|16| Parties and Presidents

When the brunette from the library —Trish— had referred to the meeting as a "party", Fiona had assumed it was only a figure of speech. Currently, she considered she was mistaken. As promised, Naomi had met her in her room after lights out. Instead of a school uniform, she'd appeared in a grey hoodie and jeans.

This caused Fiona to change her cloths, putting on the casual outfits Joan had handed her. Rather than being too big, they were too small. Feeling ridiculous, Fiona accessed herself in the mirror. Her white T-shirt, which had a smiley face printed on it, stopped far above her naval and hugged her body too tightly. Her purple skirt, though it'd been pulled down to her hips, exposed more than half of her thighs.

Noami, being the jester she was, playfully catcalled, wriggling her eyebrows. Fiona had to clamp her palms over Naomi's mouth to prevent her from waking the sleeping Bam Bam. She now felt even sillier. Fiona was not insecure about her body, not in the least. In fact, she believed she had an excellent figure, but that didn't mean she wanted to showcase it to the world.

An option was to adjust her outfit's size with her magic. That left her to make a hard choice; expose her controversial beauty procedure to Naomi or go out as she was. After a second of thorough consideration, Fiona decided one night of wearing undersized cloths couldn't be so bad.

The Forest Banes quarters was a secluded clearing in the middle of the woods that occupied the southernmost part of MARC. A large treehouse was positioned on two mighty trees, while a similarly structured shed stood at the far end of the clearing. Boulders of varying sizes littered the space. What marveled Fiona, however, were the people.

Although this had been made out to be an organized social gathering, there was nothing orderly about the group of over 100 supernaturals. The crowd rowdily chatted, laughed, and ate. Cartons of food and drinks were scattered about the place. A bonfire burned brightly at the center, but those who did not need to keep warm relaxed away from it, resulting in an even distribution of people in the clearing.

 "Plaque?" The guard on duty, a giant troll with overly long canines sticking out his bottom lips, growled.

Fiona placed the stone she'd been given in his open palm. He inspected it, then moved out of the way.

 "Really Krunk, you're always so grumpy. Smile a little." Naomi stuck out her bottom lip, her hands on her waist. "Tonight looks great!"

All Krunk gave her as a reply was a nonchalant grunt. Not seeming to mind his attitude, Naomi dragged Fiona into the teeming crowd. Introductions followed, with Naomi announcing her new "girl friend" to anyone who cared to listen. Fiona got introduced to so many people, she doubted she could remember all their names.

 "Banes alert!" She was saved by a harpy shouting.

He had long red hair, orange eyes, fair skin, and a tall frame. Huge wings with reddish brown feathers sprouted out his back. In place of fingers, he had talons. He was standing on the first stair leading down the shed. The instant he spoke, the crowd fell silent, everybody facing him

 "That's Vice President Mito." Naomi whispered into Fiona's ear. "He's so cool."

 "Calling in the president." The harpy continued.

A boy stepped out of the door and unto the porch of the wooden house. The crowd immediately burst out clapping, whistling, and screaming. The president was apparently very popular. Meanwhile, Fiona gaped at what was arguably the most handsome male she'd ever seen. His golden brown hair, his yellow eyes, his square jaw, not a feature was out of place. A loose black singlet revealed his moderate but muscled biceps, and his tight jeans outlined his toned legs.

Mito, the number 2 of the Forest Banes, had swagger, no doubt. But it was nothing compared to the president's. The way he grinned, placed his hands in his pockets, and tilted his shoulders, all managed to portray his confidence. Notwithstanding, he did not seem pompous. He was talking, but Fiona was not paying attention to his words. Just him. Shaking her head, she snapped herself out of the trance. It was not like her to be dazed by a boy's good looks.

 "After extensive discussions, we concluded on Duel as the method of judgment. Namma and Heecnor, come forward!"

It took a while for Fiona to understand that the orc and cyclops moving to the front of the congregation were having a dispute, and would be settling it in the presence of the entire fraternity. The fact that they would be dueling alarmed Fiona. Violence was never a good solution to problems, and an organization that supported it had to be no better.

The two bulky beasts stood opposite each other, flexing their muscles.

 "Places on 1!" They rested an elbow, each, on the boulder between them and gripped their palms. "Get ready on 2!" They glared pointedly at each other. "And fight!" The president yelled. They began fighting to push the other's hand down.

