Double Trouble

Elias Darcy locked eyes with the girl. She was a small thing, lithe and willowy, with long legs and short, curly hair which only just brushed her shoulders. While she didn't have much in the way of curves it was easy to tell that she'd fill out in time. As he watched, her eyes went from a light grey to a startling silver, something which grasped his attention thoroughly. There was only one other person whose eyes did that, and she'd been dead a very long time. He felt a gnawing hunger growing in his chest as a single word permeated through his mind,

Mate.

"Can I help you?" A tall, broad, good natured fellow was trotting up to him. He clearly was the teacher, only a year or two past his prime, and reeked of dog.

Elias resisted the urge to curl his lips back in disdain. Straightening the cuffs of one perfectly tailored sleeve and then the other, he said, "I'm withdrawing Miss Silverthorne from your class."

"Are you family?" The werewolf sized him up warily, trying to see a weakness. He wouldn't find one.

"No."

"Then I'm afraid-"

Elias' eyes flashed and the other man froze on the spot. "Release her to me."

Turning to where the students were all gaping in amazement, the wolf waved a hand toward the girl. "Rose, you're dismissed for the afternoon."

"Uh," Rose shook herself out of her stupor. She'd been blatantly staring at the man who'd just waltzed into her class as if he owned the place, and now he was going to waltz back on out as if he owned her. Her eyes flickered between Mr. Henrickson and the stranger. "I think I'd like to stay, actually."

Her teacher frowned, struggling with some internal battle before turning back to the man. "If she's not comfortable going then--"

Elias sliced his hand through the air in a gesture that clearly said 'silence.' Mr. Henrickson's mouth clamped shut. The students were now whispering among each other, the sound cascading through the empty gym in a flurry of suppositions and new rumors. One look from the man silenced them, as well, before he turned fully to Rose Silverthorne. "You'll be coming with me," he repeated calmly, though his eyes held no room for argument.

Rose's eyebrows snapped together and she rocked back on her heels, crossing her arms over her chest. She felt a strange magnetic pull toward the man, but not so strongly that she felt compelled to do as he said with no question. "Sorry, but I'm not in the habit of leaving with strangers. Plus, I don't know you."

Elias' lips curled into a slow smile, revealing sharp fangs. "I think you do." He started to walk forward and the rest of the class fell back and clustered together, leaving Rose to fend for herself. The closer he got to her the more he could single out the scent that was uniquely hers. It was intoxicating. A mix of sweet roses and sandalwood with an undertone of amber and cinnamon coiled around his senses, obliterating everything and everyone else. She was young still, but that hardly mattered. Everyone was young to him. When a vampire found his mate it was unmistakable - to both of them. He felt rather than heard her heartbeat kick up a notch and he knew she was well aware of her status. When he stopped before her, he towered there - though he was hardly a brick wall. His form was fit, neat, and professional. A stark contrast to most of the whelps surrounding them. His voice dropped to a low purr. "Or are you going to tell me you don't feel it, too?"

Rose had flinched at the revealing of his fangs. He was a vampire. Her eyes darted to the windows in the gym and she floundered. It was broad daylight. The sun was out and shining merrily. Didn't vampires hate the sun? Didn't it burn? Her eyes dropped back to him. He wasn't pale. He didn't have red, red lips. He looked perfectly normal, a painfully beautiful normal, and he smelled…

Her heart sped up a little more. He smelled divine. She wanted to bury herself into his chest and breathe the scent deeply, to lose herself completely in it. His voice was dark chocolate and velvet, with a touch of accent (what was that, British?) which had long since been masked. She knew what he meant exactly, which was why she took a step back, surprising them both.

"Look," she started slowly, raising her hands peaceably, "I don't want trouble. I just want to finish my classes and travel the world." She had never thought about a mate before now. She'd never wanted one - for several reasons she wasn't inclined to go into. "Besides," she added, taking another step back, "you're a vampire. We don't mix races." That was asking for more trouble than she already dealt with.

Elias stepped in tandem with her, not letting her get far away, not letting her shake him. "Trust me when I say that mixing with my blood would give you more than status, Rose." Even her name tasted sweet. He stepped closer again and she took two steps back. "You can't run from me." It was said casually, confidently.

