Eyes of Light

I didn’t really have my mind set on anything until English came. I knew our assignment was due, but that was the least of my problems now. Walking down the hallway, I tried to think of another way to handle Josh and Anna. I couldn’t just avoid them; I was a terrible liar-at least I thought I was. They were my friends and now I was stuck.

Sighing, I stepped into the crowded room and glanced over to see Nick at his desk, staring towards the wall intently, not wanting to be bothered. I took the hint and spotted our paper in front of him on my way to my seat. Sliding into it, I set my hands on my lap and bit my lip, doing my best to face forward, but it was nearly impossible. I let a breath escape my sore lips and continued to chew on the inside of my cheek. My eyes wandered back over to Nick and I nearly gasped, his intense gaze locked on me. I was well aware of the burning and brightness caused by my gold, and I knew Nick was too, but I was thankful that no one else could see it.

The bell suddenly rang and I watched his eyes trail off of me and back onto the paper, his fingers fidgeting with his curls almost nervously. I shook my head and turned at the sound of the door, Mrs. Holster’s voice filling the room with an echo.

“Alright class; your papers are due today so get with your partner. You have five minutes for any last minute corrections and then we’ll be starting on a little project…” she smiled, everyone else heaving a sigh.

Chairs scraped across the floor and chatter resurfaced, everyone’s bodies moving around almost frantically. I knew Nick wasn’t about to move so I stood, slowly, and carefully walked over to him. This stupid paper was what caused me to be so fascinated with him and that’s where everything started going down hill. Now I find out I’m a witch with a werewolf protector that also happens to be Nick, who also happens to be my soul mate who doesn’t really want to think of himself that way, all on top of my magical abilities that I haven’t gained control of and an apparently deadly magic, known as the ‘black magic,’ is out to drain my power to kill everyone off in this fantasy world. If that wasn’t complicated, than I didn’t know what was. I could give myself a headache just thinking about it.

I pulled up a chair and sat across from Nick, my hot hands resting in my lap. Blinking, I shook my leg nervously and waited for him to say something, or at least acknowledge me. I was slightly surprised when he did, however.

“I’m getting a weird vibe…” he muttered so lowly that I almost didn’t hear him; if it wasn’t for the parting of his full lips, I would’ve completely ignored his words.

“A weird vibe?” I asked, his eyes narrowing.

“Keep your voice down,” he hushed, turning away from the girl that was staring at him. I furrowed my eyebrows and looked up at her, her eyes immediately darting away from me, as if I had… scared her. I bit my lip and waited for him to continue.

“From the woods,” he began again, leaning a little closer. A few curls spilled onto his forehead and his eyes seemed a little lighter the closer he got, his voice still hushed. “There’s something out there. We’ll need to check it out at lunch.”

“We… do?” I gulped, bringing my hand up to toy with the orb around my neck absentmindedly. It still seemed so unreal.

“It could be another witch or a wolf, or even another creature, but it could also be the black magic…” he trailed off, keeping the seriousness in his voice.

“What happens if it is?” I breathed, locking his gaze. He shook his head as if to say he didn’t know, but answered anyway.

“If it is, we can get an idea on how strong it is or where it’s going. It’s following you now, so we have to follow it.”

His words made sense, but they didn’t appeal to me… not one bit. I opened my mouth to speak but was quickly cut off by Mrs. Holsters’ loud voice.

“Alright, hand in your papers and get ready to pair up again!” she clapped. I sighed and grabbed the paper before Nick could, giving me any chance to walk off my nerves. I scooted back the chair and turned, hurrying towards the line of kids that wanted to get their paper in so they could pair up again.

I set the paper in the basket and turned around, my face only inches away from a junior’s. I gulped and gave him a nervous smile, stepping aside to see him a little better. I recognized him to be the same one who glared at me after I had chosen Nick for my partner.

“Hey, Lonnie, right?” he smiled hopefully, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Umm,” I whispered, clearing my throat. “Yeah.”

“I’m Caleb. I realized that I hadn’t really seen you around other than here, so you must be one of those smart freshman, right?”

“Oh, uh,” I laughed nervously, feeling my face heat up. “Yeah, I guess. Thanks.”

“So… I was wondering if you wanted to pair up?”

I bit my lip and let my eyes travel behind him, settling on Nick who looked almost helpless with all the girls surrounding him. He kept his face like stone and shook his head repeatedly, and I knew he was turning down all of them as partners because of the fact that we were supposed to stick together.

