Summoned By Magic by Lexie Scott

Chapter 18

Excited energy filled the air as we walked on the faded path through the edge of the forest, my coral Converse kicking up dirt. Daniel, Malik, and Sai pushed each other, laughed, then shoved back until we arrived in the open field twice the size of the rugby pitch.

The three of them sprinted to the far side and disappeared behind the trees.

“What are they doing?” I asked Hannah.

A few other people hung around, but I didn't see any animals. Were they shifters or just trying to avoid the rest of campus?

“Undressing. They aren’t generally worried about modesty—most shifters aren’t—but I told them not to get naked in front of you. At least not until you’ve had more time to adjust.”

I laughed. “Thanks for that.”

The last thing I wanted to see was my new friends in the nude. Even with my budding crush––or fixation—on Sai. It was just too weird for me to imagine ever being comfortable with that. I wasn’t sure I would ever get used to this particular part of their—our—world.

“Why don’t they have amulets that keep their clothes on?” Malik told me about that on my first day.

She shrugged. “It requires a really powerful spell, one I can’t do yet. It takes two or three witches. One of them has to be Fire, and another has to be Earth. Plus, they’re used to it. Most of the shifters have clothing stashed throughout campus, and as long as you replace it, they don't care if someone else borrows it. It’s like some unspoken shifter code.”

Huh. I guess with a concentrated population of shifters it wouldn’t be a big deal, but once they graduated and moved on it would probably become a necessity.

Interesting. The spell to allow vampires to walk in the sun seems a lot harder than keeping clothes on, and they learned that one as children. Seemed backward, but what did I know.

“There they are.” Hannah pointed toward where the guys had gone, and in their place stood a tiger, mountain lion, and honey badger. All standing in a line staring back at us.

“Holy shit,” I breathed out, and I swear the tiger chuffed, making me scoff. “Did Sai just laugh at me?”

He stepped forward, lowering his head down then up again.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

Hannah burst out laughing. “Come on.”

She tugged me forward, and they met us in the middle of the field. Even though I knew these were my friends, I couldn’t overcome my instincts to be afraid. Wild animals that could easily hurt or even kill me were circling me. I fought to remain calm and pretend like I wasn’t completely freaking out inside.

They stayed a few yards away for a minute or two, just watching us watch them. Hannah was talking to them, but I was too focused on tracking the predators’ movements to listen. This was real. My human-looking friends were now animals. How did it work? Were they still them, or did their animal side take over? Were they thinking and feeling like they normally would?

Daniel stepped closer and sniffed me. I glared down at him. “That was rude.”

Hannah hadn’t stopped giggling the entire time. “He’s getting your scent. He’ll be able to recognize and find you now.”

I cringed. I didn’t like the sound of that.

“It makes playing hide and seek in the woods a bit more challenging for us.” She smirked. “He’s a cheater.”

She was looking down at his animal form with so much love and admiration. How could he not know how she felt?

The honey badger came closer to me, and I realized how dumb I’d been to think he was a skunk. He was bigger and the white fur created a little funny line on his head. I couldn’t help the giggle that escaped at the hairstyle.

His eyes met mine, and I could see the question in them. He wanted to know why I was laughing at him.

“It looks like you have a bowl cut.”

Hannah doubled over. “Oh. It does. It totally does!”

Malik turned and hit me with his tail, and I composed myself. “I mean, you’re a very handsome honey badger.”

He walked off, and Sai took his place, rubbing his long body against my leg. I hesitated, nervous again, but he turned his head and his eyes met mine. This wasn’t just a wild cat. This was Sai. I could sense him in there.

“You’re beautiful,” I whispered and slowly reached down to touch his fur. A low purr came from him as I worked my way up his body and rubbed behind his ears.

“You found his spot!” Hannah grinned as the purrs got louder.

Sai lifted his head and licked my cheek.

“Ah.” I almost fell to the side but caught myself. He was so strong and powerful. I could feel it in the way he moved. “Nice kitty.”

He looked at me and chuffed again, making me laugh.

Daniel leaned against Hannah while she rubbed under his chin, making low guttural sounds of approval. We were spoiling them.

Malik made a noise from where he’d wandered off, and Sai and Daniel both reacted at the same time, charging toward him.

I gasped, expecting them to run into him, but he took off in another direction. They had to turn to catch up.

“What are they doing?”

Hannah stepped next to me. “Just wait.”

I held my breath as Daniel pounced from several feet behind Malik and his lithe, graceful form took to the air before they tumbled on the ground like a ball of limbs. That had to hurt one of them, but Malik snuck out from under his friend and took off running. He was faster than I expected but no match for Sai who seemed to be teasing him. He zig-zagged behind Malik, so every time he glanced back, Sai was out of his line of sight. Hannah laughed and pointed at them.

