I woke up early. So early that I had 45 minutes before my alarm went off. Tao was lying on her side, with her blue fringe toward me. Happy birthday to me, Eris. I sprang out of bed then ran to the bathroom for a shower. There wasn’t a word to describe how I felt right then; I was beyond cloud nine, I was on cloud twenty or something. Turning 18 meant I was closer to being Mio, and that meant I could sleep in all day. Throw school out of the door and be free. Well… sorta.

The warm water droplets pulsed against my skin, washing away 17 year-old Eris, and welcoming 18 year-old Eris to the world. Though nothing was changing about me and I was just getting closer to looking like a wrinkled blueberry, I felt different. As if I was more mature. And that was a good thing. At least it meant Dallas and I were older together. Hah, this is fun being 18. I stepped out of the shower then heard Tao stirring in the bedroom.

She padded into the bathroom, coming over to the sink and seizing her toothbrush.
“Happy birthday, Eris Romi Faye,” she smiled as she rinsed the brush.

“Oh why thank you, madame. Now, all we gotta do is wait for yours.” I lifted the brush to my mouth and ridded my morning breath.

After drying my hair and patting my body down, I slipped into some cute undergarments then looked for the outfit I would wear. There wasn’t more than two skirts and one dress in my closet (thankfully), so I slipped on my Rolling Stones tee shirt and black skinny jeans, topping it off with a pair of furry Uggs Tao lended me. We got downstairs, and grabbed our breakfast. As the zillions of girls maneuvered around the kitchen looking for food, I sat on the counter and talked with Giovanni.
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” Her hands were going 100 miles an hour, so I knew she had lots of expression.

“Thank you,” I chuckled.

Giovanni roughly cleared her throat then said, “What are you gonna be doing? Is Dallas taking you somewhere?”

“Oh god, no. I kept telling him that I didn’t wanna do anything, but he decided to make me dinner at his place,” I smiled. We hopped off the counter and Tao joined us as we walked to first Hour.

“By dinner, do you mean sex… ”

“No, I do not,” I giggled.

“Hey,” she threw her hands up, “we never know. It is Dallas.”

“And he is damn fine,” Giovanni agreed.

“Don’t, children. Let’s leave that between me and him, and you two can just imagine.”

As Giovanni used her hands to show us what I’d be doing later, Ophelia joined us and put her hands on my shoulders.
“Happy birthday, you bum!” she smiled. Her black/pink/white hair flew wildly in the strong breeze.

“Thank you. Please don’t make a big deal outta it, I don’t wanna see a big banner with my name on it,” I replied.

Tao dragged me off to History and the others went to their classes. I mean, I love my birthday, but once someone gives you an entire banner with your name on it, too far. Whatever. Birthdays during the week were kinda fun because everyone knew it was that person’s birthday, and I think it had been someone else’s birthday that day.

As Nanaya explained a few things for class, I kept my eyes locked her long skirt… which flowed beautifully after her long legs. One thing about Nanaya: she had curves! Seriously. This may be really weird, but her butt and hips were perfect. And, when she wore dresses and skirts, I paid even more attention to her flawless body. God, I need a life. History flew by, and I found myself sitting in Body Science, listening to Sahmi talk about some affinity and side effects. He had on a nice button up shirt, with black jeans and his dark lime hair was luminous with how good of a mood he was in. His wife, Anastasia, must’ve done something, because Sahmi was cracking jokes every two seconds and smiling like a big goof.

Riate consisted of Brice telling his own jokes. After his english jokes were put away, his incisive Riate jokes came out. Class was outright hilarious. At lunch, Tao, Giovanni, Ophelia, Skye, Lela and I were observing some guys that looked hot enough to be served at Thanksgiving dinner.
“I want his babies,” Lela moaned. She was checking out a tall, dark and handsome guy named Vasylis.

“Wanna know what I’m gonna do on his face?” Giovanni leaned into Tao and wiggled her chest out to her. “That!”

We burst out laughing and Giovanni gyrated her hips in a circle, still wiggling on Tao. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up to see our friend, Gennadi, standing there with thee cutest smile on.
“Hola,” I said.

“Hey, I wanted to say happy birthday. And, uh, so do the Dark Sons,” he sexily said.

The Dark Sons?! Holy poop! They’re like, the Rian version of the football team in high school! Every girl wanted to talk them. Not to mention there were Dark Daughters. All of the popular, condescending chicks caring about their hair and nails. Hey, I had friends, but they just had people who worshipped them.

“Oh, tell them I said thanks,” I replied.

Gennadi nodded. His long brown and blue hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and it made him cuter. He jerked his chin toward Giovanni, also his sister.
“Bye loser,” she said. She threw him a middle finger.

“You’re lucky I can’t jump over the table and punch you,” Gennadi growled. He threw his own middle finger then walked back to his table and Lela started fanning herself.

“I dunno about y’all, but I think I want his babies,” she sighed.

“Don’t, they’ll be mentally retarded like him,” Giovanni warned, signing with great expressions.

“You want every cute boy’s babies,” I chuckled.

“She just doesn’t want the Triplets’ sons, because those are mine,” Skye added.

I made a pout, so did every girl at our table. The Triplets were Lyle, Levi and Link—and if I could, I’d have a foursome with them. Er… sorry, uncalled for. At least I was good friends with them because I would so drool over their pretty faces. (Gosh, Eris, you already have a boyfriend… Quit being a hoe.)

The next bell rang and we headed off to our next classes. In Art, Verc was cracking her own jokes, and teasing and being happy Verc. But, she did have an announcement.

“Ladies and gentlemen, as I said last class, two works will be presented at the upcoming YAC, and, I think you’ll like our choices. Quade Baez, and, Tao Keyton and Eris Faye. Quade’s Eaton Jir will be presented, so will Eris and Tao’s B. WAX.”

The class clapped. Our little wax painting was good after all! (I know the name was corny, but, we had to do something! Our first choice was Wax but that was obviously too obvious.) Cool. Verc concluded her amazing announcement, and today was a free-day, so we could paint/ draw or whatever we wanted to. As I painted a massive oak tree, Quade stood in front of my table with his forearms resting before me.

“Kudos to Eris for that wax,” he said. I kid you not, his hair was bright peach, with black lines like a tiger. His Maxi clawed up his neck in the print of leopard spots. Wanna guess his affinity? (Big Cats.)

“Kudos to Quade for that awesome rainbow,” I replied.

“Eh, I try. Hey, happy birthday, you’ve reached the big 1-8.”

“I wouldn’t call it big. More like the old 1-8.”

Quade drummed his hands on the tabletop. “Who cares, I’m still older than you, buttface.” Did I mention that Quade is my cousin? Yeah, my Auntie Meika’s kid.

“Don’t be a douche. Go before I paint your nose green,” I waved the paint brush by his face but Quade scoffed.

“Bye.” He stuck his finger in the damp paint then sauntered off. Sometimes I wanted to garrote him over and over again. Art was over in a flash and Tao was dragging me off to Math as she babbled on about Maz.
“… so,” she frowned, “I dunno… He just feels even more distant, lately. I mean, when he got back from that ‘trip’, I was completely pissed because he still didn’t talk with me!”

I shrugged. “It’s Maz; he gets caught up in his own Fencing World all of the time, so, it could just be that.” We sat down and Tao gave me a rib-crushing hug that made me wince out. She forced herself off and told me, “Sorry, I just wanted to hug you.”

“I love you, but, don’t kill me.” I winked at her and Tao shook her head.

Class started and Kirsi walked in with a big grin on. Let the fun begin… Math zoomed by, and I was walking toward the dorms with Tao.
“Maz called me,” she flatly said.

“Is that not a good thing? He’s your boyfriend, you usually wait forever for him to call you back,” I stated, arching my eyebrow and cocking my head a bit.

Tao flailed her arms around then blew a raspberry. “I dunno, I just feel like stabbing him because he’s been being a distant-douche-dick.”

“Oh god. Well, I have to go see Dallas after last bell, he’s working.”

“Oooh, I forgot that Eris has a working man. Just to think, imagine how tired he’ll be, and he’ll probably want some pleasure before bed. And, he’s got a sexy Eris to toy with—not to mention it’s her birthday and she’ll probably want a present. What ever could give to you?”

I tapped my chin in pretend-thought. “Good question. I have no idea, maybe he’ll just have to show me.” I waggled my eyebrows back.

We stepped into our dorm and saw Mikey chasing Boing around the floor. Mumble was sitting on the dresser, honking and padding around, obviously egging them on. I sat on the bed, shoved in my earbuds, and listened to The Meteors.

An hour later, I got a call on my cell. Dallas.
“Yeah?” I answered.

“Well, hello, 18 year-old, Eris. Do you feel wrinkly?” he cutely replied.

“I dunno, do I appear that old?”

“Probably.”

“Dallas!” I laughed at his insult (did I appear old?!).

“Well, come down to the courtyard and see a sexy Dallas. Bye, Avatar.” Dallas hung up.

See a sexy Dallas? There was not a chance in hell that I would miss out on that. Tao had left a while ago to see Maz–she left so pissed that I was scared she would burn the place down–so I waved to the pets and shut the door. Walking downstairs, Ophelia caught up with me in the hall and smiled.
“Dallas?” she asked.

“No…” She gave me an unimpressed look. “Maybe….” She could see right through me. “Okay, yes!”

“See? He loves you, and he’s gonna fuck the soul out of you.”

“Ophelia, no. Dallas would break me in half,” I sighed.”

“Uh huh, not surprising. Well, I gotta go. Bye, have a good birthday.”

She kissed my cheek then ran off to the bonus room. When I stepped foot outside, Dallas was waiting for me by the door.
“Hey, you,” I smiled.

He bent down and framed my face in his hands, so that his thumbs rested close to my lips and his fingers splayed back into my loose hair. A big kiss made me sigh, and that sigh made him chuckle. Dallas pulled back while saying, “Hey, Avatar. Happy birthday.”

“Thank you. Now, I came to see a sexy Dallas.”

“Oh, you never have to look far to see him. Come on, I gotta show you something.” Dallas claimed my hand and we walked to the apartments. He started a bit of conversation, “How was your first day of being 18?”

“Actually, great. Verc put the work Tao and I created in a YAC, uh, all my Professors were in good moods,” I answered, playfully squeezing his hand.

“Oh, my Professors were never in good moods. Eh.”

“That’s because they had you in their classes.” Dallas shot me a look but I kept a big grin on.

“You’re so mean to me. Anyway, you ever had bacon dip before?” he asked.

“Uh, no. What is that?”

“What you and I are gonna be eating for dinner.”

“May I ask what’s in it?” I was kicking a rock back and forth as we walked but Dallas stole it. (I figured it had to be a dip, with bacon in it.)

“No. Your tastebuds will have orgasms. And, since you also have a winter birthday, I will make you a Chocolate Serial Killer.”

“What in the fuck is that?”

“Something you’ll really like. Don’t worry, I got this and I got you.” Dallas kissed me and I scrunched up my nose.

“Good because I’m really dying for some food. And, chocolate sounds like a great friend.”

Dallas shook his head as we entered the front door. I could even smell something delicious, something that would taste like heaven. Bacon dip and a Chocolate Serial Killer might be the only things I need in life. Dallas had disappeared to the kitchen, and when he arrived in the dining room, I hadn’t even noticed the food waiting for us. This boy just loved cooking and food.

There was a big dish of the bacon dip (and from the looks of it, I wanted to eat it all), with a main course of our favorite pepperoni-grilled cheeses and the hot chocolate in mugs.
“Baby,” I smiled, “that hot chocolate looks so amazing, yet so evil.”

“I try. And, there’s not a lot of food you can make for your girlfriend that doesn’t eat much red meat, so, bear with me,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Dallas pulled the chair out for me, and before I sat, I ran over to his and pulled it out. He plopped down then said, “Such a lady.”

“I know. Okay, before I drink this, what’s in it?” I giggled.

Dallas cocked one of his eyebrows. “You really wanna know?” I nodded and he sighed before telling me, “The hot chocolate itself is an aunt’s recipe, and, she melted her own chocolate into it, then, I added tons and tons of whipped cream, marshmallows, chocolate sprinkles, cookie bits, peppermint chunks and just to top it off, chocolate syrup. Oh, there’s a prize at the bottom of the cup if you finish.”

“Prize? What more of a prize is there other than this mountainous heaven? Oh, and, this bacon dip is amazing.” The dip was an appetizer, and I was eating it with a bag of chips Dallas had thrown to me. Everything was perfect except for the fact that Dallas didn’t have his lips on mine… though my mouth was busy with the food. Inside of the dip, there were bacon chunks (obviously), full of sour cream, cheese, and the other secret ingredients Dallas threw in there. Damn, I needed his cooking more.

I had just finished the drink when I felt something big in my mouth (no, not like that). Chewable… chocolate… holy crap! The “prize” at the end was a broken kit kat bar. I swallowed and smiled at him.
“Ohmygod, that was like touching Jesus,” I giggled.

Dallas shook his head. “Now the sugarrush should kick in soon,” he muttered.

“Sugarrush? Please, I don’t get sugarrush.”

“That’s what I said the first time my Mom made me this. You’ll feel it soon.”

I rose from the table then helped him carry the stuff to the kitchen. After I dropped the last dish in the dishwasher, Dallas pulled me to the couch, and smiled like his little devious-self. His dimple was so cute as he winked at me.
“What? That means you’re up to something bad,” I smirked.

“Okay, okay. I bought you something from Louisiana,” Dallas slowly said in that beautiful, rich, sexy voice of his. I could feel it wrapping around me and making me kinda curious.

