Streak of Black

We step off of the plane, and I'm met with a wave of familiarity. I can't believe we're here. I can't believe we made it here alive. I'm back in France.

I'm home.

Lovett seems to feel the same as I do, seeming to breathe it all in as if he's as shocked as I am. Everyone watches us as we look around at the airport and out the giant windows at the scenery. It's been so long since we've been here, and I don't think either of us expected to feel the way that we do. A combination of nostalgia and pain fills me as I think of all of the good and bad times that I had here as a kid.

Eventually, we return to ourselves and lead the others out of the airport, practically jogging in our anticipation to see our beloved homeland again. Charlette looks as thrilled as we are from where she stands in the middle of the group, all of us on edge from our positions around her. The peril of our situation isn’t lost on us despite the excitement of being here. She cuddles Gabrielle to keep her calm. The fresh air hits us as we step out of the airport, and it feels glorious. I forgot how wonderful France is.

We catch a cab and give him our aunt’s address in Mouterhouse, an hour away. We all sit back and relax, exhausted after the flight. Charlette still looks wary about being surrounded by the very thing that her ex- boyfriend or husband hunted, but she trusts us after saving her on more than one occasion over the past few days and not having killed her yet.

I gaze dreamily out the window as we pass through cities, suburbs, and vast fields. We even pass through one or two woodlands, reminding me of the days that Lovett and I would seek shelter in them with our family during the Cycle. I glance at him and can tell he feels the same. I just wish we could go slower and drink in every last wonderful feature.

We finally pull up the long driveway to my aunt's house, and I just think about how they'll react to seeing us alive with all of these people. Will they be happy, mad, shocked—all three? I practically hyperventilate, thinking that this may have been a bad idea. My fingers tremble as they fiddle with my seat belt, and I stumble out of the car, hardly believing that I'm here. I sigh, gathering my bearings, and lead my Pack up to the door. I close my eyes and knock on the door as the cabby pulls away. I'm filled with uncertainty, but I force my eyes open.

The door opens after a few moments to reveal a woman whose beautiful face is shadowed with sadness and grief. The mourning that she's gone through over the years have aged her far beyond a mere 39-years-old. I swallow as her blank green eyes that she shared with my father assess me and Lovett and all these people at her door, trying to figure out what's going on. She doesn't seem to register that we’re really standing here before her now.

"Aunt Lunette?" I whisper, biting my lip as it finally dawns on her who she's looking at. I'm careful to keep my hair covering most of the side of my face that was hit with Damien’s gun.

"Louve?" she asks, wonder filling her feature.

"Hello, Aunt Lunette," Lovett says next to me, his voice catching.

"Lovett. Louve! You're alive! Oh my… Kenley, Louna! Come, fast!" My aunt wraps her arms around us both, tears streaming down all of our faces as she expresses her shock and excitement in a rapid French tongue. Louna and Kenley, now both much older and taller, take in the scene and join their mother in the great embrace that she holds us in. We all sob tears of joy. I never expected to see my family again, and I most certainly didn't think it would make me feel this way, but my heart throbs at the thought of all of those years that I spent separated from them.

After we finish hugging and kissing and crying, my aunt and cousins drink in our appearance. "Where have you all been?" Louna finally asks in English, realizing our friends aren't exactly locals.

"Who are all of these people?" Kenley asks at the same time, switching languages as well.

"Why have you come back?" Aunt Lunette says with a wistful voice.

I sigh. "We'll explain it all—everything that's happened over these past 6 years. But please, we need help. Charlette, the human, is in danger by the man who killed Uncle Rollo. He'll come looking for her, but we're safe for now. He probably still thinks we're in the U.S., but we need a place to stay for just a few days until we can get her and Gabrielle somewhere safe. Please help us." I know my face and voice are both desperate, but we need my family's help in this.

"Come in," Lunette commands gently. "You will all stay until that bastard comes for the girl. And then, we will all take care of him. Together." She begins ushering us inside as my cousins, Lovett, and I exchange confused glances—my aunt never curses. "Louna, get your cousins and their friends some food and drinks. They have a long tale to tell!"
* * * * *
Inside, everyone crowds around my aunt's giant sitting room, minus Charlette and Gabrielle who my aunt put in another room so that the exhausted young mother can sleep off the jet-lag and get away from the monsters that still terrify her. I'm also absent, opting to look around a bit before lunch.

The house is still the same as when I was a little kid. Walking the halls while waiting for Louna and Lunette to prepare the food allows me to explore, each corner summoning some other memory. The only change is that a wall was built in the middle of Louna and Kenley's room to separate them, a door having been built to lead from Louna's room to the hallway. While looking in the doorways, Kenley sneaks up on me.

"Hello cousin," he whispers shyly, uncertain how to respond to our shocking arrival. He's grown over the years, but is still pretty short, not much taller than me; however, he compensates for that with a muscular frame. Obviously, the guys in my Pack aren't the only ones who find it necessary to go overboard on the training.

"Kenley," I say, turning around, shocked that he was able to sneak up on me like that and kicking myself for not being more on guard. It's never safe—I have to remind myself of that.

"I can't believe that you guys are back. It's so...shocking. I thought we'd never see you guys again. That night…" he instantly closes his mouth, afraid of going too far.

"Relax. I'm actually glad that you found me before we have to tell you guys everything that's happened over these years." I look at him, unsure how to ask this. "Nobody knows how we got all of that money except you, Lovett, and I. Should we tell or just keep that between the three of us?"

"That money actually belonged to you guys." He laughs at my confused expression. "It was your parents' and left in their will for you guys. It was meant to be saved for yours and Lovett's future. 5000 euros for you and 5000 for him."

"Then how did you know about it."

"You remember how Papa was, paranoid about some stuff and relaxed about others. This was one of the things he was anxious about. He told me about the money in case something happened to him. He even gave me the combination to the lock."

"That's awfully convenient."

He laughs again, his eyes sparkling. "Louve, I don't know what happened to you, but you're becoming just as suspicious as the old man!"

I chuckle along with him, trying to relax. I can at least calm down a little. I mean, I'm home and in a house jam-packed with werewolves. Nothing is going to happen for a long time. That fool is probably still on our false trail.

Kenley and I decide to rejoin the gathering downstairs, joking about the old days when we were little. Louna and Lunette soon enter with plates of sandwiches and two pitchers iced tea. We all eye the buffet, our mouths watering.

After stuffing our faces with the delicious meal that was laid out for us, Lunette, Louna, and Kenley look at Lovett and me expectantly. I look at my brother and he nods at me. I give him a face and he smirks at me. Might as well get this over with.

I sigh and shift my gaze to my family.