Griffin's Salvation

Chapter 6: Kian

For five hours I tried to concentrate on the bond that Elias was talking about but it didn't work I didn't know how to do it. this went on for a whole month, and not once did it work. And he was growing more and more frustrated as the failures kept adding up.

frustration made him decide to try the door. that was what he called the feeling he got when he tried to connect to Julie and she had blocked him. he could still feel her there but it was like her presence was muffled by a door. he let his mind wander to her and surprise, surprise she had him locked out again. Instead of shoving at the door like he did at the beginning when she started doing this s**t, he failed at opening the stupid door like he was failing at summoning her.

Kian shook his head trying to dislodge the negative thoughts from his head, and he tried to concentrate not on what she was thinking as a person. when it felt like he had a handle on Julie the person, he wrapped figurative arms around her waist and pulled.

It worked, there she was gasping with both her hands up in a fighting stance

-the f**k! she swore swinging around to face me. Kian? did you do that?

-yes my mother's new soulmate taught me.

-I'm going to rip his stupid head off, he shouldn't have burdened you with any of this

-f**k you! I spat anger rising.

-hey! I'm older than you...

-I know, three thousand years old and still a dumbass.

-child!

-don't! don't do that, do not reduce me to my age, you've been doing that for almost seven years now and it hasn't helped me any. Elie didn't tell me about you, I knew because I remember the day we met, before you started shutting me out I could hear your thoughts and I could see through your eyes.

-I... Kian... I didn't know.

-you didn't want to know.

-now that's not fair.

-fair do you know what happens to the human after the first bite?

- we didn't complete the first bite

-no you didn't bite me back and we didn't hump each other silly. but I have your blood coursing through my veins and all the changes that happen as a result started manifesting when puberty hit!

-I didn't know.

-you didn't listen every time you would pop into my head after I figured out I wasn't crazy I would ask for help and you would listen you treated my mind like a drive-thru "Go in, make sure he's still breathing, and then we f**k off!"

-that's a lot of swearing for a teenager

-the age thing again?

-you are a teenager.

-and you're making this weird, you know what kind of relationships this is going to be and you think calling me a child is going to make this any less bizarre?

-It's true though. she mumbled

-f*****g kill yourself!

-will stop swearing at me!

-it's the only thing stopping me from reaching across and slapping some sense into that senile head of yours.

-I don't remember you being this mean

- I wasn't but someone left me to deal with a host of new phenomena on my own while I was nothing but a child, I thought I was dying when all the changes started happening Ju-ri, I thought I was going to have to tell my mom that yet another man in her life was going to leave her.

-I...

-I'm six foot four Julie, and I'm not even sixteen yet

-Kian...

-do you know what came first? I was twelve, caught a cough from a friend at school and the next thing I knew every time I coughed, smoke would come out, and actual black smoke would come out of my mouth. I thought I was burning from the inside out! but thankfully a month later I started hearing you and sometimes I would hear a piece of information that would put things that were happening to me in perspective. But then you f*****g shut me out! I ended the last part with a roaring shout because damn!

- Kian I...

-I needed your help I had nobody, and you left me to fend for myself

-I'm sorry, I didn't know

- How would you know anything, when you've spent the last six years avoiding me?

-I... we both heard it, my mom was walking to my room, the shouting must have woken her up since it was past midnight. before I could say anything Julie disappeared, f*****g Runner! I was just lamenting about her habit of avoiding her problems and here she is doing it again. My door opened slowly and my mom poked her head in.

-you were shouting are you talking to someone?

-Yeah Ju-ri.

-My friend Julie?

-yep I said distractedly focusing on finding Ju-ri and snatching her back here

- on the phone?

-nope, give me one second! this time was a lot easier, I followed the path back to her quite easily, but this time when I reached out with my hand it actually disappeared and I could feel the back of her head against my palm. I pulled her back and dropped her unceremoniously on the bed. Stop running away from me.

mom screamed her lungs out and lunged herself against the door, closing it. In hindsight, I probably should have waited for her to leave or explained myself more before yanking Julie back. She was going to be in a full-on panic attack if she didn't stop hyperventilating, I caught her flailing hands and squeezed enough that she finally focused on me

-I'm sorry Mom, breath, I forgot you didn't know. just breath.

little by little she started breathing normally and it looked like she'd calmed down more

-I apologize mom, I was wrapped up in my own feelings I forgot to remember you didn't know

-what the hell was that! she screeched

- teleportation, it's the kind of thing humans can do when they're mated to a griffin. I explained and like a man with the worst timing ever, Elias chose that moment to flash into my room, it was definitely not big enough for all four of us.

