Page 65 of House Ignis

"Of course not," I snapped, the denial coming far too fast.

"Don't worry, Princess." I felt him lean just a fraction closer. "My eyes are only on you."

My pulse stumbled, and heat climbed rapidly up my neck. I refused to turn around and give him the satisfaction. "Focus on the match," I managed to mutter.

"I am."

I felt his fingers find the end of one of my ponytails.

He twined the strand lazily around his knuckles, playing with the hair as he leaned back. I swatted his hand away, but when I turned to glare at him, I realized it was a terrible mistake.

He was reclined against the bench, elbows hooked casually along the backrest.

The training shorts stretched over thighs carved from years of combat, and sunlight skimmed over the sharp planes of his abdomen. His hair was a mess—dark curls falling into his face, the kind that made you want to reach out and fist your hand into them.

His silver eyes tracked mine, slow and deliberate. "Problem?" he asked quietly.

Gods help me.

I snapped my gaze back to the arena. "No."

In the ring, Zaria's sea serpent coiled higher, its shadow falling over Ezra.

"Fuck," Ezra breathed, his usual smirk faltering for just a second as she joined him in the center.

Professor Aldara's grin widened. "Meet Zaria and Nerida, her sea serpent boundling. And Ezra with Ruin and Havoc. Three… two… one—go!"

Zaria swept her arm outward, and the battle began.

A whip of water laced with ice-shards cracked toward Ezra.

He rolled clear as Ruin and Havoc lunged in sync, but Nerida intercepted them with a blast of freezing mist that frosted the hellhound's flanks.

Ezra retaliated, launching jagged shadow-spears from his palms.

Zaria deflected most, but as a few struck home, the sea serpent shrieked, her massive body thrashing against the stone. In response, Zaria hoisted her hands, suspending dozens of glacial spears above Ezra like a silent execution.

As they rained down, Ezra vanished into a shadow-step, reappearing behind her just as Ruin and Havoc struck.

One hound-head snapped for Zaria's shoulder, the other for her throat. Nerida surged forward, a tidal slam of scales meeting muscle. Jaws clamped onto her neck while her coils constricted the hound.

Ezra launched more shadows at the serpent's underbelly, but Zaria slammed her palms to the floor, detonating the fountain.

A tidal wave swallowed the ring, stabilizing Nerida and grounding the hellhound. As the current destabilized Ezra's footing, Zaria raised her arms and froze the flood instantly.

Ice locked Ezra's boots and anchored the hellhound in place. Nerida reared behind him, towering, as Zaria stepped forward with a razor-sharp blade of compressed water held to his throat.

Silence fell. Ezra stared at her, then grinned and raised his hands.

"Enough," Professor Aldara's voice rang out. "Winner—Zaria Waters."

The crowd exploded as the ice thawed and the flood receded. Ezra took Zaria's hand without hesitation. "Well done, Waters."

She offered a faint, amused dip of her chin. "You weren't terrible yourself."

"She's incredible," I whispered, the arena still buzzing with the electric energy of the fight.

Professor Aldara didn't let the moment settle. "Next up," he called, his voice slicing through the noise, "Asher Maddox and Maddison Gale."