Blood Fued

I know I'm not the best writer in the world. But please don't mind commenting and sending me feed back. I'd like to know what you think. Alright, I'm starting. . . now! LOL

Part 1
I was sleeping like I normally do on any school night-or day, since the sun was still up-but suddenly, I felt like I was drowning. All I could see was darkness. . .everywhere. I couldn't move, I felt pinned. I tried gasping and screaming for help, but all that did was sink me deeper into the dark water.
I awoke with a start and sat up rigidly on my bed. I was gasping and I felt perspiration drip down my face that made my hair cling to my forehead and neck. I glanced at the clock.
"It's only two?!" the words escaped my lips before I could stop them.
Melanie stirred in her bed across from mine and then sat up, a little disoriented from what I could sense.
"Raven?" she asked a little concerned and then lightly yawned. "Why are you up?" she glanced at the clock and then stared at me. "Holy crow," she said astonished and a little loud I might add. "it's only 2 at night?! What happened? Did you. . ." she paused, taking a slow breath. "Did you have one of those dreams again?"
Looking away from Mel, I nodded slowly and shuddered at the memory.
She seemed worried, concerned and most of all, afraid. "What. . .what happened this time?" she asked softly, hesitantly.
I shrugged as if it was nothing and then sighed feeling something tickle me inside my head. I sighed and slowly whispered. "I was drowning, no one could hear me and my lungs felt like they were going to explode." I looked back at her and her eyes had widened.
Okay, so here's the thing about Mel and I. Melanie can read peoples minds and thoughts, that includes memories. I, on the other hand, see the future, can repel anyone who has magic that can hurt me-except Mel, and we don't know why-and control four elements: fire, water, earth, and air.
Every student here at McArthur Academy has a special ability. I was a rare and strange anomily to the usual "only one special ability to one individual" scenario.
Melanie and I have been going to McArthur ever since I can remember. We'd sat next to each other by random coincidence in our kindergarden year. Our teacher Mr. Vargas was cruel and forced us to write Melanie Ashford and Raven Sterling. I got irritated and threw my colored pencil at his head. I sucked at writing back then, but my aim was always deadly and precise.
After being sent to a "time out" I got to get with a partner to get to know someone. Melanie was shy-still is shy-but when I came over and we talked for a while, we became best friends.
It's been about eleven years since then, and Mel and I were at the end of our junior year. Melanie is a vampire, minus the fangs and sparkly skin in the sunlight. I am half and half of vampire and human. My kind are called Impral. In our world, there was one thing trying to kill vampires, and those are werewolves. Yeah, no surprise there, but vampires aren't that strong. Impral go through traing to protect vampires. We are a mix of vampire and human blood, which makes us stronger, faster and more lethal.
To kill a werewolf is as easy as putting on a glove, but werewolves can bear young faster than vampires and Imprals. They also can have as many as two to a dozen pups. But after five years, they can change into humans as well. It's startling, but that's how it is.
Anyway, things get stranger every day for Melanie and me. Sometimes I wonder how we will survive off Academy grounds and in the real world.

I really like your descriptions of what Raven is thinking and how she tells what has happened in the past. Very interesting name, Impral, can I ask why and how you came up with it? I think you should keep going. This story sounds like the beginning of a good one. You're more discriptive then some authors I've read, along with beinning authors, which is great. Keep the writing style up, I think it works well and flows beautifully. No worries about not being a good writer, I think it's great.
Best of luck,

LOL, thank you, I am actually gonna keep writing. I don't really know where I got the name Impral from, it just came to my head out of no where. And then i thought of werewolves, so I decided to have them be the vampire killers instead of having two races of vampires like Richelle Mead did. No offense on her part, but I just didn't want to be plagerizing her work. Anyway, here's the next part!

Part 2
Melanie and I stayed up the rest of the night talking. We were too focused on what had happened to me that neither of us could fall asleep again.
Later on, we got ready for school. After taking a quick shower and a hasty blow drying of my hair, Mel and I started walking out of the dorm building to the commons.
We were about five yards away from the entrance to the commons when James abruptly jumped in front of us. James Sarcozy, one of my friends from training classes.
"Hey there Rave," he said and smiled at Mel. "hey Mel." He turned back to me. "So, you ready for the break?" he asked looking into my eyes.
I noticed something in him that I never had before: he liked me.
Yeah, some guys stared at me like I was the most sexiest thing in the world. That didn't mean I could easily tell the diffrence between a guy's infatuation or attraction for me. For a moment, I wondered if maybe I should return his feelings.
"Hell yeah I am!" I said looking earnestly at him. "Besides, I want to have fun before senior year. After graduation, I won't be able to have much fun." I glanced at Mel and noticed she seemed to be a little down. "Not that I won't mind much." I said hastily. "It'd be worth not having fun to be your protector Mel."
She smiled, her emotions seemed to shift to a happier one. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.
"Come on," she said, tugging on my arm. "I'm hungry and really parched."
I sighed lightly but followed. Despite my aversion to her words "parched" I knew she needed to drink blood, and soon. She looked paler than usual and she seemed to be more weak, fragile. . .and a little frantic. As I followed her to the back of the commons, we were either early or late since there were only a few people ahead of us in line. I got the answer when I felt a tap on my shoulder.
Spinning around instantly and the touch, I braced myself for a threat, slightly crouched and tense. As I looked at who was standing before me, I got a little confused seeing Gregori Lefevre stare down at me. . .amused. Slowly, I straightened my posture and smiled up at him.
"Well hi there Rave. Were you just going to attack one of the royal blood lines?" he asked with that stupid smirk on his face. Lefevre is one of the six royal families that the vampires have. Looking at Mel, I remembered she was another royal. Lefevre, Ashford, Muelier, Olendski, Vadika and Upham were the six oldest blood lines. They are also the six royal families.
"No," I said smiling. "I just thought you were Kyle Marcos trying to hit on me again." giving him the end-of-conversation look and tone, I turned away to follow Mel down the hall.
At first I was tensed, ready for Greg to grab me again. As we went further down, I relaxed-just a little-as I realized he wasn't going to bother me again, yet.
Instead of going to the wing where donated blood was, Mel went to the side where the feeders were. Normally, she never went to the feeders as her "source of nutrition". I guessed instead of cold blood, today she wanted something warm. By how frail she was, I didn't argue.
Vampires depend on blood, but when they were weak and frail, that's when they need warm blood, straight from a prominent vein. Donated blood kept them strong, but not as strong as blood from the feeders the academy always had. Even so, most of the academy vampires prefered warm blood compared to the cold refrigerated donations-which we rarely had any in stock.
After Mel and I left the "blood hall", that's what I call it, we finally went to get food.
I spotted a few seats by James and then looked at Mel. Knowingly, she nodded and we started walking towards him.
"Hey James." I said taking the seat next to him while Mel sat in the one next to me. "We didn't get to finish our talk outside." I gave him the best flirtatious look I could manage, his eyes widened and he stared at me for a few seconds. I think I went slightly too far.
Clearing his throat a few times, he finally managed. "Twice in one day? That's a new record." he gazed at me with that adoring look and I faltered a little. Why not? It's only high school. said my inner voice. "Well, my plans are to get through the month long break and get back to the academy."
"Oh?" I said questioningly. "And why is that? You gonna miss training that badly?"
He chuckled and shook his head slowly. "Nope," he grabbed my hand in one of his and lifted it near his mouth. "I'm just going to miss seeing you every time I turn around." he kissed my hand and stared into my eyes.
I had a feeling he wanted to kiss more than just my hand, but instead of acting grossed out, I simply withdrew my hand and said in the most girly singsong voice I could. "Aww, Little Jamesy boy has a crush on me!"
The other people at the table laughed. I saw James blush momentarily and then he had that protector face on, the one that barely showed emotions. Except, well. . .I could sense that he did like me, and the glint in his eyes proved that.
Suddenly, the bell rang for classes to start and we all started walking to the school building.

