"For God's sake, Victoria, it was just one kiss!" Aaron yelled to me as I walked down the street towards my house, which was about fifteen miles from his friend's house, where his birthday party was still going on, but I'd rather walk forever than stay here or drive with him. "You're not honestly about to walk home, are you?"

"Yep. I am."

"Oh, c'mon, Vicky! You're over-reacting!" I stopped and turned to him angrily before stalking to him.

"I'm over-reacting?"

"Yes. Per usual."

"Oh, I'm sorry if I got just a little pissed off because my supposedly loving and loyal boyfriend is going around kissing other girls in front of me. I'm terribly sorry, Aaron! Terribly sorry!" I turned back around and continued my stride.

"Okay, so I kissed a couple girls. So what! It's my birthday! I should be able to do what I want for just one day!" I smiled and turned back to him.

"You're right, Aaron. You should be able to do what you want. And you can actually do whatever you want all the time because you're now officially single." I took out the key to his house that he gave me a year ago and tossed it at him along with the ring and necklace he gave me. "Happy fucking birthday, asshole! May all your fucking wishes come true." I turned back around and walked away. It was exactly midnight. Awesome. It's dark and late and I have like 50 more blocks to walk before I'm even close to home. I rolled my eyes and pulled out my phone to see who I could call. A car slowed beside me and I sighed. Great. I'm about to get raped and killed by some lonely psycho then dumped in a gutter or a river somewhere near the border of Mexico.

"Stop contemplating how you're about to get killed, Vicky, and get in the car." I looked and saw my best friend Conner. I grinned and shook my head.

"You know me so well. And I'm fine. Go ahead back to the party." He rolled his eyes and shook his head with a sigh.

"Victoria, stop tryna be such a badass and get in the car before someone really does come and kill us both." I smiled and walked to the car. He stretched over and opened the door for me before helping me in. We rode in silence, listening to Lithium by Nirvana.

"So, how'd you know I was gone?"

"I saw you arguing inside, then I saw you leave out with your stuff. I waited a little while to see if you'd come back with him like you always do, but you didn't. So, I came after you because you're stupid enough to walk fifteen miles just to prove a point."

"I'm so done with him." He scoffed and I looked over at him. "What? I am done."

"That's pure bullshit, Victoria. You say that now, but tomorrow you'll be back together again, like always." I looked at him in shock.

"That's not true."

"Yes it is. You always do this and guys have fallen for it every single time. No doubt some poor soul at the party is plotting how he's gonna woo you this time around, praying to the God or Goddess above that you stay single long enough for him to make his move." I rolled my eyes and gave him a look.

"Yeah right. If that's so true, then how come you stopped falling for it?"

"Easy. I'm your smart best friend. I notice things. I see all you do. And I've drawn a pattern of everything." I rolled my eyes again and scoffed.

"I wouldn't say all of that─"

"Yeah, because you know I'm 100% right," he said with an edge. I looked at him, confused and a little on edge myself.

"What's with all the hostility?"

"You. All these games you play. You've broken a lot of hearts, Vicky, and you know what the worst part is? You don't care!"

"Well, if I'm that much of an evil person, why do you bother hanging with me all the time?"

"I don't know! Maybe I should stop!"

"Maybe you should! Pull over." He obeyed and I got out the car.

"What're you doing?"

"Going home. I'll walk. You seem like you have some major problems that you need to work out."

"Wait, Vicky, you can't walk home. What the hell are you doing? Get back in the car and stop being such a bitch." He grabbed my arm as I reached for my bag on the floor and I looked at him like he'd lost his mind.

