Energy

RORY

“Wow, Aurora, great outfit!” Mia says in a teasing sing-song voice. “You look like a total princess.”

She’s wearing a normal party dress and a smug grin as she crosses the crowded living room toward me.

“On anyone else this look would be ~too much~,” she says. “But actually it’s perfect.”

She steps back to join her giggling lackeys.

I clench my fists and tell myself that punching her perfect nose won’t do me any good.

“This isn’t a costume party, is it?” I ask even though I already know the answer.

Another glance around the room and it’s clear Mia has done this to humiliate me. Everyone looks like a normal college student.

And I look like I’ve traveled here in a bubble.

People are giving me weird glances.

I hate to admit it but I feel like I’m right back in high school or my old pack being bullied and picked on by the popular girls.

~How can someone be this cruel?~

~And how can I let them make me feel so small?~

I thought I was coming here to have the perfect college experience and it feels like a nightmare from my past.

Not wanting to face the laughter any longer, I turn and move to leave. But Mia grabs my arm.

“Wait, where are you going, sweetie? The party’s just starting.”

I tug my arm away from her and catch my foot on my petticoat.

~Stupid ballgown!~

I topple forward, tripping over myself and crashing onto the stone path outside the door.

Kids are staring. Some look concerned. Most of them are laughing.

Something wet and warm trickles down my lip. I wipe it with the back of my hand and stare at the red smudge left there.

My nose is bleeding.

~Great, that’s just what I need.~

I turn back to see Mia and a couple of her friends standing in the doorway, smirking down at me.

Suddenly, it’s all too much.

I manage to get to my feet, holding my wrist against my nose in case it’s still bleeding.

Once I’ve gathered my dress with my free hand, I start running.

Just like Cinderella, I run away from the frat house. I leave the college campus and hurry back to where I know I’m safe.

Back to where my prince is already waiting for me.

***

EVERETT

“You’re home early,” I say.

Aurora gently shuts the bedroom door behind her. I can’t see her very well in the dark, but I can make out the sloped shape of her shoulder and hear her ragged breaths.

I flick on the lamp next to the bed.

“My little mate, what’s wrong?”

She turns to face me with flustered cheeks and clenched fists.

She’s wearing a dress that looks like a marshmallow. ~I thought she was going to a frat party…?~

“It was a disaster!” she says.

“Come here.”

She waddles over to me and plops onto the edge of the bed.

“Can you unzip me?” she asks.

I move forward and release her from her corset.

“Do you want to talk about it?” I ask as she stands and lets the dress fall to the ground.

She shakes her head, then crawls back onto the bed and snuggles up to me.

“Do you want me to kill someone?”

She laughs gently into my chest.

“I don’t know how I could be so stupid,” she says, finally looking up. “All I wanted was one night to act like a normal college girl, and she ruined it.”

“Who did?”

My anger flares. If someone has hurt my mate, I’ll tear them apart.

“Just Mia, that stupid girl from the Red Moon Pack.”

Killing a Red Moon Pack wolf would not be a great step toward unification.

But I want to right now.

“Should I excommunicate her?” I growl jokingly.

Aurora laughs and shakes her head.

“No. She’s a dick, that’s all. I should have known better than going to a party in that ridiculous outfit.”

“Excuse me?” I ask playfully. “That outfit was a triumph.”

Aurora slaps my chest gently.

“Don’t tease.”

“I’m not.” I hold her at arm’s length so that I could look at her. “You looked amazing. Like a princess.”

“I’m just glad to have it off.”

I take in her little frame in just her bra and underwear. I start to feel my blood rushing south.

“Me too. Although seeing you dressed like that was kind of sexy as well.”

I raise an eyebrow and grin mischievously.

“Kind of sexy?”

“Incredibly sexy!” I purr.

“Everett, don’t be ridiculous.”

“I’m not, little mate. Just seeing you all dressed up makes me want to do things to you.”

It’s not even a lie. I’m fully erect now, my cock straining against my boxers.

“Like what?” she asks.

“Like tear it off you.”

She licks her lip and grins.

“Well, I’m still wearing underwear.”

“That’ll have to do.”

I roll over so that Aurora is underneath me, trapped between my thighs, and tear through the strap of her bra. It comes away easily in my strong hands.

She lies beneath me with her breasts exposed and my mouth floods with saliva.

There’s a hungry look in her eyes. Her tears have all disappeared.

I pull at the elastic waistband of her underwear, feeling her delicate skin on the back of my fingers. Elongating one claw, I carefully slice through the fabric.

In one swift motion, I pull the tattered garment out from under her and toss it across the room.

