Tuesday October 21st 2014

The pack surrounded Cesare on his way to school, just like they’d done for the past week. He ruthlessly suppressed the smile that threatened to spread across his face.

“Looks like our date’s arrived, boys. You’re looking like hammered shit today, toad face.” They claimed his flanks and back as he passed them. The pack liked to stay on the edge of sight, to play on the fear every rabbit owned.

“A cute First Year came up and thanked me.” One of them taunted. “Everyone knows we're here, teachers, students, even Blaez's piece of red-haired pussy knows. No one’s coming to save you, because no one wants you. A fucking mistake, that's all you'll ever be. They should have put you down as soon as you walked your stinky ass through the door.”

Tinfoil crinkled under his grip, the pack's eyes locking on the bag. The guy on the right swiped it out of Cesare’s hand, dancing back with his prize.

“Ho! Look at this! Looks like someone has treats!” Taking a chocolate wafer encrusted with pistachios, dried cherries, and granola out of the bag, he popped it into his mouth before passing the bag around.

He read the label on the bag. “‘For Miss Raven.’ Damn street meat, you’re like an ugly puppy that won’t stop crying. She’s a fucking dyke, the fat bitch only spreads for pussy.”

“You gotta get over that shit, man. So she gave you a fucking D, big fucking deal!”

“Fuck you! It was my first year! I needed that grade to keep going to practice. I had to do summer school because of that carpet munching whore. She could've ruined my fucking life.”

Reaching the steps to the school, the wolf tossed the empty bag at Cesare. “Thanks for the eats bitch. See your loose ass tomorrow, fuck stick.” They laughed as they bounded up the stairs.

Cesare lit the bag on fire, watching it melt into a hard clump of black char and soot. He stamped out the flames and threw the mass into the garbage. A cruel smile touched his lips as he walked into school. The second act was ready to begin.

At lunch he watched the pack from the loser's table with the last bits of his pizza dotting his lunch tray. He stood in one fluid move, adjusting the duffel bag against his back with absent minded hands. Without another thought, he made for the teacher’s table. There was a line that existed between the teachers and the students. Invisible to the eye but real as razors drawn across the thigh. An unspoken rule that you didn’t bother the monsters that ruled the school. No one had breached the invisible line that separated them from the students … until today.

Jerold watched him cross the boundary with a face stripped of emotion. Cesare didn’t know the guy, they’d only crossed at the Thagirion’s locker room. But the man had pulled his punches when he had every reason to put him down. That counted for something.

Viktor was easier. They didn’t talk, but they didn’t need to. Viktor broke Cesare, skinning the civilized masks from flesh until only pain, sweat, and blood remained. Caging him in a punishing crucible where strength was gone and only his will held him together, the world turning on an axis around the weight he was working. Viktor’s eyes sparked with interest as he looked beyond Cesare and into the silent sea of students behind him.

Elizabeth’s eyes blazed when they met his, it was the one tell she allowed herself. It had been a gamble to let her in on it. If caught, he’d face expulsion, and she’d face termination. But trust was a forked tongue devil, cruel and wanton as it lied with gleeful eyes. He trusted her, and that made him her victim.

Jerold beat Viktor to the punch. “Cesare, how can we help you?”

“On my way to school, I overheard some kids talking about how they’d gotten high before they left the Serpens Lacum.” Jerold's eyes narrowed at Cesare’s words.

“That's a grave accusation. And one we’ll have to look into. Who are the kids?” Jerold asked.

As he named off the pack, a smile flickered and died on Viktor's face. As one, the teachers focused on the pack’s table. Cesare turned to look out across the silent cafeteria. Anastasia and Blaez were together, hip to hip at their table. Her hair ran down her shoulder in a living river of flame, as far from the wolf as it could get. The pack and harem surrounded around them in interlocking circles of feral temper and worship.

The harem were the weakest of the group, but each of them alone could take out a tactical squad if pushed. They were mass murderers, only a bad day away from a killing spree. In a real fight, they'd walk through Cesare, a bunny caught in the jaws of a velociraptor. All of them together was beyond most third world armies. But fighting wasn't the only way to break a man.

