Chapter Six
"You're going to the fights!"
I glanced up from the book I was reading to look at Rowan. "I'm not just going. I'm participating."
Rowan barked out a laugh and shook his head. "Freya, are you insane?"
I sighed and placed a bookmark in the book before closing it and setting it on the bed. I sat up from my sprawled out position, making Bruce open an eye to see what I was doing. I gave him a reassuring smile before facing Rowan.
"What better way to get to know my people than joining in on their extracurricular activities?"
"Freya. These aren't just normal people. They are demons who have worked a long week and want to let out some of their pent up anger. This isn't the fae realm. These people aren't afraid to hit a girl," Rowan warned me, crossing his arms over his chest.
I shrugged. "I'm not scared."
Rowan threw his arms up in exasperation. "You should be!"
I shrugged and walked to my vanity, grabbing a hair tie. I threw my hair up into a ponytail and then turned back to Rowan. "Why are you so worried?"
Rowan dropped his arms and glared at me. "You are my responsibility while you are here. You can't just go run off and put yourself in every dangerous situation that you can think of."
"Actually," I trailed off, before smirking at him. "I can."
Rowan groaned. "What are you, Bella Swan?"
I barked out a laugh. "I'm not doing these things to try and get your attention. I just want to learn who my people are."
Rowan sighed at the sincerity in my voice. "It is a smart plan. But you're going to need some training first."
I raised my eyebrows. "It's tonight."
Rowan shrugged. "Then I guess we have a lot of work to do."
Great.
*****
Rowan and I stood in the middle of some kind of wrestling ring, inside a workout room. The room is mostly empty, except for a guy at a punching bag and a girl on a treadmill. As I was analyzing the room, Rowan swung his leg out and knocked me to the ground.
I landed on my butt with an oomph, gasping as the wind got knocked out of me. "What the hell was that for?"
"Never let your guard down when in the ring. You never know when or how someone is going to strike," Rowan informed me, his voice strictly business.
Oh, so that's how this is going to go down. I groaned and picked myself off the ground. Before I could even blink, Rowan had shoved me. I went flying into the rope of the ring, my body flinging forward on impact. I gritted my teeth to stop myself from using my powers to fling him across the room.
"These people are going to fight dirty. Don't expect them to follow traditional fighting rules. They will push you, and pull your hair. There are no rules, Freya."
I walked forward, and at the last minute swung my leg out. Instead of falling over, he suspected the move and caught my leg. He looked me in the eye for a moment before twisting my leg, making me fall flat on my back. I tried not to let the impact affect me as I jumped back up, ready to fight again.
I aimed a punch at his stomach, but he swerved out of the way. "Is that all you got?"
I narrowed my eyes at him and aimed a swift kick to his shin. This time, he didn't see it coming. He grimaced, before giving me an approving look. "Better."
Rowan aimed a punch, but I deflected it with a grin. We began to circle each other, analyzing the others every move. Rowan kicked out and made me fall, but I grabbed at him and made him fall with me. We both got up in record time, getting ready to attack again.
It went on like that for a while, before we were both drenched in sweat and Rowan finally called it quits. "You're still going to lose, but at least now it won't be embarrassing to watch."
"Ha," I muttered, jumping down from the ring and grabbing the water I placed on the ground. I downed it as Bruce came up and rubbed against my leg.
"You have two hours before it starts. You should probably go freshen up beforehand. You stink," Rowan informed me, scrunching up his nose for emphasis.
I rolled my eyes but nodded, following Bruce out of the room. It's the work out room in the mansion itself, so it wasn't hard to find my way back to my room. Once in there, I grabbed a change of clothes and walked into the bathroom.
I threw my hair up and took a quick body shower. God knows I'm going to shower again after the fights, so there is no point in thoroughly washing up. I was out in minutes, quickly drying myself off and throwing on the clothes I grabbed. I took my hair out of the bun and brushed it out before throwing it back up into a ponytail.
