The Animal Inside

Chapter Eight: Heroes

The weekend couldn’t come around fast enough. It was just the beginning of the week when plans were made, so I had to endure the whole week before I could let off some steam. It was an intriguing week though. After all, it was my first week at the Academia. My two other subjects, Combat and Battle Theory and Shape Shifting Theory, were very interesting. Combat and Battle theory was, like the name suggested, the theory behind battle, deciding when to make calculated moves, learning about weapons, and studying famous and infamous battles in history. Shape Shifting Theory was fascinating. We learned about how the body behaves when shifting happens, and how to avoid getting into awkward or dangerous situations while shifting, as this was a time when shape shifting Supers were vulnerable.

My training sessions with Diego were going well. I had told him all about my sudden burst of strength. Well, not all about it. I left out the whole kissing part. We experimented with this new strength, but it didn’t show up again. I continued training with my senses. I was getting very good at tracking.

Lock and I hadn’t talked about that moment in the gym since it happened, but we were certainly becoming closer. We continued our training sessions together. Lock would walk me to my classes, even classes we didn’t share like Natural World Studies, or Shape Shifting Theory. When we walked, his hand would often find mine. None of the others seemed fazed by it, which was strange to me. It was like they didn’t notice it. I know they did though, because Gaia would constantly pester me for details of our budding romance.

My eyes continued to change between the two forms. I mainly kept them normal, however, when my concentration slipped or my mind was on other things, the glamour would drop and my cat eyes would reveal themselves. The first time Gaia saw my eyes was hilarious. I had just come out of the bathroom after having a shower. She had just walked in with an armload of books. She looked at me, and screamed, dropping her books. I had to explain to her that my eyes changed and that one day they would stay as cat’s eyes. The others had seen my eyes change on occasion, but they all just accepted that it was part of who I was. Still, I felt self-conscious when I had cat eyes, so I kept them normal everywhere except my dorm room. It has taken Gaia a bit of getting used to, waking up and seeing a cat staring back at her, but by the end of the week she acted like it was the most normal thing in the world.

Finally, Saturday rolled around. Everyone seemed excited. We decided to leave the Academia at about seven. Aldedge was about half an hour’s drive from the Academia, and we planned to spend about two hours at Heroes to get back in time for curfew. There was a mini bus that would ferry us from the Academia to Aldedge and back again.

After dinner on Saturday, we all rushed off to get ready. After throwing half the contents of my closet onto my bed and floor, I finally found what I was looking for. It was a strapless black dress, with a sequined bodice and flowing skirt that reached halfway down my thigh, perfect for a night of dancing. I had brought it a year or so ago for a wedding I had been to. I curled my hair, adding loose ringlets to it. Finally, I applied some simple make-up. Black eyeliner and mascara, nude eye shadow and a simple lip gloss; nothing to fancy.

“Wow, you look amazing,” Gaia squealed when I emerged from the bathroom.

She was wore a green dress, a similar length to mine. The bodice was tight while the skirt had a feathered look to it. Her dress was also strapless.

“Me? You look fabulous,” I said.

Grabbing our clutch purses, we headed downstairs to meet the others. It was agreed that we would meet in the girl’s common room, as the girls made up the majority of the group. The room was mostly empty, a few students coming and going from dinner. I spotted Noa and Kimi sitting by the TV, so we went to join them. We settled onto the couch, waiting for the boys. A news program was on the TV.