His Stray

Chapter 14

Ten Years Prior

Celia sat on the edge of the small lake, watching the water ripple out from the stones she threw. She loved this spot. The lake was not far into the woods from her house, close enough that no one ever came by. It was too near her family’s place for people to wander, but still deep enough in pack territory that patrols and warriors never bothered with it.

Whenever the weather was nice and she didn’t have to help her mom in the kitchen, she would come out here. Most days, she was alone with her thoughts and the water. But sometimes she was lucky enough to get visitors.

She heard feet crashing through the underbrush and her heart leapt. Finally Lucas broke through the clearing, messy brown hair falling into his eyes again. He still wore his school clothes, though his shirt was rumpled and stained now, not pressed and spotless like it had been that morning.

To her surprise and delight, Landon was only a step behind him. She liked Landon nearly as much as she liked Lucas. He was funny and kind and stronger than anyone she knew. Whenever he joined their games, everything was more fun.

Celia sprinted across the clearing and wrapped Lucas in a tight hug. “I missed you,” she breathed.

“Me too,” he muttered, squeezing her back. “Are you okay?”

She stepped away and nodded.

“They took you after recess and you never came back,” Lucas rushed to say. “Some kids said they brought you to see my dad.”

She nodded again, slower this time.

“Did you really burn Jared?” Landon cut in, eyes dancing with amusement.

“I didn’t mean to,” she burst out. “I don’t even know what happened.”

“That’s awesome,” Landon said, his smile stretching wide. “I wish I could burn people with my mind. Someone pisses me off and -” he pressed his fingers to his temples “ - boom! Pile of ash.”

“It’s not funny, Landon.” Tears welled in her eyes.

“Are you kidding?” Landon almost laughed. “It’s incredible!”

“They think I’m not a wolf!” The words broke free, along with the tears that spilled down her cheeks.

The smile fell from Landon’s face.

“Don’t listen to them,” Lucas said quickly, pulling her into another hug.

“Who cares anyway?” Landon scoffed, kicking at the grass. “So maybe you’re not a wolf. Maybe you’re a witch or something. That’d still be cool.”

Lucas shot his brother a look. “Werewolves don’t like witches.”

Landon shrugged. “Yeah, well, I don’t really care what everyone else likes. I like her.”

Celia’s breath hitched. She stared at Landon, her tears slowing. Lucas only frowned, hugging her a little tighter.

“You really don’t care?” she asked, her voice small.

Landon looked at her like it was the silliest question in the world. “Why would I? You’re still you. You’re still Celia. That’s the only part that matters.”

Lucas’s arms tightened around her. “Yeah, but I care if people say stuff. I don’t want them being mean to you.”

“They’re always mean,” Celia whispered. “They call me a witch already.”

Landon snorted. “Well, maybe next time someone’s mouthy, you’ll actually turn them into a frog.”

Celia let out a watery laugh despite herself. Lucas didn’t quite smile, still looking troubled.

“It’s not funny,” Lucas muttered. “If she’s not a wolf, she might not even belong here. Dad could say…”

“Dad says a lot of stuff,” Landon cut in, rolling his eyes. “Who cares? He’s not out here right now, is he?”

Lucas looked like he wanted to argue, but Landon just dropped down on the grass and stretched out like he owned the whole clearing.

“Come sit,” Landon said, waving them over. “It’s nice out. Let’s stay until the sun goes down.”

Lucas hesitated, but Celia tugged at his hand. Together they went and sat with Celia squeezed between the boys.

Celia hugged her knees to her chest. After a minute, Landon leaned over and bumped her shoulder with his.

“You’re gonna be fine,” he said, softer now. “Even if you’re some weird half-wolf half-witch swamp creature, you’re still ours. Okay?”

Her throat squeezed. “Okay.”

Lucas sighed and leaned into her other side. “You’re not a swamp creature. And I’d still like you even if you were.”

Celia giggled then, and something inside her loosened.

They sat there until the sky turned orange and the trees threw long shadows across the water. When it started to grow cold, Lucas stood up first and pulled her to her feet.

“C’mon. I’ll walk you home. Landon, you too.”

“Nah,” Landon said with a lazy grin. “I’ll catch up. You two go on.”

Lucas hesitated, glancing at his brother, but finally nodded and took Celia’s hand.

As they walked back through the trees, she peeked over her shoulder. Landon was still sitting by the lake, tossing rocks into the water like he didn’t have a single care in the world.

She wondered what it would be like to be like that. To not worry about what anyone thought. To not worry if you belonged.