Page 11

As much as Zaryen was tempted to stay longer in the safety of their rooms, with no one but Meveris by his side, he hadn”t come to the Academy for that alone.

Well, that was the big draw once he”d learned it was possible, but he”d felt drawn to the Academy for other reasons as well—the idea of it, the structure, the challenge it represented, especially to a noble human who had been pampered most of his life. And the community of it, too, because said noble human might have felt kind of lonely despite all the luxuries he was now aware that he”d had.

And said community—along with the challenge—was outside the door to their bedroom.

”We don”t have to start with the dining hall,” Meveris said when they were getting dressed. ”If you prefer to go somewhere else first, we can do that.”

”No, I think dinner is the best option. That”s the perfect opportunity for me to meet your twin brother. And if any of your friends are here, I”d like to meet them, too.”

”I know some people, but no one I”d consider a particularly close friend. How about you? Do you know anyone here?”

Zaryen hesitated. ”Aside from a few passing acquaintances from before, there”s this guy who helped me when I first came here. It”s too early to call him a friend, but he showed me around and went out of his way to support me, since he knew…” He paused. Wind”s curse. Feraan knew some things but he only thought he knew others, because Zaryen hadn”t offered him the whole truth. ”I”m not sure if we”d become friends, but I”d like that.”

”Then I”d like to meet him.” Meveris walked up to him and brushed his hand along Zaryen”s neck, fixing the collar of his shirt. ”You dress up nicely.”

”It”s dinner.” Zaryen lifted his eyebrows. ”Don”t people dress up for dinner around here?”

”Most people don”t. It”s pretty casual overall, but there”s a range, too, and some people like to dress up. Outside of the ceremonies or traveling out of the Academy, when we need to be in our robes, we can dress however we want.”

”Well, I don”t have anything other than the robes, the clothing for practice, and this kind of clothes.”

Zaryen glanced between them, noting Meveris had a loose shirt on, with no buttons and an open collar, along with a pair of pants that were more of a lounge wear in Zaryen”s book than something one would choose to wear for a meal with other people.

”And you look dashing in them.” Meveris offered him a once-over that stirred heat in Zaryen”s stomach they had no time for, now. ”Almost as beautiful as you look without it, even.”

Zaryen”s face heated, so he took a step back and turned, trying to hide the blush. He enjoyed compliments as much as anybody, but for some reason the earnest way Meveris praised him made him warm and squirmy at the same time.

He liked the prospect of getting used to that, though.

”If you keep talking and watching me like that, we”ll never leave this room.” Zaryen headed to the bathroom to see himself in the mirror for a final check. ”And as tempting as that is,” he added when he caught the reflection of Meveris leaning against the bathroom door and watching him, ”we need to get out at least once today.”

Their uninterrupted time after the searching ceremony was over, and while they didn”t have any classes or other scheduled obligations either today or tomorrow, every pair was expected to make some kind of appearance outside of their rooms at this point.

Caleen had warned him that because of that initial pull towards his companion, it would be way too easy to stay in until someone came searching for them, but that they needed to start venturing outside before the classes began.

”You both have to get used to sharing space with each other but also with other people. It”s uncomfortable at first, and you may feel… territorial over your companion, but once you do this a few times, it does become easier. Expect some ups and downs for the first month, right until the bonding ceremony, and then it should even out. You”ll still prefer him above all others, of course,” Caleen had added with a soft smile, ”but it will become easier to spend time with other people, too.”

Now, when Zaryen turned to Meveris and his companion offered him a hand, Zaryen readily took it, startling at the way his shoulders relaxed right away. He hadn”t even noticed they were tense.

Meveris gently tugged him towards the door. ”Let”s go find ourselves some dinner, then.”

Despite Zaryen”s nerves, leaving the room ended up being anticlimactic, since there was no one there in the corridor. Only once they walked towards the stairs and then down to the dining hall could he hear more and more noise—echoing thuds of someone”s steps, the door closing, the growing hum of voices.

