Prologue

            The forest is a dark, dark place. It’s especially dark and mysterious during midnight where there’s nothing to be seen.  There were only various noises to be heard throughout the night. Predators rustle through bushes, hunting for a midnight snack.  Branches and twigs were being snapped as creatures ventured through the dark. The wind whistled through the leaves and trees. The thick stench of dirt and pine and the earthy smell of beginnings and endings roamed the land. The forest is never asleep.

One shouldn’t be running through them this late at night. Although there was no light to be seen- not even the moon - Maria Bloodworth had no problem getting to her destination. When the moon was up, so was she. Maria was running as fast as she could, cradling her beloved child in her arms. The man on her trail was struggling to catch up as she moved through the trees. Maria had reached a cottage and started to pound the door till it opened up on its own.

            Inside there was a young looking lady stirring a giant pot containing a foul smelling broth. Maria ran up to the sorceress and handed the child to her.

            “Please, Celeste, I beg of you. Raise my child as if she were a one of your own. Please, I beg of you. I don’t have much time left!” Maria pleaded to her sister. Celeste looked at her sister with sympathy and brushed the hair out of her younger sister’s eyes.

“I’m honored that you trust me with your own child,” said Celeste, “But why would you ask me to do such a task?” Maria looked down at her daughter and stared into her big red eyes. Tears started to build up in Maria’s eyes.

            Before she could respond, the mad man who was chasing Maria throughout the woods had barged through the wooden door. The man looked completely exhausted but he still had the strength to complete his task. He started to walk forward through the scattered pieces of chipped wood. Maria’s heartbeat sped up as the killer got closer and closer. She whipped her head back and turned to her sister.

            “Keep Scarlett safe.” said Maria. She handed her child to Celeste and her heart sank. The killer was a few steps away from reaching Maria. He pulled out a wooden stake and before Celeste could register what was going on around her, Maria felt the other end of the stake come out through her chest. Little Scarlett started to wail and scream at the top of her little lungs. Celeste had finally come to her senses and grabbed her wand from the stool to her right.

            “Carmine caperent!” Celeste exclaimed with both rage and sadness. The trapping spell was casted upon the killer. Before he was enclosed in the bottle sitting on the shelf with the other potions and exotic ingredients, the killer yelled in his husky voice, “Just you wait, I will have your entire kind extinct even if I have to accomplish this myself! I already got your husband!” The man’s voice faded and he disappeared into the bottle on the shelf.

            The sorceress returned to her injured sister who was on the verge of passing into the after life. Celeste knelt down to Maria. She looked up to Celeste with her eyes barely open. Her face was paler than it usually was and her hands were crimson red from the wound in her chest.  Hot tears rolled down Celeste’s pure white skin. There were no words that could describe the feeling of pain and misery flowing through her mind and heart. It was as if her heart was wounded like her sister. 

            “MARIA! MARIA! Speak to me! Please!” Celeste’s only focus was on her wounded sister. Celeste’s mind was trying to find a healing spell but she was to overwhelm by the scene laid before her. Maria had hazy vision but could faintly depict the image of her sister’s shiny golden locks flowing from her head. Before her memories could flash before her eyes, she slowly started to move her hand to cup her baby’s cheek. Maria opened her mouth slowly to speak. By that action, she grabbed Celeste’s full attention.

            “Ce-Celeste . . .Take care of her . . .” Maria whispered, “. .Our vampire legacy shall live on.” 

 Chapter 1

The plane landed smoothly and the pilot steered the plane to its designated gate. “Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to Mayville. Please remain seated until the aircraft has come to a complete stop.” Announced the flight attendant. Scarlett continued to tune out the rest of the announcements made and turned up the volume of her music. Her plane ticket still remained clutched tightly in her hands, like how it was at the beginning of the flight. The piece of paper, that was once neat and straight, had dark wrinkles where Scarlett kept her grip. Her aunt placed her hand on her niece’s fist. She felt the hand relax a bit. “Scar, I think your gonna like it here. Plus you’ll be much safer.” Said her aunt. Scarlett looked into her aunt’s blue eyes. She released a deep breath, hoping the nervous feeling would go away.

