Page 22 of Midnight Hunt

I saw the look of disappointment on Valerie’s face but had no time to address it. We could talk about it later. Likely, my little witch was trying to draw the attention away from The Grove, from me, but there was too much going on. I couldn’t chance this attacker to get to her. They’d already preyed on The Grove while I was away.

Randolph and I made quick work of the portal, opening it between two trees. Inside The Grove were two trees made around a carved, enchanted gem. It allowed those who resonated with it to open portals from between two trees and to step out inside The Grove. Kahrina, Randolph, and myself were currently the only ones who resonated with it to allow us to get back in times of dire need. A shimmering portal opened up before us, a glittering mirror of The Grove that danced with every raindrop that hit it. I thrust Valerie and Randolph through it before following myself. It popped like a bubble behind us.

I stood at the backside of the courtyard, staring at the curved horseshoe of a building, where there was a distinct burn scar across a portion of it.

“Damn.” Valerie’s hiss echoed around the silent courtyard. Despite a hundred students all gathered around the Mother Tree at the center, there was no noise. Just the hiss of steam coming off the building. Green magic illuminated the night as they reformed the flora wrapping that portion of the building.

“There you are!” Kahrina broke the silence, scrambling away from the Mother Tree. She rushed up before me, “Professor, thank Sylvanus, you’re alright. We did our best—”

It was the first time I’d seen my TA in less than rigid control. Tears were streaming down her soot covered face, her fingers shaking, tufts of moss and little corn snakes crawling throughher hair as she lost the reins of her magic. I’m not sure why, but I wrapped my arms around her, dismissing the snakes and moss and twigs and pulled her tight. Her body snapped upright, rigid like stone, her voice caught in her throat. I reached out an arm to Randolph and tugged him into the bundle too.

“You two have outdone yourselves. You have exceeded any expectations, and the Oak Father is blessed to have you two at his side. My little druids, I could not ask for finer leaders or protectors of this grove.”

I squeezed them tight. Kahrina hiccupped shortly before wrapping her arms around Randolph and I. My RA chuckled softly under his breath, but it was not lost on me that there were sneaky tears trickling down his cheeks. I rubbed both their backs before pulling back from them.

“Thank you both,” I cooed, making sure to lock eyes with both of them before I slid past them toward the Mother Tree. “Now it is my turn.”

I spread my arms wide, funneling all the magic in the air to the building. The blessing of nature, the feeling of His hands resting on my shoulder, keeping my soul grounded while my magic ascended into the air with the arcana swirling around us, it felt like home. My eyes fluttered closed, my head back, and the scent of new life filled my lungs. I gulped it down as I gave that life a mission. It swirled through the air as the earth beneath us rumbled.

Soon the building stopped steaming. It grew a second floor, a spiraling staircase of mushroom tops and stone it grew through leading the way. The building groaned as new rooms were added, but more importantly, as it grew thicker. All its wounds, the knicks and cuts from where the villain carved their way in, were sealed up. Sap leaking like blood was plugged up and healed over. I opened my eyes to the Mother Tree’s last branch detaching from the building, returning to her natural state. Mydruids all gasped, excitedly rushing to the side of the building. Their eager hands roamed its new exterior as I retracted my magic. Sylvanus’ touch falling away, just one last stroke to the top of my head.Like a pat for being a good bear.

I smiled as I turned to see my students all staring at me. Kahrina was lit up like a child with a new present. Randolph was wide eyed and mouth ajar, gobsmacked. Valerie stared right at me, her bottom lip tugged between her teeth. I didn’t need to smell her to know her frenzy returned tenfold. My spine straightened with pride as her eyes hungrily roamed my body. When they locked with mine once more, my cock strained in my pants.

Kahrina and Randolph raced to see inside the building while Valerie sauntered up to my side. She jabbed a finger in my direction, whispering so low it felt like a threat. “You, sir, are in so much danger.”

“And how is that?” I smirked, keeping my hands to my waist. If I didn’t, they’d be on her, and I’d finish what we were doing in the cave in front of all my students.

“Because I’m about to sneak into your room tonight and ride you till you see stars, that’s why,” she hissed, but heard Kahrina call out her name. She glanced over her shoulder, giving me ample opportunity. I leaned in, whispering in her ear.

