“He just cares about you. He doesn’t want to see you get punched again,” Marcus said gently, but it didn’t help.
I knew my friends probably thought I’d been poking my nose in where it didn’t belong, again. But if I didn’t say something, who would? I’d only been trying to stand up for someone who was in trouble.
So why did it feel like I’d let Charlie down?
Chapter Thirteen
Charlie
Nobody touched my pidge.Nobody.
I’d have killed Tony if given the chance. He’d hurt my pidge, and as far as I was concerned, that warranted the death sentence. I was dead set on taking his life the moment I’d realized he’d hit her. At the same time, I was glad Ava pulled me off of him. I’d have ended up in Cellblock 9 if I’d taken things any further.
I should have known Ava’s issues with fight club went far beyond my own involvement. She wasn’t just scared of me getting hurt. She didn’t wantanyonegetting hurt. That’s how Ava was. She never wanted someone to suffer the way she had. She wanted to wipe suffering from the face of the planet.
But she couldn’t. Even as the chosen one, such an effort was futile. She could live a thousand lifetimes with the same goal in mind, and it’d do nothing to save our souls.
There was no saving me, either. I was already in too deep, and Ava knew it.
She didn’t mention fight club over the next few weeks, and neither did I. It wasn’t a secret anymore, but we both avoided the topic as if it didn’t exist. I would run off to train without telling her where I was going. Though she obviously knew, she didn’t object.
It made me feel as if we were both living a lie. But Ava wouldn’t talk about it unless she wanted to, so I didn’t bring it up.
“Ivy’s hired me to design him a dress,” Ava announced on our way to class one day. I had my arm draped over her shoulder, and Oberi walked alongside us, her hooves clicking lightly against the floor. Ava bounced on her toes with every step, obviously in one of her better moods. “I should be done with the design by the end of the week and can start sewing it in the Arts and Crafts room this weekend.”
“That’s nice, pidge,” I said. “I’m glad you’re doing something you love.”
Ava had been spending an awful lot of time designing clothes— so much that we’d barely spent time in the music room lately. I got the sense that she was avoiding me, but I wasn’t interested in having that conversation right now.
“It’s going to be gorgeous,” she raved. “I’m thinking a red satin evening dress with a long slit up the side to show off Ivy’s legs.”
“I’m sure he’ll love it,” I said.
She scoffed. “Of course he will. My designs have never let anyone down.”
Ava slowed outside our Supernatural Religions classroom and led me inside. We claimed seats at the back of the room, and Oberi shifted into husky form to curl up on the floor between us. Chatter buzzed around us as more students came into the classroom. As usual, people threw things like pencils across the room. A paper plane soared through the air and almost hit me in the face, but I sensed it with my magic and sent it flying off in the other direction.
“Settle down, please,” Professor Jobe called to the class in a bored tone. He was an older warlock and a decent guy, but I had to imagine he was only here because he couldn’t get a teaching job anywhere else. His lectures put most students to sleep. “Today, we’ll be talking about the various ways the gods came into being.”
Almost nobody heard him. Paper wads clattered to the ground as students tossed them at each other across the room, and a group of people laughed in the corner.
“Pay attention,” Professor Jobe called. “This will be on the test.”
The room finally settled, and Professor Jobe sounded slightly proud of himself.
“As I said, we’ll be discussing the gods today,” he began once he had everyone’s attention. “We’ve previously discussed the gods that belong to each major supernatural religion, but with so many gods alive today, the question arises; what makes a goda god?”
He paused, like he was waiting for an answer, but no one responded.
Professor Jobe continued in a monotone voice. “Ultimately, a god is measured by their power and omnipotence. Their power is immeasurable, far greater than any supernatural alive, or any classification of demigod. But there are several ways they can get this power.”
Ava faked a light snore from beside me, and I nudged her playfully. She snickered under her breath.
“The very first gods have existed since the beginning of time,” he continued. “The Great Spirit in Hawkei culture, or the Seven Gods from Arcanean culture, are great examples of this. The second way to become a god is to bemadeinto one. To ascend to godhood, an existing god must give a piece of him or herself away, gifting a piece of their godhood power to the individual.”
“Guess your dreams of becoming a god are crushed,” a girl loudly joked to one of her friends.
“You’re no goddess yourself,” he cracked back.
