Chapter 4: Who's Reeta?

I could sense the morning sun shining into my room through the window across my bed. My sensitive ears could pick up the footsteps of soldiers doing morning patrol through the area. I opened my eyes a little bit and saw Mira, Elli, and Lavender were still asleep. I rested my head deeper into my pillow and closed my eyes again, letting the uneven breathing of the others in my room lull me to sleep.

June...

June...

A demon whispered my name as I cowered to the wall, desperately seeking protection.

"We gave you a deadline..." the demon in a human's skin hissed, "We can't keep doing this. We want our money."

"Please I just need more time!" I begged.

Both men's eyes flared with hatred, "Enough with your excuses."

They slowly advanced towards me, there human skin melting off to reveal their true demonic faces. I shook in fear with tears streaming from my eyes.

"Get away from me!" I cried desperately, "Stay away!"

The demons got closer step by step with greedy lustful expressions painted on their faces. One pinned me to the wall by my shoulders while the other watched in pure evil. I could feel the hands of the demon trace my figure but I kicked him back in his stomach. The other demon charged at me but I threw myself out the way. The shine of metal drew my attention to my left side. I glanced and saw a sliver pistol resting on the floor. It gleamed under the moonlight peering through the window. I reacted without thinking and grabbed the gun. The demons froze in their tracks the minute I pointed the firearm at them.

"I will shoot," I told them with a shaky voice.

The demons looked at each other and grinned grimly. Their bodies shrunk and shifted into the body of a smaller person. A little girl named Reeta. My eyes became filled with shock and I could barely hold the gun still.

"Open your eyes," the little girl coldly said, "You're late."

"Reeta..." My voice cracked.

"Wake up," she said.

She lunged at me at grasped my throat, strangling me. I was surprised and didn't have time to react at first. I found myself frozen and I couldn't move.

"Wake up June."

"Wake up."

"WAKE UP!" Ace cried as he shook my shoulders.

"AAAAHHH!" the sudden awakening had scared me so much that I punched Ace and sent him flying to the ceiling.

Ace hit the ceiling and landed on the floor hard. He twitched and muttered pained noises.

I took in deep breaths and tried to calm down my heartbeat. When I looked at Ace on the floor, a part of me felt relieved he had awakened me. Another part however, was very furious he had barged in my dorm and woke me up. That was the only side I was willing to let show.

"What the hell are you doing waking me up?!" I yelled.

"Give me a moment….," he muttered, "I'm dying down here… I'll reply when I'm on the other side….."

I rubbed my head in frustration, "What time is it anyways?"

"Five 'o ten I believe," he said.

"Five?"

"Ya five."

My body began to release a dark aura, "You mean to tell me you woke me up at five and not six?!"

Ace yelped as he began to try to run. I jumped out of my bed and landed on top of him.

"I have an hour of sleep still!"

"I'm sorry!" Ace desperately cried from under me, "but you had requested early access to the training grounds so I thought you wanted me to wake you early so we could use it before the soldiers get in."

I glared down on him and tightened my grasp on his shirt causing sweat drops to run down his face.

I got up from on top of Ace and threw him out the room, "Tell the other slayers I'll be out in five minutes!"

I shut the door and took in a deep breath to calm myself down. I stared down at my feet and let my hair fall in front of my face.

"Reeta..." I breathed mournfully, "I'm so sorry."

I roughly wiped away a stray tear and shook my head.

"No, this is not a time to be thinking of that. Just shake it off June," I told myself.

I walked to my drawer and pulled out a yellow button up shirt and black pants. I slid off my sleepwear and pulled the shirt over, buttoning each button one by one. I slipped into the pants and tied the front strands of my hair back into a mini ponytail. I looked up at the mirror by Mira's bed. She always kept one there due to her obsessive grooming. I stared at my eye, brushing a hand over it gently. The skin around my eye was rough and dry. Its presence ruined the symmetry of my face. This person staring at me in the mirror was weak and pathetic. I grabbed the cloth to cover my eye and tied it around my head. Giving one last glance in the mirror, I saw a completely different person than before. This person had some sense of pride and dignity.

"Time to go," I whispered to myself.

I grabbed my signature brown tail coat with the tail ends touching my shins. Sliding it on, I headed out to the training grounds.

When I arrived, I saw Slane was halfway finished through leading the slayers in stretches. Upon seeing me, Mira gestured me over. I stood next to her and joined in on the stretching.

"Why didn't you guys wake me when you were leaving?" I asked her.

"I didn't know how to wake you," Mira replied.

I looked at her curiously. She had an uneasy look on her face.

"You seemed to have been having a nightmare and when I tried to wake you, your expression only became more scared. I decided to leave you be," she explained.

I crossed right arm over my left, "I have a question. Did I say anything while I was asleep?"

Mira glanced away for a second and back at me, "I didn't hear anything."

I nodded, "Good to know."

