263
Lucy
I whirled around him, seeing Duke walking towards me, dressed like normal and frowning at his phone. He was wearing crisp, new-looking clothes: a button-down, vest, and slacks. His sleeves were still rolled up, and he looked like he'd gotten a haircut, but there didn't seem to be a thing wrong with him.
Even his almost disgruntled frown was still there.
The tears spilled down my cheeks without me meaning for them to fall. I couldn't help it. I took a deep, shuddering breath as if I had been holding my breath for a long time. He looked at me, and his eyes widened. The concern took over his face.
"What's wrong? What happened?"
My anxiety was still buzzing in my ears, and I threw my arms around him and squeezed him close, sighing with relief and shaking as the adrenaline seemed to fade. He smelled like he'd just taken a shower. He was warm, and I didn't smell anything medicinal on him. The cooler he usually had with him rolled along beside him, holding his backpack, too. He seemed normal-- blissfully normal and starting his day late. He wrapped his arms around me, rubbing my back.
"Rough day?" He asked.
I sniffled and nodded. "Y-You weren't in class, and I thought something might have happened to you."
He scoffed. "Sorry. I sent a message, but I guess it didn't go through. Nothing happened."
Just then, my phone chimed, and I could have laughed as I checked it. It was from Duke.
"I'm... I'm just on edge. A-Algebra was weird."
"Sarah complained that much, huh?" I shook my head, and we headed into the class together.
"No. We had a young, attractive professor... he's the reason."
He frowned. "Something happened?"
"Let's... talk about it later. Why were you late?"
He groaned. "Healer's appointment. Went on longer than I thought. Maggie must have told them to run every check under the sun..."
I exhaled, grateful for the simple explanation. I nodded, and the tension continued to drain out of me as we made our way to our usual seats. The weight lifted from my shoulders, and I allowed myself to believe that perhaps the day's strange occurrences weren't connected. Daedalus was one thing, but Duke was fine.
"Is everything okay?" I asked. "Did you go for an injury or something?"
Duke's expression softened, and he leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "I should have. I'm pretty sure Maggie broke my ability to sleep regularly."
I snickered as he ruffled my hair.
"Just some routine check-up stuff. Nothing to worry about." He tilted his head. "You're looking a little longer than usual."
I reached up. "I haven't cut it in a while..."
"Planning to have long flowing tresses?" He wrinkled his nose. "I'll miss the curls."
I shook my head. "I'm pretty sure it'd have to be incredibly long to be heavy enough to not be a mess."
I grimaced at the thought. "And I'd end up cutting it because of all the tangles anyway."
Throughout the class, I found myself sighing, breathing, and glancing over at Duke as if he would vanish at any moment. The warmth of him sitting beside me felt grounding. My mind felt at ease, and the issue with Daedalus almost felt a lifetime away.
When the lecture concluded, Duke turned to me, a playful glint in his eyes. "So, what did I miss in economics? Any groundbreaking revelations?"
I winced. My face warmed with embarrassment. "I... have no idea. I couldn't really focus."
He laughed. "Don't worry. I'll ask someone else for their notes, and we can both get caught up."
"Thanks..." I sighed, shaking my head. "I wonder sometimes if I'm just always reacting to everything that's happened."
"Trying to live like a normal person is making you question your life choices, huh?" He hummed, bobbing his head as we packed up. "Can't blame you. I question my life choices every time I have to get out of bed after training with Maggie half the night."
I laughed, and we headed out. As we navigated the crowded hallways, David hummed. A draft of cold air washed past me. I thought I might have imagined it, so I didn't say anything.
"Though, since we're on the subject of stuff happening to me," Duke said as we walked down the hallway toward the mess hall. "I had a dream."
I bit my lip. "What sort of dream?"
"Well, it wasn't G-rated, I'll tell you that, but it wasn't scary exactly." He tilted his head. "Just weird. Oren and Selene were having another not-so-secret pow-wow."
"About what?" I asked.
"Well, they were in the woods again. I'm pretty sure they were there mostly for the tryst." He wrinkled his nose. "If I never have to watch them fuck again, it'll be too soon. You think she's doing that to torture me?"
I shook my head. "I don't think so. I don't even think she meant for you to be there."
She probably didn't even know that we were peaking in on her meetings with Oren unless we revealed ourselves. What that meant, that we entered her dreams even when she didn't want us to, I didn't know. Was she getting weaker? Were we getting stronger? Was it something else entirely?
"Did she speak to you?"
"Nope. Neither of them even seemed to notice me." He grunted. "I had hoped it was on purpose; otherwise, it makes me feel like the pervert."
I laughed. "Be serious. What else happened?"
"I am serious," he grumbled. "It was horrible. She sounded like a pornstar, and he really didn't seem to understand that she was faking it. He was a poster boy for fuck boys, really thinking they were doing something. It was disgusting."
I blinked at him. "And... you know that how?"
Duke went still, blinking at me. I wondered if I had stepped over a line accidentally.
"She was talking too much."
I frowned. "What?"
He turned his head and didn't look at me. "And she couldn't have looked more bored if she tried when he flipped her over." He paused again. "I could feel how disinterested she was."
I bit my lip. "Duke, I didn't mean to..."
"Trigger me? I know. I'm fine." he shook himself. "Though it's oddly comforting to know that Oren's a terrible fuck. Probably true of his sons." He winked at me. "I'll be sure to emphasize to David that he should be exceptional."
I swatted him as he laughed. "The dream besides that?"
"I need the crystal necklace, blah." He waved his head. "At least until things got weird."
"Weird, how?"
"A white wolf appeared. Selene was trying to get it to come to her, but it wouldn't come, then Oren started wrestling it. He wasn't winning exactly, but he wasn't losing either."
I bit my lip. What on earth did that mean?
"Your face says that wasn't too weird."
"The first time I saw her, she had two white wolves, but the last time there was only one... Maybe it means that she's losing control."
"Yeah, but over what?"
Or who?
A shiver ran down my spine. "I don't know. And I'm not sure if I want to find out."
He slung his arm around me. "Well, Lucy. Something tells me that we won't have a single damn choice in the matter. With the way things have been going, we're probably going to find out in the middle of some life or death moment."
"Don't jinx us."
His eyes glinted with an otherwordly light. I went still, recognizing it from before. "There's going to be blood all over that white dress, but at least things will really get started."
I frowned, blinking up at him as his voice seemed to grow more distant, deeper, like it wasn't him talking. My heart started racing, wondering if Selene was going to talk to me or if it would be Oren.
"Though, the son of a bitch will deserve it," he smiled. "David will make his ancestors proud, the ruthless warrior that he is."
The light vanished, and he turned to me. "Enough about weird ancient creeps. Let's eat."
I blinked up at him, wondering what had just happened, but I fell into step with him. As we left the main corridor, we reached a quieter area. The air seemed warmer, and I could smell the food, and my stomach grumbled.
"What did Blue pack you?"
"Too much as usual," Duke said.
"Hey, you made it!" Sarah called, waving us to sit with her, Michelle, and Amy. "Hurry up, we're starving!"
"Yeah, yeah," Duke said, leading me toward the table.
I went still as the air went cold around me for a second. I turned back and saw Daedalus lurking in one section of the cafeteria. His watch glowed like a star as he smiled at me, almost challenging. Then, his gaze drifted over Duke.
Something predatory and dark filled his gaze.
Then, I heard Sarah.
"Professor Faust, why don't you sit with us?"
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