Werewolf

Prologue

Crouching in the bushes, I waited anxiously, as I had been for hours. My leg and arm muscles were cramped and my sweat chilled me to the bone. I had no idea how long I had been there, hoping they would pass by me, but by the looks of the moon, it was near midnight. Six hours after the chase began. I paid no heed to my aching stomach, pleading for some type of nourishment that hadn’t been provided since morning. Sorry stomach, but you’ll have to go hungry for a little longer.
I felt my willpower fading and the desire to get up and make a run for eat grow stronger, but I knew if I did, I would be found. Wallowing in self-pity, I began to drift off despite my terror. That urge was quickly stifled when I heard the snap of a branch behind me, not daring to move, hoping that no one had seen me.
A long howl broke the night’s comforting silence. It was dark and safe in the woods, where I spent most of my time. The howl was quickly answered, and taken up by others. I felt the urge to stand up and howl with them, joining in that eerily familiar and safe call to family. But I dared not, in case any of them saw me, and for a little longer I waited in fear.
A branch snapped in front of me, then in back, and on both sides. I felt cornered, trapped like an animal in a cage. Fear is your biggest weakness, I thought, it can make you see things that aren’t there, and hear things that never make a sound. Forcing my self to slow my breath, I imagined myself melting into my surroundings as I did when all the taunts were flung at me: wolf girl!  Freak! Look at her teeth, see how sharp they are? What a loser. The mocking of the other students rang in my ears. Since then, I had learned to blend in, and the taunts were not as often as before.
I felt a chilling thrill course through her as she thought: This is my escape, my territory! I could run circles around them here. On impulse I stood, unaware, or not caring, of the sudden frenzy all around me. The cold sensation continued to run through me, soon mixed with boiling adrenaline.
As I ran, the others close behind me, I laughed. I knew they could not catch me, knew that though they were fast, I was faster. I felt so free, so wild, at the blissful joy that enveloped me, darting in and out of the thickets and weaving around trees. I surged forward with a sudden energy and felt the others fall further back. I closed my eyes for a second, and felt the earth, its steady rhythm matching that of my heart. We are one, I thought, and opened my eyes, attempting to keep that connection.
So intent, was I, in keeping that connection that I didn’t notice the metal wire strung across two trees until it was too late, I tried to jump it, but caught my foot on another higher one that I hadn’t seen and landed flat on my face. I struggled to stand and found that they had caught up with me. The adrenaline and thrill melted away, and the earth turned lifeless, almost as if shying away from the occurrence. I gulped and turned around as one of them stepped forward, his fangs gleaming in the moonlight. The alpha male in a pack of werewolves. 





Chapter One

This can’t be good. I thought, as he walked towards me. He stood next to me for a moment and dropped a paper onto my desk.
“Today, we have a pop quiz,” said Mr. Inkell. “Your time starts now. You have until the end of the period to finish it. Begin,” he walked back over to his desk and pulled out a container of altoids, popping a couple in his mouth before putting them back in the desk drawer.
“Stevens. I’m not going to give you the answers! Get started!”
         I quickly looked down at my paper and groaned inwardly. How was I supposed to know this stuff? This was certainly not a good day. Maybe, I could just take a short little nap, and guess the answers…
         “Stevens!” I jolted to awareness and looked up to see Mr. Inkell standing over me.
         “There is no sleeping in my classroom, understand?” he looked at me sharply and I nodded and muttered some words. Content, he stalked off to crack down on some other kid that did something that was not to his liking. Not that I cared at the moment. I had a killer headache and I couldn’t at all sleep last night. Maybe I would go down to the nurse and get some ibuprofen after class was over.
         Hurriedly, I scribbled some answers on my test and handed it to Mr. Inkell before shouldering my backpack and walking out the door. I walked along the hallways until I reached the nurses’ door. I stepped inside and took my backpack off, putting it on the chair next to me.
         “Isabella Stevens? Why are you here today? You need your pill?” the nurse walked over to me, looking worried.
         “No, Mrs. Evehart, I don’t need my pill today. I just need some ibuprofen for a headache.
         “Ok then, I’ll be right back,” she walked away merrily, humming a tune as she went. I thought of when I last had my pill: a week ago. I was anemic and never seemed to have enough blood in me, so I was constantly taking pills to get my cells to work overdrive to make more.
         A moment later Mrs. Evehart was back with my ibuprofen, and I quickly swallowed them, then took the water and gulped it down; I was thirsty.
         “Thanks,” I said, starting to leave.
         “Any time, dear,” she said, getting back to her paperwork.
         Sighing, I walked to the library and took a seat, waiting for the medicine to kick in. I browsed through the fiction section and found some books that I hadn’t read yet, and checked them out. Looking at the clock above me, I saw there was still a half an hour left before my next class. I sat down at a table and started reading.
         I few moments later I heard someone slide into the seat across from me and I looked up to see him reading a book on the Lycanthropes.
         “Homework,” he said in a deep voice, and at my accepting gaze, went back to his book. I had never seen this boy before. He had raven black hair that looked silky smooth. It looked good. He had deep black eyes that hid all his thoughts away.
         He must have felt me looking at him and he looked up from his book at me. I quickly looked back down at mine, flustered at having been caught. I looked at the clock again and grabbed my bag, throwing the books inside before walking off to my next class.
         
