“The match is almost over. The guys will probably shower, then we can walk with them out to the shifters’ fields. Are you ready to see their animals?”
Up until now, I was. Or at least, I thought I was. But now that the time was here, I wasn’t so sure about seeing a tiger. A mountain lion and honey badger made me nervous even though I saw them once before. It had been so brief that it didn’t really sink in.
“I hope so.”
She laughed again, and the match ended. Our guys’ team won, and we cheered for them as they waved and ran off the field.
“Here we go.”
Chapter 18
Excited energy filled the air as we walked on the faded path through the edge of the forest, my coral Converse kicking up dirt. Daniel, Malik, and Sai pushed each other, laughed, then shoved back until we arrived in the open field twice the size of the rugby pitch.
The three of them sprinted to the far side and disappeared behind the trees.
“What are they doing?” I asked Hannah.
A few other people hung around, but I didn't see any animals. Were they shifters or just trying to avoid the rest of campus?
“Undressing. They aren’t generally worried about modesty—most shifters aren’t—but I told them not to get naked in front of you. At least not until you’ve had more time to adjust.”
I laughed. “Thanks for that.”
The last thing I wanted to see was my new friends in the nude. Even with my budding crush––or fixation—on Sai. It was just too weird for me to imagine ever being comfortable with that. I wasn’t sure I would ever get used to this particular part of their—our—world.
“Why don’t they have amulets that keep their clothes on?” Malik told me about that on my first day.
She shrugged. “It requires a really powerful spell, one I can’t do yet. It takes two or three witches. One of them has to be Fire, and another has to be Earth. Plus, they’re used to it. Most of the shifters have clothing stashed throughout campus, and as long as you replace it, they don't care if someone else borrows it. It’s like some unspoken shifter code.”
Huh. I guess with a concentrated population of shifters it wouldn’t be a big deal, but once they graduated and moved on it would probably become a necessity.
Interesting. The spell to allow vampires to walk in the sun seems a lot harder than keeping clothes on, and they learned that one as children. Seemed backward, but what did I know.
“There they are.” Hannah pointed toward where the guys had gone, and in their place stood a tiger, mountain lion, and honey badger. All standing in a line staring back at us.
“Holy shit,” I breathed out, and I swear the tiger chuffed, making me scoff. “Did Sai just laugh at me?”
He stepped forward, lowering his head down then up again.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
Hannah burst out laughing. “Come on.”
She tugged me forward, and they met us in the middle of the field. Even though I knew these were my friends, I couldn’t overcome my instincts to be afraid. Wild animals that could easily hurt or even kill me were circling me. I fought to remain calm and pretend like I wasn’t completely freaking out inside.
They stayed a few yards away for a minute or two, just watching us watch them. Hannah was talking to them, but I was too focused on tracking the predators’ movements to listen. This was real. My human-looking friends were now animals. How did it work? Were they stillthem,or did their animal side take over? Were they thinking and feeling like they normally would?
Daniel stepped closer and sniffed me. I glared down at him. “That was rude.”
Hannah hadn’t stopped giggling the entire time. “He’s getting your scent. He’ll be able to recognize and find you now.”
I cringed. I didn’t like the sound of that.
“It makes playing hide and seek in the woods a bit more challenging for us.” She smirked. “He’s a cheater.”
She was looking down at his animal form with so much love and admiration. How could he not know how she felt?
The honey badger came closer to me, and I realized how dumb I’d been to think he was a skunk. He was bigger and the white fur created a little funny line on his head. I couldn’t help the giggle that escaped at the hairstyle.