Yes, yes been forevs I know. School sucks and takes up all my time. I apologize, the next LIT update is coming soon I promise! Happy holidays to you all and your families! Your continued support of both BM and LIT has been so awesome! I truly appreciate your warmth and patience!

Chapter Songs:

Here Comes The Rain Again by The Eurythmics, Drumming Song by Florence + The Machine, Perfect Stranger by Civil Twilight, Rumour Has It by Adele, Headlights Look Like Diamonds by Arcade Fire, Yes by Coldplay

Chapter Four: Princess Charming

Amber

If someone said to me this morning that 1: I'd not-so-randomly bump into Leah and 2: she's exactly perfect for me in more ways than one, I'd have laughed and went on about my day. I am so wrong. The three o'clock caffeine itch really should be my first warning that my day is going to take a massive u-turn.

The second sign would be how I walked well out of my way to the same little bistro I love so much. I keep telling myself it's because of the coffee, best in the city, and the little chocolate raspberry scones that I can look at and gain three pounds imagining the yummy sweet buttery taste.

However from where I'm currently standing all that convincing and false self-conviction melts away. All because of a pair of black brown eyes in a beautiful honey brown angular face, staring at me from across the cafe. My cheeks begin to sting a little and I realize I've been smiling, like an idiot on laughing gas, for at least a good thirty seconds. What floors me even more is the hint of a smile I can see on her face. Beneath visible nerves and apprehension I can see she's happy to see me too.

I walk over. I don't know if I decided to or not, but in any case I find myself standing in front of her, frothy warm cup in hand. "Is this seat taken?" I ask, motioning to the empty chair I'm standing behind.

Please say no and invite me to sit. Pretty please.

I almost laugh, that nervous laugh you get when you trip and fall and don't want anyone to laugh at you first. I can't believe what I'm even thinking. I hadn't called her. I hadn't made any moves towards showing her my interest, so why should she care? She doesn't know that I had already programmed her number into my phone, or that I keep the little piece of paper in my wallet just in case my phone decides to pull a hari kari and I lose her number.

Leah's face softens a little but I can tell there's some mischief in there. "It's a free country, and no, the seat's not taken," she tells me with a light smirk curving up one side of her mouth. She motions to the chair as well. Like I needed any more encouragement to join her.

I stop for a moment and stare at the way her lips are curved perfectly. Idiot! I shake my head. What am I thinking? Did I really just stare at her mouth? I must look completely deranged. What's coming out of my mouth, additionally adds to the lunacy factor. "Well technically it's not a free country. Sure we have certain liberties, but is anyone truly free? If our society was a 'true' free society it would be a direct democracy instead of the republic we live in," I blurt out, rambling as I take my seat. I stop again, shock washes over me intermingled with shame. Wow, I'm all about the verbal diarrhea today. "I'm sorry. I'd say I'm normally not like this, but that would be a lie."

The smirk grows wider and a small smile emerges. I can tell, just from this, that when she really smiles she grabs peoples' attention. "I don't mind. I'm used to rambling thoughts. You know, people underestimate the value of a good ramble."

I grin even wider than before. A sense of calm washes over me at the reassurance in her words. That is something entirely new and different to me. I sip my machiato, my eyes darting out to the street where the light sprinkle has now turned to an afternoon downpour. Awesome, that's gonna be fun to walk home in. Though I'm glad I brought my umbrella.

Silence reigned over the two of us. A good minute later, Leah leaned over her hand gripping her cup, fingers twitching like she wanted to do something else than hold onto the cup for dear life. The day or so I'd spent since I had last seen her really did feel like an inordinately long amount of time. "Why did you drop the class?" I ask, blurting out my thoughts. "I mean, I checked and you weren't even in my lab section."

Leah chews on her lip for a moment, an action that obviously means to be an unconscious pensive tick, but really, all it does is remind me of her mouth, yet again. Do not stare. Do not stare. I don't even know her yet; all I can feel is this strange magnetism around her. Less than five minutes and I feel like this is something finite and important. Like she is something precious and rare in this world. She leans forward a little, motioning for me to do the same. "I don't really need biology for my major. And I wanted to get to know you. I wasn't sure what was kosher as far as university policies, but I didn't want to cause conflict of interest for you," she explains. Her voice is soft, almost unsure of herself.

I nod and another question just rolls off my tongue. "What's your major?"

