CHAPTER 3

Brody laughed at the mirror before him. The figure reflected back smiled back, it grin wider, it white fangs gleaming in the light from the room. It was after school on a Friday night. Standing in a new outfit that he had bought just for this occasion, he held his arms out.

“How do I look?” he asked his friend.

His friend gave a approving nod of his head at the white jeans and black v neck long sleeved top.

“I like it. You picked the right clothing.” it said.

Brody smiled even more and nods “Thanks. I guess I should go then. They will be here in a few.” he said as he turned from the mirror, going to his bed and snatched up his new black jacket.

“That is fine.” came the voice from the mirror. “We shall have a nice time I suppose”

Brody smiled at him as he slipped his small arms through the jacket sleeves. “Yea, I have a feeling we will”

He cut of the lights and headed for the door. Heading to the stairs he began to whistle that tune he had never heard, but now seemed so familiar. He stepped past the hall mirror and flashed his friend a bright smile, its blue eyes gleaming with satisfaction brightened more.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs he started for the door down the short hall. To his left his mother stepped out from the dinning room, her arms folded over her chest.

“Where are you going?” she asked, taking in his appearance. The new cloths, shoes, his black hair brushed back from his face instead of hiding it like normal. The new jacket. She raised a brow at him.

Brody smiled at her as he let the whistling die. “I am going out to a party.” he said happily.

His mother frowned “Since when do you have friends?” she asked confused.

He shrugged casually “For a few weeks now. They attend my school. They invited me.”

His mother sighed and shook her head some “You have been acting differently of late. You dress differently. Your grades have improved, you talk without stuttering. Is there something going on I should know? I mean, is one of your friends responsible for this change in you?”

Brody simply smiled and nodded his head happily. “Yeah! He's great too.” he said.

She looked at him for a moment silently “He?”

He nodded and chuckled to himself. That was all he was willing to tell her. Since that night when he met his new friend, things in his life have become better. His bullies have seemed to vanish. The police were looking for them. They had even questioned him, but they had nothing to say that he had anything to do with their disappearance.

That damn Ruffles was gone, and hasn't been seen for the last three weeks. People at the school began to notice him now ever since he had obviously stood up for himself again in a class room where the offending boys head had met his desk a few times. Once again, Brody didn't remember doing that, but apparently he had, and the kids at school now liked him.

His friend had kept his promises to him. No one bothered him anymore.

Except one.

He didn't want to think about that. Tonight was about having fun. The sound of a horn ranged from outside. Brightening suddenly he ran to the door and flung it open, slammed it shut just as his mother went to say something to him. He raced to the car and jumped into the back seat.

Three others occupied the dark car. Jake in the driver seat. His spiked blond hair brushing the roof. Cathy, his girlfriend in the seat beside him. Her dark blond hair hanging to her shoulders. Her brown eyes lit up when he slipped in next to Van.

Van smiled at him, his hazel eyes watching Brody as he settled next to him. “Excited?” he asked

Brody nodded happily as Jake put the car into reverse, backing out of his drive way. Soon they were off.

********************

Brody giggled. He slapped a hand over his mouth to stifle the sounds. He tried again to open his front door. It was locked, he should know that. He looked at the glass embedded in the door. 

The blue eyes that looked back at him seemed to glow in the moon light. The shadowy figure there was now about his height instead of towering over him like before.

“I forgot my key” he giggled to his friend. Once again slapping his hand over his mouth.

He swayed on his feet a bit and caught the door frame for support. 

He heard a chuckle echo in his mind.

“Go around to your window in the back of the house.” his friend advised.

Smiling at the idea Brody turned and staggered to the back of the house, completely missing the fact that there were now two cars in his drive way instead of one like before. Once he reached the back of the house, he looked up to his dark bedroom window. He looked around for a moment, his vision going blurry. He giggled again and looked at the glass of the back sliding door a few feet before him. His friends blue eyes could be seen gleaming back at him.

“Now how am I gonna get up there?” he giggled to him.

With a large smile his friend tilted his head to the side “Allow me” he answered.

Suddenly the same feeling of darkness from inside pushed Brody aside, covering him in a now familiar hold as everything, even feeling went away.

Curling up in a ball with a giggle he let the blanket of shadows envelope him.

********************

Smiling at himself, he easily leaped the feet it took to grab a hold of the roof of the back porch just under Brody's bedroom window. Pulling himself up with ease, he got to his feet. The body staggered a bit. Growling at the feeling of fighting for control of the body he quickly made his way to the window quietly.

He didn't like the feeling of this. Reaching the window, he slipped his growing nails under the sealed window, he shimmed them under the closed pane. When he got them in there good, he yanked upwards. The lock gave a popping sound as it gave way. Lifting the window he slipped inside. He turned and closed it.

