Branded

Disclaimer:

Layla: hello!

Kasia: Howdy there Layla!

Shala: Yep HI!

Layla: Okay Shala, that was a bit over enthusiastic…

Shala; Oh I know.

Layla: Yep.

Kasia: Can we get back to what we are supposed to be saying?

-They're sitting in the cafeteria in the house of night.-

Layla; Yeah sure, of course.

Shala: What are we here for? This is the cafeteria, we're here to eat.

-Shala starts to get up.-

Layla: NO! Yes we may be in the most unlikely place, but this is a disclaimer, we're here to tell you that certain characters in this Fanfic series, does not belong to our dear creator, Zaira.

Shala: Oh ya.

-Shala sits back down.-

Kasia: Right, first of all, me, Layla and Shala, belong to Zaira. So no going off thinking that we belong to P.C and Kristen Cast, because we don't.

Layla: Now Zoey and John Heffer and all of Zoey's friends-

Shala: Don't forget Neferet…

-They all growl.-

Shala: and the other teachers.

-They all smile.-

Layla: yeah those too, they all belong to P.C and Kristen Cast and not Zaira.

Kasia: So there you have it, now we have to go get us some amazing food.

-Zoey sits down randomly.-

Zoey: What? Can't I randomly sit down here? We are friends after all.

Layla; yes of course. One more note, Zoey's friendship group is bigger than it is in the house of night books. And Aphrodite doesn't belong to our creator either, forgot to mention that.

Zoey: Yep, Aphrodite is too mean to belong to Zaira!

-Everyone laughs.-

Layla: I can be mean when I want too…

The others: WE KNOW!

-End of disclaimer.-

Chapter 2

We drove on down towards the House of Night, well at least I thought that's where my dad was heading, till I realized he was heading towards the lavender farm that Zoey's Grandma owned, like what the heck?

"Um, Dad, why are we going to Sylvia's lavender farm?" I asked, frowning at him, as the smell of fresh lavender filled my nose.

"I just want to tell her the… I guess it is good news, isn't it?" Dad asked me, glancing at me.

"Well yeah, I guess… but if I don't get to the House of Night soon, you know what happens…" I warned him, feeling a bit weird.

"Yes, I know, but we still have time, right? I mean you're not lying on the floor dying right now." He joked; okay I was a LOT like my dad.

"Yeah, you're right." I grinned.

"Then it's settled, we go say hi to Sylvia." My dad grinned back as we pulled up and stopped.

Kasia and Shala had been very quiet the whole journey, but now they had grins on their faces too; they loved it here, and frankly, so did I.

I saw Sylvia walk out from the lavender field, and came bustling over to us as we climbed out of the car.

"Oh! You've been blessed with a mark, I'm guessing you're making your way to the house of night?" Sylvia asked, smiling.

"Yeah, we wanted to tell you, so you wouldn't wonder why Layla wasn't coming to your farm." My dad smiled back.

"Well it's nice to know you'll be joining Zoeybird." Sylvia smiled at me.

"Well we can't stay long, I don't want Layla dying…" Kasia looked a bit sad.

"I know, I know." Sylvia patted Kasia on the arm. Gosh I love this woman.

After getting milk and cookies, we got back into the car, and headed away, leaving a waving Cherokee woman behind, gosh my life was really changing.

As we finally drove up into the house of night car park, I felt the weirdness I felt lift, finally, no more coughing! Gosh that makes me happy. Seriously coughing your life away hurts. My dad parked the car and we all got out, Shala's look of awkwardness had disappeared and now she was standing in awe at the beauty of the place. This was where I was staying now. Ohmaigawshyay! Um… Sorry, I'm just getting over-excited now, but eh, that's just me, as I said before. We walked up to what seemed to be the front doors to the House of Night. We had nearly reached the doors, they opened and a very beautiful woman came out, smiling. But something was wrong with that smile, but I couldn't put my finger on it. It was a fake smile non-the-less. I kept hearing other people's voices in my head… WAIT did I have a gift? Ohmaigawsh I can read minds! I concentrated on the beautiful woman, and I could hear something else going on in her head, but the thoughts were confused and muddled up. I left it at that cause my head was hurting and she was staring at me with a weird expression. Not good.

"Welcome to the House of Night, Layla." she said in a motherly voice.

"Thank you." How did she know my name?

"Your friends and dad will have to go now." She smiled that fake smile of hers.

"Oh yeah, of course." My dad sighed, "Good bye my pet." My dad gave me a giant hug and then walked off before he could burst into tears, and that would totally embarrass me.

"Buh-bye Layla…" Kasia said in amongst tears.

"Bye Kazzie!" I couldn't hold it any longer; I burst into tears as I hugged my two best friends' for not so life.

"I'm gonna miss you, Layla." Shala whispered in my ear and then they both ran off to my dad's car so they couldn't be seen bawling their eyes out anymore.