“I really appreciate it… Caleb, but I already have a partner,” I smiled softly, turning away from his stunned face.

I hurried forward and sat back down. Nick spoke suddenly, his eyes connected to the desk.

“Mr. Quarterback offering his partnership?” he muttered, his voice seeming uninterested.

“Uh, he asked, yeah, but-”

“You could’ve accepted,” he cut off, looking up at me.

“You were turning everyone else down, I thought-”

“Stop, okay?” he shook his head. “I don’t ever want you to do something based on me.”

I inhaled sharply and rubbed my arm, shaking my head. “It wasn’t based on you,” I muttered, shutting my eyes tight as Mrs. Holster began to speak.

“I expect you all are partnered up. Now, we’re continuing on with this unit of fantasy,” she chuckled. Oh, how wrong she was. “And you have options. One of you is to do some type of art, whether it be a portrait, making a poster, or some type of sculpture, and your partner is to tell a story with or about it. Simple enough, right? Let’s make this due… Friday. Go ahead and discuss.”

Everyone started up their chatter again, turning to discuss with their partners, or most likely talk about what they were going to do after school. I sighed and smiled slightly, already having something in mind.

“You’re good with writing, aren’t you?” I questioned, already knowing he was. He nodded slowly and cocked his head, watching me with curiosity. We may have to save our world from the black magic, but we also had school… I guess we were kind of normal. “My mom liked to paint, remember that one of the wolf? I could try to paint something…”

“Paint what?” he asked softly, his tone somewhat surprising.

“I could paint you, in wolf form, you know?” I suggested nervously. “I mean, it’d be easy, since I grew up with her always painting them…”

“That’s, um, a good idea,” he cleared his throat, nodding. His lips twitched upward into a small smile and it made my glow go even brighter.

&&&

“I was wondering why she would even do that, you know? I mean, it’s a TV show, but come on! No one can be that stupid!”

I knew that I would like listening to Anna’s pointless stories; they were quite entreating, but I couldn’t pay attention fully. I was hungry and I had yet to tell Josh and Anna that I wouldn’t be sitting with them, let alone going to lunch. I knew Josh would get nosy, which wasn’t unusual, and Anna would just smile and say okay. I was still nervous, though. The black magic wasn’t something I wanted to encounter again.

“I, umm… I have to go see something. I’ll catch you guys later, okay?” I said awkwardly, shutting my locker as quick as I could. Anna furrowed her eyebrows and blinked in surprise, Josh’s own eyes narrowed.

“Oh, um… alright,” she laughed, shrugging. “I better get down there before all the juices get taken. Come on Josh,” she sighed, hurrying away, but Josh wasn’t so quick to leave.

“What’s going on?” he asked suddenly as I stepped forward, his whole focus on me. I scratched my head nervously and shrugged, clearing my throat.

“I don’t know what you mean,” I mumbled, glancing around the clearing halls for Nick. He had to be by the back doors.

“You’re acting… weird. If you don’t want to hang out with us, just say so,” he said bluntly. I was caught off guard, my mouth slightly hanging open before I could snap back into reality.

“No, that’s not it; of course not,” I sighed, cracking my knuckles.

“Then can you meet me after school tomorrow? For real this time?” he asked, hope present in his wide eyes.

“Umm,” I hesitated. I had said yes so quickly last time, so it seemed, and now I couldn’t help but hesitate. “Yeah, I can do that.”

“Okay,” he sighed, laughing slightly. “I’ll… see you later, then.”

“Yeah…” I trailed off, hurrying away once he backed up.

I turned down the hall without looking back and felt my heart thud when I didn’t see Nick. I pushed myself towards the door faster, quickly shoving myself out into the cool air, and turned my head. My eyes rested on Nick as he stood, staring through the trees with his hands in his tight pockets, his curls swaying in the roughening breeze. I sighed with relief and stepped forward and over a large tree root, careful not to slide down the hill.

“I don’t think I should phase… not so close to here, at least. We need to go deeper. The winds picking up,” he spoke, turning to set his gaze on me. He didn’t look as stern and I was thankful for that, happy that he was being a little easier to get along with.

“What does wind have to do with it? Is it some sort of sign?” I questioned, shoving myself a little closer to him.

“The black magic travels through the wind and, usually, you can tell where it’s been through piles of leaves.”

