Chapter 277: New Beginnings

Allison

The last week has been… a lot. That’s the most polite way I can put it. Who knew that being part hellhound, part dragon, part demon, part whatever-the-hell-else I apparently am now would stretch a heat cycle into something that felt like my body was running a marathon while on fire. Turns out, when you hold pieces of five different kinds of magic in your bones, your body takes its time recalibrating. The boys were relentless about it, in the best way. They fed me, washed me, kept me warm when I shook and cool when I overheated. They made sure I drank water even when I complained. They held me when everything felt too tight inside my own skin. They loved me, over and over, patiently and reverently and ruthlessly until the pain eased and the edge softened and my body finally remembered how to settle the hell down. By the end of it, I’m pretty sure I’ve slept more in the last seven days than I have in the previous seven years. Now, it’s over.

I wake up without heat humming under my skin for the first time in days, without my magic clawing for release, without that constant, low ache. My body feels heavy but whole, like I’ve been wrung out and put back together properly this time. Christopher is asleep beside me, one arm thrown over my waist, his breathing slow and deep. Cassian is in the chair by the window, half-dozing, because this week has clearly taken a toll on him. Kael is sprawled on the floor at the foot of the bed, one hand resting against the mattress like he fell asleep mid-guard. Evander is already awake, because Evander is always awake when something important is about to happen. Rhaziel stands by the balcony doors, watching the morning as if it owes him answers. Home. I sit up slowly, testing myself. No flare of heat. No sharp pull of magic. Just… me.

Rhaziel turns to me.

“Your heat is over,” he says quietly.

“I think so,” I reply, voice rough but steady.

Christopher stirs, blinks, then looks at me like he's worried he might need to perform another round. His hand tightens at my waist for half a second before he catches himself and relaxes.

“You okay?” he asks.

I nod. “Yeah. I’m okay.”

That causes a flurry of movement. Kael’s on his feet in a blink, Cassian is scanning me internally before I can protest, Evander is already reaching for clothes, and Rhaziel watches with something like satisfaction settling into his posture. They don’t smother me or panic (not completely). They… adjust.

Breakfast happens whether I ask for it or not. A shower follows, this time without steam fogging the mirrors or requiring extra hands. Cassian checks my throat one last time and finally nods, satisfied. Evander presses a mug into my hands and waits until I drink all of it. Kael comments about me being “criminally functional again” and dodges the pillow I throw at his head. Christopher stays close, quiet, and ever-present. Then Rhaziel hands me a folded stack of fabric.

“Approved,” he says.

I unfold it and stare. Pants. Actual freaking pants and joggers that are soft and fitted. The last piece is a Thornhill-coloured polo shirt, comfortable and straightforward.

I blink at it.

“You mean I don’t have to wear a skirt I could die in?” I ask.

Cassian’s mouth twitches. “School board agreed surprisingly fast.”

I pull the clothes on and feel like myself again. When we step into the hallway, it feels like re-entering the world after being underwater too long. The dorm smells the same. The floor under my feet is familiar. My magic stays quiet, present but contained. We make it all of ten steps before Tessa launches herself at me like a feral creature.

“Allison!”

She wraps around me, legs, arms, everything, laughing so hard she can barely breathe. I stagger and catch her automatically, laughing into her hair.

“I missed you too,” I manage.

She kisses my face. Once. Twice. Three times. Ten times. “You disappeared again. Do you know how dramatic that was for me?”

Rhaziel clears his throat.

“Down,” he rumbles.

Tessa looks up at him, still clinging to me, and laughs harder. “Oh my god, you’re even grumpier now.”

Rynor appears out of nowhere, bows deeply to Rhaziel, and says, “Apologies. She has no sense of self-preservation.” Then he peels Tessa off me and places her by his side. We move through the school together, where students now walk freely, laughing, talking, not flinching when teachers pass. The old Council banners are gone, replaced with something simpler. Unity. Factions of the World. A future that feels like it’s being built instead of enforced. I catch my reflection in a window and pause. I look… happy. Still me, just better. No more pretending I’m someone I’m not. Christopher stays close to me, his shoulder brushing mine as we walk. He doesn’t say anything, but I can feel his quiet attention on me. Rhaziel moves ahead of us, his shadows folding back in on themselves as we pass through the school’s common area. He turns to me, pauses, then steps back just enough to kiss me softly on the forehead.

“I’ll be back at dinner, hummingbird,” he says, voice low and soft just for me. “Have a good day.”

He disappears through the shadow, and I feel the subtle weight of his absence already. Kael and Evander fall into step beside us, both of them glancing at me, then each other, before leaning down to kiss me too. Evander presses a soft kiss to my cheek, and Kael places a quick but lingering one on my lips, his usual smirk in place.

“We’ll catch you after class,” Kael says. “Don’t do anything fun without us.”

Evander snorts. “You can’t tell her that. You know she’s trouble.”

They move down the hall to their respective classrooms.

Tessa links her arm with mine, grinning widely. “I’m so glad you’re back,” she says, voice full of that energy I missed so much. “Let’s make today normal. Please.”

I laugh, shaking my head. “Normal is overrated.”

We head into our classroom, and I take my seat between Tessa and Christopher. The professor walks in then. Storm's grey eyes lock onto mine with an intensity that sends a warm shiver straight down my spine. I send him a mental image to let him know that I'm thinking about what that mouth could do to me. His jaw tightens, but he doesn’t break his focus on the board. I smirk. School is going to be interesting from here on.

Author’s Note

Thank you so much for being here in this world and for trusting me as an author to take you on this journey.

If you enjoyed this book and the way I write, I have several other worlds waiting for you, including Violent Little Thing, Her Obsession, Bella and Her Beast, Goddess of the Underworld, and its sequel, Ascension of the Moon Goddess, with a brand-new story on the way titled Where the Ice Gives Way.

Until next time, Sheridan Hartin. xx