Spirit of the Earth

by Adriadne LeFox

  “What did you do the last time this happened?” I asked, trying to be as helpful as a shapeshifter could be with witch business.

  Kirsten paused, looking at me. “Do you think I hadn’t thought of that? I don’t know what I did. When you all left, I fled to my room, trying to avoid my brother and mother, and eventually, it went away on its own. The only thing I did was sit on my bed and panic.” Her fox came up to her, rubbing its little furry body against her legs, whimpering at her witch’s discomfort. She bent down and scooped the creature up, smothering her face into the side of Winter. “I don’t know what to do,” came her muffled response.

  Kirsten

  My heart pounded out its own rhythm inside my chest, and my head felt like it was floating amongst the clouds. I couldn’t stop the shaking that rattled my whole body as I tried to get this aura thing under control. I couldn’t even figure out how it started, let alone how to stop it. The guys were pouring over the books, trying to find anything that might help us, but I felt like it was a lost cause. I was going to be the freak among witches, just like I already was. What’s something new to add to the pile? I felt like I was about to topple over with everything that was happening.

  Instead of letting my feelings get the better of me, I took a deep breath and sat on the floor, setting Winter in my lap as I closed my eyes and evened my breathing. Meditation had become second nature to me when I started getting bullied all those years ago, and I hoped it would center my thoughts. My breath slowed as I cleared everything that was cluttering my brain, going in and out in measured paces. I lost track of time as I floated in the darkness of my mind.

  “She isn’t glowing anymore.” I heard whispered around me. “What is she doing?” I didn’t let the voices distract me.

  “I think she is meditating.” Another whispered close by.

  I felt a hand touch my shoulder, snapping me out of the peace I had found. Dylan’s face floated in front of mine, close enough I could lean forward and place a quick kiss on his lips. I refrained from the impulse. Instead, I leaned away. “What is it?” I asked with a little anger threaded through my words.

  “You aren’t glowing anymore. Maybe it’s tied to your emotions? What were you feeling before you started glowing?” Dylan was in research mode again, which I didn’t mind after the way my instincts reacted to him coming out of my meditation.

  “Which time? The day before or today?” I slid away from him, climbing to my feet with Winter firmly in my arms.

  Dylan stood as well, going back to the books he had opened across the floor nearby. “Either time. Was it different emotions each time?”

  I felt it was a little invasive to ask, but they were trying to help me understand what was happening to me. “This time, I was feeling very overwhelmed, afraid and a little strung out. Last time…” The desire I felt with Kyler’s shaft pressed against me briefly washed over me before I was able to get the feeling pushed down. My cheeks heated up hot enough I could have stood naked in a snowstorm and stayed perfectly warm. “I don’t want to talk about that…” I muttered. The heat in my cheeks moved to encompass not just my face, but my whole body. The embarrassment was mortifying.

  Kyler came over to me, placing his hand on my arm, not helping with the turmoil that raged inside me. “We only need to know because it might help us keep you from doing that glowing thing in the middle of school and exposing you. I’d hate to have you become a liability to all supernaturals. No, liability isn’t the right word.” He corrected when my embarrassment turned to fury. “More along the lines of you breaking a very big supe law. No supernatural can expose themselves to humans upon pain of death, and it’s not even a very quick death.” He paused, looking to the others for help, but they all looked away. “I am trying to protect you, Kirsten. We all are.”

  “But there is no way in hell you are my Protectors; you already said that. So why go to all these lengths to help me? Why not let me wash out?” I jerked myself away from the comfort Kyler and the others were offering. I didn’t need it. I was not weak; ignorant yes, but never weak.

  17

  CEMENTED IN DESIRE

  Kirsten

  The guys all surrounded me, placing their hands on me, trying to provide comfort and quiet my tumultuous thoughts. All it did was make me feel boxed in and slightly out of sorts. My body vibrated with restrained cravings for these super attractive men. I couldn’t have them, but I wanted them all for myself. It was selfish but also for my protection. They could provide the best security I so desperately needed and desired.

