“It’s really not going to be fun, Polaris.” Liliana groaned to her Bond as she slipped on the blazer of her uniform, the dark silk contrasting nicely with the gold of the blouse that went under it. Liliana would’ve still preferred the school colors to be blue and black. She looked good in blue, but she could admit the gold didn’t look bad against her tanned skin.

“I’ve never been to an… ’orientation’ before. Isn’t this school thing supposed to be about new experiences?” Polaris asked, sounding too innocent.

“Have you been rifling through my memories of Earth school dramas and academy novels?” Liliana asked, slowly turning towards her Bond.

“They make up a large percentage of your memories.” Polaris said, voice sounding defensive.

“Is that why I’ve been having nightmares about answering questions in class in my underwear?” Liliana asked with a groan, closing her eyes to rub at her temples.

She didn’t truly mind Polaris going through her memories while she slept, better than him doing it while she was awake and potentially dragging her into a flashback. Still, she worried what kind of effect the school dramas and questionable quality of the academy novels she’d devoured in her last life might have on the fox.

“Don’t answer that question. Just. Be good, don’t bite anyone.” Liliana sighed.

It had not been stated in the rules that bonds couldn’t attend the orientation. Just classes they weren’t needed for, not that she thought Polaris, Lelantos or Nemesis would wish to sit through math or world history. She barely wanted to sit through math or world history, if she were being honest.

“I shall be a ‘model student’, as your stories would call it.” Polaris promised her, though his vulpine grin made Liliana believe he had no intentions of that.

“I will put you in your summoning stone before you can yip if I see you do even one thing that might get me detention on my first day at school.” Liliana warned, tapping his summoning stone to emphasize the point.

Thankfully, for her school record, orientation day was the first day of school, but it was the only thing they would do for the day other than meet their homeroom teacher. Polaris would have to be put in stasis for that much, as it was the first stop today and bonds weren’t allowed out in classrooms. He happily dematerialized. His essence sucked into the stone on her wrist.

Liliana sighed, turning to look at her two other bonds, who were lazing in their courtyard currently.

“Either of you two coming as well?” Liliana mentally called to them, as there was a door and too much distance for vocal communication.

“Humans.” Nemesis’ voice responded immediately, the word a curse and refusal all in one.

Nothing more really needed to be said. Nemesis might love Liliana and even enjoy the company of Emyr and Marianne, not that the serpent would ever admit to it, but it was quite clear Nemesis saw them as the exception to the rule.

“No hunts. No fun.” Lelantos’ reply followed Nemesis, his mental voice far rougher than the serpent’s or the kitsune’s.

He struggled the most with forming words, often defaulting to communicating through images and emotions. Liliana wasn’t sure if he simply had little interest in it, or if it was because he had only recently reached Rank 5. Lelantos cared little for anything that didn’t have to do with fighting, hunting and killing. He could communicate just as well with images and emotions for those activities, so Liliana knew he didn’t try as hard as Nemesis did with learning another means of communication.

Liliana was half convinced Nemesis was learning to talk more fluently just to have more words to insult humans with. Or to gain more knowledge, she’d seen the serpent staring at her bookcase with a hunger she typically reserved for prey. Whatever the case, she was taking a hands off approach with her bonds regarding learning how to communicate verbally. She communicated mostly through words with them, only resorting to images or emotions if she was feeling panicked. She hoped it would encourage them to pick up the skill easier, but other than that, she let them move at their own pace.

“Alright. Be good. Don’t eat anyone while I’m gone.” Liliana waved at her bonds before exiting her room.

It was early, half past eighth bell. Orientation was set for tenth bell, and they had to be in their home rooms by half past ninth bell. Liliana watched a few of her classmates stumble down the stairs groggily, moving towards the kitchen, likely in search of coffee.

Nobles and their tendency to sleep in. Liliana thought with a small shake of her head. She’d been awake since the sixth bell, and that was late for her, but she’d been up late with nerves. She’d spent the first hour and a half of the morning reading some of the books she’d gotten from the library before she started to get ready. Liliana hadn’t had enough time to justify going into the forest to train, but she’d perhaps get the chance after orientation.

