CHAPTER 1

Help me! Someone, anyone, help me! My heart was racing as my paws pounded the cold, hard ground, and my breaths formed mini clouds in front of me. I wish I had listened to mom. Please make them go away! Mother always said not to shift into a wolf without supervision, because bad people would come for me. Sadly I didn't believe her. As I was remembering the countless warnings my mom gave me, a sharp pain pierced my thigh. I didn't know what it was, but I started to get tired. My legs buckled from beneath me and as my eyes drifted shut, I saw a group of people smiling down at me.

I sat up in bed, breathing heavily, cold sweat pouring down my face. It was that dream again. Of the time when I was six years old and I had gotten kidnapped by some lackeys of a witch. It was thanks to the GPS in my choker that saved me, but not before I received the scars that adorn my neck and torso. After my heart calmed down, I looked at my alarm clock- 5:30 A.M. I should start getting ready for the first day of  school. Heading to my en suite, I quickly took a shower and got dressed. As I turned to exit my room, the smell of bacon assaulted my nose.

Walking down the stairs, I could tell it was my mom from her apples and cinnamon scent. Because I can turn into a dragon and a ten tailed wolf, my senses are heightened, so I associate people by their different smells. Upon hearing me enter the kitchen, my mother turned around to look at me. Her eyes showed her concern, and not for the first time, I'm glad that I couldn't hide anything from her.

"The dream again?" She asked as she sat a plate of crispy bacon and fluffy eggs in front of me.

"I can't hide anything from you, can I?" I muttered, biting a piece of bacon off. The edges of the bacon were crunchy while the inside was chewy, and the flavor left your mouth watering and your stomach wanting more. Mom was the best cook.

"You can with some things, but with this, you look like you saw a ghost. Do you want to talk about it?" She sat beside me at the counter with two cups of coffee, one with cream and sugar for her, and one black for me.

I sighed. "It was from nine years ago when I was first kidnapped. I wished I had believed you sooner. Maybe this could have all been avoided." Picking up my fork, I started pushing my eggs around the plate, my appetite was gone. I looked up and noticed my mom was eyeing my outfit.

"Andrew, are you really going to wear that today?" She inquired. My outfit was a pair of black ripped skinny jeans, black combat boots, a band t-shirt, my studded choker, my long dragon and wolf necklace and to finish it off, my cuffed dragon ear ring. Rolling my eyes, I stood up to take care of my dishes.

"Yes, I am. By the way, don't you need to be at the hospital by 6:30 A.M?" I asked, picking up my backpack. Kissing her on her cheek, I headed out the door to start my walk to school. My sister, Alexandra, would often drive my adoptive brothers and I to school; but today, I just wanted to be alone.

Fifteen minutes later, I was walking through the front doors of Northwood High School. This four story red brick building was one hundred and fifty years old, and is considered one of the best schools; but most of the students didn't like those who are different. Taking a deep breath, I prepared myself for a living hell. As I was walking to my locker, people stopped to look at me, and pretty soon the whispering started. Man did I hate the whispering. It's not like I can't hear them or anything. This is the downside of having heightened senses- you can hear everything!

"Just another freak." A new student asked.

"Did he get dental implants?" Another one wondered.

We got a lot of new faces this year, but by the year's end they will be under the influence of the other students here. There goes my first impression. I thought gloomily.

"Just ignore them. The year will go a lot faster if you do." My adoptive brother, and best friend,  Josh said as I slammed my locker shut. Looking up, I saw that Adam, and the twins Damian and Dominic were with him. My parents were best friends with theirs, so when they passed away during a fight with vampires, mom and dad took them in since they had no other relatives. That was nine years ago when I was six.

I gave a forced smile and pulled my backpack higher on my shoulder. "Easier said than done.  You know they won't stop. They never do." I sighed remembering last year. The school had a group consisting of five bullies that kept beating me up until I threw a punch back, which landed one of them in the hospital. I have a bad feeling about this year.

The ringing of the bell filled the halls. Groaning, we headed to our first class, AP World History with Mr. Lite. Most of the seats in the front were already taken, so we took the five in the back. I decided to take out my sketchbook to continue my current drawing. It was of two wolves howling at the moon while in the woods.