  My eyes bounced between all of them, trying to figure out what they were thinking and why they decided to surround me now. Their faces were closed off, but eyes are the windows to the soul, revealing things people would want to be hidden deep inside. I didn’t want to know what my eyes were telling them; it was too jumbled amongst other emotions, tangled up in a heap of excitement, fear and anticipation. My heart pounded so hard that I could have sworn it was trying to beat out of my chest. It hurt like it’s never hurt before like it was trying to go in five different directions.

  I clutched at my chest, curling into myself as the pain grew to excruciating levels. A cry lodged in my throat, where I tried to keep it from coming out, but the agony grew to a level that I couldn’t resist the scream’s power anymore. I let it out with all the pain, the power exploding out of me. Crashing sounds echoed throughout the house, thuds from bodies hitting the floor and tripping over furniture. Winter curled herself deep into my arms, whining and licking at my chin.

  When the pain was finally gone, I pulled myself up straight with a bit of difficulty. My body felt like it had been torn apart and put together in the weirdest way, leaving my skin jumping at every sensation, and my insides knotted around themselves.

  I looked around at the devastation that surrounded me in a circular wave of destruction. Pictures had fallen from the wall, shattering on contact with the floor, couch cushions had flown off their spots, landing on the other side of the living room, and the guys laid scattered around me in haphazard places.

  Groaning told me that they, at least, were still alive, if in pain. My heart reached out to them as I placed Winter on the side of the overturned armchair. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened.” I trembled with the fear of the unknown, especially with this. I didn’t know I was capable of this kind of ruinous power.

  Dylan was the first one to sit up from his place on the floor near the fireplace, just missing the stone that surrounded the hearth. He rubbed at his chest as he held himself up with his other hand. His clothes were in disarray, which was unusual for him. I’d never seen him looking anything but perfect. Even his hair was falling out of its normal bun on top of his head. Clumps fell around his face. “What was that?”

  “I was hoping you’d be able to tell me,” I muttered, stepping around books and thepages ripped from their homes and scattered across the floor. I reached out to him, helping him to his feet. “I have no clue what just happened.”

  Rhydian started groaning as he rolled away from the place on the wall he’d hit, leaving a large dent and plaster dusted around and on him. “That was fucked up.” His voice sounded thready and choked up with the dust he inhaled.

  I rushed over to him. “Are you alright?” I landed with a thud, my knees taking the brunt of my fall, chunks of drywall digging through my flannel pajamas to stab my tender knees. Helping him dust himself off, I saw that there wasn’t a scratch on him. “You aren’t hurt…” Awe had me staring at him with wide eyes. I had never seen someone leave that big of a dent and walk away without a scratch.

  “Camasotz, remember? My skin is virtually impenetrable. Perks of being one of the undead.” He sounded better and better the more he talked, of which I was thankful.

  Practically springing myself at him, I embraced him with all my limbs, his hands barely catching me as I flew towards him. “I am so sorry.” I murmured into his neck. The smell of plaster dust was strong and drying out my throat, bu
t I needed to reassure myself he was okay.

  Pulling away, I looked around the room, trying to locate the rest of the group. Kyler poked his head up from behind the other armchair, which had flown backwards but managed to stay standing. He looked okay, even if his hair was in a bit of disarray. Keegan crawled back into the living room from the hallway, a few scratches covering his arms and face, but alive. Branden was the only one I couldn’t spot.

  “Branden?” I called into the dusty air, my eyes roaming the living room until I saw the shattered window. I bounded up, racing to the opening, ignoring the chill that permeated the air around the broken glass. The crunch and sharp stings as the glass sliced into my feet was a minor nuisance as I crawled through the opening and into the snow. Bloody footprints followed me as I paced the front lawn, trying to find the body of my werewolf. “Branden!” I called again, ignoring how my skin was slowly turning pale with the cold.