"I don't know who the hell you think you're talking to, but I do know you need to let me go right now before I break your arm off." He released me, knowing I wasn't joking. My father, Czar, is a retired stone cold assassin. Now he owns a self-defense facility where he teaches fighting mechanisms and has his own company that none of us know of because he never talks about it and he doesn't need us to know, and if it's unnecessary for him, then it won't happen. All I know is that he's a master sword maker like the Japanese guy from Kill Bill Vol. 1. I live with him, so I get taught the stuff automatically because he brings his work home. He usually uses those mechanisms on my older brother, Adrian, who then tries them on me, which means I need to know how to fight back or I'll die. It's like the wild in my house. You can only survive by fighting back. Hard. Oh, by the way, I'm Victoria Volcov. And yes, I'm a Russian. Well, Russian and Hawaiian. My mother, Iolana, is Hawaiian and fell in love with my dad when he was trying to kill her brother in Hawaii. Magic love story, huh? Just warms your heart. I look like a mixture of the two, too. I have tanned olive skin, courtesy of my mother, striking silver eyes, courtesy of my father, a nicely fit and curved 5'7'', courtesy of my mother and father─−curves from my mom, muscle and tone from my dad's constant need to keep Adrian and I fit─−and wavy sandy brown hair, courtesy of somebody along the line. Anyways, I have to live with a deadly, over-protective Russian asshole for a dad, an annoying son of a bitch for a brother and a love sick, submissive, wimp for a mother. Just the purely perfect family, right. I started walking down to my house again in the cool September Tulsa air in only a pair of black shorts, a dark pink tank top, a pair of black ankle boots with a thick heel and a thin black blazer. I heard footsteps behind me and I turned to see some tall guy with pale skin that was also kinda tanned, shiny black hair and midnight blue eyes. Well, at least I'll be killed by a hottie. "Oh great. Look, if you're gonna kill me, can you make it fast because I have had a horrible night and I really don't feel like dealing with a bunch of talking and threats like Freddy Krueger."

"Um…okay. I'm not here to kill you." Sexy voice on a tall hottie. Awesome.

"Then what do you want?"

"Goddess, why can't I ever do this stuff right," he said to himself as he came closer. He was under a street light now and I could see him clearly, including the big sapphire crescent on his forehead and the intricate swirls around his face.

"Wait. Are you a vampyre?"

"Can you just…let me finish?" he said with an edge to his tone, like he was frustrated. I lifted up my hands and raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry." He sighed and thought for a second before finishing his statement.

"Victoria Volcov, Nyx has chosen you." Then he lifted up his arm and pointed at me and my forehead suddenly burned.

"Are you done now?" He nodded, staring at me shocked. "So, I'm guessing I have one of those blue crescents on my head now, right?"

"No. What the hell happened?"

"Well, I don't know! It's your job to tell me!"

"Well, you have a mark, which is a good thing. It's just…not blue. It's silver. Goddess what did I do?" Wow. He's really beat up about this.

"Okay, sir, chill out. Alright. I'm the one that may be about to explode, not you. So relax. I'm pretty sure it's just some weird vampyre shit that can easily be worked out." He looked at me and nodded.

"Right. Just Nyx working her weird ways. Right. Okay. Um…I don't…"

"So, what do I do now?"

"Oh! Right. Um…so, now you have to attend the House of Night here in Tulsa. So, you go home, say goodbye to your family and pack all your stuff then get someone to drive you to the House of Night tomorrow night….or tonight. Whichever you choose."

"Okay, uh, sir─"

"Erik."

"What?"

"My name is Erik. Erik Night."

"Okay, then. Erik, about that, nobody's gonna drive me there, so, if I don't go, I die, right?" He nodded and I pursed my lips. "Thought so. So, could I just go back with you tonight."

"Uh, that's gonna be a little complicated. See, I didn't drive here."

"Yeah, you used some type of vampyre magick, I know. But can you just get me there tonight, too. Nobody is gonna take me there, and I'd rather not die so stupidly." He looked really torn and he was really stressing over all this. "You know what, never mind. You're really stressing about this whole thing and I'm not making it easy for you. So, I'll just find a way to get there myself." I turned and started walking down the street again. Now, how in the hell am I gonna not only tell my meathead dad all this, but also convince him to drive me to this vampyre school tonight?

"Wait!" I turned and he was jogging down the street after me. "Okay, I'll take you with me tonight. As long as you trust me."

"Dude, I don't even know you. How do you expect me to trust you?"

"Touché. Okay, you just have to trust that I won't drop you." I shrugged.

