Fangs vs Claws

by Rua Hasan

  Or should I say running?

  “Immo! Immo!”

  I turned around and looked at her with confusion.

  “Yes?” I asked.

  “When will Liam and Aiden get back?” she asked quickly.

  “Um, maybe in a minute or two. Why?” I asked.

  She sprinted to the cupboards while cursing to herself.

  “Dang it! It took me forever to find it, and now I’m late!” she said as she took out a glass cup and a small red bottle from her pocket.

  “Um, Marie, what are you doing?” I asked as she poured Pepsi into the glass and put it on the tray with the others.

  She looked at me and smiled evilly.

  “Well, my dear friend, let me tell you a little secret. This is a special hot sauce made from India,” she said as she pointed to the small bottle.

  “A special friend gave it to me, and I’m going to put it in Liam’s favorite glass that he always uses,” she told me as she poured the hot sauce into his Pepsi laughing evilly.

  I raised an eyebrow.

  “And why would you do that?” I asked confused.

  She looked at me and frowned when she seemed to remember something.

  “Liam stole my granola bar yesterday,” she said and pouted.

  I couldn’t hold my laughter.

  “Really? Just because of that?” I asked.

  She nodded.

  “You’re so immature. When will you guys stop fighting?” I asked.

  She rolled her eyes.

  “When Liam stops stealing,” she said.

  Once she said that, the door bell rang. I rushed out of the kitchen as my heartbeat increased. I went to the living room and saw someone about to open the door.

  “No, it’s okay, I’ll open it,” I said and walked over to the door.

  I opened the door and was greeted with my parent’s happy smiles. Liam and Aiden stood next to them.

  “Mom, Dad!” I said as I rushed to them and was eventually engulfed in their hug. They were holding me so tight, I could barely breathe. But I didn’t say anything. It didn’t really matter. All that mattered was that my parents were back.

  “Stella! Sweetheart, we missed you so much,” my mom said as she brushed my hair and looked at me from head to toe.

  “Sweetie, you haven’t been eating much? You look thinner,” she said as my dad gave me a kiss on my forehead and I chuckled.

  “No, Mom. I have been eating. You don’t have to worry about me,” I said as I hugged her again.

  “Come on, let’s go inside. I’m starving,” Liam said.

  Marie poked his stomach with her elbow, and Aiden slapped his head.

  “Oh hush, don’t be so rude. Let them first catch up,” Marie told him.

  “No, it’s okay. We’re pretty hungry too,” my dad said as my mom nodded.

  We got inside and sat on the table where the food was placed. Aiden sat next to me a bit too close for my liking. After all, I wanted to tease him, not to give him satisfaction. So I stared at Marie, and luckily, she understood what I was asking.

  “Oh, um, immo, could we change seats so I could be farthest from the window? The wind is hurting my eyes,” she lied.

  I smirked and nodded. Aiden grew tense, but he didn’t say anything and just sighed.

  As I sat down, everyone started to eat while having a small conversation.

  “So, Mom, Dad, how was your flight here?” I asked.

  “It was really relaxing, not like when we traveled to Japan,” my dad answered.

  “We almost missed the flight because we got lost, and when we finally made it, we were seated next to a werewolf, which was not a big fan of vampires, by the way,” my mom continued.

  We were all laughing at some jokes my dad was telling when Liam took a sip from his soda and screamed.

  “Oh my god! Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot! Ah!” he shouted as he ran to the kitchen.

  Marie’s face turned red as she tried to hold in her laughter.

  Liam cursed and ran back immediately looking at Marie.

  “There’s no water in the fridge!” he shouted.

  “Not even milk!”

  Marie started to laugh really hard as tears fell from her eyes, while a panicking Liam sent death glares to her.

  “Where did you hide all the water, you little mutt!” he sneered at her.

  Aiden and my parents chuckle at their behavior.

  “Marie, really? You even hid the water?” I asked in disbelief.

  She nodded while smirking.

