Hellhound (Supernatural #1)

12: An Ugly Revelation

Truth, noun.

1.the actual state of a matter.
2.conformity with fact or reality; verity.
3. an obvious or accepted fact; truism; platitude.

***

As it turned out, one of the chemistry teacher, Mr. Davidson, was a warlock.

All male magic-users are warlocks.

The next day, my tour of the supernaturals at school continued. Before school, he had taken me up to the greenhouse on the roof. There had been one girl inside when we had gotten there. I had recognized her as Diane; she was a short girl with shoulder-length light blond hair. She had elfin features and a sweet smile. When Tate had opened the door and had let me step inside before him, a wave of humid heat had hit me square in the face. There had been plants everywhere but in a well-organized placement. Amongst greenery, Diane had appeared with an apron tied around her waist and a watering can in her hand.

"Hey Diane, I thought Sebastian would be here now."

She had smiled at the both of us, looking utterly relaxed. She had fit right in with all the different greens around her; she had been the bright burst of color. She was the flower in that greenhouse. "He called me this morning; there was some trouble in his own greenhouse. He sounded so panicked and talked so quickly that I didn't entirely get what happened. Anyway, he asked me to water the plants instead. Was there anything in particular you needed? Maybe I can help?"

"I wanted Sawyer to meet a nature spirit. Sebastian agreed to show her a few tricks; I suppose you have the same powers, right?"

Diane's smile hadn't faltered but it had tightened. "I heard you were introducing a human."

"She's not human; she's a supernatural, I can assure you. I simply haven't figured out what she is quite yet."

She had visibly relaxed at those words. The smile had brightened and had been genuine. In the minutes that followed, she had shown me a few cool tricks; a newly planted seed that grew into a fully grown flower in a matter of seconds. She had made the ivy grow along the wall and made it retreat again. She had changed a red rose into a white one. And, before we left, she had handed me a handful of fresh strawberries that I snacked on while we walked to class.

After we had left, Tate had told me that nature spirits such as Diane weren't real nature spirits. They were half-breeds; a human parent and a nature spirit one. In Diane's case, her mother was human. Her father was the spirit linked to the maple tree in their backyard. Because he was linked to that tree, he was basically a stay-at-home dad; he couldn't venture too far away from that tree without getting sick. Other nature spirits, Tate had added, could be linked to lakes, ponds, rivers, bushes, flowers. If the humans treated them right they might reveal themselves, and a stereotypical love-at-first-sight story would follow.

"They are the only supernaturals who can reveal what they are without risking death for themselves or the humans they tell. They have this keen sense about people; they would never reveal what they are if there is even the slightest possibility of the person blabbing. Which is a good thing, because there is no way of turning someone into a nature spirit, and killing every single human who ever met a nature spirit would probably cut the earth's population in half."

"Wouldn't that solve overcrowding issues," I had joked, causing Tate to chuckle.

I had wondered briefly how many more supernaturals Tate could possibly introduce me to when I had gotten his text, telling me to meet him in one of the science labs. By the time I had gotten there, Tate was already talking to Mr. Davidson. From the look on Tate's face, I had instantly known that I was about to meet another supernatural.