Dwayne's screaming woke us. We were screaming along with him, for him. Pain stabbed into my body, clouding my vision. Something was wrong. Something had happened. Almost as one we dropped to the floor and raced into the main cave.

Bursting into the room, we snarled and snapped, all in protective mode. We were careful to avoid the beams of sunlight that managed to find their ways into the main room. I searched the room. Star and Laddie, Michael as well. Them I knew. My memory screeched as I tried to place the three younger boys, two blondes and one dark-haired.

Where had I seen them before?

Then my eyes fell on Anna. Rather on Anna's lifeless corpse, laid out in the dirt as a bloodied Michael pulled away from her. Michael dropped to the ground, his transformation completing. He was now Pack.

"I killed her." Michael whispered to everyone and no one at the same time. "I killed." His eyes brimmed with tears.

Star dropped to his side, pulling him close and squeezing him tightly. Laddie sat, eyes as wide as dinner plates.

My heart broke as we all watched Dwayne look over Anna, see that Michael had ripped the side of her throat to shreds with his blood lust. Slowly he crossed and sank to his knees, gathered up the body and cradled it to his chest.

Dwayne began to shake. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to digest all the emotions and pain that coursed through the blood link the Pack shared. Marko gently touched Dwayne's shoulder.

Dwayne lifted his head. The glossy tears slid down his cheeks and his entire body shook with unvoiced sobs. His eyes were flat, lifeless. He'd lost his will to continue on.

Dwayne turned his eyes on me. He begged me, silently, to bring Anna back, to save her.

It was killing me. Dwayne's pain welled inside me, bringing tears to my eyes, tears I could not shed. I shook my head.

I didn't have the power to save Anna.

A voice filled the cave. A voice none of us had ever heard before. A voice filled with great power.

"She has completed her purpose. Her soul is safe, on its way back," the voice said.

"Her life was the price of their second chance," Star whispered. "Her life was the price of my wish." I shot my eyes at Star. What was she talking about?

The voice was sad, sympathetic. "I know. But she died saving you, isn't that any help?"

"No." Dwayne's voice was empty. "Her life was worth more than that. She was worth more than that."

"You would have died. You. Marko. Paul. David. Even Max. You all would have died, bitterly, painfully, if she hadn't been here, if she had not fulfilled her Destiny. She was sent here to be your Protector, and she succeeded grandly."

Everything rushed back upon me. What I had thought a dream had actually been time rewinding. I hadn't understood it then but now I did. I clenched my fists.

"I would rather be dead." The sincerity in Dwayne's voice scared all of us. I started towards Dwayne but the dark look in his eyes stopped me.

"You do not appreciate what she gave for you?" The voice was curious, angry.

"I don't appreciate her having to die." Dwayne replied.

The voice sniffed. "It was her Destiny."

"Destiny?" Dwayne's voice cracked. "Anna's destiny?"

"Yes," the voice said sadly. "Her Destiny was to die young. To never belong. To never be loved..." the voice trailed off, waiting for our reactions. I snarled loudly

"She did belong! She was ours! And you know this! She belongs to us! Damn you for taking her! Damn you!" I felt the others staring at me. I hadn't given away how I'd felt about the situation until now. In truth, I was only voicing what everyone else had felt.

"She was loved," Dwayne's voice was barely a whisper now. He gazed down at Anna, his face streaked with the tears he'd shed. "I loved her."

There was silence, long drawn-out moments of silence. None of us spoke, waiting, hoping, and praying.

"The bottle; your blood. Mix it and feed it to her."

I was shocked I hadn't thought of that. Darting across, I scooped the ornate glass bottle up. I bled myself first, then Marko and Paul. Each of us gave willingly. I came to Dwayne and sliced his skin, letting his blood drain into the bottle. I hesitated. Maybe this wouldn't work...

"Hold it to her lips. Pour it down her throat." The voice was getting frantic. "You don't have much time. Mere seconds before the chance is lost." Dwayne jerked the bottle from my hands and pressed it to Anna's lips, tilting her head so that it would slip into her mouth.

Another eternity passed. Now the cave its self seem to hold its breath, waiting.

"It's too late," the voice whispered sadly. "I couldn't give you enough time. I'm sorry..."

The voice broke off when Anna coughed and her eyes fluttered open. Dwayne slowly lowered the bottle. Anna's pink tongue slowly extended to taste the drops of blood still clinging to her lips.

The rest of us waited in silence. Waiting for Anna to speak, to give us a solid sign. She continued to lie there, looking up at Dwayne, licking the last of the blood off her lips. Her mouth opened. I drew in a breath with everyone else.

"Love you too." Anna whispered, music to Dwayne's ears. He kissed her tenderly, holding her tightly. She pulled away. Surely now she was going to yell.

"I'm hungry." Anna announced to the rest of us. We all broke into laughter, until our sides ached. I plucked the discarded bottle from the dirt and handed it to Anna.

"For now, here. Tonight, we will hunt."

"Good!" she purred at me, gulping from the last of the bottle's contents and handed it back to me, empty. Her face turned to Michael, who was staring at her. "Michael?"

"Yes?" he answered, his smile guarded now.

"It's OK, this time. But the next time you kill me, I'll have to hurt you," Anna said, laughter in her voice.

Michael sighed in relief and hugged Star tighter. Behind me, the three younger boys huddled in the shadows, searching for an escape route. I grinned, letting it spread into a smirk that covered my whole face.

"Tonight." I whispered, knowing everyone heard me.

"Tonight." Everyone echoed back, letting his or her own blood lusts fill the cave.

We were all Pack now.

THE END