“You won’t be sneaking, little witch. I’ll see you in our bed tonight.” And before she could speak another word, I pressed a hand to the small of her back and guided both of us toward the building.

Chapter Fourteen:

~Valerie Contempt~

Kahrina and I wandered through the upstairs, marveling at everything Lochlainn grew for the building. As much as I wanted to immediately rush that gorgeous bear back to his room…it would be best to keep up face. Randolph knowing was one thing, the entirety of The Grove was another. While Lochlainn and his RA got students back in bed for what little left of the night they could sleep, Kahrina and I walked. Finally, as we reached the top of the steps again, she sat down on the mushroom top. I joined her, our legs dangling beneath us.

“Valerie, where were you this evening?” Kahrina whispered, her face forward and voice soft. With all the plants around us, our voices were nestled in a private little bubble around us. Nothing carried, nothing echoed, everything else in The Grove seemed muffled.

I sighed, which prompted a yawn, and the exhaustion set in.Damn…“The truth?”

“Preferably.”

“I was going out to clear my head. After Amber showed up, I just kept spiraling over what she could want, and I was trying to understand what all has happened. Professor O’Hare found me, and we were just talking. Well, I was talking, he was listening. I started talking about my family, which led me down a whole other spiral. It wasn’t pretty.” I lied like my life depended on it, finally glancing to look her in the eye. She twisted to face me, nodding along as I strung her along the story of the lonely witch who just wanted to get her degree and open an apothecary.Which isn’t so much the lie part, but I definitely didn’t tell her how I let Lochlainn hunt me down and fuck me in the mud.

“Yeah, I suspected as much. Professor O’Hare is just that kind of guy. I just…” she trailed off, her gaze roaming out to the mushroom covered stairway. She nodded, like acknowledging something internally, and glanced back at me. “I just want you to know, if you wanna talk, you’ve got me. I don’t like many people, but you’ve got something I admire.”

“Absolute audacity?” I snorted.

Her whole body trembled as she collapsed into her lap, cackling as she did. I snickered with her, the mushrooms lighting up around us but devouring all the sound between us. When she finally snapped back up, gasping for air, she was grinning from pointy ear to ear. “Yeah, something like that. My mom calls it ‘the fucking audacity’, especially when aiming it at me.”

I kicked my feet a little, chewing on my words.Do I tell the TA anything? Do I actually try to make friends? Who am I?I let out a sheepish laugh, “I, uh, my mom thinks I’ve got pizzaz, but my grandmother would disagree. She might call me a disgrace, you know, what with having ambition and dreams outside of being a brood mare.”

“I heard that one line, what was it… ‘Witches come to college to get a degree in breeding’?” Kahrina glanced at me with a weak smile.

“Something like that,” I mumbled, staring at my lap. I willed the words to stay behind my teeth, but if I was being honest, I didn’t want that.I’m tired of not telling people things, of being so removed.I blinked away hot, embarrassed tears. Forcing my eyes up in hopes it would stop them, but unable to stop the words from flowing from my lips, my voice wavered. “You know, I did want a family when I was little. And I do now. I want a gaggle of annoying, clingy, curious little witches who ask so many questions it makes me pull my hair out. I want a house that’s always loud and full of life. I want a garden we all take picnic lunches in, where I take a nap under a tree with all my kiddos piled next to me. And I want to open my fucking apothecary with my family cheering me on. I want them to help me cut that stupid ribbon with the biggest fucking scissors they can make and have them scurry around the shop with excitement. I want…a family that cares aboutme, the realme, and lovesme,without expectations. And if my kids don’t want kids, then so fucking be it. What do I care about legacy when legacy has done nothing for me. It didn’t congratulate me on making it into grad school or clap during my speech or help me study for exams. None of them did, because I was expected to just come here for a year or two, fuck someone in the woods, and go home to be apart of a coven that never gave a damn about me as a person. Just my womb.”

The mushrooms softened their glow and the world felt so quiet. I sat there, tears streaming down my face, arms shaking as I raked my nails across the lip of that first step. And when the words finally stopped, the hard concrete boulder on my shoulder crumbled off.

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