Fox 10

"You're headed to the training center?" Jason questioned as he walked beside us through the school grounds. We had run into him when we first left the dorms. He looked particularly dashing as he strolled besides us his blue eyes sparkling in the morning's sun.

"Yup! We're going to work on Tae's shifting and my fighting." Levi replied excitedly. "Oh! And Alistair's spell use too."

"It's good to always challenge yourself. It'll only help you grow more as a mage and familiars." He smiled.

"So where are you headed?" Alistair questioned.

"I'm one of the advisers at the training center today." He explained.

"How many advisers are there?" I questioned.

"Anywhere between fifteen and twenty. You might actually meet Mr. Corin's other familiar, Thomas, there." Jason replied with a hint of a blush tinting his cheeks.

"How many familiars do mages have?" I asked.

"It depends on the mage and how powerful they are. Usually beginners only have one until they graduate and then they'll take on more and more as they become stronger. Alistair is a special case and it's definitely a unique skill and a testament to his strength to have two familiars at his age." Jason praised and Alistair blushed.

"What do you do as an adviser?" Levi questioned completely missing the subtle blush completely.

"Well I usually give pointers to students who want it during their training. I'll enter the training room with them and tell them what it is that they need to work on and how they can better defend themselves. The other advisers simply monitor what happens in each room to be sure that nothing dangerous happens." He explained as he reached out to hold the door open for us.

I hadn't even realized that we had made it to the training center with all the talking we had been doing. The three of us brushed past him as we walked inside the building where there were only a handful of students walking around.

"See! I told you it was a good idea to come this early." Alistair poked Levi in the cheek.

"That doesn't mean it's okay for me." He snarled. Clearly Levi wasn't a morning person and he made it clear to everyone who asked.

"Since it's your first time here I would advise that you three spar with an adviser present in the training room." Jason suggested as he followed us inside the training center.

"Do we just pick one we like or..."Levi questioned.

"You can sign in and an adviser will be chosen for you." He explained.

"So we might not get you?" I questioned.

"Why? Do you like learning with me?" He teased causing my cheeks to heat up.

"No! I mean, well of course but n-not like th-that." I stuttered to which he simply laughed as he led us to the front desk where a charming older woman sat waiting for us.

"Who are these lovely young men Jason?" She questioned brightly.

"This is Alistair, Levi, and Tae."

"Aren't they absolutely adorable." She cooed causing us all to blush. "You better be careful that Tommy don't get jealous again."

"Tommy?" Levi questioned with a smirk.

"Don't worry about it. Carol can you sign them in and give them the first available adviser?" He questioned as he dismissed Levi completely.

"Well I'll be darned." She smiled brightly. "Their advisers have already been chosen for them courtesy of Mr. Corin."

"No..." Jason groaned.

"Yes hun, it seems like your mage simply loves torturing you." She giggled.

"What's going on?" Alistair questioned.

"You've been paired with Jason and Tommy, two of Mr. Corin's top familiars. They will be your advisers for up to three hours." She explained.

"Why?" Levi questioned.

"It says here that you three are a special case." She replied.

"You three are more advanced than you think. Each of you have a skill that shouldn't be present in beginners such as yourself and yet you do. Not to mention that you also started later then everyone else so they're trying to get you caught up more or less." Jason explained.

"So what do we do next?" I questioned.

"Next you find out that you're assigned to training room number 7C and then you go find that room. It happens to be down that hall right there." Carol pointed to her left.

We all thanked her and practically dragged Jason along behind us as he sulked about having to be a co-adviser with this Tommy person. He was grumbling something about hating Mr. Corin and how he was going to quite to become a lion tamer. Alistair guided us through the hall scanning each door number for the correct one as we followed behind him.

"Here we are." Alistair announced as we stopped outside a door. Reaching forward he turned the knob and walked inside. The room was completely blank save for the stranger standing in the corner of the room with a lit cigarette between his forefinger and middle finger. He stood out in the utterly white room in his head to toe black outfit. He turned to look at us pulled the cigarette to his lips and let it hang there as he walked over to us.

