Blood Fued

Part 15
Today, I was in a rush, and was eager to get out of the room. Mel was already dressed and I was still brushing my hair. I looked in the mirror and was happy with the way I looked. When I was done, Mel and I were walking to the commons.
Before we even stepped through the double doors, we could hear a lot of people talking. Everyone was back, and they were excited. I noticed a few new students, but didn’t pay attention to anyone in particular.
After Mel was done feeding, we went to the main commons to get food. I walked over to James and tapped his shoulder. “Mind if we sit here?” I said.
He shot up from his seat and looked at me, and when I say “looked” I mean really looked. He was looking at me from head to toe and he smiled. Sliding out the chairs next to him, he looked at me and then Mel. Giggling I sat down in the chair next to him and Mel took the chair beside me.
“What a gentleman.” I teased. He blushed and then took the seat beside me.
Everyone was talking and everyone was laughing. The commons felt like a zoo. I loved it! I missed everyone here, including the teachers. I didn’t care about much, but the image of the wolf came to my head and I realized I’d miss him.
The bell rang telling all students to get to class. Everything was chaotic as students left the commons to go to their classes. Someone bumped into me.
“Sorry.” I said and turned to look at who I ran into.
He smiled at me and shuddered a little. “It’s okay.” Chuckling a little, he walked off.
Standing there like an idiot, all I could do was stare after him. I could barely breathe. It was that guy I saw in my dream. He was a few inches taller than me; his skin had a light tan to it, his hair was a sweet brown color, his voice seemed to ring inside my head and made me feel wonderful, and his eyes…those eyes were such a beautiful blue, I was mesmerized.
Mel came over to me. “What are you doing? We have to go.” She said to me.
A little reluctant, I followed her to our first period class. Taking the seat next to Mel, we started talking like giddy kids. When the bell rang again for classes to start, the teacher along with another student walked in. I barely paid attention as to who it was, engrossed in the conversation with Mel.
Our teacher, Mr. Brayten, cleared his throat to get the classes attention. The conversations in class died down and we all gave him our attention—except me.
Standing next to him, was the guy I bumped into earlier in the commons. I was staring at him, and he stared back at me. Mr. Brayten introduced him to the class and gave him a seat…the empty one that was next to me.
I wanted to protest, but as I saw him walk toward me, I lost my voice. I couldn’t speak. As he passed by me, his arm softly brushed against mine. My thoughts were swirling everywhere. That one little touch made me feel warmer. I shivered closing my eyes.
For once, I couldn’t pay attention in class because of a student.
Finally, the bell rang for first period to end. Relieved, I quickly got up, but suddenly stopped when someone grabbed my arm. I felt like something shock me, and the person quickly withdrew their hand. Turning, I was faced with the guy I bumped into earlier.
“Hi…” I said.
He smiled at me and said, “Hey.”
After that, I couldn’t stay any longer. I made a break for the door. He didn’t come after me, thankfully.
I met up with Mel in our next class, and next thing I knew, he was in my second class period. Bleep, this is going to be a long day.

Part 16
I was up in my room while Mel was in the library doing homework. She had notes to finish while I finished them in class. In the mean time, I had nothing to do.
Sighing, I laid on my tummy on my bed and I was drawing in my sketchbook. I turned on my stereo and listened as the song Believe by the band The Letter Black played. Finally at ease, I closed my eyes, hoping to take a quick kitty nap.
A knocking on my door woke me up from a sweet dream of the new guy. Looking at the time, I’d only slept about fifteen minutes. Sighing, I walked to the door and rubbing my eyes.
I paused when I saw who was at my door. He smiled at me and I couldn’t help a small smile. I really liked how he smiled. His lips looked so wonderful; I imagined how they would feel against mine and on my skin and—bleep!
What was I thinking? I couldn’t be imagining that. I shook my head, trying to clear my head, only to have my concentration shatter when he spoke.
“Aren’t you going to invite me in?” he asked with that smile still on his face.
I hesitated and then slowly stepped aside. He walked in taking in his surroundings. Like with Claude, he only glanced at Mel’s side, but then his attention was all over my side of the room. He walked over to my bed and brushed his fingers against my sheets.
“What are you doing here?” I finally asked. He turned to me. Blushing lightly, I said, “I mean, it’s just that…if you get caught here…you’ll get in trouble and…” I barely made any sense to myself, but I couldn’t finish…he started walking to me and then he was standing right in front of me.
My pulse picked up, and it sounded a little fluttery. I felt so embarrassed, but I couldn’t look up at him. I didn’t dare to, afraid that I’d lose my train of thought.
“I followed you here.” He said in that cute voice. “I couldn’t help myself, you were so…interesting to me. You didn’t try to use your magic on me, you didn’t pull out a weapon and you didn’t try to kill me.” I shuddered at his words.
“So…why are you here?” I asked, slightly uneasy.
“I told you,” he wrapped one of his arms around my waist and the other caressing the side of my face. I started to breathe a little faster and closed my eyes. “I followed you here because you interested me. You, of all people, reached out and pet a werewolf. A werewolf! Most of you would have tried to kill me, but you didn’t.”
His hand was under my chin and he forced me to look up at him. I stared into his eyes, and I could barely breathe. Then, his lips were on mine, and I couldn’t stop myself. I got lost in his kiss; he was pulling me right up to him, his lips moving with mine, his fingers trailing down my arm. My palms were on his chest and he felt so warm, I didn’t ever want to stop touching him.
The door opened and I heard a giggle. He pulled away from the kiss and I sighed. His arms were still around me, but he was looking at the door. Mel was standing there and she was smiling at us. I felt the tickle in my head and let her search through my thoughts, but I blocked out everything about werewolves. Mel didn’t need to know about that.
“Well look what we have here. Raven and the new kid.” She smiled at us. She had no idea that he was a wolf. Thank you protective magic shield! I thought.
He kept his arms around me and smiled a little. I rested my head against his chest, breathing in his scent. He smelt really nice…I couldn’t quite name his scent, but oh well. I didn’t really mind much.
“Yeah, well…he sort of stalked me.” I smiled a little and she laughed.
“I guess he did, considering he’s in our room.” Laughing again, she went to sit on her bed. I meant he followed me here to the academy while Mel thought I meant he followed me to our room. “So, what’s your name again?” she asked politely.
I looked up at him and realized; out of every class I had him in, I didn’t remember his name. Wow, you’re stupid. said the voice in my head.
He smiled and said, “My name is Sora.” He looked back at me, staring at me with those lovely eyes and tightened his arms around me.
“Sora…” Mel sounded like she was thinking. “Well, it’s nice to meet you. I guess you and Raven have been talking all day, right?” she asked, unsure.
I shook my head. “We just started talking when he came to our room.”
“That’s…strange.” She said, slowly looking at both of us. “Do you want me to leave?” she asked.
I shook my head. “No, you have as much a claim over this room as I do. Besides, we were just done.” I looked up at Sora and understanding flashed in his eyes. He kissed me on the mouth one last time before he released me.
I sat in the middle of my bed and looked at Mel. Sora didn’t do anything at first, so I thought he’d leave. I thought wrong. He decided to sit next to me and wrapped one of his arms around me. I giggled and leaned against him.

All three of us talked for a while and it was…nice. Mel asked questions and Sora answered most of them. When she asked about his family, he hesitated a second too long before answering.
“My mom is probably watching my little brother and sister. My dad, on the other hand, is probably out with a few of the family…friends…” he looked at me and I knew that we shouldn’t talk about his parents. If the wrong thing came up, it could mean that his identity of being a werewolf would slip out.
I faked a yawn and stretched a little. “It’s getting late.” I said, glancing at the clock. “It’s almost curfew…you should return to the guys dorm.”
He nodded, “Yeah, I guess I should.” He stood up getting off my bed. I felt a little sad. I didn’t want him to go, but I didn’t want him getting in trouble either.
“See you at breakfast tomorrow?” I asked.
He smiled at me, “Of course.” Leaning down, he kissed me one last time before he left.

