“Guys...” Hazel says again. She looks totally panicked now. We’re far enough away from the main square that none of the others seem to realize what’s going on.
It’s as I’m staring defiantly up at Amelia that I feel a familiar feeling rising in the pit of my stomach. I had almost forgotten what it felt like, but my heart almost stops when that cool sensation floods my body once more. Shit. No, no, no. Not now. I take a step back from Amelia. “Listen,” I say, “can you please just--”
“I don’t take orders from freaks,” Amelia sneers, and the poison in her voice is enough to do the trick. Before I’m even consciously aware of it, I can feel the transformation starting again, and in spite of my efforts to control it, it hits me like a freight train. Fur begins to sprout on my arms, my nails turning to claws and my teeth turning to fangs. I’m losing control of myself, only vaguely aware of the others staring at me as I shift. Amelia’s eyes go wide, but she stands her ground. “Damn,” she mutters. “You’re even uglier than I was expecting.”
“Stop it!” I yell, and a burst of fire explodes from my mouth, the same way it did back at the warehouse.
Amelia darts back, looking startled, and before I can even react, she’s changing too. Her eyes go red, her hair turning the color of blood as fangs sprout from her mouth. “You bitch!” she yells, and then she lunges for me. She’s startlingly fast, like a bolt of lightning. Is this a vampire ability?
I don’t have time to wonder, since she’s already knocked me to the ground. Everything feels like it’s happening in slow motion. I catch a glimpse of Hazel taking off towards the campus, while Landon and Silas exchange a look before beginning to transform, as well. Their clothes shift into their skin, Landon going sea green and scaly, his hair turning the color of aquamarine. Silas, meanwhile, seems to be doubling--no, tripling--in size, blue-gray scales rippling up his body as a pair of batlike wings sprout from his back. For a moment I’m stunned by the fact that I’m looking at a dragon, but then Amelia slams my shoulders into the ground again, her red eyes raging.
I try to shove her off me, but it’s no use; she seems to have the strength of ten people in this form. I’m half-wondering if she’s going to kill me, but then Silas in dragon form slams into her from the side, knocking her off me like a bowling ball. Amelia gets up quick and runs at me but Hunter stops her, trying to pull his sister away, yelling at her to stop, but she’s past listening to him. I look up to see Landon joining the fray, stopping her from getting close, only for Hunter to curse and push him away from his sister. I catch a glimpse of Amelia hitting Silas hard enough to make him take off, flapping his wings to get out of range. How strong is this girl, if she’s able to fight off a dragon that’s four times her size?
In fact, I notice with a sinking feeling that she seems to be getting the upper hand, throwing Landon off of herself like he’s nothing and taking a flying leap towards Silas, teeth bared. I become aware of shouts in the distance, and all I can hope now is that this won’t get any uglier…
Except it does. Because of course it does. I don’t know if it’s the adrenaline or the concern for the guys’ wellbeing, but I feel something else well up inside me, some new aspect of this magic that bursts out through my fingertips. A shockwave manifests in the air, sending Amelia flying out of the air, mid-jump. It’s enough to knock her to the ground.
For a moment I stare down at my hands, wondering how the hell I did that, but then the sound of a woman shouting draws my attention away. “What on earth is going on here?!” It’s a male faculty member who I don’t know, following behind a frantic-looking Hazel. “What is the meaning of this?” he demands, stopping at the base of the tree.
Silas shifts back into human form and opens his mouth to reply, but Amelia beats him to it. “She attacked me!” she cries, pointing at me. “She shifted into… into… that.”
I look down at myself and realize belatedly that I still look like someone put a bunch of fairytalecreatures in a blender. “I’m sorry,” I begin, eyes wide as I look at the professor. “I don’t know what… I didn’t mean to.”
Landon shifts back, making it look easy, and takes a step towards the newcomer. “Professor Drysdale,” he begins, “listen, she’s new. And Amelia was--”
“I don’t care what Amelia was doing, Mr. Thyme,” replies the professor. “Shifting outside of class is strictly forbidden. And make no mistake, I saw you two doing it, too,” he adds, looking from Landon to Silas. “I would expect better of you--all of you.” He glances at me, his expression softening, but only a little. “Picking fights with other students isn’t a great way to start your first term,” he tells me.
“Wait a minute,” Silas says, “Amelia transformed, too.”
Professor Drysdale glances at her briefly. By now, she’s turned back into a human, her red hair mussed and her uniform covered in dirt. “Self-defense is another matter,” the professor says. “She can’t be blamed for protecting herself.”
Landon snorts. “Sure you’d say that if her dad wasn’t a leader? If she wasn’t a princess of the shifter world?”
“Watch your attitude, Mr. Thyme,” snaps Professor Drysdale. “And as a matter of fact, this has nothing to do with nepotism.” He glances at Hunter. “You were involved, too, Mr. Ash.”
Hunter’s eyes go wide.
