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Liam and I face off on the mat, both of us drenched in sweat.

It's been around a month since Saoghal started channeling. I'd started channeling lessons with Professor Carr, and I think he either saw me as an interesting experiment or he hated my ass. Every chance he got, he would test my limits and watch me like a hawk, either waiting to see if I'll explode or simply be unable to perform. So far it's been the latter.

While I'm not as bad as some of the students in my class, I'm certainly far from the best. I can hardly lift a small stone without my head feeling like it's about to pop from the pressure.

Liam throws the first punch. I duck swiftly and skip behind him. I don't have the chance to put him in a chokehold, because he's already facing me, fists up.

I launch an attack at his torso, which is left fairly undefended, but pull back when he lands a blow to my shoulder. "Fuck," I curse, skipping back out of his reach. "How did you get so good?"

Liam shrugs, grinning. "You pick up a few tricks when you're a marked one," he says in a vague explanation. I roll my eyes, before launching myself at him. I manage to land a blow to his face from my use of surprise—mostly luck—and he stumbles back.

Liam quickly gathers his wits again, however, and throws blow after blow with his fists. I'm forced to retreat to the corner of the mat until I finally spot an opening on his left.

I dart to the side, not stepping off the mat, as I slip past his blows. I kick his knees in from behind, and Liam falls onto his stomach. He's about to roll over when I step up onto his broad back, eliciting a groan from him.

"Got you," I say tauntingly, leaning over slightly from where I stand on top of him. "Do you yield?"

Liam holds out for a moment longer, but I lean my weight forward so the brunt of it is over his lungs. "Yield," he chokes out and I hop off his back, leaving the man gasping for breath. "Holy shit, Ria. You fight dirty."

I shrug as I walk over to the bench where Violet's armor lays drying. We sit down next to each other, and I let Liam take a swig of water from my canteen. "Fair isn't the only way to win," I say, nudging his shoulder. "As long as you win, right?"

Liam grins. "As long as you win," he agrees.

We watch Rhiannon and Violet spar in silence for a moment. I can hear them bickering and talking, but don't really try to listen in. I only really pay attention when Xaden walks in, Garrick  at his side, as usual.

"Go away unless you have something useful to say," Violet snaps at him. She continues to battle with Rhiannon as Xaden walks by.

"Move faster," Xaden supplies. "You'll be less likely to die. How's that for useful?"

"Incredibly!" I call as Xaden and Garrick take up fighting stances on a mat nearby. "Your insight is just invaluable, Riorson. I'm sure no one else would be able to supply us with that just brilliant piece of advice." I pause as he shoots me a glare, before adding, "You must've taken forever with that one!"

"The way you talk to him," Rhiannon mutters. I can't tell if she's talking about me or Violet—probably both.

"What's he going to do, kill me?" Violet counters as she launches an attack at Rhiannon's legs with her staff.

"You're likely to kill eachother," Liam cuts in. "Can't wait to see how you two function after graduation."

"Oh yeah," I say, remembering that their dragons are bonded. "You guys are tied together now, aren't you? How's that going to work? Can Tairn and Sgaeyl even be separated?"

"Haven't let myself think past this week," Violet says with a grunt as she narrowly dodges one of Rhiannons swings, "let alone all the way to graduation."

"Look," Rhiannon says tentatively, "I know you're...aggravated by how long it's taking Tairn to channel. I'm just saying on this mat with me is a way safer place for you to take out that anger than the giant, shadow-weilding wingleader."

"She'd be fine," I say with a grin. "Let's throw them in a pit and see who lasts the longest. That could be a great anger-reliever."

Rhiannon and Violet both glare at me, but there's no real anger behind their looks. I smirk at them. "I don't want to take any of my anger out on you," Violet says, turning back to Rhiannon. "He's the one I can't shake because he thinks I'm his weakness. But does he help me? No. Does he train me? No. He's remarkably good at showing up when I'm about to die and eliminating threats, but that's it."

"So there's definitely some anger there," Rhiannon notices after a moment of processing Violet's rant.

"Which is why my pit idea is so great," I mutter under my breath. Liam shoves me with his shoulder and I nearly go toppling off the edge of the bench. I recover my wits and flip him off, wrinkling my nose at him. He just laughs.

"You would be furious if someone took your freedome away," Violet snaps. "If you had Liam at your door every morning until every night, even as seemingly great as he is."

"I appreciate that," Liam says.

"'Seemingly'?" I give him a glance out of the corner of my eye. "Is there something I should know, Liam?" Liam rolls his eyes.

"Yeah," Rhiannon says in agreement with Violet. "I would. And I'm pissed on your behalf. Now, let's put that anger to use." Rhiannon and Violet continue to spar, and I marvel at the change in Violet since Parapet.

No longer was she the quiet, frail girl who everyone underestimated. While she may still be fragile, she was infinitely stronger and no longer obviously struggling on the mat. Whatever Imogen has been doing to her with the weights has been working, and I can see the new muscles on her forearms as she swings her staff.

Suddenly, Violet and Rhiannon stop sparring. Their gazes are turned toward the center of the room, wearing Xaden and Garrick battle viciously. I wouldn't have wasted a second glance on the pair were it not for the fact that they'd stripped their shirts off with all of their muscle-y glory on display.

