Chapter 1
All her life Roan had wanted to be normal. When she was younger, she knew what would happen to her, but it never seemed quite that real. She looked normal as a child and felt relatively normal, it wasn't until she entered the teenager world when she realised being a Breathing Spirit meant more then spots and bad tempers. She had twice the temper, especially with her parents, and had to deal with the fact that at any point over the age of sixteen, she would be taking her transformation and stepping into adulthood. Now seventeen and in lower 6th form, life sucked as far as she was concerned and the worst thing was, there was nothing she could do about it.
"Roan please hurry up, you're going to be late." Heather said to her daughter. Roan rolled her eyes and grabbed her bag which was hanging over the chair next to her. Heather was washing up and staring out of the window, but she saw Roan leave the room in the reflection.
"You're dad is planning to do a bit of practice tonight love!" She called.
"Do I have to?" She shouted.
"Your father makes the rules." Heather shouted back. Roan sighed and slammed the door behind her. She marched up the little farm track and got to the road at the end. Walking up to the end of the street she came to the main road and walked along the path opposite the woods. No one ever hardly went into the woods; they stretched for miles on end and there wasn't much point in going in them. This was an advantage for Roan and her family. They had a sanctuary in the woods where their animal spirit would take over their bodies in a full moon and they didn't want to cause panic so Heather and Bill both went in human form to the sanctuary and then would shut themselves in, so the animal wouldn't get out. Roan hardly ever went in there. There wasn't much point as she hadn't had her transformation yet, which she knew would be happening very soon.
She turned left down another road and walked passed Jerry's shop and Alison's café which were right next to each other and the only bright things along the whole street.
As she walked, more and more kids were walking on either side of the road on their way to school. Turning down a few more streets she then came to her school. It was a big building and was fairly old, it wasn't particularly ugly, but you didn't really want to look at it either. Walking through the gates she met up with her friends Robin and Aimee. Roan had known these two for as long as she could remember and she had lost count of how many times she had tried to tell them about her secret. Her parents had told her never to trust anyone with her secret. Friends may turn you down if they find out you're not human, according to her parents. Roan linked arms with Aimee and got a big grin from Robin. She and Robin had always been very close as they had grown up together, he was tall, decent looking with brown hair and even browner eyes with thick black eyelashes any girl would crave. He had high cheekbones and his skin was a dark olive colour which Roan would kill for, but even sitting out the sun for a year, she would never go that tanned and stay that way all year. He was understanding, but protective as well and was the perfect friend in Roan's eyes. Aimee on the other hand was about the same height as Roan, but she had brown hair which wasn't particularly a colour you would remember. Roan always thought Aimee was quite plain, but in a nice way, her hair was mid length and layered which saved the fact that it was a dull colour, just like Robin she had brown eyes, but hers were much lighter and the shape was much rounder. She was wearing her favourite dress and as always made Roan feel like she hadn't made an effort. Roan lived in jeans, t-shirts and checked shirts and was hardly ever not wearing a pair of converse.
They all walked in together and went to form first as the always did and were just glad they weren't in assembly. Roan couldn't think of anything worse. They sat in one of the English rooms and Mr Brian came waltzing in, making jokes and being simply happy. Everyone loved Mr Brian. He wasn't exactly a slim man and he had square glasses and very little hair. You could make out three or four wrinkles on his forehead, but when he smiled you instantly felt at home. He didn't have many notices so he just let them talk for the rest of the twenty minutes.
"Guess who got tickets for the match this weekend!" Robin said dancing in his chair.
"You and football!" Roan complained. Robin was so typical for boy, sporty, cheeky and funny. However, it was what made him Robin.
"I think I would rather die then sit and watch a football match."
"So your not going to watch the match I'm playing in next week against Harring High?" Robin asked sounding slightly disappointed.
"Well I might come and see you, but you're different!" Aimee blushed trying to cover herself up.
"Don't worry I'll come anyway and Aimee can make up her mind if she's going to come." Roan winked at Aimee who hit her arm. As she did the bell went and they all pushed their way out of the small and heavy door.