She sighs, shrugging. "Right now, philosophy. I'm trying it out. I'm kind of undecided. But I figured that philosophy might help me see the world in a different way."

Her admission alone has me intrigued. "A different way?"

Leah nods. "I used to have a problem with the way my life was going. It wasn't the path I wanted to have and I used to be really angry about it. I've learned now everything really does happen for a reason," she explains. A small smirk returns, curving up one side of her mouth. The expression on her face borders on wry. Narrowing my eyes, I feel like I'm missing something. Some huge piece to the puzzle before me.

"I can understand that. I felt that way a lot when I was a teenager." Leah's smirk fades. Immediately the pit of my stomach twists. I didn't want her to feel bad for me. "I mean, it's not like I was in dire straits or anything. I had a hard time with self-acceptance."

Her expression is softer now, almost empathetic. "Believe me, I know how that feels."

"You do?"

"Yeah, about seventeen years ago, my entire life turned upside down. Everything fell apart and I couldn't do anything but just watch it all happen."

My chest begins to constrict at her words. I didn't want her to feel that kind of helplessness. Never. But it was in the past. One thing you learn about growing up is that the past is your past. You can't change it no matter how much you desire to.

"Anyways. I'm glad I ran into you today."

I look up at her. A happy smile beginning on her face. I don't fight the urge to return the expression. "And why's that?" She asks.

"I have to admit, I've been kind of distracted since the other day when you gave me that note."

She glanced down at her hands. Long nimble fingers laced together the same deep shade as the rest of her skin. For a moment I looked at my hands. Paler than pale. Almost anemic looking next to that golden tan. "Then why didn't you call?" she whispers. It's so faint I really have to strain to hear it, but I still do.

"Oh, um I don't really have a good excuse."

Leah nodded. "It's all right. I figured it might seem weird. Some strange girl giving you her number."

"No, I didn't really mind that. I guess I just I tend to procrastinate everything. And I was a little apprehensive." I look out to the street for a moment. At least it wasn't pouring anymore, instead it's back to a drizzle. I needed to get home before it starts up again. I'd suffered walking home in a downpour before. It wasn't the most fun, that's for sure. "Would you like to walk back to my place? I kind of want to get back home before the weather gets bad again."

Leah's face lightened up. "Um, sure," she says, getting up. She's just a little taller than me. Maybe half an inch to an inch taller. It makes me feel better because of how tall I am. "What?"

"Nothing, just you're a little taller than me. Most girls are shorter."

Leah grins widely, taking my empty cup and tosses both in the trash bin. "Yeah, I come from a line of tall people. Though you wouldn't know it, my mom's a little above average in height."

"And your dad?"

She swallowed hard for a second and replied, "He was about average for a guy when he was alive."

Immediately my stomach bottoms out, and not in that good way either. "I'm sorry. I didn't real-," I say but she stops me with a wave of her hand.

"It happened a long time ago. It's easier now, but I still miss him." Her face grows pensive. A little crease forms between her dark brows. Even her eyes begin to glass over in that misty way they do when someone is about to cry but holding it back. There's one trait I can see plainly now. She's strong. Even though she doesn't have to be. I wonder just how long she's been this way - how strong she's had to be over the years.

An unbidden and involuntary emotion builds in me. It's one I'm not familiar with, with exception to my brother. I feel like I want to protect her, to take whatever past pain that plagues her present and get rid of it forever. It's a strange tugging in my chest. We walk, in step with each other, out of the bistro and she flips up her hood. I grin a little at her and dig inside my bookbag for my umbrella offering to hold it for her as we make the trek to my apartment.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. My place isn't far away, just a few blocks."

Leah smiles. "No big deal. I'm a runner, so distances aren't a problem for me." I grin back as we continue our trek to my apartment.

Leah

I'll admit, this is indeed going far better than I could have expected. I almost forgot all about the other night when I saw her with some guy. But as we approach her brownstone, I grow more and more nervous. What if she really is straight? What am I supposed to do? Help her switch teams? That's all kinds of fucked up if that's the case. She turns and stops as we approach her stoop, noticing my hesitation.

"You okay? I mean, I get it some weird person you hardly know invites you back to their place. I swear I'm not like some crazy axe murderer or something." She laughs nervously as she pushes a few strands behind her ear.

I grin reassuringly. Even if she was crazy, there would be very few ways she could actually take me down. "It's okay, really. I was just remembering something the other night. I was strolling in the city and had passed by here. Very deja vu moment," I say. Amber mirrored my grin and fiddled with her keys as we went up the steps while I internally berate myself.

