Okay, maybe this is a prologue bigger than those that we are all accustomed, will probably be much bigger than normal chapters, but I really need to tell this part of Amber's background, that won't fit in like a normal chapter or something like this, so let's face it like an "extra", maybe?
Warning: There's some cursing by the end, nothing too much, but it's necessary in the scene, oh, and the usual violence.
I'm going to stopo talking now, enjoy it ;)
"I like the sad eyes, bad guys
mouth full of white lies
kiss me in the corridor
but quick to tell me goodbye"
- Ghost, Halsey
"Amber, why are you taking so long?"
The voice of Hazel Heather coincided with the beep of the microwave and both took Amber way from her thoughts. Amber rubbed her eyes trying to ward off sleep without success, the desire to sleep was still there, but it was friday, and every Friday she and her sister got together to watch a movie that both liked, not that the purpose of doing it was just watching, it was just a moment in family, only the two without weapons or training involved.
Amber took the hot popcorn to put in a bucket without answering the Hazel. A sharp, sudden pain in her fingers indicated that she had been stupid to take away the popcorn. Amber could not help but shriek when taking your hands off the steaming container.
"Damn it!" She muttered, putting her hands in the sink, hoping the water would relieve the irritating pain. Hazel laughed at what happened, by the kitchen Amber could hear the noise she was making. She checked her fingers, sighing in relief that it was nothing serious, they were just sore and reddish, there wasn't even burn blisters. A first-degree burn, as she had been taught to recognize.
He wiped his hands and grabbed the bucket of popcorn and chocolates and left the kitchen. The Heather Family's room was bright and had a lot of space, with enormous glass windows, big enough to be walls, and lamps, which were lit at night, the decoration was classic and with no fuss, with simples and charming furniture and relics collected by Ms. Heather. There was almost no photos, though they have moved a long time, but the family coat of arms proudly hung higher on the wall, a golden dragon interlaced with a ruby eyed snake, which eyes seemed to follow everyone who walked in that room. Hazel was sprawled on the red leather couch, taking up almost the entire space, still laughing. Hazel was Amber's identical twin sister, they both had the same smooth golden hair, but Hazel began to curly hers years ago, light and sharp blue eyes, tanned skin and a sharp nose. Even in personality they were similar, the same attitude and confidence, even if Hazel was slightly more shy than Amber, the sisters liked the same things, thought the same way.
"Don't laugh" Amber said when she walked over to Hazel, not before hitting her with the nearest pillow "I should've let the popcorn burn"
"It's just popcorn" Hazel laughed again, and took the popcorn off Amber's handa "And you're a terrible cook"
"So next time you make the food" She said, pushing her legs in Hazel's lap purposely bumping her sandals on her sister's white tank top.
"Stupid!" Yelled the blonde. She tried to wipe the stain, but failed. She send a death glare to her sister, who just laughed mockingly.
"That was for laughing at my burn" Amber was still laughing, and that just irritated her more. Hazel grabbed a pillow and tried to hit her, but Amber avoided with another pillow, a leopard-printed one, her stomach aching with laughter.
"No! Not my pillows" The voice of Mrs. Heather sounded so abruptly that scared the girls, she was stanting there, a hard and serious expression as always. While most of her friends had fun and sweet mothers, Ms. Heather seemed to come from a thriller movie. The blond hair tied in a bun, makeup and perfect chothes with a sneer on her face were a trademark. And the leather clothes she were only added to her sense of authority.
Both Amber and Hazel released the pillows immediatly.
"I'm going out with your father. Don't expect us" She took her nude purse and left, closing the door behind her without making noise. But Amber could have sworn she saw a gun stuck in her belt and she lost her speech.
"Is she taking..." Hazel began, but stopped when Amber shot her a look. Weapons was a delicate matter that house, because the girls know exactly what the parents would do with them. Mr. and Mrs. Heather did not have a regular job, nor they were common. In they spare time, they were hunters of supernatural creatures. The Heather family was old in this business hunting these creatures from the early days, especially werewolves. While most children grow up without ever seeing a weapon live, Amber and Hazel were created since they were kids to be hunters as well.
Only when they heard the car starting the girls relaxed.
