Connection - Golden Lycans Sequel 3/3 [in progress]

We Cannot Fight Our DNA

***Ares***

I wait—perhaps a little too anxiously—for Lia to emerge from her room the next morning.

It had taken longer than I care to admit for my fangs to retract, sliding back into my gums where they belonged. If they had to exist at all, I preferred them out of sight, out of mind.

I’d briefly considered whether they could be surgically removed, but some deep, primal instinct warned me they’d only grow back.

“You’ve been staring at Lia’s door for like... fifteen minutes,” Ash says, his voice low and amused.

I blink, only now registering the bowl of soggy cereal in my hands. I chew, slowly, as I turn to face him.

“Just thinking,” I say, turning back to the door.

“About... Lia?”

“Obviously. Who else?” I nod, straightforward. Honest.

Ash huffs a laugh. It sounds oddly knowing.

“Yeah. Thought so. Trust me, I get it, man,” he says, already drifting off down the hall, still chuckling under his breath.

I glance at the door once more.

What was funny?

A minute or two later, Lia finally emerges, wearing some baggy khaki cargo trousers and a white t-shirt that reveals a little of her midriff, all of which seems to make her look taller. She is definitely looking different again, her hair is looking a little lighter...again.

Perhaps I ought to have persuaded her to admit that she has been dying her hair, because she had denied it three times, now.

"Good morning," she says softly with a gentle smile towards me, just before she opens the fridge.

"How are you today?" I ask her, wanting to see if she remembered anything about last night. She shuts the door with a tub of margarine in her hand and nods casually.

"I'm good. But...oh, I am so sorry, Ares. I did make you a mocha last night, and then I apparently totally spaced out on the balcony. It went cold, and you had already gone to bed. I didn't want to disturb you. I figured you were tired after what was a very heavy day of lectures. It was a lot, wasn't it?" she says with an apologetic look.

"That was very kind of you. I am sorry I went to bed early, I would have enjoyed it, I am sure." I reply truthfully, as the mocha had looked great. She then smiles a little cheekily.

"Perhaps...I can make one for us both, again, later this evening?" she suggests tentatively.

"I would like that very much," I reply, my eyes lingering on hers for a few moments; they are so bright and vibrant this morning.

Although they always were when she wore white, which was more often than not.

"Great...let's do that," she says, opening her bread to extract two slices. She pauses a little, "oh! I could finally bring my telescope out onto the balcony if you'd like? I checked last night, clear skies are finally forecast!"

The idea of doing something with Lia that had nothing to do with university work, actually makes me feel quite excited.

"Yes, that sounds great, I will look forward to that," I tell her, smiling jovially back at her. I then feel my phone vibrate in my pocket.

ValeAdmin: Please report to the administration building at 10:10am for a meeting with the Vice Chancellor.

I frown at my phone, wondering why Ella Landry wants to see me.

"Is everything okay?' Lia asks, noticing my expression.

"I have to go see the VC this morning. I cannot imagine what it's about," I reply, putting my phone back in my pocket, "I'll try not to be late for anatomy class."

...

***Ella***

"...and it would be just wonderful to finally figure out exactly what is going on with Ophelia," I say into the camera, as I record a communication to Marin in the Fae realm.

There is a knock on my door, which is slightly ajar, and I look up to see the tall figure of Augustus' son, Ares, stepping into the room.

He shuts the door carefully behind him and he nods politely toward me, his movements more fluid and relaxed than the first day here.

I hadn't realised the time.

"Vice Chancellor Landry, good morning to you," he says politely, before he takes a seat in one of the empty chairs opposite while I pause my recording.

"Likewise, Ares," I reply quietly, leaning forward with my arms crossed on the desk, "how are you finding Vale? Are you fitting in?"

He looks a little surprised by my question, but he smiles as he considers his answer.

"I cannot speak for how others perceive me, but I think it is going well. I feel very comfortable where I am living. I have made a true friend in one of my roommates, whom I share all my classes with," he says, his smile growing as he refers to Ophelia.

"That's very encouraging, I am glad to hear it," I say truthfully, "who would that be?"

"Her name is Lia. I believe her mother works here. But, that is something I keep to myself, though," he says conversationally. I make a sound of acknowledgment before I press on with the questions that I brought him here to ask.

"Your father and Atticus divulged quite a bit about your kind, so please forgive the scientist in me, but I want to know," I begin, leaning forward across my desk, "aging was never mentioned. How is it that you are ten, yet...clearly not?"

He sighs and looks torn for a moment, evidently wondering if he can speak to me candidly.

