I stared at the couch as Thane slept. His hair was braided and laying on top of his eyes as he snored loudly. His chest was bare as he only wore briefs. 'Batman? How old is he, ten?' I shook my head and grabbed my backpack, slipping in my bottle of water and my phone. I left the house and went on my run. The cool air felt refreshing as the birds tweeted in the trees. I had woken up early; almost three hours too early. Waking up at 4:30 in the morning wasn't something I wanted to do frequently. As I ran around the park, my eyes stopped on a girl with brown hair and tattoos standing between two buildings. 'Terri? What's she doing this early?' 

A guy I recognized from school walked up to her and smiled. 'Are they ..together?' I watched as she started kissing down his neck. 'Don't watch this, Cat.' Terri knelt down in front of him and my face scrunched up in disgust. 'Not watching that.' I turned to finish my run but froze when her mouth opened and her teeth turned to fangs. I gasped as she bit down on his leg. 'She bit him! Holy shit.' My hand touched my neck and I flinched. The only thing on my neck was the emotional scar. The guy didn't even scream; he moaned and put his hand in her hair, pulling it. 'What the hell?' I shook my head and ran home. 

I burst through the front door and slammed it closed, leaning against it. A heavy thud came from the couch and Thane jumped up, his braid bouncing as he looked around frantically. "The fuck?"

"She was drinking his blood!" We stared at each other until realization hit Thane's face. 

"Asterin was feeding on someone? You saw?" I nodded, swallowing my nerves. 

"She was feeding on a guy from school," I panted, feeling my neck. "It was different from my bite. He liked it! How could he like something like that? Her fangs were in his thigh for Christ's sake!" I collapsed to my knees as I held my neck. Thane walked toward me and knelt down. 

"It's a vampire thing. They can convince people to do things."

"Like hypnosis?" 

"No. Yeah. I don't fucking know. They just say they're hunger and a person bares their neck. I don't get it but it works and the victim doesn't remember it." Thane pulled on his braid in frustration. "Do I look like an expert on Vampirism? I can't even tell you everything about us wolves. You just got stuck with me 'cause the other wolves are basically afraid of the light." He chuckled at his own joke and I shook my head, chuckling under my breath. 'At least he lightened the mood.'= 

"Put on some pants, Thane." He looked down then slowly looked up at me. "WHat's with the weird look?"

He stuttered for a minute, "Nothin', that's just the first time in a while someone has called me by my name." He cleared his throat. Thane walked over to the couch and slipped on his grey jeans. 
I stood up and walked upstairs to take a shower and get dressed. I heard Thane call after me, "I'm making breakfast!" I rolled my eyes and got into the shower. 

____

I walked down the stairs and sat at the island to see a plate full of different things; sausang, bacon, beef patties, and eggs. 'What's with all the meat?' Thane turned around a set a bowl of fruit down next to the plate and filled a glass of orange juice. He smiled, sweeping his hands over the island. "Bon appetit."

"What's with all the meat?"

 Thane smiled,"Ha! That rhymed. We eat meat 'cause wolves eat meat. Primal instinct or some shit. Whatever, eat." We dug in and Thane was right, I wanted the meat. 'Guess I have to eat more meat.' I cleared my throat.

"Thane," I said softly and his head looked up. "What's going to happen?" My stomach had a knot and my tongue felt swollen. 

"You go to school, pretend that nothing has happened and when a dorky idiot says something stupid and wants to be your friend, accept him and he'll protect you." I nodded quickly as he leaned back. He sighed and ran his hand through the top of his braid. "If you mean later on, well that depends on a lot of shit. The Alphas will probably have a meeting, if they haven't already, and decide your fate." A heavy lump formed in my throat as anxiety crept up my spine. 

"Can't I decide my own fate?" The words were innocent but the way my voice projected sounded more of a threat. Thane stared at me hard, unmoving. He shot forward to lean on his hands. His hard look never wavered as he leaned closer.

