New: The Fluke

“OH, MY GOD,” Avery exclaimed with wide, excited eyes. He looked from where I was lying on the Infirmary bed trying not to move to Griffin, the surprisingly gorgeous, forty-something doctor—one of anyway. Avery leaned forward on his stool, nearly bouncing. “You have to let me! I’ll do it—I really will.” He turned begging eyes on me, but there was something behind them that I just didn’t like. “Come on, Basil. I’ll be your bestest friend.”
“You’ll be breakfast,” Caine corrected, smirking.
I would have snorted out a laugh, but it would hurt like hell, so I did my best to hold it in.
Cullen had run me—literally—here and Griffin had nearly shoved another doctor out of the way to get to us, he had been so desperate and angry. It seemed we made it just in time, too, because Shott had run out of the energy and fainted the minute we had entered the special room they had added to the sickbay for me. It was dark and looked just like any of the other sections of the Infirmary, apart from it being windowless. That meant, in short, that the floor was a weird, easy-to-clean slate, the ceiling was tall and cathedral-like, the walls were far away and the bed was white with restraints on it. Seems like they had their own demons to deal with in this school, and that scared me a little more than I cared to admit. Blessedly, this area meant no sun, so I could care less about the restraints at the moment.
Griffin, a tall, dark-eyed man with graying brown hair, had immediately stuck an IV into a section of my arm that wasn’t burnt to a crisp and had quickly removed my clothing. It had still been smoking as he had cut it off, having to rip some of it that had adhered itself to my skin. That part had hurt like hell, and I had screamed my head off at most of it, but he had been efficient and Cullen had healed me—somehow—as they went. The healing had taken care of some of the small-scale burns and made the worst of them more bearable, but I was far from fine.
I was hungry as hell, for one, and Aisling was the tastiest thing in the room. Blood alive, even Cable was looking pretty appetizing. Of course, neither of them were willing—well, that wasn’t entirely true. Cable wasn’t willing, having rejected the idea fearfully, but Aisling . . . . Both Vincent and the teachers had said no for her. It seemed it wasn’t a good thing for her, either, even if her eyes had lit up with a curious glow of white light briefly as she hesitated to answer. It probably had something to do with that secret everyone was keeping from me. In fact, I would bet my left fang on it.
That being said, Vincent, Avery and Caine—or one of the teachers—were my only options. Considering Caine had almost thrown up at the very thought and Vincent had almost cried, Avery was the last one. And he was way too eager. It was gross, even if I really didn’t have a problem biting him when push came to shove, which it seemed it would.
“I don’t mind,” he repeated with a wicked grin. He bit his lip and I had the sudden thought that if he’d been a girl, guys would line up for him by the mile. Hell, they probably did already. His big eyes twinkled at me with an innocence I didn’t believe for a minute. “You don’t mind, do you, sunshine?”
I wanted to wrinkle my nose, but stopped. “I do, too,” I gritted out. My skin wasn’t black anymore, but it was tight, blistered and drier than a desert. That meant that opening my mouth was going to hurt, so the fact that I was going to have to sit up to bite someone was a freaking bitch. “I don’t want my fangs anywhere near you.”
He feigned being hurt. “Ah, my blood is perfect. I bet it’s tasty too. Come one.” He grinned again, standing. “It’ll be fun.”
“Only option, Basil,” Griffin added, nodding. He pointed at the little devil teasing me, his expression sheepish. “He’s the only one willing and you can’t be picky if what Guide’s said about your condition is true.”
My stomach clenched sickeningly, and I hated to point out the goose everyone seemed to be ignoring. “He’s a guy.”
“What was your first clue?” Caine asked dryly.
“The dick in his pants,” I told him in all seriousness and I saw Cable blush. My eyes went to her immediately and I could feel the hunger in them as I stared, my mouth watering instantly as I sucked on my lips to keep away the temptation from licking them. Obviously, she saw it too, because she shrank away instinctively and I couldn’t blame her. A vampire on the verge of berserk was a scary thing to see for a child. It was only when Aisling and Caine stepped protectively in front of her and I forced myself to look away.
