Moonrush
Chapter 1
Rays of silver pierced the black between the trees. The darkness was alleviated in less than a heartbeat. I felt the muscles of my eyes focus, making out every tree and limb as I dashed through them. The stones should've been tough on my bare feet, but I was used to this path now. The brush of ferns across my legs matched the piercing swish of the air beside my ears. Splinters of light were momentarily blinding as I passed through them. They spiked my blood with fresh adrenaline. The sounds following me were hardly quiet. Every small animal within miles dashed away from our path. My legs burned. I leapt over a log, landing on my hands and feet and propelling myself forward that way. My spine felt ultra-flexible as my back unwound and I returned to my two feet. The sounds closed in. Twigs scraped my ankles, but I propelled myself forward regardless.
A tribal cry pierced my lips as I leapt through the trees and rolled in the wet grass. I tumbled down the incline, passing over a bramble of flowers among the field grass, until my feet found the gravelly banks of the riverbed. My skin was sweltering despite the crystal at the base of my throat and I leapt in freely. The clear water reflected the moon overhead. It was full and round, pure silver. It felt like a precious gem. I waded out to my waist and scooped up a cupped handful of water. Some fell into my mouth, some splashed my face and ran down the front of my shirt. I didn't care. It slid down my bare belly and rejoined the rest of the water.
Romulus burst out of the trees, a wide and wicked grin on his lips. He stopped his predatory run and straightened, the grin barely falling. His jeans rode low on his hips and his sleeveless black shirt left nothing to my imagination. He waded out to me as I cupped another handful of water and gulped it down. It was cold and fresh, rushing around my body freely.
His smile narrowed, becoming thin and warm as he looped his fingers through the belt loop of my shorts and tugged my body closer to his. The plaid shorts were a yellowy lime and purple, a slightly different shade than the cut-up top that barely covered any of my stomach. His damp hand plucked a leaf from under my headband. I rose on my toes, wrapping my arms around his neck, "You need to pick up pace. You never going to catch deer like that."
"You don't run like a deer," he replied. He caught my chin and crushed his mouth onto mine. Warmth pooled in my center; I hitched my leg up against his hip and received the boost I needed to link my legs around his waist. In the past few months, I'd learned how strong he had gotten to be. His hand rested on my behind, claws poised to rip the new shorts away. I bit his lip in warning. His fingers wound in my streaked hair instead. I kissed him until I couldn't breathe, and when I broke away, he dropped the both of us into the cold water. I gasped in delight, pressing closer to him and tugging on his messy hair. His arm wrapped firmly around my waist, those warm and understanding lips pressing firmly to mine. Ever since the party, the moon had affected us the same way. My father had given up on trying to constrain me in the house on the full moon after the first month. With the water rushing around my body and his, our clothes soaked and our bodies pressed together, I could've given anything to keep this moment to just the both of us.
Instead, Rocco burst through the trees and leapt into the nearly still banks a few feet downstream. Kate and the others burst out after him, laughing and howling more loudly than they did at any other time. Against my will, I forced myself to unwind from Romulus, but he refused to leave me. He continued peppering wet kisses to my neck and damp collarbone. I was soaked up to my shoulders, and if it wasn't for the stone ledge under my behind, I would've gone deeper. The ends of my hair were soaked too. It was going to be a fun walk home, that was for sure.
"Hey, Rom, you really should charge for those porn shows!" she called.
He withdrew to growl at her, echoed by one of her own. I wrapped my fingers in his shirt, about to defend her when he sunk his teeth into my neck. They pierced the skin, but for some reason I didn't feel pain. Instead, I pulled him closer and let out a howl of pure euphoria. A few of the others returned quiet howls and yips of understanding and enthusiasm. The wolfen marking ritual was romantic in the roughest way possible, but it did the job of claiming the alpha's mate. Whether it was instinct or tradition, Romulus did it well.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and tilted my head back while he kissed away the blood he'd drawn. The moon stirred my appetite for life and for some strange reason, brought me the calm that filled my body at that moment.
"Rom!" Kate shouted. The silver light faded from my eyes long enough for my hands to find the slippery stone and pull myself away from my boyfriend just a bit. With his reverie broken, he could see that the water was becoming sluggish and my skin was turning blue. I smiled and crawled to the bank, laying down and clasping my hand around my crystal. The warm air dispelled a lot of the frost from my skin, but Luken and Deugi still threw their shirts. I folded them and used them to prop up my head.
Romulus followed me out of the water and laid among the pack in our clearing. Once the water had returned to its natural temperature, a few of them dashed in to join Rocco in swimming. As usual, Kate came over to me and laid on her side. "Nice going Rom, you almost killed the one I like."
"Katie, you know what I'm about to say," he replied, his eyes up on the navy blue darkness above us.
"So don't make you say it. God, you sound like my old man."
As much as I knew he wanted to pretend he was offended, he smiled. The past few months had been good for the siblings; they'd gotten closer to their stepfather and I'd gotten closer to them. The world as Monster High knew it was at peace.
I stretched out and rolled my shoulders backward slowly. Now that our adrenaline had dampened for the most part, I felt like a house pet. I had eaten and I had played, now it was time for a nap.
"Go ahead," Romulus murmured as he took my hand, "I'll drive you home."
"You never offer to drive me home," Kate said, climbing over the both of us.
"Then I'd have to offer to drive everyone home, and my truck doesn't hold that many people." While Romulus had helped me understand American tact, he had apparently learned from his past mistakes. I still half-expected him to tell her off at times. Still, she laid down and made herself comfortable with his stomach as a pillow. He glanced to me, but I couldn't stop smiling. "What?"