I think it's too early, but I'm going to write the next part.

Part 3
Mel and I had the same class period at the begining of the day, so I didn't miss her that much. After lunch hour though, we had to separate. Vampires had different afternoon classes compared to us Protectors in training.
I always looked forward to this time of the day, though it wasn't technically my favorite thing being apart from Mel. Either way, I loved my combat classes, I always liked the fact that I could punch someone without getting in trouble.
I was breathing heavily staring at every movement Edmund Contila made. Ed was just as worn out as I was, his breathing slightly labored and his eyes were studying me. I took a swing at him, he dodged and I backed up going back on the defensive side.
I was about five feet away from him and he got distracted as his auburn colored hair got blown into his face by the wind. I figured that it was better than any chance I could have gotten. Quickly, I lunged forward and struck him in the chest. He swayed a little and then caught his balance.
Quicker than I ever thought possible, he tackled me onto the mat we were using. Even faster than him tackling me, he quickly restrained my arms and legs. Ed was smarter than most. If he hadn't restrained my legs, it would have been the easiest thing in the world to strike out with my leg to hit him just between the legs. That would have made him groan in pain and he would have let me go.
I still struggled and after a few moments, I reluctantly ceased my struggles.
"That was pretty great." I gasped out. From training the last three hours, I was exhausted. That, and the fact that Ed was still holding me down and cutting off my lungs a little. "Now will you get off me?!" I practically shouted. "I can't breathe!"
He laughed and then got off me. When he stood beside me, he held his hand out to me. "Need help getting up?" he smirked and his hazel eyes sparkled a little.
I slowly took his hand and, instead of rising, I smirked and quickly pulled his arm down toward me. At first, I saw he was shocked, then he registered what I intended on doing only a second too late.
Smiling, I held him down while I breathed a heavy sigh. "Don't forget lesson one: never let your guard down." I smiled and he chuckled.
We both got up and everyone started cleaning up the mats we'd used for our safety. I was glad we had mats, otherwise all that falling and pinning would seriously give us a concussion.
"You did great out there, Rave!" Ed smiled at me and he didn't take a beating from a girl that bad. He actually seemed a little relaxed.
"You too. Honestly, I thought I wouldn't have any moves left once you had me pinned." I said truthfully.
He shook his head, slightly smiling. Ed was always friendly, but he was always serious in training classes. "No, you used surprise and force. I didn't expect you to do that, but you caught me off guard and you were fighting hard. . .I could see the fire in your eyes."
I looked straight ahead at the dorms where upper classmen stayed and didn't acknowledge what he had said. Acting as if I didn't care, I shrugged. "It was the last move I had left." I explained calmly as if it was nothing.
I saw Mel enter the dorm entrance and I immediately forgot about the last training class I was in.
"I'll see you around. Later Ed." I waved good-bye and started jogging for the dorm's entrance.
He called out to me. "Yeah, I'll see you at lunch!"

I walked into mine and Mel's room and found her doing her homework. That's not a surprise. my inner voice said lightly.
"Hey Mel." she looked up at me and started to put her things away.
"Hey Rave. So what are the plans tonight?" she asked knowingly. Since I'm the more irresponsible one, of course she thinks I have a party planned. . .especially since it's friday night!
"I honestly have no clue. But after dinner tonight. . .we may have a hell of a weekend!" I told her excitedly and smiled.

uhhhhh lets seeee.... tati idk what ur talkin bout. you're as good of a writer as i am lol. duhhhh

I really liked those parts you wrote, Tania Belikova, and what you're writing is really good. Keep going at it, I can't wait to read more!

Thank you. I appreciate you taking the time to read this

Part 4
I couldn't believe that when I woke up the next day, it was saturday.
Excited and eager, I woke Mel up. At first she refused to get out of bed, but when i reminded her about what we were going to do, she practically jumped out of her bed.

Later on near curfew, I hurriedly took a shower, blow dried my hair and applied some make up to accentuate my eyes and mouth. After trying on about six outfits, I finally found one I liked. It was a deep purple halter top that sort of clinged to my body and showed off my curves, a plaid purple and black skirt and I wore black knee-high boots. I looked at Mel and spun around once to show her my outfit.
She smiled and then grimaced slightly. "You aren't gonna go to the party with your hair in tangles are you?" she asked.
I looked in the mirror and mentally swore at myself. I remembered to dry my hair, but I hadn't brushed out the tangles after the shower.
Picking up my brush, I started to brush the tangles. After I finished smoothening my hair, I noted how. . .Well, pretty I looked.
I liked my chocolate brown eye color. My eyes always seemed darker or lighter depending on my moods though, and I thought that was cool. I liked the light tan to my skin color, the subtle curves to my body and how graceful everyone thought I seemed and looked. Then I admired my hair. It was such a dark brown, it looked black sometimes, it was straight and didn't curl, but it also looked like I had red streaks in it sometimes.

Mel and I left our room and snuck down stairs to the first floor. There was only one person watching the front desk--which was inconviniently positioned to where someone could watch the front doors--but it was better than two or three. Lucky for us though, after ten seconds, she started yawning.
I glanced at Mel and she nodded knowingly.
The woman on watch started yawning again and her eyes drooped slightly. Mel and I waited another three minutes, but she never did fall asleep. Mel considered that we go back to our room, but suddenly, the woman slowly laid her head on her arm on the desk and her eyes closed.
Tugging on Mel's hand, we quickly crossed the short distance to the double doors to freedom and slipped outside.
Feeling like we were secret agents, we walked the hundred yards to the guy's dorm and snuck in through the side entrance. Why didnt I think of that at our dorm? I asked myself in my head. It would have been easier and faster, my inner voice was a little annoyed.
After walking up stairs to the third floor, that was it for the sneaking. We could hear a few people talking and the music that played in the room.
I had my hand out in front of me ready to knock on the door, but it suddenly opened.
"Hey there, you girls need an escort to the kid side of campus?" said a familiar voice. I finally got a good look of the guy who had opened the door. . .It was Greg. He had that goofey and stupid smirk he always had when something seemed amusing to him.
I glared at him and refrained from punching him in the face. "No need," I smiled earnestly. "But I'm afraid your mother called and asked us to tell you to give her back her make up bag."
I heard laughter from the other's in the room and James put a hand on Greg's shoulder just as he started to get tense. "Step aside, Gregori, and let my friends join us."
Greg did as James' said, but that didn't mean he didn't glare at me with pure hatred. What startled me was that that glare on his face had softened, turning to something welcoming and. . .warm. At first I thought it was because he liked me as a friend instead of hating me. Then I noticed his eyes take a look at me from head to toe.
I grimaced, but decided to make a joke. "Hey, you can stare at me as much as you want Greg. Just don't expect me to be your girlfriend."
Everyone in the room laughed--except James--and the usually confident Greg flushed a light pink color before walking back to a dark brown chair and settled in.
Then, the real party started.