This was going to get worse before it got better, I thought as my stomach clenched for a completely different reason than disgust at the images of forcing Cable to submit to me flitted through my brain, and I forced the hunger back into control. I needed blood and that was that. Bagged wasn’t going to do anything right now. I needed warm, living cells to heal what my own deficient body couldn’t. Avery was offering me that and I had no right to refuse when no one else would help. But, damn, it was going to make things awkward as hell afterwards.
I sighed, wincing from that slight pain before agreeing, “Fine, but everyone clears out.”
Avery’s face split into an excited grin and he almost bounced on his feet, but the rest of the room froze as if shocked by my decision. That was, until I realized that it wasn’t because they were surprised that I had agreed to bite Avery, but that I had told them all to get out. They thought I was going to hurt him. Man, were they all in for a real surprise.
Griffin and Cullen exchanged looks and I rolled my aching eyes. “I’m not going to go berserk and kill him. I just need some blood, not a lot. I know when enough is enough, but this is going to be—“
“Awesome,” Avery interjected.
“—embarrassing,” I continued, shooting him a look. “And uncomfortable. For both of us. We don’t need witnesses.”
“You’re sure you can handle it?” Griffin asked seriously, clearly unsure. “You can stop?”
I ignored my burnt reflection in his glasses as I looked him in the eye. “Yes.”
After a momentary hesitation of staring, Griffin gave a brisk nod and Avery clapped his hands together in victory as people started leaving the room. Caine patted him on the shoulder, saying sympathetically, “It’s been nice knowing you.”
Avery smirked, flipping him off. “You’re just jealous. Don’t let the door hit you in your ego on the way out.”
He waited for the door to close before turning back to me, his hands on his hips and a happy smile on that pretty face of his. I wanted to punch him, I wanted to yell at him that he had no idea what he was doing, but most of all I wanted to bite him. “Alone at last.” He rubbed his hands together. “So, now what?”
“You don’t know what you’re getting into,” I warned.
He shrugged. “I’ve heard the stories.” He spread his hands. “Curiosity killed the cat. I figured it’s going to kill me too, so what the hell? Might as well go out having fun, right? And this seems like a blast.”
I couldn’t help it, I smiled, the skin in my lips splitting again and my cheeks feeling like they would rip. Mercifully, my smile disappeared as quickly as it had come and I looked at Avery with every amount of seriousness I could. “Just get one thing in your head first, okay?”
“Sure.”
“Whatever you feel while this goes on is not your fault.” I shook my head painfully when he tried to interrupt. “No, I’m serious. It’s just an effect of being bitten, got it?”
He hesitated for the first time since this whole parade started. “Uh . . . . Sure. Yeah. Got it.”
Figuring that was as good as it was going to get, I steeled myself and sucked in a breath as I started to sit up. Avery watched as I struggled against the pain, my skin stretching painfully as I levered into a sitting position. It hurt like hell, but I wasn’t doing this lying down and I wanted that sheet bunched around my waist in case something happened that I didn’t want to be seen. He was cute, but not that cute.
When I had caught my breath and finally stopped feeling like my entire body was going to break apart, I gestured for him to perch on the bed. “Get comfortable.”
His brows rose. “I can stand.”
“No,” I argued. “It would be bad for both of us if you fell.”
He sat on the bed, obviously surprised and uncomfortable as he started to fidget. He looked like he wanted to get started, but it was blaringly obvious he didn’t know what to do in the slightest. “So . . . what now?”
I held out a burnt hand after pulling out the IV. Saline wouldn’t do shit anyway. “Give me your wrist.”
Avery’s brows rose higher and I thought I saw disappointment in his neon eyes. “You’re not going to bite my neck?”
“Hell, no.” He laid his wrist in my palm and I immediately felt his pulse through his skin. It was quick, anxious and strong. My mouth watered and I stared at the veins I could see under the surface, anticipation lighting through me. “That’s too personal. This . . . .” I swallowed, feeling my fangs extend. It didn’t matter that Avery was a guy anymore. Blood was blood, and I wanted his. It was calling me. “This will do fine.”
Before my mind went completely blank, I turned my eyes up to his, bringing his wrist up. “Remember that this means nothing. We’re just friends, okay?”
He looked confused and I almost smiled. “Well, yeah. Why would that change?”
Ah, the inexperienced . . . . “You’ll understand in a moment.” I frowned just above his wrist, my chapped lips brushing his skin. I held back from biting him to give him another warning, but just barely. “Try not to make too much noise.”
