by Dakota Brown
I tilted my head and he shook his. He could tell me later.
He led class without his usual enthusiasm, though the topic was still interesting and once everyone had filed out, I lingered. I didn't suspect people would think much of it, since I doubted I'd done so for the several months when the demon was in control. No one gave me any looks like they thought I was trying to get too much attention from the teacher. Or maybe I was just being extra sensitive.
"So, what's wrong?" I asked.
"Let's talk after school. I still need to talk to Deputy Morrison, too. I can fill you all in then."
"Should I worry?"
Doc shook his head. "No. I think if Deputy Morrison were going to try and blame the fire on us, he would have shown up and tried to arrest me already and the other thing is interesting, but not actually a problem at this point."
"Leaving me in suspense."
He smiled. "Get to class. We can grab takeout, so Nikolai doesn't starve."
"I think we need to talk with Victoria, too. She may have some contacts that can help us. I think events have progressed enough that we need outside intervention."
Doc's brows furrowed for a minute before he nodded. "See if she wants to come up to the yurt for dinner. She can see our new accommodations. I'll bring you both back down here before it's too late so you can sleep at the dorm."
I pouted.
"Unless Victoria wants to cuddle with a bunch of guys she's not dating, she probably won't want to stay up there," Doc said quietly, eyes glinting in amusement.
I laughed. "Okay, point. Let's plan on that, and I'll tell you if anything changes."
Doc sighed and nodded. He clenched his hands into fists and shook his head. "Pretend I'm giving you a big hug right now, and get to class." There was no way anyone could overhear us, but he spoke even more quietly than he had before.
"See you soon," I replied.
"Looking forward to it."
I left the classroom and made it about halfway to my next class before I ran into one of the people at the top of my never want to see again list.
"Sofia," Alex purred my name. "Looking diminished."
To hear him say my name with such familiarity and comment on how being just me lessened me somehow made me want to show him everything the demon had left me with and leave him a smoking crater in the ground.
I growled, clenching my hands, trying hard to resist destroying him where he stood. As confident as Alex looked right then, I knew I would win.
Ironically, Allan saved Alex.
"Sofia," he came up to me and claimed my mouth with his. It might have been the only thing he could have done to keep me from completely losing control and showing everyone on campus once and for all that magic was very lethally real.
After a quick moment, I could sense that seeing Allan kiss me so openly seriously pissed off Alex so I pressed myself to Allan, using him for a minute in a quick revenge. Of course, I got the impression from our pack bond that Allan was doing the same exact thing.
Alex finally made a gagging sound. "Try not to get a hairball," he growled and stalked away.
"Cats!" I called after him, "Cats get hairballs, idiot."
"Sorry about that," Allan said, cheeks coloring a bit. "I, uh, thought it would piss him off. Not that I didn't want to kiss you..."
I cut off his unneeded apology with another kiss, pressing my lips to his, my body molding to his muscular one, hands digging into his back. Forgetting for a moment that we were on campus and not up on Doc's property.
Someone catcalled and I broke away, laughing.
Allan grinned at me.
"Timely rescue," I said when he took my hand and we headed toward my next class.
"Yeah, I could feel you pulling all your magic. It was pretty intense. Fortunately, the visual show hadn't started yet. I don't think anyone but Alex and me noticed."
"Fucker," I growled again.
"Yeah. He probably was trying to provoke you."
"He has no idea what he's getting into." I clenched Allan's hand.
"No, but we gotta be careful."
I sighed and tried to relax my shoulders. "I know. Thanks for the save."
"Anytime, Sofia. We'll get them. We just have to figure out how to do it."
"I know," I grumbled. "Allan, I..." I hesitated as I met his eyes. The intensity and hint of wilderness I saw in them melted me inside. I needed to tell him how I felt now, in case something happened. We were in a literal fight for our lives. Why was I hesitating? Because I was being dumb, that's why. There was no reason not to tell Allan I loved him. None at all.
