76
Lucy
Someone hurried by as I followed her toward the giant doors at the front of the building. I watched the step into the air and take off through the air. I gasped as the figure started to fly away.
“How…”
Araya chuckled. “Brooms would be way too obvious.”
I looked over to another set of people who were conjuring fire in the palm of their hands and chatting over books. As we went through the doors, I smelled a different floral scent in the air. There was a pair of people, a man and a woman, with a bunch of books floating behind them. The largest one was floating just in front of them as they walked and talked. In the middle of the large room was a long row of desks a few feet into the building, but I could see people walking around and heading off into random doorways behind it. The back wall was all glass and showed a landscape that couldn’t have been real.
Everyone looked so busy. It was kind of what I imagined a college to be like except for all the magic. Araya led me toward a clerk behind the desk.
“Welcome!” she said cheerily. “Always a pleasure to see you, Officer!”
“The same to you. She’s here to register for…” Araya frowned and looked at me. “You said that you were supposed be a student. What kind?”
“I… I don’t really know.”
Araya turned back to the clerk. “She’ll need an evaluation.”
“Of course!” The clerk said. “Please step up and let me get you in the system.”
I stepped forward and handed over as much information as I could manage, including my new supernatural ID number. Then, she told me to take a seat and an evaluator would be out to get me.
“Think you can handle it from here?” Araya asked.
I fiddled with the hem of my shirt and nodded. “I think so.”
Araya smiled. “There’s no rush. I don’t mind if you need a little support, hm? It’s a pretty big endeavor you’re taking on. Most werewolves don’t even bother to explore their magic in any way.”
I kicked my feet. “Do all werewolves have magic?”
She tilted her head. “They wouldn’t say so, but officially, yes. All shifters have magic. It’s just different from the magic of a witch. You probably can’t cast spells, but being more in touch with your magic could help you manage your shift and your strength a little better.”
She shrugged. “I’m not sure how much like other shifters werewolves really are since you have that whole contagion situation, but they’ll be able to answer all your questions.”
I nodded. “It will be nice to have someone able to answer them, even if I don’t know what they all are yet.”
She grinned. “You have plenty of time to figure it out, and you came to the right place to ask questions. The Hecate Coven loves to educate.”
“Lucy Graves?”
I looked up at the young man holding a clipboard and stood. “That’s me.”
He glanced over me and frowned before nodding and extending his hand. “I’m Jason. I’ll be your evaluator. Come on back. Before we begin, I have a few questions I’ll need answered…”
I looked back at Araya.
“I’ll be here when you get out and escort you home,” she waved. “Just answer what you can.”
I nodded and followed Jason down a hall as he started asking me health questions. Most of them I had an answer for, and some of the others I didn’t, but by the time we reached his office, I felt a little less nervous. It was kind of like going to the doctor, or that other lady except I was conscious this time. I took a seat on the bench in his office and smiled.
His office was set up a lot like Yvonne’s room, and that made me feel more at ease.
“When was the last time you shifted?”
I winced. “I’m not sure. A while ago.”
He nodded. “I see. Well, based on your records. It was a bit hard to get a read on you. Now that you’ve had your anchor for a while, you should be able to shift a little easier.”
I fiddled my thumbs. “Do I… have to? It’s not a full moon.”
He chuckled. “You don’t need a full moon to shift, Ms. Graves. You’re a werewolf.”
I frowned. “But… they said.”
I shook my head. “Okay. What do I do?”
He walked over to a bookshelf. “Once upon a time, werewolves could only shift under the full moon, but the species has evolved beyond that and had been for some times. Is it easier to shift under a full moon, sure, but it’s not necessary.”
“Is that why I could refuse to shift?”
He turned back. “Refuse? What do you mean by that?”
I bit my lip. “They… Tony and Matt they tried to make me shift during a full moon, but I didn’t want to, and I just didn’t.”
He nodded. “Actually, yes. Though that probably speaks more to your magical aptitude than anything. Do you know if either of your parents were witch-descendants?”
I shook my head.
He shrugged. “No matter. I’m sure we can get to the bottom of that when they’re done with the lineage search…’
He pulled a box out and brought it back. “For now, let’s focus on your evaluation and getting you ready to start classes. In your case, you just need a little boost to shift. That restraint is the main reason why it’s not easy for you, and shifting is good for your health.”
“H-How so?” I asked. “I mean… the last time I shifted, I was going to kill something.”
“Normal,” he said and opened the box. “You hadn’t shifted before. Losing control of your instincts a little is normal. You have to understand that the wolf you turn into isn’t just a physical form, it comes with all the rest of it to.”
He wrinkled his nose. “Though the understanding of that is so muddled in the werewolf community.”
“… you’re talking about mates, right?”
He smiled. “And that whole dynamic business.”
He rolled his eyes. “There’s a whole section in the library about it. Years and years of study, if you’re interested.”
He came around and offered me a large gem that glowed with silver light.
“We’ll try a moonstone first,” he said. “If that doesn’t work, we’ll move on.”
I took it. It was so warm in my hand. I felt the heat spiraling through me. My skin started to tingle. It didn’t feel at all like it had that first time, but it was more comfortable. Fur rippled over my skin. My eyes widened as I felt my body start to shrink. In place of my hands were paws and I looked up at Jason a little fearful.
“It will wear off soon,” he said. “Onto the bench, hm?”
I tried to climb up onto the bench, but I couldn’t manage it. My limbs felt weak and unstable. He helped me up by lifting me onto it and hummed.
“You’re quite underweight,” he said softly. “I suppose that would make sense…”
I frowned. My human body wasn’t underweight. Why would my wolf body be?
The bench lit up and he hummed a little more before the light vanished and I shifted back into my human form. Nothing ached or pulled. It felt just like I was changing clothes or something. The gem had lost its glow. He picked it up.
“Whoever gave you that anchor knew what they were doing,” he said, tutting. “That restraint really hasn’t done you any favors.”
I lay back, feeling a bit exhausted as he talked.
“Hard to say exactly what it’s restraining completely, but I will say that you’re going to need a lot of training to try and break it.”
I nodded. “Can I get that training here?”
“Most definitely,” he said. “I’ll get your profile over to admissions. You won’t need to be here full time. You’ll probably end up in the night class, but that should be fine since you’re not planning to go into magical law enforcement.”
I frowned. “How… do you know that?”
He cocked an eyebrow. “What?”
“How do you know I’m not planning to go into magical law enforcement?”
He chuckled. “You’re a female werewolf.”
He waved his hand. “Give you a few years—hell, a few months and you’ll be going on about how you found your mate and want children.”
I sat up fully. Something hot and angry burned in me. I was so upset, so angry. I thought of those women and Matt and Tony telling me that all I would ever do was have children and die.
“I’d like to speak with an admissions councilor myself.”
“About what?”
“About the magical law enforcement courses.”
His eyes widened, and for the first time in all the time I could remember, I felt proud.
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