  A cold hand grabbed mine, wrapping around it to engulf my whole hand and part of my wrist. Admittedly, I did have small hands, but I didn’t think they were that small. “Come inside. Let us handle the search for Branden while you get your feet looked at.” Rhydian sounded strained, and his eyes were slowly turning black.

  I faced him fully. “I can’t lose him. I can’t lose any of you.” Reaching out to touch the now sunken cheeks on his face, I traced the sharp cheekbones that were now so prominent. “But you can’t handle being around my blood, can you?”

  He turned his face into the palm of my hand, nuzzling against it, the scrape of his stubble a shock to my system. “It’s been so long since I had fresh blood. I don’t like the way I become with it. It’s like a drug, and sometimes I cannot stop myself from draining my victim dry.” His voice sounded different, deeper, but also a hint of his accent was now more pronounced as he spoke, distracted by the fresh blood that stained the snow. He had more of a British tongue with his mind elsewhere. But it wasn’t what you would hear nowadays; it was older, ancient. I didn’t know how old he was, but he wasn’t eighteen.

  “I’ll go inside, but you need to get out of the public’s eye as well. You could expose yourself.” Protective instincts I didn’t know I had reared up at losing him because he was too busy trying to control his bloodlust instead of keeping his secret hidden. “The others can look for Branden.” I took my hand from his face and grabbed onto his free hand, the one not holding my other hand.

  Dylan came out of the front door with Keegan and Kyler hot on his heels. “I can tend to your feet since I don’t have any enhanced senses.” He came to my side, kneeling in the snow to lift one of my feet. “These are superficial, so they will need minimal help. I’ll just clean them out, make sure there is no glass, and bandage them up.” He stood up after examining my feet, brushing snow off his knees.

  “I’ll head out, but I need to go inside so I can shift. I will need to have clothes for when I get back, and if I shift out here, I will shred my clothes.” Keegan started to head inside.

  “What do you mean?” My question stopped him.

  He briefly turned to me, “I have to take off my clothes. They don’t shift with me.”

  My face flamed when I pictured him fully naked, and I was thankful we were outside. “Okay.” I murmured, staring at the ground in front of me.

  “Let’s get you inside. You are barely wearing anything yourself. Those pajamas cannot hold any warmth for you.” Rhydian sounded more himself, and thankfully he looked more himself too.

  I followed Dylan inside with Rhydian close on my heels. Now that it was pointed out, I was feeling the cold, almost insanely so, like all the chills I had been suppressing were now attacking my body ten-fold. My body shivered involuntarily, causing pain to follow suit.

  18

  MISSING WOLF

  Branden

  When I was hit, it felt like my heart exploded. My skin was sliced to ribbons as I was thrown through the window, and my wolf clawed to escape. He felt drawn to the dark-haired vixen in a way that terrified him, and when he was scared, he either fought or fled. Since he wouldn’t attack the girl, his mate, he fled as soon as we hit the ground, tearing his way through my wall that separated the two of us and taking control as he had never done before. The ferocity of the change was so sudden it felt like my bones were breaking throughout my entire body. My clothes shredded apart, leaving only rags surrounding where we landed.

  My wolf took off down the street, running away from the pain, the fear, and the unknown. I was just a passenger on his path to freedom.

  Keegan

  Turning into a large bloodhound, I pranced in anticipation to leave with Rhydian and Kyler. Now that Rhydian was feeling more himself, he wanted to get away from the smell of blood and find our missing friend. I didn’t blame him; I wanted to get out there too.

  We had never had to do something like this before since Branden was never known to lose control before. I didn’t want to tell Kirsten this, of course, but I saw the giant wolf prints leading away from the house and the shredded clothing laying haphazardly in the snow.

  I also don’t know about the others, but I felt this inexplicable urge to protect what was mine, more so than before the blast. It was a strange feeling that engulfed me when the golden aura exploded from Kirsten—one I cannot quite explain—but it was like something grabbed my heart and pulled it out of my chest, tied something to it, and then slammed it back into my chest. The pain was agonizing, but now I could feel Kirsten. I could close my eyes and point directly to her. It was strange and invigorating.

