"Laine" a lilting voice with an Aldic accent called. Laine stopped immediately, recognizing the speaker as Zephyr, his best friend and classmate. He turned and watched as Zephyr floated up to him. Zephyr had short red hair that was always windblown and bright sky-blue eyes which were now trained on Laine.
"What do you want? I'm busy." Laine said impatiently.
"Rin has called a meeting. Apparently, there are things to discuss." Zephyr said wiggling his pointy ears as he hovered a foot off the floor. Laine shrugged.
"So, I'm busy. I can't and don't want to go." Zephyr's wide grin never faltered.
"Rin figured you'd say that, so he told me I was to use whatever force was necessary to make you come. We can have a fun fight before I drag you there. Though, the meeting starts in five minutes, so we'd have to make it quick." Laine's eyebrows drew down as he frowned and thought.
If he fought and got out of the meeting Zephyr would only be more interested in where he was going. That would undoubtedly eventually lead him to Ro, the unknown siren Zephyr had been searching for ever since he'd met her in the locker room. There was no way of knowing if her appearance magic would work on him and Zephyr finding her was unconscionable to him. So, Laine sighed heavily and acquiesced. Laine followed Zephyr in silence to the meeting room as Zephyr talked non-stop.
They entered the room and sat in their respective chairs. Laine looked around the room checking for everyone. The massive oni, Charon was leaning against the wall. Even in human form he was still big, standing over seven feet tall. He looked very similar to a pitbull with a bad underbite, small beady eyes, buzzed hair, and two large horns growing out of the top of his head. He was built though, muscle over more muscles. The delicate Torin, an elf, with his silver-blond hair pulled back in a pony tail, grey-blue eyes, and angelic features was looking out the window. Brown haired, brown eyed Shiki, a nereid, was sitting cross-wise in his chair playing some sort of handheld game. Laine looked for Rin and met his simmering eyes. Laine shivered. He hated doing that.
"Now that we're all here we can get started." Rin said with a smile. Everyone returned to their seats.
"The school has found us a new instructor, so classes will resume next week. Let's try to keep this one sane." Rin said with amusement.
"That was mostly you." Shiki pointed out. Rin's smile darkened sinisterly.
"She was cute. Who knew a human's mind would make such a fragile toy." He continued after a pause. "The school also wants us to pick the rules for tournament this year. Let's discus. It's an open forum."
"An anything goes battle royal to the death!" Charon exclaimed eagerly.
"We would all die because Rin would kill us, you idiot." Torin stated flatly.
He may look beautiful but there was something wrong there. Laine had never, in the five years he had known him, seen any kind of emotion come from him at all. Maybe that was what happened if you saw the future.
Shiki said something next, but Laine had stopped listening. Instead, he was wondering if he'd miss Ro's daily stretches today. He always arrived early every day to watch her move her supple body around. He just couldn't help himself. Sighing, he wondered what that flexibility would do in bed. He imagined her hot, naked body spread out under him like a feast for his eyes. She would look up at him and smile tenderly as she reached for him.
He felt a poke on his arm. He snarled as it ripped him out of the day dream that he was beginning to have more and more frequently.
"What?" He snapped at Zephyr, who had poked him.
"Your demon is showing." Laine lifted his hands to feel the top of his head. Two furry, brown and white wolf ears were definitely up there. He shifted back to his human form.
Zephyr gave him a sidelong glance. Laine never slipped form like that. Something must have really distracted him. Zephyr assumed it was the assignment from the school. Laine was never around in the evenings to keep him company anymore and for a while now, Zephyr had been feeling curious about what he was up to. Now, he just might be interested enough to find out just what exactly he was doing.
"Welcome back Laine." Rin said in an annoyed tone. "We've decided on one on one combat to incapacitation or involuntary ring out. Surrender is prohibited." He looked at Laine as if daring him to object. Laine just shrugged. Rin went on. "Lastly, something or someone has caused my dear brother to start teaching again. I want you all to find out who or what it is so that I can respond appropriately." Laine stiffened almost imperceptibly but Rin latched on to him with his eyes. "Something to add Laine?"
"I was just surprised. I thought we were leaving him alone this year."
"My brother's back. How could I possibly ignore that?" Rin asked rhetorically with a malicious smile. "But are you sure that's all it was? There wasn't something else that made you tense up?"
"That was it. I am just a little bored with going after your brother again and again." Laine shrugged feigning casualness.
Zephyr stared at him in surprise. Being his best friend Zephyr could tell when Laine was lying. And right now, he was lying his butt off. But why? Zephyr was definitely interested now. He couldn't wait for this meeting to end so he could figure out what Laine was up to.
Rin narrowed his eyes as he observed Laine's nonchalant attitude. He figured Laine was lying and he dared to do it right to his face. Rin's temper was boiling.
"Torin?" He snapped. Along with seeing the future, Torin had the ability to look into minds. He could tell instantly whether a person was lying. Which is why Rin called on him in situations like these. Torin turned to look at Laine. His eyes bore into Laine's and held them while he sifted through his mind.
Laine watched as Torin went backward through his memories, starting with the fantasy he had just had. Torin went through it once. Then he went back and paused it at the point where Ro smiled and reached up. Fury welled up inside Laine's mind over the course of time that this memory remained displayed. That was his fantasy no one should see it but him.
Torin then continued backward until he found the memory of Ro wearing Ky's bracelet. Laine expected him to stop then but Torin kept going until he had reached the day Laine had first seen her. Then instead of leaving his mind, Torin went through all the memories containing Ro a second time and then a third. Suddenly, Laine could see the world again. His head ached fiercely, and he was enraged. Those were his private memories of Ro that Torin had watched not once, but three times.
"Stay out of my memories, you freaky bastard." Laine yelled as he clutched his head.
"Relax Laine, he was just doing what I asked of him." Rin said with a smirk. Laine dropped his hand and glared at Rin. Then he remembered why Torin had been in his head in the first place and he straightened in his chair. He thought If he was going to be outed for his lie, he'd face the consequences. "Well?" Rin asked Torin, his eyes not leaving Laine's.
"He's not lying. He pities your brother and feels guilt over the part he's played in his suffering. There was nothing else." Laine was very careful not to betray any sign of the shock he was feeling. Instead, he forced himself to smirk at the glowering Rin.
Zephyr on the other hand thought his head was going to explode and was smiling broadly in delight. He knew Laine was lying, therefore Torin must being lying as well. But Torin never lied. He never found it important enough. Something this time had made him, and he did it straight to Rin's face. Zephyr fairly bounced in ecstasy in his chair. He couldn't wait to find out what was going on.
"Fine! Just one final thing then: If anyone finds anything interesting while looking into this situation with my brother, bring it to me right away." Rin ordered. The group dispersed.