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Chapter Twenty-Six
Knox
Eli’s laughter bounced throughout my room and mine followed as we cackled over the time we had strung up the principal’s underwear outside the school. The two of us sat in the chairs from my desks and recalled stories from our childhood and teenage years. Happiness spread throughout me as I realized how much I missed spending time with him. Ever since Halley showed up, Eli had been spending more and more time with her. I wasn’t angry about it, but I had missed hanging out with him like this. It reminded me of home.
“How are your classes going this year man? I can’t believe we don’t have any together. I really thought we would have at least one, but I guess being a year older finally caught up to us.” Eli said, nudging my chair with his foot and sending me sliding backwards.
I righted myself with a chuckle and thought about what he asked. Growing up in such a small community, there weren’t enough students to have separate grades, so Eli and I had every class together. However, now that we had different abilities and I was a year older, we didn’t get to goof off in class anymore. And as far as my classes this year? To be honest, they were boring. I often lost focus in many of them and dozed off in the others. It wasn’t like I didn’t think learning was important, in fact, I loved learning. I would read any informational text I could get my hands on. But that was the problem. The things we were learning, I had already read about in my free time. The only class that was beneficial was my specific Seer class. And even then, I often spent the class alone, working one on one with the instructor as we tested the limits of my power.
The only time I paid utmost attention was in my sessions with Halley. Each meeting, Zachariah’s concerned expression and words sounded in my head. I needed to get close to the girl and have her let her shield down. I knew from Eli that she had mastered the ability, but I wasn’t surprised she hadn’t allowed me to peer inside her future or past. The girl was as closed of as they came and no matter how hard I tried; it didn’t seem like she had any interest in being my friend.
Unlike Eli, who seemed to spend every free moment with her. Thoughtfully, I wondered if I should be taking advice from Eli on how to get the girl to open up. He obviously knew what he was doing.
“Classes are boring, but what can you expect. I have too big of a brain.” I answered with a teasing smirk.
Eli laughed loudly, he never did know how to express happiness quietly, before responding. “Yeah, I have to agree with that. I love working with the other Ethos but the only other time I enjoy class is when I tutor Halley. I mean, how many times can we learn the same history before they think we know it?”
Thankful he brought up Halley, so I didn’t have to, I latched onto it. “You seem to enjoy more than just your sessions with Halley. You’ve been spending a lot of time with her.”
I tried to keep my tone light so he didn’t take offense to my comment, but I should have known that wasn’t a possibility with Eli. He always saw the good in people and would never take someone’s words in a negative way, even if that’s how they were meant.
Grinning, Eli began rambling about Halley and I could see he really did care for the girl. “Yeah, I mean, I love spending time with her. She’s so strong, has a great personality, and I love making her laugh. Plus, you have to admit she’s the prettiest girl you’ve ever seen.”
I couldn’t deny that statement. Something about the girl was utterly alluring, her sharp features contradicting the softness in her eyes and the cuteness of her freckles and red hair. But I didn’t dare think too much more about how attractive Halley was, because if Eli’s words were any indication, he really liked this girl, and I wouldn’t even think about stepping on that.
“She seems pretty closed off though. Or at least she is during our sessions.” I explained, needing some advice on how to get her to open up. If I couldn’t get her shield down soon, I was worried about how Zachariah would react.
Eli’s happy expression softened as he nodded solemnly. “Yeah, she was pretty closed off when I first started hanging around. But she’s had a really tough life you know? She’s been through so much on her own that I’m not surprised she’s hesitant to open up. I knew she was special though, so I just kept pushing. Being there for her, supporting her. She needed someone in her corner, and I was happy to be that guy.”
Eli continued talking, telling me about different nights they’ve spent together and the growth she’s shown, not just with her powers but with allowing Eli and Kalani into her life. And if that was the key to getting into her life, being there for her and showing up, well I could be another guy in her corner. No one could ever have too many people there for them. And the fact I felt like shit for using the girl for information she had no intention of giving up? Well, I pushed that to the side. Because I was doing this for my people. And my people would always come first.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Madden
Walking through the corridors of East Territory, I replayed the past several weeks in my head. Usually not much in this world excited me, but before each session with Halley, I felt a buzz of energy inside of me. The only other time I felt that buzz was when I shifted into one of my creatures. Shifting was where I got my thrill and could enjoy my peace. It helped that when in animal form no one could speak to me. Sometimes, if I was annoyed enough with a conversation and had no way out of it, I would shift just to excuse myself. I happened to think it was a better alternative than telling the unfortunate person trying to talk to me to fuck off. But with Halley, Iwantedto talk to her. Maybe it was because she didn’t seem to be afraid of me like so many other Divines, or maybe it was because of the fire in her eyes whenever I pushed her buttons. Either way, I sure as hell was starting to enjoy these forced interactions. Except, I still hadn’t pushed her hard enough. After that first day when she had left abruptly, I had started planning how to make her crack. Each lesson, I showed up late. And then I would start the lesson by telling her I had nothing to teach her. Sure, it annoyed her to no end and got that fire blazing in her eyes I was becoming addicted to, but she never snapped. And dammit I wanted to see her snap. And then I wanted to enjoy whatever came after. So today, I had a plan. Not only was I getting to the room before her, but I was going to teach her something today. During one of my recent shifts, I had found myself outside of Enchanters Dorm and with my enhanced hearing, listened to the three voices inside. They were speaking about Halley’s mental shield, and it sparked an idea inside of me, one I was itching to test today.