Going to sleep wasn’t easy for me. I kept thinking about Sora, and his lips on mine, replaying every touch between us in my head. I heard something tap against the window, but ignored it thinking it was the wind. Then I heard another tap, and another. Sighing, I walked over to the window.
Slowly, I opened it and looked down…it was Sora…

Wow Tati, you've been busy. Sorry I haven't replied in a while but I got side tracked then very busy with life. (which is totally overrated anyways)
I love Sora. How he speaks and acts around Raven and I love how Raven and him meet while he's still a wolf. And in Raven's room! ^///^
That was too cute!

Part 17
“What are you doing?” I asked and looked around, seeing if there were any teachers on guard duty. Most of the time; protectors only patrolled the school in shifts. Then I remembered Sora was a werewolf and if anyone came around, he’d sense it before I did.
“I came to sneak you out…if you’d let me…?” he seemed to hesitate slightly, but that shimmer in his wonderful blue eyes made me think he was confident. I guess being a werewolf made them reckless and irresponsible…sometimes.
I smiled, “You do know if we get caught, we’d be suspended for a while…”
He laughed and I gasped at the way it sounded. “I doubt we’d get caught. Keen senses…stronger than vampires and Imprals.” I giggled. He was right…about the “keen senses” part, but someone could find us.
I shrugged, “I’ll be down soon. Let me change.” With that being said, I closed the window and changed into one of the outfits my sister had asked our parents to get for me. After brushing my hair and looking in the mirror, I smiled at the way I looked.
I walked down stairs and then paused. Maybe I should use the side doors of the building instead. I said to myself. When I snuck outside, I saw Sora standing at the side of the doors. He was leaning against the wall of the building with his arms folded across his chest.
“Finally.” He said. I blushed lightly.
“Did I take too long…?” my voice trailed of at the end.
He shook his head, “No, but I really wanted to see you.” He walked over to me and wrapped his arms tightly around my waist.
Being in his arms that way…it made me think that there wasn’t a safer place I could be than with Sora. I felt his warm body against mine and it seemed too good to be true. Hearing his heart beat and feeling each and every breath he took, I realized that he was real, and he was here…with me.
Looking up at him, staring into his eyes, I knew I didn’t want him leaving anywhere. I wanted him to always be here, always near me. The memories of him being a wolf didn’t make my feelings falter. If anything, it just made them stronger. A forbidden love among both our kind: werewolves, vampires, and Imprals.
He leaned into me and when our lips met, I responded instantly. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I kissed back and tried pulling him to me. I didn’t need to do much after that. He pushed my back against the wall and kissed me hungrily. I tried to remember that he was a wolf and that he could lose control at any moment. My logic was quickly pushed aside as my yearning for him picked up.
He just kept kissing me and I kissed back, not caring about anything. His hands slowly slid up the back of my shirt and he pulled me closer to him. I started tugging his shirt up and I felt him shudder. He was just so warm!
Then, he pulled away from the kiss and he let go of me. Wanting him back, I tugged his shirt closer to me and he shook his head smiling. “Come on.”
Feeling confused and still yearning for more, I followed him. I could barely think, following him into the woodsy part of the academy, I hesitated. What if he was leading me to his pack? What if all of this was a lure for me to willingly follow him to my death?
“Hurry, it’s not that far now.” I didn’t know what it was, but suddenly, my curiosity spiked. As we walked further into the woods, the brush thickened and I could barely see the sunlight, let alone the campus.
Then, a little house caught my attention, it looked beautiful. It looked like it was built using bricks; vines hung around one side of it, red roses were in a small little garden in the front. I couldn’t see inside, since the curtains were drawn, but I didn’t smell the scent of wolves anywhere, so I felt confident.
When I got a glimpse of the inside, it was lovely. There was a small kindling fire going, all the furniture looked new, the walls were painted a sort of red-brown color. I was in my dream house…well, something close to it. Everything was striking; the rooms were connected together really nicely. The living room where the fire was burning was on my right, connected to it was a small kitchen on my left. There were a few doors I’d seen and I was curious about what a place like this was doing on campus.
“I found this place and it didn’t seem like anyone used it. I assumed that the Imprals were using it, but they said no one had been here in years.” He explained and I just kept walking around feeling the way everything felt against my skin. “I decided to add a few things and—my being a werewolf made it easy to—get new food and supplies for this place.”
I looked at him. “So…you’re staying here instead of the dorms?”
He shook his head. “I’ll still be living in the dorms. This will just be like a second living space.”
I nodded. Wandering around, I found that two of the doors led to bedrooms. The others were a bathroom, a room with a TV, consoles and all the other things, and the last door was to a wonderful room where I could look outside. Glass was used for these walls, making it easy to see outside into the woods. If the moon was out, it’d be amazing.
I felt Sora behind me and his hands trailed up and down my arms and he repeated it over again. He pressed his lips against my neck and I giggled.
“What do you think?” he asked me, slightly uneasy.
“This place is wonderful. It’s gorgeous. How did you find this place after a day or two of being here when I’ve lived here practically my whole life?”
He laughed. “You forget: I’m a werewolf. We’re known for sneaking around, or so I’ve heard in most of the classes here today.” I blushed, remembering what we’re taught about wolves and how “violent and vicious” they are and that they “show no mercy”. I started to think that we’ve only been hunting them down out of fear because their kind bred easily…and in numbers greater than humans, vampires and Imprals alike.
“…I’m sorry…” I really was…I hadn’t given much thought to what we were sworn to do…to protect our kind from werewolves. To make sure we didn’t die out…but now…now, things were different. Werewolves weren’t so bad…we just attacked and attacked because we were scared. We didn’t know that they could be…civilized (sort of).
He kissed me, stopping my train of thought. My yearning took control over me again and I responded back to him. Tangling my fingers in his silky hair, I kissed back and he picked me up taking me away.

Thats a really good story, I want to know what happens next.

Oh. Wow. ^///^
I agree with tyler000bon: I want to know what happens next!

Part 18
We were both breathing heavily, and I could barely think about anything but Sora. I felt surrounded, but that’s because I really was being surrounded. Sora was everywhere; his lips were on mine, on my neck, the hollow of my shoulder, at my chest. His hands were on my waist, my arms, my hips, my thighs…I was burning.
I didn’t want us to stop. I wanted to stay here, with Sora…forever. I wanted to wake from his kiss and feel his arms around me. There was so much going around in my head, I wondered how I was able to remember how to breathe. It took all I had to breathe while I was burning with Sora.
He pulled away and I reluctantly stopped, looking up at him trailing my fingers up his chest. He moved and lay beside me on the bed and closed his eyes.
Turning on my side, I snuggled into his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and I closed my eyes, listening to his heart beat.
We stayed like that for a while. Slowly, I started drifting to sleep.

I was in the little house still, but I could see a lovely moon. I smiled and felt a little cold, shuddering lightly. Rubbing my hands against my arms, I felt someone behind me. Whoever it was, he put his jacket around me. I tugged it around my shoulders and I felt his warm arms wrap around me.
I turned around and looked up to find that it was Sora. I smiled at him and he wrapped his arms tighter around me. I stood on my tiptoes and kissed his lips once. He pulled me back to him and kissed me fiercely. I reacted like I normally did, except every time we were together like this, my yearning for him always increases.

Feeling someone’s lips against my forehead, I slowly opened my eyes and saw Sora.
“We have to go now.” He told me softly.
I glanced at the clock on the bedside table and sighed. “I guess we have to, especially me. Mel will notice that I’m gone. She wakes up earlier than me.” Cuddling closer to Sora, I kissed him again.
He responded by kissing back and tightening his hold around me. Only about a minute or so passed, but suddenly, Sora pulled away a little.
“No…we have to go…” he looked like he wished we didn’t have to, but seeing him yearn for me too made me feel better about leaving.
“Okay.” I said and kissed him once.