"Yeah?" He brushed his fingertips across my temple.
"I love you. You know that, right?" There, that wasn't so hard? Was it?
His eyebrows rose. Clearly, he hadn't been expecting that, but his eyes softened, glistening. "I love you, Sofia."
We kissed gently before breaking apart.
"And, we're going to be late for class." I sighed.
He shrugged. "At least we'll make it. A few weeks ago I never thought I'd get the chance to tell you how I felt in words."
I smiled. I'd been right. They needed to be said. Now I just had to get some alone time with Ed.
∞ ∞ ∞
Ed and Allan met Victoria and I at our dorm later. We waited in the common area for Doc to show up. A few other students used the space to study, so we kept our quiet conversations to safe topics. Exams were starting to wear heavily on my mind, and I studied my tablet, hoping to unlock more immediate access to the knowledge I had to have gained over the last couple of months.
Though none of the information was new to me, it was becoming apparent the demon hadn't truly applied herself toward paying attention in classes. That didn't exactly surprise me, and I couldn't blame her at all, but I wanted to end the semester with decent grades. I knew my parents would understand if they slipped a little, but if I could at all avoid having that conversation, I would.
Finally, the wolves heard Doc's pickup and we headed outside and climbed in. Victoria took the passenger seat and I got in back with Ed and Allan.
"Did you get takeout?" Ed asked Doc.
"Nikolai said he had cooking covered, so I stopped by the store instead."
Ed and Allan were quiet for a minute before Allan whispered, "What did you get?"
"Uh, normal stuff, I guess."
Ed groaned.
"Hey, I do actually pay attention to what you guys eat," Doc mock growled.
I happened to glance at Victoria. She studied Doc closely, before sighing quietly. Shit, the guys just couldn't seem to remember that she didn't know Doc's secret. Well, at least she wasn't going to jump to the vampire conclusion since she had seen him in the sunlight. Oh well.
Doc glanced over at Victoria and tightened his jaw before shrugging.
"I got lots of hamburger."
"Well, that's something, anyway," Ed muttered.
I laughed. "Guys, it could be worse. You can always go hunt down another deer."
"You all didn't want to stay at a hotel?" Victoria asked.
Doc shrugged. "Nikolai was pretty excited about his yurts and it's actually quite comfortable. We're happier up there, anyway."
Doc hit the main roundabout in town and headed out of the valley.
"You're lucky you found him," Victoria said.
"Yes, we are," Doc agreed.
I couldn't help but grin. I was particularly grateful for a lot of reasons, but I was also glad that Nikolai and Doc had hit it off so well. Victoria might not know about that aspect of our pack dynamic. She was about to get an eyeful if she didn't already know.
Shortly we had pulled off the main road and were bouncing down the snowy driveway.
"It's so pretty back here," Victoria said.
"We like it," Doc replied.
The rest of us murmured agreement.
Once the truck was stopped, we all hopped out. Nikolai waited for us, looking extremely pleased with himself.
"Hell
o, Victoria," he greeted her before wrapping me in a hug and kissing me soundly. "Day was long without you."
I flushed.
He gave Allan a quick hug before the werewolves jumped in the back of Doc's pickup and grabbed the food Doc had bought.
"I guess he didn't do to badly," Ed said as they headed toward the yurt.
Doc shook his head. "No gratitude."
"Experience!" Allan shot back.
Nikolai laughed and put his arms around Doc, pressing his chest against Doc's back and rested his chin on the vampire's shoulder. "Don't like your shopping?"
Doc sighed though his expression softened with Nikolai's embrace. "I needed some training when they were younger. They haven't forgotten."
I happened to glance at Victoria. Her eyes were wide, though she seemed amused more than anything.
Nikolai kissed Doc's neck before releasing him. "Training?" He headed toward the path we'd made in the snow that led back to the yurt.
