Page 25 of Demon Reform Academy, Term 3

25

PANDORA

“ T his is the prettiest necklace I’ve ever seen,” I gasped, as the silver chain caught the light with a soft shimmer. It dangled between Jenni’s hands as she held it up to show me the aquamarine stone glistening on it. The pale blue hue was stark against the warm, golden sand beneath our feet.

“Since Bram’s necklace wasn’t from Bram at all, I figured you deserved a pretty necklace.” She grinned, handing it over to me. “Death actually helped me pick it out.”

“Did he really?” I gasped.

She winced slightly. “I told him I’d tell you he did, but to be honest? He wanted to get you a gold chain instead. It was pretty, but this one was prettier. I vetoed him.”

“I love it.” Tears pricked my eyes as I took the necklace, entranced by the sparkly stone. It was cool to the touch despite the scorching desert heat, and I brushed my fingers over the smooth stone before reaching back and clasping the metal chain around my neck.

“It looks so good on you.” She wiped fake tears from her eyes and pulled me into a hug. “I’m the best step-mom ever.”

Giggles burst out of me, and I hugged her back. “You actually are .”

“It’s kind of weird, huh?” She pulled back as we made our way toward Reform Hall for Demon Capital History. “My best friend being my fated mate’s daughter.”

“No.” I shook my head, loving the feel of the enchanted cool air washing over us as we entered the building. “I don’t think it’s weird at all. You and Dad are literally made for each other. That was obvious just by listening to you talk about him. Then, he became obsessed with passion fruit lemonade after you left yours last term. It just makes sense.”

She sighed lovingly, her blue-green eyes twinkling. “Yeah, true. How’re you doing with your mates?”

I blushed thinking of how Hunter had me spread out on his desk with his head between my legs. “Good with Hunter and Reed. Skel and Dex are good, too, but I’m not sure I’m ready to take the step to seal the bond yet. Maybe with Skel. Soon. But the thought of wielding shadow magic?” A chill shook me to my core. “Then, there’s Bram. I’m ready to forgive him, but I’m not ready to bond with him yet.”

“Progress.” She cackled, sweeping her hair behind her ear as we walked. “Death was pretty much ready to consume Bram’s soul, so he’ll be disappointed about you forgiving him.”

I let out a strangled protest. “What?”

“What?” She frowned. “He heard Bram insult you first term, remember? It’s only natural for him to hate him.”

I vaguely remembered my dad yanking Bram’s septum piercing out once, but honestly, I understood why he did it. Especially after I remembered going to apologize to Bram for Dad doing that. I was met with nothing but anger and accusations.

But Bram was drunk constantly then. He’d grown so much since, and he took accountability for his actions and his words.

I nodded as we reached the classroom and walked inside.

Reed was already sitting in his seat, and his face lit up as he saw me. His smile made my heart throb with a loving twinge.

We were the last to arrive, and Respa was already standing in front of the room with her arms crossed.

“Thank you for joining us, ladies” she said, her tone a slight warning.

“Sorry,” we replied.

I gave Reed a smile as we made our way to our seats next to him.

“That necklace is pretty on you,” he murmured, reaching up to touch it as I lowered myself into the chair next to his.

As I settled into the seat, a faint creak groaned beneath me before it was swallowed by a spine-chilling crackle I’d never heard before.

Respa’s eyes snapped wide as she noticed it, and panic enveloped her face. “Everyone get out!”

Before her words fully registered, the classroom erupted in a catastrophic flash of orange and red. The searing brightness obliterated everything in my vision.

Heat blasted through the air, and sheer force hurled me backward.

Flames surged, clawing at the walls and ceiling, roaring as they consumed everything in their path. Everything was a fiery, chaotic blur as a deafening roar filled my ears. The sound of the explosion mingled with the groan of collapsing desks and glass shattering around us. The crackle of fire eating through the desks and shelves was constant, while the distant screams of my classmates faded into the violent hum.

Ash began to coat my tongue and throat, gritty and bitter, making every swallow a raw, agonizing effort—more so than usual. My lungs screamed with every inhale of smoke-laden air. It was like razor blades were scraping my throat. The sensation reminded me of when she had cut my vocal cords.

The heat was like a constant physical blow, scorching my skin. My exposed arms and face felt as though they were being melted off layer by layer. It was a relentless, biting agony that consumed every nerve ending. The acrid stench of charred wood, melting plastic, and burning flesh choked me.

“What…” I rasped. My voice was weak, barely even audible as smoke thickened around me.

My vision blurred and the edges darkened, but I caught sight of Reed’s silhouette. He threw himself over me as his urgency to protect me shot through our bond. The sweet smell of his cotton candy scent momentarily pierced through the acrid air.

“I’ve got you!” Reed shouted, but his voice was hoarse and starting to fray. His body shielded mine, pressing me to the ground alongside Jenni.

Beneath the deafening roar of the fire were explosions of small, sharp bursts that rang out.

“Fuck. Pandora! Reed!” Dex’s voice hit my ears as unrelenting searing pain pulsed through every nerve in my body.

This was a different pain than when I ate dark magic, and it was different than Mother’s shadows—this was somehow so much worse .

Along with my own pain, I felt Reed’s.

The classroom was a literal inferno. Flames danced across the few standing desks, devouring them in a relentless feast. Sparks flickered madly on the stone walls.

I could still faintly hear the screams of my classmates, but they were distant, fragmented cries that seemed worlds away.

