Chapter 25 When parties meet

[A/N] Werewolf chapter!

Which means:
Known Werewolf names:
Tala Rahu: Will Vandom
Dante Rahu: Tony Vandom
Laikos Irraka: John Vanders
Rengar Irraka: Angelo Vanders
Draven Hissu: Uriah Dunn
Ares: Jeremy Dunn
Riven: Hay Lin

Known Hunters:
Kiro: Eric Lyndon
Jelan: Micheal Dunn (Uriah's father)
Kumo: Nigel Ashcroft

Liam: Martin Tubbs

Angelo shivered in the cold wind that had taken a hold of the city. Secretly he wished it was already night, where the cold didn't bother him and where he didn't have to think about his human worries. Then again, the reason why he even bothered leaving the house was no human concern.
It was his encounter with the woman in the Saberwolf stables, the one he was sure was Nerissa. She seemed so confused and estranged from the world, while also giving him the impression she knew exactly what was going on. But what was more important, she seemed to know more about the Lunatone cave, calling herself a product from it. Why would she do so, he had wondered. When nothing came to his mind, he decided to ask his grandparents. They'd known her for far longer and, even though they always avoided the topic of her, they knew more about her.

So he braved the cold December wind, which was once again accompanied by snow, to visit his grandmother's temporary home in the hopes of finding both of them there.

Luck seemed to smile down upon him, because when he rang the bell of the small apartment they had now, he got answered by the voice of his grandmother. She'd rung him up and he was welcomed by the two smiling faces of his elderly family.

"Angelo! What good to see you. You know, visiting us a bit more often wouldn't hurt." His grandmother joked when she took him into a hug.

"I know Grandma." He said muffled. "I just couldn't find the time."

"Ah, the busy occupation of being a teenager." His grandfather said as he ruffled his hair.

"Try a werewolf teenager who's friends with the Guardians." Angelo said with a sigh.

Joe started laughing as he lead his grandson into the living room, whereas Kadma went to make them some hot chocolate.

"Been there, done that!" He said with a grin. "The horrors I've been through before the others knew about my secret."

"Like sneaking out of your house because one of them was suspicious?" Angelo said.

His grandfather sighed and chuckled, shaking his head.

"Oh please. I once had to escape school, seeing as I'd ended up in detention in the winter. And don't get me started on Cassidy! That girl was so sure about me being strange that she'd tailed me for months on end! You should be happy you've got Will, and now Hay Lin as well to help you." He said.

"Didn't you have a best friend in the Guardians who stopped Cassidy?" Angelo asked slyly as he eyed his grandfather.

Grandpa Joe sat a bit back, a sad smile formed on his lips as Kadma appeared with the mugs. She too sighed as she sat down, frowning a bit.

"Oh yes. Cassidy had been complaining about being static for weeks after Nerissa had gotten to her." Joe chuckled.

"I remember that." Kadma muttered, rubbing her arm. "She'd been sparking me to prove her point."

Angelo snickered, readily believing that Irma would do the same thing to Cornelia if she'd ever got to Will's side. He raised an eyebrow, realizing the frightening resemblance between the two groups. He then shook his head and took his cup, looking at his grandparents in the hope of more information, but the two remained silent as they had disappeared in their memories.

"But, uhm... Gramps. You rarely talk about Nerissa. What was she like?" Angelo tried, mentally kicking himself for the blatant question.

His grandfather blinked out of his memories, his eyebrows knitted together pensively as he gazed at Angelo. Angelo felt himself blush and looked away, into his cup of steamy brown chocolate milk.

"Well, she was nice. You could trust her with anything and she was very supportive. And she had the nasty habit of planning everything up till perfection. But she was always open for a laugh and a joke." He said, a new sad smile pulling on his lips. "But why the sudden interest? You usually read the tension when her name is mentioned."

Angelo scratched the back of his neck and again avoided their gazes.

"Angelo..." His grandmother said patiently.

He sighed, wondering why he never came up with a plan of trying to ask them discreetly. He sat back and looked at his cup, somehow feeling a bit out of place.

"Well, I was in Meridian a few days back." He started.

"I know, you were meeting with Elyon, were you not?" His grandmother asked.

Angelo nodded.
"Yes, well. She was called away. More werewolves have been spotted during full moon nights and shady people are wandering around as well. But that's not it. I was at the Saberwolf stables when I met a woman who talked about Lunatone cave. And she looked an awful lot like the girl you once pointed out to me to be Nerissa."

He looked from his cup to his grandparents. His grandmother seemed to have paled, looking surprised at his grandfather, who frowned at him. Angelo sat up, looking at the both of them.

"Are you sure?" His grandmother finally asked.

Angelo frowned, looking back at his mug. He wasn't completely sure, but his gut instinct was telling him he wasn't wrong. Who else would know Cassidy and his grandfather and mistake him for his grandfather?

"I think so. She even seemed to go in a trance and think I was you." He said. "She also mentioned that Cassidy hadn't been completely correct about Lunatone cave. What do you think she meant with that?"

His question was unheard as his grandparents looked critically at each other, both raised an eyebrow. If Angelo didn't know better, he would almost think they were communicating telepathically. His grandfather then turned to him with a smile.

