CHAPTER 26

Tattoos were the topic of conversation at dinner on Friday.

We were heading out after to their favourite tattoo parlour in the city. Tonight, it was my turn to join the inked-up club. I was well and truly assimilating into their culture.

Apparently, in celebration of this being my first one, they were showing their support by getting tattooed with me.

It was no secret the guys had their fair share of tattoos but the girls were no strangers to ink either. In fact, most of the warriors had some sort of marking. It was basically a rite of passage at the Knights.

Kitana had an array of dainty fineline pieces adorning her body but mostly on her back, including but not limited to, a crescent moon, three lines running down the bottom half of her spine, a cluster of cherry blossoms and this super cool linework dragon that ran along the side. She also had a tiny heart on her hip, ‘karma' on her wrist and I was lucky enough to be shown the cheeky little cherry tattoo she had on her inner pelvic hip. Billie's were more detailed than Kit's but she only had a few. Her most simple tattoo was a tiny crescent moon behind her ear, similar to her friend's, but the other half of the moon was outlined with tiny dots and a centred star broke the dotted semicircle. But as for the more intricate designs, she had this incredible shaded flower vine trailing down her back and a beautiful leaf wreath wrapped around her ankle.

They all took turns telling me about their first experiences as we ate in the Diner.

"Does it hurt?" I asked. I was so ready to get tattooed, I had seen and admired Xari's ones my whole life. She had a beautifully curated sleeve that I would spend hours staring at as a kid. It was only a matter of time before I did it, and given this new version of me that had been reborn, the timing finally felt right. I was where I needed to be and becoming the woman I wanted to be. But this woman still didn't love needles.

My mind drifted to the beautiful tribal eagle my mum had on her upper back. All the pieces were starting to fit together now and I could imagine my mother being in the same position as me all those years ago, before she met dad.

Carter replied first. "Not at all."

"Mmm-hmm." I shook my head and turned to Billie. "I need a more reliable source."

"Hey!" Carter huffed.

"You should take that as a compliant Car, that just means you lot are a lot stronger than normal people, let alone me. I doubt many things hurt you," I explained with a shrug.

"They don't," Griffin added with a proud smile before he took a sip of his cola.

Billie laughed softly. "It's a bit of an odd one to describe. It's definitely uncomfortable and there can be a slight sting in some places but it's more like a numb scratch. You'll be so fine after all you've put up with in here."

I smiled at her. I could already tell she was always the empathetic and reliable one. She was level headed and mature, the mother of the group. Kitana was the life of the party. Bubbly and a little curious but also a spitfire who'd protect her friends at all costs. Carter was the one you'd go to for a good time. He pushed you to be spontaneous, to live in the moment, and gelled everyone together with his carefree nature. But he was also that friend that would always be your number one supporter. Griffin was the hardest to read. He had a serious nature to him, a little more reserved and aloof but a protector—a leader. Contrary to that, he was sarcastic, self-assured and seductive. Yet he'd also proved to be caring and someone I could lean on. He was confusing and contradictory. I was still figuring him out.

"You've got this babe and we'll be there to hold your hand," Kit added excitedly.

???

Later that night we stood in the dark, moody interior of the tattoo parlour. The studio sat upstairs on a typical New York street, with large windows that looked out to the lights of the city. The room was dimly lit with pink neon vertical lights casting a diffused glow over the beds that lined the black walls. Each station had its own lamp directing light onto the bed for the artists to see what they were doing. The constant buzzing of the tattoo guns echoed in the space. It had a similar vibe to the compound and I could see why my friends were drawn here.

We were met by a stunning redhead who greeted everyone with hugs, Griffin being last but definitely not least as she held onto him just that little bit longer. That seemed to be the case with most of the girls I'd seen him interact with.

Kit lent in as she whispered to me, "She's slept with Carter but has always held out for Griff. Surprise, surprise. But … she's great and we love her. I wouldn't trust anyone else to repeatedly stab me with a tiny needle." She turned away and hopped up on the nearest bed, her legs swinging underneath her as she grabbed a lollipop from the bench and popped it into her mouth without a care in the world.

"This is Venus," Griff casually stated when the girl finally let go of him, nodding towards me. I noticed his hand still rested flirtatiously on the small of her back as he guided her in my direction. "The newest addition to our little group." He smirked at me. I wondered if she knew about the Knights and the academy.

She came in for a hug which I cautiously returned. "Hey Venus. Lucky girl! Something tells me these lot don't just let anyone in. You must be special." She smiled warmly at me as she pulled away. She was stunning and I attempted not to feel discouraged by her beauty or the connection she seemed to have with Griff. Her tall frame was clothed in leather pants and a super cropped black long sleeve top. Her fiery red hair, contrasting with all the black she wore, sprawled down to her waist. She had stunning green eyes that were rimmed with dark liner. I felt intimidated by her, yet wanted to be her, all at the same time. But I tried not to let any ill will take over as she seemed like a genuinely nice person.

"Oh, I'm definitely lucky to have found them," I replied honestly. "It's lovely to meet you, ah–"

"Ivy," she filled in the blanks.

"Ivy," I repeated with a smile. "Gorgeous name."

"So is Venus!" She added cheerfully. Griffin aside, I think I was going to like this girl.

While Griff remained beside us throughout the interaction, watching us curiously, Billie and Carter made their way to what I assumed was their usual spot where Kit still sat, going through pages and pages of a large art portfolio.