Bruce and I walked back to my room quickly. We both plopped onto my bed and I turned the tv on. Once it turned on, I startled. I haven't watched tv in so long. I eagerly flipped through the channels until I stumbled upon my favorite show of all time. Friends.
Bruce and I watched a few episodes before there was a knock on my door. Aiden didn't even bother to wait a second before he came into my room. "I hear Friends!"
I laughed as he ran and jumped onto my bed, practically landing on top of Bruce and I. "Screw the fight. This is so much better."
I playfully shoved him and rolled my eyes. "We can watch Friends any time."
"I guess," Aiden sighed dramatically.
I laughed and shook my head at him.
"You're going to have to either leave Bruce here or tell him to stay a tattoo. Otherwise he's going to kill whoever you fight."
Bruce perked up at his words, tilting his head in our direction. I bit my lip, trying to decide what I wanted to do. I think I will feel too weird without him with me. It's only been a day and I'm already so attached.
"Hey buddy, you wanna be a tattoo?"
Bruce yipped, rubbing his body against my arm. As he did, he slowly started to shrink and disfigure, until he was back on my shoulder as a tattoo. It was such a weird site to see.
"You ready," Aiden questioned me.
I shrugged. "I mean I guess."
Aiden nodded and led us out of the room. We got down and outside fairly quickly. He handed me a helmet before placing one on his own head and hopping onto the bike. I hopped on after him, and we zoomed away.
It wasn't long before Aiden was pulling into a warehouse, parking his bike amongst hundreds of other cars. I raised my eyebrows. This place is going to be more packed than I first thought. Aiden led us through a back door and down a flight of stairs. Before we even got half way down, you could hear the roaring noise of the people down below.
"You sure you're ready for this," Aiden questioned.
"As ready as I'll ever be," I laughed.
Aiden nodded and opened the door. The sheer chaos of the room shocked me. The room was filled with bleachers along every wall. Hundreds of people filled the stands, buckets of cash being passed around amongst them. They must be making bets.
In the middle of the room was the same kind of ring Rowan and I were practicing in, except much bigger. You would think this were the real MMA's or something. Aiden led us past the crowd and into a door all the way across the room. Inside, there were a ton of little spots curtained off. A few people were walking around, many of them extremely buff.
Everyone who saw us acknowledged Aiden in one way or another. The boy really is popular. Aiden led us to one of the curtains. Inside was a few other people, including that guy Christian that I danced with at the party. He grinned and walked up to us right when we got there.
"Are you ready to face the wolves, Freya," Christian questioned.
I laughed. "C'mon, it can't be that bad."
Christian shook his head and clapped me on the shoulder. "Trust me, there's a reason why I don't participate in these fights."
I raised my eyebrows at that and turned to Aiden. "Do you?"
Aiden nodded. "I never lose."
Christian laughed and shook his head. "That kind of cockyness is bad to have in these kinds of things. This kind of fighting is way too unpredictable."
The crowd started to roar even louder, and Aiden grinned. "Sounds like it's starting. Want to come watch?"
I shrugged and nodded. Aiden led Christian and I out the door and into the crowd. He shoved through people until he found a decent spot close to the front. We stood with the rest of the crowd and watched the fight take hold. What I saw made my stomach turn.
The smaller opponent had his much bigger counterpart's head slamming into the ground. The much bigger guy was bleeding profusely out of his face, and I could have sworn I saw a tooth missing. After a few moments, the bigger guy got the upper hand. He swung his head back and got the smaller one right in the nose. I could practically hear the crack from here.
I gulped. This is not going to be good.
"Nervous yet," Aiden questioned, leaning down so that I could hear him better.
"Not at all," I lied.
Aiden laughed, but didn't push further.
I looked around then, hoping to catch sight of Mal. My stomach dropped at the amount of people in the building. There's no way I will find her in this crowd.
