WinterIt's like a giant, white gorilla with a long snout and red eyes. When it opens its mouth, I see razor-sharp teeth. It seems to be made of the same plastic-like grass as the ground, except it's ten times worse. It must be at least ten feet tall, and it's moving towards us.My heart is pounding, but I can't move. I'm frozen in place, unable to speak.Damon is still standing next to me. "What is this?" I bark out."I don't know," he says. "But we need to get out of here. Now."I grab Damon's arm and start running, but I can't go fast enough. The gorilla will be on top of us in seconds. I look around, searching for somewhere to hide, like Alec is.The grass is too tall. I see a tree a little ways away, but I don't know if I can run that fast.And then I remember who I am. What I can do.Closing my eyes, I shine a light on the strength within. It fills me up, the power surging through my veins.Opening my eyes, I find the monster only yards away. I'm not afraid anymore, th

WinterI stumble as the ground beneath me gives way, my heart racing with fear. I can hear the others shouting, but their voices are muffled by the sound of rocks and debris crashing around us. I land hard on my side, and pain shoots up my arm."Winter!" Alec's voice is frantic. "Are you okay?"I groan, trying to sit up but finding that my arm won't support me. "I think I hurt my arm," I say, wincing."We have to get out of here," Damon says, grabbing my good arm and helping me to my feet. "Now."We start running, our footsteps echoing through the cave as we try to find our way out. But the path we took before is blocked by fallen rocks, and the walls are shifting and changing so much that we can't even tell which way is up."This way!" Elena calls, pointing to a narrow tunnel that seems to be the only way out.We sprint through the cave, dodging falling debris and jumping over crevices that have opened up in the ground. The air is thick with dust and the scent of dirt and roc

Winter"Which way to the river?" I look around the dark forest."That's ... the thing." Damon scrunches his face. "Remember how I said things are constantly changing here?"My stomach drops. "Yeah.""The landscape can change at a moment's notice. Sometimes the river is there, and sometimes it's not. I'm sure there's a pattern to it, but I haven't been able to figure out what that is."I chew on my lip. "Okay. No big deal."Alec climbs on top of a fallen tree and looks around. I can tell he's using his heightened senses to listen for any danger, but Damon doesn't know that. We still haven't told him where we're from or what we are.Then again, in my case, I don't really know what I am. People at Hawthorn either treated me like I was something special or a freak. No one ever gave me a concrete answer."Let's try this way." Alec points.I nod. He must have picked up on the scent of water or something."Sounds good to me." Damon starts walking, his hands on his backpack straps.

AlecI barrel into Winter, shoving her out of the way. We both land hard on the ground, my forearms breaking my fall and her landing on her side. The pebbles rain down behind us, their impact on the ground making booms that rattle the canyon.Elena, Hank, and Damon stare at us with dropped jaws."Don't move, anyone." I carefully sit up.Winter is frozen, her brow furrowed. "What happened?""You almost got hit by some pebbles. Remember what they're like here? How heavy they are?""Oh, yeah." She shakes her head, and I can tell she's disappointed in herself. "I wasn't thinking.""It's okay." I offer her my hand. The moment she slips her palm into it, it’s like the rest of the world disappears.I pull her to standing, and she blinks at me. Heat spreads through me. I want to pull her closer, to press my lips to hers, to hold her tight until the end of time.Instead, I just stand there like a dummy."Glad you're okay." I release her hand and look away, but not before I see the d

Winter"You're a werewolf?" Alec blurts out.A sheepish look crosses Damon's face. "Well ... yes."Alec and I stare at each other. We definitely did not see that coming."I'm sorry I didn't tell you before," Damon says. "It's not exactly something you share with everyone you come across. And then I saw you both do those amazing things ..." His eyes widen, and he smiles big."We thought you'd left," is all I can think to say.His face falls. "No. I'm sorry if it looked that way. I snuck off to shift. I thought, maybe if I did it in secret, then I could change back, and you wouldn't know it was me, and ..." He rubs the back of his head and looks away.I'm still having trouble finding words. Damon is like us! Well, not one hundred percent, since Alec is a vampire, and I'm a ... something.But he's close enough."Thank you." My eyes fill with tears. "Thank you for saving us."He nods. "I wouldn't leave."Alec clears his throat. "Were you going to tell us?"I glower at him. "W