The Werewolf and the Halfling

Prologue.

The vampire took a step back snarling fiercely. His confident demeanour was long gone. Red eyes swivelled franticly in his sockets. He was afraid; he could already feel the effects of the sun.

Christian Valentine stood before him like a man etched in granite. Not even the gentle breeze could ruffle his long golden hair tied back with a leather thong. Hard muscles bulged as he threw an oaken stake at his adversary. The vampire laughed catching it in mid-air. Though his reflexes were quick, in the time it took him to catch the flying piece of wood, Christian stood behind him, his arms wrapped firmly around his chest.

He stood strong as the vampire twisted, his foul breath and evil stench caused Christians eyes to water, still he stood a cynical smile on his lips as the first strands of light filled the air.

"You will die too vampire," he snarled.

Wincing as Christian applied more pressure around his torso, bones cracked under the strain, piercing his lungs and heart.

"damn you!" He choked once more as boils and blisters spread over his body, smoke arose as he skin began to char.

In a raspy voice, affected greatly by the heat he asked, "why do you not feel it?"

Even in the midst of death he was intrigued by this 'vampire'. Christian laughed mockingly. Thick white hair sprouted from his face and chest, his bones became fluid and transformed into thick hind and fore legs.

His face elongated and a dark muzzle sniffed disdainfully at the brittle black body. The vampire made a wheezing noise, Christian cocked his head as he recognized laughter.

"The Valentine child, and I thought I was the unfortunate one." With that he head lolled to one side and burst into flame.

Christian waited until the blaze stopped, watching the dying embers he recalled the vampires words.

He looked to the sun and once again pondered what it would be like if sunlight could end his pitiful existence. He skulked into the surrounding trees, perhaps he would run with the wolves today, or replenish himself and find an unsuspecting victim. He laughed bitterly, what did it matter?

A fragrance of roasting beef filled the air, licking his lips he turned back into a man. Powerful leg muscles stalked through the woodland until he came upon a MacDonald's.

Maybe he'd just eat a burger.

ONE

Jessica de Groudané huffed, sending a stray trestle of red hair flying back on the crown of her head. Her fingers drummed against the wooden desk as her history teacher continued prattling on about the introduction of the windmill.

"And so you see my friends, wind mills are the pillars of our society."

''oh yes, how ever would we survive without our trusty windmills?'' Jessica couldn't help but laugh as her best friend Toni, raked her hand through short purple hair and sent her an aspirated look with her telepathic message.

Like her Toni was a lycanthrope or in twenty-first century terms, a werewolf.

"Well that's the end of our lesson." Thank god, she thought to herself, slinging her backpack effortlessly onto her back.

Like all Lycan's. They had a sensuality about them, and as always she caught the gazes of many men.

"They are so sex starved. Look at Michael's face, he's practically snarling." Jessica bit back a laugh.

She could see the hair on his arms standing up, erectly.

"I think you should just put him out of his misery and make him your mate." Jessica rolled her eyes.

That was what everyone was expecting. Michael was a direct link from the royal family. A distant cousin, and as custom had it they were meant to be. Jessica threw her bag into the back of her car.

"So do you want a lift to the institute?" Toni shook her head.

"Unlike you, I have a social life, but I'll see you this evening for training." Jessica shrugged her shoulders in a fluent motion and climbed into the car.

She revelled in the refreshing San Francisco wind, her hair burst from her lose chignon. Tuning on the radio, she hummed to the frantic beat of 'Man Eater'.

The large mansion that belonged to her grandfather loomed ahead.

"Jessica de Groudané," she said into the intercom.

Needs oil, she thought to herself as the large iron gates screeched open. The wheels crunched to a stop.

Satisfied she stepped out, the familiar beep, beep of the alarm and she was in the house. She always felt a thrill entering de Groudané mansion.

Every piece of furnishing was made of oak, in case a vampire managed to infiltrate the house. Vincent de Groudané taught ten werewolves at a time. Many decided to follow the road of a vampire hunter.

There were many schools like this all over America at most two in each state.

" Jessie girl is that you?" her body warmed all over as her grandfather walked down the large wooden stairs.

At twenty-three hundred years, he was in his prime. Coal black hair was combed back into a small ponytail. Strong muscles rippled under his silken shirt as he engulfed his granddaughter in a bear hug.

"Grandpa, I just saw you this morning," she mockingly scowled, she loved her grandfather, after her parents murder at the hands of vampires, he had taken her in and was teaching her all he knew.