“Oh my god, you’re always getting me shit.”

Dallas removed me from his lap then went to his bedroom. What in the world did he get me? He walked back with a big box in his hand.
“Dallas…” I sighed, smiling a bit.

“I swear there’s no rattlesnake,” he grinned. Dallas gently placed the box on my lap and continued with whatever he had to say, “I really hope you like it because I searched long and hard.”

I ripped through the box and laughed. “Ohmygod, baby! This is perfect!”

He got me a Duck Dynasty coffee mug, with the quote from Si, saying “Hey Jack!” and a big picture of the logo. Then, there were four awesomely decorated pens; they looked like a million dollars. And, there was a small, black velvet box.
“Dallas…”

“Open it.”

I opened the box and saw the Fleur de Lis necklace. Absolutely beautiful. I couldn’t thank him enough.
“Dallas! I’ve always wanted one!” I hugged him around his neck and Dallas kissed my temple before sliding behind me and raising my hair to snap it on.

“I know you did, that’s why I got it,” he gently replied.

Dallas draped the necklace over my chest, locked it on my nape, then put my hair back down. I put the box on the table then claimed his mouth with the biggest kiss I could work up. Dallas’s soft lips felt amazing against mine, so good that I could feel a tingling down below. He put his hand on my butt, squeezing and kneading me as my hips rocked against his.
“Thank you,” I whispered on his lips. The necklace was breath-taking, the mug could be used for more Chocolate Serial Killers (I was feeling that sugar rush), and the pens, I could sketch and doodle around in my notebooks.

“You’re welcome… I’ve got one more present,” Dallas replied.

I sat up then looked into his hazel eyes. “Is it a really good present?”

“Big, too.”

Dallas nuzzled my neck and I started to giggle. I knew what his “big” present was. He carried me to the bedroom, with my arms around his neck and our lips pressed together. Dallas didn’t put me down; he kept me in his thick arms, and I kept my long legs wrapped around his waist. I wiggled down from his grip then grinned. My shirt was off in two seconds, and I knew Dallas was staring at my purple bra.
“Your turn,” I smiled.

Dallas pulled off his tee shirt to expose his sinewy chest. (Oh, sexy body.) Like always, I grazed my fingertips over his Maxi, taking in the amazing knots and curves of the blue ink. The bit of ink that crawled onto his neck was my favorite because I’d given him more hickeys there than I could count. Dallas gently pushed my stomach, resulting in my clumsy fall on the bed. When I hit the mattress, I made an unattractive “oof!” sound.
“Haha,” Dallas snickered.

“You butt,” I giggled.

He crawled onto my body, kissing from my navel up to my lips. His benign touch made my pussy warm up, and my nipples instantly hardened. Dallas kissed my lips once more then went down to my chest. Dallas clawed at my bra, finally slipping it down my shoulders. He put his mouth on my nipple, and god did it feel good! His tongue flicked and circled, while his hands massaged my other one. I put my hands in his hair, keeping him closer to my awaiting breasts. Now, I didn’t have Kate Upton boobs, but they were pretty big. But Dallas told me he didn’t like super big boobs, and I had the perfect size for him. (I knew had the perfect size because I usually had a hickey the size of Alaska on my chest.) Dallas used his teeth to gently nibble me, and I moaned out my pleasure. As he sucked and licked my nipples, our hips were grinding away… and my hands in his hair… and his hands on my ass. I was kinda disappointed when his lips left my chest and came back to my lips, but it still felt amazing. Dallas moaned when my hand began rubbing his hardness; the fabric of his jeans was blocking any real contact, but he was enjoying it. I flipped him onto his back, then straddled his hips and kissed down his bare chest. Dallas let out a deep moan, balled his fist in my hair and held me close to his hard on. I shook my hair behind my right shoulder as I undid his jeans, making sure not to hurt his hard cock. Dallas helped me ease his jeans down and release his hard member. Before I could even grasp my small hand around his thick shaft, Dallas pinned me on my back.
“Baby,” I pouted.

“Sorry, I wanna do something,” he smirked.

His fingers eased into my jeans, yanking them down with one rough tug. My panties were blue, and Dallas toyed with the lace between my thighs. Shit, his hand was caressing my inner skin, but he was purposefully avoiding my soaking wet pussy. It completely made me crazy when Dallas brushed his mouth over the thin fabric of the lace covering my aching, soaked, begging flesh.
“Babe, please,” I panted. With a great big sigh, Dallas balled them up to the side then examined my soaking pussy lips. I’m pretty sure he could smell my arousal—Dallas told me that I smelt good during sex. (Why? I dunno.) The soft feel of his fingers tapping and wiggling at my clit made me hornier and wetter by the second, and Dallas was taking his precious time with me. My pussy convulsed and Dallas kissed me. He ripped my lacies off then threw them over the bed and to the floor.

His tongue flicked at my swollen clit. I gasped when Dallas gave my pussy kisses, using his tongue to quickly taste me. He spread my lips apart and slowly licked my labia—all while keeping his eyes on mine.”Ohhhhhh,” I moaned, rubbing my boobs in circles.

His piercing blue eyes made me crazy, and the way he was teasing me was killing me! Dallas sucked on my clit—hard—while his fingers dug into my skin and held me in place. I loved his tongue. I loved how he could torture me with the softest of touches. Dallas trapped the pink knob between his teeth, making me gasp his name and cry out for more. Dallas used his thumb to tap on my clit, briefly rubbing me in circles and spreading my lips apart. I couldn’t wait anymore, so, I slid my own hand down and started rubbing my pussy for him. Dallas adjusted my hand a bit higher then devoured my sex. Holy shit! That felt amazing! His lips kissing and nipping at my pussy, all while my hand was circling my clit for him. Dallas gave me a few more kisses then wrapped his hands around my hips and jerked me toward his mouth. “Mmmmmm, Dallas,” I growled (Dallas loved when I growled, and I loved when he did). If he was to stop, I’d scream at the top of my lungs; it felt so good and I could definitely feel a screaming orgasm coming on. Dallas dug his tongue into me, circling and flicking at my labia while he kept his eyes locked on, watching the signs and observing my exposed body. His hands forced my legs wide, so wide that I was worried he’d break me. After a minute or two of his tongue rolling around in circles on my outer lips, I arched my back and started breathing harder.
“Agh, agh, Dallas…. I’M CUMMING!”

My hands gripped the sheets so hard that I could feel the strain in my body. The spasms started, I screamed out, everything. My eyes instantly shut, I arched my body until Dallas had his hands on my ass to keep me calm, and I was yelling his name at the top of my lungs. All while this was happening, he was torturing me in the worst of ways: trailing his tongue inside of me, swirling around in counterclockwise circles and pushing my flesh further apart as I came. I came down from the sensational climax, then relaxed my body back into the soft confides of the mattress, and watched Dallas kiss and lick away at my leaked juices and to clear all of my cum. He finished sipping at me then pulled away. Dallas stood over me, surveying my body and probably debating what we should do next while I laid back panting and recovering from one of thee best orgasms ever.

Dallas kissed my neck before whispering, “That’s the fourth gift.”

“What’s number five?” I asked, still panting but kind of smiling.

“Come here and I’ll show you.”

He pushed me higher toward the pillows, so I crawled up and Dallas got under me. I arched an eyebrow, giving him a sexy smile as I lowered myself onto his throbbing tool; we both cursed and moaned as I started moving my hips. Gift five was about to have me screaming. Being on top gave me the advantage, because I could easily pin Dallas back and take control—why not give it a shot? I grabbed his hands, then pinned them back on either side of the pillow, but Dallas just grinned. I bent down to his ear and whispered, “I’m in control for number five.”

“Won’t last for long,” he replied.

I sat up straight, keeping his arms back, and continued to ride him. Though Dallas probably had a good 90 pounds over me, he let me do what I wanted (I mean, I am the Birthday Girl) and, man oh man, I had so much fun. The only thing missing was the sensation of his mouth on my breasts. Looking down I saw how Dallas’s chest rose and fell with every one of his deep breaths, and I saw all of that sexy muscle. My hands involuntarily let go of his wrists as I bent down and began kissing his neck. Dallas slid his hands down my spine, making sure to trace my Maxi before going down and squeezing my ass. He ran his warm, rough, hands over my hips; his fingertips brushed over my navel and up toward my chest. As Dallas reached out to massage my chest, I grinned and welcomed him with a rough grab, forcing his hand to my left boob. It always felt like heaven to have him be so gentle, but so rough while he pinched and tweaked my pink nipples. He was always a little wild, a little uninhibited in bed, and this was the sweetest, most passionate gift I ever received for my birthday. Dallas teased and caressed and pinched my breasts for a bit until I looked into his blue eyes and mentally told him I was cumming; he was right behind me. Clawing and digging my nails into his skin I had my orgasm first and Dallas rammed into me harder. Silver sparks exploded from the center of those bright blue eyes, chasing midnight-blue lightning as he grunted his release and I yelled his name out. I yelled his name like a song while Dallas said my name like a curse. Nothing else was audible over our panting, and the soft ruffling of the sheets throughout the room. Dallas looked back into my eyes and I smiled.
“Well,” I panted, “happy birthday to me, huh?”

“Damn happy birthday,” Dallas chuckled.

I cuddled up to his side and reposed against his chest. Dallas draped his arm around my neck, hugging me closer and warming me up. Despite the fact I had school the next morning, I’d feel amazing because I’m 18, and I just had birthday sex with the best person ever.
It’s a good day to be Eris.
====
The faint sound of Tao humming made me turn to my right. She had her headphones jammed in, listening to Bruno Mars. I yanked one out and she made a face.
“What the fuck?”

“We’re in class! Put it away,” I roughly whispered.

Miffed and rolling her eyes and muttering some curse words, Tao dropped her phone back into her pocket then paid attention to Kirsi’s lesson. Truth be told, I’d barely been paying attention, but I still knew what we were doing. Last bell rang, thank Goddess. (Well, technically it wasn’t last bell, but we could ditch Affinity Hour if we wanted.)

Anyway, I was heading to Ria. 57 for another book; this time for pleasure. With a bunch of motivational and enthusiastic talks with Zara, I’d made it halfway through all of the Element books, as I was behind on Tusnced, Reaxced, Quacvced, Fzaesced and Lopced. But, it was okay, because those were advanced-power books, and I didn’t have any yet.

The Air book (Lopced) told me about the misting, and how I practically became invisible on command. The Earth book (Reaxced) said that I could manipulate Earth (i.e, split a tree in half so I could sneak out to see my boyfriend). The Water book (Tusnced) read about the advanced power of ESP through marine animals! And I could potentially control them! In the Fire book (Quacvced), I was pondering the fact of being able to burn someone internally. (It kinda made me think of Aya, but I was sure to push those thoughts away.) And lastly, in the Spirit book (Fzaesced), it told me that I’ have the ability to help someone’s emotion—if someone was suffering from great depression, I’d fill their mind with uplifting, relaxed, euphoric thoughts. But, I had to remember that I didn’t have a strength for Spirit, I just used the candle in a circle. It amazed me how unbelieveable my powers could turn out to be. Then, there were tons of other powers that I could develop, but, I’m only 18 (ha ha), so, I could wait.

I stepped up to the front desk, smiling down at Zara who had her nose in Twilight. She raised her eyes over the edge, then smiled.
“Hello! What do ya need, hun?” Zara asked like her perky-self. Her red hair had been curled, and it framed her face nicely.

“Hey, I just wanted to see if y’all had Ask the Passengers, I think I wanna read it,” I answered.

Zara’s eyes got a bit wide. She leaned in close then quietly said, “Eris, are you having different feelings?”

“Wha—no! No, Zara!” I knew what she meant: the book was about a girl becoming lesbian. “No, Zara, I just want to read it. I don’t feel any different.”

“Oh, okay. Whoo, I didn’t know! Not that I’m saying it’s wrong, just you and Dallas—eh. Nevermind. Yes, you’ll find it in the D bookshelf.” She realized what she said and grinned. “The ‘D’ bookshelf?”

“Zara, you’re not an immature tween. Thanks.” I shook my head laughing as I walked off.

I’d been in the library, curled up with the book and smoothly reading when I heard a throat being cleared before me. I glanced up to see Maz standing over me, with his lips drawn in a firm line, his dark eyes looking darker with how distracted he seemed. I bookmarked my page and said, “What’s up?”

He sat in the red chair across from me. Maz’s chocolate colored hair was a bit messy—like he’d been running his fingers through it.
“Hey, uhm, I got a question,” Maz softly asked.

“Yeah?”

“What’s Tao doing tonight? I really need to talk to her about a few things.”

I shrugged one shoulder and let it fall. “No clue. I not saw her in classes, why? What do you need to talk about? I thought you two me up last night?”

“No, and, it is not your business,” he gruffly said.

“Well, my best friend is my business. And she told me that you’ve been being a jerk lately.”

Maz snorted. “Me, a jerk? Tao must be out of her ever-loving mind. No, I haven’t been being a jerk; my asshole brother is getting in some trouble. Why, Eris? Do you wanna stick your nose somewhere it doesn’t belong?”

“Maz, you’re being a bit of a jerk right now. Don’t talk to me like that because it’s not like you, and, you didn’t even pick up Tao from class… And, she barely paid any mind to it because Tao knew that you’re having a bad week..”

“Eris, I only needed to hear one word from you’ your annoying voice is starting to piss me off. Tao isn’t always gonna be so important and number one in the world. What I actually came here to tell you was that she needs to call me. Goodbye.”