Part 5
Well, that party definetly got insane, but what shocked me was how quickly it ended.
After about two hours, one of the protectors on duty heard music and our laughter and well. . .He busted the door open. All of us got a stern talk. It bored me, but was easy to tune out.
He escorted Mel and me back to our dorm. When we stepped through the double doors, he didn't leave. I sighed and we continued to walk to our room.
Once I opened the door with my key and stepped inside after Melanie, before I could slam the door, he stepped into the room. Shocked that he came in, I was afraid he was going to watch us sleep!
Suddenly, he bowed. His next words put me in a daze. "Good night, your highnesses." then he shut the door as he left.
Mel and I didn't talk much after that. She was tired, but I was stunned. My movements after the protector left us had me doing things I normally would, mechanically.
As I lay in bed, I started thinking about when I was referred to as part of the royals.
Then, I remembered something that I rarely thought about. . .I was part of the royal Ashford blood line. Along with that, Melanie was my real sister. My father, Shane Ashford, was also Mel's father. My--our--father used to be a heart breaker. . .That is, until he'd met my mother, Karen Sterling. She is an impral, just like me. She was my flesh and blood. For Mel. . .She was her mother by marriage.
Yes, I said marriage. It was rare in our world, but it happened from time to time. My mother had fallen for Shane, just as he fell for her. Ironically, they fell for each other only about a week after our father dumped Mel's flesh and blood mother, Sierra Upham. Even though Shane and my mother had fallen for each other, that didn't mean he didn't go back to Sierra.
Though I had been born two months before Mel, a fraternity test proved Mel and I were related. It astonished my mother, but also, it had broken her heart. Not only that, but she had to leave both Mel and me here, at the academy, to be raised. It wasn't really her choice, but she had to keep being a protector.
Another twisted part was, when Mel was conceived, in the process, her mother passed. It's really sad that her mother died giving birth to her, but it also meant she was strong enough and was fighting to keep Mel alive.
I never realized how weird our--Melanie and my--lives were.

The next several weeks passed by so fast, it's a wonder that I remembered my name.
It was the last week of school, everyone had either left early, was going to be picked up by eager parents, or were staying at the academy.
Melanie and me were talking about how wild the last day of school was, and were heading back to our room when I noticed someone following us. With a speed that shocked me, I was tense and crouched protectively in front of Melanie. Making sure she was safe and that no harm would come to her, I let my senses range outward to find any other threat. . .But there was none.
I sensed Melanie move to the side, which put her in danger because she was in the open of our pursuer.
I tried to shield Mel with my body again, but her words froze my muscles in place. "Dad." she breathed.
Trying to process what she said, I realized that there was no threat. Mel had said "Dad." which meant only one thing. . .Our father.

In part 4 I really like how you discribe Raven and how she reacts and speaks to others in your story. She's a really good character. In part 5 I like how you have connected Raven and Melanie as half sisters. That's a twist I wouldn't have thought of. It's good, keep going.

Thank you. And here's the next part. Hope you like it.

Part 6
Slowly, I straightened my posture.
"How are my two angels doing?" he smiled and looked at both of us.
Melanie ran to our father and wrapped her sort-of-tanned-and-skinny arms around his waist. No surprise there. "I missed you." she whispered. Judging by how her voice cracked a little, I knew she was on the verge of crying.
"I know sweetie, I know. Things have been busy lately." he softly stroked her hair, his eyes turned to me, his voice turning a little husky. "You aren't going to give your father a hug, Raven?" his lips turned up slightly at the corner of his mouth, but I could hear that I had hurt him a little when I hadn't hugged him immediately like Mel had.
"Come on Rave, he's our dad. Didn't you miss him too?" When she spoke, she was looking at me and I saw the tears in her eyes.
I walked over to them and hugged them both in a little group hug. "I did miss you, and mom." that made Mel stiffen a little, but she loved both our parents. She accepted my mom as her mom, just as I accepted her dad as my dad.
After a while of bonding, I tuned my father and sister out. I didn't really want to be distracted. If any flaw in the system occured, I'd have to prrotect two vampires from the werewolves on my own. And not just any vampires, two royal vampires that were also. . .My family.
I heard swift foot steps approach and I got into my protective stance again, blocking anyone or anything who put my family in danger.
Then, I saw someone who was at least in her late twenties or early thirties that had similar features as me, walk toward us. Karen Sterling, some part of me said.
I straightened out of my defensive posture and stared in her direction. "Mom. . ." I said, my voice barely audible.
She understood, either she knew me that well, or it was written all over my face. "Hey there sweetheart," she said, smiling and looking in my direction. "How have you been?"
Even though I tried controlling my emotions, I couldn't help but wrap my arms around her. She was shorter than me, yes, but I figured it was because of my father's genes. With my mom, dad and sister here. . .I realized I didn't ever want to lose any of them to those ugly and vicious monsters called werewolves.
Nothing mattered to me more than protecting my friends and family.

About an hour after the beginning of our family reunion, we decided to eat as a family in my room--which was also Mel's room. We were talking for what seemed like days, but only an hourhad passed.
Suddenly, I heard the words "drowning" and the name "Breanne Sterling"
I stood up and asked, "What happened? Who's Breanne??" I was pretty sure I sounded hysterical.
By the looks I got from my family members, I guessed right. I took a slow breath to calm myself.
After a minute, my mom answered, "Breanne was your aunt--both of your aunt's." No surprise there, my family was Mel's family, and her family was my family. Although I was pretty sure I hadn't imagined our mother say "was".
"You said 'was' our aunt. . .What do you mean by that?" I stared at her, part of me was fierce and strong while another part was scared about what the answer was.
"She got chased by a pack to a river near her home and she drowned." It wasn't my mother's voice who anwered me. . .It was my father's.
I stared at him. Aunt Breanna "drowned" and from what I heard, it was brutal.
"How long ago?"
"Not that long, a few weeks ago maybe. Why?" our father looked at me, but then got distracted when our mom gently brushed his hair.
I looked at Mel, and the way she looked at me, she understood. She remembered that dream I'd had weeks ago, it seems like we both forgot about that.