Back at the side entrance of the girls’ dorm, we kissed again before he walked to the guys’ dorm.
Sneaking back into my room, I found Mel sleeping. I went to my bed and laid down closing my eyes.
“I hope you don’t think I didn’t notice you were gone for about five hours.” Said a familiar voice...it was Mel.
I sighed and sat up on my bed. “How long have you known?” I asked.
“Since he came by throwing pebbles at our window.” She said. Feeling the tickle in my head, I let her see everything except the dream and about the wolf thoughts I constantly had around him.
After the tickle faded, I smiled “Satisfied?” I asked her.
She nodded, “Definitely, I just wish I didn’t have to see all that physical stuff you two were doing.” She started massaging her temples.
I flushed delicately, “Yeah, well you’re the one who wanted to look into my head.” I teased.
Glumly, she said, “Next time I find out you two snuck out, I’m not gonna look into your mind.”
I laughed. “But you always like finding out things I know Mel.” I told her, smiling.
“I know, but I don’t wanna know about your romance…” we both looked at each other and then laughed.
“Well, we gotta get ready for school. And I know even though you won’t admit it, I know you’re thirsty.” Looking at Mel, I knew she was. She sighed and got out of bed to get ready for school.

I liked how Mel was telling Raven that see knew about her and Sora leaving in the middle of the night. That was sweet. And when she looked into Raven's mind, lol, her reaction was perfect.

Part 19
We were over in the main commons and I spotted James. He started walking over to where Mel and I sat, but Sora arrived first, taking the seat next to me. He moved closer and wrapped one of his arms around me. When James came, he sat in the seat in front of me.
“So, liking the view around here?” James asked Sora, staring at the arm he had around my waist.
“Yes, it’s pretty great around here. I just can’t believe I’ve never been here until this school year.” He said politely, kissing the top of my head. Stupid height difference! I thought.
“Yeah, well I’m James.” He said, holding his hand out I think he was hoping Sora would use the hand that was on my waist.
Instead, Sora nodded and said, “I’m Sora.”
With a frown, James slowly withdrew his hand, placing it at his sides.
I started getting uncomfortable, so I jumped in. “Hey, do you know what we’re going to do in our combat classes today James?” I asked him.
That was all I needed to say for us to have a normal conversation. Even Mel laughed sometimes. When we went to a topic about someone hitting themselves with a weight yesterday, we all laughed…except Mel. She shook her head, I imagine she felt worried, but as long as the tension between Sora and James died down, I was all for it.

Later on, we were finally at the last class period of the day. I was walking with Sora and when we were at the field, Rachel was the one guiding today’s session. She announced to partner up with someone, and Sora chose me.
After a few seconds, James came over. “Want to be my partner, Sterling?” he asked me.
I shook my head and looked up at Sora. “Sorry, he already asked me.”
He looked sad, “Oh, it’s okay…maybe next time.” He walked away and I saw him partner with Ed.
“Well, that’ll be funny finding out who wins that spar.” I said to Sora nodding to where James was.

Sora didn’t falter when he set up the mat for us to fight on. He took off his jacket, and I couldn’t help but stare at his shoulders and arms. God, he looked wonderful!
“Scared of me now?” he asked, chuckling lightly.
I smiled and shook my head. “Not in the least.” I walked on to the mat, a little nervous and really wary.
We both circled around one another, watching every move that the other made and calculating what to do next. I lunged forward and quicker than I thought possible, his hands were on my arms and I was pinned to the floor. I struggled a bit and he held me tighter.
I was breathing hard and so was he. I started feeling pain at my side where he got a good hit at my ribs. He was just so close! I felt everything! His warmth, every breath he took, his chest and legs were pressing against me…I felt like I was gonna die. He smiled at me and I just loved the way his eyes looked.
He moved in closer and I thought he was going to kiss me! But, my hopes shattered when he moved his lips by my ear. “Got you pinned little girl.” My heart beat spiked and I felt like I was drowning by the ring of his voice…or the really close proximity between us.
Slowly, he got up and looked down at me. Holding his hand out, I made sure to keep the look of defeat on my face. Remembering what I did with Ed, I tried to take advantage of him.
Pulling his arm back down with as much force I could exert. He came down and I quickly got on him shoving my arm against his chest and using the other to hold on his wrist. He laughed and quickly shoved me over him and slammed me back to the ground.
“This time, don’t try anything girly.” I looked at him and bit my lip. No, don’t think of that right now. It’s neither the time nor place, said the voice in my head.
Then, he leaned in and…he kissed me. Finally, he kissed me! I reacted to him and moved closer to him. Suddenly, he pulled away just as quickly as he kissed me. I sighed and he laughed shaking his head.
We both got up and I looked around. No one had noticed that short exchange…well, except for James who was staring at us. James was side tracked and wasn’t paying attention to Ed and he ran into him and shoved James down to the ground.
Poor James… I thought. Even though he liked me, I just couldn’t feel the same way about him. It wasn’t like that for me. My everything belongs to Sora, no matter what happens…

I like Raven and Sora's fight on the mat with the terms of endearment Sora used and how you discribed what Raven was feeling. And then the quick kiss between them.

Part 20
We were just about to leave after class when James came over.
“So, what’s with you kissing the enemy, Sterling?” James asked me harshly.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, James.” I said, a little nervous that he might know that Sora’s a werewolf.
“When you guys are sparing, you’re enemies. You think a werewolf will kiss you after he rips out your throat?!” he was shouting a little. I glanced up at Sora, uneasy.
He stepped between me and James and he was a little tense. “Look, it was just a little kiss, okay? Now if I were you, I’d just drop it. We weren’t hurting anyone. It’s not like I’m a real murdering werewolf that’s hurting Raven, alright?” Sora looked…angry, and a little on edge.
James glared up at Sora—since James was shorter—and stalked away. Sora’s hands were clenched into fists and I lightly placed a hand on his arm. He was shaking.
He turned to me and I said, “Calm down, he’s gone Sora. Please…” I breathed. “Calm down…?” I sounded slightly panicked and afraid of seeing Sora so angry. It frightened me more because he looked human…civilized. I didn’t like him upset.
Slowly…Sora calmed down a little. When he looked calm enough, I wrapped my arms around his neck and rested my head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms tightly around my waist and held on to me.
A few seconds passed and he whispered in my ear, “Sorry,” and then, his voice was fierce. “I’ll try to keep better control of myself…”
I shook my head and looked up at him. “It’s not your fault. James has liked me for a while now. I just didn’t notice it early enough. And he’s sort of brainless; but now, that doesn’t matter, because I don’t like him.” I shrugged.
He chuckled and then pulled away. “Come on, let’s go. Besides, we have things to do. See you at dinner?”
I nodded eagerly and he laughed. I noticed something shift in his features and he leaned in to kiss me. When he pulled away, I quickly tried to pull him back but he shook his head. I sighed and reluctantly watched him walk away.

