The Vampire's Harvest

16

Without much thought, you reach down to the pistol at your waist and raise it into the sky. You know you're not a good enough shot to hit the alpha's large figure, but you don't need to damage him. You just need to make everyone stop and listen.

In the space of a breath, you make up your mind and pull the trigger.

The shot rings out, the sound of the blast ringing in your ears and reverberating through the forest. You cry out in pain, the recoil sending shockwaves through your shoulder. Your eyes pinch together as you struggle to regain your composure. You picture Ferris, the coven, and Gianette. You need to gather yourself. They're depending on you. You need to get it together and win over the wolves.

Pushing through the pain, you open up your eyes and find the alpha and the entire pack watching you with a mixture of confusion and curiosity. As for the rest of the field, not a single insect could be heard chirping in the night.

"It was me," you call out to the silence, your voice raspy and quick. "I created the ward. No one else. I used this pumpkin to do it. That's all. It wasn't them. I acted on my own."

"Why?" the alpha asks, his voice like gravel as he pushes past his wolves and saunters towards you.

"Because she's my sister. I had to protect her." You know that Gianette is still on the ground behind you, but you can't manage to look back. You fear only disgust and disappointment await you. Unfortunately, the alpha is perfectly capable of seeing just how she reacted to your reasoning.

"All that from a pumpkin?" he asks, looking down at the gourd, whose candle extinguished after the spell was cast.

"Yes," you say with a nervous laugh, "and I'm not even very good." You look over to the coven and give them a nod. "They're far better than I am and they want to see the vampires dead. I imagine you do too."

"That's a safe assumption," he says, his large hand massaging his whiskered chin as he appraises Ferris and the coven. Then he looks back to you with a shadow of a smile on his lips. "Us wolves believe in the power of blood ties. I suppose it isn't surprising to hear you are Gianette's sister. It's been awhile since I had a fight like that. She's got spunk and so do you. If your pack over there is as brave as you are, then I think we can make an arrangement. I, however, would prefer to work it out with their alpha."

"Oh, of course," you say before gesturing to where Ferris stands. The alpha moves to meet with the coven's leader, while his wolves ease back into their full human form and huddle close behind him. As for you, you take a breath and turn to find Gianette back on her feet with her hands on her hips and her lips twisted into a half smile.

"You're a fool. Brave is not what I would have called that." She shakes her head and you swallow hard, but when she looks up at you again, you notice a genuine smile graces her face. "But, it means a lot to know you'd do something that stupid for me."

"All my other sisters and brothers are gone, Gianette. You're the only one left and I can't lose you."

"Then, don't ever do that again," she says, grabbing your shoulders and herding you towards the pack. "I had a plan you know. I would have won that fight on my own and you never interrupt the alpha."

"Well, I don't know the rules..."

"You're lucky he's a generous alpha and that we're pressed for time. He may be confident in the pack's strength, but he's no fool. He knows help will be to our advantage."

And it was.

Ferris and the alpha coordinated an assault so that the wolves distracted the vampires while the coven stood on the outskirts of the fight, preparing the spell. Gianette was offered entrance into the pack should she survive the fight and maintain her post around the coven, protecting us from any wayward vamp. In the end, it all happened so quickly that Gianette never even got a chance to prove herself in combat. The wolves kept the surprised vamps at bay and Ferris and the coven worked quickly to produce the spell that turned all the vampires to ash.

After the battle, the coven heads to their rendezvous to celebrate and the pack makes their way back to the woods. Uncertain where you should go, you remain in the street watching as the others part ways.

"Won't you be joining Ferris?" asks Gianette, who hangs back as the pack move to the tree line. Her hesitation catches the alpha's attention and he too waits while ordering the others forward.

"Perhaps, but I think Ferris is still a little angry I suggested we get your help, even though we won." You turn to where the last of the coven slips into the shadows and disappears from sight. You sigh and continue, "I think I bruised his ego."

"Pride should be in one's pack and not in one's individual accomplishments," says the alpha, who joins your sister's side. She gives him a warm smile, one he returns with affection. Then he looks back to you. "You were watching out for your pack and for your kin today. I respect that. Should you find that your calling is not with them, then perhaps you'll consider joining us instead."

"As...as a werewolf?"

"I think both your sister and you have proven your worth," he says, nodding to the two of you. "We're returning to our camp to commence the turning of your sister. It will be an even bigger celebration if we turn the both of you."

You look to your sister, whose wide smile and bright eyes beg for your answer. Your heart lightens as you picture a future running though the wild by her side.

"Yes. I swear my life to you and the pack," you say with a bow.

After that night, you become a werewolf and spend your days living in the forests surrounding town, protecting it from all who wish to seize control from Ferris and take away the freedom that his rebellion granted.

***

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