The sunlight streaming through her window woke her to a new day just as the alarm went off. Pushing aside the duvet, Aurora's dark brown hair cascaded down to her waist in loose curls as she sat up in her bed. Sapphire eyes scanned the room to find a couple of boxes piled up from her recent move. Swinging her body around her feet met the cold wooden floor; she spotted her uniform for her first day at her new school hanging on the back of her computer chair. Dread settled in her stomach like a lead balloon. She slowly made her way to the bathroom wondering what the school would be like.
She barley recognised herself in her new uniform, she was wearing a light blue blazer, a white blouse with red bow and a black pleated skirt. Aurora couldn't believe how much her life had changed in the last three months. She missed friends and family but maybe she would find something better here in Odaiba, Japan. You never know what's around the corner or at least that's what Nan used to say.
She slowly padded her way into the kitchen smelling the breakfast and coffee on the table. Dannielle had left for her while she finished typing something up on the computer. Maybe it was to email back her aunt who was pissed at the sudden move especially when they couldn't give a good reason for it. Dannielle smiled at her from the sofa probably trying to make her feel at ease about today. It wasn't working.
Aurora threw most of her breakfast away, she couldn't stomach it. She grabbed her bag off the chair before disappearing out the door with a quick goodbye over her shoulder. She strolled towards the lift, taking in the scent of cherry blossoms and the sounds of car engines as people made their way to work.
Tapping her foot anxiously waiting for the lift to arrive, she couldn't take it any longer. She grabbed the railing and launched herself over it. The wind pulled at her hair and clothes as fell further towards the ground, landing in a graceful crouch as her legs took the full force of the impact when she collided with the concrete. She stood up pushed her hair out of her face and carried on walking like nothing had happened.
After twenty minutes of walking she finally made it to school, she slowly followed the signs to the school reception, weaving her way through other students, she tried to ignore the whispers and stares. She knocked on the door before entering and walked over to the desk. The receptionist looked up and smiled at her.
"Good morning, how can I help you?" The lady spoke in Japanese her voice very high pitched.
"Hi, I'm a new student, my name is Aurora Winter. I came to get my class schedule." She responded in the same language forever grateful to her child hood friend Harriet for teaching it to her.
"Oh, yes, Aurora, the Head teacher was telling me this morning that we had a new student coming to us from the UK. I'll just be a moment." She pulled out some papers and handed them over to her. "This is your schedule and a map of the school in case you get lost," She quickly gave her directions to the home class, "The teacher will assign somebody to help you find your way around." The receptionist quickly went through everything else she needed to know, she tried to listen but her ears were picking up on the students talking about the foreign girl, it was making her more nervous.
Moving and trying to read the map she was given probably wasn't the best idea but she couldn't stand around, she would be late and on her very first day too. The five minute warning bell had gone off, she had to hurry up and get to class. Aurora was so busy looking at the map that she didn't notice the person walking towards her.
The person caught her shoulder as she spun round to apologise, she caught sight of the teenager in front of her. He was wearing a pair of goggles around his neck. He was tall and very handsome with dark chocolate coloured eyes and wild spikey hair standing a good several inches off his head.
His heart was beating usually fast for any human. She involuntary breathed through her nose catching his scent, he smelled like the rich earth and rain water. His muscles tensed for a moment as he stared at in what Aurora could only describe as disbelief.
The wolf inside her snarled, hackles raised. Aurora could feel her eyes glow to a luminous electric blue, his eyes changed colour as well. There was something different about this male wolf but she couldn't pin point why, then the late bell rang.
He disappeared, running down the hallway. "Shit," Aurora swore. There were wolves in the school and not only that, she had exposed herself as well. "Fuck," she snapped running down the corridor after him only to find herself at her classroom.
As she slid open the class door the teacher, a man in his mid-thirties turned to her. "I'm so sorry for being late, I got lost." Feeling her cheeks turn red under the gaze of the class. The man sighed irritated with her tardiness. "Class this is our new student," he turned to Aurora. "Why don't you introduce yourself?" She focused her attention on the class and almost choked at seeing the teenager from the hallway sat at the back of the class.
