Chapter 13: Apparently Not A Cat

Evangeline

I wake to a crushing weight on my chest. Like, literally. Are cats usually this heavy? Maybe Roxy is pregnant. However, I haven't seen any other cats around, let alone males, so...

I blink sleepily, shaking away the random, irrelevant musings and make a move to shove the cat off my boobs. My hand grazes warm flesh instead of glossy fur. My eyes fly open.

"AH!" I shriek at the top of my lungs. The being on top of me rolls off the bed and onto the floor with a grunt. I rake the strands of hair out of my eyes and stick my head over the edge of the bed, clutching my pillow. Stupid Evangeline. As if that will protect you from harm.

It's a...person. They roll over, and eyes like melted gold meet mine. Slit black pupils, inky, tousled hair and that unmistakably mischievous grin.

-

Isaiah

The guys and I are making our way to the new dorm, laden with cardboard boxes full of our belongings. Liam's is with us too, because he's busy eyeballing Evan, whom according to his report, has already moved upstairs. The new dorm. The we're supposed to share with Evan. My displeasure at this is merely an understatement.

Ever since he arrived, he has been nothing but trouble. Why bring him in, anyway, and waste precious, limited resources on him? He was, or is perfectly able to survive on the outside alone. His presence alone is enough to prove that, nevermind luck. There is no such thing.

Regardless, Blackwood and the Headmaster still want him. Need him, even. Evan Marshall is literally a walking, talking (and not to mention scrawny) plethora of information about the Outside and it's Monsters. That's what everyone calls it. Every student here has already lost all recollection of anything they may have experienced there. Loss of family, encounters with demons, so even if the 'academy' were able to successfully hone our various abilities to their sharpest and very best, the odds would be against us. The venture into the unknown would most likely end up with all of us ending up dead in the blink of an eye by some wormy creature from the depths, skilled or no.

This brings me to my second point. Within Evan Marshall's body lurks a power greater than anything else the Hybrid race has ever seen.

I'm betting that his Trait outburst yesterday was merely the tiniest of tantrums, and that's an understatement as well, which is why Headmaster Terrathorne practically covets him, though she may not show it. This place is a prison, where the Headmaster and organisation trap Hybrids with the pretense of 'giving them a safe place to stay'. The authorities here are actually poking around with us like Guinea pigs in a cage, trying to bring out our abilities at their finest. If only he could see through the newness of his environment and the sugarcoating.

If his Hybrid status is legit, despite his obvious human appearance, given proper training, Evan could destroy the world with a snap of his fingers. Other students now avoid him like the plague, but I won't give up so easily. He has to leave before things start to get serious, and our shared living environment gives us the perfect opportunity to do so.

A sudden squeal from somewhere down the corridor interrupts my cogitation. It isn't a cry of pleasure, but one of fear, and it came from our dorm room. We immediately drop our things, and race to locate the source of the noise.

Room 305. Inside the room, last bed to the right, Liam is sprawled in a naked, totally unconcerned heap on the ground with a pile of blankets, while Evan kneels on the bed, leaning a little over the edge, wide-eyed and holding a pillow like a weapon.

"What the fuck," Rafe hisses. The rest of us share the same sentiment. Evan breaks the awkward, tense silence. "So, you're not a cat."

Liam swallows and nods, looking shy. That's strange. Liam is never bashful. He tugs a corner of the duvet over his junk, in an attempt to cover himself, which only draws Evan's silvery eyes to the not-so-subtle movement. He flushes a bright pink and chucks the pillow at Liam's face. Wait. Is he gay?

Adam coughs. "He isn't." Evan frowns, apparently still grouchy from his little nap. "Then explain. Everything." My lip curls. "I didn't know we owed you an explanation." He scowls deeper in return, glaring daggers at me and folds his arms over his chest. "You do. Wonder what the Headmaster would say if she found out you sent one of your lackeys to spy on me?" Adam grunts. "Fine."