Chapter 5
The faint sound of the door closing woke Aurora up, she could no longer feel Tom lying beside her and assumed that he had left to go back to his own room. When she rolled over, she glanced around her room and noticed that the other beds in her room had disappeared and had been replaced with an oak desk and matching chair.
Stacks of books were placed on the desk; she became intrigued by them, so she crawled out of her bed and made her way to the desk. Next to the books there was an envelope with her name written on it, she was hesitant to open it because she knew the handwriting belonged to her mother.
Dyani Buck was always the most brilliant person in the room, her own mother had been an Elder within their tribe and Dyani was expected to follow in her mother’s footsteps. This put much pressure on Aurora’s own shoulders, she felt like despite being talented she would always live in the shadows of the matriarchs that have come before her.
When she finally forced herself to open and read the letter it was short and to the point, Aurora would not be coming home for the winter break and would be staying at Hogwarts, her mother mentioned that the rest of the family would be busy in South America hunting down something that had been lost for centuries.
Aurora should have felt upset but there was a wave of relief flowing through her. She loved her family but their constant disappointment in her made it hard to be around them.
After placing the letter down Aurora started getting ready for breakfast, she knew that today was a fairly easy day; she only had three classes and she hoped to pinpoint good options for a mentor.
When she was finally dressed and heading out of her dorm Abraxas’ ring on her finger caught her attention and she thought about him. She thought about what would happen if he knew about Tom staying the night, she thought about how their kiss would hurt him and guilt filled her.
She decided to tell him as soon as she saw him which would hopefully be before Tom joined them.
As she made her way through the common room she noticed Felix and Abraxas sitting by the fireplace, as she approached them they noticed her walking over. Abraxas smiled as soon as he saw her and she knew it would kill her to tell him but it would be better coming from her than someone else.
“Where’s everyone else?”
Felix smiled before answering, “Tom is still sleeping and won’t be joining us for breakfast, and the others are already in the Great Hall. Abraxas and I were just talking about quidditch practice.”
“Oh how exiting, sorry for interrupting.”
“You weren’t, come sit.” Abraxas moved over so she could sit down.
Aurora sat down beside him and she felt their legs lightly brush against each other, she could feel the tension building up in his body.
Just as she was about to ask a question Felix got up, “Shoot, I forgot I was supposed to meet someone for a walk before breakfast. I have to go. I’ll see you guys at breakfast.”
“See you then, and we can finish this conversation then.”
Felix nodded before heading off and it was just the two of them.
Aurora looked at Abraxas before taking a deep breath, “I need to talk to you about something, in private.”
She could see the worry form on his face, “Okay, let’s take a walk to the Black Lake before breakfast.”
As they made their way to the lake they made idle conversation, Aurora asked him about his family and what he planned on doing in the ministry once he graduated.
They found a bench and the two of them sat down, “What I have to say needs to stay between us.”
Aurora looked around scared that Tom would pop out from behind a bush and curse her, she knew she was being paranoid but she couldn’t help it.
“Go on, you can tell me anything.” Abraxas grabbed her hand and his eyes conveyed worry.
“It has to do with Tom.” She could feel his body stiffen at the mention of his name but she continued on, “The other day we kissed and he slept in my bed last night. I wanted to tell you myself because, well, I like you Abraxas and I know you feel the same.”
There was a moment of silence between the two of them and she knew jealously was blooming within him, “I knew he would do this.”
Abraxas got up suddenly and Aurora was hit with the fury he was feeling. “He has no intention of loving you, I do hope you’re smart enough to see through that.”
Aurora was still sitting on the bench, “Of course I know that. I see him for what he really is. But I wanted to tell you, not to hurt you, not to anger you but because I needed you to hear it from me.”
Abraxas sat back down, “I do.”
Aurora looked at him slightly confused.
“I do like you, from the moment I saw you. I think. I knew that I wanted your favour, to be around you and to know you.”
It was Aurora’s turn to grab his hand, “He wants to keep us apart and I think this is his way of doing so. But I like you too.”
Aurora let go of his hand and moved it to cup his face and she could feel him lean in closer to his touch.
“He’ll know though, if we sneak around behind his back. He’ll see it as a betrayal so maybe it’s for the best we steer clear of each other. You should stay close to the Blacks, tell him that you’re all in with them. He’ll be happy to hear that.”
“I know, I guess for now we should stick to this plan. I don’t want to but you’re right.”
