~YULIA
I felt uneasy as I followed everyone to the large dining hall while Albus quietly walked beside me.
What did he mean by expecting the unexpected? My life was full of the unexpected anyway so what was making me uneasy?
The dining hall was large and spacious with chandeliers decorating the very high ceiling. The table was the strangest I had ever come across. I had no idea what material of wood it was made with.
“Obsidian,” Albus said as if reading my mind. “Very fragile though,” He added as he took a seat. The obsidian table was very long and I was certain it would take a lot of people.
How big was the Craven house?
I sat beside Albus and before I could say a word, Davina appeared with a pissed off expression on her face and plopped down beside Albus. He was sitting between us.
“It did not go well I presume?” Albus asked with humour in his voice.
“With that Lycan, nothing ever goes as planned,” Davina replied in an angry huff.
“What happened?” I asked Davina.
“Your uncle followed Iris Craven,” Davina replied with a disgusted frown and grabbed a drink from the table. She took a sip as if to wash away the taste of Iris’ name from her tongue.
“Funny fact,” Albus said. “Iris and Davina were in a sort of love triangle when they were students at my school.”
“Albus, are you going to keep telling everyone about my past?” Davina asked in a stern tone.
Albus merely chuckled kindly and shook his head.
“You do not seem to like the Cravens,” I said to Davina who scoffed in reply.
“Well, I do not like the fact that they walk around like they own everything and everyone,” Davina replied.
I realized that she fell really hard for Issa as I watched her closely. I wondered how many women felt this way about Issa. My mind went back to the odd werewolf family. The Rasputin family. I had seen the way the Luna, Olga had gazed at Issa despite the fact that she was Mated. I believed that the Alpha was aware of this.
“You seem to have a lot of thoughts on your mind,” Albus said as he opened up the plate that was deftly placed in his front by the ever-wandering servants of the Craven household.
“I am just wondering how a soul bound to a Lycan is,” I replied thoughtfully.
“The Soul Mate Bond is a bit different with Lycans,” Albus replied. “They are not fully bound by it like other werewolves, they can fall in love with others even when bonded to their soul mates,” Albus explained as he adjusted his silver rimmed glasses.
I did not like that at all. The image of Issa with other women filled my mind with a small brewing rage.
“But there is nothing to worry about,” Albus continued. “Lycans are eternally faithful to their mates as they eventually grow tired of their lovers, the power of the soul mate bond trumps everything,” He said.
“That explains why they keep offering him their daughters,” I mused.
“Who is offering who their daughters?” Davina abruptly asked me.
“This werewolf family, Petre and Olga,” I said.
Davina cursed angrily. “Rasputins,” she said like it was not the first time this was happening. “I warned them not to try and change their daughters’ fate, it will affect them later in life.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, curious to know what she was talking about.
“Werewolves have fated soul mates, it could take years or even a lifetime but they eventually find their mate, some try to alter their fate because they tire of the waiting,” Davina explained.
“That is what the Rasputins are doing with their daughters,” I mused.
“Which is wrong,” Davina added in an annoyed tone.
“How do you know so much about werewolves? I thought you were just a witch?” I asked as I recalled Davina being introduced as the Head Witch of Blue Lake Coven.
“That is why Canis Academy exists,” Albus interjected. “Knowledge is a very powerful tool in this day and age, Ms. Moonshadow,” He added.
“How old is Canis Academy?” I asked because that was the next question that came to my mind.
Albus chuckled. “Let us just say, Canis is very ancient, the exact age of the school is still being debated,” He replied.
“That means you must be very old yourself,” I said, peering closely at Albus. He looked old too.
“That I am,” Albus said and for the first time, I could hear the strain of old age in his wizened voice.
I looked around. “I still have not seen your Mate though,” I said.
Albus laughed heartily and even Davina smiled. I was confused at their reaction.
“Ms. Moonshadow, I am not of the wolf kind,” He said with humour.
My eyes widened at his words. I glanced at Davina in awe and confusion.
“So, what are you then, because you definitely cannot be human. It would be suicide if a human is a chancellor of an academy like Canis,” I said.
“I am not human, Ms, Moonshadow, that much is correct, I am what you call a Mage,” He replied with a twinkle in his eyes.
How was he still alive? I wondered.
“I know you are thinking about how and why I still breathe,” He said.
Could he read my mind?
“I have studied the secrets of the universe, so prolonging my life is a…how do you teenagers call it…a piece of cake,” He said with a smile.
“Wow,” I said, unable to come up with a reply.
“Yes, I get a reaction like that every time,” He said with a light chuckle.
“You must have seen a lot of things in your lifetime,” I said.
“And every day I still get surprised and learn something new,” He replied.
“Do you want to know a secret?” He asked. I nodded, speechless.
“Canis Academy was once called Moonheart University.”