Page 6 of House of Ydril

My eyes sweep over the walls around me. I see the other crests, too. The crests of the three royal bloodlines. There’s the House of Lycan, the full moon with its two halves, one light and one dark. Then the House of Lilith, the black cross fitted inside a simple circle, the circle of life.

But when my eye finally lands on the crest of the House of Ydril, something stirs deep inside me. Of course, I’ve seen it a gazillion times before, the wide open eye shaped like a triangle. But the corners of the flag on which it’s depicted are adorned with birds. Tiny black ones. And it’s those birds that make me feel… something.

I squint, trying to bring back a memory I didn’t even know I had.

I only snap out of it when I hear a murmur rise from all around me. I crane my neck in the direction of the archway, where I see the prince himself glide into the hall. Except now, he’s not alone. He’s surrounded by girls and guys dressed in the latest fashion, looking around as if they own the place.

What catches my eye as they walk is that they’re all trying to gethisattention, especially the women.

Can’t really blame them. I used to spend hours staring at his photos and repeating his name to myself. Andreas Faust. Andreas. Faust. Until I could no longer tell the difference between real life and fantasy. And he’s even more eerily handsome in real life. My eyes are struggling to take it all in. The chiseled jawline, the porcelain skin, the thick black hair. Even the long, elegant muscles straining his sharp suit. But it’s his eyes and the way he carries himself that I think keeps his cohort and everyone around him under his spell. There’s an air of bored privilege about him, that’s for sure. But then there’s also something else, something I can’t put my finger on…

I’m so absorbed in watching him that I almost miss the whole thing. When the prince and his company reach the only empty front seats, I see a posh vampire dude with long sideburns come out of nowhere, placing his hand on the chair that the prince was just about to claim.

There’s a stir in the crowd and I see one of the girls walking with the prince take a step forward, warning, “Don’t do it, Leo.”

But Leo doesn’t even acknowledge her. His lips curling into a smile, he addresses the prince directly, “I think you’ll find more empty seats to the back.”

I hear so many breaths being drawn in, the sound echoes. Shit. This might get ugly, I think as I grab onto the edge of the table.

For a second, the prince just stands there and stares at the guy as the entire room waits for his reaction with bated breath.

Without taking his eyes off him, he takes one deliberate step back and I breathe a sigh of relief.

The very next second, he disappears.

Confused, I get up and look around, along with everyone else. And only once I see him crouching over the guy, who’s now lying on the ground, do I realize that that’s not what happened. He didn’t disappear. He’s just abnormally fast, so fast my mind couldn’t even register his movements.

What snaps me out of it is the low groaning that comes out of Leo’s mouth. I lean forward, my heart starting to pound when I see that the prince is keeping his arm twisted in a fucked-up position. He bends closer to him and whispers something into his ear.

“Fuck you,” I hear Leo snap back at him.

With the corner of my eye, I see people glancing at each other as an actual scream comes out of the poor dude’s mouth.

It’s then that my instinct overtakes me. Before I even realize what I’m doing, I’m getting out of my chair and charging straight at them.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing,” I snarl as I stop right before him, my hands balled into fists.

He slowly gets up and throws me an unreadable look, letting a few of the others grab Leo and lead him away. He’s so tall, I have to look up to meet his eye.

“I could ask you the same question,” he says flatly. “Addressing a prince without being formally introduced.”

I have to fight the shivers that his voice sends down my skin. It’s smooth and thorny at the same time.

“I don’t see a prince, I only see an asshole,” I snap at him, though my own voice is barely above a whisper.

For a second, there’s a flash of surprise in his eyes. He doesn’t move, except for the tiniest flick of his hand as he motions for one of his minions to come close. The guy rushes to him and whispers something in his ear. I think I hear the word ‘human’ being spoken.

His eyes still locked on mine, the prince frowns, stays still for a second and then lets out a scoff. His lips curl into a smile as he says, “I guess being raised by humans makes one stupid.”

“What did you just say to me?” I hear myself raising my voice, but at the same time, there are so many gasps coming out of the mouths of the people around me.

He pays them no mind. “Here, let me make sure you hear me this time.” He leans in so his lips are almost touching my ear. I shudder. “You’re not among the Scions anymore. You better learn how things work here.” He drops his voice to a whisper. “And you better make it quick.”

The look on his face when he pulls away from me is, once again, unreadable.

It pisses me off so much, that he’s nothing like the man my high-school self dreamed him to be. I open my mouth to tell him off, but then his eyes dart over my shoulder and to the front of the hall. Noticing students rushing to their seats, I crane my neck and I see the Pied Piper staring the two of us down.

The woman who kidnapped and brought me here. The vampire who’s apparently the Academy’s current Pied Piper.

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