The family reunion didn't last long, but Mel and I cherished every moment.
That night--which I'd had one of those weird dream vision things--was actually quite peaceful. I'd dreamt that my parents--which were also Mel's--would come and talk to us, saying they were going to take us away from the Academy for about a week.
Later on in the afternoon--which was the middle of the night since the Academy acts off a nocturnal schedule--our parents came to talk to us and said they were taking us to be with them for a while.
Melanie was so ecstatic, I was surprised she didn't scream. Our parents said they'll give us two days to pack our things.
Mel and I went through the day so happy, it's hard to believe that we'd just lost a family member.

I was dreaming of a sweet mellow field with the warm sun on my skin, I was happy and radiant. Suddenly, things shifted. I was still on the field, but everything seemed darker.
I checked my surroundings, nothing seemed wrong.
When I took one step forward, that's when I heard it. There were people running, and breathing hard. . .No, not people, I realized. Werewolves. . .

I really liked the ending to part 6 when Raven is dreaming. I wouldn't have thought to have werewolves running around for the end. People maybe, but not wolves. Can't wait to read and find out what happens next.

Part 7
Shocked, I couldn't wake up. They started closing in on me, and I braced myself to run.
I heard them gaining on me so I picked up the pace and pushed my muscles to their limit.
It was crazy. I couldn't believe I was being chased by werewolves! I mean, in the future, maybe, but now? Gosh, this was so not cool.
I started slowing down a little. My muscles ached and were screaming in protest. Keep going, the voice in my head said. You can't just let them tear you apart! Not when your family needs you! the voice yelled.
That was all I needed to keep running. I couldn't let these monsters kill me. Not when I have a family that needs to be protected.
Next thing I knew, I jolted upright gasping for air and lightly shuddered. Taking in my surroundings, I realized I was back in my room. I heard faint breathing on the other side of me. Glancing over, I sighed in relief seeing Melanie asleep. She had a smile on her face, so I assumed she was peacefully dreaming.

Later in the afternoon, I was walking around campus--without Melanie, which didn't happen often. I was constantly around Mel, but she had wanted to finish packing, so I let her. I didn't know why, but I just wanted to think about what my vision meant.
I saw movement out of the corner of my eye, but ignored who it was. I saw the auburn colored hair that flowed to my mother's shoulders and immediately caught myself before I attacked her. My nerves were so chaotic, I had to try really hard not to turn around and throw a punch.
"Raven." my mother said to me. I turned around and looked down at her. She smiled at me and I couldn't help a smile grin. "I have to tell you something. . ." she hesitated.
I shrugged. "What is it, mom?" I didn't need to ask, I already knew what she was going to tell me. Before I dreamt of being chased by werewolves, I saw my mother telling me she knew someone who could help me with my training and control over the weird powers I had.
She looked at me with speculation. "You already know what I am going to tell you, don't you, Raven." When she said that, it didn't sound like a question, it was a statement.
I nodded and she sighed. "Look darling; I am doing this to help you. People like you are rare. . .special." When she said "People like you" I knew she meant people who had more than one ability or power. "I know you have the potential to wield your powers, but the Academy doesn't know what to teach you. They don't know how to help you gain control of them."
The rest of the conversation with my mom was like that. She was worried about what would happen to me if I slipped once with controlling my powers, it could kill me.

After the encounter with my mom, I walked back to my room to rest.
As soon as I walked in the door, I felt that little tickle I got when Mel read my mind. I said and let her see what I was doing while I was gone.
Even though one of the abilities I had included shielding myself from the abilities of others', Mel could still see into my head, just like with anyone else. We didn't know why only Mel could get through my defensive power, but I thought it was because we were related by flesh and blood from our father. Although, just recently, I learned that if I didn't want her to know something, I could block her from my head.
I didn't acknowledge that last thought. Melanie was always happy that she was the only one who could breach my protective ability--mentally, since she wasn't strong enough to beat me in protective combat.

Mel and I were with each other the rest of that day. Talking, laughing, saying random things and talking about what happened during school.
It was getting late and we were both getting tired. Later on, after Mel had fallen asleep, I stayed up. I couldn't shake the feeling that I might have the same vision with the werewolves chasing me--though most of my visions never repeated themselves.
An hour passed and I started feeling exhausted! Maybe a little kitty nap won't harm me. I started drifting into a calm sleep.

Standing and staring out at how beautiful the night looked. I sensed someone walking toward me; it was both familiar and unfamiliar because it was just a dream. Someone’s arms suddenly wrapped around my waist. I turned to see who it was, but what I didn’t expect was . . . The guy who stood behind me was excruciatingly handsome.
I smiled a little and drank in his features. I liked the way he smiled at me, how warm his arms felt around me, how sweet his lips looked . . . When I looked into his eyes, I stared adoringly at him, but some coherent part of me--the part that was sleeping in my room with Mel’s bed across from mine--was startled. The eyes that I was looking at had a light tinge of gray around the pupils.
He’s a werewolf, some part of me said. How could this be? I had fallen for a werewolf . . .

I really liked how you explained Raven's running dream. Most people I have read from books and fanfic can't write a good running scene, but yours worked really well. I loved the ending dream, too, and how she was explaing the mystery man behind her. Can't wait to find out who he is!

Part 8
The thoughts of the man I loved in the future being a werewolf was abruptly pushed aside once his lips brushed softly against mine. Suddenly, light and intense warmth shot through my body, I couldn’t help but respond to his lips on mine. I turned around and grabbed a handful of his shaggy brown hair with one hand while my other was currently pulling his shirt up.
Stop it Raven. He’s a monster, remember? Just like they all are. said the coherent side of me. Only…I couldn’t help it…I knew with every part of my being that he would always watch over me. He would always protect me.
No, no! I screamed at myself. What about Melanie? What about mom, dad and everyone else? Melanie’s name was like a slap in the face.
I woke up and shuddered. I wanted to fall asleep again and see if I could get another glimpse of that man I saw. I yearned to see him again…But it wasn’t possible, with all the adrenaline in my system, I couldn’t even relax into a resting position.
I sighed and walked to the window across the room. Staring out the window, I saw stars glimmering and sparkling, almost like they wanted me to have that vision…It was almost like they were acknowledging that they knew what I saw and that they wanted me to see that.
Were they trying to tell me I should avoid ever running into that man, or were they telling me to accept it and just let go of some things the academy taught me?

A few hours later, there was a knock at the door. Mel stirred, but otherwise didn’t wake from her dreams.
I crossed the room and opened the door. I sighed when I saw my father, but couldn’t help a small grin. “You are up early. Shouldn’t you still be sleeping?” I asked curiously.
He shook his head, “This is actually a little late for me. But I wanted to see how you both were.” He made a gesture toward me and then Mel.
“Well, as you can see, Mel and I are great. Now would you please leave? Let Mel sleep.” I pleaded. “We will meet you--and mom if you bring her—in the lobby.”
He nodded and gave me a hug. I thought about the nightmares I’d been having lately and hesitantly wrapped my arms around his waist. He kissed my forehead and let go of me. I shook my head and clung to him. Tears were threatening to spill from my eyes, but I didn’t care. I needed to make sure my father was alive and it wasn’t my dysfunctional mind playing tricks on me.
My father was stunned—which was acceptable, considering I didn’t get all mushy often—but he wrapped an arm around me. He didn’t ask what was wrong, which I’m glad for. I didn’t want to tell him—to tell anyone, really—about the stupid visions. I just wanted…Needed to be comforted.
After about a minute, I relaxed my hold on my father. He noticed the change and looked at me incredulously. Again, I shook my head and he nodded.
See, that’s what I loved about him. He never did push me into talking about things that upset me. Mom, on the other hand, was exceptional at constantly pushing me into uncomfortable conversation.
He turned to leave, but I whispered, “Love you, dad.”
He paused a little and glanced back at me, “I love you, too. But please…If and when you want to talk…You know who to go to.” Then he left.

