(Song of the chapter: 'everything i wanted' - Billie Eilish)

Wait, no, that wasn't right.

I blinked at the figure, still disoriented. This male towered over me, with an extremely muscled physique and dark black hair that was currently falling into his eyes. None of his features fit with how Jonathan had looked... or what he might look like now.

Might... if he was even still alive.

No, this person was a complete stranger. An intruder.

Well, he'd broken into the wrong home, the worst mistake he could ever make. And possibly the last.

Without another moment's pause, I reached up and grabbed the pillow from behind my head, gripping it defensively. I was a little thrown by how light it was - my pillow usually weighed a ton for this exact reason - but I didn't let that distract me.

I brandished it at the villain, waving it in the most threatening way I could muster.

"GET BACK! BACK, I SAY!"

The intruder stilled. It was quite dark since the lights were off, but I sensed he was contemplating my pillow. And he wasn't backing away in fear.

How dare he not be threatened? Well, that was his mistake.

I tensed, ready to launch myself at the brute and clobber him into oblivion.

"Wow, how scary," the figure spoke before I'd even moved an inch.

I blinked. I knew that voice.

"Rhys?" I asked incredulously.

A hand reached up and swept the hair back, exposing those beautiful blue eyes.

"No, it's Santa," Rhys drawled.

"I had to lose weight just to come down the stairs. I grew tired of sliding down chimneys like a barbarian."

I'd know that dull monotone anywhere. I dropped my pillow and sat up, rubbing my eyes.

I remembered about the sleepover now. There were distant snores coming from the other side of the couch. It must have been about four in the morning.

Rhys, I remembered, hadn't been asleep when I drifted off.

"Rhys," I growled, my voice even unfriendlier than before.

"Yes?" He drew out the word, a thick eyebrow arched. His eyes conveyed amusement.

The only light in the room came from the fireplace facing us. I'm sure it gave him a pretty good look at my scowl.

"What do you want?" I gritted out.

In response, he flopped onto the spot beside me. There was a little hiss as the couch dipped. I peered at him to find a thoughtful expression on his face.

"You know that new app everybody's on, the one where kids all do the same dances with those creepy smiles on their faces, but some still get more famous than others?"

I blinked. I hadn't been expecting this line of questioning.

"You mean TikTok?"

Rhys nodded. "That's the one. I saw a video related to that anime we watched earlier, and I thought you might be interested."

I could only stare at him.

"You woke me up to show me a TikTok video?" I asked, in disbelief.

Another arched brow. "I woke you because you were thrashing around and looked like you were about to fall off the couch. And when I rushed to save you like any proper prince would, you tried to beat me to death with your fluffy pillow."

My nightmare started coming back. Being chased... Jacques' voice... Jona...

The metallic taste of terror coated my tongue, making me swallow heavily.

"Show me the video," I croaked.

He complied. A hand slid into his back pocket and he pulled out his phone. Hair fell back into his face as he started pressing buttons.

I covertly studied him while he typed. His hair was getting long- it made him look more artsy.

I blinked out of my thoughts when he scooted closer and showed me the phone screen. The TikTok had about 700k likes, and the first words on the screen were 'On my way to destroy Itachi🤭😏'.

My interest was already piqued.

A guy held a big sword that looked like it was part of a Zabuza cosplay set, the flat edge of the blade resting on his shoulder. As I watched, he repeatedly walked through a doorway. At first he seemed unaware of this, but then he quickly realized he wasn't getting anywhere. The video ended with the guy's face crumpling in terror and a whine escaping his lips.

My lips had been curving up the longer the video went on. I laughed at the ending.

"Yup, that's pretty accurate," I told Rhys.

He looked at me questioningly.

"He was under Itachi's genjustsu," I explained. "It's the same thing that happened in the battle with Sasuke."

Rhys nodded solemnly. "Wow, I completely understand now," he said flatly.

I glared at him. "It's not my fault you choose to be uncultured. Naruto is a staple anime."

"How will I ever live with myself?" Rhys shook his head like it was a great mystery.

My lip twitched, but I bit down on it. I realized he was trying to distract me from my nightmare. He wasn't even asking me about it. It was making my stomach do the loop-de-loops.

"Do you have any video games?" Rhys asked suddenly. I lit up, instantly forgetting my train of thought.

_

"SONIC! SONIC MOVE! MOVE YOU STUPID HEDGEHOG!" I yelled at the screen, furiously smashing my playstation buttons.

Sonic valiantly ran for a few more miles, but it was no use.

