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Leaning forward, he put a hand on my arm. Warmth shot through my arm, running straight to my belly, and my heart stumbled over its beat.
“We’ll talk about it later. Don’t worry. I don’t know much about narwhals, but I’ll learn.”
I could barely register what he said as goosebumps rippled across my body.
When he finally moved his hand, the place where his fingers had touched my skin was still warm. He gave me a playful wink and turned to follow his friend.
Watching Deus jog away, my eyes roved over his body, ignoring my brain’s demands that I look away.
I couldn’t help but appreciate the way his shoulders moved under his shirt, nor could I stop my eyes from traveling down his spine to where his tight-fitting chinos showed off his—
Stop this nonsense,I chided myself. Crossing my arms, I turned toward the dining hall door.
Oh, how my mother wouldlovefor my first message home to be filled with guy talk.IfI did anything—and I wouldn’t—it would be purely physical. Maybe a bit of fun to relieve the stress of my studies and the pressure I was under.
I wasn’t so stupid that I’d get involved with a guy who could tank my project and possibly my goals, if things went wrong.
The storm broke during dinner, sending cascading sheets of water down to earth, where it turned the gravel paths that traversed the campus to mud.
The crowded marine dining hall watched in amusement as the landlocked paranormals ran under the cover of umbrellas, coats, backpacks… and under the wings of a generous vampire who’d shifted into a huge bat.
I listened to—a.k.a. eavesdropped on—the conversation happening between a selkie, a mermaid, and a siren as they excitedly debated everything from their thesis projects to their favorite cheesecake-ice cream combination.
A small part of me wished to have friends I could laugh with and tease, but I firmly pushed that piece of myself to a dark corner of my mind. I was here to get my degrees, prove that Krakens weren’t monsters, and then get back to the sea as soon as possible.
Around nine, I wrapped my raincoat around my backpack and eagerly set off for the freshwater pond. Passing the lake, I could hear mermaids splashing as they took turns diving for stones. My sensitive hearing allowed me to pick up their singing as they swam beneath the water’s surface.
I winced at the sharp pang of longing that stabbed my chest, and my tentacles strained against their enchantment. I shouldn’t have to slink around, but I reminded myself of the necessity.
Until we could prove that I was no threat, I had to keep my secret to protect my clan and my kind.
“Suck it up, buttercup. Or maybe it should be suction-cup?” I mumbled.
Headmistress Losia’s house and grounds lay on the far side of the fae wood. I skirted the forest, walking in the open rain until I came to a small brick house.
It was a sturdy building with a tin roof and surrounded by a wrought-iron fence. The front gate was locked but low enough that I could easily step over it.
Glancing toward the house, I spotted Headmistress Losia standing at the window and waved. She gave me a bright smile and lifted her hand in greeting.
Rain pattered through the leaves, plastering my ombre hair to my head and causing my clothes to suction against my skin.Next time I should bring a hat. My hair was too distinctive, and the last thing I needed was for someone to follow me.
I followed an ancient flagstone path into a small cluster of trees and finally found the pond. It was set into the stone, dotted with water lilies, and populated by a few lazy koi.
Tucking my bag under a stone bench, I shed my clothes and let the rain tickle my bare skin. I breathed deeply, filling my lungs with the humid evening air.
Deus was right. The smell of rain was something truly beautiful.
Sitting down on the edge of an overhanging rock, I slid in. The pond was deeper than I’d expected. It was deep enough to dive, and the cool water was like a balm on skin that had been dry and overly warm all week.
Taking a last furtive glance around, I made sure no one was watching. Seeing no one, I held my breath and slipped the gold cuff off my wrist.
I was too large in my fully shifted, eight-tentacled Kraken form to fit in the pond, so I’d chosen to perform a partial shift. My legs transformed into tentacles as red as my hair, and four more tentacles sprouted to join them.
From the waist up, I appeared similar to a mermaid. Faint scales glowed against my skin, and gills had formed thin lines on either side of my neck.
The only way I differed from a mer was my darkened fingertips, which looked as though they’d been dipped in black ink, and the swirling imprint lines that wrapped my wrists and forearms. Another Kraken would recognize the importance of those lines, but they would be completely invisible to anyone outside my species.
Since Krakens were typically killed in their fully shifted beast form, it wasn’t likely that anyone would recognize my species even if they did catch sight of my darkened hands and fingers.