Even if I Mira is lying, I'm okay with her knowing about Mira. I'm not ready to tell her about it yet though. I'm not ready to tell anyone yet.

"Alright, my pack come to me and we can start our exercises," Slane said.

Con and Alph came up to me. Alph put his arm on my shoulder and leaned on me.

"So what's the training schedule Alpha?" he asked me.

I pulled a paper out of my pocket and opened it to see the plan. Con, Mira, and Alph all leaned in to see as well.

"Well today I want to work with Mira on her shifting. Con and Alph, I want you two to work on you evasion and speed. I've noticed you guys have been too busy focusing on each other that you have been slacking on your fitness training."

"Can do Alpha!" Alph said as he cracked his knuckles.

Con rolled his head and prepared himself, "Bring it monkey!"

Alph laughed, "I'll send you with your tail between your legs, mutt!"

They both shifted into their slayer forms and began to race around the grounds. Mira giggled as she watched the two compete.

"Whether on the field or in training, those two are always competing," she said.

"You'd think it would be you and Con who'd compete since you're dog and cat," I commented.

"Ya, but he's too protective over me and our little brother to ever think of competing with us."

I looked at her and saw a warm smile on her face. I placed a hand on her shoulder.

"We should get working," I told her.

"Your objective," I told her while raising a small orange flag in the air, "is to grab this flag. You are not allowed to shift into slayer form. If you do, the exercise is a fail."

Mira nodded her head and listened intensely.

"My job is to make sure you do not take this flag," I told her, "Therefore, I'm allowed to use whatever measure is necessary."

"I understand Alpha," she replied.

I raised the flag high in the air, "Come at me!"

She charged towards me and jumped up to get the flag, but I took a step back and kicked her away in the gut. She fell back and rolled on the ground to get back on her feet. She jumped at me and tried to kick the back of my knee in order to get me to fall forward, but I bent down and blocked her kick. I grasped unto her leg and flipped her over my shoulder sending her hard to the ground with a painful thud. She let out a pained cry and clutched her hands into fists.

Whenever Mira's body undergoes too much stress, she shifts into a slayer. The slayers who aren't in the Elites have a similar problem. She is an amazing slayer; however the fact that she can't control her shifting makes her dangerous. This exercise puts Mira's body in a lot of stress. The frustration of being unable to grab the flag and the pain I inflict onto her. The goal is not to grab the flag but to conquer the slayer inside of her.

Mira got up and lashed out at me again; barely able to touch the flag, but I grabbed her by her shirt and attempted to throw her off of me. She grabbed my arm though, pulled me in closely, and sent me to the ground with a head-but. I fell to the floor and she jumped on top of me in order to grab the flag. I kicked my feet up and kicked her shins in order to stun her. When she flinched, I punched her in the middle of her chest and threw her off of me. Her body began to twitch and she let out painful moans as she clutched unto her sides.

"Mira, don't shift! Fight it and control it!" I said.

Her fingers clutched tightly unto her shirt and she locked her jaw together in pain.

"Mira…"
"June… I… I can't do it!" she cried. She then lost control and shifted into a slayer.

I sighed, "We still have a lot of work to do…."

Mira lowered her ears and lowered her head and tail in defeat. I walked over to her and bent down so that our eyes were level. I slid the cloth on my eye to reveal my slayer eye and stared deeply into her eyes with it. We spent a minute staring at each other, speaking only through stares. That was how slayers communicated best. Eyes. When slayers switch from human to beast, their minds switch as well. A slayer can only recognize someone they know through eye contact.

"I'm sorry…. I failed again…."

"We just need to work on it more. Don't beat yourself up over it."

I looked over at Con and Alph who had started chasing after each other, playing a game of cat and mouse.

"No luck?" Slane asked me.

I turned to face him and shook my head, "I'm afraid not."

"Maybe you're going to hard on her," Slane commented.

"In reality, her emotions won't go easy on her. She is a slayer who will be put through extreme measures. This training is necessary," I said.

Slane sighed, "I really hate that exercise. We use it all the time on the other non-Elite slayers and it hurts to see them suffer of something we do to them."

"Slane," I replied, "they aren't suffering. Their pain heals. I know you don't like the exercise; I don't like it either and neither does Ace, but do you know any other way to do it."

Slane thought about it for a minute and sighed, "I can't think of one."

"June!" Ace cried from behind me, "Mira's getting away!"

"What?!" I snapped my head around and saw Mira running off towards the HQ center, "Crap! We can't let her run off on her own! Her slayer form is aggressive!"

Ace ordered his pack who had not transformed to go after her. Slane had his pack chase after her in their slayer forms. Con and Alph acted on their own initiative and immediately went after Mira.

"No slayer in their slayer form is allowed to go inside the buildings! They can cause unnecessary damage to them and/or frighten the Survey Corps," I ordered.

"Yes Alpha," the two half slayers replied.

I snapped my fingers to get the attention of my pack. Con and Alph both looked at me to see what my direction for them was. I stared them both in the eye.