“We shouldn’t be seen walking into the Great Hall together so you go up and I’ll follow behind you.”
Aurora got up and looked around before leaning down, Abraxas almost seemed shocked and then tilted his head towards hers. She placed the most gentle kiss on his lips and felt her heart flutter.
The moment was over and she began to walk away before Abraxas called out to her, “Come watch quidditch practice.”
She smiled and nodded her head, she made her way to the Great Hall with a smile on her face and when she finally reached the end of the Slytherin table she noticed that only two of the boys were sitting there.
“Where is everyone?”
Falco shrugged as he took a sip of his coffee, and Nicholas answered her question.
“Avery is in the library doing some research, Felix is with a lady friend and well Abraxas… I don’t know.”
Aurora stopped the blush from forming on her face, “Well, I’m glad it’s just us three.”
Falco raised an eyebrow, “Oh, really, you don’t say?”
“Not to sound rude but we are the smartest of the knights no?”
Nicholas chuckled before agreeing with her, “So, what’s your question?”
“Walburga mentioned something called the Slug Club. Do either of you know anything about it?”
“Did you get an invite?”
“An invite, no.”
“Slughorn has a group of a students that get together and have dinner and socialize, it’s mostly kids from prominent families or extremely gifted students.”
“How does one get an invite?”
“Be better than everyone else, or have the right family name.” Nicholas said.
“Good to know.” Aurora smirked.
There was a hum of silence before Abraxas appeared.
“Where have you been?” Falco asked.
“I had to see Professor Dumbledore before his first class. He invited me for private lessons.”
“Wow, learning from the enemy.” Nicholas smiled as he said it.
The breakfast conversation eventually made it’s way to Tom’s whereabouts and why he wasn’t there. Aurora tried not to look at Abraxas but she could feel his gaze his flicker towards her every once in a while.
Once breakfast had concluded Aurora made her way to charms but she had to go back to her dorm room before heading there because she forgot her textbook, she knew that the boys would be there and saving her a seat. She liked that all of them were in the same class, it made the classes more interesting when they were all together.
Professor Dumbledore gave an interesting lecture and it made the class go by quickly and before she knew it class was over and just as she was about to gather her things Professor Dumbledore asked to speak to her.
All the boys shared a glance before looking to her, “I’ll meet you at the herbology class when I’m done.”
They nodded and left, Tom’s gaze lingering on her longer than the rest of them. “We’re meeting tonight, come.”
She nodded before putting her books into her bag, then she made her way to the front of the class where Dumbledore was sitting.
“You wanted to speak to me?” Aurora used her sweetest voice.
“Headmaster Dippet mentioned that you were looking for a mentor and thought I might be a worthy one. You don’t need to decide now but I just thought that I should let you know that I would be honoured. We already have two classes together so I thought it would be a good idea.”
“Oh, thank you professor, I really haven’t thought much about it because I’ve been waiting to meet all my professors but I think you might be right, learning from you would benefit me considering we’re both interested in the same fields of magic.”
“You’re welcome and I look forward to your decision.”
After their discussion Aurora made her way to herbology and when she got there Falco motioned for her to sit beside him. Herbology came naturally to Aurora, mostly because she was already taught about plants and the land. Her culture taught her that it is a fundamental belief that everyone and everything is connected and should be respected, it’s why she was so excited for herbology. The professor was nice enough and the course material itself was interesting but there was a whole in her heart where her former herbology class used to be.
Herbology was over and everyone gathered in the sitting area in the greenhouse, once they were alone Tom spoke.
“There will be a meeting tonight, after the quidditch practice. Everyone is expected to attend. Don’t be late, I have something to do afterwards.”
They all nodded and slowly headed to the Great Hall for lunch, before they made it there Aurora excused herself and headed to the private room where she would continue to have lunch. She could feel someone watching her and she knew that if she turned around it would be Tom.
When she walked into the room she noticed that the only one that was there was Alphard, when she sat at the table he smiled at her, “Well, look at you being early.”
“I could say the same thing about you.” Aurora smiled.
She sat across from him, “Why are you here so early, Mister Black?”
“I skipped potions, Slughorn won’t stop badgering me, he wants to get on my good side.”
“I understand why, your family is very influential.”
“Indeed we are.” Alphard smirked. “Have you thought about who you’ll bring to our new years eve gala?”
“I’m not sure yet, I might not even bring a date.”