"I'm pretty sure I can," she squeaked hastily, her voice barely audible. He was so close now it was even harder to ignore the pull between them. She suddenly threw up her arms, sending silvery threads out from her fingers. The man took two or three steps back in surprise as a woven fog burst into life between them and spread throughout the entire gym. There was a sound of paws beating a quick retreat and the intoxicating scent of Rose Silverthorne quickly disappeared through the open gymnasium doors. He chuckled. Wolves weren't the only ones to enjoy a hunt.

Rose skittered around a corner, her padded paws scrabbling for purchase on the slick floors as she streaked through the school. Her fur gleamed silver in every reflective surface. If she could get to the principal's office she'd be safe - probably. Or maybe she needed to find campus security? Her mind raced frantically as she went through options. Whoever the man was, he was clearly dangerous. An image of her mother flashed through her mind and she flew out the high school doors. Home, she had to get home.

Hot tar seared through her paws, baked by the afternoon sun and little shade. She didn't care. If she could just get to her motorcycle and get out of here, everything would be fine. She'd get home, run to her parents, and if the man showed up they'd know what to do. Her heart raced as she thought of him and she shook her head vigorously. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about his looks when he'd essentially tried to kidnap her. Rose's muscles bunched as she leaped over a hill and the small fence which surrounded the senior's parking, in the home stretch, and spotted someone leaning on her motorcycle.

She skidded to a halt, feeling her paws blister from the friction on the burning pavement and she stumbled, rolling. When she looked up she thought she must've hit her head. The man from before stood at her motorcycle, but he'd somehow changed. He wore jeans and had no shirt on. His chest was bronze and perfect even with the plethora of scars crisscrossing over hard muscle. His hair was longer, wavy, and black as midnight, as were his eyes. He smelled just as heavenly.

Rose slowly got to her feet and shook off her silvery fur. This wasn't the same man. They looked similar, but this one was a wolf, like her. An arrogant, self-satisfied smirk crooked up one corner of his mouth as he looked her over.

"So, you're the one Elias was after." His voice was as deep as his brothers, but bittersweet at the same time. Rough. Not nearly so cultured. And it sent shivers up Rose's spine. He stood from her bike and glanced at it. "Nice ride." Then his eyes dropped to her paws and his smirk turned into a disapproving frown. "That was stupid."

Rose bristled. "Excuse me?" In a flash she was herself again, rubbing her scraped hands together. Unlike the rest of the wolves, Rose didn't have to worry about being naked or ruining her clothes. She'd learned from an early age how to preserve her clothing in a sort of ether space between shifting, and could reapply it to herself as quickly as she changed. "Who are you?"

He was striding forward and Rose hurried backwards, nearly tripping over the fence she'd bounded over only moments before. He had her hands in his faster than she could blink and was glaring down at the red marks. "Jesus, I thought you'd be smart at least." His scent was that of woodsmoke and pine needles - dangerous and sweet, the deepest of forests after a summer rain and it engulfed her just as the other man's had.

What was happening? She'd heard of people crushing on multiple possible mates, but once they found their actual mate, the one they were meant to be with, all the rest disappeared completely from their thoughts. And yet, this was the second man to make her head go woozy. Maybe she was just experiencing crushes, then. But she'd never had feelings as intense as these before and she wasn't sure she liked it. Rose barely had a thought to move until it looked as though he fully intended to lick her hands. "Oh, gross! Don't you dare!" She moved swiftly, twisting herself out of his grip and slipping from the space between him and the fence.

He turned slowly, eying her over his shoulder. "Afraid of a little saliva?"

There was a taunting edge to his voice. Rose edged toward her motorcycle and froze. The other man was climbing the hill and had stopped, his eyes locking with the second man's.

"Kazriel." Elias spoke the name in a lazy drawl. "What brings you here?" He finished his climb, stepping over the fence with far more grace than anyone had a right to have.

Kazriel sneered. "Elias." He spat out the other's name as though it were the most disgusting thing he'd ever tasted. "Just here for what's mine."

Elias' eyes narrowed. "I think you're mistaken. Nothing here belongs to you."

Rose's eyes darted between the two. They were unmistakably twins. They looked exactly alike aside from their dress and demeanor. Then a cold understanding clicked in her head and her eyes shot back to the one called Kazriel. Kazriel Gregor, leader of the Chaos Mountain pack, nicknamed The Boulder for his propensity of crushing his enemies mercilessly, the most dangerous werewolf in the history of packs… and, her eyes turned to the other, Elias Darcy, the Crimson Fang, Father of vampires, rumored to be hundreds of years old. They were brothers. Twin brothers.

And they were both glaring at one another because of her.