The Huntress (Short stories)

First Hunt

I felt sick. And angry. The day was turning out to be the worst. Firstly, my "parents" woke me up way before the sun was up. On my birthday! Secondly, they forced me to inhale a massive breakfast, making me feel bloated. On my birthday! Lastly, they totally forgot it was my 16th birthday. ON MY FUCKING BIRTHDAY! And the worst thing was, that if it wasn't my birthday, I wouldn't have minded. It was time for my first hunt, all the training I went through - it was time to prove myself.

Tom-Tom told me yesterday to make sure I was comfortable with the situation, but looking at my dad, I could never tell him I wasn't going through with it. The disappointment would be something he would never let me live with. Mom will make me pay for the embarrassment. Our family is hunter royalty in a sense, as I'm a fifth generation hunter, there's no other choice for me. And I think I'm okay with that. I just really wanted today to be the best day ever. Crissa wouldn't shut up about her birthday a few months ago. Alice's is coming up soon. I just want to be normal and belong, for once in my life amongst regular, boring people. Especially on my birthday.

"Don't fuck this up, Ella," my "loving" father shared his last-minute words of wisdom with me. How could I ever repay him for all this kindness and encouragement? I force my eyes not to roll out of my head. He's so controlling and suffocating. It's like having one superhuman hunter isn't enough for him. Tom is the best young hunter our "family" has seen in years. Why do they need me to be like him? I sound like a whiny teenager. Wait! I am a teenager, I can be whiny if I want to. Hell, sometimes I surprise even myself with my genius.

"Don't need a reminder, dad," I mutter finally as a response. I could feel him getting frustrated with my silence. He's so temperamental, I don't understand how he's survived as a hunter this long. We're supposed to be calm under pressure and never do anything on impulse. We are all trained to think before we act. How he's not dead, I wonder about that sometimes. The really twisted thing is, that I don't think I'd be all that sad once he passes away, either from old age or by the hand of some evil vampire. Just like I don't think they would miss me, if this doesn't go my way. Cold and calculated - my family's "I love you" is "Don't fuck this up!". We're a typical Hallmark family. Barf! I want out of this family. And here I go again, whining.

"Focus!" he commands. Now I do roll my eyes. My parents have always tried to force me to be like everyone else. We are soldiers and we are supposed to think and act like the rest of our community. Tom might be able to turn off his human side, but I'm too much of a rebel to ever be okay with that. Two more years.

"I am," I assure his royal pain in my ass. He needs to take a chill pill. Maybe he and mother should go on a vacation and relax by a pool somewhere. Karen told me on Monday during lunch that her parents were always fighting, but after they went to a spa weekend, they seemed to be okay and no more yelling. I should talk to Tom about that, maybe he'd agree with me. Probably not, though. He's the perfect son.

"We're here," my father announces. I look out of the window, it's just another small town somewhere in America. I missed the sign as we drove in, so I don't really know where we are. I know the town's plan by heart, but learning its name was never necessary for my mission. I do know it took us two hours to drive here from Denver. Damn roadwork!

I start to open my door, when my father grabs my arm, rather ruffly. "I don't think I need to tell you what will happen if you fail here. Don't bother coming home if you lose that vampire, your mother would never allow a failure to live under our roof. If he bites you and tries to change you, you better kill yourself with that stake, we will not have our daughter changed into a murdering monster. Understood?" I would feel upset, if this wasn't our regular means of communication. Everything in my life revolves around being the best hunter I could be. Plus, I already got that speech from my mother before we left for this little town. I simply nod. I hate them so much for ruining my birthday.