“They love messing with Malik. He acts so tough, and he can be terrifying when he needs to be, but Sai is built for speed and longer distances than him. Honey badgers aren’t really supposed to run all that much.”

I needed to do some research about the guys’ animals. I wanted to know everything about them. Their strengths, weaknesses, and habits. Then I could compare them to how the guys acted. I couldn’t wait to ask questions.

“When they’re in this form, do animal instincts take over, or are they in control?” I figured Hannah would know the basics.

“They’re always in control and aware, but there are instincts that they don’t try to suppress, like Daniel smelling you and Sai rubbing on you. Neither of them would do that normally, but in these forms, it’s natural.”

I nodded, glad they wouldn’t suddenly slip into wild animals.

“They’re one with their animal forms if that makes sense. It’s still them. There isn’t a tiger’s soul living in that body too.”

That was at the root of most of my questions.

“It’s fascinating.” All the werewolf movies and books had it wrong. Well, some of them were closer to the truth. They weren’t forced to shift based on the moon or a curse. They could change at will, and they weren’t at the mercy of their animal. It was just another side of them.

For the first time since I learned who, and what, I really was, I hoped I took after my dad. Was it possible that side of me was dormant too? What kind of shifter had he been? Might I be? How could I find out without asking? I had to be discreet. Masie reinforced that with her call. I couldn’t get too comfortable, even with my friends. As much as I liked each of them, I didn’t know them well enough to trust them with my whole story. I didn’t think any of them would run off telling the rest of the school, but I couldn’t risk it. It wasn’t worth my life.

Maybe I could ask Mrs. Hedgings. I was so new to this world that maybe she would assume I was just curious. When did shifters first change? Did they display any abilities before then? Was there a way of knowing?

I could always do my own research in the library. There was probably a record of past students somewhere. Yearbooks? I could check, but with what free time? I had so many tutoring sessions on top of my normal homework and classes that I barely had time to sleep and eat. It would save time to ask, but I’d have to wait and make sure I could bring it up naturally, without raising suspicion.

The guys continued chasing and fighting, although I could tell they were going easy on each other. They warned me some shifters could get violent, but it didn’t seem like they wanted to take it to that level. Maybe they would if there was actual danger present, but there was no need right now.

After they tired themselves out, they came back to where Hannah and I were sitting on the grass and laid around us. Sai rested his head in my lap, and I grinned down at him while playing with his fur. I flatted the extra fluffy area under his jaw with the palm of my hands until it stood up like a mohawk.

“Look.” I pointed out my masterpiece to Hannah. She chuckled and tried to do the same to Daniel, but his fur was too short.

Sai raised a paw and rubbed it over his face.

“Aw,” I cooed. He looked adorable, fumbling with his big paw. He glared at me, and I combed my fingers through the mohawk and smoothed it down. “There you go, grumpy.”

His lips raised, revealing his teeth, and I couldn’t tell if he was smiling or trying to look scary. Either way, I was past being afraid of him. I’d gotten used to his tiger and could see his personality clearly.

“Go change, I’m craving something sweet.” Hannah pushed at Daniel and Malik, who had curled up on either side of her.

Sai huffed, and the three of them got up and lazily trotted to where they’d left their clothes. Within a minute or two, they emerged. Daniel and Sai were running their fingers through their hair, but it was in vain. Hannah and I had done an excellent job of messing it up. They would have to shower to get the strands to lay back down.

Malik hurried past us at the mention of desserts. “I hope the dining hall has the sundae bar out.”

Daniel hesitated, glancing between his friend and Hannah like he couldn’t decide who to walk with. I turned suddenly and walked slower than normal, accidentally cutting him off and making the decision for him. Hannah could thank me later.

Sai fell into step next to me. “So? What did you think?”

I smiled up at him. My brain was struggling to connect this version with the tiger version I’d just been petting.

“It’s a little weird. I mean, I get it. I saw you, then the tiger, but it’s hard to accept that it was you.” I pinched my lips together. “Hannah said you’re still you. That you’re in control and aware, just in the form of a tiger.”

“That’s right. I know some legends state that the animal is a separate spirit with its own mind and desires that the shifter has to control and work with, but it’s not like that. It’s just another form I can take. I’m still me.”

“So, no cravings for raw meat?” I teased, only half-joking.

“Gross, no.” He laughed, and I relaxed.

“Thanks for showing me.” I felt shier now. Even though I’d just spent an hour or so petting him. That was different. But it felt like something changed between us.

“Anytime.” He winked. “I could get used to your ear rubs.”

That might have been the weirdest thing anyone ever said to me, but I couldn’t help the excitement that grew in my gut at the thought. Spending more time with him, in any form, was exactly what I wanted—even if he was a distraction.