The current fight ended with the smaller one as the champion, and the bigger one being carted off on a stretcher. The next few fights were a lot less damaging. There was still a bit of blood, but it was a lot more wrestling than brute force. It made me feel at least a little better.
Aiden gasped. I raised my eyebrows at him. "Rowan hasn't fought in one of these in years."
I looked to the front to see a shirtless Rowan walking into the ring. His back was to me, showing off the deep muscles in his back and the dimples at the bottom of his spine. Belle slithered along his arm, probably to make the opponent more intimidated.
Rowan's opponent was a little bigger than him, but I have a feeling that Rowan is about to crush him in two seconds flat. When the announcer started the fight, Rowan's opponent didn't hesitate. He came flying at Rowan, ready to body slam him into the ground. Instead, Rowan caught the guy around the middle. He threw him up, and slammed him to the ground. Even I cringed at the impact.
The man was barely fazed, jumping right back up to have another go at Rowan. They circled each other, throwing punches and kicks when needed. The opponent got Rowan good in the jaw, but that's about the only impact he ever made on Rowan's body. Clearly Rowan was holding back when we were fighting earlier.
Rowan's body moved like water, his every movement calculated. It's like watching a God in his natural habitat. I've never been so impressed by a fight in my life. Too quickly, the fight was over. Rowan had the guy pinned flat on the ground for the 10 seconds that was required of the match.
Rowan looked around as the announcer held his arm up to announce his victory. His eyes landed on me and held there for a few moments, before looking away and accepting his win. He didn't smile, but he didn't look angry either. He walked off and allowed the next fighter to begin.
"You're going to be up soon," Christian warned me. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
"I don't really have a choice at this point," I admitted.
Christian gave me an uneasy look.
"Why don't we go get you ready," Aiden suggested.
I nodded and followed Aiden as he led us away from the crowd. He walked us back into that room and behind the curtain. He handed me a water bottle as he spoke. "Okay, so you cannot use your powers and you cannot give your opponent any kind of killing blow. The only way you can win is if you keep them pinned for ten seconds."
I nodded.
"They will probably give you a female opponent. No females have gone yet, so there must not be a very good female turn out this time. That won't always be the case," Aiden warned.
I nodded again, though I let out a small sigh of relief. I'll have a lot better of a chance with a girl than with one of those beefy dudes who could crush me with their pinky, blindfolded. Plus, girls aren't as brutal, right?
Some random guy pulled back the curtain and told us I was up. I took a deep breath. It's going to be fine. I got this.
"Don't worry. No matter what happens, you will have gained the respect of everyone in this room for trying. They love their fighters."
"It's going to be fine," I informed him, though it was more to reassure myself.
Aiden walked me out of the room and to the ring. "This is where I let you go. But I'll be right over here if you need me, okay?"
I nodded and smiled in his direction. I am a half demon, half fae princess. If I can't take on one little fight, then no one can. With that in mind, I marched up to the ring with my head held high. I ignored the deafening roar of the crowd and analyzed my opponent.
She's tall and lean, with a good amount of muscle in her arms and calves. I tried to analyze her for any weaknesses, but was disappointed to not see any. She's inspecting her nails, not even bothering to look at me. Underestimation will be her biggest mistake. The second the announcer said we could go, I struck. I swung my leg out and brought her to the ground, before dropping down on top of her.
She took this in stride, pulling a leg up and kicking me off of her. I jumped up instantly, ready for another attack. She smiled at me before aiming an expert punch at my stomach. I moved out of the way, but not quite fast enough. It still made contact with my side.
I took the hit as best as I could, returning her with a harsh one of my own. She wasn't expecting it, because she stumbled back. I used that to my advantage. I ran at her, grabbing her around the middle and bringing her to the ground with me on top of her. I straddled her and tried to get her body to pin. She flailed around, before settling on biting my arm. I wasn't expecting it, and that was all she needed to flip the position around.