"Jason." He greeted him with a small smirk as he completely ignored us.

He wasn't what I was expecting at all but I don't know what I was expecting when I hadn't heard much of him at all. There was this mysterious quality about him but it was evident that he was also quite playful when it came to the right person of course.

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop smoking." Jason sighed as he reached forward and snatched the cigarette from out his mouth.

"Come on Jace. I just lit that..." The new man whined as he pushed his hair out of his face.

"Tommy, this is Alistair, Levi..."

"And Tae. Yes, I know. I've read their files already and know what we need to work on today. Jason how about you help Tae shift while Levi and I go shift in the locker room." He suggested.

"I can shift here." Levi offered. "I'm not shy."

"Wonderful for you but I don't want you prancing around naked in front of my boyfriend there. He's a shy one." Tommy replied as he jabbed his finger into Levi's shoulder.

"Boyfriend?" Levi questioned with a wide smile as he turned to look at Jason.

"It's not like that!" He protested.

"Well if that's the case I'd be more worried about Tae." Levi laughed as he walked towards the door.

"Wait! What? Why me?" I questioned.

"What did he do?" Tommy questioned as he followed Levi to the door.

"Well we were in class when..." He trailed off as he told recounted the story of the first time we met Jason.

"I'll never hear the end of this." Jason sighed.

"I like him." Alistair snickered.

"Yeah everyone seems to just love him." Jason sighed. "Alright Tae have you been practicing shifting?"

"Well, I shifted that one night when we were attacked and that was it." I confessed.

"That's not enough. When you're in your room after class you need to be shift as much as possible just to get the hang of it." It was clear he wasn't pleased with me.

"I know and I will." I promised.

"Don't worry, I'll make him." Alistair chimed in earning him a sideways glare from me.

"Alright then let's do this."

Remembering what Jason had taught me before I tried to shift quickly but it still wasn't as fast as I've seen others shift. When I finally finished Jason was already sitting there sitting on his haunches, already shifted and watching me.

'Don't be alarmed but I will be speaking to you inside your mind as well as Tommy.'

'How?' I questioned.

'One of my abilities is to form quick bonds with others. At this point I can form bonds between ten or eleven people.' He explained.

'That's really cool.' I admitted.

"I agree." Alistair chimed in just as the door to the room was nudged open. In came Levi in his bigger form followed by a large cat which I could only assume was Tommy.

'What's he?' I questioned as he came to stand in between Jason and I. I've never seen an animal glare at me before but it was clear that Tommy was simply glaring at me as he sat there.

'I'm a lynx and I need you to stay at least a foot away from Jason at all times.' He snapped.

'What I do?" I questioned.

'I heard about the kiss. if anyone's going to kiss Jason it's going to be me.' He answered as he turned his head and licked Jason's muzzle causing the blond fox to blush.

"Well then..." Alistair cleared his throat and turned his head away from the scene before us.

'Stop that!' Jason whined, as he quickly wiped at his muzzle with his paw.

"Should we maybe start with the training?" Alistair questioned.

'I agree. Let's start.' Tommy replied sounding much happier now that he claimed what he was sure was his.

'Alright what I need to see first is each of your abilities. So prepare something to show me quickly .' Jason spoke up getting right to business. 'Tae, I'm not sure if you can duplicate your actions when you three were in the forest but I need you to concentrate and try because I believe that could be one of your special skills.'

'I doubt I could do it again. Everyone was in danger and my kitsune took over. I really had no control over it at all.'

'Alright we'll discuss that later for now we should watch what Alistair and Levi have come up with.' Jason answered.

I moved from in front of him and sat on the other side of him earning me a low growl from Tommy. I let out an unintentional squeak before moving a couple inches away from the large fox. Tommy seemed content with the distance as he stopped the growling and turned back to face Alistair and Levi who were standing before us waiting to show off.