Neferet lead me into the school, walking swiftly. "I'm gonna take you to the dorms, nobody's up yet, well at least I think there isn't." She smiled, looking down at me.

There was something really wrong with this person, but what was it? Next thing I knew we were outside again, making our way across the grounds of the school, towards another big building.

"Wow, this place is better than I first thought." I exclaimed, staring around at the beauty of the place.

"Yes, it is a very nice place." Neferet answered, opening the door to the girl's dorm.

Oh, did I forget to mention that Neferet was the high priestess of this House of Night? Sorry 'bout that, my mind went blank, because she is very pretty. There were a few girls up, watching TV, including a girl who looked very familiar. Ohmaigawsh it was Zoey.

"Zoey!" I squeaked, gosh, I sounded like a right idiot.

"Huh? OH! Layla! Nice mark." She smirked, realizing who I was. I left Neferet and skipped over to Zoey, happy beyond my dreams.

"Well, at least I know someone here, even if not very well." I smiled.

"Yeah, you're lucky. I came here, and everyone was staring at me because my mark was filled in." Zoey mumbled. That's when I noticed it; her mark was filled in with a sapphire colour.

"It's really pretty." I smiled again, looking away from the mark. Oh, please. I'm not a gawking idiot like some people.

"Thanks." Zoey replied. "Oooh I should introduce you to my friends!"

"Well, I'm glad you're already settling in, I'll leave you be." Neferet said, making me jump, I'd forgotten she was there.

"Okay, thanks for showing me the way, Neferet." I grinned at her, could she tell my smile was as fake as hers?

Neferet blinked, hesitated, and then left. Yes, I bet she could.

"What's up with her?" Zoey frowned.

"No idea." I told the truth, I don't know why she was so bothered about me.

I wanted to know if vampyres could have gifts, so I simply just had to ask.

"Zoey, can Vampyres have gifts… Or powers?" I asked, trying to see if I could read her mind, but nothing but blurriness came to me.

"Well yeah, people can have affinities for the elements and some people have other gifts like having visions and stuff. Why, do you think you have a gift?" Zoey questioned me with so much curiosity, it was sort of scaring me.

"I think I can read minds." There was something in my head telling me I was right. But then why couldn't I read Zoey's mind?

"Wow, that's an amazing gift. I know that adult vampyres are very intuitive, but I've never came across someone who could read minds, and I've been here for 2 weeks." Zoey smiled.

"Another thing, does Neferet seems… A bit odd to you?" I asked, feeling a bit awkward for questioning the high Priestess when I've only been here for less than an hour.

"Well, there is sometimes I wonder what's going through her mind." Zoey frowned.

"Also, that smile of hers is so fake, I just know it…" I said without thinking, but before Zoey could say anything, a boy and three girls clomped over to where Zoey was sitting and I was standing.

"Hey!" Zoey greeted them. "This is Layla, she's new, and she went to the same school as me before getting marked.

"Hey Layla!" The boy grinned at me. I pretended I didn't know what was going through his head. But one thing for sure he was Gay and his name was Damien. Hmm, should I freak them out? Yes, I'm that cruel.

"Hey… Damien is it?" I smiled back at him. His eyes widened and then looked to Zoey, who eyes were big too.

"Wow, you really can read minds." Zoey exclaimed.

"What? Oh, I guess that clarifies how she knows my name." Damien blinked. "This also means you know I'm gay."

"Well yeah." I felt awkward now.

"Hey, don't worry." Damien smiled up at me from the chair he had flopped onto.

"Okay." I grinned, and then looked to a coffee-coloured girl. "You're Shaunee." I looked to the girl that was sitting beside her. "And you're Erin, and even though you look nothing like each other, personality wise you are so alike that it's freak and people call you the Twins." I chuckled at their astonished expressions.

"That is…" Erin gulped.

"Amazing." Shaunee finished for Erin.

"And that leaves, Stevie Rae." I grinned at the Oklahoma girl.

"Yep, that's me." Stevie Rae smiled at me.

"School starts soon." Zoey pointed out. I then realized they were all dressed in some sort of uniform.

Just then I heard the dorm door open and a blonde haired girl twitched in. Ohmaigawsh she reminds me of Mrs. Madden.

"That bitch, is Aphrodite." Shaunee growled, Erin growled as well.

"You got that right, twin." Erin mumbled.

"Weird, I can't read her mind… But then again, I can't read yours either, Zoey. And Neferet's mind is all muddled up and it hurts to try and guess what she's thinking, but there IS something going on…" I frowned.

"That's weird." Zoey returned the frown, looking away from the approaching Aphrodite.

"Hey, Layla right? Neferet says you're my new roommate." Aphrodite smirked. Oh gosh, a hag from hell, that's what that, was in Shaunee and Erin's mind.

"Oh great. I'm stuck with a hag?" I sighed, and Shaunee and Erin burst into fits of laughter, Hmm… Maybe I'll fit in here just fine.