Before he could ask another question, I let my fangs slide through his skin. He gasped, his free hand shooting out to grasp the sheet on the bed as his wrist jerked under my mouth, his hand clenching and unclenching. I held his wrist tighter, sighing as his blood hit my tongue, relief filling me almost instantly. I took a long pull on his vein and he let his head fall back, his eyes closing and his mouth opening as I pumped desire instead of pain into him. Not wanted to be grossed out enough to cause that pain, I closed my own eyes and focused on his blood.
I had expected it to be spicy, like his personality, but it was surprisingly sweet. In fact, it was incredibly sweet. It might have been because it had been a while since I had had fresh blood, but I didn’t care. He tasted great; nice and cool—like a splash of ice water during the summer. It was just what I needed and I could feel his cells repairing the damage that mind couldn’t. My skin was relaxing, the heat escaping my pores now that they were allowed to breathe, and the many blisters were sinking back under my skin, smoothing over to pink, sunburnt patches. Even my lips felt better and they eased against his wrist as they became pliable once again.
Knowing I definitely had enough, I started to pull away but was stopped by Avery’s free hand as it suddenly pushed on my head. Surprised and more than a little shocked, I looked up quickly to see Avery’s flushed, almost glazed expression as he watched me with such awe, such desire that I felt embarrassed. It kind of grossed me out almost as much as it turned me on—so a double dosage of grossing out, because I was not gay. It didn’t matter in the slightest that I really wanted to kiss him right now, or do other equally nasty things to his tiny body. It was just the blood high.
“Don’t stop,” he begged, his voice slurred, sounding drugged and dazed. “It’s amazing.”
I raised a brow, knowing exactly how he felt, but surprised that he had actually given in to it, and used my strength to pull his wrist away. He struggled, but he was human and he easily lost under even my weakened strength. There was no way he could win against the kind of power I was packing.
I licked the puncture marks and cleared my throat, dropping his wrist. “We’re done. Go . . . . Uh, go take care of yourself.” I glanced at his fly, embarrassed that I was the cause of the tent there. “Or hide it. Either way, I’m not helping with that.”
Avery seemed to snap back to himself and he blinked, looking down in surprise before covering his fly with his hands. His face was redder than a tomato and he refused to meet my eyes. I didn’t blame him. “Oh. Um . . . . Was this what you meant when you said ‘effect’?”
“Yup.”
An awkward silence fell around us and I really wished I had a shirt handy. Avery had started staring as if he wanted to do all the wicked things I had thought earlier to me and it was bloody uncomfortable.
“It made me want to kiss you,” he confessed suddenly, his eyes staring at my belly button as if it were something he was physically stopping himself from touching. “It made me want to . . .” He trailed off, a fact for which I was grateful, and his eyes crawled up my exposed body to meet mine. “Is that normal? Even for men?”
I swallowed, ignoring what the effects of the bite had done to me and concentrating on the relief at being able to do something as simple as swallowing again. “Yes. It’s a side-effect of a pleasure bite.” I crossed my arms. “I could have made it hurt—really hurt—but I don’t want to hurt you.”
I saw the shock register in his eyes a moment before he smiled. “Thanks.”
“Yup.”
“You look better,” he commented, his eyes curiously examining me, his embarrassment starting to fade.
“Yeah.” My cheeks went red instead. “Thanks.”
He smiled, starting to get his cockiness back—and not the kind that was in his pants. “Sure. Anytime.”
I wrinkled my nose at the thought. “That’s not happening again.”
His face split into a grin. “Too bad. It was definitely fun. A lot better than the rumors going around.” He leaned in, dropping his voice. His eyes went to my waist and I stopped myself from covering my private bits. Unfortunately, with his blood running through my veins, that particular part of me was reacting very positively to him and I was sure he could see that because, while I may not be as big as him, I wasn’t a shrinker. “Was it like that for you, too?”
I looked away, crossing my arms and ignoring the more-than-a-semi I had going on under the sheets. “Of course not. It’s greatly lessened for the initiator.” If we didn’t really want it, that was, but he didn’t need to know that.
