ARIA
Abnormalities in my aura. Abnormalities, abnormalities, abnormalities… It’s all that I think about now. I have no hope. I was done with it years ago! But now this little mention of some kind of abnormalities in my aura and I am obsessing over it. What could it be?
After a quick shower, I get to dinner. I catch Hunter’s eyes on me a few times. I know he will make me pay for today, so I escape as soon as I am done. To the only place where he would never go – the library! I can also use this time to read about… yes, aura’s abnormalities. I still can’t throw it out of my head.
After about half an hour of search, I find enough books and get to my favourite spot – right next to a huge window in the corner, behind several bookshelves. No one is going to notice me here.
It’s getting darker but I see groups of students hanging out outside. They joke and they laugh and generally speaking – they have the time of their lives. I sigh to myself. I never get invited to these get-togethers… I tried to make friends here at first but it just never worked out. I can’t relate to anything they experience as wolves and witches, and they can’t relate to being a human… In the end, it was always getting awkward and I felt like they are forced to be my friends because of my family. And I gave up. But sometimes I wish I could go to one of those parties they throw, or just go outside in the evening and join my classmates… Kieran always calls me. But again, it feels like his friends have to be nice to me. And I impose enough during our meals together.
Oh, well! I am used to being a loner now.
I flip through pages and find nothing worthy. Abnormalities in one’s aura are pretty common. And in women, it may just be a sign of something hormonal… like simple periods. Yeah, nothing much…
Die hopes, die! Crawl back to where I buried you all those years ago!
“She is here, I am telling you!” a familiar female voice gets me out of my thoughts. I will recognize that voice everywhere – it’s Chloe Berger, Marissa’s best friend, and most loyal minion. I carefully take a peek through one of the bookshelves I am hiding behind. Her short pink hair could be seen from afar.
“It does smell like her!” Marissa is right next to her. And I can only pray that the two of them are not looking for me.
“Come on, little human princess, come out to play!” Chloe chuckles darkly, “We are not going to hurt you. We just want to talk.”
s**t. Now I know for sure that they want to hurt me.
Don’t panic, Aria! Do NOT panic. You are ready for this. You know it. And they don’t.
I take a deep breath and come out, regretting that the library is not a popular place to hang out in our school. There isn’t a single soul here with the exception of me and two evil she-wolves.
“You are looking for me?” I ask calmly, raising my brow, “Here I am!”
“Huh!” Marissa snorts, “How very royal of you to honour us with your presence.”
“It’s good that you know that I am one of the Royals, both – the pack and the family,” I remind her, but it only makes her angrier than she already is.
“And what, do you think it makes you somehow better?” Marissa chuckles.
“If you weren’t a daughter of the King, you would be just someone’s pet!” Chloe adds.
“Hardly, law prohibits to have humans as pets. Anyway, I am the daughter of my father. So, what is it exactly that you want from me?”
“I want you, empty little thing, to get off my boyfriend!” the redhead hisses.
“Listen, your boyfriend is the last person on Earth I want to be associated with. In no way I want to ever be close to him! So, your wish is granted!” I say but they do not look convinced and, knowing that I wouldn’t get away easily whatever I say, I add, “Just make sure he stops following me and leaves me alone. You can do that, right?”
“You b***h!” Marissa steps in my direction, her eyes shine green and her talons grow long in seconds, “What a pity that human wounds don’t heal easily! One deep scar on your face and no boy would ever want to stay close to you!”
She swings and tries to hit me but I dodge just in time.
“This is twenty-first century, Marissa! People’s conception of beauty changes! And also – are you out of your freaking mind?! Try that again and you are going to regret it!” I warn her one last time.
“What? Are you going to cry really loud so that you Daddy or Mummy come and rescue you?” Chloe snarls taking position behind me. Those two really leave me no choice.
“Lesson has to be learned, Aria! Know your place!” they both make their move and I activate the artifact in one of my rings, sending a wave of defense magic around me which throws them away and far. Marissa knocks and even breaks a few bookshelves. Chloe lands across the wall. Both fall to the ground, groaning from pain.
“I warned you!” I sigh trying not to show my shaking knees, Luckily, my aunt Cassidy is a talented artifactor. She made so many of those for me that I lost count. And since I have no powers, I wear at least a few with me at all times. I never use them unless I am in real danger. Which happened for the first time ever at school. But protecting my face from Forrester’s jealous girlfriend seems serious enough to do it.
Chloe looks unconscious but when I turn to look at Marissa, she is not where she landed after the hit.
“Looking for someone?” she says right to my ear and then I feel the hardest kick into my abdomen, which sends me flying across the room and into another bookshelf. I feel something cracking and tremendous pain overwhelms me. Silly Aria, of course, werewolves recover faster and their reactions are sharper than yours. Why did I ever think that I can stand a chance against them?
“What the hell is going on here?” Hunter appears out of nowhere and scans the room.
“Honey!” Marissa throws herself at him, “She attacked us with an artifact! Look, I am bleeding! And so is Chloe! I was protecting myself!”
In the meantime, I try to get up out of the wreckage of shelves and books. Unsuccessfully. I feel the metallic taste in my mouth and when I touch my lip I realize that it is badly broken… But the worst thing is that I can’t move my left wrist.
I look up and for a second there my eyes meet Hunter’s but in less than a second he is back with his girlfriend.
“Why would you even waste your time for trash like her, Marissa? If she tells her daddy he wouldn’t be figuring out who started it!” he starts talking and I feel like someone punched me yet again. Chloe comes to the two of them with a smirk on her face. Blood trickles down my face and that’s how I know that I hit my head pretty hard too. I want to cry from all the pain because yes, it’s more painful for humans and no, I will not heal quickly. But I will not fall so low as to show them my tears. I push away a broken piece of wood that’s on top of me and force myself to stand up, even though I almost fall and Chloe giggles at that.
“Pathetic!” she chuckles.
“Honey, take me away!” Marissa curls her hands around Hunter’s neck.
“Of course, babe,” he gives her a quick kiss and lifts her up in his hands, giving her a proper princess carry. Before they leave, he takes one last look at me. “You’d better stay silent about it!” he says and walks away, not looking back and thus not seeing the middle finger that I give him.
As soon as they are gone, I fall back to the ground. Everything hurts so badly!
“Well, that was impressive!”, a familiar voice behind my back makes me turn quickly…
Aksara