Leveret's ears perked. "I usually don't like racing."
I shrugged. "That's fine. We can do something—"
"But for you, Animus, I'll always make an exception."
I barely had time to digest his cute statement before Leveret took off like a speeding bullet, leaving me in the dust.
"Hey! You cheated!" I called.
I ran after him. My long legs were no match for a hare, a creature designed to outrun anything pursuing it. His lithe body zoomed across the sand like an unleashed spring. I pushed my muscles to their limit, running as fast as my body allowed. Hell, aside from booking it away from Terranus and his tantrum the other day, I didn't remember the last time I ran—certainly not for fun.
Something about watching Leveret bounce in the sand, so free and candid, without a care in the world, pulled me in. I couldn't escape his orbit—and I didn't want to.
Leveret slowed down for my sake, letting me catch up to him. He twitched his nose at me teasingly before thumping his powerful back paws into the sand, spraying me with it as he shot ahead.
"When I catch you, I'm gonna grab your ears!" I said.
His puffy white tail wriggled as if mocking me. Leveret was almost at the rock. I exerted one final big push, pushing my body to its limit.
And then, something odd happened.
Energy vibrated below my skin. Thick, powerful pulses spurred me on. My strides were longer and faster, my body lighter. It was like a bolt of lightning had struck me with a burst of stamina.
Within seconds, I was beside Leveret. His eyes widened in shock.
"How did you do that?" he asked.
I shared his confusion. "I don't know! It just ha—"
A burst of energy in my legs knocked me off balance. I tumbled and fell face-first into the sand.
"Animus!" Leveret bounded towards me. "Are you okay?"
I spat a few grains out of my mouth. My forehead was scratched, but otherwise I was unscathed. "Fine, except for the sand between my teeth..."
Leveret frowned. Instinctively, he licked my forehead with his little tongue. "What happened?" he asked between licks.
"I'm not sure. All of a sudden, my muscles grew stronger. I ran too fast and tripped."
Leveret shifted to human form and helped me up. He frowned, examining me.
"Your wings came out," he said.
I blinked, turning my neck. Sure enough, two smoky wings jutted out from my back. "That's odd. I didn't summon them on purpose..."
Leveret picked a stray grain of sand out of my hair. "How do you feel? Are you hurt?"
"Not at all. I feel quite good," I murmured, examining my arms in confusion. My body almost didn't feel like my own. It was energetic and strong. A steady hum wavered beneath my skin, reminding me that it was there.
There was no doubt about it. After recovering from the incident with Terranus, my magic now exceeded its supposed limit. It had grown stronger—stronger than itshouldhave been.
How? I had no idea.
Frowning thoughtfully, I curled my claws into a fist. The magic pulsed like an echo of my heartbeat.
It made no sense. The ridiculousness of it made me panic, and for a moment, I was terrified I'd stolen fated mates magic from Leveret by accident. But he had no omega, no fated mate that I knew of, and he surely would've told me if one existed.
My magic levels had risen somehow. Mortals had a saying: "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth." But how could I not? Magic didn't manifest out of thin air. There had to be a catalyst. I just couldn't figure out what it was.