Roan had a headache and wasn't really feeling her best and it was now only second period. She couldn't concentrate in lessons and she felt like she wanted to shut herself away. Rubbing her temples she tried to concentrate on what her Art teacher was saying, but she just wasn't taking it in. She felt like someone was walking into her personal space and she was feeling uncomfortable. Something wasn't right and she just couldn't understand what it was. Then she saw them. Through the window you could see a little hole in the fence on the school field and it lead into the back end of the woods. She saw a person standing there. It looked to be a boy of her age maybe a little older. He was staring at the window and caught her eye. Then he vanished into the trees. Roan blinked and turned back to her drawing. She added a few finishing touches to it and then straight after class she didn't bother waiting for Aimee or Robin, she just went straight outside. Checking no one was watching, she ran as fast as she could across the field and leapt through the fence. No one had seen her. Slipping through the gap she got into focus and let her eyes relax and they filled with a glowing lime green. She smiled, feeling very free all of a sudden. Her animal was definitely a fast animal and definitely a predator. Her speed was amazing, no human could run the speed Roan could and she had to try and slow down when racing, otherwise she would be just a blur. It was skills like this that partly Breathing Spirits so special.
She picked up speed and sprinted through the trees. The sun was shining through the branches of the trees causing little spot lights to leak through. Feeling a slight breeze, she flew over tree roots and stones. Her heart was pounding hard in her chest, but it was with adrenalin, not from being out of breath. She made a sudden stop and looked around. Feeling as if someone's eyes were watching her, she wondered if it was that boy from earlier. She turned in a full circle and then sniffed the air. All of a sudden she could see a trail of green dust in the air. Following it round for a while, she kept her eyes open for anything, but just ended back where she started. She sighed and growled a little bit, her eyes still shining green. She had definitely seen someone and she felt someone here, but they were hiding extremely well. Turning around, she headed back for the gap. It was a good job she had a free lesson for studying third because she had been gone for almost half an hour. She got to the gap and annoyingly the years eights were having their PE lesson. She swore under her breath and sat down in the gap knowing she would have to wait until they were all inside so she wouldn't be seen.
Getting out a bit of English work she studied it for a while. She was sat down for twenty minutes when eventually the kids all headed inside. When they were gone she ran across the field and slowed down as she got to the playground and walked to the 6th form block. Sorting out her honey blonde hair before she went in. Stupidly, she had left it down and as it was long and straight, the running had done it no good, so she swept it up into a ponytail and went inside. Aimee and Robin were sat on one of the sofas and they looked up as she came in.
"Where've you been?" Robin asked as she sat down with them.
"Just, around." Roan said.
"You were gone the whole hour Roan! We were worried sick, we couldn't find you anywhere!" Aimee said.
"Sorry, I just had to meet my mum at Alison's. She needed to give me something." Roan made up. Robin nodded and Aimee wasn't quite convinced, but she shrugged it off. Wherever Roan had gone, it was obviously important, so she didn't question her anymore.
By last lesson Roan was tired and in a bad mood. Her headache hadn't improved and she felt the massive urge to break something. She was in English as well, which didn't help. She was just glad it wasn't science as she wouldn't ave been able to even just sit. She sat tapping her pen on the desk for a while when Aimee elbowed her.
"Ow!" Roan hissed.
"Stop tapping!" Aimee hissed back.
"Sorry." Roan said staring back at the board, the something amazing happened. The board blew up. Smoke came bellowing out and engulfed the whole room. When the smoke cleared the board was hanging off the wall.
"Oh my god!" Roan's English teacher said. "I'm so sorry everyone! I'm not sure what happened there, I'm going to go get the caretaker, will you please all go into the...oh no." The fire alarm then started ringing. "Everyone out!" She barked and everyone in the class left for outside. It was fifteen minutes before the end of the day and they spent that time standing outside. The registers were taken and it was all a bit hectic. Roan glanced round at all the teenagers standing in their lines in complete silence. They were eventually set home and everyone was buzzing about what had happened, but Roan wasn't. It was her fault it had happened. She had stared at that board hoping something would happen and it did. She could have injured someone or worse and she felt dreadful about what had happened. hardly even saying goodbye to her friends she sprinted to get home and when she got in she curled up on the sofa because she was no threat to anyone that way.
"Are you all right Roan?" Bill asked as he came in from work.
"Headache, just feel a bit rough overall really." She said.
"Oh dear." He said feeling her forehead. She didn't look very well he had to admit.