Amber and Hazel spent a few minutes in silence, with brief glances at each other, each wondering what Caius and Aubrey Heather would be doing in the dark forest, what kind of creatures could be after, how dangerous they were? Amber had always dreamed of seeing a live werewolf, but the closest she got was the dead body of a boy suspected of lycanthropy - in the end they found that the boy was only a human -. To Hazel, everything was normal, but not for Amber. She was not a girl to sit when his parents were after werewolves, in only those moments of silence, Amber's uneasiness was visible. For her, it meant quiet space to think, but she did not want to just think about what her mother would be doing with one her favorites guns in the arsenal.
Amber nervously looked at her sister, desperate for a subject.
"So what were you so eager to tell me?" Earlier in the day, everything Hazel talked was that she had something to tell Amber, and as much as the older twin insisted, Hazel wouldn't open her mouth. And Amber was naturally curious, she would not let go. When Hazel began to blush, Amber knew it had something to do with boys.
"Well, you really wanna know?" She asked hesitantly, but Amber knew very well her sister, she knew she liked to tell things like that, like Amber herself liked. The two sisters had no secrets, and perhaps, that's why they got along so well.
"You spend all day saying that you have something to tell me, of course I want to know" Hazel took a deep breath, as if what he had to say was very important, seemed to be preparing to proclaim a speech on the war of secession. Amber acknowledged her drama, so she took another pillow and hit the right side of her head.
"Mom said no pillows!" She muttered, but dropped the drama she used to hide the nervousness. Amber didn't know why her sister was so nervous, she had already told terrible things before. She took a deep breath and finally opened her mouth - Daniel kissed me. And I think I'm falling for him.
"How did it happen?" Amber asked, turning on the couch to come face to face with Hazel, like an interrogation.
"It was so unexpected, good, of course I was waiting for this for a long time, but at the time was unexpected. And sis, was so wonderful!" Amber took a while to absorve that, she was happy for her sister finally kissed the boy she dreamed for so long, but she couldn't ignore the strange sensation that she had every time she looked at Daniel. "Will not you say anything?"
"Well, I don't need all the details, but are you okay with that?"
"What?" The innocent look on Hazel's face was so fake that Amber rolled her eyes.
"With the fact that he scares everyone" Amber tried to speak seriously, but ended up laughing nervously, she didn't want Hazel to thought she didn't approve of Daniel, what she did.
"There you go. We had this conversation already, Kath" Amber suppressed a smile when she heard the name, she was still apprehensive about her sister's decisions. Hazel was the only person who called her by her second name's nickname. Amber loved occasionally being Katherine.
"It seems that he wants something with you. Something dangerous" Hazel just sent her a skeptical look while leaving the room, up the stairs two in two steps.
Taking the popcorn with her.
"Again, Hazel. Now farther."
Amber cautiously watched the moment Hazel released another arrow, which stuck on the wall of the target, a few centimeters away from the red center. The younger blonde took a deep breath and took another arrow and, with a sigh, released again, this time the shot hit a little closer to the center, but still far too much for the eagle eye of Mr. Heather. This time was Amber who sighed, she knew Hazel was not as good at shooting as the rest of the family, and that would damage her. Hazel was much better in the physical fight, reaching a force that not even Amber could, but in the hunt, they often attacked by far, they were not fighters.
Caius Heather pursed his lips in a clear sign of disapproval, and the twins looked down, Hazel by shame and Amber out of solidarity when he coolly took the bowl off Hazel's hands and hit right in the middle, almost without aiming.
He lowered the freezing blue eyes to his youngest daughter.
"That's how it's done. Any problem with the bow, Hazel?" When he received only a hesitant nod, he continued, the words coming out like ice cubes. "Back on training. Only stop when the arrow hit the target. Amber, it's your turn"
Amber got up from the ground where she was sitting, the muscles in your body soon began to complain of the movement, the two had just come from a 2-hour race as part of training, but she ignored the pain in her legs and arms and grabbed the bow. She stood in the right way and faced the target, all she had to do was hit the target a few times and she would be free. She bent the bow slightly up, feeling the arrow through his fingers ready to be released, she fired. The arrow stuck right in the center of the target, millimeters from her father's arrow. But it was not enough, not if she wanted to be a real hunter. Without hesitation, she pulled another arrow.
