It was soft enough that I had to strain my hearing to listen. The faint melody of Tchaikovsky playing ever so softly. I basked in the reminiscence of his "1812 Overture" that was so gracefully and gradually being carried to my ears, bringing with it all the dastardly, catastrophic, and joyful events of my past.

My parents, former CIA agents, had been MIA since I was seven. For ten years I have been staying in the White house being as my parents were so close with the president. Over the years I have trained to be the best assassin in all the agencies. Today, my parents were renounced as KIA. Their bodies, decapitated and almost unrecognizable were sent to the White house from Russia with a note addressed to me.

'Dearest Zoella Montgomery,

I am sorry to inform you that I killed your parents. Although with all that training you were doing I'd say that you were trying to achieve something. I wanted to warn you ahead of time that I will be claiming my prize. You see, your parents and I once played a risky game. They never wanted a child so they made the winning prize their lovely little girl. Can you guess who lost? Soon, Zoella, I will be coming for you. My son needs a beautiful wife with exotic looks. You fit the category perfectly and you're already mine.

Proshchaniye,
Kalona '

My heart stopped. Neither of my parents wanted me. When did they make that deal? Was I already born? To be honest, if I remember correctly, they didn't even act like they wanted me. That's why I got so close to the president and his wife.

President Link Forbes, who was reading the letter from over my shoulder, rubbed my back comfortingly. Him and his wife, Caroline have been like a pair of replacement parents. They did everything that parents were supposed to do. I even started calling them mom and dad. They have even taken to calling me their daughter at events.

"We won't let him take you, Zoey," he assured me.

No one calls me by my real name unless I'm in trouble.

"What are we going to do? Obviously he has spies in the building. They've reported back to him that I've been training," I said, on the edge of hysteria.

"Bring Aphrodite and move to Oklahoma. Caroline and I have found a long, lost relative. She was your mother's mother. Sylvia Redbird lives on a small lavender farm outside of Broken Arrow."

"Will I ever see you again?"

"We'll visit every weekend and while we're there we can put together a plan of how to keep you safe."

"Why should I bring Aphrodite?" Aphrodite LaFont was my best friend. She was like a sister to me and I would love to have her with me, but she has a life. Aphrodite got married at seventeen because people in our line of work don't live long.

"Because I love you, Z. Darius and I are coming with you no matter what," Aphrodite said, walking through the door with Darius in suit.

I smiled sadly at the both of them. "You really don't have to do that."

"Yes, we do. Besides, there are some people that need some serious protecting at Falling Stars."

"Falling Stars?"

"The high school that we'll be positioned at. Not only will there be people protecting you, you'll be working."

I turned to the president in relief. "Seriously, dad, I thought you were just going to make me go to Oklahoma and tell me I couldn't work anymore."

"You're the best assassin out there, Zoey. Why would I tell you that you couldn't work?"

I smiled sheepishly. "When do we leave?"

Aphrodite stepped forward. "The private jet is all ready. I called before Darius and I came here."

"Thank you, Aphrodite," President Forbes said.

Aphrodite smiled at him. "You're welcome. Now, come on, Z. I'm going to help you pack." Aphrodite grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the oval office and to my room.

"Good news. I called the principal at Falling Stars. She works for the CIA so she knows all about you and the lovebirds over there." President Forbes pointed to Aphrodite and Darius who were in the back of the jet making out.

I picked up a book from the seat next to me and chucked it at them. Aphrodite caught it before it hit either one of them. She removed her mouth from Darius's and smirked at me. "Nice try, bitch."

I stuck my tongue out. "Watch yourself, whore."

We smiled at each other before returning to what we were doing. President Forbes smiled at the two of us before continuing the conversation. "Sylvia knows everything as well. The three of you will be staying with her until we get a hit on Kalona." He was about to say something else, but Caroline walked out of the bathroom with a huge smile on her face.

"I'm pregnant," the brunette announced.

I beamed at her while Link got up and hugged her. "I guess a congratulations is in order. Congratulations, mom."

Caroline smiled. "You're going to be the best big sister ever, Zo."

"If everyone would please take their seats. We will be landing in five minutes," John announced on the intercom.

I got up and let Caroline take my seat. I sat down next to Aphrodite and squeezed her hand. She squeezed mine back as we landed. My heart rate started to pick up. I couldn't tell if I was excited or just anxious. I was going to meet my grandma. My real grandma. Both of my parents said that all of my living relatives were dead. Obviously not.

When the plane landed, I spotted a little old lady with gray hair. Guessing that that was Sylvia Redbird, I ran into her arms. "Welcome home, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya."

"You really are my grandma?" I'm betting I had tears in my eyes. I know that Sylvia did.

"I am." Grandma smiled.

"How come my mom said I didn't have any living relatives?"

