Shadowborn Academy_ Year One (Dark Fae Academy #1) - G. Bailey Page 0,24
room where the food is. Gods, it’s like a pack of hungry animals in there, which, as we are shifters, I guess is the right description.
Second time lucky, I push into the cafeteria with Sage at my side. A tall, lean boy with dark skin, periwinkle eyes, and curly brown hair stops in front of us. He’s holding a plastic bag full of delicious smelling food, and my stomach basically says hello to the guy for me, rumbling loud and clear.
“Hey, don’t worry about them,” he says, his voice a little husky. “Breakfast is basically feeding time at the zoo if you don’t arrive before eight. Here.” The guy offers me the bag. I take it and peek inside to see two paninis and two bottles of orange juice. “You’ll thank me later.”
“What’s our saviour’s name?” Sage asks with a big smile, inspecting one of the paninis. “Cheese and bacon. Nice!”
“Ronan Fairweather, Miss,” he answers with a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “I’m new, too, but my big brother came here eight years ago and taught me all the tricks of the trade.” He winks, and even though he isn’t handsome in a classical sense, he has charm, that’s for sure, and it’s a little alluring.
“I’m Corvina Charles and this Sage Millhouse. Thanks for the grub. We owe you one.” I take a large bite of my panini. It’s delicious and I barely acknowledge Sage or Ronan as I devour the rest so fast I practically inhale the damn thing.
He watches me scarf the food down, his eyes flickering with mischief for just a brief moment. “I’ll keep you to that.”
“We’re supposed to meet Professor Lochlan at the Ghoul Bridge for Basic Magic Control,” Ronan says as we walk down the corridor. We’re still in the Upper Half of the castle with generous bursts of sunlight and luscious trees peeking through the porticoes, but the closer we come to the ebony doors at the end of the hallway, the colder the air becomes. It lifts the hairs on my arms and the nape of my neck, causing me to shiver.
“The ghoul what now?” I can’t help but ask, a little bummed we bailed out on eating breakfast in the cafeteria. As chaotic as it’d been, I wanted to check out the competition more closely and get the name of that bitch who shoved into me. But when Ronan mentioned he had the same class as us, Sage practically jumped at the chance of a guide.
Ronan flashes me a wolfish grin. “Don’t worry. The bridge ain’t haunted by ghouls no more.”
“Where is this Ghoul Bridge?” Sage presses, finishing the last of her breakfast as we step into the entry hall. “Don’t tell me it’s inside the forest because that place ain’t all it’s cracked up to be. Enchanted, my ass. More like cursed.”
“The bridge is just outside the forest,” Ronan says, wrapping a hand around the door handle and looking back with a playful grin. “But if I had to guess, we’re headed into the woods for the day, so I’d have your wits at the ready.”
“Wits?” she counters with a hoarse laugh. “I’m grabbing my battleaxe.”
I tug the hood of her cloak before she runs off. “Come on, it’s not going to be that bad…” I peer up at Ronan. “Is it?”
He shrugs. “Nah. Only one student died last year. You’ll be fine.”
We watch him push through the doors without so much as a backwards glance.
“Well, that was comforting. Thank you very much, Mr Fairweather!” I turn to Sage and give her a reassuring smile. “We’ll be fine, Sage. Trust me.”
“Famous last words, Buzzie,” she mutters under her breath.
I smile at her, lifting my hood over my head, and follow in Ronan’s wake.
As I suspected, we emerge into a part of the castle where the shadows bathe every corner. The vaulted ceiling curves into a pair of wings that crawl down the cave walls, wrapping around the intricate details carved into the dark stone. We slide under a beautiful arch at the other end of the hall. The sconces on the walls accentuate the flights of stairs winding down in a seemingly never-ending spiral. By the time we reach the fourth flight, my pulse has spiked and droplets of perspiration glide down my forehead.
“Isn’t there an easier way to get around here?” I ask Ronan, wiping the beads of sweat from my brow. “‘Cause I’ve gotta level with ya. This is not my idea of fun.”