Perfect Pet

Ch. 37: Something New

The last few weeks were nothing but a blur in my memory. If you asked me what happened, I would be hard-pressed to tell you since it felt like I had only blinked and the Claiming was already days away.

We were attending one of our last classes with Madam Rohan, where she was detailing how we were expected to behave during this important ceremony and if I didn't know any better, she was slightly misty-eyed as she did it. "It's tradition for all of you to wear red dresses to stand out. No one else is allowed to. You'll line up in the ballroom before a stage and if your name is called, you will walk up it to stand before the vampire that chose you. Afterward is a ball to celebrate." She paused and studied the room with her typical stony expression. "I know I've been hard on you this year but you've turned into a fine group of girls if I do say so myself."

It was weird to hear a compliment come out of her mouth and I didn't know how to process it. Some girls had big grins on their faces while others turned theirs away and tried to discretely wipe at their eyes. This school had been our entire world for almost a year and it was finally time to kiss it goodbye.

It was like an out-of-body experience.

One of the other girls raised her hand. "What's the Bonding ceremony like? No one has ever gone into detail about that part."

"Because it's a deeply personal thing. Only a moron would be stupid enough to ask a vampire about his ceremony. The Claiming is simply them stating their intentions. The Bonding is where the actual magic happens and, well, you should know by now what vampires are like."

They liked sex. That's what she was getting at and from several quiet giggles, the implication hadn't been missed. It was a huge relief she didn't go further since it would be extremely awkward to listen to a woman old enough to be our grandmother talk about the birds and the bees.

"Any more questions?" When no one else raised their hand, she hummed in satisfaction. "Then I will wrap up our last class with this: Not all of you will be chosen. I want you to know that isn't a reflection on your character and I don't want you thinking you weren't good enough. You busted your butts and took a leap of faith many are too scared to try. It just boils down to being the right fit for it to work out with a Master. Understand?"

In chorus, like so many times before, we all said, "Yes, Madam Rohan."

She gave a nod of approval. "You are dismissed. See you at the ceremony."

The screech of chairs being pushed back filled the room and I had to force myself not to glance at the spot I knew Kali was sitting at, pretending to mess with my bag as the area emptied. She was still giving me the cold shoulder and I couldn't for the life of me think of a way to repair our relationship, ever aware of the ticking clock counting down in the background. I had hoped we could stay friends even after our school year here but that was starting to look more like a distant dream than a believable reality and it broke my heart.

Even though Claire wasn't physically here anymore, it was like her ghost was still putting me in awkward positions and forcing me to cover for her sorry ass, and quite frankly, it was hard not to be angry about it. "Damn you to hell," I hissed under my breath and slapped the tabletop in frustration. I didn't mean it- not completely, anyways- but venting helped to keep me from feeling like I was seconds away from a massive meltdown.

Even if crying sounded like an amazing idea right now.

"Eden, is everything okay?"

Madam Rohan's voice scared the shit out of me and my heart clenched at the sudden question. Somehow I managed not to bolt from my seat, jerking my head in time to see her studying me in concern. I'd forgotten as a professor, she was often the last to leave and would find it weird that I was still here.