Maz rose from the chair, shooting me one last look and walking off to his destination. I didn’t have an annoying voice! (Like Morgan Freeman says: the deeper your voice is, the better you sound. AND I KNOW MY VOICE WAS NOT THAT HIGH!) That bitch. I grabbed my book, waved to Zara then headed off to my dorm and best friend.

I stepped through our door then saw Tao fresh out of the shower. She was brushing her hair back into a ponytail when she noticed me and waved.

“Hey!” she smiled.

“Hi! I got the book,” I said, waving my novel in the air.

“You’ll really like it! Or, at least I did.”

I slipped out of my clothes, throwing them into the hamper and pulling on lazy clothes. By lazy clothes, I meant keeping a bra on and gym shorts. Tao came over to the bed with me then sat on my legs.
“Okay, listen,” I sighed. “Maz wants you to call him. But, I don’t think you should because he’s MMS’ing.”

“MMS’ing?” she questioned.

“Male PMS’ing.”

“Wow. But, I couldn’t care less about what he wants me to do, Maz needs to pull his face out of his ass and focus on what he needs, and what I need from him.”

I nodded. “Wow, okay. I just wanted to tell you because I would hate if he was mad with you.”

Tao shook it off then said, “That’s his fault. Anywho, wanna watch a movie?”

“What movie?”

“There’s a Lifetime coming on at 10.”

“Okay. Tell me when it’s 9:45, I’ll be reading”— I slipped on my glasses then made a face—“with my glasses on.”

“Hm, that’s what cool kids do.” Tao nodded but her face said otherwise.

“Cool kids.”

I reopened the book and read until the designated time.

At 11:30, Tao and I were sitting downstairs, lightly crying and still watching the movie. It was about a girl, she was abducted when she was 4, and her mom tried to find her, but the girl (who was now 18) died of cancer…. and the mom found the woman who took her. And, it was so freaking sad!
“Here,” Tao passed a box of tissues to me. I clutched the tissue to my chest, crying a bit harder when it showed the girl as a baby. The last ten minutes of the movie was the original mother killing the abductor, and the mom had a vision of her daughter. Tao ended up crying even harder, but I just buried my face in the tissue.
“That was so fucking good,” she cried.

“Now I wanna cry again,” I added.

We had issues. After getting ourselves somewhat together, Tao led the way back upstairs, and we turned out the last hallway light. I crawled into the bed, checked my phone and saw I had a text from Dallas.
Dallas: Hey
Me: hey baby. Sorry, we were downstairs.
Dallas: it’s fine. What are u doin tomorrow?
Me: uh… Nothing… I hope.
Dallas: Okay. Go to bed, I love you.
Me: I love you too.

That was random. Dallas always knew that I went to his place after school… Eh, he was just being Dallas. I placed my phone on the charger then waved goodnight to Tao. I was lying on my side, facing the wall when Boing jumped in the bed, turned around on my face, then plopped down on the pillow.
“Get your own pillow,” I whispered.

Eieee-eie-eiee.

She had no intentions on moving, so I used her furry body to use as a pillow and closed my eyes.

The next morning, I woke up happier than I expected. Maybe because it was raining outside… Hmm.

Tao quickly stepped into her boots then followed me out of our room and down the hall. Downstairs, Giovanni was sitting on one of the counters eating cereal. I stole a bite, and she cussed me out in sign language.
“I love you, too,” I giggled.

“Don’t. It was mine,” she signed.

I blew her a kiss them followed Tao out of the glass doors.

We were nowhere close to late, but I didn’t feel like sitting down and gobbling up an entire bowl of cereal—I just wanted to hurry up and fly through school. Well, my wish came true. History was the class I had the most fun in—Nanaya gave us flowers since it was a birthday week (four students in my class had their birthday that week), Body Science was awesome because Sahmi told us why he was so happy: Anastasia was having another baby. Brice was in his regular chipper mood, lunch was pizza (praise the Lord), Art was another free day, and Math was a blur. I had stopped by the library to return the book to Zara—that book was amazing, by the way—and I was passing by the cafe when someone tapped my shoulder. His sexy voice made me laugh.
“Boo,” he smiled.

I stood up on my tippy toes and gave him a lip-smoldering kiss. “Gotcha. Hey, where are you heading from?”

“Nowhere. I just met up with some of my friends. And, where are you headed from, Miss Lady?”

“Ria. 57. I had a book. But, of course you wouldn’t know anything about books.”

Dallas smiled and blinked his eyes to a dark grey. They looked like the night sky during a thunderstorm, a swirling, deep, beautiful thunderstorm.
“Of course I don’t know anything about books,” he said. I snaked my arm around his waist and Dallas gently squeezed my shoulder. “How was your day? Did you have to beat anyone’s face into the ground?”

I giggled and thumped the back of his head. “No, you asshole. It’s Friday, so I barely did anything and now I’m spending time with a big goofball.”

“I wonder who that goofball is.”

“Uhm, his name is Dallas Rebel Ollier.”

Dallas gave me another kiss then tersely pulled away. He did a quick look around with his grey eyes, then tugged me behind a wall. The wall was the wall of Ria. 65 (the rec hall) and it was right next to another wall that separated some of the oak trees in Ria. 200. Dallas pushed me against the rough bricks then devoured my mouth, and grazed his hands down to my shorts. I panted his name, but I don’t think Dallas heard me because he pressed flat against me then grabbed my ass. He slipped his hands past the hem of my shirt, found my covered boobs and softly massaged me while I kissed behind his ear and ran my tongue along the ink of his tattoo. Dallas was hard. Super hard. And I really wanted to get him off.

I was preparing to go down on him when the annoying buzz of my cellphone interrupted. I pulled it out then saw it was my Dad.
“Hey, Dad,” I abruptly answered. Dallas took a step back with a guilty face on.

“Hey, Casper”—he called me Casper because my hair was almost white when I was a kid—”Lena needs you down at Ria. 84.”

My eyes got wide. “Is everything okay?”

“I have no clue. I’m not even in Rianate anymore; I had to go and check on your aunt. Go to her right now.” Dad hung up without any further details. Great, am I on her bad side again?

“Who’s bad side?”
I looked up then looked down. Dallas was sitting on the hard cement with his eyes closed and his head back on the wall. He looked like he was meditating while he read my mind and answered my unspoken questions.

“Lena,” I sighed.

Those bright blue eyes shot open.

“What?! That’s worse than being in a cage with a gorilla,” he exclaimed.

“Why in a cage with a gorilla? Why not a—”

“Eris.” He gave me a face and I sat down across from him. “What does she want?”

“I dunno. I have to go to Ria. 84 so I can see.”

Dallas pushed himself up on his feet then gave me a hand to stand. I brushed my finger over the shell of his ear while saying, “It’s okay. I’ll come back to you, promise.”

“Alright. I love you.” Dallas sealed the deal with a big kiss. We left the little alley then split up.

What in the world did Lena want? I’m pretty sure I didn’t piss off a Professor, I haven’t talked with her in a while, and I’ve been pretty discreet about sneaking around after curfew. Dear Lord, what is she gonna do?! I got to the main building a bit later than I thought because it started raining again. My hair was getting a little soaked so I tossed it to the side then tied it up in a ponytail. I cracked open the door to the main office and saw Lena pacing back and forth behind the chairs. Oh god. Pacing—never a good sign. I cleared my throat to get her attention.
“Eris,” she smiled, “come in and sit.”

“Okay…” It took all of me not to bolt before sitting in the leather wingback chair.

She smiled—oh such a fake smile—then said, “Eris, do you think I’m an idiot?”

That was surprising! How in the hell am I supposed to answer this type of question?! (I knew Lena was getting all of these questions on my mind, but I was honestly deciphering whether or not to answer this.)

“U-uh, no. No, Lena, I don’t think you’re an idiot,” I mumbled. At least I didn’t think that I thought she was.

“Well”—Lena smacked her palms flat on the desktop—”why do you insist on driving me crazy?! You and your reckless little friends only make matters worse when you do foolish things!”

Who made you eat bitch for lunch? Who poured you a tall bitch beer float? Who sprinkled bacon bitch in your salad? I nearly laughed aloud with these, but I kept my mouth shut as she continued.

“I guess missing curfew once or twice is okay, but now this, Eris? Really?”

“Lena, I haven’t really done anything other than go to school, hang out with my friends and talk with my boyfriend… I have no powers–which you’ve made no effort to help change–and I’m practically living the life of an average teenager, only my life is way different.”

She shook her head and mumbled something under her breath.

“Eris, that’s what I’m saying. You can act as if nothing happened because your powers are gone, and you’re practically living the life of a human teenager. In all reality, you’re sneaking around and doing things no one would expect you to do.” Lena gave a cold, humorless laugh. “At first I was shocked that a pretty girl akin to Eris would participate in such revolting actions.”

Was she serious?

“I’m sorry, but, last time I checked, I don’t really ‘participate in such revolting actions’, Lena. The last time I’ve done something wrong was when I missed curfew, and you forgave me. Lena, I don’t want to come off rude”–yeah I did–“but you’re being assumptious. And I dunno if my Dad knows about this, and I honestly want him here. So, please explain to me why you needed me.

Lena coldly shook her head, with an unconvinced expression on. She waved her hand over her desk, uncloaking a dime bag of weed. Oh my shit…

I couldn’t resist from rising to my feet and yelling, “LENA! THAT IS NOT MINE!”

She wasn’t buying it.

“Sit.” I plopped down in the chair and Lena continued, “This is so expected of a brat like Eris. I’m surprised because the student that gave it to me was Maz Leo, and I know you two are good friends. It happens all the time—a Rio turns 18, they want to live the life of an adult. Not a very smart adult.”

I laughed. During this type of situation I just had to laugh. Maz? Maz was the one to tell Lena? Because I’m damn sure he’s the one who’s buzzed all the time, and he’s the one who’s being a dickface to my best friend. This was one of those things that made me want to beat someone’s face into the ground. Wait until Tao heard about this… She loved him, but I wouldn’t be able to except that. If this was anything different, I know it wouldn’t be my place to say this, but, he was being an ass to her, and now an ass to me. But hey, I guess we can blame everything on me, now. World Hunger. War. Global Warming. Apocalypse. Getting stoned with a bunch of idiotic Dark Daughters and Dark Sons. WHY THE FUCK NOT?!! I already had images of my fingers wrapped around his throat while I kicked Lena in the gut for believing him.

I gulped down the shitty piece of information I received and said, “Lena… why would I do that?”

Her dark eyes seemed to glisten. “No, the question is why wouldn’t you do that. Maz says he saw you at the Rec Hall with a few Sios and Rios, he didn’t give me a specific time. He just said late last night. Why, are you going to confront him and be big bad wolf?”

I laughed again. “No, Lena; I don’t need to coerce him into giving me info… Thank you for being the one person who I no longer trust—not even one bit. This is beyond what I had in mind; I thought you’d yell at me for seeing Dallas after school all the time, or maybe even accuse me of killing some creature. But this is… some next level shit. Honestly. Lena, I’m not gonna spend anymore time doing this; shit or get off the pot. Get off my case unless you got something important, because frankly, I’m tired of being chased in circles by you and your mislead accusations. So what if Maz Leo ratted on himself; it’s not me and I have a hell of a lot of people that could back that up. Fucking part.”

I left that office so quick that I didn’t give myself time to think. I just ran. Ran to the one person I needed. I stopped at Dallas’ door and banged so hard that my hand started to hurt. The door swung open and I pushed past Dallas.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. He closed the door then leaned back with his arms crossed over his chest.

“I have to tell you something.” I dug my nails into my palm until I drew blood.

Dallas put a heavy hand on my arm. “Tell me. And stop doing that; you’ll hurt yourself. Come on.”

We went to the bedroom and Dallas sat on the edge of the bed, his indigo eyes watching me pace. I put up the wait-finger, and he made a noise while I figured out what to say. Why was Maz being such an ass?! Why was he being such a prick? Why was he treating my best friend like shit? Why was the only word I could think of. Why did Lena automatically believe him? Nah, I had that answer: she hates me. Anything that had to do with Eris was hell. I was like the devil’s child. I was beyond angry, and the only thing I wanted to do was curl up in the corner, rock back and forth and cry myself to sleep. But the only thing I did know about that weed: the Dark Sons and Dark Daughters used it in their sage. When the Sons and Daughters would cast a circle, they always performed them in the Rec Hall, and I knew they used weed in the sage because I’d been once. AND MAZ IS A FUCKING DARK SON!

“Eris… ” Dallas’ comforting voice brought me back to reality. “What happened?”

“Maz happened. The douchebag happened,” my voice was no louder than a whisper.

“What? Maz? That’s Tao’s boyfriend, right?”

I nodded. “And of course, Lena thinks I’m anything but pleasant, and Maz is the world’s biggest suckup, so, anything he said against me was true to her.” I gave a sharp, unkind laugh. “So apparently I so drugs, now!”

Dallas grunted.

“So you’re saying that Maz went to Lena, snitched on someone doing drugs, but made that someone you?” he asked.

“Bingo,” I chuckled. Dallas blinked his eyes all eight colors, and I had to sit on his lap for him to calm down. “It’s okay,” I whispered.

“Eris… Does Tao know?”

“Nope. Maz has been so… weird lately that she cut herself off from him. It’s not like she’s not gonna know.”

