Another chapter coming in the next hour or so! You'll have an answer to some of your questions very soon...:)
[Apple]"Congratulations...?"Why did her eyes shine for a moment? What is going on here?Nervously, I step back. "Apple," Hazel looks around. "We'll talk after." She gives Hawthorne a look and he nods, his expression still hard but his eyes strangely soft, like his face can't decide what it wants to feel. "It's a good thing, trust me," Hazel winks, and then leads the way into class.Looking back, I suddenly find comfort in Rudy being only a few steps away. Whatever Hazel has to say is going to change everything. I can feel it.The problem is, there have been so many changes in my life recently that I can't handle another. I'm already overwhelmed. "Let's just get through today and worry about everything else later," I try to pep myself up as I enter the classroom.Today is a lab day, and I'm excited to see how my seedlings are doing. We planted peas in various soils to see how they'd grow, or not, depending on the environment. The professor is already speaking by the time I take m
[Sylvester]I know the Board of Directors is trying to tell me something important, but I can't focus. My thoughts keep shifting back to last night, the way she felt, the way she tasted, and the way she called out my name as I brought her release with my fingers and my tongue.My sweet, perfect, Apple. I need to see her."So as we were saying, we need to meet your Luna immediately. Tomorrow." Beta-emeritus Clancy Greystone announces briskly. "And if she doesn't meet our standard, you have no choice. It's Alexis. Do you understand what we are saying?"I want to answer back with something flippant, but I hold my tongue. I need to see Apple. I need her. "Of course, Beta Clancy," I remember my manners, giving a deep bow. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have important work to attend to running our pack. I'm sure you understand."I'm given the details of the time and place to bring Apple, but I don't even bother listening. I've already come up with a better plan. They won't accept Apple, Clan
[Apple]This has to be a trick or a hallucination because none of this makes sense. Hazel’s words cannot be true. I can’t be a witch. “But I grew up in Pleasant Valley, California.” I groan as I turn my head from side to side and my hair emits amber sparks, my skin glowing and my eyes shining beacon bright. “A HUMAN ONLY community. They have hex-blockades and supe detectors installed in the roads leading into town," my voice is growing louder and as I blush in frustration, my skin's hue slowly blooms to match the flowers in my hair. "How can I be a witch if I grew up in a place like that?" "Witches are good at hiding." Hazel shrugs. "I'm sure your mother had her reasons for hiding you so far from your own kind. But now you've found us again," she makes it all sound like a celebration, like something to be happy about, but all I feel is despair. Just a few moments ago I knew who I was. Now, I have no idea who or what I am. Hazel’s twinkling eyes glimmer as she moves my hair aside t
[Apple]"Sly," the sound of the door closing behind me tells me we are alone. I hold my breath. He steps forward, closing the distance between us, and pulls me into his arms holding me tightly as he breathes in my scent."I needed to see you," he says against my hair. "You left me alone," a sob breaks free, muffled by his chest as I bury my face in his embrace, craving his touch and scent as much as any wolf. "You don't need me. You don't even want me."He holds me even tighter as I cry, clutching his jacket. "I know this relationship is just pretend, that you never promised me anything, but I can't help how my heart feels," I try to explain, my words moving quickly. "I can't give my body without my heart, Sly. When I offered myself and approached you, it was with everything, and I know you can't love me back, but I thought it wouldn't matter.""But I was wrong," I confess. "I want you to want me too. To have you reject me broke me.""I didn't reject you," he moans and I look up to s
[Apple]Haven. A safe place. Home. A place where you belong. Both of these words are loaded with so much meaning. The only safe haven I have had in my life was with my mother, and right now, as my eyes full adjust to the wonder before me, I wish more than anything to have her with me right now.I have so many questions. Questions that only she can answer. Questions like--” Why didn’t you tell me that we are witches?” and “Did your heart yearn for my father the way my heart yearns for Sly?” As my eyes come into focus, I find myself in a large, cavernous room. It is almost more like a cave than a structure, and I have a feeling that some type of magic was involved in its creation. The entrance sits above it all, looking down into a valley of sparkling lights that glow with the rainbow variety of life. The space is large, easily as big as a convention center, broken into parts for various elements of life--shopping, eating, playing, and living their regular lives. It's several city
[Apple]I felt lost in the woods of buildings I didn't recognize and streets that twist and turn in directions that make no sense. If it weren't for the old Grandmother witch in the apothecary shop, I'd have been lost sooner, but I also wouldn't have left the only guide I had. I'm not sure which decision would have been better--staying with Throne, who at least liked me if maybe a little too much, or coming out here on my own.I tried my best to follow her instructions, following the glowing stones heading up the hill to the exit, but my mind was so preoccupied with what was happening inside of me and around me that I soon found myself lost and heading back down instead of up. I feel a sudden tug on my heart as if being called. My chest hurts and I can't think. I suddenly smell Sly's campfire scent and look around. He's not here, but it is almost like he is by my side. And he's in pain. "This can't be real," I murmur to myself. "I never felt his pain before." "You didn't know you w
[Apple]My attackers quiver, their legs shaking as their eyes widen. One pisses himself as the wolf takes a step forward. Neither of them moves, frozen in place, unable to react beyond unintelligible whimpers. Snapping forward his maw opens wide, his teeth dripping with saliva.He can't mean to kill them? Can he? What if someone found out? Taking a step toward the wolf to say something, I kick a discarded soda can. The wolf's head swivels, and his eyes, black from pupil to sclera, turn enough for me to see that the wolf has taken over completely. If there is a man inside, he's not there. All that is left is the beast. I place a hand on his shoulder. "Sly. Please." Sniffing me he growls and then turns back to the men. He can smell them on me and he doesn't like it. He takes another step forward, snapping his teeth, spit flying from his muzzle. "Rufus, you don't need to do this!" I beg, although part of me wonders why I'm trying to defend these witches who only moments before were
[Apple]His gentle hands set me down on the bed and I feel cherished. His eyes never leave mine as he pulls his shirt off in a rush, some of his buttons breaking in the process, bounding off and landing around us like raindrops.I sigh at the sight of him, his muscles gleaming and hard, the small patch of hair that curls between his breasts inviting my touch. He's always been lovely to me. The first time I saw I thought he was the most beautiful man I had ever laid eyes on. Irresistible. Doesn't he realize that I crave him just as much as he craves me?"I'm sorry, Apple," he apologizes again as he removes his pants and kneels on the bed, completely bare except for his manhood, which I can see pressing tight against his boxers. "This isn't how it should be."The smell of his sweet musk enlivens my senses. I want him. Even in pain as I am, I want him. And I tell him this as I struggle to turn towards him. "Love me, Sly. Please." Carefully he peels back what remains of my clothing. It st