“Where have you been?” came a deep voice from the shadows.

Turning around to face the room again, he looked to the darkest corner. He saw the outline of the large man sitting in the chair there. Calmly he took a few steps towards the bed

“Out.” he answered simply.

Unlike Brody, he held no fear of this man. He often wondered why Brody would fight him when he tried to keep this man from hurting him. Brody would refuse to go into the darkness. He smiled now.

Brody wasn't here to stop him this time.

The lamp on the desk beside the chair was turned on, the mans blue eyes was enraged.

“Out!?” he said harshly.

He nodded his head as he dropped the new jacket to the bed, followed by the white tight jeans. He didn't want to get Brody's new pants dirty by accident.

The man jumped to his feet just as he tossed the pants onto the bed. He grabbed his hair and yanked his head back to look up at him.

“Who do you think you are talking to?!” he roared “You go off without telling your mother! You come home four in the morning with no call to let her know that you are alive, and then you have the nerve to stand there and disrespect me!”

He met the mans eyes with a bored look in his own. He didn't bother to reply. There was no need to do so.

After staring at one another for a few moments, the man realized that the boy before him wasn't looking at him like he would normally. There was no fear, just empty eyes boring back into his own. His stillness began to unnerve him. He didn't even flinch like he would when he reached for him. Nor cry out in pain when he was rough with him.

Yanking on his hair harder there was still no response. Not even a hitch in his breathing.

That flat look slowly began to fade, and a look of immense joy began to spread through them. This threw the man even more. His hands began to shake a bit. He released the boy and then struck him across the face with the back of his hand.

His head didn't even budge.

A smile now spread across his face as the man looked at him in confusion. A chuckle built in his chest and leaked through his lips a moment later.

The man took a step back as he allowed the chuckle to fall into a full blown laugh. He almost doubled over laughing.

“Is that it? Is that all you could do? “ he asked between laughs.

The man struck him again, harder this time. He watched as the boy continued to laugh, the blow having no obvious effect.

“Please. Try again.” the boy said as he threw his head back and laughed.

The man, by now was more then a bit afraid something had happened to his son. “What...” he never finished the sentence.

The laughter died. Those blue eyes landed on the man with an true intense look of glee.

“Are you done already?” he asked sweetly, a grin coming to his face, the light gleamed off his white fangs.

The man eyes widened as he took a step back as the boy stepped forward. He opened his mouth to say something, to apologize, to beg, but nothing came as a cold hand wrapped around his throat suddenly, cutting of his air.

“I would gut you. I would take my time and slice you apart. But I don't wish to get the floor bloody. “ came the smooth voice. He held the mans gaze as his hand tightened even more, crushing his windpipe calmly.

The mans hands came up to his chest, trying to push the boy off of him, his eyes wide with fear as his efforts went unsuccessful.

“The blood stains would be too hard to get out of the carpet.” his eyes left the mans and looked across the room at a half opened door. He smiled even more, his face seeming to stretch to accommodate it.

“I have an idea.” he continued to crush the mans neck in his hand as he walked towards the door, carelessly dragging the man along with him as he now clawed at his arms, his legs kicking trying to get them under him.

He paid him no mind as he pushed the door open. Walking inside he kicked the door closed and locked it. He hit the light switch in the large bathroom, instantly chasing the dark away. He walked towards the four man sized shower stall. He opened the glass door and slung the man inside, his hand still securely wrapped around his throat.

Shutting the door with his free hand he turned his attention to the weakly struggling man. He let his grip loosen a bit. The man struggled to take in a breath through his damaged airway. His eyes wide with panic as his pulse raced with fear.

He smiled at the man “Now I can have fun. I can just wash away all the blood when I am done.” he took a hold of the mans arm still clinging to his and pushed it back until it snapped with a audible cracking of broken bones.

His hand covered his mouth as a scream rose up. He yanked again and the bone pushed through the skin with a jagged edge. He then pulled it free, ripping all the flesh with it. The blood poured freely from severed veins and arteries.

He hummed as he watched the look of horror on the mans face. Throwing his head back he lifted the arm up. He opened his mouth as the blood rained down on him. His swallows were loud as he enjoyed the taste, his eyes never leaving the mans.

His long purple tongue darted out, it licked at the exposed bone. Wrapping around the limb, it guided it into his mouth as it widened to allow him to swallow it whole.

He smiled down at the man, his face covered with blood, his body wet with it, his hair matted together.

“You see where this is going.” he said quietly his smile stretching even more, flashing his blooded fanged grin at the man. “I am going to enjoy this.”