Bonded By Birth (Hiatus)

Chapter 1

The cool December wind whipped through the trees and brush, making branches and leaves sway and rustle to an inaudible tune. Dried, brown grass leaves were scattered across the sidewalks and streets of the town of Sheckley. The quiet seemed to be alive with the sounds of people just beginning to wake up and start their days, not all unlike the animals that were stretching themselves and preparing for a day filled with causal strolls and learning something new. The animals in Sheckley were not much different than the people, usually differing in only looks and not personality as many people would think, while the people in Sheckley were one in a million. Each person seemed to have their own thing to bring to the table; whether it be amazing sewing skills that can rival that of top designers or excellent culinary skills that would put Hell's Kitchen contestants to shame. Each and every person in Sheckley was unique whether it be by the clothes that they wear, the color of their hair, or the fights that they start daily with one another.

Shouts were heard echoing through the halls of Jamenson High School as a small group of people screamed it out and others stood around cheering for a fight to happen. The two people at the focal point of the group were Salem Harrigan, a shy computer geek, and Leah Roche, the popular girl who had a little bit of a snippy attitude. A fight between the two was not unusual but the intense fury in their eyes as they glared at each other was almost tangible, people had actually started backing away from them in fear. None of the crowd moved too far so that they couldn't sit there and cheer on the two raging girls. Their eyes were blazing so much that some of the spectators were sure that they could see fires ignite in the pupils and burn until their eyes were consumed by the deadly flames. Leah had her eyes somewhat shut as she seethed in her place while Salem had her hands clenched into fists at her side. Teachers passed by the group without worrying about the issue, the two teenagers were going to be able to work it out themselves.

The bell rang dismissing everyone to their first period but Leah and Salem easily ignored the warning, choosing rather to stay there and glower at each other. Their eyes glowed with hatred and, after a teacher came and broke them up, they both stalked to their homeroom trying to keep their minds off of the other girl. Salem down at her desk in Chemistry with a textbook open in front of her and two girls gossiping with her; one whispering in each ear. She shivered, not in disgust, but in the cool breeze that they blew across her neck as they whispered to her. She always knew that she had an unmistakable attraction to the female form, but she refused to tell any of her so-called friends that and preferred to keep it to herself and her family. She decided that, rather than be distracted by the two beautiful women who were now flanking her on either side, she would actually study and hope that she can get a good enough grade to not be grounded over summer. Her eyes drift over the dry erase board that the teacher was currently jotting notes down on. Salem sighed before digging her rarely used notebook out of her schoolbag and copying the notes down on the first page, which also happened to be the first blank page in the book.

Leah grinned as she squirmed in her seat, she loved having Computer Programming as her first period. It gave her a chance to be on a computer first thing in the morning, which worked as a perfect wake-up call for her, and it was a way for her to be able to pass this class without too much strain in case she wanted to go to sleep. She squirmed in her seat for a little while before she was able to find a position that made her the least bit comfortable. She stared at the computer before her and started typing in the log-in information so that she was able to begin her programming lesson of the day. Her fingers danced across the computer keys and numbers and letters started to appear on the computer screen before her. This period gave her a time to calm down and relax, allowing any stress that may have accumulated from her argument with Salem.

After a couple of hours of total boredom the bell rang dismissing everybody to their last period of the day before lunch, many students did not have to come back after lunch as they took online school for those classes. Salem grinned as she headed towards her World Lit classroom. World Literature happened to be her absolute favorite class of the day but she would never tell any of her so-called friends that, they would probably use it against her to become the most popular kids in school. She let her body carry her down the stairs and too the portable that housed the World Lit classroom for this year. She slipped into her assigned seat which happened to be right next to Leah's assigned seat; though they believe that the teacher put them there on purpose, more likely than not hoping that they would become friends and help each other.

Leah slumped down in her seat with a frown on her face and glanced over to the girl who was sitting next to her. They were violent and hateful to each other in every class except for World Literature, mostly because they both love this class and would never do anything that may put them in the position to be kicked out for bad behavior. Their desks were close together and most of the time they worked together when told to pair up with someone else, and sometimes even if they were told to group up. The teacher, and students especially, were surprised to say the least when they had partnered up that very first time. Not only did they work together, but they managed to stay civilized and get the work done in record time without a single fight. She focused on the whiteboard when the teacher entered the classroom and started talking about Horace and the amazing impact that his writing had on the world.

After about fifteen minutes of just lecturing the teacher started to accept questions until there was about twenty minutes left of class. Salem grinned when her teacher started to read out a poem by Sappho that Salem and Leah happened to have memorized. The two of them relaxed back in their seats. Leah started doodling on the edges of the paper she pulled out at the beginning of class and Salem sat there playing games on her phone. The teacher shot them a look from the corner of her eyes before deciding not to get into that particular discussion with them again today, mostly considering it was the last month of school and they were passing her class with flying colors. They were two of her best students and she felt blessed everyday that they showed up at her classroom door ready and prepared for the day ahead of them.

When the bell rang Salem raced out the door and met up with her group of friends as they headed towards the outdoors cafeteria. They grabbed their lunch trays and sat down at the biggest table that was always reserved for them and the hot senior boys that they were dating at the time. Salem was the only single one and that was because of her mother's insistence that she not date anyone until she was at least 21 for fear that they may react badly to the news of what Salem really is. No one in the school knows about her secret and she hopes to keep it that way. She sighed as she started to eat the food that littered the paper plate in front of her, she did not normally eat school lunch but her mother had forgotten to make lunch so she was stuck with either school lunch or starving. She spared a glance over to where the grassy area was and saw Leah sitting there with a book propped in her lap and food next to her.

Leah's white hair made her the source of constant teasing but she usually shoved it all to the side choosing rather to delve into the mysterious worlds that books offered her. Red, blue, green, purple, and black streaks were scattered all through her hair, giving off a sense of rebellion that almost no one believed she had. Blue eyes shot up and locked with Salem's, making the more popular girl shy away from the glance after a few seconds. Leah's hair was chopped off at her shoulder-blades and, when she bent over, the hair fell to reveal a mystifying eye of Horus tattoo on the back of her neck. Salem let her eyes drift down the toned body of the lonesome girl, seeing muscles that protruded past the skin only when put to work.

She started to compare Leah to herself. Salem had red hair that fell down to her lower back area and stormy gray eyes that always seemed to express displeasure with someone or something. Her muscles showed no matter what she was doing and, unlike Leah, she had a slightly snobbish attitude and believed herself to be better than most people. Granted she was a very rare breed of human, but even she would admit that sometimes she takes it just a little bit too far. Leah's skin was vampire pale when compared to Salem's tanned body, yet another difference that stopped the two of them from ever conversing outside of class.

Later in the day Leah was wandering down her street, trying to ignore the leers that were coming from the teenage boys that lined the sidewalk. Her eyes drifted across the road, watching the cars that passed by. Her gaze was drawn to on car in particular, a red van that had black flames painted on the side, as it sped down the road and then stopped at the corner of the road. Her eyebrows quirked in confusion but she continued to make her way steadfastly towards the corner where the grocery store was placed. She rushed towards the store and, as she was opening the door, felt something hard slam into the back of her neck. Her eyelids fluttered close as a darkness overtook her mind and body.

A/N: The ending was kind of random but I needed a way for the parents to meet and it was either this or a school deal, eh I may end up doing both. I'm not too sure.