“Is that why I always saw your paw prints following perfect piles of leaves? You were… trying to track it?” It made sense now, as far as it could, at least.

“I wasn’t really trying to track the magic,” he corrected, shaking his head. “You can’t catch wind, but if I could chase the leaves it was traveling through, I was hoping to see if maybe I could find the great witch…” He locked his eyes on me, his full lips slightly parted. The wind began to pick up again and I shivered, letting out a cool breath. “and it worked.”

“Why are we… tracking the magic now or whatever? To see who’s controlling it?”

I didn’t quite understand that aspect of the whole black magic thing. Nick began to walk forward, trailing his hands over the branches to push them away, occasionally ducking underneath. I noticed that he slowed his pace down for me just a little, taking the time to look around for any clues. Whatever this black magic was, it had to be smart enough to stay away from a whole building of humans… even if it could destroy them easily.

“You don’t control the black magic, that’s why it’s so hard to get rid of,” he grunted, jumping over a log. I quickly followed, slowly pulling my legs over. I didn’t understand why he was so graceful, but I guess it was a wolf thing… or a creature thing, although I didn’t have it. “The great witches of the past could never figure out what exactly black magic was. They always thought it was an evil spirit, a cloud of death smoke. That’s why your mother was so important to our, and all the other creatures', people.

“Like all of us with certain powers and abilities, it comes through blood. She discovered that the black magic isn’t a spirit or just a cloud of smoke like it appears to be, it’s in fact a witch. The second most powerful witch. She, however, has no where near the power you have now. That’s why all of us are counting on the next great witch; we’re counting on you because you have the exact same power that the black magic does. You’re just not evil.”

I was shocked to hear his words, my eyes trailing over him as he continued down the path and deeper into the forest. I let out a shaky breath, the wind prickling my face quickly. I gulped.

“But how come no one has ever just… banished the witch that has that dark power? I still don’t understand…”

“You see, Lonnie; you were next in line for the great witch, just like I’m next in line for the great wolf. The black magic is transferred through the next in line. This black magic has been the same, though, for over ten years. It’s someone that had to have known your mother, even as an acquaintance, and someone who’s afraid of letting the evil die.”

“So… a witch without children?” I questioned lowly, turning my head in the direction of a snap. Nick stopped me in my tracks and squinted, listening intently. I could tell he wanted to phase, but would that really be the best thing?

“Umm,” he hesitated, his cheeks lightly flushing. “N-no. I read that all witches have a soul mate, but you don’t have to have… children.” I could tell he was uncomfortable now, his eyes darting around, refusing to land on me. I could feel my own face flush, but I wasn’t sure if that was from the glowing or from a blush.

“Doesn’t the great witch have to have children though? At some point?” How did we get off topic so quickly?

“Any leader of any group has too, as far as I know now,” he muttered dryly, shaking his head. “But the black magic never did,” he continued quickly, swallowing hard. “No one knows why, but apparently she doesn’t have any help, leaving us all to believe that she doesn’t have a soul mate.

“She’s after your magic because it’s the only thing that can freeze her in time to rule as others come along and, eventually, the human race.”

Nick motioned me forward, sliding down a small ledge of mud carefully. I stared down, unable to see any way that I could get down without getting dirty or hurt. I leaned down a little and tried to move, but I just didn’t feel like falling.

“Lonnie, what are you doing?” Nick hissed, the wind brushing over his face like ice, but he barely winced. I looked up and bit my lip, shrugging. He sighed but stepped back, holding out his hand. I hesitated but stuck mine in his, almost freezing from the sudden feeling. My skin warmed, the glow spreading out and onto him, and I gasped. It looked as if it were rippling forward, his eyes burning deeper into mine. He looked as if he were in shock. I could see a speckle of gold sparkling in his chocolate orbs and his eye twitched slightly, unsure of anything that was going on.

He tugged me forward, off the ledge and into him before spinning me around to set me on my feet. I exhaled sharply and swallowed the lump in my throat, pulling my hand out of his warm one. The glow seemed to retract back to me, distracting me for a moment. I pulled my hand closer to my face, examining it almost, but quickly gasped when my hair started to whip in the wind. Nick stayed by my side and glanced around quickly with narrowed eyes, quickly moving to the right.