  Liam looked at Aiden with a red face. I kind of felt bad for him.

  “Bro, do something. I feel like my insides are burning!” he told him.

  Aiden rolled his eyes and looked at Marie.

  “Marie, just show him where you hid the water,” he said, and Marie sighed.

  “Gosh! You just had to ruin the fun,” she said as she left the kitchen with Liam behind her.

  “So, Aiden, I’ve noticed you’ve marked my daughter. I hope you’ve been treating her good. You wouldn’t want to face my wrath, would you?” my dad threatened.

  Oh if only he knew that Aiden marked me by force, he would surely kill the guy. Yes, I wanted him to regret what he did, but I didn’t want him dead. That’s why I didn’t tell my parents.

  Aiden seemed unaffected by my dad’s threat, as if they were having a normal conversation.

  “Don’t worry, Mr. Parker. Your daughter is in good hands,” Aiden said.

  I rolled my eyes.

  Sure I was.

  “I’m glad to hear that, son. But if I find out you hurt her, I will not hesitate to snap your neck,” my dad threatened once again.

  “Lucas!” My mom gasped.

  She looked at Aiden apologetically and smiled sweetly at him.

  “Please don’t mind him, dear. He’s only looking out for his daughter,” she said softly.

  Aiden didn’t say anything after that. He only nodded his head.

  Once we were done with lunch, my parents headed toward their room to rest, while I sat in the living room with Aiden, Marie, and Liam. We were watching TV.

  Well, Aiden and I were trying to watch TV, but Marie and Liam were fighting over the remote. They kept pressing on random buttons, changing the channels.

  “Um, guys,” I said.

  “No! We’re going to watch The Vampire Diaries. I made it to the part when Elena and Matt fell off the bridge!” Marie hissed as she took the remote from Liam’s hand.

  “Guys!” I said a little louder, but they simply ignored me.

  “In your dreams! Arrow is on, and I’m not missing it!” Liam argued as he snatched the remote from her grip.

  “You guys do know that there are other TVs in this house, right?” Aiden’s husky voice boomed through the room, and that finally brought their attention to us.

  “Yeah, I know, but I want to watch TV here,” Marie whined while Liam rolled his eyes.

  “Stop being such a baby and grow up,” Liam told her as he changed the channel.

  “Me? A baby? I’m sorry, but I wasn’t the one crying earlier today,” she said while she put her fingers on her chin, pretending to remember the event from today.

  “W–what! I wasn’t crying. It was just from the spiciness!” Liam argued, but I could tell he was embarrassed because there was a hint of pink on his cheek.

  “You know what! All of you are babies. Just give me the damn remote!” I yelled at them and snatched the remote from Liam.

  I sat down next to Aiden while changing the channels. It must have been a bad idea because he took this as a sign to hold my hand. At first, I was tense, but I then decided to tease him a bit. I sat closer to him while one of my hands ran up and down his chest. I could feel the sparks return. From the corner of my eye, I saw him staring at me and not at the TV. I heard him growl as I continued to run my hands over his chest, smirking to myself.

  In one swift movement, he lifted me up and sat me on his lap. I gasped. I was straddling him, and his eyes dar
kened. Yup, that’s all it took just to tease him. It was too easy.

  In one sudden movement, I got up from the couch and gave the remote to Marie.

  “On second thought, I’m going for a walk,” I said, and I walked to the door feeling Aiden’s glare bore a hole into the back of my head. But before I walked outside, I popped my head into the living room.

  “Oh, and Elena dies and gets turned into a vampire,” I told Marie.

  She gasped as I walked out of the door smirking.

  Chapter 24

  I heard Marie screaming at me about spoiling a Vampire Diaries episode as I walked toward the sidewalk. I smirked even more. Aiden didn’t say anything as I left the house. He was stunned.

  Well, he better get used to that! I made a bet to myself that by the end of this week, Aiden will explode. And until then, I will not forget what he did.