"NOOOO!" I theatrically wailed as Shadow, that smarmy creature, did a victory dance with a particularly smug look on his face. The words 'WINNER' blazed across him.

I flung away my controller and folded into the couch, sobbing dramatically.

"You really are a sore loser," Rhys remarked, his voice tinged with humor.

I glared. "Vete a freír espárragos!"

I just told him the equivalent of 'go fuck yourself', although the literal translation was quite bizarre.

Rhys threw his head back and laughed. His good mood made me even more cranky.

None of us had consistently won any of the games we played. He'd won in Halo, I'd triumphed in Call Of Duty and Mortal Kombat. But he'd really pissed me off by taking the win in Spongebob Squarepants: Battle for Bikini Bottom.

I was supposed to have that in the bag. I played as Sandy, 'cause no one's more badass than Sandy. But noooo, he'd won playing as Patrick.

Fucking Patrick.

And now he'd beaten me at Sonic Adventure 2 too. I folded my arms and scowled at him.

"Want a rematch?" He asked, eyes glinting with mischief.

I snorted and picked up my controls, sitting up. "You bet your ass I do."

"Wait," he told me before I started the replay. I looked at him questioningly.

"How about we bet on this one?"

My brows rose. "On what grounds?" I asked, interested.

He scratched at his chin, deep in thought.

The sun had risen while we played, illuminating the room with vibrant natural light. Rhys, of course, still looked ridiculously good at eight in the morning.

My gaze fastened on the slight stubble on his cheeks. And the faint purple eyebags under his eyes.

Before we started gaming, I'd asked him if he'd ever gone to sleep. He'd snorted and told me, "Sleep is for the weak." Which was a very Rhys thing to say, but now I wondered if there were monsters chasing him in his dreams as well.

I held my breath. Then, before I lost my nerve, I scooted over until I was in his lap.

He looked at me in surprise. I ignored the look, gently brushing at the hair on his face.

"What's wrong?" I whispered.

His eyes softened, and then his arms rose up and surrounded me. He let his forehead slowly rest against mine, and I accepted his weight, lifting him up as he so often did for me.

"If you win..."

I exhaled, blinking out of such ridiculous daydreams once he started speaking.

"...I'll buy you anything you want to eat for a week."

I blinked at him again. He was completely serious.

I sat up, my anticipation stirred. My mouth watered as I thought of all the Chinese takeout I could order.

I was gonna max out this rich boy's credit card- give him a taste of the broke life for once in his entire existence! I couldn't wait!

I stopped rubbing my palms with evil glee at Rhys's look. I cleared my throat and composed myself.

"And if you win?" I asked, trying to be civil about the matter.

"If I win..." He squinted a little, rubbing at his lower lip. The sight for some reason made me fight a blush.

He dropped his hand. "You'll tell me something about yourself that others don't get to know."

I froze. There was a lot about me the public didn't know. And most of it was classified.

I did the math. He'd won 5/8 of the games we played, giving him a high chance of winning the next one. I hesitated.

Rhys's eyebrow arched in that infuriating way of his. "Scared?" He taunted.

My teeth ground together. Oh, he was going down!

"You're on!"

We turned back to the screen, thumbs poised. The game began.

Both our hedgehogs took off, clearing the obstacles with minimal effort. I bit my lip, narrowing my focus to the game. I couldn't lose, I couldn't.

Just when it seemed like Sonic was gaining, the doorbell rang.

I turned towards it distractedly. Now who could that be?

Rhys capitalized on my preoccupation. His fingers fiercely jerked the joystick, and then Shadow was ahead.

My eyes widened frantically. No! NO!

I furiously tried to catch up. But I was too far behind, and he was maneuvering as expertly as if he'd personally coded the game. The finish line was coming up, and he was still in the lead.

Panicked, I picked up the remote and switched off the screen. The game abruptly shut off.

Rhys slowly looked at me. I was panting heavily, my chest rising and falling with great force, my hair disheveled.

"N-no one wins," I stuttered. Rhys said nothing, just considered me with a half-amused, half-intrigued expression. His eyes were probing, no doubt wondering what I'd go to such great lengths to hide.

His gaze felt too intimate, like a caress. I wanted to get far away from it.

The doorbell rang again.

Saved. I sprang up. "I'll get it!"

I scampered over to the peephole and peeped through.

I was met with Lilith McKenzie's bulging eyes and very enormous nose.

"Hullo?" One eye closed, and the other angled to take up the entire space.

"Anyone there?"