"You ready Levi?" Alistair questioned earning him a yip.

Alistair took a few steps back before closing his eyes and chanting a few words. The entire room began to grow dark as if all the lights in the room had been turned off. Levi didn't even bat an eyelash as the room went completely dark. Thanks to my advance eyesight I was able to see what was happening regardless.

Without warning Levi lunged at Alistair and my breath caught in my throat knowing that there was no way that Alistair could see him coming. Instantly a few dark purple spikes formed in front of Alistair and shot out towards Levi who was still running in Alistair's direction. Just when I thought it was over for Levi he multiplied before my eyes into about ten different Levi's running with each other.

'Wow...' I murmured in my head.

'Quite interesting.' Tommy mused.

The spikes hit several duplicate Levi's but only destroyed three of them. The rest jumped high and came crashing down on where I thought Alistair had been but he was no longer there. Levi seemed confused as well as I'm sure he had him beat. Something moved in the far right corner catching my attention.

What appeared to be a whip snapped from out the corner where Alistair was hiding and destroyed five of the remaining Levi replica's in an instant. They turned around and finally spotted him and charged at the corner ready to attack when something changed. The room remained dark but the temperature began to drop rapidly as Levi's duplicates disappeared instantly.

A shrill alarm sounded from somewhere above us as the sound of locks clicking behind us echoed in the unnaturally quiet room. Jason turned to look at Tommy who looked back in confusion. It was clear that no one knew what was happening.

Levi stopped his attack and spun around looking in several different directions not knowing what was happening. He crouched down and the fear was evident in his features as his tail wrapped around his body. I could practically feel the confusion and fear as it rolled off him and over our bond as something sounded on the opposite side of the large room.

'Wh-What's happening?' Levi quesitoned.

'I don't know.' Alistair answered truthfully. 'Come here.'

I could see Levi sprint over to the corner where Alistair was now standing. The room began to get even darker than before making it hard for even me to see with my advance sight. I was starting to get even more worried as the seconds slowly ticked by.

'What's going on?' I questioned Jason.

'I'm not sure...' Jason replied, worry clear in his voice.

'You're not sure!' I snapped in anger as I felt the fear roll off my friends as they cowered in the corner waiting for something. 'Shouldn't you be helping them or something?'

'It won't do any of us any good to just run in there without knowing what we're fighting. We need to wait to see what happens.' He replied.

'Are you serious right now Jason?' I couldn't see him but I knew that he was probably just as scared as the rest of us.

'I agree with Jason. We should just wait and see...' Tommy spoke up.

'Well forget you both.' I snapped as I blindly rushed further into the darkness to find my friends. About a good foot or two in I couldn't even tell if I was heading in the right direction when I felt something large sprint past me, then another, and another. Whatever had managed to get into the room was headed for Levi and Alistair and I wouldn't allow it.

In an instant the purple flames began to grow lighting the area around me allowing me to see what was happening. My body ached and I rolled my shoulders as I ran to where my friends were hiding. I could feel my teeth elongating and my body growing bigger with each step I took. The closer I got the clearer everything seemed to get.

Levi was standing in front of Alistair who was also standing in a defensive stance preparing to defend themselves against the five abnormally large shadow creatures that towered over them. They stood on long sinewy legs that went along with their bony bodies. The emaciated looking creatures turned around with large glowing red eyes glaring at me.

'Tae?' Levi questioned as one of the creatures took my arrival as the appropriate distraction that it needed and lunged forward pouncing on Levi. Both tumbled to the side with Levi ending up on top of it. He bit down into the side of the creature illiciting a loud piercing shriek. Alistair took that time to quickly chant the same spell he had before when he was battling Levi. The spikes appeared again and instantly flew at them stabbing the remaining two beasts.

I wasted no time in attacking the creature closest to me. I wasn't sure what to do but I went off of my instinct and bit into the hind leg of one creature catching it off guard as it tried to get away. I quickly unlatched myself from it before I was kicked and turned my attention to the other creature. My flames grew bright and were launched from my body into the second beast setting the creature on fire.

