Twisting, snarling, raw, unleashed, pure, power. Teeth, fur, claws, tails, red eyes. She was a massive beast, twice the size of the biggest dog. Fallon backed away, fear evident on his face. The vampires watched on from a distance. Michael, Shane and Eve stood together, watching in awe – and fear.
She felt the change come over her, couldn't stop it. Knew what their reaction would be, too late now. Suddenly she was done, and the beast was unleashed. Her fury at him was uncontrollable. She could sense the others fear, and was incredibly saddened – more than she had expected. But the moment was gone and she pursued her prey, which was scrambling back, making an awful lot of racket. Without pausing for effect, or anything that vampires like to do, she pounced, and killed. His screams lasted a while. When she was done, she turned. The vampires were watching, some with awe, some with fear, a lot with anger. They didn't like not being alone at the top of the food chain. She ignored them, and focused on them. Her housemates. They stood close together, wary still, and she suddenly had an image in her mind's eye of what she must look like, covered in the blood of her enemies. Like old times. Old memories were surfacing, of the times before , when she had been free to roam the hillsides, making whole villages extinct, three, four at a time. And that was when she was bored. She lowered her head, and turned to go. What had she been thinking, that they would just accept her? She should have known better, after all this time.
But as she turned to go, her name was spoken. She looked back, but it was not her housemates. No, it was Myrnin. She appreciated the irony. Of course, the mad man would be the only one to accept her as she truly was. "Don't you think you should give them a chance? She stared at him for a moment, surprised. That wasn't what she had expected him to say. But still, she couldn't expect him to fully understand, understand how many times she had been rejected, hunted, stared at. How hard it was for her to do this, to stay here, waiting for their judgement. She paused, and in that pause, they came.
They reached her at the same time, but he was the one to reach out first. Shane reached his hand out, and she flinched, just a little bit, but enough to show how scared she was. No, terrified. He saw that , she saw , in her eyes, and still he reached out, resting his hand on her head. His eyes were wide, but then, she supposed, so were hers. Eve stretched out, then Michael. They moved their hands, and Claire realised she was being petted. Everything in her told her to run, run run as fast as she could. But after a few moments, when they didn't recoil in revulsion at her fur, at her teeth, at her whole being, she started to relax. "Jeez Claire" Eve whispered, uselessly. The vampires were still there, watching history be made. "You could have told us" She shifted, and as she did so, Shanes hand caught under her ear. She stiffened, and they paused in their rubbing, but when she didn't move, they continued. A low sound came from her chest, not a growl, and after a moment of puzzlement, Claire realised she was groaning. In pleasure. IN happiness. She shifted, and brushed up against them. Eventually, the vampires dispersed, and they were the only ones left. "So, you coming home then?" Michael asked, still in awe. She butted her head against him, a clear yes. He smiled, relieved, and she realised he had been afraid she would say no, would abandon them. She was shocked. How could he think that? After what she had done? They were the first to accept her, as she was. The first. They set off, but when she didn't follow immediately, eve stopped, and turned. Claire nudged her on again, but waited for someone else. She had to show someone else she could trust him.
Myrnin came out of the shadows, where he had been all along. She padded toward him, and he remained relaxed, his eyes scanning her whole body. She sat next to him, and without hesitating he put his hand on her head and began scratching. She wagged her tail, and he chuckled. "So this was your big secret then?" Hardly worth getting excited over" he teased her. She sighed, a sharp expulsion of air, and leaned against him, bumping him into the wall.
All was well, finally. She had a home, and a family who accepted her for who she was.