No Longer Alone

Chapter Eleven: The Reason

I didn't even think. I just reacted. My hands were around Sebastian's throat before anyone could blink. At first, he didn't fight back, becuase he didn't know what happened. Once his brain caught up, he was struggling. Magnus was yelling at me to stop. He was also attempting to get me off of his brother. I ended up kicking him to the other side of his hut. Sebastian suddenly went limp, surprising me. My grip involuntarily lossened. I was turned over onto my back. Sebation straddled my hips and burried his face in the crook of my neck. He breathed in deeply, taking in my scent.

"I'm masochistic, Sweetcheeks. I thought the last few times we were in this situation would clue you in." He whispered in my ear.

I could feel something I know would scar me for life, and it was rubbing on my thigh. "You're disgusting." I didn't sound discusted in the slightest. Before I could get even more destracted, I reached up and punched him as best I could.

Magnus pulled his older brother off of me. I instantly jumped to my feet, ready for the fight to continue. Sebastion wasn't going to get away with peeking at me. Instead of killing him like I wanted to, I took a deep breath and stormed out. I ran into Starr half way to my little home.

"Are you ready?" She asked.

"Ready for what?" I questioned hesitantly.

"To get branded. You've been asking since your last test. I told Sebastion to tell you. I guess he forgot."

"Sure. Let's get this over with."

"Okay." She led me over to the only burning fire, besides the one that's used to cook.

Moon was holding a branding rod, keeping the design in the heart of the flames. He looked over and lifted a corner of his mouth in greeting. I guess he was going through a silent moment. This time when I looked at him, I actually noticed the tattered scarf around his neck, covering most of it. The scar must be pretty bad if he wears that all the time. We had something in common, really. I make sure to wear nothing but t-shirts and long sleeved shirts. My body was not something pretty to look at. It was warped with years of beatings and lashings.

"I'm going to get everyone needed, stay here." Starr said, jogging away.

Moon coughed a few times and cleared his throat. "Admiring my scarf?"

I smirked. "It's pretty."

He chocked out a laugh. "Sure it is. Want to see what's underneath? Nothing compare to what to have hidden."

"This isn't a contest."

He nodded in agreement. Moon unwrapped the scarf and exposed his neck. The ragged scar took up the length of his throat. It look like they let the new guy do it. It wasn't in a straight line like a professional cut him. There were plenty of people that cut poorly on purpose. I came in contact with many of them. They like making more of a mess than was necissary. The scar almost looked familiar. Actually, it did look familiar. The air around me suddenly felt thick. It was getting hard to breathe. I started getting light headed. Moon noticed a change in me.

"Carman, what's wrong?" He asked, worried.

I gripped my chest, right above my heart. Was I having a heart attack? I was about to gasp for air, when I felt an arm snake its way around my waist. The contact made me snap out of my panic attack.

"Good to see you again." Sebastian said.

I pushed him away, trying to catch my breath. Moon was looking at me with an almost knowing expression. I closed my eyes for a few seconds before opening them back up and turning to face Sebastian.

"Why do you always have to be here for these things?" I demanded, as if nothing had happened.

"Because I'm in charge of this camp. If you don't like it, take it up with the big guys."