"Who hurt you?" Viola asked seriously, placing her hand on Dasha's shoulder. Lost in my own thoughts, I hadn't noticed how she approached.
My gaze met Viola's cold stare, and we greeted each other with a short nod. I then cautiously turned around, wanting to check whether the others would decide to join us. That was the last thing I needed.
After the open house at Kserton State University, Dasha and Viola somehow became friends. They say opposites attract. Who would have thought it would happen this much?
I had assumed that, unlike her siblings, Violetta considered herself strong enough to ignore my request to stay away. Diana was afraid that if I couldn't find a way to get along with Kaandor, Viola would try to eliminate the threat at any cost, just to protect the lives of those she loved. In her own way, the thought that there was at least one equal opponent to me among the Smirnovs comforted me—and at the same time, Viola's blood called to me just as strongly. It was as if Viola knew this and never missed an opportunity to stand close, provoking me with her proximity. Born to be a hunter from the witcher clan, she was still a vampire. No matter how much good Viola had brought into the world, protecting Kserton alongside the wolves, from Kaandor's perspective, she remained a tempting target.
"No one," Dasha replied softly and tried to smile, but the corner of her lips twitched, betraying the pretense that Viola immediately picked up on.
She snorted in displeasure and furrowed her brow. After a short pause, Violetta turned around, noticed an empty chair at the neighboring table, dragged it over to ours, and placed it closer to Dasha, before sitting down beside her.
"Well, tell me," Viola fixed Dasha with a piercing look, as if trying to make sure her friend couldn't hide a change in mood.
"Nothing to tell," Dasha answered quietly, absentmindedly running her fingers through her hair, smoothing the already perfectly done ponytail. "Just nervous about the dance."
"Did he say no?" Violetta asked, and I looked at my classmates in surprise, not understanding what she meant.
"Who said no?" Tatyana quickly asked. "That guy from the other school?"
Dasha's shoulders slumped, and it seemed like she wanted nothing more than to sink into the ground to avoid the horribly awkward conversation. She stared down at her plate without blinking. A blush spread across her cheeks, emphasizing her embarrassment.
"He's a second-year student at Kserton State," Dasha muttered under her breath, but, to my surprise, Tatyana managed to hear it without any vampire or werewolf hearing. Apparently, high motivation can work wonders.
"No way!" Tatyana exclaimed. "Does he have any cute friends?"
Viola turned to look at Tatyana for the first time, and it looked, to put it mildly, threatening. They'd never gotten along, but there hadn't been any major quarrels between them. Viola tolerated Tatyana, just as she tolerated everyone else in Dasha's circle—until someone started making things uncomfortable for her charge. I wondered how Arthur wasn't jealous yet? It must be hard to accept when your partner, on the first day of break, quickly flutters away from the table, leaving you alone, just to sit with a friend for breakfast, but that's just how girls are.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the rest of the Smirnov family, and noticed that Arthur seemed pretty content, chatting with his brothers. My gaze involuntarily slid toward Stas, who was sitting with his back to me, and at that exact moment, he seemed to want to turn around. Damn!
"He probably has," Dasha continued. "I just don't know any of them yet. He doesn't like talking about himself or school."
"Really?" Tatyana raised an eyebrow mischievously and carefully covered her smile with her hand, as if trying to suppress a laugh. "What does he like talking about more than himself?"
Tatyana was back to her usual teasing, but I stayed silent, making an effort to do so. After all, there was no point in worrying about Dasha—she had a protector. My only task now was to count how long it would take for Viola to rip Tatyana's head off for her double entendres.
"Art. He knows so much about it," Dasha's face brightened, as though some memory was warming her from within. "I wish I could read as many books and visit all the museums he spoke about so passionately."
Tatyana wasn't satisfied with the answer and huffed disappointedly. The only thing Tatyana cared about in art was how much it could be sold for.
"Dasha," Viola called her before her friend could drift off again, "so what did he say about the dance?"
"He probably won't come," Dasha said sadly, holding her nearly empty tea cup with both hands. "He managed to make it to the White Ball, but you know… flu epidemic, cancellation of mass events. And now he's all caught up in coursework. So, I probably won't even make it to the ball."
"Oh, come on," Tatyana tried to cheer her up. "What's the big deal? You walk out of your room, take a little stroll. A hundred meters, no more. It'll be all friends, no adults—just a couple of teachers, the headmistress, and the staff. I even bribed a few people to add something stronger to the punch."
"You'll get drunk like on Halloween?" I teased Tatyana, immediately regretting it.
"Well, at least I won't go into the forest to find wild animals and end up on the front page of the newspaper," Tatyana shrugged casually and took a sip of her tea.
How could we have become friends? I realized that her sharp remark had hit the mark when Kaandor loomed threateningly over Tatyana. It was especially difficult for me not to stare in moments like these: after all, no one else could see the dark, shadowy figure with a human body and a wolf's head in the middle of the bright hall. It was lucky that Viola hadn't caught up to Max in developing her abilities yet. Only Viola's twin, more skilled in witchcraft, and my mother could see Kaandor's manifestations in reality. I hoped it would stay that way, and judging by how Viola stared impassively over Tatyana's head, behind which a toothy maw was now revealed, fate clearly wasn't entirely indifferent to my wishes.
I purposely cleared my throat loudly, trying to get Kaandor's attention, but that was apparently not enough to make him stop. The dark companion opened his jaws wider, seemingly aiming to stuff Rostov's head into his mouth. The good news was that Kaandor could clown around all he wanted, but he wouldn't truly harm Tatyana without fully merging with me. The realization that Tatyana was in no danger didn't stop me from feeling ashamed of his antics. I hoped Max hadn't seen this.
"I think…" I stood up from the table, "I've eaten enough."
"Are you coming to the pool with us?" Dasha managed to ask, and I hesitated.
"How long until?"
"In about an hour. I need to digest a little: I ate so much sweet stuff," Dasha absently looked at the crumbs left on her plate, and something told me she would have gladly continued indulging in pastries and cakes.
"Can we make it two hours instead?" Tatyana chimed in. "I still need to freshen up."
"Before the pool?" Viola and I asked in unison.
Tatyana rolled her eyes in exasperation, as if not understanding why the people around her didn't know basic things and had to be explained the obvious.
"Of course! There'll be boys there."
"What about 'love until the grave' and all those sugary vows to Stas?" Viola smirked.
"Our relationship is none of your business!"
"You don't have a relationship with my brother," Viola shot back.
"Oh, you…"
"Asya?"
We all jumped when we heard a deep male voice. I quickly turned around and saw Arthur. Unlike Viola, he made a point of keeping a distance of about two meters today. Tall and tense, like a string, Arthur was watching me without blinking, assessing my mood this morning. How did I not notice he'd approached?
"Arthur," I replied calmly, "did you want something?"