Beastly • H.S

~Seven~

Not edited

I measured him quietly. My brows coming together in befuddlement as a audacious laugh dares to erupt through my lips. His eyes, boring into mine, seem to be studying me. Waiting for a reaction to show itself through my expressions.

I stare at him, my gaze lingering on his until I let out a breath, a wicked smirk twitched on my lips.

"You're blaming your physiognomy on a witch?" I raise an eyebrow at him doubtfully.

"Not exactly my physiognomy, but my whole aura." He corrects my assumption. I nod confoundingly, not understanding the concept that he thinks an actual witch made him look how he is.

"You think a witch did this to you?" My eyes flicker to the marks and smoothed ink on his face before jotting back to his austere expression.

"I know so." he declares with a tight nod.

"Are you being serious? Making fun of your own appearance isn't exactly -"

"Why would I make fun of my own appearance? " He snaps. "You think I'm joking? That I'm a freak for believing that a powerful women who flies on a broom did this to me?" He says with bitter sarcasm. "What are you thinking, that witches are old ladies flying around at night on an old broom?" He asks rudely.

I want to tell him to stop, but he goes on.

"Don't be so inane, stereotyped witches are far different from the real ones." His voice lowers and he shakes his head.

"I'm not being inane. I just can't believe that you think a witch did this to you." I frown. "Witches are just myths." I say.

"That's where you're wrong." He points a finger at me. "They are real. I know I probably sound like a little kid that just got done watching Hocus Pocus or some crazy guy, but it's true; witches are real. They may not wear cloaks and have a talking black cat as their best friend, but they're out there." He tells me.

"I think I should go," I shake my head and take out my phone, checking the time. It's been close to forty-five minutes already and him talking about freaking witches is making me feel uncomfortable. Maybe my senses were right. Maybe that uneasy feeling I got when I first saw him was a warning for me to stay away. I knew it was, but curiosity killed the cat, right? I wanted to get to know him, but now that he's letting me, I think I regret it.

"Why?" He asks, his voice sounding edgy. Almost scared.

"Look, you were right. You got me, say 'I told you so'. Go on," I roll my eyes and stand up from the chair, shouldering my bag on my soulder.

"About what?" He asks, also standing up.

"About you telling me- warning me- that I didn't want to get to know you." I say and his face flinches.

"What do you mean?" He asks.

"I can't believe you." I let out an airy laugh from my throat. "Witches? I actually thought you had a good reason behind all your looks, but now-"

"You have to believe me, why would I lie about this?" He raises his voce again and steps closer to me.

"I don't know, you tell me." I shrug and start to walk away but he puts his hand on my shoulder, turning me around abruptly.

"I'll prove it." He blurts and quickly yanks his hand away from my shoulder. I frown at the action but say nothing about it. Why is he so worried about others touching him or him touching others?

"You're going to prove to me that witches are real?" I ask and he nods, dropping his gaze to the floor then looking back at me.

"Yes, but I don't know how to prove such a thing." He tells me.

I walk up to him, his face only inches from mine, and I grab his arm tightly. I look up at him, his eyes wide as he tries to pull his arm away from me.

"Stop," I say. "I'm not going to hurt you. Why are you so edgy when I touch you?" I ask, my voice soft.

"I don't like it when people touch me, that's all." He says gruffly. "Can you let go?"

"No, I'm not." I go against his liking and raise his shirt sleeve to his inner elbow. He doesn't even try to pull away as I stare at the tree that's tattooed on the underside of his arm, it starting at his wrist and ending close to his elbow. It looks just like the one on the coin, the branches looking lifeless and dead. This was the tattoo I seen that had moved in the coffee house.

"I saw this move one day," I raise my hand to touch the out lining of the art. Harry weakly tugs his arm in my grip and I look up to him. His eyes boring into mine already.

"If you saw them move, then why don't you believe me when I say Cyrene did this to me?" He asks. "Not just any random person has a tattoo that moves on them. Something had to be done to them, something wicked." His voice is just above a whisper as he speaks and I can smell the faint cinnamon scent off of his breath as it fans across my face.

"Show me then, prove it like you said you would." I tell him, my tone becoming challenging.

"I don't how, though. " He frowns.

"Make this tree move, you did it once you can do it again." I say.

"I didn't make them move, Avery. It moves on its own whenever, wherever. " He sighs and extracts his hand away from my hold. He tugs the sleeve down over his arm and I back away from him.

"Take me to Cyrene." I tell him bravely. He gives me a bewildered stare.

"What?"

"I want to see her, talk to her. If she tells me that she did this to you, then I will believe you." I explain.

"No, I'm not going-"

"Yes, you are. What other way of proving you were cursed by a witch is there than going to the witch who cursed you herself." I say.

"I'm not taking you to her, she's dangerous, Avery." He says.

"She didn't hurt me when she was in my house hours ago." I inquire. He falls silent and stares at me debatingly.

"Why did you have to come into my life?" He asks, his face masklike and unreadable.

The words shocked me at the least. Hitting me dead on in the stomach and making me feel embarrassed by the way he said them; with no emotion. He didn't say it with hatred, he didn't say it with a smile, and he didn't say it like he was mad. He sounded as if he was asking himself the question, not me.

"Would you like me to leave?" I put on a cautious teasing smile and he blinks at me, shaking his head as if he was coming back to reality.

"No, I dont."

Sorry for the short chapter! Next one is going to be longer, I promise, and also more interesting hopefully :) vote and comment!

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