Alphard looked a little shocked at her answer, “That’s crazy considering you’re like the most eligible witch at the school right now.”
Just as Alphard stopped talking the door opened and in walked Walburga and Lucretia, Walburga noticed the silence and smiled at the two of them before taking her seat.
“What were you two talking about?” She raised her eyebrow as she asked.
“Aurora here isn’t bringing a date to the new year’s eve gala, or so she says.”
“Uh, it’s so far away. Let her breathe Alphard.” Lucretia rolled her eyes and looked at Alphard who started to blush.
Walburga noticed and cleared her throat, “Let’s not talk about that just yet, how has your mission been going?”
Walburga looked at Aurora before speaking again, “Lucretia can be trusted, she’s family.”
Aurora nodded, “He’s trying to keep Abraxas away from me, he’s driving a wedge between us. He knows that Abraxas likes me and he’s using that as a weapon.”
The three of them stared at her and it was Lucretia who spoke, “How so?”
Aurora took a deep breath before speaking, “Well, he kissed me. Tom that is. He knew it would hurt Abraxas.”
“I didn’t think Malfoy had feelings.” Alphard said with a sneer.
“Wait, Malfoy isn’t the important one here, it’s Tom. He kissed you? Like really kissed you?” Aurora could see the spark in Walburga’s eyes when she asked.
“Yes, it was weird. I didn’t think he would actually do it.” Aurora started to blush.
“You should ask Abraxas to the gala, he’ll already be there and I’ll ask my father to be your patron during the holiday. Our families already know each other so the Malfoy’s won’t be so put off by him escorting you.”
Lucretia and Alphard looked at Walburga at the same time, “Do they know each other?”
“Yes, Alphard, did you not listen to Grandfather? Or read his journals from his youth?”
“No… why would I read his journals?”
Aurora watched as the two siblings bickered back and forth while Lucretia slumped in her chair.
“Anyways, Grandfather knew Aurora’s grandfather while he was in America. The two of them met and became friends. I’ll write to father and ask if he’s willing to do it. I’ll say that grandfather would want us to be friends and I’ll mention how our grandfather attended your grandfather’s funeral.”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea. I remember seeing him briefly.”
“Is there anything else that has happened?”
“Not really, I mean he keeps telling me that my mission is to still get close to you and your family but that isn’t new. I have been thinking about who the weakest links might be.”
Walburga nodded her head, “That’s good, I fear that some of the boys might be too loyal to him like Lestrange and Nott. They’re the most sadistic and find comfort in the ideas he’s sprouting.”
Aurora tensed for a second, “I think Falco isn’t as loyal as he seems, sure he’s been given orders and he’s following them but I think I may be able to sway him.”
They all seem shocked but it was Lucretia was the one to speak, “I don’t understand how these heirs can just blindly follow someone that makes promises he probably won’t keep, I thought they were smarter than that.”
“I think it comes down to love, doesn’t it?” Aurora spoke quietly and paused before she continued, “He’s bound them by brotherhood and the thought of betraying each other is what’s keeping them together, which is why we need all of them if this is going to work.”
Just as Aurora finished talking Orion walked in and looked between the group, “What’s going on?”
“Nothing, Orion, nothing to be concerned about.” It was Walburga that spoke.
He rolled his eyes, “Stop treating me like a child.”
“You are a child.” Walburga and Lucretia said at the same time.
Aurora couldn’t help but giggle at the older girls, Orion took a seat beside Aurora, “So, really what were you guys talking about?”
He looked directly at her and she could feel him probing her mind, “So does your entire family try to get into people’s heads without permission?”
Aurora raised her eyebrows as she asked him. A slight blush formed on Orion’s face, “Sorry, you’re right. My bad. But you guys never tell me anything. Always keeping secrets.”
He started to sound almost pouty so Aurora took pity on him, “We were just talking about the new year’s eve gala your family is hosting. We were talking about potential dates.”
Everyone glanced around at each other before Orion spoke up again, “Oh, you’re coming? That’s so exciting. It’s unfortunate that you won’t have a family table.”
“Oh that doesn’t bother me much, I’m just excited to finally put some faces to the names you have all mentioned.”
Walburga smiled at Orion, “Actually, we were brainstorming on how to ask my father to act as Aurora’s patron. Maybe if we got your father on board as well he’d be more likely to say yes.”
Walburga gave Orion a sly smile, “Don’t you think it’d be nice and who knows maybe Aurora could spend more time with us.”
