"Seriously, that person in the mirror is me?" I asked again, pointing at what was supposed to be myself. "I look so weird!"

Briar groaned. "C'mon, Ann, you're far from weird. Look at yourself. Really, study your face."

I looked again and Alexandre placed me down. I cautiously stepped over the mirror and held my hand out. I didn't touch the reflective surface, but I did study it a bit.

"No wonder Mom didn't want me to look. A mirror is so interesting when I can use it." I mumbled, moving from side to side to see if anything was behind it. "How weird."

"Anwyll reminds me of a puppy that can't figure out who the other pup is in the mirror." snickered a new voice, so I turned my head to the right to study the person who spoke.

Tousled waves of black hair were being held back with one hand, since I caught the boy raking his fingers through his hair. Two different colored eyes greeted me; one was a pretty light brown and the other was a dark green. A smirk curled the boy's lips as he stretched in his chair. He had long limbs and a muscular body, but he was more slim like Dian.

"Like what you see, pretty boy? Come to bed tonight and I'll show you how to play."

My ears perked and my tail wagged. "What would we play? Fetch? I like fetch!"

The black-haired boy's smirk fell. "Oi, are you messing with me? I don't take sh—!"

"Blaine, stop." growled Angel and Briar. "He doesn't know that kind of stuff."

Blaine paused, then his angry expression melted away moments before I stepped over to him with a big smile. "Let's get along and play together, okay?"

The green and brown eyes filled with sadness as Blaine looked at me. I tilted my head, then lowered my hand. It was grabbed up in a warm hand and I watched Blaine press a kiss to my knuckles.

"All right, Anwyll. Let's get along." Blaine chuckled, watching my cheeks flare up again.

I beamed with flushed cheeks. "Thank you!"

I hurried back to the mirror and peeked at myself again. I couldn't believe it.

My hair was a pretty purple-gray color with a silvery sheen when I turned in the light. My ears and tail were the same color, except that I had a white tip on my tail. I held my fluffy tail in my arms and admired the tip, like a paintbrush dipped in white paint. My lips were kind of dainty-looking, my nose was straight, and my eyes were quite large, but not to the point of being scary. My eye color was very strange. I had never seen violet-colored irises before. There were even flecks of silver in them.

Overall, my mom—err, ex-mom—was right about my feminine and childlike features, but I actually liked my look quite a bit.

"So, what do you think?" asked Briar.

I whirled around with a broad smile and hopped up to hug his neck. "I look pretty."

"Aw, how cute. What a treasure." sneered one boy, which made me frown. I glanced at the third to last male I had yet to be introduced to.

He had forest-green hair and rich yellow-green scales at the corners of his eyes. His eyes were brown, but the irritated expression on his face made the rich caramel color dull and dark.

"Don't call me again for something so stupid. I'm going back to my room, and Anwyll, you should stay the fuck out!" he shouted, then stomped off.

I blinked, completely stunned. "Um, who was that?"

Another boy sighed aloud. "I'm sorry for Zaire's behavior. He hates new people, but eventually warms up to them."

"Not quite lukewarm, but warm enough to at least heat you up on a minus zero degree day." snarked Damon, which made everyone shrug in agreement.

"So, um..." I twiddled my thumbs. "Maybe enough to hold hands?"

The nameless boy, who had apologized for Zaire, now began to laugh. I blushed and rubbed my face, but walked over to him when he patted his left knee.

"If you can get Zaire to hold hands with you, it would truly be a miracle."

I patted his hands. "I guess we'll find out, then."

"My name is Gavin. Zaire is my cousin. We used to be really close, but he changed after an incident. He never talked about it." explained Gavin, whose expression was full of sadness. "I wish he would have talked to me."

"I'm sure he will one day." I smiled, squeezing his hands.

The last person was actually a man like Angel, but he seemed to be a silently brooding type from the way he was glaring at the floor. I slowly stepped towards him, but heard soft warnings from the others. Even so, I wanted to try to be friends with everyone, even if it was impossible.

The man didn't seem to notice me moving closer, so I decided to err on the side of caution and flip my fluffy tail onto his ankle. He blinked, then lifted his silver eyes up to my violet orbs.

"My name is Anwyll. It's nice to meet you—?" I paused and held out my hand.

The man stared at it, then lowered his right leg to the floor. I could hear the whimpers from Briar, and I didn't take my eyes off the silver gaze. Those eyes held me in place anyway.

His fingers crept towards my tail, our gazes glued together. When his fingers brushed the fluffiness, I grinned at him. He chuckled as he took my tail into his hands and played with it a bit. It felt weird, but it wasn't bad. I kind of liked it.