Coppery blood, mixed in my mouth with the vile, gritty texture of soot. It seemed to cake my lips and coated my teeth. I struggled to swallow but could barely pull in enough air. My nerves screamed as fire licked at my legs. My flesh had started to bubble.

I was burning alive.

“There you are!” Dex’s shadows surged around us. They were as hot as they usually were, but compared to the fire, they felt cool.

Within seconds, Reed, Jenni, and I were yanked out of the room in a gut-churning rush of shadows.

The moment my body hit the stone floor outside the classroom, a soothing warmth of healing crept through me, mending the burns all over my body. My skin knit itself back together, but the pain lingered in my throat. My head pounded like it might split open, but it didn’t stop my thoughts from reeling.

What the Fates just happened?

Reed’s scream pierced the air. It was a sound of such raw, agonized pain that it froze me in place. He rolled off me onto the ground beside me. His flesh was melting on one side of his face. It slid from his cheekbone before my eyes.

“No—no, no, no!” My voice cracked as I pushed up and crawled toward him.

He groaned, his violet eyes squeezing shut as his hands clawed at the ground. Sweat poured from his body, mingling with blood and soot, but the damage was slowly reversing. His demonic healing slowly kicked in, and it had a slingshot effect as it brought the skin and muscle back into place to cover his bone. The rest of his skin regrew in agonizing, painstakingly long increments, and his expression was a mask of unbearable pain.

I pressed my hand against his stomach, forcing some of my magical essence into him with every ounce of strength I had left. “Help me,” I cried. “ Please , heal Reed.”

Dex crouched down beside me and slowly reached a hand out to rest on Reed’s shoulder doing the same.

Slowly, Reed’s screams softened to quiet whimpers, then his whimpers turned to soft breaths. Agony lingered in his eyes, though, and I felt lances of the pain through the bond. He’d taken most of the explosion by covering me when it happened.

“Are you okay?” His voice was rasping, choked with smoke, but his gaze darted desperately to mine. His eyes widened in shock. “Oh, Fates…”

“What do you mean? Am I okay?” My voice cracked as I shook my head. “Are you ?”

“Pandora, uh, dream girl, your?—”

“Thank you,” Jenni sobbed, carefully getting up onto her knees. “You shielded Pandora and me when you didn’t have to.”

“You’re my mate’s best friend, and I actually consider us friends, too.” Reed blushed.

“Pandora!” Hunter’s voice pierced the air as he ran down the hallway.

“Pandora! Jenni!” Dad shouted, stepping out of the shadows with Bane, whose gaze widened slightly before she stepped back into the darkness and left.

I yelped as I went to sit back onto my ass and realized my backside had taken the biggest impact. It was burnt— badly .

My healing was slowly spreading through it, but it was raw.

“Fates, Pandora, your hair…” Hunter dropped to his knees in front of me and cupped my face, checking me over.

“What’s wrong with it?” I reached up and my fingers splayed over dry straw-like hair that had been burnt all the way up to my ears. “Oh no!”

Jenni’s eyes widened in horror. “Fates! It’s…it’s really not that bad. You can totally rock it,” she lied.

My mouth fell open, and my hands frantically patted my head. The fire had burnt almost all of it off. Only patches of slightly longer strands reached my ears. The rest was gone.

“It’ll be fine,” Dad promised, his expression being the only one not horrified.

Hunter and Reed looked like they were in shock, and they were unable to give me any input.

“Oh, yeah. Totally , trouble. It’ll…it’ll grow back.” Dex offered weakly, but Jenni’s reaction was most telling.

She looked at me like I was hideous. “Totally,” she repeated.

My ass didn’t even hurt as much anymore—not when my scalp was exposed in several places and it must’ve looked like a madman took a hatchet to my hair!

“It’s that bad?” Tears filled my eyes, not from pain, and maybe it was vain, but my hair!

“No,” everyone answered quickly before shock took over their expressions once again.

Tingling spread away from my ass as it healed and traveled up my spine to my scalp. Slowly, my hair slipped down my shoulders again, growing back until it was the same length it had always been.

“Oh, thank Fates,” Jenni murmured, relief sweeping over her as her shoulders slumped forward.

“How?” Reed choked out.

“My hair does it too. That’s why I always wear it long. All soul eaters have long black hair.” Dad shrugged. “We can’t color it or cut it. It’s just how it is.”

Thank Fates.

“Oh, fuck,” Dex breathed.

“Huh. I just thought it was a sexy fashion statement,” Jenni muttered, running a hand through his hair.

Scarlet danced across his cheeks.

“Now that that’s settled, can someone explain to me what happened?” Dad glanced over toward the burning room.

“It was an elemental fire fae trap that was rigged under your daughter’s seat, Death.” Respa stepped into view as she rounded a corner with Headmistress Clearwater—Verity, as she liked to be called.

“Not to worry. I can handle the fire.” Verity held a magical artifact in the form of a pen that was covered in ice and winked at us before activating it by clicking the end.

A blast of ice magic came out of it, freezing the room and stopping the flames in an instant.

“Woah,” Jenni mumbled.

“A gift from one of my dads.” She grinned at us with a small shoulder shrug. It was obvious she loved all of her parents. “He’s actually a prince of the Ice Kingdom, so I’ll have him look into this.”

“No need,” Death bit out. “The only demon I know with connections to the fire fae is Blackthistle.”

Hunter, Reed, and Dex let out growls in sync as my heart dropped.

I already knew once Dark Veil figured out the truth of my powers that they’d want me out of the picture, but this was fast.