The tortured cries of the beast echoed in the room as it fell to the side and was burned to a crisp. I turned my attention back to the second one I was fighting. It began to take a step or two back in anticipation of my attack.

"Tae? You alright over there?" Alistair questioned.

'I'm good.' I replied as I kept a good eye on the thing in front of me.

"Levi?"

The sounds of his scuffle finally hit me and I turned slightly to the side to see whether or not he was good. Several Levi's danced around the creature attacking from all ends thoroughly confusing the creature.

'I'm good...' Levi announced just as I prepared to lunge one final time. My fire burned even brighter as I lunged once more at the creature. My claws dug into it's side as I pushed it down and kept it there. I didn't want to kill it, simply injure it enough that it couldn't do anymore damage. This was the second time we'd been attacked this week and I wanted answers and this thing could provide some.

The wail of the creature sounded beneath me as I dug my claws even deeper into the beast. A murky black liquid poured out from the wounds as I held him there waiting for Levi to finish off that creature. The shrill cry that sounded from behind me alert me to the fact that Levi had in fact destroyed the beast leaving me with the only living one.

Levi strutted over to me along with Alistair who crouched down besides me as I held the beast still. In an instant Levi shifted back into his human form and stood besides Alistair with a serious expression on his face as he looked down at me.

"Well you sure are a sight to behold Tae." He spoke up sounding quite pleased with me.

"I would have to agree with you Levi." Jason's voice echoed as the darkness began to lift and the temperature rose.

"Where were you when we were being attacked?" Levi snapped angrily as he took a step forward. Alistair stretched his arm out trying to stop an incredibly angry, incredibly nude Levi.

"I understand how you could feel less than pleased with me but please understand that it isn't as it appears." He tried to explain but Levi wasn't having that.

"It's not what appears? That's the best you could come up with? You piece of sh-" Levi was starting to get really worked up, even for him.

"Whoa there! Don't talk to my Jacey Poo like that. He's a sensitive soul." Tommy growled as he appeared beside Jason, both of them fully clothed.

"Don't tell me how to react to the fact that we could have died while the two of you sat there and did absolutely nothing!"

"Well I'm certain that you wouldn't have died." Tommy replied as he pulled a cigarette out of his back pocket. He snapped his fingers twice and lit his cigarette without the use of a lighter or match.

"You can't be certain of that." Levi growled.

"Actually he can be. He was controlling the creatures that were attacking you. At no point in time were you in any real trouble. We did it to evaluate your skills and your potential in the future. It was the only the way we could accurately measure your abilities." Jason explained just as Tommy waved his hand and the creatures disappeared in an instant.

"I'm sure there was a better way then attacking us." Levi snarled.

"Maybe for you and Alistair, yes. However, Tae here needed a little extra encouragement. At this point he seems to only be able to access his powers when he sees either or both of you in moments of extreme distress." Tommy spoke up.

That seemed to shut Levi up although he was still pissed off about the entire thing. I could see it from both sides but I agreed more with Levi. After what happened to us the other night we were already paranoid as it was and this definitely didn't help to ease our worry.

"Tae, before you shift back Mr. Corin would like to get you checked out in this form and maybe try a few things just to see how you react." Jason spoke up softly sensing our collective frustration with the two of them.

'As long as Alistair is fine with it.' I answered.

"It's fine with me as long as all three of us go together." He added.

"That should be fine. If you wish to cut your training short this week I don't see a problem with it." We turned our attention towards the door only to find Mr. Corin standing. "You three show remarkable promise and you haven't even been a part of our world for as long as some of our other students. Allistair the way you're able to manipulate your magical energy into physical weaponry is genius and the fact that you don't rely solely on your familiars to protect you is very useful and quite advanced for you.

Levi your attacks are quite precise and executed in a timely if not swift manner. You're quick on your toes and try not to waste time. Tae, you're quite amazing in you're own right and every time I see you I'm more shocked then the last."