“Come on,” he huffed quickly, rushing through the bushes. The leaves and twigs crunched underneath us repeatedly, our pace fast. He led me farther away and it was as if the wind stopped for a moment, but then it came back even stronger. He shot his hand out and stopped me in my tracks, my heart thudding against my rib cage. My stomach seemed to hold butterflies from his touch, but the wind was making it harder for me to breath.

We turned slowly, my eyes widening as it set on a cloud of dark black smoke spreading forward, a gray glow coming through almost blindingly. Nick’s hand slid down my shoulder, clutching my arm tightly as he backed up, tugging me with him.

“What… what do we do?” I whispered harshly, shivering. He shook his head, biting his plump bottom lip.

“There’s nothing you can do,” he replied almost breathlessly, pulling me back quickly. I tripped and fell onto my butt with a grunt, but Nick quickly gripped my waist and pulled me against his chest, stabling me on my feet again.

The wind suddenly rushed forward and it suddenly felt as if I couldn’t breathe, my eyes widening as I gasped for air. I tried to swallow, but it was nearly impossible, and it felt as if I were suffocating again, that hissing sound ringing through the air. I felt a warm hand on me again and I was suddenly pulled away and running, Nick’s hand tight around my wrist. I could tell he was trying not to run to fast or stop to phase because I had to stay with him, but I had no idea what else there was to do.

“Nick!” I cried out, the hissing sound getting louder, the wind becoming heavier and thick with smoke, like it was closing in around us and the trees. “What-what do we do?”

He looked so torn, like he didn’t know what to say. It didn’t feel like danger, until it got closer and closer, and I realized that it could very well hurt me… but that’s why Nick was here.

“Water!” he shouted suddenly, tugging me harder.

“What?” I almost screamed, the sound of the hissing and the wind being too loud to hear over.

“It can’t swim unless it returns to human form!” he shouted back, his voice strained. “It won’t because we’re not supposed to know who it is! Hurry up!”

I pushed myself forward, as hard as I could, and managed to slip my wrist out of his tight grasp. I felt some of the warmth disappear but quickly return as I shoved my hand out, clasping to his as tight as I could. I felt his immediately wrap around mine without a second thought almost and he pulled me closer, almost slipping around the corner. I let out a gasp and pulled myself up the best I could, scrunching my nose up as the wind hissed close to us.

My eyes settled on a lake a mere feet away suddenly and I gulped, continuing on the path. Nick seemed to pick up the pace and he grumbled to himself, saying something about how he should’ve phased. We got closer and closer to the clouded water, the ripples moving swiftly as we neared, the black magic following us. I could hear the leaves flying up, swirling around us, our feet crunching over them.

“Go!” Nick yelled, his voice echoing through the whole forest, and everything seemed to slow down. We leapt forward at the same time, our connected hands flying into the air, and our bodies seemed to curl up, our legs flailing. I let out a scream and shut my eyes tight, inhaling deeply.

Our bodies broke through the surprisingly cold water, the sound of giant splashes replacing the hissing of the black magic. My eyes were tight, but I could feel my hair swirling around, my body almost weightless. My hand was no longer in Nick’s and I was afraid to open my eyes. My heart felt like it was ready to stop at any second, no noise surrounding me. I snapped my eyes open and looked around for Nick frantically: he was gone. Holding my breath, I pushed backwards and looked around frantically, shooting up for a big gasp of air.

“Cover your ears!” Nick’s voice shouted in my head and I was surprised, but reacted swiftly. That ear piercing howl echoed through the air and I could still manage to hear a shrill cry flowing through the air, the wind almost stopping completely.

The black smoke was suddenly gone, only a few leaves dropping to the ground, and the only ripples that flowed through the river was the one’s I was causing, along with… Nick. I spotted him and he was definitely in wolf form, dragging himself back onto the land. I swam forward slowly, shock still filling me, and pushed my hair out of my face. The wolf dropped and I could see Nick’s arms coming into view again, the rest of him quickly following. He looked tired and he heaved a sigh, slicking back his soaking curls. His lips pouted out and his eyes were narrowed, his hands tugging at the shirt that was stuck to his body from the wetness. He pulled it over his head quickly, revealing his muscles, and shook his head.

“W-what does this mean?” I shivered, pulling myself out of the water. I shot my hand up to my neck and sighed in relief, the gold orb still sitting there perfectly.

“It means that you’ll need to get on this,” he answered, his face full of seriousness. “And I’ll just have to deal with it… for now.”