A couple of hours later, as the girls continued to train under the supervision of her father, Aubrey Heather went downstairs the basement, more serious than ever. Hair already stuck in a tight bun and leather clothing indicated that she was not just there to check out the work of the girls, it was something important.
A hunting.
Without giving a second look at the girls, she stopped next to Caius, a hard feature on your face. She unrolled a paper showing, in detail, the entire city of Beacon Hills.
Amber tried to peer over her mother's shoulder, but Aubrey tried to not even prevent the girls to see, almost on purpose, which made Amber suspicious. Her parents generally forbade watching the strategies before the hunt and even think about going to a real hunt. One of her oldest memories was of one little herself, about three years, being kicked out by the mother after the older woman received a phone call.
But this time neither of them did anything, treated them as if they were hunters as well.
Noting the questioning look of Amber, Ms. Heather smiled slightly.
- You're going with us this time - If she had not handed the weapon to his father earlier, Amber would have dropped the bow. She always imagined herself as her mother, in a relentless search through the Beacon Hills forest, after a werewolf killer, always imagined the capturing, the pride that the family would feel to see her follow in their footsteps. Hazel had a similar reaction to that of Amber, her eyes widened once she assimilated Aubrey's words.
- Why the surprise? - Caius asked, making circles in different places on the map - You knew this day would come.
None of the twins replied, still in shock. Amber took a deep breath trying to calm down, if she was not in the same room with her cold, judgmental parents she would vibrate, shout and even dance, but just smiled toward her sister, who also seemed to be holding her animation. When she could speak without smiling, Amber took a more precise look on the map.
The accuracy was not great, but Amber could see that the map was of excellent quality, and huge, he occupied all the table, but it was necessary to show praticamento each tree city forest. His father had made several notes on the sides and marked some places the forest and surrounding areas.
"What are we looking for?" The implied pronoun "we" was used deliberately by Amber.
"Your mother and I found a new pack in town, Argents should be taking care of it, but they aren't doing a good job with the Hales, they hardly will handle this" He said, Amber always thought that his father had a sympathy for Argent, but when it comes to work, he would not forgive nor their daughters. He pointed to the points marked between the east wing of the forest and an abandoned factory behind a famous cafeteria. "You see these green spots? That's where they are"
"How many members in this pack?" Hazel asked, joining her sister and father.
"The footprints found in their last appearance indicates around 2 or 3 beta and alpha, of course"
"You mean the doctor's murder?" Amber asked remembering the school events. Mr. Heather nodded.
"Any Strategy?" Hazel looked nervous and bit her thumb, one of the customs that the twins had in common.
"Let's call our own reinforcements, capture the betas, just kill the alpha and try to collect as much information as possible. If the Argenst cannot handle it, we have to do for them. We counting on the two for this.
Both twins exchanged glances.
That was no coincidence.
It was a test.
They come in black cars, darker glasses. When the bell rang, everyone in the house were ready. All with their usual clothes and armed, ready for a war. Amber and Hazel, the twins were so similar, the same faces, the same clothes, even the hair was the same (Hazel hadn't had time to fix it the way she likes)and the same confident pose, anyone could confuse them easily. They were unfamiliar faces for Amber, older adults known by their parents, with their children with ages similar to the twins probably going through theirs first tests as well.
Amber was always led to believe that the success of a hunt depends a lot on who you had with you. Throughout her life she believed that Hazel would be her partner for life, the two worked well together, but at the first opportunity she had been starting with two strangers.
While Amber was trying to do the minimum of fuss, Evan and Lucy seemed not even care. They were brothers, Evan was tall, with short blond hair and a pose that might frighten little children if he did not open a smile every five seconds, Lucy was already almost the same size as Amber, despite being a few years older, with tanned skin, short hair and green eyes.
The three entered ever deeper into the forest, Amber silent as a cat, guns drawn and a flashlight in her hands, while Evan and Lucy looked like two drunken gazelles, the two had been playing and laughing since the three separated from the others and it was driving Amber mad. She didn't want to be like her father and complain but this way they never would find the alpha, which was her goal, and Amber needed it. She needed to find this alpha to fulfill this test and be a real hunter.
When Evan pushed Lucy against a tree, making the girl let out a high-pitched laughter. Amber reached her limit.
