Page 4 of The First Year

Mrs. Adams shooed us out of the office. “Move while you introduce yourselves, please.”

Once we got to the corridor, I stopped, not daring to shake her hand. That might be dangerous. My wolf was already mad with want for her. But that couldn’t happen. “It’s good to meet you, Roxy. I’m Odin.”

A smile rose on her face and I tried not to stare at the bite on her neck. It still looked fresh but that couldn’t be. I thought the war had ended months ago.

Perhaps I was wrong. We were not always informed about the outside world here.

“Odin? Viking god? Huggin and Muninn your best friends?” Not everyone knew about the god’s ravens; this female did.

I chuckled. I liked a woman with spunk. “My parents really didn’t give me a choice on my name but yes. That Odin.”

“Good to know. Should we start the tour, or did we want to stare at each other a little longer?”

I snorted. Yeah, I liked Roxy already. Most students came here with a chip on their shoulder and took it out on the first student they saw, who was often me. How I got this job was still a mystery, but it got me out of class once in a while. “Let’s go. This is administration. We only come here if we have a medical checkup or we’re in trouble. Try not to do the latter. It’s not fun.”

“This place? Not fun. You’re kidding.”

I shook my head and took her bags. They weren’t heavy. Not surprising. I came here with nothing but the clothes on my back the council had given me. Rags left behind by another captured shifter. “Next building is the classrooms. This way.”

Roxy mumbled something about a tough crowd but followed me. I didn’t know if it was her stature or the fact that the bite was taking its toll on her, but she walked slowly, and I had to make my steps match hers in order not to leave her behind.

“Classrooms are here. Three floors. You get the idea. For the most part, core classes are on the first floor. Second is shifter. Third is extracurricular, aka career training.”

She nodded, keeping close to me. I got no scent of fear from her, but her unease couldn’t be denied. She had nothing to fear if I was around. The council might call me feral, but I knew how to treat a lady. My father and mother instilled that in me before they were killed. “This way is the dining hall. The food is actually good despite the prisonlike atmosphere.”

“Ah, so it wasn’t just me.”

I opened the doors to the dining hall and a couple of the staff waved at me. Not only were they used to me peeking in with a new student, but they snuck me cookies and brownies here and there. I was a growing boy, after all.

“You have a fan club.” Roxy giggled. The sound shot straight through me, warming my chest.

“They’re nice. I try to be respectful. My mom worked at a school cafeteria. Some people are mean to them but they are good ladies.”

Roxy’s cheeks reddened. “That’s sweet, Odin.”

“It’s the truth. This way. We’re going to cross the commons, and the dorm rooms are after that.” We crossed the grassy area furnished with a few picnic tables and some stone benches. The architecture of this place was beautiful, but I wondered if the creator knew that one day their beautiful design would be used to corral the rejects. Maybe he did and gifted us a bit of beauty to breathe life into us. “The dorms are broken up into years. First and second years are in that one to your left. Third and fourth are in the building to your right.”

“Which one are you in?” Roxy asked. The question stopped me in my tracks. Females weren’t usually interested in me romantically. Sure, I was strong and built, but I was also a bit fluffy. I never turned down a cookie or a second helping.

Plus, I had a baby face. Everyone said so.

Didn’t really make the ladies flock around, but it hadn’t bothered me too much. I was waiting on my fated mate. Nothing would compare to her.

“I’m a third year. I think you are too. Can I see your schedule?”

She plucked the paper from her pocket and unfolded it. When she handed it to me, our fingers brushed and my wolf howled so loudly, I was certain she and every other person on the planet could hear him.

My heart beat louder than a thousand drums. I looked down at my chest, certain it would beat its way through my sternum and offer itself before her feet.

“Are you okay, Odin?”

Gods, my name on her lips was sweet agony.

“I’m okay. Let’s see. Yeah. See that three by your name in parentheses? That’s your year, but you have two classes where you’re in second year. You were in school before? Before the war?”

Nodding, she took her schedule back. “I was. Urban Academy.”

The school she referenced was in the city, hence the name. It was kind of famous in the shifter world. “You must miss it.”

---