The Shadow in the Flame Chapter 1

Chapter 1 – Farewell for Now

Ariel

My mouth trembles a little as I stand on top of the hill at the Academy, looking down at the train, watching it puff smoke and start to pull away. I sniff and wipe at my cheek, missing Rafe already, wanting him back even as I know he has to go. He’s the only one of us who can tear himself away from school right now, after all. And our Northern people need aid. And he has to go protect Maryam.

If she’ll let him.

I smirk a little at the thought, wiping the tears off my other cheek, sighing as the train moves away from the platform and along the tracks.

“What’s wrong with you?”

I gasp, spinning at the words and looking around for the speaker –

At first, I don’t see anyone. But then I look down and see Midnight there, standing very close, staring up at me with her hands on her hips. “Why are you crying?” she snaps, fierce as she always is. “Who was mean to you? Tell me now and I’ll go kill them.”

I burst into a grin, shaking my head at her. “No one hurt my feelings,Midnight – I was just watching Rafe’s train leave.”

She peers around me, her eyes catching on the train in the distance. Her lips turn further down as she looks back up at me. “I don’t get it.”

I laugh, delighted with her as I usually am. “I’m just going to miss him, Mids!”

“You can just telephone callhim,” she says, rolling her eyes at me, clearly thinking I’m quite pathetic for feeling so sentimental at my brother’s temporary absence. After all, he’ll only be gone for a few months.

Probably.

“Nah, not a lot of cell service in the North,” I say, slipping my arm around Midnight’s shoulders and turning her back towards our collection of little houses. The moment’s over, anyway. “Plus, we’re not allowed to have phones while we’re students. Distracts us from our studies.”

“Fine by me,” Mids snaps. “I don’t know how they work, anyway. Seems like a waste of time.”

I murmur my agreement as we start for my little blue house. Even as we do, though, I look down at Mids with a frown. She’s…snappier than she usually is. Which is saying something. “You okay, Midnight?”

“I’m angry at that Captain man,” Midnight says, nodding sternly. “He won’t let me do anything fun or play with any weapons, which is unfair. All the other Candidates will come in September and they’ll have played with all the weapons they want.”

“Oh, I think you’ve got bigger problems on your plate,” I say, nodding. “We’ve got to get you caught up on a great deal of basic scientific and logical knowledge. I think doing well in those exams is a better strategy for you, as opposed to leaning on the physical. You’re small, after all.”

“Well then let’s gooo,” Midnight moans, slipping out from beneath my arm and grabbing my hand, hauling hard on it to pull me towards the house. “We’re wasting time! You could be teaching me right now!”

I burst out laughing, stumbling a little as she tugs on me. But I nod and hasten my steps to make her happy. She’s right, after all – I did promise to teach her and I’ve got some free time now.

A big wide grin spreads over my face as we approach the house, heading for the front steps. Jackson and Marigold are right where I left them about a quarter of an hour ago, with Jackson seated cross-legged on the front porch, looking down at Marigold who lays flat on her back, crying her eyes out and stomping her feet. Poor Jackson’s face is lank with devastation.

“What’s wrong with her?” Midnight asks, all breathy, looking up at me like she’s wondering why the hell we all cry so much.

“She’s fine,” I whisper, leaning close, not wanting Marigold or Jackson to hear. “She was told that she’s not allowed to color on the walls with her crayons and she is…unhappy about it. Jackson is practicing telling her ‘no.’”

Mids looks at me like I’m insane. “Why does he need to practice that?”

I laugh a little, shaking my head. “Jackson has…a very hard time denying her anything. But kids need boundaries and I’m not going to spend the rest of our lives being mean mommy while he gets to be the nice guy. So, he has to practice.”

“Well, I’ll help,” Midnight says, striding forward. “Goldie! Quit that racket! You’re not allowed to –“

I burst out laughing and grab Midnight’s arm, pulling her back to my side as we reach the front steps. “Let him, Mids,” I say, grinning first at her and then at my mate, who looks up at me, very miserable. “He has to get good at this.”

Marigold increases her wails and her stomps as we climb the steps, sensing she has an audience. But I smirk when I see that there are no fresh tears on her cheeks and that her stomps are less vehement than they were before. She’s exhausted and faking it now, pushing her boundaries, seeing how far she can get.

“Hi,” Jacks says, quite glum. His wolf howls and my little rose-gold wolf rushes across our bond, pressing herself to his side, wanting to give him what comfort she can. Jacks really, really hates this harder side of parenting, after all.

“You’re doing great, baby,” I murmur, stepping close to him and bending to press a kiss to his head. He sighs and leans against me a little.

“I want to draw!” Marigold shrieks.