  Something in me told me that all this was utterly useless because I forgave him a long time ago, but I’m not one to back down. I just wanted to have a little fun, that’s all. Sometimes I think I would make a great evil villain in a Disney movie. I mean, come on. I’m pretty badass! For example, instead of poisoning Snow White’s apple, I’ll just hit her head with a baseball bat. Simple.

  Okay, fine. I’m not that evil. I do have a heart.

  Well, a dead one though. But you get the point.

  I walked toward the orphanage. I was getting pretty attached to that place and with the children—I mean, who wouldn’t? They were all angels who tragically fell to the ground. Especially Sarah. She was like the little sister I never had. Seeing her made me want to hold her and protect her from any harm.

  Her smile brightened up my day and had become my motivation to wake up in the morning. Seeing a child go through tragedy and still be able to stand on their feet is inspiring. It made me want to become stronger just like her.

  She might have been a child, but she had the heart and the brain of a wise adult.

  The orphanage wasn’t that far away by car, but I didn’t have a ride then, so I walked. And also, I wanted to take a relaxing walk so I could admire the natural scenery. I walked along the forest and listened to the birds sing.

  Five minutes later, I was trying to think of other ways to annoy Aiden when I accidentally tripped over a stone. I stumbled forward trying to regain my balance but failed. I fell forward, but before my face could hit the ground, I stuck my hands out to cushion my fall. The fall didn’t hurt because I was a vampire, but I could feel my knees throb. That’s probably going to leave a bruise until tomorrow. I got off from the ground, cursing at myself for being clumsy as I dusted off all the dirt on my clothes.

  I noticed my right palm had a scratch. It was bleeding but not that much, so I decided just to continue my walk to the orphanage. I looked around to see if anyone saw me being such a klutz. Luckily, there was no one.

  I was about to head forward when I noticed a little girl holding a red balloon. She was staring straight at me with lonely eyes.

  Shivers went down my spine for some unknown reason, so I decided to approach her and ask her what’s wrong.

  “Hey, are you okay?” I asked as I got near. I noticed her hair was braided in an old fashion way. I was puzzled by what she wore. She was wearing one of those dresses you would see in the nineteen seventies or eighties, which was weird. Whoever was raising her must have bad taste in fashion.

  The little girl shook her head.

  “No, I’m lost, and I don’t know where Mommy is,” she whispered.

  I smiled at her and kneeled down to her level.

  “How about you tell me where was the last time you’ve seen mommy, and I will help you find her,” I told her, and she nodded.

  “The last time we were in the building Crowman, in the city center,” she said.

  I never heard of that before. It must be somewhere around the city center, but where? Since we were close to the orphanage, I decided to take the girl with me to ask Emily if she knew it.

  “I don’t know where that is, but we could ask a friend. Come on, let’s go,” I said as I walked with the little girl.

  I didn’t even know her name.

  “What’s your name, sweetie?” I asked.

  “Isabel” she whispered.

  I nodded. Something about her was different. I don’t know, but she had a strange vibe coming from her.

  Finally, we made it to the orphanage, and I saw Emily standing right outside the door. We walked toward her, and when she saw me, she smiled widely.

  “Ah, Luna it’s great to have you here,” she said cheerfully, and I smiled at her.

  “Thank you. It’s great to be here,” I said.

  “Um, can I ask you a question?” I asked.

  Emily nodded.

  “Uh, do you know where the Building of Crowman is? I’ve heard it’s somewhere in the city center, but I don’t know where,” I told her.

  It took a moment before she realized what I asked, and a look of confusion covered her face.

  “Luna, that building has been gone for years,” she said, and I raised an eyebrow.

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “I mean that yes, there used to be a building for ceremonies and meetings called the Building of Crowman, but sometime in the nineteen eighties, it fell to the ground because of an earthquake, killing hundreds of people,” she answered.

  I was shocked.

  But why did Isabel tell me it was there?

  “Why do you want to know?” Emily asked.

