Chapter 1

Luther lifted his head to the lush canopy above. Scattered rain pelted his face from beyond the branches. He sucked a deep breath through his nose and released it slowly from his mouth. People could say what they wanted to about Forks. It was heaven to him. It served as a refuge for everything he loved; wildlife, the soothing smell and sound of rain, small town folks and their idiosyncrasies, and, best of all, all kinds of legends and myths to immerse himself in.

He took another whiff of the rain soaked air before checking his watch. He had fifteen minutes before his first class started. That was plenty of time. He hopped down from the fallen tree trunk that served as his perch and loped along through the trees in the direction of the high school. He didn't get far when an enchanting noise caught his ear. He smirked to himself when he recognized it as the lightning fast heartbeat of a startled rabbit. For a moment, and only a moment, he considered chasing it. No, he had to fit the part, boring as that tended to be. He resumed his trip to school in a lazy trot.

Something was off when Luther entered the school grounds. The scent of excitement and hormones was thick in the air. He squeezed his eyes shut and shook the cloying odor out of his nose. His worn sneakers squeaked on the wet pavement as he made his way across the parking lot. Mike Newton, an acquaintance of Luther's who was slowly becoming a friend, offered him a cheery wave. Luther put on his usual close-lipped smirk and gave a slight nod in response. Mike's gaze wandered away to something just beyond Luther. He turned to see just what was so interesting.

It was a girl. She was new to the school, perhaps, and certainly nervous. Other than that, he didn't see what had Mike so intrigued. He gave her a friendly smirk which she reciprocated with angsty discomfort. She smelled terrified underneath the brooding face that almost certainly served as her armor. She was friendless. Almost defenseless. It was an understandable reaction to being in a new place, but it was that sort of fear that separated the predators from the prey. This new girl was definitely prey, but not the kind that interested him. He resumed his stroll to his first period class.

If he got there in time, there was a chance he could find his seat and bury himself in his notes before Alice arrived. She had caught him staring a couple times before, and he didn't want to revisit that embarrassment. That girl was something else. She definitely wasn't human; she smelled too dead for that. Her scent wasn't, unpleasant, though. Hers was a sweet sort of decay. She reminded him of the flowers people pressed in books. She was as vibrant as if she were alive, but she had a fragile kind of beauty that only dead things possessed. And yet, there was strength to her. He got the impression that her rightful place was somewhere at the top of the food chain, like him. He shook his head and pushed through the classroom door. How corny could he get?

Her faintly sweet scent hit him before he could lay eyes on her. He felt blood rush to his face and quickly took his seat. He could have imagined it, but he thought those beautiful large eyes had turned his direction. He flipped open his notebook and fumbled for a pencil at the bottom of his backpack. He couldn't find one. A soft tap registered through the thick material of his fleece jacket. He looked up. There, in all of her pixie-esque glory, was Alice. She smiled at him and he felt as though his face was on fire.

"I've got extras," she said, holding out a pencil to Luther.

"Th-thanks. Thank you," he stammered. He was mortified when his voice broke at the end of the sentence.

She gave him a kind smile and returned to her seat. Luther feverishly wished he could disappear, but nothing happened to relieve his humiliation. He hunched over his notebook and reviewed his notes with such intensity that his head started to hurt. Why couldn't he have just brought a pencil to school? It wasn't that much to ask. But then, if he had, she wouldn't have touched his shoulder. He could still feel that tiny tap against his jacket. He looked down at the pencil in his hand. Alice's pencil. He was holding Alice Cullen's pencil. At least he had that small victory to cling to.

The period crawled on in a blur of words and power-point slides. Luther took his notes as he should, but his focus was trained in Alice's direction. Her constant companion, Jasper, was not seated far away and he was very pointedly watching Luther. Luther could never figure Jasper's involvement with Alice. Were they a couple? Brother and sister? The whole thing was admittedly weird, but somehow it didn't detract from Alice's allure.

Finally, the period ended. Luther packed up his things and took a deep breath. With all the courage he could muster, he crossed the room to where Alice was seated.

"Thanks again," he said as he held out the pencil to her. At least this time his voice stayed steady.

Alice favored him with another smile and held up one of her hands, "I've got enough pencils. Why don't you keep it?"

"You're sure?"

"Really, it's alright."

"Th-thanks, Alice," he stuttered, beginning to lose his composure again, "well, see you around."

"See you."

Luther hurriedly left the classroom before he could ruin their meeting with something even more awkward or stupid. When he had rounded the corner outside, he flopped against the wall of the building and clenched the pencil in triumph. He laughed to himself for a moment before making his way to the boy's locker room for P.E.

