The Damned

New Year

Nix POV

Tonight after dinner, my family and I will go for our very first all family run.  I’m so excited.  They have yet to see Isla.  They know she’s a white fox, but I can’t wait to hear what they think of her when they actually see her.  I just hope we don’t run into any of the other shifters while on our run.  I’m not ready for the whole world to know that I’m the white fox of the prophecy.  My family and I eat dinner in silence.  I suddenly become nervous.  What if we do happen across another shifter?  How will I hide what I am?

“Sweetie, you okay?”  Mom asks breaking my reverie.

“I’m just hoping we don’t happen across another shifter while on our run.”  I say expressing my nervousness.

“Oh, honey.  We mainly stay in the forest surrounding our house and the Darkas’ house.  If we do run into anyone, it would be either Luna Aslanta or Darian.  But I highly doubt they’ll be out.”

“Why do you say that?”  I ask.

“Your mother and I were concerned about your fear of this, so, we told Luna Aslanta to keep Darian inside with her tonight until we give the all clear.”  Dad says taking my hand in his to reassure me.

“Thank you.”  I smile to my parents who nod with smiles on their faces.  After dishes are done, we each go out one by one to undress and shift.  After one person is done, they mind link the next to come out.  They all leave me for last.  I go outside behind the tree I’ve claimed as mine and undress.  I let Isla take over.  Once on all fours, I walk into the backyard to see the rest of my family watching my tree expectantly.

‘Nix, you’re beautiful.’  Dad’s voice comes through.

‘My daughter.’  Mom says proudly.

‘Rock on.’  Theo nods his wolf head at me.

‘You’re a vision.’  Nina says.

‘Thanks, guys.  Shall we?’  I say.  They each nod their wolf heads and I let Isla take full control.  My family and I run through the woods.  By the time we get home, dressed, and showered, it’s time to count down to the new year.  I’m so thankful we didn’t come across another shifter.  My family and I gather in the living room.  We each hold a champagne flute of sparkling white grape juice.  It’s tradition.  As we begin the countdown, I can’t help but wonder what the New Year will bring for me.  Midnight hits and my parents exchange a kiss as always while Nina, Theo, and I group hug.  Mom and Dad join in the group hug after a minute.  Then we toast and drink our juice.  I finish my juice first and rinse out the flute.  I put it in the dishwasher then say goodnight to my family.  I go upstairs and get ready for bed.  I crawl into bed and drift off into a peaceful night’s sleep.

Darian POV

Mom made me stay in after dinner.  Just before midnight, she finally released me so that I could go for a run.  My wolf has been on edge since Lucian and I saw Nix at the shopping center.  I go outside behind a tree and strip down out of my clothes.  Xavier instantly takes over.  When we hit the ground on all fours, he shakes his fur out and then sprints off through the forest.  We run for a while then Xavier, once again, leads us to the Delaney house.  The living room light is on, but so is Nix’s room.  Her curtain is drawn tonight which means she must be getting ready for bed.  Xavier suspects as much, too, so, he takes off running again.  We run for a while longer before Xavier decides to take us back home.  When he stops at the tree, he lets me take over again.  I shift us back to human, get dressed, and go inside.  Mom hollers ‘Happy New Year!’ to me so I holler it back to her.  I then go upstairs to my bathroom and start the shower water warming up.  I grab my pajama shorts from my bedroom, undress, and hop in the shower.  After about twenty minutes of letting the water run across my tense muscles, I shut off the water and get out.  I dry off and put on my shorts.  I check my phone to see that Lucian sent me a text.  I open it and he wished me a happy new year as well.  I send him the wish back and curl under my covers.  Tonight I sleep without any dreams.

Nix POV

Waking up this morning, I feel refreshed.  I ran with my family last night for the first time since I started shifting.  They were all in awe.  I decide to take a shower this morning.  When I am dried off and dressed, I go downstairs to find my family in the living room.

“Anyone hungry?”  I ask.

“What are you thinking?”  Theo asks turning around.