"Damn straight. Don't let them tell you who to be or when to be it. You're not human anymore; you're a wolf. That changes what you are not who you are. Always remember that or they'll tear you apart." His words were full of emotions I couldn't place. 'Anger, sadness, regret? DId they do something to him? The way he reacted last night flashed across my memory. 

"Why don't they call you by your name?" I said gingerly. 

Thane chuckled dryly. "My pack?" He laughed loudly. "Oh Gods. Honestly, I don't think they know it." My mouth opened to question him. "You should probably get going, runt." I sat back and rubbed my lips together. 'I've been shut out.' I nodded,grabbing my backpack and leaving the house. I decided to walk to school. 'It's not the first time I've been shut out. I should be used to this. I get it from dad all the time, why would I expect different from a stranger?' I adjusted my backpack as the school came into view. The brown haired vampire stood next to the front doors, looking at her phone. 
Today her arms were covered with a thick sweatshirt as she shivered. A beanie covered her head as she looked up. Her eyes connected with mine and she started walking towards me. 'Oh lovely. Here we go.' I smiled as she smiled. 

"Hey! Oh my god, it's so freaking cold here. How do you survive?" She laughed and covered her nose with her sweatshirt. I looked down at my long sleeve and jeans. 'It's not that cold but I did bring a jacket, just in case.' 

"I guess we're just used to it. And it's not time for it to snow yet, then it will be cold." I joked as we walked inside. The hall was quiet with lingering early students. 'Wait, isn't she a vampire? How's she cold? Do vampires get cold?' 

"Penny said I had first and second period with you. Then third with her and fourth and fifth with Marcus. I'm so thankful I made friends already." She smiled wide and I almost smiled back. 'Remember she's a vampire. She's faking.' "You know, my sister didn't make any friends. She's kinda anti social but I know she'll make some life long friends!" Terri smiled wide, giggling. 'Stop giggling for Chrit's sake.' 

We walked into Mr. Coal's class and I sat down, Terri following behind me like a puppy. I rolled my eyes. 'Terri would be less annoying if I didn't know she was after me. Or a vampire, that would help.' The first bell rang and students started filing in and talking. Terri couldn't talk to me over the people and I thanked God. Penny walked in and stuck her tongue out at me. I rolled my eyes as she sat down. The bell rang and Mr. Coal closed the door. We worked through the assignment and soon the class was over. I sighed as Terri followed behind me. She stuck to me like a sticker to a window until SHe had class with Penny. I sighed in relief, relaxing my shoulders until the lunch bell rang. 

I groaned. 'Do  I have to go to lunch? Terri's gonna be there. She could literally rip my throat out before I even sit down.' I walked to the lunchroom and got in line. The line moved slowly and I zoned out. 

"You know a taco is a mexican pizza." I heard from behind me. 'What an idiot.' I shook my head in disappointment. 

"Dude, that's fucked up." A deeper voice said right behind me, closer than the other guy. 

"It's basically true. Okay, so check it, my cousin has this wolf pup and guess what he named it?" 'Spot? Dog? Wolf?' I grabbed a tray and continued to wait. "He named her Cat!" He chuckled. I stiffened, looking over my shoulder. A guy with dark brown eyes stared straight at me. "Isn't that funny?" His voice wasn't a joke anymore as he raised his eyebrow. I turned around and grabbed my usual, heading to my table. 'Why am I suddenly a target? Jesus Christ.' My tray slammed down on the table and Marcus jumped, looking up at me. 

"What's up, Kit? A big bad wolf after you?" I glared at him as I took off my backpack. 'If only you knew.' 

A tray set down next to mine, "A group of crows is called a murder. You know that?" My heart beat in my throat as the guy that was behind me in line sat down. "There's going to be a new kid; He'll protect you. If you aren't sure it's him, wait for him to say something stupid. 'It's him.'

"Everyone knows that." I said stiffly.

"Seriously? That's cool." I rolled my eyes at Marcus. 

 "Hey, I'm Harley. Marcus, right?" Marcus nodded at the new guy. "How're the sports here?"