Viktor stood up, his body moving with wild grace. Stalking away, he shot his words over his shoulder. “I'll check their rooms.”

Jerold called out the names of the students with only a trace a satisfaction. The four guys stood and the table stood with them, including Blaez, Anastasia, and the harem. Abraxas and Pantagruel had already left their tables and were making their way to their teammates.

Only when the mass of students had joined up did the group answer the teacher’s call. Jerold's icy voice stopped them in their tracks. “The four I’ve named are all we require. The rest of you can go back to your lunch.” The harem wavered and broke under Jerold’s icy glare, slinking back to their seats. Blaez stayed with his pack and the Thagirionstayed with their dog.

Abraxas closed the distance. “I request we accompany you. The Thagirion are here to protect, the school and the students. They deserve to have someone defending them against any charges.”

Jerold silently studied the dragon before nodding. “Very well. Let’s head back to my office.”

Wall to wall and floor to ceiling, a single bookcase occupied the wall behind Jerold’s heavy oak desk. Grouped by topic and then alphabetically, the books' spines marched along ruler straight. Bare of personality, the other three walls were stripped down to bare stone. A rug of geometric patterns in black and white lines covered the floor in severe lines. Stained almost black, the desk dominated the room by being the only point to focus on. A tall chair of black leather stood behind the desk, padded with a high back, the leather creaked when Jerold sat. Two chairs of black, angled exactly the same, stood in front of the oaken throne.

Jerold lined up four containers in front of him. Precisely spaced out, they created a perfect line. “We have an allegation of using illegal drugs.” Jerold paused, as he eyed the pale faces of the pack, “You have one chance to come clean before we continue.”

“This is bullshit. He only wants to get back at ...” Standing behind his packmate, Blaez laid a hand on the wolf’s shoulder, silencing the boy.

Cold eyes bored into the kid. “And why would he want to get back at you? What have you done that would push a person to seek revenge?”

Blaez smoothly entered the dangerous silence. “Nothing. I think Cesare’s just jealous of their success. You know how it is, the popular crowd always draws its share of envy.” Blaez kept his eyes on Jerold. “I've known these men my whole life. I’ve never seen them take an illegal drug. I can vouch for their honor and commitment.”

“Today we’ll find out just what that’s worth,” Jerold said, taking the containers and boys out with him. Elizabeth followed behind to verify the pack was held to the rules.

Blaez spun on Cesare, eyes bleeding into yellow. “You fucking did this!”

“Well, duh,” Cesare said. Blaez’s lips peeled back from his teeth. Back foot grounding, he readied himself to leap for Cesare’s throat.

“Control yourself. You will not start a fight in Jerold’s office. If I have to, I’ll put you outside.” Abraxas’ words stopped the wolf in mid-step.

Blaez snarled as he whipped around. “Bullshit! You know he's doing this to spite me! They haven't done shit!”

Abraxas kept his eyes on Cesare thoughtfully. “No. I'm sure they’re innocent of the drug charge. Unfortunately, prisons are full of innocent men.”

Blaez paled at the words, turning slowly around. “What’ve you done?” Horror, naked and raw, rode his voice.

“Nothing. All I did was hear some students talking and did what any good student should—turn them in,” Cesare said.

Jerold, Elizabeth, and the boys walked into the pregnant silence. Taking his seat behind the desk, Jerold set the containers into the exact line he’d pulled them from. Elizabeth stood just behind Cesare, silent support and a declaration that she had his back.

The room watched the containers of yellow liquid. A smell filled the air, barbed and feral, it scraped against the throat. It was the packs fear tearing through the illusion of humanity as they waited for a cup of piss to decide their lives. The pack gave a low whine when the testing strip went fire engine red.

“It's his fault!” Jumping up, the wolf pointed at Cesare.

“How is it his fault?” Jerold asked.

“It was those things we ate this morning! He put something in them!”

Jerold raised his eyebrows. “Before, you said this was out of jealousy. Now you’re saying he gave you something laced with THC to get you in trouble? What did you do to him?” The boys looked at each other before turning to Blaez with begging eyes.