I like how Raven's innter voice is telling her to do things. It's great that she's 'arguing' with her innter self. I love how you worded it to work with the story so well. And that end! I loved her dad saying 'I love you, too. But please…If and when you want to talk…You know who to go to.' That was pretty awesome. Keep it going, I still want to figure out this mystery man's name.

Part 9
When Mel woke up, she seemed to be in a great mood. That strange tickle I always felt when she searched through my thoughts was familiar and calming. I knew she’d look through my memories and watched them replay in my head with relief. I blocked the little dramatic scene with our father because I didn’t want her to get worried.

We were with our parents at their vacation house—which they kept for times like this, although our parents were constantly working—since they were both taking a break to spend time with us.
Mel and I finished packing and we didn’t know what to do. We talked for about ten minutes before our parents came into our room.
They had asked if we wanted to join them in the backyard for a little “get together” party.
We agreed and told them we’d be out after we were ready.
I chose a dark pink tank top that had a wonderful hem and neck line that was black lace, a plain black skirt that went to my mid thigh over black shorts and a cute pair of black boots that were knee-high with pink shoelaces. I accessorized my outfit with a silver chain necklace that held my favorite charm that dangled beautifully. It was made of silver also and it spelt my name, but it was more vibrant to notice because the letters were black instead of plain silver. I smoothed the tangles from my hair and rushed putting on my makeup and used a light pink gloss to make my lips shine a little.
Melanie had to straighten her hair—since it was normally wavy—and it looked gorgeous when she wore it straight. Her outfit was a light blue dress that flared out a little after it flowed past her hips, with a matching pair of heels. She used blue earrings that dangled half way down her neck, baby blue bangles and a silver chain—similar to mine—that held a charm that spelt her name, except her letters were in blue instead of black.
Our parents had given us both the same necklaces when we were ten during the end of summer vacation. When we turned thirteen, they had given us the charms that our necklaces now held securely. The color that matched my features was black—not surprising—and the color that matched Mel was blue.
Melanie had a vibrant blue eye color that always seemed to sparkle, she was pale with only a slight tan, and her hair…Her hair was a gorgeous color that I envied. It was a beautiful dirty blonde shade, but it was gorgeous with her features. She’s a few inches taller than me, but not by much. She was thin—not malnourished—and she gets fragile and ravenous when she’s really parched, and that was one thing I detested.
I never liked when she was frail from not drinking much, though I still didn’t like the scent of blood.
She smiled broadly at me and I couldn’t help the little smile that spread across my lips. “You ready?”
I nodded and in a few moments, we descended the stairs like we were royalty—which, we both actually were.

I really liked that part with how you discribed what the two were wearing and the connection between the two necklaces with their parents and themselves. That was a cute moment.

Part 10
Our parents were waiting at the end of the stairs and smiled at us while we walked down. We came to a stop in front of our parents and we were both a little nervous—I noticed Mel play with a lock of her hair for a brief moment, which is what she normally did when she felt uncomfortable.
“There’s our beautiful daughters.” I heard a faint sigh come from our mom when dad said those words.
Mel and I both smiled at our dad’s praise. “Well, it’s nice to see you too.” I said, trying to lighten the mood even more. It worked a little. I noticed the change in Mel’s posture and I saw that she was calmer and more eager.
”So…Where is everyone?” she asked, her voice sounding a little impatient.
“Like we said earlier darling,” our father said. “It’s a ‘backyard’ party.” He smiled at the both of us and started leading us to the back door we rarely used on these vacations.

Mel and I came to a halt when we saw the people that were in our— rather huge and insanely expensive houses—backyard. There were at least fifty people back here—that included my family and me.
Mel was just as shocked as I was because she asked, “What the heck? Why is there so many people crowding our backyard?” she looked at our parents and Mel looked—astonished.
Our dad was so amused, he couldn’t answer Mel; instead, our mom answered, “Well, it’s not often that we are all together like this.” From her slight pause, I realized there was more; apparently, so did Mel.
“What else is there?” she asked slightly annoyed and impatient.
“Well,” began our mom. “Since we won’t be able to make it for both your birthdays, Shane and I thought…” our mom’s words drifted to a uncomfortable silence.
Our dad finished the rest of our mother’s thoughts. “We thought it’d be best to have an early birthday party over summer, while we had time.”
I looked and Mel and she too looked pretty uneasy. I decided that I might as well step up to the plate here—no pun intended. I finally saw a table that was near the door to the backyard…And it had gift wrapped boxes everywhere. There were presents on top of the table, under the table and some to the sides of the table on the ground.
I quickly turned back to my parents and they smiled. Uneasily, I glanced at Mel; she seemed just as shocked as me.

Suddenly, the party didn’t seem too dreadful. I had seen a few novices and walked over to join them. Mel had seen a few of the vampires in her class and engaged their group.
After about a half hour after the sun had set, both vampires and novices alike were partying together. I started talking to Mel when a glow about thirty yards away caught my attention. She looked toward the glow also and then we looked back at each other. Seeing the gleam in Mel’s eyes, I immediately knew what she was thinking.
“Oh, why not?” I said lightly, smiling. “Might as well make the most of this early birthday party, right?” she nodded eagerly and I laughed.
We snuck back in the house unnoticed and quickly changed out of our ‘semi-formal’ party clothes and into ‘pool’ party clothes!
Again, we descended the stairs and walked out the back doors. Once we stepped outside, all eyes were on us. Busted, the voice in my head said. A few seconds passed and our parents were standing before us, only…didn’t seem angry. They smiled and someone started playing music from a really good bass and surround sound system.
Everyone at the party was hanging around the pool. I was swirling my legs around in the cool water and started staring at the sky; mesmerized by the moon and stars. I felt someone standing behind me, sensed that whoever it was, was watching me.
I glanced behind me at nothing in particular, just from an urge to figure out who could look at me with an intensity that I could sense. A quick assessment of the party-goers around me revealed nothing out of the ordinary. I was about to go back to watching the stars, but suddenly, I saw someone I hadn’t noticed before. I didn’t see the features I barely caught sight of in my vision of the werewolf I apparently might fall in love with, but that didn’t mean he looked any less intimidating.
I suddenly had the feeling of someone searching through my thoughts. I glanced over to where Mel was and I felt shocked to see that her attention wasn’t on me, but on Greg Lefevre. This has to be a trick, some part of me said. Maybe she’s just trying to throw me off? I knew better than that, Mel would never try to psych me out, especially not this way.
Then…I got my answer. It was that man who had stared at me with such intensity, that I sensed his gaze. I shuddered lightly and reluctantly stood up walking toward this stranger. I still felt that tickle in my head and tried not to focus on anything specific.
Standing before strange-staring man, I looked him dead in the eyes—though he was about half a foot taller than me. “Who are you?”
He smiled slightly, and there was that little tickle again. “You already know who I am, Raven.” It was a statement.

