Monday Morning January 10th, 2011. Beacon Hills, California.
"Aye…. Maybe the pants weren't so bad, akere?" Mo said to himself as he sped down the connecting highway from the hospital in a bmw three series. Thanks to the nurse leaving her car keys in her pants pocket.
He settled into the smooth leather seats, purring as the engine roared and the speed of the winds spun in through his open windows.
It was almost like running again.
Then he exited the highway and hit a stop light.
"Eishhhhh…" He tried to keep his claws from popping out and tearing up the leather steering wheel.
In his halted motion, he was forced to finally face the agenda of the day.
"So….what have we done, Mo? We didn't show up at home. I'm sure my foster folks won't care. As long as I make it to school and enter some extra curricular they can report to the foster association. But I also have to stay under the radar so the cops don't track me down after last night. Bathong! This place has werewolves. Ones like I've never seen. I didn't expect that. Still... I shouldn't have went out on a full moon. I didn't even get to help the boy. He's an enemy now. Or he will be. Especially with an Alpha like that. I'll have to be careful…."
A cop car rolled to a stop in traffic behind him.
Mo's leg began to bounce.
He smiled at the idea, "Ok. I'll be careful...later."
When the light turned green, Mo smashed the gas pedal and flew down the street hitting eighty miles per hour by the time the cops lights flashed.
The chase took them through the quiet city all the way towards the forested edges where he ditched the car with the keys on the dash and took off into the forest.
He didn't need a two mile warm up this time. He was moving at top speeds as soon as he ascended the dirt hill.
The rest of the run was a breeze as he dashed through the sunlit greenery, following the flow of cars headed to Beacon Hills High.
The building was a modern westcoast castle of white brick and red accented edges with a parkinglot that rivaled his last highschool back in Brooklyn.
All was motionless except for an expensive in-year jet black Escalade that rushed through the steel maze.
Mo kept his senses aware as he entered the lot from the back end.
He ran through, trying his best not to let his eyes wander into the windows of the expensive vehicles. To avoid his sticky handed urges.
But then again, who was he kidding?
He reached the end of the parkinglot, jogging across the street to reach the school en—
A car honked and tires screeched but it was too late.
Mo was hit from the side by a vehicle in a hurry.
The hot front-end smashed against his arm and sent him rolling across the pavement. He wished he hadn't forgotten his ribs were still healing.
The alpha hit harder, though.
From the ground, he opened one eye and confirmed the car that hit him. It was the Escalade.
"Hehe….jackpot."
Quickly, Mo shut his eyes and groaned in…."pain" as the doors of the expensive minivan opened.
Out stepped a girl not much older than him— clearly frantic in her approach. From the drivers side, a militant middle aged man joined his assumed daughter to survey him.
"Oh my god!— are you ok? We're so sorry— we didn't see you coming. Do you need an ambulance?" The girl asked.
"Ah-eh... no, I'm ok I'm ok." Mo said as he tried to sit up.
A hand quickly came to his chest, holding him down. It was the father. His blue eyes were unmoving and unbothered despite what the rest of his face said.
"Are you sure? You were moving pretty fast, it's kind of why we didn't see you—"
"Dad! Don't blame him…." His daughter said before looking back at Mo.
She was…. angelic. Not at all Mo's type but he'd seen her type on every tv screen since he made it to America. The new girl with her pale skin, feminine innocence and perfectly coiled brown hair. She was like a Disney princess as she worried over him.
"You're right, Alison. I'm sorry I….. haven't gotten much sleep lately. I'll call the ambulance." Alison's father said and began to stand up.
"Oh— woah! No, thank you. I'm new here….. my insurance isn't fully set up. If you get that ambulance I'm in a special kind of debt for the rest of my highschool career."
"Don't worry about cost. It's my mistake, I'll pay it."
"Jackpot squared." Mo thought before replying, "Can we worry about attendance then, Thaema?"
Alison and her father shared a glance before looking back to Mo.
"I'm ok. It was just a bump, no? Look. Help me up." Mo began to sit up.
"Dad?" Alison protested in her princessly ways.
"He's stronger than he looks." The father shrugged and gave Mo a hand. His hands were calloused and faintly smelled like gunpowder.
Mo used Alison's fathers hand to help stand. He stumbled once on the way up and one of his hands found its way past the fathers coat pocket to stabilize. In a flash he was reoriented.
"See. Good as new."
The two looked up at him— finally realizing his towering height.
"You uhh…. play sports?" He asked.
"Oh of course."
"Basketball?"
"Baskets and balls are my speciality, akere." Mo agreed.
