3
1796 Words
Selene caught what was coming at us and crushed it.
A football.
I stood up, placing my hand on her shoulder. The look on her face was adorable. Selene’s cheeks flushed, and her eyelids fluttered, almost in embarrassment.
The five werebears came running up.
What the hell are they doing here?
“Damn, Tiger, you destroyed our ball,” Alexei said.
“I’m so sorry! It was pure instinct. All I heard and smelled was a flying werebear, and I wasn’t taking any chances!” She tossed the deflated football to Alexei.
“See what I mean?” I whispered, making Selene smile and nod.
“What are you two up to?” Alexei asked.
“Bro, read the vibe. Nachos, iced tea, it’s a date,” chimed Sean.
Selene looked embarrassed and frantically shook her head and arms. Honestly, that stung a little. I know it wasn’t a date, but for some reason, her reaction hurt.
“No, not a date. We’re just hanging out. Tomorrow starts my research. Grey’s sweet enough to help me.”
“You see, Sean, not a date,” Alexei said with a sly smile.
This guy got under my skin. I wanted to punch that smile off his face and take Selene’s hand, taking her away from them. For some reason, I felt this rush of protectiveness.
“What are you researching? I love history,” said Josh.
Selene looked over to me, and I shrugged, hand gesturing for her to tell them.
Huh, she looked to me for approval. That felt satisfying.
“Well, Greysen is going to help me figure out what creature I am since he’s the only one that smells close to whatever I am.”
“We’re in,” Alexei stated, making me grit my teeth.
“Oh! Ummm. Okay, thank you, guys!” Selene grinned, half shocked and half excited.
Selene went to each of them, hugging them. When she hugged Alexei, they took a little longer to part.
What’s with this guy? And why am I feeling this way?
I cleared my throat, and they finally separated from the hug.
“Wait,” I started. “Why are the five of you still here? Why didn’t you go home for break?”
“This is home. Been here since we were kids, thanks to Professor Wyatt. What about you?” Sean answered.
“My parents are always busy with work. Holidays or breaks don’t change that. I’d just be sitting around either way.”
“Anyway, what kind of creature are you exactly?” Mason asked.
All eyes were on me as I shrugged. “I dunno.”
Slapping her forehead, “I’m such an i***t. I was so caught up in my crap that I didn’t bother asking about you!”
We all laughed.
She’s adorable.
“It’s alright, Selene. I figured we’d solve that mystery, too, during our research. That’s why I have so many books. Trying to figure it out myself.”
Selene then straightened up and got serious.
“Okay, guys, I’d love to continue the fun, but I’m going to head back.” Selene’s face turned serious. “I appreciate all of your support. I truly don’t deserve it. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to start bright and early. I’ll have everything prepared for you. Oh, I almost forgot…”
Selene held out her hands, palms glowing faintly with a soft amber light. The guys and I exchanged confused glances as a small arc of energy sparked between her fingertips.
“I’m only doing this once, hold your breaths,” she said, her voice playful but focused. The light from her palms twisted into delicate tendrils, weaving into six small glowing sigils that hovered in the air like wisps of smoke. With a flick of her fingers, each sigil flew into our chests—warm, weightless, then vanished beneath our skin.
I blinked. “What was that?”
“Your temporary access mark,” Selene grinned. “It’s bound to your magical imprint now. It’s basically a copy of mine, just weak enough to fool the wards guarding my sector.”
Josh stared at his palm. “So…no key? No code?”
“Nope. Just press your hand against the door’s rune panel, and it’ll read your aura. If you don’t have the mark, the door will eat your arm.” She winked. “Kidding. Mostly.”
“Please keep that to yourselves. The professors who know about me only think I can do a small bit of magic. I made it look as if my powers were bound.” She twirled her hair. “I have the whole sector to myself, long story involving safety concerns for students, blah blah blah. Story for another day. Just follow my scent trail, or you’ll never be able to find me. See you all at 5 a.m.!”
And with that, Selene bounced away, leaving us still staring at our hands, feeling our chests, wondering what kind of magic we had just become a part of.
I noticed Sean elbowing Alexei, with him simply replying, “I know.”
Erik walked over, nudging me. “Hey, dude, can you do magic?”
“Uhhh, no?”
He sighed with disappointment.
“Just to clarify, she wants us to follow her scent, and if we can’t, we’re screwed?” asked Mason.