That was a cool part. I loved how Raven notices the glow of the pool before looking back at Mel. And that ending! Can't wait to find out more of mystery man.

Part 11
I started to shake my head, then; the realization hit me hard as if I was shoved to the ground in combat classes. “You’re my mentor…my instructor. The one my mom told me about.
Nodding, he added “There was no need for her to tell you, you had a vision that told you she was going to, so when the time came, you already knew about me. Hmm, this is interesting. I’ve never been in someone’s mind before to find out startling things from them.”
I still felt that little tickle in my head, and I didn’t like the fact that this guy could get through my shielding ability. I shoved against his intrusion—mentally of course—and after a few seconds of concentration, I was able to shove him out of my head.
“Amazing…” he breathed. From the look that came to his face, I assumed no one could block him from their minds. I gave him annoyed look and he looked like he’d enjoyed that little confrontation.
“Look mister, I really don’t have time for all your games. Are you or aren’t you going to help me control my powers?” I didn’t fell that little tickle in my head, so I assumed he wouldn’t be able to know that if he got me any more annoyed, he’d get his clothes soaked.
He looked at me amused and broadly said, “Raven, you have so much to learn. It might take three quarters of your senior year to learn how to control most of your abilities.”
With that being said, I got a little angry. In my mind I was imagining some of the water from the pool to splash him and get his pretty clothes all wet. After a moment…nothing happened. I stared in astonishment at him. Why wasn’t he soaking wet? What’s going on?
He chuckled and that sound broke me away from my tantrum. “Surprised? You shouldn’t be, after all, I can control one element.” I stared at him and noticed his eyes elsewhere. Following his gaze, I saw a little of the pool’s water just behind me.
I was shocked. He could sense what I was doing and he stopped the water. Great, this mentor’s gonna be a pain!
I walked away from him and threw the water back into the pool. He didn’t stop that, I guess while I was thinking of getting water on him, he was thinking of it going back into the pool. That would explain the fact that it stopped about three feet out of the pool.
After that encounter with my new and personal mentor, I kept my defenses up the rest of the party. I did not want this guy intruding on my thoughts. But why can this guy be in my head when other students at my school with that ability—excluding Mel—couldn’t? My thoughts were swirling around so many events; I’m surprised that I could still walk.
The party wasn’t a total disaster, but it was still weird after the confrontation with my mentor who—supposedly—has more than one power. I enjoyed the rest of the party, partially because I didn’t want Mel to get too curious and skim through my thoughts.

Groggy and light-headed, I walked down stairs and went to get me something to drink. I didn’t know why I felt beat, but then last nights events flooded back to me in an instant. My eyes widened and I felt a little insecure about a few things.
Then I sensed someone watching me and I knew last night wasn’t a dream. I turned around and saw my instructor. He was staring at me with that same intensity like he did the other night.
I walked over to where he was sitting and stood before him. “Well you know my name and so much more about me, yet I know nothing about you…except that you have more than one ability.” I said a little annoyed and then I felt a little off guard. “And that you can get past my defensive ability—to shield other’s from my thoughts if they used their powers…Why is that?” I asked.
He smiled, still sitting in the chair, “Claude Akatsuki, nice to meet you.” His eyes seemed like such a wonderful hazel, I couldn’t help but stare. “The reason your shield against other’s powers doesn’t work for me when you don’t block me out is because I have the same shielding ability…it just isn’t as strong as yours.”
I blinked in disbelief. So that’s why he was able to get through my shield. This man—Claude—has sort of the same ability of shielding that I do…

I love Raven's reaction to Claude. It's really good. And I love how they talk to each other. Almost like siblings but a little more then that. Can't wait to read more!

Part 12
Well, three days has passed and I’m still “raw” according to Claude; with my abilities.
Today, Claude got me working with fire. I tried making a small fire and I got his jacket singed a little. I was so embarrassed that I apologized and ran back into the house and locked the door to my room. Luckily, Mel was out and with our parents to find new clothes for her to use in senior year.
An hour later, someone knocked on the door.
“Go away!” I shouted.
I heard a rustling at the door and I sighed. Claude stepped into my room. He paused, one foot through the door, the other behind. He looked around like he was entranced or something. He glanced at Mel’s side of the room, but his attention was mostly on my side of the room.
“I know, I have a weird sense of fashion compared to Mel. Don’t I?” I asked, smiling a slightly pained little smile. I hadn’t cared about what people said about my style, it was part of me, and I expressed it clearly. People questioned how we had different styles, and yet, be related.
He nodded, “It’s rather different than most.” He said, taking in my side of the room.
Mel had cute blue sheets and they were lovely with her beige colored bed frame and head board. I had purple sheets on my bed with a sort of red shade of brown bed frame and head board.
Our tastes and styles stood out, mostly because mine was sort of dark and mysterious, while Mel’s is light and open.
We talked for a little and he walked out of the room. I was a little relieved, but then I felt a loss as his presence faded. Then, a few minutes later, he returned with two cups in his hand.
He extended one of the cups to me. I sat up and sniffed at the cup. “Strawberry soda…how did you know?” I looked at him curiously and tilted my head to the side.
He smiled at me, light and breath-taking. “When I saw into your head, I skimmed through a few things.” I nodded, still uncomfortable with him being able to see into my head like Mel.

Claude and I continued on working with my abilities until Mel and our parents came home—which they’d been gone for three hours.
Exhausted, I walked into the house, Claude following behind me. I lay on the couch and closed my eyes. “You really know how to make someone work, don’t you?” I asked him.
I heard him chuckle and I couldn’t help the smile that crept upon my features. “Yeah, well, someone like you needs to work harder, especially if you are going to be one of Mel’s protectors.”
I looked at him and sighed. “Yeah, you’re right.” I realized I had a lot of work to do with controlling my abilities. Everyone else had a class to go to for control, since everyone only had one ability. I couldn’t though. True, they could put me in a bunch of magic classes, but that wouldn’t work. With my shield, anyone who was in the room couldn’t do any magic, and neither could other classes near me.
The teachers observed me like some sort of freak they didn’t know had existed. They sent someone outside and had them try to use their magic. After he was about sixty yards away from the building, he could use his magic. They changed the schedules so that magic classes happened during my training classes—which was smart because we were about a hundred yards away from the school building and were on the field.
“Hey Rave,” Melanie said to me. “Hi Claude.” She nodded in his direction and he bowed, ever so slightly.
“Your highness.” I still wasn’t used to that much.
Mel turned back to me. “You look dead beat, Rave. He didn’t have you do much, did he?” she looked at him for a brief moment and then turned back to me.
I grimaced, “He had me working with my elemental magic today, and it was not that good.”
He laughed and gave us a parting bow. “I apologize, but I must attend to a few things.” He left us and I stared after him.
“So,” Mel said, getting my attention. “We go back to the academy in two days. I’m really going to miss being with our parents.”
“Yeah, I am too.” I agreed. It occurred to me that I really would miss the vacation house. Things were so stable, so sweet here. I wanted to stay here and not leave, but I knew that my life after senior year will be about travel.

