Moon Child
Chapter 1

She stirred from her dream, the painting of a summers sky floating away on the night air as soft eyelids fluttered open. Moaning, she placed an arm over her eyes in rebellion against the inevitable. She didn’t want to get up, because moving meant living through another night of what ifs and maybes.

With a sigh she sat up to grasp her bearings. She was in the woods with the moon bearing down on her like a flashlight shining in her eyes after a few too many. It made her skin itch, as if its light was like poison oak rubbing across her flesh. She knew what it wanted from her, but it never gave her a choice. There was no asking for her permission, it simply bent her into the will of the night.

She would have to shift soon, or face the torture of going against her natural instincts. Her body begged for another form, to hear the cracking of her own bones would be a merciful retreat from this human body’s torment. Mossy green eyes flashed silver as she looked up to meet her mother moon, shoulders shaking and hands trembling as she begged for reprieve. She didn’t want to turn, but what could she do? Unable to ignore the need any longer she moved to her feet and traveled deeper into the trees, her mind falling into the past.

She was trying to control it, holding her head high as she thought back to a time when none of the world she walked through now had ever existed. It had been fairy tails to her, make believe and nightmares spun of lies. Now? She knelt on the dirt beneath her as if to bow to the sky above.

She had changed so many times over the past five years, but when the bones beneath her flesh cracked and moved to animalistic placement she had no chance to stop the scream that ripped itself from her throat. She bent forward, spine breaking and shifting as she tried her best to slip out of her clothes. She had forgotten them over and over again, every time ripping through them in her beast like body.

She tossed the t-shirt and shorts to the side, all she had left of a life she could never return to. She was cursed, alone for eternity in the body of a woman and an animal, always waging wars within herself. The shift was the most painful thing she had ever experienced, and she had been through a lot in the last couple years.

Once the transformation was done a howl escaped her newfound snout, fur coat shimmering in a dark auburn hue, just like her hair when she was in her human body. The moonlight was like an aphrodisiac, intoxicating and alluring. In this form she was free of all the human worries and responsibilities, but she was also riddled with animalistic desires so strong it caused her head to ache. She wanted to hunt, but she also wanted to mate, but if she could just replace a pack then maybe…

No!

The fur on her back stood up as she refused the natural way of her current being. She refused to be tethered down by a group, denying the need for an alpha and the protection a pack of her own could provide. She wasn’t like the others, born into this curse and given the best training her ancestors could provide. No, she was forced into this life and she refused to rely on the same monsters that ripped her from her human existence only to toss her aside like garbage. She would not be a slave once more.

So she did the only thing she could do. She ran. Her paws hit the ground at an unnatural speed, the wind whipping around her viciously as she tried to forget everything, leaving it behind as she raced through the billowing trees. A storm was coming, she could smell it in the air even as the sky remained clear as her liquid silver irises.

She was almost free, her human thoughts slipping away as the ground blurred under her. She could feel the nothingness creeping into her mind, blowing caution to the wind as the animal in her truly held the reins. This was what she had wanted right, to stop worrying over the past and what might have been or the future and what it might bring? She just wanted the relief of the present, the simple things that so easily numbed the pain. In her sister form, the wolf, she could feel the true blessing of a purified life. Run, hunt, simple things that made it so much easier to handle.

She woke with a start, sitting up as she gasped for air as if she had been holding it for hours. What had she done? How could she allow herself to let go of the reins of control for even a moment? She had done the unthinkable, again. She was relying far too much on the beast within her and now she had crossed a blurry gray line within her mind. Fear rode her like a high strung stallion as she looked down at her hands.

“No.”

Crimson liquid stained her fingers, clotting under her nails as she quickly jumped to her feet. Gods, she had done it this time. She had lost all control, forgetting her humanity for who knows how long. She had blood on her that wasn’t her own, which meant she had hurt something while in her animal form. It was also fairly fresh which meant she had passed out close by the crime scene, only to wake in her more vulnerable form. Her heart skipped a beat as images from the night before skipped through her mind. She could see trees, hear voices whispering around her, and then came a gunshot.

