The Lost Girl

The tip of her nose was a rosy red as well as her cheeks. Her hair curled around her shoulders in a beautiful way. She gave me a confused smile as she gestured to the trees around us,"what are we doing here?" She sounded breathless but of course she would be. We've been climbing this snowy hill for about an hour, flirting and laughing and eventually, just walking. I gave her another one of my stunning smiles and walked closely to her, lowering my eyelids in a seductive manner,"just to have fun."

She gulped and glanced down at my lips, her eyes darkening, the sparkles being replaced with desire. She took a shaky breath and said in a husky voice,"to have fun." I nodded and leaned closer to her, smelling the sweetness of her that I've been dying to taste all night.

I know a beauty when I see one and as soon as I had entered the bar some hours ago with my eyes landing on her, I knew I needed to know how'd she taste. I leaned down and gently nibbled at her bottom lip, grabbing her by the waist to pull her close to me. I let go of her lip and she then leaned into me, lifting her head up so that I could have the access that I needed. I smiled and kissed her fully, sucking and biting her bottom lip without mercy. When she tried to do the same, I then insert my tongue into her mouth, trailing over her perky white teethe and exploring the roof of her mouth. My tongue danced with hers and eventually she started to become breathless but was too consumed in the kiss to realise this. I suck on her tongue and pull away, beginning my trail of kisses on her face. She gasped and moaned, clinging onto me as her legs became wobbly, like most have done before, and I spread kisses across her cheeks and eyelashes, eventually ending up at her jaw. I nibbled and kissed until I finally found her neck. She smelled so good and felt so soft. Her moans echoed in through the air, urging me onward. She arched towards me, bending her neck, burying her face in my shoulder.

Not being able to control myself anymore, I sunk my teethe into her beautifully pale skin, relishing in her sweet nectar. It's been awhile, almost too long, since I had fed. I had been putting it off and as I drank her fully, ignoring her complaints and her shoves, I start to wonder why. Such warm and delicious blood, the very thing that kept her going will keep me going. Really, if you think about, it's the same way with humans as it is with us, vampires. I need blood just as much as they need their not so appealing foods. It's the circle of life in it's full beauty.

She stops fighting me and I had almost drained her completely when I heard a growl and the crunching of snow. I glance around, retracting my fangs from her neck and ignored the few droplets of this woman's sweetness rolling down her neck, staining her jacket. My senses started to tingle and I could see eyes in the shadows, slowly approaching me. There seemed to be only one pair. Guessing by how the snow is crouching and the height of the eyes, it was a wolf. A very unhappy one.

"Wait!" A woman's voice calls out, appearing from some trees about fifty yards out. She starts running towards us then, reaching us within seconds. Werewolves. The hairs on the back of the wolf's necks still stood on end as he growled at the woman, seemingly warning her away. Or maybe just trying to protect her from me. I flashed my fangs at the wolf, already knowing how this is going to end, and the wolf snapped its head back to me, a deep growl starting in its chest. "Please." The woman stood beside the wolf until the wolf shifted and stood in front of her. She was looking into my eyes and pleaded with me,"please, just let us take her." Her voice trembled, clearly scared. I wasn't surprised though, we've terrorized the smelly mutts enough for them to be passing scary legends and stories of us around the camp fire. I raise my eye brows at the woman and looked at claire, the woman who I had just drained. Her heartbeat was faint, but she was still alive. I cocked my head at them, by law I was allowed to kill them, seeing as how they have encroached on my dinner. I pursed my lips then, hearing another heartbeat in the woods, this one fainter. I narrow my eyes at the woman,"pretty stupid to bring a baby out here." The wolf growled and the woman stiffened. I rolled my eyes at the latest generations of werewolves, overwhelmingly disappointed.

A hand touched my lower back, which would have startled me had I not known that she would be joining me eventually. This was our meeting place after all, the place we first met and first confessed our feelings. And today was a special day indeed, our hundredth anniversary. Warmth spread through me then, smiling as I turn towards my lover. "Aw now, just let them have the human so they can leave us be." Says the beautiful brunette beside me. She wore a long silvery white dress exposing the back and her a large proportion of her chest. She had no shoes and no jacket, the cold not bothering her in the least. I jotted out my bottom lip at her," I didn't know we were dressing up." She looked at my bottom lip and tingles trickled into my stomach. "I didn't know we were supposed to bring dinner." She says while looking at claire, a corpse waiting to happen. I shrugged," I was hungry. " she laughed,"after all this time you'd think we would get this down already." I laughed with her, remembering all the other times we failed at making a decent anniversary date.

