"Look at me," I murmured, barely moving my lips.

He did. Merlin's eyes met mine and I could see how hard he was clenching his jaw.

"Relax." I smiled at him. From the outside, I knew it looked friendly, like I was talking to a close friend. "You can't make people like you, Merlin. And if they don't, fuck them. Have you tried venturing outside of your mage and witch circles long enough to try and find someone who is compatible with you?"

His eyebrows scrunched together.

"You haven't, have you?" That was insane. He was wasting his life.

He shook his head slowly.

If I had learned anything in the ten minutes we'd been inside, it was that Merlin was right. He wasn't well liked within this circle of people. And it wasn't his doing. People looked to his mother and father before turning back to him and reacting to him being here. Like they wanted to make sure they were seen outwardly shunning him.

"Merlin."

We turned and his mother and father were there, practically looking down their noses at him.

He nodded a hello, and it was then that I realized that Merlin had been abused. By them. And as much as I didn't really care for the guy, that was unacceptable.

"And you are?" His mom raised her eyebrows at me.

"Nova," I answered. "I'd say it's nice to meet you, but I'd be lying."

Merlin stared at me incredulously, even as his mother's eyes widened.

Honestly, there were times I hated how much I pitied the pitiful. I got this stupid urge to protect Merlin all of a sudden, and if I learned anything about myself in the past few months, when I protected, I did so fiercely.

I didn't know if I'd ever see Merlin after this gathering. Hell, I didn't know if I'd even speak to him again. But he was standing by me, bracing himself for something they were going to say or do. He shouldn't be that on guard when someone spoke to him. That was ridiculous.

"Excuse me," his mother finally asked.

"I don't make it a habit of communicating with people who look like they have an entire fucking log up their ass." I smiled.

His father's eyes flashed in anger, and when Merlin took a small step back, I took a step forward. So it was his father. His mother was probably emotionally abusive, but his father terrified him.

His father glared at me. "You don't get to come here and curse at-"

"I can do what I fucking please, old man." I moved slightly sideways, successfully putting myself between father and son.

"Nova," Merlin pleaded.

I held my hand up to stop him from saying more, and in that moment, his father reached out and slapped me so hard across the face that it would have given me whiplash if I hadn't been expecting it. The sound echoed throughout the hall, effectively silencing any and all conversation around us.

Blood trickled from my nose as I turned back to face Merlin's father.

"I'd like to show you something," I said, letting the blood drip from my nose onto the pristine white floor. "Resurgemus."

The man's eyebrows drew together in confusion.

"Vivet."

The ground pulsed.

"Respirare."

The moment the word left my mouth, they stood, waiting. The death mages who had finally entered the hall all started murmuring.

"A raising?"

"Nothing happened."

"Maybe she's not as good as her reputation says."

Oh, honey. If only.

"How long did you abuse Merlin?" I tilted my head, the blood slipping into my mouth as I spoke. It was sweet. Much sweeter than any normal human's blood.

They didn't respond, and it looked like Merlin's sisters were about to break out laughing. They looked at each other, humor twinkling in their eyes.

I looked back at Merlin and saw his eyes wide and horrified. He wasn't afraid of me. He continued to stare at his father, like answering my question would make him lash out.

"Merlin," I said.

His eyes flicked to me.

"How long?"

He didn't look like he was breathing. "I'm not sure. I...I lost count of the years."

Merlin's father's eyes narrowed and he stepped forward, but that was the moment the dead came into the room. They didn't just enter through the main door. They came from windows, breaking the glass to get in. They came from side doors. They came from everywhere.

I tilted my head as people screamed, rushing away from the zombies and huddling as far away from them as they possibly could.

Merlin's family's eyes were wide. His sisters took a step back, away from me like I was the threat here.

Honestly, the zombies could and would do a lot worse than I planned on doing myself.

"Shut up," I called over the screaming. "All of you shut up and listen to me."

When they finally stopped yelling, I allowed the silence to hang over the room for a few moments. People gagged at the smell of the rotting corpses around them. Some even went as far as to throw up. But they didn't say anything.

Merlin's family finally looked back at me, and I got a sick sort of amusement from the way his father's face went ghostly white.

"If I ever hear any of you put your hands on Merlin, or even if you go the coward's route and talk shit about him," my eyes locked with his father, "they won't just be standing here next time. You justify your actions by trying to please these people, but fun fact."

I leaned forward slightly, smiling at Merlin's mother now. "They're not at the top of this little totem pole they've created."

Merlin's father looked like he wanted to punch me until I passed out, but he only held his fists at his sides, waiting for me to be done. And if that wasn't enough proof that the rest of them shouldn't follow such a pitiful family, I don't know what would be.

I winked at the family before me. "And here you thought Merlin was bad luck for your family. Surprise! It's actually me."

I looked behind me at Merlin, who stared at me like I'd just slapped him across the face. Then I looked at the zombies.

Thank you, I thought to them. You may go back to your resting places.

They all turned as one and left the exact way they came in, causing more people to either throw up or cry out.

I reached out to Merlin once the zombies had cleared. "Come on, Merlin. I'm bored."

He paused for a moment, looking over his family, before his lip twitched into a small smile and he held his arm out for me to take.

I grinned at his family one last time before we left the gathering, the doors slamming closed behind us.