"Alright. Fine. Let's go. My house is a few miles down."

"Miles? You're about to walk home?" I nodded. "Okay, change of plans. Get on my back and trust that I won't drop you." I looked at him like he'd lost his mind.

"What are you tal─"

"Look, just do it." I held up my hands and did what he told me to do. "Okay. Hold on tight." Then we were moving at an unimaginable speed. It was the scariest and coolest thing I'd ever seen in my entire life. But, it is not something I ever want to do ever again. I climbed down off his back as we stood in front of my house. I didn't bother to ask how he knew where I lived because he knew my name, too, so it didn't even matter at this point.

"Okay, before we go in, I'm warning you now, my house is like the wild." He looked worried and looked up at my house. I walked up the driveway and to the front door. All was silent except for the TV, which is not a good sign. "Here we go." I opened the door and walked three steps before my brother launched himself at me. Good thing I was prepared. I punched him in the chest and throat, sending him crashing into the dining room table. My father came out of nowhere─−6'5'' and pure muscle of 200 pounds─−and grabbed my hair and somehow locked my arms and got me to the ground.

"What did I tell you about this hair? It must always be tied tight because what?" his booming voice yelled.

"It can be used to the enemy's advantage!" I yelled. "But what did I tell you about repeating the same pattern and speech?" I kicked his foot and locked his leg, sending him falling backwards and he pulled me with him. I elbowed his ribs and heeled his calf before lifting my head and slamming it back down into his face. He released me and Adrian came up and swung his leg around and knocked me back down before leaping on me. I hit his pressure point and kneed him somewhere near his groin, but it was just as painful because he bucked and rolled off of me. Then there was my dad again. He grabbed my arm and bent my wrist before pulling my arm behind my back and knocking the back of my legs so my knees buckled and I hit the ground. I shot my leg up to his groin and planted my foot there for two seconds before slamming it into it, forcing him to let me go. Adrian was still on the ground, but my dad got back up and came after me. "Dad, I have to tell you something!" He ignored me and swung at me, but I ducked and kicked him in the throat in one swift motion that sent him to the ground. He started to get back up, but I stomped on his torso then throat. "Listen to me!" He looked up at me and I pointed to my forehead. His silver eyes widened and Adrian came up behind me and grabbed me, locking my arms down and lifting me off of my dad, most likely crushing my ribs.

"Stop." One booming word and Adrian sat me down. I was on my hands and knees and my dad was walking towards me. He grabbed my arm and lifted me up so we met eye to eye. He looked at my forehead and at the crescent mark before dropping me. "What the hell is that?" he asked angrily. I coughed, needing a lot of oxygen fast if I planned on living. He growled and walked to the couch, grabbed my inhaler, and tossed it at me. The little gold pump was the most beautiful sight right now because it was going to save me from an asthma attack. I pumped three shots of air before standing up and looking at him.

"You know what it is."

"So you're a fucking vampyre now?" he yelled.

"No, it's just a permanent tattoo," I said sarcastically with an eye roll. He was about to swing and I prepared myself, but he stopped as he looked over my shoulder. I kept my eyes on him, but I knew he was looking at Erik. My mother walked in from the kitchen and glanced around at everything before looking at me. Her black eyes widened just as my dad's had and she looked at Erik then back at me.

"Oh, Nani," was all she said. She always called me my middle name, Nalunani, because that's what she originally wanted to name me. But my dad wanted my name to be Victoria after his killed sister, so that's what I was named. I actually like Nalunani better because it's more warming and reminds me of the pretty blue ocean back in Honolulu. We lived there for my first 5 years before my father shipped us back to his home in Siberia. We haven't been back since and we just recently came to Tulsa about six months ago so my dad could set up his company and everything.

"Who the hell are you?" my father asked.

"Erik Night, from the House of Night. I'm here to take Victoria back to the House of Night to be properly taken care." Wrong choice of words, Erik. My dad stepped around me and towards Erik slowly.

"Properly taken care of? Are you saying I'm not properly taking care of her? You think I don't know how to raise my daughter?"

