Twelve years later...
Waking up to yelling is not something you want to do everyday. In fact, it's not something that you want to wake up to at all.
Which is why I was out-of-my-mind pissed when I heard Art and Damon in a shouting match, jolting me out of my sleep.
I growled and flung the covers off me, stomping downstairs.
Damon and Art were having a face-off, fists clenched. I could tell that Art was really mad because he had a vein sticking out of his forehead. I got right in the middle of them, putting a hand on both of their chests.
"There had better be a good reason for you two fighting," I growled, "because you are both about to get your butts kicked."
"He started it." Art said, pouting. Damon folded his bulging arms.
"I did NOT start anything. He's the one who cheated." I finally noticed the checkers on the floor, the board somewhere in the kitchen. Which just made me madder.
"So let me get this straight." I said, folding my arms and narrowing my eyes. "You meatheads woke me up because of a freaking Checker's game?"
"He cheated!" Damon said earnestly.
"I did not!"
"Says who?"
"Says the instruction manual for the game."
"BE QUIET!" I screamed. I breathed in and out slowly, closing my eyes and thinking happy thoughts. When I had finally calmed down to the point that I wouldn't shift I opened my eyes, glaring at my scared-looking brothers.
"Now, this is what's going to happen." My voice had a deadly edge to it. "You guys are going to pick up all of the Checker pieces. I'm going to go back to sleep. And if you wake me up again, so help me God Logan and Damon, I will come back down here and beat the snot out of you."
They gulped, looking at me warily. I started up the stairs. My brothers were no pushovers. But when I was seriously mad, they listened. For their own good.
When I got back to my room I snuggled back into my bed and just couldn't fall back asleep. Which really stunk. Muttering curses, I got out of bed again and went to the kitchen, where my dad was cooking.
It was odd really. My mom couldn't burn water, so my dad did all the cooking. That was unusual, especially since he was an alpha. But the whole situation turned out to be okay. My mom was sitting on the counter, swinging her legs and just watching him. It was cute and gross at the same time.
"Good morning, sweetheart." She said, smiling. I tried to give her a smile. What can I say? I'm not a morning person.
"Morning." I said, grabbing a plate and filling it with the freshly cooked chocolate chip pancakes and eggs. I sat down at the table and ate hungrily. "Where's the twins?" I asked. The house was quiet.
"Leo and Cassidy took them to the park."
I shook my head. "Those poor, poor kids." They'd probably see some stuff they did not want to. Leo had just found his mate. They were perfect for each other and I was happy for them, but they showed that loved each other IN PUBLIC way too much, if you get my gist. I just hoped Caleb or Amy would have the sense to throw a chunk of dirt at their heads to separate them.
"I know right." My dad sat at the table next to me and dug into his plate with gusto. Damon and Art came along not three seconds later, grabbing plates and sitting down heavily. I finished first and washed my plate, downing a glass of milk to quench my thirst. I rubbed my stomach happily.
"That was really good dad."
"Thanks, Zo. Go get dressed we're going to the pack house."
"Kay." I went to my room and put on a pair of baggy basketball shorts (probably stolen from one of my brothers) and a gray spaghetti strapped camisole, some long socks, and a pair of black hightops. I went to my bathroom and brushed my teeth and put on deodorant, looking in the mirror. I had my mom's straight black hair and slightly short, curvy figure, but my eyes were all my dad's. I looked okay in what I was wearing so I went downstairs and out to the car.
"Took you long enough." Art said, his nose in a book. I rolled my eyes and let it go, shutting the door and plopping down into the back row. I figured the twins and Leo would meet us there. My dad pulled off.
We lived close enough to the pack house that we'd be able to get there quickly, and far enough so that we'd have some privacy. My dad's pack was huge, with thirty-four people and new members coming in almost every month.
Damon handed me a can of root beer. "Burping contest?"
"Sure. But let's wait, some of the other pack members might want in."
"Okay."
We made it to the house and I jumped out, hugging my grandfather. He smiled at me. "Hey Zoe."
"Hey grandpa."
"How's life?"
"Pretty good." I gave him a crooked smile and went next to Damon, walking to the backyard where all the kids our age were. I saw my best friend, Mac, standing by the fence and ran up to him.
