I'm feeling out of bounds, out of bounds

I'm running out of time, out of time

I know there's no such thing as either of them

But it doesn't make me feel any better

Present Day - California

Jack's POV

I was snapped out of my reverie as a door slammed somewhere in the deep recesses of the house. The nightmares that had chased me through the night had followed me into the day…again. It was always the same dream; the same nightmare every time, but it didn't mean that my heart had stopped twisting painfully as the final scenes replayed themselves in slow motion. The dream was real, the events had actually happened. It was slowly killing me because deep down I knew - if I had been brave, I could have changed the events. The dream or rather nightmare had recurred so often that it was as if it was branded into my memory, to the darkness that lived in my subconscious. I couldn't escape it. Nothing worked, I'd tried staying up all night, but then she managed to appear during the day; I'd taken sleeping pills and trained my mind to lock away anything that could even trigger the memories. But she always slipped through the cracks, making my walls crumble at the memory of her touch. My lip began to quiver and the heat left my body.

I was cold; so cold. The reason for my being was gone and I could never be whole again. When she left, she ripped out my core and now I was just a hollow shell of my former self. The idea that somewhere out there people were happy seemed cruel to me. How could anyone be happy when I was so cold? The very idea of happiness was a distant memory, one I knew I could never feel the true effects of again.

I wandered over to the bathroom lost in thought; I was like a zombie. My body and mind were present, but my heart and soul were gone. I shook myself. It was the first day of school today, I needed a clear head. I was splashing cold water on my face when I felt hands on my back. At first I thought nothing of it, but then I knew. It was her. I stood up to my full height, slowly enough to ensure she wouldn't leave and kept my eyes firmly shut so as to enjoy her spell a little longer.

"Why are you here?" I asked her.

"What? No, 'how was your day in the afterlife?' or 'nice to see you again'?"

"Riley…" I interrupted her, wincing as I said her name. It made her seem so real, almost as if she were still here.

She continued on as if she hadn't heard me, "You know I really expect more from my soulmate, I mean you stood there and watched me die, you could at least show some interest in my afterlife."

My eyes snapped open at the harshness of her tone, but for once the warmth spreading from her hands didn't disappear. I turned and saw her standing there with her arms crossed like the day we'd first met. My heart squeezed so much it was as if it had been ripped out of my chest. But no matter how similar she looked, there was always something different, something wrong with the image my mind had conjured. This time it was her eyes. The hatred in them was the same as before but instead of the sparkling violet they had been when she was alive; they were a flat black, darker than the blackest night. I shivered. When had I become so troubled that I couldn't even enjoy the memories of a loved one?

Ivy's POV

I looked at the calendar blankly, my stomach twisting with fear. It was August 31st, two months till I had to go through hell again. My mouth went dry. Two months, two months, twomonths twomonths,twomonthstwomonths. I swallowed loudly as I repeated the words, hoping that if I said it enough it would lose its meaning.

I turned away abruptly and pulled some skinny jeans and a random shirt out of my wardrobe, trying to distract myself from the swirling abyss that had formed in the depths of my stomach. I had so much to do in so little time. I'd thought I'd have all the time in the world, I'd never thought the opportunity would come at the strangest of moments, when I was completely unprepared. But I couldn't miss this. Not this time. I couldn't fail again - it was vital that I got what I wanted and didn't let anything distract me. I'd been waiting for this moment for as long as I could remember.

I looked at my reflection in the mirror, wishing I didn't have to always glamour myself. My black hair looked soft and sleek, like a raven's wing and seemed to hold rich jades and violets within its silky darkness, accentuating my pale skin and unique eyes. My eyes were the colour of molten gold and my favourite feature, the only part of me that held colour.

I sighed knowing that I was wasting time trying to put off the inevitable. If I didn't glamour myself I'd be discovered by Night World authorities and get killed for plotting against the council. You'd think that with time they'd forget what I'd done, obviously that would just be too easy. I concentrated for a second and focused on who I wanted to be, feeling myself grow shorter by a couple of inches and the hair that hung over my face like a curtain rearrange itself into a different style.

I opened my eyes and looked at my features with disgust. I looked too vulnerable. Long blonde hair hung lankly down either side of my head and large cerulean blue eyes stared out at me. I shook my head, appearances weren't important. Revenge was. Besides underneath all the glamour, I looked exactly the same as I had centuries ago. I smiled; it was a smile that only I ever saw, one where the hatred was visible underneath. All five centuries of it.

