The Wand and the Wolf

6 - Warlocks dont take walks

Ibhan

Infuriated, I walked until I was sure I was out of listening range of the two wolves. I was on edge, irritated, and I had no idea why. Something about Matthew just unsettled me. His aura had been muddied with colours, something that was never a good sign in my experience. Auras were precise and delicate in nature, a muddied aura was a warning.

I glanced back to see Matthew put his arm around Kyda, leading her back to her house, and I felt a spike of anger flare within me. I pushed it aside and stopped walking as I found myself close to the woods again. I groaned and rolled my shoulders back, trying to relieve the tension that had built up inside of me. I had to get out of here. There was too much going on all the time and I needed peace.

I slipped into the woods as the sky darkened, letting myself become lost amongst the trees. I sat down on a small stump and pulled out my spellbook deciding to take the opportunity to revise. No matter what happened here, I would not let it affect my apprenticeship. The sooner I was a fully fledged warlock the better. I pulled out my wand and rested the tip of it on the page and murmured a small incantation that pushed back the shadows on the page, letting me read the words easily in the fading light.

After a few minutes, I felt an unbearable itch in my mind and slammed my book shut. I looked around for the source of my irritation. Everything had energy and some of that energy would clash with auras, it was part of how our intuition worked. As I looked over the little clearing I had found myself in but there was nothing of interest around me. That's when I realised that it wasn't a presence that was bothering me, but an absence.

"That damned wolf," I said through gritted teeth. She was imprinting on me. I needed to leave soon before I became attatched.

I stood up and dusted off my robe. I should tell her that I'm leaving in the morning. The sooner the better. I tucked my spellbook and wand away. I wouldn't be able to focus until I was far away from here.

I groaned as I realised I had walked farther than I anticipated. The woods were quickly darkening and I was unfamiliar with my surroundings. Taking a deep breath I let the auras of any beings around me shimmer into my vision, guiding me around them. It took me several minutes but I finally broke through the tree line. I hadn't been quiet so glad to see open space before as I headed back in the vague direction of Kydas home.

It didn't take long for her to appear from amongst the little cluster of houses I was approaching. She held a small plate in her hand an apologetic look on her face. Her aura shimmered with traces of pale pink, a sign of embarrassment.

"I saved you a slice of my sisters cake," she said, holding up the plate.

"I'm not a dog, you can't send me on walks when your boyfriend is around," I said flatly, taking the plate from her.

"He's not my boyfriend, and I'm sorry," she said handing a spoon. I sighed and took a spoonful of the cake, shovelling it in my mouth. Wolves never seemed to stop eating, but I also couldn't deny that they were excellent cooks.

"Good right?" She asked and I nodded, earning me another one of her satisfied grins. I looked her over in the low lamp light, the shadows dancing over her athletic frame, highlighting the muscle and tone of her arms as she folded them across her chest.

"I'm leaving tomorrow," I said, being careful to keep my face blank as I saw a myriad of emotions cross hers. She looked me in the eye, clenching her jaw and taking a deep breath in.

"Fine, thank you for staying as long as you did," she said and she turned away, walking back towards her home. I had already tapped out of her aura and it took every ounce of self control I had not to tap in again and see how I had made her feel. That was none of my concern.