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“Hunter!” Luz all but jumped on Hunter as he entered the oracle classroom, her eyes shining with excitement and a wide grin on her face. “Guess what? I overheard some other students talking, and it sounds like we’re learning about a new type of wild magic today! Isn’t that exciting?”
Hunter paused, already halfway in his seat, his interest piqued. His palisman, a small, gray wolf Dell had helped him carve that he’d named O’Bailey, glanced up at him from the desk with a cocked head. Truth be told, Hunter had never been too thrilled about this particular class—he’d discovered pretty quickly that oracle magic was low on his list of favorites (some of the spells they learned reminded him a little too much of Belos, too much of his manipulation), but if they were learning about wild magic?
Well, he thought, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad today.
“Really?” he asked. “Did you hear what kind?” Hunter was trying not to get too excited; for all he knew, it would just be another lesson on glyphs—though, if that was the case, he doubted Luz would be as excited as she was.
“Okay, so, have you ever heard of the strings of fate?”
At this, Hunter perked up, his ears twitching. He had heard of the strings of fate; he’d come across it a couple of times in the books he’d snuck from Belos’s forbidden texts when he’d still lived in the castle, and while he’d never read into it too much, far too concerned with absorbing as much as he could in case he was ever caught, he knew some things.
“I’ve read about it before,” he said finally. “I think it’s similar to human soulmates, and there’s a spell—”
“—that lets you summon your strings, yeah!” Luz cut him off, practically buzzing in her seat. Hunter glanced down at his battle-scarred hands, flexing his fingers. As exciting and rare as it was to learn about wild magic, especially in school, there was a part of him that couldn’t help but worry—what if he didn’t have any strings, platonic or otherwise?
What if him being a grimwalker messed with the strings somehow? What if the spell thought he was Caleb and not Hunter?
“I heard they’re gonna let us summon our strings today,” Luz continued. Hunter tamped down the uncertainty that started to build in his chest, inhaling and exhaling to a silent count of four. Just as he opened his mouth to comment that maybe letting a bunch of teens see who they may or may not be connected to might not be the best idea, the oracle teacher entered the room, effectively cutting him off.
The bell screamed and the door to the classroom swung closed. The teacher wasted no time in launching into their lecture, detailing the strings of fate and how they worked, the different colors they might see.
“Most common are the silver strings, representative of both friendly and familial bonds,” the teacher spoke in their gravelly voice. “And while most will have a gold thread or two to represent a romantic bond, not everyone does, so keep that in mind when summoning.”
Hunter rested his head in his hand as the teacher continued on, explaining some of the smaller details that he’d already known from his own studies—small things like who could see the strings once summoned (only the summoner) and how long they would last (until moonrise). It wasn’t until Luz hit his shoulder excitedly that he shook himself out of his thoughts to listen again.
“Some small notes to remember as we begin,” the teacher said, tapping a piece of chalk against the board. “Although they are called the strings of fate, most of the strings you see will tie you to people who have impacted your life in big ways. The strings are merely a suggestion. This is meant to be a fun activity, what with Grom approaching. Don’t take it too seriously.” They fixed the class with a glare, before dismissing them to work on their summoning.
Luz turned back toward Hunter, and if she was excited before, it was nothing compared to now—she had stood up and was practically bouncing on her toes.
The best part about learning wild magic, Hunter had realized, was that it drew its power from the Isles, which meant there was no need for a bile sac.
Which meant it was so much easier for him and Luz to actually participate in class.
Luz pulled her hands away from the crystal ball as the smoke slowed and watched her fingers as she wiggled them experimentally. After a moment, she let out an excited yelp, and though Hunter couldn’t actually see anything, he could only assume that the strings had appeared on her fingers.
Hunter took a deep breath and pressed his hands against the glass ball, watching as the smoke curled once more. As he pulled away, he watched with bated breath as strings shimmered to life around his hands, glittering silver strands winding around each of his fingers.
