Night Class

September 10th, 2019

Tuesday 10:30am

I move to go around Rhea once more but the stubborn danag refuses to be swayed. This has been my life for the last three hours. After realizing that no one was letting me leave my room, I took a nap that led to sleeping well past breakfast and now Rhea still won’t let me leave the room at all.

“Rhea.” Giving her my best glare, I cross my arms. “Move out of my way or else.”

“Sorry, Izzy.” Her smile is a kind one, but I’m far too annoyed to read into it. “We both know that you’ll only run to find Ehren and you need to give him some space right now.”

“I want to help him find his brother!” Throwing my hands up into the air in frustration I exclaim, “You know, our friend! He needs all the help he can get if the guy was taken by vampire hunters!”

“I know that!” Rhea’s voice turns harsh now, her face becoming contorted with anger. “You don’t think the rest of us want more than anything than to help him? You don’t think Nicolas wants to just break down Ehren’s door and hold his friend until he stops freaking out! You think for a second that Vera isn’t having a breakdown in her own room because she was the one guarding Kieran when the- We want to comfort him, we do, but he needs space and we’re giving him that!” She points a finger at me now with tears in those glowing blue eyes. “You walk around here acting as though you’re invincible, Isabella, but you’re not! Ehren is dangerous, especially right now when he can’t control how angry he is. How do you think he’d feel if you were to barge in there and then the nether hurt you by accident? He needs to calm himself down right now, on his own, without the risk of hurting anyone. Why can’t you respect that?”

She’s right. Slowly, I take a seat on the unmade bed with a heavy feeling in my chest. She’s absolutely right. Ehren showed me his gift, let me see the pain he feels when he uses it. Much like the rest of the gifted vampires, I’m sure his is also triggered by strong emotions. For him though, his can cause death with just a simple touch. It’s probably for the best that I keep my distance from him, for now at least.

“You’re right,” I admit to her. “I’ll stay away from him while he’s processing everything, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t still help him.”

Her eyes snap to meet mine now, curiosity eating at those bright blue eyes. “Elaborate.”

A grin spreads across my lips as I say, “We need to take a trip to the library.”

Mr. Gilly stands just at the edge of our table with a look of concern on his face, but he says nothing as he lays out the last of the books on the table and walks away. Rhea looks mortified as I start opening different books and laying them out in between us. Each one holds a different section of notes on the hunters, the ancient ones from long ago. I had the pleasure of briefly running across an article or two about the disgusting bigots on one of my trips to the library to get away from everyone.

“What exactly are you looking for?” Rhea asks as she skims the books before her. “Something involving the hunters?”

“Yeah. When I was in here before I noticed that marking from the arrow- the one that nearly ended my life.” I toss the parchment from the vampire settlers’ book onto the pile between us. “Here it is.”

I tap the giant B with a simple oval-like circle around it, a snake slithering around it, weaving in and out from under the line.

“B-Bromley?” Rhea leans back now in her chair. “That’s impossible. The Bromley family crest is of a raven holding a fig twig. Not this.” She motions towards the symbol that lies just above the Bromley name.

“It hasn’t always been a raven.” We both jump at hearing Ehren’s voice. I turn to see him standing in the library doorway, looking as though he’s been put through the ringer. “They changed it thirteen years ago, so not many remembers their old insignia.”

“But you do?” I asked him, briefly forgetting that his mother was technically a Bromley.

His hard eyes turn on me before nodding. “Yeah, because I look at the old insignia every day.” He pulls out a locket on a simple gold chain. The front of the oval locket has a capitol B with an oval-like shape circling it with a snake slithering around the line. “It was my mother’s. This is proof that Arlo is behind what happened to Kieran.”

“And this.” I push the book towards him with the seal on it. “We need to talk to Natalia.”

“Not possible, I’m afraid.” Mr. Gilly now stands just beside Ehren, but not too close. “Queen Natalia is still preoccupied with the headmaster of Reinridge. She’s not expected back for at least another two days.”

“Two days!” I stand on my feet now. “Isn’t there some way to call her? She needs to know that Kieran’s been vamp-napped!”

