Springbrook Academy: Born Of Fire

Boys

Previous day after school....

Nate, Ryder, and Tate all meet up at home after school. They are adopted brothers, but have known each other since birth. Their parents had all been friends, and when they were all 4 years old, their parents had gone on their annual trip up north. Their plane had crashed. Their bodies had never been recovered, and after weeks of searching, it was presumed that they had passed away and they were declared dead. Ryder's grandparents adopted all three of them and have been raising them since. They felt extremely blessed to have each other.

They each take turns talking about Emma and realize they are all talking about the same person. They stare at each other.

"She is all of our mate? Like we share her? I've never heard of this before, and how will that work?" Ryder says while looking upset.

Tate holds his hands up. "I've heard of it before, but it's rare and usually means that she is powerful. It didn't look like she recognized the mate pull, so she may have to be touched to trigger it. I just had to look into her eyes and hear her voice. Ryder could smell her, and you said that you felt the pull when you met her eyes, too."

Nate nods his head, "Yeah, and honestly, I don't have a problem with us having the same mate. We just need to get to know her and hope she'll accept us. We're huge guys, and having three mates may scare the hell out of her. I hope she doesn't reject us or run." He starts rubbing his jaw line. He tends to do that when he's worried.

Ryder decided right there and then that he was going to make sure their mate fell in love with them. Suddenly, he sits up and yells, "shit, I forgot to tell you what I heard her telling Jen!"

Ryder grimly relays what Emma had gone through and how that may make their job of getting her to trust and love them even harder. They had their work cut out for them.

"I'm going to research who this guy was and see what his background is because this sounds a lot like something that the counsel may be behind."Tate said.

The counsel was a group that believed they were being wrongfully held back by the restrictions the God's had put on supernaturals and were determined to circumvent them. Their ultimate goal was to increase their powers and gifts by any means necessary. No one knew much more about the counsel. No members had ever been identified, but they would claim responsibility for atrocities against supes and humans throughout the centuries. They did not care about the consequences that would be held against them.

Ryder looks around at his best friends and brothers and says, "we need to do everything we can to make sure she's safe and falls in love with us. I've always wanted a mate, and if she's ours, then she's as special as I thought she was."

"I, for one, think we need to be upfront and lay it out for her," Tate says.

He doesn't beat around the bush. He's a very straightforward person, and while he can be a little blunt, he's genuine and caring. There is no one else who had their back like he did.

"Well, let's not scare the shit out of her either. We have to be careful," Ryder cautioned.

We had decided to let her know tomorrow we were all mates. We'd see how things played out.

"I'm worried about the danger she's in. If this guy had her once, he would be determined to get to her again. We can't let that happen. I'm going to talk to Grandpa Bob and see if he can help with some of the background info we are looking for." Nate gets up and heads out to the garden where grandpa Bob was tending to his prized flower beds.

Tate and I each go to our rooms to think about how we were going to show Emma we were mates.

Nate's point of view....

I make my way outside admiring the garden as I approach Grandpa Bob. He was fae with the gift of earth elemental powers. He had one of the most beautiful gardens in the state and was very proud of it. He straightened as he turned towards me. Being fae, he had an ethereal beauty. Short dark hair and green eyes framed by long dark lashes, full lips, and a square jaw. He was lilthely built with corded long muscles that gave him a sleek look. He had been married to Grandma Maddie for decades. She was a witch with water powers. Both of them looked to be in their 40s and not their real age of 120. This was pretty typical with supernaturals. We tend to age very slowly after our 18th birthday. Their love was something that each of us dreamt of someday having ourselves.

I stop in front of him and tell him all about everything that has happened the last couple of days.

He chuckles and says, "Congrats on finding your mate! That is some happy news indeed. We'll tell Maddie about it tonight and celebrate with dinner. As for researching, I can tell you what I know, and I have a friend who can make a trip down here to help out. He has some ancient tomes that may be useful."

He scratches his head thinking and says, "So for people with multiple mates, that usually means they are powerful and the multiple mates ensures their safety. Each mate will possess powers and skills that will be needed. Three mates also has a special meaning, the number 3 was considered as the perfect number, the number of harmony, wisdom, and understanding. It was also the number of time - past, present, future - birth, life, death; beginning, middle, end - it was the number of the divine."

I stand there trying to take that all in. Whoa! That was way more than I thought I'd get right now, but it does bring some things into perspective.

Bob continues with, "The number four is one of support and stability. So, the fact that there are four of you total means that there are going to be some significant changes, and you all are at the center of it. Brace yourself because things are going to start happening pretty quickly now that you all have found her."

"Thanks, Grandpa Bob! I'm going to go let the others know and we'll see you at dinner." I wave bye.

"I'll let you know when we can expect Pervil. He'll have more information that you'll need for what's to come." Grandpa Bob pulls out his phone and dials, and I head inside.