"It's fine with me." Alistair replied.

"Well then let's get a move on. Levi you need to either shift or put on some clothes before we leave this room." Mr. Corin instructed as he turned to leave the room himself. Jason and Tommy followed behind him without another word as Levi shifted back into his fox. He snorted as he walked beside Alistair and I as we followed the three adult out the room.

*********************

"Can you believe them?" Levi whispered for the third time since we entered the library.

"Yes, now shush." Alistair tried to quiet him down.

"Seriously Alistair. They attacked us just because they wanted to test us? What kind of bull is that? We've barely been here a week and we've already been attacked once. Wasn't that good enough for them?" He huffed.

"In their mind it was the only way to examine our skills to know how to train us. None of us were harmed and overall I believe we did quite an outstanding job." Alistair replied as he flipped another page.

"Yeah, you heard what they said. We're pretty much amazing." I smiled brightly remembering the compliments that they paid us after the training exercise.

"Well of course we are." Levi boasted just as another patron of the library shushed him. He shrunk further in his seat before continuing in a hushed whisper. "Yeah, I guess you're right." He relented.

"Of course I am now stop talking and keep reading. Curfew is in an hour and we need to find something relevant about this Helion guy." Alistair replied.

"Okay, Okay. I'm reading." Levi answered as we both went back to scanning our respective books for anything that we thought could be important.

The more I read, the more intrigued I was by this man. It seemed like during a time when there was conflict between the mages and the werewolves him and his familiars took down an entire fleet of top notch werewolves during a full moon. He was once praised as being one the best mages in the magical world and was offered the highest honor of becoming a royal mage, which he turned down.

He was documented as having three familiars total that traveled everywhere with him. One raven, one fox, and one wolf each with abilities that seemed to compliment and heighten the others. In every book I read about him it seemed like he was the most revered and most treasured asset of the magical community and then all of a sudden something changed and he slowly began to drift into the dark side of magic.

Something happened to him two years before he was caught that changed the way he thought and acted. He became a recluse, only speaking to and communicating through his familiars. For two years the only correspondence anyone had with him was through his raven familiar who would simply relay messages to him from the royal council.

"None of these book say whether or not he was killed for his crimes." Levi spoke up. "They only say that he was apprehended and then detained."

"Same here. I don't think he was killed. They're probably still holding him til this day." Alistair mused.

"If that's true who's to say that he hasn't been corresponding with his familiars still?" I questioned.

"I'm sure if that was the case they would have caught it by now." Alistair answered.

"How long ago did this all happen?" I questioned.

"Not that long ago actually. It's only been eighteen years since he's been caught." Levi answered as he pointed at a timeline in one of the books he was reading.

"Eighteen years? Really?" I questioned.

"Yeah. Right before we were born." Alistair mused.

"Hey, this book says that it was rumored that he had a secret family somewhere. Does that mean that somewhere out there is a little Helion running around trying to get revenge for his father?" Levi questioned.

"If it hasn't been proven that he has a family I doubt we should believe it. Besides, if he had a family I think that the Royal Mages would have found them and would keep a close eye on them to make sure that they wouldn't do anything like that." I replied.

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"Boys. It's time to wrap up here. The curfew will be in effect in about half an hour and you three need to get back to your rooms." The sweet old librarian interrupted our research.

"Yes ma'am." We chorused as we began stacking up our books. We put them back on the shelves where we found them at before exiting the library. The sun was setting and the sky was a beautiful golden red. As I admired the gorgeous sunset I spotted an interesting, if not familiar, looking black bird perched on a tree leading into the forest that we were no longer allowed in. It shrieked once before disappearing leaving me with the odd feeling of being watched as we walked back to our room.

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Tell me what you think my wonderful readers. As a warning there are probably a lot of errors but I wrote it at like three in the morning so...yeah. I'll go back and edit it later. If you find something just let me know...

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