He forgot he was holding Meveris”s hand, but when he spotted someone—a guy rushing in the direction of the dining hall ahead of them, with another one close behind—he tightened his grip on impulse, stopping where he stood, right there on the bottom of the stairs.

Meveris nudged his shoulder. ”What is it?”

Zaryen knew it was silly to be afraid. He knew that. After all, he”d done the scariest thing ever barely a few days ago, so this, right here, was nothing in comparison.

And yet.

”We can still go somewhere else and grab something to eat later on,” Meveris offered quietly, but Zaryen shook his head.

”No, I”m actually hungry and I heard the food here is pretty good. Besides, I”m as ready as I”m ever going to be.”

One step forward, then another, and then they passed the familiar door to the main corridor, where Zaryen could see more people, all heading in the same direction.

He caught a few looks towards him and Meveris but couldn”t tell if they meant anything other than a passing glance, the same thing he did as he noted all the new faces. He couldn”t see anyone even remotely familiar.

As they entered the dining hall, for a moment he was overwhelmed by the crowd, the noise, and even the smell of something delicious that made his stomach growl. But then he blinked and everything settled down at a manageable level, right before Meveris tugged him left, towards a big table with several people, including a guy who was getting onto his feet with a grin so similar to Meveris”s that there was no doubt in Zaryen”s mind that this was his companion”s twin.

”Lan.” Meveris let go of him to pull his brother into a hug, and Zaryen curled his fingers into his palm, missing the contact already. ”Look at you, I see you”re settling in alright.”

Zaryen didn”t know what that meant for a moment, but as he glanced around the table, he recognized the younger prince, Naveen, and his companion, as well as Valyn, the man who spoke up publicly about being own-preferring last year. He”d been the first one among the nobles to throw his support behind Caleen”s idea so openly.

And Feraan was at the table, too, but he was facing away, so he either hadn”t seen Zaryen, or—

”—meet my companion,” Meveris said, tangling their fingers together again, and Zaryen turned his head quickly towards him, only to see him grinning widely, almost bouncing on his feet.

It was really cute, even if Zaryen was too nervous to appreciate it properly.

”Zaryen, this is my twin brother, Lanveris. Lan, this is my companion, Zaryen.”

”Nice to meet you.” Lanveris offered him a small wave and the same exact grin Meveris was still sporting. ”I was told hugging is not a good idea at this stage, so I guess a wave would have to suffice for now.”

Chuckling despite his nerves, Zaryen waved back. ”Hi. Nice to meet you, too.”

Even aside from their smiles, the brothers looked a lot alike, but they weren”t identical. Lanveris was a touch taller, his hair was longer, and his eyes seemed darker than Meveris”s, although it was hard to say for sure in this light.

”Come on, sit down before someone else snatches the seats we”ve been keeping for you.” Lanveris pointed them towards the bench opposite him and another dragon Zaryen didn”t recognize. ”Everyone, this is my brother, Meveris, and his companion, Zaryen.”

Once they sat down—with Zaryen between Meveris and Valyn—Lanveris also handled the quick introductions of people at the table. Aside from the younger prince and his companion, Soryan, there were two other bonded couples, Valyn and Daryan, who both greeted him with nods and smiles, and Feraan and Aderys, who… did not.

Or rather, Aderys did offer him a nod, but his smile was tense as he glanced at his companion, who stared at the plate in front of him and didn”t acknowledge Zaryen at all.

Zaryen”s stomach clenched and his polite smile almost slipped, but he tried his best to keep it together, turning back to Lanveris and trying to focus on what he was saying, which was apparently some brotherly teasing.

The conversation at the table picked up quickly after that, and if anyone other than Aderys noticed the way Feraan dismissed him, they didn”t show it. Lanveris offered to get Meveris and Zaryen their plates, and when he disappeared into the crowd, Valyn asked them about their first impressions and whether or not they”d explored the Academy already.

Zaryen”s voice seemed stuck in his throat, but thankfully, Meveris came to the rescue.