Avery looked slightly disappointed, but he was grinning teasingly. “But you felt it anyway, huh?” He straightened, stretching his arms over his head, his shame completely gone and I envied his ease. “That’s awesome. Makes the raging hard-on you gave me feel less inappropriate now.” I must have made one hell of an expression, because he laughed. “Don’t worry, sunshine,” he assured me. “I’m straight. I won’t be sneaking into your bed because of this.”
Surprisingly, I felt relief and a little disappointment fill me at his words. I narrowed my eyes on him as he stood, going to the door. “So we’re still friends?”
His smile was blinding. “Hell yeah! That was awesome.”
My nose scrunched up as he opened the door and I called, “Pervert.”
“Says the guy with the sex-laced fangs.” He waved and walked out, leaving me laughing behind him.

*******************************************************

“SO?” CAINE ASKED during my lunch break. Why they always decided to meet in the clock tower was beyond me, but I was grateful they were where I thought they would be, so I didn’t have to go searching all over the school for them after I was finally allowed out of the Infirmary. Griffin had practically held me hostage even when it was obvious that the burns were almost completely healed. The effects of fresh blood were a marvel, certainly, and all I was left with was slightly pink and sensitive skin. Griffin, it seemed, had wanted to experiment a little, but, thankfully, I had managed to escape before he broke out his syringe and scalpel.
Today seemed slow for the Ghosts little club work, but after what had happened the night before, I was grateful there were no random students popping in or out or a teacher calling for cleanup. Surprisingly, I wanted to be around people—well, these people. Everyone else could take a dive in that lake outside. But these guys helped me forget about the slight pain that was still circulating through my body and the ache that still radiated through my tight skin. Although I was painfully aware of Avery’s every move and his blood did me wonders, I would still be in recovery for a day or two. My movements were human-slow and the rest of me was trying to catch up. I would need more blood soon, too, but I didn’t exactly want to let that slip. No doubt that Griffin wouldn’t have let my out of that uncomfortable bed if I had. For now, I was going to enjoy my night off and heal.
“What was it like?” Caine asked suddenly and I nearly dropped my bowl of pasta. Gyn never served pasta. This was heaven, and if Caine ruined it for me, I was going to kill him painfully, slow movements or not.
Avery shot a glance at me and I was surprised that he could keep his cheeks from blushing as he smirked wickedly, leaning back against the pillows and sipping his drink smugly. He had a bandage around his wrist, but he really didn’t need it, the show-off. “Why don’t you try it and find out?”
I gave him a bland look. “I’m not the sharing type, you know.”
Avery sat up, eagerness written all over his face. “Does that mean I’ll be your only donor?”
I tried not to puke. He was really killing my lunch. Although the thought didn’t repulse me as much as I let on and a fresh donor would be ideal, taking blood from Avery was not something I was willing to do again. He had liked it too much, which meant he could easily become addicted and that just wasn’t something I was willing to do to him. “Not on your life or either of mine. I’d rather drink bagged blood.”
“Is there that much of a difference between bagged blood and fresh blood?” Vincent asked. It had seemed the thought of blood at all bothered him, considering the way his face paled, but his curiosity obviously got the better of him. I couldn’t blame him for that. I was fascinating.
I licked some sauce from the corner of my mouth and smiled a little. “You have no idea.” I leaned back against the coolness of the window, letting the night seep into my back through the glass, looking at the ceiling. “It’s like the difference between night and day.”
“That’s a pretty big difference,” Aisling commented.
“Feels good, too,” Avery agreed, his eyes sparkling as he obviously replayed the bite in his mind.
“What did it feel like?” Cable asked in an almost hushed voice, curiosity making her eyes big and her body lean forward over the back of the couch.
“Like something you’re too young to understand,” Avery said seriously.
Cable’s cheeks went red in shame as he straightened. “I’m thirteen!”
“Exactly why I’m not going to tell you.” Avery crossed his arms, adamant.
Cable glared at him, but I nodded, setting my bowl aside. “He’s right, Cable. The side effects aren’t something to be discussed with children.”
Cable stood, her pink eyes spitting fire and her hands clenched in obvious anger and frustration. “You guys are kids too! They only adults here are Aisling and Vincent!”
Avery nodded. “Which is why we’ll tell them if they really want to know.”
“I think I’ve lost my curiosity,” Aisling put in mildly.
Cable stomped her foot. “That’s not fair! Why am I always the one left out of everything?”