"No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that you don't know how to raise a vampyre. And if she doesn't go to the House of Night around those who do know how to take care of her, then she will die." My father was about to hit him, but I kicked his pressure point─−which he has an extra of in his calf─−stopping him from his action.

"If you would just stop being such an ass and listen to what he's saying, you might understand what's going on!" I said to him before looking at Erik. "You don't have to explain to him. Go tell my mother over there." She stood off to the side with her hand over her mouth, gazing at the scene taking place. Erik walked around my dad and went over to my mother. They went into the kitchen and I punched Adrian. He looked at me and I nodded in our father's direction. "Make sure he doesn't do anything. I gotta go pack." He nodded and I walked upstairs to my room. It wasn't much in my room because I didn't want anything broken from one of the little fights. My clothes were still in boxes from us moving and so were my little knickknacks and pictures from Honolulu and Siberia. So, I was set with everything I strictly needed and wanted. I walked downstairs with two boxes and told Adrian to get the other three. Erik had finished explaining to my mother and now sat in the kitchen just talking. My father was in the living room glowering at the TV. I sat my stuff down and walked into the kitchen, leaning on the door frame and folding my arms, just watching my mom laugh and smile. Erik glanced up at me and so did my mom and she stood.

"Oh, Nani, he is such a lovely keiki. And handsome, too," she said with an edge and a wink. I rolled my eyes and smiled before walking over to her and hugging her.

"I love you, mom." She hugged me back tightly.

"I love you, too, ipo. Be good and stay out of trouble." I hugged her tighter and moved close to her ear. "I'm coming back for you. Don't worry," I whispered. She nodded and started crying before letting me go. I looked at Erik. "Let's go. We need a car."

"Oh, take mine, Nani." I shook my head. "No. Aaron said we could take his car." She smiled and Adrian came back downstairs. "Are you gonna help me carry these to the car, big brother?" He shrugged and walked to the door. After a long goodbye from my mother and a death promise to my father if he does anything remotely dangerous to my mother's health or safety, Erik and I followed Adrian out down the street to Aaron's silver Corvette Stingray Concept sitting all shiny and new in front of his empty house. Good thing I kept the key to it. We stacked everything into the trunk and I grabbed Adrian by his shirt. "If he does anything; if he tries to include my mother in this stupid fucking fighting shit, you call me and let me know. If he hits her or tries to, let me know. Do you understand?" He stared at me for a while before nodding. "Promise me you'll protect her."

"I swear on my life, I'll die before I let him hurt her." I nodded and hugged him before punching him and getting into the car. Erik sat silently staring straight ahead as I started the car. I looked at him and waited for him to say something, but he never did. He turned to me and furrowed his eyebrows.

"Well?" I said loudly, getting irritated.

"What?"

"Well, I don't actually know where I'm going."

"Oh! Right. Uh, I'll drive." I rolled my eyes and he opened the door.

"No, no. that'll take too long. Here, just…I'll climb over and you climb under." He looked at me like I'd lost my mind. "Come on!" He obeyed and started moving so I could climb over. He switched to the other side and almost busted his head against the window. "Aren't vampyres supposed to be super graceful and smart?" He ignored my comment and started driving.

"So…does that whole…uh…fighting thing…happen a lot?"

"Yep. About six times a day at the least."

"Why? I have never seen anything like that. I heard of tension and all between the father and kids and of yelling, but serious fighting like that has never been inducted."

"My father was in a business where he needed to do all of that times ten, and he brought his work hoe and taught my brother, who then started trying to fight me and I had to learn the stuff and be good at it, or I'd die. There's no mercy. There's no time out. You keep fighting until someone loses."

"But, why? Why do all of that?"

"Because that's his way of showing us he cares."

"And you believe he does?" he asked loudly, shocked.

"Yeah. He just has a horrible way of showing it." We rode on in silence.

"That's not utter parental care, Victoria."

"I know. But…there's no other way to classify it without making it a bad thing, so that's what we call it. And that's what it is to us." And that was the end of the discussion.

Alright R&R