All of the rooms in the student quarters were more or less identical, from what I’d managed to glimpse. At least I didn’t have to share, and the rules seemed pretty lax. No strict curfew, just a note to be considerate of others—that was the difference between life at coven school and something tantamount to college. Plus, I had my own bathroom, which was a godsend, tucked away behind a narrow door that I could barely squeeze through. These rooms resided in an annex off the East Wing, with the male quarters in a different annex nearby.
Crossing to the door, I winced at the icy nip of the stark stone floor beneath my bare feet. I had to remember to put slippers on my list of necessary items for my mom to send through.
She left me in that box… I shook away the illogical thought. It was only a nightmare—an actual one, not a Leviathan-infused hypnosis. I could feel the difference; my head didn’t feel invaded, like it had when Leviathan had wriggled in. I took a steadying breath and opened the door to find Genie standing in the hallway.
“Finally! I was about ready to break down the door.” Genie grinned at me, only for her smile to fade quickly. “What’s up? You look all… sweaty and feverish. Are you sick? I heard there’s this thing called Fresher’s Flu that hits the new recruits in their first week. Do you need me to round up some meds for you?”
I put my hands up in mock defense. “Easy, there, I only woke up two seconds ago. I can manage a maximum of one pre-coffee question.”
“Sorry. I’ve just been on a run around the grounds, so I’m pretty jazzed.” She took a deep, meditative breath. “Are you feeling okay? It wasn’t a… you-know-what, was it?”
I shook my head. “That was technically two questions. But no, it wasn’t a Purge. It’s been”—I counted out the days on my fingers—“five days since the exam, and I haven’t had any symptoms. I think this place is already doing me some good.”
“Either that, or this Mama of Monsters thing is like food poisoning.”
“Huh?” My mind was still way too preoccupied with the dream to decipher her metaphors.
Just seeing her standing there was both relieving and triggering, since she’d abandoned me in that dream like everyone else. But I needed to push the thought away before it ruined my day entirely. After five days of settling in, we were finally having our orientation, and I wasn’t going to let any stupid, separation-anxiety nightmare get in the way of my first proper day as a student. Plus, I had some catching up to do, socially speaking. While the other students had been exploring and getting to know one another at planned events, I’d spent most of my time recovering from the banshee, going back and forth between my room and the infirmary for checkups. Genie had stuck with me, not wanting me to feel alone, but I worried she might’ve missed out by playing nurse. Still, we’d have plenty of time to mingle now that we were getting into proper Institute business.
Genie smiled, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “The flu. It’s supposed to be rough as heck for the first few days, but then it all plateaus and you don’t have to keep running to the bathroom every ten minutes.”
“I hope so,” I admitted. This was the longest I’d gone without Purging since getting the worst birthday present in history, so either Genie was right… or I was due a doozy of a beast birth. I prayed it was the former.
“So, why all sweaty? I know you haven’t been running.” She squinted curiously, as if she could read the problem on my face.
“That’s because, as you know, running is for psychopaths. You’ll never convince me otherwise.” I bit the bullet and told her: “I had a dream. A bad one.”
She gasped and lunged forward, pressing her palm to my forehead to check for a fever. “Like, a Leviathan dream?"
"He was in it, but it wasn't one of his, if that makes sense. At least, I don’t think so. It didn’t have the same vibe as before, and he wasn’t doing any romancing, unless you count a few unsavory brushes.” I removed her hands and held them for a minute as I explained the dream. When I finished, she looked at me with genuine horror.
“You know I’d never do that, right? They’d have to go through me if they ever even thought about putting you in a box.”
“I know. It was just a dream.” If I kept saying it, I was certain I’d eventually convince myself. “Everything’s new here. I’m in a strange bed in a strange room that doesn’t feel like home yet, and we’ve got orientation today, so I think it was probably an anxiety dream.”
Genie nodded in understanding. “I’m with you on that. I had a horde of seahorse-mounted Atlanteans chasing after me with tridents last night. Stereotypical, totally implausible, but very unnerving.”
I laughed, the residual jitters dissipating. “Did they catch up to you?”
“I don’t know. I woke up when I got pronged in the butt cheek.” She ushered me gently back into my room. “Now, get your peachy butt into some clothes so we can get coffees before orientation starts. And trust me when I say I wouldn’t let anyone put you in a box. You could Purge elephant-sized chickens for two weeks straight, and I’d still bite anyone who came near you.”
“I thought Victoria warned you about the biting?” I asked, smiling.
“She said I couldn’t bite any of her people,” Genie reminded me.
After the banshee debacle, she’d apparently bared her teeth—figuratively and literally. It certainly explained why a few of the other students had been wary around her when we’d done