"The football team is pretty good, if I do say so myself? The basketball team sucks, the girl's volleyball team usually makes it pretty far. Other than that? Uh... No, nothin'." Marcus laughed stroking his own ego. = I rolled my eyes, forcing myself to relax. 

"Let me guess, you're on the football team?" Harley said, chuckling as Marcus nodded, popping a fry in his mouth. 

"You bet bruh! You thinking about joinin'?" Harley nodded as he took a bite of his pizza. "Cool. You should talk to couch."

Harley froze for a second. Marcus continued talking without noticing. I cautiously ate, watching Harley from the corner of my eye. Soon, three trays landed next to Marcus and my eyes came up to see Penny and Terri with another girl. All their eyes were on Harley. Harley was stiff as he stared at Terri. Terri smiled at him as she sat. 

"Hey, I'm Asterin. I haven't met you before. I just moved here." Harley's jaw tightened. I gulped. 

"Actually, Harley is new. He just started today. " My eyes flicked between them. 

Terri smiled widely, "That's so weird! Three new kids at the same time. Oh, and we're all friends with Kitty Cat." She wrinkled her nose and giggled. I could hardly breathe. Everything she said wouldn't alarm me if I didn't know what she was. 

"Don't call me that." My eyes flicked to Penny. "Please." 

"That's really weird but Cat's amazing, so I get it. She's like a magnet." Penny chuckled, munching on her chips. Marcus nodded smiling.

"You know how I met Cat?" Marcus chuckled and I rolled my eyes. "So, God rest her soul, Cat's mom had a costume birthday party and invited us even though we didn't know who they were. Our mom was so excited we got invited and forced us to go." I smiled softly as Marcus continued. "Margo went in a suit with a bow tie. Her hair was so frizzy, it was two times the size of her head! I was a classic ladies man, of course. "

"He's lying." I stated, crossing my arms.

"I was a cowboy with twin pistols. Cat was so mad when we arrived, I thought she was gonna attack. Wild kitty cat." I groaned, burying my head. "Okay, so Margo was a huge tyrant in grade school. And what does little Cat do when she finds out Mean Margo was coming to her party?" Marcus laughed as I shook my head in shame. "She dump the bowl of punch on Margo!" Marcus and Penny laughed as I silently died.

"Cat's mom was so mad!" Penny chuckled as she looked at me. My face was red in shame.

"Who's Margo?" My heart dropped as I heard her voice. 'I forgot about Terri.' I sat up slowly.

"Oh, she's Marcus' sister. They're twins. She's on a volunteer trip." Penny said as my throat closed. Terri nodded, taking a drink of her juice through a straw. 

"That's so cool! I can't wait to meet her. Oh, this is my sister, Hestia." Terri smiled at Hestia who stared back at us blankly. She had a shiny black bob cut and green eyes; her lips a dark maroon. Her thick eyeliner and center lip piercing provided a glimpse into who she was before her mouth even opened. 

"Hestia?" Our eyes turned to Marcus. "That's the virgin Goddess in greek mythology. That's dope." I furrowed my eyebrows. 

"How do you even know that?" I said. Marcus shrugged taking a drink of his powerade. Hestia stared at me and I looked down nervously. Marcus and Penny continued talking with Terri as I stayed silent under the pressure of Hestia's stare. Harley stayed quiet unless someone talked to him. His back was completely straight and his fist clenched under the table. After what felt like an eternity the bell rang and I jumped up, basically running from the inter species tension of that table. 

'Terri sounds like a threat, Hestia looks like a threat, Penny and Marcus are clueless and Harley, for fucks sake, he's like a brick! He said like four sentences before tensing up! How is he gonna keep me safe, if he can hardly move when he sees them?' I screamed in anger as I walked down the hallway. Kids turned to look at me in confusion. I ducked my head and ran to class. 