Alphard nodded in agreement, “It’ll be good to have someone not from our bloodline hanging around.”
“I guess that’s true, I’ll send an owl to my father after lunch today.” Orion smiled at Aurora before digging into the food that was brought in by the elves.
Everyone was quiet for a moment before Aurora talked again, “I received word from my mother about the winter holiday, it seems that I’ll be staying here, which I’m actually very happy about.”
Lucretia gave her a weird look. “Why are you happy?”
“My parents are… just constantly disappointed in me. It makes being around them unbearable.”
“Well, I think you’re brilliant.” Alphard said quietly.
“Thank you. I’m really glad Walburga invited me to join you all. I don’t know what I would have done if she hadn’t.”
“Okay, stop being sappy. Eat your lunch.” Walburga rolled her eyes as she smiled.
Once everyone was done eating Alphard, Orion, and Lucretia left quickly explaining that they had to go get their textbooks for their afternoon classes.
Walburga and Aurora sat there waiting for the three of them to be completely gone before speaking again, “I think Alphard likes you.”
Aurora shook her head, “He’s just being nice.”
“No, I know my little brother. He never blushes and he technically is still on the market, my parents haven’t arranged a marriage for him yet.”
“Walburga!”
“What… are arranged marriages not common in America?”
“I mean – they are but I don’t know I thought I’d marry someone I’m in love with, call me a hopeless romantic.”
“Well, the offer still stands, I doubt he would object.”
Aurora shook her head with a smile, “I should get going, I have defense against the dark arts. All the boys will be there.”
“Good luck with winning them over, start with the ones you know already favour you. Do you know which boys that will be?”
“Abraxas and Falco definitely. I’ll put out some feelers for the other boys and he’s going to ask how my progress is with you and your family. If he doesn’t get what he wants he’ll know that we’re messing about.”
“You can tell him that I’ll meet with him. You say that I’ll only meet him with you there.”
“Okay, sounds good. Thank you Walburga.”
“Of course, he should pay for what he did to you and if I’m going to be honest I would much rather see you lead those boys around.”
The two girls shared a laugh before Aurora got up, there was a part of her that didn’t want to fully trust Walburga but did she have a choice. She didn’t know anyone here except for the boys and the Black family.
As she made her way through the swarms of students she finally reached the defence against the dark arts classroom.
She walked in and she could feel the tension immediately, she looked around for her friends and when her gaze finally landed on them she knew what was happening. There were several Gryffindor students holding their wands out towards her friends, she noticed that none of them moved but it would only take one person to move and hexes would fly everywhere. She looked at Tom who was idly standing by, she noticed that he looked intrigued and almost giddy at what was happening.
As she walked over she noticed Falco glance at her, “What’s happening here?”
It was Tom that spoke up, “These Gryffindors seem to think that we stole their brooms from their changing room.”
Aurora looked at him, “Well did you?”
Tom’s face darkened when she asked him and she knew she would pay for it later, “I have no interest in quidditch, it’s a waste of time so why would I care about sabotaging other teams? Use your brain Buck.”
Aurora rolled her eyes and turned to Falco and Abraxas, “Did you take their brooms?”
Abraxas was the first to glance at her and shake his head no and Falco did the same.
Aurora then turned to the Gryffindor students, “They didn’t take them. They’re telling the truth. So lower your wands.”
Neither group of boys lowered their wands and Aurora could feel anger start to build in her body, the room’s air started to feel heavy and she started to feel pressure in her mind. Her vision started to blur for a moment and everything felt like it was moving in slow time.
“I said, lower your wands.” Aurora could feel the heaviness of her words and she watched as all the young wizards around her lowered their wands. In astonishment Abraxas moved closer to her and tried to pull her to him. But at first she resisted, that was until she started feeling dizzy.
“Aurora.” His voice sounded far away.
His voice snapped her back and her vision became clear again, she could feel his hand on the small of her back, “You should sit down.”
She nodded her head and made her way to her seat, she could feel the emotions of everyone in room; shock, intrigue, and anger.
It started to make her feel nauseas and as Professor Merrythought walked in Aurora stood up unsteadily, “Professor, I need to go to the hospital wing.”
She looked at Aurora with concern, “Yes, dear, you do look a bit pale. Malfoy escort your desk mate please.”
“It’s okay, professor, I’m strong enough to make it on my own.”
