Chapter 27: Chapter 26
" What do you have next?" Freda asked.
"Royal training AP 501. What about you?"
"AP Fencing … ugh … I have to spend the next hour watching girls fall all over Christian. It's pathetic."
An unbidden surge of jealousy took hold over Athena's being for a second. She clenched her fists as the negative emotion coursed through her blood. Her face almost changing to something so primal and animalistic as the lights of the hallway flickered. Freda recognized this a sign extreme emotional distress. The Aliqua was losing control of her powers. And she was sure it had something to do with women flirting with Christian.
What Freda did not understand what called for such a strong reaction, because Arsenio was clearly her soul mate. A Dampier can smell these things after all. There smells matched, sort of. There were two other smells laced in with Arsenio's. Which Freda found odd because well, there can be only one soul mate.
Freda instantly saw Daniel from her peripheral vision. He had sensed Aliqua's turmoil too.
"Athena!" Freda heard Arsenio's voice boom over the loud voices of the students.
Athena's stance changed completely. The strong emotion she felt a few moments ago suddenly lost power and she was distracted. A deep blush painted her cheeks as her eyes roamed Arsenio's face. Paying special attention to his lips.
"Arsenio …"
"Where are you heading?"
"Royal training ."
"Me too. Let's go together."
"You have royal training too?"
"No. But, I simply want to drop you to the class. Any excuse to spend time with you alone."
Athena felt surrounded by the smell of musk and heat at Arsenio's words. A sense of possessiveness and rage washing over her skin. And an unbidden thought planted in her head. He can hear me and he doesn't like this.
"Let's go."
Athena found herself alone in a large room draped heavily with curtains. The door thick and immediately locked from the outside, the moment she walked in. The floor unlike the rest of the building was made of wood. No, natural light streamed into the room. It was almost as if they were trying to hide the existence of this room. Of the events that unfolded in the room. One of the walls was made of mirror almost like the dance studio in her own mansion.
At the far back of the room was another small door. It was not as grand as the one through which she entered. Athena knew it before she even tried the door that it was locked. So, she finally gave up and sat down on the floor, hoping that when she did not show up by tomorrow, Arsenio would come and rescue her.
Just as her legs stretched out to sit, the small door creaked open, revealing a beautiful woman.
"Athena …" she whispered, almost was as if she could not believe that Athena was here.
There was something familiar about the way the woman looked. And yet, Athena had never seen her before. Her appearance too was so akin to her. If Athena did know better she would have thought that they were related.
She had the same tumbling mass of red hair. The same high prominent roman cheekbones. But, instead of green, she had stunning blue eyes. There was something so regal about the way the woman held herself. An air of superiority and confidence hanging around her like a coat.
"You always were so queenly. And now you fit the part …"
Athena said without even thinking or fully understanding what she said. But, Penelope recognized the sentence. It was an echo of a memory of her sister. A remnant of her that lived in Athena. But, she looked at Athena with a blank expression almost willing her to think what she said was just an imagination.
"Penelope Night."
Penelope introduced herself.
"Ath…"
"I know." Penelope said. Feigning indifference.
Her mask is back.
Athena heard a voice say in her mind. Another crack opening through the wall put inside her head.
"I had expected to meet someone … less you when I decided to teach. Seems we will have to start your lessons from the basics."
"Which is?"
"Your posture for starts. I have never met a woman so graceless as you! Slouching like a poor fisherwoman. Were you not trained in etiquette? How do your guardians tolerate such an laid back posture. It's so unbecoming of your birth! Stand straight! Behave like you are queen!"
"Yes madam…" Athena muttered with a hint of anger.
"It's Madame…"
"Yes Madame…"
"show me how you walk…"
Athena found it difficult to walk with her back as rigidly straight as hers. It almost felt like she had never walked at all. Like a new born babe she stumbled along the line of the wooden floor as it lazily creaked under her feet.
"Are you fat?"
Athena suddenly heard the cracking sound of Penelope's voice echo against the walls. She immediately stood still turning to face her in disbelief.
"Sorry?"
"Are you a fat fucking girl?"
"I hope I am not."
"Well, then why on earth are you dragging your feet on the floor? Lift them and then place it back down like you're walking on a tight rope. Be gentle like a flower."
"Basically walk like I have something up my butt." Athena whispered.
"I heard that…" Penelope retorted, with a hint of a smile. Almost as if she was remembering a different age and time.
Athena lifted up her feet and placed them back down, starting with her toes and slowly moving towards the ball of her heel and lifting the other foot back up before the first was finished finding its ground. It was perfect.
Athena felt a charge run through her body with each step and heard that voice again.
"Come to me …"
The words began to appear in front of her eyes
"Taljack.. Ouri…Taljack Ouri… Taljack…."
Penelope was beside Athena in a second. She did not understand what it was but it was something, for the moment Athena took her first few steps, her eyes glazed up. A trance like expression masked her face before she lost consciousness as a mist left her lips.
Penelope had never seen anything like this before. She did not know what to think of it, but, what she did know was that this marked the beginning of him.
He was coming.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone