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They just don’t wait around for us to drag Oscar out of bed in the mornings.
Our teacher clears his throat and starts going over details for the project, and I suppose I should at least try to pay attention. It’s kind of hard to care. Shifter Magic isn’t exactly a challenging subject.
“We used to be known as the moon cursed,” Mr. Havelock says. “Does anyone know why that is?”
Someone snorts, and a couple of hands rise into the air.
“Ms. Ferrier,” he invites.
The Beta girl in the glasses puts her hand down. “It’s because witches cursed humans to change their forms on a full moon as a punishment for the wicked.”
“Correct,” he tells her. “That’s a well-documented fact. What I’d like you all to present for your projects is research into the less common side effects of the moon cursed. The original witch cursed shifters created the modern shifter, but not all of us were created equal. You can’t write about Alphas, Betas and Omegas.”
I raise my eyebrow at Vi. She shrugs back at me.
“Why not, sir?” A girl at the back of the class calls out.
He looks over at her and gives a tight smile. “Because Alphas, Betas and Omegas exist across all species. These designations aren’t only found in shifters so they’re not a consequence of the curse.”
Okay, now this is starting to sound interesting.
Everyone around us starts to talk amongst themselves as the teacher passes out printed specifications for the project. I listen carefully, but we all seem to have the same basic question.
What other consequences are there?
I look over the project print out. Clearly, it’s up to us to find out.
“This feels like a trick,” Vi admits.
I check back over the wording carefully. “I don’t think it is.”
“Research your chosen consequence carefully,” Mr. Havelock tells us. “Base your report on fact. I’ll give ten minutes for you to discuss the project with your partners and then we’re moving on to the dangers of partial shifting which will be next semester’s hot topic.”
Vi raises an eyebrow at me. “Choose carefully? This project is designed to trip us up.”
“Maybe,” I admit, since it does seem that Mr. Havelock expects at least some of the class to mess it up.
She sighs. “I was looking forward to the break.”
“We can get this done before the break,” I tell her. “We have all week.”
“You think you can drag yourself away from your mates for a project at nights?” she asks, giving me a dubious look.
“Not tonight,” I start, remembering the promise I made to Oscar. “But I’ll make the effort starting tomorrow. Maybe you can check with Ivy if she remembers this project from her first year. If he’s pulled this one before, we can work out what might trip us up.”
Her eyes light up. “Great idea! Why didn’t I think of that?”
A smile comes out and she starts to doodle in the margins of her notebook. Leaves. Ivy vines. Tiny little hearts and horseshoes. It’s easy to tell when she’s thinking of her mate. She radiates happy energy as if she’s been lit up from the inside out.
She’s come so far since I met her. That timid, nervous Omega has been replaced by a quietly confident shifter. She might prefer me to be around when she’s at school, but she doesn’t need me here. She’d be fine without me. She’s stronger than she knows.
I zone out a little as class goes on. My thoughts drift back to the problem I’m going to have to start fixing tonight. I need to get Oscar to open up to me.
I need to know what he’s hiding.
Chapter Four
Oscar
