~RYDER~

I walked into the empty training room, attempting to control the heavy exhales that escaped me, sweat slowly gliding down the side of my face.

When Marcus’ hesitant voice echoed in my head, feeling the increase level of anxiety projecting out of him, it alerted me that something bad was about to happen. I knew the boys better than I knew myself.

Marcus’ random emotional fluctuations were normal to me, happening more than enough times for me to predict the onsets, especially in regards to triggering his shift. Anxiety was one of those predictions, cueing me in on two possibilities; he was either having a nightmare, which at this time in the morning would be impossible seeing as Marcus always trained early, rain or shine, or someone close to him was in trouble.

Partnered with Elias’ frantic voice and Daniel’s feelings of worry slamming into my mind through our knight bond, I could only come up with one shifter who could induce such a reaction from those three; Makoto.

I had been meditating, my mind clear and calm till I heard my demon’s snarl.

“Where. Is. She.” His level of anger broke my concentration, pulling me out of my hypnotic state.

“Locker room! The trio bitches were discussing jumping Mako if they got the opportunity. I didn’t know Mako wasn’t with Marcus.” Elias’ frantic voice huffed.

“Mako always showers at home, but we worked up more sweat than usual, so she opted in to showering there. We’re headed there now.” Marcus’ voice explained.

I bolted up from my meditation pose, slipping my black runners on and heading out the door in one smooth movement. I was trying my best to ignore my demon’s attempts to take control, his frustration was making the anger within me roar to life.

Settle down. You trying to take control isn’t helping my concentration. I get it; you’re worried just as I am. You’ll get your moment of glory when we get there. I can’t let you walk around, oozing power like that in this section of the school.

My demon retreated, thankfully not to enraged to understand common sense. I was still in the teacher’s section of Knightwood, having finished my discussion with Marcus and Karen too long ago.

I didn’t need to deal with multiple stares from those inferior professors. They would only attempt to try and stop me from reaching Mako in a timely manner.

The moment my foot stepped outside the teacher’s district, I jolted into a sprint. From the look of things, the others must have been at the house which at running pace would take them at least five minutes, give or take. I bet Marcus would love to fly straight there, but we had enough issues with blending in. We didn’t need him showing off his dragon attributes, especially for the fact no one knew what he was.

From his appearance, everyone assumed he was a bear shifter. His sapphire eyes didn’t help with the guessing game either, the shade being a rare trait for a dragon. No one but us knew he had the elements of fire and ice, the frosty power being stronger between the two.

The Starlight gods had done a good job when creating Marcus. I only wished he could understand his worth and love the image he saw every day in the mirror.

As leader, I had to always be in control. That included not being influenced by the groups overflow of emotions. They all knew I sensed their moods the strongest, all of them doing their share to not burden me with their troubles, but sometimes they couldn’t help it.

Marcus and his control issues, Elias with his family problems and Daniel…he worried me the most. His angel attributes clearly contributed to his wellbeing, influencing him to help everyone else before concentrating on himself. That was a big problem in my book.

Ignoring your inner demons wouldn’t rid you of their existence. No, they only continue to grow, surpassing your limit and consuming you. I needed to talk with him when we finally got a chance, but I needed to deal with my own issues first, the main issue being Makoto.

I forced my voice to stay calm, coming to the realization I hadn’t replied to the others. I didn’t get why they got so anxious when I stayed quiet for too long, but I guess my demon’s impatient personality was to blame for their reactions. He even scared me at times.

“I’ll be there.” I announced, allowing my mind to disconnect from the bond. It was nice to be able to separate my mind from our combined connection. It allowed me to stabilize my own thoughts and feelings before entering such state of mind, not wanting to reveal my own dark feelings.

Two minutes passed till my hand crashed into the training room doors, my power slamming into it, activating the lock system to allow me entry. When I arrived in the room, I noticed three things:

First, the room reeked of sweat and blood, the heavy metallic scent mixed with a variety of body odors assaulted my nose, causing me to cringe in disgust.

Second thing I noticed, was the drops of blood on the floor starting a few feet from where I stood, trailing to the other exit at the right corner of the room. The blood scents were a tad different; notifying me that more than one person was bleeding out.

Third, was the fact that the room was empty, not a shifter in sight including my blue-eyed brunette, which was unsettling. Where was she?

My eyes landed on the pale pink door, the words GIRLS ONLY written in black, bold italics. Before my mind could even comprehend my curiosity, my body was already moving, heading straight to the change room.