         
After listening to a long boring lecture on calculus, which I admit was much better than a pop quiz, I was pretty tired. Sadly, I was unable to sleep in class since Ms. Maguire had kept a close eye on me. Sighing, I walked to my locker, and grumbled. The stupid lock wouldn’t open.
         “Do you need help with that?” someone asked, and I whirled around to see my friend, Anna, smiling.
         “Uh, well, I…yeah,” I stood aside, and the second her fingers touched the lock, it seemed to spring open. “Thanks,” I said, throwing my books into the locker and taking out my lunch.
“No problem,” she smiled warmly and we walked through the hallways together.
We made an odd pair, but people had long since accepted this and moved on. Anna always wore light, colors and was a small girl. Her hair was a light brown and came a little bellow her shoulders and usually kept it hanging straight down or behind her ears. She was popular for being kind and quiet, but for some reason hung out with me.
I was the complete opposite, with my clothes usually dark browns, greens, blues, and blacks; all earthy colors. My hair, a dark brown, was in disarray and I could never keep it in place. I was of average height and a little less that average weight. I kept to myself and didn’t really have any friends, except Anna. Although we were different, I didn’t mind her company; I kind of enjoyed it. She was pleasant, and did most of the talking, and I did most of the listening, which worked for both of us. She was calming, in a way, and I felt almost attracted to her, like twins separated in a crowd.
         We entered the lunch room and headed for a table in the back. She started talking about the pop quiz earlier, but my mind was elsewhere. I kept thinking back to the dream I had started having about a week ago, but it had suddenly stopped the night before.
         I snapped back to reality and turned to see Anna staring at me, her head tipped quizzically. “Sorry, I didn’t hear what you said,” I admitted, biting into my sandwich.
         “I asked if you were okay,” she replied, showing me that she wanted to trade her cookies for my pudding.
         I handed them over and said, “Yeah, just a bad headache. Probably because I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
         “You shouldn’t stay up so late,” she chided softly.
         “It’s not that I don’t get to bed early, I just can’t sleep,” I defended. She let it go and started to talk about the new movie showing at the theater.
I finished my lunch and pushed it aside, listening to Anna’s soft voice and tuning out the rest of the cafeteria noise. My headache was fading a bit, and I smiled at Anna.
“I’m going to study now,” I said. “Want to come?”
She stood and nodded, following me to the library after disposing of her trash. “Do you want to go see that movie?”
“Sure,” I replied, not feeling like making up an excuse, though Anna wouldn’t ask for one, it was more for my benefit.
         “Ok. We could see it tonight. I think there’s a showing at eight thirty.”
         “Sure. Should I meet you at your house?”
         “Yeah. Come at eight.” she answered as we turned into the library.
         I looked over and saw one of the tables occupied by the same boy I saw that morning. He didn’t look up as we walked past him, sitting at another table. We both pulled out books from our backpacks and without talking, opened them and studied.
         About fifteen minutes later the bell rang, and I jumped, startled. I gathered my things and headed to my next class, Anna trailing behind. I looked back and saw the library empty. I hadn’t even noticed the strange boy leave.

