Chapter 1
The freezing air nipped at my bare face, the darkness seem eerie tonight – no, the forest. Either way, the forest wasn't like it always was when pops was with me during the light hours. I was small for my age, and being a smart seven year old who looked four didn't seem so smart right now. I had snuck out so I could see the forest covered in snow – without parents coming or knowing – and I was very talented with sneaking around. I walked slightly faster to get to the clearing I saw up ahead, not out of fear, but out of pure excitement.
I ran and ran around the clearing out of wholesome joy until my tiny heart was thumping out of my chest. I fell gently to the snow covered ground and laughed making snow angels. I always wonder if angels were real. Pops said it would depend on whether you believe in them or not. But then again he says a lot of things.
The snow was like a blanket of white covers all around me. It sparkled when I would move – the beautiful winter land seemed innocent. I laughed out of pure giddiness. I rolled in the powder, feeling the damp chilly feathery whiteness creep into my clothes. After a while it hurt. The cold hurt, the winter hurt, everything hurt.
Anything I touched felt as if thousands of needles would shoot up every inch of my tiny body. Shaking from the cold, I glanced around the clearing. Nothing. I'm completely alone here. I'm not very smart, I thought to myself. Not smart at all. I listened for anyone – anything – around me.
I heard someone creeping around on the edge of the clearing, just out of sight. The steps sounded human – no, animal. There are four steps, it more like pads are crunching the snow and not shoes or boots or whatnot. If it's not human, than it must be a wild animal, I thought with fear coursing through me.
A wild animal may kill me, that or I'm going to freeze to death. I huddled in the dead center of the clearing, hoping that the animal would make it quick and painless. I burst out sobbing when I heard a deadly crack and a faint silvery light. Then a howl burst out of nowhere. Wolf, I'm going to get killed by a wolf. This is going to be painful.
I sobbed louder to the point I couldn't hear the steps anymore. I looked up – trying to see through my blurry vision I scanned the tree line. Nothing is there, except when I turn back to face the trees in front of me. I gather my breath for a scream but nothing comes out when I try to scream. The man was old – wrinkles down to the hunched over himself – and he was staring at me.
His salt and pepper hair was wispy and thin, very, very thin. His eyes were a honey color and an intense evil look were set deep in them – I would never forget how demon he looks. He held out his right hand to me and gestured for me to follow him. I shake my head knowing that it was a mistake. The man narrowed his eyes at me, and walked – glided – toward me. He was right before me at eye level. I nearly drowned in his scent – a delightful musky scent of the forest. I always loved the scent of the forest. It was heavenly, it was true nature. His evil honey eyes burned into my innocent gray eyes. He held out his hand once more and this time – without hesitation – I took his hand and stood. He smiled lightly and whispered that the pain would be gone soon. His voice was soft but brittle. It made him seem less evil, or menacing.
As he led me toward a small cottage up ahead, I saw a few wolves looking up at me. Then without hesitation most of them did a wolf like bow others bent their head. It terrified me – yet, it made me feel like royalty. A light gray wolf that was very, very close to the path looked at me in sympathy. I could see in its moist green eyes that she was sad and lonely and that she didn't want me to go inside the cottage.
The light gray wolf walked in front of us with her head bent. She snarled a few times and the man beside me would glare at the wolf. The wolf was thinner and smaller than quite a few of the other wolves, but some wolves were thinner and smaller just like the wolf. I took a wild guess and figured that the thin, small wolves were females. The man turned to me when we stepped inside the cottage, the wolf was guarding the door outside, I suppose.
I looked up at the man and that made him smile lightly, but it was an evil smile.
"My dear, please sit wherever. This won't take long. All you need is a warm drink and then you'll be ready for the meal." He growled pleasurably.
I sat on a soft white couch nearby. The man had left the room. The wolf outside was whining, and every once and a while she would glance through the screen door. I sent her confused looks, but it seemed to just crush her. By the fourth time she looked up, I was huddled up by the door with my head on my knees and my arms wrapped around my knees.
The wolf whined lightly, then a deadly crack came and a faint silvery light from outside. I didn't bother to look – I was too scared to move. I was wishing for papa to find me, to come with a gun and aim it at the old man. To tell the old man to never touch me again, and for me to go home and sit in front of the fireplace. I would defrost and run to give a bear hug to mama and papa.
The screen door opened slightly, and I was leaning against it so it came open all the way. I fell out onto the porch with a thud that sent more needles through my body. Tears slipping down my cheeks, I looked up at the person who opened the door. A woman with moist green eyes and very light blonde hair was staring down at me. She put her index finger on her lips and reached out to me.
She had set me on my feet when we heard footsteps coming from inside. The woman looked at me and grabbed my wrist gently and somehow I had made it to her back. It reminded me of the piggy back rides that papa used to give me. I tried to remember if I saw a woman on the way here. I only saw the evil looking old man, no other humans.