“Lili,” a voice murmured right before an uncharacteristically dim Marianne bumped into Liliana’s arm.

“Marianne? Are you alright?” Liliana asked with concern, not used to seeing her bubbly friend so subdued.

“Too early. Make the sun go away.” Marianne grumbled, leaning further into Liliana. The girl was almost certain the princess was attempting to fall back asleep on her.

“It’s half-past eight bell. You know our classes start tomorrow and they begin at seventh bell.” Liliana told her friend, raising an eyebrow Marianne couldn’t see with her eyes closed.

“Gonna tell mom to get the Academy to start at a reasonable hour. Like noon,” Marianne sleepily murmured into Liliana’s arm. Liliana sighed and dislodged the princess, grabbing the girl’s shoulders before she could fall. Liliana began to push her friend forward. She was quite used to this behavior, having lived with Emyr for so long, and her panic over seeing Marianne so off subsided.

“Enough of that. Let’s get you some coffee, then breakfast. You can fall asleep during orientation.” Liliana said as she guided her friend, who she wasn’t convinced hadn’t gone back to sleep, to the shared kitchen.

There was a line for coffee, students stumbling forward to grab a cup and fill it with the liquid that would magically transform over half of Liliana’s class from the undead into living teenagers. By the time Liliana and Marianne had reached the head of the line and Liliana had shoved a cup of the steaming brew into Marianne’s hands, the princess looked marginally more awake.

“Morning Ali, Em.” Liliana called out to her brother and friend as they exited the kitchen, Liliana still guiding Marianne forward and directing her around hazards, like other students with boiling hot cups of liquid in their hands.

“Morning Lili,” Alistair called out with a smile, like her Alistair was a morning person.

Emyr looked up from where he was nursing his own cup of coffee and hissed at her. Emyr was not a morning person in the least, but Liliana had learned by now how to avoid his attacks when he was disturbed too early. She was just glad that their dorms had opposite sex restrictions; she wasn’t expected to wake him up when he inevitably slept in. Let Alistair, the tank, deal with the dangers of waking up a sleeping Emyr. Last time she’d tried, he’d shot a fireball at her head and nearly singed off her eyebrows.

“You direct Emyr, I’ve got Mari,” Liliana told Alistair. She knew if they let the other two decide their pace, they wouldn’t get breakfast and would likely be late for their first meeting with their homeroom teacher.

“Aye aye Captain Lili,” Alistair said with a grin and salute as he grabbed Emyr’s arm and began to drag the boy towards the door. Liliana merely huffed at the nickname her brother had given her after their multiple trips into dungeons over the past year.

“I will carve your eyes out with a rusty spoon,” Emyr growled at Alistair between sips of his coffee as he glowered at his closest friend.

“Yea, yea. Just keep drinking your coffee, you hellish gremlin,” Alistair teased, earning him the next hiss.

“We could just let them be late,” Liliana said as they left their dormitory.

It was still chilly this early in the morning, but Liliana barely felt the cold anymore. A brisk Spring morning had nothing on the hell that was a Rosengarde winter.

“Then he really would carve my eyeballs out with a rusty spoon, and probably feed them to me.” Alistair snorted with a shake of his head.

He swapped out Emyr’s coffee with a practiced hand, replacing the empty cup with a full one. The used cup disappeared into his storage ring. There would be more coffee at the cafeteria, thankfully, because Emyr wasn’t human before his fourth cup of coffee.

“A pox on your family line and a curse on all mornings,” Emyr grumbled darkly from next to Alistair. The boy didn’t fight Alistair at least as they walked, simply speared his friend and every living thing he saw with a baleful glare.

“Yes, a curse on mornings.” Marianne echoed sleepily from in front of Liliana. Thankfully Marianne didn’t seem like the violent kind of not a morning person. She just seemed the type to fall asleep standing up.

The walk seemed to wake up Emyr and Marianne marginally. By the time they got to the cafeteria, they were walking mostly on their own. Though Emyr was still muttering dark curses and death threats under his breath and Marianne had to be diverted from running into the doors. It was progress though because Emyr looked like he was only considering mass murder and not about to act on the impulse, and Marianne was at least walking on her own even if her navigation left much to be desired.