I slammed my hand against the door, the usual magic lock not lighting up at my output of magic, opening with the push of my hand. Broken, not a good sign.

I walked in, preparing my heart for the worse when a wave of relief hit me as my eyes descended on the girl before me. A pair of vibrant turquoise eyes looked up towards me, her arms over her head, stopping mid way of pulling on a white and pink shirt.

My eyes couldn’t help but gaze down her exposed body, her bountiful sized breast encased in a neon pink and white laced bra. Her markings were on full display, the gorgeous swirls and rose patterns outlined her slim waist, trailing down her hips continuing its descent into her white shorts. They resurfaced from the bottom half of her thighs, encircling her legs all the way down to her ankles.

I’d seen her markings a few times now, the first time was when she’d accidently sleep walked into my room. She jumped out of my bed, cursing at the realization she’d somehow unlocked my magic infused door and snuck into my bed, without me noticing. I was a light sleeper in the beginning half of the night, so I was impressed at her subconscious skills at hiding her presence. My heart started to quicken as my arousal assaulted my body, making me hard. I took one more second to enjoy the image before me, burning it into my memory for future purposes, before focusing on the problem at hand.

“Well, hello to you too Ryder. I know it's been four hours since I last saw you, but I don’t think you need to barge into the girls change room to see me. I would have seen you at breakfast in ten minutes.” She greeted, taking a moment to look at my appearance, which probably looked like a chaotic mess. She slid the top over her head, pulling the shirt down, the soft fabric clinging to her like a glove, emphasizing her luscious curves, which wasn’t helping my attempt at ignoring my desire for her.

I walked forward, stopping an inch away from her, our bodies’ only centimeters from touching. I took a moment to analyze her naturally pale complexion; those turquoise eyes were even more fascinating up close, reminding me of the clear blue sky.

My eyes landed on her cherry lips as her teeth bit the corner, the action slow and enticing. I came to understand her habit of biting her lip, usually indicated she was either nervous or sexual aroused. My calculative nature leaned towards option two. I brushed my hand against her cheek before guiding it through her loose wet hair, pulling her into a passionate kiss.

The relief of her being safe flowed through me, leaking into the knight bond as I pushed my mouth against hers. I tried to control the wave of desire that crashed into me as my lips pressed against hers, wasting no time, I pushed my tongue between her lips, needing to taste her.

She let out a moan, her body pressing against mine as her arms gripped at my waist, pulling me against her. I closed my eyes, the passion engulfing my anxiety and fear, as my groin pressed against her. The sensual contact caused me to moan, as my other hand wrapped around her, squeezing her perky ass. Her body was perfect to me; her exquisite curves only increased my attraction to her.

I forced myself to pull away, my body protesting my actions. I’d love to continue making out with the woman I cared about, but I needed to make sure she was okay. I knew the others were close; I needed to get some of the facts before their arrival. I just needed to confirm if anyone needed to be murdered, so I could get the others to hide the remains. No big deal.

“Hello, beautiful. Are you planning to explain to me why there’s blood all over the training room and the reason behind the broken door?” I questioned, raising my eyebrow at her.

I watched her shrug her shoulders, turning back to her open locker. As she raised her right hand, reaching into the locker to retrieve something, I noticed the long fresh scratch located on her upper arm, the surrounding area clean of blood but the actual wound bright red. I grabbed her arm; stopping her from moving it, as I inspected the cut closely, anger bursting to life. Who the fuck hurt her?

“It’s nothing. I got it from training.” She attempted to yank her arm out of my hold, failing miserably.

“Mako, babe, don’t lie to me. I know you don’t like causing trouble, but don’t defend people who don’t deserve such salvation.” I muttered, my voice cold. She blinked at me, her expression blank as she pondered my words. I was about to ask again when my demon surged to life, taking full control. Those jeweled like eyes doubled in size, fear flickered in her eyes for a split second before she frowned.

“Makoto. Who in the Starlight’s name hurt you?” My demon demanded, fighting off my attempts to take back control. Ugh, can’t you get your answer without scaring her. He ignored my complaint, continuing his intimidation attempt.

Her eyes closed for a moment, a wave of power blasting through the air, the temperature dropping severely. When her eyes slowly opened, we were greeted with royal purple eyes; Rose taking full control. Shit. It was never a good idea for two demons to be facing each other.

If things weren’t bad as it was, the sound of footsteps emerged, followed by three sweat dripping males barging into the room. My demon glanced over his shoulder, taking a moment to glimpse at the new arrivals. Acknowledgement registered in our mind before his gaze returned to the demon before him.

