Silver and Blue

Chapter 4

Erika's been absent for three days and now I'm worried. As soon as the final bell ranged, I shot out of the classroom to get to my moms car out front. I yelled out a quick goodbye to Sebastian and Wade when I saw them.
I pulled into the dirt driveway of her small house and got out quickly. I knocked on her door, growing more and more concerned as the seconds passed by. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding when she opened her door.
Alive and well before me was my best friend. I was about to question as to why she had been missing when I noticed the she was pale now, the red all but gone in her cheeks. Her normally dull eyes were now a vibrant forest green and I noted flecks of red in her irises.
"Erika, did something happen?" I asked slowly. She opened her mouth to speak, but before a single word escaped, a sleepy feminine voice moaned, "Erika, who's at the door? Come back to bed, won't you, love?"
She hesitated before she turned to reply. "It's no one, just give me a minute please?" There was a muffled groan and my friend's unfamiliar eyes looked back at me. She stepped outside me into the cold, cloudy weather. I decided to ignore the fact that she had just called me 'no one'.
I watched her expectantly. She looked much more regal than before and her hair seemed to be a lighter tint. "Saskia, Alexis told me a secret; a secret she doesn't want me to share..." She began quietly. "Have you...become a wolf?" She asked. I nodded slowly. "Evidently I always have been. Also you smell of sweat and dead leaves, Erika."
Anger entered her features and she glared at me. "And you smell like wet dog! You aren't even fully werewolf are you?" Her question flared in me and I slapped her across the face, surprise now registered in the eyes that weren't hers. "My mother is human, so no. Why are you so mad at me anyways? Why have you been missing?!" I suddenly felt very tired.
"You don't know anything, do you?! How did you expect me to talk to you like it was nothing? You're the fantasy expert here, you should know that vampires and werewolves don't mix!"
There it was. My suspicions were once again confirmed. "Erika..." I began slowly. She held up her hand. "I'll be at school Monday. Before then, ask Wade about the Willow Tree War." She opened her door and stepped into the threshold of her home. "If after that you still want to be my friend....text me." And with that, I was left in the cold.

On my way to the forest I texted Wade "meet me at the hill". After a minute or so, he replied with "Okies :3 wolf or human?" I sighed. This guy, using that damned cat face when he knows how adorable it is. "Human."
I made it there before him and sat waiting. There was a faint breeze and forest smell all around me. "Hey, you texted?" That soft voice I've come to love, yes love, broke the silence invitingly and Wade sat next to me casually.
"Tell me about the Willow Tree War." Wade looked at me as if dreading this moment. He sighed. "Guess I knew you'd find out one day."
I watched him expectantly as he stood. "Can we leave the forest before we talk about it?" He asked. I doubted that he would tell me if I refused, so I stood and we made our way through.
The walk was steady, but my burning curiosity made it seem much slower. Wade didn't once meet my eyes. It seemed that he would look at everything but me.
Once we were out, Wade drove me to the school, promising we would go back to get my car later. He drove around the back and we snuck over to the roof.
I was looking out at the view when he finally found his voice. "In our territory, there is a single, lone Willow Tree. Our pack believed that it held spiritual powers, since it was so out of place. All the wolves protected it with their lives.
One day, the vampires heard of this rumor, and they wanted the powers for themselves. We didn't really hate the vampires at that time, but then their leader, Abiduris, appeared to try and make a deal; that we give them our tree and for them to do as they please. He said that we couldn't even touch it.
Of course, we said no. Because of this, Abiduris sent a few of his little vampires to try and take it by force. By then, our wolves had made the Willow the center of our territory, so we had a large number of wolves protecting it. We defeated the vampires, but more kept coming and eventually, newborns appeared."
I stared at him, absorbing this information. "Newborns? You mean newly made vampires?" Wade nodded. "They don't know their own strength yet, so they are exceptionally powerful." I nodded and looked back out at the school. 'This is one problem I can't leave behind.'
I looked at him, now silver-eyed and clouded with hatred. "What happened next?" I asked uncertainly.
"They killed our Alpha, who was your father. After three months of fighting, a newborn named Alexis killed him. She and the group she was with ambushed him while he was fighting an older vampire. The whole pack felt it in their furs when his last breath was cut short. This girl goes to our school, no doubt you've seen her or, at least, heard something. She notorious for be, uh, adventurous."
'Ask Wade about the Willow Tree War. Then, if you still want to be friends with me, you can.' So that's what she meant. Erika is now a vampire and the one that turned her had to be Alexis, who must've been the voice I heard before.
"Who won...?" I asked quietly. "No one, the Willow tree was destroyed. Without the Alpha, the wolves lost hope that they could win. They knew that your father wouldn't have wanted the vampires to win, so they burned the tree."
My best friend has a girlfriend that killed my father. She knew about this, and yet still became a vampire. Does that mean I should avenge someone I never even knew? "How old was my brother...when our dad was killed?" Wade's eyes looked sympathetic. I glared at him and the look faded into something protective. "Your brother was only two, and your mother was pregnant with you."
"You keep saying 'we' and 'our'..... How old were you during this?" I wasn't sure I wanted to know. What if Wade was actually older than he said he was?
He came over to me and put his hands on my shoulder. "Saskia, I'm seventeen. I'm older than you by five months. I swear." I nodded, knowing the relief was plain on my face. "So, do we have to hate vampires? Isn't that like, racism or something?"
A bit of amusement shone in Wade's soft, brown eyes. "Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure it is. Whether or not you hate them or most of them or whatever is your choice."
I laughed and hugged him, ignoring the warm tingle that went through me when I felt his arms around my waist. "Thank you for telling me, I was starting feel like people were hiding things from me."
"I was supposed to, but you're too stubborn, you would've found out soon enough." I giggled at his comment. I was stubborn, everyone knew that. "That's a nice sound." He said quietly.
I pulled away and looked at Wade curiously. "Your giggle," he explained. "I don't hear it a lot." My cheeks began to burn so I stuck my tongue out, mad that he could get that reaction out of me. Even more so, some foreign feeling came over me as I remembered our first kiss, here on this barren roof that wouldn't really be considered romantic to the outside party.
He laughed and my slight anger disappeared. I love that laugh. I love that I can make him laugh. Seeing my smile, he asked, "What?" I shook my head and let a wave of bravery wash over me as I realized what I felt was desire. I wanted that small proximity like before. I wanted his lips on mine once more. He tilted his head in question, making it perfect for me to kiss him.
He didn't immediately return it, but that soon changed. His arms tightened their hold on me and his kiss deepening and demanding. It felt as if every part of my body was on edge and there was always too much space between us.
My lips parted slightly on their own, allowing his tongue a free pass to explore. His shoulders felt solid and protective under my palms.
Wade moved tentatively to my neck, making me feel vulnerable. I let out a soft moan and thought 'did I really just do that?' He moved up and kissed my jaw, letting his lips linger teasingly. I felt his breath as he whispered, "Wolf politics or not, I can't resist you."
My body shuddered as his mouth met mine hungrily. I ran my hands slowly along his chest; his lean stomach, letting my fingers twist in his belt loops. He made a low, quiet moan.
We parted reluctantly, our lips not touching but our faces still close. "Saskia...?" I could hear the question in his voice. "Yeah?" I replied. Wade moved away to look directly in my eyes. "Will you stay with me?"
The emotion in his voice surprised me; the need, the fear...the love. I searched his eyes for any sign of a joke or lie, but saw nothing but pure feeling. I nod and kissed him lightly, whispering 'yes' against his lips.