"Okay, that's enough!" She kept her voice low, which only made her more intimidating, despite her age, Amber knew when to use what she learned from her parents "That way we will never find the alpha, unless he is deaf and mentally retarded, he definetely noticed you. He must be a million kilometers away from here.
" Do not be so cranky, Amb" Evan started, putting one arm on top of Amber's shoulders. The blonde pulled it off abruptly.
"Don't call me Amb" Every second she liked him less.
"Ah, c'mon, Amb" He was interrupted by a piercing scream. He was interrupted by a piercing scream. The whole mood of fun, at least for Evan, it was when they realized that high-pitched voice could only belong to Lucy, who was no longer there. Amber moved before Evan, looking for the girl, her flashlight illuminating the dark trees. She heard a noise behind them, turned quickly only to find complete darkness.
Amber was filled with tension, heart pounding, this was what she had been trained, she struggled to keep the hand holding the flashlight without trembling.
"LUCY!" Evan yelled at her side, but nothing changed. Lucy's screams ceased and dead silence followed. Amber gulped, millions of assumptions running through her mind as she watched Evan look for the girl in the trees nearby. Was it some kind of joke? The alpha got her? Or the beta? Or other creature?
"Lucy!" Evan screamed again, desperation starting to become evident in his voice. Amber rolled her eyes at the noise that the boy was doing, she was going to shut him up when suddenly something heavy fell in front of both of them. Amber couldn't contain her cry of horror when she recognize the bloody body of her hunting companion. There was no doubt that Lucy was dead, her green eyes were wide staring at nothing, blood came out of her mouth, her torso was all pierced deep marks that were still bleeding, claw marks.
"Lucy" Evan whispered weakly as he watched the body of her dead sister. He took a step toward her, but something slammed into his body.
"Evan! No!" Amber yelled while pulling the gun and blindly shooted the figure, but nothing happened. The figure dragged the screaming boy by his feet out of her field of vision.
Amber did not think for a second, ran toward the two, she stopped to reload her gun and tried to shoot again, but there was no way she could find out if the bullets hit the target. She ran in the dark, she had left the flashlight fall behind, she stumbled in branches and small holes in the ground, she could feel the branches piercing through the skin underneath her pants, but she kept chasing the werewolf. Her highly trained for these races legs couldn't reach the werewolf, he was faster and soon she was panting, tired.
Amber leaned on her legs, trying to control her breathing, sweat dripping down her neck, clinging to her hair. She looked around, the dense forest didn't gave her a clue to where the wolf had taken Evan. Amber was sure that this was one of the betas, not the alpha. She should run to the other side and look for a leader, probably her father, but she wouldn't let Evan die that way, and being a bit insensitive, she didn't want to see his body torn to pieces and leave the city alone, she would have enough nightmares about Lucy.
She took a deep breath, which was becoming a habit, and concentrated. Her hearing could not be as accurate as the beta's, but it was one of the first lessons, listen to your surroundings, look for sounds. Without hesitation, with a gun in one hand, no flashlight, she forced her legs to run towards the first sound she heard.
Adrenaline filled her again and determination helped her to follow the wolf's trail. As she ran through the trees, one thing bothered her, it was too easy, Amber studied for several hours the behavior of werewolves, this beta was leaving too many clues, almost as if he wanted the girl to follow him.
That thought made the girl stop the race. Certainly it was a trap, and she almost fell for it, but what could she do? The beta still had Evan and had killed Lucy. While thinking about between going after the beta or going back and trying to trace the alpha, the sound of leaves being trampled on reached her ears. Amber looked up only to find the beta blue eyes. She had read once that werewolves with blue eyes are those who have already taken innocent life. And the one front of her was certainly a murderer.
Amber stared at the wolf in front of her, trying to see behind the wolf form to guess who it was. She had the impression that she knew him, something in his jaw, eyes and nose were familiar to her, even in the dark forest. The wolf took a few steps forward, standing a few meters away, Amber still could not put a name on it, but took a few steps back, her eyes running all around the forest, searching for an escape route. The beta moved closer, the claws and fangs gleaming in the light of the full moon. She was running out of time, she shot a few times in his right leg and he let out a moan of pain, but it was not enough, cause he went stumbling toward her, growling.