I plopped into a seat and sighed. I got ready for class and waited for the bell to ring. A hand landed on my arm and I jumped, tingles erupting everywhere. I looked up to see Harley with wide eyes. I relaxed and looked down until the tingles faded. I leaned close to him, "Are you fucking stupid?" Small tingles covered my arms. 
"Your eyes glow?!" His whisper-shouted. "What the hell?" I rolled my eyes and sat back in my seat as Mrs. Drewberry turned off the lights. "Wait, Cat, I need to talk to you." I raised my hand and Mrs. D gave me a look. "This guy won't stop talking to me." I pointed at Harley and he scoffed. 

"Mr. Taylor, if you'd please not distract my star student, I would greatly appreciate it." 

Harley nodded, opening a new spiral notebook. He looked over at me. "Can I borrow a pencil?" I rolled my eyes and handed him a pencil. I leaned forward, preparing to take Mrs. D's intense notes. 'Why am I even being mean to him? He's doing what he's supposed to do.' I glanced at him, his eyebrows raised high cause his forehead to wrinkle as his eyes were wide. His eyes flicked over the projected screen and his jaw dropped. I chuckled as a look of panic embraced him. 'He's clueless.' I returned to my notes and pushed all other thoughts away. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I shoved open the front doors and sprinted away from the school. I ran all the way home and burst into the house, slamming the door shut. Thane jumped up from the couch, "The fuck? You know how often you slam that door? " He walked around the couch while turning off the tv. "What is it now?" 

I glared, pushing past him and stomping upstairs. He sighed and leaned against the counter. "What'cha want for dinner?" He called. I slammed my door shut and laid face first on the bed. I took deep breaths until my shoulders relaxed and my mind was clear. The doorbell rang and I growled as a tingle started in my spine. I stomped down the stairs and pushed Thane away as he attempted to go to the door. He raised his hands in defeat as he backed into the kitchen. 

I flung the door open knowing who it was and grabbed his shirt, pulling him inside. I slammed the door shut as Harley and Thane looked at each other. My heart thumped as Harley suddenly became hostile and stormed up to Thane who straightened to his full height. I'd seen enough teen drama to know a fight would start if I didn't do something. "Is this my 'protector'?" I air-quoted, moving to stand between them. 'Damn, don't I feel short.' Thane nodded. 

"Yeah, it's who I thought it would be. I didn't think you'd invite him over for tea." He stated bluntly. I tilted my head.

"What is this? England? No, I didn't invite him over. I seem to have taken to letting complete strangers in my house, though. Huh?" I raised my eyebrows at him and he rolled his eyes, scoffing. "Thane, sit." I shoved him toward a stool and he complied. "Harley, sit your ass down." I pointed to the couch and his glared turned to me. 

"You think I'm going to listen to you?" He stepped closer to me and goosebumps rose on my arms and neck. This wasn't just anger, it was fear. 'He could destroy me in a second and he knows it.' A growl erupted from my chest. 'He thinks I'm prey? I'd like to see him try.' "You aren't my Alpha, half-breed. You'll submit to me." 

Thane stood up quickly, stepping between us, shielding me from sight. "Harley, your Alpha assigned you to protect her. Would you disrespect your Alpha?" Harley snarled and sat on the couch. I swallowed my sigh of relief and pushed Thane a side. The air was thick and claustrophobic.

"How is Harley going to protect me?" I asked softly. Thane looked at me, then Harley. "When he saw Terri and Hestia, he was a stone. He didn't do anything." 

"Who's Terri and Hestia?" Thane said.

"Asterin and her sister." I informed him, crossing my arms. "Do you have any experience with vampires?" Harley remained silent. 

Thane chuckled and Harley growled lowly. "They gave you an ametur; basically a pup." He burst out laughing as Harley glared at him. I sighed and rotated my head. 

"Thane, be serious." 

Thane stopped laughing and walked around the island and continued cooking. We sat in silence until my phone rang. I pulled it out of my pocket to see Penny calling. I accepted it and put the phone to my ear. 