I groaned. I'd almost managed to forget about her.

Sulking, I unlocked the door and flung it wide open. Lilith stopped tiptoeing and beamed when she saw me.

"Hi!" She greeted cheerily. She had her hair up in a tight high ponytail, and wore a smart yellow tracksuit that complemented her hair and eyes. Her lips were red as usual. Her shoes looked more sturdy, like combat boots, but they still gave her a height boost.

She also held a boombox.

"Nice crib," she commented, stepping past me and studying the interior of my house.

She had the code too? I shut the door with more force than was probably necessary.

"Ow!" I heard someone wail from the basement. I walked behind Lilith as we both dashed down the stairs.

Jasper, who'd been asleep throughout our loud gaming, had just woken up.

Sitting up slowly, he placed a hand on his forehead and winced.

"Why does my mouth taste like I've been making out with a skunk's butthole?" He asked with bewilderment. He moved to stretch but abruptly stopped, grimacing.

"And why does my back hurt like I've been carrying a ten-pound baby?"

Rhys, who hadn't moved from the couch, shook his head. "The world is a mysterious place, Jas," he replied solemnly.

With a groan, Jasper flopped back onto the couch.

Lilith aimed a glare at Rhys.

"So you lads went off to have fun without me?"

Rhys's grin was casual. "Whatever makes you think that, Lilith?"

Lilith produced a note from her pocket.

"Because you wrote, and I quote: 'Lilith, we have gone off to have fun without you. Rhys'."

She held up the note, exposing Rhys's elegant scrawl.

He just blinked innocently. "I deny these allegations. That could've been written by anybody."

"Besides," Jasper mumbled from his prone position, "You're such an old lady. Who the hell goes to sleep by 9pm?"

Lilith turned her focus to him. She walked over to where he lay and looked down at him thoughtfully.

Then she raised her foot and booted him in the side.

"Ow!" He yipped. He continued to yelp as Lilith kept kicking him until he rolled over. Then she crouched and studied his face.

"What the bloody hell have you done to yourself now, Red?" She asked exasperatedly, peeling open an eye.

Jasper groaned again, looking lifeless.

Lilith tutted and slid off her tiny backpack. Reaching into it, she pulled out a bottle of Advil and popped it open.

"Say 'ah'," she instructed. Jasper opened his mouth.

She placed two pills inside, then poured in some water from the bottle strapped to the side of her bag. Jasper swallowed with a glug.

"Well?" Lilith inquired.

"You're an angel," Jasper moaned. He slid his eyes open a fraction.

"Why are there three of you?'" He sounded thoroughly confused.

Lilith snorted. Rising, she stepped over him like he was a fallen branch. She perked up once she reached Brandon.

"Watson," she whispered, shaking his shoulder. Brandon's eyes sprang open.

Lilith beamed at him, not looking surprised to see him in a blanket cocoon.

"It's time to get up," She said, gently pulling away the blanket.

Brandon sat up, looking like he'd already drank his morning coffee.

"Hi, Holmes," he chirped.

"Hey," Lilith smiled back. "I brought your trainers."

I blinked as she removed a set of running shoes from her backpack as well. Just how many items could that thing hold?

Brandon eagerly removed the shoes he'd been wearing and shoved his feet into the sneakers. Lilith placed his discarded ones into her bag. When he was all laced up, she pushed a button on the boombox.

My jaw dropped at the loud tune that filled the room.

OPPA GAGNAM STYLE! The K-Pop beats blasted throughout the space.

Rhys smirked at my expression.

Brandon stood and stretched like he did this every day. He probably did.

Lilith joined him in stretching.

Even Jasper became activated. He suddenly shot to his feet, looking right as rain.

"AYYYYYYYY, SEXY LADIES!" he hollered, flapping his arms in the air like a bird.

We stared at him.

He started moving his legs as well in what looked like a macabre form of galloping. But then the fool tripped over his own two feet and fell on his face.

"Ow!" he whined pitifully, his voice sounding muffled.

Rhys aimed a flat look at him.

Brandon surveyed him, then turned away dismissively.

"Ready to go?" Lilith asked him. He nodded.

Together, they jogged up the stairs, Lilith still holding the boombox. I could hear the music getting fainter as they got closer to the door.

Rhys looked at Jasper and sighed. He stood and retrieved his own shoes and Jasper's, then put both on their feet. He lifted Jasper by the arm none too gently, slinging it over his shoulder.

"Thank you babes," Jasper said, making moony eyes at Rhys. Rhys didn't meet his gaze.