"Please, shes going to die soon." The woman pleaded, her eyes wide and staring at claire. I huffed and waved her off, pulling Audrey's waist,"come on dear, let's go have some fun." I heard the she-wolf breathe a sigh of relief, immediately running back to the faint heart beat. Right before we started to run, i heard the crunching of a werewolf shifting, probably so he could easily pick up claire.

The wind pushed our hair back, audrey looking like a goddess as always, laughing as we ran. The trees were a blur and the world didn't seem to exist whenever we ran like this, so carefree and in love. Just as it should be.

I then fall off a cliff and land on the lake, breaking the ice. I swim back up in embarrassment, hearing audrey laughing at me from of the clift. "Come down and join me!" I yell. My voice echoed against the wall of rocks and dirt, tree roots poking out every now and then. She was peering over the edge, laughing her tail off at me. "You should watch where your going!" I roll my eyes at her, knowing full well that she could see it. In a blur of white and brown, she was splashing in beside me. Pieces of ice broke off and the hole I had made grew bigger. I laughed as she came back up," why'd you take the dress off?" I had seen her lacy bra and thin panties on her way down, noting the paleness of her smooth stomache. She pushed back her thick hair and replied," we may be indestructible, but the dress is not." I laughed at that, audrey treasured her fashionable clothes, bags, and shoes. Probably more than me, I'd reckon. She then wrapped her arms around my neck and wrapped her legs around my waist. I could feel her cold breath on my face as she said in a low voice,"and besides, I thought you liked it when I didn't wear clothes." I blushed. Still amazed that as long as we have been together, she could still make me blush. But that's what happens when you finally meet the love of your life, or in this case, my soulmate.

I shrug and pulled her closer to me, which never seems to be close enough, and whisper,"it really just depends where we are. For instance, I wouldn't want a bunch of gu-" She finally kissed me. Atlast, the very thing I end up needing more with every second that I am away from her has finally been given to me. A familiar hunger woke up inside me, causing me to growl and making me want to stake my claim. Deepening the kiss until I couldn't deepen it any farther, pulling her flush against me until not even water droplets could come between us. She tightened her hold on me, grabbing me by the back of my hair and pulling me away so she could kiss my neck while my hands explored every curve like a starved woman. Her tongue ran a trail all the way up to my jaw, eventually going to nibble on my ear. I gasp and begin to tremble in the water, making small waves appear.

And then she digs her fangs into my skin and I did the same. Each of us connecting on a level that only we could, because there is no other love that is stronger than a soulmate bond.

I run my nails down her back all the way down until I can grab her ass and squeeze, effectively making her moan although it was muffled. I bring my other hand up and in an impressively swift motion, I unclasped her bra and untangled her from it. She retracted her fangs and began to try and undo the zipper on my jacket. The jacket then reminds me of claire and the show I had put on for her to make her go out into the woods with me. It took alot of flirting and touching, something audrey would surely dislike. Finally just tearing the zipper and eventually the jacket off out of impatience, audrey then starts to work on my sweater. I kiss her neck and in a muffled voice I asked,"are you jealous?" Already knowing what I was referencing to she replied,"she could never offer you what i can." She swings my sweater off and let's loose an exasperated huff at seeing an undershirt.

Grinning I explain,"I don't like the feel of wool." She just shakes her head and proceeds to take that off as well and then my bra, throwing everything out on the bank. Before she could lean down to do one of the things that would make thinking next to impossible, I beat her to it. I grabbed her left boob, enjoying the softness of the bulging skin and the hardness of her nipple at the center of my palm. I then leaned down as she gulped and started arching towards me, as eager as I am. I run my tongue over the plumpness of her mountain, gently pulling at the skin with my teeth, rubbing my tongue until she was scratching my back rasping for air that she didn't really need. I smiled and switched sides until I knew she couldn't take anymore. I lifted my head, intending to go a little farther south even if i had to go under water to do it, when she crashed her lips to mine, grinding her hips into me. Her belly met mine and the flesh on flesh contact drove me farther I already was. I watched her, frustration in her eys, as she tried to appease the rising desire. Eventually unravelled an arm from around my neck, trying to do the deed herself. As much as I would have loved to see that, I like it .uch better when I'm the one causing her climax and her ecstasy.