Amber fired again, now on the other leg, the werewolf grunted and fell down. That was the time she needed. She started running in the opposite direction, forcing her tired legs to move faster and faster. Everytime she heard im recovering, she shoot him again, it would have to last until Amber get to a safe place. At that moment she did not care anymore with Evan, let alone with Lucy.
When she thought that she was getting through, a noise let her on alert, then, without a warning, another werewolf emerged from the shadows, one with bright blood-red eyes and way scarier than the first, but Amber was not afraid of alpha, she was no longer afraid of anything, she was so in automatic mode that not even the fangs of the most powerful werewolf prevented from acting. She drew one of her knives from her belt and threw in wolf, but he averted easily, approaching the blonde.
Amber tried to retreat, but the steps behind her indicated that the beta had got her. She was trapped, but would not fall. Pulling a loaded gun from her belt and started to shoot the alpha, several times, but he deflected all. The beta rabbed her, holding the girl in his arms, making her drop the gun. The grip was getting too strong and Amber screamed, her legs dangling, trying to kick the werewolf. The alpha slowly returned to human form, revealing a young, tattoed face, with clear, bright eyes and a smirk.
"Is she the one ?" He asked, his voice was a bit more childish than Amber expected.
"No. She's the twin sister" When he spoke, Amber finally realized why he was so familiar. Her eyes widened when she finally recognized that face.
"Daniel" He whispered before everything went black.
"Hey, Kath, c'mon, wake up" A voice whispered in her ear while she regained consciousness. Even a little groggy, she managed to grumble in irritation.
"Don't call me that" Daniel chuckled in mockery.
"That's how your sister calls you" These words fully awoke Amber, she stood in a second, striking strong slaps throughout the beta's body.
"DON'T TALK ABOUT MY SISTER" She may not be a supernatural being, but her slaps still hurted, so Daniel grabbed her wrists waiting for her to be quiet, but the girl kept squirming , trying to escape the grip. "You disgusting idiot, asshole, son of a bitch! Stay away from her!"
"Gee, stop complaining! It just so happened that I confused you with your sister, and now she's safe. Or not." He let a malicious smile in the last sentence.
"You wouldn't dare" She moved to give him another slap, but he caught her hand in the air before it hit his face.
"Relax, I'm not touching her"
"This doesn't change the fact that you used her to get to me" She tried to escape again, but he held her stronger.
"Don't flatter yourself. It could be any of you" He laughed loudly. Amber shot him a dirty look.
"Asshole!" Amber used her leg to kick him in his privates, Daniel growled but let go of her, his eyes sparkling in blue.
"Enough!" The alpha appeared in the corner of her vision, his voice no longer childish but powerful and authoritative. "Are you sure she'll works?
"Yes" Daniel confirmed. Amber widened her eyes, fearing the direction of that conversation.
The alpha smiled darkly. And without any warning, Daniel grapped her arms and all she felt was the pain of the bite.
Amber returned to consciousness slower than last time and with more pain. Her limbs were numb, her head throbbed and her spine was hurt, as if she had spent much time in one position. But her shoulder was the worst, perhaps she had never felt such deep pain, not even the extensive training she had done since childhood had left her so weak. It was such a strong pain she wanted to scream, but her voice wouldn't come out.
Amber spent some time like that, semi-conscious, until after a while she was able to feel anything but pain.
The cry escaped her lips while her eyes widened in alarm. The cry quickly ceased the moment Amber began to gasp, her eyes running everywhere trying to figure out where she was. The place was dark, even though the windows showed the shining sun.
After a second, Amber knew she was in the abandoned factory behind the cafeteria, one of the places that her father marked in the map. That thought made chills go down her spine, she had been brought there by a werewolf. Her neck throbbed again and she touched the injury with her fingertips.
It was a bite.
It had the exact shape of a human jaw, Amber was not stupid, she knew what the bite of an alpha did to you. At the next full moon you would be a monster like them. The thought of becoming a wolf disgusted her. And she was sure her parents would have the same reaction, or worse.
Amber didn't like crying, but she couldn't stop the salty tears running down her cheeks at the thought of his family. They would hate her. She would go from golden girl to disowned, she had doubts whether her parents would even let her go alive if they knew it.