When I was done with homework, I started changing into nice clothes to use to go to dinner. Mel was finished with everything before me, but we always left together. We were together everywhere.
We got to the commons and I saw Sora was already there. Not many students came this early, but Mel was really parched, so we left our dorm.
“Hey you two, what’s up?” Sora fell into step with us, wrapping one of his arms around me.
“Nothing really, I’m just going with Mel to get her something to…drink.” I said, hesitantly. I didn’t know how he’d react to vampires “drinking” blood from humans.
“Oh, cool. Can I come with you two?” he asked, sounding a little curious.
“Sure, I don’t see why not. Come on, I’m going to the feeders today.” Mel said brightly. “I already know Rave doesn’t like that, but she goes with it because I get too weak without warm blood every once in a while.” Mel explained, looking a little pale and weary.
Sora followed us down the hall that led to the feeders. He took in his surroundings in…wonder? Yeah, that’s what it looked like. I realized that he hadn’t been to academies like this. He was awestruck about everything. For me, this place was dull and boring compared to the vacation house…even the little house out at the edge of the woods…I flushed a little recalling what it was like to be in a cozy little home with Sora.
When we got to a feeder, I turned away and cuddled into Sora’s arms. He looked down at me questioningly and I shook my head a little. He smiled and kissed my forehead when someone touched my back. I jumped, but then steadied myself.
Walking back to the main commons, I noticed Sora was a little on guard tonight. I started wondering about the celestial pattern and tomorrow was a full moon. I got slightly worried about what would happen to Sora.
All three of us sat by Ed and Jeremy who were talking about the last combat class we had. Ed was talking about something distracting James and I couldn’t help but jump in.
“James got distracted by me and Sora sparring and that gave you an opening to knock him around a bit.” I giggled and Ed laughed while Sora stroked my arm with his long and delicate fingers. It sent electricity through my body and it was hard to ignore.
“So, who won between you two?” asked Ed, glancing between me and Sora. I looked away, not wanting to admit I got beat by him, but it didn’t stop him from saying anything.
“I did. It was almost too easy, considering Raven is a little too weak compared to me.” Sora smiled with a teasing glint to his eyes. I elbowed him and he laughed it off.
After dinner, Sora walked with me and Mel to our dorm.
He hugged me for a minute and then kissed me gently. “I’ll see you again later tonight?”
I giggled and cuddled into his chest. “You will, but you’ll have to come and sneak me out again.”
Mel let us have a moment and went upstairs to our room. A few minutes passed and I reluctantly released him.
“Come and get me in about…two hours, okay?”
He nodded and pulled me closer to him. Stroking my cheek, he leaned in and kissed me one last time before he left.
Back in mine and Mel’s room, I got ready to shower. I started to wonder a lot about Sora. What would happen if his family found him? What happens on a full moon? Will he lose control? Will I be in danger? Will anyone be safe?
I shrugged and decided I’d ask him tonight when we snuck out. It was already eight at night—which was day time for humans that weren’t on a nocturnal schedule—and I had a little less than an hour to get dressed in something cute.
Mel was still awake, which didn’t surprise me. I was glad she was still up so I could ask her opinion on my outfit.
“You really like Sora, don’t you Rave?” she asked, calmly.
“I really do like him,” I agreed. “I may even love him a little. But it’s hard to tell. We just met, but there’s some sort of connection I have toward him…you know?”
She shook her head. “No, I don’t. I may not have someone like Sora, but I do have someone in mind.” She said, flushing lightly.
“Oh, don’t tell me you like James.” She shook her head with a disgusted look on her face. “Ed? Jeremy? Who?” Mel looked at the ground when I said Jeremy’s name. “Good God! It’s Jeremy!” I exclaimed.
“Maybe it is…so what.” Mel blushed lightly.
“Well, I guess that’s better than falling for James.”
She shrugged. “He’s been into you for years. I can’t believe you just noticed this year. Anyway, have fun with Sora, because he’s already here.”
I looked at her questioningly and then walked to the window. Sora was standing out there and saw me peering out the window. He waved and I waved back. “How did you know he was out there?”
“Duh, my hearing is still better than yours, Rave.” That was true. Oh well, no use to argue about that.
“Well, I’ll see you when I get back.” I hugged Mel before walking to the door. “Night Mel, sleep well tonight, you hear?”
“Yep, no problem, I’m beat anyway.”

Part 21
Sneaking out the side of the dorms was a heck of a lot easier than the front. Why hadn’t I thought of this before? I was arguing with myself a lot lately. Sometimes, I thought I had another person talking to me, but I guess it was just self-criticism or something.
I used get in trouble from sneaking out, but now, not so much. I liked that, it meant less detentions and not getting suspended for a week or whatever.

Sora and I ended up back at the little house again. I loved this place, it was beautiful and I got to be alone with Sora.
We were cuddling on the bed in the same room like last time. I liked this room better. The other was smaller and the sheets were a weird beige color. It didn’t look cute. These sheets were a nice red, and they were soft, like silk. The pillows were soft and feathery, and they matched the sheets, with the same black colored patterns on them as the sheets.
I remembered the questions I had for Sora and one of them slipped through my lips. “What happens on a full moon, since you are able to control when you turn into your wolf form?”
He chuckled, “Nothing really happens, it just gets harder for me to control my temper is all.” He said calmly and kissed my neck. Always, when his lips were on my neck, I felt so thrilled, it was hard to think.
I still managed to ask, “What if your family finds you?” he stiffened a little and then sighed.
“They won’t find me. It’s been about two weeks since I ran away. They’re just so annoying sometimes…I couldn’t take it anymore.”
I placed my hand on his shoulder and he looked back at me. “That’s family for you. My mother regards me as a child, and it’s annoying. My dad sees me as a young adult that’s reckless, but that’s better than knowing someone thinks of you as a kid.”
“Yeah, well I like the sound of that better. My family sees me as an adult and I don’t like it sometimes. There’s way too much pressure, and it gets to me…” He seemed tense and angry, so I decided not to ask questions anymore.
I was on my knees behind him and started massaging his back and shoulders. He was stiff and tense, and I didn’t like that. After a while, he relaxed a little. I moved closer to him and kissed the side of his neck a little. Still massaging his back, I slowly licked his neck.
He shuddered lightly and turned around, grabbing my hands. I looked at him and then, his lips were on mine. That’s basically all the talking we had time for.
Falling asleep like last time wasn’t easy tonight. We stayed up for about three hours, but we couldn’t help it. Neither of us got each other’s clothes off. I thought it was stupid, but sweet at the same time. At least things were being taken a little slowly.
Even though no one’s clothes came off, that didn’t mean we didn’t get our hands under each other’s shirt. I was so far gone; every part of me was drowning with the feel of Sora against me.
Finally, we split apart and we were able to sleep.

The days that passed after were dreadful. I always loathed being at school because me and Sora weren’t able to have much physical contact. There was that, and the fact that girls were falling for Sora and guys were still coming after me. It didn’t help that James was still in that category. Thankfully, it was finally the weekend. To top that off, Jeremy and Mel had finally got together.
Like Mel, Jeremy was a part of a royal vampire blood line. Jeremy Muelier. He was sort of cute…if you like the strange and kind of broody type. He wasn’t that popular, in fact, he was the least popular of the seniors, but still. He had cute green eyes, messy black hair, and was pale—like all vampires mostly is. He was sort of rebellious, and we clashed sometimes. We both didn’t have a preference for each other, I didn’t like him with Mel, and he didn’t like me with her. For one thing, I was her sister, so he couldn’t entirely take me away from her. For another thing, he was her boyfriend, so I couldn’t take her from him. We both sort of lost…in a way.
It was Sunday night, and today, Sora and I had been meeting and sleeping together every night. By “sleeping” I mean it literally. We never went so far as to taking of each other’s clothes…well, he didn’t. I always took off his shirt lately. I couldn’t help it, he always felt so warm.
Cuddling into his chest again, I started to wonder what his last name was. None of the teachers ever called him by last name, but he never told anyone. Like usual, I was curious. As the night dragged on, I started drifting off to sleep.

