The Hunter Academy

~Çhapter Fįfty-Ęight~

I paced around my bedroom at the Academy as Lucas argued from his spot by the glass wall.

"It can't be Chase! Okay! She isn't-"

"You don't know that!" I snapped at Lucas and I closed my eyes, turning my head up and releasing a sigh.

I couldn't help it when I snapped. I hadn't been getting much sleep, constantly holding my Adler, debating on calling Benjamin and Stella but always deciding against it plus, I'd forgotten how tiring school was. I was always more tense wth less sleep and I was snapping more often then I would have liked.

I sat down on the edge of my bed and held my head in my hands.

"Okay, Lucas," Amara said sternly and I could only imagine her glare, the scars making her look even scarier. "That's enough. It's only been days and you're already getting testy."

I felt the bed dip down under someone else's weight before a pair of hands landed on my shoulders, working in small circles. I felt my shoulders relax and gave a lazily, tired smile at Zac over my shoulder.

The worst and best thing about him is that he knows when I'm about to snap, properly snap, and I can't hide it from him.

He smiled back and plopped next to me as I looked at Lucas. God knows where Julian was, but he wasn't here. "All I'm saying," I began all too calmly. "Is that it's a possibility-"

"No it isn't," Lucas snapped back and I was steps away from throttling him, just give me a damn chance to state my reasons.

But Lucas wasn't like that, he wouldn't bend for anyone. He believed in fact not fiction. It's admirable but it also makes it so it's hard to present a theory to him.

I clenched my fists. "What if the rings are what's being used to track us? Well guess what! Victoria doesn't have a freaking ring! Siren, no! Pegasus, no! Phoenix, no! Dragon? N-O!"

Lucas stalked closer to me. "Okay guys, I think we need to calm down just a tad," Amara stated as she wrapped her arms around Lucas and tried to pull him back to the widows but he merely shrugged her off and I could see the hurt before she stepped away.

"Okay then," her voice a little higher then normal. "I can see where I'm not wanted. I'll go look for Julian."

She scurried out the room and I heard her sniffle quietly just before the door shut with a quiet click behind her.

My attention was brought back to Lucas as he clenched his jaw. Damn, he was mad. Just me proposing a theory about Victoria being the ones tracking us had him snapping at me.

He really did believe in the goodness of authority... that's kind of sad.

Zac carefully wrapped an arm around my waist as I was about to stand up until I was nose to nose with Lucas because I will not let him believe that he can trust any adult until he learns the hard way that no matter what your age trust has to be earned not given.

I shook my head. "I just... there's this feeling and you told me to trust my instincts because they will be the greatest weapon in my arsenal. Well guess what?" I looked up at him. "Something doesn't add up."

"Oh yeah and what proof do you-"

"I said I have a theory for a reason," I snapped again and I almost forgot Zac was sitting next to me until he grabbed my hand and tugged on it.

I looked at him but my eyes glanced past him, guessing wrong about where he was sitting, and instead catching sight of my... my desk draw that I locked because...

I stood up so abruptly that Zac's grip on me slipped. I told Lucas that the argument would be 'postponed to a later date' before rushing over to my desk.

The book, the package the Councillors had given me. I had complexity forgotten about it when I still did Chemistry with Julian - who says I'm erring better but I highly doubt - as well as combat with Lucas - we've broadened to my abilities as well as weapons and hand to hand combat - not to mention the early tutor sessions with Zac just to learn the things that Hunters learnt growing up... except one thing that I haven't learnt.

I pulled the package out of my draw and ran back over to the bed ignoring Lucas' weird looks as she plopped down next to Zac.

"The Councillors gave me this and they told me to give it to Victoria-"

"And you haven't?" Lucas asked as he sat down next to me.

I raised an eyebrow. "They didn't say when I had to give it to her."

Zac smirked next to me. "Rubbing off on you am I?" He winked and I rolled my eyes.

"Believe what you want to believe Night."

He gave me a lopsided smile as he mused his hair. "Always Archer."

Lucas gagged. "Do you mind," he said. "I don't particularly enjoy seeing you two flirting with each other."

I almost chocked on air. "We... we aren't- we're not... flirting?" I looked at Zac as I said this and he just had the biggest grin on his face, I was afraid it would split in half.

"Well maybe I am Archer," Zac said as he wriggled his eyebrows.

I smiled with a small shake of my head. I grabbed one of my knives from my Master Belt and carefully undid the tape before pulling the book out of the package.

"The Councillors gave it to me because I couldn't read... Hunteris? Huntiris? Hunt-"

"Huntarius," Zac corrected and I nodded.

"So I'm guessing that you guys can read it then," I said and they nodded.

"It's like how someone born in... France and moved to England, they might speak English and French in their house so they learn both," Zac explained before plucking the book out of my hands. "It's just a second and or first language that Hunters-"

He froze as he looked at the book cover. My curiosity and interest had been piqued. "What?" I asked.

"Yeah Zac. What's the ma-"

Lucas peered at the cover and froze, paling.

"What?" I asked loudly and Zac's head snapped towards me.

"Chase this is Blood Magic."

"And?" I asked.

Lucas looked at me. "Blood Magic's illegal."