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Keeping Human

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love-triangle
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Blurb

Nelly Fox is no ordinary human, she is the ONLY ordinary human left in the small town of Moonstone, England. With the constant struggle of keeping her humanity, and delving deep into the mysteries of her family, Nelly tries to keep in line with family and school even with a clan of vampires, and a pack of werewolves, fighting for her to join them...and it's already proving harder than she expected.

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Chapter One
It's Christmas Eve. The blissful night is commencing as the sun gradually ducked behind the silver clouds, making room for the moon and her stars. Gentle snow was flaking into fortresses of white to shroud the beautiful village of Moonstone. The lonesome roads were silent, and the town deathly still. Soft carols can be heard from the local Church, their lyrics are carried through the wind as if the notes were the snowflakes that fell from the sky above. The surrounding fir trees were littered with white fairy lights, and each singular house had its own unique design and decoration in tandem. The innocent youths of the village awaited eagerly in their warmly-lit homes, anxious for Saint Nicholas to deliver their presents; their parents assuring them that if they fall asleep earlier, he will appear much faster. Their harmless schemes gave the parents time to drink their last glass of tender Brandy as they relaxed together in the evening. An elderly lady known as Mary Withers now lives alone on Christmas after the death of her late husband, Charles; she gently rocks in her chair beside the log-fire, a pair of knitting needles in hand. The soft droplets of snowflakes fall onto the window pane behind her. Her gentle humming comes to a halt when a group of adolescents tap on her door-frame; with the same surprise as any from the village, she listens in sweet as they begin singing cherubic songs as the eldest hands Mary a rose. She feels her heart gain a stitch, and switches her Christmas lights on again. One man lay asleep on his worn couch, afraid to enter his own bed on Christmas for a fear of his wife. He drags the sheer sheet up towards his head as the indoor space heater doesn't warm his being as much as he would like. He took a deep and thoughtful breath as he feels the life that could have been and the father he could have become. He finds his eyes being pried awake by the haunting mistakes of his past; his beagle pup hops up onto the couch and starts licking away his salty tears. She can feel his pain, but licks mostly for the taste. He happens a smile across his cheeks as she falls asleep against his chest. He cradles her like a child. The dark house at the end of the cul-de-sac is stricken of decoration, with an eerie stillness, demur the lone strand of blue and white police tape attached to either ends of the porch. It wavered in the winter wind in front of the boarded windows, like a streak of depression across the house. The property once belonged to the Cricket family. After the tragic suicide of their eighteen year old daughter, Ophelia, Mr and Mrs Cricket moved away in hopes of leaving the stench of death behind. Nelly fox remains. Since the girls passing, Nelly gazed longingly at the bedroom window of her best friend's house, hoping to see Ophelia wave from the window. They would then venture to their secret hideout, hidden within the woodland overlooked by the village; it was a place where anything could be said and kept arcanum, where the mystical trees would whisper sweet, inspiring words in their ears and urge them. Nelly still leaves the comfort of home to visit her safe place, but alas, has never felt so lonely in such a place before. Nelly's family was fair, but small, considering she hadn't a mother nor father figure in her life. Her brother Caleb took care of both her and her younger sister Madeline, who also both happened to be the only two people she had left to care for. She found herself once again at the foot of the Cricket residence, dressed in winter clothing, leaving the silence of her house for the whispering wind outside it's walls. The snow had risen to an auspicious degree in the past hour and proved more difficult to wade through than she had anticipated. Tenaciously, Nelly stomped through the tightly packed snow until the houses behind her were mere dots on the skyline. The peaceful woodland greeted and beckoned her to enter, the naked trees waved upon her arrival and allowed her to breathe deeply as she collected her thoughts into one. Sometimes, Nelly swore she often heard Ophelia's gentle voice being carried along with the wind, as though her spirit was resting within. She exhaled a soft, white cloud that merged with the plain background of snow-painted trees, she shivered gently and entered the area cloaked by the bleached plant-life. A few paces