"Linda was always a peculiar girl. She told me that she never wanted me in your life, but she still sent photos. Maybe to make me feel jealous of some sort. Perhaps she didn't want the hassle of having to take you to see me every so often, although I would have went to you."

I smiled. "I feel like I've known you forever."

"I feel the same way, Zoeybird. Would you all mind coming inside the house with me? I sense there's going to be a storm."

"You don't mind us staying here until the storm passes over?" Caroline asked politely.

Grandma smiled a heart warming smile. "Not at all." The six of us headed inside and just as the door closed, the rain started to pelt the grass and lavender plants.

The storm lasted all night. Fortunately, it was just a minor storm. As soon as I said my goodbyes to Caroline and Link, Grandma explained that I had to go to Falling Stars with Aphrodite and Darius. Sure, we'd be the oldest there, but we're only going to be there as seniors. Probably not even for the rest of the year. We didn't have to wear uniforms being as it was our first day, but everyone wanted me to not look like an outcast. So I was given a black sweater, a white collared blouse, a black mini skirt (no one cared about the size of the skirt), and black stilettos. The stilettos were courtesy of Aphrodite. She wanted us to look good on our first day. Mine and Aphrodite's hair was neatly tied back into a high pony tail. Our long hair cascaded down our backs until it reached our waist. And that was with it tied up.

For the past ten years, Link and Caroline home schooled me. I'm already smarter than the average person. That is one of the requirements of being an assassin. You need to know everything about everything. You need to know when to get the hell out of a situation, for sure.

Grandma dropped us off at Falling Stars at six in the morning. You'd think we were tired, but we weren't. "Bye Grandma!" Aphrodite and I called as Grandma drove away in her car.

Aphrodite and I sauntered towards the main office in our matching outfits while Darius followed in suit closely behind us. As we walked down the hallways, people stopped and stared. When we arrived at the main office, the principal welcomed us with open arms. "Welcome to Falling Stars. My name is Thanatos."

"Like the god of death?" I asked.

Thanatos smiled with amusement. "You'll see that a lot of the teachers here use names of great power."

I smiled back. "Okay, well, we'll just be getting our schedules then."

Thanatos handed the three of us our schedules, which were all the same, and we headed off to our first class. Drama with Professor Nolan. The rest of our schedule went like this: Gym with Dragon; Language Arts with Professor Blake; History with Lenobia; Science with Professor Nyx; Cooking with Professor Shekinah; Study Hall; Math with Professor Anastasia Lankford. Lunch was scheduled for in between Language Arts and History. When we walked into the class, all heads turned in our direction. Everyone's mouths were ajar and their eyes were wide. It must look pretty weird to see three beautiful (not trying to be full of myself) people walk into your classroom when they could have chosen better schools. Flawless skin, perfect hair, 20/20 vision, bodies like two goddesses and a god. Professor Nolan cleared her throat to catch the class's attention as we walked to the three empty seats in the back of the class. Although one person continued to stare. She had short, curly blonde hair and blue eyes. I thought she was beautiful in a little girl kind of way. In particular she stared right at me. It was like her eyes bore into my soul. She looked like she was trying to figure something out. Someone from in front of her grabbed her arm.

Another person that sat to her left decided to stare at me. She was the color of cappuccino (the kind you get from real coffee shops and not the nasty, too-sweet stuff you get from Quick Trip) and all curvy with pouty lips and high cheekbones that made her look like an African princess. She also had some seriously good hair. It was thick and fell in thick, glossy waves around her shoulders. Her eyes were so dark they looked like they didn't have any pupils. Honestly, she was beautiful just like her (I'm assuming) friend. Now, I finally got a good glimpse at the person who got the blonde's attention. She looked Caucasian with her blue eyes, creamy skin and long, straight, blond hair. You could tell she was rich by the designer uniform she wears.

Professor Nolan had begun her lesson, talking about dialogue. I leaned back in my seat and tried to pay attention, but I just couldn't. My mind kept drifting to the girls a few seats in front of me. Why had they kept staring?

Aphrodite leaned over the bar that connected her seat to the desk and gave my hand a squeeze. "We'll make it out of this," she whisper so low that I had to strain to hear it. "You'll be fine and we'll get to go back to you-know-where."

I took a deep breath and nodded. "I know. I'm just fearful," I whispered at the same voice level as her.

Aphrodite smiled at me. "Darius and I have got your back."

Someone from in front of us cleared their throat. Aphrodite's gaze shifted up. As did mine. The boy in front of us had dark brown hair and brown colored eyes. "Can you please move your arm?" He asked in a quiet voice.

I heard audible gasps from in front of us. The girls from before stared at the boy. "And you are?" Aphrodite sneered.

"Damien Maslin," the boy said with confidence.

"You can go around," Aphrodite hissed, eyes narrowed.

"Aphrodite!" I chastised. Aphrodite shrugged and pulled her arm back. I looked up at Damien. "I'm so sorry for my sister's behavior."

Damien smiled at me. "It really is no problem..."

