CHERUB : Fitting in
I strode alongside Bruce, heading towards the Guild entrance, hidden deep within a forest. Neither of us had spoken of the fact that we had woken up in each other's arms that morning. I glanced back at him, walking half a pace behind me.
"We're coming up on the Guild soon." I said. Bruce grunted in response.
The entrance to the Guild was well concealed, a battered wooden trapdoor, hidden by brambles. I pulled them back, ignoring the shallow cuts they made on my hands. Bruce jumped down the hole first, leaving me to pull the brambles back. I dropped down next to Bruce, my eyes quickly adjusting to the gloom, the darkness lifted only by the occasional lamp along the wall. I glanced once at Bruce. He nodded back, and I walked on.
After about a hundred metres, we came to a heavy door blocking the tunnel. I knocked three times.
"Shadow Wolf requesting entry, bringing Bruce Norris." I shouted. For a moment, nothing happened. The door scraped across the dirt floor, revealing a stone-faced assassin.
"You must report to the Lord, Shadow Wolf." He said. I nodded once, fixing an expression of stone on my own face, pretending as if nothing fazed me, although it did. I strode through the underground tunnels, remembering the paths from my childhood. Bruce scurried to follow my long strides. I came to a gap in the tunnel that led into a cavern. I turned to Bruce.
"Don't talk unless spoken to, don't look up at him, and stay kneeling." I whispered to him before striding into the room. I walked to the centre of the room, kneeling down on one knee with my fist over my heart. I heard Bruce do the same next to me.
"So, the prodigal returns, Shadow Wolf." Said a male voice. It took all my self control not to look up. I knew the Assassin Lord was walking towards us. "I do believe that we exiled you, why do you return?"
"I obeyed my training, sir, I should come and report back after a mission."
"Stand up." The order came as a quiet threat. I got to my feet, but still kept my eyes lowered. I felt his hand on my cheek, lifting my face up so I locked gazes with him. He traced the scar around my eye. I jerked backwards, narrowing my eyes.
The Assassin Lord turned to Bruce.
"And who have you brought with you?"
"Bruce Norris, of the CHERUB campus. He saw me as I was about to execute my duty and wished to follow me."
"Did you complete your mission?"
This was the question I had been dreading. "No, sir, I did not."
I fell back, my hand flying to my face as the Assassin Lord backhanded me. He stood over me, stopping me from getting up.
"You did not complete your mission and you dare return here."
"I'm sorry, sir!" I cried out, curling into a tight ball on the ground. The Assassin Lord strode towards Bruce, pulling him to his feet and surveying him. I didn't dare move out of fear of angering him further.
"You two will commence training once more tomorrow. Wolf, you had best not anger me again." He ordered, letting Bruce go and turning back to the dark throne, dismissing us. I grabbed Bruce's arm, dragging him back out into the tunnels.
