Disclaimer: House of Night, all characters except for my OCs, settings etc. are the property of P.C. and Kristin Cast.

Ok, so I love the House of Night series, and Stevie Rae has always been one of my favourite characters. Seeing as the books are written from Zoey's perspective (mostly) we don't really get much information about the other characters' pasts, so I thought I'd write this. It's going to be a multi-chaptered fic starting with Stevie Rae getting Marked, and probably ending with the end of the first book. Apologies for any inconsistencies with the plots of the actual House of Night books. Hope you enjoy this, please review :)

Chapter One: An Unexpected Birthday Surprise

My mama always told me that a good girl doesn't play games, but when it came to me and Shane Goode, it was hard not to. There was something about him that made me act all coy and coquettish. Maybe it was his big brown eyes or his curly blond hair, but something about the kid turned me into a mess. One second we'd be flirting up a storm, the next I'd be snubbing my nose at him and pretending I didn't know he existed.

One thing I was sure of, I did not like the way he made me act. I was a nice girl – mostly, anyway – and I didn't like playing hard to get. So when I got up on the morning of my sixteenth birthday, I decided that today was the day. I was finally going to stop all of the games and tell Shane exactly what I thought of him.

With that in mind, I took extra care picking out an outfit for school. Mama had laid out a nice pair of Roper jeans and my favourite blue check shirt. I dragged a brush through my unruly curls, slipped on my favourite cowboy boots and then bounded down the stairs for breakfast, a grin tugging at my lips at the familiar sounds of the Johnson morning routine.

My two oldest brothers were already in the kitchen along with Mama and Daddy, arguing about who should have the first piece of bacon. My other brother was still in the shower – I had heard him yodelling away when I left my room.

"Morning, y'all!" I chirped happily, sliding into the seat beside Daddy. My brothers grunted at me and Daddy mumbled a gruff happy birthday. Mama smiled at me and waved her spatula, approaching the table with a plate loaded with bacon, eggs and a stack of toast that was dripping with butter.

"Happy birthday, baby!" she said, kissing me on the cheek and setting the plate in front of me. "You look just gorgeous, Stevie Rae. Sweet sixteen!"

While Mark and Owen whined about their stomachs, Mama disappeared into the living room. When she returned she was carrying a small wrapped box. She handed it to me with a smile.

"From Daddy and me. Open it before your breakfast gets cold!"

I grinned and tore through the packaging, revealing a black velvet box. Holding my breath, I lifted the lid and then gasped at what I found inside. Nestled on a white cushion were two pairs of silver hoop earrings. They looked expensive. I removed my usual gold studs from my ears and replaced them with the hoops. Mama clapped her hands.

"Beautiful, honey. Just beautiful."

She returned to the stove to continue cooking just as JJ sidled into the room, a damp towel lying around his shoulders. Amazingly, he ignored the scent of bacon to give me a hug, draping his skinny arms around my neck.

"Happy birthday, Rae Rae," he mumbled. "Your present's upstairs. You can have it after school."

I smiled. Mama and Daddy always told us that you don't play favourites with family, but if I was being honest, JJ was my favourite brother. He was only a year older than me too, so we were pretty close. He took the seat beside me and we all tucked into our breakfast. By the time JJ had polished off his last slice of toast, we were running late. I barely had time to kiss Mama and Daddy on the cheek before JJ dragged me out to his beat-up old pickup truck.

We rode to school, squabbling as usual about what music to listen to during the drive. I wanted Kenny Chesney, but JJ said there was no way he was letting that "garbage" into his car. If it had been anyone other than JJ I would've clocked him one, but I was used to it. This was our morning ritual.

We arrived at school just on time to hear the bell ring. JJ raced down the hall to his homeroom, shouting a happy birthday over his shoulder. I headed to my own homeroom at a slower pace, rolling my eyes at the familiar Henrietta Fighting Hens banner draped above the doorway. Our school mascot was a serious thorn in my side.

I spotted Shane as soon as I went in. He was sitting in his usual seat at the back of the room, talking to my best friend, Lindy Adams. He looked adorable as usual, wearing light jeans and a white t-shirt. I smiled at him and offered him a wave, but before I could make my way over to him, Ms. Applewhite called me to her desk. I ended up staying behind after homeroom to listen to a lecture on the importance of being on time, which just wasn't fair. JJ was normally very serious about getting us to school on time – we'd just been distracted cos of my birthday.

Ms. Applewhite's lecture meant that I'd missed my chance to talk to Shane. We didn't have any classes together, so I wouldn't see him again until lunch, maybe not even then. It put a crimper on my plans, and I'd wanted to put them into action as soon as possible, before I could chicken out.

