Chapter Five:That is Exactly What I am Implying.

“When do we start phase two?” Kurai pants, having just run about 4.5miles around the track giving me a piggyback ride, I’d say he has a decent excuse for panting. Usually I would do all of the workouts with him, but today’s session was an exception. Today’s lesson was still covering the same concept we had been on for about a month and half, which is to say, since I arrived. And that concept is, ‘Life-isn’t-fair-and-I’m-in-charge-so-stop-being-a-priss-and-do-as-I-say’. He must really not like this concept, because I would’ve expected him to have caught on by now. Hell, I think anyone would have caught on by now. Unless you were an idiot. And the intimidating eyepatch wasn’t enough of a hint for you.

“What do you mean ‘phase two’?” I ask, hopping off of his back and watching him as he stretches to try and ease the burning in his muscles. His dark hair is slick with sweat and falls in his eyes, and he’s shirtless. He lost his shirt about a mile back, when it became so drenched he just took it off. Which only proves my theory that he has some muscles, because clearly, I am seeing such muscles right now. His cargo shorts cover his knees but don’t go any further, and his sneakers are worn from all of the rigorous activities I’ve been coercing him into.

“You know, Phase two? Link and Megan get to do all this fun stuff and all you have me doing is running around a track and lifting weights and all this stupid crap.” I toss him my dark blue waterbottle, and with a bit of hesitation before putting his lips to it, he gulps down a few swigs. Black and blue, that’s how everything is divied up in our space. We both favor the color black, but everything of his was already black (and since that wardrobe malfunction in the first week where we wound up arguing over whose shirt was whose, we kind of needed a system on how to easily tell apart each other’s belongings. Which means I can no longer buy oversized T-Shirts to sleep in. And I actually had to compromise.) so I had to settle for the next best thing- blue. All shades and hues, so I guess in a way I sort of came out on top. Well, I suppose I’m doing a pretty bad job of explaining this system, let me give you an example. Kurai’s towel is black, Aura’s towel is blue (because for God’s sake both of us know that the other doesn’t want anything touching their body that has touched the other naked. Even if it has been bleached, soaked in peroxide, and BURNED to a delightful crisp.). Or, Kurai’s notebooks are black, Aura’s notebooks are blue. Or in this such case- Kurai’s water bottle would be black, and Aura’s water bottle is blue. Notice I said ‘would be’, because the idiot left his at his girlfriend’s place. (I’m surprised she even has her own place, she spends so much time at ours.) I know he’s hesitant to put his lips to something that he knows as touched mine (Hey, for him it may as well be the kiss of death) but if the idiot is thirsty enough, he’ll take what he can get. Heck, he should take what he can get from me anyway because, ask Megan, I am not one for hand outs.

“We haven’t even mastered stage one yet, moron. Hell, we haven't even entered stage one. You complain about Megan and Link getting to do all of this ‘fun stuff’, but you fail to see that we haven’t even been able to cover the very first thing that is absolutely necessary for me to begin training you seriously.” I state, taking my water bottle back after he finished and wiping it off with a little white cloth before closing it and setting it aside. The gym is surprisingly vacant “today”, particularly the outdoor track. There are only a few straggling people jogging or walking the track, which is a shame, since this is the very image of the perfect night. There are a few clouds, but they are of a whisping sort that seem to complement the shape of the moon in the crystal clear sky. Winter in District 1 is significantly less enchanting than winter in District 3. Mostly because it is warmer, and when it does snow, they scrape it away as though it were pesky muck and not something worthy of awe and admiration.

“And what might that ‘very first thing’ be?” He retorts snidely, wiping his brow with his arm, which really doesn’t help, since it’s slick with sweat as well.

“This is exactly what I’m talking about.” I groan, fixing my stiletto heeled boots. I wear them everywhere, all sorts of styles, but always stiletto heel boots. There a bit of a ‘signature fashion’ for me. And you’ll grasp why later. “Before we get to ‘Hey teach me some cool stuff and let’s go have some fun’-”

“That is not what I sound like.”

“Yes it is. Shut up. Before we get to all that stuff we have to cover one, very basic, very essential principle that just can’t seem to permeate your thick skull.”