Dallas drew his green eyes to me, and I tried my hardest to smile. He saw how upset I was so he pulled me into a bone-crushing hug that I really needed. I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I cried silent tears into his shoulder as Dallas rubbed my back and whispered comforting things to me. I didn’t like anything that had to do with me. Why? Because it turned into bullshit really quickly and I would always look like the bad guy to one person—that one person being Lena. I couldn’t believe Maz. Maz and I used to be really good friends until he started acting like Tao didn’t exist and since he just ratted himself out for smoking weed on campus, but blamed it on me. He was the epitome of the guy I wanted to snap in half. I would find a reason why he did this, I would find a reason for Tao. She was my best friend, and she didn’t deserve some douchebag who would pretend to care for her.

Dallas patted my thigh as I wiped my eye.
“Just know that I will be happy to break his arms,” he said.

“Okay. Thank you, and, I’m sorry for storming in,” I laughed.

“I like seeing you storm in.” Dallas gave me a kiss and I jumped into his lap. I snaked my arms around his neck, smiling and bouncing on him.

“Whoa, don’t get me hard. I don’t think now is the best time for sex,” he snickered.

I made the pout he always gave in to. I watched him from under my eyelashes and Dallas poked my nose.

“No, it’s already late, and it’s Friday so we got all weekend.”

“Ahh, okay. Come on, I’ve had a long day and I want to watch a movie then go to sleep.”

Dallas tossed me back on the bed then took off his shirt. I found a movie on Netflix and curled up under his arm, relishing in his amazing smell. We didn’t get to watch the last twenty minutes because I fell asleep, and Dallas just turned the tv off.

For a long day and a crazy accusation that had me ready to murder Lena and Maz, I went to bed happy because I was in Dallas’ strong arms.
====
That next morning, I woke up a little earlier than Dallas, so I jumped out of bed then took a scalding-hot shower. I wasn’t sure why I took such a burning shower but I felt much better (and much warmer). I walked out of the bathroom, pulling my hair into a ponytail and a towel wrapped around my body, then I saw Dallas sitting on the edge of the bed.
“Hey,” I smiled.

He looked up and rubbed his pale hazel eyes. “Hi. Are you always that wild of a sleeper?”

“Sorry, being still is not my friend.”

“Huh. Where are you going? On a mission to kill Maz?”

I gave him a stern look as I stepped into a pair of lace panties. Dallas glanced at my naked chest and laughed; he was obviously getting horny because I could see his hard on.

“Gosh, Dallas, keep it in your pants,” I giggled.

“It’s called morning wood. Anyway, so where are you going?”

I yanked my tee shirt on then grabbed my cellphone. “I’m going to talk with Tao; Lena probably has told the entire world about me, so, I have to talk to my best friend. Plus, Maz was her, so called boyfriend. ”

He stepped into his pair of jeans from last night then led the way to the front door. Harley and Hannah were padding around the floor, glaring at us with big golden brown eyes. I smiled but Harley turned his wings and waltzed toward the kitchen.
“You’re in a crappy mood,” Dallas snickered.

“Well, we’re allowed to be in shitty moods when there’s a bitch chasing you in circles,” I added. I wrapped my arms around his waist then gave Dallas a firm kiss.

“I love you, call me later.”

“I love you, too. Bye.” I waved one last time then headed off to the dorms.

When I entered our room, Tao was sitting on her bed, not listening to Kenny, but more so pissed. Her fingers rapidly drummed on the bedspread, the music was audible through the headphones, and even though she was scrolling through her phone, Tao’s jaw was set tight and her icy blue eyes seemed to blaze fire. I’m pretty sure that if Tao had her powers, the entire room would be suffering from a gelid Ice-shower. I plopped down on the massive beanbag chair then she pulled her buds out.
“Hey,” I smiled.

“Hi. I missed you last night,” she replied. Tao placed her phone on the nightstand and sat straight up.

“Yeah, I, uh, went to see Dallas after seeing Lena. Which is what I have to talk with you about…”

Tao flipped her blue hair over her shoulder while saying, “Oh lord. That bitch just won’t leave you alone. What happened?”

“Maz,” I whispered. Tao blinked at me… over and over again until I continued, “Lena called me down, and, she literally just told me that I was blazed at the Rec Hall with other Sios and Rios. And the person to inform her was Maz. I didn’t want to believe it, but, after how he has been treating you all week, and the way he just stomped on me in the library, I had no choice. Believing the first thing someone tells you is dangerous; it could lead to a whole bunch of shit that’s not pleasant. But, of course, Bitch Monster Lena hates me in and out, so she believed Maz and made this astonishing presumption that had me ready to shit myself!”

Tao comprehended the big mess I just threw down then stood up. She twirled the ends of her hair, pacing back and forth between the beds and muttering stuff to herself. Her blue eyes met mine and she told me, “Who knew that my boyfriend would induce so much shit on you? Maz is in no place to incriminate you, nor is Lena. Eris, I want to apologize, and I should, but I’m no longer responsible for his selfish behavior. Maz has been acting weird, and I just want him to stop being so… douchebaggy… but he can’t and won’t. But, there is one thing I can be sorry for: you ahving to deal with that piece-of-shit High Priestess.”

She ran over to the beanbag, jumped in my lap, and we shared a hug so tight that my boobs were crushed (hey, what could I say?).

“Ya know,” I said as we pulled back and stared into each other’s eyes, “we haven’t had girls’ night in a while. No one else, just us.”

Tao made a humming sound. “Mh-hmm, I like that. It is Saturday… and neither one of us has a power… so you wanna go and beat up Maz?”

“Nuh-uh, if we tried to beat him up, it would turn into murder. Why don’t we grab some pajamas and bum around for a while?”

We shared an evil smile then ran to our closets to change. Hell I couldn’t even remember last the time Tao and I just hung out in the dorm with our pajamas on… or just to have fun together like regular teenagers. I pulled on a pair of track shorts, a black tank top and tied my hair into a low knot. Mumble honked at me, which made my body jump and my eyes go wide.
“What?”

He made a grumpier honk. Mumble was a Galápagos penguin, with the meanest noises in the world.

Tao came over, scooped him up and took him to the floor. “Oh, poor baby!” She hugged him to her chest and Mumble nestled himself into the cleft of her boobs. Even penguins loved tits.

“Hey,” she blurted.

“Yeah?” I turned around and sat on the floor with her.

“You have any more paste? I’m kinda bored without any designs on my hands.”

Tao was asking me for a henna tattoo, which I had been doing since I was 11. Any thing that had to do with ink on skin, metal in skin, or some type of body art, I was in love. The first time I put some paste on Tao, she fell in love and I even taught her about the tattoo and the designs. I reached under the bed, grasping the round box that I kept my materials in. As I shook up a cone of paste, Tao asked, “So… Can you explain that LENA stuff to me? I got the Maz part and how he was being an ass, but, I only know about the weed from Lena.”

I slightly shook my head as I slipped four paisleys onto her smooth skin.

“Well, since she believed Maz, Lena didn’t pay any attention to what I told her; it went through one ear and out the other,” I explained.

Tao huffed out of her nostrils. I put a few drops of paste that reminded me of tears on her ring finger. I drew a flower in the middle of her hand, adding circles, curls and complex twists inside of the leaves that contrasted Tao’s cold skin.

“Well, just know that I’d be happy to fuck her up if you need,” Tao blurted.

“Try explaining that to your mother,” I giggled.

After finishing the flower, I just had to do her fingers. On her pinky, I did two bars–like the outline of a ring–then drew small vertical lines between them, then made semi-circles to connect the lines. I finished her fingers, then did another knot of paisleys to line her wrist. Tao was done.

“Holy shit, this is good!” she exclaimed.

“Thanks. Remember, let it dry then wash your hands,” I said as I put the box back under my bed.

“Yep. Alright, I’m gonna go listen to Kenny for a while.”

“I have to call my Dad. Ughh…”

Tao went to her bed and turned on Kenny while I mentally prepared myself for my Father. Now, Dad knew I wouldn’t ever do something like that–I hope–but, he was a bit… uh, what do you call it? Crazy, yeah. Dad would try to murder Maz and his Dad, though I don’t think that’s appropriate, I would assist him. I grabbed my cellphone, stepped into the bathroom then dialed my Dad’s number. He picked up on the third ring.
“Hey, Casper,” he answered.

“Hi, Dad…”

“What’s wrong? You’re not that quiet of a person, Eris.”

I bit my lip and started pacing. “Lena.”

“Did you get in trouble at school?”

“Uhm… You could say that.” I chuckled but Dad didn’t sound all that happy.

“Quit stalling, Eris. What is up?” he sternly asked.

“Okay, so, Tao’s boyfriend, Maz, he accused me of smoking pot on campus, and he took it to Lena. Now she’s trying to rip me apart with her teeth and I didn’t even do it!”

Dad was silent. Oh, he’s mad…

“Hmph,” was the only sound he made. I could just picture his bright green eyes glowing with anger, so bright that I could practically read his soul.

Dad cleared his throat and continued, “Casper, I have a question.”

“Yes, Dad?”

“Did you do it? Would you ever do something like that?”

I gasped. “No, Dad! Not ever!”

“Then don’t let Lena fill your head with bullshit. She’s always been a confrontational type of woman. Don’t take this as an opportunity to be rude and disrespectful toward her, though. When she called you down, I did not expect this to be what she had to say. Don’t worry, Dad will talk to her. Get some sleep, and I’m sorry I was not present on campus for your birthday.”

“No. It is fine, Dad. Thank you for believing me, and, if you ever think about murdering Maz, I will help you,” I responded.

Dad laughed into the speaker. “Trust me, I’ll know to call you if we ever need to kick some ass. Get some sleep, baby.”

“Bye, Dad.” I hung up happier than I expected to be.
I decided to text Dallas and tell him the news, since he had been worried about me.
Me: Hey, Rebel.
Dallas: Hi. What’s up?
Me: Happier than a gay man.
Dallas: Call me.

I called him and Dallas instantly picked up.
“Who are you and what have you done with my girl?” he joked.

“No, it is Eris in the flesh and blood. No, I was just about to tell you that my Dad believed me over Lena, and, I’m pretty sure he’s going to mash her skull in,” I giggled.

“Yeah? Well, tell him that I’d be happy to shoot her in the hip.”

“I figured you would. What are you doing?”

“Restraining myself from shooting Harley in the head. He keeps stealing my clothes, and throwing them in the dining room.”

“Well, it sucks to be you. And, tell Harley that I encourage his misbehaviour.”

“Of course you do, Eris. Hey, can you sneak out and come over tonight?” The small sound that Dallas made was super sexy, and I couldn’t decline his invitation.

“Uhm, I guess. Give me twenty minutes.”

Dalla hung up first so I could go and tell Tao. She had already fallen asleep, so, I pulled on my blue Power Ranger hoodie then stepped into my boots. I quickly left the Dorms, and headed toward the tree so I could get to his place.

When I opened the door, an arrow was flying toward my face, but I sidestepped and caught it. Dallas snickered with a guilty look on.
“Sorry, I was bored,” he said as he took it back.

“What, trying to get rid of me?” I giggled.

“Oh, then who would provide me amazing sex?” He bent down and game a long kiss, and I poked his dimple when he smiled. I followed him off to the bow room, watching Dallas put the curve back bow back on the wall, and putting the arrow in the designated quiver.
“Hey, baby,” I blurted.

“What?” Dallas asked as he turned around.

I stepped over to him, snaked my arms around his broad shoulders and smiled. “What are you doing tomorrow?”

“Nothing really. I mean, I do have to go to work at 1.”

I pouted but Dallas kissed me.

“Why can’t we just sleep all day? Watch Netflix and cuddle?”

Dallas smiled back at me. “I’d love that, but, duty calls.” He rolled his eyes before walking me backwards and shutting off the light.

We were pretty clumsy, so when Dallas finally got me to the bedroom, I flopped back on the bed and started giggling. Dallas went to his closet then changed his clothes, so I stripped off my hoodie and shorts then got under the covers. Dallas came back in just his boxers and crawled under with me. He ran one finger over the metal bar in my ear.
“How was your day?” I asked.

“It was okay. How did Tao take the news?” he replied.

“Okay, I guess. She was still pissed about the Maz thing, so, I guess she’s breaking up with him.”

“That sucks.”

I nodded then put Dallas on his back. We kicked the covers down as I kissed his soft lips, and Dallas balled his fist in my hair as his tongue came to play. He reached his left hand down, running his fingers over the thin lace of my black panties. Dallas groaned when I moved lower and trailed my tongue around the flat disk of his nipple, and when I moved past his navel, Dallas said, “Eris, don’t–”

“Stop talking. Let me take care of you for once,” I breathed on his stomach.

Dallas shut up then helped me set his straining erection free and the taut skin burned my hand and I wrapped it around the turgid shaft. Thinking about it, this would be the first time we had sex after my birthday, and Dallas was so used to taking care of me and making me feel good that I rarely got the chance to just make him relax. I slowly wrapped my fist around his thick tool, then licked down the entire base while I kept my eyes locked on his sparkling hazel ones. I did that a few times, which made Dallas become harder until I figured he’d blow. I kissed the tip before gently wrapping my lips around the head and pumping my fist up and down his manhood. Dallas always stopped me midway during head, but this was one of those times when I needed him to shut up and let me do what both of us wanted. I got about four inches into my mouth then another… and all the way down to make Dallas say my name like a curse. I came back up for air then took him all the way again. I swirled my tongue as I came back up, paying much more attention to the underside and the head. Dallas let out a satisfied “ohhh fuck!” when I used the slightest touch of my teeth along the upperside, and it made both of us moan when he thrusted his hips upward. The tip hit the back of my throat, but I kept going further down until my jaw felt like it would split in half—not to mention that I did have all of him in my mouth, and Dallas was moaning and groaning as I came back up. There was just something insanely satisfying about making that strong, sexy, tough body quiver and quake under my command. It was a feeling that I would never get tired of. He arched his hips forward, and before I could tell him to calm, Dallas was cumming down my throat and making loud guttural grunts that turned me on. I swallowed the last rope of his seed then pulled his softening cock from my mouth. I clutched the covers, draping them over our bodies and cuddling up to his warm chest. Dallas kissed the crown of my head and whispered, “Thank you. You didn’t need to, ya know.”

“Yes I did. Dallas, I barely get to just take care of you; you’re always in control, making me feel amazing. Sometimes I wanna do the same for you.” I kissed his soft lips and Dallas cupped my cheek.

I nestled my face in the crook of his neck, and slowly, sleep claimed my body and I was in an amazing dream about Dallas tacking care of me in the ways only he knew.
====
The sun was slapping me across the face the next morning, and I could sense that I was alone in the bed. I yawned my awakening, rustled my hair behind my shoulders then rubbed my knuckles into my eyeballs. When I blinked open Dallas shut the bathroom door and came out in a pair of jeans. He smiled then kissed me, though my breath probably topped a troll’s.
“Good morning, sleepyhead,” he said.

“Hey. Thank God it’s Sunday ’cause I was so not feeling school,” I replied as Dallas pulled on a black tee shirt.

“I had an amazing night, so I wasn’t feeling work. Speaking of an amazing night, what are you doing later on?”

“Nothing really. But, I’m gonna go to the dorms and make sure Tao hasn’t killed Maz in his sleep.” I giggled then climbed out from the pounds of covers and went in for a shower. I didn’t have any of my regular Bath and Body Works body wash, so, I used what I could and scrubbed myself clean. As I got dressed, Dallas came into the bathroom to fix his hair. Midway through running his fingers in the thick strands of his platinum blond hair, he sniffed the air and said, “You smell like me.”

“Uhm…” My eyes for wide as he crossed over and smelt my neck. To clean myself, I used his AXE, so I smelt like a boy who just discovered the strong scent.

Dallas shook his head and I joined him in doing my hair. I brushed the wavy locks back into a ponytail, tying it with a bright blue holder and leaving one shorter strand loose in my eye. Dallas never made breakfast on Sunday, so I poured myself an awesome bowl of cereal and sat on the counter munching away. Hannah flew into the kitchen, landing on Dallas’ shoulder and sqwuaking as loud as she could at Harley who had a glow in his golden brown eyes.
“What did he do?” I snickered.

Hannah “yelled” again.

“He stole her food,” Dallas explained to me.

I shook my head then washed my empty dish out. Dallas followed me to the front door, pushing me into the wall and giving me a firm kiss. He cupped either side of my face then wiggled his tongue on mine, which made a tingling feel flow up my thighs. We both pulled away, breathing hard and disappointed that I had to leave and we couldn’t continue this.
“I’ll probably see you later,” he said.

I nodded. “Okay. Bye.” I have him another tiny kiss before slipping out of the front door and going back to the dorms.

Tao hadn’t been in the dorm room, so I called her and she answered on the second ring.
“Yeah?” Tao said into the speaker.

“Hey, where are you?” I replied.

“Library. I had to wake up early and study for that Body Science quiz. Come join me.”

I agreed to meet her after I bathed Boing in the sink. She had gotten in a mud puddle with Mikey earlier, so her normally white fur was a tinted brown color, and there was every bit of debris on her bottom.
“Bubba,” I giggled, “you’re not a dog… Mud puddles are not cool.”

She sneezed then rapidly shook her body, sending water flying everywhere.

I ran her long tail through my fingers a few times, getting all of the dirt and crud off of her small body. After Boing was dried and fresh, I carried her on my hip down to the library. I found Tao scanning some Body Science books, with her pen trapped between her teeth and her fingers rapidly searching through the pages.
I seated myself in the puffy red chair, smiled then sat Boing in my lap.
“Hey,” she said without looking at me.

“What’s up. You look like a mad woman,” I joked.

“I broke up with Maz.”

That was abrupt. I reached over the table, clutching her cold hand and finally getting her eye contact.

“You okay? I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. He was sleeping with that Farrah chick.” She gave an exhausted laugh. “I’m just so done with him, ya know? If he wanted to accuse my best friend of something completely stupid, all while he was sleeping with some ugly Pio (sophomore) then fine. My number one question is just why? Why couldn’t he have waited until I was in a better place? I just lost my powers, and I’m still recovering from midterms, so, why couldn’t he have actually cared?”

I softly smiled to try and lighten her up.

“I dunno, Tao. But do you know what that means? It means Maz wasn’t worth half of what you are, and if he wanted to waste your time, fine. But it is not okay that he wasted your love, because that’s something that a million people would kill for. Now you don’t have to worry about being cheated on, you don’t have to worry about him going off and never coming back; however, you do still have to worry about your heart and yourself. So, go have fun! Even without your powers, they’ll come back, and you will be back to your normal self—but this time Maz-free. Okay?”

Tao dropped her face into her hands. “Has anyone ever told you that you give amazing advice?” she sighed.

“Eh, once or twice.”

“Well, he can go get all the ass he wants, but I am gonna take my time to find someone. Maybe even sleep with a few cute guys to start my ignition”

I scoffed and laughed as Tao sexily bit her pen. “Good plan. Now, I kind of need to study, too, so. Wanna stop at the cafe and grab something afterwards?”

“Absolutely.”
Tao handed me one textbook and we studied until 5pm then went to grab a bite.

As we headed back to the dorms, Tao told me something about her Dad, and how he’d shoot Maz in the head if he ever found out that his baby girl was hurt by some boy.
“That sounds a lot like my Dad,” I chuckled. “Last night when I told hm about Maz and the accusation, he was probably plotting his way to stab him in the neck.”

Tao snickered. “Jeff? He’d never do anything like that.”

“Yeah he would. Maybe I should—”

I was cut off by my phone blasting a Steve Aoki song, so I knew it was Bear.
“Yes?” I answered.

“Hi. Dallas wants you back at his place; we have a surprise for you,” he replied.

“Oh, what is it?”

“Do you not know the definition of a surprise? Little girl, get your butt down here.”

“Fine.”

I shoved my phone in my back pocket then grinned at Tao. She was sitting on her bed, preparing to hop in the shower and take a nap.
“Hey, I gotta go,” I said.

“Alright. Tell Dallas I said hi,” she grinned, wiggling her fingers as I shut the door and left down the hall.

Someone for me to meet? Bear had been the one to call me, so it was obviously a group effort. I’d met their dogs, Loki and Thor—the cutest Bulldogs ever! Hmm, who did I have to meet? Considering the possibilities of them showing me an anaconda that they found outside made me freak out. Knowing those three, they probably would.

I opened the large glass doors to the apartments and went down to Dallas’s place. Three knocks and Bear swung the door open.
“Hola, mi amigo,” he smirked.

“Hola. Where’s Dallas?”

Bear sidestepped and let me into the door. Coming from the hallway, I saw Bull… and another guy.
“Oh! Hey, Eris,” Bull smiled. He nudged his friend with his shoulder. “This is my boyfriend, Magnus.”

Magnus waved. “Hey, Eris.” His mint green hair was pulled back into a ponytail, but I could see it was usually styled kinda messy. I’d heard of him before, and I knew him to have an affinity for Writing. His dark brown eyes had rings of blue and pink in them, and it was weird but beautiful to stare at. The hoop Spider Bite piercing on his bottom lip made me happy; I liked people with piercings or tattoos, because it was my dream job to be a tattoo artist or do body modification.

I brightly smiled. “We’re gonna be really good friends. Because you can put up with Chris.”

Bull grimaced. “Thanks, babe. Anyway, Magnus is kind of stupid, so you can just call him Thumper.”

Magnus made a face and swatted his arm.

“Eris,” he said to me, “I may be rethinking this thing with him. Chris is a bit of an ass.”

“Of course he is.”

The voice came from behind me, and I felt arms wrap around my midriff. Dallas kissed my temple then said, “How was Tao?”

“I feel terrible,” I sighed.

“Why?”

We sat on the couch, with Magnus and Bull on the other, and Bear texting in the chair.
“What’s up with Tao?” Bear asked without glancing up. “Did she get her powers back?”

“No, but she is having a shitty time with Maz, why she broke up with him,” I explained. “But, why do you need to know? Nosey.”

“Hey, I just wanna know,” he growled.

“Should I talk to her? Ya know, I am a love expert,” Bull offered.

“If you’re a love expert, why do I hate you so much?” Magnus egged on.

“Haha! No, but seriously, I already talked to her, and, I give amazing advice, so no need to waste your breath,” I said.

“You give amazing advice? Yeah right,” Dallas chuckled.

I rolled my eyes. “I do give amazing advice. Anyway, who wants to play me in FIFA.”

“I’ll play–“

“You don’t want to,” Bear said cutting Magnus off.

“Why not?” he asked as he grabbed the controller off of the coffee table.

“None of us know how to beat her,” Dallas chuckled.

“Because I spend a lot of my free time in front of a TV screen, blasting on your asses. As a matter of fact, I just bid on George Weah,” I giggled as we picked teams.

“Speak now or lose your pride,” Bull said to Magnus over his shoulder.

“Trust me, I’ve got it,” Magnus sighed.

We played, and I beat Magnus by one lucky goal. I did a victory jig, which had Magnus challenging me to a game of Advanced Warfare. So, we switched, and this time, Magnus ended up massacring me by 3,000 points on his team.
“Grrrr!” I growled.

“What was that? I’m sorry, I can’t hear you over my winning!” Magnus laughed. “It’s alright, kiddo. Maybe you’ll learn next time.” He winked but I flipped him off and passed off to Bear.

About an hour or two after playing box and talking, I saw what time it was; 7:32, and I still had to cast my circle later tonight. And, I had to go read before bed. Shit. Dallas and Magnus were playing GTA, but I wanted to talk with Dallas before I left. I stood up then tapped his shoulder. Leaning into his ear, I whispered, “Can we talk?”

He turned to Bull
“Aye, take over. I’ll be back,” Dallas said, handing Bull his controller.

He grabbed my index finger and led me to the bedroom. Dallas sat me on the bed.

“What’s up, Avatar?”

I smiled. “Katniss–” I gave him a look but Dallas rolled his eyes–“I wanted one-on-one time before I left.”

“Leave? Where ya going, it’s not close to curfew,” he said, cocking his head.

“I’m casting a circle tonight. And, I have to read my book before I die wondering what happens to Astrid.”

“I… I don’t know who Astrid is. Is that like, a guy you secretly have sex with?”

I sighed and cupped his cheeks. “Never, baby. It’s the girl in my book, she thinks she’s a lesbian.”

Dallas made a face. “Okay… Uhm, let’s change the subject.”

“You goof. Well, I’m sorry I can’t stay tonight, but tomorrow, I will so take care of you. Maybe even feed you out of my palm.”

Dallas hooked his hand under my hair on my neck then pressed me close, so his lips were on my ear.
“Can you me from between your legs?” he whispered as he kissed and licked on my earrings.

Holy… “Uh, we’ll see. Ya never know, I might just make you beg,” I smiled, biting my lip and relishing in his sexy words.

“Hmm, we’ll see.” Dallas pulled away and planted his lips firmly on mine. He deliberately brushed his hand over my chest so one of the buttons on my shirt would come undone. Dallas looked at me with blazing blue eyes—they reminded me of the base of a fire. “Oops, might as well undo the others,” he grinned.

His hands slowly unbuttoned me, but I didn’t stop him. Dallas gave me a sexy look before saying, “Do you have to go?”

“Just a little bit,” I tripped over the words because his warm hands had found my skin.

“Okay, but, I want you here tomorrow. After school.”

I couldn’t do any more than nod when Dallas kissed up my jaw. He cupped my breasts, caressing and loving on me in a way I’d only experienced with him. If we had time and some privacy I’d jump his bones in two seconds. Dallas kissed the cleft of my boobs then closed the shirt. He patted my thigh.
“Can you stop making me wet in good jeans? Now I need to change,” I sighed.

Dallas glanced at my jeans. “They look like they’re spray-painted on,” he said.

I stood up and pressed my lips against his ear. “One of the reasons I’m not wearing panties.”

And I was serious. Of course with his goofiness, Dallas reached down and massaged me ass, swiftly lifting his eyebrows in realization.
“Not afraid to go commando.” He winked at me.

“Oh, I know,” I smiled like an innocent little girl. “Walk me out?”

Dallas draped an arm around my waist, tucking me to his hip. He made me feel so small—but, in a good way. I came up a bit higher than Dallas’s shoulder, but he secured me under his strong arm like I was 5’2. (A relationship with a 6’4 guy when I was only 5’2 didn’t sound all that bad.) We walked out of the bedroom, then crossed over to the front door.
“Hey, don’t trash my house. I’m walking her back.”

“Bye, hoe,” Bear jokingly said.

“Bye, Lavagirl.” Bull winked at me.

“It was nice meeting you,” Magnus smiled as he pulled his hair out of his ponytail. His hair was too beautiful!

“Magnus, can we switch hair?” I watched him rake his fingers through it.

“No, I worked hard for this.” He smiled then said, “But I always wanted teal hair.”

I did an exaggerated hair flip with my shoulder. Dallas shut the door and we walked back to the dorms. Or, by “walk” I mean we raced. He gave me one last peck and sent me upstairs. I grabbed all of my candles, sage, then sprinted off to Ria. 200.
====
I was in the ring of oaks I’d last cast the circle. Automatically, I heard a rustle in the nearby bush, then a grumpy “Ei-ya-eee” sound. That was Boing who had decided to follow me out of the Dorms. I bent down and picked her up, brushing the leaves off of her white body.
“Bubba, you can’t follow me everywhere. And I just gave you a bath,” I giggled. She sneezed in my face. “Ya know, you sum up my life: a bit gross, interesting, and messy.”

