"My legs hurt!" "I want to go home!" "There's a bug on my shirt!" Cam and I rolled our eyes. Of all the groups we could have been put in we had to get the one that contained all of the popular girls. We trudged on ahead while they trailed behind looking dismal in their perfect pink designer tracksuits and head bands. Cam had feigned vomiting in her mouth when she'd seen them strutting out of their tents this morning. One thing I had to commend them on though, was being able to fit a small generator in their packs so they could charge their phones and use their hair straighteners. Together, Cam and I continued to march on ahead until they were out of sight. We then sat down and waited.

    "We are never going to get to canoeing at this rate," groaned Cam, poking at a ladybug that was scuttling across the log we were sitting on. I nodded agreeance as I stretched out my limbs. If I was being perfectly honest, I was grateful for the break. My legs were aching and my chest felt like I was sucking in shards of glass. I'd slept terribly and knew that I was still recovering from my week without proper rest. Dean had been sweet enough to point out that I'd really fallen out of shape at out last training session though he used it more as grounding for our lesson than a tease.

    "You never know what shape you're going to be in when you have to take on an exile," he'd explained. "They don't care if you've broken every bone in your body. They'll still try their most to kill you." As the beautiful people caught up to us we hoisted our packs back onto our backs and continued on until we got to the lake.

It was a roughly shaped oval, six kilometres around. The canoes were lying on the bank waiting for us. The instructors sorted us into pairs and, thankfully, I was set up with Cam. Once on the water we formed a long line behind the instructors' boat and followed them about the lake like duckling swimming after their mother. Fifteen minutes in and I was sure my arms were about to fall off.

    "Alright!" one of the instructor, Sara, announced, "Everybody bring your boats side by side to form a raft."

    "We'll be running along the fronts and backs," the other, Damon, added. Cam grinned with anticipation while I groaned.

    "What's wrong, Rosie?" piped Cam looking decidedly evil, "Not up for the challenge? Scared of getting your feet wet?" I shook my head. My whole body was on fire. I reckoned I'd have a hard enough time walking on solid land let alone seven wobbly canoes bobbing on a lake. I really didn't need to do this right now. But Cam couldn't know that. I couldn't wreck her time by getting her worried about me. I was Grigori now. Even not at my peak I was meant to be stronger. Then why was my human friend finding this so much easier than I was?

'I'm still a little off,' I reminded myself, 'And she has five brothers to do this sort of stuff with all the time.'

Cam and I were on the boat furthest from the instructors' so we were consequently the first to run. It was to be a race. The pair in the boat next to ours would hold it steady while we ran over the tips of the canoes to the instructors'. Everyone would then move down one and the next pair would race. We took up our positions; Cam at the back and me at the front. The two girls holding our boat together to the main pack clung on as tightly as their glossy manicures would allow.

    "Go!" shouted Damon from the instructors' canoe. And we were off. It was even harder than it looked. The boats wobbled with every step and threatened to float apart from one another. I was doing okay, keeping pace with Cam. Just. We only had two boats to go and I could tell it was going to be close. Suddenly my foot slipped out from under me and I tumbled off the slippery plastic into the icy water below.

. . .

At first I was surrounded by millions of bubbles. The water was freezing and I could feel it biting my skin causing goose pimples to rise up along my arms and legs. The bubbles cleared but the murky quality meant I couldn't see much anyway. With a start I realised I was stuck under the boats! I tried to swim to open water but found I couldn't move. Something had attached itself to my ankle. All of a sudden my heart clenched, my lungs began to burn and I did the one thing I shouldn't have done. I panicked. The more I flailed about the tighter the thing around my ankle became. Where was everybody? The instructors? Surely someone was going to come to help me? My insides felt like a balloon in front of a fire. If someone didn't hurry I was going to burst. Then, through all the fear, a cold, calm reality set in: I was going to die here. As if responding to that thought my arms and legs seized up so that I couldn't move. My jaw clenched as I tried so very hard not to let any of the precious oxygen escape from my lungs. Even though everything was wet, I knew that I was crying. Pin picks of golden light sparkled through the growing dark. And then ... they were there. Cam grabbed hold of my shoulders and smiled gently. Below me, Alec ripped through the seaweed that had entangled my legs before looping his arms under my own and making for the surface.

Air! I sucked in a big wet mouthful and coughed. Ignoring all the water than was getting in my mouth I kept on breathing desperately. Alec bridal carried me out on the shore while I heroically hung onto him like he was a lifebuoy. Once we were a little distance from the lake he put me down. I stared up at my saviour; blonde, wet and shirtless, and then turned my gaze to the water to see Cam emerge dripping as well but fully clothed. The other students were paddling furiously towards us with the instructors in the lead looking very worried. I don't remember much about the rest of the day but we were all bundled into a minivan to be taken back to our campsite. The only perk of nearly drowning was that you weren't expected to make the ten kilometre hike back to camp. I don't think my legs would have held me up anyway; I was shaking so badly from the shock of my near-death experience.

. . .