Walking into the classroom, I took in the space. For my approach today, there were way too many desks and chairs in the way. Considering I didn’t know what time Halley got here, maybe she was one of those obnoxiously early people, I started pushing everything out of the way quickly, not wanting her to interrupt amid my set up. Once everything was pushed out of the way, I stripped out of my shirt and pants, standing proudly in my boxers. Obviously, I was going for the shock factor here. Plus, every interaction we’ve had together, when she thought I wasn’t looking, I had caught her checking me out. Which was perfectly fine with me because I was checking her out just the same. I never seemed to be able to tear my eyes away from her body and that thick hair that I craved to wrap around my fist.
About ten minutes later, and about one minute late, which either means she isn’t punctual, or she’s used to me being late so figures it doesn’t matter, Halley comes strolling through the door and comes to an abrupt stop when she glances up. She does a double take at the door, as if she walked into the wrong room, but turns back around and slowly eyes me up and down. I can feel the heat of her gaze all the way across the room as she tracks from my bare feet, stopping to glance at certain areas, before ending her perusal at my face. The heat of lust is in her gaze, but so is the annoyance I’ve grown accustomed to. I quite enjoy both. Smirking at her, I wait for her to speak, as I do every time we meet. Finally, after what feels like a lifetime, she clears her throat and snarks at me.
“Is there a reason you’re almost naked? Or did you forget about our session and were planning on meeting someone else here?” Did I detect a hint of jealousy in her tone with that last statement? Although I liked it, there was no need. I wouldn’t say I haven’t gotten around this school, I get bored easily and like to fuck, but no girl has ever captured my attention like the one in front of me. Maybe it’s because she didn’t grow up around us and was different, or maybe it was plainly because she was sexy as hell. Could be either, but all I knew was I was ready for that pent up aggression from each session to melt into a puddle of lust at our feet. Hopefully, my plan today allowed that.
“Well, I figured today I would actually teach you something.” I drawled and she raised a sarcastic eyebrow at me.
“Sorry, but I already know all about the male anatomy, don’t really need any more lessons on that.”
Man, I loved the snark in her tone. I wanted to tell her that she may know the male anatomy, but I could teach her things she had never seen before. Of course, I figured if I said that I’d get a glare and her storming out, so I had to play this smooth. Hence, the absurd amount of time I had put into this plan.
“I’m sure you do, just like I know plenty about the female anatomy. But today’s lesson has nothing to do with all the fun things our anatomies could do together.” Pausing my speech, I eyed her body up and down so she would get the message that I would be more than happy to explore that lesson as well. Continuing, I told her, “Remember the shields we drove through to get to the academy?” Halley nodded, but it seemed she didn’t quite understand where I was going with this. “Those were created by the Enchanters. I figured, if they could create shields that big, they had to start somewhere small. And eventually, our shields will fail, and we’ll need you to create more. So, today I’m going to teach you how to create a physical shield.” From my eavesdropping, I already knew she had the ability to create a mental shield, so this shouldn’t be too much of a stretch for her.
Halley blinked at me, as if she still didn’t quite understand what I was saying. “You know the enchantment for shielding?” There was apprehension in her tone as if I couldn’t possibly know it. And she wasn’t wrong. Did I know anything about Enchanters and how their power worked? Nope. But I did know that instincts and emotions were crucial to all Divine powers. So, I was going to play on that.
Instead of answering her question, I drew on my web of power and shifted into my large grey wolf. Halley’s eyes widened and if my wolf form could smirk, I would be doing so right now. Not only was I the only shifter in existence to have four animals, but my creatures were also incredibly large. And I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride at the astonished look in her gaze. Without waiting for her to ask any questions that I couldn’t answer currently, I bared my teeth and started stalking towards her.
As I prowled towards my enticing prey, Halley held her hands up and started backing away. Sure, backing away from a predator was instinctual, but she needed to realize that she had powers now and needed to rely on those instead. Plus, I needed her to grab ahold of the fire inside I’ve seen. So, I picked it up a notch, and growled. I could smell her fear in the air, and I inhaled deeply through my snout. Halley had kept shifting back towards the other side of the room, but she was stuck against the wall now. In one swift move, I pounced across the room, landing inches in front of her. Her shriek was loud and echoing in the small room as she hurriedly scrambled away from me again. Turning her way, I continued to leap across the room, landing inches in front of her, my snarled teeth a breath from her face. I didn’t want to hurt her, but as she kept scrambling away, it was clear that my tactics weren’t working. She needed to fight back, not run away.
I eyed her position and started backing her towards the pile of tables and chairs. She followed my lead and backed herself into a corner, no way to run this time. Perfect. As I came closer, Halley frantically looked around and realizing she was stuck as well, finally,finally,stood her ground. I could see the concentration on her face as she delved into her own power. Sitting back on my haunches, I waited a second, allowing her to grasp onto whatever innate instinct she could feel, and then before she could second guess herself, I jumped. As my body came diving towards her, I could see her spine straighten as she held her hands up defensively, and then suddenly, my body was hitting an invisible barrier. My wolf bounced off the barrier as if it had hit a trampoline and I skidded across the floor. Shaking off the fall, I stood back up and locked my eyes on Halley’s and there it was. Standing tall, the fire blared in her gaze as she stared at me. Wanting to push her to her limits, I leaped at her again. I hit the barrier once more, but it crumbled on impact, and I came crashing into her body. Quickly, I shifted back into my human form, not wanting to crush her under the immense weight of my wolf.