"Shut up."

I followed them to the door. Rhys looked over his shoulder at me. "See you later."

I nodded.

He walked out the door and over to his Porsche parked in my driveway. I turned away from him stuffing Jasper into the backseat like a body bag and towards Brandon and Lilith. They were currently heading for the gates, calmly jogging like they'd be at this for a while.

Op, op, op, op
Oppa Gangnam Style

"She runs in those heels?" I voiced.

Rhys slammed the door and looked at me. "Anytime I ask, she just says, 'You try being 5'3'."

I snorted. Rhys walked over to the driver's side and got in.

I stood there watching my friends depart, even till they were way out of sight.

_

We watched the figures burst through the forest clearing. They'd been stomping through the grounds, sounding like a herd of elephants.

Curious, we'd waited to see who was making such a ruckus.

I tilted my head in intrigue as the Four Horsemen came into view.

Interesting, I mused. The goddess knew it had been a slow night.

Inside, Alpha shifted uneasily.

I hadn't hesitated to take over once it struck midnight. The girl's nightmare had unsettled both of us, and I'd wanted to reassure myself that I was strong and powerful.

A fox was never any match for a wolf.

Our target had hired heaps of security, but we'd cut them down with only one swing of Excalibur. Their wounds were superficial of course, since he was the only one promised death.

But once he'd seen that his security was no match for us, he'd taken the cowards way out and popped a cyanide pill before we could reach him.

Denying me my kill.

We couldn't really blame the guy, since he'd likely heard of what we'd done to the last target.

And Bernie too, can't forget him.

Poor Bernie. At least his memory lives on.

I think I was slowly getting messier.

Still, a howl of frustration had torn out of me. Brimming with anger, I'd broken into all his devices and wiped any files containing the words 'wolves', 'Sinner' and 'wolfsbane' from the cache.

Then I'd burned the whole place to the ground.

The Sinner continued to search for an anti-wolfsbane plant. He remained paranoid that one day our existence would be discovered, that there'd be a leak I couldn't get to in time, and then the masses would descend on us with our fatal weakness.

I tried not to take it personally that he thought I would somehow fail the Pack someday. I was an excellent hunter, and he was a paranoid bastard. Still, it grated on me, spurring me to carry out my duties thoroughly. Like I'd done tonight.

But I still hadn't gotten to kill anyone.

Turning my attention back to the thicket, I watched the Horsemen double over, panting.

"So... they're not happy," the redhead gasped out.

The blond was leaning against a tree. "Think we lost them?" He asked the petite girl.

She was holding a machine gun. Her chest rose and fell rapidly.

"I don't know." She turned to Raven-locks with a contrite look on her face.

"This is all my fault, Rhys. I'm so sorry..."

He raised a hand, shushing her. He was also holding a gun.

"None of that right now, Lilith," he snapped. "Let's be quiet."

Interesting, I thought once more.

I was currently perched on top of a tree, the full moon glowing behind me. Silently, I darted over to the tree in front of me for a better view.

Rhys's head suddenly darted up. "Who's there?" He demanded.

I looked at him with even more fascination. I hadn't made a sound, but he could tell that someone... or something... was watching.

Good senses, that one. I surveyed him closer.

The hand holding the gun rose, pointing somewhere in my vicinity but not directly at me.

"I know you're there."

His voice was flat, and even his eyes were cold. This one could be a killer.

The others tightened their ranks around him, to protect and defend. No hesitation flickered in any of their eyes.

A battle with them would be four-against-one, not one-on-one. They were a very cohesive group, and taking them down might even be... a challenge.

STOP THINKING ABOUT KILLING MY FRIENDS! Alpha bellowed.

I grunted. Oh relax, I was only thinking about it.

Still, I was in dire need of a distraction. And the rich one was waiting. He didn't seem the type to like being kept waiting.

I decided to bite. "You're pointing the wrong way," I called out.

He frowned in the direction of my voice. Blond and Redhead searched wildly, while Lilith gasped. No doubt she remembered me.

I slunk down the tree directly in front of them like it was a stripper pole.

"Well, hello," I purred as all their eyes focused on me.

The reactions were instantaneous. Blond and Redhead edged back. Lilith whimpered and darted behind Rhys, weapon forgotten. Her face had turned the most interesting shade of white, almost resembling porridge.

Rhys, though, didn't move back. His gaze narrowed on me and he tightened his grip on the gun, but made no further movements.