I headbutted her and got back up. I shook the pain off as we circled each other. She bared her teeth at me and attacked. I side stepped her and allowed her to fling her own body into the ropes. She used this to her advantage, using the ropes as momentum to land a kick to my side. I hissed in pain, but swung around and slammed a round house kick into her stomach.
She stumbled, so I kicked out with my other leg and took her own leg out. I jumped on top of her and tried to pin her yet again. She tried to struggle, but she was losing momentum. I grinned. I might actually win this. I gritted my teeth and pushed with all my might to get her body to lay flat. As I focused on that, she found an opening.
She jabbed her elbow into my stomach, making me lose my grip. Then she reversed the position. She headbutted me this time, making my vision go spotty and my body start to give up. I tried to force myself up, but it was no use. After a few moments, I acknowledged that she had won and allowed her to pin me to the ground.
She grinned as the announcer called for her win, jumping up to smile and wave at the crowd. I made myself get up just as quickly, and mimic what she did. To my surprise, Aiden was right. Despite my loss, there were still many people yelling my name.
I stumbled off the ring, happily accepting the help Aiden quickly gave me. He took most of my weight as I stumbled down and leaned against the wall to catch my breath. Aiden handed me another water bottle, and I chugged it eagerly.
"You did incredibly well," Aiden complimented.
I grinned. "Thanks."
My opponent walked off the ring. She turned right and walked straight over to someone walking this way. She called over to him, "I think I'm starting to lose my touch."
"I taught you everything you know. There is no way you are losing your touch," Rowan stated, stopping in front of her.
She laughed, and the familiarity of it chilled me to my very core. This is the girl from his room the other night. I just lost to Rowan's play thing. You have got to be kidding me.
"Are you okay," Aiden questioned, grabbing my arm to steady me. "You're looking a little pale."
"I'm fine," I laughed, though it came out as more of a croak. My head started to spin, and my hands began to shake. What is going on?
"What did you eat today," Aiden asked, his voice getting panicky.
I tried to think back. Not much. Maybe a bowl of cereal? That was so long ago. I was going to go get food when Rowan came to train me. I guess I didn't think fae could get drained like this.
"Freya," a voice questioned, but they sounded so far away.
I started to sway on my feet, and blurred colors started to fill my vision. I tried to gasp in a gulp of air, but nothing filled my lungs. My heart started to race. What is happening to me? I tried to call out for help, but blackness was my answer as my eyes rolled into the back of my head and I dropped.
*****
"Freya?"
I slowly opened my eyes at the sound of their voice. The bright light filled my vision, causing me to blink a couple of times to get used to it. I slowly sat up and looked around, trying to figure out where I was.
The first thing I noticed was the white walls and the uncomfortable hospital bed that I was laying on. The second, was Bruce curled up at my feet.
"Of course the first time I see you after a week is in a hospital," a familiar voice joked.
The familiar, warm tone in her voice practically melted my heart, and I was out of the bed in a flash. "Amilia!"
I jumped into the girls arms, making her stumble back with a laugh. "I missed you too."
I held her there for a few moments, taking in everything about her. She smells like home. I reluctantly pulled away so that I could take a good look at her. She looks so much better. The color has returned to her face, and her eyes aren't as crazed. There are still bags under her eyes from the lack of sleep, but clearly just being here is helping her.
"What happened," Amilia asked me, her eyes roaming over to the hospital bed I was laying on.
Before I could even respond, someone did it for me. "She decided to exert all of her energy in a fight when she hadn't eaten since that morning."
I turned around and glared at Aiden. "You say that like I wanted to pass out."
Aiden threw his hands up in exasperation and slumped into his chair. I turned back to Amilia and shook my head. "Don't mind him. He has a few problems in the head."
"Hey," Aiden exclaimed, jumping out of the chair to come over to us. "She's the one with the problems!"
I shook my head with a smile and turned back to Amilia. "So, what happened?"