“Rose.” He greeted, his usual toneless voice hinted a spec of kindness, piquing my interest.

I could barely remember the history between them, usually giving him full control back in my younger cycles when he requested to have some time with Roseline. I was impressed that after all these cycles, Roseline remembered Stryker, even with that mental block being applied on Mako.

 “Stryker. It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?” She acknowledged, her blank expression soothing into a weak smile.

I could feel Stryker’s change in emotion, a mixed wave of pain and passion as he nodded. I hadn’t heard anyone use my demon’s name in cycles, myself, the boys, Matthew and Karen were the only ones outside my close family knowing such a title.

“Will you be so kind as to answer my question? Makoto seems to be playing stubborn.” He requested, smoothly.

She shrugged her shoulders as a playful grin formed on her lips.

“You should know how stubborn Makoto is. She isn't going to answer your question if the subject being questioned isn’t important.” She brushed off, sounding bored.

He raised an eyebrow at her, our eyes moving to the wound on her arm and back to gaze into hers. She sighed, understanding he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Demon spirits could be just as stubborn. Not to mention our ability to hold grudges. 

“The whore trio decided to challenge Mako. She was minding her own business before they barged in here claiming that we were spying on their outspoken conversation. They then proceeded to accuse us of stealing their men, which was quite entertaining. I wouldn’t have guessed the black-haired chick who has a crush on Daniel was Bisexual. Interesting topic really.” Rose explained, waving her hand in a dismissive matter.

“Roseline, please. Off topic.” Stryker announced.

“Oh, right. Anyways, Mako revealed their little dark secrets and was on her way when the black-haired chick froze the door shut. They then challenged her, stating they were going to teach us a lesson. Hah, what foolishness. As much as I wanted to have some play time, Lexi stole the show, claiming we don’t give her enough opportunities to put people in their place. So, they took it outside in the training room. It was almost boring to watch, though their hysterical screams felt like music to my ears. They ran away before Lexi could turn them into ash, such a shame. She didn’t leave them unharmed of course. I bet they bled all over the training room.” She concluded.

shook his head, though the small grin on his face demonstrated how amusing her story was. Those girls had the guts to challenge a shifter with four spirits. They clearly had no idea how outmatched they were, even with three of them.

“So, in conclusion, you kicked ass.”

“Yup. We’re fine; the wound won’t take long to heal. Though, I’ll be taking my leave. Mako’s low on energy. Don’t want her fainting as usual.” Rose admitted.

She stepped forward, her body leaning into Stryker. Her lips pressed against our cheek and I felt a flood of emotions from Stryker – joy, desire, love.

“Nice to see you again Stryker. Let’s catch-up soon. Farewell, Mako’s lovers.” She mused, waving her hand at the three stunned boys behind us before her eyes closed, the temperature rising slightly. Mako’s lovers…not bad.

“Likewise.” Stryker concluded, pulling back to allow me full control again. I sighed in relief, attempting to ignore the wave of dizziness that crashed into me. Are you happy with your moment of glory? Next time, can I get a warning? Your forceful switching with me is a real pain in the ass.

“Hmph. I’ll think about it.” He replied, leaving my mind.

I glanced up to see Mako wavering on her feet, her eyes drooping. I stepped forward, reaching out to place my hands on her shoulders, stabilizing her. She gave me a weak smile, followed by a yawn.

“I’m sorry; I was going to explain but I was rudely interrupted.” She stated, her exhaustion evident in her low voice.

I smiled at her humour attempt, understanding her effort to de-escalate the large amount of tension in the room. I was unable to stop myself from leaning down, pressing my lips against her forehead. I felt her body relax, her shoulders dropping the moment my lips pressed against her smooth skin. I took a moment to enjoy the fresh scent of vanilla, her smell inviting and addicting.

It dawned on me that the boys were still present, my attempt to not show much or any affection towards Mako around them, forgotten in the moment. I could sense their growing attraction for her ever since we brought her home that faithful day.

I didn’t hold an ounce of jealousy towards their interest in her. I knew they would be just as vigilant in protecting her and love her unconditionally, helping to fill the void within her, as I would. I wouldn’t admit it to them yet, curious to see how things would play out. What can I say; demons can’t help but keep a few secrets.

I waited to feel any sense of jealousy or anger towards my act of affection, but felt nothing. I assumed they were either still shocked at witnessing our demons have a friendly exchange instead of killing each other or with me kissing her.

“C’mon. Let’s get you home.” I announced, letting go of her, followed by taking her hand in mine. I turned around, guiding her to the door.