Studying him, my lips tilted up. "I startled you, but you didn't shoot. Makes me wonder what those Idiots in Blue's excuse really is. Or is it that you just don'tknow how to use that thing?"

His eyes narrowed further. "Who are you?"

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, don't be coy. I'm sure you've heard of me by now."

Rhys shook his head. "No, I mean who are you? What's your actual identity?"

I raised a brow. "So I tell you, and then stand here twirling my hair while you inform the authorities?" I snorted, leaning against the tree.

"Please. It's just 'Vixen' to you."

I suddenly remembered my grievance with my name. "You know, I could have been the 'Wolverine'," I growled, incensed.

"But noooo, the name was 'taken'." I made air quotes around the word, then sulked petulantly.

It would be a simple enough matter to just kill the original owner, but I rather liked Hugh.

You're seriously bringing this up again? Alpha groaned exasperatedly.

Vixen is YOUR NAME.

But it doesn't have to be the one I'm known by, I griped.

And whose fault is that? She retorted. You're the one who yelled 'I AM VIXEN! BOW TO ME!' while waving Excalibur like a maniac during our first hunt.

That was an oversight on my part, I grumbled.

And notice how they didn't bow? 'Vixen' just isn't scary enough.

Alpha rolled her eyes. I am so done talking about this with you.

I snarled at her.

Tuning back to the Horsemen, I found them staring at me like I was a person who heard voices in their head. Even Rhys had lowered his gun in befuddlement.

I gave them a charming smile.

"Just how old are you?" The redhead - Jasper, I think - found the courage to say.

I shrugged. "Somewhere between the ages of 14 and 40. You're welcome to guess," I told him, seeing his dumbfounded expression.

"It's been a really slow night," I sighed dreadfully. "I haven't gotten to kill anyone yet."

Lilith blanched and hid behind Rhys again. I eyed her impassively.

"Oh relax, Goldilocks. I'm not going to eat you."

I tapped my chin. "It was Red Riding Hood who was eaten by the big, bad wolf, wasn't it?"

I mulled for a moment, then shrugged.

"Somehow, I think there was room for two."

I smiled at her. She quivered in fear, making me chuckle.

"Why do you kill people?" Looking at the blond - Brandon - I saw an open expression on his face. No hint of judgement or fear.

So I replied with equal sincerity. "It makes me feel alive."

"Isn't there something else you could do that you'd like better?" Jasper asked haltingly.

I was intrigued. "Like what?"

He scratched at his hair. "I don't know... taking care of people?"

I studied him for a long moment. He fidgeted.

"I take care of people," I finally said.

Jasper blinked, surprised. "You do?"

The whole purpose of my job was to keep my Pack safe from any potential threats. But of course, he couldn't know that.

So I nodded, my lips lifting into a smirk. "Oh yes," I purred.

"I get paid very good money to take care of people."

The color drained from his face at the double meaning. I barked out a laugh.

"You walked right into that one," I cackled, raising a palm to my lips.

Rhys lifted his gun again at the movement. I cocked my head at the barrel, dropping my hand.

I batted my lashes at him prettily. "If you poke that thing at me again, I will poke you back."

Rhys's jaw tightened, but he dropped the gun, warning received. I wasn't about to stomach threats just because Alpha was sweet on him.

"But why do you need the money so bad?" Brandon inquired. "Doesn't anyone take care of you?"

I blinked. "What is this, an intervention?" I hissed, my hackles rising in outrage.

Rhys snorted, his own disgust evident. "Oh, please. Who could love that?" He said, eyeing me derisively.

I felt Alpha flinch like she'd just been burned.

"That's not very nice."

My tone was noticeably cooler now. Our heart beat and the sound of rushing wind filled our ears as we narrowed on our new target.

We plucked the gun we'd packed as an afterthought from our thigh holster, switched off the safety, and aimed, all in the span of a second.

And then we fired.

********************************************************************************

Ooooooh! What's gonna happen next?? 👀

Not me getting hype and forgetting I'm the author 🤭

So I delivered on my promise for a new chapter today. I did not, however, promise it wouldn't be a cliffhanger.

I'm not really a cliffhanger kind of person though. It's just 'cause I can't write more often for you guys. So please don't hate me 🥺

If you want to watch the TikTok I described, I've put the link below:

https://www.tiktok.com/@_vcy/video/6862147772565556485?sender_device=pc&sender_web_id=6930791870659544582&is_from_webapp=v1&is_copy_url=0

We're almost done with the first part!

Remember that I love you,

Lulu.