She loved the smell of humbugs and tobacco on his skin, she loved him dearly.

"Well, that was a long time ago. Now go do your homework, and then we will begin. A few of the pups are upstairs."

Jessica shook her head, 'pups' really! The eldest of the pupils was over one thousand years old. Though in werewolf standards, her grandfather was was a young adult. The average life span of a Lycan was five millenniums give or take a hundred years. "Get out of my room!" Jessica stepped back as Daniel Hudson came flying out of her bedroom. His head smacked against the wood panelled wall and his body slumped to the ground. Karen Thomas, her room mate in the mansion stood, half between the change.

Dark fur bristled with anger, canines snapped. Daniel quickly awoke from his stupor, vaulting over the banister. Jessica saw a flash of hot pink before he turned round the corner.

"Don't say it." Karen warned, her once work clothes now lay in tatters around her voluptuous body. Jessica stifled a laugh and entered her room, the sooner she did her homework, the sooner she could begin training.

The air was slightly humid; Jessica rubbed her palm up and down her face. She lifted her heavy ponytail, fanning her neck.

"This is stupid; I bet Vince was just pulling our leg. It must just be a drill." Gordon said in his heavy English accent.

Jessica shook her head. There was a strange fog forming, even her heightened sense of sight was straining against the mist.

''I can sense something, Jessica.'' Jessica frowned, it was Michael. They were under strict instructions not to talk telepathically.

Vampires could sense that. They had split into two groups; Toni bounced on the balls of her feet, her fur was a rich brown, with a dark purple patch, above her eyes.

Jessica walked up and down rubbing her arms, the temperature had suddenly dropped.

"It's here." Jessica said to no one in particular, they could all feel the evil, the coldness. She could even pick up a faint sound of its heart, sluggishly beating.

"lets go." they all ran in the direction of where they could sense the monster. A flicker of white and he was in their sights. Jessica ran up a jutting log and jumped off, in mid jump she changed.

Silken red fur shifted over her body, she landed with a quite thump. The vampire's minions staggered towards them.

Jessica almost collided with the moving figures. All dressed in the outfit they wore to their graves. Some looked fresh, whilst others looked decayed. Jessica felt her stomach roll as she saw a maggot fall from a empty eye socket.

''There are only six, we can do this. I'll tell Michael to carry on.''

''Ok, just don't bite them, poisonous blood runs through them.'' ''I know that Michael.'' She stressed his name.

How many classes had she been in with him, he always thought himself the expert. It was so condescending Her attention turned back to the limping creatures. She whipped her tail around its ankle, bringing it crashing down. Her paw thrust through its chest cavity, its blackened heart was crushed with her rump.

In no time they had killed them all. Jessica was just pinpointing where the others were when a great streak of lightning ignited the ground.

They all backed away, searching the skies for the vampire that had caused the blaze. It was out as soon as it had started the corpses nothing but fine dust.

''What the hell?'' Jessica felt Toni's confusion. She sniffed the air and ran back towards the house.

The carnage unsettled her. More zombies littered the floor as did Rochelle, the newest member of the school. Jessica quickly changed back. She thought of jeans and a dark tank top, waving her hand over herself, her attire appeared.

"Christian!" the vampire bellowed. Jessica reached for her crossbow; taking aim she fired it at the vampire. A blue flame incinerated it before it reached him.

"Christian I tire of your dogs." Jessica growled, as did her fellow brethren.

A shadow blanketed the skies, then a man stood not six feet from the vampire. Jessica shivered, who was this man Christian, surely not Christian Valentine?

TWO

Christian was weary. Paul was stronger than he thought, and for him to hide in the school that trained to kill their kind he was even more of a fool.

He could feel the hatred radiating from the wolves, but he did not care. What did it matter if he died?

An eternity to be shunned by both his kind. Why had his parents submitted him to such terrors, they were now dead, he no longer had anyone.

"Ah, so you have arrived I..." Christian in a blur of black broke the vampire's neck, then he ripped his slugging heart and watched it turn to dust.

The endings were always easier, it was the build-up that was the harrowing thing. A growl emitted into the air, as more corpse filed out of the woods.

Even at their master's death, they were relentless. There were too many, and even though the wolves would kill him he felt a kinship towards them.

Summoning all his energy, he blasted the undead, satisfied that they were dead, he rose slowly, his chest hurt were the vampire had stabbed him, because of his mixed blood his healing factor was faster than any on the earth.

He knew this because he spent most his free time searching for one like him. But it seemed his parents were the only ones foolish enough to defy the laws of nature.