They visibly calmed under Blaez's eyes. Licking dry lips, the pack dodged Jerold's question. “They were chocolate strips with berries and nuts. He must have laced them with something. We don't do drugs. We already have scholarships into the Sanguine Nativitate. Who would fuck that up for a cheap thrill?”

“You’d be surprised. Maybe the chocolate looked something like this?” Jerold laid a baggie on the desk, taking out a chocolate wafer. “Just so we’re clear, they’re not berries. They’re dried cherries and pistachios, along with granola.” The boy lost his voice, unable to pull his eyes off the chocolate wafer. “Cesare made these over the weekend and graciously gave some to the teachers. We liked it so much we asked if he had any more. I find it strange he would give them to you ...” Jerold’s words trailed off.

“Sir, I know this looks bad.” Blaez’s body tightened as he barely kept from glaring at Cesare. “I've known these men since we were boys and I’ve never seen them use anything. They have college scholarships that depend on staying clean and getting good grades. An expulsion, or even a mark of drug abuse, would kill those chances and their dreams. Since this is a first offense, can't we work something out? They’d do anything you asked, sir. Do we really have to ruin their lives over one indiscretion?”

Only Jerold’s eyes moved, a frozen statue mimicking life as he listened to Blaez's plea. “You make a good argument. Abraxas?”

The dragon had silently studied the room while they'd talked, black eyes threaded with even darker thoughts. His words were casual, almost dismissive. “I think you should do what you believe necessary,” Abraxas said, meeting Cesare's eyes briefly. Blaez blinked in surprise at the lack of backing. It was almost as if Abraxas knew something.

“Very well. I believe we can work around this one indiscretion since it would cause damage far out of proportion to the offense.” The boys sagged in relief. “Random testing, of course, will be necessary. Any further drug abuses will carry the penalty of expulsion from the school. Searches of their rooms ...”

Viktor walked in without knocking, stopping Jerold's speech in mid-sentence. With a careless throw, baggies of meth scattered across the table. “They’d slit open their beds and packed them into the mattress. Almost missed it, but the sheet hadn’t covered them completely. Looks like they were selling.”

Distaste touched Jerold's face. “I see. Well, this changes things. I'm afraid you’ll be expelled immediately.” Anger heated his icy voice. “I might overlook a temporary indiscretion, but I have no tolerance for peddlers of filth.” When you make a point of getting up early to ambush someone, you leave your room unguarded.

Jerold dismissed everyone as the boys silently cried in the wreckage of their dreams. Abraxas turned to Cesare once the door was closed. “Well done. I knew you’d have a backup plan. You’re not the type to let a kill wiggle free. Congratulations.”

Blaez’s deep growl drew a bored look from the dragon. “Don't think it. I’d break you without trying.” With bare-knuckle effort, Blaez mastered himself. Under the dragon's punishing eyes, Blaez ducked his head in submission. Giving Cesare a final nod, the dragon turned and walked away, Pantagruel falling into step behind him.

Anastasia and Blaez stood together, facing off with Cesare and Elizabeth. Elizabeth waited for Cesare's nod before she moved down the hallway. Anastasia stepped away from Blaez once the teacher was lost from sight down a side hall.

The wolf whipped around on his girlfriend, a snarl deforming his face. “Fine, take his fucking side! Go ahead! You've been wanting to do it for months. Go ahead and fuck him for all I care!” The werewolf turned to Cesare with a slow, murderous intensity. “Do you know what you’ve done? They’ve trained their whole lives to be the best! Their one shot was getting a scholarship. You’ve condemned them to the same dead-end jobs as their fathers. This was their chance to be something more than kicked dogs. You've killed that for them. All their years of working and dreaming, all their sacrifices gone like that.” Blaez snapped his fingers, body trembling under the force it took to stop him from going for Cesare.

“You should’ve thought of that before.” Cesare’s words were friendly. “Did you really think I’d let it slide? You don’t get to walk away after fucking with mine.”