"'Sup? I had a bomb ass idea! We have a sleepover!" Penny shrieked. 'I swear to God, if one more thing pops up, I'm killing someone.' I rubbed my forehead. "We can invite Terri and Hestia, so we can get to know them! And of course, Harley, too. I mean, why not? We can do it at your house and all sleep in the living room together!" 'Thane sleeps in the living room.' I stuttered, trying to find an excuse. "I think we should do it tomorrow." I choked on my spit. "Shit, I gotta go. Bye." The line disconnected and I dropped the phone from my ear. I turned to Thane as he looked back blankly. 

"Nice, job." He mocked. 

"What do I do? Where will you go? You can't just stay here; I told them we met at summer camp and you needed my phone number. If they see you here, they'll go crazy."

"Then kick him out. Don't need scum like him here anyway." Harley said glaring. Thane glared back.

"At least I can make my own decisions without asking permission from Daddy." He spat. Harley lunged at Thane but Thane moved around the island laughing. 'Oh fuck.' 
"Knock it off!" Harley growled seeming not to hear me. Thane moved around the island to the front door. Harley crawled forward his body hunched over, disformed so he could walk on his hands and feet. Every few seconds it popped. "What the fuck?" 'He'll attack Thane. I ..can't .. No.' I grabbed a knife from the kitchen block and ran in front of Thane. I held the knife shaking as I stared at a disformed, drooling, and growling Harley.

"Cat, move." Thane demanded behind me. 

"No! This is my house, damnit!" My eyes watered as Harley crawled closer his jaw moving and popping. "Harley, stop." 

Thane sighed behind me and cleared his throat. "Stop!" Thane's voice was booming and deeper than usual. It sent shivers down my spine. Harley froze. "Human." His voice held authority that weakened my knees. Harley started popping faster as his body shifted to look more human until the Harley from school was sitting on his knees in front of me.

 I relaxed, my hands shaking the knife. Thane placed his hands around me and took the knife, his heat pressing against my back. He pulled away, walking to the counter and setting the knife down. My knees shook as I stared at Harley, who sat quietly staring at the floor. His shirt  and jeans were stretched and ripped from the distortion. 

Thane came to stand between us and hugged me to his chest, rubbing my back. My eyes watered as I hugged him back, my knees weak and gave out. Thane pulled me up in his arms, carrying me upstairs. He kicked open my bedroom door and set me on the bed softly. Tears leaked down my face as I pressed it into his chest. He continued rubbing my back as I felt my throat tighten. 'He was turning into a wolf and I jumped in front of him like an idiot. I could have died.' I choked on a sob, hugging Thane tight. He rocking me back and forth, rubbing my back until I calmed down.

"How did you stop him?" I whispered. I felt Thane sigh deeply. He ran his fingers in my hair.

"I am, technically, Alpha blood. I can use the Alpha commands. I just.. My grandpa was the Alpha, my dad is Alpha, but because I was a late shifter, I was deemed unfit. Then it got worse as I grew up hating my pack." His fingers paused. "Wolf life is.... Complicatedly simple, unless you're different. I rebelled and am forever outcast."

 I sniffled, looking up at him. He chuckled. "Don't look at me like that, runt." He rubbed under my eye, wiping away a stray tear. "You look like shit." I scoffed, shoving him away from me and Thane stood up, stretching. "I'm gonna go to the store for tomorrow and make some dinner. Mh'kay? Get some rest." His soft voice was shocking compared to earlier. I nodded as he walked to the door. "And for Gods' sake, take a shower, ya nasty." He closed my door as I laughed. 

I did as told and took a long hot shower. 'It's so weird. A lot has happened and I'm just.... Blank? How am I supposed to react? Fear? Anger? Am I supposed to run away?' I climbed out, drying myself off and getting dressed.  I grabbed a book and walked downstairs to see the house dark and empty, the only light on was the stove light. I settled onto the couch, letting myself sinking into the cushions. I leaned back and closed my heavy eyes. The quiet ticking of the grandfather soothed my soul into the soft lullaby of sleep.