It was some kind of party. The people here were dressed as if they were of high status. They talked amongst themselves in the grass while sipping champagne or some other spirit. The children ran around, laughing and chasing one another without a care in the world. All of them looked adorable in their fancy clothes, completely innocent. But as the shadows steadily grew longer and the sun began to set, my nerves also grew more unsettled. It felt as if another side to these beings was awakening with the coming darkness. They were closing in on my family without moving an inch. Should any child or adult come any closer than fifteen feet, I felt the rage of a mother protecting the vulnerable. My body acted on its own, springing out, growling, and flashing invisible fangs. My tail, which no one could see either, stuck straight out, high in the air with warning.
"What's wrong with you? Relax, it's just a kid." Mom gripped my shoulder pulling me back from where I stood. No one else seemed to notice, neither did I. Instead, my focus was already on another child about to enter my radius. Again I sprang and the child ran away.
"Mom you need to go, now!" I urged her, my eyes still darting back and forth. I didn't understand what was going on, nor why I felt they were in danger and not me. If anything, it felt natural for me to be in the midst of these people. But my family was my priority, if they aren't safe here, I don't belong here either.
"What? Why?" I felt her doubt, but she still reached for my little sisters' hands and walked to the cars with a brisk pace. Again, no one seemed to notice or care until we reached the cars. Zulie, my mom's close friend, had also followed us and piled her own kids into the SUV. As they did, all hell broke loose. First it was the blood-curling screams and snarling, then we saw them. They came with a fury, slamming into the vehicle to stop. They clawed with a feeding frenzy known only to them.
"Go! GO NOW!" I slammed my palms on the outside of the SUV. Turning to the seemingly rabid beings, I attacked. My body acted on its own with only one thought in mind. 'I need to protect them no matter what! They need to escape!' Mom stomped on the gas pedal and the scent of burning rubber suffocated us all. Screams could still be heard from the park as the once clean and civilized now feasted. From the ones who tried attacking my family, only a few stood up again and disappeared in different directions.
It was made clear through the sound of snarls growing louder and the gradual decrescendo of the cries of terror and agony, there was nothing I could do for anyone else. All I could do was hope and pray my family was far away and managed to find somewhere safe for the night.
My body felt exhausted as I trudged on down the road. How long had I been walking? What was that awful smell? A church came into my sight and I headed straight for it. What happened back there? 'Ghouls, vampires, and werewolves.' My brain thought. How did I end up somewhere like that, ending with that kind of situation? The big question was why I didn't feel personally threatened around those peop...creatures. If they're really what I think they are, what does that make me?
Walking into the church was the chapel, dozens of rows of empty pews. I continued past them to a door on the far right, then down a hallway that came to a kitchen. The moment I stepped inside I felt someone's presence but had no idea who, or what, they were. If this was to serve as my temporary safe haven, I needed to protect it. The same feeling from earlier came as I bared my fangs, growling. Allowing the feeling to take over, I sprang, ready to pounce on whatever was emitting the pungent scent of fear. A little girl shrieked quietly, pushing herself closer into her mother as they all cowered in the far corner. In that instant I stopped short, aware of who the family was.
"Hey! It's just Zulie!" I heard my mother before I saw her. Zulie looked up, still ashen faced, holding her children close.
"What are you doing here?! It's not safe!" I snapped at my mom who came out from the hallway from the opposite side of the kitchen. She stared at me with wide eyes of disbelief.
"What do you mean what am I doing?! I wasn't about to leave you behind," She looked over at her friend who comforted her kids. "What happened?!" I remembered the smell from earlier, only my mind registered it as blood, but it smelled like a corpse. No one else seemed bothered by the stench, just the fact that my clothes were practically splattered with it. "What happened?!" She demanded again.
"I don't remember." I tried remembering details of the events after I tackled the first guy but nothing came. It was all a muffled blur. By the look of my clothes though, there had been some serious physical damage to someone, or something.
"Mom, why were those people trying to get us?" Zulie's daughter whimpered.
"They weren't people, those were ghouls." A boy hopped over the island counter and sat on the edge. My body instinctively backed up into the fridge. Even in the low lighting I could see his features clearly. A lean but sturdy body of someone well experienced in martial arts, incredibly observational emerald green eyes, and hair the color of dark chocolate. 'Mine' a whisper, barely audible in my head claimed, followed by the louder thought 'Tasty', but that quickly dissipated when our eyes met. Before I could react, he leaped; pinning me against the fridge with one arm, a blade was pressed against my throat with his free hand.
"Hey that's my daughter!" Mom shoved Emerald eyes away and pulled me behind her. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Emerald regained his balance and glared past her, right at me.