The guy hadn't being paying attention until he noticed her stare. He abruptly sat up in his chair leaning forward like suddenly there was something very interesting going on and he didn't want to miss anything. The only spare seat in the entire class was next to him.
"My name is Aurora Winter, my family just moved here from Britain."
"Go and take your seat next to Tai." The teacher instructed as he continued calling names from the register. Aurora slowly made her down to the back of the class and slid into her seat next to the boy. She could feel his stare sliding up and down her body analysing her, it was making her more nervous.
She had met other werewolf's so why did her instinct tell her to be submissive to him. Aurora knew why he was interested in her while the wolf gene passed down from father to son normally though it can skip a generation there had never been a female wolf till she shifted for the first time.
The bell rang it was time for classes one by the students left the class room. Aurora picked up her bag and walked to the front of the class begging that the teacher didn't leave her in Tai's care, she couldn't refuse if he did.
"Azami," The teacher called, a short girl with glasses stepped forward. "Would you please show Aurora around school this week just till she gets settled in?"
"Yes of course, sir." Azami chirped. "Follow me, Aurora." She trailed after her but she could still feel somebody's gaze burning into the back of her head. Tai's stare was fixated on her. He was standing next to a tall pretty boy and a leaner boy with a laptop in his hands. The blonde scrutinised her with a blank face while the other seemed to analyse her every move. Who ever said high school was supposed to be easy?
When she meet Tai's gaze his eyes narrowed then glowed for a second before returning to normal. She walked a bit faster to keep up with Azami or at least that's what she told herself it had nothing to do with the male wolves watching her with undisguised interest.
The day quickly passed except for the stares there were at least three wolves in the school, so much for keeping a low profile. Her last class of the day was P.E which worried her; she didn't want anyone to see them. Aurora would have changed in the shower stall if they had been any available. Knowing she had no choice she started to get changed with her back facing the wall she had just taken off school blouse when she heard a sharp intake of breath.
"Aurora, how did you get those?" Azami shouted alerting the entire changing room causing them to all gawk at her. Aurora tilted her head to look in the mirror and saw the claws marks on her back running from her left shoulder almost to her right hip; it was a slow healing process. A girl with short red hair and a slender frame nudged her friend, she had a curvy figure that most girls would kill for and a pretty face to match, neither where all that fazed by what they saw they just gave each other a sideways glance. "I got attacked by a dog awhile back." Aurora said not taking her eyes off the girls.
Azami and the rest of the class seemed to accept the lie but those two girls didn't, the pretty one snorted in scepticism. "I bet that really hurt," Azami said looking unsure of what to say. Aurora's own scream echoed in her head as she allowed herself to remember some of the pain she felt that night. "Yeah, it did but not now."
P.E passed soon enough, Aurora got changed picked up her bag and started heading home after waving goodbye to Azami, she said she would have walked with Aurora but lived in the opposite direction. Aurora noticed the forest she had passed by that morning and decided since it was still early to have a look around.
She found herself at a clearing, deciding to sit down under a cherry blossom tree; this was the first time she'd had to herself since being forced to leave London after the attack. It's not surprising her mother wasn't willing to leave her alone ever since that night, a twinge of pain shot up her spine.
If it hadn't been for Harriet's mother Zoe, who was a doctor they never would have gotten the wolf's bane out her system, it would have killed her if the blood loss didn't. Aurora was very lucky to be alive.
Just as she stood up the wind shifted, the smell of another wolf permeated the air. A snarl broke the silence. The black wolf so much larger than herself, stalked towards her. Shifting wasn't an option in her current state as she would only reopen her wounds not that she could beat him in a fight. His size alone would crush her. She took a cautious step back the wolf snarled baring his sharp canines at her. Aurora kept her eyes on him if she ran the wolf wouldn't be able to resist going after her but she had out run other wolves before even in human form. She would just have to take that chance.
She spun on her heel and ran as fast she could towards the exit weaving her way through the undergrowth of the forest. She could hear the vicious growls of the wolf behind her slowly gaining. Aurora pressed herself to run faster knowing the exit would appear soon, once she out of the forest she would be safe. No wolf would risk exposure, it was there law.