-Marissa are you okay? he asked positioning himself between my mother and us.

- so I'm surrounded by supernatural creatures and nobody's elected to tell me.

-I was going to, on our camping trip this weekend. Eli said apologetic.

-are you also a Griffin?

-gods no! I'm a werewolf.

-peachy! Julie, you're wearing shorts with a crop top in my teenage son's bedroom.

-you saw the asshole rip me out of my bedroom I didn't want this! Ju-ri groaned diving under my sheets. it's not like throwing wards that would make me look dressed could work on him.

-I don't think you need to worry about any of that Mother I'm pretty sure I'm asexua... I saw Elias make a face. why did Elias make a face? I asked turning to Ju-ri.

-Well, technically when someone meets their soulmate or mates they stop being interested in other people. Ju-ri mumbled uncomfortably. we met when you were nine soo...

-you see this is one of those things you could have mentioned if you'd been around to answer my questions. I growled, because what else did I know about myself that was completely false?

-I'm sorry.

-okay, why don't we let them finish this discussion and we can have one of our own?

-we should leave the door open a bit!

-no need, I have superhearing the minute something untoward happens I'll let you know!

-Mother, I'm way too angry to make that sharp turn into desire.

-well, have a night then. mom said dragging her mate to her room, it was lucky that tonight the twins were at my grandparents. or this would have turned into more of a clusterfuck than it already was.

when the door clicked behind Mom and Elias I dropped to my bed suddenly very tired and stared at Ju-ri. I wanted solutions, a plan that we could both be okay with, I didn't want to berate her further.

-I get that the age thing is weirding you out, but the disappearing act you've been pulling is weirding me out. it makes me feel like I'm alone and I don't like it.

-That's not what I was trying to do, I was just letting you enjoy your childhood without pilling the supernatural on you or god forbid grooming you into someone you're not or something like that.

- I don't think you're capable of that all I could get from you before you shut me out was how grateful you were to have found me, I remember doing some really dumb s**t you've never said anything, that not really what you're worried about is it?

- fine, all the mates I've seen so far are very hands-on if I can say without offending your tender ears

-I'm fifteen I know what s*x is.

-porn?

-and health class

-not even going to deny it?

-what would be the point you can probably tell if I'm lying!

-Right, anyway, it feels wrong to even think about lusting over someone so young. I'm scared if I spend too much time around you it'll happen and I'll end up hating myself.

-how long am I supposed to wait for you to no longer feel weird about my age?

-thirty-five?

-I will not be a thirty-five-year-old virgin! eighteen.

-thirty-two

- forget the thirties they're not your friend! nineteen

-I refuse to sleep with a teenager! twenty-nine.

-twenty-one, final offer.

-I can't believe we're negotiating your virginity right now.

-I can't believe we didn't do this sooner, until then. I understand limiting time alone but no more shutting me out of your head.

-okay, but you can't just yank me out of places with no warning anymore.

-deal, now bite me!

-what, no!

-River and my grandparents completed the first bite, it doesn't need to be followed by s*x. I'm pretty sure I'm malfunctioning sometimes because we never completed the first bite. I mean I've always only been able to produce smoke maybe if you bit me things will even out.

-what if...

-if the last six years have proven anything Ju-ri is that you can control yourself, so will I, please do it, I'm begging you.

she scooted forward hesitatingly and leaned forward sniffing at my neck, she snapped her head away from me and took a big gulp of fresh air. She leaned back into my neck and bit, f**k she was right to have been worried, I almost lunged at her. I locked my hands on the blanket under me and pulled my knees up to conceal the erection that happened against my will. she didn't open her eyes when she was done, she just sat there paralyzed.

-you should go now. I said through my teeth, she left without a word. f**k, at least now I know for certain. I was definitely not asexual. I slipped under the covers that still smelled like Ju-ri and kept my eyes closed until sleep took me under.