”We haven”t done that together yet, but I”ve seen the stables and I”m itching to go back there.”

That caught Zaryen”s attention. ”Are you?”

”Yeah, the horses there are gorgeous. I”ve never been on one, so I”m not sure about that part, but with the upcoming riding classes, I”ll have to get over that.”

”I can show you.” Zaryen straightened in his seat as the rush of excitement shot through him. ”I”ve been riding since I was a kid and I love it.”

Meveris grinned and bumped their shoulders together. ”Great. Then I guess we know what”s first on our agenda for tomorrow.”

Before Zaryen could answer, Lanveris came back with two steaming bowls and put them in front of them.

”Here, eat up. You”ll need the energy.”

The bean stew smelled absolutely delicious, which reminded Zaryen how hungry he was. He grabbed a spoon and started eating right away, humming at the taste.

”Wow, that”s really good.” He glanced up at Meveris”s twin. ”Thanks for getting it for us.”

”No problem.”

Lanveris seemed more subdued than before, somehow, but Zaryen didn”t know him well enough to be sure. Meveris didn”t have the same problem, though, so once they were both about halfway through their stew and Lanveris still hadn”t relaxed, playing with his empty bowl, Meveris pointed a spoon at him and leaned forward.

”What”s wrong?” he asked quietly, probably not wanting to alert the rest of the table.

Lanveris let go of the bowl and clasped both hands in front of him. ”It may be nothing, don”t worry about it.”

Zaryen tried to focus on his stew, but the tension in his stomach made it impossible.

”If you don”t want to talk about it in front of me…” he drifted off, unsure, because he didn”t like the idea of Meveris going anywhere without him at this point.

”No, no, it”s not that.” Lanveris sighed. ”I overheard some people talking, and it seems that the news about your… circumstances has gotten around.”

Zaryen froze.

It happened, then. They all knew.

He”d figured it wouldn”t stay a secret for long, but he”d asked for sanctuary only yesterday, how did it even—

”Hey.” Meveris caught his hand and leaned closer. ”Hey, look at me. It”s going to be fine.”

Forcing himself to lift his gaze, Zaryen surveyed his surroundings. He”d been so focused on the people at their table that he”d ignored everything else after the initial overwhelm, but now he could see a room full of other students at various tables, eating, talking, laughing. He also caught two or three guys glancing his way.

Or simply their way. Maybe Zaryen was overthinking it. Almost nobody around here knew him, so they would have no idea what he looked like, even if they were aware of a sanctuary seeker in their midst.

But if not today, they were still going to find out soon. And who knew what they were going to think.

Zaryen”s gaze wandered towards Feraan, who was slowly eating his dinner without interacting with anyone around him.

Was that the reason he was acting so cold towards Zaryen? Had he found out the truth and judged him for his choices?

The mere idea that he”d lost a potential friend because of a decision he”d made out of desperation filled Zaryen with dread.

He pushed the bowl away.

”I think I need to go,” he said quietly. ”I”m sorry.”

Meveris squeezed his hand. ”You don”t have to apologize. We can leave if you want and go back to our rooms.”

”I didn”t mean to—” Lanveris started, but Zaryen cut him off quickly.

”No, it”s not on you. Thanks for telling us. It”s better to be prepared, after all.”

Prepared for what, he had no idea, but he still preferred to at least be aware of the issue.

After they excused themselves from the table and headed out, Zaryen kept his gaze firmly on Meveris so he wouldn”t see anyone staring, wouldn”t imagine them talking and judging him behind his back.

Well, he was imagining it, but at least he didn”t watch it happen.

Meveris came to a halt right outside the door, and Zaryen barely avoided colliding with him, taking a step to the side.

”What is it?” he asked, but then he saw it for himself.

Taveris was standing there with his arms crossed against his chest, face blank.

Zaryen tightened his hold on Meveris”s hand.

They couldn”t change their minds about the sanctuary now, could they?

Taveris looked between the two of them before settling his gaze on Zaryen.

”Your brother”s here and he demands to see you.”