I didn't have to elaborate for her to know what I meant. "How about we talk about that later?"
I nodded slowly and walked back so that I could sit on the bed. Amilia followed suit. "So, when did you get here?"
"About an hour ago. Rowan came to get me early, going on and on about how you were hurt," Amilia explained. "I'm just glad you're okay."
"I'm fine, see," I exclaimed, pointing at my face to prove my point.
Amilia laughed and shook her head, before turning to Aiden. "Hi, I'm Amilia."
"I'm Aiden, Freya's new best friend."
Amilia raised her eyebrows and turned to me. "He's ambitious."
"I know right," I laughed, my heart warming. I missed her so much.
Amilia turned toward Bruce, her eyebrows raising. "Who's this?"
I smiled and leaned over to pet Bruce's head. He leaned into my touch, closing his eyes as he did so. "This is Bruce. My familiar."
Amilia raised her eyebrows. I just shrugged. "I'll explain later."
Just then, Rowan walked in. In his hand was the largest plate of mac n' cheese I have ever seen. My stomach growled at the sight. I tried to fight the blush that came due to how loud that stomach growl was, but no one in the room acknowledged it anyways.
"Next time, eat before okay," Rowan stated, shaking his head.
I stuck my tongue out at him, but gratefully took the food. Rowan sat in the chair next to Aiden as I ate. Only then did I start realizing how embarrassing my faint was.
So much for gaining the people's favor. Now they are all going to think I'm a dud. Why couldn't I have eaten more today? I didn't even think about how that might affect how I would perform.
"How many people saw me feint," I asked to no one in particular.
Aiden shrugged. "No one really. You were off to the side. Just us, honestly."
Well, that's good at least. As long as word doesn't get around, I should be fine.
"Don't worry about it," Aiden reassured me. "No one would care anyways. You'd be surprised how many people pass out after matches."
I nodded, feeling a little bit better about the situation. "How long was I out for?"
Aiden shrugged. "Just through the night."
Good, so I didn't miss much. Now that I'm thinking about it, I do feel pretty well rested. I probably just got the best nights sleep of my life.
"Amilia."
Amilia turned to Rowan, her eyebrows raised.
"What I'm about to say does not leave this room, do you understand?"
Amilia's eyes widened and she looked at me out of the corner of her eye before slowly nodding.
"It would only affect you if it did anyways," Rowan stated, shrugging and leaning back against the chair.
"What Rowan is trying to say," I budded in, glaring at him. "Is that we know you are half demon and have every intention of keeping that a secret."
Amilia's spine stiffened. She clasped her hands in her lap, probably to stop them from shaking. She looked down for a few moments, before taking a deep breath and looking me in the eye.
"How did you find out?"
I bit my lip. "I didn't. Rowan did. Cameron isn't healing, and he connected the dots."
Amilia nodded slowly and took another shaky breath. "Do you hate me?"
"Amilia," I breathed out, moving so that I could sit closer to her. I wrapped my arms around her shoulders and brought her into my embrace. "Of course not. Why would I?"
"You told me everything," she murmured into my shoulder. "And I'm hurting Cameron. He's your best friend."
"Mil," I sighed. "You're my best friend too. What's going on with that is between the two of you. Maybe we can have a girls night and we can talk about it all, okay?"
Amilia nodded into my embrace and let out a small sigh of relief.
"For the record, I think you're so much cooler now that I know you're part demon," Aiden announced.
Amilia let out a small, surprised laugh. She slowly removed herself from my embrace to smile at Aiden. Then she turned to me. "I take it back, I think he's alright."
I grinned and bumped shoulders with her. "Me too."
*Hey guys!
I feel like a lot happened in this chapter, so hopefully that makes up for how short last chapter was.
Thank you guys so much for reading! How do you feel about Cameron and Amilia being mates?
Don't forget to vote and comment!
-Xoxo, Gab :)*