“What did you do, Blaez?” Anastasia asked sharply.

Eyes locked with Cesare, rage and fury twisted inside the wolf. “Nothing. The little freak’s making up stories.”

Cesare stepped away with a smile. “Well then, I’ll just have to live with destroying the lives of four saintly boys.” Walking away, Cesare added, “I'm good with that.”

A few hallways down, Elizabeth held a door open for him. Dust streaked the desks of the unused classroom. He turned as the click of the door closing filled the room. Elizabeth walked over to him, hands timidly fitting onto his hips as she matched him eye to eye.

“No one would have done what you did for me today. When I was a student, the teachers tried to make it better for me but ... it was my word against theirs. The Thagirion made sure the students never did permanent damage, but they let them walk that line. It was hell. And when I came back as a teacher it was the same thing, always no evidence.” Her fingers traced his face, eyes soft and wondering. “You did this, Cesare. Today, you got revenge for what they did to me when no one else cared.”

Soft and welcoming, her ample hips filled his hands, lacking any of the muscle or tautness of youth. “This is where you want to be. You’ve spent your life getting to this point. I only want it to be a happier place than the hell they forced on you.” The whisper was a shade of sound.

She smiled, eyes bright with unshed tears. “You do. So much so that I don’t know what I’ll do when you leave. No, let me finish. You'll wake up one day and realize I can’t give you what you want. I can’t turn back the clock and have you be my first boyfriend. I can’t give you my first kiss or anything else. You’re finding out about life and love, but those lessons are worn out books to me. You’re finding your place in the world while I’ve already claimed mine. Someday, you’re going to want someone who can share that with you and that will never be me.”

Taking a deep breath, her voice fell to a whisper. “And when you do, I want you to take this with you—that you’ll always be the flame that warmed me in a world that offered only ice. That you warmed parts of me long since gone dead. That you gave an old woman hope.”

He pulled her close with a smile. “I’m not going anywhere. Ever. And you’re going to have to live with me being part of your life.”

Anastasia waited on the steps outside school. Her black coat pooled around her waist, its yellow claymore standing proud and deadly along her spine. She fell into step with him, her shoulder touching his as she matched his walk. Keeping a sullen distance, the harem watched with greedy eyes.

“Was it necessary?” Anastasia asked.

It was simple curiosity stripped of judgement. She wasn’t condemning, only asking for the reason he'd destroyed the lives of four kids. “You don't judge a man by how much money he has or how successful he’s made himself. You don't judge a man by his strength or how many he's killed. Any idiot can get good at killing. Can't even judge a man by how much he loves his family. The world is filled with abominations who love their family. Actions are how you judge a man.” Black, viscous anger stirred in him.

Anastasia studied him from a foot away. “I found her crying over the remains of her friends. They hurt what was mine. They hurt someone I care about. So, I took what they treasured most. I took their dreams and their future. Next time Blaez tells someone to do something like that, they’ll hesitate because of today.” He locked eyes with Anastasia. “If it had been you in that room crying, I would’ve done the same. The day you see a friend cry and don't do something, is the day you’ve lost any right to call yourself that person's friend.”

Anastasia looked away. “Blaez said he didn’t know who did it. We had this big meeting after it happened. Abraxas was pissed because the teachers were coming down hard on the Thagirion. Every lead dried up on us almost as soon as we chased it down. They gave us a few days but when we got nothing they ripped us apart for being incompetent. Abraxas lost his shit afterwards.” Anastasia sighed. “I can't believe Blaez would have anything to do with that.”

Cesare and Blaez were on a collision course, and only one of them would walk away from it. He could see it. So could Blaez. But Anastasia couldn't—or just didn't want to.

“Blaez and you are so much alike. Can't you see that? You’re both intensely, obsessively, loyal to your friends. He’d have gone for your throat if Abraxas hadn’t stopped him. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do for his pack. If he thought killing you would give them back their dreams, he’d do it and damn the consequences. If only you could both see ...” She trailed off sadly.

“No, we’re not. I wouldn't use my friends to bully and torment others. And I wouldn't lie to you.”