She looked at me with hooded eyes, the moon making her look as if she were glowing, the droplets of water glistening in a way that was almost magical. Dark tendrils of her hair curled upon her skin, sticking to her shoulders and back, dangling as she arched towards me. I walk over the wall of rocks and sat her upon a rock. Wedged between her legs, I bring her down for a kiss and begin to pull her panties down her legs. I then trace them with my hand and grasp at her thigh and squeeze before going to touch her. Her moans echoed, making me as wet as the water and affecting me in a way that no other could ever imagine. My beautiful siren sang her song and before she could finish, she had grabbed me, causing me to start singing as well.

After awhile, I help her out of the pond, my legs feeling weak and my lips swollen. She takes a look at me and smiles smugly. I roll my eyes at her as she puts on her dress. My clothes were either soaking wet or torn to shreds, but it didn't matter, wasn't like I was going to freeze to death. Of course, audrey started to throw a fit though. "Come on I'll buy you some clothes." I laugh,"I don't need any, we could just go home and i could get dressed there." Audrey louted," but i like to dress you up." I smile over at her as i try to put on my soaked pants, hoppin and wiggling into them. She laughed," is this the mating dance everyone's talking about?" I laughed at that, hilarious really. "Just let me buy you some clothes, it'll be fun. I promise." After struggling and actually accidentally ripping the pants while trying to pull them up, I huffed. "Fine, but I'm not walking into town naked. Let's go home so I can put on some clothes and then we can go shopping." I looked over at her as she considered my proposal. Smiling widely, my favorite kind of smile indeed, and she nodded her head.

I threw the pants down on the ground as well as the other things, only wearing my panties and bra. "Okay, let's go!" she excitedly said. She acts like we don't ever go shopping, we go all the time. I chuckled and grabbed her hand.

We ran like we always did. We loved to run, that was our thing. I then stopped though, seeing something I haven't seen since last year. Knowing she'll notice my absence and come back, I walk over to the bush.

"Alyla? What's wrong?" I could feel her coming closer, every inch of my body tingling with every step she takes. Just before she could wrap her arms around me from behind, I turn around. She frowns at me, clearly concerned and curious,"what are you doing?" I smiled at her. "Do you remember our first date?" she instantly narrowed her eyes at me, having every right to being suspicious. That night I had persuaded her to break into the Vampire Queens garden just for a picnic. We had ended up laughing and swimming in a large fountain, replacing the jewels in it with pretty rocks to see if anyone would notice. We got caught by the guards. Once the jewels were returned and intricately placed back into their spots, we had to care for the guards horses for a month. We shoveled a lot of horse dung that winter.

I smiled brightly and revealed the snowy white rose from behind my back. Her eyes widened and softened once she had seen it. After an argument had occurred between her and her parents, she became angry with me. Her parents wanted her to grow up to be a respectable young lady, always kind, and always obedient. And although their intentions were honorable, what they had actually done was chain down a spirit that was actually meant to roam free.

Well, when we got together, it was rough at first. Audrey was torn between what her parents wanted and what she needed. Eventually she chose me and we have been together every since. About fifty years after her choosing me, she and her parents became close again after accepting me as a big part of her life.

But anyways, after the argument, I had begun to feel frightened at the thought of her leaving me, and broke into the queens garden once more, stealing a rose that's was as pale as her skin and as stubborn as her as well, seeing as how it only grows in the winter. The very season in which most things die. She forgave me and that night we shared our first kiss.

Audrey took the rose from me gently, stroking its soft petals. She looked up at me with tears in her eyes, opening her mouth as if to say something. I just smiled at her and said,"I know." When I say that nothing could explain or describe our love, I'm being completely honest. Even the words 'I love you' seems too small of a phrase to hold such a big concept.

We ran towards the house then, which is deep in the mountains with a lot of the other vampires. Higher up the mountains is the palace. This is were we all live, no humans endangering our secret existence, and no smelly mutts to ruin the air.

Our house is situated at the bottom of the mountain, not because of status but more for preference. Audrey and I love the view of the trees where many a wild animal wanders through and a pond in our front yard. And what where a vampire stands with the queen is determined by value or birth. Your either born into the council of advisors or into the royal lineage, or you become so valuable that your promote to be on the top.

The house is two stories high with large windows and alot of space. Smiling, audrey leads me to our bedroom and starts pushing me onto the bed. She stands between my legs and I quiver in excitement, I would much preferably do something like this than to shop. She leans down till she meets my eye level, exposing her breasts to me, which I stare at. Because shes beautiful. And because I love her with everything I am. I may even be drooling because of her. She then just pecks me on the cheek and moves away, skipping out of the room.

