Ashes Between Us

Twigs snapped under his feet as he ran past trees in the forest, as he called it.

He had a lot on his mind and he needed his usual morning exercise to clear his head. Last night had been wasted trying to get his brother away from trouble with humans.

He was so deep in thought that he ran past the safety sign on the cliff and flew legs first onto the river below.

“Ahh!” he screamed as the cold water touched his skin.

“Damn it!” he spat out water and started swimming toward the bank with strong strokes that would have left any human nearby terror-stricken due to the inhuman strength with which he swam to dry land.

I'm lucky to be a lycan, he thought; no human would have survived such freezing water.

He was now standing on the shore flexing his muscles to get warmth into them when he picked up his brother's scent.

Raphael! he called "over here! the words were barely out of his mouth before his youngest brother sauntered into the open shore closely sheltered by trees on either side.

He had the look of the ancient Greek gods and his icy blue eyes and dark lashes did nothing to diminish his looks.

His lips had an upward tilt to them and his long hair made one long to run his fingers through it. He was what one would call beautiful, and still felt that not enough justice had been done to his description.

We've been looking around for you Ruke.

I've not gone missing Raphael, just took the wrong turn, that's all.

He tapped his brother on his shoulder and started walking towards the trees.

Has he woken up? Raphael raised his eyebrows.

"No jake's still sleeping”, Ruke shrugged and shifted a fallen tree from his path and continued walking.

They had now walked out of the woods and were walking toward their home, which was a stone's throw from the forest.

“The only thing separating forest and house is the wide tarred road for the benefit of cars and visitors.

They got to the house and Ruke looked upwards.

It had become a habit of his but he couldn't help thinking about how big their home was, as they were filthy rich.

One of the perks of being immortal was that they had years and years of piling up wealth and they had power at their fingertips.

Their only discomfort was that their promised mate was nowhere to be seen.

This has been the three brothers' main itch and they had their grudges against the moon goddess for making them wait for far too long.

He noticed his brother had been quiet. He turned to look at him and saw a silly grin on Raphael's face.

"Thinking about your mate again? he asked, smiling sheepishly.

Ruke quickly blocked his brother from mind-linking him.

“Damn mind link” he retorted.

I need a bath, Ruke said as he made for the stairs leading to the third floor.

His brother shrugged and made for the kitchen. They had the day to themselves as it was a Sunday.

Ruke ran up the stairs and within seconds was in his room, he took off his shirt and revealed his beautifully toned and.

He pulled down his briefs and made for the washroom.

He washed quickly, dried himself, and went to his wardrobe, which was as spacious as a room. He took some clothes, put them on, and made for the stairs.

Seconds later, he was outside, he walked to the garage, went towards one of the six cars parked there, and drove out towards the city.

Ruke found Lake City fascinating, though he loved his quiet woods better.

The noise and the smell of humans were somewhat different.

He drove distracted towards one of the many restaurants owned by fellow supernaturals, werewolves, and the like.

Lycans were like royalty among them and everyone made sure to be on their good side.

He got to the restaurant, parked his car and got off.

(THE CAT SHIFTERS)

Hermione's family had never stayed in one place. They were always moving.

Thanks to being cat shifters, the most dreaded supernatural species.

They were considered ruthless, especially in their cat form.

Once they are discovered, they leave the place quickly to avoid being attacked by the scared natives.

The young cat shifter sat in her kitchen sketching plans for a house.

She was midway through it when she suddenly slumped on the kitchen counter and immediately slipped into a dream.

She was standing on a rock and before her stood a man.

She did not know him. He was breathtakingly handsome but he wore a furious look on his face which made him look dangerous.

She didn't want to take her eyes off him and yet his glare made her look away.

She looked down between them, and what she saw made her scream. She awoke in her kitchen screaming.

It was just a dream ", she tried to reassure herself.

She looked around, trying to make sure she was nowhere near that place. She walked to the sink and drank water straight without a glass.

She tried to reassure herself that the dead bodies of supernaturals and humans that she saw were not real.

It was just a stupid dream and she needed to get out and see the new city she was in.

Perhaps the noise would calm her nerves.

She ran to her room, donned her simple beautiful black gown, and grabbed her keys.

She made sure to lock her doors because of her human neighbors who always liked to visit people, even when it was obvious that their company was not needed.

She got into her car, turned on the music and drove towards the park.

Enya's only time seeped out from the music player and she relaxed.

She had always loved Enya and she sometimes wondered if the woman was human or if she was a fae lulling people in with her enchanting music.

"Who can say why your heart cries, as your love lies, the only time" she sang.

“Oops, I almost drove past my destination". She quickly parked, got off, and locked her car. "Not many kids out here today" she thought.

She walked towards a bench and sat down.

Two teenagers walked past her, stopped at a safe distance and gawked at her stupid field.

The wind was blowing through her long mane of fiery red hair and one would not blame the poor teenagers for being spellbound by her beauty.

She's beautiful! One of them finally found his tongue. She smiled at the teenagers and they simply collapsed.

She was suddenly overcome by a strong fit of laughter so that she stood up and left the area before people started to think she was crazy.

She decided to walk around the park just to kill time. She must have been lost in thought.

When she finally checked the time on her phone, she was dismayed to see how late it was and quickly walked back to the car.

While opening it, she noticed a group of men lurking in a corner of the parking area. She dismissed them and jumped into her car and made for home.

It was already getting a little dark but she didn't mind a little darkness. What got her worried was the car that was closely following her.

“Those pesky humans,” she thought, “ always looking for who to rob”, not me.

She decided to mislead them, so she took another road flanked on both sides by the thick forests.

“They'll think twice before following into this dense bush" she increased the speed of her car and drove into an opening in the forest that was now dark but she could still see.

Which is one of the many advantages of being a shifter.

She looked through her rearview mirror and saw that the car was still following her.

It was then that she awakened all her instincts and the scent that hit her nostrils had her slamming on her brakes and driving into a tree.