"You read auras," he states, rather than asks, "what do you see in mine that you do not see in any other vampire?" I am surprised he has tried to answer my question with one of his own.

"Light. A lot of it," I answer simply, "but why?"

"I do not know, but it has afforded me the use of the trees since I was around the age of six," Ares replies.

"Interesting...and how did you come to find that you had the ability to do so?" I ask. he looks uncomfortable at the question and shrugs, his gaze dropping to the ground.

"I don't really remember it too well, but I do remember a voice on the wind. A kind voice. Listening to the directions the voice gave me, I found another place, adjacent to this one. Identical in physical land features but very different from here. Our ancient history involves another realm, one we lost access to many millennia ago. I suppose it was part of the great balance," Ares muses.

I nod, leaning forwards even more, keen to hear more now I have heard him confirm the existence of another realm entirely, just as Amoya had hinted toward Austin.

The voice...that was a troubling aspect of his story.

"What is it like there?" I ask. He smiles, as if recalling a fond memory.

"It is so beautiful. It is a shame because as far as I can tell, its completely devoid of intelligent life, now. The gravity is much stronger. My bones and muscles are dense and strong as a result, but the biggest difference of all, is the reason I am not ten years of age," he says, his eyes rather fierce.

The ball drops and I make a sound of acknowledgment.

"Of course! The Fae realm is the opposite. In balance, gravity is weaker there, and then there is the subject of...time. Time goes by so slowly, there. Three days there equated to six months here, in our normal world. In balance, it is the opposite in your other realm too, isn't it? You've spent time there, aging around a decade, in the timespan of...how many years?" Ares smiles and nods.

"I started the process two years ago, when I was eight, just after you publicly announced Vale and your vision for the future. I have lived eleven years in the space of just two," he admits, before his expression softens considerably, "it was an isolating experience, which is why I am so poorly socialised. Less so, now, than when I started here. But, I have no regrets, as it has meant I am sitting here right now in front of you, Mrs Landry, working on achieving my goal, being taught by some of the most fascinating guest lecturers and being on the cutting edge of supernatural biological science-"

I am a little taken back by this admission.

"-Oh my goodness...you spent all that time...in another place? Completely alone?" I ask, feeling abundantly sad for him, on a motherly level, at that. He nods.

"It is how I have taught myself everything that I know. Our home library rivals that of Oxford's. I have had the time. It is also why Chemistry is my worst subject. I had no proper equipment in the realm. I'd take food with me and spend days there at a time, returning home to my mother, who experienced very little time away from me. Over time, I would be different when I came home. As I grew older, I became taller, even in the time between breakfast one morning and dinnertime the next. But, it allowed me to learn with no distraction and no impedance; to age to the right age to come here as soon as I could. I took my exams at home, but I just missed the application deadline. That is when your brother-in-law suggested to my father that he approach you personally. He knows how important it is to me, and also to my mother," Ares explains, suddenly looking as if he said too much.

"Your mother...no one knows anything about her. Never even seen her," I say quietly.

I can see it in his eyes and in the shift of his aura-his mother is why he is here.

"Her name is Adelina, and she hates what she is," Ares admits, "I come here to learn and to grow, so that I may one day try to find a cure for vampirism. For her...and for any others. It might be impossible, but I want to try."

I tilt my head and look at him across the desk, trying to imagine how I'd feel if one of my children had done what he had done; all for me.

I want to cry for him, for his lost childhood.

"I don't understand why only I can access that place, why, out of all my people, only I can use the portal trees the same way you can," Ares muses, evidently full of questions about himself, "vampires don't have light. We are of shadow, in balance to your kind. I often mystify myself."

"You can use them, because you are a sweet, good, young man," I tell him, because in the last few minutes, I feel that I absolutely did make the right decision to let him enroll.

Surprisingly, he stares back at me rather fiercely, looking at me as though I had just said something rather ridiculous.

"I am not sweet, Mrs Landry," he says, his voice stern and a little louder than it had been previously. He looks uncomfortable, and I see his aura cloud over with a raw pain, "because sometimes...try as we might? We cannot fight our DNA."

I have evidently touched a nerve, and I am not sure why, given what we do know about natural-born vampires.

"How so?" I ask, my curiosity getting the better of me, even though it is clearly upsetting him. He shakes his head vehemently.

"All you need to know is that I will not become a threat to anyone," he assures me, his dark eyes and a little pleading.

Now I am really curious; natural-born vampires didn't crave blood, so why does he feel like this?