"So she gave you a pencil?" Mike Newton asked with a grin as he and Luther stretched for the period's warmup run, "That's like, halfway to first base, right?"

Luther gave him a playful shove, "Whatever. It's the most contact I've had with her ever, so I'm happy."

"Speaking of contact," Mike said with a smile, "I had a chance to hang out with that new girl, Bella. She's really cool! I'm thinking I might ask her out."

Luther looked up at Mike and cocked an eyebrow as he stretched out his hamstrings, "Really? I thought she was kind of odd. High-maintenance, maybe. But if you like her, man, go for it."

"What do you mean, high-maintenance?" Mike asked, pausing from his stretching routine.

Luther straightened up. He could explain the complications of adopting prey as a pet rather than letting nature take its course, but there didn't seem to be a point. Mike was preoccupied with her, and if Luther knew anything about Mike, he would continue to be preoccupied with her until something new came around, which was rare in Forks. Luther gave Mike his trademark close-lipped smirk.

"It was just the impression I got from her. Call it instinct."

Mike shrugged, "Still asking her out."

Luther rolled his eyes and they finished stretching. He closed his eyes and let the cold wash over him when they made their way to the track. He had a naturally higher body temperature that stifled him in his fleece, and it was a relief to have an excuse not to wear it. Mike shivered beside him.

"I'm starting to think that you don't have nerve endings," he mumbled ruefully.

"Or you're a wimp," Luther teased.

He kicked off into an easy trot before Mike could retort. His thoughts drifted as he followed the monotonous curve of the track. It had been a long time since he had been so content. He'd talked to Alice, she gave him her pencil, things were getting more comfortable with Mike, his grades were picking up... It was almost as if he was normal. His dad had been right. Forks was a good place for a new start. He would keep up the charade this time.

"You're off your game, man!"

Luther jerked out of his reverie. Mike had caught up with him and quickly passed him up. A growl escaped Luther's lips, but only loudly enough for him to hear. It was on. He picked up speed and zeroed in on Mike. There was no way he was going to let his friend beat him, not even once. He wove through the other runners with an almost graceful kind of precision and was on Mike's tail in moments. A small voice in the back of Luther's head reminded him that this kind of game was dangerous. He shook it away. He was in control. There was nothing to worry about. He pushed himself harder.

"What were you saying?" he called as he left Mike in the dust.

The rest of the day passed fairly quickly. Amid the usual collection of lessons and quizzes was the constant buzz about the new girl. It was true that Forks didn't see new students very often, but Luther couldn't figure out what the fuss was all about. She was just a girl. A shy, awkward, clumsy girl. There were several of them at the school. Really, the fascination with her was starting to become annoying. It was something of a relief when the final bell of the day rang.

Luther escaped the campus by the same route he had used that morning. He checked the fallen log that had previously been his perch when he passed it. His bag of essentials was still tucked into the hollowed out end of it. He doubted anyone would have wanted it if they found it. To anyone else it would have seemed like nothing. There was just a set of clothes, a full water bottle, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a stick of deodorant. But Luther had been caught without these things before, and the sight of them waiting for him was comforting. He would double check that the bag was there before the coming night's... events.

Honestly, the La Push reservation would have been a better setting for what was coming, but he couldn't risk anyone noticing a pattern. That had gotten him into trouble in the last town. This time, he had five different territories to choose from and he was very careful about keeping the incidents looking as natural and random as possible. Yes, this part of the forest would be his playground tonight.

His mom greeted him as he walked though the door. She was at the sink scrubbing at a stubborn glob of hardened food on a plate.

"Well, don't you look happy! Good day at school?"

Luther smirked, "You could say that."

His mom's lips pulled into a wide grin. She might not have had the senses he was gifted with, but her intuition seemed on par with telepathy at times. She set down the plate she had been cleaning and fixed him with her deep blue stare. She always got the information she wanted with that stare.

"You talked to that Alice girl, didn't you?"

Luther blushed, crossed to the refrigerator, and opened the door, "C'mon, Mom."

She returned to her scrubbing with a melodramatic sigh.

"Okay, fine. Don't tell your mother about it. It's not like she could give you advice about girls, or anything. Oh, and don't ruin your appetite. You know what happened last time you hunted on a full stomach."

Luther closed the refrigerator door and sighed, "Whatever you say, drama queen."

She laughed, "Well, if you're not going to tell me about it, go help your father. He could use a hand chopping firewood."

"You won't let me eat before a hunt, but I can exhaust myself with chores before I go?"

She lifted an eyebrow, "And I'm the drama queen?"

He snatched a couple of apples on his way out the door to the backyard. He smirked when his mother's protestations were muted by the closing door. His father gave him a nod in greeting before setting down his ax to wipe the sweat from his face.