I shoved my books into my locker and looked up as Anna came over. “Hey,” she said quietly.
“Hey,” I replied, slinging my backpack over my shoulder closing my locker door. We began to walking, her frame looking petite and delicate compared to mine.
“So we’re still on for the movie tonight?” she asked as we stepped outside and pushed our way out of the crowd and into a more open area.
“Yeah,” I said, rubbing my temples as the headache started to come back.
“You sure you’re alright?” she asked, noticing my gesture. “We can always go another time.”
“No, I’ll be alright, I just need to…relax,” I finished the last word in a whisper as I saw the boy from earlier sitting on a bench, staring straight at us. He held my gaze for a moment, before standing up and walking the opposite way.
“Hmm? What’s that?” Anna asked, looking around for what had caught my interest.
“Nothing. I just thought I saw someone, but I didn’t. See you later,” I said, and we parted ways to get to our homes.
What is up with that kid? I thought to myself, remembering my encounters with him. Is he new? And why does he keep staring at me? Does he…like me? The thought of that made me blush and I looked up at my surroundings briefly before going back to watching the ground.
I turned into my driveway and stopped at the mailbox, looking through the day’s mail. There were two letters for me from colleges. The rest was junk mail and bills. I walked into the house and put the mail on the kitchen table. I dropped my backpack next to the bench in our dining room, right next to the front door, and plopped down on the sofa.
I woke up in what seemed like five minutes. I stood and groaned looking at the clock. It was already six. Mom would be home in a half an hour. I walked into the kitchen, and had to grab the countertop quickly to avoid falling as my legs spasmed. The doctors attributed this as part of my disease; that since there wasn’t enough blood to go around, my legs became weak and for a moment, unable to hold my weight.
I held the counter until the spasm passed, then began browsing through the food selection. I finally settled on a chicken salad sandwich and grabbed some chips and a glass of orange juice with it.
I brought it over to the table and sat down, pulling my two envelopes out of the pile. I ripped open the first one after taking a bite of my sandwich and read the letter. Rejected, because I didn’t have the amount of electives they were looking for. Oh well, Princeton could be like that. I moved on to the next one, a letter from University of Delaware and skimmed through. Accepted. I put the U of D letter aside and threw the Princeton one out. I cleaned up my dishes and headed upstairs.
I entered my room and shut the door. I walked over to my desk and put the letter on top of a stack of other acceptance forms. I turned on my laptop and while it was booting up, left for the bathroom.
I opened the closet and grabbed the ibuprofen, popping two pills. I turned on the faucet and splashed my face, which was hot and flushed. I cupped my hands after letting the water run and sipped. I turned off the faucet and looked in the mirror, my face still dripping wet. Two malevolent golden eyes stared at me for a moment, and when I blinked, they were gone, replaced by my hazel ones. I dried my face off with a towel, thinking I must be coming down with something.
When I returned to my room, I checked my email and did some homework. About fifteen minutes later I heard the front door open, along with the loud sound of plastic bags and keys. I walked slowly down the stairs, my headache still there, and saw my mother, struggling under loads of bags.
“And what is all this?” I asked with a hint of sarcasm.
“Well, you know how I’ve been wanting to finish the basement and make it into a usable space? Well, I finally decided on a color and got some accessories and paint and stuff for it. Oh, I also stopped at the market on the way home.”
“Oh, And what color did you decide on?” I asked her, my mother was an interior designer and had good taste, which showed throughout the house.”
“Green. Could you help me? I have some groceries left in the car.”
“Nice choice,” I said, before walking into the garage and helping with the groceries. Once I was finished, I located my mother in the basement. “anything else?”
“Nope that’s it. Thanks.”
“Alright,” I went back upstairs and turned off my laptop before heading to the bathroom to take a nice cool shower.
The water slipped over me, and I ran my hands through my hair, relishing the cool beads that slid down my face, covering my with a sheer blanket. I opened my mouth, savoring the taste. I heard a faint yell, and focused in on it.
“Dinner in five minutes!” mom yelled up.
“What time is it?” I asked.
“Seven fifteen,” she replied, and I soon heard the sound of pots and pans banging as she prepared the meal.
I hurried up and finished my shower, combing through my hair and throwing my clothes on. I chose a brown pair of cargo pants, a green t-shirt, and black sneakers. I put my hair into a loose bun and tore down the stairs, jumping the last few and landing lightly on my feet.