"That looks amazing! How long have you been drawing?" The girl in front of me asked. My eyes widened in surprise as the unknown female voice filled my ears. I looked up to see a girl with ginger hair, green eyes and freckles on her nose, staring at me. As I was about to open my mouth to reply,  the teacher walked in and the class started.

By the time we got to the cafeteria, it was already crowded with most of the tables filled. We grabbed our plates and went to sit outside where it was quieter. Taking out my phone, I decided to send a quick text to Nigel, one of my four godfathers.

Andrew: Still up for afternoon training?

Nigel: Yeah, but I'm not going to tell you what it is. I want to see how you adjust to different situations.

Andrew: Not cool.

Nigel: You'll thank me later.

Grumbling, I put my phone down to finish my picture. Nigel, Nixis, Umbra, and Donatello were my four godfathers, and they were also dragons. Apparently, they were old family friends going back two hundred years, so my mom and dad dubbed them as our godfathers. They were also my teachers when it comes to self-defense.

Nixis teaches aikido, Umbra instructs krav maga, Nigel teaches about blades, ranging from daggers to the katana, and Donny is a doctor in case something happens during my lessons. I was so absorbed in my thoughts that I didn't notice two new people sitting beside me. It was the girl from class, and a guy who looked a lot like her.

"Hi! Your drawing looks so realistic! By the way, my name is Amber, and this is my twin brother, Jacob. Sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier." Amber said. She had such a smooth voice that you could listen to it for hours.

"It's fine. My name is Andrew, and this is Josh, Adam, Damian, and Dominic." As I called their names, they smiled and waved. I had a small smile on my face at this pleasant change. Guess the others hadn't gotten to them. Maybe this semester will be different. I thought as two new people joined our little group.

"So what class do you have next?" Jacob asked around a mouthful of fries. Amber playfully punched his shoulder while muttering about 'lack of manners.'

"P.E, how about you?" I asked while adding shadows to the trees. With a smile on my face, I signed the bottom corner of the page and ripped it out. This was one of my more detailed pieces and was one that I was extremely proud of.

"I have P.E as well, but Amber has art." Jacob replied. After a couple of minutes he continued. "You're an odd one. The other students say crazy things about you, but you act completely different in person." I dropped the fry that was in my hand and sighed.

As I was about to pack my things to leave, my phone rang. Looking at the caller I.D I saw that it was Nixis. Not knowing what to expect, I answered the call.

Andrew: "What's up? You normally don't call during school."

Nixis: "Nigel had something come up. Training is cancelled."

Andrew: "What came up? You normally don't cancel training, no matter what."

Nixis: "It's about the clan. I don't know what it is exactly, but he'll be going to the mountains for a bit. He said to let you focus on school for the time being. Sorry."

Andrew: "No, it's fine. The clan comes first. I understand."

Nixis: "Alright, then I'll let you go. See you in a bit. Bye."

Andrew: "Yeah, bye."

With a sigh, I closed my phone and laid my head on the picnic table. "Training is cancelled." I replied to the eyes I felt staring at me. Lifting my head up, I got my things together just as the bell rang. Getting up, I placed the picture that I was working on by Amber's tray. She looked at it in awe.

"Because you liked it so much." I told her as I walked to the gym to get ready for my next class. Inside the changing room, all the guys were talking about how the class was going to go. Changing into the mandatory basketball shorts, v-neck t-shirt, and sneakers, I went into the gymnasium. Making a v-neck shirt mandatory for P.E made no sense to me, but it's not something that I could control.

Joining Josh and the others on the bleachers, we waited for the teacher to explain the class for today. Upon the announcement of us doing the mile run, everyone groaned. Well, everyone except Josh, Adam, the twins and me. They often joined me during my training or when I go for a run. I often do three miles, but depending on my mood, I can do five. This was going to be too easy.

The teacher put a  small dot on our hands after each lap, to help keep track of who completed it and who didn't. After I got my four dots, I decided to continue running, so by the end of the class, I had ten dots symbolizing  my two and a half miles. While I was thinking about running an additional two and a half miles after school, I made my way to my last two classes. When school was over, the guys and I decided to swing by Sonic to get a snack on the way home.