I was at the commons, and sitting around me was Sora, Mel, Jeremy, Ed, Katherine, Jamie and Thomas. James had avoided me since the confrontation between him and Sora. Mainly because I was always with Sora, and I had a feeling he didn’t want to get in a fight with him. If I were James, I wouldn’t want to fight with Sora either.
Then, the room went dead silent. I glanced around, wondering why everyone wasn’t talking anymore. Looking at the doors to the commons’ entrance, I saw someone that looked like he was in his junior year…and he was looking right at Sora…

I woke up to find Sora awake…and staring at me, his eyes filled with wonder. “Nightmare tonight?” he asked softly, stroking my hair.
I smiled and shook my head. “No, just a dream about some new person coming here that I’ve never met.”
“Should I be offended that you’re dreaming of other guys?” he said half heartedly.
I giggled and hit him on the shoulder. “Hey, be nice to me.”
“I am nice to you…sometimes.” He winked and gave me one of those scattering-thoughts kisses and then pulled away. I tried pulling him back, but he shook his head smiling while one of his hands trailed up my thigh.
Breathing a little heavily, I looked at him. He was teasing me. I pushed away from him, but he pulled me back, pinning me against the bed. I stared up at him and bit my lip.
He leaned in and I closed my eyes. Instead of our lips meeting—like I normally expected—his lips were at my throat. I gasped excitedly. He trailed kisses down my throat and loosened a few of my buttons on my blouse. Then, I felt his lips on my chest. I closed my eyes and a soft sound escaped my lips.
I think he meant to be gentle, but after his teeth lightly grazed against my chest, I felt his yearning increase. My fingers laced themselves in his hair, pulling him to me while one of my legs wrapped around him. Suddenly, I felt as he bit me harder. I screamed softly. It hurt at first, but then, the scream turned into something softer. Pulling him even closer to me, he fought for control.
Pushing away from me, I fingered the hollow of his shoulder. I sighed when he shook his head.
“We have to go. Oh and…you might want to use more covering shirts now. You’re gonna have one hell of a hickey…” he said, looking at my chest. Looking down, I saw a circle of indentions where his teeth were. Around and inside the bite, it was slowly bruising. I sighed, remembering I had wanted to use a tank top today.
He walked me to the girls’ dorm—like always—and gave me a quick kiss before he left.

Part 22
I showed Mel the bite and she totally freaked. I didn’t really go into detail, but that’s because I could barely explain what Sora and I did. And—like Mel said—she didn’t look into my mind to see what we did.
After getting ready for school, we walked out the main way to leave the dorms. Although…today was different compared to all the days last week. This time, Jeremy and Sora were waiting for Mel and I to leave. We were both flattered.
Mel walked hand in hand with Jeremy to the commons while I walked with Sora’s arm around my waist.
We sat with the usual people today. The thing is; everyone was sitting in the same seats as they were in my dream. Oh no, I thought. Then, everyone went dead silent. Even though everyone’s mouths were moving, it was like I lost my sense of hearing. This time, I didn’t have to look around. I already knew where to look and who I was looking for.
Looking over at the entrance, I saw that same guy in my dream. Now, I got a better look at him. I stared and strangely…the kid looked like Sora. Only, he was shorter than him—way shorter—and his eyes didn’t hold the same intense gaze that Sora’s had.
He was staring at Sora, but then his gaze flickered to his arm—which was around my waist—and then…me. Okay, it might seem cocky of me, but I swear this kid was checking me out. A few seconds passed, and I realized that he really was looking at me like some of the guys here did.
Then, my world started up again and Sora caught my attention. “What were you saying?” I asked.
He shook his head and everyone at the table laughed. When the bell finally rang, we all walked our separate ways and Mel walked with Jeremy—only to some classes now.
Sora and I were just about to make it out the double doors when, the guy that looked similar to him stepped in front of us.
“So this is where you’ve been, Sora.” He said, sort of…menacingly. “Everyone will be interested in hearing about you going to school with the enemy.” Finally, I noticed his eyes were similar to Sora’s, and that the blue made it hard to distinguish the gray coloring that surrounded his pupils.
I stepped back and grabbed Sora’s arm, trying to bring him back with me, but he didn’t budge. “Sora…he’s a…a werewolf.” I whispered, sounding slightly panicked.
“Yeah,” he said. “I know…this is my…brother…” I was shocked. This was his brother? This guy who seemed…nothing near his brother? It couldn’t be. He was just so…so-different!
“It’s not thrilling for me either. I didn’t expect to follow your trail here. I mean, come on! Why here, of all places?!” I didn’t like the way he was speaking toward his older brother.
I stepped between them and tried shielding Sora—though I knew perfectly well that a werewolf could rip me apart easily, since I wasn’t strong enough…yet. “Don’t talk to him that way.” Though I was scared and uncertain, my voice came out strong and fierce.
“Well look what we have here. So Sora, I see you’ve found a pet.” His brother said, looking at me from head to toe.
Sora placed a hand on my shoulder and pulled me against his chest. “Look Duston, this isn’t the time or place for this. Let’s talk somewhere else, somewhere more…private.” He wasn’t asking his brother—Duston—he was telling.
Duston shrugged. “Fine by me, but your pet doesn’t leave, it comes with us.”
Sora stiffened. “She is not my pet! And she certainly is not an ‘it’! Her name is Raven.” Even though he was clearly angry, his voice came out controlled, but fierce and cold. I shuddered.
“Whatever.” Duston waved off his comment as if it didn’t matter.
Sora’s eyes turned a light tint of red and his grip on my shoulder started to hurt. “Ouch,” I said. “Sora, you’re starting to hurt me.”
His gaze flickered down at me and he quickly loosened his hold on me. “Sorry…I didn’t mean to hurt you.” He seemed a little panicked.
I shook my head, “You didn’t mean to, that’s all that matters. I guess we’re ditching today?” he nodded, but wrapped his arm around my waist.
“Come on, we’re going to the house.”
“Aww, that’s cute. You and your little pet have a house.” Duston said mockingly.
Sora glared, but let him be. I walked at his side with his arm tightly around me. He was shaking, but otherwise, he was in control of himself.
What happened between these two that made them so tick around each other? I wondered to myself. Then, the answer came to me. They’re brothers, and I guessed this happened sometimes. They mock fight and throw punches every now and then. Girls, on the other hand, shouted and gossiped. That’s just how the gene pool worked, I guess.
We finally made it to the house, and the silence was broken when Duston whistled. “Nice place you got here, Sora. You plan on sleeping here when your little pet and her friends could shoot you at any moment?”
Sora’s control snapped. He let go of my waist and squared off with his brother. “You listen to me. Raven is not my pet, she is my girlfriend.” I gasped and a smile spread across my face. He never ever said that, but he finally did. I just hated the circumstance we were in. “And most of all, Raven will not hurt or turn me in to the protectors.” His voice was cold and fierce, and I didn’t like how deadly he sounded.
I clung to his arm and forced him to look at me. “Never.” I said. “I won’t do anything that will hurt you and I won’t turn in your brother as long as he can behave himself here like you have. I don’t want anyone suspecting anything.” Sora finally stopped shaking and he slowly cupped my chin in his hand and then kissed me.
Duston cleared his throat to get our attention. “Ahem. Are we going to talk, or are you two going to have a make out session?”
I flushed and pulled away from Sora. “We all need to talk. Come on, let’s get inside.” I reached out to open the door, but Sora opened it first and made a gesture for me to go in first. “Thank you.” I giggled lightly.
He quickly followed after me. I guess he didn’t want his brother close to me. Sora guided me to the room we never used, but I figured this might as well be where his brother slept. I hoped he wouldn’t go to school with us. I sat in the middle of the bed and Sora took the spot next to me, wrapping his arms tightly around me. Duston disregarded the bed and sat in the arm chair.
“So big brother, it looks like you have a lot of explaining to do.” Duston said, letting his gaze flicker to me, and then returned to looking at his brother.
This is going to be a long day, said the voice in my head.

Keep going! You said you have 5 parts done!

