Chapter 6

Evan

Jackson was waiting for us in front of our house. His grave expression made my blood run cold. It was not often you saw him unhappy, so the demeanor change was unsettling. He approached the car as Maverick was helping me out.

"They want you in the auditorium."

Maverick simply nodded.

"You want me to change?" I asked, grimacing as I took in my jeans and shirt, my belly on full display.

"No. They already know and it's not like out outfits will make a difference." Maverick took my hand and all three of us made our way across campus.

We received some stares on our way. For the first time, people could see that I was not only pregnant, but also in a relationship with a professor. I smiled. Luckily they couldn't treat me any worse.

Jason and Gordon were leering at us as we took the steps to the auditorium. There were secret smiles on their faces. Maverick and Jackson glared at them.

Even though this was scary, I was a little bit glad it came out. My belly was getting harder to hide and it would become even more difficult as time went on. Even the oversized shirts and hoodies were getting to be a bit obvious. And it was so hot to layer up.

Maverick took a moment to steel himself before he pushed open the heavy door. Jackson would wait outside, ready if we needed him.

My hand was sweating, but Maverick didn't seem to care as he just gripped me tighter.

The meeting auditorium consisted of curved tables set in a circle with an opening on one side. There were three wooden tables seating four people each. It was specifically here if a council meeting was ever called at the academy. The middle was left bare for the accused -apparently us- to stand. Everything was brightly lit and modern white, in stark contrast to the dark clothes of the twelve elders already seated.

I gulped.

As soon as we took our place in the ring and faced the middle table, a man stood up.

"You have been accused of coercing a student into a relationship with you, Professor Maverick Monroe. How do you plead?" The elder's voice sounded tired and crackly.

"Not guilty," Maverick said clearly.

The elders gave him looks ranging from astonishment to anger, looking quite obviously at our clasped hands and my belly.

"Well, what would you call this then?" The elder motioned to me. If the elders appeared in front of others, only the head elder is allowed to speak. The others are allowed to negotiate, raise questions and give opinions when the council meets in a different room to discuss what happened. They want to appear as a united front. It was ancient protocol.

"His name is Evan, not this. And I'd call him my soulbound. Parent to my child. Love of my life." He paused and took a deep breath. "But I will admit... I must also call him my student."

Eyebrows were raised and little scoffing sounds reverberated around the room. Maverick had told me to let him do the talking, which was fine by me as I had no idea what to say. Why couldn't we just be left alone?

"Yes, he is a student at this academy. Placed in your care, under your authority and-"

"He's not a child." The elder's jaw fell open. No one was to interrupt an elder. My hand tightened in Maverick's. "Let's get one thing clear. Evan is twenty two. He's not underaged. He's not devoid of his own opinions. He's a man. Just as capable as you and I. Let's not pretend the situation is anything else."

The elder huffed, but apparently let the insubordination slide for now. I breathed a sigh of relief. "Be that as it may. It is still wrong."

He sounded so much like a petulant child that I fought hard not to laugh.

"I understand that. And believe me, I tried to fight the connection for as long as I could. But many of you will know how difficult it is. As elves, we crave to claim the other part of our soul. To become whole again. How is it fair that it is praised in some instances and rediculed in others?"

"This bearer is a student here."

"Evan is a student, you're right. But what difference would a few months have made? We'd still be connected. We'd still have claimed each other a year later. The timeline is irrelevant. What we are to each other won't change."

"The Hennecky Clan took this-" Maverick shot the elder a scathing look, "uh, Evan, under their wing. They cared for him and protected him. You didn't even ask their permission I hear. They were worried sick. The bare minimum-"

"Protected me!?" I didn't realise the booming voice was coming from me until a second later, but now, my blood was boiling. "What bullshit," I spat. The Elder Council gasped as one. "You heard me. I'll stand by that statement. For years, I was forced to live with them. Cater to their every whim. When they felt like beating someone, they beat me. When they felt like starving someone, they starved me. When they wanted anything, it was up to me to provide it." My voice was losing power, a sob creeping up in my throat. "I don't know what they told you, but they didn't protect me. They never gave me a second's peace. Never had a kind word to say to me. They hate me. And you know what? I hate them too."

A deathly silence fell over the auditorium. Many mouths were hanging open. The head councilman looked vaguely concerned. Maverick squeezed my hand in support and I shot him a grateful smile. I quickly wiped an errant tear from my cheek with my free hand.

"When I met Maverick," I surprised even myself by speaking out of turn once more, "I felt like life had no meaning. Everyday felt more tedious that the last and I was prepared to end it all. Things haven't always been perfect. We tried to resist, but the soulbound bond drew us together. He's my everything. The father to my baby, my first friend, my protector, my forever. You made it sound dirty. Vile. Something so beautiful. Something so loving. You can say what tou want about the timing of the relationship, but I won't listen to another second of you degrading it. Maverick has given my life purpose and I'm so grateful he came to me when I needed him the most."

As my energy ran out, I turned to Maverick, took his face in my hands to give him a kiss before once more facing the silent council.

The head councilman cleared his throat. "Be that as it may. We have no witnesses to this alleged abuse, while we have many witnesses from the Hennecky Clan who can vouch-"

"Actually," a women stood at the end of the table to our left, "we have witnesses to the abuse." She stepped towards the head councilman and handed him a few papers. "This was handed to me before we sat down and I've been reading through them until now. In there, you will find the testimonies of professor Jackson, doctor Nathan, and no less than six students in Evan's year that can vouch to either having seen the attacks happen, or seen the aftereffects."

