Chapter Three: And Strutted Down the Path

"Kayle, c'mon . . . please," she begged in a whisper that is barely audible. "Tayhe's gone for a couple hours; he'll never have to know." Destin's wondering fingers dragged down under the sleeping bag that separated them. Playfully she pulled up the hem of his shirt and spread her hand across his warm stomach.

Kaylen made a silent groan in pleasure, not understanding what he should do. Before he could think straight he realized the sleeping bag was being pulled open and Destin crawled in with him. She straddled him, digging her hips into his with a look of desire in her eyes. He couldn't help but bring his hands to her hips and had to move uncomfortably underneath her when he felt she was wearing skimpy pajama shorts. "Destin, what if . . ."

He never finished. She had leaned forward and started to suck ever so lightly on his neck. His shirt was removed quickly over his head and her touch made him shudder. His hands moved upward, grasping her sides in hope to regain control. However, this had the opposite effect. Unable to find the strength to pull her off, he instead lifted her shirt up to give him access to her skin. After a few more moments of her soft, teasing kisses along his neck he couldn't help himself. He bent his head down, stopping her tormenting kisses and capturing her mouth with his. He didn't play around with gentle, practice kisses. His tongue traced her lips once, and she didn't need more of a hint. Without hesitating she parted her lips, loving the feeling of being devoured.

Her taste was unforgettable, addictive and paralyzing.

Everything turned into a haze. Slowly, he sensed her absence from the tent, and became aware of the small sounds just outside the tent.

Destin woke up freezing cold, shivering under her thick sleeping bag. 'Warm nights my butt,' she thought miserably, though she knew it was due to her extensive drinking. Her body was stiff; hating her and longing for the sleep that it stubbornly refused to give. Dee's head was clear, wide-awake and ready to role. Half hearted she kicking off the covers she sat up and stretched slowly. Her sweat pants and sweater lay hauntingly on top of her bag. She unzipped the tent and slid out, snatching her clothes along the way.

Closing the door behind her she stared out at the makeshift camping spot. How painfully it mocked her. She climbed into her clothes, hoping for instant warmth yet finding none. Destin scowled to herself, knowing that her mood wasn't helping a thing. She crawled onto the same rock as earlier. There was a cool breeze that made her feel better. 'At least my headache's gone,' she thought positively.

The more she thought about the day, the more she was confused. Should she feel stupid for getting drunk the first night here, feel excited by his lingering touches that consumed her brain, or angry that he causes such a reaction out of her? She heard someone stir inside of the tent and smirked. It obviously wasn't Tayhe; he wouldn't wakeup until food was made. Destin slid off the rock almost silently. Taking her time, she headed in the direction of that small landing she had been on to write music.

Loving to test people she waited until she knew he had seen her shadow before slipping into the darkness, leaving no further trail. As she suspected he followed willingly not long after her. Surprisingly he didn't call out, which gave her the feeling that he understood her games. However, when Destin suddenly snatched at his arms, he jumped a mile, not expecting her touch. "Did I wake you?" she asked politely, laughter evident in her voice.

"No, I never sleep for very long," he mumbled quickly.

"Weird dream," she stated rather than asked.

He tried to make out her expression in the darkness but failed. He hoped she hadn't heard anything; he didn't know if he talks in his sleep or not. If he did, what a dreadful place to start. "Something like that. Where were you headed?"

Dee entered into the moonlight so he could see her face. She had a funny grin on her face and motioned for him to follow. She never had the grace to move when she was younger, which had irritated her. Over the years she forcefully taught herself how to move in silence, almost in a flowing movement – though there were times she lost all grace. He watched in admiration for three seconds, before clobbering after her, not having the ability to make no noise. He had little trouble keeping up with her, even if she was quite fast.

She stopped abruptly, surprising herself at how quick she had reached the landing. He sort of bumped into her, almost making her tumble, but instead of being furious she giggled. "I never seem to give adequate warnings, sorry,"

"You get trampled on by a guy twice your size and you apologize," he smirked.

"You're not twice my size, good try though." She sat down on the edge and mused. Finally she felt relaxed and that she didn't have to hide anything.

He sat beside her, not knowing what to say about the change of heart. "You seemed to have dramatic thing going on earlier." His voice was careful, truthful, daring.

"Yes, but it was the first time I've ever gotten angry enough to lash out in years. I've had the ability to remain calm since I've started at Hogwarts. I kind of had to with all the rumors that started," she added. She watched her toes wiggle in the moonlight.

"Hogwarts?"

Her toes stopped dead, her face ghostly white. "Pardon?"

"You said since I've started at Hogwarts. I was just wondering what Hogwarts is, I didn't think I'd take you by surprise seeing as you mentioned it."

