I can not believe I'm going through this. Against my will, yes, but I'm still doing it none-the-less. Maybe.
If they could get me out of this room. At least the vampires couldn't - the door was made out of wood. Oak to be exact. It was the only room with a wooden door, which meant the others could get in, just not the vampires.
And the girl behind the door was no vampire.
"Keller, come on! You have to show Poppy and Thea the clothes they got you! And your date with Galen is in an hour! Hurry up and stop being a scaredy cat!" Oh, the eye twitch returns.
"Iliana, no. I refuse to step out of this room wearing a top that shows way too much cleavage, and these jeans are too tight! And I near shredded that thong you had on top of the damned pile! Who bought the fucking thong!" I near screeched as I stood right behind the bolted door, taking a quick glance at the small, lacy black fabric I had earlier thrown with disgust to the other side of the room, along with the other clothes I found unacceptable. I took a few breaths, calming myself down as I tried to slow my racing heart that I was sure others in the hideout could hear. Though the mere thought of the clothes made me want to just shift and run away.
But they had taken my jumpsuit and I'd rather not walk around the hideout in only my underwear and bra. I could always just shift if I wanted to, but it was a hassle if I wanted to change back. The twitch in my right eye made itself noticeable when I heard the Wild Power's giggle on the other side of the thick door.
"Oh, I know who would do that. Well, actually, I know several people who would do that. Anyway, remember when I told you that the guys were going to shop for Galen, too? Well, Ash - you remember him, James' cousin? - thought it would be funny if he got you a 'special' welcoming present for you, even though he said it'd be more of a present for Galen then yourself." The witch was full-blown laughing at this point in her explanation, unaware of the dilation of my eyes into mere slits.
No, you can't! It would make Poppy and Thea sad if you ripped their new clothes. It's a gift, you must endure the humiliation. Pep talks didn't work that great, I realized. Especially with Iliana laughing it up on the opposite side of the door. I could hear multiple footsteps coming towards the door, but I couldn't decipher who it all was.
"Iliana?" Oh no, oh no.
Galen Drache, my soulmate.
"Oh Galen! You're just in time! Maybe you can convince Keller to come out to show us Poppy and Thea's gift. Or part of it, anyway." Iliana explained cheerfully, still hiccuping from her laughing. I growled deep in my chest, and it caused all movements on the other side of the door to cease.
"..Raksha?" Came the fairytale prince's meek voice, and I could feel him through the wood, my body yearning for his embrace as much as his yearned for mine. We needed each other, and we'd been apart for a few days thanks to his family needing him for some meeting. I hadn't been allowed to attend, but he had called me on my phone every chance he got.
I sighed, and Iliana's giggle alerted me to the fact that she knew I was slowly, reluctantly, giving in to my soulmate. "Yes, Galen?" I said in a perfectly normal voice, though I couldn't help the slight annoyance it held. At least the twitching had gone away.
"Can we see you, please? Can I at least come in and see? They made me dress up, too." Galen asked softly, though I heard him crystal clear. My mind was screaming no, no, no! But my heart was screeching yes, yes, oh Goddess above yes!
I bit my lip, nervous for the first time. Well, if I just let Galen in, it wouldn't be as embarrassing. Of course, the others outside would start dreaming up weird fantasies, and that was worse than any reality.
We haven't even had sex yet, why were they so up on us? Because we were the newbies? It was so unfair.
". . . Fine, Galen can come in. And only Galen, do you hear me you losers? I can easily rip some wood out of this door, or even out of the furniture." I threatened through my teeth, unlocking the first dead bolt, and then the second. My hand eased down to the third dead bolt, and I could hear anxious breaths being taken on the other side of the door. Just who was all out there to see my misery?
"Remember: just Galen you freaks, or I'll shred you all to pieces." I wouldn't really since Armageddon had yet to approach, but I still sounded completely serious.