"Ambrose," he said in a low voice. "My name is Ambrose."

My grin widened. "Thank you for telling me. I look forward to becoming closer to you."

His gaze flashed with coldness, but I only pouted at him until his eyes warmed again.

"I don't know what others have done to you, Ambrose, but they are not me. And I hope you can understand that with time." I smiled sadly, then stepped away when his grip on my tail loosened.

I held out my hand as I went back to the group, and Angel and Briar rushed to grasp it, but Damon got to me faster. I giggled and smacked the back of his knees with my tail.

"Hehe, you beat 'em to it."

Damon's cheeks warmed as he led me out of the room. I turned back to wave at my family. "See you later!"

Alexandre partially hid his smile behind his fist but wiggled his fingers at me. Angel and Briar were glowering at the back of Damon's head while Waltz was hitching a ride on Dian's back. Blaine and Gavin followed moments afterwards, but Ambrose stayed behind with Alexandre.

"That was amazing." remarked Blaine, so I glanced up at him with a curious glaze. "I have never seen Ambrose smile, let alone laugh, in all of the time we've been here."

"Really?"

Everyone murmured their agreement. Briar patted my head with a relieved sigh. "I was so worried he was going to knock you away."

"It's okay, I can take a few hits." I grinned, pumping my left arm. "I've gotten lots of practice."

The mood sobered as expressions darkened and I bit my lip. I always say the wrong things. I squeezed Damon's hand. My ears lay low and my tail hung limply as my own mood darkened.

"Did she hit you?" asked Angel, his voice deep with anger.

Damon stopped and turned back to look at Angel. "His mom?"

"Yes," I whispered, then crouched down into a ball. "S'okay, though. She can't hurt me anymore. You said that to me, Angel, so I'm gonna believe you and try to get over her."

I stood up again and burst into a run, tugging Damon along with me. He yelped, but I turned back with a broad grin. "Let's go play outside!"

Damon huffed, then grinned back at me. "You've got it!"

He pushed forward and dragged me after him towards the great room and to the double doors to the outside. We burst outside and I playfully howled my freedom. Damon laughed and chased me through the grass, then the others joined for a game of Tag.

______________________

We collapsed in an exhausted heap on the living room floor. I was on top, as the smallest and lightest, according to everyone including Waltz. I giggled tiredly, but I was so filled with happiness.

Alexandre wandered in about ten minutes later, but paused when he saw most of us asleep in a dog pile. He came over and tried to pick me up, but the others grunted and grabbed hold of my body, keeping me down on top of them.

I giggled sleepily. "Hi, Alexandre. How are you?"

He blinked, then his lips curled up. "I am doing very well, Anwyll. It seems as though you were the missing puzzle piece."

My tail weakly wagged across Waltz's back, which made him giggle in his sleep. I smiled at the headmaster, then kissed his fingertips as they brushed over my face.

"Thanks for saving me, Alexandre."

His eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

"I was so close to ending my life because it wasn't much of one." I murmured, barely able to hear myself speak.

Alexandre's form tensed. "Had you done anything before?"

"No, but I thought about it a lot. During making dinner, I would sometimes take a knife and aim it for my neck, but I'd chicken out in hopes that my mother would come to love me. I gave up on my eighteenth birthday."

"When was this?" asked Alexandre, although he already knew.

"Today." I whispered anyway with a teary smile. "So, thank you for giving me another chance to live and allowing me to have the best day I have ever had since my third birthday."

Alexandre's eyes filled with tears as he carefully knelt down and cupped my cheeks, threading his fingers into my hair. I heaved a sigh, my body shuddering with a relief. I felt his lips on my ears, then my forehead, and cheeks, finally landing on my lips. A happy tear slipped down my cheek, but Alexandre brushed it away.

"You will be happy here, Anwyll, this I promise you. No one will treat you as she had, and we will take care of you."

"Only if I can take care of you all, too." I whispered, then closed my eyes as exhaustion hit me hard.

"Anything for you, my little wolf. Sleep well." breathed Alexandre, his deep timbre lulling me to sleep.

______________________

I awakened to find myself in a room with another occupant. He was currently sleeping on the same bed as me, which I found very comforting. I squirmed a bit and freed my arms, then yawned while stretching my arms out. I then figured out there was another person. I'm kind of surprised I didn't notice him before.

I peeled my eyelids open and saw Briar's green eyes watching me. I blushed, sliding my tail between my legs to grasp it. Briar growled when I hugged my tail and cuddled with it.