Her heart was thumping, she could feel her blood rushing faster, but her thinking was still boggled. "I'm such an idiot," she muttered to herself, not realizing that Kayle was staring at her, listening to every word. "I just blurted it out, like it was common. To a muggle, my Lord, I think I've gone absolutely insane. Not once have I ever come close to –" she stopped mid sentence and looked at him.

"Muggle," he said more to himself, but continued to study her expression. "Is that new slang for ruggedly handsome?"

"Something like that. Hogwarts would be rather boring to talk about, you wouldn't want to know." She looked away, down at the water, giving a weird, nervous look to the waiting water.

He laughed, she tried hard and he'd give her points for that. "We have all night, well sort of. Mornin' really, I 'pose eh?"

"I'd rather talk about something else, if you wouldn't mind. Hogwarts is a sore spot for me. I'm not used to having to go into detail." She was frantic, what would happen? Will the Ministry find out, or (in that case) do they already know?

He looked at her nervous attempt at a smile, and caved. "Maybe some other time when you feel more comfortable." He gave her a warm smile, not wanting to pressure her. She returned it, along with a sigh of relief. "So what are you doing up so early?"

"I had shivers, cold in the night. My own fault, I'll admit. I always have restless nights." She looked up at the stars in the sky, studying them. "I'm a night owl, can't handle the day honestly. Once I'm done at school, my job will include graveyard shifts constantly." Destin laughed at herself, "I'm a little nuts, I know."

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Nuts and eccentric are regularly confused. I think you're taking the clues to make inaccurate conclusions. It's good to know there's a person out there who isn't obsessed about the perfect tan or the most flattering beach wear." Kaylen thought for a moment. "'Everyone would quit caring what people think if they knew how little they were thought about.' I'm sure that's not the exact quote, but I think you get the meaning."

"Where did you hear that?"

"A friend. She spends her time digging around for useful quotes. Or so we tell people just to make her angry; you see she reads a lot more than any of us. We're never too sure about her." It was strange how he didn't even know her, but could talk so easily about nothing. He noticed she was still staring up at the sky and couldn't resist, "What do you see in the stars tonight?"

"Everything and nothing. As always I suppose."

"Hmm."

She decided she could at least try to explain. "You see as a w- I mean humans often change, exaggerate the meaning of what they see, but it's impossible to stop. Or if they are the rare pure soul they might completely understand the meaning, but miss the important message or even say something almost utterly different. There's no real use of trying to predict, or even assume what position each planet is in if you don't have a telescope." Destin finally took her eyes off the deep purple sea above her, and was a little overwhelmed when she realized that he was looking curiously at her. "Sorry, I've studied a little."

"You don't have to apologize. The way you clearly expressed your opinion in such a calm manner was just kind of alluring. Not to mention you have a lovely voice to listen to, as long as it's not yelling at me."

She felt colour wash over her cheeks and forced herself not to look away. "That was one of the best compliments I've ever been given, even if I don't deserve it." Destin looked out at the scenery around her lazily. "I'm sorry, about earlier. I didn't know I still had such a temper. I'm used to being able to control my emotions, but there's . . ." she trailed off, aware that she was two seconds from insulting the guy.

"Something about me? Don't worry I get that a lot."

Dee peered into his unyielding hazelnut eyes. She'd noticed they deepened to an almost black when arguing, were warm and inviting during a moment of laughter, but at any other time seemed to judge and mock the person staring into them. "It's not just a random quality; it's your eyes. They deride."

His cocky laugh rang in her ears. "You're eyes are beautiful too, princess."

"Shut up," she said a little more fiercely than she had intended. "I didn't say it to insult you."

"Why else would you say a thing like that?"

"It's not an insult if you were born with it," she replied calmly. She'd been over this same piece of fact with many people who still don't quite understand what she was getting at. 'They all had that damn temper,' she thought.

"What would you call it then?" he demanded in a rising voice.

"The truth! Fact! Good, hard evidence." Her voice had raised a level, but he still saw her as calm and collected as ever. "You have expressive eyes and they seem to be evaluating you."

"Isn't that what everyone does? You evaluate what the person is saying, and with you it's always an opinion. Opinions reflect character, so why wouldn't I be trying to figure you out?"

Her eyes burned white anger; she could just send the kid flying off the edge into the water… Wait no. They've already been after her about using her powers on summer holidays. Not that anyone would've known if Tayhe had kept his trap shut. She stood up and dusted herself off. "Shove off." She pushes him off the edge with her foot when he starts to stand and is unbalanced.

He didn't have the time to scream, to try and catch his balance, or prepare to crash into the freezing water. She smirked to herself, as there was a scandalous sound of his body breaking the water surface then turned on her bare heel and strutted down the path.