She could feel Abraxas’ gaze on her but Merrythought obliged and allowed her to leave on her own.
As she gathered her bag she felt Tom trying to get into her head, her walls were weak from what just happened but she managed to keep him out. She knew that he would want to talk about what just happened but she didn’t want to, she wanted to run.
The fear that was coursing through her body made her pace quicken and she found her way to the headmaster’s corridor. She was unsure if she could just walk up there but she was worried and she didn’t trust any of her professors enough to tell them about what happened.
She paced for a moment before deciding to head up, as she made her way up there she became increasingly colder.
Once she reached the giant doors she went to knock but they opened before her fist hit the door, “Come in, Miss Buck.”
She walked up to where Headmaster Dippet was sitting and before she could even begin talking he asked her what was the problem.
“Something, just happened. Something that I can’t entirely explain. And I fear it may be bad.”
“Sit. Tell me about it.”
As she recounted what happened the headmaster started to look more concerned as she described what she was feeling, once she was done they sat in silence for a moment.
“What should I do?” Aurora asked with a shaky voice.
“What you did, it’s – not impossible but it is rare. It sounds as if you used an unforgivable nonverbally. Imperio.”
Aurora nodded her head and tears started to fill her eyes, “I’ll reach out to your father and let him know what happened and I’ll deal with the students that were there. You didn’t mean to do it, right? ”
“Right, it just kind of happened.”
“You’ll need to be careful from now on. You’re gifted for a witch of your age but it doesn’t surprise me considering your family lineage. You’ll need to find a mentor to help you control it so you won’t have to fear this happening again.”
At first Aurora didn’t know what he meant by that so he clarified, “I’ll protect you from this and no one will know. I’ll go to the classroom now and I want you to go speak with Dumbledore. He may be able to help you.”
She nodded her head and the two of them left his office at the same time, she made her way to Dumbledore’s office and he was grading papers when she walked in.
She was still shaken when she got there and she recounted everything that happened to Dumbledore and he had the same grim face as the headmaster did when she first told him. She was nervous and Dumbledore asked if he could enter her mind, to see what truly conspired.
“I can show you.”
Dumbledore looked surprised but motioned for Aurora to begin, she slowed her breathing and she conjured what happened in class. She could start to feel tension in the classroom and she knew it was time to push it into his mind.
When she met his eyes she knew that he could see it, she remained focus and as Dumbledore further watched her memory a smile crept onto his face. Once it was all over Aurora felt exhausted and sat back in her chair.
“Incredible.” Dumbledore whispered to the room.
Aurora gulped, “Headmaster Dippet said you could help me. Control it. Master it even.”
“Do you often feel other’s emotions?”
“Yes, especially if they’re felt very strongly. I try to stay away from people but it’s hard being here you know.”
“Do you know who the anger came from?” He asked with concern in his voice.
“I do. Or at least I think I do.”
“You should watch out for them.”
Aurora nodded her head and he spoke again, “The headmaster said he would contact your father? Has anyone in your family been this adept in nonverbal magic before?”
“My grandmother was very gifted, but not like this. It felt like I had no control over myself. I just wanted them to stop. I didn’t mean to do that though.”
“I know Aurora I can feel and see your guilt. You won’t get into trouble and Headmaster Dippet is correct, I can help you and I want to help you. I believe you’ll do wonderful things in the future.”
“Thank you professor.” Aurora felt like she was a rat in a trap and the words coming out of her mouth felt like vinegar.
“You should go rest now, I’ll send an owl and set up times for us to work together.”
“Okay, thank you again professor. I guess we know who my mentor is.” Aurora smiled.
She left his office and made her way to the common room, she knew that the class wouldn’t be over for at least another hour and she wanted to go to her room and hide from whoever would come look for her. When she went into her room she felt a sense of calm wash over her, when she looked around the room she saw her father sitting there.
He got up from her desk and she unwillingly fell into his arms, “Dad.”
Her voice almost came out as a sob but she managed to control it last minute.
“Little one, it’s only been less than a week.”
“I know, this place though. It’s hard being here. The people, some of them scare me.”
“Shhhh, I brought you something that will help.”
Her father reached into his pocket and pulled out a bracelet, it was a silver band with a black obsidian bear charm. He placed it into her palm and watched as she looked at it.
“It belonged to my mother, she passed before you were born and it was supposed to pass on to her daughter, your aunt Skye but she passed before having daughters of her own so by tradition this belongs to you now. It’ll help you and protect you from the things you cannot see.”
