INITIATION by Imogen Rose (Bonfire Academy Book One)

Chapter Three

It was so awesome to see him. After the fire, we’d been relocated in a hurry, and I hadn’t even said goodbye to him. We had, of course, talked and texted while the Academy was being repaired, but I had missed him terribly. He wasn’t just my boyfriend; he was also my best friend.

“So, who’s your friend?” he drawled, lazily sitting up, and grinning.

I went over and kissed his forehead, running my fingers through his dark hair, resisting the urge to show him how much I had really missed him. I’d wait and do that once we were alone.

“Quinn, Faustine. Faustine, Quinn. I was asked to mentor Faustine. She’s King Sebastian’s daughter.”

“Ah.” Quinn sat up straight. “The half-human?”

“Yep.”

“Interesting,” Quinn commented, giving Faustine the once over, the demon kind–which was totally intimidating at the best of times. “You didn’t tell me you signed up for the mentoring program. What about tennis?”

“Stop that, Quinn! Don’t frighten her!”

“Oh, I’m not frightened,” Faustine protested. “My dad is the demon king of London. Nothing frightens me.”

I smiled inwardly. Poor thing. She must be terrified on the inside. “That’s right, Faustine. Nothing to be scared of. Is there, Quinn?” I asked pointedly.

He shrugged. “I guess not. Not if you are mentoring her. Still, she is half human, though, the first half-human we’ve ever had at the school. And she smells like it; I was just checking.”

Faustine raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Really? You’ve never had a human here before? Ever? Checking what?”

“No. We’ve had quite a few hybrids, but never a human hybrid. Are you more human or demon? I can’t tell from your smell, which is what I was trying to figure out. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”

“No worries.” Faustine sat down on the chair I pointed to. “I don’t know. I guess that’s one of the reasons I’m here, to find out. Say, I’m a bit hungry.”

“Oh, sorry. Quinn, join us for a snack? Let’s go down to the cafeteria.”

“Um, are you sure about that? May be wiser to get something sent up, considering…”

“That would take too long. I think Faustine needs to feed now. Is that right, Faustine?” I didn’t really have to ask. I could see the red-hollow hunger in her eyes even as she nodded. I’d keep her safe. Plus, I’d have Quinn to help, should we have any issues. “Okay, ready?”

We headed down the stairs and made our way through the dark, stone corridors to the courtyard. It was very quiet, and we only saw two other students. Both of them passed without paying Faustine any attention at all. I couldn’t help but notice the video surveillance cameras that lined the otherwise unadorned stone walls. The cameras were a new addition, part of the improvements during the rebuilding. We didn’t run into anyone else, but that would change tomorrow when the majority of the students returned.

As we approached the cafeteria, the aroma of grilled meat assaulted my senses to the point where I found it difficult not to drool. Much as I needed to head straight for the meat station, I stopped short and gawked as soon as we entered. So did Quinn.

“What’s the matter?” Faustine asked, looking at us wide eyed.

“It’s totally changed! I wasn’t expecting this.” I scanned the space that had once been an old-fashioned hall with banquet tables. “Boy, they totally redesigned this room! It used to be filled with long oak tables with backless benches. Five-foot chandeliers hung from the ceilings, and the stone walls were covered in candelabra sconces. We had ten of those twenty-foot tables, with the one reserved for the staff running perpendicular to the others. The food stations were over there.” I pointed at a door at the far end of the room. “By the smell of things, it’s still there. Let’s get some food.”