Werewolves hunted vampires, vampires hated werewolves. He was struggling for breath, his head swam as the world tilted and he crumpled to the ground. Jessica walked towards the vampire, a stake raised in her hand over his heart. He was so beautiful, and that's what surprised her. As werewolves they could see the true beauty of a vampire. Grey skin laid taunt over their crooked skeleton, yellow teeth twisted out of their pale lips. T

hey had little if not no hair. They could not disguise themselves from werewolves unless they were just recently turned or of great power. Well the males anyway, it was harder to detect females.

"My god, he's an angel." Toni said dryly "spear him already" Jessica still stood immobile.

"Did you just hear yourself my friend, he looks like an angel," Toni blanched. Jessica could smell the other wolves anger and impatience.

"We will take him to the mansion," she declared. "Toni get his feet." Toni obliged, even after the bombardments of curses and no's. Her grandfather stood at the large French doors. His burrow furrowed and she could see a vein throbbing at his neck, belying his calm exterior.

"He saved us," she said firmly, though she knew they could have taken the ghouls out, it was pretty sweet the way he helped them.

Blonde hair fanned out against the black pillows. He wore little else except leather trousers, Vincent was unsure of who he was. Could he be Christian Valentine?

No, he was not so stupid as to come to San Francisco. He would be killed. Though he had not been heard of for the last one hundred years, rumours circulated that he was indeed alive.

Vincent bared his teeth, no this was just the run of the mill vampire, and he would be treated as one.

^"Go, hide behind the bed Christian," he hugged his dirtied blanket closer to his chest. Long, blonde hair in need of a cut brushed at his shoulders as he hugged his mother's skirts.

The men continued to bang against the door, relentless. Julian turned to his wife and son, his teeth bared in warning.

"Go now, ma chére. Go mon fils" Diane gave her husband a hard look, before folding Christian into her arms and sliding down behind the cupboard. His mother covered his ears in a futile attempt to block out the sound of the door splintering, the blood thirsty cry of the werewolves. She tried to block out the ripping of throats, the crushing of lungs.

Ten to one, his father didn't have a chance. He felt his mothers' tears scorch his skin. He saw her already pale skin lighten as the cupboard was pulled back, even in his last moments of life Christian felt proud of his father.

Six wolves lay slain on the ground. He had fought valiantly. He hung to his mother as the four wolves dragged her to the ground. Shackling her with silver chains, her fangs barred she snarled as they approached her son.

Christian wriggled against them biting at their hands. He too was chained to a chair. His six year old eyes forced to watch his mother raped then killed whilst silver burnt into his skin, because of his mixed blood, it made him even more affected to the effects of the metal. He hadn't a prayer as he saw the men loom before him.

Stakes in their hands, he did not shed a tear, instead he bared his fangs as fur washed over his body. They looked at him as if he was a disgusting cretin, something foul at the bottom of their feet. Then they all seemed to fall to the ground. Their heads slid of their shoulders. In the doorway stood a beautiful woman, dark hair plastered to her head a murderous look on her face.

"Come child," she said softly, her hands pulled away the chains.

He watched as he saw his parents home burned to the ground, his hand clasped firmly in hers. But he could still feel burning, searing pain...^

Christian woke with a start, his body jerked against the chains only to feel them sear through his skin.

He clenched his teeth tightly, as blinding pain shot through his arms and legs.

"I think he's awake," came a soft, feminine voice. Well as feminine as a voice could get when talking to her worst enemy.

Not very, in his book. He closed his eyes imaging himself without the chains, free from all the burdens in the world. Nope didn't work.

He opened his eyes slowly, blinking as sunlight poured through the room.

"The vamps awake!" yelled a deeper female voice, he squinted, feigning vampire allergy to the bright light.

Just above his heart was an oaken stake, luckily it wasn't silver. His healing factor was so fast even a stake to the heart could heal within days.

Except silver, which he was highly allergic to. A red haired girl looked down on him, a snarl on her perfectly pink lips. Okay, where did that thought come from? she bad, me good, he told himself sternly. He realised that if he didn't fight against the chains, it wouldn't hurt so bad. The red head was still there, her hatred flickered in her eyes. Damn! What had he done? Then he thought back to what it was vampires did.

"I did not kill your parents," he said slowly. Jessica took a step back, how could he tell that was what she was thinking. She hadn't projected that thought in any way.

She had actually been thinking what a drag it was he was a vampire and that he was so damn good looking. She could hear Toni, running up and down the halls calling 'the vamps awake!'