For Rei and Nat the last couple of months had been a whirlwind of adventures.
After acquiring the Ring of Change the two teens discovered just how powerful magic could be, creating a pair of friends, a kid they now babysat, and all other manners of things. As the school year ended the girls found themselves happy and with friends. Things though, had gotten a bit odd.
It started when the teens babysat for the Harris family, quickly discovering that the couples three children were in fact mythical in nature. One moment they were taking care of a 3 year old girl and her younger twin siblings and the next thing they knew they were tasked with caring for a kitsune and a pair of diaper clad kintaro.
Things only got weirder when they met Gloria, the teenage girl from the Magic Shop, and her friends. Rei and Nat quickly learned that they weren't the only ones with magic in town. It appeared that their home was populated by an entire community of wizards.
Finally, as Freshman year came to an end, the two teens found themselves dragged into a confrontation with vampires. Thankfully for both teens their contact with vampires was limited to a single experience. A pair of female vampires tried to kidnap the Harris children, only to be foiled by Nat's mother Marisa. It did though lead the girls to meeting a Demon Hunter family as well as another damphir.
Meeting the Morelands was interesting, both girls being introduced to Jacob and Nina Moreland, as well as their son Caleb. What interested Nat the most though was Duke, the damphir son of Miro Tepes aka the Lord of the Vampires. Before school ended Nat had a chance to talk with Duke, the two half vampires having a chance to get to know each other, with Nat learning of her potential as a damphir.
With school ending and the summer beginning Nat and Rei found themselves savoring the joys of summer. Lazy days with their new found friends, the Desoto's, found the quartet growing closer. So much so that Nat and Rei revealed the power of the ring to them. The two teens shared everything they had seen with the siblings, from their experience with wizards, to demon hunters, to vampires, and even the nature of the Harris kids. Still, their was one secret that Nat and Rei guarded very closely.
Nat had still yet to reveal her damphir nature to the Desotos. She hadn't even mentioned her mothers true nature as an actual vampire to them. Nat was still guarded about this family secret and as much as it pained her, she kept that tidbit of knowledge to herself.
As July now gave way to August Nat, Rei, Miranda, and Miles now found themselves exiting the movie theater late on a Friday night. For the teens, this was becoming a weekly tradition. The four would go to the mall, eat dinner before catching a movie. More often than not the group would be picked up by one of their parents before returning to their homes. Tonight though, the group asked to walk home.
The teens lived relatively close by and with Nat's mother busy working on her new novel (a mythical story about a kitsune samauri who protected a baby wizard) the teens were left without a ride. Asking their parents if they could walk home, they were pleasantly surprised to see them all say yes. As they stepped into the summer night, they found themselves overflowing with excitement.
"Man that was fun," Miles exclaimed happily, a wide grin plastered on his face as he gazed at the night sky.
"I know and those end credit scenes," Rei replied. Nat and Miranda simply chuckled as they gazed at Miles and Rei. "We've already seen the movie three times," Nat laughed.
"I was talking about the girl who gave me her number," Miles replied slyly. Miranda and Nat laughed, rolling their eyes at the handsome teen. As the group laughed, Nat sighed in contentment.
At first worried about turning their personal bully into Miles and Mirandas mother, her fears were quickly put to rest. The twins were still exceptionally friendly, their changes appearing to be physical in nature only. When the spell was originally cast returning the twins to their youth, the teens had been a rather light skinned pair of Puerto Rican teens. Now though, with Gabby as their mother, the teens physical appearance had changed.
The teens skin color had darkened, appearing more tan, while their hair had gone from brown to black. Interestingly enough their hair was still rather straight, gaining a natural wave to it. This led to Miles hair appearing a tad thicker and more untamed, while Miranda sported a natural spiral curl to her long hair. Gazing at the young and beautiful biracial girl, Nat and Rei couldn't help but be just a bit jealous of Miranda's gorgeous hair.
As the group journeyed for home, Nat couldn't help but smile. She was finally making friends. Gone were the days when she and Rei would quietly hang out at eachothers homes, watching movies or reading comics. She had a social life now, branching out, feeling accepted by her peers. She and Rei had been wallflower Freshman year but come the fall things would change, she could feel it.
Passing the woods now, Nat paused. Part of being a damphir meant she had excellent night vision, able to see in darkness as if the sun was shining brightly. As they passed the woods, the teen had clearly seen movement the others hadn't. What was worse was that she immediately re ignited what it was. "Um Rei," she stammered. "Can you come here."