"We all have to get something to honour our newest member," Carter suggested as he peaked over Kit's shoulder at the book. But it was Griffin who eventually picked out the design: a little planet. Not of Venus of course. Firstly, because it was a boring planet for a tattoo and secondly because this was Griffin we were talking about, and he wouldn't give me the satisfaction.

Instead, he picked a tiny Saturn, which was the prettiest looking planet by far. So I didn't fight him on it.

They were all going to get this tattooed on their bodies forever with me—for me. I was beyond blessed to have found friends like this. People that I could truly be myself around, flaws and all. People who would love and support me, no matter what. People that were proud to have me in their lives.

I went first so I didn't chicken out, with Kit holding my spare hand and Carter reassuringly squeezing my knee. Billie and Griff knew I was in safe hands as they sat around us, and Ivy was extremely comforting.

It was done before I knew it, and nowhere near as painful as I imagined.

In a moment of bravery, I also decided to get two more tattoos once everyone else had theirs done: a trio of stars on my left inner wrist to represent mum, Celeste and Xari; and a shaded crescent moon on my shoulder. The Saturn was on the outer side of my opposite wrist.

Throughout the process, Ivy laughed and chatted to us about the city and some of her craziest experiences here. She had lived in Manhattan her whole life, grown up in the Upper East Side, until relocating to SoHo a few years back.

We bonded over our love for art and our struggle to find a sense of direction and purpose in life. She had studied to become a nurse, her family pushing her down the path of University and working an acceptable job, but after working as one for only a single rotation, she quit and pursued her passion for art with tattooing instead, opening up this place with a friend and risking the wrath of her family. She had a younger sister who was studying to become a doctor; whom she didn't see very often.

Looking at her now, all clad in leather with a mismatched array of beautiful sticker tattoos along her arms, I couldn't picture her as anything else. I admired her. Admired her courage to leave what she knew and start fresh alone. We were more alike than I would have ever imagined.

I loved that my tattoos were done by someone like her. The ardour she had for the artform was clear in each piece she worked on and I loved each artfully drawn design that now adorned my body. They felt like parts of me that had always been there, now materialised into something tangible. I was going to get addicted to this, I could already tell.

When we were done and said our goodbyes to Ivy, we caught the subway towards Central Park and strolled through the city, stopping to get hot chocolates on the way. Although the days were slightly warming up, the nights were still quite chilly.

I walked side by side with Griffin. Upon entering the gates of the park, the liquidy silver shade in his eyes took over as he scanned our surroundings. His usual stormy brown-grey was nowhere to be seen.

I faced him, hot chocolate cupped in my hands to keep me warm. "Your eyes changing colour, is that part of the hunter skills?" I asked cautiously. I had always wondered how it was possible that his eyes did that, wondering if I was just imagining it. But after hearing that we had special powers and skills, it made sense that it could be part of it.

He looked down at me and within seconds the greyish brown had returned. "It is."

I raised my brow to coax him to continue. The others had walked a bit ahead now so it was just us two, our pace slowing dramatically.

"The Sight is something that only the Gray bloodline has." As his gravelly voice continued, I observed the park at night, taking in the view of the path and benches lit up by little lamp posts, and the glow of the moon that shone through the trees. In any other circumstance, I'd probably avoid being here in the dark, but with my present company we were as safe as we could be. "It was an extra gift that was given to us, being one of the founding families. It allows me access to wolf vision. It's weird, I mostly have control over using it but it does sometimes happen without my will. I guess it brings out a slight animalistic side in me. Gives me that natural instinct."

"Wait, so it basically gives you access to a wolf's eye?" The extent of these powers was blowing my mind.

"Yes."

"So you can see in the dark?"

"Yes. I can detect motion, make out darker and light tones, see further … spot prey. Wolf sight lacks in some aspects, so the ability to use both gives me the biggest advantage over our enemies."

"So there really is no sneaking up on you then," I laughed. Of course he would have perfect senses.

"Nope."

"Hmm, I'll see if I can change that," I challenged.

"Will you now?" He looked at me jovially, his eyes flashing silver to make a point.

"Yep."

"Goodluck with that, Supernova."

"Thank you," I replied smugly.

He gave me all his attention as he contemplated me, looking me up and down. My wooly jacket hung off my shoulders slightly so it didn't rub against the newly sensitive area. His eyes lingered on my tattooed shoulder.

"It suits you," he murmured.

I smiled at him, using the same smug tone as before. "Thank you."

"Do you know what else would suit you?" From the self-satisfied tone of his voice, I knew he was about to suggest something ridiculous and salacious.

"Enlighten me."

"A griffin." And right on cue, his too-pleased smirk crossed his face. That irresistible, gorgeous smirk that was becoming permanently etched in my mind.

I snorted. "You wish."

"For Griffin to be on Venus? You bet I do." He knew how to use that seductive tone a little too expertly, and it got me every time. The strength to resist his proposal was getting harder and harder to maintain.

"Wow. You really are something, you know that." I pushed away from him, walking backwards towards our friends who had now stopped to wait for us.

"Oh I know, Cosmo. I know." He winked at me.

"Come on hot stuff, let's get back to the others," I prompted. His lips twitched and his eyes shone with amusement at the possibility that underlined the term of endearment.

As he caught up to me, arms stuffed into his denim jacket, he grinned. "You really have become one of us."

A matching grin formed on my face. It was amazing and unbelievable, but I had become one of them—or at least I was well on my way.