Angry tears welled in her eyes and Avery sighed, suddenly losing all his childlike humor and adopting a rather martyred expression. “That’s not what I meant, Cable. You know you’re not left out, but this isn’t something I’m going to talk about with you. Ever.”
“But you—“
Aisling laid a hand on the girl’s shoulder, her firm voice silencing her. I hadn’t even heard her move from where she had been sitting in the corner. “Cable. I think you need to go and calm down.”
I followed Aisling’s pointed gaze to Cable’s hands and my eyes widened with surprise. They were glowing with a purplish-black mass, resonating from the inside-out. Parts of the balls were dripping to the floor and smoking before fizzling out, leaving scorch marks on the tile. Those were some nasty spells, whatever they were.
Cable gritted her teeth, spinning on her heal without another word and storming out, the door slamming behind her.
“Sorry,” Avery apologized sheepishly. “Cable has a hard time controlling her temper.”
“Don’t we all,” I agreed dryly, still staring at the marks on the floor. That little girl may be young, but she was certainly not to be trifled with.
“Yeah,” Caine nodded, “But Cable obliterates things when she does.”
I grimaced, wondering if that’s exactly what she had gone to do. “Fun.”
“Try cleaning up the mess,” Caine suggested, his tone equally as dry.
“No, thanks,” I rejected, shaking my head. “I think I’ll leave that up to you.”
“If you make her lose it,” Aisling told me with a sweet grin. My heart thumped in my chest, “you get to clean up after.”
“It’s a rule between friends,” Caine nodded, a little too eager for my liking.
I gave him a curious look, narrowing my eyes. “’Friends’? Since when did we become friends?”
His face went red and he scrambled to cover his slip of the tongue. “I-I meant friends of Cable! We’re not— I mean, you and I—“
“Give it up, Caine,” Avery said, crossing his arms behind his head and yawning. How his drink kept from spilling as he cradled it in his hand was beyond me. “Just admit that you like him already.”
“Yeah,” Vincent agreed. He glanced at me, his eyes dating away as he cleared his throat. “I like him.”
Aisling looked shocked and Avery’s eyes had gone a little wide. Caine seemed equally at a loss for words, staring at his brother like he had just sprouted horns.
“You like someone?” Aisling asked.
“Other than Caine?” Avery added, astonished.
Vincent rubbed the back of his head innocently. “Well, yeah.”
“I take it this is rare,” I commented, standing to take my bowl over to the table. I watched it disappear conveniently and wondered what spell it was that took dirty dishes away and replaced them with clean ones. That would come in handy everywhere, but it was too bad magic only replicated in genes. Which begged the question; if that were true, then how had I gotten any magic? I didn’t recall anyone in our family being anything other than a vampire or half-vampire. So how did I end up this way?
“Basil?” Avery sang. “Hello-o-o? You listening?”
I blinked myself out of the odd little trance I had gone into, forcing myself to stop staring at my hands. “Y-Yes. I am.” I squinted at Avery. “What did you say?”
Avery rolled his eyes. “It wasn’t me, blood boy; it was Caine. He wants to know what the bite’s like.”
I glanced at the blond puppy and scowled, my mind turning over what it would have been like had he volunteered instead of the eager Avery. It wasn’t a pretty picture. “You don’t want to know.”
Avery smiled wickedly, his eyes dancing with light. “It was awesome,” he sighed almost dreamily.
I wanted to vomit.
“Didn’t it hurt?” Vincent asked curiously.
Avery shrugged. “A little at first, but then it just got better and better.”
I turned away from them, acting as if I was engrossed in choosing a beverage from the four that had appeared on the table rather than listening to what they had to say. I had never donated and my donors hadn’t told me what my bite felt like other than the obvious. This was valuable information, to be sure, but I most certainly didn’t want to contribute to it.
“Better how?” Caine asked skeptically.
I didn’t need to look to know what Avery’s face looked like. His voice said it all and I held back a very loud sigh when he said, “Better as in the best sex you’ve ever had.”
I felt my face go instantly red and I winced when my skin protested. The room had gone quiet and I had a hard time convincing myself to turn around, but I couldn’t stare at the drinks forever. Grabbing one, I faced them and walked with as much dignity as I could muster to the furthest cushion away from Avery. He merely grinned at my obvious display of avoidance and I shot him a dirty look.