Rhea stares at me for a moment, probably because of my use of the word vamp-napped, before turning to Mr. Gilly now. “Rupert, this may be one of those moments where we make an exception on breaking the rules of conduct when contacting the queen.”

“Rules of conduct?”

Ehren sighs out, “Us of the lower social class aren’t permitted to call upon a royal directly. It’s seen as a sign of disrespect.”

“Yeah, well I’m not lower social class.” I rush from the room while shouting, “And screw respect!”

The thought of Arlo Bromley hurting Kieran has my heart racing, most likely triggering every danag’s bloodlust in the entire school-building, but I can’t help it. I need Kieran back here knowing what I know now about Emmy’s dad. He basically threatened me to Ehren, and I’m not even related to him. God only knows what he’d do to Kieran. Rushing down the familiar hallway, I reach Natalia’s office doors and shake the handles. Locked. I back up a bit and take off running at the door, but two arms swiftly catch me before I make impact.

I turn around to find myself in Ehren’s arms. “As much as I appreciate you fighting so hard to help, I’d rather you didn’t break yourself doing it.”

He releases me and approaches the doors themselves. With one simple motion, I can hear the inside tumblers snapping under his forceful strength. Without a second thought, Ehren enters the room and begins searching through my aunt’s cabinets. He seems to know exactly what it is he’s looking for, so I leave him to that section. Making my way around her desk, I begin opening her drawers and looking for some form of emergency contact number. Surely Natalia wouldn’t just leave the entire school alone for three whole days without someone in charge or a form of protection in place.

I look up to see Ehren’s back still turned towards me. His back muscles ripple under his thin white cotton shirt. It takes so much focus to keep my heartrate even now as I just let my eyes drink him in. His tall frame towers over the cabinets as his washed-out blue jeans threaten to fall off his hips. I don’t think I’ve ever just taken the time to look him over without being interrupted or worried that he might catch me staring. He’s beautiful. It’s not just his eyes or his body either. He’s really beautiful. Everyone around him acts as though he’s ready to snap any minute and just leak nether everywhere- they’re terrified of him. Not one person has ever told him no or went against him, other than me. I’m not scared of him or his powers. He must be lonelier than he’d ever actually admit and something about that echoes until the waves reach my heart, pulling at its strings until I find myself standing just behind him.

Tentatively, I reach out and caress the middle of his back. His muscles are tense, but I think that may have more to do with the fact that no one ever actually touches him.

“I didn’t mean what I said in the shed,” he admits quietly. “You’re not something I have to deal with. I enjoy watching over you, protecting you. I was just-”

The silence thickens before I finally whisper out, “You were just angry.”

He finally turns to face me. His breath fans out over my forehead, just barely brushing the bridge of my nose. I stare up into those bright blue eyes, shining with a single ounce of moss green. Now that we’re face to face like this, I can see the small crook in the bridge of his nose, almost as if it’s been broken before and set wrong. There’s a small spot near the corner of his lip on his right cheek, right where I’m sure a dimple would be if he would only smile. I want to see him smile.

“What are you doing to me, Isabella?” His hand tentatively touches my left cheek, grazing the flushed skin. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do here. I’ve never- I don’t- You’re the first person to ever make me feel this way.”

“I’ve never felt like this either,” I whisper out. “You’re not alone.”

His hand slips from my face and he steps farther back, a look of sorrow in his eyes now as the brightness dims. “Kieran likes you; you know. He’s a great guy too. I love him. I really do love my big brother, no matter how much it may not seem like it. So-” He shakes his head now before turning away. “We should just forget anything that’s happened between us. It’s for the best.”

“Ehren-”

“No, Isabella.” He looks at me now. “It should be Kieran. It needs to be Kieran.”

With that, he turns away once more. His back muscles are tense now as he continues searching through the cabinets. Maybe he’s right. He doesn’t seem like he’s ready to be with someone right now and Kieran has already expressed just how ready he is. The remembrance of him having a girlfriend already kind of puts a damper on the idea, but all of that can wait until after he’s back home, safe.

Home.