  “Oh, because I found this lo—” I stopped halfway when I noticed that there was no one beside me.

  Isabel was gone.

  I turned around looking at my surroundings to find her, but she was nowhere. That was awfully strange. Where did she run off to?

  “Luna, are you okay?” Emily asked.

  “Yes, but did you see where Isabel went?” I asked.

  “Who?” she asked.

  “You know, the little girl that was beside me when I approached you. With the old fashion braid and funny looking dress,” I said.

  Emily’s face was blank until it changed from a look of confusion to a look of concern.

  “What do you mean? There was no one besides you when you came. You were alone,” she told me.

  What?

  I was left speechless. What was that all about? I could have sworn I’ve just seen a little girl and was walking with her. I felt shivers run down my spine at the creepy thought of just meeting someone no one saw.

  Who was she?

  Did I just see a ghost?

  Pft, no. That cannot be real. They don’t exist.

  Do they? If werewolves and vampires do, could they too?

  I rubbed my hands over my face noticing that the scratch from earlier had healed and stopped bleeding.

  “Are you sure about that?” I asked Emily.

  She nodded.

  “Certainly.”

  

  I was sitting under a tree with Sarah as she colored in her coloring book and hummed a tune. We were in the playground at the back of the orphanage. The place was really peaceful and relaxing.

  I wish I could have enjoyed it. But my mind was still thinking about what happened earlier today.

  I’m not sure if I should feel creeped out and scared about the situation.

  Was it normal for a vampire to see a ghost? I don’t think so. Never in my two hundred years have I met one. So today was a complete shocker.

  “What are you thinking about?” Sarah asked as she closed her coloring book.

  I smiled at her curiosity but didn’t want to tell a child that I may or may not have seen a ghost, so I decided to change the subject.

  “I was thinking about a really great movie I watched. Speaking of that, what’s your favorite Disney movie?” I asked.

  She smiled widely and sat closer to me.

  “Tangled, of course!” she squealed.

  I wasn’t expecting that. I was thinking maybe Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty
or Snow White.

  “And why is that?” I asked.

  It took a moment for her to answer.

  “Because Rapunzel had a dream. Just like me,” she whispered.

  “She was taken from her family and lived her life as a lie, but that didn’t stop her from accomplishing her dreams,” she continued.

  Woah, that was deep for a child. Other kids would just say that they liked it because the princess is pretty or they like the prince.

  “Oh, and because Flynn Ryder is funny.” Sarah giggled.

  “What’s your favorite Disney movie?” she asked me.

  I thought about it.

  “Mulan,” I answered.

  She scrunched her nose up, and she looked confused.

  “Why?” she asked.

  “Because Mulan had a dream too, you know. She didn’t let others decide her fate and tell her who she was supposed to be. She created her fate by standing up for what she believed in and showed everyone who she really was—a hero,” I told her.

  She nodded.

  “The moral of the story is to not judge anyone without getting to know them. Sometimes we’re born with everyone expecting us to do a certain thing, but that doesn’t mean we have to follow the path everyone is walking on. Just stand up for your dreams and what you believe in, and that will be enough to prove everyone wrong,” I said.

  

  I left the orphanage before it could get dark. Aiden had to be his annoying self and send Scott to take me home. He said he didn’t want me walking all alone in the streets.

  But I doubted anything would happen. This territory was quiet and safe. Other than the rogue attack that happened, nothing really happened here.

  I walked toward the car Scott was in. One of the reasons I didn’t really complain was I didn’t feel like walking past the woods as the sun set, especially after today. I wouldn’t want to run into a ghost again.

  I just don’t get why in all my two hundred years I haven’t run into one until now.

  Probably just a coincidence.

  I got into the car, and Scott took off toward the pack house. I laid my head against the window as I looked at the passing buildings and trees. I was getting really tired, which was weird because the sun was only setting.

  I yawned as I closed my eyes wanting to sleep a bit until we got there. But after a few minutes, the car stopped, and Scott’s voice boomed through the car.