Warsong | Celeste Academy Series Book #4

Chapter Three ⚜ Dresses and Dainty Ribbons

"You've been looking so glum all day, Val," Genevieve said. "I'm guessing the talk hasn't gone all too well with that chubby girl."

Tamara looked up at the mention of Valeriana's friend that she had to quirk a brow, lifting her eyes from examining her nails. "What chubby, you good-for-nothing?" she asked the younger of the twins.

"Wasn't that her name?"

"Idiot," Aneeka interjected. "It's Charvy."

"You stupid girls," Tamara rolled her eyes. "Trying to correct somebody else when you aren't any better. It is Chavi Goodwin, duh."

Valeriana shook her head at the exchange between the three girls. "You all got it wrong."

"Then what?" Tamara adamantly refused to back down.

"It's Chavi Audwin."

"At least I got the first name right," the third-ranker muttered. "Doesn't matter anyhow, not like anybody cares at all. Anyhow, care to tell us what happened during your prison visit?" she asked.

They were currently in Tamara's room hanging about doing nothing but going through her excessively flamboyant woman's wardrobe. The dresses she had were ridiculously extravagant and appropriate for the ball. Elfre had no problems with dresses and was only lending the other girls a hand in choosing theirs. With the ball coming in two days, the preparations were big. While the guys had no problems with the clothes they were going to wear, the girls were up about like bees fussing over how they would look. Tamara was otherwise. She could care less.

"I just . . . don't get it." She threw her hands in the air and blinked up at Genevieve through the open doors of Tamara's walk-in closet. "It's like Chavi was possessed. And she didn't even answer me when I asked her."

"Figures, why would she tell you?" Aneeka asked, holding up a brilliant yellow gown under her chin.

"Body possession is not a simple game, Val," Genevieve said. "The only type of demons I've seen that can do that had to eat the soul before they could take their hosts' place. But, without the soul, the body would slowly rot and it'd be obvious in a few days' time."

"But Chavi was still there. I'm sure she was still there."

"You sure she's not fooling you?"

"I don't know, I could not tap into my connection with auras since the room had a nullifying quality, but her eyes. She didn't look like lying."

"Well, she betrayed you before. Not just you, actually. But the entire school," Elfre told her. "And she acted way too good. Don't you think she can do it again?"

"I don't want to believe it."

"Well, you have to," Tamara insisted. "Why do you trust her so much? You've only been together for like . . . four months."

"Just like how much I trust you guys," she told them, looking directly into Tamara's blue eyes with utmost sincerity.

If they were measuring the period of time she had known Chavi, Valeriana had known her a bit longer than the rest of the Twelve—in exception for Corvan and Courtney. Tamara shrugged, backing down as she obviously did not have anything against that. However, compared to Chavi, most of the ranking members of the Circle came from prominent backgrounds. About half of the group was composed of nobilities, and the other half was left to other people. In other words, there was no questioning their integrity and loyalty.

Valeriana silently wondered. Had there been any incident of nobilities turning into a demon and betraying their fellow Valemnians? For sure, there must have been a few cases—only that they wouldn't be publicized as they were disgraceful.