"Do not go inside buildings! If Mira runs in them, I'll take care of her," I ordered.

"I'm sorry…. I failed again…."

"We just need to work on it more. Don't beat yourself up over it."

Mira watched Alph June begin to speak with Alpha Slane. Not wanting to bother them, Mira walked a couple steps away and lied down on her stomach. She sat there and let out a sigh. She looked over at Con and Alph who were busy practicing their techniques on each other. She'd normally join in and fight as well, but she didn't feel like bothering them either. Besides, something more interesting caught her eye. In the corner of her eye, she saw a man walking near the training grounds, a familiar man.

That's the same human that tried to hurt my alpha! I can't let him get close to Alpha!

The man walked past, focused on getting to someplace he needed to be. Mira stalked him, careful not to make a sound as she stepped. He didn't notice the danger about to overcome him. That's when Mira made her pursuit…

"Mira!" I cried.

Desperately, I ran as fast as I could in order to locate her. Normally, Mira was well behaved and often stuck to my side like glue. For her to run off like that was extremely unusual. Unless she…

"Please don't let my theory be right Mira!" I begged.

I heard a bark behind me. I turned my shoulders to look behind me and saw Con staring at me.

Follow me.

Con ran off in another direction and I chased after him. About twenty feet in front of us, I saw Captain Levi was walking ahead of us. Just a couple feet behind him though was Mira, prepared to launch an ambush on the clueless soldier.

"Damn it Mira! Don't!" I muttered.

Con picked up his pace right as he saw Mira begin to run after the captain. He leaped at her and was able to pin her on the ground. Levi jumped in surprise as he turned around. His eyes widened a bit in shock, confused as to what just happened.

"Captain Levi, I can explain!" I quickly spouted.

"What just happened?" Levi asked, clearly confused due to have heard nothing.

He has no idea what's going on! Man what great luck!

"You see we were training the slayers on their stamina," I lied, "So we had Mira run while Con tried to catch her. And he did! Good job Con!"

Mira tried to wiggle her way out from under Con. I stepped in front of her in order to prevent her from lashing out at Levi again.

"I didn't realize you would be taking this path," I said, "Forgive me Captain."

That's suddenly when Mira's body began to shift to normal. Con got up from on top of her and sat next to her. Mira shifted back to a person as let out an exhausted moan.

"Ugh… what happened..? Did I complete the exercise?" she asked tiredly.

I sighed, "No, I'm afraid not. But don't worry. With enough practice I'm sure you will eventually."

Mira sighed and looked up and saw the captain's feet, then up at his face. Her cheeks took over a shade of pink when she saw him and her eyes widened in embarrassment.

"Levi! Er…. Captain Levi…. I didn't realize you were there….." Mira commented.

Levi placed on his cravat and straightened it out, "Well this has been... interesting. However I have things I need to attend to so if you excuse me."

After he was well ways away, Mira began to talk to me.

"I tried to attack him didn't I?" she asked.

I nodded.

She simply sighed, "Why must I be such a burden for the slayers? My slayer form wants to kill him for trying to hurt you before; however, my human side…. I don't even know what my human side thinks."

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

She sighed, "Can I trust you not to make fun of me or judge me?"

"Of course Mira," I answered.

Mira took in a deep breath, "Yesterday when I laid eyes on Levi, I forgot how to breathe. My heart began to pound and my stomach began to flutter as if I had swallowed butterflies. And last night, he appeared in my dream."

She placed her hand on her cheek and blushed slightly, "He kissed my cheek…. But why?! What's wrong with me?! These kinds of feelings aren't normal!"

I smiled, "No there's nothing wrong with you. You're simply emotionally aroused by the thought of him."

"Huh?"

"Meaning you have a crush on him."

Mira smiled a little, "A crush… This is what having a crush feels like…."

"Surely you've had a crush before you and your brothers became slayers," I assumed.

"Maybe," she replied, "but none were this strong before. Even if they were I'd think I'd remember them right?"

"Well, be careful Mira, you don't want to end up making mistakes you'll regret later on," I told her, "Don't let him hurt you and at the same time make sure you don't go insane and hurt him."

Mira gave me a questioning look, "I still don't get it. How is it that someone younger than me be so much wiser? You're only fifteen and I'm eighteen. Shouldn't I be giving you this advice?"

I shrugged, "I guess it's all based on experience. Anyways we should get back to training."

Mira was silent for a second, "Does…. Who's Reeta...? Is she the reason behind you being so deep in your words and actions….?"

I froze for a minute. The memories of Reeta hurt too much too explain. I couldn't talk about her at the moment, but I didn't want to leave her hanging, so I answered the best I could think of, "Yes, yes she is. Like I said before, a person's experience is what makes people wise. She's in the past and I'd prefer not to talk about it at the moment."

"I'm sorry for bringing it up. If they bring back painful memories, I won't demand you tell me," Mira replied.

"Thank you," I said, "Let's get back to the others.