"You must have been wrong. Nerissa has been gone for a long time, Angelo."

"I know what I saw and I want to know what she meant." Angelo said, crossing his arms.

"Angelo." His grandmother said tiredly. "Nerissa is a thing of the past. Something your grandfather nor I wish to talk about."

"She was your best friend!" Angelo countered, interrupting his grandmother and looking at his grandfather. "How can you ostracize her?"

His grandfather got up and hit his fist on the table, creating a dent and an awful creaking noise.

"Enough Angelo!" He said loudly, his eyes showing a mixture of anger and grief. "Sometimes things happen that are meant to be left unsaid."

He then sat down again with a heavy sigh, tiredly rubbing his eyes as Kadma placed a hand on his arm. Angelo looked at the ground, knowing he'd gone too far. Yet he couldn't just believe his grandfather would prefer to pretend his best friend had never lived or was dead. He sighed and looked back at his grandparents, seeing grief upon their faces.

"Grandpa, Grandma. I didn't mean to... I mean, I'm just scared it will happen with me and Will as well, whatever happened to you and Nerissa." He muttered.

His grandparents gave him a weak smile and his grandmother sat next to him. She took him into a hug and sighed again.

"Don't worry about it, Angelo." She told him. "What happened with Nerissa won't happen to Will. She's different from her and as long as you two don't even think of searching that cave, things will be alright."

Angelo gave her a small smile and looked at his grandfather, who nodded with a grim determination. He slowly came out of his grandmother's hug and his grandfather reached out to pat him on the head.

"Now, you better go. Unless you want to worry Will and Hay Lin with you being late."

Angelo looked at the clock, realizing it was almost time for the moon to rise. He quickly gather his jacket and took off, but not before he heard just a small snippet from the conversation of his grandparents.

"Kadma, do you know if it's possible-?"

"I don't know, but perhaps Cassidy knows more."

...

Matt stood in the shadows of the bare trees, watching th snow grimly. The sun had set and the moon was glowing menacingly above the Heatherfield forest. A sneer formed behind his mask as he took his phone, checking the time. Martin and Eric should have been here already.

He pocketed it and crossed his arms. There was still doubt within him for showing his form to them. Sure they were his friends and hunted werewolves, but he showed them a secret far more dangerous. He didn't know of their capabilities, but he doubted they could hold their own against magical opponents. And if Earth ever was under attack, his enemies might go for them. He balled his hands as he remembered how Martin and Eric had told them about the Hunters. To say he'd been surprised that his friends knew about werewolves and that they knew he knew about them, was an understatement. They'd just told him everything they knew, but once they asked if he would stop searching the beasts, Matt had gotten angry. It was irrational of him, he knew, but his friends had no right to deny him his chance to gain his revenge upon that monstrous race of humanoids. They'd told him it was too dangerous and he'd told them he was safer than they were. They still tried to keep him out of it, to which Matt transformed. Will had tried to keep him out of her Guardian business and he was glad he hadn't listened. Now he had the means to fight her kind and he showed his friends he had the power they lacked. He just hated to have people think he was weak and needed protection. To have people look down upon him.

Rustling caught his attention and his eyes glowed a menacing green. Until he recognized the ones who made those sounds.

"I thought you wouldn't show up."

...

Kumo hid his face more behind his scarf, his eyes squinted to two suspicious lines as he looked at the dark angel in front of him. He still couldn't believe that this monster was his friend. He grasped his shotgun a little tighter when the golden mask looked at him. Matt might be his friend, but he had his doubts about this guy. His gaze glided to his companions, Liam and Kiro, who both waved at him.

"M..Shagon!" Liam said, sounding glad. "Sorry for the wait, we had to convince our last teammate."

"Shagon, this is Kumo. Kumo, this is the guy we talked about."

Kumo nodded, not keen on shaking Shagon's hand. Judging by the size of his muscles, he didn't want to find out what strength Shagon possessed, so he too stopped himself from commenting him to go home. Instead he shrugged.

"Not feeling too cold, with just that vest?" He grumbled, his voice low.

Shagon laughed, his reptilian tail swishing behind him.
"Trust me, the cold doesn't bother me at all." He said.

Kumo smiled behind his scarf and saw Shagon nod as well. He shouldered his shotgun and found Shagon checking out their weapons. His hand once again wrapped protectively around it, getting a bad vibe from his friend.

"So... What got you to join us?" He decided to ask, seeing as no one was trying to break the silence.

Kiro and Liam briefly looked at each other, before continuing to ready their gear. Shagon leaned against a tree and shrugged.

"Got some personal issues." He said.

"I didn't know we were allowed to take along anyone who had 'some personal issues' with werewolves." Kumo stated calmly, his eyes pointed at Liam.

Liam saw him looking and shrugged, but Kiro looked almost apologetically at him. Kumo wondered, had it been Liam who'd persuaded Kiro into telling Matt? He frowned at the idea, because he'd never seen Martin persuade anyone in his life. Could it be that he was more capable than he let on? This once again made him shake his head. This was Liam.. No, this was Martin he was talking about. He was book smart, but had not the life experience to hide his best assets.

"I'm also not anyone. Remember that."