She looked over herself, discovering a mark across her upper arm that had almost completely healed by now. She had been grazed by a bullet, the metallic smell burning her nostrils as she searched the woods around her with frantic eyes. She had been attacked, or maybe she had attacked and they had defended? She felt nauseous just thinking about it. What if she had killed something…or someone?

She felt dizzy and anxious as she frantically looked around for the victim of her late night run. She had gone too far again, but what if it wasn’t an animal this time? She had killed animals before, and though she didn’t like it she preferred it to harming humans. Her mind was racing a mile a minute. What if she had killed a human? Her fears rose like bile in her throat as she lifted her nose to the wind in hopes of following the blood trail to her latest victim.

It wasn’t easy to catch the hint of blood among dirt and trees, but the metallic smell had left an imprint on her mind so deep it may never be forgotten. Why was her mouth suddenly watering? She felt the pains of hunger itching at the insides of her stomach, body begging for another hunt. Her heart began to pick up its pace as she moved forward almost robotically. She had to know what she had done, but what if it was too much for her conscience to handle? What if she saw the victim of her mistake and wanted more?

When she lost control last time she had woken to a severed deer head lying in the dirt beside her, its body almost a mile away. She had stayed on the move for years now, refusing to stay put for too long for fear of being noticed. Every incident she created would only stir up suspicion and cause too much attention to fly her way. She had to lay low, living off the map and far away from civilization.

Her footsteps stopped beside a large oak tree, pupils dilating as she caught sight of her latest prey. A breath she hadn’t realized she was holding freed itself in an exasperated sigh. It was an animal. A dog, to be precise. She whispered her apologies to the animal, though it had long since left this world. She had ripped its throat out, blood staining its dark golden fur. She could remember a time when she would have cried over such a horrific scene, retched in denial at her rabid nature, but now she could no longer allow herself such weak shows of emotion.

She had never asked for this life, but fate could not be changed. Now she must clean herself up and move on, just like always. It was another day, after all. Well, another night. She had slept through the sun, her body lying beneath the shade of an ancient tree with more history than her whole family tree could claim. She had to be truly thankful for not being found by someone walking through the forest, though she was so far into the woods she doubted any human would risk their necks to explore the place.

She sighed, looking down at herself. What about the gunshot? She wanted to reassure herself that she was safe from any humans discovering her, but she couldn’t be ignorant to the obvious fact that someone had gotten close enough to snag her with a bullet. She needed to clean up and head out ASAP.

She could sniff out her own trail, follow it back to her clothes, but she would prefer to bathe first. She had to get the stench of blood off of her flesh, because if the humans didn’t hunt her down one of her own kind might. She, once again, lifted her nose into the air. She sniffed for a good minute before replaceing water nearby. A lake to wash herself in that was only a short walk away from her current location. She hated using her supernatural abilities, and maybe that’s why they had grown weak.

She looked all over before exiting the tree line, stepping under the moon light as she looked around cautiously once more. She smelled nothing, saw nothing, so there would be nothing. Correct? With her body bare and on display to the world she quickly moved into the water, knowing that it could wash away the blood but never the guilt. She wished her affliction had a cure, but she had yet to discover one. Perhaps one day the heavens would show mercy on her and allow her to perish like the mortal she once was, but that day would not be soon enough. Would it ever come?

She had no idea what she was, not truly, but she knew that she couldn’t die. At least not by her own hand. She had tried drowning herself by tying her ankles to large concrete blocks at the bottom of a lake that had been abandoned. Slicing her wrists open and bleeding out over the roots of a cedar tree didn’t work. Hanging herself inside an old barn just had her feeling dizzy. It was all for not.

She experienced all the pain, the last breath of life slicing through her lungs like ice, but then she would wake the next night as if nothing had ever happened. Some light scars were left behind, but barely anything to mar her tan skin. She thought that she might be some kind of demon, in which case she was damned no matter the path she took.