As she took her seat, my eyes widened. Who would have testified against the Henneckys? More importantly, who would have stood in my defence?

The head councilman looked over the papers. He sputtered. "Well, we still have two students who-"

"What, Julian's boys?" A dark skinned man from the table at the right snorted. The head councilman looked on in annoyance. I'd never heard of an instance where the council had openly defied their leader in such a stunning display. "We all know Jason and Gordon are as cruel as their father."

"And as stupid," another councilmember added under his breath.

I fought to hide my laughter as the head councilman spun to glare in the direction the words had come from. Everyone suddenly looked occupied elsewhere.

"Perhaps we shall retreat to discuss this further and take a vote."

"No need, I think. A cheery woman with vibrant pink hair said. "I believe most of us are on the same page. So, in the spirit of majority rules and all that, let's take a vote. All in favour of letting this matter go as a young elf who met his soulbound at the academy and chose to be with him immediately rather than wait, raise your hand."

Ten of the twelve hands were raised.

"Right then," the pink haired councilmember said, "let's pack up so that we can all go home for the weekend. Clearly, this was one big misunderstanding. Maverick, I apologise for suggesting you did anything untoward against your soulbound. To the both of you, I hope you will be very happy together. And congratulations on the baby." She winked at me.

"You do not speak for the council!" The head councilman's face turned red as he screamed. The man next to him, the other person to not raise his hand, tried to calm him down to no avail. The other members continued packing their bags.

"I think that you will find, Finnegan, that she does," the dark skinned man said. He got up from his chair. "When is the next inter-council election again?" He asked the person next to him conversationally.

"I think that's our cue to leave," Maverick whispered, taking my upper arm and leading me to a waiting Jackson and Nathan, who had apparently driven here as soon as he could.

We embraced tearfully.

"What happened in there?" I asked, voice still full of awe.

"Well..." Nathan drew out the word. "One of the councilmembers is from my clan and I've known her from birth. She's really nice and very open-minded. So I went through the liberty of sending statements to her that Jackson and I had prepared a while ago. You know, just in case. If we never needed it, fine. But better safe than sorry."

"And some of the other elves in your year are actually not horrible, Evan." Jackson drew Nathan closer to him by the waist. "One of the girls is from our clan and she heard about your request to join. She must have put two and two together and asked me whether you two needed anyone as a character witness for the council hearing that would undoubtedly be in your future. So we recruited her and anyone who was willing to help with the statements to turn in to the council if it was ever needed. Something tells me we're about to see a major change in how the Elder Council is run."

The two of them looked so pleased with themselves.

"I don't think I've ever loved you more." Jackson burst out laughing at Maverick's statement as they embraced.

"Ditto. You two are amazing." Nathan beamed at my words. "Now that all this is over... do you think we can still get that ice cream?"

"As long as we can join and we can still squeeze in baby shopping afterwards. You're not the only one in need of onesies."

My jaw dropped at Jackson's words. My eyes snapped to Nathan. "You're...?"

I couldn't even finish my sentence, but I didn't have to. "I thought we were going to wait to tell them!" Nathan admonished.

"Oops. I got excited." Jackson looked sheepish.

Nathan sighed. "It's okay. I wanted to tell them, too. It's still early days, but for the record, I hope our babies are going to be best friends."

I hugged him one last time for good measure. "I'm so happy for you," I whispered in his ear.

"I'm happy for us. Now, how about that ice cream?" Nathan asked Jackson.

"Always, my love. Always."

I laughed at their antics as Maverick tucked me under his arm, kissed my head and whispered his I love yous in my ear.

*****

Two weeks later, I was still riding the high of finally being able to show my love for Maverick in public. Even better, the clan had accepted my membership and I was finally part of a family. Some elves had even started talking to me in the time between classes. I could barely believe my life had changed so much. All because the Hennecky Clan were losing their standing at the academy.

Maverick reached across the center console to grip my hand. We were quickly approaching the lodge where all his clan was gathered to welcome me. My hands we sweating. What if they didn't like me? Well, I guess it was too late now. They'd already accepted me. Surely they couldn't go back on that?

Just as I was about to ask, the giant gates swung open before us and the words got stuck in my throat. The giant wooden house was decorated in hundreds of fairy lights. People were milling about on the front lawn. Everything looked so inviting.

As soon as we emerged from the car, all attention turned to us. There were many curious expressions, but so many more of joy. Maverick took my arm and gently led me to a big man.

"Evan, this is Harry, our Clanmaster."

I obediently shook his hand, thanked him for welcoming me and was promptly ushered onwards to meet all the others. Names and faces blurred together. I had no idea how I would ever recognise any of these people again. Everyone congratulated me on my soulbound connection, my baby and, of course, joining the clan. They seemed genuinely happy to have me there.

My heart was already brimming with gratitude when a bouncy woman approached me. "Hi! I'm Chelsea. I know you probably don't recognise me, but I'm in your year at the academy. I'm so happy you're here, and I would love it if we could become friends. I'll introduce you to the others at the academy."

She looked so hopeful, I nearly laughed. Someone hopeful I'd be their friend? Now there's a first.

I gave her my warmest smile. "That'll be great, thank you. But I don't want you to feel obligated-"

I was cut off by a sharp sweep of her hand. "For years, everyone has been blindly following the Hennecky Clan's wishes. We were all too scared to oppose them and you paid the price. No more. We'll never let their vile ways corrupt us again."

That sounded good to me. As I chatted with Chelsea, I couldn't help but think how strange it was that this was my life now. I smiled. It sounded like a pretty good life to me.