The smile from my faces drops instantly,"hey!" I hear her sing back at me,"after we've shopped!" Groaning, I fall back onto the bed. This woman was going to be the death of me, I swear.

Sighing, I get up from the bed and head to the shower. Although weather or temperature doesn't really affect us, we do things normal people would for the simple pleasure that it brings us. We can feel the warmth and coldness of the air, but we would sweat or lose our breath from the heat and we also would shiver or turn blue from the cold. Basically, nothing can really kill us. Well, wood could, or decapitation. And the wood doesn't even have to be that big, just a splinter could do the trick.

I turn the shower as far towards the little red dot that I could, relishing in the hotness and the steam rising from it. When I had lathered my body in soap and had scrubbed my scalp clean, I get out.

I wiped the fog from the mirror and examine myself, trying to see what audrey still sees after all this time. I mean, when it comes to being soulmates, looks seem to cease to exist. But i still get curious at what she sees sometimes. My long brown hair goes all the way to my lower back and is straight to the point of it looking like I did it on purpose with a hair straightener. I sometimes wonder who i had gotten that from. My mother, my father? I wouldnt know since i was kind of abandoned on the steps of the palace. A servant by the name of john took me to his mother, who was also a servant, and she basically raised me. I looked into my own green eyes. With my light brown hair and green eyes, I could be considered pretty. Dark eyelashes framed those eyes and freckles dotted my nose,which seemed to be too long for some reason.

A crash from downstairs interrupted my thoughts. Chuckling, I imagine audrey dropping a glass. Normally vampires are gracefully but we've been known to be clumsy.

I quickly got dressed, leaving my long hair to just hang and drip onto my newly dry clothes. I practically ran down the stairs, not wanting to wait a second longer to see Audrey's embarrassed blush. I wouldn't let her feel embarrassed though, I'll simply tease her until she starts joking about it with me.

Reaching the last step with a smile, I head to the kitchen to look for her. But there's no one. Confused, I call out her name,"audrey!" No answer. My stomach starts to feel weird, almost anxious. But its nothing I'm sure, she probably just went to get a broom. Smiling I head to the living room to see if she was near the closet where we keep all of those cleaning things. Frowning once again, I see no one. And then I see a vase beside the door broken in a million pieces. Could she have done that? No I don't think so, we never usually dust anything, and if we do we always put the breakable stuff on the floor. Her mother gave her that vase on our wedding day. There no way she had done that.

My heart starts to pound in my chest, an ache forming where my hearts pounding its panic, the smell in the air isn't right. I know that, in fact, from the most intimate of moments. From audrey. I inhale a great amount of air, following her scent to right around the corner of where the vase had broken. She laid there, in a pool of her own blood, with a giant stick wedged in her chest. Her skin whiter than usual, turning grey as the seconds passed. I am literally watching her eyes sink in on itself and her lips start to shrivel up.

I get down on the ground immediately, yanking out the stick. I've heard if you pull out all of the wood in time, you could save the vampire. The end of the stick was covered in blood, clearly sharpened into a weapon. I throw the thing across the room and look down at my love, not knowing what else to do. I touch her, shes so cold. Long gone, leaving her body behind, her spirit going wherever we go when we die.

Die. Shes dead. The love of my life is dead, my audrey is dead. The pain unlike any other starts burning a hole in my chest, killing me from the inside. I look over at the stick, it had landed beside what's left of the vase. Audrey would have a fit at that, she really loves that vase. I smooth Audrey's hair back, the dress shes wearing was crumpled and stained beyond repair. I shake my head. Shed have a fit at that too.

I look over at her beautiful eyes, even in death shes beautiful. I stroke her cheek, imagining her waking up and reprimanding me for not calling anyone. She would then sit me down and we would come up with things to do if any of us were to die. We never thought to do any of that before, after all, were immortal to a point. Pun intended I started laughing at that, rocking myself as I did. I really should call someone. I looked over at the stick again,or do I? I crawl over to the stick, holding it close to my chest as I crawled back to audrey. The pain was unbearable, tearing me apart, burning inside. Killing me. It was killing me.

I can do this, I cant do this. Not without her. I raise the stick up, the point of it touching the skin right above my mangled and shattered heart. Crying to the point of no return, i began to push it in. The wood burned me like acid, my body instinctively curving away from it, my hand stopping me from doing the very thing that would relieve me from this whole thing.