She could see the light shining through the trees; she was almost there when she felt pain rip through her back as her wounds reopened. The pain that rocked her nerves was enough for her to lose speed. Making it effortless for the wolf to grab the back of her blazer and throw her straight into a tree.
The bark shattered on impact as she crashed to the ground, blood poured down her face from her hairline. She tried to blink the blood out of her eyes as she attempted to stand to her feet using the tree as support.
Aurora could smell the glee coming off him as he watched her struggle. Sick bastard, he got off on hurting her. A snarl rumbled in her chest as the wolf in front of her faded to a black blur as her vision faded. The wolf crouched down ready to lunge at her when another wolf sent him flying across the forest floor followed by two more. The three of them stood protectively in front of her. They had put themselves between her and the black wolf.
The black wolf wasn't deterred as saliva dripped from his canines he flew towards the other wolves. Aurora lost her grip on the tree as the adrenaline faded from her body as the wolves disappeared into the forest. Instead of hitting the ground she was pressed against a warm body they smelled faintly like rich earth and rain water.
"Shit, we got here too late," male voice exclaimed anger made his grip on her tighten slightly. "I'm sorry Aurora." That was the last thing she remembered before darkness claimed her.
When she finally came to the first thing she noticed was the slight pain in her skull and the bright light. It took a second for her eyes to adjust. Aurora heard movement before the mattress dipped from someone's weight. She tried again to open her eyes and spotted somebody she didn't know.
Her instincts took over, snarling she sat up in the bed. Tai was sat on the bed looking at her but he hadn't moved. Aurora's fangs retracted and her eyes returned to normal before embarrassment and shame set in at having growled at Tai like that, he had saved her life.
"I'm so sorry. I didn't-"she said nervously.
"It's okay."
"Thank you for saving me."
"No problem." When he smiled at her Aurora flushed.
Clearing her throat she stood up from the bed. "It's getting late I should be going home before Mum starts worrying where I am." Before Aurora could move Tai was stood in front of her blocking the exit. She had to tilt her head back slightly to look him in the eye.
"Before you go anywhere there's something I want to talk to you about. Sora and Mimi told me you had claw marks on your back." The penny dropped immediately the girls from the locker room; they must be friends of his. "They should have healed by now."
"The wolf that attacked me, used a pair of metal claws laced with wolf's bane," The muscles in his jaw tightened. "My dad's old friend is a cop, he interrupted him, not that it mattered he assumed I was going to die anyway."
"Why would he attack you if you were part of his pack?" His face twisted with anger as a growl rumble in her chest making the wolf inside her whimper.
"That's just it I wasn't." She tried to walk pass him but he wouldn't allow it by stepping in front of her again.
"I'll take you home."
"Its fine I can walk by myself, I think I've caused enough trouble."
"You can't walk home by yourself Aurora, I've already carried you here from the forest, I doubt walking to your's is going to hurt me, so where do you live?" She barely got a chance to look round Tai's flat before she was outside. It took at minute to get her bearings before realised that Tai was her neighbour and that she had lived only a few doors down from him this whole time.
"There's not much point in you walking me home since I'm practically there already?" His handsome features crumpled into confusion before she explained to him.
"You're the new family that moved into the building." He yelled, which made her laugh but her head throb in response. Tai walked her back to her door in comfortable silence.
"Thanks Tai, goodnight." A smile tugged at her lips.
"See you tomorrow Aurora." She shut the door just as Dannielle came in from bedroom.
"What the hell happened to you?" she shouted before rushing over to Aurora, tilting her chin back to better examine her head.
"Can I fill you in after I have a shower, please Mum?" Dannielle sighed pushing Aurora's hair out of her face.
"Of course," Forty minutes later Aurora was clean and sitting at the kitchen island in her pyjamas with a full stomach.
"That's everything Tai walked me back to the door and I said goodnight." Dannielle sat on other side of the table stress and worry leaking into her natural scent, it was so thick Aurora could almost taste it.
"We moved here to get away from all this but I suppose it was too much to ask that you would go unnoticed." Aurora tried to supress her yawn but it wasn't working. "Get some sleep Aurora." Dannielle leaned over pressing a kiss against her daughter's hair. Aurora got up from the table and walked to her bedroom, "Love ya Mum." She called as she closed the door.