“Hello?”

Though still underwater she could hear the voice that was too close for comfort. Her body stiffened as she tried to figure out her next move. She had made sure no one was around, yet she was no longer alone. She had lost her edge, paranoia at bay for just a moment too long. Coming up for air she looked toward the dirt that washed in with each little wave, pooling before large bare feet. She immediatley covered her chest with her arms, pupils dilating as a strong scent caressed her nostrils. Fuck.

She was backing up before she knew what was happening, praying for a miracle of mercy as her body prayed for darker things. Her mind twisted into naughty webs of poison and lust as her gaze moved up long tan legs that held power and confidence in their stride.

She took in a shaky breath as she tried her best to ignore the large shaft of a man well endowed, pupils dilating further as her nipples tightened painfully. Her body was trembling as if the water had turned to ice, taut muscles tightening on a perfectly tanned abdomen as his pectorals flexed with his every breath.

He was the embodiment of lust, scars marring his torso that seemed to exude dominance. How had she not sniffed him out earlier? She knew by the look of him that he was no human, the aura around him far too powerful for a mortal to hold. His scent was familiar as well, with a twist to it that had her mouth watering. She had heard of this feeling, her body yearning for it more than once but it had never been strong enough to break her.

The water swayed back and forth as he moved into its depths to get closer to the female he had sniffed out the night before. She was gorgeous, the body of a water nymph and the hair of a siren. She had clearly been forged by the Gods to tempt him, and he would burn for eternity if it meant he could run his fingers through those auburn locks for but a moment.

Her tanned skin was lighter than his, the water glistening over her like drops of moonlight upon soft flesh. Her curves were voluptuous, breasts poorly hidden behind petite arms. She was the picture of femininity, waist slimming only to curve out into the hips of a goddess. She was every bit the woman of his dreams, and every bit the reason he hadn’t been able to sleep through the night as he tracked her down. Her scent had caught him like a chain around the neck, dragging him toward her with such ferocity that it almost choked him.

Her eyes held emeralds of kindness and fear, auburn curls falling around her heart shaped face to sink back into the water that was barely above her waist. She was nude, as was he. He stiffened up, his male body reacting to her in ways it had never done with another. He felt the strongest need to go to her, possess her. Yet he also felt the urge to cradle her within his large arms and engulf her in a protective hold that would never leave her open to the dangers of the world around them.

She knew it was too late to run, fate stepping in to seal her destiny once more. In front of her stood a potent male of her own kind. The unnatural, animalistic kind. Her spine stiffened up as she took a faint step forward, still trembling as her flesh began to heat up at the thought of him touching her. This had never happened to her before, not on this level. The hunger in his eyes was evident, and it scared her witless, but it also kicked her hormones into overdrive. There was something about this male that had her glistening between her thighs with a need so strong it made her legs weak.

She had tried her best to escape the people sharing her affliction, yet here he stood as if to rub it in her face that she could never leave behind what she truly was. Invisible sparks ignited between their bodies and she could do nothing to fight the beast within as he took a confident step forward. He was powerful, that much was obvious, but something about him seemed oddly familiar.

His dark brown hair fell to the middle of his tan back, braided at the nape of his neck. A strong jawline spoke of royal ancestry, perhaps an alpha lineage? It would explain why she felt the need to stay instead of running like she had done so many times before when caught in the sight’s of another changeling. She could run from a male, but not one who reeked of power as this one did. It was the curse running through her veins, and even if she fought it she would end up right back here to finish what they had already unknowingly started.

He was larger than life, shoulders broad enough to carry the weight of the world upon them with ease. He had the stance of an alpha too, which only made her tremble when he took another step toward her. Once more her eyes caught sight of the dozens of scars marring his gorgeously toned chest and abdomen. He was built for the fight, and clearly that’s what he had done. Something about the sight of him, how truly unbelievable his handsome face and built physique was, made her mind fall into the past. Who was this man to her?

“Please…”

She never wanted this, but fate was a spiteful bitch.