Part 23
So, Sora and I ended up missing school today to talk to his brother, Duston, who surprised him—and me—with a visit after tracking him down. Duston had told us that he was sent by their father to find him and bring him home. Sora said he couldn’t leave…not without me. When his brother had asked him of his motives…well, we got into a little detail.
“So, you were planning on killing your pet, I mean, Raven, but when she reached out to touch you, your curiosity overran your instincts?” Duston asked.
“Well, that pretty much sums up my reason. And, well…honestly…if you met her the way I did,” he tightened his hold around my waist and I giggled, flushing a delicate pink color. He stroked my cheek and I leaned into his palm, “I doubt you wouldn’t have been curious yourself.” Sora looked at me adoringly, he was like a dog. I giggled at the thought.
“Well…it looks like werewolves can turn into pets too.” Duston laughed and I glared at him.
“Seriously, what’s your problem?! You think you’re all high and mighty, when really, you’re just the little sibling.” I sounded cold…colder than I ever had, to someone who annoyed me.
He raised one of his eyebrows at my outburst and Sora was stroking my arms, trying to calm me down, I supposed. “You didn’t tell her?” Duston glanced at Sora.
“Tell me what?” I was annoyed and angry, but something about what Duston said piqued my interest.
Sora shook his head, “No, and I was hoping I wouldn’t have to…” he looked warily at me, and then turned back to Duston.
“Interesting…” was all he said.
“Tell me what?” I was getting impatient and to me, my voice sounded threatening.
Duston seemed amused, like he found my impatience amusing and not threatening at all. “About whom we really are. I’m Duston Knight, nice to meet you, although…I doubt you feel the same way about me.” He smiled at me, and I stared at him in shock and then I turned to Sora.
“You’re Sora Knight?” I looked at him, utterly astonished.
He hesitantly nodded. I stood and moved across the room still facing Sora and Duston. I didn’t want them out of my sight. I looked between the two of them. Two of the Knight family members were with me…in the same room. There were only five members of the Knight pack…the leaders of all the werewolves. Three kids, two boys and one girl, and two adults, a woman and a man. I realized that Sora and Duston were the brothers, and his sister was probably with his parents…which the leaders of the packs…were his parents. I slowly backed away from them, moving closer to the door.
“Raven, look, it’s not what you think.” He stood up and I took a few more steps away from him. Duston stayed sitting down and suddenly, Sora shot him a look. “This is exactly why I did not tell her about our family, you idiot.” Then he looked back at me, his eyes and voice turned soft. “It’s okay love, I won’t hurt you.”
I shook my head. I was too over come with emotions, I could barely think. It took everything for me to breathe. And then, everything that was in my surroundings vanished and I was in some other place. I saw a girl who looked like both Sora and Duston. She was pretty…it was their sister. Just as fast as I saw that vision, I was out of it and back at the house. But now, Sora was right in front of me and he looked worried.
“Raven, Raven?” he repeated. I don’t know how many times he called my name, but I wasn’t going to be that close to him. Not after what I just found out.
I flinched away from his hold and he looked like he wanted to pull me back to him, but he didn’t. I was relieved. I turned and ran as fast as I could away from him, away from that room, away from…Sora, the guy I most certainly cared for.
I couldn’t bear the thought of him being part of the family that controlled the packs of werewolves all over the world. I couldn’t face the fact that he was in the family that lead the actions of the packs…I didn’t want to.
“Raven!” I heard him call. “Raven!” I didn’t hear him following me, and as the distance between us lengthened, his voice started to fade.
I was being torn into pieces. The guy I had feelings for was part of a monstrous family that lead to the killings and mutilations of innocent people. Some may not have been innocent, nonetheless, people all the same. And his family was trying to kill off vampires! Trying to kill off mine and their race! How could this be?

I was back in my room, and I didn’t want to leave. When Mel came back, she looked into my head, and this time…I let her see everything. And by that, I mean even the confrontation with the truth about Sora and his family.
I had a long talk with her about it, and it took a while to convince her not to go to the teachers and tell that there were werewolves on the campus.
“So what do we do?” she asked me. She was so innocent…how could I tell her that I was going to talk to Sora and ask that he stay here? But, then again, I didn’t have to, I felt the tickle in my head and she sighed. “So…it can’t be helped. You love him.” It was a statement, not a question.
Though I couldn’t tell myself that, Mel had no problem with deciphering my thoughts and everything in between. I slowly nodded. “I’m going to the house and talking to him…and Duston, if he’s still there.” I stood up and was about to leave when Mel walked over to me and placed a hand on my arm.
“I’m going with you.” I didn’t argue with her, she had a right.

When we showed up at the house, some lights were on. I prayed and hoped that Sora and Duston were still here and hadn’t decided to run away. If Sora ran, I’d be heart broken and crying over the loss of his presence. I couldn’t imagine Sora leaving…couldn’t imagine him not existing. It was unbearable, and I’d rather be tortured with serrated knives for twelve hours of the day rather than suffer a life with knowing Sora was out somewhere and not with me.
I opened the door and walked in. I sighed in relief when I spotted Sora. He immediately stood up and wrapped his arms around me.
“I’m so sorry that I never told you about me, about my family. I didn’t want you to know. The reaction you had earlier proved my fears right about telling you of my family. I’m so sorry.” He was shaking, but this wasn’t out of anger. He was shaking because he was…scared? I don’t know, I never thought Sora could get scared about anything. Than again, I never thought he’d be a Knight.
“Shh…it’s okay. I’m here, and that’s all that matters.” I stroked his hair, trying to soothe him. “It’s not like you meet someone as strange as me that would like petting a werewolf that could bite her hand off.”
He chuckled and whispered, “No one could be like you. You’re one of a kind.” Then, he kissed my neck.

Part 24
I felt a brief tickle in my head and then sighed. Mel wasn’t trying to read my thoughts; she was just reminding me that she was still there. “And I’m not the only one that came. Sora, you remember my half sister, right?” he nodded. “Duston, this is my half sister Melanie, she prefers to be called Mel, though.”
“So this is the eldest daughter of the Ashford line? How many of you are left? I’d say roughly around…ten maybe, excluding your father.”
I tensed and I guessed Sora noticed the change because he chewed his brother out—metaphorically, of course. Although, I admit it would have been interesting to see wolves brawl it out.
That evening was okay, but Mel was parched, so I hugged her briefly. “That’s code for ‘I miss Jeremy and I want to go find him’, right?” I asked her and then giggled.
“I thought I was the mind reader?” she asked.
“You are, but now you know I can hide things from you. So please, just skim through my head instead, there are some things I don’t want you to know and I am just protecting you, alright?” I said and looked her in the eyes.
She nodded, “Okay, but you better tell me later on.” I nodded and then she left.
“Well, that was certainly…different…” Duston said.
I glared at him, and Sora growled, which stopped me in my tracks. I hadn’t heard him growl except that one time when he was a wolf. I didn’t really like that he could growl while he was human…well…growl sort of like an animal…
“Sora, how long will he be staying?” I tugged on his shirt to get his attention.
“For a while. As long as I’m here, he’s going to attend school too.” I grumbled and went to the room we’ve slept in previous nights. I didn’t like the thought of Dustin staying here and ruining the romance with all his sarcastic and obnoxious comments. I am so gonna love my training classes even more.