"Right," that was Hannah Snow, and I smiled in relief. I could trust Hannah, if no one else. We had talked on the night we arrived since she had found out Galen and I were soulmates. She was very kind, and I was shocked to find out that she wouldn't become a vampire for Thierry, the leader of Circle Daybreak. When she told me her story, it had been so heart-breaking. . Almost being turned into a vampire, but to be murdered as soon as it was over, just to make her soulmate miserable. And even after Maya had died, Hannah still refused to become a vampire for her own personal reasons, and I didn't question her choices.
Myself on the other hand. . .
I had just nearly lost Galen to the Witch Child slash Wild Power number three because they were destined for each other since birth, even if Iliana hadn't known at the time. The girl didn't like change, but time had made her more flexible to the Night World, and I even considered her my sister. Of course, the blood tie helped just a tiny bit.
The last dead bolt clicked open, and I turned the knob and opened the door a sliver, pushing myself against the door so once one body came in I could close it as soon as Galen made it through.
"Go!" I ordered as he pushed inside the room and I slammed the wooden door shut, hearing disappointed 'awws' as I locked all the dead bolts, and the twitch returned when I heard a few chuckles.
Those perverts, I'll kill them. Or at least castrate them.
"Keller."
I whipped around at the sound of his voice, and I couldn't help my jaw dropping at the sight of his transformation from fairytale prince to blond badass. Not like the previous mentioned Ash, but.. sexier (I'm biased, of course. Just ask Ash's soulmate who she thinks is sexier!).
My cool grey eyes met his own bright emerald green ones after he had made a once-over of my own new attire. I blushed soft pink at the thought, and he just smiled his sweet smile, like he was incapable of thinking naughty thoughts.
Well, I was certainly capable.
"You look.." he paused, and for a moment my mood deflated. Did he think I was showing too much? Did I look like a slut? A whore? A ho-bag? The worry must have been obvious on my face, because he simply laughed and walked towards me, his hands lifting to cradle my pale face in his smooth, warm hands that radiated warmth into my previously hot cheeks - his warmth canceling out the blood which had burned my face in embarrassment. I near-melted into a Keller-colored puddle of goo on the floor from the love I felt coming off of Galen in large waves. His aura was full of love and other kinds of emotions. The explosion in my mind from when our skin touched had turned into a large tidal wave of emotion instead of the normal spark most soulmates experienced.
"Keller," Galen whispered softly, and I just jumped him and we landed on the floor, my arms around his neck and I was nuzzling my cheek into his exposed throat like a kitten.
I was even purring! I shouldn't be able to do that, I was a panther for Goddess' sake!
He wrapped his arms around my waist and I shivered as his hands ghosted over the small of my back, my spine arching as he pressed his fingers expertly into my vertebrae. The hoots and hollers from the people outside the door interrupted our moment, and I growled as I made a movement to get up, but Galen's strong, reassuring arms kept me plastered to him like super glue. I could have easily broken his hold, but his words halted me in my tracks.
"Why should I have to share my beautiful panther? I haven't gotten to see you for three days, and I'd rather hog you then let the others humiliate you because you're absolutely stunning." Galen flattered me and I couldn't help but blush bright red which contrasted greatly with my normally pale skin. My hair fell passed my shoulders and pooled around our faces, like curtains hiding us from view from the non-existent on-lookers. He took a hand and brushed his fingers down my face, from my hairline to tracing my full lips that were open with pleasant surprise.
I knew Galen was a poet, but his words never ceased to amaze me.
"Galen. ." I spoke softly, but I couldn't say more as his warm lips covered mine, and our eyes closed as I locked my fingers into his soft blond locks. I tried to pull him closer, but we were as close as our physical bodies would allow.
"But we're so much closer as one." His voice echoed in my mind and I smiled into our kiss, our bond stronger than ever.
After a few minutes of mingling in each others soul and mind, we broke apart and stared into each others eyes, panting from the intensity of the moment. My mind slowly recollected that there were people outside the door, until I realized that I could no longer sense them.
Well, well, they had enough common sense to leave while we were having our reunion. Good, I'd spare their lives.