X-X-X-X-X

I looked up at the school building with mild disinterest. Vines which would presumably carry roses at some point in the year snaked up the side of the building and concealed the old brick work underneath. Wow, this is my first day of school since…since the 1800s I mused, as I stepped into the shadowy entrance hall spinning slowly around in a circle to take everything in. The smell of old wood was overpowering. Faded and threadbare green seats that had long lost their shape lined the far wall opposite a counter top running along the left side of the room, a stark contrast to the dark décor. I walked over to the secretary feigning nervousness, and coughed politely. The secretary looked up, her dark eyes slicing into me. There was a plaque on the desk stating that her name was Ms Blackthorn. I recognised the name instantly, she was a vampire.

I fought the urge to kill her on the spot or at the least narrow my eyes - no one could know what I was planning.

"Hi, I'm Violet Evergold," I said stiffly, using the name I'd picked when applying for the school, "I'm new here." I forced a smile and handed her my papers.

"Hello," she replied, obviously taking the frostiness of my voice for nerves. She skimmed over them quickly and then drummed a few things into her computer. "Transferring this year, huh? California must be very different from New York." She stated, her eyes flicking up to meet mine.

"Yeah," I was unwilling to talk to this leech.

"Why the sudden change?"

"My grandparents decided I needed a change of scenery to clear my head after my -" I broke off abruptly to make it more convincing and blinked away false tears, "a-after m-my p-p-parents d-died."

I could've won a Grammy award for that performance.

She rubbed reassuring circles into my left hand which was resting on her desk. I resisted the urge to curl my hand into a fist. "That must've been so hard for you."

I forced myself not to snarl at her, vampires were so fake these days, and just smiled amiably. She patted my hand again absentmindedly before grabbing a messy stack of papers from on top of her desk.

"Ok, here's your timetable, locker number and a form that you need to hand to each of your teachers. Your guide should be here soon. Take a seat whilst you wait."

I turned away and headed to the seats when she called me back. "Violet, if there's anything you need, I just want you to know, you can come to me."

I smiled and nodded, knowing that in reality there was no way in hell I was ever going to hold her to that.

I glanced down at my timetable for the week; Algebra I, Advanced Chemistry, English III, Drama, Spanish, AP World History and Art. I grimaced; today was going to be fun. Not. I quickly scanned the rest of the timetable and saw that it followed suit. Great. I scowled and looked out the window; the only class that seemed vaguely interesting was History.

The tardy bell rang, making me jump and the last few students that had been loitering around in the car park rushed in, but there was still no sign of my guide. I grabbed my notebook and I-Pod from inside my bag, turning the music up loud before I began to doodle aimlessly on the front cover. Black swirling lines quickly sprang up from my biro in an intricate pattern that reminded me of the wrought iron gates that lined the circumference of the old manor house I had in France. I smiled, wishing I was there now, instead of here.

A couple of minutes later, someone sauntered in with the grace of a cat. It was the little things that gave him away; I could tell what he was from the inhuman fluidity of his movements as he slunk towards the reception desk, from the way he took everything in as he entered the room. He was a shapeshifter, and a powerful one at that. Just being in his presence made my stomach twist in fear, I hadn't been this close to one since I was- I broke that thought off, I couldn't think of such things now, not here where they would become a reality in only a few months. He had longish hair that was halfway between dark blonde and brown and golden green eyes that, Night Person or otherwise, I knew would make most girls knees go weak.

He leaned on the reception desk and asked something quietly and I looked back down at my notebook, immediately losing interest. A couple of moments later, a shadow fell across me. I looked up in confusion.

"Hi, I'm Cougar Drache, I'll be your guide for the day," he said, his voice had a soft lilt to it, despite his bored tone.

I got up in a movement that I made purposefully jerky and awkward, "Hi, I'm Violet."

I held my hand out for him to shake. He ignored it and turned to go back through the set of double doors, he'd just come through, glancing back once to see if I'd follow. Rude much? I snatched my bag from its spot on the floor and half ran to catch up with him, juggling my notebook, pens and papers in my hands, reaching the door just in time for it to slam in my face. I scowled; if this was how my day was beginning, it wasn't a good sign.

I shouldered my way through the doors, shoving the stuff in my hands into my bag, with excessive force barely concealing my irritation. I looked up to see an extremely amused Cougar watching me.

"What?" I snapped.

He smirked but didn't answer me. I scowled again and pushed my straw like hair back from my face. How the hell did he manage to become a guide? I sifted through the papers the receptionist gave me, until I found my locker number and combination; number 352. I glanced at the locker next to me, a plaque on the front proclaimed it to be locker number 115. Great, they just had to give the poor, unsuspecting new kid the locker that was as far away from the main entrance as possible. I cast number 115 a dirty look, it didn't react and just continued to sit there taunting me.

