Page 12 of Cleansed By Water (The Nature Hunters Academy 3)

“Right?” Shelly nodded. “No offense, your majesty, but I think you need to consult Braveheart before your next motivational speaking engagement, especially one given on the precipice of war.”

“Noted,” the water queen said with a small smile, obviously taking their teasing in good humor.

Terrick stepped up and nodded. “What you say is so true, Kairi. Though these are dark times, there is hope. The fact that we have joined together in comradery is a very good sign. We will draw strength from one another.” He turned to look at Elias and Tara. “In regard to the earth elementalist warriors, we haven't been able to reach any soul-bonded earth couples. We are still holding out hope that there are some alive. As of right now, you are it.”

“Bloody troll babies,” Liam said. “No pressure.”

“Thanks for that, water boy,” Tara bit out.

“Oh, come on, that’s just mean, even for you,” Liam whined.

“You can take it,” she said. “You wouldn’t want to look like a cry baby in front of your girl.”

Liam cursed under his breath, and Gabby saw the smile on Tara’s face. Her own face turned up in a grin. Tara caught it before she could wipe it clean. Tara winked at her. Damn the girl's kindness and the way she made Gabby feel like she was a part of them.

“You all know Jax and Zuri,” Terrick said, motioning to the earth elementalists.“They will be two of the four warriors going out with the students. The other two are already on-site of their assignment. They specialize in mitigating catastrophic disasters. Earthquakes, shifting of the tectonic plates, eruptions of volcanoes, wildfires, that sort of thing. They’ve been working in the field for a little over a century. Their experience will be a huge asset in dealing with the dropping temperatures.” He paused and then motioned to the professors who were in the meeting. “The professors here will also be joining each team. They have been warriors off and on over the years, usually when they needed a break from the stresses of the classroom.”

“So, the teachers here need a break even from elementalist students? Sounds just like high school,” Shelly said with a chuckle.

“Believe it or not,” Professor Frost said, “supernatural students are usually worse to deal with because most of them have superiority complexes over the fact they can wield elemental magic. We are frequently required to knock them on their asses. Literally.”

“Oh, I like you,” Shelly said with a thumbs up.

“That’s all your fault, Professor Frost,” Tara said. “Don’t come crying to me when she’s trying to force you to be her BFFF and you get to your wit's end with her stalking.”

Professor Frost's eyes widened.

“Pfft, she’s totally exaggerating,” Shelly paused then added, “mostly,” another pause, “sort of. Okay, it’s probably true but I’ll be so busy stalking my new pharaoh man that you won't have to worry about me until I get bored.”

“Um, well, that’s …,” Professor Frost seemed at a loss for words until she finally said, “I’m sure we will get along just fine.”

“Mmm, mmm, mmm, famous last words of those who garner the attention of the one and only Shelly Smith,” Tara said, shaking her head as she pressed her lips together.

Gabby had to admit she loved the play between Shelly and, well, everyone. The chick totally didn’t have a filter, and Gabby liked that she was real. Like Tara, Shelly didn’t just say what people wanted to hear. Gabby would much rather a person tell her the truth even if she didn’t like it rather than tell her a lie in an effort to be “kind,” when really they were just being two-faced.

She also had to give Shelly props because her commentary was helping keep Gabby’s mind off a certain water elementalist who she knew was still drilling holes into the back of her head with his stare. She wanted to turn around and give him the finger so badly but figured that might be inappropriate considering the setting. Okay, it most definitely wasn’t appropriate. Not being inappropriate had never stopped her before, but now it gave her pause.

“Before you all leave, I’m going to assign your teams. Some of the names I call out are the warriors already in the field,” Headmaster Terrick said, pulling Gabby’s attention from her thoughts. “The first team will be Professor Warren, Lawson and Cara, one of the fire soul-bonded couples, Ross, Elias, and Tara. The second team will consist of the other fire soul-bonded, Crey and Tinley, along with Ra and Shelly, Professor Briggs, Professor Hart, and Mia.” Terrick’s eyes ran across the room as if he were considering who should be paired with whom. “The third team will be Professor Frost, Miles and Josie, the water soul-bonded couple, Professor Zuri, Professor King, Liam, and Gabby.”

Gabby tried not to groan out loud as she heard the headmaster’s announcement that she would be on the same team as Liam. Obviously, the universe hated her and was determined to make her pay for some past discretion that she probably didn’t even know she’d committed. She swore she could practically feel the smug approval rolling off of Liam from behind her.

Terrick continued. “The fourth team will consist of Ender, Colt, Aston, Professor Fernis, Professor Jax, Rush, Brianna, and Darby.The fifth team will be an assistant team. They will offer support when a team gets in critical situations. That will include the triplets, Atticus, Shaw and Omar, the air soul-bonded couple, Riggs and Lark, Giana, Jase, Crew, Lincoln, and Professor Bernhardt.

The headmaster continued to speak, but Gabby couldn’t hear a word he was saying because she was trying to work out an argument that would get her switched to a different team. There was no way she was going to be able to be around Liam for any extended amount of time. One of two things was bound to happen. She’d either kick his ass or attempt to molest him. Either option was equally embarrassing. Kicking his ass would make it clear that he was getting under her skin, which is what he, no doubt, wanted. And molesting him, well, for obvious reasons, that would be completely and utterly shameful. She glanced at Professor Frost, who was actually staring right at her. The professor had a little smirk on her face as if she knew exactly what Gabby was thinking. Frost gave her a small shake of her head.Is the professor shutting me down before I even have the chance to make my plea? She has to be. Damn her perceptiveness.

“We are going to give you time to gather any necessities you may need,” Terrick said. “I would highly recommend a heavy coat and your cell phones so that contacting each other will be easy. Conjuring portals simply for the sake of passing information will take too much attention away from your tasks.” He glanced around the room and asked, “Are there any questions?”

When no one spoke up, Aviur said, “Shelly and Ra, I would like to speak with you privately in fifteen minutes. I will meet you on the training field.”

“Everyone else will meet there in a half hours’ time,” Terrick added. “From there you will leave for your designated destinations.”

Chapter 4

Murmurs moved across the room as the meeting broke up. Gabby forced herself not to bolt from the room. She needed a few minutes—or fifty—to gather her thoughts and mentally prepare to be in Liam’s presence. And she couldn’t let her face betray those thoughts. Otherwise, someone might ask her what was wrong. Then there would be stabbing … and possibly burning. No one wanted that.

She felt a hand take hers and glanced down, following the arm up until it attached to Shelly. This was the second time the girl grabbed her without asking permission. The chick had serious boundary issues. Not that Gabby would ever actually give permission for anyone to touch her.

“We need to have a BFFF meeting before we are portalled off around the globe,” Shelly said before she reached out and grabbed Tara’s hand as well and began dragging them from the room.

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