I gently put her against an oak, knowing she wouldn’t run off without me. My bag had the candles, and the sage, and the lighter inside, so, I got to work. Since it worked perfectly and sent chills running down my spine, I decided to call Spirit again—it seemed like the right thing to do. After putting all of the candles in their places, I stepped to the middle of the circle and took a deep breath. Inhale, exhale. In and out. Take, give.

The chilly night felt amazing, even more amazing since I could feel an oncoming storm. From reading all ten of those thick books, I had learned that casting a circle on a Full Moon was most effective; it was a ritual after all. Also, I memorized a few poems and passages, all enough to keep me calm and let me glide through the circle. I was just about to start when Boing let out a little sneeze.
“Shh, I need full, 100% concentration,” I hissed.

She gave me what looked like a chinchilla eye roll then curled up in a little ball. I cleared my throat then lit the dried rope of white sage. Circling and purifying the area, I recited one of the poems I remembered.
“In this circle, I will be
Authentic for Air.
In this circle, I will be
Faithful for Fire.
In this circle, I will be
Wise for Water.
In this circle, I will be
Empathetic for Earth.
In this circle, I will be
Sincere for Spirit.”

One blow, you’re out. The power in my voice was phenomenal, something worthy of acting or to draw attention. I’d been told before I had a good voice, but I barely knew how to use it… Except for singing in the shower or singing for my great-grandmother. I sat the sage in the middle of the circle and grabbed my lighter. Already I could feel my mind being cleared, and free, like I had just aced a test I was nervous about.

One more deep breath, Eris. One more is all it takes. That wasn’t real. What I just heard was my mother’s warm, caring, sweet voice. She couldn’t have sent that message to me. One more for me, U-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. Just one more. Yep, it was definitely her. “U-we-tsi-a-ge-ya” translated to “daughter” in Cherokee, and it always sounded so amazing coming from her sweet tone. One more breath was all it took.

That breath brought the sound of a big bass drum in my ears. Thumping…. pounding…. bringing light to me. From my book, Ask the Passengers, I learned that it was twice as important to send my love to people I didn’t know. Or to the people I missed. And that’s exactly what I did: sent my love up to my mother as I mentally prepared myself for casting the circle and ritual. Hearing my mother sent something off in me; something poetic and like I owed her this circle. Taking one good luck breath, I crossed to the grey candle and commenced.

“Soft and whispering, Air from afar, greetings be unto thee. In the name of Layla I call you to blow clear fresh and free, and I call you here to me!”
I lit the wick of the grey candle and was instantly surrounded by sweet, caressing Air, tossing my hair around and even rustling the oak branches. I made my way to the red candle.

“Warming and quickening Fire from afar, with the warmth that brings forth life, and in the name of Layla, I send greetings unto thee, and call you here to me!”
I flicked the flame at the candlewick, and it burst into a beautiful, blazing flame. This was mom. The soft blue candle stood proud, like it was awaiting its big power.

“Cool waters of lake and stream afar, I offer greetings unto thee. Flow clear and pure and swift in magical presence so that we shall see, as I call you here to me!”
I touched the lighter to the wick and was shocked by the visible water, not actually touching me, but lapping around my feet. That was awesome. I sighed as I remembered the last time I lit a green candle.

“Lands afar and wild places of Earth, greetings I say unto thee. Awaken from your mossy sleep to bring forth bounty and beauty and stability. In the name of Layla I call unto thee!”
A fresh, rich scent of newly a mown hay field completed the air. The sound of chirping birds surrounded me. Lilacs made the air so sweet that it was like I’d been spritzed with the lightest and most perfect perfume ever. It reminded me of Nanaya, and how she smelled of a new flower everyday. The middle of the circle gave a great view of the forming barrier of energy that needed one last candle.

“Spirit filled with magic and night, whispering soul of my Goddess, friend and stranger, mystery and knowledge”—I just had to describe my mother as my Goddess—“in Layla’s name I call thee here to me!”
My candle lit, and I stood very still while the familiar cacophony of all five Elements filled me, body and soul… It was so amazing that I forgot to breathe.

Closing my eyes, I heard my mother’s soft tone. I am your Goddess, U-we-tsi-a-ge-ya; I’d never abandon you, or ever leave your soul. Breathe, Bambi. Take in your power. Express your feelings. This is what you are. You are mine; re Jeff’s… But most of all, you are, you are truly… my Goddess.

My eyes shot open and I could breathe again. Without knowing it, the branches of those towering oaks had shielded me, like I was to be protected. And I could feel water rushing up my body, like I was in the stream with Dallas. Warmth… protection… I sensed my mother’s delicate touch; her eyes bringing heat and comfort to me. My soul… my body… my mind was light. Nothing was too heavy. Everything was perfect. The night’s breeze was strong, so strong that the leaves were bustling around the circle from the branches. For once, I honestly felt Dallas’s nickname to be more than that. I honestly felt like the Avatar; this was my form of meditation; I was an Airbender, Earthbender, Firebender, Waterbender, and in addition, a Spiritbender. And I felt like Casper. Like nothing could touch me, unless I felt the need. Like I was friendly (but we all knew Casper couldn’t always be that nice), and I had a bit of light in me. The energy was perfect; I even heard a little buzz like a tattoo machine. The Earth candle shot a green light to meet Fire; the Fire shot red to meet Air; Air released a clear to meet Water. And all four of them, all four twirled together, to meet Spirit. But, the Spirit still had something amazing. The entire candle looked like one of those zapping, science lab experiments that cartoons made. (Ya know, creepy old guy has a vial of some weird-colored liquid, it’s zapping and making a little thing of light.) Before I knew it, all of this power was dying down, like when the shower head is trying to pump more hot water, and it turns cold for a bit… then slowly… you get the warm water back.

I blinked.

The energy was connected to my hands, and I freaked out. I was standing directly behind the Spirit candle, and all of that power—in a little, colorful, powerful, affinity ball—raised to my palms to make me feel amazing. The candle had given me all of the power, but the energy that connected them all still remained. It was barely there… like the little puff I had in the shower. Only this one was real power (I’m not saying getting clean isn’t a power), and I could feel the effect it had on my lower stomach. A tingling. A fluttery feeling. A sensation I got when Dallas made love to me.

I blinked.

The energy slowly dispersed… until it came time for my puffball… and with a little poof, it dropped down to the Spirit candle. I closed my eyes and gathered myself.
You are power, U-we-tsi-a-ge-ya.

Thanks for the pep-talk, mom…

I couldn’t help but smile as the trees opened, as the breeze died down, as the feeling of water left me, as my soul lowered (but still felt amazing) and as the hint of my mother fell deep inside of me. This is what I was born to do; cast circles, talk to my mother and be Eris. Not what all of those weird, preppy, spoiled human girls wanted to be. Because, we really weren’t human. The things that I could do topped any human. (I may not be as smart as Einstein, but I certainly know more about Nature’s Elements.) Packing up my things, I listened to Boing make chinchilla squeaks and purrs and happy sounds—she must’ve felt the energy too. I couldn’t sleep by myself that night. I knew Tao had gone to visit her Mom, and I had to tell someone what I felt…. what I saw… what I heard… who I remembered. Dallas. I scooped Boing up and tucked her on my hip then clutched my bag and sprinted off to Dallas. Nothing was stopping me—hell no. I felt fresh and free and clear, mysterious, powerful, beautiful, stable, and all of those other words I said. There was no stopping me. There was no—“Shit!”

Dallas had opened the door and I hit his strong chest. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders so I didn’t fall.
“Slow down, criminal,” Dallas chuckled.

“Please say Avatar,” I grinned.

His lip twitched. “Avatar?”

“Yes. That’s what I feel like. Let me in so I can tell you.”

Dallas stepped to the side, I darted in, sat Boing on the floor (praying that Harley wouldn’t have a dinner of chinchilla), ran to the bedroom, and stripped down. I always kept some extra clothes stored in the top drawer of Dallas’s dresser, but he didn’t know that because I hid them under his tee shirts. Dallas came back into the room then looked at me.

I was sitting in the middle of the rumpled bed, biting my lip and all fidgety. Dallas sat at the headboard, swung his feet up then nodded.
“I’m all ears.”

I took the biggest breath. “Circle. I cast the circle and after I purified, I heard my mom. She called me U-we-tsi-a-ge-ya, and I could hear this drum while I lit the candles. After lighting, I felt all the ‘whoa’ and warm and cool and breeze and earth and calm, then the energy came popping out, and, the Spirit candle looked all like it had been electrocuted and it was super weird, but super fun. Then, the power shot up to my hands! Seriously! It felt like a little shower puff, and it felt good. One blink later, everything was gone and back to normal. I talked to myself; I felt like Avatar, and I felt like Casper. And I just had to tell you.”

Dallas’s eyes blinked all eight colors after four blinks. That happened when he was nervous, or freaked, or in deep thought. And it was always freaky (but kind of cute) to watch. He blinked a fifth time, and his eyes flashed brown, then went grey. (I loved his eyes.) “That’s amazing,” he huffed, his lips tugging at a smile. “Have you ever heard your mom before?”

“No. And it half scared me to death. She said One last breath, U-we-tsi-a-ge-ya and she called me her Goddess. How in the hell—sorry. How am I her Goddess?”

“You really don’t know?”

I felt stupid. I barely shook my head and met his glossy blue eyes.

“Eris, when Rian pass, they literally turn into our Gods and Goddesses. It is our job to worship Greek Gods and Goddesses, though they may not physically exist, they do soulfully and mentally. Take you for instance! You’re literally named after a child of Zeus and Hera. Eris: chaos, discord. You’re my beautiful chaos, and you could be my Goddess any day of the year. I don’t care if you hate it, or adore it, your name symbolizes you and your power; the Elements can be chaotic, and as you witnessed tonight, they do what they want. Eris… Elements… Chaos… Goddess… That’s perfect to me.”

Dallas gave me that smile before resting his forehead with mine. “And you are so hot enough to be a Goddess.”

I laughed. I’d never heard him say anything that deep, and it made my eyes tear up. Dallas was very guarded—that was until you developed love and understanding of him, then you’ll hear his strong, sexy, deep voice speak.
“You really think I’m Goddess material?” I whispered.

“Eris”—he smiled his slow, sexy smile—“you blow any Goddess out of my mind with those bright teal eyes”—he ran his finger on my cheek then stroked my hair—“that long, fringy teal hair”—his lips brushed with mine—“and those sweet, soft, loving lips.” Dallas nibbled my lower lip then gave me an almost too deep kiss.

When he pulled back, we were breathing hard and looking directly at each other. His hands found my skin again, and I took in a sharp inhale of breath. Dallas had his large hands cupping my face, with mine pressed firmly atop and our mouths devouring each other. We were both shocked when a spark came from our hands. I roughly pulled back, and Dallas’s eyes flashed all eight colors again.
“What the hell?”

“I dunno.”

“Spark of love?” Dallas wiggled his fingers at me.

“You’re a goof. No, but seriously, what the fuck was that?”

“Well, I wouldn’t have asked the question if I knew the answer.”

Dallas flung back on the bed when I landed a hard pillow on his neck. “Ow!” he exclaimed.

“Stop it, asswipe,” I giggled, rubbing his shoulder. Dallas sat back up then pulled me into his lap.

“Spark of love or spark of hate, I’m still gonna kiss on you, and touch what I deserve.” Dallas was about to kiss me again but my finger on his lips stopped him. “Pwoblem?” his words were jumbled from the awkward finger.

“What you deserve? Ahem,” I scoffed. “I see it as a gift.”

Dallas grabbed my wrist and yanked me away. “I’ve fought women before, so, don’t be shootin’ shit at me.” We shared a death stare before I said, “Please, I’ve fought guys before. Definitely not you, but I think I can manage.” I smiled when he sneered.

“Eris? Fight someone? Who?”

I jumped on Dallas, rolling him onto his stomach and locking around his back. He sat up, reached back and flipped me over his head and onto the mattress. He pinned me down, putting his knees by my sides and holding my hands over my head.

“Yeah,” Dallas said, “you’ve fought guys, but not me. And look who’s pinned down.”

I knew what would distract him so I made a groan. “Ugh, Harley’s back. He flew in the window.” I pointed to the west wall and Dallas looked back. I rolled him onto his back, sitting on his chest then looking down at him.
“Yeah,” I mocked, “you’ve fought girls, but not me. And look who’s pinned down.”

“And look who’s about to be pinned down,” he muttered.

“That doesn’t—whoa!”

Dallas roughly forced me onto my back, tossed me back on the gazillions of pillows and threw the sheet over me. The comforter was down by our feet, but this sheet was making me hot.
“Dallas! Which way is out? I can’t see!” I giggled, scurrying around around the dark cover.

“Uh, to your… left…” Dallas said.

I went left, that was the headboard. “Ow!”

“Not your left, my left, you ass.”

“Oh.” I went the other way and could stick my hand out. I freed myself, breathing in the oh-so sweet fresh air. “I was dying under there,” I smiled.

Dallas rolled his eyes. “Lay down, I have to shower.”

“Why can’t that wait? We’ll be dirty anyway.” I grabbed him by his shirt, but Dallas seized my wrist.

“Eris, you know we both have to get up in the morning, and, I smell like boy.”

To me, Dallas always smelt yummy, but, he did smell like outside. I knew he’d been practicing.