Kumo looked back at Matt, whose eyes were now glowing menacingly as his tail swept behind him like that of an angry cat. His wings were slightly spread and Kumo gripped his shotgun a little tighter, gently aiming it at Shagon. It took him even more effort to believe that this monstrous angel was his best friend, despite having seen him transform back. Matt never was this violent or offensive, so why the sudden change?

"Calm down, he didn't know." Kiro said, stepping in between them.

He then turned to Kumo and placed a hand on his shoulder. He gestured Shagon to calm down and took Kumo a little closer.

"Listen, I'm also not a big supporter, but I really don't think that, if we go against him, he would stop hunting werewolves." He muttered. "This way we can keep an eye on him."

Kumo raised an eyebrow, looking surprised at Kiro. At least one of his friends still had some brains left, which was good. He was already afraid he had to go against both him and Martin.

"Fine, but that doesn't mean I don't want to hear his reason." He said, pointing his gun at Shagon.

Shagon stopped leaning and shrugged, spreading his wings slightly.

"Fine, I don't really care. I only came because they – he pointed at Kiro and Liam – asked me to come along. But if you don't want me here, I'll take my leave. It's not like I need your help to hunt."

Kumo bit the inner side of his cheek. This was not what he had tried to achieve. Kiro was right, keeping Shagon here, under their surveillance was probably safer then to let him rampage around.

"Shagon, please. Forgive our teammate, he doesn't know you." Liam tried, walking up to Shagon.

"Indeed. I am sorry." Kumo added, bowing his head. "I should have trusted the judgement of my teammates."

"That's alright!" Shagon said, almost too jovially as he patted Kumo on the shoulder.

With all his might did he stay standing, though his legs were still shaking a bit. He looked up, but the golden mask was impassive and made it impossible for him to read his friend's true intentions.

"So, any idea where we're going?" Kiro said.

"The lake." Shagon answered immediately.

Kumo frowned a bit and shouldered his shotgun.
"Oh? Why so sure?"

"Because every time I end up battling them, they are near the lake." Shagon answered. "He even lead me to it."

"He?"

Kumo didn't have to ask, for Kiro had already blocked his path and questioned the dark angel. He did notice that Liam already had his crossbows out and was too, planning to head to the lake. What did those two know?

"The one of whom I know is a werewolf." Shagon clarified. "Angelo Vanders."

Kumo gasped, but managed to hide it with a cough, while his two companions both stopped dead in their tracks. He looked, along with his friends, incredulously at Shagon, whose golden mask gave an eerie glow in the moonlight.

"He's a werewolf?" Kiro finally said, his voice quivering between shock and disbelieve. "That's impossible! I checked him! He didn't react to the dog whistle!"

"Did you see him transform?"

Kumo didn't step back when Shagon looked once again at him. He would not be intimidated. He knew that Matt had a great dislike towards Angelo, something Kumo believed was because of Angelo's closeness to Will, which had caused the two to break up. Therefore, he couldn't let Matt hunt on the boy if he was innocent. And even if Angelo turned out to be a werewolf, they had no rights to attack him if he was no Rogue, but Kumo had the feeling that was something Matt didn't care for.

"Yes."

Kumo frowned, seeing Shagon scratch the back of his elbow, a trait Matt always showed when he was lying. Yet, the determination in his voice made him wonder. It sounded like he was a 100 percent sure that Angelo was a werewolf, despite not seeing him transform. He sighed and shook his head.

"Even so, he might not be a Rogue and..."

"Still a monster."

Kumo looked surprised at Liam, who continued to walk. He quickly followed him, surprised by his determination. Why would Martin even want to harm Angelo and wasn't his Master the one who pleaded for peace? He'd expected Kiro to say it, but not Liam.

"Liam, what?" He said.

Liam halted again but didn't turn around. Kiro and Shagon had followed them, but were now also waiting to hear him speak. The moon shone above them, casting ghastly shadows of the trees and them on the ground.

"Listen. He might not be the only one at my school." Liam said, his voice a bit broken. "I'm even willing to bet he was bitten by someone else. He would seem the type to do that."

"Who M... Liam?" Kiro said, but Kumo heard some desperation in his voice.

So it wasn't just him who was getting the wrong vibes. He started to think that this collaboration was not one of the best ideas. He'd never expected to see Liam to be this hostile against werewolves. He'd expected it from Kiro, though had hoped he would be bright enough to look past the petty hate of his Master, but apparently werewolves had done something against him, or else he would not foster the same hatred as Shagon did.
But now he gazed at him, his frailer frame trembling, not from cold, but from anger. It was another rare sight, for Martin never became angry. He took a step back when Liam readied his crossbows, his hands clenching them. Kumo took his shotgun, just in case of emergency and waited.

"I didn't see him transform, but another Hunter told me. And I'll never believe Dunn is a nice puppy following the rules."

Kumo looked shocked at Liam. Uriah a werewolf? Sure, he was a bully, but there was one at every school. Besides, it would be too obvious if he were one. His detentions usually lasted until the moon was up during the winters, so it should be impossible. He stood rigid as Liam shuddered a bit. Whoever this Hunter was who told him this, it had to be a lie.

"That's impossible. He's had detention during the winter and you know the moon rises early. He would have transformed in school if you're right!" Kiro argued, stepping in front of Liam and blocking any passage.