“Ugh, it’s noisy,” Liliana’s nose wrinkled as their group made their way up the stairs.

The worst of it was the E and D levels, they had the most students and despite the many students who looked ready to fall asleep on their meals there were plenty more who were awake enough to converse, and that many conversations created a roar of noise Liliana couldn’t say she enjoyed. She wasn’t used to being around so many people at one time, and it made her skin crawl.

“A curse upon all of them. May their socks always slide down their feet in their shoes.” Emyr muttered, glaring around them at anyone who dared to speak at above a whisper as they climbed the stairs.

“That’s a nasty one, Em,” Alistair snorted.

“May your clothes always be too loose or too tight,” Emyr muttered, glaring now at Alistair, who Liliana was certain he was currently blaming for the injustice of being awake this early.

“Ouch, rude.” Alistair chuckled, sharing a smirk with Liliana. They were both very used to Emyr’s colorful and creative curses at this point.

“Here you two sit. We’ll get you food.” Liliana directed Marianne to an empty table, Alistair plopping Emyr down next to her. Emyr glared at them both until Alistair sighed heavily.

“And coffee as an offering for the dark lord,” Alistair told his friend with a mock bow.

Emyr nodded, looking marginally pleased, though his glare never left his face. It was at least directed at the other students in the class S cafeteria rather than them finally.

Liliana looked around, her fingers tapping nervously against her thigh as she took stock of who was in the cafeteria. Most students she didn’t recognize, she barely remembered the upperclassmen who had given them advice that second day here and the second year who had guided them. But she wasn’t looking for people she didn’t know. She was looking for those she knew too well.

She’d managed to keep Zir’elon and Diana away from her friends these past few days, mostly by being very insistent they start preparing for classes and practically dragging them to training rooms or the library. It had been effective. Most of their class apparently had no idea they could or should be starting to hone their skills and knowledge, and so there was little chance of an encounter yet.

But today would be the first time they were all in one place for an extended period of time since the tour the first day. And Liliana wasn’t sure how strong a compulsion ‘fate’ would be. She wanted to keep Zir’elon and Diana away from her friends for as long as possible, as quietly as possible. She couldn’t exactly explain why she wanted her friends far, far away from the two of them. Liliana found herself half wishing the two other heroes would start a fight with her or her friends, to at least give Liliana a reason to keep her friends away from them.

As Liliana and Alistair left the line with trays of food for themselves and their friends, Alistair balancing an extra tray filled with coffee, Liliana felt her stomach drop to her feet.

Speak of the devil. Fucking fate. Liliana mentally growled as she watched Zir’elon leaning against their table, attempting to engage Marianne in a conversation. Liliana let out a hiss under her breath as she strode towards her table, anger flaring in her chest that she quickly tamped down. She’d learned her lesson, she wouldn't let her anger drive her. But if need be, she could channel that anger into power to drive a dagger through the prince’s hand if he tried something today.

“-y father told me a lot about your mother, and since we’ve never been able to formally me-“ Zir’elon was droning on as Liliana and Alistair approached.

Liliana threw a glance over her shoulder and saw her brother staring at the prince with a wary gaze. Her sociable, trusting brother was long gone. He’d heard too many cutting remarks from nobles he used to call friends to approach any newcomers with an open smile any longer. He caught Liliana’s eyes and words went unspoken between them. Liliana tilted her head and Alistair nodded before she turned her head forward again and dropped her trays on the table with a touch of more force than was strictly necessary.

Zir’elon jumped, head turning to look at her with slight surprise on his face. Liliana let a small half smirk slip onto her face.

Terrible spacial awareness. Liliana noted to herself.

“Hello.” Liliana greeted as she stood next to her seat.

She didn't like to sit when someone was standing. It immediately made her feel like she was lower in the power dynamic. There was a lot of power in being taller than an opponent, and she wasn’t going to give anyone more height on her than they already had. Liliana heard her brother drop his trays with more grace than her, but she felt his presence at her back and knew he wasn’t sitting either.

“If you don’t mind, we’d like to have our breakfast. You’d better get yours too, before it’s too late,” Liliana told the prince with a saccharine sweet smile on her face, her eyes showing none of the sweetness she’d laced her voice with.

