Sadistic

I'm late leaving the labyrinth for the cafeteria, having spent another fifteen minutes discussing the pros and cons of Frozen, its music, and the Disney corporation in general before finally getting around to actual tutoring. We made a goal to cover at least one more page of the first test today, but that meant we had to cut into the first fifteen minutes of lunch to finish. Not that I mind spending more time with Al and I'm sure Ellie will cover for me with our friends.

The graveyard is in a rarely-used auxiliary building with only a few classes actually meeting there. So no one else is around as I walk through the school's courtyard back to campus proper.

That's when I see him, stooped behind a pillar along a less frequented pathway. Deron.

I'm about to skirt around him, but a strangled sound draws my attention to whatever the bully is doing. I duck behind a nearby half-wall and creep close until I can clearly hear hissing and meowing. I risk a peek over the low-lying ledge. What I see makes me sick to my stomach.

Deron has trapped a tiny kitten in a small ring of fire. Her eyes are wide with fear and she keeps trying to leap over the flames to escape. But everytime she crouches, posed in a certain direction, the flames billow higher on that side, sometimes clipping her front paws. She recoils away from the pain, whining in her small, baby voice.

From my vantage I can see an orange glow spilling from Deron's normally golden brown eyes, but that's not the only source of light in his expression. Glee is written plain as day in his toothy grin, interrupted every so often by his tongue swiping his bottom lip. He laughs when the kitten jumps and then flails as the flames scorch her belly.

"Good kitty," he whispers, reaching towards the trembling cat to brush his fingers along her exposed burns. I sharply inhale and Deron's eyes flick towards my hiding place.

I dip back below the half-wall, my heart pounding in my chest. My sudden movement makes my head spin and I lose the fight against my nausea. I haven't eaten anything since this morning, but that doesn't stop me from dry heaving. I jump when a hand falls on my back, but relax when I see Alastair looking at me in concern.

He puts his fingers towards his lips and makes a motion like "stay" with his hands. Then he straightens and walks with purpose towards the older warlock. I can't see what's going on, but I hear him say, "Stop tormenting that poor cat, Deron."

"Al," I hear the smirk in the bully's voice. "I was wondering when you would show up to ruin my fun."

"What do you really get out of hurting innocent animals?"

"Oh, come on. Don't be like that, man. I was just practicing my magic. Osran's been helping me with this new technique—"

"I'm sure my uncle didn't mean for you to practice on kittens," Al interrupts. His uncle? I remember Addy mentioning him once.

"Well, he didn't say not to and your guess is as good as mine, right? Since you can't hear Osran's thoughts, who's to say what he intended me to do?"

I hear Alastair sigh heavily. "Deron, all animals are our brothers and sisters. Children of Mother Earth. How many times must we go through this? It drains the coven's power when we disrespect the Earth."

"So where were you when Barrett was poisoning those dogs' apples?"

Holy shit. So it was a witch who put collar rot in the orchard?

"Barrett got his punishment from the High Priestess," Al snaps.

Deron just laughs. "Tell me, what would your punishment be if the High Priestess knew where you really were that night? Running after that filthy bitch in heat instead of fulfilling your responsibilities to the coven?" My heart takes off racing. What did he mean? Was he talking about me? But I didn't see Alastair the night of the full moon.

But… I did… I did smell him. When I was in the clearing near the border with Davy. The first time I felt happy in a month. Shit. Is that why he thought I was mated to Davy?

"Deron, you can't mess with me. It doesn't work."

"No? What about your pet? Do you think your mommy would care if I practiced my magic on him? After all he isn't a child of the Mother. Just some freaky moon hybrid."

Did Alastair just growl? "If you touch Cameron—"

"Chill, bro. Geez, you take everything so seriously. I was just joking."

"No, you weren't."

"You're right. I wasn't."

A beat of silence passes between the two warlocks. My heart is slamming in my chest and blood rushes in my ears. I can't tell if they've stopped talking or if they are whispering over the sound of my own anxieties.

"Don't worry," Deron suddenly says in a normal volume. "You know I won't do anything to permanently hurt the twat. That's what I love about him. He's like a joint that never burns out, just keeps healing himself."

"I'm not playing anymore, Deron. If you so much as singe a hair on his head—"

"I know, I know. You will reduce me to a shriveling puppy afraid of my own shadow. Got it. Now, if you will excuse me I'm going to eat some lunch. I'm starving." I hear some shifting and it sounds like the two warlocks are walking off. "What's your obsession with that loser anyways?" Deron's voice fades as his distance from me increases.