I only realize I'm staring when Liam says teasingly, "Stop objectifying our wingleader." I don't bother looking away.

"Is that what we're doing?" Rhiannon asks.

"Yeah, I think that's what we're doing," Violet replies breathlessly.

"What?" I startle and jerk my gaze away. "No. I would never look at Riorson like that. Ew."

Liam snorts in response.

"We could just be watching for technique," Rhiannon suggests.

Violet nods in absentminded agreement. "Yeah. We absolutely could be."

"Crazy, those two are," I shake my head in mock disbelief on scoff. "Can you believe this? Wingleader. He's our wingleader."

"Ah, yes," Liam nods gravely. "You wouldn't ever do something like that. Come on, you, Ria? You could never do something so frowned upon, rule follower that you are."

"Never," I agree, before my gaze wanders back to Xaden and Garrick. Liam laughs as I'm once again drawn to the battling pair.

"If you guys are this easily distracted, we're fucked for the Squad Battle," Dain snaps in annoyance. I contemplate continuing to stare just to spite him, but come to the conclusion that the reward would not out-weigh the price. "You can kiss any thought of visiting the front-lines goodbye." Rhiannon and Violet jolt back into reality and face off once again. "Get back to work. We have another half hour."

"Should we?" Rhiannon asks Violet, raising her staff.

"Yep, we definitely should." Violet raises her staff as well, rolling her shoulders and adjusting her stance. I wince as Rhiannon sweeps Violet off her feet in one fell swoop, and the smaller woman lands on her back with a thud and a groan.

"Shit, I'm sorry, Vi!" Rhiannon kneels beside her. "Just relax and give it a second."

I can predict the trouble that's about to unfold as Jack Barlowe stalks over. "And yet that is the rider that Tairn chose," he taunts, folding his arms over his chest as he stares at Violet menacingly. "I'm starting to think he chose wrong, and considering I haven't seen you wield any powers, I bet you're thinking the  same thing, aren't you, Sorrengail? Shouldn't you have twice the ability to channel with two dragons?"

Liam moves from his place next to me on the bench to between Jack and Violet. My friend continues to lay gasping for air on the mat.

"Simmer down, Mairi," Jack mocks, "I'm not going to attack your little charge. Not when I can just challenge her in a couple weeks and accidentally snap her scrawny neck in front of an audience." He pauses, sneering down at Violet. "Tell me, though, you are getting tired of playing the nursemaid, aren't you?" One of Jack's friends offers him a slice of orange, and I tilt my head to the side as I watch him shove his friend away. "Get that noxious shit away from me. Do you want me to end up in the infirmary?" Interesting.

"Walk the fuck away, Barlowe," Liam warns, dagger already poised in his hand. But it's not Liam that makes Jack struggle to conceal his fear.

Because Xaden has finally decided to make his dramatic entrance, standing over Violet with his arms crossed over his bare chest as he narrows his eyes at the first year.

"She's only alive because of you," Jack spits, trying to maintain the upper hand, but he knows that he's lost already.

"Right, because I'm the one who buried a dagger in your shoulder at Threshing," Xaden counters as Violet scrambles to her feet.

"We could settle this now," Jack says, and he adjusted his position so he can look at Violet straight in her eyes. I finally move to stand, but Xaden shoots me a glance that has me sitting back down. This is Violet's battle to fight. "If you're done hiding behind the big, strong men."

When Violet doesn't reply, Jack blows Violet a mocking kiss. "That's what I thought," he sneers.

"You ran," Violet snarls, finally finding her voice again. "That day in the field, you fucking ran, when it was three on one, and we both know when it comes down to it, you'll run again. That's what cowards do." Jack flushes angrily and Dain runs a hand over his face in exasperation.

"Oh, for fucks sake, Violet," Dain mutters.

"Go, Violet," I murmur under my breath.

"She's not wrong," Xaden says dryly. Jack leaps at Violet furiously, but he's quickly intercepted by Liam, who muscles him off the mat and out of the gym. Jack struggles to hold his ground, but Liam gives him one final shove and Xaden flicks his hand at the doors, slamming them shut with one push of his shadows.

"What the hell were you thinking, egging him on like that?" Dain explodes wildly, stomping toward Violet.

She raises her chin. "Oh, now you feel like talking to me?" she snaps, and Dain doesn't get a chance to reply. Xaden steps between the two, his gaze not on Dain but on Violet. She stares into his eyes boldly, and even from my seat off to the side I can see the rage simmering behind those onyx irises.

"Give us a second," he growls. Dain only waits a second before backing off, and Liam returns to my side, flopping down on the bench.

"I bet my dragon they kill each other here and now," I whisper to Liam as we watch the pair snarl at each other back and forth.

"Your dragon? Damn," Liam scoffs just as quietly. "I'd say they're going to wait just a little bit longer. Maybe at the end of the week." I frown.

"The end of the week?" I mutter. "That's a long time. You really think they have that much—" I don't get to finish my sentence, because a tendril of shadow had snuck up behind me and wrapped itself around my mouth. I try to exclaim, "Hey!" but it comes out more like, "Huhmph!" Xaden doesn't avert his gaze from Violet.