"He may have sneaked out!"

"And Mrs. Knickerbocker wouldn't know it? Come on Liam! Think! You're a bright guy!"

"You haven't seen him! He's stronger than he looks!" Liam argued in return, his voice growing louder.

"Calm down, you don't want to gain unwanted attention, do you?" Kumo hissed, silencing both of them immediately.

Kiro and Liam glared at one another and Kumo could feel Shagon getting restless. Nothing was said and no one moved as the two apprentice Hunters glared at one another. Kumo didn't say it, but he agreed with Kiro. Uriah and Angelo werewolves? It sounded ridiculous in his mind but if he were honest, so was the idea of Martin being a Hunter. But perhaps if he and Matt had chosen people they didn't bear a hatred to, then he would have been more likely to believe them. But how could he break that to them without giving up his identity?

The glare wars between the two Hunter apprentices was broken when rustling caught their attention. Kumo readied his shotgun, while Kiro's guns and Liam's crossbows were already aimed at the bushes from which the rustling came. Shagon's green glowing eyes casted a soft light that, along with the full moonlight, gave them a better view. The rustling became a bit worse before a squirrel jumped out, squeaking surprised. Kumo sighed, snickering softly at how they all were at the ready to blast the innocent critter into oblivion. As they all lowered their weapons, the squirrel shot away, seemingly in great haste. Kumo wanted to laugh with his companions, when the bushes rustled again and gave way for a dog. Or that was what he'd thought at first until he realized that the animal was too big to be a dog. He aimed his shotgun again as the small beast growled annoyed before his eyes caught them. He whined shocked and Kumo could see his brown fur shiver in fear. His yellow eyes were wide and he fell back, his back against the bushes.

"It's a young one." Kiro muttered. "I've seen it before... Which means..."

His sentence was cut short when a voice rang out from the darkness.

"What's wrong Ares? Did the squirrel bit you?"

It was a raspy female voice, who sounded amused and out of the bushes a brilliant white werewolf appeared with a red streak running over her back. Her lightning blue eyes widened when she saw them and gasped loudly, suddenly standing rigid as well.

Kumo felt a little uncomfortable, for they had now two werewolves at gunpoint and they could easily pull the trigger, but neither of them attacked. They seemed frightened instead of aggressive.

"We..." He tried, when the silence had stretched on for far too long to his taste.

He never came further than his first word when the white werewolf gasped and pulled the smaller one along. Shortly after she'd pulled him away, Kumo saw a green beam hitting the spot.

"Shagon what are you - !" He yelled out in anger.

Apparently was the attack enough for the werewolf to run. Kumo growled and pushed the dark angel away.

"Genius!" He growled at him. "They could've helped with finding Rogues!"

"After them!" Kiro yelled, already disappearing between the bushes.

Kumo wanted to do the same when a tail suddenly knocked him aside. He groaned and looked up, seeing Shagon tower above him with his eyes glowing.
"There is no difference between these monsters. I would have thought that someone like you would know that." He sneered behind his mask before following Kiro.

Liam helped him up, not even bother to apologize for Shagon's behaviour. Instead he placed his shotgun in his hands and told him to follow. Kumo gritted his teeth, quite sure he would tell all his friends a few things if his Master hadn't been so insistent on keeping his identity safe. He grunted and followed Liam, but was quickly once again forced to halt. His eyes widened as they laid gaze upon a full pack. Never had he'd seen one and the first warning of his Master rang through his head. 'Never attack a werewolf in a pack, without facing the dire consequences.'
Now he faced them. The little brown one, who had a black streak running over his back, was leaning against a ginger werewolf while the white werewolf seemed to have been talking to the two werewolves who were now in front of them. A black one, whose green eyes gleamed in the moonlight, and a red one whose lightning blue eyes shined threateningly. The red one had her teeth bared, while the black one only viewed them with caution. However, when Kumo heard the rustling of feathers and the rhythmic flapping of Shagon, did the red werewolf step back, her eyes wide in fear.

The reason of the fear became quickly clear when Shagon fired again. Kumo yelled out, trying to stop the idiot from perhaps harming innocents, while the werewolves jumped out of the way. Shagon ignored Kumo's yelling and fired again, his aim switching from the black to the red and back again.

"Stop you idiot!" He yelled out in frustration. "Stop!"

"Martin?"

Kumo halted and his eyes darted to the ginger werewolf. He'd ended up close to Liam, and as a breeze blew past him, indicating the wind's direction, Kumo realized he could have smelled him. But what rubbed him the wrong way was that the werewolf recognized Liam's scent. With Liam's accusation of Uriah being a werewolf in mind, Kumo noticed how much the colour of the fur resembled the hair colour of Uriah. He shook it off, knowing that werewolves did not necessarily have their hair colour as fur colour, but the resemblance was striking.

"Uriah." Liam growled darkly and readied his crossbows.

Kumo moved and tackled Liam, right before he shot his silver bolts at the werewolf. Liam pushed him off roughly and even followed with a punch which hit him right in his face.

"Stay away Kumo, if you know what's best for you." He growled before shooting one of his crossbows at the ginger werewolf.