“Bingo. I already have her scent, so if you can’t lock onto her, then meet me at my room by 4:20; that should be enough time to find her.”
We all agreed and went our separate ways.
Early the Next Morning
Greysen
What am I stressing about? So what if they lock onto her scent? That’s a good thing. Right? Why did she give Alexei such a long hug compared to the others? Ugh, I’m overthinking this.
I couldn’t help but pace around my room. When I glanced at the time, it was 4:18. I took a deep breath and grabbed the backpack that I had filled with a bunch of different books.
“Okay, I guess I’ll head out. Looks like they caught her scent.”
As I opened my door, there stood Alexei and the others.
“Well, as embarrassing as this is, lead the way,” Alexei said.
I was beaming inside.
Some time went by, and we found ourselves in a completely different and unfamiliar part of the school. The stone walls were ancient, unpolished, and colder than the rest of the academy—hardly any lighting, the air heavier here. It was hard to believe this was still part of the school.
Erik slowed, glancing around. “Weird…anyone recognize any of this?”
“I didn’t even know this place existed,” Mason replied.
“That’s the weird part,” Alexei said, frowning. “We’ve been here since we were kids. You’d think we’d know every corridor by now.”
I glanced between them. “So, you’ve seriously never been down here?”
Sean shook his head. “Not once. And now that I’m thinking about it…my memory of this place…the school…is blurry. I feel as if it wasn’t here one day and then it was the next.”
“Yeah…same.” Erik gave a slow nod.
They traded uneasy looks, but no one seemed to have an answer—and I wasn’t sure I wanted to ask the questions forming in my own head.
We soon came to a heavy reinforced door, etched with glowing sigils that pulsed softly in the dim corridor. It looked much newer than everything else around it, as if it didn’t belong to this time.
“Guess that’s what these marks were for,” I said, flexing my fingers.
“Yep.” Alexei gave me a push. “Go on, fearless leader.”
“Ya know, for five werebears, you guys are bitches.” I laughed.
I stepped forward, placing my palm flat against the rune-inscribed center. The magic that Selene embedded in us earlier hummed to life—I felt it respond beneath my skin. With a low chime and a soft thunk, the door reacted.
A warm light scanned my hand, and then came the click of unseen locks. The door slid open with a hiss of ancient air, revealing a dark hallway beyond.
The second I cleared the threshold, the door snapped shut behind me with a thud.
So fast.
One by one, the others followed. Each of them pressed their hand to the runes, triggering that same flicker of light and click of magic before stepping through. The place felt different now, like we were walking deeper into Selene’s world.
After a few turns through winding halls and fading torches and twitching wall lights, I caught her scent—strong and sweet.
“There.” I pointed to the doorway ahead, where the scent pooled thickest.
We walked in.
“You guys showed up!” Selene beamed. “Honestly, I thought you might’ve changed your minds since it’s already a bit past five.”
“Sorry, Selene,” Erik said, mock panting. “We didn’t realize we’d be traveling to freakin’ Asvara to find you. The only thing missing is the closet.”
She laughed, waving us in. “Welcome to my kitchen-s***h-eating area. I just finished setting out breakfast, buffet-style. Help yourselves.”
Selene beamed that wonderful smile of hers. Meanwhile, our stomachs talked amongst each other.
“Well, fellas, get to it. Let me know what you want to drink. Food-wise, there’s bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs with cheese, home fries, and cinnamon toast. Oh no, I forgot pancakes!”
The guys and I laughed, and I spoke. “This is plenty enough, Selene, and unexpected.”
“It’s the least I can do. I dragged you guys out here so early. And we only saw each other, like, what, twice? And all of you are nice to help me,” she twirled her hair.
We made our plates and sat to enjoy our meal. Selene brought over two pitchers of orange juice, a pot of coffee, along with cream and sugar.
“Wow, Tiger. This tastes great!”
Everyone moaned in agreement. My eyes traveled to Selene, and she was blushing.
Damn, I want to take her right here, right now, making her mine. I had to force myself to continue my breakfast and force out any dirty thoughts.
Once we were all done, Selene started to clear the table, but Sean took over.
“Hey, relax. I’ll take care of this. We’re here to help you, remember?”
“That’s so sweet of you, thank you, Captain.”
“Captain?”
“Yeah, because the few times I’ve seen you, you’re wearing something with Captain Valor.”
- Writer