"Audrey, I hope you don't mind- Alyla! What's going on?" I didn't even turn to her, feeling too numb to do anything. "Oh, audrey!" The woman knelt down and started crying, attempting to hold audrey in her arms. Suddenly feeling an animalistic feeling in me, I jerked Audrey's form from her, laying her head in my lap. I sense the woman staring at me, and then glance at the stick. She got up and disappeared, making a phone call.

I just kept stroking my beloved Audrey's hair, hiding in this numb part of my mind. Hiding from what's happening. Hiding from the reality and imagining audrey back. Her talking to me, laughing and flirting. Her sniffing the rose I had given her. Just her. Her alive and happy. Her with me.

Pieces of myself started crumbling, shattering the person I was and leaving behind this anger and fury. She would still be alive if it weren't for the queen. She was supposed to protect us! This was supposed to be our haven! We grew up believing we were safe from avenging werewolves and vampire hunters, but they were wrong! We are all wrong, we are not safe! Swiftly and gently I lift up Audrey's body, feeling her weightlessness. Turning around, I left behind our beautiful house and our loving life. I heard the woman call after me, but I made no response. I needed to settle this.

I climbed up the stoney steps of the mountains as fast as my vampire speed would let me, dodging trees and harmful things that would further damage my soulmates body. It didnt take long before I was standing in front of the great doors of the palace. Gold and silver intricately formed pictures of our history upon them. I didnt take the usually time that I would to stay and look at them. To memorize every picture and story engraved into the doors. Indeed I did not, I instead barged through them, hearing them slam into the walls inside, and stride into the palace holding the one person I'll ever love.

"Oh my, dearest Alyla, what has happened?" Hearing her soft voice filled with gentle concern angered me more. I looked up into the eyes of our queen as she sits in her high throne. "We were supposed to be safe here!" I yelled, the fury causing a fire unlike any other to burn inside of me. The mighty queen slowly rose from her throne and approached me cautiously,"dear, you must tell me what happened." Angry still had me in its first and I began to climb the stairs leading to her throne, gently laying down my love onto the ground before her. "She was murdered but mongrels!" The woman suddenly had an expression of understanding on her face and nodded slowly. She then turned to sit in her throne and I waited to hear her excuse before deciding what revenge I would take. She took a dainty hand to her small chin, finally speaking," we have been having trouble from the pack neighboring us. Being so close to the palace, it makes it hard not to end up hunting them when in fact we are just trying to hunt humans. Which is why we've made a law to carefully smell the prey before eating it. Hopefully this will stop the killing of the werewolves. But the werewolves aren't happy, seeing as how the problem had been going on for awhile and half their population has been drained. I understand their thirst for revenge, just as I understand yours, but what will become of all this blood shed? A war? No, I will not have it! We must simply find a way to understand and live with each other!" I stare at her highness, confused as to how all of this will get me my revenge. She simply looks at me, reading my expressions and suddenly declaring,"you will not attach the pack!" I flashed my fangs at her decision," they killed my soulmate! You know the law! It is fair game when one of us has been killed!" I have just yelled at our queen, which would have been enough to have been banished from the kingdom, but she just calmly replies," indeed, but those laws are from an old, distant past. How are we to grow and change if we are still holding onto the same customs of a world that has been dying for centuries now?" Growling began to pace," and if I do?" She woman frowns at me disapprovingly," then I will banish you to the wolves part of the world, and they will do as they wish with you." I gape at her,"just for avenging my wife?" She nods at me. I look down at her,"they should have killed me." The woman replies quietly," don't say that young one, time will heal all. You'll see, just give it a chance first." I didn't look at her, I just said,"give Audrey's body to her parents." I then walk out, ignoring the queens calls, which has rarely ever been done before.

I grab the pointed stake from the floor beside Audrey's blood, and shove it in my belt. I then started pouring gas on everything, turning on the burners of the stove and leaving propane bottles everywhere. I cant live in a house, in a world, that only had remnants of audrey. I couldn't live like this, reminded constantly of my loss. I walked out, wearing black skinny Jean's, a red tank top and Audrey's favorite leather jacket. The house exploded just as I reached the outskirts of the forests, I could see the pillar of smoke from where I stood. I took that moment to remember her, the love of my life, and then pushed away every feeling away. Becoming an emotionless monster ready to kill. Because that's exactly what I would need to become to avenge my wife.