“Oh, and what might that be Miss, ‘I’m-all-seeing-but-I-only-have-one-eye’.” He mocks.

I scowl and cross my arms, giving him a glare that, on a scale of one to ten on the worst glares I could have given him, was probably a solid four. But it still made him straighten up and shut his mouth.

“What that might be, is a certain level of trust.” I say, pulling my calf back and stretching it. If he had been a bit more civil, if he didn’t have this bad habit of always trying to get me back one better than I got him, we would have a pretty good relationship. Or at least, he would save himself a lot of pain. Respect is earned. Never given. I don’t care who you are. And a Slayer’s respect? Well, that is surely one thing that will never come easy. He needs to realize that I’m not here to kill him, I’m here to save him. If I’m tough on him, it’s to make him stronger. The reason people fear Slayers is because they’ve lived through hell, and they can certainly live through anything else. They are stronger than any normal person. I’m not going to put Kurai through the hell I was put through, the sort of life that warped and changed Megan and I from sweet little girls into the dark souls we are now, but I still can’t go easy on him. If he thinks I’m being bad to him, maybe he should spend a week in Slayer Academy. See what he thinks after that.

I hear him stifle a laugh. “Oh, you want me to trust you? Maybe I’ll try that when you stop trying to kill me.” he snaps back with that usual smart attitude of his. The tone he’s using makes me want to ram his face into the dirt and ask him why in hell he won’t just accept that I may just be trying to help him?  

“I am not trying to kill you I am trying to help you. Pardon me but I do believe this is what they call ‘tough love’, or in our case, ‘tough mutual communications’.”

“You seriously are a very literal person…..aren’t you?”

“If you rip out a heart the right way will it still beat in your hands for a few seconds?”

“Um…..I’m not sure If that’s a question I want to answer…”

“Yes. The answer is yes.” I reply, flipping my long ravenwing black hair over my shoulder, it’s smoky hues of blue glint in the moonlight like those of the wings of the odd and yet commonplace bird. Odd because humans symbolize it as the foreshadowing figure of death, commonplace because the little creatures are found everywhere. Even in Muortum.

“I don’t think we’re compatible.” He remarks. “You’re just too….”

“Violent? Strange? Harsh? Cold? Bloody? Angry? I’ve heard it all loverboy. And nothing you say could possibly offend me nor could it weasel you out of our arrangement. Let’s face it, until once certain young man decides to listen to me, and I’m not naming names, we’re not getting anywhere.”

“But Aurora….I’m the only young man out here. And you said you weren’t naming names.” He says slowly. ‘I’m not naming names’ must have a different meaning in his book. To me it means, I’m just literally not going to say the name. To him it must mean you don’t do the equivalent of calling a name either.

“Hey I just said I wasn’t naming names, I didn’t say I wasn’t going to imply 100% that it was still you.”

There’s another slight pause before I chip in again.

“Because that’s totally what I’m doing. I am absolutely 100% implying that it was you.”

Reviews

[Jared Grace]

This chapter makes me thinking about the differences between Slayers and hunters, not only in terms of skill but other stuff as well. I hope you outline their differences in upcoming chapters

[Silent Wolf]

I love this chapter. I have to agree with aura, because kuri has to learn a lesson. I love this book (which I just finished reading) and I would love to read more, if you would be willing to notify me when you have more. ^-^ plus, the chapters are that long yet (which I both love and hate) and kuri sounds so hot and aura sounds so beautiful, even with the eye patch! I'd love to meet both of them. :3 love how everybody's all like "awwwww poor kuri" and I'm all like "b***h deserved it" you show great use of details, especially in the chapter where kuri and aura first met, and I love aura's personality, she sounds a lot like me in some ways. ^-^ plus! the story doesn't seem rushed, so that is also nice. ^-^

[EmaleighLynn]

Another great chapter! Kuri, poor boy, is really taking shape here. And Aura....Well she's awesome, as always. I can't wait to read more!

[Catherine Frain]

Love this chapter and how it shows the "relationship" between Kurai and Aura. Love it, and it's good as ever. :D