Child of the Moon

So I went to Sam’s house, who I think was the Alpha. His mate was waiting for the pack, half her face destroyed. I had seen it a million times. Eventually the poor human would be killed, and the wolf would be driven to insanity. I would have to keep him in check if that happened, for I doubt this pack would turn on each other, even when necessary. Sometimes I wish I didn’t have to act as the police of our kind…

So they told me the almost unbelievable story of Edward and Bella. Had I not seen his ‘family’ react to their deaths or death, I would not have believed it. The most implausible part was that these vampires conquered their bloodlust enough to blend into society… I had seen how bad it got for the creatures. This leech had to have sacrificed a lot to be with this human.

“So, that’s our story.” One of them finally finished.

“That’s it?” I asked. They all nodded. “But that doesn’t answer any of the questions that I was looking for!”

“Okay, well ask away.”

“How were you in wolf form in the middle of day, hours after the full moon set? Where are you getting your Wolfsbane? I didn’t smell any Warlocks near by… And why do you smell so weird?” I asked quickly, getting out everything on my mind.

“Um… Well, we chose when to change. It’s not like the crazy rumors that humans make up. No idea why we smell weird. And Wolfsbane? Warlocks?” Jacob supplied.

I raised my eyebrows. “Well, as you are probably wondering, I am a werewolf. I change on the full moon and lose myself, like those ‘crazy human rumors,’” I turned to glare at the boy. “I have wolfish ears and tail, the only way you can tell what I am when it is not the full moon. And Wolfsbane is to keep us from losing our human minds to our wolf selves. Warlocks make it for werewolves. Speaking of, I don’t think you are. Werewolves, I mean.”

There was a pause, before some of the wolves objected.

“Maybe you’re the one who isn’t a werewolf.”

“You’re just coming here and telling us that we aren’t wolves? Are you blind?!”

“So what’s next, the Cullens aren’t vampires?”

Wow, defensive much?

Just then, a middle aged man in a wheelchair wheeled in, bringing a slight breeze with him. All the wolves shut up and looked up at him; they seemed to respect him although he was not a wolf himself.

“Settle down, settle down,” he said in a gruff voice. “The Lycan’s right, okay?”

The wolves all stared at him with mixed expressions. The leader finally spoke. “Go on…”

“She is a real werewolf. Transforms at the full moon. Hundreds of years old. Has the marking of a Lycan…” he glanced at my ears and tail and nodded a confirmation. “Which just makes you shape-shifters who happen to transform into wolves.”

The pack just murmured their thoughts. They seemed to not really care now that it was coming from one of their own. Typical. But this explained so much… I had never actually met a shape-shifter but I wasn’t surprised they existed.

“So… I was planning on leaving, since I don’t want to start any conflicts here…” I glanced over at the man in the wheelchair, who nodded.

“We have a peace treaty,” he said simply, and I nodded. Didn’t want to get into all that.

At that moment the phone rang, and Jacob got up to get it. He answered, then paused, then spoke quickly and quietly so it was obvious that it was not for our ears. So I tried to tune him out.

He hung up the phone and came back to the kitchen. “They said they need to meet… erm... the wolf girl,” he ended uncertainly.

“My wolf name is Accalia. But my mortal name is Houri. You can call me whichever, or the wolf girl. I kind of like that…” I said softly, smiling to myself.

“Okay then, Accalia, the leeches want to meet you before you left. They’re nosy little buttheads, and they seem to have the idea that they aren’t going to let you leave without a fight. I wouldn’t pick a fight with them since you’re way outnumbered and we can't fight them without breaking the treaty. They also want you to meet them on their side of the line,” the man in the wheelchair filled me in. Apparently I'm one of the only ones who care to respect peoples privacy here.

I nodded. If it came down to it, I had a spare pack of holy water on my belt that I could use in an emergency. Although I didn’t like using it on vamps because I knew how it felt… I couldn’t touch silver without the most extreme pain a wolf can feel coming over me.

“Where do they…?” I started, but I felt the sudden presence of someone new. I spun around and came face to face with the vamp who had mistaken me for a newborn.

“I’m supposed to bring you to our place,” he said, as if that wasn’t obvious. I didn’t turn back to look at any of the shifters, just ran when the vamp left and stopped when he did.

I was face to face with a huge windowed house, surrounded by the forest we had just been running through. It was very… un-vampirish. Nothing like the places I had seen in Europe. I wondered what these vampires really were… They could walk in the sun, they weren't drinking humans left and right, they seemed to have enough control over their bloodlust to be able to communicate in groups…

“We aren’t your latest science experiment, Lycan,” A Southern vampire said as I was lead into the house, almost as if he could read my mind. I resisted curling my lip back in disgust. I bet these creatures could read your mind, and other unnatural, twisted things.

“Be nice to our guest,” an older vampire said calmly, the first to appear at a more normal speed. He smelled of intelligence and humility, traits I usually only smelled in elderly humans. He must be about as old as me...

“We’re so glad you could come,” yet another vampire said graciously, appearing with a blonde teen and mid-twenties leeches. I remembered her as the one who said that Edward was going to kill himself. Edward seemed to be the only one missing now.

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” I grumbled softly. The older vampire laughed, and I gave him an odd look. He didn’t seem superficial, but he was also too friendly at the same time.

“Come on, we can talk in here,” the vamp in her mid twenties said, gesturing to a sitting room. We all sat rather awkwardly, waiting for someone to say something.

“We do know why you came, by the way,” the older vampire said pleasantly.
I paused for a moment and nodded. “And you are…?”

“Carlisle.”

“Okay, Carlisle. I’m assuming you are familiar with my world, although your mate and clan are not?” Carlisle nodded. “Then you can hardly blame me. My purpose in this life is to rid the world of demons. I don’t know what you are, but I don’t think you have demon blood. But I didn’t know this while I was traveling here.” I paused for a moment. “How, exactly, do you know this?”

Carlisle nodded. “We were not saying that we were going to kill you for coming here. Just giving you… fair warning. And for how we knew… we have family members with certain… talents.”

I glanced over at the Southern one carefully. The girl sitting next to him laughed.

“She thinks Carlisle means you, Jasper,” she giggled, then turned to face me with a broad smile. “He means Edward, our brother. Jasper here just senses and controls emotions-” the small girl was silenced by all the glares from her ‘family.’

“What?” she asked. “I know what I saw, the wolf girl can be trusted. You know what’s going to happen.”

But I wasn’t paying so much attention anymore. Because right then the boy who I am assuming is Edward walked down the staircase next to this room. My pursed lips relaxed as I openly stared at the vampire coming towards us. Although he looked like he had been to hell and back, to me he looked amazing.

“Bella’s doing fine,” he said flatly, although no one had asked the question.
It took me a second to register what he had said, other than that he had the most inhumanly perfect voice.

“Bella?” I asked. “I thought she was dead?” I said softly, trying to sound sorry for Edward’s loss.

“Don’t feel sorry for me,” he said as soon as I thought that. Oh yeah, mind readers. How strange that I had thought that vampire’s powers were so freakish, but now it seemed pretty hot…

I caught myself just then. He can read you mind. And he’s an effing leech. I needed to clear my thoughts ASAP.

“Porch’s that way,” Edward said, pointing to a door. I nodded thankfully and stepped outside.

The cool air hit me and refreshed my mind. The sharp smell of pine trees and decaying plants were calming.