“Goldie,” Jackson says with a sigh, leaning towards her. “We’ve talked this through. You’ve got a dozen coloring books, you’re just not allowed to –“

She shrieks louder, wordless and stubborn. I sigh happily, heading for the door.

Midnight looks between the three of us like we’ve utterly lost it and darts into the house before me. I pull the door shut after us, muffling some of the noise but not dampening it completely.

“Ah, the stern parent,” Jesse says, glancing up at me over the edge of his book, a smirk already on his mouth. “Will you please go silence your child? Her father is bad at it and I’m trying to read.”

“I agree,” Midnight is, striding into our tiny kitchen and starting to fill the kettle. “My studies are very important – vital for the continued security of the country, in fact – and I need peace in which to learn.”

I sigh, shaking my head at both of them as I move over to the quaint little bookshelf that we’ve been steadily filling with books over the course of the three or four days that we’ve lived here. I select one on basic chemistry that we ordered for Mids, pulling it off the shelf.

“You should all be more supportive of Jackson,” I say, heading to the couch and glancing out the picture window. I smile when I see he’s managed to coax Goldie off the floor and into his lap. “This is hard for him, and he’s used to new skills coming to him easily. He’s learning too! You have to respect his education as well!”

“If he could learn more quietly,” Jesse murmurs, languidly turning a page. “That would be fantastic.”

“You know, you have your own room, Jess,” I say, raising an eyebrow at him and pressing Midnight’s book to my chest. “No one is obliging you to be here.”

“It’s cold and lonely up there now,” Jesse murmurs. “Plus, someone has to keep an eye on the creature.” He nods towards the kitchen where Midnight’s back is to us. She has lit the stove and put out some mugs.

“What creature?” Midnight calls, rifling through the tiny fridge for some milk.

Jesse grins at me, wicked and knowing, and I burst out laughing. He turns his eyes back to his book and I study him for a moment, my heart clenching just a little. Jesse – he’s such a subtle person and sometimes hard to read. It’s only been a few days since Midnight rejected their mating bond and while he took a little time to himself to recover, he’s spent most of the last two days truly ensuring that Midnight feels loved, and involved, and part of the family.

But…is he okay? I frown a bit, worried for him, hoping that he’s taking care of himself as well as her.

“Stop staring at me with pity in your eyes,” Jesse murmurs, not looking up at me but sensing my gaze. I laugh softly, unable to help it. “I’d prefer only if you gaze at me admiringly for the time being, please. All else is forbidden.”

“Well, as that can’t be managed, I just won’t look at you at all.” I sigh and sit down on the edge of the couch.

“A fine compromise.”

The front door opens and my sweetheart mate steps in, making me smile again as I look up to see our little daughter sniffing, her head resting on his shoulder. Jackson smooths a loving hand over her hair as he presses the door shut.

“There’s my sweet girl,” I say, smiling and reaching my arms up, wanting to hold her in turn. “Did you come up with a plan?”

Marigold huffs, turning her face away from me and into her father’s chest. I don’t miss the way he smiles at that, loving her so incredibly much even when she’s spent the last half hour having a tantrum. She really is a good girl and an easy child – but everyone has their moments.

“We’re going to have a snack,” Jackson murmurs. “And then color in the book. Right Golds?”

She nods against his chest, still not looking at me, and I press a hand to my heart, laughing silently, loving this whole scene very much.

Midnight comes into the living room with three mugs on a small try, looking up at Jackson as he passes her, off to get Goldie her snack. “Looks like you’re still mean mommy,” she murmurs to me, placing the tray down on the coffee table.

“Yeah well,” I say, leaning forward and putting the chemistry book down next to the mugs of tea. “Someone’s gotta do it.”

“Cool, let’s start!” Midnight says, grabbing a pillow and sitting on it, eagerly reaching for the chemistry book.

I lean forward too, looking between her and Jesse, but then…

A sudden wave of guilt passes through me.

Because as much as this is a very happy scene, someone is missing.

I stand up quickly, drawing both Jesse and Midnight’s eyes as I move to the door. “Jess, will you get her started on the periodic table?”

“Ariel, you know that I can’t. I hate reading and study of any kind.” He sighs dramatically as he looks back down at his book and turns the page.

“Oh, just do it, you lazy cat.” I send him a glare and haul open the door.

“Where are you going!?” Midnight gasps, looking utterly betrayed. “I have to learn!”

“I’ll be back!” I call, waving over my shoulder and darting out the door. “Fifteen minutes! Twenty! Start with hydrogen and helium and memorize everything you see!”

“What the hell is hydrogen!?”

I don’t bother to answer, leaving that in Jesse’s hands, and instead pull the front door shut behind me as I start for the castle at a run.