Was there no bounds to my word vomit around this girl? Just offer up that you were unintentionally stalking her. Nice one, Clearwater. Way to impress your soul mate. Yet is she really mine yet? Hardly. I had a long way to go before that ever happens. This entire thing is so odd but I've never felt more normal, more human than when I'm with her. Is that what I'm supposed to feel? Is she supposed to bring me back to equilibrium? Guess I'll find out.

"Really?" she says. Then softly, to herself she mumbles, "Could have sworn..."

"Could have sworn what?" I ask, losing the last bit of whatever verbal filter I had left after all these years of being in the heads of emotionally stunted males.

Her grey eyes widen, surprise and embarrassment coloring her cheeks. She didn't think I'd heard her. I should be better at this. I'm not human. Sure, okay I am half human. Amber did not know this. Not yet, anyways. If I'm going to do this. If I'm going to pursue her as friends or more than that it, means bringing her into a world she doesn't realize even exists. Making her part of a constant struggle. The vampires of the world, for the most part, knew not to mess with the tribe. We did, on occasion, get a nomad that came through trying to start a fight. Even still, what if that happened and she were on the Rez? Could I really put her in that much danger because of this compulsion to keep her near?

"Nothing," she answers. I know there's more, however. I eye her a moment and she caves. "I thought I saw you. Coincidence?"

"Don't think so."

She arches an eyebrow in question. So quickly I've found myself being able to decipher the little quirks in her face that give away her thoughts. "So are you, like, stalking me?"

I chuckle, both in amusement and that her question so mirrors my own thoughts on the subject. "Not intentionally, no. Seems to be working out that way. Though you could be stalking me."

"Oh yes, I love stalking random gorgeous co-eds who slip me their numbers," she shoots back at me with what I'm beginning to realize is her sarcasm face. A coy smile and raised eyebrows complete with giggle fit.

My heart stuttered for a moment. Did she just...? Did that mean...? We went into her apartment and she instantly grimaced. "Sorry, I uh, didn't know I would be having company. Nerdy girl confession, I play MMORPG's."

"MMO-What?" I ask. I had a feeling it was a kind of video game. One I heard floating around in Brady's mind a few times when we were on patrol with each other, which was decidedly rare.

"Oh um, it's called World of Warcraft. I play with a bunch of guys. It's kind of an online dungeon's and dragons."

Again she'd lost me. The games sounded familiar, but I had never played them before. "Sorry, I'm not familiar. A couple of guys I know like online gaming."

"It's part of the online world. It's one of the biggest around. There's plenty though. David and I used to be in a leet raiding crew, but we're both in grad school so our guild had to take a backseat."

"Leet? Like elite?"

"Yeah, nerd speak," she answers with a sheepish shrug and her cheeks going pink again.

I chuckle at her self deprecation. "I don't mean to sound like I'm insulting your relaxation outlet. I just don't really know the lingo." She smiles softly as she gathers up the bowls and wrappers of food in front of a computer set up that would even make Emmett Cullen drool. I come over and help, but Amber's face tells me she's not happy that I am. "What?" I ask.

"You're a guest. You don't have to do that," she tells me.

I blow off her comment. Sure I didn't have to help, but I wanted to. "Oldest of two. I'm used to pitching in," I reply, following her into a cozy kitchen. Her apartment is, in a word, perfect for her personality. Eclectic decor, movie posters everywhere. "Besides, you should be more pissed about your boyfriend not helping you clean up," I mention, trying to bring it up casually into conversation. There was clear evidence that a male had indeed been in this place more than once.

She stops dead for a moment, eyeing me suspiciously. "Boyfriend? What boyfriend?"

My heart does a bit of a skip and I find myself smiling at the possibilities in her question. "You mentioned a guy. David?"

Amber's face crumbles into the largest smile I've ever seen as her shoulders shake with laughter. "Oh, that's good. Really? You think I would date that bozo? He's my bud, sure. But no, definitely nothing going on there. Besides...I'm..."

She trails off and then her faces loses all humor. Like she's mentally yelling at herself. I take a step toward her. Was she still dealing with her own views on her life? "What is it?"

A deep breath later she turns to me. "Let's just say D and I bat for the same team."

"He's...?" I ask, begging for clarification. Really it could go in several different directions but I couldn't help myself from hoping for one in particular. Strange as that felt, it also was reassuring to know that she could, after all my anxious speculation, be interested in me.

