Page 43 of A Sun Scorched Bloom

"Again," he said. On the second try, the flame still engulfed most of the twig, and yet it had stayed away from Erik‘s fingers. "Good," Erik praised. "Now, make the fire even smaller, just the very top."

Lea exhaled slowly, diminishing the fire, her forehead creased in concentration. The flame grew smaller and smaller before her shoulders dropped and the fire winked out completely.

"Dammit," Lea hissed before meeting Erik’s stare.

He picked up a new stick, one even smaller, and Janelle chuckled. "Quiet," Erik told her firmly, but not unkindly. "She can do it."

Gray watched silently, growing less worried as they continued to practice on smaller targets. They were far less likely to attract attention with such an insignificant flame. He sent a reassuring wave of confidence through their bond as she attempted to follow Erik’s instructions again.

This time, only the top centimeter of the stick caught on fire. Lea stayed focused, but the tips of her mouth perked up with a proud smile.

"See," Erik said, swinging his head dramatically to look at Gray. "Now, make it burn hotter, Sunshine."

Lea shifted forward, her posture more confident, her movements less tentative. The fire changed from a red and orange color to blue around the edges, and yet she maintained control. As the small branch continued burning, Erik held up a much larger stick in his other hand, roughly the size of his forearm.

"Now," he slammed the stick into the ground so that it stuck straight up into the air, "light this on fire. Top to bottom. But don’t let the small one burn out." Lea scrunched her nose, her eyes wary. She shook out her shoulders and arms before raising a hand slightly and focusing on the larger stick. It exploded into flames, and along with it, so did the smaller stick.

"Control it," Erik said through gritted teeth, still holding onto the flaming piece of wood.

"I can’t, Erik! Just drop it! Your fingers!" Lea’s eyes were wide and brimming with panic.

Indeed, Erik’s skin was blistering, the burns spreading from the tips of his fingers to his knuckles.

"No," he ground out. "Control it."

Lea rose to her feet with determined movements and focused on the smaller stick. It only took a second before the flame shrunk, even further this time. Only a few milliliters of flame remained.

"I’m so sorry, Erik—" Lea started, but Erik just held up a hand.

"I’m fine. You did it. Even when you were afraid. Even under pressure."

Lea’s shoulders sagged in relief as Erik healed his fingers, his blistered, red skin turning back to a nice, healthy pink.

Gray’s stomach churned at the guilt he could feel radiating from Azalea. He walked to her, unable to stop himself from tucking her firmly against his side. Knowing she felt anything but happiness had his fingers itching to rip Erik to shreds. But despite his palpable need to stab his friend for making his mate upset again, Gray knew deep down that this training was necessary. She had to learn to protect herself. Especially if, as he feared, he might not live through this war to be there to protect her.

"Now," Erik said, "I want you to build a fire for us. No wood or sticks or kindling, just a flame that sits upon the ground."

Lea wiped her eyes with the heel of her hand, avoiding everyone’s gaze. Her nose was red, and her breathing shallow.

"Hey, you did great." Gray leaned down and spoke into her hair. "You don’t have to continue. Only if you want to."

"I just don’t want to hurt anyone else," Lea sniffled.

"I think that bastard deserved a little punishment for putting so much pressure on you," Gray teased, forcing a smile. Lea didn’t deserve the guilt. Erik had made a choice, knowing Lea would find the strength to control her flames if she feared he’d be hurt.

Lea hiccupped a laugh.

"Actually, Lea," Janelle called out, "if you could make a fire for us, that would be great. I’m freezing my tits off over here."

"You see, it’s an emergency, Sunshine. We can’t allow our girl here to lose such beautiful breasts, now can we?"

Chapter 25

Lea

Janelleblushed,mumblingsomethingunder her breath Lea couldn’t distinguish.

"Okay," Lea breathed, reaching for her magic again. She stared at the ground, imagining her fire igniting from thin air, but the few tiny sparks that appeared fizzled out. There was nothing for her flames to latch on to, to tether themselves to and hold them in place.

---