            “I hope so.” They grabbed their carry on bags and caught a taxi to their new house. Scarlett threw her bags into the trunk and sat in the back row. Aunt Celeste got into the passenger seat at the front of the vehicle and buckled her seatbelt. The taxi driver slammed the door causing the entire car to shake. Scarlett was way too jumpy and the simplest thing like the vibration of the motor starting made her jump two feet.

As they kept driving, they passed tall buildings and all sorts’ people walking on the sidewalks heading to their destination. The busy, urban city made Scarlett wonder if New York was as busy as this. They continued to drive until they descended into a less populated part of the town. The sunlight leaked through the trees and reflected off the car windows. They were soon in a calm neighborhood with small houses in the area. There were kids playing outside and they stopped to look at the taxi, curious about it’s passengers.

            The taxi stopped in front a small house with a giant truck sitting outside that read ‘Johnny’s Movers.’ The house wasn’t to big but was the perfect size for two. It was greyish blue two-story house and the windows had a white frame. The roof had dark grey tiles and a few solar panels sitting near the chimney.

Scarlett’s aunt paid the taxi driver, while Scarlett got their bags out of the trunk. The driver left the neighborhood then the two went inside their new house. The movers set up the living room and put the beds in the rooms. They spent the entire day setting up their new house and now all there was to do left was unpack their clothes.

             “What do you think, Scar?” Scarlett turned to her aunt and smiled. “Aunt Celeste, I think I’m going to like it here.” Said Scarlett.

             “I think so too” said Aunt Celeste. She went into the kitchen and started to boil some water in a red kettle. She pulled two tea bags out of the white cupboard and placed them in two mugs. Aunt Celeste poured the boiling water into the mugs and put a few drops of blood into one of them. Celeste carried the mugs and walked over to the grey couch where Scarlett was sitting watching television. Scarlett

             “I’m kind of worn out so I’m gonna head upstairs. Good night, Aunt Celeste.” Said Scarlett as she when up the stairs to the room down the hall. The door creped open to a plain room with a few boxes, an empty closet, and her bed in the corner of the room, already made.  Scarlett took out a thin grey long-sleeved shirt and black shorts, changed her clothes, and then lay down on her bed. Tossing and turning till she laid flat, her head sinking into her pillow. And she soon fell into a deep sleep.

            Scarlett’s vision cleared to see that she was trapped in white. There was nothing around her, just white. Everywhere she looked, she was completely surrounded by nothing. In the distance, a happy couple was standing at the opposite end of the area.  Scarlett recognized the two people standing. The man’s black tailcoat suit and the woman’s red and black dress stood out from their setting. Her mother and father were standing there, right before her eyes. They were calling her name over and over; encouraging her to come to them. Scarlett slowly lifted her feet one by one; her pace started to speed up but her parents were getting farther away. The clacking of her boots was echoing off the blank walls. The room went on forever and Scarlett seemed to be going nowhere.

            Scarlett almost reached her deceased parents. She reached out her hands to her mother and father. But they started to disintegrate into the empty background. Her parents were gone again. She was too late. Scarlett fell to her knees and sobbed into her hands. Her cries were bouncing off the walls as she mourned about her parents.

            “Scarlett! Scarlett, wake up!” yelled Aunt Celeste. Scarlett slowly opened her eyes, the sun shining down from the window across the room. Scarlett scowled at the sunlight then slowly got out of bed; moving as slow as a zombie. She went to a box with all her clothes inside. She unpacked some of her clothes and put them in the closet. She took out a loose grey shirt, black shorts, black leggings, and her famous red and black striped jacket. She dragged herself down the hall to the bathroom and got dressed Scarlett returned to her room and took out a long belt. She wrapped it around her waist twice, one loop loose, so that it hung down on her right side. Scarlett grabbed her phone from her nightstand and when downstairs.

