Chapter 165. Gruer’s Theory
Maisie
I started to slip into the seat beside them when Juliette caught my wrist, halting me. I glanced at where she held me firmly. Her frown at the three Lycans had only worsened. "Why don’t you take my seat, May?"
Jenny and Regina fell silent at the coldness in her tone.
But it wasn’t directed at me.
"Juliette, is something wrong?"
She blinked, and that cloud fell from her face. She glanced down at where she held me and let me go abruptly. "I’m sorry. I just..."
Her cheeks turned red and she averted her gaze. "My brother and his converged aren’t the only ones who get possessive over you, you know. You are like my sister and I have grown rather fond of you. And though we do not move in packs, we are family. And when it feels like someone is trying to steal you away, it doesn’t just affect them," she muttered.
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It was sweet. "Juliette," I said softly, squeezing her hands gently. "No one is taking me away."
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Her gaze floated behind me at the Lycans whose gazes were still burning into my spine. "I don’t trust them."
I didn’t either, but we were interrupted when Mrs. Belarus walked into the classroom. "Alright everyone. Settle down." She clapped cheerfully as she settled in front of the board, watching us scramble for our seats.
I took Juliette’s seat, letting her settle in mine between Jenny and Regina, and she beamed at me for the gesture. Cole and Lana strolled in, disregarding Mrs. Belarus as they went for their seats, and I stiffened when I noticed Lana’s long stare as they walked past me.
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And then... she broke away from Cole and dropped something on my desk and smiled. My skin crawled because well... she was smiling sweetly at me and Lana never smiled sweetly at me unless she had something evil planned.
"I never got the chance to congratulate you on your wedding," she said. "I’m really happy for you. And I hope you could attend mine, too." My hackles rose when she gripped my fingers tightly. "I know we haven’t been on the best of terms... I know I have hurt you... but I would appreciate it if you gave me a chance to make it up to you. I miss... our relationship."
Uh... what was happening?
"Hurry up, Braxton," Mrs. Belarus said. "We don’t have all morning. And I’m sure you all don’t want to be late for your Combat classes with Instructor Warren."
Everyone grumbled and Lana squeezed my hand again before walking away.
"Girl, throw that shit in the thrash," Regina muttered, flipping her notes open.
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But Mrs. Belarus said, "Put your phones away. And take out a sheet of paper."
Collective groans echoed throughout the classroom and Mrs. Belarus clapped again. "You have less than a minute. And I’ll have you know this test contributes significantly to your results this term. And you couldn’t cheat on this, even if you tried."
More grumbles. From the numerous classes I’d missed since the term began, it was safe to say I was grumbling, too. I didn’t remember the last time I picked up a book. I silently cursed my mates for this. I used to be such a serious student.
After we’d all settled in and had our sheets in front of us, Mrs. Belarus said, "Several years ago, before the ban on rejections was placed, a scientist from this very academy conducted a bond-dissolution experiment. He was Phillip Gruer, a half-breed. Most of his work was struck out after concerns were raised that his research was heavily based off of his personal vendetta to separate a woman he was in love with from her mate and several attempts to murder said mate in the process."
Mrs. Belarus walked around in a circle. "But Gruer’s research sparked the most controversial question in our history that still hasn’t been answered till date. Is the mate bond inherently consensual, or does instinct compromise free will?"
My brows arched at the question and soft murmurs of interest steered all around me as everyone appeared thoughtful.
"Mr. Gruer conducted a research with statistical proof, asking several mated pairs one question: If the bond disappeared tomorrow, would you still stay?" Mrs. Belarus smiled. "Can anyone tell me what the common answer was?"
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Without raising his hand, Cole Hayes drawled, "It depends on if they’re happy with their bond, I guess."
Mrs. Belarus narrowed her eyes at Cole. "Interesting manners, Hayes, but you are not wrong. You aren’t right, either." She paced in front of the class again. "You see, the goal of Gruer’s research was to prove that the Moon Goddess was a tyrant and had no business running a match-making industry."
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Laughter rippled across the classroom at that.
"The common answer was yes. 96.8%, if I am to be exact," she said. "And this bothered Gruer, as it contrasted with his hopes. Had the answer been no, Gruer would have argued that no one really wanted who they got stuck with. But with the answer being yes, Gruer changed his approach, and posed a different question to the Council of Wolves."
Her gaze swept over the room through those lenses. "If the bond has already altered the way you think, feel and perceive your mate, are you still capable of answering that question objectively?"
She paused. "Did you choose your mate because they were always the person you would have loved or had the bond reshaped you so completely, you will never know if it was truly your choice? And lastly, Is the formed emotion called ’Love’ an evidence of free will or merely evidence that the Moon Goddess’s supposedly cruel experiment was successful?"
My heart was racing in my chest and my fingers tightened around my pen as I stared at the blank sheet.
Love?
The mere thought of the word sent my heart into an overdrive. Was I compromised? Altered? If the bond didn’t exist, would I have wanted them? Was my inability to stay away from them because of this bond, or was it that warm, fuzzy, uncomfortable feeling that had been sitting in my chest for Goddess knew how long?"
Love? What was love?
The classroom had fallen completely silent, and I heard Claire mutter, "Shouldn’t this be a final year question? All this thinking is hurting my brain."
For the first time, I agreed with Claire.
Mrs. Belarus glanced down at her watch. "You have exactly forty-five minutes to build a fitting argument to counter both of Philip Gruer’s theories. Or one to accept his theories. You are allowed to use quotes from our previous lessons to prove this. There is no right or wrong answer. This will be scored merely on your ability to think." She clapped again in that eccentric manner of hers. "Begin."