Year of no Stars

Chapter 16

I think this is the shortest of all the chapters...

Year of no Stars- Chapter 16

    “There’s a monster in the woods Laura, so you have to stay close to me,” whispers Jasper. The sun has set and has retrieved her friends the moon and the stars. They all dance in the black sky, adding beauty to the beautifully horrifying darkness.

    My body presses up against Jasper as soon as he mumbles those words. There’s a monster? I don’t ever want to leave the cave! But my curiosity is stronger than my fear. Sitting down, the top of my small body only reaches the standing Jasper’s side.

    “What does it look like?” I ask. Jasper turns and sits in front of me, the unknown territory behind him absorbing in his obsidian pelt. Though, against the blackest night, his eyes shine out like the fire balls in the sky. Bright blue and glowing, a hint of amusement settling behind his hard features, his eyes.

    With a chuckle, Jasper begins his story. “He looks like one of us; moves like one of us but in reality, he is anything but. Half white, half black, representing the bad and good of life but when he strikes, the black takes over. Unlike my pelt, his is radiating with evil and anger. Never does the white envelope his broad body.

    “Some ask if he is a wolf; in my opinion, he is not but others would disagree. With snarling shark fangs filled with poison and the piercing talon of a falcon’s, nothing compares to its battle cry. I have never heard it and pray you don’t. Those who have heard describe it as unnatural, something no living creature should be able to do. It is high pitched and blood curdling; just a moment of its scream can kill you.”

    My eyes widen, my heart suddenly beating fast. I am going to die out there and I wouldn’t even be able to prevent it. Its outcry would reach my ears and I would be a goner. The images flash in my mind; the beast running up beside my lost and lonely body as I struggle through the underbrush. It howls and my lungs would collapse but I would not die. No, not until it pounced and slowly began to finish me off in a painful and suffering-

    “Don’t worry Laura,” Jasper says, clearly seeing the catastrophic scene forming, “as long as you be a good girl and listen to me, it can’t hurt you. It only goes after the bad so be careful, okay?”

    I nod aggressively; he has no idea how much I want my point across. I would be the best daughter out there. I would be the best wolf to ever walk these lands; they wouldn’t call me Laura but by a superior name, like Alpha. That is, if I ever have a pack of my very own…

    I sit up, blinking back tears. I wake so peacefully, the dream fading casually into my subconscious but I don’t want the memory to go. Noah stirs beside me; what time is it? I check the clock beside his bed. It is one in the morning. My eyes widen; Juliet must be so worried! Without a moment’s hesitation, I wake Noah harshly.

    “What?” he moans sleepily, his eyes flutter open. He sees the moderate fear in my eyes and bolts upright. “What’s going on?”

    “I need to get home!” I whisper loudly. “Juliet and Oliver, they have to be worried!”

    Noah lets out an exasperated sigh, flopping back down into the soft covers. “I phoned them when you fell asleep. They’re fine with you being here.”

    I suddenly feel very silly for waking him. “Sorry,” I mutter. I lay at the end of the bed but seeing Noah curled up in the warmth of his comforter makes me jealous and I slip in beside him. I nuzzle my head into the crook of his head, breathing in his heavy scent. According to the book Noah got me, sleeping with the one you cared for in this way was a big no-no for parents but I didn’t care. He is my strong point, the thing holding me up each and every day and with him by my side, I won’t even collapse.