A/N: Hello All! This is my story The Thorn In My Side, this is actually a rewrite of a story I wrote 4 years ago and I thought it needed a little refreshing so I hope you like it. Welcome all my new readers! It's going to be pretty different to the other one so you definitely don't need to have read the other one aha. So please enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do own the original, so I own the idea. But not the fandom or anything to do with the fandom

The Thorn In My Side

Prologue – How It All Started

Many people would have assumed that the room was empty, as was the rest of the house. It was an abandoned house, situated right on the outside of town that no one ever went into and mostly forgot about. Until a few hours before nothing very exciting had ever happened in this house when the whole world of a small family was turned upside down.

This family consisted of only three people; a mother, a father and a small child of only two years old. They were not a normal family, no matter how hard they tried to be, after having run away from the mother's family they attempted to blend in with the crowd but it was very hard for 3 shape-shifters to go unnoticed. Eventually, they were found.

As I said, many people would assume that the room was empty, but it wasn't. Underneath the side table, tucked into the very corner of the room, draped in an old, tattered and musty tablecloth, was a small bundle of fur. This small bundle was shaking violently.

Young Isabella had shifted, due to her fright, into her wolf form although it was of no use or protection to her. Her young mind tried desperately to comprehend the events of the day, but they all blurred together in a confusing mess of images and emotions that she couldn't understand.

Her mother, looking scared as she picked Isabella up this morning, babbling frantically about something to her father that she was too sleepy to understand. Driving for hours, scenery rushing by as she tried to hand her head out of the window. She was too little to have good enough control over her shifter tendencies. Coming to this house, late at night. Then suddenly her mother, hiding her under the table. Lots of loud noises, men shouting, a woman screaming. She had peaked out but it was too dark, figures rushed around the room, occasionally caught in the moonlight like grotesque camera flashes. Then silence. The men had left.

All she really knew was that she was alone.

Hours later more people arrived and as Isabella heard them she started whinging uncontrollably the fear taking her over. She just wanted her mummy.

Someone lifted the dusty tablecloth. "Hey" came a woman's voice "over here."

Another person crowded over and Isabella flinched away. "Oh look at her, she's terrified. She must have seen the whole thing. Come here little one, we're going to take you somewhere safe." A man's voice soothed her as he reached under the table scooping the shifter pup into his hands. "It's okay" he stroked the raised hackles until she relaxed in his arms "we're going to take you home."

Isabella couldn't see anything as they carried her away. She whimpered slightly, looking for her mother and father. But part of her already knew that she would never see them again.

~TTIMS~

Thorn Redfern was a natural vampire, abandoned as a baby by whoever his parents were. The people who had found him in the cardboard box had named him this because he was found under a rose bush. He was picked up by circle daybreak just a few weeks after being put in the care home as reports of the children gaining strange wounds attracted their attention. The very tell-tale sign of two small puncture holes leaking blood.

He had spent the last 3 years living in the big mansion with everyone else, but he wasn't a normal child. Not loud and annoying, always crying and begging for attention. He was quiet and reserved; he preferred to be alone and shunned as much company as he could. Especially intelligent for his age he enjoyed reading and drawing at which he excelled, even his stick men had shading.

When Isabella arrived everybody put them together, two children of the same age, what a wonderful opportunity, now they wouldn't have to be alone. Maybe Thorn would even be happy for once.

At first the two children were very wary of each other, every time Thorn looked at her she instinctually shifted, ready to defend herself if need be. Slowly, when it was clear that he wasn't going to rip her throat out Isabella began to relax. She didn't grow closer to him but when they were made to play together she was no longer quiet and still, she would run and jump, sit and scribble, sing and dance but still keeping a safe distance. Just in case.

One day, this frosty and distant relationship was brought to an end. It started off fairly normally, a beautiful June day everybody thought it would be a good idea to let the children play outside, the fresh air would be good for them. They were sent out with one of Thierry's assistants who said she would look after the young ones.

Whilst she sat on a bench reading her book young Isabella thought that it would be fun to climb a big old oak tree with lots of low hanging branches. She scampered up, higher and higher, excited. Looking down she could see Thorn, watching her, silently of course, with dark curious eyes, looking amused and sceptical.

Well, she thought, I'll show him, as she continued to climb higher still. It got to the point where she was about three quarters of the way up and looked down in order to gloat even further. Then she saw how far away the ground was and her legs locked. They began to shake as she clung to the branch, eyes wide with fear, heart pounding. She couldn't bring herself to move let alone climb down, she didn't realise her fear of heights until that very moment.

On the ground looking up Thorn saw the sudden change in her behaviour and sighed, he had known this would happen. Little wolves were too full of bravado, they did not know that they were made to stay firmly on the ground. But he couldn't let this foolish little girl get stuck there and so he began to climb up to her, slowly helping to unwrap her from the branches she clung to his back instead as he brought her down back to safety.

~TTIMS~

From that day on they were inseparable, at first it was because Isabella would not leave him alone, she would follow him everywhere, like a lost puppy, with wide adoring eyes. And then as they got older it became more of an even ground Isabella started to develop a very loud and stubborn personality to counteract his quiet but equally stubborn nature, however Thorn was a lot more patient than she would ever be.

They fought, a lot, but it never usually lasted long and it was only really because they were so alike that they fought at all. They equally enjoyed each other's company and did everything together, reading, writing, playing, eating. Everything. Isabella would shift into a wolf and they would play chase and they would always visit their tree. She found that she wasn't so scared of heights when he was with her.

When Thorn turned 13 he was given the choice of whether or not to start training so that when he became 18 he could join as a fully-fledged member of Circle Daybreak. Of course he wanted to agree immediately but that meant it would take up his time and he wouldn't be able to see Isabella as much, he couldn't leave her, so he begged for another year so that they could both train together.

For many years all was well and peaceful between the two best friends. But it was no destined to last.

Please please review! I really really want to know what you think and I promise this does get more exciting!

Much Love,

MaryandMerlin x