Darkness settled amongst the leaves that had fallen outside the house, the house in which it had happened. Outside, an owl hooted, a deer ran across the road, and a car drove by, its occupants unaware of the terrors that were happening a mere few feet away from them.

Brigitte envied them.

Crouching on the floor next to Sam, the brave soul who dared to stand by her, she looked up at the fearsome creature her sister had become. Glowing green eyes was the only physical feature left of Ginger, Brigitte's older sister. Otherwise, the creature, as Brigitte had come to call the thing in her mind, was gigantic, terrifying, and a golden werewolf. Brigitte would have screamed, but fear kicked in before natural instinct.

"Ginger…Ginger, please!" she begged.

The creature roared, looking hungrily at Sam.

Sam looked over at Brigitte, his eyes fluttering shut. "Brigitte…" he whispered, "Don't stay…"

Brigitte rolled her eyes. "I am not leaving you!" Turning to Ginger, she said in as calm of a voice as she could, "We always agreed to be together, remember? I love you, Ginger. Don't do this. Ginger, you don't have to do this!"

The creature snarled, sniffing Sam before taking a bite out of his shirt, letting it fall gently to the ground. Brigitte couldn't help but notice the toned, muscular chest that he had, nor could she ignore his handsome features. Blinking, she snapped back to reality, back to focusing on Ginger, on what Ginger had become.

"Ginger, listen to me. This isn't you, okay? You're not like this!"

Ginger howled, causing tremors to erupt throughout the house. Books were knocked off of shelves, china fell out of the cabinet in the kitchen in which the feud was taking place. Moving closer to Ginger, Brigitte whispered, "Take me, Ginger. Take me, not Sam. He's done nothing. I'm sorry that I locked you up. But it was for your own good, trust me. I-we-can help you. But you have to trust us-"

Ginger let out another violent howl, knocking a painting off of the wall. The painting struck Sam, knocking him unconscious. Panicking, Brigitte took a deep breath, trying to stay calm.

Calm was the last thing that would come to any of them, unfortunately.

There was the sound of a car again-this time one pulling into their house.

Wide-eyed, Brigitte tried to reason with herself. What would she say to her parents? They would be afraid, too. Nothing seemed to make sense anymore. When the door swung open and her mother, Pamela, stood there, Brigitte simply looked from Brigitte to her mother in horror.

"Ginger Renee, how many times do I have to tell you to take your medicine, young lady?" Handing Ginger a few capsules, her mother sighed and turned to Brigitte. "I remember my first time as a werewolf," she mused quietly, running a hand through her auburn hair. "Those are rough days, aren't they, Ginger?"

Ginger took the pills, coughed, and turned back to her normal self. "What's new, B?" she winked, looking at her sister.

Pamela said in her calm, motherly voice, "Brigitte, maybe you and your young man should go off and get something to eat. Get some air. Clear your heads. You look a bit peaked, to be honest."

Brigitte was too startled to do anything but grab Sam and run. Rousing him from his slumber, she ushered him out into his van, turned the keys in the ignition and drove off.

He was hysterical, confused, and frightened. "Brigitte, what's going on?"

"Sam, it's okay. Everything's okay. Ginger's back to normal."

"What?"

"It turns out that I've got a mom-wolf."

He cringed. "That's creepy. Your mother was a werewolf."

"Is. She is a werewolf."

Sam looked at her. "Thanks for getting me out of there. You were really brave."

"No problem." Now was not the time for niceties. "Anyways, where are we going?"

"Well, we can go to my house…"

"I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Why not?"

"I'm not thrilled with your lifestyle, to be honest."

He gave a dry laugh. "Come on, Brigitte. Don't be like that, okay? Anyways, I was kidding. I have no idea."

She glanced over at him. "I need some air right now. Things are too weird."

He put his hand on her shoulder. "Come on. I'll tell you what. I'll buy you some dinner."

"At midnight?"

"Sure."

"Who's open at midnight?"

He said sarcastically, "No one. That's why I offered."

Great, she thought, more of the sarcasm. Maybe Ginger should've torn into him after all…

He seemed to sense that he had annoyed her, for he said, "Brigitte, just go to this restaurant here. The food's good." Sam was not good with apologies.

Brigitte complied, parking a little crooked but decent for someone who didn't even have a license yet. She and Sam picked a small table at the back, where they ordered burgers, fries, and shakes. When they got their food, they ate so ravenously that they could have been mistaken for malnourished children.

Darkness had fallen completely, encompassing everything. Yet a light still existed in Brigitte's heart when she replayed the events of the day over in her mind. Ginger was saved, and without any violence or bloodshed. Her mother was home, and, for once, she and Ginger seemed to be getting along rather well.

And, best of all, Brigitte ended up alone with Sam.

He looked at her from across the table, their eyes meeting. They were a team now, the two of them. Brigitte still loved Ginger, but there was a large problem with trust between them now. Sam would become a permanent fixture in Bridget's life. Although she did not know for how long, she knew that it would never be long enough. Taking his hand in hers, Brigitte suddenly felt powerful, as though she could rule the world with him by her side. They did not know where they were headed. They did not know how they would get there. All they knew was that they had each other and that was enough for them.