            Aunt Celeste turned around from the stove and put one of Scarlett’s favorite foods on the table, red velvet pancakes. Scarlett especially loved Aunt Celeste’s pancakes because she added a something special just for Scarlet; blood. “Eat up. You don’t want to be late for school,” said Aunt Celeste

            “Thanks” replied Scarlett. She took a plate and took two pancakes. She poured some cream cheese syrup and started eating. She finished fast and went to grab her black backpack. She swung the bag over her shoulder and zipped up her black boots. “Okay let’s go” said Aunt Celeste. They both went outside to their car, a pure black Porsche. “When did the car arrive?” exclaimed Scarlett. In reply, her aunt just winked at her. By that wink, Scarlett knew that her aunt used magic. They got into the car and Aunt Celeste started the engine. Scarlett was so nervous. Her stomach was turning and doing a bunch of flips. She could almost feel the pancakes coming back up.

            They continued onto the freeway, Scarlett was looking out the window. So many things were going through her head. Aunt Celeste could feel Scarlett’s nerves. Out of nowhere, Aunt Celeste pulled out a cup with a lid and a straw and handed it to Scarlett. She took the cup and sipped the red liquid through the straw. Scarlett savored the red liquid in her mouth as if it were a gift from the gods. She felt her fangs come out of her gums but as soon as they pulled up into the school’s parking lot, they turned back to normal. Everyone just stopped everything that they were doing and stared at the car. Aunt Celeste stopped the car in front of the school’s entrance.

            “Okay Scar, this is your stop. Have a good day, now don’t get into trouble, okay? Bye sweetie have a good day now” said Aunt Celeste. Scarlett pulled her black backpack over her shoulder and stepped out of the car. Every step she took felt like she was getting closer and closer to her doom. “Bye, Aunt Celeste” she said as she closed the door. As she entered through the school doors, she immediately received stares from the other students as she walked down the halls. Couples stopped making lovey-dovey faces at each other, nerds looked up from their video games and comic books, but the worse thing that happened was walking into the group of pops.

The popular kids, or the pops, were the people at the top of this school. Just by being within 10 feet of them, you can smell their popularity level. The group was filled with cheerleaders, jocks, and the queen bees. The cheerleaders were the side followers, the jocks were the tough guys, and the queen bees surpass them all. They’re the top of the top. Once they set their eyes on Scarlett, she knew she was dead meat. Every student in that hallway was shocked by Scarlett’s next move.
            “Who is that?”

            “Is she a new student?”

Other students whispered to one another as they stared at Scarlett walked through the group of Pops. She walked through the group as if she were Moses when he split the red sea. Scarlett just tried to ignore the others and kept walking towards the administration’s office. The Pops were so surprised; they could have won an award. It was like the school’s popularity system has been disrupted. Everyone just watched Scarlett walk down the halls like nothing happened. The bell soon rang and the students scattered through halls to their next class. Scarlett continued to travel through the maze of lockers until she saw the sign pointing to the administration’s office.

Scarlett finally reached the office on the right side of the hallway. She reached for the golden doorknob and turned it slowly. The door made a loud screech that echoed off the walls. There in the office sat a small lady with small thin-wired glasses that sat on her nose and her gray hair pulled back into a small bun. The walls had pictures of various black and white photos of previous students. Most of the pictures were of the students receiving awards or accomplishment medallions. The woman looked up from typing on her computer and looked at Scarlett. She adjusted her glasses so that she could get a clear look at Scarlett.

            “Hello there. You must be our new student, Scarlett Bloodworth. I’m Mrs. Sulligan, school administrator. Welcome to Starlingridge High School.” Said the elderly lady. She held out her hand to Scarlett and they shook hands.