"This is our family," I replied, squeezing his hand. He rolled his eyes, "Yeah, I didn't get to pick them either."
"Woohoo!" Rocco cheered as Deugi lifted him up and suddenly body-slammed him into the water. Kate sprung to her feet, "Deugi!"
The ferns rustled as the Wolf pack came wandering out. Howleen cut her siblings off at the last moment, trailed by her brothers. Clawdeen growled, "Howleen! Those are my sandals! You are not taking my sandals in the river! HOWLEEN!"
Clawd sat beside us, his exasperation obvious, "Hey."
"Hey," Romulus replied, "Parents over at my place?"
He nodded and shifted onto his back slowly.
"Draculaura wearing you out, man?" Romulus teased. I rolled my eyes.
"Probably not like Abbey wears you out, Old Yeller." This time, I laughed. Romulus knew better than to reply for his own reputation's good. Instead, he shifted to place his arm under my head. I took his other hand and nestled into his side.
"You're freezing," he murmured, rub-warming my shoulder.
"Was that pun?" I replied, kissing his warm shoulder. He smelled earthy and warm, a very rich, spicy, Romulus smell. He turned onto his side and crushed me in the embrace of a muscular teddy bear. I could've purred if I knew how. My hands ran up his chest, cooling him and warming myself. It was when my cold toes pressed into his legs that he jumped, "Damn, Abbey. That crystal doesn't fuck around."
Clawd snorted. He was used to this by now. Very gently, I tucked my head under his chin and nestled myself against him as closely as I possibly could. Our friends and packmates were howling and carrying on like children, leaving the three of us alone in our lounging on the grass. I must've drifted off under the pale moonlight, because when I woke, I was being stirred with kisses. His warm skin pressed against mine. I opened my eyes and sat up, surprised to find the both of us alone.
"They just left," he murmured, "I'd carry you, but I'm tired too. Hopefully Clawd's parents left already, or I'm sleeping in your barn or something." He rose and dusted off his jeans, shaking out his hair to make sure anything living was expelled from it. I combed my fingers through the ends and nudged his elbow with my own, "Or you could come inside and spend night anyway."
He scoffed, "Your dad would try to kill me if I asked."
I smiled, "Never said you had to ask."
The sneaking around behind my parents' back had become so regular that it became routine for me. Grace knew, because mothers knew everything, but my father was none the wiser and between the three of us, I didn't think he would be until I had gone to college.
"We've gotta be responsible about it sometime," he said, trailing off a bit ahead of me.
I sighed, climbing logs and brushing my feet over tender ferns. My ankles ached from the cut of the twigs and rough bark, and the pads of my feet stung from the rocks and the earth. We reached his truck at the edge of the woods and I climbed in wordlessly.
"What is there to be responsible of?" I asked, "You are coming over to see me. Half time, we don't even do things."
"Yeah, but still. I feel like I'm invading your privacy. We're together all the time. I know when you go to the bathroom. I know when you sleep, when you eat, what you read..."
"So?" I replied. He should know how badly my feet hurt. Sometimes I thought not wearing shoes was as bad of an idea as wearing shoes.
"So...I keep worrying that if I don't give you space, you'll find some reason to get rid of me." The genuine concern was so obvious I could see it in his face. I shrugged, "Have not found reason yet. If you have no reason to leave me, I have no reason to leave you."
He scoffed lightly and shook his head. I thought he might've spent a moment angry, but he just looked at me with amusement, "You're so fucking stubborn."
"Is why you love me," I replied. I was trying not to massage my feet, but they were throbbing. Maybe he would need to carry me somewhere.
When he pulled up at my house, the porch light was still on and his house across the street looked calm. I took off my seat belt and leaned over to kiss him, completely unsurprised when he returned it with a little more passion than I thought I was awake for. Warmth stirred in my center, but I was too tired and too sore to put it to any use.
"Goodnight," I murmured against his mouth. "Should I leave window open?"
He nodded. He'd be there, whether he talked about space or not. I stole another little kiss and climbed out. The pavement was cool and smooth, and I silently thanked the natural world for that. I shut the gate behind me and shuffled up to the door while he pulled in across the street. Both Grace and my father were up, obviously having expected me.
"Fun night with Rom?" she asked while grading summer school papers.
I nodded, "Ran with pack. Feet sore."
"Why don't you wear shoes?" she asked.
"Snag lace on twig, fall and die?" I replied. My father made a sound. I kissed both of them on the cheek and headed upstairs. My clothes were wrinkled from all the water, so they draped over the towel bar over the air conditioning vent while I took a shower. Wearing only a new pair of underwear and Romulus's shirt, I crawled into my bed and rested my sore feet. Too tired to do much else, I didn't even turn on the TV. Shiver's snoring was almost enough to put me to sleep, but I heard the window raise before long. Still dripping wet, Romulus crawled inside in his sweatpants and crossed the floor to my bed. He crawled in beside me and pulled the blanket up over the both of us.
My head fell to his chest, "Love you."
He brushed my hair off my face and held me tightly, "I love you too, Abbey."
I barely had the strength to smile, but when I did, I fell asleep with it on my face.
A/N- God I didn't mean to start this now. I've just had a recent influx of love for my werewolves again (thank you, Teen Wolf) and I ended up on this. I might just end up writing both or alternating or something like that, but hey, it's summer. I have time. :) I don't make promises to update every day, but I will update SOMETHING every day. It will update pretty frequently though, so, hop on board and enjoy the ride. Welcome to White Wolf parte deux.