For now.
"So," I started looking down at my knight as I grinned myself silly. I felt energetic and filled with Galen's love, and I just wanted to be with him forever. I knew he felt the same as he de-tangled my long, thick tresses with his smooth fingers. I never had enough time to brush my hair all the way and it got constantly knotted. I had considered cutting it short, but Galen told me he liked it longer, but he'd still find me beautiful if I cut it.
I knew he'd love me no matter what I did.
"So?" He questioned me as he sat up, sitting me in his lap like I was a child at Christmas. I rested my head against his shoulder, feeling the material of his new shirt as I traced my hand from his neck to his belly button, poking him with a small giggle. I could only be this way around him, I knew that. I'd be tough Keller around everyone else, but I was sweet, innocent Raksha (anyone see the irony? Raksha equals demon? Haha! Anyway.) in the presence of Galen Drache, the only person in both worlds to bring me to my knees. Of course, I couldn't always be sweet around him. He had to deal with Keller sometimes, too.
But only sometimes.
"Do we really have to go on a date?" I asked, looking up at him from under my thick eyelashes. He poked me on my bare midriff and I couldn't stop the small squeak that escaped.
Oh no.
"Oh, is the infamous fighter Raksha Keller ticklish?" Galen grinned at his new discovery, and proceeded to tackle me to the ground with fingers flying up my sides, causing me to go into a fit of laughter. I tried to push him away but I was laughing so much that I didn't seem to have the strength to push him away.
Eventually, the tables turned and I had gotten my hands on Galen and he started to laugh uncontrollably. I smirked as I pushed him to the ground and continued our tickle war, or positions going back and forth as we took control. This lasted for, I don't know, ten minutes? I knew by the end of it, we were laying side by side panting for precious oxygen, both smiling.
We were having our own little date in the safety of the hideout. No need to go out in public and show off the clothes the other girls had gotten me. Galen's weren't that bad, a new black button-up shirt with only the two center buttons buttoned, but he wore a white tank-top underneath so I wouldn't have to reprimand him for showing off to other girls. I am rather possessive, you see. His sleeves were only three quarter sleeves, and I ran my fingers lightly up and down his forearm while feeling the warm skin there. He wore a black studded belt - which he never would have worn on his own - that held up black Trip jeans. I knew it was probably James, Ash, or David who got them for my blond prince. Oh well, it made him even sexier than normal.
Me? Oh, I was basically living a nightmare in these clothes that the girls bought me as a welcoming gift. There was another pile of clothes in the corner of the room with miniskirts, tank tops, capris, et cetera. And that damned thong lying not-so innocently on the opposite side of the room.
I hoped Galen wouldn't notice it.
The clothes I deemed appropriate weren't that bad once I had given it some thought. The top I wore was a dark blue color and it had a wide, low neckline that showed off more cleavage than I would have liked, and the sleeves stopped short just above my elbows. It also cut off at my waist, showing my midriff to the world. And my jeans were low-riding flares that cut off the circulation in my legs, and yet I could still walk and feel them when I moved. I wore no shoes at the moment, but they had bought me black flats with a small, blue flower as a sort of button accessory. Why did shoes need buttons if you couldn't even use them? Decoration?
Galen sighed as I laid my head upon his chest, hearing his calming heartbeat beneath his chest. Our hands interlinked just a few inches from my nose, and he lightly traced circles in the valley between my thumb and pointer finger. I purred lightly once again, closing my silver eyes as we laid in silence.
This was enough for us.
"I love you, Keller." Galen whispered in my ear as my eyes fluttered open to glance up at him. He placed a gentle kiss on my forehead, and I smiled a small, soft smile that I'm sure no one else in the entire would had ever seen on my face. This was our moment of peace, just the two of us. The thoughts of the world, of the others in the hideout, even the search for the last Wild Power were pushed out of my mind as I squeezed his hand tightly, a sign of true reassurance.
"I love you too, Galen."