The father held out his hand after a few seconds of awkward silence. "What's your name, son?"
"Mo."
"What's that short for?"
Mo didn't like the inspection in his gaze. He grinned, "Something no white man I've seen can pronounce."
He laughed soundlessly. It was fake. Alison watched with visible discomfort.
"Well, my name is Chris. Chris Argent, and you've met my daughter Alison. She's new here. You'll have to show her around if you get the chance." Chris explained.
"I would if I could but I'm new too, Thaema." Mo said with a shrug and grin.
He raised his eyebrows in surprise, "Oh, well, this isn't the best start to a first day at a new highschool, is it?"
"I've had worse." Mo tapped his shoulder, the muscle was strong there.
Chris nodded as he looked him up and down, "Well, once you're welcome in, find the nurse just to get looked at. If you find any medical concerns or issues….. Alison will give you my number. I have to get going, work from last night is spilling over to today."
"Last night….?" Mo thought before nodding, "Good day."
Chris nodded and turned to his daughter, "Have a good day, sweetie. Call if you need anything."
He was gone.
Alison was chewing her fingernails as she stared at him.
Mo stifled a laugh, "Relax, miss. You wear your face like I still haven't gotten up off the road!"
Alison shook her head, "It's just….. we were driving over thirty miles per hour."
Mo clicked his teeth, "That's a ticket, no?"
"Do you joke about everything?" Alison asked as she looked back at the school entrance.
"…..I don't know." Mo shrugged casually.
"….your accent is interesting."
"Most say ugly."
"That's rude."
"Mhm."
"Where are you from?"
"Here and there."
Alison sighed and sat on a bench placed behind her, "Same actually. I guess I didn't get to pick up the cool hybrid accent, though."
"We can't all be blessed, Ally-cat."
Alison looked up at him suddenly.
"What now?" Mo asked.
"Ally….cat?"
"You know. The strays in the alleys. Always shivering and staring." Mo acted out his explanation.
Alison deflated even further.
"But they also kill with terrifying efficiency. The eyes never lie, alley-cat." Mo pointed from his eyes to hers.
Alison firmed at his words.
"Always butter up your target." Mo thought with a satisfied purr.
"So, you get to be called Mo, and I'm alley-cat?" Alison asked.
"Would you like to call me something else?"
Alison nervously laughed and looked back and forth from him, "Heh— no… I…. I don't know—"
"Come on, skeem! We're the new kids on the block. You hit me with your car— I'm wounded! Give me the gift of a name at least!"
"That's not cool."
"It's January. Everything is cool." Mo said.
Alison rolled her eyes and relaxed as she looked at him.
The silence was cut when she spoke again, saying, "Spider."
"Excuse?"
"Your nickname is spider." Alison repeated.
"Eh?"
Alison pointed at his legs.
Mo looked down at himself and grinned, "HAHAHA! Spider…. Like daddy long-legs!"
"Yea, and I'm not walking into this school calling you….. daddy anything." Alison laughed faintly as she replied.
"Fair fair." Mo nodded.
It was then that the school doors opened and out came what Mo assumed was the principle.
"Alison Argent and Mod—"
"Mo."
"Mo." The principle nodded, "Both of you come with me and I'll get you sorted for class. I hope you have pencils."
"I think I do." Alison said.
Mo didn't even have a backpack.
Mo motioned for Alison to take the lead and she did nervously and at a brisk pace.
They entered the school soon after and were eventually split up to go to their first period classes.
Alison had history. Mo had algebra.
***
Alison arrived partway through her class and was seated in the only open chair. Behind a boy named Scott. She dug through her bag once she was seated, trying to also listen to the teacher explain the details of the syllabus while searching for her pencil.
"Come on. I swear— the one thing I was focused on was bringing a pencil to school. At least to doodle during the boring bits." Alison thought before exhaling angrily, "I don't have a pencil."
Scott suddenly turned around with a pen, "Thought wrong?"
She took the gift with a smile.
***
Across the first floor in algebra, Mo sat at the back of the classroom with his long legs sprawled wide beneath his desk and a pencil stacked behind his pierced ear.
Suddenly something buzzed in his pocket.
Mo waited for the teacher to turn around to face the board and took the stolen phone from his pocket. Chris Argent's phone.
The screen blinked on and showed the block of new messaging.
It read.
"Sherif Stiles and his crew didn't find the other half of the body. Requesting permission to alter the plans for hunting this wolf. It's beyond the norm— especially with the other creature fighting it. It might be a territorial dispute that could endanger more people."
"Oh no..." Mo's leg bounced up against the underside of his desk.
"Alley-cat's dad is a Hunter?!"