She shakes her head. "No, I'm a lesbian," she answers, taking a deep sigh of what looks like relief. "You have no idea how good it is to say that to someone. I mean, sure, I'm kind of out and proud, but my family doesn't know, except for my brother. He's super supportive. My friends here know, and now you do."

I stand there stunned. No boyfriend. No, she's attracted to females. She could be attracted to me. I should have expected this. Should have realized that since I imprinted on her that she could, if she were so inclined, to return my burgeoning feelings for her. "Oh, I'm glad you told me." I replied with a small grin.

Was that what I was now? I didn't think the blanket term lesbian could apply to me. Not when I could only feel this strange attraction to her and her alone. This was totally and completely other to me. After Sam and everything that went on in the year proceeding that I tried to move on and date again. It didn't seem worth it to me. Other relationships held no appeal for me. Men who I once found attractive didn't quite make the cut. I always found myself nitpicking, trying to root out a flaw to push them away. Was I doing that because the imprinting compulsion was pulling me toward her all this time?

One thing's for sure. Hindsight's a bitch.

Amber grins a little. "Really? I mean I get that some people can still be put off by that. But this is who I am, yet it doesn't define all of me."

"Of course it doesn't. You're still you," I tell her. Even with the knowledge she could have been straight didn't change how I viewed her. Nothing could now. The imprint bond was sealing up, strengthening the closer I get to her. No one would be able to separate me from her for long.

Her smile widens. "Yes, exactly. Could you explain that to my parents before I come out to them? Because that will help, really."

I could only understand her frustration on a very small level. My own anxiety in telling Seth and my mother about my imprinting experience must be a very small fraction compared to the years of denial she's put herself through. I don't think I could feel any more gratitude for the family I have. For them to accept this so well and so quickly was, as I'm beginning to understand, not as common as it should be, even though things had changed in the last couple of decades. "They're not understanding?"

Amber shrugs. "I'm too scared to tell them and lose them altogether."

I nod. "Well, maybe they'll surprise you," I tell her while reaching out, an involuntary reaction to strands of hair blocking my view of her face. I push them back behind her ear, my fingertips just grazing her pale sweet skin. She gasps and turns to me.

"You know, I like your optimism," she replies coyly.

"I'm not usually. Just around you for some reason," I admit, though I'm sure this will alarm her just a little bit. Instead she cocks her head to the side, placing her hand atop mine on the countertop. I should have pulled away, but I didn't. I was too happy to feel the cool softness of her human skin.

Her eyes widen in shock. "Your hand..." she says. I knew this would be the moment when I'd have to explain the insane body temperature. I don't think I can lie to her if I even wanted to. She is my imprint, and she needed to know the world she was about to get pulled into if she wanted me to stick around. If only there was a way I could walk the lines of both worlds with her firmly rooted in the human realm. I just don't think it's possible anymore. Her hand shoots up to feel my forehead and I don't move. I stay still, waiting for her inspection as the smooth coolness of her hand connects with my forehead. "Christ, you're burning up. Do you feel all right?"

I grin as she starts rummaging through drawers, looking for something. Perhaps a thermometer to test my body temp. It wouldn't be any use. It would just indicate how abnormal I really am. I let her keep looking though, only slightly taking pity on her. "It's a family trait. I feel completely fine," I assure her. It's a feeble attempt. Any human would die from a fever this bad. My body's built to handle it. My metabolism is what models envy. I could eat an entire cow and not gain any weight.

She gives me that look, one where it looks like she's silently calling my bluff. "You feel like you should be in a fever induced coma."

"If I were normal I would be," I confess. There's no use in lying to her. She would find out sooner or later anyways. Wasn't it better to find out now, before she decides to be my friend or lover? She should be given the choice. Especially if her choice is to run screaming all the way. I would have to respect that. She didn't deserve to be forced into a life of danger and a world that made her the bottom of the food chain.

She stops, her eyes fixing on me. "What do you mean?" I can see the emotions brewing in her expression. Fear, incredulity, curiosity. All of these were working in concert to give her one of the most confused expressions I've seen in a while.

I breathe deeply and reach for her hand. Without hesitation she places her hand in mine. An action that gives me a little hope that she, like the other imprints, is good with weird. I lead her into the living room and motion for her to sit. "It'll be easier if you sit. This can be a bit of a shock." I tell her, trying to lessen the blow by making her prepare for something that could be far worse than the reality.