  But now we needed to find the fifth member of our little group, one who may not want to come back. We couldn’t force him to do anything.

  Kyler

  As soon as I opened the door, Keegan took off, nose to the ground, heading east, away from town and into the forest that surrounded us. I had to jog to keep up with him, Rhydian following the dog version of our friend right beside me.

  It was a quiet trek, especially once Keegan slowed in the trees. I kept my eyes and ears open to anything that might provide a clue as to the whereabouts of our brother. Broken twigs littered the ground, and fur stuck to branches in some places, like he was running here without a thought of being tracked. It would be unusual to see wolves in this part, even with the wolf pack just outside of town, but it wasn’t unheard of.

  I stepped carefully over twigs, rocks, and leaves, making sure to step on the soft soil so my footsteps were less likely to be heard by Branden’s supernatural hearing, not that I thought he would hear us. He was probably a mile or two ahead of us, if not more, and here we were, trying to track him and catch up all at the same time.

  Keegan did a sudden sharp turn to the right before galloping off at a pace that was hard for me to keep up with, but Rhydian stayed pace the whole way. My breaths came in spikey gasps as I picked up my pace. I may be a supe myself, but I didn’t have the same perks as shapeshifters, Camasotzs, and wolves.

  19

  DRAWN TO YOU

  Kirsten

  Dylan led me to the cushionless couch, pausing while he grabbed one of the tossed cushions on the other side of the living room, putting it on the couch before letting me sit. He lifted one of my bloodied feet very gingerly, taking into account that there could still be glass embedded in my skin. I watched as Dylan pulled out a bowl of steaming water and tweezers—where he got those, I have no idea. The first aid kit came out to sit beside him, waiting to be used to bandage me up. I couldn’t really feel the damage to my feet since they were still so cold from the snow, but as they slowly heated up, I could feel pins and needles sending unpleasant sensations up my legs.

  I watched as Dylan dipped a rag into the hot water and started softly cleaning the blood from the bottom of my foot. He was ever so gentle, wiping it clean so he could see the damage underneath all the blood. He made a noise deep in his throat before setting the rag back in the water, grabbing up the tweezers.

  “You have some glass embedded in the pads of your feet. Most of these cuts are s
uperficial, but some are going to need more treatment. They are deeper, and there is glass in some of those as well.” He spoke, looking at my foot in his hand the whole time.

  I glanced over at the broken window in dismay. How was I going to explain that to my mother…? Before the depression and anxiety could drag me under, I looked away and watched as Dylan pulled tiny shards from my feet. I barely felt it until he got closer and had to dig a little. His hand on my foot tightened as I tried to pull away from the stinging and pulling happening. I couldn’t exactly see what he was doing, and I didn’t think I’d want to, so I just tried to concentrate on other things.

  My mind went to Branden. What was he feeling right now? Was he hurt? Scared? Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath, trying to clear my mind, but Branden’s face popped back in, taking over my thoughts and feelings. Fear coursed through my veins, but it wasn’t mine. Desperation was mixed in and a sense of needing to be far away. All these were not my own, so I tried to focus harder on them, hoping they would give me an idea of where he was heading. Instead of his feelings drawing me towards him, I felt a tug deep in my chest and a bright light flared up in my mind’s eye, nearly blinding me with the intensity.

  “DYLAN! I think I can find him!” I jolted out of my thoughts so hard I nearly toppled over. Dylan himself jumped, almost losing the bandage he was wrapping around my other foot. I looked down at the first one he had been tending to and realized he had already finished it, wrapping it up and all. “That was fast,” I muttered.

  Dylan looked up at me in shock. “I’ve been here for almost an hour. You went somewhere in your head, so I kept working. When I noticed you had gone into a sort of trance, I left you alone. Now, what are you talking about? Who are you talking about?”