“Wait, hold on. We’re just going to leave. Aren’t we going to get charged for breaking the school property, or you know, the blood all over the floors outside?” She frantically asked. Gets into a fight, kicks their asses and still worries about whether we’re going to have to pay for it. Priceless.

“They’ll handle it. Fights happen all the time. The cleaning staff is used to finding broken classrooms, pools of blood and bodies. No big deal.” I replied, pulling her forward to cue her to start walking.

“Bodies! Jeez, how savage are you guys?” She accused.

“Wait till the 1v1s. You’ll find out how savage shifters can get when their ranks are on the line.” I concluded.

I stopped before the three silent shifters. Elias was the only one who didn’t have a shocked expression, his usual blank stoic face resurfacing. Daniel blinked a few times, glancing at Mako’s arm, his shocked expression replaced with a frown. Marcus rubbed his eyes, taking one more look between us before smiling.

“In my whole existence, I never would have thought I’d witness two demon spirit actually have a conversation with one another without causing a war.” Marcus admitted.

“They have history. Daniel and Elias, can you take Mako home? Marcus and I are going to tell Matthew that we’re all going to be absent today and about this mess.” I explained, letting go of the Mako’s hand, pressing against her back to guide her towards Daniel, pushing gently. She looked over her shoulder to face me.

“You guys won’t be long, right?” She asked, worry lines forming on her face, causing me to smile.

“Nope. We’ll be quick. You’re probably hungry. Go home and let Daniel heal your arm. At least by then, Elias will be done with breakfast and we’ll be back and we’ll have breakfast together, okay?” I reassured her. She nodded.

“Okay…and um.” She started, hesitating as she looked to the ground, her hands coming together as she fidgeted in place. She rotated in place, so she could somewhat face all of us.

“I just wanted to say thank you. You guys didn’t have to all rush here on my behalf…but since you did, thank you for always looking out for me. I’m not use to such attention or acts of kindness and I don’t know how to repay you all but I will one day. I promise.” She whispered softly.

I looked around the room to the others, their eyes locking in on mine as we allowed her words to sink in.

Marcus moved towards her, standing behind her and placing his hand against her lower back. Daniel raised his hand, resting it on her left shoulder. Elias moved to her opposite side, reaching out to hold her hand, and I took the other hand in mine, lifting it towards my lips, kissing the rainbow-coloured marking, symbolizing our unity and reminding me of my purpose. I wouldn’t let her down again. We wouldn’t allow anyone to take her away. She was ours now.

“You don’t need to thank us Makoto. It’s our duty and we care about you. We’ll always be here to support you, no matter what obstacles that come our way. No matter what path you choose to walk on, we’ll be right behind you.” I vowed, the others nodding in agreement.

She smiled, her eyes glossy, as a tear rolling down her cheek.

“Let’s go home.” She whispered, sincerely.

 

~MAKO~

I dragged my feet, trying to win the battle I was currently facing. My eyelids felt so heavy, but I was trying my best to beat the ongoing wave of exhaustion. I knew I wasn’t going to be victorious, but I wouldn’t give up on my mission to stay awake.

I stared down at the ground, trying not to trip over another rock like the previous five times. Elias was walking ahead, my hand in his as Daniel trailed behind me. We were only two minutes away from the house, but the journey felt like cycles had passed.

“Mako, just let me carry you.” Elias urged, his voice a mixture of worry and irritation.

“Nope. I’m fine and dandy, thank you very much. I walked through the valley of the shadows of death. I fear no evil…from those unicorn beasts.” I mumbled. Hmm, I read that in a book somewhere.

“Sweetheart, that’s from the bible, with the exclusion of the unicorns.” Hope admitted before sighing.

“You know when someone needs a nappy nap when…” Rose hummed soothingly.

“My bad.” Lexi apologized.

“This is why we let you be the cheerleader in the group. You pooped her out.” Lily pointed out.

“I’m not a poop and unicorns are so in the bible. I read it. They’re there.” I argued.

“Did she just say unicorns are in the bible?” Daniel asked, clearly needing clarification of what I had just stated.

I smiled to myself as a song came into my head; Marcus gave me permission the other day to listen to his music from Realm Six.

“I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bikeeeeeeee.” I sang softly, as I stumbled over another rock. Those bloody things didn’t have any manners. Can’t they see I’m passing through. Make way for the queen of the unicorns.

“Ugh, I give up.” Elias cursed, turning to face me, not like I noticed, crashing right into his chest. I looked up at him, blinking to clear my blurry vision.

