Page 161 of House of Lilith

I nod.

“Would you mind submitting my paper for me? I’ll send it to you to print out.”

For a second, I hesitate. Then I bite my tongue and I nod. “Sure.” And I move to get up. “I’ll see you two later then.”

It’s Hilde’s hand on my forearm that stops me. “You’re not going to the cafeteria with us?”

I slink away from her touch, grabbing my bag off the floor and slinging it over my shoulder. “We have the finals just around the corner,” I say, simply.

“Bloody hell, sis,” Nikolay says with a rough little laugh. “Where wouldIbe if I studied as hard as you?”

I don’t say anything. I just throw them both a half-smile and I walk away.

But she doesn’t let me get far. It’s just as I reach the staircase that I hear her call out, “Nyx.”

I stop midstep, I take a deep breath and I turn to face her just as she comes to a stop in front of me.

Then she just stands there, looking at me like I’m some circus freak. “Yes, Hilde?” I ask, fighting not to grit my teeth.

“You’ve barely talked to us for the past, like, two f-ing weeks,” she finally says. “Are you mad at me? Or Nikolay? Or both of us?”

I press my lips tight before I choose to say, “No. I’m just ready for the summer break to start.”

To my surprise, that makes a spark appear in her eyes. “Tell me about it,” she says with a breathy laugh. “We’ve only got two weeks left and Professor Byrne’s drowning us in homework as if we had months. But Iamlooking forward to the last game, I have to say. I mean, only six players left and a lot of people betting onyou… You must be thrilled as well.”

For a second, I just look at her in silence, watching the frown reappear on her face. Then I just say, “Yeah.” And I turn on my heel and I start rushing down the stairs.

And I’m not going to the Library to prepare for the finals, as I implied. Sure, I had a hard time my first year here, having just been shaken out of years of depression. But ever since, this school’s been a fucking joke.

So today, I think as I barge out of Lilith Tower and onto the hot summer day outside, I’ll first be blowing off some steam at the training ground and then going to Vasilisa, to keep preparing for the only thing in my life right now that’snota complete fucking joke.

The fast approaching Fifth Game and the potential fucking chaos it might wreak.

*

By the time I get to Vasilisa’s room, I’m in a different mood. I still have sweat clinging to my skin from all the training I did, of which I’ve been doing a lot more than usual, but there’s this lightness in my muscles and clearness in my head that almost make me believe that one day, I’ll stop feeling the way I’m feeling right now.

Still, I choose to take a minute after I close the door and before I call for her. I sit on the floor, my spine perfectly straight and my eyes fixed ahead, and I try to just be for a minute.

Right now, Vasilisa’s room is the only one I can feel really comfortable in. Where I’m not constantly watched or asked stupid questions or reminded of thingsI just want toforget. And that’s exactly why I have my lunch here with me, waiting for me in my bag, and why I’ve set up an extra altar for myself under her portrait, and why I’ve been coming here, every day, for the past two weeks.

And it’s starting to have that effect on me right now, easing the tension, deepening my breathing, clearing my thoughts.

So, right now, this is the situation, I start, my eyebrows pulling down in focus.

The Archon has been in custody ever since it happened.

No one knows exactly where and no one knows in what conditions.

But the real head-scratcher is that no one knows why exactly. Sure, she used her connection to the Box to stop the Game and then try to do something with it. But, I mean…

What was the plan?

There was nothing about the way she did it that indicated any kind of strategy.

To top it all off, while they’re still keeping the previous Archon imprisoned, the Academy is appointing the mediocre Professor Byrne as the new one and making it seem that the Fifth Game, the very last one, will still be held on June 21st, as planned.

I let out a scoff, my eyes darting to the portrait. And she, I think as I fix them on Vasilisa, the goddamn great-great-grandmother who’s supposed to serve as some kind of mentor here, what doesshehave to say about it?

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