The group paused as Rei now approached her girlfriend. Nat now leaned closer, whispering something to her. Rei's eyes now went wide. "Are you sure," she exclaimed.
"Sure about what," Miranda asked. Rei and Nat now nervously glanced at their friends as they searched for an appropriate answer. "Um nothing we should go," Rei said quickly as she tried to hurry the twins forward. The twins though stopped dead in their tracks, furrowing their brow as they stared at the young couple.
"Thats bull and you know it," Miles replied. "What is it?"
"A...Code Fang," Nat replied meekly, her statement sounding like more of a question than an answer. The twins now raised their eyebrows, giving the two a quizzical look. "Whats a Code Fang," Miranda asked.
Rei and Nat now fidgeted in place, they didn't want to alarm their friends, but neither one was any good at keeping secrets from their friends. Sighing their shoulders now slumped as they glanced sheepishly at their friends.
"It umm means I saw a vampire," Nat replied sadly. Miranda and Miles eyes went wide, the two teens now scanning the darkness. "How though its pitch black," Miranda exclaimed. "I thought you said they were gone," Miles added in alarm.
"They were mostly gone," Rei replied sheepishly. The teens now anxiously glanced around the woods, wondering what to do. "We should move," Nat stated. "Quickky!" Nodding in response the group now began to hurry, anxiously glancing at the shadows, fearful something would leap out of the darkness.
As the group rounded the corner, they paused as they listened to leaves rustling. Fearfully gazing at a set of trees, they held their breath as all went silent. The silence though was broken, in the darkness the group now witnessed a man sized fireball erupt before quickly extinguishing. Screaming in fright, the teens stood stone still, gazing at the embers nestled ina group of trees. Shaking herself out of her stupor, Nat now cautiously approached.
"Nat what are you doing," Rei hissed.
Tiptoeing towards the embers, Nat now anxiously gazed at the ground. The vampire that appeared to have been stalking them had been reduced to ash. The only evidence remaining was a silver tipped arrow.
As Nat now gazed out into the darkness, she gasped in fright. From out of the darkness a bolo had come flying towards her, wrapping around her body. Losing her balance, Nat now fell to the ground hard. Groaning in pain, she listened to her friends frightened cries.
"Told you I thought there was another one!"
Groaning, Nat now blinked her eyes. As her vision cleared, she was surprised to see a punky looking 15 year old girl with green hair standing over her.
"Huh," Nat asked, obviously confused.
Now another figure stood over her, a teenage boy her age holding a crossbow. Nat studied the boy carefully, he was handsome with sandy brown hair and grey eyes. As he looked at Nat carefully, his expression soured as he now turned to the green haired girl. "Thats not a vampire Spark its a damphir."
"Potato, Potato," Spark shrugged. "Better safe than sorry. Am I right Connor?"
"Hey ASSHOLES," Miles exclaimed as he charged towards Spark and Connor. Nat now watched as the waifiah green haired girl assumed a fighting stance, ready to attack before Connor held up his arms. "Whoa easy," Connor stated, putting his crossbow down. "It was an accident I'm sorry."
"You just attacked our friend," Miranda exclaimed. "How do you accidentally attack someone."
As Miranda and Miles argued, Rei now sprinted to Nats side, trying to untie her. "Are you okay," she asked.
"Hey its a simple misunderstanding," Spark exclaimed angrily. "We thought your friend was a vampire."
"How could you think Nat is a vampire?"
"Cause she's a damphir duh," Spark bellowed.
Nats face now went red, her eyes tearing as Miles and Miranda gazed at her curiously. Her family secret had just been exposed in a way she was not ready for. "Nat," Miles asked. "Are you a damphir?" Nat nodded sadly, her head hanging as she stared at the ground.
"Why didn't you tell us," Miranda asked.
"Its kind of a family secret," Rei interrupted, now speaking for her best friend. "Nat doesn't really share that bit of info. She didn't even tell me until years after we became friends."
A silence now hung amongst the teens, none knowing what to say. Connor now blushed, bending down as he cut away Nats bindings. "I'm really sorry," he said softly. "Please don't be mad. My names Connor. This is Spark."
"I'm Nat," she replied sadly. "That's Rei, Miles, and Miranda." Connor now gave the teens an awkward wave as he helped Nat to her feet, apologizing profusely as he did. As the six teens now gazed awkwardly at one another, they wondered what exactly to talk about.