Lavinia had a powerful aura about her. She was not a shifter, yet she was clearly the alpha female of the Guzman house.Madame Guzman was of average height, but she stood tall and walked tall. The hems of her flowy pants never creased at the bottoms. She never dragged her feet.Ash wasn’t sure if Lavinia was actually taller than her (she wasn’t) but the woman just seemed to stand over her, literally and figuratively.Lavinia spoke with authority and moved with a dancer’s grace. With her wavy black hair, curling softly about her shoulders, she looked regal: the rightful and noble queen of a castle. To Ash, even her name sounded fancy: Lavinia.And yet, Mrs. Guzman was also warm and motherly.“It’s not too tight, is it?” Lavinia asked.“No, ma’am,” Ash replied.Ash sat on the floor of Mrs. Guzman’s sitting room as the lady of the house braided her long dark hair. Mrs. Guzman herself had offered to do it. It had seemed so natural to sit at this woman’s feet and sink into the gentle grazi
Monday Morning: At lunch, the cafeteria was abuzz with chatter. It was the first day after the holidays and rumors were flying.Rumor 1: Apparently, a man had been found dead in the woods behind the school.Apparently, the man had killed himself and the body had been eaten by animals, leaving only his pecked clean bones. Others claimed it was one of the school staff that killed himself.Rumor 2: Celia, the new money girl, had apparently tried to stab the orphan Boots girl at the fancy restaurant in town. Her vulgar rich parents had paid off the orphan to not press charges, and apparently, that was why trailer trash Celia new money wasn’t back yet.Rumor 3: It appears that there was some truth to Rumor 2, as Hunter Guzman had suddenly seemed to take an interest in Orphan Boots.They had been seen jogging together at the quad in the early morning and they seemed to be chatting away. He also
In the middle of the first week back, the headmaster called all the students to the Grand Hall for an assembly. This was unusual as Assemblies were usually set for the beginning or end of term, and certainly not done mid-week.The students shuffled in at an early 7:00 am, with much grumbling and fidgeting.The Head Master looked out to his early morning audience and began his speech. He spoke first of preliminary matters, welcoming the students back from their holidays. After the brief niceties, a somber look came upon his face and he continued.“There are a few matters I will be addressing this morning that is of great importance to the Academy.First, I am sure that all of you have heard of the tragic incident that occurred over the holidays in the restricted area behind the school. It is true that a man was found thereon, but I would like to assure everyone that it was not a student of this school. Those of your peers who have yet to arrive from their holidays will be accounted for
The silver-haired man looked like he was in his late forties, perhaps fifty years old at most. He had sun-warmed skin that contrasted with his pale blond, nearly silver hair. He looked like an outdoorsman in his denim jacket and worn gray jeans.“That’s Wendell Carson to you, my boy. Grandfather was an old life,” the silver-haired man replied with a half-smile.Hunter didn’t say a word. He did not know what to say. He only knew that he had said something he wasn’t supposed to say.The man turned toward the girls and smiled.“My name is Wendell Carson. I’m a wildlife expert from The Wolf Sanctuary in Mountain Range. In an old life, I was Hunter’s known grandfather.”Ash’s eyes widened. She had only ever heard of Hunter’s grandfather from Lavinia, Hunter’s mother. The story of him killing and eating Lavinia’s horses shot through her mind. Her heart beat faster and her palms began to sweat.Celia and Izzy merely looked on, confused.“You will call me Mr. Carson and that will be all. No o
Ash’s wolf eyes opened to see two girls cowering together on the bed in front of her. She could smell their fear distinctly: an acrid smell that caused her nose to twitch. The smell was emanating from these two girls and these two girls were her friends. She knew this in her heart. They weren’t prey animals.Ash moved to bring comfort to her friends, seeking to calm them. She opened her mouth to speak and a low keening howl escaped her throat. The sound seemed to reverberate around the room. The sound was monstrous and offered no comfort to the human ear.Celia screamed, afraid. Izzy, however, remained perfectly still. Her fear was still palpable but there was an underlying courage that kept her from swaying.Ash could sense an aura coming from Izzy. Something yellow, with lines of sky blue. It was warm and soothing.[Ash, please, Celia is scared. Please stop] A voice echoed in Ash’s head.[Izzy, is that you?] Ash thought.[Yes, it’s me. Please stop this.]Ash locked eyes with Izzy in
In the middle of winter, the woods were quiet. The river had frozen over, and all of the small animals were tucked into their nests and burrows, sleeping away in the cold night. Soft snow was falling on a wooden lodge in a clearing. Two lights shone brightly at the front of the house, illuminating the front door. Inside, the lodge was dark: all the lights had been turned off for the night, save for the one in a bedroom on the second floor. In the yellow-lit room, a little girl sat hunched over on the edge of a soft bed. The child was trying to run a comb through her thick black hair. Her hands tugged hard at the wooden comb. As she struggled with the tangles in her hair, a dark shadow loomed over her. A thin white hand reached out, hovering over the innocent little head. "Aaah!" the little girl gasped. The pale white hand clutched the little hands that held the wooden comb on the child's head. A long arm wrapped itself around the thin shoulders, holding her in a pale embrace. "Gr
Ash waited listlessly for Celia in the common room of their dorm building. It had stopped snowing outside and the sun was just peeking through the clouds. A few students were milling around the dorm: some were still in their pajamas, while others, like Ash, were standing around in their uniforms.It was still more than one hour before the start of morning assembly. Normally, Ash would be one of the students sleepily walking around in pajamas, stretching lightly and scratching at her bedhead at this time, but the dream had cut her sleep short and so she had gotten dressed and ready for school an hour earlier than usual.Celia however was an early riser and she was very pleased to have a leisurely breakfast with Ash. She was in such a good mood that she ran back upstairs to change out of her regular stark black coat and look for her "special coat" to wear to breakfast.Ash thought it was a lovely gesture. Celia's "special coat" was an expensive green designer coat
Isabelle let out an exasperated sigh as Ash stood in front of her. Ash was a tall girl but she had poor posture, and today her brown eyes looked tired. Her shiny black hair was tied up in a bun on top of her head, making her look like a matron."You look like hell, Boots. What's wrong with you?"Ash smoothed her hair back and moved to rub her eyes. Isabelle slapped down her hand."Hey!" Ash yelped."Don't do that, Ashy! Your hands are dirty from the oil in your hair!""Sorry, My Lady!" Ash said, rolling her eyes."You keep calling me 'My Lady' and I will slap you right across your dumb face!""I would love to see you actually slap someone, Izzy. It would be hilarious. Saint Blaise himself would rise from the dead to see that.""You are the most blasphemous person I have ever met, Ash Parker!""Clearly, you don't keep the company of many blasphemers, Your Ladyship." Ash laughed.Isabelle rolled her eyes at Ash. Ash