Along with a single gold string, looped delicately around his pinky.
“Hey, Hunter, look!” Luz held up her pointer finger, a silver string tied around it. As she moved her finger, Hunter felt a tug around his own and followed the line of her string with his eyes, only partially surprised to see that it wound around his own finger. “Guess you’re stuck with me, huh?”
~~~
It wasn’t until Flyer Derby practice later that day that Hunter paid any attention to his strings.
Gus dropped his bag next to Hunter’s on the lower-stadium bench. A small force tugged at his finger—it was faint, almost like a tickle, and Hunter wasn’t even sure it was real at first. But there it was again, that same pulling sensation he’d felt with Luz earlier that day. Glancing up toward his hand, Hunter saw three of his silver strings pulled slightly more taut than the others. It was hardly a shock to see Gus at the other end of one of those strings, and only marginally more surprising to see that the other two strings led to Viney and Skara respectively.
Warmth spread through Hunter’s chest, a faint smile tugging at his lips. It made sense the more he thought about it, especially with what the teacher had said about impact, but there was something about seeing it that made him feel just a little bit lighter.
“Well, someone’s looking happy today,” Gus’s voice cut through Hunter’s thoughts as he held out his hand for Emmiline to crawl onto his shoulder. Hunter jumped, heat briefly pricking at his ears. “Lemme guess… ooh, were you thinking about maybe asking someone to Grom? A certain, oh, I don’t know, flyer derby captain?”
“What?” Hunter exclaimed, his cheeks reddening at the way his voice cracked, and definitely not at whatever Gus was insinuating. “No, of course not! I—I was just… thinking about the team. I’m just—really grateful for you guys, that’s all. Definitely not the other thing,” Hunter added hastily, his heart racing.
Gus crossed his arms, his smug grin melting into something softer. “Are you going soft on us, Hunter?”
“Of course not! I—”
There was that tugging feeling again.
Hunter looked down toward his hands, eyes scanning over the various strings. There was only one other person who would be showing up to practice who wasn’t already attached to a string. And if the others had changed his life enough to warrant a string?
Then it only made sense that Willow Park should have one too.
“Uh, Hunter?” Gus asked, eyeing him suspiciously. Hunter glanced up, mouth already opening to tell Gus about what they’d learned in oracle class that day when the tugging started again. This time, as Hunter’s eyes shot down to look at his hands, he was just barely able to catch the single gold strand twisting around his pinky, stretching somewhere behind him.
“Alright team!” Willow said, her voice coming from the exact direction the string was leading.
His breath caught in his throat as he turned to look in her direction, face burning hotter than he’d ever felt before when he caught sight of the single gold string looped around Willow’s pinky, a perfect mirror to his own.
Oh, Titan.
“We have a game against Glandus this weekend,” Willow continued as she approached, a green notebook held tightly in her hands, “so I want to work on some drills, make sure we’re—Hunter? Are you alright?”
“Yeah, you don’t look so well,” Viney added, eyebrows pinched in concern.
A strangled noise escaped Hunter as he fumbled for something, anything to say. Because the truth was, he wasn’t well—as giddy as the (admittedly massive) part of him that was crushing on Willow was, there was a part of him that filled with dread.
“Hunter?” Skara asked, her voice suddenly much closer than he’d remembered, hand hovering over his shoulder, a silent question.
Hunter sucked in a deep breath. His head swam as he inhaled, counting to four, before exhaling, a fake grin plastered across his face. “Totally fine! Never better, in fact! So ready to, uh, run some drills.”
“Oh…kay,” Willow said, pursing her lips. “If you’re sure. But if you need to sit out, y’know, take a rep off then just go for it, okay? Don’t want you to burn yourself out or anything.”
There was something in her expression that said she didn’t fully believe him, and if the look Gus, Viney, and Skara shared as Willow turned her back said anything, Hunter figured it was a shared sentiment.
