Selena POV:
I woke up the next morning, feeling a moment of panic. I must have been really tired as the memory of falling asleep was lost to me. I tried to sit up but the covers were firmly tucked around my body snuggly. I doubted that I had moved all night. It was only then I realized how anxious I had been to go out. It had sucked all my energy out.
Looking over at the clock, I saw that I had five minutes before the alarm was supposed to go off and decided not to wait. Untangling myself from the covers, I looked down and saw that I had sweated through my clothes.
I gradually went through the motions before going downstairs, feeling as though there was a weight attached to each of my limbs.
Ed was concerned when he came to pick me up for training.
“I feel so tired today,” I said softly, trying not to sound like I was whining. Looking at the expression on his face, I had to assure him. “I’m okay… Still feeling a l
Selena POV: The rest of the lunch was relatively quiet. I noticed that Duncan was nowhere to be found. And Neo wasn’t bothered that he had to take up this urgent role to train the kids in place of the Alpha. He took it in stride. Ruth kept giving me sly looks when she thought I wasn’t looking. She was making me extremely uneasy as I wasn’t sure what was going on in that crazy head of hers. I was relieved when Neo asked her to follow him back into the woods. Ruth seemed to want to follow. But even though she was coming along, at least I would be busy with training, so any further interaction would be minimal. I wondered if I could skip on the meal from tomorrow so that I wouldn’t have to sit with all of Ruth’s hostility directed at me. It was wearing at my appetite. Walking into the clearing once again, I found that Duncan was already there. He was setting up a board and writing stuff on it. Various stretchable bands lay on the floor and the instructions on
Selena POV:I almost felt sorry for Ruth. Seeing her brought so low made it so, but thinking of the girl who had almost hurt two pups from the pack, I couldn’t bring myself to support her. Instead, I felt my stomach clench thinking that the joke was probably meant for me. The fire had just grown irritated and moved erratically, hurting others instead. What was wrong with this girl? Was she so consumed with the need for attention that she had to commit acts that could hurt other people? “Neo, take Ruth to the house. We will have a hearing about her conduct,” Duncan commanded, lightly pushing Ruth over to him. She didn’t give another excuse but willingly left with him, knowing she would be in for hell if she lingered around Duncan for a second longer. I turned away from the party, moving quickly towards where I knew Meredith still was. I needed to talk to her immediately about me being able to handle fire without any prior practic
Selena POV:Ed was the first to arrive, striding into the kitchen looking severe, but it was only because he was worried about me. He came over and looked me over, placing his hand on my shoulder for a reassuring pat. He told me that he heard a little of what happened during the lesson, but not the details.“When everyone gets here, I will retell it, but not until then,” I explained. “Okay,” he said, taking the seat beside Meredith and me. We stayed close to each other until the door opened once again. A group of voices could be heard coming from the entryway as the three of us made our way into the dining room. Duncan, Neo, and another man walked in at the opposite side of the room moments later. Duncan came in, talking in lowered voices with the older man. Neo seemed to notice me and came over quickly. “Are you okay? I was so preoccupied with what happened that I didn’t check in with you,” he said quietly.
Selena POV:Back at Meredith’s compound, Argon and Meredith walked farther in front of me as I trailed behind, thinking about what had happened. I found myself going into the house and to my room to change into normal clothing. I stank of sweat and soot and wanted to get out of it as soon as I could. When I came downstairs to the kitchen area, I heard voices coming from the greenhouse. It was a regular occurrence to find the door to it open. I peeked in, not wanting to intrude, and found Argon looking around the room in admiration. “Seeing the garden and now this… beautiful,” Argon said, his deep voice drifting in my direction. “She did this all by herself?” he asked after a while. “Yes, she did. The first time I saw her use her life magic. I had to use a lot of my power to contain it,” Meredith added.The more I heard these comments, the more curious I was to see what other witches could do. Even
Selena POV:“Alright, it’s time for Selena and me to go to the forest,” Meredith announced, walking us out of the house. “I am coming along. Are the plants being infected at a rapid rate?” Argon asked calmly as Meredith led us into a smaller forest path. As I stepped through the narrowing path and through the thorns. I could only gasp in horror to see all the rotting trees, fruits swarming with flies, and bushes withering away from the very entryway of our primary destination. Again, I was hit with the feeling that the energy in this place was polluted. I looked down and saw that the area was barricaded by a large magic circle. “Meredith, why are their two circles?” I asked. “The inner circle is the heart of the ritual, needed to prepare and repair. The outer circle is the containment circle. So that the rotting doesn’t spread and the things outside it are protected from being infected,&rdqu
Selena POV:“I noticed that I needed to concentrate on its energy more so than Earth,” I told him. “Yes, and to even turn away for a moment can be dangerous,” he said. “I want you to become acquainted properly with Fire today, maybe even hold it. But nothing else.”“Alright,” I said as I brought the lighter up into both of our lines of sight and flicked it on. A strong flame ignited immediately, casting a warm yellow glow. “Now, find its essence and focus,” he whispered. I did as he asked, first calming myself of all my nerves and worries. I looked into the heart of the flame. Within moments, I felt a connection. The flame started to dance happily in greeting, asking to bond with me. “Yes, I would like that very much,” I whispered lovingly to it as if talking to a small child who was asking me to come to play with it. I nervously raised my other hand slowly a
Selena POV:It had been a week since. Lessons with Argon and Meredith varied during that time. Some days, it involved circle casting and others involved working directly with the elements. I enjoyed my time spent with them. Meredith was my teacher and confidant in either new healing techniques or new plants, or even if I wanted to have a heart-to-heart conversation. Argon, on the other hand, was the harsher one. The questions I found were too personal and embarrassing to ask Meredith, I would ask him. I found myself asking him what a mating of witches was like. If he had known any half-breeds who had gone through it. I personally didn’t think it would happen to me, not to mention that I didn’t want to think about who my possible mate would be. But Argon was calm and explained with clinical precision. He had a mate back home whom he missed dearly. And though he rarely gave details about her, the wistful look in his eye told me that a part of the reason why
Selena POV:Duncan followed my words and shifted into his human form. I guess I should have thought it through before asking him to do that because then, Duncan was naked. It usually wasn’t a big issue for shifters, but it was for me.“I… um…” I mumbled, trying my best to shift my eyes away from him, but he didn’t make any attempt to hide his naked body from me. He stood before me in all his glory. His thick member stood at attention, making it difficult for me to look anywhere else. “You ran,” he stated. I blinked a few times before looking up at his face. “I had to get out of there. I couldn’t. I can’t. You can’t choose me. You have to pick someone else.”I heard the low growl in his chest. He had no intention of picking anyone else. “I don’t like being told what I can and cannot do, Selena. Just like you. I have no plan to pick anyone else. You are the