A Werewolf's Promise (Scarwood Chronicles #1)

Chapter 1: Into The Woods

"Mom, I'll be fine... it's not the end of the world or anything!" the black-haired boy frowned, looking up at his mother, "Stop worrying!"

The tall woman tutted, her black, gloved hands quickly readjusted her son's collar, much to his discomfort. He made a mental note to unbutton the top button after she left, to give himself at least a little but of breathing space.

"It's your first day of official magic schooling, how could I not be worried?"

The boy narrowed his eyes in an almost cat-like manner.

"It's not like someone's going to die or get hurt there: Scarwood is the best of the schools out there, and you went there yourself, mom."

"Yes, I know, but still, I'm allowed to be concerned for my son, aren't I? A lot can change in 15 years."

Sugar rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything more. Then, a rapping sound from the door caught his mother's attention.

"What's the matter?"

"Ah, Lady Sybil!" the voice of one of the apprentice witches floated from the other side of the door, "your brother wishes to see you."

"Rhion? What could he possibly be looking for? On today of all days..." she turned back to her son, "Stay right here, Sugar, I'll be only a minute." With that, she strode out of the room, and as she did, the boy breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, he wouldn't need to deal with being fussed over.

He quickly walked over to the mirror and messed up his carefully styled hair until it finally resembled his normal look, which was a feat, considering the amount of charms and hair gel applied to it. Seriously, what was his mom thinking? His normal hair was fine! He also loosened his collar, glad at being able to breathe again. And another thing: he wasn't going to stay put. Not when there was something far more interesting.

His uncle never really got involved with anything to do with the magic world anymore, not since he got married to that human, so him coming out all the way to the Blood Coven was definitely something strange and definitely something he had to witness.

Sugar crept out of the room, and slowly followed the sound of voices to where his mother and uncle were talking in a room. Keeping himself hidden, he kept his ears peeled for all the juicy details.

"Look, Sybil, I'm not telling you to change your plans completely, it's just that... it's her. Do we really trust her? I mean, this is just plain old risky! We're just asking for a repeat of The Incident." the usually velvety smooth voice of his uncle now had a quiver to it. Barely noticeable, but there nonetheless.

"Rhion. We made this decision a long time ago." however, his mother remained as impassive and calm as ever, "There's no way anything bad could happen, and besides, if what you say is true, she'll be much less likely to try anything. In this position, all eyes are on her. Any move she makes will be scrutinised and judged."

"Yes, but she seems like the type to come back for... revenge, you know? I wouldn't be surprised if she came back to target you or something. You are the one who revealed the whole thing..."

"I have faith that she changed."

"Well, I don't!" Rhion snapped, "Sybil. Something bad will happen if you keep trusting her! I can feel it. You know what? Fine, fine, but when it happens, just know, I've already warned you." with that, angry footsteps headed for the door. Sugar didn't even have time to pretend he hadn't been eavesdropping on the whole thing when his uncle stormed through into the hallway.

Rhion Thorn. Although he was part of this family of witches, he wasn't really one of them, at least not in the sense that he fit in. Maybe it was the golden blond hair, a stark contrast to the rest of the family's dark ones, or it was the fact that he never really showed much of an interest in learning anything about magic. But he was strong, even with that apparent lack of training. And so, had as much sway in this family as his sister did. As he walked out, he turned to see Sugar, doing an awful job at hiding, and his stony expression softened.