Claws (Rewritten)

Six

Chloe

Markus and Caleb were sat in the back of the car, arms crossed, looking out the windows silently in protest. Lyn and I had managed to corner them both and force them to come with us, but you'd think we were taking them to their death.

Perhaps all supernatural beings were this dramatic...

"We should go to the library or something - I never went last year," Adelyn mused aloud.

"Yeah, it's great in there," I told her. In response to her questioning look, I elaborated. "I went there a few times to get some textbooks. Occasionally to study."

"You had study sessions without us?" Markus asked, breaking his silent protest and leaning forward between the two front seats.

Caleb pulled him back to his seat. "Obviously - you're annoying as hell to study with."

"Take that back!"

"No."

"You're telling me I had an alternative to studying with these two bickering toddlers?" Lyn asked me helplessly.

I laughed. "Now you know. There's no food allowed, though. And only water as long as you're not by the computers."

"Oh, well that's just great. I'm going to starve as well as die of boredom," Markus complained.

"That's me not bringing blood and pretending it's juice this year, then--" Caleb added.

Lyn turned in her seat to face him, and I glanced in the rearview mirror to give him a concerned look. "You really did that?" I asked him.

He shrugged. "Sometimes. You should've seen how jealous the people in my lectures got when they thought I had a superior drink to their water."

"That's cruel," Lyn told him, though she was smiling at the thought.

"That's life," He grinned in response.

"What's cruel is you two dragging us out hours before our lectures start," Markus muttered reproachfully. "I suppose you want us to stay til four, too?" He added sarcastically.

Caleb shot him a warning look, but before he could take his words back, Lyn quickly cut in. "Oh, that's really kind of you to offer."

"But--"

"So kind," I continued, trying hard not to smile.

They shared a bleak look and accepted their fate - not that they had any choice in the matter. Adelyn wanted us all to pass this year and procrastination was out of the question.

The library had only just opened when we arrived, and as such it was almost empty except for a few keen students, and us and our prisoners.

We found a table at the very back of the room, with a line of bookshelves behind us and a large window overlooking the campus courtyard on our right. I stared at the university halls opposite, where we had spent our first year. So much had happened there, and it wasn't all partying and study sessions.

"Okay, here's the plan," Adelyn began once we all sat down, making me glance back at her, "We'll regroup here at one for lunch - that should fit with everyone's schedules - and then again at four to head back home." I should've known she'd memorized our timetables already. And she was right - I had a lecture at nine until half eleven, and another at two til four. As far as I could remember, everyone else was free around one, too. Today was one of the few days where I didn't finish at five, thankfully.

"Can't Caleb and I go back early?" Markus whined sorrowfully. "What if we run out of work to do?"

"We came here in Chloe's car," Caleb reminded him. "Unless you feel like walking again."