"You shouldn't be protecting her. She could turn on you at any moment." He gripped the knife, behind him, Zulie placed herself in front of her own kids.
"What are you talking about?"
"Look at her! She probably fed along with the rest of them!" He spat walking closer. "Those things that chased you were ghouls. Normal humans can't see their true forms, along with the other Nightwalkers. Just like you can't see hers."
"Boy, I don't know what you're smoking but don't you ever threaten my daughter again." Mom's tone was low and menacing, rarely have I ever heard her speak that way.
"I can see you for what you really are. You can't fool me with your mind tricks." I didn't like him, not one bit. A growl grew deep within my belly as my lips curled up to reveal my fangs that had come out again. This obviously pissed him off even more, but he wouldn't budge. "I've got my eye on you." Emerald had murder in his eyes as he turned and walked around the island. He flipped the switch on and off; a few moments later a small group of six crawled out of the hallway.
"What's going on?" Gabriel, Zulie's son whispered.
"Forgive Luke, he's all soldier no sympathy." A woman in her late thirties walked over to Zulie. The short mother eyed her suspiciously. "My name is Evelyn." The tall blonde continued, "Is everyone ok? No injuries that need treatment?" Her grey eyes inspected the small family, relieved to see nothing serious.
"We've been using this church as a base for the past few weeks. It's safe for you guys to spend the night." A boy younger than Luke, around fourteen years old, strolled over to us. Safe? Had he not just witnessed attempted homicide? My little sisters scooted behind me, but when the boy held out packets of sour candy, their eyes gleamed. "Here, it's ok." He smiled with child-like innocence which made the two relax.
"I don't like sour candy." Danny stated flatly, yet she still took the packet. Mom gave the blunt seven year old a warning gaze. The chubby, green eyed child played oblivious to the scolding expression.
"My name is Damien, what's yours?" The young teen whipped his dirty blond hair out of his eyes and grinned at Leanna who backed away further.
"She's really shy at first." I explained, taking her share. Once in my hands, Leanna snatched it away and ripped it open. "What do you say?" I looked down at her with an eyebrow raised.
"Thank you." She murmured softly, avoiding his gaze. I tapped her shoulder which she responded with a huff and looked up at him. "Thank you." Damien nodded with that brilliant smile of his and walked away. Evelyn watched our interaction closely, obviously taking many mental notes.
"I think we'll get along just fine. You all look like you've had a rough night. Why don't you sleep here and we'll do all the talking in the morning? There are only two beds left open for now." The blonde woman pursed her lips thoughtfully.
"The kids can share the beds, my mom and Zulie can use any sofas in the living room, assuming there are some?" Evelyn nodded while Mom and Zulie stared with the same incredulous expressions.
"And you?"
"I'll sleep in the chapel on one of the benches." I shrugged, they didn't seem too uncomfortable.
"You can't sleep in there!" Luke straightened up, challenging me.
"Then I'll sleep on the floor, it doesn't really matter to me." I snapped back full of disgust. What was his problem anyway?
"Sleep on the floor like the dog that you are." He spat crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"Luke that's enough!" Evelyn scolded him as if she were his mother. Mom's grip on my arm tightened as she kept trying to haul me back. When had I moved? Unclenching my fists, I looked down at my little sisters who looked nervous again. "Sorry about that. Come, I'll show you to the rooms." The other people who stood around the hallway entrance disappeared back to their room now that the excitement was over.
"No! I want to sleep with Fay!" Leanna clung to my leg.
"Me too!" Danny followed suit, wrapping her arms around my waist. Mom studied me for a moment before shaking her head.
"No, not tonight. You kids are going to share the beds. I'll go with you, now say goodnight to Fay." Mom was exhausted from all of the sudden events, the little ones probably even more so.
"Goodnight." Their lips trembled and their eyes watered but they obeyed. Everyone left down the hallway leaving me alone in the still silence. The moment I could no longer hear them my body dropped and my breath came in short gasps. Everything that had been building up inside me was released. The horror if what I had seen, the confusion of practically everything that's happened these last 24 hours, the relief that my family was ok. Again the question ran through my mind, 'What's going on?!'
"So much for the brave front." Luke commented dryly from the shadows. In a heartbeat, I was back on my feet, fully composed with a frosty glare. Not only was I irate with him, but also myself for letting someone see me like that. ESPECIALLY him! Without another word I turned and headed for the chapel.
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Hey guys! So don't be afraid to vote and comment if you see it fit to do so! Hope you guys enjoy! ^.^
It took forever but I feel like Samantha Boscarino is a good representation of how I imagined Fay to look like.