            “Nice to meet you.” Replied Scarlett. Mrs. Sulligan pulled out a skinny white folder and handed it to Scarlett. “Here is your class schedule and locker assignment. Please follow me to your first class” Mrs. Sulligan got out from behind her desk and opened her door. Scarlett followed her out the door and down the hallways. They stopped in front a door and Mrs. Sulligan turned the doorknob. The door opened with a loud creak. “Do all the doors here squeak?” thought Scarlett. The students in the room looked up from their phones and stared at the doorway. The teacher in the room looked at Mrs. Sulligan and Scarlet.

“Oh, you must be our new student. Please come in,” said the teacher. He was a very tall, thin pale man. He wore a black collared shirt with a red tie and black slacks. Scarlet walked inside, her stomach was turning as everyone was watching every move she made. The students was monitoring her every action.

“Thank you, Mrs. Sulligan,” said the teacher. Mrs. Sulligan closed the door and returned back to her office, ”Welcome to our class. I am Mr. Devonshire. Please, introduce yourself to the class” Scarlett slowly turned towards the class. The desks were long tables so there were two students per table. Everyone’s eyes were staring into Scarlett’s soul. She opened her mouth. “I’m Scarlett Bloodworth.”

“It’s very nice to meet you, Miss. Bloodworth. Could you please take the empty seat next to Miss. Brewer” said Mr. Devonshire as he motioned to a girl with light brown hair.

Scarlett walked down the rows. She could feel their eyes move when she did. Scarlett reached her desk and took the empty seat next to the brunette. The girl had wide rimmed glasses that sat on her face. Her bangs swopped right across her forehead and looked as if they were freshly cut the previous day. The girl looked up from the book she was reading under her desk. She turned to look and gave her new tablemate a friendly smile. 

“Hey, I’m Jenifer but you can call me Jenny” said the girl.

“Nice to meet you” said Scarlett. They both smiled at each other. That was the only good thing that happened so far that day. Mr. Devonshire slapped his hands together that made a loud echo to get everyone’s attention. He faced the students.

“Okay class. Let’s begin our lesson. Please open your textbooks to the page on the board and read the following pages” He dropped a book on the table in front of Scarlett. The giant book cover read, ‘History of the World.’ Scarlett scowled at the book.

            Social Studies and world history wasn’t her forte. At her previous school, the teacher would always call on her and she would never have the answers. Sometimes she thought the teacher would purposely call on her just for the embarrassment. History just didn't click in her brain. In middle school, Aunt Celeste would help her past with a simple spell but that was enough to past with a B-. Apparently magic has boundaries too. She understood every other subject but that one.  She hoped that one day that history would make sense but that day hasn't come just yet.

            Scarlett looked around the room at her fellow classmates. Kids were sleeping one by one. Heads were falling onto the desks, others were texting their tablemates sitting right next to them. The goody two-shoes in the front were jotting own every word that came out of Mr. Devonshire’s mouth. It was just another average high school. On the other hand, Jenny’s head was stuck in a book. Scarlett was trying to read the title but every time she tried to sneak a peak, her head automatically moved away. The strange sensation when ever her head was shifted felt so familiar. It was like magic.

            The thought of Jenny being a sorceress was peculiar to Scarlett. But then again, when Scarlett was little, Aunt Celeste would use a similar spell to save the “fruit punch” from the little vamp. Scarlett has never met any other “unnatural” people on earth. She’s met sorcerers before, but that was when she went with Aunt Celeste to the wizard council meetings. Apparently she’s very widely known in that universe.

When she was little, Aunt Celeste was too lazy to call a babysitter. She wasn’t a fan of paying a stranger to watch her child. And leaving a human with a baby vampire going through her teething stage isn’t a safe idea. The risk of getting exposed was just too risky, even for Celeste.

Scarlett tried once more to see what was inside Jenny’s book. To no avail, her head motioned to the side and focused back to her opened textbook. Maybe she was a sorceress. Or maybe Scarlett was still recovering from her new student nausea.