*Chapter Four*
“…Escape the fact that you’re no longer human.”
Aurora was furious, furious with herself.
How could he have guessed? How could a demon who didn’t even know her have guessed her exact fear? Deep inside, she knew that what he said was true, yet she refused to believe it. It was something she had battled ages with herself. How could she admit that she was neither human nor demon? She was nothing, and she belonged nowhere. Before she even realized what she was doing, she had slapped him. Her hand had throbbed painfully, reminding her of how hard she had slapped him. Snorting through her nose, she told herself that it would probably heal in less than a minute.
She yanked her locker open, using way more force that was necessary. Aurora tossed her books into the locker, and they clattered noisily with the bottom of her locker.
“Whoa, whoa, I better watch out. Someone’s in a pretty shitty mood.”
Aurora turned around to see Cade walking towards her with a stupid grin on his face. Aurora felt her mood lift a little.
“What are you? My stalker?” she said playfully, but frankly, she was extremely thankful that she had someone by her side.
Cade crossed his arms over his chest, and for the first time, Aurora noticed that his t-shirt clung to him perfectly, enhancing how well-built he was.
“Just protecting a powerless girl from rapists while walking to her dorm,” he said with a small bow.
He would never guess how ‘powerless’ she is. The corner of her lips twitched, and she turned away before he could see it.
“I’m no damsel in distress, Cade,” she said, walking away from him.
“Geez,” she heard him say, “I knew you would react like that. My friends and I are going to watch a movie. Do you want to come?”he asked, hurrying up to catch up with Aurora.
“You have friends?” Aurora grinned. “I would’ve thought otherwise since you’re constantly around me,” she shrugged nonchalantly.
Cade glowered at her, perfectly aware that she was joking.
“Oh, yes, I do. It’s done then. Meet me in front of the school’s main entrance at eight sharp.”
“All right, see you,” Aurora said and waved once before turning around and heading up the stairs for the girls’ dorms.
Aurora ascended the stairs and noticed that the hallways were impeccably cleaned, something to be expected from a prestige school like Artemis. She stopped in front of her dorm, and pressed the card against a small white device on the side of the door. The door clicked open, and Aurora was immediately met with a room having identical furniture on both sides. It was as if someone had set a mirror in the middle of the room. Seeing no one, Aurora placed her bag onto the floor and shut the door behind her. She plopped herself onto the bed and rested her forearm over her eyes. A soft sigh of relief escaped her lips.
She felt someone approaching her and lifted her gaze. A strawberry blonde grinned at her, leaning against a wall. Her hair was in soft waves, half of it pinned behind her head and the other half cascading down her back. She had steel gray eyes that made Aurora wonder if she was wearing contacts. She walked forwards, and Aurora slowly got up. She stuck out her hand towards Aurora.
“Hello, I’m Gabriella, your roommate.”
“Aurora,” she said, shaking Gabriella’s hand.
Gabriella inhaled sharply, her eyes suddenly wide and her cheeks flushed with excitement.
“Hey, hey, have you seen the bathroom yet? It’s huge!” she exclaimed as she practically bounced on her bed.
“You’re quite energetic,” Aurora said, laughing quietly to herself.
Gabriella grinned sheepishly.
“People say that a lot.”
Aurora sighed and leaned back. All she wanted to do right was have a warm bubble bath. She quickly glanced at the clock. It was still far from eight. Aurora threw her legs over the side and got up.
“Are you going to use the bathroom? I want to take a bath.”
“Nope,” Gabriella replied easily and took the remote control from the table across them, flicking through the channels.
Aurora entered the bathroom and plugged in the stopper, turning on the tap. Humming softly to herself, she waited until there was a decent amount of water in the bathtub. She locked the door and unbuttoned the silver and black school uniform. The shirt dropped onto the floor with a dull thump, quickly followed by the school skirt. Aurora slowly walked forwards and rested her elbow onto the edge of the sink.
She stared into her own reflection in the mirror. Her eyes had long lost their original brightness, but they were nevertheless emerald, a color that she was born with. Her gaze lingered on her left iris, and she hesitated. Was she really being a pathetic? Even after all these years, was it possible that she still couldn’t accept herself?
The answer was yes. She was a coward, and she was afraid. She rested her elbow on the edge of the sink, and brought her hand to her face. Aurora parted her fingers so that she could see herself. Suddenly her reflection in the mirror changed.
Her smooth black hair twisted and curled. Her lips pulled back into a snarl, showing two sharp teeth that could rip anything apart. Her head titled slightly upwards, giving off a haughty expression. Her skin turned a shade paler than it is now. Her ears became more pointed. Her nails elongated.
Her eyes.
The two pools of swirling emerald flickered in their shades, and wisps of red replaced emerald. Like ink, the smoky crimson shade pervaded both her irises until her eyes had turned completely to red – the shade of blood.
Flashes of those blood-lust driven creatures filled her mind.
Aurora bit into her tongue to stop herself from screaming, the metallic taste on her tongue reminding her of the scent of death and blood all around her.
“No,” she gripped her hair.
Before she knew it, she was on the bathroom floor, rocking herself back and forth. She raised her quivering hand to her eyes. It was pale, but nothing as pallid as the color she saw in the mirror. Breathing heavily, Aurora reached out to the bath tub. There was a creak of the metal, and the warm water stopped flowing from the tap. Aurora slowly lowered herself, immersing herself in the warm water. Her muscles relaxed, and she tilted her head back. She closed her eyes, a small sigh escaping her lips.
“I really should have died in 1895.”
“You sure she’s not here?” Cade asked for the tenth time and hopped down from the window still.
The sun was setting, and a beautiful orange shade was cast upon the small island. The soft autumn breeze blew across the field and into the dorm through the small window.
“She’s taking a shower,” Gabriella answered. Her smile had disappeared from her face, and she was glancing out towards the setting sun with concern. The breeze had caused strands of golden hair to float around her face.
“I don’t sense anything inhumane about her. She doesn’t seem as dangerous as described. She’s nothing like what we thought she would be like.”
“She certainly doesn’t seem unstable to me either,” Gabriella answered with a puzzled look. “Be on the safe side, Cade; don’t let your guard down.”
“Sure.”
There was a click of a door opening, and Gabriella nodded at Cade. One second Cade was leaning against the wall, the next, he was gone.
“I’m done,” Aurora said, her raven black hair was stuck to her forehead as she walked out of the bathroom.
Gabriella frowned to herself. Was it just her? Aurora seemed like she had just seen a ghost in the bathroom. She reproached herself for being ridiculous and plastered on a large smile.
“I’m going to take a bath now. Do you mind watching the water? I’m boiling pastas,” she chirped.
“Got it,” Aurora said with no hesitance and walked past Gabriella. A gentle breeze blew in from the window, and she picked up a familiar scent. Her eyes dashed to the wall right next to the window, and they lingered there for an extra second before she looked away.