"I believe you," I tell him, seeing the evidence of his statement all over his aura, "and...Ares, I will do everything in my power to help you, to help your mother. But...I cannot do that unless I have a greater understanding of everything, particularly about how someone becomes a vampire. It requires research, manpower, resources and so much time."

"I know you will, and I hope that in time my father grants you access to what you need, rather than waiting for me to have the ability to start researching it myself," he nods, getting out of the chair, "umm...I have anatomy class shortly, please may I be excused?"

I nod, shooting him a little smile before he swiftly leaves my office.

I spin around in my chair to look out the window at the warm coloured leaves adorning the abundant trees around the campus. I had a meeting shortly, so mulling over what I had just learned would have to wait.

...

***Ophelia***

After dinner, Maddy leaves for a shift at the campus cafe and Ash gets his gym kit on for one of his tri-weekly two-hour weight sessions at the gym. I could tell earlier that Ares was in a strange mood after he got back from meeting with my mother, but I wasn't sure why.

I wanted to know what they'd talked about, but I knew she wouldn't tell me what was going on with another student.

"So...still fancy that mocha? And some stargazing?" I ask him as he comes out of his room in a black t-shirt and grey sweat pants. He nods and looks quite appreciative of the idea.

"I think it would vastly improve my day. Although Ash's pie did a great job," he says with a light smile. He speaks so much more naturally, now, than he did when we first started.

Home-schooling definitely had a lot to answer for.

"Excellent, take a seat, and I'll whip one up," I say happily, getting my frother out of the drawer and grabbing some hot chocolate powder from my cupboard. I finish up our mochas by adding whipped cream and mini marshmallows on top, putting them on the table outside while I fetch my telescope. It had gotten very cold in the evening now, so I have ensured I put my thickest hoody on and my slippers.

"My mother also used to do a lot of star gazing," Ares says as I set the telescope up to point to a thankfully clear night sky.

"Oh, can she not do it now?" I inquire. He had only briefly mentioned his mother once or twice, so I was a fair bit curious about her. She didn't sound well, any time he did.

"It is hard to fully explain. She is unable to appreciate it the way she once could," Ares clarifies, staring up at the skies with somewhat watery eyes.

"You love her very much," I surmise quietly.

"I do. She was all I had, most days. My adoptive brothers are older, so they were not often around. Around enough for me to form a stable relationship with them when I was younger, but not often in the last several years. Being home-schooled, my mother has been the closest I could have to a 'best friend'. She is one of the most intelligent people I will ever meet, and she has a wealth of life experience. My father could have sent me anywhere in the world, to the best school, but she wanted me at home. But, she became a bit of a recluse. Ever since the age of five, I have known that I wanted to become a doctor, and she has always supported that. But...not everything can be learned from books. Social interactions, colloquial language...subtle nuances. There is a lot to learn. She tried her best, though," Ares explains, smiling as he talks about his mother.

"Some things in life we just have to figure out on our own. I think social norms are a continually learned behaviour anyway," I reply.

"I am sure that's true. But some signposting would have been useful," Ares says with a short laugh.

"Well, I happen to think that she did an amazing job," I tell him truthfully, straightening up from the telescope, "and I think you're doing just fine, Ares. Socially, that is. You're polite, thoughtful, careful with your words, and I've definitely noticed you trying your hand at humour. You may not understand modern slang, but compassion and kindness are traits that I prefer to have in my friends, traits that have clearly come very easily to you."

He smiles gratefully at my comment, before I gesture for him to look through the telescope, as I have brought Saturn into focus. He steps forward next to me and then looks down at me rather fondly.

"Thank you for saying that. It helps that I have a new best friend now. Or two. I think that I also get along with Ash quite well," he says, leaning down to look into the telescope. He then grabs my wrist in excitement and exclaims happily.

"LIA, this is incredible! I can see the rings!" he breathes in amazement. I find it endearing but humorous at the same time, as I have seen Saturn countless times. It may have become mundane to me over the years, but witnessing Ares' excitement firsthand, is quite enjoyable, and its reminding me how magical this activity can really be.

"What else can we see?" he asks, turning to me with an excited smile on his face.

"Jupiter?" I suggest. He steps away, and I can see him watching my hands as I start adjusting the equipment.

He is quickly going to figure out how to use this. I know it.

"What other hobbies do you have?" Ares asks as I move the scope around.

"Uhh...I used to do gymnastics. But...I don't anymore. I used to do martial arts....but I don't do that anymore either. Now...I guess it's just basketball and cooking because my dad really enjoys those two things. I've also been buried in academic books for a long time, and so...I ran out of time to have many hobbies," I reply, standing up again.