Part 25
I was keeping Sora up half the night, practically. After returning with food for Duston, we went into the room we’d slept in for the past week and I was throwing a fit.
“Why does he have to stay?” I was whining like a little kid—I admit—but that didn’t mean I wanted his younger brother taking us away from our romance. School and other students did enough of that. Not to mention that Claude is starting up after school training sessions for about an hour.
“Look, if I could—which I can’t—I’d extricate his entire being from this planet, but I can’t. For one thing, dad will be ticked, for another, mom will yell at me…no, dad will get ticked and yell at me while mom goes to talk to Karyn.” He said…and he sounded like he was on the verge of losing control.
Instead of egging him on more, I changed the subject. “Your sister’s name is Karyn?” he nodded. “Karyn Knight…that sounds cute. You know…I saw her. Remember when I blanked out earlier and then ran away?”
“Yeah, I remember. That’s when you took my heart with you.” He said, utterly serious.
Aww, I can’t believe he just said that! I thought to myself. “Well…I sort of have an ability to see glimpses of the future…” he nodded, but didn’t seem all surprised.
“I figured. But at least it’s only two extra abilities that I have to deal with from you.” He kissed my neck again and I giggled.
“Y-yeah, you’re only partially right…” I hesitated.
“What do you mean, Rave?” he asked me.
“I mean…I have more than one special ability…I’m one of the rare ones that has more than one power.” I explained. “A person that has at least two or three special abilities is rare. Well…I’m sort of…nonexistent…”
“What are you telling me, Raven?” he asked me.
“I’m saying…I have more than just three special abilities…I have at least six…that I know of…” I looked at him, and his eyes had widened a little.
“When you said you could “hide things” from Mel…I knew you had a shielding ability, and then when you said you had visions, I realized you were a rare one, I just didn’t know you’d have…a lot more abilities.” Sora said, and he seemed surprised and staring at me in wonder.
There was a cup of water on the night stand beside the bed and I let the water come out of the cup, and then back in. my gaze flickered at the wooden nightstand and I managed to fix the part of it that was chipped. I briefly warmed the room up and then let it cool back down. I looked back at Sora and made a light breeze to ruffle his hair.
“It’s a wonder that I never met you until the end of summer.” His eyes were wide with curiosity and I kissed his cheek.

The night went by quickly, and as I fell asleep, my sweet dream of the garden at the side of the house, through one of the doors—changed. Instead, I was in a room that I didn’t even know whose it was. I looked around and didn’t see much, then, something moved and I felt my muscles tense when I crouched in a defensive position. Suddenly, the room became brighter, but it was because the sun was rising.
I turned to where I saw someone move and paused. It was a girl—a few years younger than me, obviously—and she resembled two other people I knew: Sora and his younger brother, Duston. I straightened my stance and really took in the girl’s features.
“Hmm…brother said you were pretty, too bad he’s really good at understating things.” She giggled. “Hi, I’m Karyn.” She held out her hand. I hesitantly shook it and then withdrew my hand from hers.
”So, I’m guessing you already know my name?” she nodded and seemed really…excited? I couldn’t tell, and this certainly didn’t have the feel of one of my visions. I was actually acting on my own accord instead of my fighting to control myself if it was something bad. Then I remembered an ability that I didn’t think anyone had: dream walking. At the same time I realized this, she smiled.
“Guess I’m caught, huh? Oh well, please don’t tell on me, I’d get in trouble. You wouldn’t rat me out, would you?” she fluttered her eyelashes and me and I couldn’t help but laugh.
I shook my head, “No, I wouldn’t, but I gotta admit, this is…strange.” Okay, strange couldn’t begin to cover this situation, not at all. But I hung with it.
“So how’s my brother?”
“Which one?” I asked tilting my head to the side a little.
Karyn gasped, “They’re both there?”
I nodded, “Both Sora and Duston. Didn’t you know that?” I asked, a little uneasy.
She shook her head, “No, I thought only Sora was there. Then again…Duston has been gone for a while. Come to think of it, Duston’s been gone nearly as long as Sora,” she laughed a little and she sat on her bed cross-legged. “Guess I don’t notice Duston as much as I notice our big brother. He doesn’t like me much, Duston, he’s always sorta…mean.”
“You know, with the dreams you control, I’m sure you can torture him in them,” I smiled at her and she giggled shaking her head.
“No, last time he told mom and dad about it. The little weasel told mom and dad about it.”
“Hey, think about it, is he even home?”
She shook her head, “No, he’s with you and Sora.”
“Exactly, so that means he can’t tell your parents about it. Isn’t it a good thing that he’s being my annoying pain instead of yours?”
“No, I like you, you’re pretty cool. You and big brother don’t deserve to have the idiot around you two.”
Should that flatter me? “Thanks. Anyway, how are you and your parents?”
“Well…”
And after that, we just started talking about all the girly things we could think about. If she thought the way I dressed was weird compared to her, she didn’t mention it. This might have been the weirdest way to meet Sora’s sister, but I didn’t mind. It was nice and Karyn was sweet.

Those chapters were really good Tati. I really liked Raven and Sora's reactions to his brother Duston. And Raven's reaction to Sora's true name then Sora's reaction when Raven came back with Mel. ^///^ cute!

Part 26
“Raven? Raven, wake up.” I felt someone shaking me a little and I fluttered my eyes to open.
“Mmm…Sora?” I asked.
“Yes, it’s me. Come on, we have to go.” I looked at the clock and it was almost the time that Mel woke up.
“Oh.” I said. “So I’m guessing Duston will have to come with us during school, huh?”
“Sadly, yes. But I’m sure he won’t cause any problems. I’ll kick his ass if I have to.” I stared at him. “What?” he asked.
I shook my head, “Nothing, I just didn’t think he could tick you off this much.” I shrugged, “Oh, and your sister visited me.”
“She did?”
“Yep, she seems sweet.”
“Yeah, she is.”
“Okay, well, are we gonna go or what? Because I can think of a few things that’s better than going to school…” my words trailed off as I fingered the hollow of his shoulder.
He took my hand and shook his head. I sighed in resignation and got off the bed.
“Where are you going?”
“Back to my dorm room. Where else do you think I’d go?” I tilted my head to the side a little, looking at him.
He shrugged, “Want me to go with you?”
I thought about it for a few seconds. “Mmm, okay. But what are we gonna do about the idiot in the other room?”
“Hey! I heard that!” Duston shouted.
I blushed lightly, and whispered fiercely, “Stupid werewolf hearing.”
“I heard that too!” I giggled and looked at Sora. He nodded and we walked to the girls’ dorm lacing our fingers together.

Mel and I left the dorm to go to the commons about an hour or so later. Outside, Sora, Jeremy and Duston were waiting for us. Sora walked up to me and smiled, entwining our fingers together. Jeremy went to Mel and took her in an embrace and kissed her. Duston just stayed where he was—hands in his pocket—watching us.
We all walked over to the commons, me and Sora talking about what would happen in combat classes, Mel and Jeremy talking about Mental Magic class. Mel’s ability is mind reading while Jeremy was an illusionist. He could make you see your worst fear or he could make you see something you liked, but only the people of his concentration would see the illusion. A few years ago, when we constantly clashed, he tried to make an illusion that made me see the academy being attacked by werewolves and I was all alone—so he says, since I couldn’t see anything due to my “shield”.
When we sat with our usual group, Sora introduced his brother.
“So this is your little brother?” Jamie asked. “Huh, you guys don’t look too much alike; except for the eyes and the hair.”
Sora shrugged, “Yeah, well, he’s still a pain in the ass. Wait till you get to know him, wait, on second thought, don’t. You’ll regret it.”
I slapped him in the arm, “Hey, be a little nice to your brother. He’s only a junior, yeah, but he’s not that annoying.”
“Says the pet to her master.” Duston chuckled.
I glared at him, “On second thought, he is annoying. Okay, I give up, you can beat him now.”
Sora shook his head, “Not the time or place for that, Raven. But maybe later, if we’re not alone together.” He winked at me and I giggled. Everyone at the table cracked up.
When the bell rang, I was glad to get to class. Luckily since Duston has a junior class level schedule, we had different classes, except the last combat class I had. But I admit, it’s better than having him in more classes.