But something about those moist greens eyes kept making me think she was that wolf outside. I burrowed my head between her shoulder blades. I was tired, and a tired seven year old without sleep wasn't a very good combination. She seemed to be walking very smoothly through the forest, but was that even possible? I mean, I may be seven but not even I could walk straight in the house much less in the forest.
There's so many fallen trees and mud, the sticky kind. I looked up, and gasped with shock and horror. I threw my head back between her shoulder blades hoping this was a dream. She was running, not walking, running. A smooth, clean run and she was fast.
I'm seven, I have a wide imagination, I thought to myself soothingly. I'll wake up soon, just wait you'll wake soon. But I didn't wake up – I was unable to change anything. I began to sob again, I'm not dreaming and these people they're… a fairy tale creature. The fairytale creature, a werewolf.
Werewolves, that's what those wolves were out by the path. That's what that old man was, and he was going to make me his dinner. The woman stops dead in her tracks, I could feel her muscles flex. It felt odd on her back, not just because I had a feeling she was a werewolf but more of the fact that I felt I was getting a little heavy.
"You can come down now, little one." The woman said gently. Her voice was silky and soft – no trace of evil in her. I slide down off her back and scramble to a log, only inches from her. Rocking on my feet and staring at nothing, the woman comes to kneel beside me.
I peek over at her – her face full of loneliness and grief. She must not want me to become dinner, or she wanted me for herself. "Young one, do you know what he was going to do to you?" She sounded concern. I look at her intently.
"He was going to make me dinner." I said quietly, but horrified. The woman gave me a tight nod and looked away.
"Sophie, I cannot protect you anymore. I should tell you who and what you are." The woman is looking out in the distance not really looking at something pacific. I keep a weary glance on the woman – how did this woman know my name? What is she talking about?
"I just want to go home!" I whine. "I don't want to be here, and I don't want to be a monster!" The last word made the woman flinch, but the odd part is that it made me cringe from the word.
"You look so much like your father." Tears were welling up in her eyes. She seemed so familiar to me. But as soon as I looked into the woman's eyes, I knew her.
"Mom…" I whispered and hugged her tightly. I couldn't bring up my father's face, but I had so many images of her face. Her name was Kiki. She looked like an angel, she always held me and she put up a huge fight with her parents when they told her they needed her to give me up.
"I'm so sorry, Sophie! But, promise me this. You can't ever tell anyone about your real family or your true nature. You're a hybrid and other night creatures will try to take advantage of you. You mustn't be in the woods alone. Sophie, I'm going to convince your adopted human family to move. To move far away from here, never forget who you really are, my daughter." Kiki's breathing was ragged and her eyes were red from crying. I understood her – I could tell it broke her heart to let me go.
I breathed a promise, and at that I was on the porch of papa's and mama's house. They defrosted me, and told me the big news about moving from our Wyoming cabin to a Tennessee home in the city. I felt distant from them, knowing I can't be myself around them anymore. I can't trust anyone, like Kiki said. Her dad had made her give me up, and that betrayed her.
I can't trust anyone, except Kiki. And Kiki is no longer going to be with me. I felt heart ache for a while, but the experience in the woods made a huge impact on me.
I wasn't Sophie the small, clever, young looking seven year old. I was now Sophie the fun sized, clever, young looking seventeen year old. Tears slipped down my cheeks, just remembering my past years of pushing everyone away. I kept a barrier around me, not telling what was really on my mind. Kiki had told me not to let anyone know about my true nature.
I'd get grounded by my human parents when I snuck out to go to secret werepeople meetings. Of course, the werepeople didn't know I was watching. I couldn't trust an entire pack of werepeople. It's nothing really important to me though, I need to find a Vampire Clan – and fast.
My body and senses were changing to fit vampire and wereperson abilities and whatnot. I needed help, but I didn't want it. My human family doesn't really notice anything about me anymore – they think its hormones and puberty. Boy, are they off – vampires don't get hormones or puberty, and werepeople get those things in a different ways than humans.
I stare at the ceiling for God knows how long before my alarm clock goes off. I turn the clock off and slip out of my bed. Stretching, I glide to my closet. Pulling out the clothes I usually sneak out with, I hear someone walking down the hallway. I sniff quietly for the scent – it's not human – and I listen for the way the footsteps move – predator, and it's older than I.
Cursing silently, I open my door a crack. The footsteps are down stairs now – they don't seem to know I'm awake. I think it's because of me having the human scent on me. I gently step out of my room, but not gentle enough. The footsteps stopped.
I stand there with my eyes closed, concentrating on the Night creature below. The footsteps begin, while I ride the railing down the stairs. At the end of the railing, I meet the Night creature. Face-to-face to a Night creature...