“I was thinking I’d make omelets for everyone.”

“I’m down with that.”  Nina smiles at me over her shoulder.

“Great.  I’ll start fixing them.”  I smile and head into the kitchen.  Luckily, we have all the ingredients for each person’s omelet.  Mom likes ham, cheese, and onions in hers.  Dad likes ham, cheese, onions, and green peppers in his.  Nina and Theo both like ham, cheese, onions, green peppers, and mushrooms in theirs.  As for me, I like bacon, cheese, onions, mushrooms, and green peppers.  The bacon is easy enough because we have a pack that you can do a few pieces at a time in the microwave.  I chop up everything else and set everything aside while I whip the eggs together.  I put in some garlic salt and pepper in the eggs.  Luckily, everyone likes the seasonings I put in eggs.  Well, as far as I know they do.  They have never told me otherwise.  I call my family to the kitchen as their omelets are finished, but they just all come in at the same time rather than one by one.

After breakfast, Nina and Mom go shopping.  I decide that this semester I don’t need new clothes.  I’m good with the ones I have.  By the time they get back from shopping, it’s close to dinner time.  While Mom fixes dinner, I decide to go for a short run.  I go outside and behind my usual tree.  I strip down and let Isla take over for the shift to four paws.  Isla runs for a while making sure to avoid anywhere that another wolf might potentially be running.  After a while, Isla runs back home and goes behind our tree.  She lets me take back over to shift us back to two legs.  I get dressed and go inside.  Dinner tonight is steak and potatoes.  My family and I eat in silence.  After dinner, I go upstairs and take a shower then get ready for bed.  I don’t immediately go to bed though.  Instead, I sit in my window with a book.  As I’m sitting there, I feel like someone is watching me.  I look out the window but don’t see anything.  I shrug it off and read five chapters in my book before crawling into bed for the night.  I start to drift off while thinking about what this New Year will bring.  Maybe Theo will meet his mate.  Maybe Nina and Lucian get married.  Maybe I won’t feel so alone anymore.

Nix POV

Tomorrow starts a new semester.  I’m nervous and excited.  I’m not sure which feeling is stronger than the other, but that’s okay.  Soon enough, I am sure, everything will come to pass.  Over the holiday break, I shifted for the first time.  It felt so good to let Isla run.  Turns out she is the fox from the prophecy.  I’m still not sure how to feel about that.  I don’t want to be the one to lead The Damned towards the end of the world.  I like the world the way it is.  I don’t want it to end especially not with me in the lead.

I decide to lay in bed for a while after waking up this morning.  Once I manage to roll out of bed, I go over to my desk and start looking through my spring semester schedule.  I can’t wait for my art classes.  This semester I’m actually taking a few different electives.  I decided I wanted to see what photography is like, so, I’m in semester one of the introductory class.  I have always loved Shakespeare so I’m taking Mrs. Tucker’s class on him.  I’m also in semester two of Intro to Paint.  And finally, I love being on stage, so, I took the introduction class of theater even though I’ve performed in three plays already.  I can’t wait to find out what the spring production will be.  I hope it will be something interesting and that I can get a good part.  All I know is that auditions will probably take place mid-February.  I can’t wait.

After looking over my schedule, I get dressed and go downstairs.

“Well good morning.”  Mom says when I enter the kitchen.

“Morning.”  I smile.

“We thought you weren’t going to get up until lunch.”  Theo chuckles coming into the kitchen.

“Ha-ha.”  I say sarcastically.  Theo just chuckles again.  I really hope he finds his mate soon.  Maybe then he won’t pick on me so much.  I doubt it, but I still hope he finds her soon.

‘What if Theo’s mate is male?’  Isla says.

‘Theo’s not gay though.’

‘Have you ever asked him?’

‘Well, no.’

‘Exactly.’  Isla says snidely but then stays quiet.  I mentally shake my head and turn my attention back to Mom and Theo.  Theo looks at me strangely.  Now I can’t help but wonder.  What if Isla is right?  I give Theo a smile and he shrugs and walks out of the room.