Part 27
School seemed to go by faster, and that was a good thing. Finally, the last combat class I had at the end of the day came. Sora and I walked over to the field and saw Duston talking to one of the junior novices, Jenna. At least, I thought it was Jenna. Yup, it was, and she was…laughing. Okay, so weird.
I turned to Sora, “Hey, looks like your brother is enjoying his first day here.” He glanced at where his Duston was and shrugged. Well, then. Guess he doesn’t care much about Duston unless he was causing trouble, and really, he didn’t seem like he’d caused trouble, so I shook it off.
The instructor today wasn’t Rachel, but it was Camdin. He was a pretty good teacher, been here for about ten years, so he knew his stuff. Today was different though, we had grouped sparring. He chose to go with four people in each group. Sora and I paired up together along with Ed and Jamie. We got to choose who was in the groups, but he chose which groups sparred with one another.
It turned out to be pretty fun. We ended up with James and his group: Terra, Cody and Martin. I took on Terra, and it was pretty easy, I took her down in a few minutes. Since everyone else still was fighting, I decided to help Jamie fend off Martin. It seemed like he was on the verge of losing. Stepping towards Martin, I saw someone move close to me: James. He’d taken down Ed and now, he and Terra were sitting on the side of the mat. Great.
Blocking James’ punch, I quickly moved a few steps away from him. Instead of circling around each other, he charged toward me. I ducked and kicked him in the shin. Lucky for me, the momentum he built up helped, because when I kicked him, he staggered and went down face first.
He got up and I giggled, “Aww, come on, you’re better than that, James.” I saw that my words ticked him off a bit, but the sound of my voice seemed to take him off guard a little.
One second he was staring at me, the next, he was down on the ground struggling. I was standing there, trying to figure out who had taken him down. Then, the features and the voice came together in my head, it was Sora. I looked around and saw Cody, Jamie, Terra and Ed were sitting out. It only took me a second to realize this, and another second to hear someone coming towards me: Martin.
I turned around just in time. Instead of hitting me in the back, he got a good punch at my rib cage. I wavered a little, but with all the adrenaline coursing through my veins, I barely felt any pain. He came at me again and I dodged, landing a punch at his face. He made an awful sound, but then charged toward me. I was ready to dodge again, but then, he was on the ground and Sora was on top of him, pulling his arms behind his back.
Martin struggled and groaned when Sora tightened his arms behind him. Finally ceasing his struggles, Sora released his hold on his arms and got off him. Martin rolled over and sat up, stretching his arms out a little. Sora held out a hand to Martin and he took it. Everyone started cheering and it took me a moment to notice that we were the last group to finish sparring. After a few seconds, the bell rang and everyone started taking the mats to put in the storage room at the side of the building that was facing the field.
Sora came over to me and hugged me, I winced. Pushing Sora away a little, he pulled back and looked at me raising one of his eyebrows. I shook my head and lightly poked the right side of my ribs and winced again at the pain that shot through me. I lifted up my shirt a little and saw a bruise the size of Martin’s fist forming.
Sora sucked in a breath through his teeth. “Are you okay? That looks pretty bad.” I tugged my shirt down and shrugged, again wincing at the pain.
“I’m fine, it’s not like I haven’t been knocked around in combat class before.” He shook his head but took my hand and started walking to the gym that was across the field. I sighed, “Oh God, I totally forgot about the extra lessons with Claude yesterday and this morning! Great, he’s gonna kill me!” Sora smiled a little but stopped in front of me.
God, those eyes were gleaming again. That or I was delusional from the little throbbing pain I felt because of Martin’s punch. I looked down, not wanting to meet his gaze. “Like you said, you’ll be fine.” He tilted my chin up and kissed me, soft and gentle, and then it turned to something stronger, hungrier.
Ignoring the ache in my rib cage, I gripped his shirt with one hand while the other was tangling itself in his hair. He groaned a bit and his hands were on my hips, pressing us closer to each other. He bit my lower lip and a soft sound escaped my lips. He stopped kissing me, but instead of pulling away like usual, he moved away the hair from the right side of my neck and started trailing kisses over to my throat.
He quickly pulled away from me, holding me away at arm’s length when I tried to move toward him. “No…Claude’s gonna be mad enough. Come on.” He gently tugged on my arm, walking toward the gym. I sighed, but followed. I didn’t really want to face the wrath of my mentor, not yet.
We walked into the gym to see Claude talking to someone already. With the brief distraction, Sora kissed me and whispered, “See you later.” Then walked back out the doors we came in.

Part 28
“Ah, so she isn’t sick after all.” Claude said, getting my attention, “I thought you had a reason for missing three sessions, but I see now that you’re fine.”
I flushed a little, “Sorry,” I mumbled, “won’t happen again.
“That’s alright, you won’t have to worry about early morning sessions anymore, but you’ll still have after school sessions. I figured you wouldn’t need combat training anymore, just control over your abilities.” Claude explained. I smiled a little in relief. Least I won’t be that sore.
I looked at the guy that Claude was talking to earlier. “Who’s he?” I asked. Clearly he was an Impral, but I didn’t know his name. He didn’t look familiar either.
“Hi, I’m Joshua Veraclease. Josh suits me better though.” He smiled at me, but didn’t offer his hand to me, so I nodded.
I turned back to Claude, “What’s he doing here?” I admit, that was a little rude, especially since the guy—Josh—seemed to be pretty nice.
“He’s going to help you with your vision problems. You said they were starting to happen while you’re awake also, right?” Claude asked. He didn’t really talk down to me like I was a student, more like I was an old friend.
I slowly nodded, then I said, “But how’s he supposed to help me? What, does he have some sort of shielding ability too?”
“Right, like I’d have that. I’m not a rare one. I don’t have more then one ability. But I do have better control of visions than you.” I grimaced a little. Great, looks like I have another chastising teacher, ugh. I felt the tickle in my head and then it went away. Oh crap. One thing I hate about Claude is him reading my mind, especially at a time like that.
“No, he’s not here to be your teacher; he practically just graduated.” Claude said, “He came here when I asked him if he’d help with you.”
“Yes, and I’m only twenty years old.” Wow, that was unexpected. “And I’d rather not be your teacher, more like a friend that’s helping a friend.” He smiled and I sighed.
“Okay, lets get this over with.” I said. I sat down cross legged in front of Claude and winced when a jolt of pain ran through me. “Ow,” I clutched at the right side of my rib cage and checked how bad the bruise was. Not good, it looked black and purple, ugh, “I am so killing Martin.” I muttered.
“Why?” Claude asked. I lifted up my shirt a little, just enough to reveal the bruise on my side. “That looks like it hurts, want to go to the hospital?” I shook my head. The hospital we had at the academy was awful! The walls were an ugly pale green color and it had a strange scent of too much flowers. “Okay, we’ll call off today’s lesson. But I expect you here tomorrow after school, alright?”
I nodded, “Fine by me. I’ll see you two tomorrow, I guess.” I got up and walked to the gym doors. I looked behind me and saw Claude and Josh talking again. I rolled my eyes and walked out into the cooling chill of fall.

When I got back to my room, Mel was sitting on her bed, reading one of my books. “Like it so far, Melanie?” I asked with a teasing edge to my tone.
She nodded, “You always read books that are intriguing. But when it comes to school reading, you throw the books beside your bed and forget about them.” She smiled and I stuck my tongue out at her like a child. She laughed and I rolled my eyes.
“It’s not that I forget them. I read them, yes. But I don’t like them. They aren’t interesting enough to make me want to re-read them.”
“That explains why some of these books are worn,” she said, holding the one she was reading out to me.
I took it, “It’s not my fault some people know how to write stories while others don’t.” I placed the book back where it belonged on my book shelf and grabbed a towel and a change of clothes.
That little exchange with Mel got me in a better mood. Now, I was ready to get cleaned up before dinner. My clothes were a little icky and creased and my hair was a mess. Well, that’s what happens when you work out for half the day. I took my brush and started smoothing out the snarls in my hair.
After it looked and felt better, I stepped into the shower. It felt nice and warm, but it made the ache at my side throb stronger. I poked it and a surge of pain shot through me. Wincing a little, I looked at the spot where the bruise faded and then returned to looking dark and purple. Ugh, it’s gonna be worse tomorrow.

Those last couple chapters were really good. I like how you wrote the fight in combat class. Most people don't know how to write a good fight. So glad you do, Tati.

tati you have ten seconds to give us more!!!

LOL, WAIT!!!! I need time!!!!!

You said that you had 2 more done!!!