The Drakons

"Nycto! Where are you hiding?" I call out into the eternal night of the woods. The bushes next to the back door rustle. I run back into the house. He's not allowed to frighten me again. I might end up seriously injuring him this time. Nycto is my mate. Ironic right? Hi, my name's Ivory. Nycto and I live away from cities. In a place where it's eternally night time. It's better for our eyesight. Light can damage our ability to see, period. I'm shaking my head when he comes inside.

"What?" he asks. He shakes his wings out and wraps his arms around me from behind. I smile.

"You're a dork," I say as the candles in our house flicker. I give Nycto a quick nod and head upstairs while he gets the salt. We may be fallen angels, but we are still paranoid. It's most likely just one of the kids. I pass the first door to the upstairs hall. Our weapons closet. The kids think it's embarrassing photos of them from when they were infants. The second door is to Nycto and I's bedroom. The third is our daughter, Lily's room. I head in there first to see that she's having a nightmare. I hum a morbid lullaby as I cautiously step forward. Lily shoots straight up and looks at me with tears in her eyes.

"Mama?" she asks me.

"Yes, I'm here, sweetie," I cross the room over to her and lift her out of her toddler bed. She clings to me, her arms around my neck. I carry her out of her room and go to check on Evan. His room is the fourth door down the hall, across from the bathroom. He's laying upside down on his bed reading a book when I knock on his door softly. He looks over at me, his long hair hanging down. These kids will never have their hair cut. Nycto comes upstairs, his breathing rapid. He meets my eyes and takes Lily out of my arms. She starts panicking too so I send out a pulse wave. She falls back asleep on his shoulder. I motion Evan forward quietly.

"Bunker down, everything. We're going under lockdown." Nycto tells him. The high angels must have found us. Or maybe it was the demons. Ugh, we have too many out looking for us. Evan nods and begins blowing out candles throughout the house. This isn't his first lockdown. But it is Lily's. She wakes up and reaches for me. I take her back to her room and try to explain that we can't go outside for a while. Fresh tears form under her eyelids as she processes this. I wipe them away gently.

"But what about Panda?" she asks in that small voice of hers. Crap, I reel and tell her to stay put, to go in her closet if she hears anything. Panda is our husky/hellhound hybrid. He usually stays outside but, in a lockdown, ... I shake out my barely used wings and jump from Lily's window. Nycto closes it behind me. Panda is growling at a tree when I find him. I whistle low and clear. He turns toward me and bounds into the house, leaving me with whatever is out here. I concentrate and motion with my hand. The front door shuts, it's echo loud in the quietness of the prowling predator. Nycto grabs my hand and tries yanking me back. I push him toward the house as I feel claws go down my back. I turn to see a purebred hellhound. These fuckers again? Panda needs to mind his own. My vision turns black when I hear my daughter crying. Nycto attacks the hellhound head on. I spin back around and go into the house, looking for my spell book. Evan and Lily are sitting underneath the table. They look terrified. I circulate my vision, returning my eyes back to normal. They must have come down to see Panda. I whistle again. He comes as beckoned and I command him to stay near the kids.

"Ivory, stay inside! I got this!" I hear Nycto yell. I growl and grab the nearest projectile I can find. A salted silver spike. I take it by the tip and drip my blood onto it. Everything around me goes silent. The only sound is the blood rushing in my ears. The spike leaves my hand and sails straight for the hellhound's heart. A thud resonates back to the house. Nycto pushes the beast off him, its blood flooding the area around him. He comes into the house and locks the door behind him. Panda goes over to Nycto and licks the blood off him. Nycto shrugs and scratches the hybrid under the chin. I pick up Lily and Evan and bring them upstairs, blood still rushing in my ears. Adrenaline. Addictive as it can be, it isn't safe to indulge in when the kids are around.

"Ivory, come down here when you're done. I have to talk to you!" Nycto calls. I shout back an agreement and set the kids in their respective room. When I got back down, Tala and Volk are sitting at the dining room table. I balk. They never come over unless it is a grade A emergency.

"What happened?" I ask. Tala looks at Volk to answer. He motions back to her. Nycto throws his hands up in frustration. Okay then... Scilla comes out of the basement. She's holding some sort of blade. It looks cool.

"Granted the circumstances, we've decided we're staying with you until the heat dies down. And then we're gone," Tala says. I tilt my head then roll my eyes, crazy people. I motion them to the basement where they usually keep their stuff. Nycto snaps his fingers, relocking the house.

"Next time you guys want to hang, send an owl or something and not piss off our familiar. Or scare the kids for that matter." I say as I reassemble the kitchen. Tala puts her hand on my arm and volunteers to do the dishes. I slowly back away and let her do her thing. Nycto and I head upstairs to check on the kids. Scilla follows us.

"Of all the inconvenient times to show up..." Nycto cusses. He and Scilla were solidifying their mate bond. I was used to being alone, so I decided to give him to her. She was so worried about taking him from me I finally said screw it and broke it off. Sad, yes, but for the best. I peek around to see Evan reading to Lily. I smiled and motioned Nycto and Scilla to come see.

I head in there and give the kids hugs and kisses goodnight. Giving my two friends a sad smile, I jump out the window and fly away. Toward a new beginning.