“I didn’t do anything.”
“You remained calm, sweetheart. You didn’t let them goad you. And you’re one hell of a Faeball player.” He cupped my cheeks in his hands and kissed me lightly. “Why didn’t you tell us you knew how to play?”
“You mean kickball?” I asked. “Humans play that in, like, elementary school.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Really?”
“I told you that,” River put in, joining us. “I’ve said that, like, ten times.”
“You did?” He gave him a look. “When?”
“One of the many times you were apparently ignoring my comments about the human world,” River grumbled.
“Hmm. Fair.” Titus draped his arm across my shoulders, pulling me to his side. “Well, Claire’s a natural at it.”
I snorted. “It’s not a hard game.”
“She’s really good,” someone agreed from the side.
“Yeah, she is,” another said.
I frowned after them. “I don’t know them.”
“Ah, but they know you.” Titus pressed his lips to my temple. “Actually, I think your position around here is about to change.”
Exos joined our circle, his gaze brimming with pride. “Mortus just gave us permission to move back to the Fire Quad, if you want.”
“He did?” I glanced around, trying to find that ominous energy, but he’d disappeared.
“He did,” Exos confirmed. “But I told him we’re having too much fun on Spirit Quad to move.” He lifted a brow. “Unless you disagree?”
I considered it and smiled. “I think the Spirit Quad could use a little life.”
His lips curled. “My thoughts exactly.” He stepped in to brush his lips over mine while Titus’s arm remained solid across my shoulders.
My two fae.
It felt good here.
Felt even better that Vox remained on my other side. I didn’t know what that meant, but I would investigate later. For now, I was just glad to have my name cleared of wrongdoing. I still had a lot of work to do to get my elements under control, but at least I could do so without worrying about hurting others.
As Elana said, I’d helped.
No, I’d more than helped. I’d dismantled the bad energy with my own gifts.
“I want to know more about the internship,” I whispered to Exos. “What does it mean?”
“It means Elana wants to tutor you personally. Like she did with your mother.” He tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear and pressed his forehead to mine. “It would be good for you to have a second spirit instructor, and she’s extremely powerful. She could also tell you more about Ophelia.”
My heart slid into my throat. “Because she mentored my mom.” The gravity of that realization floored me, making me uncertain of how to proceed.
Part of me didn’t want to know my mother at all, especially after everything I’d learned. The other part desired more information on what happened, who she was before her relationship with Mortus took a turn, and what similarities I had to her that I should avoid.
“Yes.” Exos pressed his palm to my neck, angling my head back to meet his kiss. “Think about it, princess. You don’t have to decide now.”
“Okay,” I whispered. Although, in my heart, I already knew my decision. Yes. Because I had to know what she was like, to avoid ever becoming her.
I refused to ever hurt Titus in that way. Exos, too.