Cam was lying curled up against me in the tent, breathing peacefully, but I couldn't seem to get my eyes to close. I was so wired. She mumbled something in her sleep and rolled away from me. After a few moments of twisting, my friend settled back into her deep sleep. I envied her being able to drift off while I sat here with my body tense and waiting for action. I took a deep breath and forced my eyes shut attempting to think about nothing. It was difficult but I knew I could do it given enough time. I had almost reached peace when a shuffling from just outside our tent startled me. Now I was on edge, again. Something was undoing the zip on the tent door. I could feel every wild beat of my heart like a recoil from a gun in my chest. Slowly the zip made its way down and I waited with baited breath as my mind conjured up the worst case scenarios; a half-decayed goblin coming to lick our faces, a crazed murderer with a paring knife to slit our throats, a rabid werewolf looking for someone to turn. What would it be? My heart beat continued like a wild stampede as I still held onto my breath in fear.

Then his presence hit me like a cool wind, little wind chimes twinkled gently in my mind; the soft melody of Alec. His head popped through the opening, eyes glittering wildly and a grin playing on his lips.

    "It is good to see you still conscious," he whispered as I scowled at him and opened my mouth to tell him off but he put a finger to my lips to signal for his silence. The skin tingled where he had brushed and I swished his hand away.

    "Cam's asleep," I spat quietly, "Out. I'll meet you." His head retreated and, pulling on some boots, I followed.

    "Don't ever do that again!" I whisper-shouted, "You almost gave me a heart attack!" All this did was cause him to grin even wider.

    "Now why would I want that?" he asked laughing softly as he grabbed my hand and started pulling me away from the campsite into the shadows. I shivered slightly in the frosty night air and my breath came out in little foggy clouds. I began to talk as we walked on.

    "How did you get past the teachers?" I hissed in awe. Alec shrugged one shoulder dismissively.

    "I can bend the shadows to make myself unseen," he replied feigning boredom.

    "Like a dark exile?" I questioned. He sucked a sharp breath in and shook his head.

    "What an awful thing to say," he replied, sounding very mocking, "To the man who saved your life. I am not an exile but I do have certain ... talents." Feeling slightly more assured I moved onto my next line of attack.

    "How long have you been stalking me?" I ask suddenly. He looked taken back by my question and also a little worried.

    "Umm . . . ah," he stalled. The expression on his face was enough.

    "How long?" I demanded placing my hands on my hips. He ran a hand through his beautiful golden hair that was shining in the pale moonlight.

    "Since you were approximately one year of age," Alec mumbled his face glowing red. I was pretty sure my eyes had popped out of my head.

    "I swear that I never saw you unclothed or anything of the sort!" he defended shielding his face with his hands as if I was about to hit him, "I always left before that." I continued to stare at him. Then I regained my composure and stopped. He was so cute when he blushed.

    "You brought me out here for a reason, yeah?" I asked diverting the conversation to avoid the air getting anymore awkward. He nodded silently and pulled me into a clearing. Taking up a position behind me, he gently tilted my head up towards the clear sky.

    "I wanted to show you the moon," Alec whispered, his breath hot on my neck. "It is so pretty when you are away from the city lights. No?" And it was; so incredibly pretty. Like a huge silver orb suspended in the dark velvet folds of the evening sky. Delicate and pure. Untainted by anything man had ever done. There were mirrors up there somewhere, reflecting back messages from NASA but you just couldn't tell from here. Magnificent. Then I found myself on my back and I folded into his embrace, all the while staring silently up into the night. And I felt infinite.

. . .

At some stage I must have fallen asleep because I opened my eyes and daylight peaked in through a crack in the tent door. I was wrapped in my sleeping bag and Cam was shaking me.

    "I want details," she grinned, "Lots of details." According to my friend, at four-thirty, Alec had carried me back into the tent. Cam had woken with a start to find him leaning over me. Almost on top of me. I blushed as she explained her part of the story.

    "The look in his eyes!" she gasped in horror. "I thought he was going to rip your clothes off and you'd be doing it with me right next to you!" If I'd thought I was blushing before I must have been causing global warming now. She had definitely read too many saucy romance novels. "So what actually happened?"

    "We went for a walk," I answered, quietly, "And we watched the stars. And then I guess I fell asleep." Cam looked at me bug-eyed.

    "You fell asleep!" she exclaimed, "With him right next to you!" I nodded and then stopped.

    "I think I was lying on top of him but I'm not quite sure . . ." Cam shot me a startled look, "No!" I yelped, "Not like that!" Her face split into a grin.

    "I always knew you were a naughty girl, Rose Wood," she giggled wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. Then she got a jumper in her face.

. . .

The rest of camp consisted of lots of hiking, some surfing lessons and team bonding. And Alec had conveniently joined our group which our leader didn't seem to have realised. But hey! That was fine by me. Each night Alec and I would sneak out and look at the moon while playing 'get to know you'. Cam would wake in the morning asking if we'd done it yet. Which we hadn't. Yes, I know, she's so mature. 

. . .

So how was that? Let's go outside. Oh, that Alec! So if he's not a Dark Exile like Phoenix was (kinda) then what is he? And what did you think of Cam? She really is soooo mature. (not) Hope you enjoyed this chapter. One more to go and then we'll be on to completely new material so I hope you're excited. I'll update again today.

~SpanishFox