“Like sex?” Aisling intoned, surprising me with her calm. My eyes shot directly to hers and I could see them starting to glow a subtle white. I was betting mine were starting to go red. “Really?”
“Why?” I asked, narrowing heated eyes on her. She was looking at me in the same way I no doubt looked at a girl I wanted to bite. It was hot, heavy and full of promise. I was surprised I had enough control to not follow the line of her leg up to her tiny shorts, but I was not surprised that I couldn’t stop my mind from wondering what it would be like to peel them off her and run my tongue across her thighs. Why did she always insist on wearing the leather casings? Was it to purposely tease? They certainly weren’t practical by any means, so it must be some sort of perversion on her part. Or maybe she knew that I couldn’t keep my eyes off her when she was in them.
I leaned forward, bracing my arms on my knees, my eyes locked on hers. I felt as if we were the only two in the room and my voice came out low, velvet-smooth and alluring. “Do you want to see for yourself, Legs?”
Her eyes flashed white briefly before Vincent threw an arm in front of her protectively—I just couldn’t tell who he was trying to protect. He looked almost scared, but there was a fierce determination out-weighing whatever it was that she was hiding.
“That’s enough,” Vincent commanded, his voice suddenly serious and demanding. It was as if he had taken on a completely different persona and even I wouldn’t want to mess with him. He glared at me. “I don’t like the way you’re looking at her.”
I grinned, still watching Aisling, who was so obviously trying to control herself. Whatever was going on, it didn’t scare me. Well, Vincent scared me, but only because I had a feeling he could fry me with a thought and that wasn’t something I felt like experiencing again. But Aisling. . . She just got more and more interesting. “I don’t see what the problem is. She’s looking at me the same way.”
A throat clearing turned our attention to the doorway where a blushing girl with curly blond hair and unnaturally gangly limbs stood. She looked afraid as she fidgeted with the hem of her shirt.
“U-Um,” she started, “I heard this is where the Ghosts are? And you offer help?”
I noticed easily how everyone straightened, their attention turning immediately to the girl, their expressions and demeanor serious. Business, I was guessing. I had never seen them in action before—I had always been left behind or had arrived just as they were finished up. This could be interesting—I hoped. It could just be a whole lot of boring, but, either way, it was a good distraction from the tension that had so obviously crept into the room.
I leaned back and watched.
“What’s the problem?” Aisling asked. Her eyes were back to normal and I felt a twinge of regret. I had been close to discovering something they all were so keen on keeping secret and the loss of that information—and the sexy look in Aisling’s eyes was felt acutely.
The girl looked behind her, nervous. She walked into the room and shut the door. Turning back to us, she gripped her hands tightly together, turning them over. “T-There have been rumors lately. I thought it was just stupid talk even in this school, but I got curious, you know?” She let out an explosive breath, dancing from foot to foot. “I can’t believe they were true, though.”
“Rumors?” Avery asked carefully. “What rumors?”
Her frightened face turned shifty eyes to Avery. “Rumors about girls in the lower dormitory practicing summoning.”
The room went eerily quiet, but I didn’t pay attention, latching on to what I didn’t understand. “Summoning? What’s that?”
Caine had covered his eyes with a hand, obviously upset. When he pulled his hand away, his face was pale and angry. “Summoning is forbidden—black magic.” He gave me a serious look, one full of disgust and disbelief. “It’s when a witch is trying to summon a demon.”
“A demon?” I exclaimed. I didn’t even think that was possible. “Why would someone want to do that?”
“For a contract,” Aisling answered grimly. “Witches used to do a summoning in the old days for more power, longer lives, fortune—you get the drift. It’s been forbidden for decades now. To break this law has dire consequences, but nothing worse than if a witch summons a demon they can’t control.”
“Why?” I pressed, not liking where this was headed, but wanting to know all the same. “What happens then?”
She finally looked at me, her eyes dead serious, full of sorrow and contempt. She had either tried this once or she had known someone who had and it had broken her. The knowledge of that was as clear as day in her eyes. But it was what she said that had me reeling. “They lose their soul.”
She turned back to the girl, leaving me with my mouth hanging open in shock as I tried to process the information. “Don’t worry. We’ll look into it. For now, come sit down and tell us what you know.”