"What have you been hiding from?" Ares suddenly asks me, his eyes a little intense.

His question is striking, and I am unsure how to respond for a moment.

"W-why do you think I've been hiding from something?" I ask anxiously in response, biting my lip, because I absolutely have. I stopped physical hobbies aside from basketball, when I felt like my wolf would never come to me. It was easier to avoid it, than confront the fact I couldn't excel at it the way I should.

His dark eyes look as though they are staring right into the bottom of my soul.

"I am sorry to pry, but I cannot help but get the impression that you are missing something, and...you avoid whatever it is. You wrap yourself up in your schoolwork, because it feels safer than confronting what it is that you are avoiding," he says, annoyingly, horribly on point with his observation, "it is easy to recognise the signs in someone else...when you happen to do it yourself..."

I say nothing, while I wonder whether I should just tell my friend exactly what it is that I am missing.

But...like with my schoolwork, I easily wrap myself up in moments like these, with Ares, where I can ignore the internal confusion and frustration over what is missing, inside.

I do avoid it and I do hide, because to confront the issue entirely was potentially another way to give up entirely....and I couldn't do that just yet.

Some slither of hope always remained.

"We can pretend, we can avoid...but no matter what, we cannot fight our DNA, whatever it brings us," I say quietly, stepping back from the scope. Ares looks back at me strangely.

"Intriguing words. I said something very similar to the VC, earlier today," he says, before mentally dusting himself off, peering through the viewfinder once again.

"Oh really? So what’s in your DNA?" I ask, wondering where his gorgeous olive skin came from.

He smiles broadly at the vision of Jupiter in the viewfinder and steps back again.

"I am not entirely sure, Lia. The beauty of genetics is that within our reproductive organs, we carry traits and characteristics that our own bodies may never express, but our children might...or even their children might," he says thoughtfully, before drinking more of his mocha. I drink some of mine too, finding it to be the perfect temperature, now.

"Virtue is assuredly written into yours," Ares adds with a fond smile, "and...when you find what you are missing, and you stop avoiding. When you stop wrapping yourself up in the safety of academia and embrace everything fully, I think you are going to surprise yourself. I think you are going to surprise everyone."

"See, now this is how I know you're doing just fine socially, Ares," I tell him fondly, feeling my cheeks flush.

He suddenly looks a bit uncomfortable for a moment and he steps back from me a little, clenching his jaw hard.

He smiles nervously at me before he sits down on the lounger a little way away from me, producing his phone from his pocket.

I continue drinking my mocha, wondering if I have said something wrong, but thankfully, he returns to my side, and starts to change the dials confidently with his hands as if he had done this a thousand times before.

Typical.

"Beautiful," he says, before straightening up, "Tsuchinshan-Atlas, for your perusal."

I look into the viewfinder, an excited smile spreading across my face as I see a comet with a bright, glowing green trail.

"Home-schooled? Really?" I ask him with narrowed eyes, I didn't quite believe him, he was too good at figuring things out. He laughs and c***s an eyebrow.

"No, you're right, I wasn't," he admits, and I shake my head at him, "you want the truth? From the age of eight...one electronic tablet, many hundreds of books from our family library at home...all self-taught. My mother was my guide, but I was my own teacher."

I look back at him in astonishment, as that's even crazier than being home-schooled. And yet... I absolutely believe him.

"That's why you're so rubbish at Chem," I say with a laugh. He laughs and nods.

"I really am," he confirms with a grin, "but thankfully I have you. I have you in every class, pushing me forwards. Reminding me where and who I want to be."

"A home library, huh? Is that to go with the helipad?" I ask, changing the dials of the telescope again as my cheeks flush.

"Mhmm. My home is very large. My father has collected a lot of books, among many other things. The library would astound you. I hope I can show it to you one day," he replies, finishing his mocha.

"It's a long course, Ares, maybe you will?" I joke back lightly. I go back to adjusting the dials and step away once again.

"The crab nebula," I say happily, enjoying Ares' wonderment at the beautiful sight in the viewfinder.

"Goodness! Such wonderful colours. Gosh. I would love to see the aurora borealis," he suddenly says, standing up and looking out at the sky.

"I'll take you," I say suddenly, not entirely sure why I have just come out with that, "your library...for the aurora borealis."

"Deal. I had thought to go on my own one day, but...I think it is the sort of thing where having a shared memory with others, likely makes it that much better," Ares replies, looking down at me with a lopsided smile.