ahead led her into the wild and only a few more brought her to their den; she eyed the soft indentations carved into the rock and the faded marks on the log. The area, though tarnished by the previous crime scene investigation, was finally retaking its land - moss was resurfacing and vines strangled the trees. Though the case had never been officially closed, nobody seemed to care anymore. As she trudged through the snow, her foot sunk deep, as the other joined it, she felt herself stepping on something hard. It was not as if she had merely brushed past a rock, it was surfaced and flat. Leaning down, she curiously brushed her way through the snow to reveal a hard-back book, like a journal of some sort. Immediately, Nelly recognised this as the book Ophelia had been reading on the day of her death. The pages were damp and cold, and many had been stuck and frozen together; even the words on the cover were barely readable anymore. However, the bookmark she had stuck inside the pages remained intact; in fact, as Nelly opened the book onto the marked page, the words were no worse for wear. The book was merely study work for somebody training to become a forensic analyst. Over the top of the printed words, however, were two capitalised words almost painted into the paper with black ink, they read: 'NOT DEAD.' Nelly felt her heart stop, and her blood run cold. Is this some kind of trick? She thought, for the words themselves were as deathly as the snow. Slamming the book shut, she shoved it inside her jacket; brushing it aside as she swallowed the lump that was now a common occurrence. Icy tears welled up in her glassy eyes as she meekly edged herself to perch on the wing of the log; though cold, she simply hung her head in her hands and wept in despair. The bare trees, shrugged in snow, howled in the winter wind as snowflakes brushed against Nelly's pale cheeks, the tears already clinging to her face. A twig snapped ahead, creating an uneasy atmosphere around her. She removed her hands from her face slowly and watched for movement; though her vision blurry, she was certain something was sneaking up on her from the brush ahead. She hadn't a moment to react before her eyes caught the attention at the sight of a gigantic, white wolf emerging from the flora beside her. The beast was before her, staring into her shaking eyes with immense, amber orbs planted firmly into his skull. Nelly longed to run, but she felt her body frozen stiff, as though she had been painted into the landscape. The wolf's nose was but a whiff from hers. Her entire frame was shaking uncontrollably. Her eyes like a magnet to his, she could not pull her eyes away though she desperately longed to. Within moments, several others of the pack flanked from the white ferns surrounding her. The alpha, the much larger of the rest, sniffed Nelly's face hesitantly; the others, produced peculiar whining noises from beyond him. Without any sign of warning, he spun his head around and snapped his gigantic jaws at them. Nelly's heart lurched at the curdling sound, almost certain that her heart had jumped from her chest and out of her mouth in panic. Tardily, the alpha moved his head back to face her and, with a hesitant movement, began backing away; his pack reluctantly trailed after him until they had completely vanished from the vicinity. Finally, Nelly felt her frame melt. She threw herself from the painting and took off in the direction of her house; her snow boots trudging through the heavy ground in a rhythmic beat. The tears that were once frozen to her cheeks flew from them as she scarpered and her long, brunette hair streamlined in the wind, creating a wave to the naked eye. The wolves she had seen were unlike any she had come across before; they were enormous, perhaps the size of a small horse or pony. Its head was larger than that of a cow, and it's muscular frame alone was enough to crush bone in one movement. The forest's exit was within reach, and the clearing that looked down upon her village was but a skip away. Safety. In the spur of the moment, Nelly thumped against something solid and fell to a heap on the ground, coating her body in the snow. She grabbed a hold of her forehead and winced her eyes to adapt to the harsh light. Her eyes trailed up to the person she had collided with: a boy, not much older than herself, with a half-naked figure and a pair of devious eyes. Without a word, the boy held out his hand and gestured for her to take it; with a scrunched up face, Nelly did just that and was utterly taken aback as she was heaved up with incredible force. The boy smiled charmingly, his hair untidy and his stubble overgrown; he gripped Nelly's hand with his own, softly brushing his thumb over her palm. "I'm sorry for knocking you over." He apologised calmly, still holding her hand with his own. Nelly slowly released herself from his inhuman grip and nervously brushed the snow from her jeans and coat before finally focusing on him. "It's fine, I totally ran into you." She