Marcus' Prey

Chapter Ten

"Then afterward," Meg chimed in, "because Ammi can't go an hour without eating, we'll go to the food court and eat our weight in shitty Chinese food and greasy pizza."

That sounded...fun?

"What color are y'all getting?" Ammi prodded, her eyes alight. "Ya girl is getting firetruck red!"

Meg snorted, "Dark purple for me, obviously. Color of magic and royalty, ladies."

I bit my lip, "I...think I'd like pink. Not like hot pink, but...pretty pink, you know?"

"Hell yeah I know!" Ammi replied, leading us all through the mall towards the nail salon. "We're gonna find the perfect color."

As usual, Ammi followed through with her sweeping declaration. She and Meg were unerringly patient as I spent an inordinate amount of time deciding on the precise color I wanted. And then there was gel versus paint! When it came to split-second, life or death decisions, I would act in a heartbeat, as I'd been trained to do. But for something so, (frivolous wasn't precisely the right word, maybe light?) choices, it was almost impossible to pick. But, when I was finally satisfied with my selection, I began to feel some excitement, to the point that I was beginning to bounce off the walls. I felt giddy, happy, almost childlike. The only thing missing was my...

...was my Champion.

But no. I was determined to enjoy my time with the girls.

The whole manicure thing was definitely a new experience, especially when they were touching the bottoms of my feet. I was ticklish, and I couldn't resist the giggles I let slip. But, when I saw the gel polish swiped on my toes, I was absolutely in love with how it looked. It felt...like me.

Meg and Ammi chatted the whole time, going out of their way to include me, which I appreciated. At first, I was sad, realizing I didn't exactly have much to bond with them over. Though from the small comments they made here and there, neither of them had had an easy time of it in the past. But they hadn't been so disconnected from the world as I had. They'd had a childhood, no matter how traumatic.

I didn't resent them for it, though I listened to their stories wistfully. Yet, when they noticed my silence, they began to focus the conversation more on topics I could understand. It filled my heart with warmth and melted it down into goo.

"So," Meg sighed, looking down in satisfaction at her one painted foot, "spill the cauldron, Kai-Kai. What's up with you and the cranky daemon?"

Not a daemon.

I clamped my mouth shut before I could spill that little fact. Not that I'd have anything to follow it up with, mind you. I knew what he wasn't, but that didn't mean I knew what he was, as much as it may frustrate me.

"Well, I don't know..." I blushed furiously.

Ammi clapped her hands together in excitement, "Oh man, did you two fuck like bunnies?"

"No!" I gasped, appalled at her, glancing down in horror at the woman carefully painting my nails. "We did not...have...you know..." I blushed even harder.

Meg, mercifully, let me off the hook.

"Well, then, what's actually happened?" She smirked slightly, "care to enlighten us?"

I wrung my hands together, "Well, he's been very clear that, erm-"

"That he wants you," Ammi finished. Meg punched her lightly on the shoulder and she went on the defensive. "What? Anyone with half a brain can see that. Plus, you're his mate."