“What was that all about?”  Mom asks.

“Not sure.”  I reply with a shrug.  Mom turns back to the counter.  “So, what are you making?”

“Putting together a pot roast for dinner tonight.”  She replies.

“Sounds delicious.  I’ll leave you to it.”  I leave the kitchen and decide to let Isla out for a bit.  Once on all fours, Isla takes off running through the forest.  We wind up at the lake two miles away from the house.  The lake sits perfectly between my house and Darian’s house.  I hope we don’t run into him while we are out here.  Isla senses my nervousness and runs back home.  I go upstairs and take a shower.  After my shower, I go back downstairs and fix a sandwich for lunch.  I eat my sandwich at the bar then go into the living room to see what my family is up to.

“Hey, sis.  We were just thinking of putting in a movie.  Want to join us?”  Theo says when he spots me.

“Sure.  What movie?”  I ask getting comfortable on the floor.

“Not sure yet.  Any thoughts?”  Dad says.

“Hmm.”  I think.

“How about Princess of Thieves?”  Nina suggests.

“I’m good with that.”  I smile.  Dad shrugs and Mom gets off the couch to put the movie in.  We sit watching in silence.  After the movie is over, I go upstairs to my room and check my phone.  There’s a message there from Yvonne sent ten minutes ago.  It’s 14:26 here which means Yvonne’s time is 09:26.  I open the message.

‘Hey, girl.  Got a second to talk?’

‘Yes.  Call when you are ready.’  I reply.  Five minutes later, my phone is ringing with Yvonne’s name on the screen.

“Hey!”  I answer.

“Hey.”  Yvonne says, but something doesn’t sound right about her voice.

“What’s wrong?”  I ask knowing my best friend.

“Nothing serious.  I promise.  It’s just that I feel bad.”

“Bad about what?”  I ask confused.

“Kristoff.”  She says.

“Who’s Kristoff?”

“He’s my mate.”

“So, why do you feel bad about that?”

“Because you aren’t here to meet him.”  She sniffles.

“I’m sure I will get to meet him sooner than either of us knows.”  I assure her.

“Yeah.”  Yvonne says still sounding sullen.

“Hey.  It will all be okay.  I promise.  Just make sure you keep me posted.”

“I will.”  There’s a pause and I can hear someone calling for her.  “Well, Mom is calling me for breakfast.  I’ll talk to you again soon.”  She says and hangs up before I can say goodbye.  She never has been one for long goodbyes.  I smile knowing that she’ll be happier now that her mate has found her.

I go downstairs and share the news with my family.  They all react with happiness.  I can’t help but join in their glee.  After a couple minutes of excitement, Mom announces that dinner will be ready any minute now.  I follow her into the kitchen so that I can set the table for dinner while she finishes the last minute stuff.  I get the table set and then help Mom bring the serving dishes full of food into the dining room.  We all sit and eat.  While eating, conversation flows easily.  Nina is excited for the new school semester.  I am glad one of us is so excited about it.  Theo talks about his classes that will start in two weeks.  He attends the college here on the island.  Theo had a chance to go to the States for college, but decided to stay close to home.  I don’t see why though because if his mate were on the island, he’d have found her by now.  But maybe she’ll be coming from the States and starting a semester behind her class.  I hope that that’s the case.  After dinner, I help Mom clean up.  Once the dishes are done, I decide to go upstairs and read.  I grab my copy of The Beautiful by Renée Ahdieh.  It’s a good book and the funny part about it is that the sequel to it is called The Damned.  I sit in my window and start reading.  After a few chapters, I start to feel drowsy, so, I bookmark my page, set it back on the shelf, and get ready for bed.  Tomorrow starts a new semester.  Hope it goes well.