said, brushing her eyes over his bare body. "You must be freezing," she suddenly pointed out, breaking off her stare, "take my jacket." One arm was already out of her coat as she forcibly handed it to him, but with a calm wave of his hand, he respectfully declined, "No," he smiled smugly, "it's fine, I don't get cold...but you do." He smirked and chuckled lightly at the confused expression. "It's a type of exercise I do, a type of jogging. It helps the blood get flowing." Slowly, Nelly started to put her coat back on with a hesitant nod. "Well, I'll be going now." She mumbled awkwardly and moved past him. The boy stopped her gently with a touch of his hand and sighed, "I'm actually glad I bumped into you, my name is Jared Jones; I'm moving in the house at the end of the street next week." He said, holding out his hand. Nelly ignored the hand he gave out and brushed a few fingers through her hair. "Yeah, I know you." She said flippantly with a shrug. He scratched the base of his neck with the hand Nelly had neglected and smiled sympathetically, "I just wanted to say, I heard about the previous inhabitants...and I just wanted you to express my condolences. I assume you knew the girl that died?" Nelly winced her eyes. "Yes, I knew them, and I knew her quite well," her attitude turned cold when she caught the incense of his words and thought back to the note on the page. "Condolences? Ophelia isn't dead, so there's no need for your condolences," she bit her tongue to avoid conflict, "but...thank you." Jared jogged up alongside Nelly. "You're right," he chuffed, "she didn't commit suicide." Nelly halted abruptly and spun her body to face him rather irritably, "If you've a point, please spit it out, because I've no time for your witty and sarcastic remarks." The boy paused and took a deep, exasperated breath, "I'm not being witty, nor sarcastic," he hesitated as his amber eyes searched hers; he tensed his body and grit his teeth, "Ophelia is alive." Nelly sensed a teardrop fall from her eye and down her cheek before falling through the snow beneath her. Angrily, she turned away from him and continued down the path; almost at her home, she wiped the residue from her face. Suddenly, Jared appeared ahead of her, as if from thin air and grabbed her arm to a halt. His fingers made indentations in her skin. She struggled for a moment. "Get your hand off of me!" Jared growled and pushed her into the side of her house, pinning her against the wall aggressively. "No, listen to me." He argued, his hands holding her tightly with an iron grip. "Do you want to see your friend again? I can take you to her." Her face scrunched up as she tried to yank free her arms and pry his bony fingers from her fragile skin. "You're sick!" She hissed. His eyes did not waver from hers, they stared deep and solemn. His body remained stiff, as if somebody had turned a switch which correlated to his movements; though he was no longer moving, his grip finally loosened and he watched blankly as Nelly fell to the floor with a thud.  She landed in the deep snow, her clothes becoming even more frothy with the snowflakes and ice particles. His demeanour changed entirely, he no longer seemed friendly and approachable, instead, he seemed agitated and frustrated, as though his temper was gradually building up inside of him, waiting to burst. "What the bloody Hell is going on out here?" Nelly's brother, Caleb, emerged from the house, his trudging footsteps gained closer as his boots heeled through the snow. As he appeared from beside her, she felt his arms slowly lifting her from the ground. "Who are you?" He scoffed towards Jared. Jared's head snapped towards Caleb, but his expression faded and a sinister smirk took place instead. "You know exactly who I am." Caleb glanced at Nelly who stuck beside her brother, "What are you talking about? Do I need to call the police?" The man's face scrunched into anger, "It's going to be like that, is it?" Caleb remained calm and sighed. "I don't know who you are, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave." "You know they're still looking for you," Jared broke in, "you can't just opt out of this. The feat alone is punishable by death." Caleb took a hold of his sister and ushered her away, "Are we going to have a problem, man?" "Admit to me that you know who I am, or we will have a problem. Why don't you show her the tattoo, huh? The one on your arm. Be truthful for once." He threatened. Nelly frowned and looked up at her brother, "What tattoo?" She asked curiously, she knew that he had a few on him, but never one on the arm that Jared gestured to. She knew that. "Oh, you never showed her? Do it now, lift up your sleeve. Don't lie to her any longer." He gestured towards Caleb's shirt sleeve and smirked deviously. Caleb took a deep breath with a scrunched face and lifted up his right arm's sleeve to reveal...nothing. His arm was totally blank, his tanned skin contrasted nicely to the light blue shirt he was rocking but there was no trace