The aim was off, but it still grazed the werewolf's arm, who whined in surprise and grabbed his arm. He growled dangerously and bared his teeth. He went to stand on his two feet, making him easily as tall as Shagon and Kumo shakily grabbed for his shotgun, feeling intimidated by the monster in front of him.

"Don't attack them!"

Kumo let his gaze wander to the black werewolf, who dodged yet another attack of Shagon. Shagon roared frustrated as he now tried to shoot at the red one, who dodged it just as easily. The black werewolf looked at the ginger one, who'd returned to standing on his hands and feet.

"Remember the upcoming pact. We cannot cause a breach!"

"He's right!"

Kumo nodded at Kiro, who stood in front of Shagon in an attempt to stop him from attacking them. Kumo ran to Liam, tackling and this time pinning him down as well. Liam struggled heavily and muttered a string of curses, making Kumo sure that he would try and find out what his friend's motive was to be so hateful towards Uriah, if the ginger werewolf was indeed the guy.

"Move away Kiro, they're obviously lying." Shagon said, using his tail to force him away.

Kumo gritted his teeth as Shagon's eyes glowed green again. They couldn't stop the dark angel so easily and he couldn't shoot a warning shot as long as Liam was struggling against him. Luckily Kiro had the same idea and shot two times at Shagon. Kumo couldn't see where he was aiming at exactly, but judging by Shagon's shocked appearance, he hadn't hit him.

"Run!" Kumo yelled at the werewolves, who were looking at them in confusion. "Get away from here!"

They didn't need to hear that another time and the werewolves disappeared, not before the black werewolf nodded at him in a way to thank him. He nodded in return, unsure if the werewolf had seen him, before he focussed his attention back on Liam.

"Are you insane?" He breezed at him and Kumo only raised an eyebrow. "We could have taken them down!"

"You are the insane one." Kumo replied darkly. "You attacked innocent people! You, out all of us, should know about it, seeing who your Master is."

"Uriah was one of them!" Liam argued. "No way in hell that they were regulars! They are the Rogues!"

"Then why didn't they attack us, huh?" Kumo bellowed in return, despite knowing he wouldn't get through to the boy at the moment.

"Urgh!"

Kumo looked back concerned, ignoring Liam's helpless struggle to see that Liam had landed against a tree. His bandana's were slightly askew and his eyes closed. Kumo looked back to see Shagon, who'd been held under gunpoint by Kiro, now flying at a speed at them. Kumo raised his arms in an attempt to block the obvious tackle, but was still easily knocked off of Liam. He shot backwards and too landed against a tree. His head had bounced against the tree and as the pain started to spread from the back of his head, his eyes started to close. He could see Liam getting up and look at him.

"Don't think too badly of us." He could make out as his consciousness was slipping away. "We're doing our job."

...

"Cornelia! Cornelia!"

A sigh left her lips as she looked down upon her younger sister. Ever since they'd shown them their secret, her little sister had gotten the habit of pestering her every now and then. If she could show her something or for some extra lessons. And she always chose the times that Cornelia was busy reading or watching television.

"Not now, Lillian." She mumbled, her eyes back to the book she'd been reading. "Maybe tomorrow."

"Cornelia!" He sister whined. "You HAVE to listen to me!"

Cornelia sighed in response and turned a page. It was probably her sister asking how to turn someone into a frog.

"Uhuh."

"Please! Something's wrong!"

Realizing she wouldn't get some peace and quiet if she didn't listen to her sister, Cornelia placed her book down and looked bored at the younger girl.

"Don't tell me you turned someone into a frog." She said bored.

Instead of the playful pout she would have expected from Lillian, she was met with wide eyes. An eyebrow raised as her younger sister grabbed for her hand and pulled her a little closer.

"Cornelia, I feel really bad." She muttered and Cornelia just knew Lillian wasn't talking about her physical wellbeing.

"What do you mean?" She whispered.

"I don't know..." Lillian replied, her uncertainty echoing in her voice. "I just feel something dark and it hurts here."

She placed her hand over her heart and Cornelia looked concerned at her sister, unsure what she could do. This was her first time encountering something like this, but she steeled herself as to not worry her sister.

"Do you know where it is coming from?" She whispered.

"The forest."

The reply was immediate and Cornelia bit her lip. The forest was most likely the place the werewolves were, but there was also something that was causing her little sister harm. She smiled reassuringly at her sister and placed a hand on her head.

"Make sure mom and dad don't know I'm out." She said. "I'll look into it."

Lillian nodded and ran out of her room, only saying 'thank you' just before she left. Cornelia sighed, but couldn't shake the feeling of uneasiness. Not for the first time did she wonder why all the strange stuff had to happen to her.

'Taranee? Irma? You there?'

'I'm here. Something wrong?' Taranee replied.

'Why not call Hay Lin or Will?' Irma answered slightly annoyed. 'Unless this is a werewolf issue, because then I'm also out.'

'This is not a werewolf issue, though both of them might cause an argument that could cost us time.' Cornelia replied annoyed.

'What's wrong?' Taranee answered, sounding concerned.

'It's Lillian. She's feeling something dark and it's hurting her.'

'Let me guess, it comes from the forest?' Irma said, sounding both concerned as well as annoyed.

'Bingo.'

'We can check it out. Who knows. Maybe a new enemy?' Taranee said.

