I nodded.
“Practice makes perfect,” I murmured. “There is something else I’m curious about. Has Scylla shown any abilities so far? I can tell she’s a cross between water and air. Has she used those elements yet?”
Scylla, who was curled around my left foot, lifted her head at the mention of her name. She’d grown quite a bit since being summoned, by now, she was roughly the size of the space between my wrist and my elbow.
“Yeah,” I answered, “Yesterday. All the water flew out of my glass and sort of coated her like a shell.”
I rested my chin on my finger, deep in thought.
“And what about you?” I inquired. “Have you been able to harness those abilities?”
I bit the inside of my cheek, dragging a hand through my hair. “I think? I’ve felt… strengthened, after showers or drinking water. Considerably so. And yesterday, I got excited about something, and my glass of water fell over. I ended up being splashed in the face.”
I nodded.
“Those won’t cause you any trouble,” I was, at this point, practically talking to myself. “Still, you’ll need to be able to control them. You and Scylla both. Whenever you can, especially when you shower, try to control the water. Do whatever you want with it, but practice it every day.”
A mischievous glint entered my eye as I took a slight risk and raised a hand to my forehead, giving a crisp salute. “Yes, sir,” I answered playfully, allowing my proper personality to shine through.
I raised an eyebrow before letting a chuckle escape my lips, shaking my head at his mischief.
“Idiot,” I muttered under my breath in amusement, but hardened my face, joining in. “For that comment, how about you run five miles in the memory of the good old days?”
I groaned theatrically, my shoulders relaxing the moment I partially took down my mask, the one settling Elliot’s actual personality over me like a cloak.
“Oh, come on, don’t ruin the moment,” I continued. “You laugh for like, the first time, and now you’re assigning me laps?”
I quirked an eyebrow.
“What laugh?” I inquired. “As I thought, you’re getting distracted and out of shape. You’d better move it, or I’ll add one more lap.”
“You chuckled, just a few seconds ago,” I pointed out. “For you, That’s sort of the equivalent of rolling on the floor, laughing while tears stream down your face.”
“6 laps,” I said instead in a monotone voice, ignoring his statement. I was, of course, being playful myself, but what did Elliot know? “Do continue, Elliot. You’re making this harder on yourself.”
I lay back on the floor, covering my face with my hands. “I’ll do anything but the laps…”
I raised an eyebrow, bending down over him so I had him pinned to the floor.
“Oh, really? I see. Then give me fifty push-ups,” I smirked, shaking my head. “Go on, then.”
I choked on the lazy inhale I had been about to take, colour instantly rushing to my face. My mind went completely white—all I could feel were Cole’s hands, pinning me down.
I raised an eyebrow at his reaction before realizing why. We were both males. Unless we were homosexuals, this was not a position to follow.
I immediately let go of him and stepped back, careful to make it seem like I didn’t think of anything inappropriate.
“I’m waiting, Elliot.”
I hastily rolled over into my front, lifting myself into a plank position. I was almost certain that he could hear my pounding heart, which was yearning to be trapped beneath him again.
I managed to hit forty push-ups before my arms gave out.
“All right,” I sighed. “I guess forty’s enough. Come on, it’s almost time for lunch.”
Sure enough, just as I said that, the castle erupted into a shrilly alarm.
I rolled onto my back, still lying down on the ground. Scylla, spotting an opportunity, pounced and landed on my chest, curling up and closing her eyes. After a beat of silence, I spoke, a seemingly random question that had come from hours of thinking.
“Hey Colton?” I asked, cracking open an eye. “Can I ask you something on a ….. touchy subject?”
I quirked an eyebrow at the question.
“What is it?”
But all of a sudden I shook my head. I couldn’t ask him that—what if he said the very I thing I feared the most? A confirmation that he’d kill me in an instant if I was found out? I couldn’t risk that answer, so I got to my feet. “Forget I said anything.”
What was that? Was he serious?
“I think I’m curious now,” I said, trying to make an eye contact. “What’s the rather touchy question?”
I turned towards the door, letting Scylla perch on top of my head.
“Never mind, it doesn’t matter. Let’s go have lunch, you just be hungry.”
I shook my head, letting it drop and followed him out the door, Key joining us a while later.
(You said ‘her’, not ‘him’. Lol)
(You said ‘her’, not ‘him’. Lol)
(Damn.)
Kaden’s POV:
I handed a cup of pudding for Hope, who sniffed it before gently lowering her face in, eating it slowly and nicely.
“Now if only I could eat that nicely,” I muttered under my breath. “Where’s Elliot?”
Honestly, it wasn’t that I minded, really. It just meant that I could spend more time with Andreas, but I said that because Elliot was my friend, too. I popped a potato muffin in my mouth, and Hope shook her head at me as she licked her mouth. My bondmate and her table manners…
I sort of felt extremely out of place with Andreas and Elliot, now that both of them gained their abilities. I was the only one out of the five students who didn’t get his powers. It made me feel terrible, but I pretended it didn’t bother me. It did. It had been two weeks since the Oath—why was I the only one left out?
I scooped a healthy helping of hash browns onto my plate, snatching up a sausage when no one was looking and offering it to Copper, who was perched on my shoulder. He unhinged his jaw (a bit like a snake), ready to devour the piece of meat, but I tapped my finger against his head before he could.
“Hey, not there!” I protested aloud, moving towards the scones at the end of the buffet table. “You’re going dribble juice all over my uniform!”
Grumbling, he glided down to perch on the edge of my plate, looking at me mockingly as he sank his teeth into his breakfast.
“Sassy dragon…” I muttered under my breath. Scooping a few muffins into my plate, I did a loop around the dining room and back to my usual table, where I saw Kaden, sitting alone. My face immediately flushed, heart kickstarting, and I plopped down next him. “G’morning!”
Kaden:
I almost jumped when Andreas plopped down next to me and Hope looked up almost instantly, her eyes flashing towards Copper. She immediately pushed out a cup of extra pudding from underneath her, something she saved for Copper. Really, it was adorable how she acted.
"Good morning," I smiled, trying to make sure Andreas didn't see it was a bit forced.
I smiled at Hope’s antics, chuckling a little when Copper eagerly hopped down to meet her.
“I brought you a muffin!” Grinning like an idiot, I handed it to him, my hands steaming for a second to warm it up.
I smiled, taking the warm muffin, a bit jealous of Andreas's ability.
"Thanks, man," he grinned anyway. "How was… uh, magic class?"