Aurora put it on her wrist with help of her father, “Thank you, for coming, I really needed to see you.”
She hugged her dad and for once he hugged her back, “Everything is going to be okay.”
He ran his hand over her head, trying to soothe her, “The professors here and Headmaster Dippet will take good care of you and I can come here whenever you need me. I know this is hard, this place is not like our home but I know you’ll thrive.”
He pulled Aurora out of the embrace and looked into her eyes, “You need to be careful who you trust, the headmaster said you have been having lunch with the Black family.”
Aurora nodded her head and he continued talking, “Stay close to them. I’m having lunch with the senior family members today. I’ll send you a letter and detail everything we discuss.”
Aurora nodded her head in agreement, before she could ask the questions forming in her brain there was a knock on her door, when her father opened the door it was Abraxas standing there. He was dressed in his quidditch gear, “Oh, I’m so sorry, I was hoping to see Aurora.”
Aurora could feel his anxiety without even seeing him, she stepped closer to the door so he could see her, “Father, this is Abraxas Malfoy. We have many classes together.”
Her father stepped aside and motioned for Abraxas to come into the room, “Hello Mr. Buck, it’s an honour to meet you.”
The two men shook heads and Aurora’s father turned to her, “I should get going. Write to me if you need anything.”
“Thank you for coming father.” Aurora went and hugged him again before he walked away.
After he was far enough away Aurora turned back to Abraxas, “Your father is a terrifying man.”
Aurora wanted to laugh but she knew that it was the truth, “Yeah, he’s kind of always been like that.”
“Are you okay?” Abraxas looked at her like he was afraid she would fall apart.
Aurora closed the distance between them and went in for a hug, Abraxas wrapped his arms around her, “I won’t let anything hurt you.”
He said it in a whisper and her heartbeat started beating fast, “I know.”
When the two of them pulled apart she looked at him in his quidditch practice clothes and giggled a little.
“Are you still coming? You don’t have to if you don’t feel up to it.”
“I want to, just let me change?”
“Okay sounds good, I’ll wait in the hallway and we can walk down together.”
She changed quickly not wanting to keep Abraxas waiting, once she was done the two of them walked down to the quidditch field.
“If you want a good view I’d sit up there, I can walk you up there if you want?”
“It’s okay, you should go warm up. I can’t wait to watch you play.”
“What about me?” Felix came around the corner and bumped into her, Felix had a beautiful smirk on his face as he said it.
“Of course I’m excited to see you too Felix, I also didn’t take you for the jealous type.”
“Oh, I am, when it comes to you at least.” He winked at her before he began walking away.
“It’s a shame that no one knows about how much of a flirt he is, they just seem to know he’s a nice guy and when they find out he’s a player they get upset.”
“You’re right.” Aurora giggled and as she started walking away she turned back to wave at Abraxas.
By the time she got to the top of the stairs the boys had already started practicing, she knew the basics about the game but had never played the game herself. She was a good flyer and she would like to learn how to play. She was lost in her thoughts while watching the boys fly around when she noticed someone walking towards where she was sitting.
“Why are you watching them practice?” Tom asked.
“Abraxas and Felix asked me to.” She didn’t bother looking in his direction.
“It’s a waste of your time, watching them fly around like idiots.” She could hear the venom in his voice.
“Not everything that isn’t aligned to your goals is a waste of time. They have their whole lives to serve your ambition, this is for them.” Aurora looked at him then and she realized that he was staring right back at her.
“You must think you’re better than everyone else here, already the talk of the school. You have the headmaster and the professors protecting you.”
Aurora swallowed hard and chose her words carefully, “I don’t think I’m better than anyone. And Headmaster Dippet is a friend of my father’s.”
Tom inched closer to her face and she knew it was a tactic to throw her off.
“Are you dense? They are protecting you to use you.”
“And you’re not?” Aurora asked.
Tom blinked and for a split second she could feel his emotions shift, it went from anger to curiosity.
“I’m not using you.”
Aurora had to stop herself from laughing in his face, “Okay, then what do you call it?”
Tom moved even closer to Aurora and she tried to move back but Tom grabbed her arm, “I’m training you. I see you and I see power. You and I could change the world. Don’t you see it?”
Aurora shook her head, “I don’t want power, Tom.”
Tom let go of her arm and stood then, looking down at her with disgust he said, “You will.”