'Like werewolves isn't enough.' Irma complained. 'But I'll come. If the Heart of Earth is feeling darkness, it can't be ignored, right?'

'Never thought to hear you say something logical like that.' Taranee replied amused.

'Forced movie night?' Cornelia added amused.

Irma remained silent, but Cornelia was sure she was fuming. Despite her amusement, she shook her head. She took out the Elemental Heart and transformed, before opening her window.

'I'll see you two at the forest in five minutes.'

'Will be there.'

The cold winter air brushed past her, but the cold never reached her. She was glad her Guardian outfit protected her against it and jumped out of the window, her wings catching her and she made her way to the forest, truly hoping it wasn't something big that had her sister feel like this.

...

Rengar halted the pack once he no longer could smell the scents of the Hunters. Or should he say friends? He took a deep breath and looked around, finding that his friends were all looking as if they'd seen ghosts. He couldn't blame them. He'd never thought that, along with Matt as an enemy, they also had Eric, Martin and Nigel! Granted, Nigel and Eric weren't the ones who attacked them, but still he'd never guessed that any of them would be Hunters.

A sob broke out and Rengar's first concern was Tala. Matt had appeared again and had been attacking them. Luckily it was sloppy work, but it could have caused her old pain to come alive again. Instead he found Riven leaning into Tala, large tears rolling down her nose. Tala had placed her head upon hers, but Rengar could read her lingering concern in her eyes. He walked closer to them and heard how Riven's painful sobs became words.

"He's a Hunter. A Hunter!" She cried softly. "He'll hate me for sure."

Rengar looked away, not daring to say that he'd known this before. Or at least speculated it. Tala shushed her and made her look at her. Riven's eyes were reddish and filled with tears, while Tala showed her a sad smile.

"Hey. He protected us. If anything, you have more chance with him than I had with Matt." She said softly, rubbing her head against Riven's to calm her down. "Don't worry. Everything will be alright."

She looked at him when she'd said it, but Rengar couldn't reply. He couldn't give her a reassuring nod or a smile, for he held no answers. He truly hoped Tala was right.

"Maybe it was because of Matt." He proposed. "They attacked because of him. Maybe, if we can talk to them without him..."

"You'll tear them apart!"

Rengar looked up in surprise, just in time to see a green beam heading his way. A force pushed him out of the way and he looked at Draven, who replied with a grim look of his own.

"Thanks." He muttered as they got up.

"Don't mention it." Draven replied darkly. "We need to get away from here."

"Don't think we'll let you, Dunn!"

Rengar looked concerned at Draven, who growled at the mention of his human name. It bothered Rengar that Martin apparently knew Draven, but, judging by his confusion before Draven had accidentally said his name, Rengar figured he was guessing. Maybe they could use it to divert his attention from Uriah, but for now their prime goal was to escape these two. Only shortly did he let his gaze wander around, in the hopes of finding Nigel and Eric again, but they didn't appear. He couldn't smell them either and took a defensive pose when he heard an arrow click in place.

"Where are your sensible companions?" He growled.

"You mean the two you obviously control?" Martin replied. "They are out for a while."

Rengar growled, not willing to believe that Martin had knocked them out. Then again, looking at Matt, he wouldn't be surprised it happened. He watched Martin point his two crossbows at Draven, while Matt's eyes shone again.

"Spread out!" Rengar yelled, causing all of them to dart to a different direction.

Only didn't it work out like he'd planned. His path, as well as Tala's, was blocked by a long beam of Matt, while Draven was forced to move out of his way to dodge the arrows of Martin. Riven and Ares, who'd gone together and were probably the only ones safe from their two attackers, yelped in surprise and when Rengar looked what had stopped them, his stomach turned. Appearing from the darkness, surrounded by two small fires, were the three remaining Guardians.

"Ironic that the darkness Lillian spoke off, had to be werewolves." Irma said, her eyes now also pinpointing Tala.

"There is a new one." Taranee pointed out, motioning to Riven.

"And Ma...Shagon has a friend as well." Cornelia said.

Rengar looked briefly at Martin, who had pointed his crossbow at the girls before Matt stopped him.

"There is our cavalry." He heard him say.

Rengar gritted his teeth. This was all suddenly a lot more difficult than he'd wanted it to be. The Guardians had been a big problem last time and now, with Matt and Martin at their backs, this wouldn't pack out well.

As to confirm his thoughts, both Matt and Irma shot at Tala. She managed to dodge Matt's blast, the most lethal one, but was too late to create an electric defence for Irma's attack. She was propelled against a tree, but was quickly back on her feet. Only her eyes were wide and filled with panic. Before Rengar could take action, Tala turned tail and ran. Matt yelled out, immediately giving chase. Rengar tried to do so as well, only for vines to barricade his way. He snarled at Cornelia, who was flying high above the ground with her arms outstretched. He watched how Irma zipped down, probably intending to follow Matt and Tala, but he was glad when Riven blew her back.

"Stop scaring her!" She yelled as Irma shot back.

"This one can use air!" Taranee yelled out. "Cornelia!"

"On it!"