I trudged through the school day like I always did, although I was barely listening when my friends talked to me, and even Lindy had trouble grabbing my attention. It wasn't just my missed opportunity to talk to Shane. I felt sick, sluggish, like I was coming down with something. My throat was all scratchy and I couldn't stop coughing – it felt like I was hacking up a lung. I eventually snapped out of my funk when the dismissal bell rang and I saw my chance to talk to Shane. He was standing by his locker, peering at his schedule with a frown. I pushed my way through the crowds until I reached his locker and then smiled at him, brushing a curl out of my eyes.

"Hey, Stevie Rae," he said, his eyes lighting up. "I haven't had a chance to talk to you all day! Happy birthday!" My smile grew wider. He remembered!

I shouldn't have been surprised. I knew that Shane liked me – heck, all of Henrietta knew that we liked each other – but it still made me happy that he'd remembered my birthday. I was even happier when he reached into his locker and pulled out a small package, hastily wrapped in pink tissue paper. He handed it to me, a blush spreading across his cheeks.

"For me?" I said teasingly, weighing the package in my hand. "Why Mr. Goode, you shouldn't have." I unwrapped it delicately and caught my breath. Inside was a silver charm bracelet with five charms dangling from the links – a cowboy boot, a musical note, a chicken, a tiny 16, a key and padlock with a heart attached. Before I could say thank you, Shane launched into an explanation of the charms.

"This one," he said quickly, touching the cowboy boot, "is because of your boots. And this one here is because you love Kenny Chesney. The chicken is for the Henrietta Fighting Hens – I know you hate them, but you're still one of them. The 16 is self-explanatory. And – and this one here is..." He trailed off, blushing even harder.

"What is it?" I pressed, smiling.

"The key to my heart," he said in a rush, his cheeks turning scarlet. "I just – I really like you, Stevie Rae, and I want you to know that you've got the key to my heart. Always."

I blinked at him. He shut his locker with a soft click and then took the bracelet with shaking hands. He fastened it to my wrist and then smiled, meeting my eyes hesitantly. I grinned right back at him.

"Well, I really like you too, Shane Goode," I said brightly. "And I promise I'll take good care of that key."

I reached over and slid my hand into his and we walked out of school like that, both of us grinning like idiots. JJ was waiting for me in the pickup. Shane squeezed my hand and then left to go to his own car. I practically bounced over to my brother's truck. The sound of the tinkling charm bracelet on my wrist was like music to my ears. JJ narrowed his eyes at me as I climbed into the passenger seat.

"What's all that about, Rae Rae?" he said, a glint of brotherly concern in his eyes. I simply smiled at him, swallowed down yet another hacking cough and then waved at Shane, roaring out of the parking lot ahead of us. JJ shook his head and started the ignition.

We made it home in record time. I was almost drooling at the thought of the big birthday meal Mama would have waiting for us. Mark and Owen would act like real human beings for the night, and Daddy would spoil me rotten like he always did on my birthday. And then when it got dark out we'd all settle down in the family room to watch one of my favourite Disney movies, The Little Mermaid. It would be perfect. My birthday was always the best day of the year.

Except this year, apparently, was gonna be different. Because when I climbed out of JJ's truck, I saw the guy standing on the doorstep.

Well, dang it. Someone was about to get Marked.

Da-daaaaa! Hope you enjoyed that. For anyone who's interested, there's a quick summary of each of my OCs below (just so you don't get confused throughout the story). Also, the brothers aren't technically OCs, but since they aren't named in the books, I've named them and tried to flesh them out a little.

Shane Goode: Stevie Rae's love interest, a real Okie boy, and ridiculously cheesy (although you probably guessed that after the whole charm bracelet thing). Stevie Rae and Shane have been pretty much meant to be since they were kids, so her getting Marked is a real bummer for him. He's sixteen, same age as Stevie Rae. He'll pop up quite a lot in this story.

Jacob Jeremiah Johnson "JJ": the youngest of Stevie Rae's three brothers. He's only a year older than Stevie Rae and they've always been quite close. He can be very protective of her when he wants to be.

Mark Johnson: the second oldest of Stevie Rae's brothers. He's twenty years old and is very loyal to his town. He was on the Henrietta football team in high school.

Owen Johnson: the oldest of Stevie Rae's brothers. He and Mark are practically inseparable, though they argue a lot. He's twenty three.

Lindy Adams: Stevie Rae's best friend. Lindy is a good Catholic girl and is horrified when Stevie Rae is Marked. She cuts off all contact with Stevie Rae as soon as she finds out. She has a huge crush on JJ.

Er, if you're still reading this, thank you! Please please please review. Please? :3