Mel and I returned to our room and I paused. “What’s all this?” our room had a whole bunch of packages on the floor and some on our beds.
“We went shopping, remember?” she asked.
“I really don’t think you need all these clothes, Mel.”
She laughed, “They aren’t all mine. I also got mom and dad to get you clothes too instead of having to take you tomorrow.” I smiled and looked in one of the packages on my bed.
I crossed the room and gave Mel a hug. She was the best half sister I could have ever asked for. “Thanks Mel.” She smiled and hugged me back. She knew my style, as I knew hers, and we knew each other so well, it shocked me sometimes.
After we packed our thing in our cases, we had a few packages to carry, but we didn’t mind. Our parents called to us, and we went down stairs to eat dinner.

It was dark, cold, and I had no idea where I was. I didn’t know what was going on. I heard a rustling sound behind me and I turned around as quickly as I could. I scanned the area around me. Nothing seemed strange, other than how dark it was and the temperature since it was still summer. Even though it was dark, I could see fairly well because the vampire genes in me strengthened my senses.
I heard something running toward me, just a second too late. I got slammed to the ground, and hovering over me…was a wolf. He was beautiful. His fur was soft, and was almost a light black shade. He snarled at me, but I was mesmerized of how wonderful a wolf looked. He stared down at me and his eyes…they were such a wonderful color of blue, I couldn’t even see the gray that surrounded his pupils.
I felt the wolf shaking and he just stared…then, he suddenly turned around and ran.

I woke up in my bed at the vacation house and I was a little startled. What just happened to me? I wondered.
I thought about the wolf I dreamt about and then, the man I saw hold me in his arms in my other dream came to mind. I compared their eyes, and then a realization hit me…they were both the same person! What the bleep!

That was great, Tati! I love the discription of the wolf ^_^

Part 13
I stayed awake the rest of the night; I couldn’t even believe what I had just seen in my vision. This couldn’t be, I thought. Why is this happening? Why are my dreams so bleep ridiculous? the voice in my head was slightly annoyed. “Ugh,” I said to myself. “What’s going on with me lately?”
I walked out of the room, went down stairs and into the backyard. Finally able to get a little fresh air, I felt better. Things were so crazy now; it seems like I’d been sleeping for days and every time I woke up, I was still sleeping. If only it were that easy, said that voice in my head.
Someone cleared his throat from behind me, and I jumped a little. It was Claude. I was startled, but he was amused. “What do you want?” I tried to look fierce. It didn’t affect him.
“Someone didn’t sleep well, I’m guessing.” He gave me the statement-of-fact tone and I glared.
“Yeah, what of it, Claude?” starting to get annoyed, I placed my hands on my hips.
“I was just wondering what’s wrong and if there was something I could do, your highness.” He said. All trace of his humor and amusement vanished as he thought of me being part of the royal Ashford family.
I decided not to go too hard on him. “I want to know how to control these visions I get in my dreams. I hate them, they keep getting me terrified.” I stared at nothing, but was looking at the image of the wolf-man that was forever burned in my head.
He sighed and walked over to me. I didn’t feel that tickle in my head, and I wanted to keep it that way. I strengthened the shield and tried to make sure I had my mind blocked from him. I didn’t want him to know about the wolf. “I can’t help you with that. I do not have that ability.” He looked at me as if he wanted to help me, like he wanted to trade everything he had, to help me.
Huh, the voice in my head said. Never thought he liked me. But as I looked at him, I had a feeling as if he wanted us to have more than a student-instructor relationship. “Thank you, but later on when the sun goes down, I would like to go on my own and walk around to clear my head.”
At first it looked like he’d disagree with me, but then something in his features changed to…trust. “Okay, but keep your cell with you.” It was stern, an order. Among all things, I was glad he was back to teacher mode.

The day went by too fast; I wanted it to go slower. I didn’t want to leave mom and dad yet. Things were getting stranger as time went on. I had trained with Claude for the last two hours and I was tired!
I took a quick shower and dressed in a black mini dress that was torn in such a fashion that it screamed—not really—for me to wear it. Over the dress, I wore a purple tube top and it sparkled a little. I also used a black and purple plaid skirt with safety pins on it. After all that, I chose to use purple boots. I looked killer.
Even though these were the new clothes that my family bought for me yesterday, I couldn’t help but feel like I’d used it before. I shook my head thinking I was being ridiculous and walked down stairs. I checked my phone and it was almost midnight. Perfect! I was elated to go for a midnight walk beneath the moon and the stars.
Claude was in the kitchen while I started drinking strawberry soda. “You look nice. Where are you going, if I may ask?”
I shrugged, “I don’t know, I just want to go for a midnight stroll. After all, I can do something alone without getting in trouble.”
He glared, but then he softened up. “Okay, but—“
“Keep my phone with me. I know, you told me earlier.”
Claude smiled a tight smile and I sighed walking over to him and hugged him. He didn’t expect that. Neither did I, but I wanted to reassure him that I’d be okay.
“Just be safe.” He said in a slightly husky voice.
I nodded and gave him a parting smile as I walked out of the front door.
Once I closed the door, I had a flash of the wolf attacking me again. And then, I was out. Weird…I only had visions when I’m asleep. I shrugged it off and walked around in the moonlight. It was lovely.

I was walking around for about an hour now, and it started to get cold. I rubbed my hands together trying to warm them. Oddly enough, it was only August; it shouldn’t get cold like this. I breathed a heavy sigh and I saw my breath come out like a white cloud.
I shivered lightly, wishing I’d worn a jacket. My phone rang and I jumped. Looking at it, I saw Claude’s name on the screen.
Sighing, I flipped my phone open and said, “Hi Claude.”
“Where are you? It’s already 1:45. What have you been doing?” he sounded really concerned and everything he said came out in a rush. I felt a little guilty hearing how much I made him worry.
“I’m fine Claude. Don’t worry about me. I’ll walk back home now, okay? Tell everyone I’ll be home in about a half hour.” I shut my phone before he could say anything else.
I put my phone away and glanced around. It was dark, the lights on the street weren’t working, and the moon was blocked out by the clouds.
Hearing a rustling sound, I turned and took in my surroundings searching for a threat. Nothing seemed out of place. Hastily, I looked around again. Suddenly, I realized that, while I was walking, trying to follow the moon, I didn’t pay attention to where I was going. Sighing, I walked back the way I came. I smelt the faint scent of my perfume in a trail, so I followed it.
Being a little wary, I made sure not to let anything catch me off guard. Heard a rustling again, and then, I was pinned. Bleep! the voice in my head sounded upset.
I was panicking and struggling. Then, I heard heavy breathing and it did not sound human. I looked up and saw the wolf from my dream. I screamed…