The ground started to break beneath him and chunks of rock shot at them. Rengar moved out of the way, keeping an eye out for any arrows that zipped past him. Ares and Draven managed to dodge them as well, while Riven blew them away. Vines followed quickly, hoping to restrain their movement, but this time Ares showed his powers by burning them away in time. Yet a few managed to sneak past and grab Riven, who got pulled into the air.

"Not so tough now, huh?" Irma questioned.

Riven gave her a wolfish smirk before taking a deep breath. Irma, Cornelia and Taranee realized what would happen and already made their attempts to dodge, but once Riven blew out, a small tornado appeared. It ripped her from the vine and caused the Guardians to be flung away. It also made Martin search for cover and as the tornado receded, a howl was heard in the distance.

"Go!" Draven said. "We'll keep them at bay. Riven will do the pixies with Ares's help. I'll do out four-eye friend."

Rengar nodded and ran towards the direction Tala and Matt had left, sincerely hoping he wasn't too late.

...

No. No. This wasn't supposed to be happening! This night was meant for some fun and games, a little hunting and perhaps some play fighting. Not being hunted by her former boyfriend.
The loud cracking of branches sent shivers over her spine and the flapping of wings made her heart beat go up with a thousand miles per hour. Tala made a sharp turn and kept on running, beating down the tears that were welling up again. She didn't want to think about the night he'd found about her. She didn't want to think of his betrayal.

Had it been a betrayal? He had every right to attack her, especially after what had happened to his family. But that hadn't been her fault. He knew that and yet condemned her for crimes she didn't commit. But she did attack Irma. Which was something she truly regretted and if Matt had used his brains, he would have known it. But her race was cursed to attack humanity, so why wouldn't humans hate her? Since when did she ever care about things that were fated?

A blast to her left caused her to wake up from her inner argument. The wood splinters shot past her, one hitting her nastily in her leg. She whined in pain and growled, a tear rolling down. He was hurting her for what? A past that could not be changed? Why should she be the one to pay? Hadn't she been good to him? She'd supported him and never gave up on him. She wasn't even hurt when his Regent form was Shagon. Why couldn't he see it was just a transformation?
A transformation she'd forced upon Hay Lin. No, it had been Hay Lin who'd forced her to stop her from not transforming.

She looked up at the round yellow globe responsible for her transformation. She was innocent and Matt knew it. He just hated her for the sake of hating. Well, he would learn how dangerous it was to strike a werewolf against the hairs. He would rue his blind stubbornness.

She halted, her gaze still at the moon. Behind her, she heard Matt land and she could hear the power brimming in his eyes.

"Finally decided to stop running, monster?" He sneered. "Gotten tired of pretending?"

Tears were supposed to form, but they were exchanged for a surge of anger. She couldn't believe she'd actually loved the guy.
She turned around, her eyes glowing slightly as she raised her lip. Matt shot at her, but with an own blast of lightning did she stop it. The blasts exploded and created smoke. But it wasn't enough to obscure her vision. With a vicious howl did she jump at him pushed him easily to the ground. Despite him looking so buff, she could bring him down and now growled darkly at him, her eyes looking right into his.

"W-Will..." He stammered.

Oh, so he did remember her name. Too bad it would be one of the last things he would utter.
Though, even if she thought it, she didn't move. She could see his eyes through the mask, wide in fear and she could smell the angst around him. His voice had quivered in a way she'd never heard and she whined, tears finally forming in her eyes.

She got off of him and moved away, tears rolling down her nose as she watched him get up. Whines escaped her throat, in a vain hope to make it clear to Matt she didn't want to harm him.

"Please Matt. I don't want this." She pleaded, her voice broken by tears.

Matt looked at her and for a moment, she truly thought he would stop. But then his eyes started to glow, even more than before, and a new whine left her. She shuddered as his heavy breathing echoed among the dark trees.

"Stop. Your. Lying." He breezed. "You attacked me, just now. DON'T YOU DARE TO PLEAD PEACE!"

Knowing what was to come, Tala closed her eyes. She felt no need to see her incoming death, but she wouldn't move. Maybe it would give him peace of mind and stop his senseless hatred for her kind. Even if, in the back of her head, she could still hear Rengar's angered preach of not giving up, she remained. She wasn't giving up, but sacrificing.

The high pitched sound of the beam being shot was caught by her ears and she prepared for the impact, the burning sensation she'd felt a few moons before, but instead she heard the awfully familiar crash of the beam hitting stone. She pried her eyes open, before they completely widened. A wall had been erected and, judging by a crack around her mid riff, it had taken the hit. But who?

...

"NO!"

Rengar yelled out, seeing Matt shoot his attack at Tala, who seemed to afraid to dodge. He tried to pick up the pace, vainly hoping to get there in time. He paws gripped the earth and he launched himself forward, yet forced himself to a new halt when a stone wall erupted in front of Tala, taking the hit.

A sigh of relief escaped him and he looked around, desperately hoping to see Cornelia flying nearby and about to tell Matt off. Instead he faced a black werewolf. He was slightly taller than Rengar was and his yellow eyes looked grimly at Matt, while his right paw was outstretched and pointed at the wall. He opened his mouth, showing a set of impressive teeth, and a long howl that cut through bones erupted from his throat. Rengar took a step back when behind the black werewolf, six more werewolves doomed up. Despite not knowing the werewolf, Rengar still had the feeling this was bad news.