Nix POV

I get ready for school this morning by taking a shower.  I get dressed making sure to put on all my new jewelry.  I braid my hair and put on a little bit of black eyeliner.  I go downstairs with my book bag and grab a granola bar.  I hope in my new car and head for school alone for once.  I go straight to my locker and put a few things out then take a few things out.  I go to Pre-Calculus and sit in my usual seat at the far back corner next to the windows.  Today, Mr. Wayland gives us a quiz to see what we remember from fall semester.

After Pre-Calculus, I head for a new class to me.  Intro to Photography I with Mr. Keel.  I’m actually looking forward to this class.  Mr. Keel begins class by giving us his favorite cameras to use.  One of his favorites is an antique camera that uses film rather than digital.  I love that idea, but it would be hard to find on the island.  Luckily, I think my parents have one stashed in the attic.  Mr. Keel tells us that if we happen to have a film camera that he will personally develop the shots in the school’s dark room.  After class, I stay behind for a minute.

“Ah, Miss Delaney.  So glad to finally see you in one of my classes.”  Mr. Keel says with a beaming smile.

“Thanks, Mr. Keel.  So excited to finally be in one of your classes.”  I smile back.

“So, what can I do for you?”

“I was wondering.  I have a film camera that I would like to use.  But I’m wondering if you can teach me how to develop them in the dark room?”  I say shyly.

“But of course, Miss Delaney!”  Mr. Keel says happily.

“Really?!”  I ask shocked.  Mr. Keel nods with another big smile on his face.  “Well great!  Thank you, Mr. Keel!”  I say excitedly.

“You’d better get going.  Don’t need you late for a class on the first day back from break.”  Mr. Keel says.

“Right.  See you in class tomorrow.”  I say and leave the photo studio.  I head for Mrs. Tucker’s classroom for my Works of Shakespeare class.  As I watch people come into the room, I am shocked to see Lucian walk in.  He spots me and waves.  I wave back.  Lucian takes the seat directly in front of me.  He turns around to look at me.

“So, we have a class together again.”  Lucian smiles.

“Looks that way.  Unfortunately, we may not have the same opportunity to talk much in this class.”  I say.

“True.”  Just then the bell rings signaling the start of class.  Mrs. Tucker starts class by handing out copies of The Tempest, Twelfth Night, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Romeo and Juliet.  Mrs. Tucker informs us that these will be our copies to keep after the semester so that we can take notes in the margins.  She tells us that our first play of study will be Romeo and Juliet.  She informs the class that, while the plays will be our main focus this year, there will be times when we touch base on some of Shakespeare’s sonnets.  Mrs. Tucker then begins her lesson.  As the class ends, Mrs. Tucker assigns my first homework assignment for the semester.  We are to read the first two scenes and take notes to be able to ask questions in class tomorrow.  I walk to Herbology IV.

During lunch today, I sit under my usual tree and begin eating while reading Romeo and Juliet.  As I am reading, I feel eyes on me.  Not this again.  I look up and, sure enough, Darian is looking at me while talking to Lucian.  I quickly look away when Lucian looks over at me as well.

Darian POV

During lunch today, I look over to Nix under her tree.  Once again, she is wearing the jewelry I got for her.

‘Dude, she’s wearing the jewelry I got her.’  I tell Lucian in mind link.

“Really?”  He says aloud.  Nix looks up at me.

“Yes.  It looks good.”  I say also aloud but not giving away what we are talking about.  Lucian turns to look at Nix and she quickly looks away.

“Yeah, bro.  It does look good.”  We finish lunch while making conversation with the rest of the table.  The bell rings signaling the end of lunch.  Lucian and I walk to our lockers.  Lucian has art class next and I’m hoping that it’s with Nix again.  Meanwhile, I have my last Herbology class ever with Nina.

“Let me know the instant you see her in art.”  I tell Lucian who nods and goes off towards the art studio.

‘She’s here.’  He says through mind link and Xavier perks up.

Nix POV

I watch the door to the art studio to see if Lucian is in this semester’s class with me again.  Sure enough, in walks Lucian with a huge grin on his face as soon as he sees me.  He comes and takes the seat next to me.