"How was I supposed to know what a pair of teen werewolves ate?" Doc replied defensively. "They learned to cook as a survival tactic."
Victoria glanced at me, an eyebrow arched. I shrugged.
She shook her head then glanced over where the cabin had stood. Her expression fell. "Wow, that sucks."
"Yes," Nikolai agreed. "We will rebuild. Just need materials and time."
"Did you lose everything?"
Doc shook his head. "Important documents and most of my guns were in the safe. Nothing else was really all that important. Even the firearms weren't that big of a deal. It's more inconvenient than anything."
"I fixed most of the inconvenience." Nikolai waved his hand. "Busy day. Good to have something to do."
Victoria gasped when we came into the smaller clearing. Nikolai had been busy. The yurt remained where it had stood, but along with everything else he'd done today, he'd taken the time to magic the yurt into something rather fantastical looking. It retained its original shape, but the ropes that lashed it together had morphed into leafy vines. The plain canvas had been transformed into its own piece of art. Earth tone colors swirled along the walls, giving it a kind of camouflage, especially in the fading light, though it was lit on the inside which made some of the colors stand out.
Doc glanced over at Nikolai. "Very nice."
"Thank you."
"There is now a shower and outhouse, too. Magic, of course. Don't let just anyone know about it. It is back that way."
I could make out another path in the snow that led further into the woods.
Ed and Allan came out of the yurt, stunned expressions on their faces.
"Damn, Nikolai, we almost don't need to build another cabin."
His pleased grin widened.
Doc put his arm around Nikolai and side-hugged him before going into the yurt.
"Put food here. Also magic. It will keep everything fresh."
A couple of trunk sized boxes sat near the front door. They were more than adequate for the food Doc had purchased.
Victoria hung back for a moment and I waited with her.
"Wow," she said.
"Yeah, having someone who has actually lived like this before in our pack is really useful. I'd be like...s'mores anyone? That's pretty much the extent of my ability to rough it."
"Well, being able to use magic doesn't hurt."
"No."
"Yeah, so those two..." She raised her eyebrows again.
I grinned and winked. "Can hear you. Come on, let's go."
"Right."
She followed me into the yurt. Nikolai had moved things around a little. The bed was pushed to the side a bit more, leaving room for a low table and cushions. Where he had gotten all of that, I didn't know. Probably convinced a tree to grow them or something. If he wasn't good at earth magic, someday I wanted to meet someone who was.
A slightly taller table looked vaguely like a place to cook. One side of the table was bare wood. The other side had some sort of black stone on it. Under the black stone was another box.
"Gets hot." Nikolai gestured to the stone. "Haven't quite worked out how to let the user chose the temperature. Just pay attention. And this is like an oven. Gets about three hundred degrees, seems to be a common cooking temperature. Not perfect, but will work."
"Not perfect? Nikolai, this is amazing." Ed got in on the hugging action, dragging Nikolai into a tight embrace.
The mage looked a little embarrassed as he hugged Ed back. "Is least I could do. You all provide everything else."
"Ed, Allan, cook something," Doc ordered. "We have a lot to discuss before we drop the ladies off back at the dorm."
The other guys pouted.
"Can't we keep her here?" That was Ed again.
"The semester is almost over. She can stay up here through the break."
"Nikolai, what do we do for water?" Allan came back in holding a tea kettle and a few other things.
"Running water in shower. Was best I could do."
Allan headed back out into the night, assuring Nikolai that it was fantastic.
Trying to stay out of the way, I sprawled on the bed. Victoria joined me, lounging near the foot.
Doc lay down on his stomach next to me, leaning on his elbows as he watched Ed and Allan get familiar with the kitchen. He must have noticed me eyeing the hair tie that kept his long hair pulled back because he reached up and pulled it out before I could disintegrate it.
"I'm running out of them." He grinned.
"Oh, sorry."
"Don't be. I just hate shopping."
Nikolai perched on the other side of Doc. "So, tell us about your day." He buried one hand in Doc's long hair, resting it on the other man's back.