“Well, I was just talking to prin-“ Zir’elon started.

“Marianne.” The girl in question piped up between bites of a warm bun she’d slathered with honey butter.

“We’re all equal here. We don’t use honorifics at the Academy,” Alistair’s voice added in, his tone steely, defensive.

“I apologize. I was speaking to Marianne here. Perhaps I can join you for breakfast?” Zir’elon recovered with a grace and suave that spoke to his raising as a royal prince.

“Sorry, Emyr gets testy in the morning and he doesn't normally like new people as it is. We wouldn’t want you to lose a finger or eyes,” Liliana put on a concerned look, nodding her head at Emyr, who looked up at the mention of his name and hissed darkly at them all before drinking his coffee like it was the only thing keeping him alive.

“Ah yes, the youngest son of the Marquess Bealstal, correct?” Zir’elon asked, eyes taking on a calculating gleam before he switched back to his charming smile, “Oh sorry, it’ll take some time for me to get used to the culture of the Academy.” Zir’elon recovered, but Liliana’s eyes narrowed.

“If you do not mind, we’d like to enjoy our breakfast. Perhaps we can speak after the orientation,” or never, Liliana added mentally.

“Of course, I shall depart now,” Zir’elon said, bowing slightly to them. “It was nice meeting you, daughter of Duke Rosengarde, or is it heir now?” Zir’elon asked, but he turned and walked off before either Liliana or Alistair could retort. Liliana’s eyes narrowed as she stared at his back, a barely heard growl rumbling in her chest.

“Lili,” Alistair’s voice was soft behind her, and Liliana sighed, turning away and dropping into her seat with a huff. Alistair sat beside her, throwing a concerned glance her way as she tore into her breakfast.

“It’s too early to be dealing with social climbers,” Marianne sighed as she sipped her second cup of coffee, looking far more alert now. Her eyes were still tired, but Liliana thought it had little to do with how early it was anymore.

“It’s too early to be dealing with people at all,” Emyr said.

He’d barely touched his food, but he had three empty cups of coffee arranged around him like some sort of breakfast court and he was gulping down the fourth cup, his fifth so far. For a brief moment, Liliana considered an intervention, then astutely decided she preferred her internal organs being inside of her and discarded the suicidal notion.

“I don’t like him.” Liliana declared, stabbing her bacon with a fork before tearing into the strip viciously. Anger did always bring out the more animalistic traits she’d gained from her bonds in her.

“Lili, you hardly like anyone.” Alistair said with a sigh, as he ate his own food with far more decorum. “But I can’t say he’s endeared himself to me, either.” Alistair murmured as he stared at his plate.

Liliana paused her revenge against breakfast food kind and looked at her brother, eyes sad. Alistair was still officially heir to the Rosengarde duchy, but since his mother’s arrest and conviction, and Liliana’s latest bond, there had been more than a few rumors saying it would soon be her who held that title. She knew that scared her brother. If he wasn’t the heir, then there was every chance their father would toss him out.

He was adopted by blood magic, but other than that, there was nothing forcing the duke to keep Alistair as his own. If their father disowned him, then Alistair would have nowhere to go. No lordship to inherit, no money to his name except what he’d been bequeathed from his mother by the queen.

“You know if they try to give me the heirship, I’ll just change my name and run off, right?” Liliana whispered to Alistair.

She’d assured her brother, many times, that she wanted nothing to do with being the heir or duchess of Rosengarde. What neither of them had dared bring up, though, was that if Frederick really wanted to, he could name Blaine or Beatrice his heir. He wouldn’t, not now that his power and position were so tenuous. He needed a strong heir. But they also both knew if the duke thought that it would gain him more power to cut his losses, he would. He was practical, in the worst kind of way.

“What was the last name you decided on? Fiona Bloom?” Alistair asked with a quirk of his lips.

“Better than your suggestion. Gertrude Swannings.” Liliana rolled her eyes as she resumed eating, her movements less violent. Liliana looked over at her brother and saw the thanks in his eyes, and she smiled softly to him, letting her eyes say what her words weren’t.

I love you, brother, and I’d do anything I have to, to ensure your happiness.