"Hey Zo." He waved.
"Hey. Do you want to have a burping contest?"
"Okay. Do you want to come Vicky?" Victoria was Mac's mate. She was mean to me at first because she thought that me and Mac were more than what we said we were, but I made it clear to her that I wasn't putting up with it and that we were just friends. She turned out to be pretty cool. Even if she was still a little wary of me.
"Nah. I'll just watch you babe." She told Mac.
"And she can be your shoulder to cry on when you lose." I said, teasing Mac.
He cocked an eyebrow. "Really?"
"Really."
"We'll see about that." He took my hand and walked over to the now huge group of people who were participating. Damon handed out root beers and looked at everyone. "We open them on three. One, two, three!"
I clacked my can open and threw my head back, gulping down the cold fuzzy liquid. When I finished the can I swallowed and looked around. Everyone had finished their sodas and my parents were sitting on the deck, watching. I felt a burp coming up and waited until it was at it's highest point, then let it loose.
BRRRRRPPP!!!
It was loud, satisfying, and left an aftertaste in my mouth. Some people started laughing and burping at the same time. Damon took a deep breath and let one loose that was almost as loud as mine. He scowled when he realized that I was still winning. I grinned.
In the end, of course, I won. I celebrated by letting a really loud and gross sounding burp escape my mouth.
"That was disgusting." A girl snapped. I swung around. A pack member, Genvieve, was leaning against a post while smirking. She was a complete female dog. I didn't let her get to me though. I put a hand on Damon and Art's arms to keep them from snapping her neck. "Leave it. She's not worth the burial."
"Just let me know when Zoe." Damon said, staring at her with a look of pure loathing. She looked right back at him.
"So, what's going on here?" I heard Leo's big voice and looked over my shoulder. The twins, looking totally disgusted, ran over to my mom and dad while Leo had an arm around Cassidy, holding her close, and there was a girl around our age standing near them. She was hanging back as if she wasn't sure if she was welcome or not. Damon had the weird look on his face. Like he'd been struck by a lightning bolt.
Oh crap.
"Damon? Is she the one?" I asked, keeping my voice low enough so that even super sensitive ears couldn't hear us. He nodded faintly and walked over to her, grabbing her hand like it was the most natural thing in the world. She beamed at him and they kissed. I made a disgusted face.
"Oh God. We're the only ones left." Art groaned, holding his head in his hands. I didn't blame him. We hadn't found our mates yet, so we weren't walking around like a bunch of lovestruck dummies.
Damon walked back over to us, almost dragging the girl with him. She was pretty, with light brown hair and green eyes. "Mom, dad, this is Delilah." I jumped slightly and turned around. I hadn't heard my parents come up behind us. They gave her warm, calculating smiles.
"Hello."
"Hi." She shyly look at us from under her eyelashes. "I'm Cassidy's cousin." She didn't act like Cass at all.
"Delilah, this is my mom and dad, my sisters Zoe and Amy, and my brothers Leo, Logan, and Caleb."
"Everybody calls Logan, Art though. It's really nice to meet you." I gave her a smile and stuck out my hand. She returned it and seemed to glow and she shook. She was stronger than she looked.
"Aren't you forgetting me?" My grandpa's voice cut in. He smirked and lightly pushed me out of the way to get to Delilah. "I'm Jackson." He said. "And welcome to the family."
We all dispersed because everyone wanted to get a good look at the alpha's son's new mate. One guy whistled and I smacked him on the back of the head. Hard.
"That was just a warning." I growled. He turned to glare at me, then saw who I was and backed away slightly.
"I was only looking."
"There will be now looking or touching. And I am looking out for you. Damon'll tear you limb by limb. Now scat." I made a sweeping motion and he frowned at me. I sighed, not wanting to shift and have to use my voice, but my dad backed me up. "Listen to my daughter, Osmond." He said in his alpha voice. It was so powerful he had no choice but to move it. I smiled at my dad. "Thanks."
"No problem, sweetheart." He folded his arms. "So what do you think of Del?"
"I think she's cool. I'll talk to her later."
"Damon's still living in our house for about a month, but he's going to be moving out."
I sighed heavily. He looked at me, smiling lightly. "It was bound to happen sometime."
