Page 93 of The Bond That Burns

Nyxaris flew on steadily, but his wings no longer cut through the air with an angry force.

The Tribunal evaluation approaches,he remarked finally.

I grimaced.Don’t remind me.

You’ll need to show them strength,he continued.Mastery over me. Enough to satisfy their bloodlust.

Guess I’m going to fail then, I joked.At least you won’t have to put up with me anymore.

Nyxaris snorted and a plume of steam rose overhead into the cold night.You may count on my help.

I blinked.What? Really?

We have not been practicing. But I believe I recall enough to satisfy them. I will make them believe you control me.

A lump rose in my throat.Thank you, I said softly.

You’ve made a promise, little rider. The least I can do is ensure you survive to see it through.

His wings shifted slightly, carrying us higher into the star-filled sky.

CHAPTER 23 - MEDRA

The Drakharrow Tower common room was quieter than usual after supper, though several students lingered, chatting or working on homework. Most were blightborn. To my surprise, no highbloods were around feeding from thralls. Maybe that explained the more relaxed atmosphere.

As for me, I’d decided I wouldn’t hide in my room anymore. If I was stuck in House Drakharrow for now, I’d make use of the common room and refuse to let highbloods—or their feeding habits—intimidate me.

I’d taken over a large wooden table on the far side of the room away from the hearth where it was quieter. My books and notes were spread out in front of me in a chaotic mess as I worked on my essay for The Alchemist’s Garden. It was due the next day. I knew Florence had finished hers a week ago. She’d even gone over the word count in her enthusiasm and now was worried Professor Allenvale might not accept the extra pages. She’d asked me if I needed help with my own essay but I’d breezily put her off, assuring her I was fine.

Now I sat there wondering whether my thesis statement was strong enough: “The dual properties of mirthleaf as an energy restorative and poison antidote highlight its importance in alchemical practices and its potential as a tool for survival.”

I wrinkled my nose. It still didn’t sound right. What was the difference between a regular statement and a thesis statement? I was in my second year. Surely I should have figured this out by now. I knew Florence would be more than happy to explain, but I didn’t want to bother her when she seemed to finally havecaught up with all of her own homework and extra reading and had a night off.

The soft scrape of a chair being pulled out beside me broke my concentration. I glanced up to see Blake sinking into the seat, a cocky grin on his handsome face.

“Why so glum, Pendragon?”

“What do you want?” I snapped, not bothering to hide my annoyance at being interrupted.

Blake leaned back in his chair, stretching his long legs out in front of him. “Maybe I just want to spend some time with my favorite consort.”

I glared at him, my face heating at his reminder of our so-called bond. “It’s not feeding time yet, Blake.”

I highly doubted he actually wanted to spend time with me for any reason besides taunting me, drinking me, or... Well, I wasn’t even going to think about that. Not while he was sitting there looking so self-assured and gorgeous.

To my surprise, his grin faded slightly and his expression turned thoughtful. He didn’t snap back with a mean retort. Instead he shifted forward and rested his forearms on the table.

“That’s not why I’m here,” he said quietly. He glanced down at my paper. “Although if you need a tutor...”

I blinked, caught off guard a little. “I don’t. What do you want?”

“I wanted to talk to you about the Tribunal evaluation.”

I tensed up. I had one more week. But there wasn’t much I could do to prepare. Nyxaris hadn’t been interested in practicing. Even for a dragon, he was a huge know-it-all. “What about it?”

Blake glanced around. “Do you, you know, feel like you have a handle on what you’ll need to do for the evaluation? How are things going with Nyxaris?”

I stared at him. “Spying on me? Really, Blake?”

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