Part 14
The wolf was bearing his teeth at me, growling digging his claws by my sides. He was just so big…if I’d been standing, he’d be about a foot taller than me, maybe even taller than a vampire.
Suddenly, I felt the urge to touch his fur. Hesitantly, I reached my hand up toward his neck. The wolf looked at my hand and his features changed from fury to one of wonder. He moved away from my hand a little, but moving mine closer, I was able to touch his fur. Gently, I stroked the fur by his neck. It felt so soft, so smooth…I was mesmerized. The wolf suddenly shuddered at my touch.
I looked at his eyes next, and he didn’t look dangerous to me. He looked like he didn’t know what to do. My vision hadn’t done him justice. Seeing those eyes right now, I thought they were beautiful. They seemed so mysterious, so hypnotic…they were a wonderful gray blue, I couldn’t tell if he had the light gray color around his pupils that most wolves had. The blue seemed to hide the gray. I kept looking at them and noticed they got a little darker around the edges of his eyes.
Tilting my head to the side a little, I said wonderingly, “Who are you?” I couldn’t help it, I wanted to know so much about this creature; he was so different from the normal people I’ve lived with.
He shuddered hearing my voice. I was mesmerized by everything that I hadn’t noticed that I seemed to entrance him, like the way he entranced me.
A few seconds passed and all we did was stare at each other. I never been this close to something I’d have to be killing soon. Then, my phone rang and it ruined the moment. The wolf glanced around warily; I understood that, if I was in his place, I’d be worried about Imprals coming. I took out my phone and the wolf stared at me.
“Claude,” I said, “I told you, I’m coming home. I’ll be there as soon as I can, so don’t worry.” The wolf shuddered again and his eyes closed. I wondered if he liked the sound of my voice, but it seemed highly unlikely.
“I know what you said, but I am still worried. There’s a tracker on your phone and I’ve been watching you. You haven’t moved! You’re about a mile away from the house. I’m coming to get you.” He said the last part fiercely. Before I could feel angry about him tracking me and tell him not to get me, the line cut off.
Sighing, I put my phone back and looked up at the wolf. His head was tilted to the side. I was guessing he heard a little of the conversation that just happened. Wolves did have keen senses, and they were stronger than the senses of vampires and Imprals.
“You have to go,” I said to the wolf and he shuddered again, closing his eyes. I guess he did like my voice. “You have to run. Someone’s coming to get me; I don’t want him finding you.” I sounded worried. I didn’t think I’d get worried about a wolf’s safety above my kind and vampires, but I realized, I only wanted to protect this wolf. I didn’t know why, but I did. “Run, please? Don’t let him find you…”
His eyes were opened and staring at me. I didn’t know if he understood or not, but something in his features changed. He suddenly jumped away from me and, with one last glance at me, he ran.
I felt a strange tinge of relief and sorrow when he left. Relief, that he’d be safe; sorrow because I missed him. I shook my head. Why are you so concerned about a wolf? the voice in my head was annoyed and frustrated. Why should his safety come before our family? Our friends?
The truth was, I didn’t know why I felt the need to protect a creature of violence. I’d heard the stories of some humans’ bodies being found; mangled into strange contortions. A shudder went through me. Among everything, if it were any other wolf, I would have used my elemental ability to put him on fire…or shake the earth. I was smarter than that though. If I shook the earth, there was a possibility of me getting myself killed. Yet, this one wolf got me to feel something other than hate for his kind.
A while later, Claude was running to me, his breathing was heavy. “What were you doing?” he asked me still catching his breath.
I shrugged. “I got lost. I was following the moon and I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.” I looked at him sadly. He seemed to have been so worried about me; he left my family at home with no protectors. If there was one wolf out here, there was bound to be another one. “You left me family.” I realized. “They’re at home with no protectors! If a werewolf came by, looking for a snack, my family could get killed!” I was screaming at him.
“They’re safe. After about a half hour, Rachel came. She’s watching your family. She’s three years older than me and she has more experience too.” He sounded calm, so I felt slightly more relieved. Even though he was just one wolf, they traveled in packs. There could be two others out here.
Claude and I started walking back to the house. When I walked in first, Mel was right in front of me. Her face looked like she’d been crying. I could understand that she’d worry about me. Feeling the tickle in my head, I let her see that I really was following the moon. I blocked out the part with the wolf encounter.
Then I felt another tickle in my head. No surprise that Claude would take advantage of my defenses being down to look into my mind. He only saw what Melanie saw, which were the moon and several buildings around me. After they faded from my mind, relief and joy filled her features and she embraced me tightly.
She whimpered and said, “I was worried.” Her voice broke a little. “I thought wolves found you and…“ Mel couldn’t finish, there was pain in her usually happy voice.
“Shh…” I said and stroked her hair. “It’s okay, I’m perfect, see?” I pulled away slightly so she could look at me.
Nodding, she wiped the tears away. “I’m glad you weren’t attacked.” She said; finally, the usual smile taking the place over her features.
I looked at Claude and he was relieved too. I strengthened my shield that kept him from reading my thoughts. He knew what I was doing. He laughed. “Still don’t like the fact that I can see in your head like her highness can?”
I grimaced and turned away from him going to the kitchen. I heard him laugh again. Mel told our parents I was back, and they found me. Just like Mel had, they embraced me in a tight and loving hug. Dad kissed me on the head and mom kissed my cheek. Looking at them, I noticed that mom had cried a little. Dad didn’t look like he cried, but the look in his eyes told me he worried too.

Later on, everyone was sleeping. I had woken up from a dreamless sleep. I liked when I didn’t dream, it was easier for me to sleep. I only woke up because I didn’t feel tired. Seeing that wolf, a lot was going on in my head. So much had happened in such a short time. I sighed and walked to the window and opened it.
The breeze was wonderful. And the sun felt warm on my face. I closed my eyes and smiled. This was going to be the last of my freedom, then its back to McArthur Academy.
I saw something black at the side of the house from my peripheral vision. I looked and then stared at what I saw. It was the wolf from last night! He was staring at me with those wonderful eyes that looked…curious.
After a minute or so, he ran off again. I closed the window and sat on my bed. A moment passed and I heard a howl. It sounded strange to me. I’d never been in a situation like this before, but I didn’t care much. I just wanted to see that wolf again.

Being back at the academy wasn’t much fun for Mel and me. We were so bored. There weren’t many older students here yet, so we couldn’t do anything. Claude was assigned to Mel as one of her protectors and Rachel—the woman who was guarding my parents the night when I had wandered aimlessly—was assigned as one of the instructors at the school.
She was intrigued that she couldn’t use her magic around me, but she didn’t mind much. I guessed she’d heard about me from Claude. It wasn’t something new to me, and I was feeling like things at the academy were going to change.