I look up at the towering shelves of books that surround me. The shelves have to be organized, I just need to find out how. Removing a book from the shelf closest to me, I read the title, 'Tales from World War II'. I replace the book and pull out another one from further down the shelf. This one is titled 'The History of the Roman Empire'. I must be in the history section. Exiting the row of shelves I was in, I enter a different row of shelves to my right. Seeing titles like 'Minerals and Gemstones' and 'Animals of the Sahara', I knew I was in the science section. I had to search three more sections: languages, music, and mathematics, before I finally found the section that housed the books on the supernatural. At first, all the books I see are about werewolves. Walking further down the row, the topics change from werewolves to vampires to witches. At the very end of the row, in a small section, nearly invisible unless you are looking for it, stand the books about lycans. I
...It took forever to find where the books on lycans are kept, but I finally found them," I inform Tyler before taking a bite of ziti. "Were they helpful?" he asks. I swallow before replying. "Not very. Most were about the myths that surround lycans. I did find a book about the different types of plants that affect lycans though. I think it may give me clues about what was in that sedative. I also found an interesting book. It's called 'Lycan Magic'. I've never heard of lycans being able to use magic so I am excited to read it." Tyler looks thoughtful. "I haven't heard of that either," he agrees. “Are you planning on spending tomorrow in the library as well?” “I will spend the morning reading through those books,” I reply. “What about the afternoon?” he asks. “I promised to help Laura with picking berries and making pies in the afternoon, remember?” I say, rolling my eyes. “Don’t give me that attitude,” Tyler says firmly. “I forgot that you prom
While I am reading through the information on valerian root and jotting down some notes, I stumble upon an interesting fact. In the list of what herbs work well with valerian root is one herb I never expected to see, wolfsbane. I know the standard effects of wolfsbane. For werewolves, it is poison, but it usually only gives lycans a headache. However, I never expected to see it paired with a sedative. Papers rustle as I flip through the book to find the page on wolfsbane. There I learn that wolfsbane can also be a sedative for lycans, especially when combined with hops and valerian root. Hmm. What a coincidence. Those must be the herbs used in the sedative, but something still bothers me. Lycans typically become used to medicines or poisons after a day or two of taking them and the effects greatly decrease. However, I didn't adjust to the sedative until several days after that. I search my memories, and the book, for an answer, but find none. Bored, I shut the book ab
“Who are you?” I growl at the strange woman standing before me. “My name is Emira, the strongest witch alive,” the woman, Emira, boasts. Laura steps closer to me and eases the berry bucket from my hand. She probably realized that I have a better chance of beating this woman than she does. I flex my fingers and prepare to shift. Before I can even start to change forms, the witch’s eyes flash bright green, and I find myself unable to move my arms or legs. “What did you do to me?” I growl at Emira, trying my best to make my hands move. All of my limbs feel like they have been encased in thick cement blocks, making them unable to move. "I cast an immobilization spell," Emira gloats. "You didn't even see it coming, just like you never saw any of our attacks coming." She cackles evilly and sparks fly from her fingertips, singeing the grass around her. "Oops," she giggles. "I got a little too excited. We-" "What are you planning?" I growl, cutting her off. S
I open my eyes, slowly becoming conscious. The soft fabric surrounding me and lack of pain have me confused. Where am I? Wasn’t I trapped in the lab? How did I get here? Looking around, the room seems familiar. I sit up on the bed and it dawns on me. I’m back home. Not the packhouse, but my old home. Why am I here though? I moved into the packhouse a while ago. I need to go talk to Tyler. He should know. I launch myself out of bed and get dressed as fast as possible. Grabbing my wallet and keys from where they lay on my desk, I practically sprint to my car. I definitely break several driving laws on my way to the packhouse. At one point, I took a turn so hard I nearly flipped my car. My tires squeal as I skid to a stop in front of the large mansion. I don’t even take the time to shut my car door before running into the building and up the stairs to Tyler’s office. The door flies open as I enter the room, accidentally using too much force. A loud gasp echoes in my ears a
Beep. Beep. Beep. A loud noise awakens me, but disappears as soon as I open my eyes. My vision remains blurry and I swear that I can see a lab room with doctors bustling about surrounding me. My limbs feel heavy and weak. Then I blink and am back in the same bed I woke up in yesterday. I sit up, rubbing my eyes. Nothing has changed when I open them again. I am still sitting in bed covered by my navy blue comforter. My desk stands opposite my bed in the right corner of the room. Both my closet door and bathroom door hang open the way that I usually leave them. I slide off my bed and wait until my feet are buried in the soft, plush carpet before standing up. Then I spot it. My keys are on my desk along with my wallet. I know for sure that I left them hanging up in the hallway as I always do before going to bed yesterday. Perhaps, the day is repeating itself the same as yesterday. If that is true, then I may be in a nightmare. Upon realizing this, my mood immediately improves.
My eyes open slowly, and I realize that I had fallen asleep on the couch. I sit up, ready to clean up my dishes from dinner, but freeze when I see the room around me. It is smaller than the bedroom in my house, but just as familiar. "Arielle, it's time for breakfast!" voice calls up the stairs to me. "Oh, no. Not this," I whisper as I slowly slide out of bed. The hardwood floor is cold against my feet as I plod down the hallway and into the bathroom. My head barely reaches halfway up the mirror, and my hunch is confirmed. I am the same height as when I was twelve, and I bet today is also my birthday. "Arielle!" The feminine voice calls again. "I'm getting done!" I yell out the open bathroom door. Clanging noises echo upstairs from the kitchen as I shut the door. I get done quickly and rush downstairs. It is hard to believe my eyes when I enter the kitchen. My mom stands in front of the stove, stirring something in a pan while my dad sits at the table reading t
My nightmare repeats itself over and over again and each time I am younger than before. My helplessness is driving me crazy as I am forced to watch my parents die, unable to help. I wake up for the seventh time and my room is different from how I remember it. The walls are painted purple, but I only remember them being light green. My bed is also smaller. It suits my small, five year old body better than my normal twin size bed. I decide to lie in bed and think about my options. I have tried practically all of them without success. During the third round, I pretended to be sick the whole day, forcing my parents to stay home with me in hopes of avoiding the wolves. This ultimately failed when the rogue wolves broke into our house and killed them. Then I tried going into the city, going to another country, and even visiting the top floor of a skyscraper. Nothing worked. Each time the wolves came without fail. “Good morning, Sleepyhead,” a voice says. I roll my head to t