The Offering only happens once every hundred years, but when it does, two people are brought together for partnership, bound by a vow that is stronger than marriage, and forced to kill others for the pride of their country. Brielle couldn't get over the fact that she met Talin. In addition to being one of this year's defender for The Offering, Talin was cunning, strong, and beautiful. Talin, unfortunately, also wants her dead.

NOTE: The story contains mature actions and issues. It tells about the love between two young men. The story is NOT edited, but I have begun with that, so please read the Author's Note CAREFULLY, thank you. How do fire and ice combine together? Meet Travis Henderson, sort of new student, blunt to extreme when he can't keep his tongue on a leash, extravagant, vain and cocky as a cat and afraid of nothing. Well, almost. Although with his looks it's very difficult to walk-by unnoticed, he wants to keep a low profile and prefers to stay alone and the company of his I-pod only. Oh, did we mention he is gay? Proud and loud, he would say. Travis knows no half measures when it comes to feelings; he feels a fire burning inside him and has to let it out. Travis must have the object of his interest no matter what, but fire can really burn and hurt you, even if you are its master. And what happens when you realize who you want is the only man impossible to have? Yes, Travis is like a burning and shining ball of fire. Meet Aleksandr Lebedev, half Russian half American, star of the ice-hockey school team. Being 6′3″ tall with a fierce and dangerously annoyed glare make him one of the most feared guys in school. And he likes to be feared by useless and annoying people, since he doesn't appreciate to be involved in others' business at all. Sasha is like the solid and cold ice on which he skates, and only his family and closest friends have a place in his glacial world and heart. That's all you will ever get from Aleksandr and mind well not to annoy him. There is ice in his veins and nothing else. How will it turn out to bump into a constant magnet for trouble? How fire and ice combine together? Will the cold ice extinguish the fire or will the burning and unpredictable fire melt the ice?

Cherry blossom lipstick: check Smokey eyes: check Skinny jeans: check Dead kid in the mirror: check For sixteen year old Mattie Hathaway, this is her normal everyday routine. She's been able to see ghosts since her mother tried to murder her when she was five years old. No way does she want anyone to know she can talk to spooks. Being a foster kid is hard enough without being labeled a freak too. Normally, she just ignores the ghosts and they go away. There's a little glitch this time. The ghost she sees is her foster sister, Sally. Everyone thinks she's just another runaway. Mattie knows the truth, though-she's dead, murdered. Foster kids look out for each other and Mattie feels like she has to help Sally, but she can't do it alone. Against her better judgment, she teams up with a young police officer and together they set out to discover the truth of Sally's disappearance. Now the killer has set his sights on her. It becomes a race to see if she can find the truth before the serial killer finds her.

Let's get the facts straight. I am no heroine and I will never bring pride to my family. I am what you could call a failure. My grades? Average. My social life? Average. Talents? Hmm... well, I think I have none. I'm not exceptional in any way and I know I'm a disappointment for my father. And in this day and age there's no way I could just take my father's place to save him from a horrible fate.  There is a huge weight on my shoulders but I can't carry it no matter how hard I try. I have no idea what I can do, I only know what I can't do. Yet I still would try anything to make my father proud, even just once. Oh right, I forgot to tell you whom I was name after. Yes, I was named after Mulan, that bright heroine who saved China and brought pride to her family. Talk about big expectations. But Mulan doesn't suit me, so it's just Ann. -:-:- BOOK #4 in the Aware Princess Series flower: Peony, it symbolises "Prosperity, honor (in China)."