"Why the crazy body temperature? I don't get it." Any human would find this insane. In fact, all the human imprints did at first. It was a large hurdle to get over once they learned that their soulmate can change into a furry beast.

"You're about to, just... if you are freaked out and tell me to leave, I get it I will. I'll never bother you again if this is too much for you. But um..."

"What is it?" she asks, looking worried now. She should be. No matter how practiced and controlled we've become, we are still volatile creatures. It would kill me to hurt her. That fact, I hoped, would keep it from happening no matter what the future holds.

"Do you believe in the supernatural?" Kind of a soft opening, but it is the best I can come up with.

"What like witches, demons, and ghosts?"

"I was thinking more horror film genre," I tease, trying to see her smile just a bit.

Her mouth opens a little, and a small crease forms between her brows. "Like mummies, vampires, and werewolves?"

"Yeah," I admit. How close was she to the actual truth? Vampires were real. Werewolves, whether Children of the Moon or shapeshifters like me existed as well. Hell, who knows, maybe demons and ghosts exist as well. Mummies, I don't think exist outside of Hollywood, but seventeen years ago I didn't believe in vampires or wolf legends.

"I'm a person of science. I mean, there isn't really any solid evidence for any of that, but I have to allow for the possibility of discovery."

"What if I told you, my tribe, the Quileutes, have legends that we descended from wolves..." I try out, testing the waters. Legends are one thing. Cold hard reality was another.

Her eyes widen a bit and then they soften. "Wolves? Like real honest to God, snarling wolves? I mean, yeah, back home in Las Cruces there's a big native culture. There's stories and legends with so many tribes and wolves. I guess it's a big theme with many indigenous tribes of America."

She was right. Tribes especially in the west had tons of legends including wolves. Ours only held one stark difference, that I personally knew of, and that was that ours were 100% true.

"It is. My tribe's legends are rooted more in truth, though, I think. I can't say that the others are, but I wouldn't doubt it if they were too. We're sure that the spirit warriors came first. They would go into a ghostly plane to defend the tribe against attack. Pretty genius too, you can't fight what you can't see."

"Seriously?" she says with her eyes mimicking saucers. I could only really nod as I watched her play with her hands, picking at her fingers. Waves upon waves of nervous energy came off of her. I reached out and placed my hand over hers. She glances down at them and then back to my face. I hoped she could see the sincerity I felt there.

"Seriously. The first shapeshifter, Taha Aki, was betrayed and took the form of a great wolf. All who descend from him have the gene that can flick on during puberty until age 25. If we're exposed to our natural enemy during that time period, we become shapeshifters, warriors who protect the tribe."

Amber's face is stone still, her chest is rising and falling quickly. If she didn't watch it, she might hyperventilate. What worried me the most was her complete lack of a reaction. Aside from the shallow breathing her face wasn't budging. Her brain seemed to be utilizing all its resources to process the information I was throwing at her. "So you're...?"

I nod again, cringing slightly. I'm waiting for the onslaught. The screaming horror that tells me this is too much for her. Oddly still, nothing comes. She was really beginning to worry me. Was no one afraid of anything anymore? "I can shift into a wolf. I have a silver coat and full mental faculties when in wolf form. You could speak to me when I'm changed and I'd understand every word just as I do right now. It also explains the crazy body temperature. I run about a one-oh-eight-point-nine. You can check it if you want," I offer. As a person of science like she said, giving her the opportunity to see if I was telling the truth might get her to believe me quicker.

She looks to her hands for a moment, taking my thumb into the folds of her hands. The heat from my one digit warms up her cool palms almost instantly. Her gray eyes flash up to my face. "I believe you," she says with a confidence that at first seems shaky but grows, crescendoing with each syllable.

I give her a soft grin, trying to reassure her that I would protect her with my life. After all, I imprinted on her. That was another thing I'm sure of how to explain. I figure a more vague definition would work until I could work on saying it in a way that wouldn't freak her out. She was already taking this new information in as what appeared a good way. I didn't want to push her over the edge.

"Good. I promise I'm not going to hurt you or anything. It would destroy me to do that to you." And it would. The thought of hurting her, emotionally or physically, made me sick to my stomach. Even if we would just be friends for a while, I don't care. She comes first. Always.

