T W E N T Y - T W O

NOVA

There were a lot freaking clues on this list and while some of their were relatively easy, clues that  referenced the garden or coliseum, other clues weren't so easy.

Specifically ones that made me scratch my head and wonder how the hell I was supposed to finish this thing in two and a half hours.

Three clues in particular were making me scowl at the stupid list on my tablet.

Clues:

1. In order to understand and learn the past, you must first enter the building that houses them.

2. I used to be a tree but I traded my roots for routes. I have a rose, but I'm no garden.

3. The entrance where you watch the Seasons change from time to time.

"You know, if you keep scowling like that, your face will get stuck like that."

My head snapped around at the familiar voice, a smile tilting my lips when I saw Pluto heading towards me in a crazy cool new chair.

"Cool ride" I smiled as he stopped right in front of me "Mind if I take it for a spin sometime?"

A grin lit Pluto's mouth, lightening up his handsome features even more.

"I'm offended new girl" he chuckled "We've barely known each other for less than a few weeks, due to your reluctance mind you, and now you're asking to borrow my stuff."

"What can I say" I shrugged "You've got some pretty cool stuff."

Somehow his impossibly large grin widen even more.

"I told you I had a chair for everything" he said before tilting his head and looking at me curiously "Whatcha doing out here?"

I tilted my tablet his way "This stupid Scavenger hunt for one of my classes."

"Are you almost done?"

"Nope" I snorted "I barely even started."

"Can I see it?"

I handed my tablet over to him and he scrolled though my tablet.

"Oh, this is easy" he said, scrawling down some answers on my worksheet.

"Easy for who?" I gaped at him "Because it sure as hell wasn't easy for me."

"That's because you're new here and the Professor is a bigot twit" he said, those amazing eyes locking with mine "Chandlers right? This shit has his name all over it."

"I think that's cheating" My lips twitched "I didn't fill out a single thing."

"Sure you did" he smiled, handing the tablet back to me "You see that answer at the top? You did that."

"That's the name portion" I laughed "How important is that?"

He snickered "So very important."

I glanced down at the screen.

"Ah ah ah" I said smugly "I wouldn't be so cocky Mr. Fancy wheels."

"Why not?"

"Because you forgot two" I showed him, pointing out the questions, the one about the changing of seasons and the garden.

He smiled "I purposefully left those unanswered."

"Why?"

"Because those are the most important ones."

I narrowed my eyes at him "You don't know the answer to them, do you?"

He snickered "Caught me."

I grinned in satisfaction "So what are you doing here?"

"Remember I get a ten minute grace period before class?"

I looked at my watch "Its already past ten minutes."

"Oops" He shrugged "I must have got lost."

I let out a laugh "Now I know why everyone's always warning me away from you."

It must have not been the right thing to say because his laughter died quickly after that, an unknown emotion taking over his face.

"They tell you to stay away from me because I can't shift anymore" he said quietly, so soft I almost didn't hear it "They think that my congenital disability will somehow rub off on them."

My heart softened as I related to his words in a way I never thought I would.

"Whoever thinks that is an idiot" I grabbed his hand and squeezed it "Trust me, I've dealt with more people like that than I care to admit."

"Yeah?"

I nodded.

"My brother is autistic and you wouldn't believe how many kids nowadays are assholes" I said with a scowl "I swear, out of a class of twenty, like eighteen of them are satan's litter personal spawns."

He laughed, his eyes gaining back that spark of mischief once again.

"Look at you" he teased, poking my hip "You didn't know it, but inner she-wolf was always there."

"If that was my inner wolf then I'm scared for the rest of the population."

"Why?"

"Because she can be a real bitch sometimes" I said with a grin.

He let out a howl of laughter, making me giggle at the joyful sound.

"You're something else new girl" he said, wiping a tear away from his eye "Something our world isn't ready for."

I snorted at his words, my eyes shifting down towards my tablet as a notification pop across it.

Twenty Minutes left before it was due.

I sighed.

"You gotta go?" Pluto surmised

I nodded.

"Before you go" he pointed to my right, his gaze locked on a spot of foliage "One of the answers to your questions is right there."

"How do you know?"

"Because I've been a student here longer than you have" he said with a smile "Duh."

I chuckled at his words and took a step forward, about to head in the direction Pluto pointed out to me when his voice rang out.

"Nova?"

I glanced at him from over my shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Whatever you do, don't stand too close to the door."

"What?"

He didn't answer me, instead choosing to give me a secretive smile as he turned around and went back to class.

What freaking door?

~~~~~~

The door in question was just that...

A freaking door.

Which was very freaking disappointing considering what my brain was imagining.

While I was expecting some kind of grand pearly gate or wrought iron door, I was vastly disappointed when I was met with a plain wooden doorframe in the middle of the freaking forest.

Like just a doorframe with no door and thick trees lining on either side of the frame.

The space where the door should have laid shimmered and glinted in a way that had me drawing closer.

I gasped when I saw what laid beyond this door...veil...portal...whatever you wanted to call it.

In front of me was a scene that looked like it came right out of a fairytale.

Snow so white and thick that it made a Californian like me, someone who only dreamt about snowy winters because of the movies or shows I saw on the tv, want to jump right in and make snow angels.

I swear I could feel the icy snow all the way over here...smell the crispness of their air that was so refreshing and relaxing that I tilted my head back and sighed, the tension easing from my shoulder fractionally.

I was just about to reach out and touch the door when it shimmered again.

My eyes widened when the scene shifted in front of me, the snowy fairytale turning into floral field.

"What is this?"

The scene changed again, quicker this time, but instead of it turning into another delightful change of scenery, the door dimmed into darkness that had me gasping for an entirely different reason.

I swear it looked like the dark forest from the Wizard of Oz, the menacing branches curling towards me as if they were alive.

Something moved inside the portal, immediately drawing my eyes towards it.

I squinted as a tall and hazy figure came into view, stalking towards me really freaking quickly.

I took a step forward, leaning towards the door to see what the hell it was, when a familiar voice startled me, making me whirl away from the door for a moment.

The door shimmered again and this time, a summer beach scene filled its view.

I turned to find a very pissed off looking Phoenix stalking towards me, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides, making those annoyingly attractive muscled forearms pop out even more underneath his uniform sleeves.

Why did the biggest assholes have to be so handsome?

"What in the ever-loving fuck are you doing out here?" he barked, looking around as his eyes searched for something "And alone too? Where the fuck are your guards?!"

"How am I supposed to know?" I narrowed my eyes "I didn't even know they existed until a few days ago."

"What are you doing out here?" he repeated.

I waved my tablet at him "Classwork."

"Alone?" he growled

"I wasn't alone" I raised my chin "I just finished talking to Pluto..."

Before I could finished explaining, he let out an unamused laugh.

"Of course you were" he said with an eye roll "Because you tend to do the opposite of what anyone tells you to do."

"Not anyone" I narrowed my eyes "Just you."

"Of course" he rolled his eyes again, grabbing my upper arm "Come on, let's go."

I dug my feet in the grass "What is that?"

"What is what?" he said, acting dumb.

I narrowed my eyes at him "And you wonder why I don't listen to a single thing that comes out of that stupid mouth yours."

Said mouth dropped open in surprise, his eyes flashing with some unknown emotion.

"What are you doing here anyways?" I snarked at him "I thought you had a class to teach?"

That surprise look turned into one of complete smugness.

Uh oh...I don't think I like the mischievous grin that his stupid face was rocking.

The one little grin transformed his entire face, his posture changing instantly as he became someone I didn't even recognize.

"You keeping tabs on me little Star?" he purred.