Page 12 of Fortune Academy: Year Three
“You shouldn’t have come here,” Kaito chided as he shoved me into one of the private seating areas. He slipped onto the cushions and sat cross-legged as he grabbed one of the shot glasses and knocked it back.
The place reminded me of an upscale sushi restaurant—demon style. The low table boasted low blue flames that ran along the edges. I eyed them warily and ran my fingers over them, but it didn’t burn.
Kaito patted the pillow next to him. “Sit.”
“Kaito. We really don’t have time to sit around and drink. How are you paying for this anyway?” I propped my hands on my hips and glowered down at him.
He rolled his eyes and grabbed me by my skirt, yanking me down next to him. “Out of all the things you ask me, that’s your most pressing question? How I’m going to pay for drinks in Hell?”
I chuckled, because yeah, it did sound kind of ridiculous.
Sighing, I gave in and grabbed one of the shots and sniffed it.
“It’s not poisoned, if that’s what you’re worried about,” Kaito said as he took a bottle with a Japanese demon face on it and poured himself another one.
“You don’t know that,” I countered. “Jess admitted to dosing me with pureevilwhen we’d done shots together back at Cindy’s bar. Who knows what kind of drinks they serve here?”
He gave me a raised brow. “Well, I guess I stand corrected.”
“Damn straight.” I sniffed again and didn’t detect any of the sharp metallic tang I remembered from the drinks Jess had given me. Taking a sip, I was pleasantly surprised to find it sweet, so I knocked it back and stuck out my empty shot glass as I squinted one eye. “This one’s safe. I’ll take another.”
Kaito chuckled and poured. “This is strong stuff, so pace yourself.”
“I’d expect no less from a bar in Hell.”
We drank together in silence as the beat outside the halls gave the atmosphere a comforting drone. It felt like we could just stay here forever, drink and talk while Calamity and the end of the world passed right on by.
Except, the weight of responsibility nagged at me with every breath I took. I was the Champion of the Third Echo of Calamity and Kaito was one of my Virtues—the first one I had ever bonded with, yet the one I knew the least about.
“So are you going to tell me why your face is lighting up like a Christmas tree?” I asked as I leaned over the table and swayed my empty glass. Or maybe I was the one swaying. It was hard to tell.
He lifted up the half-depleted bottle and drank directly from the spout. I giggled after he choked on it and set it down. “Have you ever heard of aKami?”
I lifted an eyebrow. “No, should I?”
He sighed and twirled the bottle so the demon face looked at me. After so many drinks, it creeped me the fuck out. “This is aKami,” he announced, all ominous-like.
I turned the bottle away. “An ugly bottle with an addictively sweet center?” I pinched his cheek and then squealed when my elbow slipped off the table and I tumbled into his chest. “If you’re trying to tell me what you are, it’s not working,” I said, my words muffled by his shirt.
He frowned as I fumbled against him, but he didn’t push me away. Instead his arm wrapped around me and pulled me in close as he leaned against the corner of the small room. I’d never seen him like this, so distant and depressed. “My memories came back when you brought us here.” He glanced down at me, his once silver eyes now held an unmistakable red glow that I’d only seen in places of dark magic born of suffering—my Blood Stone and Dante’s dagger. “I’m a Japanese demon,Koneko-chan. One from the lower levels. This isn’t even my body—it’s my prison.”
I stared at him for a moment, then found that statement utterly hilarious as I burst out laughing.
“It’s not funny,” he chided as he pushed me off him and grabbed me by the shoulders. “I’m ademon. Don’t you get what this means? Dark magic created this body and one day my true form is going to escape. I was never supposed to leave Hell, but before I became human all I cared about was power. I scoured the damned souls until I found the prophecy that led me to you. I wanted to use you and that was wrong. I’m a danger to you, Lily.”
“Kaito,” I said as I steadied myself against his chest. The world around me spun but I had never felt more grounded. “It doesn’t matter how we found each other. You were a monster, so what? So am I. I’m the freakingprincessof the Underworld, or did you not hear what the other Demonspawn were saying?”
He blinked at me for a few times before thumping his back against the wall again. He brought his knees around me as I crawled up and rested against him. “Then we’re both screwed.”
I ran my fingers up his neck and traced the lines of his tattoo up his cheek. Warmth emanated from it and I recognized the dark magic now that it had come to life. “So there was a prophecy about me, huh?”
He nodded. “Ancient witch spirits said your name over and over again—your demon one, that is. Some can see fragments of the future and they all repeated the same vision.” He brushed a strand of hair away from my face and tucked it behind my ear. “They said that your chosen would rise and claim the ultimate power. I wanted to be one of those chosen, Lily. I infiltrated Fortune Academy and tricked Dante. He brought you to the Academy because of me.” He swiped a hand over his face. “All of this is my fault.”
I grabbed his wrist. “No, Kaito. You can’t look at it that way. You’ve changed, haven’t you? Do you still want ultimate power?”
He looked me in the eyes and I saw nothing but love, adoration, and raw pain. Whatever monster he thought he was, what he had once been, it was long gone. “All I want is you.”
I smiled. “Then that’s all that matters, because guess what, Kaito…” I leaned in and pressed a kiss to his lips before whispering my next words between us, “You have me.”