"I feel very drawn to you," I add, trying, at least in some small measure, to explain why it's her and no one else that could do this to me. Mind boggling. That's a good way to describe the imprint. It's going to take a while to get used to this. At the same time, I can feel a sense of ease come over me. She seems to be somewhat taking this well. At least she hasn't freaked out and ran yet.

"Me? Why?" She's right to question it. To meet me head on with skepticism. She's naturally curious. An open mind wanting to be immersed in the mysteries of life.

I shrug. "My kind is drawn to the ones who will matter the most to us in our lifetime. The one's who'll be there for us because we'll be there for them." My blandest most benign definition I could place on it. Not all of us would imprint. Many of us, nearly all had in my generation of wolves. So many theories accompanied that idea. The persistence of the Cullen presence, though they moved away so many times they always visited a few times a year to visit us and Charlie.

"We? There's more of you?" She didn't even focus on the fact that I was drawn to her? No, I would think that having several large wolves in the Pacific Northwest might be more cause for concern.

"Yeah, I'm the only female in history to phase. Kind of annoying when you have to share a pack mind with a ton of emotionally stunted males. But they're my brothers, and I would kill for any of them."

"Phase? What's that?" I almost laughed at the perplexed expression on her face but I couldn't bring myself to insult her. Now who couldn't understand the lingo? Guess the tables are turned.

"It's how we shift into wolf form. In the beginning it's all triggered by stress and emotions. The littlest things can set us off and we'll shift, snarling and snapping at whatever pissed us off. It takes time to gain control."

"Is that something I might get to see?" Her eyes light up at the possibility of really seeing something otherworldly right in front of her.

I hesitate a little. I could show her. I certainly have enough control for that. I'm not sure, however, how she would take it.

"Someday, definitely. Now probably isn't the best time... or place."

"How long have you been like this?"

It was amazing to think that it would be twenty years as a wolf in just three years. Seventeen years this past spring was when I phased in front of my father, triggering his heart attack. I grimace a bit at the memory. Even though it wasn't something I could control, I knew I would never fully be able to forgive myself for being the catalyst that brought on his last few moments on this earth. I just hoped that whatever afterlife there was that he could forgive me. "Almost two decades. I shifted the first time in the spring of 2006."

"Wow. Sixteen years? You don't look older than mid-twenties." The astonishment in her voice was extremely amusing.

"I was about nineteen when I phased the first time. As long as we keep phasing regularly we don't age."

"Ever?"

No, not exactly ever. Although I'm sure Jacob was going to choose immortality to spend forever with Nessie. "We can retire. Sam and Paul did to age with their spouses and have kids. But we still have the ability to phase if we're needed once we retire. Taha Aki had retired to age with his third wife when the tribe was attacked. She sacrificed herself to save the tribe. The emotional distress that caused him sprung the wolf back into action."

"Attacked? By what? You said there's a natural enemy..."

I take a deep breath, as if this wasn't hard enough to explain to her, I was going to have to now explain the realm of vampires. "The only enemy we really have are the cold ones, blood drinkers."

"Wait, blood drinkers, like vampires?" She pauses for a moment and pinches her arm. "Am I having that weird dream where I'm stuck in a Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode? Is that what's going on?" A nervous laugh bubbles up from her chest. I don't know whether she's actually finding this funny or just the ridiculousness is getting to her.

I have to hug my sides to stave off laughter myself. "No, you're definitely not dreaming," I reply, leaning in and pinching her elbow gently. She looks down and then smiles a little. "See, not dreaming. You are right. The cold ones are vampires. But they're not the way Hollywood makes them. A majority of them do kill humans, which we don't tolerate. There are a two covens who don't drink human blood, but the vast majority of vampires drink humans. You can tell by scent and their eyes."

"Hold up. Vampires are real? Like really real? I mean, I was just kidding about the Buffy thing." Again with the nervous laughter, but it falls away quickly, giving way to the most wide-eyed expression I've ever seen.

"Joking or not, unfortunately, yes, vampires are real. They're forced to secrecy from the humans unless they intend to transform them or use them as food. I wish there weren't things that go bump in the night but there are at least some that don't kill humans. I'm sorry to dump this all on you."

Amber takes a moment to think and then gives me a look that I can't quite decipher in my limited experience of her facial expressions. The straightening of her shoulders, the calm, almost maniacally still expression tells me exactly what I've just gotten myself into, which is a whole heap of trouble. "Prove it," she demands as her confidence surges.

Again thank you so much for reading and your patience! Have a wonderful holiday!