"You don't fully realize how adorable you are." hissed Briar, his white teeth bright in the lamplight.

"I-I'm sorry."

Briar sighed and rubbed his temples. "Don't apologize, Ann. It's not your fault. You are just who you are, and we love you for it."

"W-we?"

"So far, you have charmed most of the inhabitants of this home, Anwyll." came Angel's voice from behind me, and I felt his arms tighten around my body.

I blushed a bit more. "O-oh, but I didn't mean to. Hopefully no one is upset."

Briar petted my hair between my ears. "No one is upset with you, Ann. We are all rather pleased about it."

My worried expression faded and I beamed at him. Briar gently stroked my nape, making me mewl with delight. He paused, his cheeks flushing.

"M-may I kiss you?"

I nodded shyly, eyeing him from over my tail. "P-please."

He slipped his fingers along my jaw, then lowered my tail as he leaned forward. I closed my eyes and felt our lips meet in a soft kiss. It made my body tingly. I liked that fleeting feeling, so I pushed forward as he drew away. He groaned softly when my lips hit his own for another kiss.

"Ann, don't rile me up."

I blushed and opened my eyes. "S-sorry, Bri. It felt good, so I wanted more."

Angel grunted and flipped onto his back, taking me with him. I straddled his hips and I giggled when I saw his horn. Sky blue eyes sparkled when I began to laugh.

"Hehe, your horn has a sheath!" I burst into a fit of giggles.

It was true. Angel had a thick sheath made of some kind of blue metal, but it must have been soft on the inside, otherwise he'd never wear it. I think all of our attributes are extra sensitive.

Angel chuckled. "Yes, otherwise I'd poke someone's eye out or..." he trailed off and his eyes dimmed.

"Angel?" I patted his chest. "Wanna kiss?"

He drew out of his thoughts and he smirked. "Do you want a kiss?"

"Yes, please..." I said, my cheeks warming again while his smirk deepened.

"Then come up here and kiss me."

I crawled higher and nervously hung over him. "Th-this is embarrassing."

Angel cocked an eyebrow. "Now you say that? After you kissed Briar twice?"

I pouted at him. "It's more weird when you're laying down. It feels like I'm going to awaken Sleeping Beauty and he's already awake."

"He, hmm? Are you calling me beautiful?" teased Angel, then my eyes widened.

I sat back and covered my face. I bit my tongue as my skin heated from pure embarrassment. I whimpered softly and curled up on Angel's chest. He laughed and petted my head.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. You're so fun to tease."

I lifted my head a bit and parted my hands to stick my tongue out at him, but he grabbed it. I dropped my hands and stared at him in shock.

Angel laughed and released my tongue, then tapped his lips. "C'mon, sweetheart. Kiss me."

I leaned over him again and stared at his handsome face. "Um, Angel?"

His pretty blue eyes sparkled with amusement. "Yes, sweetheart?"

"More than beautiful, you're unbelievably handsome." I whispered, then pressed my lips on his mouth.

Angel was frozen, and was still stunned even while I pulled away and sat back. Briar sat up and draped his arms around my waist, lazily rubbing his head on my cheek.

"What about me, Ann? Am I handsome?"

"Yes, very much so. I was amazed when I first met you. Your really pretty emerald green eyes made me blush at first sight, too."

Briar purred and kissed my cheek. "You're so beautiful, Ann."

I hummed, nuzzling his jaw. "Thank you, Bri."

Angel slowly sat up, then cupped my jaw and tilted my head back. "I'm going to kiss you, Anwyll. Prepare yourself."

"Wha—mmh!" I was muffled by Angel's lips, which moved mine.

I clutched his shirt when I felt him lick the seam of my lips, so I shyly parted them and moaned softly as the weird sensation of his tongue sliding on mine caused weird tingles to spark through my body. I mewled when he sucked my tongue, pulling my body closer to completely overwhelm me with his scent, heat, and taste. I could feel myself getting lightheaded, so I tugged on his shirt and made a noise.

Angel drew our lips apart and a string of saliva hung between us. He held my head while I panted breathlessly, trying to suck in some precious air. My chest heaved as I rested my head in his hands. His thumbs stroked over my cheeks. Angel shifted slightly to fold his legs underneath me, then kissed my temple.

"Did that feel good?" asked Briar, to which I weakly nodded and made him hum as he leaned his head on me.

"I couldn't really breathe, though." As I opened my eyes, I spotted Angel's amused expression.

He chuckled. "You'll learn to breathe properly over time through practice. Shall we go again?"

My eyes widened. Oh boy...