"Yes. We should absolutely do it, and why wait? February break. Iceland. I have seen the aurora, but I have not been to Iceland yet," I suggest brightly, feeling more than excited about the idea.

"We could probably invite Ash and Madeleine. Although I do not think Madeleine could afford it. But then....I do have a lot of money. I am just pay for her," Ares says thoughtfully.

"I think they'd both really enjoy it," I nod enthusiastically.

"I look forward to it. My father has many people who can find us the best place to stay," Ares says with an excited look in his eyes.

"Who is your father?" I ask curiously. He chuckles lightly and sighs.

"He is the CEO of several large companies. Companies I don't want anything to do with. I want to forge my own path. That is why you won't see my surname on anything around here..." he says a little slyly, "I'd rather no one here knew who my father was. They would treat me differently."

"I get it," I tell him, "because, you see, I am an heir to something myself. But, Ares, I would never treat you differently. Always the same as I ever have, should you ever want to tell me."

He looks upset for a short moment, before he smiles at me fully.

"I know that you would," he replies.

...

***Austin***

"What are you doing?" I ask Ella as she stares at her laptop on the sofa while drinking a glass of wine. She jumps a little and immediately shuts the lid, looking at me casually.

"Just...watching Ophelia on the security camera," she says sheepishly with a wince.

"What!" I exclaim, surprised at her lack of boundaries. But now I am curious, "...well...what is she doing?"

"Using the new telescope you got for her," she replies simply.

"Atta girl. How was your day?" I ask. She puts the laptop down on the coffee table and looks at me seriously.

"I summoned Ares to my office today and I asked him about his age, outright," she admits.

"Oh, yeah I mean they mentioned nothing about aging when they came to Vale, did they?" I muse, sitting down next to her.

"He's used the trees, Aus. To get to another realm. Amoya was right, there is another, but totally opposite to the Fae realm. Gravity is stronger there and time moves quicker. He's lived and studied endlessly, for eleven years there, over the last two years, here," she explains.

"Whoa...I thought Ophelia liked her studies, but that sounds more nuts than simple dedication," I reply, taken aback.

"He wants to try to cure vampirism, particularly in his mother. He mentioned for others too, but I really think he was talking about himself. I don't think he likes what he is, Aus. There is something about him that I just cannot put my finger on. He just isn't like the other vamps," she then says, looking contemplative.

"I thought vamps couldn't use the portal trees?" I point out.

"The reason for that is because vampires don't have light; except he does. More now than the day he arrived, actually. Nothing makes sense to me anymore! Particularly when I think about how goodness is on the decline, these days!"

She looks stressed, and I don't blame her. When things got nutty and couldn't be easily categorised or explained, she would get stressed.

"We need a holiday," I say to her.

"God yes, but...we can't," she sighs, her eyes a little dull.

"Nonsense, two or three weeks in the Fae realm and everything here will be totally different," I joke. Ella bursts out laughing.

"HA. Can you imagine? Ophelia would be halfway qualified...Joshua would probably be a father at the rate he's going," she says in half amusement.

"Ugh, tell me about it," I sigh.

"I cannot get over what Ares Katz has done," she then says, her expression bereft, "eleven years, alone, just...studying? I mean he must've returned home for food and to change books and clothes, I suppose, so he'd have seen his family. But it explains so much. He seems a fair amount better now, but his social skills at the beginning were more than a little underdeveloped. Now I know why. It makes me feel so sad. The idea of any of our kids doing that on some sort of quest to help me..."

"So our daughter really does live with someone with the mind of a ten yr old?" I joke lightly. She snorts a little and shakes her head.

"He's only ten according to his birth certificate. But he is definitely older than twenty," she nods.

"Oh. Well, I am sure if there is anyone who would be kind to someone like that, it'd be our daughter...because her kind mother let him in, after all."

...

***Ares***

I was impressed that I had dealt with it so well, when the raw hunger had struck me so suddenly, while out on the balcony with Lia.

I had taken myself away from her a little, focussing my mind on finding something to show her on the viewfinder.

It seemed to be a cruel joke, that the kinder Lia was to me, and the more fondly I thought of her, the worse the hunger was becoming.

Laying in bed right now, looking through the large window at the clear night sky, I feel peaceful and happy, regardless.

Lia had asked me about my father, and I had contemplated telling her. Sometimes, I wish I hadn't wiped her memory of finding out my truth, but then I was starkly reminded why I did it.

The least she knew about my true nature the better...perhaps.

I trusted Lia...not trusting myself was the problem.