of any tattoo. Jared's eyebrows forced into a fierce frown. "You traitor!" He screamed and without warning, launched himself at her brother. Like a wolf, he pounced and pinned Caleb to the ground. With quick and rapid blows to the head, Caleb writhed around, trying to block each punch to his face. "Stop it! Get off of him!" Nelly shrieked, and grabbed a hold of Jared's rock-solid arm. "Fight back, you coward! Fight back!" Jared roared in his face. He quickly snapped his head back to face Nelly, who was now hitting his arm as hard as she could. As though it was nothing, he took his right hand and used it to strike her across the cheek, where she fell backwards into the snow from the unexpected force. As though something snapped inside of him, seeing his sister hurt turned him feral. He grabbed Jared by the scruff of the neck and inhumanly threw him into the side of their house. He was slightly dazed at the sudden turn of tables; Nelly could almost visualise the cartoon stars above his head. Jared found his feet and retaliated, locking his hands around Caleb's tattooed neck. By now, an audience of neighbours had been alerted to the commotion. It only took a few minutes of fighting before the police showed up anonymously. A rather large man with a fluffy moustache met them in the middle and broke up the tension; Nelly recognised him from the day of Ophelia's death. His younger, and much smaller, Deputy grabbed a hold of Jared loosely whilst the Sheriff held onto Caleb. "Alright, what's going on here?" The Sheriff asked calmly. Caleb slowly removed his arm from the Sheriff's grip and gestured towards Jared as he helped up his sister. "This man is insane. He hit my sister, more than once, then started beating on me." The Sheriff looked towards Nelly before turning his glance at Jared. "Why did you hit her?" He said as though he was scolding his child. Jared said no words, his face did all the talking as it growled into a harsh glare. "Staying quiet? Very well." The Sheriff brushed off his look as though it was a snowflake on his shoulder. "Listen, it's Christmas Eve, I want to be sitting at home with my wife, watching my kids put out food for Santa Claus. Instead, I'm here, stopping two kids from fighting." Caleb remained silent, knowing full-well that the Sheriff was not here to play games. Jared's anger, however, was only building to its peak. "You better get your hands off me right now." He threatened towards the Deputy through gritted teeth. The Deputy's eyebrows raised. "Pardon?" With a push of his shoulder, he moved into the Deputy. "You heard me: get, your, f*****g, pig, hands, off of me." "Calm down, boy!" The Sheriff boomed. The young Deputy retaliated, "Do you want to land your arse in jail?" With a swift fist, Jared turned and clocked the Deputy in the side of the head. The poor man flew into the side of the house and slumped into the thick snow beneath him. All in a moment, the Sheriff took a hold of Jared and whisked him aside. The Deputy, still dazed, stumbled to his feet, holding the soon-to-be golf ball shaped lump on his head. The Sheriff took a pair of shimmering hand-cuffs from his belt and locked them onto Jared's wrists. "I'm not messing around here, boy. You're under arrests for assaulting an officer, disorderly conduct, and not to mention attacking a minor." Jared spat on the floor and wriggled angrily in his cuffs. He seemingly blocked out the entirety of his Miranda rights to glare into Caleb's eyes. "You okay?" The Sheriff asked his Deputy, to which he dazedly nodded and escorted Jared into the back of the police car. The Sheriff sighed and gently placed a hand onto Caleb's shoulder, "I hope you all have a good Christmas, and that little shits like this guy don't ruin anybody else's holiday." He gestured with his thumb to Jared sulking in the back seat. "No problem Sheriff, thank you." He chuckled. "Heh, you know me Caleb, I'm practically a superhero...to Daisy anyway. Do you need me to get a medic?" He asked Nelly. She shook her head sheepishly and moved towards her brother. With a final look at Nelly he hopped into the driver's seat of the car and put it into gear. Nelly furrowed her brows as the car drove off and glanced up to her brother. "Did you actually know him?" Caleb frowned and pulled her into a hug. "Of course not. Just some crazy bastard." He took a deep inhale of the chill Christmas air and hugged Nelly tightly, watching the police car drive away. As they made their way towards the front-door of his house, a loud screeching noise, like tires on icy tarmac, resonated through his ears. Beyond their porch, the police car containing Jared was now overturned and it's siren was bleating loudly. To the entire neighbourhood's surprise, a gigantic chestnut wolf moved away from the bonnet. With a snap of his jaws he darted into the woodland; Nelly recognised him as one of the wolves that had cornered her before. The beast had killed again. CHAPTER ONE, END.

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