"Have you taken any tablets?" He asked. She shook her head. He went into the kitchen and got her a glass of water and two lilac tablets. Taking them both and almost instantly began to feel a bit better. The headache was becoming a minor pain and she felt more at ease. Bill had also got himself a drink and when he sat down next to her Roan beckoned out for his cup and she drank half the glass. The drink was called Weakness and it was the spirit from animals. Some Breathing Spirits will suck the souls out of humans. It's how they feed and how they recruit as not all Breathing Spirits are born. Bill rolled his eyes and took back his glass.
"Right Roan, I'm not going to do any training with you, but I want you to read through this text book. I just want you to try and learn a few skills, just by memory. Just basic ones that will help you a bit and you can do without having the be able to transform." Bill said. Roan groaned and Bill apologised.
"Sorry, but it has to be done." He said disappearing out of the room to go get himself another drink. Heather then came back and realised her daughter wasn't well just by looking at her. Roan usually had a but of colour in her cheeks, but she looked like milk sat on the sofa. Her greyish blue eyes had lost their spark and bags were forming under her eyes. Heather always thought that Roan was a pretty girl, but when she was ill it was obvious.
She came in and put her arm round Roan and they just stayed that way for a while until Bill came down with the book. Roan turned too the right page and began to read, so Heather left her alone. Roan could hardly concentrate though and after about ten minutes she fell asleep. She slept for about an hour and when she woke up again, she was hungry. It was about seven o'clock and she hadn't eaten for hours. Eating some toast she guzzled two glasses of Weakness down and then went up to bed. She really wasn't doing to well at all and she hadn't drunk so much weakness in her life. When she was in bed she was about to go to sleep when Bill came in.
"Hey sweetheart try and get a good night sleep. Look we have had an urgent message saying we need to have a Moon Meeting." He said.
"But the last full moon was like three weeks ago." She said.
"I know, but it's urgent. We will be back as soon as we can." He said kissing her forehead and then he left her in peace.
***********
When she next woke up it was about midnight. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. Her headache was gone and that really weird feeling she had had in the woods was back and she didn't like it. Still with her pyjama's on, she grabbed a jacket and a torch and went to the front door. Slipping on a pair of shoes she went outside. Her parents were still out as they never came back until about six the next morning. Where they went for the meeting was beyond her, but she was still alone. She had a funny feeling as if someone was walking across her grave. This feeling she had had before and she remembered what it meant. Someone had come into her territory, which could get quite serious if it was an entire pack. Climbing out of bed she went to the window and sure enough she could see and smell the silver scent of another Breathing Spirit and one thing for sure, it wasn't her parents.
Pulling on a hoodie and some shoes she went downstairs. She got a torch from the cupboard, grabbed some keys and went out the front door. Quickly she locked it and pulled up her hood over the top of her head, sprinting after the scent. She made it up to Jerry's shop then slowed to a walk and went up a little further. Soon she came to the top of the street, just before the woods across the road.
Then she saw it. A grey wolf was padding up the road, heading for the woods. Wolves hadn't been seen in Britain for a long time and the smell was coming right off it. She just watched it come nearer and nearer. Its beautiful silver fur shone in the light of the moon and its fur was flat from the bitter breeze. Turning off her torch she stepped out in front of it.
"You shouldn't be here." She snarled at it, as she did her eyes lost control and her pupils dilated and the black was surrounded by the bright, glowing green. This immediately made the wolf step back and it suddenly began to change. Next thing she knew a gorgeous looking boy was standing in front of her. He was very good looking with short brown hair, that was quite scruffy in a way. His eyes were a sea green once the trace of unnatural eye colour had disappeared.
"Who are you?" She asked.
"Why do you want to know?" He asked.
"What are you doing here? Sorry no disrespect but this is my packs territory." She said.
"I can't explain now, seeing as those Hunters are after me and now they are after you too." She turned and watched two men running up the road. The boy was right, they were dressed in the green of a hunter and carrying what looked like vampire stakes, but they were made of silver and not wood. Hunter's had been the enemy of Breathing Spirits for centuries and they would kill anything that stood in their way.
"You brought hunters here?" she asked him. He tried to protest to her, however didn't have time so he grabbed her wrist and began running for his life. She caught up with him and they leapt straight over the gate into the woods. The men were coming after them, obviously a lot slower as they didn't have the speed of animals like the two teenagers.