“You’re in a hurry,” my mother remarked as I wolfed down my food.
“Yeah. I’m meeting Anna at the movies,” I managed between bites. Mom nodded her head.
I looked at the clock, which now read 7:48. “Well, I’m going now. Bye,” I pushed my chair in and walked out the door.
I started running as soon as my feet hit pavement. It took ten minutes to get to Anna’s house walking. I could get there in four if I ran. I ran until I got to the street corner, waiting for a car to pass and taking a short break. When the car passed, I looked up and saw the boy from earlier, walking casually, hands in pocket and face in yet another book, across the street. I began running, and as I passed him he looked up for a moment, his eyes darkening. A chill rippled through my body, along with a growl I couldn’t completely conceal. His eyes narrowed, and he looked like he was about to tackle me, but I passed him and kept running.
What was that all about? Well, I don’t think he likes me, so that rules out one theory. I shook my head while looking at the ground, then turned on instinct into Anna’s neighborhood, and continued my pace until I got to her house. I rang the doorbell and heard soft footsteps. A moment later Anna’s doe eyes peered out from the crack in the door and lit as they saw me. She opened the door wide and invited me in.
“Hold on, let me just get my shoes,” she said, and walked the hall closet, grabbing her shoes, and shut the door.
She was wearing light blue jeans and a white shirt with a light brown sweatshirt, zippered halfway. She pulled on her shoes, brown ballet flats, and smiled up at me. “Ready?”
“Yeah,” I said, and we went back outside. The sun was almost set, and we walked side by side, our forms outlined by the golden-red color of the air.
We got to the theater in time for the movie and by the time it finished it was 10: 30. Anna and I exited the movies together, laughing and talking about the movie.
“Oh, look at the moon. Isn’t it beautiful? I think tomorrow it is full,” Anna said, pointing.
“Yeah, it is really beautiful,” I replied, looking up in a trance. “Tomorrow, eh? Hmm,” I said out loud, and Anna looked to me.
“Hmm? Hmm what?”
“Oh, nothing,” I said slowly and quietly.
We arrived at Anna’s house and we stopped at her driveway. “Well, I guess I’ll see you later. Thanks for coming with me,” she said politely.
“Yeah, no problem. Thanks for inviting me,” I echoed the traditional response.
“Bye.”
“See you,” I turned and walked home, savoring the cool night air and stillness.
I felt someone watching me and turned around, seeing a golden pair of eyes in the bushes. My own eyes widened for a second, but then they were gone, disappeared into the night. I kept walking, waiting for the feeling of being watched to return, but it never did.
I finally arrived home, pushing open the door and slamming it shut behind me. I sighed and pulled my shoes off, dropping them next to the door.
“Finally home?” my mother yelled up from the basement.
I walked to the top of the basement stairs and walked down. I found my mom under a pile of fabric and ribbons. “Hey, what’s up? It’s already 11:00, you know,” I chided.
“Yeah, I know. I just want to finish this real quick. Which do you like better?” she held up two pieces of fabric; a bright red one in the left hand and a navy blue in the right.
“Uh, both,” I said.
“Oh, real helpful,” she dropped the fabrics onto her lap and looked broodingly at them.
“Have fun, I said, before heading back upstairs to get a bowl of ice cream
“Sure thing,” mom said sarcastically.
I laughed and went into the kitchen, grabbing the ice cream and sitting down at the table, facing the glass doors that showed one acre of green grass and then went into miles and miles of woods all ours. My mother made enough money for us to live in a nice house and afford nice things, but her money alone couldn’t afford this prime piece of property.
It was my father who had bought this house for us, even though he wasn’t able to live in it for long. He had gone away on a business trip soon after we bought the house. He was the owner of a large stock broking company, inherited from his father. His plane crashed, and his body was never found.
But that was years ago, I thought. I’ve learned to live again. Although, what he said before he left…I didn’t really think about it. “My daughter, you are special, much more so than others, but don’t be afraid, and don’t back down even if others make you want to. Embrace what you are, and when you do, you will find the answer.” Whatever that means, I thought.
I stood and put my ice cream dish in the sink, and stayed there for a moment, my senses and body tuned in to every little thing. I turned and walked to the basement stairs. “Mom, it’s 11:50. Get to bed.”
“I’ll be done soon,” she said absently.
I shook my head and started up the stairs.


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