He watched how Matt finally noticed the black werewolf as well and, even before his eyes could glow again, how the black werewolf had jumped him. He'd tried to slash him, but Matt managed to turn away in time. However, he hadn't calculated the space his wings occupied and the black werewolf still managed to get him there, creating an ugly gash in his right wing. Matt yelled out in pain, while the black werewolf repositioned himself in front of Tala, who just came from behind the wall with big eyes.

He immediately used their pack's call for help, the two short howls followed by the long one, before running at Tala. She was shaking and her eyes were filled with tears. He nuzzled her and could hear her heavy breathing. He whispered soothing words to her, but found that her eyes were only focussed upon the battle before them.

With reluctance did Rengar look back as well. He noticed that escaping was difficult, with the six werewolves circling the battle of the black werewolf and Matt. So he watched them, hoping to see an opening in which they could escape. He'd never thought that this forest would become so dangerous so quickly.

But, before any of the two parties could attack, the sound of paws hitting the snow echoed and from the darkness, Riven, Draven and Ares appeared. The werewolves snapped angrily at them, but didn't do more than that. The three approached them, Draven keeping an eye on the battle, while Riven and Ares checked on Tala's health.

Rengar was sure he heard the black werewolf snicker and look at them, but when he looked, the black werewolf was once again in a glare wars with Matt, whose eyes were glowing eerily. Rengar figured he hadn't attacked yet, due to his sudden disadvantage, but wasn't planning to go without a fight.

Shots echoed in the distance and suddenly and arrow shot to the ground in front to the black werewolf. He took a step back and growled with bared teeth. From behind Matt, Martin doomed up. His scarf was loosely around his face and Rengar could see a black eye. He gave Riven a questioning look, who shook her head silently. If they hadn't done it, who did?

To answer his question, Nigel and Eric appeared. Both held their weapons to Martin's back, who didn't even flinched. He simply ignored them and Rengar thought it to be a wise idea, with so many werewolves around.
Light appeared behind them, signalling that the Guardians had chosen to follow the Hunters. The surprise and annoyance on their faces gave away that their battle had been interrupted, probably by Nigel and Eric, but it quickly changed to shock when they found about twelve werewolves.

"How many of these monsters are there?" Cornelia whispered shocked as she already raised her arms to defend.

"Too many, we're outmatched." Eric muttered in return, looking up. "Look lady, I told you I don't know who you are, but I advise you to go home. Just like you, Liam."

"I'm not planning on leaving." Martin replied darkly, pointing his crossbows at the closest werewolf.

Rengar stood ready, in case an attack happened. He couldn't have it that these unknown werewolves would attack his friends, but he also had to keep an eye on the safety of his pack.
The werewolves around him, however, thought differently and all pointed their snouts upwards, before a ghastly song of howling echoed chillingly through the forest. From those who he could see the faces off, he could see they paled considerably. The Guardians looked at one another and nodded, grabbing the Hunters before leaving. Matt too took off, but as he left shot one final beam at the black werewolf, who countered by creating yet another stone wall. So he had been indeed the spell wolf who saved Will.

With the main danger gone, Rengar turned to the black werewolf. He was indeed grateful of helping them, but the bloodlust he could read from him and his companions made him think twice. He wanted them to leave. They were, after all, trespassing in his territory.

"Leave." He growled.

The black werewolf snickered and sat down in front of him, looking slightly down at him. A foul smirk played on his lips as he held his head a bit askew.

"That's not very nice to say to the one who saved you." He replied, his voice raspy.

Rengar snorted, his eyes forming a dark glare while he raised his lip. He did not appreciate the humour this guy talked with.

"Rengar. Please. Cailean did save me."

He looked at Tala, who nudged him. Rengar barked, angered as he looked back to find this 'Cailean' smirking proudly at him, taunting him in a silent way. Rengar didn't want to know how Tala knew him, though in the back of his mind Lucas did come up. He shook it away, filing it for a time when he could think about it.

"You know the law." Rengar finally growled at Cailean, ignoring Tala's plea. "Riven. Draven. Take Tala away. Ares, go with them."

Tala tried to argue, but somehow Riven and Draven managed to take her away. He didn't know how, for his gaze was still fixed on Cailean and how his yellow eyes followed Tala's every movement.

"You won't keep her long if you keep acting like this, you know?"

Rengar's glare increased and he took an offensive stance. He bared his teeth and a snarl left his lips.

"What do you want from her?" He growled darkly.

Cailean snickered as he got up. With a gesture of his head, the werewolves he'd taken along disappeared. He too made his way to leave and Rengar barked after him.

"Don't you turn your back on me!" He barked.

Cailean looked back, a wolfish grin on his face.

"No, don't you turn your back on me." He said ominously.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Cailean turned around, one more time, his yellow eyes shining menacingly in the darkness of the night. The moon light was reflected on his teeth, which were shown in a terrifying smile.

"You'll find out, brother. Sooner than you think."

[A/N] End of chapter! A lot happened in a night, huh? Cailean is finally appearing on the stage and people seem to have some anger issues. Matt and Martin are a dangerous couple when hunting. Perhaps Nigel and Eric can talk some sense into them, or at least one of them. Who knows?

See you all on the 10th of August!