Feel free tio skip the following authors note:

a/n: okay, so , I fanally got another chapter up. sry it took so long. Honestly, I could give a whole explanation on why I didn't update sooner, because I was busy or was away or my computer broke or whatever, but I'm not going to do that for two reasons:

it's wrong (but when has that ever stopped me?)

my friends actually read my stories and would know if I'm lying with my excuses, which would ttly defeat the point.

The real reason why I didn't update is cuz I'm too lazy. I like to read fanfics too, and between that, homework, and other things, I just never get around to it. Sry.

The summer really wasn't so hectic, after I got used to the whole werewolf thing. I became close with my pack—closer than I was with my brothers—though I rarely saw them in human form. I did patrols, ran away from hunters, and spent lots of time riding horses in my family's 20 acres. Becoming a wolf had practically made me alive again—not that I ever realized I was dying on the inside in the first place. But I had been dying, slowly withering away without any human contact or support, and now, here I was, as happy as a newly free slave. I can skirt over the summer but there were four major events I really want to mention.

First, there was breaking the news to my folks. I tried to be cool like Lex had suggested, but I'm afraid it didn't go so well.

After waving goodbye to Lex, I shifted and pulled on my clothes. Confidently—or in a manner that appeared to be—I opened the door and called out, "Mom? Dad? Anybody home?" And then the parents attacked. Mom and Dad had always been a bit overprotective of me, and when I strolled over the threshold and into the dining room they literally threw themselves at me, covering me in hugs and saying all sorts of parentish things. "Where have you been?" "Are you feeling better?" "My goodness, Amanda, we were going to call the police!" That sort of thing.

I pushed them off me (with a little pride that I was able to do that), and responded by shouting in their faces, "MOM, DAD, I'M FINE. I REPEAT, I'M FINE!" My voice came out in a low sort of throaty growl, and that stopped them in their tracks.

"Would you like to explain, Amanda?" Mom asked, attempting to hide her worry that I had suddenly turned into a drug dealer or something—and not doing a very good job.

I took a death breath; it was now or never. "Yeah." Smooth, Amanda. Really smooth, I said to myself.

I lead my parents and brother outside, onto our front porch. "Well, you know those old tribal legends about mythical creatures—werewolves and vampires and such." When they all nodded, I continued. "What if I were to tell you that they were true? That it was all true, everything. What would you say to that?"

"I'd say that was awesome!" I could always count on Mark to break the tension.

"And I'd say you were crazy," Dad said, pushing his way closer to me. "What does this have to do with anything, Amanda? Come on, now. You're sick and need rest."

"I'm not sick anymore, Dad. In fact, just watch. And...try not to faint, or spontaneously combust, or call the pound." I smiled weakly at my hopeless attempt at humor.

As I slid out of my clothes, my parents' expressions turned to almost disgust, as I stood before them, naked. I let loose. My sight turned blurry, and I was seeing red. I could taste metal in my mouth and feel the heat rushing through my body. With a low growl, my body expanded to the size of a horse.

Almost instantly, I could hear the others in my head.

Shut up.

Carefully phasing back, I got dressed and explained to my parents what little I knew of my life as a wolf. I'd like to say they took it well, but that would be lying, and it's hard to lie as a wolf. Slowly, they got used to the idea of me being more than human, and life went on. We decided not to tell my brother John until he came home from camp.

The next interesting thing that happened was that we got a new addition to the pack. Well, two, actually; Rebecca and Deborah Goldberg.

It was a normal day with the pack. We were all hanging out at Lex's old barn—we used to be in her house, but she's has roommates and they got really mad at us one time when we came in after patrol in the rain, soaking wet and clumsy from exhaustion at two in the morning. We haven't been allowed in since.

Anyway, we were sitting there, laughing at one of Jen's latest blunder. Lex got this weird look on her face: her eyes tightened, and the little crease that was constantly on her forehead grew bigger. The others stopped laughing almost immediately.

"Damn," Sam hissed low enough no one would hear unless, well, they were not human.

In movements so quick even I could not see them, even with my super senses, Lex ran out the barn door and we could hear her phase outside. In less than two minutes, she poked her big wolfy head inside the barn, pointed at Sam, then at me.

With a quick wave, I followed Sam outside, groaning when I smelt the air. We were going to get rain soon, and maybe some sleet. Though I was always at a hot temperature, it was no fun to run in the rain.

We stole through the trees, heading towards a farm. What a shocker, right? That's all there is around here. Farms, woods, and farms. I tried to keep my thoughts to myself and blocked out Lex's thoughts.

Arriving by the edge of the woods, we saw, in shock, not one but two wolves. The nervousness radiated from their bodies and their minds. Lex bounded forward to meet them, her dark black fur clashing with their light, almost tan, brown. The wolves stood up in synchronization, their paws placed just a little further apart than shoulder width, their tails held at exactly the same level, in a wary but welcoming position. Even their minds were thinking the same thoughts. If I didn't know that I had better than 50/20 vision I would have said I was seeing double.

They introduced themselves as Rebecca and Susannah Goldberg, identical and telepathic twins from the moment they were born. Out of all of us, they adapted the most easily to our new life, used to not having secrets and not being able to tell your friends the truth.

The pack's numbers were brought up to eight, and I couldn't help but think that things could not get any better.

Now, as the usual case with stories, as soon as the narrator says something major cheesy about how perfect life is, like that last line, it's expected that everything will then go wrong. But this is not a story. Well, it is, but it's not some figment of my imagination. It's my life, and it's true (a/n: ttly not true in any way)

Merely weeks after Bex and Suz joined us, Kim imprinted. Though I had known the legend were true, it was still a shock when we met Maximillian Greene.

The two of them literally bumped into each other outside a coffee shop, and Kim had coffee all over her. She would've had burns, but the whole wolf thing healed her. Scared, she looked up at him, and her eyes met his and she imprinted. I feel as if I was there, since Kim thinks about it nonstop. Max is really nice, cute, and funny, and he's really sympathetic towards our "issue" as we like to call it. Shame he's already taken. We're all happy for Kim, and it's nice to be in contact with a guy other than our families. But we all wish they would shut up about each other.

The last thing that happened that summer was a week before school started. It would be hard to get into a new routine with a lot less freedom, but we'd have to manage.

Once again, we were hanging out in Lex's barn, only now Max was there too, and a boy Jen was dating named Tony. He was sweet, but not very bright.

We were just talking, when Lex announced to everyone, "There is someone here who is a bit of an outcast." She grinned good naturedly. "Although all of us have shortened names—perhaps to show our commitment, perhaps to change who we are— Amanda has had the same name, while she is clearly not the same person. From now on, I "knight" you Mandy Millner, a werewolf at heart." It was a good thing that Tony was not there; we sounded like Irishmen at a new year's party.

I felt so good inside, like someone had finally noticed me for who I was, and so accepted, I was smiling all night, and Mark told me I was smiling in my sleep.

The summer was good—peaceful, but exciting. But when school started up again, nothing was going to be the same, for better, or for worse. All I knew—and still know—is that the past comes around once, and then it's gone. And no matter what, you can't go back and change it. The most important thing is to live in the moment, and no matter how hard it might be, no matter how hopeless or depressing things seem, to never, ever, let go.

A/n: wow, that was corny, wasn't it? Disclaimer: I got it off Titanic. Jack's famous nver-let-go speech right before he dies