It certainly didn’t help that he was clumsy through practice. He’d fumbled flags, missed easy drills, and had even run head-on into one of the goalposts, knocking him right off of O’Bailey, who let out a sharp yelp as Hunter fell. If not for Willow quickly summoning a large flower to cushion his landing, Hunter was sure he would’ve ended up with a broken bone or two.
Willow called for a break almost immediately after that, her expression laced with concern as she watched Hunter slide off the flower. He winced as his feet hit the ground, his hands coming up to prod at the tender spot on his chest where he’d collided with the tall wooden post. Luckily for him, Viney made quick work of the pain, a spell circle already half-drawn as she landed next to him.
“Hey Willow,” Gus said as he hopped off his own staff, O’Bailey in his hands, Emmiline detransforming to rest on his shoulder once more. “How about I hang back with Hunter for a few reps, y’know, make sure everything’s good, and you guys keep running practice?”
“Are you sure, Gus?” Willow asked, gaze darting between the two boys. At Gus’s nod, she sighed, a half-hearted smile ghosting across her face. “Alright. Take it easy, Hunter. Let us know if you need anything, ‘kay?”
Hunter only nodded. In just thirty minutes, he’d had the wind knocked out of him both metaphorically and physically, and his mind was reeling.
As Gus led him over to the bleachers, the three girls took off into the sky, though there was an air of uncertainty as they resumed their drills.
“Alright, spill,” Gus said as he took a seat next to Hunter. “Did something happen with Willow today? I mean, I know you can act a little dumb around her sometimes, but it’s never this bad.”
“What?! No—no, of course not! Everything’s fine!” Hunter squeaked, ears burning.
Gus raised a brow, his eyes narrowing. Titan, Hunter thought, he was an even worse liar than Raine.
“Well,” Gus said after a moment, “whenever you’re ready to talk, let me know.”
It was as if his words had cracked some sort of verbal dam inside of Hunter, the story of class, the strings, Willow’s string rushing out of him all at once. To Gus’s credit, he took it all in stride, nodding as Hunter rambled about the events of the day. He paused for a moment, considering what Hunter had said.
“So… Isn’t this a good thing?” At Hunter’s blank stare, Gus continued. “I mean, you basically have the literal fates telling you that you two are meant to be.”
“That’s the problem!” Hunter exclaimed in a hushed voice, eyes flitting between Gus and the field.
“Alright, you lost me.”
“I spent practically my whole life trying to fulfill some big plan from the Titan”—Hunter spat the words as if they were poison—“that Belos had planned out for me—or for Caleb, I guess,” Hunter frowned. “The last thing I want to do is force something like that on Willow, or anyone else, for that matter.”
A brief silence fell between the two, and Hunter found his gaze floating back toward where Willow floated above the field, emerald flags in one hand.
“I get what you’re saying,” Gus said finally, dragging Hunter’s attention back to their conversation. “But I don’t think you’d be forcing anything on her. Think about it as giving her the freedom to choose.” A grin twitched at Gus’s lips as he reached to scratch under Emmiline’s chin. “Besides, Willow’s not the kind of person to do something she doesn’t want to just because fate said she should.”
Hunter glanced back up at the girl in question, watching as she dove under a rapidly approaching Skara to tie a flag around the post. A soft blush pricked at Hunter’s face, his ears twitching. “I guess you’re right…”
“Of course I am,” Gus replied, a teasing tone to his voice. They sat in silence for another beat before Gus continued. “If you’re feeling better, I’m gonna get back to practice. You coming, or do you still need a minute?”
Hunter looked down at the small wolf palisman curled up next to him, and his hand moved to rest on his chest. “I’ll… be right behind you. I think O’Bailey and I both need another minute.”
“Alright.” Emmiline transformed in Gus’s hands, and he hopped onto the staff. “Just, like, yell if you need anything, yeah?”