Her hands are on my thighs, gripping my muscles. My cock feels like it could rip through my boxer shorts.

All I want in the world is to make her feel good. I never want to see her cry or be upset.

And tonight I want to make her feel better than ever.

I run a hand through the valley between her breasts, letting it come to rest on her hip. Then I lean down and leave a trail of wet, hot kisses across her chest.

Her nipples are stiff peaks and I flick them with my tongue, playing with them. Aurora moans and begins to move under my touch.

Each flick of my tongue sends her body twisting in a different direction.

Every little nip of my teeth and she gasps.

The sound drives me wild. So wild I can’t help but slip a hand inside my boxers and begin stroking myself.

I kiss down her perfect, soft belly until my face is between her legs.

I breathe in her amazing scent and I can’t take it anymore.

My tongue finds her center and I begin lapping like a parched pup.

Aurora’s moans become deeper, louder. She’s losing control as well, and I love it.

I become more determined. I’m going to drive away any negative thoughts in her mind.

I’m going to give her so much pleasure that she’ll forget everything else that happened tonight.

“Everett,” she pants. “Kiss me.”

I rise to meet her lips, finding her core with my fingers.

Our kiss ignites a fire within me, and suddenly the two of us are floating.

I continue to pleasure her, exploring her with my fingers and jerking myself off with my free hand.

I want to chase away the darkness and bathe her in light.

I want to take her to another universe where nothing is wrong and never can be.

I feel her muscles clenching.

Her kisses become more forceful, and I respond to her ferocity.

Finally, her whole body tenses. She clings to me as her muscles spasm.

Her eyes are closed, but her mouth is open.

I drive my fingers into her one last time, and she cries out in ecstasy.

Slowly, her muscles relax, and she becomes limp beneath me. My little mate is exhausted.

I place her head gently back against the pillow and curve my body around hers.

With my arm draped around her, holding her solidly to me, I begin to drift off to sleep.

I didn’t even finish, but it doesn’t matter to me. Tonight was about Aurora and making her feel good.

From the way she’s already snoring lightly, I think I accomplished my goal.

***

RORY

I wake up on Monday morning feeling invigorated.

Mia’s cruel prank is already a distant memory.

Nothing but a distraction.

I kiss Everett’s cheek as I hop carefully out of bed. He took care of me the night of the party in a way I’d never experienced before.

And all weekend he’s been an angel, making me feel good and taking care of me as much as possible.

He even learned how to make fluffy pancakes!

And I’m grateful.

He showed me that I don’t need to worry about the small-minded games of my classmates. They aren’t important.

What matters is him and me and our mission. To unite the packs and keep them safe.

That’s why I’m attending university. No other reason.

It’s time I knuckle down and forget about any other distractions.

I don’t need a perfect college experience. Partying was never my thing anyway.

And I don’t need friends.

Last week, I learned the basics, but I wasn’t able to move from theory into practice.

~This week will be different.~

I march determinedly to class, ready to face the day.

“Good morning, Aurora,” Professor Xander greets me as I enter the classroom. “Ready to try again?”

“Absolutely.”

We get straight down to business.

First up, Xander walks me through a guided meditation. He thinks it will help me to access the deeper recesses of my mind, the place where my consciousness fades into the spirit realm.

After an hour of sitting cross-legged, I feel extremely relaxed. I open my eyes, experiencing a new sense of tranquility.

Then we head to the bench at the front of the room. I worry I’m going to find this all too intimidating after last week.

But I feel different. As if my desire to accomplish my goals has solidified overnight.

I’m not here to prove something to Everett. I’m here to prove it to myself.

“Remember,” Professor Xander says as I stare down at the dead fly laid out in front of me, “channel the energy from the world around you, focus on the balance, the harmony of all living things, and try and put some of that energy into the fly.”

I close my eyes, and this time, instead of focusing on one single light bulb, I reach out to every atom.

Every particle in the air, in the ground.

Every ounce of energy in the world.

I pull it into myself. Golden strands flicker and snap as they float toward me.

I take that energy and direct it to the fly.

I can hear something. A quiet, high-pitched buzzing sound.

So I open my eyes.

Moving about on the work surface is the fly. It’s still trying to find its bearings, but its wings are beating.

Then all of a sudden, it takes off, floating in the air in front of me for an instant before zipping away.

“I…I did it!”

Professor Xander is smiling widely.

“You did,” he says.

I almost can’t believe it. I managed to bring a fly back to life.

~Sure, it’s not a whole person, but it’s a start.~

“Now,” Professor Xander says, “the real work begins.”