Shadow Breeds

Chapter 11

Ashe was sitting up against the headboard with a thick book in her hands, as usual. This time the smile that crept onto my face was genuine, "you're really pretty when you're doing nerd things."

I laughed a bit as she sent me daggers with her eyes, "doing nerd stuff is why I'm smarter than you," she retorted with a huff and looked back at the book in her hands. A second later her head snapped back up, "only when I'm doing nerd stuff?" She asked with a raised brow.

I laughed again and shook my head while crawling onto my side of her bed, "you know what I mean." I ruffled her hair and she slapped my hand away playfully. "I don't think I do," she spoke in a sarcastically innocent tone.

I sighed and relaxed while crossing my arms in defeat, "you, Asheland Walker, are always gorgeous, you're just a little extra cute when you're being nerdy." I tossed a wink at her and chuckled when I noticed her face growing pink. "You're not so bad yourself, August Stone," she giggled and rolled her eyes while closing her book and setting it on the bedside table.

I watched her curiously, if any other Shadow Breeds had ever come across her they'd know what she was immediately. I was still surprised she'd never figured it out herself or ran into any other Shadow Breeds after all these years. It should be impossible for another creature to go unnoticed that long regardless of their location, we are everywhere.

Her eyes were too silver to be human but, grey enough to pass as human to other humans, however, if you add the white swirls that are in the silver of her eyes, it becomes even more obvious what she is to any shadow being. Of coarse they wouldn't actually swirl as they're supposed to until she's fully transformed, but it was still clear.

All shadow gods, goddesses, and their relatives had white-colored swirling lines within whatever color their iris was. Gender, hair, eye color, and skin color varied between all Shadow Breeds so the swirls are the only way to differentiate the bloodlines of gods and goddesses from other shadow creatures.

In general, Shadow Breeds with human-like figures could pass as human however, most were pretty obvious if you knew what to look for. Ashe's hair should be another giveaway but, to humans it probably just looks dyed. When we're young our hair will take a more natural shade, but as we get older it brightens or darkens and changes unnaturally and hers had become a deep, fiery ember red. Her skin glowed with her aura which exposed what she was even more, something that would only be clear to another Shadow Breed even though most beings, including the humans, have an auric glow. I couldn't help but wonder what I looked like to her.

We had gotten under the blanket and curled up together about thirty minutes ago, but I couldn't sleep yet. There was so much she needed to know and so little time, and now our feelings were out in the open and we'd decided to explore them. I didn't regret that last part, I just hoped nothing in the future changed how she felt. Eventually, I over-thought myself into a restless sleep.

***

Ashe

The sun came through the windows and woke me up. I rolled out of August's arms and dragged my feet to the kitchen. After taking a minute to stretch and wake up, I started making coffee. Once I was done with my usual kitchen routine I went back to my bedroom to grab clothes.

"Good morning sunshine," August said very sleepily and quietly as I had started to walk back out. I turned with a smile, "good morning to you too, coffee is being made so I'm going to grab a shower." He nodded with his eyes still closed, I turned again and went to the bathroom. I set the water to the temperature I wanted and shed my clothes, checking the heat of the shower before stepping under it.