The hunter's code, was clear in situations like that, suicide. She shivered at the thought, they would force her to do it, maybe Hazel would loose some tears, but Amber was sure that for her parents she died at the time the alpha bit her, for them, she would be nothing more, nor less, than the corpse of the daughter they once had, walking, asking to be buried. Amber could never do that, she wasn't brave enough, she did not believe enough.
Even if the girl loved her parents and sister, and she did. She wouldn't put herself in risk that way. Even if they hated her forever, she wouldn't take her own life, or let anyone take it. And it was in times like that Amber finally absorbed some of her father's features, the coldness when making difficult decisions. And the decision she made was the most cowardly of all (or the bravest, depending on your point of view), runaway. Make them think she had been killed along with Evan and Lucy, not seeing them seemed easier than kill them, Amber would never be capable of it.
She didn't have much time, soon they were going in search of three teenagers, and wouldn't find any. Even with the sore muscles, she got up from the hard, damp ground. Her tight clothes were frayed and dirty, she had lost one of her sneakers while she ran after Daniel and the sole of her foot was bleeding, but she didn't bother much. The wood creaked in her footsteps and the sun hurt her eyes as she left.
Amber knew Beacon Hills like the back of her hand, finding a way to get home with no one seeing her was easy. Amber was very known in the city and the girl was too proud to let people saw her as sloppy. The sun was beginning to rise, so most people were still asleep and she hoped that her parents had not arrived yet.
She arrived in front of her street and almost turned around. Her house stood majestically with the sun shining behind, it was intimidating, it terrified Amber, wantingo her to lower her head, enter the house and accept fate. She took a deep breath and crossed the street, stopping again to check if her parent's car was at home, lucky for her, it wasn't.
Silently, the girl climbed the wall to get to her room. Passing one leg at a time, she made sure that no one saw her, she didn't need her neighbors warning her parents that she had come through the window. Her bedside clock read 5:32 am, her parents usually returned at that time, she had to hurry. She took one of her giant bags and put as many clothes as she could, shirts, jackets, jeans and shoes, leaving space for her greatest achievement, her louboutin boots... Then went down to get money, food and her mobile phone.
When was packing her beauty items (Amber was still a very vain girl) she heard a car coming up on the street. Amber almost thanked her new hearing, she gathered her things and jumped out of the window before the car arrives the home.
Pass unnoticed carrying a pink giant suitcase was not so easy, but she managed to get to a park, far enough to take some times to her parents find her. Silently, she went back to crying, tears falling without control, drenaline left her body and and now she felt the weight of her turbulent night and everything she was going to suffer from now on. She was completely lost. Amber was fourteen, she was a werewolf now, she had no idea what was going to happen to her.
She cried until she sobbed, rubbing her eyes with dirty hands from dirt and blood, soon the park would be filled with people, soon someone would recognize her and send her home, what was the last thing she wanted at this time. Her phone vibrated for a few moments, she sighed and picked up, it would take her head of despair a little, so she could think. It was a text from Hazel, asking where she was. And her heart sank a little, knowing she could never answer her twin.
Suddenly she had an idea, perhaps as stupid as all the one she has taken so far. She went to her contact list and clicked the number she was looking for.
The person took a while to answer, but Amber was there waiting, biting her lip to keep back the tears.
"Uh ... Hello? " She asked confused and Amber fully understood, they were friends, but they were not exactly close, not enough for a call that early in the morning.
"A-Allison? I need your help"
I just wanted to tell you a little of how this story came up, Amber appeared in a Teen Wolf's brazilian rpg, one day re-reading what I wrote for that rpg (and reviewing TW), came the idea of putting in a fic, then bychance you recognize it, I'm stealing Amber from myself, lol.
And to you that just like me like to imagine actors as the characters, here it goes:
Amber/Hazel Heather: Chloë Grace Moretz ('cos she's bae)
Caius Heather: Aaron Eckhart
Aubrey Heather: Vera Farmiga
Evan Blackburn: Liam Hemsworth
Lucy Blackburn: Willa Holland
Daniel Carrington: Hunter Parrish
The Alpha: Jai Courtney
So, don't forget to review, this was a loong chapter, I'm very awere of that, so that's a lot to talk about, right? Kisses for all of you, and until next time.
- Lavs