"They wont find us now will they?" She asked.
"They have a tracking device that can sense a Breathing spirit." He said. "Can you transform? Because then we can get completely out of the zone and they will eventually go." He said.
"I haven't started transforming yet!" She snapped at him. "Will you just answer my questions, WHO ARE YOU?"
"My name's Liam and...I'm on the run, ok?" He snapped back, but he had hesitated as if he needed to really think about what he was saying.
"...Oh I'm sorry...it's just your on our territory and I thought you might know the rules. Why have you run away or is that asking too much?"
"I didn't agree with my dad and my mum left us a couple of months ago and he's been so cranky ever since...it's really not worth explaining. I can tell you're a bit tame, because your very touchy on your space." he grinned. his smile was almost too perfect and his white teeth stood out in the dark. What's your name?" He asked.
"Roan... and I'm not tame! For your information I can be just as feisty as you more wilder Spirits, thank you very much!"
"Sorry, Roan, come on we will lose them soon. By the way, I'm not a Wild spirit." He kept her going and she kept glancing back, but the men were no where in sight. They slowed to a walk and began heading to the left a little more. They climbed a tree and sat breathing heavily.
"How did these guys get to you?" She asked.
"I was walking through a town and they found me and have been after me ever since. They were in a green van, but they ditched that further up the road. If we are lucky they might leave us and just go." He said. "I'm so sorry Roan, I didn't want this to happen." He said biting his lip.
"Don't worry about it." She answered. "Where you staying?" She asked.
"I don't know." He answered truthfully.
"Oh. Well if you are right and the hunters leave, you can stay with us if you want. My parents aren't in at the moment, so we will confer with them in the morning. At least one night is better then none."
"Ok, thanks Roan." He said.
"It's fine." She said. She then watched him close his eyes. "What are you doing?" She asked.
"Shh, I'm seeing if they're gone." He said. She did as he asked and she stayed quiet. "They've turned around and are at the gate. They are going back to the van, we can go." He said.
"That's amazing!" She said. He winked and helped her down. She was really cold and put her hood back up, she suddenly realised she was in her pyjamas and felt slightly embarrassed.
They walked back into the village in silence and headed for home.
She took him up the drive to her house and unlocked the door. She had fumbled with the keys and her hands were so cold they had lost all feeling. Putting the fire on she warmed up her hands before going and putting the kettle on. Liam sat down on the sofa. She brought him in a hot chocolate and they sat for a while.
"Why have you run away then, just because of your dad or is there more?" she asked.
"I'm different to my siblings and not to mention my dad. They are all focused on being the traditional Breathing Spirit and that just isn't me. I want to get on with humans and I want to live quietly and just be normal." He said.
"Wait are you saying that tame Breathing Spirits aren't in power?" She asked. Liam took a sip of his drink and narrowed his eyebrows.
"No, the Breathing spirits that are in power are the ones that want to corrupt the spirits of humans. They're the evil ones, why who told you that?" He asked. At first Roan didn't answer, anger was building up inside her.
When were her parents going to tell her this? Now she knew what this moon meeting was all about. They were trying to get together and change the minds of the Spirits in power. For the first time in a long time Roan felt angry, but not just angry...she was frustrated and started to feel a sense of burning hate, which she hadn't felt before.
"My good for nothing parents told me. Why do they keep lying to me?" She put her head in her hands. "They are working against those in power, not with them like they told me! The night after every full moon they disappear, like they did tonight and now I know why. They are trying, with a few others, to think of a way to make the Wild Spirits change their minds." She said.
"Hey, I'm sorry I just stuck my foot in it, didn't I? I'm sorry." He said.
"It's not your fault, they should have had the courtesy to tell me. What kind of parents do that?" She asked. Liam put his cup down and looked at her.
"They will explain to you, Roan." He said.
"You don't know my parents." She said. He smiled at her weakly.
"I know, but they will." He said. She just nodded and took the empty cups into the kitchen.
"Come on I will show you where you can sleep." She headed up the stairs with Liam at her tail. She took him into the spare bedroom. It looked fairly clean and the duvet was on. "Is this ok?" She asked.
"It's perfect." He answered. "Thanks Roan."
She just smiled and went to her own room. She climbed into bed and let her angry tears lull her slowly to sleep.