“Okay,” I dropped my arms loose at my sides. As Dallas crawled out of bed and headed for the bathroom, I just had to call out, “You have a cute butt!”

“What the fuck?!” he yelled.

I giggled, flopped back on the pillows, and cuddled up under the mountain of sheets and comforter. Dallas had a California King, which made me feel small and secure in his strong arms. The warm sheets were making my eyes heavy-lidded, but that all went away when I heard the bathroom door open, and Dallas shut out the light. I turned my head to watch Dallas dress. When he glanced up, I went back in position and pretended to be sleeping, but I had one eye open. Dear lord… he was coming to bed in just black boxers—and those worked magic on women. It made me wanna jump up and devour his dick, but I laid still as Dallas climbed into bed. The small “merr” of his iPhone being hooked on the charger signaled he was really getting to bed. Dallas gently reached around me, grabbed the remote and cut off the UFC fight. He let out what I like to call the “guy going to bed sigh” then laid on his back. After four minutes of still, silent darkness(but I could still see) I shifted my legs back so I could fuck with him. Down below, I was running my foot up his calf muscle, obviously getting some reaction because Dallas tried to kick me off. I had my arms draped over my side, and it would be obvious that I wasn’t sleeping if he could see my face. Did he know I was awake?
“Eris, go to bed,” Dallas firmly said.

Damnit! He was reading my mind.
“Shit,” I said under my breath.

“Go to sleep. You know I don’t wanna get up, and it’s gonna be twice as hard if you keep it up.”

My foot was still going, but Dallas reached under the covers and yanked me to his lap. In the dark, his sexy face looked even more sexy, and I could see how his hair was still a bit wet.
“Stop,” he firmly said. “I’m serious.”

I leaned down and smelled his hair. “No, I will always be here to annoy you and sniff your hair,” I giggled.

Our hips started to grind together, and to be honest, Dallas felt like heaven between my legs. I pressed myself against his hardness, feeling how this was turning him on. Dallas made a frustrated sound.
“Damn it, Eris.” He moved his hand between our bodies, tugged his boxers down, and looked back at me. “I really hate you.”
(Being pantie-less was a big win) As I sank down onto his hard tool, I moaned, “Oh, you love me. Your dick is proof.”

Dallas shook his head and I rocked my hips down, doing a bit of a roll as his hips slammed up against mine. By now, we had tossed the comforter to the side; sex was more important. I still had that shirt on, but Dallas was clawing away to get it off. He finally pulled it over my head and I smiled.

Our clothes hit the floor in no time. Dallas kicked his boxers all the way off, and I had better access to his grand prize. My breathing was loud and uneven, and Dallas was moaning in time with me. He grabbed my hands, holding me up while I rode him like a fucking horse. “Dallas… Aghhh,” I panted.

I was a bit easy with him, because Dallas knew exactly how to touch me. With no instruction, he could make me cum in two seconds—which was sort of happening right then. My orgasm was gonna be loud; I could tell by the way my voice went out. Dallas sent me over the edge when he started kissing my chest, teasing and playing with my nipples. I tossed my head back and yelled his name.
“DALLAS! OHHHH!”

That must’ve struck some fire in him, because Dallas took control and started hammering his cock further into my tight hole. He didn’t let go of my hands. Not once. Dallas kept me close to him while he got closer and closer and closer to filling me with the sexy cum i’d been missing for nights. He let out a curse then pulled me down to his lips. I let out gasps every time his cock rammed deep into me, with his hips slowly moving and the semen churning inside of him.

It felt like an explosion inside of me. Dallas moaned and grunted until he calmed down, until he was finally thinking straight. I was sprawled out on his chest, tracing my finger over the ink of his Maxi that crawled onto his neck. Dallas rubbed my lower back, keeping me close in his strong arms as we fell asleep.

“Goodnight, Captain Idiot.”

“Goodnight, Avatar.”
====
Throughout the day, I was happy and attentive because of my night with Dallas. We woke up around 3am, and we just laid in bed. Whispering smartass remarks and talking about random stuff was what we did best. But, taking a quiz and thinking about sex was not.

I was sitting in Riate, trying to translate the word “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” to Riate. And damn was it hard. Brice liked to give us surprise quizzes; usually less than five words to translate, but the words ranged from made up to super long and hard.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious was one of them. Brice always gave us fun words, nothing boring or dull. Well, I gave it my best shot so I got some points.

Sasquiloenvzaayerdoinlusfareteoudoic.

Does it look that easy?! And some of those letters had marks! The bell rang, and we all placed our papers on Brice’s gigantic desk. As Tao ear-blasted me about a new pair of shoes coming out in March, we headed off to lunch and I was bordering starving and almost dead. Even though Dallas made thee best french toast, we had been making out, and I was about to be late that morning, so I skipped the syrupy treat (sigh).

Thank god they had salad bar! I had been dying for some tomatoes lately. I came back to the table, then watched Lela and Giovanni crack jokes about a cute guy named Leif and glanced over to the Dark Sons table.

Giovanni made a soft moan. “Don’t you just wanna jump on him, strip his clothes off and fuck him on the table?” Her already strained voice was raspy because she was looking so damn hard.

“Oh god,” Tao muttered, “why do you want to have sex with my cousin?”

“He’s hot!”

Ophelia made a face. “No, he hooked up with Bolie once, so I don’t think you want that skank juice,” she says.

We all nodded and finished lunch with Giovanni telling us a story about Gennadi falling down the stairs when they were kids.

In Art, I was kinda bored because Verc killed the mood with some type of shitty project. Math, I was just going with the flow; I wasn’t feeling it after that. Last bell rang, and Tao grabbed me.
“Hey, guess what?” she asks.

“Peanut butter?” I replied, making Tao’s icy blue eyes gloss over.

“No, dumb dumb. Mom is taking me somewhere. And, by somewhere, I mean out of the portal.”

I lifted an eyebrow. “Ohh! Well, tell her I say hi!”

“Okay, I got it. Bye, hun.” Tao kissed my cheek before running off.

Then there was one… I couldn’t see Dallas yet; he was still at work. So, I decided to go and study a little more for my quiz, and even catch up on my books. When I entered the library, a petite body slammed into mine, and I had to catch the book that went flying. It was Zara.
“I’m sorry, Eris! I’ve been so crammed lately,” she sighed, straightening her glasses while I fixed mine.

“It is alright.” I clutched the book to my chest and followed Zara to the back room. “So, where were you headed?”

“No where. I was just about to open the door for you, but, I guess you’re perfectly capable of doing it. What are you doing here?”

“Studying and reading those books. Oh, I cast another circle last night.”

Zara rested her hands on my shoulders and grinned at me like a Mother. Her red hair was pulled back at the top by a sparkly clip, and the long locks draped over her shoulders and covered her forearms.
“I’m so proud of you. Your mother would feel just the same,” she said.

“Speaking of, she was there,” I replied as Zara took the book and put it on the shelf.

“Huh? Layla?”

I nodded. Zara and my mom had been roomies in their first year of high school, and I loved Zara like my family.

“Yeah. I heard her voice, and a big presence while I little candles. It was amazing.”

“Wow. That’s great. Well, I should not keep you from your studies, so, have fun a and ace whatever test it is you have. Merry part.”

I waved then left the large room, finding my textbook in the back wall and studying for a while before a heavy hand landed on the table. I was startled by the loud thump, and when I looked up, Dallas was staring at me with deadly brown eyes.

“Hello?” I half-asked, half-stated. “I thought you were at work.”

“I was an hour ago. You could’ve called me,” he said.

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be. I was just about to call you, but I remembered you had been studying for that quiz. Is now a good time to steal you away?”

“Sure. Let me put this back.”

I led the way to the bookshelf, waved at Zara then followed Dallas out of the glass doors.

“Am I coming to your place to a fucktoy?”

Dallas fought the urge to roll his eyes. “Sure, if you want. But, Magnus and the Twins wanna see you. Especially Magnus.”

“Hey, if he wasn’t gay, I’d be all over that.” I waggled my eyebrows but Dallas just sneered.

“How was school?” Dallas asked.

“Fine, all until Art,” I sighed.

He squeezed me. “All until Art? Did Verc give you some shitty grade?”

“More like a shitty piece to work on.”

“Oh, that sucks.”

I felt my stomach growl. “Baby, I’m hungry, can you please feed me?”

Dallas leaned down into my ear. “Oh, I’ll feed you, alright.” His warm breath made me tingle.

I bit my lip to hold in my smile; he always had something sexual to say. Dallas pulled away, but I was still tucked under his arm.
“Pizza okay?” I asked.

“Yeah, that’s fine.” Dallas checked the display on his phone. “Oh, the Twins have to do something for Chryseis, so they aren’t coming over until later.”

“Hmm, okay.”

We opened the glass doors to the apartments then walked down to his door. Dallas shoved me in. I plopped down on the couch and Dallas put his bow back in the bow room with Harley waddling in behind him. He walked to the kitchen to order our oh-so needed pizza.
“Hey! No mushrooms or peppers on my half!” I called out as I texted back and forth with my cousin.

Dallas peeked his head out. “Why not?”

I glared at him like he’d grown a second head. “Because they’re disgusting.”

“Ugh, I am offended.” Dallas put up his hand. “Sausage, pepperoni, and bacon?”

“Boo-yah!”

Dallas rolled his eyes then ordered our pizza. He came back to the couch and turned on Nitro Circus. About half an hour later, we had our delicious pizza sitting on the coffee table. I reached out to take a piece but Dallas swatted my hand.
“You bitch!” I giggled.

“My question is why the hell do you need so much meat?” he scoffed, pointing at the left half of the pizza.

I grabbed a slice then said, “Listen, hoe, you can eat your disgusting peppers, and I’ll stick to my fattening meat.”

Dallas seized his own slice. “Kiss ass.”

“Suck my nuts.”

“You don’t have any.”

“But,” I took another bite, “if I did, I’d have more than you.”

Dallas rolled his eyes and worked on his second slice of pizza. We acted like douchebags to each other, but, it was just how we were. Anyway, by time we both devoured four slices, Dallas gave me a big kiss that had me giggling and reaching down to his belt buckle. He lifted my batman shirt, then laid me on my back and unhooked my bra to let my boobs spill out. Dallas pinched my nipples, and I had learned that it felt amazing with just enough pressure. He pinched and massaged me, while he kissed up my throat and got higher to my earlobe. Dallas twirled his tongue on the metal bar, licked down the shell then tugged on the small pearl I had in. I had unbuckled his canvas belt, and I slowly brushed my fingers down the shaft of his hard cock. Dallas groaned into my mouth when I reached his ballls and gently massaged him. I giggled when he rolled my hard nipples between his index and middle finger, making my pink flesh scream for more under his touch.

There was a knock on the door that had me moving at lightning speed to hook my bra and fix my shirt. Dallas waited long enough for his dick to shrink and zip himself back up then looked at me.
“We’re here, bitches!”

“Dallas, do you have alcohol? Because I really need some.”

“Chris is being a douche.”

I got up and opened the door to see the Twins and Magnus standing there. Bear was the one to call Bull a douche, Magnus needed alcohol, and Bull, he was just weird. They came in and plopped down with us.
“Awh, bitchin! Peppers,” Bear said as he took a slice of Dallas’ side of the pizza.

Dallas and I shared a nasty look.

“Ew, peppers are for nerds,” Magnus groaned, taking a slice of mine.

“Why not take both?” Bull grabbed two slices and folded them together.

“Shit!” Dallas and I laughed.

They looked at us and I spoke up, “Peppers are outright pieces of shit, but Dallas chooses to eat them.”

“But,” Dallas shot me a dirty look, “Eris wants to kill herself with bacon and pepperoni and sausage.” I rolled my eyes.

“Well,” Magnus said, “you can always mix and match.” Bull nodded then added, “Both are delicious.” Bear rolled his eyes before saying, “Grow up, Chris.”

“It’s okay, you’re grown up,” Magnus smiled.

“Thank you,” Bull sheepishly said.

My mouth was hanging open like I’d seen a puppy. “It’s like a Lifetime movie, it’s so cute!”

Bull and Magnus rolled their eyes but I continued, “Can we like, give Magnus a nickname? Like, uh, Bat! Yes, that’d be so cute.”

“Okay, Eris, the point is to not make him sound like Batman,” Dallas quietly said. Slowly, I touched his chin, turning his angelic face back to me so he could meet my eyes. I smiled then said, “Your nickname would be Bitchy.”

He laughed before kissing me. “Thank you.”

I heard Bull and Magnus laugh, but Bear made a retching sound.

“Why don’t we give you nicknames like… Fruit Loop and Angel Pants?” Bear deeply said.

“I knew I was fruity.” Dallas and Bear shared a secret wink.

“I think those would be beautiful nicknames. Ya know”—I stood up and waved my hands over my body—“I am quite known for my artistic pants.”

“You got that right,” Bull muttered. I had on a pair of plaid skinny jeans, with zippers down my legs and a chain on the belt loops.

“Very creative pants you have on there. Are they spray painted on?” Magnus chuckled.

“Oh, you wish.” I sat back down. “But, yes, I am Angel Pants.”

“And I am not Fruit Loop,” Dallas chuckled.

“You can be Texas!”

We glared at Bull. “Dallas, Texas?”

“Yeh,” he smiled. “Dallas, Texas. Where they do everything big.

I rolled my eyes as they all broke out laughing.

“You should know if it’s big or not.” Bull wiggled his fingers out at me.

“Hell, it should be big because we can hear y’all screaming every night,” Magnus mumbled.