I turned back to Cougar who currently looked as if he'd rather be anywhere than here.

"Do you know where locker 352 is?" I mumbled, wincing at how loud my voice was against the silence.

"Yeah."

I waited for a couple of seconds, but he said nothing more. I bit back my frustration. "Aren't you gonna tell me where it is?" How slow could this guy get?

He looked as if he was thinking about it for a few moments, then slowly he shook his head. I resisted the urge to launch myself at him and attack him, as my anger simmered. I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth.

"Would it kill you to be nice to the new girl and do your job as a guide?"

He didn't respond, instead settling for taking a strip of gum from his pocket and popping it into his mouth. I scowled, something I was probably going to become famous for at this school, before turning and stalking down one of the many corridors that branched out from the main office.

I heard a muffled cuss, followed by the sound of steady footfalls. I proceeded to increase my pace.

"You're heading the wrong way," he called from somewhere behind me.

I froze, glancing at the lockers next to me. The numbers had indeed decreased in size. Traitors. I turned back to face Cougar who wasn't even a little breathless.

"It's this way," he said.

I hesitated, reluctant to give in and follow him after storming off. I considered my options, get lost, end up late to my next lesson and possibly get a detention or follow the crappest guide in history. I sighed, knowing that I would have to stay with Cougar for the time being and took a deep breath and focused on pushing my anger back so I could deal with it later.

I quickly got lost in the endless sea of lockers, lino floors and strip lights. Everything was the same shade of grey, the only colour coming from Cougar and I, the sole inhabitants of the halls. I swallowed, feeling uncomfortable and out of my depth in a strange modern world; everything was slightly off, not quite perfect. The lights were too bright and were placed at irregular intervals, the floor was too clean and the air was too still and hung in front of my face like a veil. It was choking me.

When I was at my wits end, we finally stopped. I glanced up to see locker number 352. I was so happy to see it I could've hugged it. I dropped my bag to the floor and began to fiddle with the lock. After a couple of moments it sprang open.

"What lessons do you have?"

I grabbed the slip of paper out of my bag and handed it to him before turning to dump my stuff in my locker. I slammed it shut and watched him closely, while he looked at my timetable, trying to take as much in as possible for later reference. My vision went out of focus as I thought. His likeness to the shapeshifters who'd captured me all those years ago was astonishing; I swallowed, forcing myself to think logically and not drown in a torrent of memories. He was a Drache and therefore one of the more powerful shapeshifters. More importantly, he was a direct descendant of my murderers. If I could do to him what those shapeshifters had done to me, it would be perfect.

He glanced up at me at that moment and our eyes locked, before his mouth twisted up into a cocky smile. I blushed in spite of myself as he glanced down at the papers again. He must have thought I was admiring him or something. I almost laughed. If only he knew, I thought, if only he knew that soon he would have to worry about more than how his hair looked.

"Okay great, we have all the same classes," he said with false enthusiasm, after a few moments of awkward silence.

I humoured him, saying something with just as much sugar coating and followed him through the halls as he led me to our first class. Neither of us spoke, the only sounds breaking the silence were the occasional murmur from one of the classes and the steady beat of our footsteps. I swallowed, wishing I could be anywhere else but here.

None of this was going to plan; I was supposed to enrol at a new school, get a human guide, figure out the best way to approach my victim and then find the most efficient and painful way to dispose of them. I wasn't ready to deal with a shapeshifter, not yet.

"So, what brings you to the crappiest place in California?" Cougar asked, finally deciding to break the silence, his tone indicating that he didn't really care what I said.

I flinched and adopted a sad expression, looking away into the middle distance in a characteristically depressed way. I changed my voice to one filled with self-pity and regret as I told my story. Cougar winced.

"I'm sorry for your loss." Cougar's eyes softened a touch and for some reason I knew his sympathetic smile wasn't like the fake one the receptionist had given me earlier. It was genuine.

"Don't be, it's not like you had anything to do with it."

He opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, but the shrill ring of the school bell interrupted, making us both jump. Students flooded the halls around us as they hurried to get to their next lesson.

When I looked at him again, the kind and caring person I'd just spoken to had disappeared. He turned away abruptly and started heading back the way we came. I wondered what he was going to say.

"This way."

I'm feeling out of bounds, out of bounds

I'm running out of time, out of time

I know there's no such thing as either of them

But it doesn't make me feel any better

A/N: Hi guys I'm not dead! Sorry for taking so long to update….I know I'm a terrible person… In case you were wondering the lyrics are from Adolescents by Incubus. If you have any comments, suggestions, questions or requests – review! If you do you'll get free cake! Song suggestions are much appreciated too!