"How'd you upset her this time?" he asked Luther.

Luther tossed his father one of the apples, "Eating."

His father chuckled and polished the apple on one of his pant legs before biting into it.

"Quite the offense. You know, your grandpa always ate a little bit before his hunts. He said it kept his head clear."

"Yeah?" Luther asked around a mouthful of apple.

His dad nodded as he took another bite, "He said it was all about balance. If he was hungry when he went out, he'd end up killing more than he had to. If he was full, he never really satisfied the need to hunt. He was always at his happiest somewhere in between."

Luther nodded, absorbing the information. His dad had always been helpful when it came to Luther's condition, and he was grateful for it, but he couldn't help wishing his grandpa was still around to give him pointers, too. From what he understood, his grandpa was a good man and an upstanding member of society despite his illness. He hadn't deserved what happened to him.

Luther's dad clapped him on the shoulder when he saw his son's clouding expression, "He'd be proud of you, you know."

Luther shrugged, "Maybe. It just... it makes me nervous. Grandpa played by the rules. He did everything right. Still, he got... he got..."

"Yes. He did. But that does not mean that it will happen to you. Hunting laws are a lot stricter in Washington and nobody knows what you are. Your grandpa was not as careful as he could have been."

"Still..."

"I could go with you," his father offered, taking another bite of apple, "if that would make you feel better."

Luther felt his face go pale. The thought terrified him. If the wolf got aggressive even for a second... he didn't want to think about it.

"No," he replied flatly.

His father frowned, "Now, son, I've been around hunts before. Hell, I've had to stand up to your grandpa before and he was a full grown wily lycan. I would have no problem going with you."

Luther shook his head, "No. Thanks, Dad. I'll be okay. I should probably go... It'll be dark soon."

His dad nodded, albeit unhappily. He gave Luther's shoulder a squeeze before he returned to the woodpile.

"See you in the morning, son."

"See you."

He swept through the back door, kissed his mom on the cheek, and was walking down the front walkway before she could finish saying goodbye. His skin felt too tight and his very bones felt wrong. It was already starting. He could feel that it would be a quick shift tonight, and that meant that he had to get out of sight quickly. What little light there was in the sky had started to fade.

As much as his parents did to help him they could never fully understand what it was like. His mother didn't have a drop of lycan blood in her veins and the illness skipped generations on his father's side. Not even his six brothers had to deal with his condition; only one still lived in the same house as him. Full moon nights had always been the loneliest and most alienating. This one was no exception.

He had hardly reached the fallen tree when he felt the familiar burning itch streak across his back. As quickly as he could, he stripped down to his underwear and checked to see that his essentials bag was still in place. He sighed in relief when he saw that it was, but that relief was short-lived. The shift was not going to wait any longer. With the ferocity that he had become familiar with but could never fully prepare for, the shift ripped through his body.

Skin stretched, tendons popped, muscles reshaped, and bones cracked. Thousands of red hot needles forced their way through his follicles and the pain teased a snarl from his half-formed vocal cords. His already heightened senses exploded. Every scent and sound bombarded him as his ears and nose assumed their final positions. He was a quivering heap of pale fur when the shift finally shuddered to a halt.

It took some time, as it always did, for his transformed muscles to stop trembling. When he was confident that he could stand he shook off the ruined tatters of his underwear. He took a few breaths and let the night fill his senses. Tonight this forest was his. Everything that he fought against for the rest of the month could come out to play. This was what freedom felt like.

He threw himself into a run. He wasn't tracking anything, not yet. Luther allowed himself to feel his muscles work like water over stones. Soon he'd let go. He'd let the wolf take over and his human side would sleep until morning. He just had to check that it was safe first, for both himself and anyone else who might be nearby.

A scent he couldn't place hit his nose and something ahead of him stirred. It was a huge shadow among shadows. It didn't smell like bear, though it was big enough to be. He gave a warning growl. The wolf inside forced his hackles to raise. It was railing against him for control. The shape growled in response, loud and intimidating. Luther stepped back, but the wolf stepped forward. It forced him to circle the mystery shape. This was the wolf's territory, at least for the night, and it wasn't going to give it up. Luther wanted to run, but the wolf locked his legs.

The wolf never spoke in words. It preferred visions. Now it pushed darkness across Luther's thoughts and conjured the sound of slumbering breath. It was time for Luther to sleep and he was powerless to stop it from overwhelming him. His vision clouded into blackness and the world went quiet.

AN: Reason dictates that I should not start another story while I'm working on Left 2Gether, but I saw the Twilight movie and had to write... something. I'm not really a fan of the series, but we'll see how this plays out.