I put my head in my hands. “Dear Lord….”

“Aghh, we’re just ‘fucking’ around.”

Okay, I had to laugh. We were all teary-eyed, laughing and yelling out more puns. Magnus had said an even dirtier one and Dallas put his head on my shoulder while we all laughed our heads off. As we tried to settle down, there was a knock at the door. Dallas looked at Bear.
“I swear if you put together some fucking party,” he growled.

Dallas went to the door and opened it. Xi and Karder?

“Hello, Dallas.” Xi bowed. But, he looked directly at me.

“Our Father needs you, Eris,” Karder said.

Ah, hell. I walked to the door and they cleared their throats. Xi had dull red hair; Karder had a dull blue. They had affinities for Cold and Hot, and they were thee best Professors ever. Xi’s glowing red eyes showed me that something was wrong. I guess they could sense my worrying because Karder reassured me that Brice wasn’t upset.
“Don’t worry, he has some information for you and Tao. And so do we.”

“And… about Aya Rinah,” Xi softly said.

Oh god. I could feel a tugging in my body. I turned to Dallas and weakly smiled.
“I’ll be back.”

He smiled. “I love you. Lemme know if Xi is a douche toward you; he tends to be an ass.” Dallas winked and I gave him a soft kiss.

“Oh, Dallas,” Xi chuckled as we walked off.

Xi and Karder were as mountainous as they came. They looked like they deserved to be MMA fighters or some shit, because I was damn scared of how big they were. Dressed in all black, it made their eyes and hair seem brighter and their sweet smiles even cuter.
“Do you know what he needs?” I weakly asked.

“Chill, Eris. We just have to tell you girls something.” They said that in freakishly accurate unison.

I nodded, and the rest of our walk was silent, except for them conversating in Riate. We reached Ria. 84, and I just felt the air tense up. Entering the large office, I could see Tao’s blue hair in the leather chair. She whipped around and smiled, and I gave her a tight hug. Brice was leaning on his large desk, with an expression so serious that Kristin Stewart had nothing on him. I sat down in the other chair and saw the Twins stand next to him.

“Girls,” Brice commenced, “there’s a bit of information my sons would like share. Apparently, they know who killed Aya, and who’s been eliminating all of those dragons, gargoyles, gremlins and personal pets. This isn’t something I’m proud of at all, but, we all have to face the facts. So, boys…”

Xi spoke first, “Lena. Lena’s been doing all of this.”

“Aya included. She poisoned her, and, she’s been using those gremlins and gargoyles as stand-ins for rituals,” Karder added.

“In fact, our aunt has had us kill some, because we were under a spell.”

“A spell to help her with any cruelty she needed, and to keep it a secret from our Father.”

“And, with Aya, Lena spilled a potion over her dorm room, and anything she touched would kill her.”

“We have no idea why she’d do something like that, but we couldn’t ask. It wasn’t ‘supported’ while we were under the spell.”

“But what we do know is this: she’s not doing this for fun. Lena is doing this purposefully, and we have no idea what that purpose is.”

Xi and Karder gave us the most apologetic looks ever, and I couldn’t be mad at them. Hell, I shouldn’t! It was Lena! The bitch who tried her hardest to make my boyfriend seem like the bad guy! The bitch who killed all of those gargoyles and dragons, but blamed it on Dallas and the Twins! The one to accuse
Me of something she know I’d never do! She was the one to kill my best friend. She was the one to make her suffer. She was the one who wanted us to hurt. She was the one who cast a spell over her own nephews so they could help her kill, and be so… unlawful. It amazes me how Lena and Brice were siblings. This is the woman I once saw as a mother… as my protector… as the one to make all bad things go away… But, as proven in the last month, she was wicked. Evil. Soulless.

“Ahem,” Brice cleared his throat. “And, this is an important piece of information, because last night was the first time I’d ever seen her leave the mansion. As if she was some criminal, who was hiding something. I had Warriors cover campus so she’d be safe and concealed, but, as proves, my sister is more powerful than shows. And, Eris, I know about her little fiasco that involved you and something no one would ever expect you to do.”
His voice was emotionless. He was obviously trying to figure out why his sister would ever be so cruel.

“Brice, I’m so sorry if this comes off rude, but, has Lena ever done something to make you suspicious? No offense, but, she’s been kinda bitchy lately,” Tao blurted.

“Yes, I know she’s been a bit moody.” Brice’s dark expression lightened when Tao snickered. “But I didn’t have any suspicions because I expect her to know what needs to be done. I expect her to know her role. She should expect herself to be loyal, and she should be the High Rian, and High Priestess she’s known to be.”

I shook my head. That was bullshit. Why in the hell would Lena do that?!

“We don’t know, Eris,” Xi quietly answered.

I smiled. But, that wasn’t what I needed.

Brice cleared his throat once more. “We’ll give you girls a shot. Our Warriors will be around campus; Sons of Alke, and Sons of Kratos, but, we’ll need a bit of femininity. That’s where you two come in. Tonight, curfew is out the window, and you two will be walking around campus. I don’t care if you trash the mall—well, I will if it is done intentionally—or if you walk around with a dragon by your side, but, we need to find Lena. And that can only be done with determination and concentration. So, do I have a deal?”

Our eyes shot open. Curfew, out the window? Us, walk around campus? Us, take that bitch down? I don’t know about Tao, but I was in.

“Deal,” we answered at once. Tao snickered and I smiled. We glared at each other, both with the same idea. “But, uhm, what happens when we find her?”

“If it is unfair for her to be so rude and manipulate anyone she wants, why can’t you? I’ve heard of the nasty things she has done, but I never wanted them to be true. So bring her back so she can explain. Bring her back so I can personally make me sister stop being this evil person,” Brice firmly said. His dark eyes flamed.

“Got it.”

“Merry met, merry part, and merry meet with Lena in your hands.” He saluted us with a bow, and Tao led the way out. Well, shit.

Tao grabbed my arm and we stopped in the hall.

“Okay. Well, how in the hell are we gonna do this?” she asked.

“Easy-peasy. Just find the bitch and blow her face off,” I smiled.

“Eris. We don’t have our powers.”

“But the Sons of Alke and the Sons of Kratos do. So, if we find one of them, ask if they’ve seen Lena, and if not, we do our own thing. Okay, I have a plan: you go toward Ria. 151 (the mansion), and I’ll go toward Ria. 01 (the track and car garage). Look, if you spot Lena or have any idea where she might be, send a text saying OTR (On The Run). Okay?”

Tao nodded. “And, we’ll be close enough, so, don’t leave until you and the other person know where to go,” she says. We split off and went our separate ways.

Anyway, I entered the car garage, and I heard the familiar sound of an engine starting up. Someone down the few rows was going out on the track. Up by the east wall, I knew there was a staircase that led up to the roof, and it would give me a perfect view of campus. I hurried off to the staircase and skipped up the wood steps.

The door was very heavy, and it took a lot of energy to open it. On the roof, there was a little ledge that I stood on to be a bit taller. If I was down below and looked up to see a girl in plaid skinny jeans and a black batman top, I’d be pretty freaked out. Looking over the tons of oak trees, I could see a few colorful heads walking around, but, I hadn’t seen one with royal blue hair. I turned to the left, and I saw even more oaks from Ria. 200. Still no blue hair. It was getting kinda dark, and that would make my vision twice as effective, but the sun was shining an orange/ peach color over the sky.

My phone blasted All About That Bass by Meghan Trainor. Oh, Tao.
“Yeah?” I answered.

“Dude! I see you! One of the Sons said he saw her exiting the mansion, and she went the other way, but he couldn’t catch her. Get off the roof, grab a cool car, because we’re driving that bitch through the portal!” Tao panted, she was running.

I hung up then ran back out. Me, drive an awesome car? Hell yeah! Down on the first floor, I couldn’t choose, but there wasn’t time for that. Ya know what, I grew up watching Vin Diesel and Paul Walker driving a black ‘67 Mustang GT500 (Shelby, of course), so I wanted to give it a try. (The Fast and Furious cast would be so proud to see me rage-driving after a mad woman. This was some action movie shit.)

A few rows down, I spotted one and could barely hold in my scream (this was my version of nails and hair and shopping). I ran down, hopped in and squeezed the steering wheel.
“Damn, I love you,” I sighed.

Keys weren’t needed. All I had to do was say a few Riate words, and I was good.

“Aus qwe nhu.”

Vroom, vroom, mutherfucker. I smoothly drove out of the garage and saw Tao running toward the door. She hopped in then smiled.
“Holy shit, this is like, the best birthday gift, ever!” I giggled.

“Okay, yeah. So, go down this way. The Sons of Alke were super hot—and I mean fucking burning—and he said she ran in this direction. And, Eris, I encourage you to speed.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I will.” I changed gears and slammed my foot down. (Hey, I hadn’t been driving in a few months—and this was also my dream car.)

Driving into the woods was easy, dodging a million bushes and trees was not. Tao gasped and hit my arm.
“Look, look, look! There she is! This way!” she squealed.

I saw her blue hair flying behind her body. Lena was using her Rian super speed, and she looked like blue blur. But don’t worry, I was going 95 and getting faster.

Oh shit! I was not expecting her to open the portal! The portal was about to close but Tao screamed the words, “Ru si wer do nof!”

Darkness. Slamming.

“Hahaha!” Tao laughed. “That was fun.”

“Wait—we can’t just speed through Chicago! How the hell are we gonna keep up with her?!”

We weren’t in my backyard—thank god. But we were on a street, and we would be pulled over in less than two seconds. Wait! We needed invisibility like we were nothing but air. I know I didn’t have my powers, but I had to try if we wanted to get Lena.

I’m perfectly silent… no one can see me… no one can hear me… I’m like the mist… dreams… spirit… air… light…

I could feel my body lightening up. Like I was air, light, dreams, spirit. The car had gone a transparent blue color, and I could see the people walking around on the street, but they didn’t even notice us. We moved like the wisp of a thought or a secret, undetectable and hidden in layers of silence and fog, mist and magic. My body shivered. It seemed we were actually floating, and when I glanced down at my myself I saw only a shadow within fog within a shadow (if that made sense). Tao’s voice scared the bejeezus out of me.
“WHAT THE FUCK, ERIS? HOW DID YOU DO THAT?”

“I read about it,” I cackled.

Damn, reading did help. The car was speeding after Lena, and her body was nothing but a bird. (When a High Rian goes back onto Earth, they change from a bird and person on command. It was trippy.) She was a white bird, with streaks of gold, and she was flying straight ahead of us. I almost freaked when the car went straight for a building.
“Eris, you’re gonna kill us!” Tao exclaimed. “Turn!”

“I can’t!” I was frozen and my pulse was racing as the car sped up by itself.

My eyes screwed shut as the car hit the wall. “Hit” wasn’t what happened. We went through the building. I even saw the receptionist yelling at a client; she was mad. The car zoomed to the other half of the building and we were back on the street. Tao’s mouth dropped open as she laughed, “Holy shit! Hahaha! Damn, this misty stuff is helping!”

Hell yeah. Okay, this all seemed like a crazy action movie, but it was so real and so amazing that I couldn’t stop laughing. I almost lost Bird Lena once, so I slammed my foot down as hard as possible and we caught up to her again. Lena was flying hella far, but I didn’t know if she had a certain destination. The annoying buzzing of one of our phones went off in the cup holder.
“Eris… it’s Dallas,” Tao said.

“Oh, fuck! Pick up,” I hissed.

Tao swiped her thumb and said “Hello?” in her sweet voice. Dallas talked for a bit and Tao bit her lip. “She’s right here… driving… where are we? Uh, chasing Lena… no, for real… Dallas, she can’t talk…”

I looked at Tao and mouthed, “Speaker.”

Tao nodded then hit the button.

“Hey, babe! How are you?” I giggled.

“Where are you? And, are you seriously chasing Lena? Because I can hear that loud-ass engine,” Dallas shot back.

“I’m in Chicago, and, yes, we’re seriously chasing her. And, I know right! When I turn 19, can you get me this car?!”

“Maybe, Avatar. You’re in Chicago?”

“Yeah, and, we’re chasing Bird Lena.” I looked at Tao and said, “Why is she flying down here?”

“I dunno! But she does—” Tao was cut off by what we were seeing.

“Baby, I’ll call you back soon, I promise,” I said to the phone.

Dallas hung up. Well then…. It was an abandoned warehouse; I could see the broken windows and the dilapidated facade. The building looked like it’d collapse in any second. At the big door in the front, Lena formed back to her human body, then did a quick look around before stepping in. Tao looked at me. I mentally asked for the mist to go away, and I felt solid again… but the car wasn’t.

Tao put my phone back in the cup holder, and we stepped out of the air-car. I slammed the non-existent door then followed Tao up to the large, broken doors.
“Ding dong,” she muttered.

We slowly opened the door, and there was an entire staircase of wooden, crushed, bent and unsafe steps on the right of us. “Who’s going first?” I asked. Tao gave me a death stare, but gently placed her foot on the bottom step. There was a loud, dangerous and not-so-good sounding creak from the broken wood. She closed her eyes and whispered, “This better be for a good cause.”

To be continued…
====
END OF PART 6
I hope you all enjoyed this part, and I hope you hated the big cliffhanger. I didn’t want to focus on Maz and Tao too much in the story, but let me know if you’d wanna hear more about what happens to them. The last part of the story is practically an action movie, and Eris and I have the same favorite car (ha ha).
Does anyone have any suggestions for what they wanna see in part 7, because it will be a longer part, and I would love your suggestions. The next part will have some major events, and it’ll be up soon for you to read 🙂
-L11

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