“Hello Mr. King, what a fine morning we’re having.” I mused.

“Remind me to tell the others how incoherent she is after shifting and needing a nap. This is worse than her sleep walking.” He mentioned to Daniel before sweeping me off my feet, into his strong arms. I sighed in relief, resting my heavy head against his chest.

“Has Marcus let you listen to his music collection from Earthala? I swear he has an addiction to Queen.” Daniel asked, walking next to Elias.

“I’m not telling you. It’s a secret, Shhhhh.” I mumbled, allowing my eyes to close.

I deserved a pat on the back for my honourable attempt to battle such menacing demons called sleep. You may have won this battle, but I would end up victorious…tomorrow.

My mind began to drift; the calming movement of walking surrounded by the nature’s numerous sounds was the perfect lullaby. I fell asleep, all my worries washing away as I entered the realm of bliss.

 

~DANIEL~

“Mako?” I whispered, brushing lightly against her wound. She didn’t move, as I watched her chest rise and fall, her breathing was slow and deep.

“Sound asleep. Don’t blame her. Having finished training, only to fight those three dimwits and then confront Ryder’s demon in less than four hours. I salute her.” Elias praised. He was sitting in his usual seat in the two-seater black sofa opposite of us.

Upon arriving at the house, we laid Mako in the longer sofa, grabbing a pillow from Ryder’s room to support her head. I was kneeling before her, assessing the wound on her right arm, the wound not deep enough to leave a scar. I took a deep breathe, my magic awakening at my call, descending towards my left hand. It glowed lightly; the soft glow mesmerizing.

I focused my concentration on my objective, placing my hand on the wound gently.

Mako stirred slightly, mumbling something incoherent before relaxing in the sofa with a soft sigh.

I smiled at her sleeping figure, my angel sharing my admiration for the girl before us. She had entered our lives in such a short time, yet I had seen so much change amongst the boys. The biggest shocker was seeing how cooperative Stryker had been even with his demanding attitude. We all knew if Stryker made an appearance, someone wouldn’t be left unharmed, yet he had remained calm and almost personable as he spoke to Rose.

I finished healing the slash mark, removing my hand to inspect her smooth skin. The only remnant of the wound’s presence was a light red mark; the discolouration would fade before sunset.

“Good as new.” I whispered, sighing.

I seriously needed a vacation from healing. The increase in demands of using my healing skills partnered with my mini teaching lessons with Makoto was taking a toll on me. This only meant I had to start training again. I was getting weaker compared to the others who always took time out of their schedule to train.

From Marcus’ daily training sessions, Ryder’s nightly meditations and Elias’ consistent use of his spirit and connection with nature, I needed to stop spending time sleeping and more time perfecting my own skills. I didn’t want to be left in the dust. Who knows what the stars have planned for us. Whatever the case may be, I’ll be ready. I have to be in order to protect her.

I stood up, taking a moment to stretch before walking towards the kitchen cabinets, opening the cupboard to get an empty glass. I opened the tap, filling my glass with cold water. I gulped the cold fluid in a few swallows, enjoying the tasteless liquid as it flowed down my throat, quenching my thirst. I pulled the empty glass away, sighing with relief.

“I’m going to take nap.” Elias announced. I looked over my shoulder, raising my eyebrow at him as I noticed the sleeping brunette in his arms.

“And where are you taking the princess off too?” I questioned.

I was planning to watch her till the others arrived. I felt out of the four of us, I had the least time with her, which bothered me. I couldn’t complain seeing as I spent most of my days sleeping, barely having enough energy to wake up before breakfast and dinner depending on the day.

Regardless of my excuses, I still felt left out in a sense, my heart wanting to be around Mako more. She never ceased to amaze me and I loved her company.

“Might as well bring her to my room. She’s just going to sleep walk there anyways.” He countered with a shrug, making his way to the hall.

“How do you know she’s going to sleep walk to your room and not any of ours?” I retorted. He looked over his shoulder, a playful glint in his eye as he smiled slowly.

“Mako always sleeps in my bed on Mondays. Not breaking routine now. If she sleeps through the day and night, she’d be in my bed in the am. I’ll see you at dinner and make sure you don’t sleep in. Mako doesn’t say anything, but she misses you.” He insisted before embarking towards his room upstairs, carrying sleeping beauty with him.

She misses me?

“You should stop holding back before you’re left behind.” My angel’s angelic voice stated softly.

I simply nodded, leaning against the counter top.

Soon…