Page 156 of Bone Year

Two rows in front of him, on the opposite side, Jace is sitting with Killian, his new best friend apparently. Flick is on his shoulder, and I swear that tiny bat keeps giving me dirty looks.

“Mae,” Lux says, and I turn. She raises a single eyebrow.

“You are doing the staring thing.”

I shake my head and reach down to pet Primm, who has settled between us, her white head resting on the desk.

“I’m not doing a thing.”

“You are doing two things, in fact. You’re alternating. Primm has noticed too.”

I look down at the wolf. “You’re a little traitor too.” I laugh through my nose, and Lux giggles beside me.

“Let’s talk about the ball again. Do you think Ellavee will finally introduce us to the guy she’s been sneaking off with?”

Lux beams, relieved at the change of subject.

“Please, she has more than one.”

We both laugh, because Ellavee has game, and Lux and I are both alone. Or Lux is alone in theory. She has been flirting with a demon named Lyrian for three weeks and thinks I haven’t noticed. I’m just waiting for her to bring him up first.

The doors at the back of the lab swing open. “Apologies for the delay. I was speaking with the headmaster.”

Professor Nestor sweeps in with a stack of books under one arm and his coat buttons misaligned. He dumps the stack down on his desk, and the conversation in the room dies before he turns around.

“Bone years, today you are in for a treat. I have set up the room next door for testing.”

A low murmur ripples across the rows.

“Don’t panic. It’s not being graded. Today’s exercise is not for the faint of heart though.”

The room goes quiet.

“You are familiar with the lower bonds with your eidolon. Sensory. Directional. Some early attempts at perceptive.” He proceeds around to the front of his desk. “Today, I am asking you to attempt something the textbooks call a sensory overlay. Eidolons specialize. They don’t generalize.”

We’ve been working with our eidolons in lab once a week now for some time, but I have no idea what sensory overlay means.

“Today, we will test your connection to your eidolon and their specialty.”

A small ping of anxiety blooms in my belly.

“This is blood year Elizabeth. She has agreed to assist me today. She will bring you over one at a time and get you set up. While you are waiting, you may use the time to do this week’s reading assignment.”

Elizabeth pushes off the wall and crosses to the front of the room as Nestor turns and disappears through the door at the side of the lab. She perches on the edge of his desk, crosses one ankle over the other, and tosses her long black hair over her shoulder.

Her eyes find mine across the lecture hall.

She smiles.

I haven’t seen Elizabeth much since the Mirror Ceremony despite her insisting she was going to check in on me more, but I’m glad to see she’s almost made it through her blood year.

She writes something down and then finds my eyes again. “Miss Rose,” she calls, “looks like you’re first.”

“Of course I’m first,” I mutter, pushing my chair in.

“Go terrify him, Poppy,” Lux whispers as Poppy peeks out from under the desk and falls into step at my heel.

“Be good, little boners. I’ll be right back.”