The Divinity of Anila

Chapter Twenty-Five

Anila

By the end of the week, I had the complete history of Muses. Most of it was a map of how we were described through the ages by various mythologies and artisans. The practical lessons would come in handy as well I'm sure, once I got to put them into practice. Which was on our agenda for tomorrow night. Bailey was going to take me to the mall.

Surprisingly, we hadn't killed each other yet. Of course, we weren't necessarily close, but now that he was relaxed he was enjoyable to be around. Kind of like when we first met. He'd been a lot more chipper. I preferred hyper, happy, squirrel Bailey to the brooding, moody one. From his explanation of how emotions impact Muses strongly, I felt guilty for giving him such a hard time. If I had known how much it was going to hurt him, I'd have gone a little easier on him and channeled most of my rage on someone else. Bailey was the messenger, and I more or less shot him down when none of this was his fault.

With him being more relaxed and pleasant to be around, everyone else followed suit – except for Madame.

The woman put grilled cheese sandwiches onto plates for all of us while Puck poured tomato soup into bowls. He helped serve at meal time a lot. Come to think of it, everyone had a task to do except for me. I got to sit awkwardly at the table with Bailey. He probably had dish duty later. That's what I tended to notice at least. The one who sat got to wash at the end.

Kiel put the silverware down. A soft smile formed on his face as we made eye contact. What a weird and mysterious guy. Bailey was right – Kiel was quiet. Sure, he said all the correct and polite things when it was expected of him. His words were practiced. Not to say they weren't genuine in emotion. Something was missing all the same. Kiel had more he wanted to share, I could just tell. Why hold back? What was he so afraid of?

I was fast learning that everyone had a story. A long and interesting one, actually. All of these stories would help me understand my housemates a lot better. I knew I needed to earn their trust, but I sure could fit in a lot better in the mansion if someone threw me a bone. Let me in on a few secrets so I didn't have to be the odd one out, because I was the only one who didn't know a thing.

Being the outcast wasn't something I was used to. At school I was popular. Everyone wanted to be around me, to share their lives with me. If I mentioned any of that to Bailey, he'd make a crack about me needing to be the center of attention, I'm sure. This was different than wanting people to worship the ground I walked on. I desired company for the sake of the energy and excitement other people brought into my life. And what was so wrong with wanting to have a connection, to not feel alone? All I felt was alone. Surely, he'd understand that. Wouldn't they all? From what I was learning, it seemed to be a common tie to my magic. My magic wanted people so it could thrive.

"So how are you adjusting?" Madame asked me, taking her seat at the head of the table.

I glanced at her, trying to not be unnerved by her unsmiling face. Even Cayenne smiled on a rare occasion and she was more grumpy than Puck. Not Madame.

Picking up my sandwich, I offered her a smile, determined to get this woman to like me. "So far so good. I'm learning a lot, fast."

"So I've heard. I'm eager to see the results of your first time consciously using your magic."

Despite my only being here temporarily, she still eyed me like I was one of her employees. Or maybe they were slaves? She had a lot more control over her staff than she should have. The way she gazed at me made me uncomfortable. Kind of like how some men look at women like meat. I was fresh meat of a whole new kind when it came to her. There might as well have been dollar signs in her eyes.