My hands grip the desk in front of me now. Shaky breaths escape my lips in pants. This is my home. I never thought I would consider this place my home after everything that’s happened, but it’s true. This academy is my home, and these vampires are now my family. No matter how confusing my feelings may be right now about the Knox brothers, Kieran is a top priority until he’s safe. Ehren and I can revisit whatever this is between us after that.

“Got something.”

Turning around, I’m face to face with Ehren again. The dhampir seems to be holding his breath as my eyes zero in on his plump lips. They seem so pouty, ready to be kissed. His tongue, wet, darts out and caresses his lips. It was so quick, a little too quick. Briefly, I’m reminded of how Kieran’s tongue felt against mine and now I’m fantasizing about Ehren’s doing the same. I’d bet his kiss is deadly compared to Kieran’s. Unlike his brother, Ehren makes my heart pump from something beyond lust and wonderment.

Taking a deep breath, I back up a bit and remind myself of my little pep talk just moments ago. This can wait. Kieran first, Ehren after. It may be a bit harder than I had originally thought possible.

“W-What did you find?”

He holds up a folder, placing it down on the desk. “A file showing all of Arlo’s properties. If he’s holding Kieran than it would be somewhere he can have complete control and access.”

“I still don’t understand why he took Kieran in the first place.”

Ehren releases a dark chuckle, tapping his fingers against the desktop. “Because of our parents. My father and Kieran’s mom have been pushing their agenda for blood equality. Arlo wants nothing more than to sabotage their campaign and the best way to do that would be to distract them with a missing kid.”

“Okay, but I’m still not understanding.”

He leans against the desk, his legs spread a bit so that I’m standing in between them. I make sure to keep a bit of room between us though, unsure I would be able to hold back should we even slightly bump into one another right now.

“If Dad and Ruth push the agenda through then that would mean more laws protecting us dhampirs from discrimination. Arlo can’t have that. Should the laws get passed, Arlo would be prosecuted for-”

Ehren’s eyes meet mine now, a shadow of doubt shrouding them. I understand already though, without him explaining. Arlo would finally be punished for murdering his birth mother. I’m sure he didn’t mean to nearly reveal this to me so soon, but here we are.

“I, um- Well, Romans kind of...” My palms begin to sweat, worried that Ehren will be mad that Romans and I talked about his personal situation. “He told me already about your mom and Arlo. I’m really sorry that we- I just wanted to know more about you, and I was concerned because of our little run in with Arlo yesterday.”

His jaw is ticking, tight with understandable anger. “It’s fine. But yeah, that’s why he doesn’t want the laws passed. He’d finally get what he deserves.”

“I get it. We just need to get to Kieran before your parents notice him missing.”

The doors open and in comes a very angry Rhea. “Are you two insane? Breaking into the queen’s private office! Snooping through her things! We are so getting the death penalty.”

“Relax,” Ehren breathes out. “She won’t care if it’s to save one of her precious gifted.”

“Ehren.” My tone is more warning than anything. “What did I say about calling yourself-”

“We needed to get these files, or we’ll never find Kieran.” Ehren completely cuts off my sentence, moving towards Rhea now with the folder in hand. “And I have an idea where he might be holding him. Now, let’s go.”

He brushes past Rhea, roughly. The danag looks conflicted now as she looks between me and the door where Ehren’s just left through. There’s a small measure of guilt behind those blue eyes.

“Rhea?”

Her eyes avoid mine as she leans against the wall now. “The group- You were asking why my beanbag was thrown out and why I don’t spend time with them anymore. The reason we had a fallout? It was over Ehren and Kieran.” Her body slides down the wall and she brings her knees towards her chest. She looks broken now, far from the woman I’ve grown to know. “Kieran and Ehren were arguing in the treehouse. None of us ever involved ourselves in their arguments, knowing it would make things worse. But this time, it was an argument none of us could ignore. Kieran and I- Well, we were sort of a thing, secretly. Neither of us wanted anyone to know about it, but Ehren found out. He was angry because-” Her breath hitches. “Because I was messing with Kieran behind Ehren’s back. It was wrong, I know it was, but I needed help defying my parents and Ehren was the perfect option.”

She used Ehren.