"But I didn't want it to happen so soon. He's one fourth of me."
"He'll be close."
"Still."
"I know. Your mom won't even talk about it."
Poor mom. She would still have the twins and me, Art, and Leo, but it wouldn't be the same. Leo had to stay because he was next in line. And Cassidy also lived with us. But it wouldn't be the same.
I spent the rest of the day trying not to sulk, participating in fights to distract myself. I bit the crap out of Genvieve's leg, which was a plus. When the day finally ended I was sweaty and exhausted. We all piled into the cars (the minivan and Leo's pickup truck) and drove to our house. I dragged myself inside and took a bath, soaking my aching muscles.
I put bubbles on top of the water and played around. There was a knock at the door.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, Damon."
"Okay, hold on. I stepped out, wrapping a towel around me and going into my bedroom. I couldn't meet Damon's eye.
"Sit." He commanded, pointing to the bed. He was serious. I sat. "On second thought, I'm waiting on Leo and Art to come so you can change." I stepped into my closet and changed into a pair of loose sweatpants and a tight white shirt. When I came out, my other three were all piled somewhere.
My bedroom was light green and baby blue, my favorite colors. There were little glow-in-the-dark stars on the walls and beanbags everywhere. I liked beanbags. Leo was in a red one in the corner, looking thoughtful, Art was making faces in the mirror, and Damon was looking solemn. Which looked weird on his goofy face. I tied my hair up into a ponytail and sat in a purple beanbag.
"What's going on?" Art asked, turning. I realized that none of them knew. I looked accusingly at Damon, who gave me a look back that said 'dad told you and I am going to tell them just wait a minute'.
It's a quadruplet thing.
"When I tell you guys, I want you to promise that you won't get out of control." He looked directly at me. I glared.
"I did not get out of control!"
"You nearly took off Genvieve's leg!"
"Which, by the way, was a nice fight. Way to go sis." I high-fived Art.
"She probably deserved it." Leo pointed out.
"So stop drawing conclusions." I folded my arms, looking away. "And just tell them."
"Tell us what?" Leo and Art asked simultaneously.
"I'm moving."
"What--?"
"Why--?"
"Is this because of--"
"Delilah?"
"Yes and no. I just think I need to have my own nest, you know, for when little Damon's and Delilahs start running around." He blushed a little.
"Says the guy who was fighting over a game of Checkers this morning." I said.
"Please, try to understand you guys." He looked at us. "Leo, if you could, wouldn't you move out of here?"
"Um..."
"Exactly. And I'll be right up the road." No he wouldn't. There were no good houses 'right up the road'. "I need your blessings."
"It won't be the same." Art said. It was a tone of defeat. That was his.
"It was bound to happen eventually." Leo said. And that was his form of a blessing. They all looked at me. Like I was supposed to say something. So I did.
"I need some air." I went to my balcony and stood on the railing, bending my knees to jump and grab the tree branches.
I climbed down and fell on my feet with a solid thunk. I stripped and shifted quickly, running as fast as I could into the forest. They respected me enough to not come after me. The exhilaration I got, moving so that I was a blur under the wide branches of the trees. After about an hour I slowed down, trotting and panting heavily with my toune hanging out. I looked around and realized that I was by Eden, the old tree where we used to play hide and go seek. I shifted and found the giant black t-shirt that was stored there in case of emergency, then slid it on. It came down to my knees. I started to climb.
I heard an owl talking hooting softly in the darkness and a squirrel, somewhere in a knot in the tree, telling her children to go to sleep. I hadn't used my gift in a while. So I got to my old spot, where the tree formed a sort of curve, and settled in there, listening to the animals speak.
I heard a deer frantically running through the woods and something large chasing it, it took all of my willpower to keep from jumping out of the tree and hunting down what was chasing the poor thing.
That was the way of life. I was probably the only vegetarian werewolf in the world. It wasn't any fun, chasing things down and eating them when you could hear their pleas for mercy. The brave ones, who accepted their end, were the worst.
I leaned back and sighed. There was a rustling in the trees in front of me. I didn't pay any attention. It was probably some little animal crawling around. I kept on thinking that until...
Until I saw the eyes.