I pushed up against his other shoulder with mine.
"Well, it got interesting fast. The Andersons are not quite hitting full force, but they went after my job."
Everyone stared at Doc in horror.
"It's fine. I talked them out of suspending me, although it amounts to the same thing. I'm taking a leave of absence for the spring semester. Things with the Andersons will be worked out long before the question of if I can actually go back comes up."
"What did they do?" Victoria gasped out.
"They tried to out me as a mage. I managed to convince the dean that the Andersons were lying, and they really didn't want to go through the whole process of dealing with that since I wasn't willing to just walk away. The leave of absence was a compromise."
"That's such crap," Victoria grumbled. "They can't fire you for being a mage."
"They could," Doc said. "And I'd rather they think that I'm a mage rather than the truth, and if an investigation really did happen, it would get messy fast. My current background is tight as far as the paper trail is concerned, but enough people know me, that if they asked the right people the right questions it could get, um, awkward. Of course, they'd have to go to the Navajo for real information and I suspect my mother's people would be fairly tight lipped about the whole thing. Or, the Andersons could just tell the truth. I think they're still afraid to do that, though I'm not completely sure what's holding them back at this point."
"Suspect they're afraid you have friends."
Doc snorted. "Other than you guys, no."
Nikolai nodded. "Still, is better they think that."
Doc buried his face in his hands for a minute before brushing his long hair back and resting his chin on his hands. Then he frowned and glanced over at Victoria.
I followed her gaze. She had a deliberately blank look on her face, as if she were trying really hard not to react to anything we were saying.
Doc sighed. "I'm a vampire."
Her blank mask shattered and her eyebrows rose. That she didn't immediately completely freak out pleased me. She'd known Doc for months now.
"Sunlight?" she whispered. "That's not a real thing?"
"It is." Doc answered. "I'm not a full vampire. My mother was attacked right before I was born. It's a long story."
"Oh." He
r gaze met mine, eyes wide. "Okay. Well, I guess that explains about everything then. I can, uh, see why you didn't want to tell me, though."
He shrugged. "At least now if someone asked you if I'm a mage, you can say no with complete conviction, or lie knowledgably if the situation warrants."
She nodded.
Ed and Allan turned back to the meal they were working on and Doc sighed quietly. I was probably the only one who heard him, since I was pressed up close.
"Well, so you have a long vacation. Great. How was Deputy Morrison?" I wasn't sure what else to say about his job situation.
Doc groaned. "Okay. He's not completely convinced it wasn't arson, but no one can prove anything and since I don't have any real information for him, they're going to call it shit luck, I guess. He grilled me pretty hard today, but short of telling him that mages burned it down because we took away their pet demon, I couldn't really say anything other than that I had no idea who might want to hurt us. Took a little persuasion, but he finally dropped it. I dealt with the insurance company, too. We should be able to get replacement supplies before long. Though, I don't know if I want to rebuild until the Andersons are actually handled. Two fires would be awfully suspicious."
"Which leads us to dealing with those assholes," I said once Doc had finished.
Everyone nodded.
"I can't believe they burned down your cabin," Victoria said, voice still airy as if she were trying to cope with all the new information.
It was Nikolai's turn to shrug. "Blew up part of their mansion and burned another part not long ago. Suppose is fair."
Victoria's eyes widened. "Really?"
"Yes."
She shook her head. "How did that not make the news?"
"Magic," Nikolai answered with a grin.
Victoria groaned. "I almost wish I didn't know."
"Sorry," Nikolai replied.
"It would be completely convenient if we could just end them," I said. "We need to rescue Ash and then we need to stop them. I was thinking that maybe it was time to reach out to other groups of mages, see if our problem has gotten big enough to deal with yet."
"It's worth checking into," Doc answered.
"So you want me to see if we have any contacts?" Victoria asked. "I'm guessing that's why you wanted me here."