“My heart belonged to Kieran, but I needed that corrupt status that Ehren brought me. At least long enough so that my parents would hear about it, but something happened.” Rhea drops her hand into her hands, a waver in her voice. “Ehren started to actually like me. He opened up to me about things and I still chose Kieran. I broke him and now he doesn’t let anyone in anymore. He was already so, so closed off because he was afraid to hurt people with the nether and I- I just took his feelings, his trust, and I threw it away like it was nothing. To solve the entire issue, the whole group kicked me out and Kieran left me alone. He refused to be with me after hurting his brother, because he didn’t know I was seeing Ehren, and that’s when Mandy decided to make her move on him, while he was vulnerable. And Ehren- Ehren can still barely look me in the eyes, and I don’t blame him at all.”

Silence envelops the room now. I want to get angry; I want to defend Ehren and stick up for him, but I can’t. The disgusting truth is that I’m glad him and Rhea aren’t a possibility. I don’t want to see him with anyone else. Seeing him with someone else would be too much to handle.

Warmth begins to spread in my chest now at the realization that Ehren has been opening up to me. He trusts me enough to talk to me about certain things, feels comfortable around me. I get it now. He’s pushing me towards Kieran because he thinks that I’ll end up being like Rhea; that I’ll cheat on him with his brother. That would never happen.

“It explains why you and him always seem to bump heads.” I sit down next to her on the floor, bringing my own knees up to my chest. “I’m not sure I can say anything that would ease the situation, but if it helps, I still think of you as my friend.” She looks at me with surprise. “I don’t see you any differently because of this. You’re still the same Rhea, you’re still my watcher. Do I feel bad for Ehren? Yeah, I do, but it’s in the past. We need to move past it in order to help rescue Kieran.”

Standing on my feet now, I extend my hand to the still-broken looking danag on the floor. “If you really still care about either of them, you’ll push away all of that stuff until we get Kieran back safe and sound.”

“I’m scared,” she whispers out.

The admission rattles me. Rhea, a nearly invincible vampire is scared. The words themselves solidify just how alike they are to humans. Everyone, even bloodsucking monsters can get scared.

“So am I, but our friend needs us. So, for a lack of better words, suck it up.”

Her eyes linger on my still-extended hand before accepting it. Lifting her to her feet, two arms wrap around my shoulders. Rhea’s face buries into my neck, and I can feel her tremble slightly.

“Thank you.” Her voice barely above a whisper.

We leave the office and head for the main area. Arguing can be heard from right in the entrance of the academy. It's Giles and Ehren going back and forth with one another over us rescuing Kieran.

“You can’t just leave the school,” Giles protests. “Mother would have a fit if she were to discover that all of you were gone.”

“What should we do then, huh?” Ehren throws his arms up, clearly frustrated at my cousin. “Sit around and wait on your mom to come back from playing fetch with the lycan’s? I don’t think so. My brother is out there and I’m bringing him back-”

“You’re not thinking clearly about this.” Giles doesn’t seem like he’s about to back down. “We can all sit down and discuss this properly before making rash decisions like breaking into a Bromley estate.”

“As much as I love a good rebellion,” Romans says while stepping between the two. “Giles is right, Knox. Maybe this is what Bromley wants; for you to make a mistake and be thrown in prison.”

“He has Kieran,” Ehren grits out. “I’m getting him back one way or another.”

I rush forward, placing myself in between Romans and Ehren now. “Enough! Kieran’s life could be at stake right now and you three arguing isn’t helping to get him back.” None of the boys respond. “So, our best move is to at least check out the estate where Ehren thinks Kieran is being held at. Worst case scenario is he’s not there and we go check out another place. If he is there though, we break in, grab him, and go.”

Everyone’s quiet. Turning to face my cousin, I can feel Ehren’s breath fanning out against the back of my neck. Don’t turn around. Don’t let your heart skip a beat. Easier said than done though, I guess. My body is now hyper aware of how close we are. Nothing could ever go back to being normal between us and I’m not sure I’m too torn up about that.

“Alright.” Giles steps closer to me now. “But if we do this, we do this smart. No rushing things and definitely no getting caught. If Mother asks-” He shakes his head, hands on hips. “If she asks, then this was all my idea.”

“And mine,” I tell him. He smiles as I say, “It was a family decision.”