Her expression blanking, Fiona stared. The duel had turned out to be nothing but an arm wrestle. Every member of the Forest Banes enthusiastically cheered them. Even the president appeared to be very into it. He was crouched, fiercely urging the competitors on. It left Fiona as the odd one out. She was too overwhelmed to react, standing as stiffly as a statue.

After a few seconds of intense struggle, the orc slowly bent the cyclops' hand. The cheers raised several volumes. At last, the cyclop's arm came crashing down, violently hitting the boulder. The volume soared through the roof. Fiona clamped her hands over her ears to protect her hearing functions. The president raised the right arm of the orc, who proudly beat his chest with his left. This was the judgment style of the Forest Banes.

The events that followed were less exciting. Members were picked to clean up after the meeting, and others to handle the coming month's kitchen duty. Debates were held on the activities of the next few weeks. And random announcements were made. Fiona stood through it all, feeling cold and uncomfortable. She shifted closer to the bonfire, rubbing her bare arms for extra warmth.

 "That's it, folks! We're done here, but the night is still young. Enjoy yourselves and like I always say —stay happy." The president winked and Fiona could have sworn she heard girls swooning.

She watched him get off the porch, reply to those who greeted him, and walk the path they'd created by automatically moving out of his way as he approached. She panicked, however, when she noticed he was heading straight for her. Not wanting to be caught staring, she turned away.

 "Looking good, Commander." Naomi saluted him once he reached them, wearing an expression that was so serious, it became hilarious.

 "Right back at you, Sergeant." The president played along. He then focused on Fiona. "Hi." He smiled down at her.

Fiona's chest beat a thousand times faster. "Hey." Her voice came out breathier than she'd expected.

 "So, I'm gonna go. You know, give you two your space. See you later, Fifi!" Naomi said, smirking knowingly.

What!? Fiona mentally exclaimed. How dare Naomi leave her in her moment of need? A second later and Fiona was left alone with the criminally gorgeous president. Suddenly, she felt self-conscious, awkwardly pulling at the rim of her short skirt.

 "I'm Cain." The boy offered his hand for a handshake.

 "I know." She took it. Bam Bam had pointed Cain out during her first time in the cafeteria. Fiona wondered how she hadn't noticed his looks then. She must have been VERY preoccupied to not have. Squinting, she saw he was not human, but werewolf. "I'm Fiona."

 "Well Fiona, would you like to join the Forest Banes?" Cain asked casually.

She shrugged. "I think you guys are great, but no."

 "Are you sure I can't change your mind?"

 "Thanks, but no."

Cain smiled kindly; he did not seem to be offended by the rejection. "Want a drink?"

 "You people have alcohol!?" Fiona had never taken a liking to the harsh beverage. That, and she wasn't old enough to officially consume it (at least in the human realm).

A hearty chuckle by Cain caused her heart to skip a beat. He had the most beautiful laugh. "Honestly, only humans see the appeal in alcohol. It can't get most of us drunk, and it isn't very tasty. We have fruit juice." 

Fiona's lips curved upwards. "I'll like some."

Cain studied the human girl before him. He'd heard the new student was a feisty one, but no one had told him she was pretty. She didn't have the kind of beauty that stopped you in your tracks, but one that grew lovelier the longer you looked. Her skin was dark and her hair, even darker. Captivating black eyes made it easy for one to lose oneself in them. Then there was the sexy attire she had on. Cain found himself bearing the strong urge to kiss her attractive plump lips.

The new look on the president's face startled Fiona. His eyes had darkened and the smile on his face had been wiped off. Slowly, he lowered his head. Fiona's eyes widened, her legs weakened. All this while, her heart had been behaving abnormally, but now, it seemed to constrict, narrowing in her chest. Fiona thought again. It couldn't be a reaction to the werewolf. This sensation was painful. Every heartbeat brought on an intense sting that wounded her nerves. Rapidly, Fiona's vision began to blur, till all was black.

Not again! Not again! Not again!

Sure enough, a face she remembered all too well appeared before her —golden eyes and the evilest of grins. It was there for less than a second, flashing as though it was lightning. On impulse, Fiona screamed, thrusting her arm forward. The surprised gasps that erupted returned her to reality. Blinking, she cleared her vision. And there Cain stood, holding his cheek in a completely shocked state.

It was Fiona's turn to gasp. She covered her mouth with her palms, furrowing her eyebrows. What had she done?