There was a symbol on the stake, a full moon with a star at its center. Every pack had a symbol to represent themselves with and usually it was based off of a birthmark that's usually located somewhere on werewolves who were biologically related to the alpha of said pack. Tracking down the werewolf who had killed my love wouldn't be too difficult, seeing as how there's really only two other packs of werewolves in the entire kingdom, one living close to the palace and the other living on the edge of it. I headed straight towards the one that was closest.

I walked among their wooden cabins, the mongrels walking around, all smiles and laughs. That is, until they noticed me. They appeared confused at my presence. I supposed then that they must not know what their people have done.

I looked around at the population, which was seemingly small. Looking to be only around forty to fifty people. I frown at that, but immediately squashed down any pity I had for them. They killed her. And so they will die. I could take on this many, as long as in don't get bitten. A werewolf bite is venomous to a vampire, able to kill them within twenty four hours. I was thinking on how to act upon my revenge, whether it should be direct or not, when I caught a smell in the air. It was sweet, like strawberries in the spring. I almost smiled at it until I realized that the only person I've ever met that smelled like that was dead. Because they murdered her.

I then follow the scent, it leading me to a small cabin a few feet into the surrounding woods. Considering how far away from the alphas cabin it is, I'd say these werewolves would be outcasts. I smile at that, lovely. Id just kill them then, and go on my merry way.

I didn't bother knocking on the door and just walked in. The whole place smelled of her, of my audrey. I listened for anyone in the house, already having decided their fate the moment I had seen the pool of blood in my house. There was a woman humming and dancing in the kitchen, preparing a meal. She looked to be the same woman from the woods and this thought was confirmed when I watched a young man walk into the kitchen, heading straight towards the woman. He smelled like the same wolf, only it was tainted with the smell of strawberries.

I then waited for him to leave, even if it were to the bathroom of something, to catch the woman alone. He eventually did, after some rather repulsive mutt mate touching, and I then made my move. I bite the woman on her neck, muffled ik ng her gasp of surprise with my hand and then pinching her nose shut. As she suffocated, I drained her quickly and snapped her neck, letting her fall with a thump. I waited around the corner for the dude, knowing full well he had heard his love fall. He walked around the corner and the pure agony at seeing his love dead on the floor made me think of audrey. Good, i hope he drowns in sorrow as much as hes going to drown in his own blood. I then swiped my claes at his neck, blood spurting every where and watched as her fought to add pressure to his neck. He then fell next to the woman, gurgling his last breath, and I atleast have had my revenge. I was still angry though, still hurting. I wanted more and their deaths were too quick. I should have killed him slower, tortures her in front of him. Make him watch as i drained her and break her into pieces. Instead i was too eager for them to die to even think on how i wanted it to go.

I was fixing to leave, debating on taking my anger out on the rest of the pack when i heard and a whine. Frowning I turn towards the couple, they were both laying still in their blood and broken bodies. Both too gone to have created even the smallest of sounds. And then I heard it again, but it was a whine, it was a gurgle. Not one created from a man drowning in his blood, but one made from a child barely of walking age.

I walked over a blue laundry bracket that had been set down on the counter in the corner. It was filled with blanket and a wriggling bundle. I raised the white fuzzy cotton from the face of a little baby. Her thin hair glistened in the light, a reddish color. The child also had brown eyes, the lightest I've ever seen and had creamy skin. Are those freckles I see? I frown at the child, I should leave her at the alphas door step, they would give her a home and raise her to be the young wolf that she would become.

But then I smelled the strawberries on her, her mouth open wide with a gaping smile and her eyes sparkled as if I had just given her the greatest gift. When in fact, I have just killed her parents. Regret coursed through me. Audrey and I had wanted children, and were actually deciding on adopting or not. She would have hated what I have done here, killing the parents of a child only recently brought into this cold world.

I give the child my finger, letting her squeeze and noticed that the pain seemed to fade to only an ache as I let her. This child could help me live and I could help this child grow to be strong. To be as careful as I should have been. I could help this child through life. I could adopt her, show her the ways of the world, give her a new life outside of this kingdoms. We could live as humans do, away from the chaos that was my world. I lifted the child up and ran. Holding her tightly in her blankets and not looking back. The queen will make sure I will not be able to come back, and the werewolves will surely know what i have done.

As I ran, I began to understand that I have no idea how to raise a werewolf child to grow in a human world. But I decided it didn't matter. Surely it couldn't be that hard.