“I’m so happy we’re in this class together again.  Now we’ll have the opportunity to talk like we did last semester.”  Lucian says excitedly.

“I’m happy we are here together too.”  I smile.  “Decided you like to paint, huh?”  I tease.

“Yeah.  Well, it’s always been a private hobby of mine.  So, I figured I should take the introductory classes so that I can perfect my own paintings.”  Lucian says revealing something new about himself.

“I didn’t know it was a secret hobby of yours.”  I say shocked.

“Not many people do.”

“Well maybe one day you can show me some of your stuff.”

“Definitely!”  Mrs. Muir starts class then.  Our first assignment for the semester is to paint a favorite movie scene of ours.  She’s giving us until February 19 to work on it.  She releases us to start brainstorming.  “So, what movie do you think you’ll do?”

“Not sure yet.  You?”

“I think I may do a scene from Pirates of the Caribbean.”

“Which one though?”

“Probably the first one.  I liked that one the best.”  Lucian says.

“I think I’ll do my favorite scene from Titanic.”  I say.

“Let me guess…the scene where they are standing on the rails.”  Lucian smiles.

“Yeah.  Pretty obvious scene to do.”

“Not at all.  Complex maybe.  But I have faith in you.”

“Thanks.  What scene from Pirates do you think you’ll do?”

“I was thinking the scene towards the end where Jack steps into the moonlight and is skeleton.”

“Good scene.  Also complex, but I have faith in you too.”  We both smile.  I go over to the tablets and grab two of them.  Lucian and I spend the rest of class looking at scenes from different movies so that we know for sure which scene we want to do.  After class, I head for Greek Mythology.  Mrs. Zutler also does a quiz today.  Then it’s off to English Lit.  Mrs. Tucker dives right into the lesson and assigns the first two chapters of The Count of Monte Cristo for tomorrow.  Last class of the day for me is one that I have been looking forward to.  It’s Intro to Theater I with Miss Graham.  Miss Graham is Mr. Keel’s mate but they aren’t married so she has retained her surname.  I wonder if they will ever get married.  But then again, they did just find each other two years ago when Miss Graham was asked to move back from the States to be the drama teacher and thespian director.  Miss Graham starts class with a game so that we can all get to know each other better.  There are eleven students in this class.  Seven boys and four girls.  Miss Graham has us introduce ourselves to start then she has us all tell two truths and a lie.  Each student takes their turn and lies are revealed rather quickly.  Then it’s my turn.  I tell my two truths and a lie.  Two truths being that I’ve never been to an aquarium and that in school I’m considered a junior even though I’m only sixteen.  My lie is that I’ve never read a Shakespearean play.  The class sits there for a minute thinking about my answers before they guess my lie correctly.  After everyone has had a turn, Miss Graham starts class.  We are split up into three groups.  One group has four guys.  The second group has three girls.  And my group has me and three guys.  Miss Graham tells each group that they will be doing a scene she has selected from Romeo and Juliet.  My group gets one of the most famous scenes in a Shakespeare play.  I get to be Juliet on the balcony while Romeo, played by Greg who is a member of the soccer team, listens to her for a bit before interrupting.  The other two guys, Fred and Shawn, will play Romeo’s two friends at the beginning of the scene.  Miss Graham lets us talk about the scenes in our groups and then tells us that we have until February 22 to memorize our lines and how we will be acting the scene out.  Miss Graham tells us that we will have full access to the theater and props throughout this semester.  We just have to make sure to tell her when we want the space so that she can be here to unlock the door, supervise, and then lock the door again.  Greg, Fred, and Shawn give me their schedules so that I can prepare a schedule for us to practice our scene.  After class, I go to my locker, grab everything I need for any homework, and head to my car.  I drive home and go straight upstairs to start working on homework.  I finish homework just before Mom calls me for dinner.  After dinner, I go back upstairs and start working on an appropriate schedule for me and the guys to practice our scene.  I get it the way I want it and then get ready for bed.