Walking through the door, you could sense that something was happening. You could almost cut the excitement with a butter knife. Mom was busy cooking in the kitchen and dad was getting the backyard ready for company. Exactly who I had no idea, but we would find out sooner or later. I walked into the kitchen to throw my Sonic cup away and also greet my mother.

"Hey mom. Who's coming over?" I asked while giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. Whatever she had in the oven smelled amazing. And I didn't hesitate to tell her.

"Thanks honey. A friend of your father is coming over with his son. It's been a while since we could sit with them without talking about work. They should be here in about twenty minutes, so why don't you freshen up and relax a bit?" My mother informed me while taking the food from the oven. It turned out to be barbequed chicken that looked so moist and delicious, and on top of that, the smell of spices weren't overwhelming in the slightest. Pure heaven. Giving mom another kiss on the cheek, I went upstairs to take a quick shower and to start my homework.

Having all AP classes is going to be a pain. We have to do a report on any event in history, an insane amount of calculus, an essay in english, and writing down facts about all the elements of the periodic table for chemistry. Oh what fun it is to be in high school.

I had decided to start with my math when my mother called me for dinner. Finishing the problem that I was working on, I headed downstairs to join everyone else outside. Mr. Deus was the police chief at the station that my father worked at, and he was also a family friend. It wasn't uncommon for him to come over after work, but this is the first time that I'm seeing his son. He looked a lot like his father with short curly copper colored hair, brown eyes, and a light dusting of freckles on his cheeks, plus he looked to be around our age.

"Antonio! Marcus!" My father's booming voice rang from the back door. He walked up to Mr. Deus and pulled him into a bear hug, then he clasped Marcus on the shoulder and commented on how big he got. After my dad greeted them, he introduced us to Marcus and we all headed to the backyard.

"So Andrew, how have the last couple years been for you? I know that we haven't seen a lot of each other in the past five years." Mr. Deus asked out of nowhere. When I finished chewing on a piece of chicken, I answered his question.

"Really good. The lessons with my godfathers are going well, and two new students decided to sit with us at lunch. Plus it's a bonus that no one has tried to abduct me in the five years since the last time. I'm really grateful that you had found me." And that's not a lie. If Mr. Deus hadn't found me at that time, then I wouldn't be sitting here. Of all the times that I was kidnapped, the one five years ago was the closest to killing me.

"So you were the one from the kidnapping case five years ago! I heard dad talking to mom about it. He said that was one of the worst cases he's had to do." Marcus piped in for the first time. His eyes held a faint glow of sympathy towards me, and that was a look that I didn't want to see for a long time.

Trying to get out of this conversation because it could be considered 'work related' I decided to do a subject change. "Mom, do you mind if I go do my homework? I have four AP classes this year and the homework is already piled up to my neck." This wasn't a lie either. Four sets of AP homework is going to be a fun challenge for me. Regular classes were too easy, so I was always the top student in the grade, even when I was stuck in a hospital bed for most of Middle School.

"If that's what you really want, then it's ok. Just remember not to stay up too late." Was my father's reply. He smiled at me, signaling that he understood that I was uncomfortable at the moment, and I was grateful that he could read any situation just as well as mom could. Not only did they help redirect different conversations or situations, but they could also tell when I was at my social limit. Because I was in and out of the hospital so much, I had my assignments brought to me, so I had low social skills. My parents helped with this over the summers, and soon, I could function like any other person my age, but I still got overwhelmed when conversations became about my past.

"Thanks dad. Dinner was amazing as always mom." I said kissing both their cheeks. Turning to Mr. Deus and Marcus, I bid them a good night and went back to my room. Looking at the clock, I saw that it was 7:30 P.M. The history and english papers weren't due until next Friday, so I still had a week and a half to complete them. With that in mind, I decided to direct my focus back onto my calculus and chemistry. After two and a half long hours, I was done with both classes. Putting my work away, I got ready for bed and went to sleep.