What was this story? A boy has fire powers, gets sent to a school where he becomes emotionally linked to a horse?

Question

I used to have this book a while ago but got rid of it because it caused me to suffer from emotional damage when I was about 12.

There's this boy who lives during the medieval era (I think) and he lives in this village with his family. He's unremarkable and I think he goes to a school where he ends up cornered by these boys, who I guess are like medieval hall monitors?? Anyway, they take him to a room where they are going to whip him for some sadistic reason. Before they can, he burst into flames randomly and kills the boys who were about to whip him.

I don't remember what happened directly after this incident, but he goes to this school?? (I think it's supposed to be a school anyway) where he finds out he's this special magical guy who can create flames by focusing on his emotions, I think. It gets even more fuzzy in my memory at this part, but I think he has to create an emotional link to an animal for some magical reason and he ends up emotionally linked to either a regular horse or a unicorn. It was one of the two I believe.

After emotionally linking to this horse or however, they became connected the two can talk to one another in their minds?? They train together and have some questionable dialogue that made me think they were falling in love with one another but I'm not here to judge. I don't remember how this ended up happening, but the last thing I remember about the plot was that near the end of the book, they either end up going into a war or end up getting attacked by these bad guys that end up killing the unicorn/horse create the guy was connected to.

I guess the linked animal and human can feel each other's emotions/pain I suppose because he knows she's been killed. I guess the weight of that was too much for him and he said something dramatic about not being able to live without her and he erupts in flames and ends up ending his life by burning himself alive.

That's all I remember because I think I stopped reading at that scene. I don't think I ever finished the book and I really want to read it again, please help!

Answer 1

Brightly Burning by Mercedes Lackey, part of her Valdemar collection of books

Lavan is bullied by the students at the school that he is sent to, which results in his Gift of firestarting manifesting and his selection by a Companion, Kalira. (Companions are horse-shaped intelligent, magical beings in the Heralds of Valdemar series.)

Lavan ends up being sent to fight the war brewing with Karse and, as described, Kalira is killed by a crossbow bolt and Lavan goes beserk with his firestarting and destroys the entire incoming Karsite army and himself in a suicide strike.