"Zoey Redbird," I said deciding that I liked Grandma's last name more than my own.

"Zoey," he said as if trying it out. "Why don't you come sit with me and my friends at lunch?"

"I'd love to." Aphrodite threw me a look causing me to roll my eyes. "That is if I could bring my sister and her boyfriend."

"As look as the hag," the blonde with designer clothing started.

"From hell is contained," the cappuccino colored girl finished.

I sighed inwardly before answering. "I will. She has slight anger issues."

"Hey," Aphrodite complained.

I threw her a cheeky smile. Damien and the three girls chuckled before Damien said goodbye and went to go take his seat. Darius looked like he was just about to say something , but Professor Nolan intercepted him. "Zoey, do you mind coming with me for a second?"

I could see and feel (almost as if they were next to me) Aphrodite and Darius stiffen. Professor Nolan gave me a reassuring smile. Darius and Aphrodite relaxed a little bit, but were still tense. The girls in front of us raised their eyebrows at us. I got up and headed towards the door where Professor Nolan walked out. Professor Nolan stood there with eight other people. One of them being Thanatos. After about a minute of introductions, Thanatos decided to enlighten me on why this was happening.

"Zoella, I would just like to make it clear that we can trust these people. I wouldn't have told them if we couldn't. Now, I've explained to these teachers of your situation. They will keep an eye on you as you watch everyone else." After a moments hesitation she started talking again. "Do you mind coming with me? I need to talk to you about your job."

I nodded and followed her down the long hallway. The other teachers dismissed themselves and went back to their classrooms. Aphrodite and Darius will be furious that I didn't tell them , but who cares? I was safe with Thanatos. I hoped anyway.

"Zoella, will you keep an eye on one of the students Dallas?"

"Of course, Thanatos."

"Be careful and mindful that he has followers that do what he does. Maybe not as bad, but they'll follow in his footsteps."

The classes went by in a daze. Soon enough, it was lunch time. Damien showed me, Aphrodite, and Darius around for the next several classes until lunch. Link and Caroline already prepaid for our lunch for the rest of the year so we just grabbed food and put in a pin code. Aphrodite took a Caesar salad and a cup of chocolate pudding. She absolutely loves that stuff. I took a pizza as did Darius. We took a seat with Damien and his friends. Across the table was a really hot guy. He had light brown hair and dark eyes. The boy was wearing a Pink Floyd t-shirt and blue jeans.

"I'm Zoey Redbird," I introduced myself and stuck out my hand.

The boy shook my hand and electric shocks went up my arm. We both quickly retreaded our arms and began introducing the others. "I'm James Stark, but my friends call me Stark."

"Does this mean I'm considered a friend?" I asked playfully.

James smirked cockily. "Hell yeah."

I chuckled. "This is my sister, Aphrodite, and her boyfriend Darius."

"She's your sister?" The blonde with the short curly hair asked with a countrified twang.

I shook my head, amused. "Adopted."

Aphrodite scoffed. "I'll always be the prettier one."

"Not likely," Stark muttered under his breath.

I ignored it since I probably wasn't supposed to hear that.

"I'm Stevie Rae Johnson," the blonde with the accent said. "These are my friends Erin Bates, Shaunee Cole, Jack Twist, Kramisha Long, Erik Night, Shaylin Ruede, and Damien Maslin, but you already knew that."

They all smiled at me. I returned the gesture and said," It's nice to meet all of you."

After our exchange at lunch and the welcoming chat, the rest of the day went by extremely quickly. Aphrodite, Darius and I said our goodbyes and headed off. I told Grandma not to bother coming to pick us up because it was nice out and I wanted to check out the town. Thankfully, it was a really nice evening. Plus I trusted that we'd be safe considering that the three of us had concealed weapons in our belts. I felt bad about lying to our new group of friends, but we can't trust them. Although that Stark guy is pretty hot. Imagine all the things you could do- Zoey! Get your mind out of the gutter.

Stevie Rae

"Stark, you totally have the hots for Zoey!" I exclaimed.

Stark clamped a hand over my mouth and glared at me. "Shut up! No one needs to know. Plus she's not in my league and that family is hiding something. Something big."

I shrugged. "So you like a mass murderer. Who cares? Me, Damien, Jack, Kramisha, Shaylin, and the Twins want to be friends."

"What about Erik?" Stark asked.

"He thought she was a whore. I think he's still getting over the issue that his last girlfriend had sex with his best friend."

Stark bit his fist. "Damn. I never thought I'd see the day when I don't have to compete against him for the girl I like."

"Ha! So you do like Zoey. Well, get close to her and maybe you can find out that big secret of hers."

A/N: It's a bigger secret than you'd think, Stevie Rae. This is my first AH House of Night fanfic... Do you guys want me to continue or no? I won't continue unless I get at least two reviews.

XOXOXO

DeathAssassinFaerie