Hunter nodded quietly, instead focusing on the strings looped around his hand, an unbalanced mixture of silver and gold. The drills his friends were running meant there was a constant tickle in his hands as the strings—or rather, the people attached to them—vaulted around the field at high speeds.
He would tell her. It was just like Gus said—he’d give her the choice. Besides, it wouldn’t be right to keep it all to himself.
If only his heart would stop trying to hammer out of his chest.
~~~
“Uh, Willow?”
Hunter rubbed at the scarred skin of his arm, trying to maintain some shred of his composure. Glancing up from her scroll, Willow smiled though there was still a thread of worry in her expression. She patted the spot on the bench next to her and Hunter sat, O’Bailey crawling onto his lap. He scratched at the palisman’s ear, letting out a sigh.
“How’re you feeling?” Willow asked after a moment, and Hunter glanced toward her. The golden hues of the setting sun glowed behind her, which only worked to fluster him even more.
“Sore,” he answered feebly, hand moving to brush against his chest. The pain was almost entirely gone thanks to Viney—Hunter had a feeling whatever ache he felt was due to his bruised ego more than anything. “I actually, uh, wanted to talk to you about something else, though.”
Willow leaned toward him, eyebrows drawing together. “Is everything okay?”
“Y-Yeah! Everything’s fine,” he said before taking a deep breath. “I know I’ve been a little… off today, and I don’t want to keep this from you—Oh, Titan, I didn’t think it would be this awkward,” he muttered under his breath, dropping his head.
“Hey, if you don’t want to talk about it right now, it’s no big—”
“No! No, I do. I do, it’s just—” Hunter straightened his spine once more and turned to face Willow, steeling himself. He’s done much scarier things than this, he can make it through a conversation with one of his friends, no matter how intimidating it was.
And so he launched into a recount of the day’s events, making sure to leave out all the most embarrassing parts (like how he’d been thinking about her when he crashed into the goalpost, and basically all of Gus’s teasing). Willow watched him with a small smile on her face as he told his story, her cheeks flushed a pale pink.
“I know it’s silly to get worked up over,” Hunter said finally, scratching at the scar on his cheek. “And I completely understand if you just want to forget all about this and just stay friends—I just wanted to make sure you had a choice. I know what it’s like to not, so…”
Willow’s hand on his shoulder cut him off, and he took in her positively giddy appearance—between her big, goofy grin, the small daisies that had sprouted in her hair, and the brilliant pink flush that colored her face, Hunter froze.
That… wasn’t the reaction he was expecting.
She grabbed ahold of his hand, reminiscent of the way she had when they’d first met, and held his gaze. “I like you, Hunter.”
“I—what?” he squeaked, feeling his own face burn, his ears flattening against his head slightly.
“I like you,” she repeated. “In the more-than-friends way.”
Hunter felt ridiculous, his mouth opening and closing but no words coming out. His cheeks felt like they were on fire, and all he could do was stare at Willow.
Willow, who had just told him she liked him.
Was he dreaming?
Willow let out a sigh, her hand moving to rest against his cheek. Hunter watched with wide eyes as she leaned in. Her thumb brushed lightly against the raised skin, and Hunter could feel his heart rate skyrocket.
“Can I?”
Hunter could only nod, his eyes fluttering closed as Willow pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. His heart pounded, and Hunter felt himself lean in ever so slightly. Her hand trailed down to rest on his jaw for a moment before she pulled away, a silly grin on her face.
“You think you got it now?” Willow asked, a teasing lilt to her voice.
“I—uh, yeah. Message received,” Hunter fumbled over his words, his brain fuzzy as he fought to get his breathing back under control. “Loud and clear.”
“Good,” she said, giggling. “Glad to hear it. Mind walking me home? It’s getting kinda late, and…”
“Yeah! Of course, let me just—get my stuff.”
Hunter’s eyes caught on the tangled thread of gold as Willow took his hand in hers, and warmth radiated from his chest, reaching through every inch of his body.