"You're back!" I squeal in delight, most likely sounding like an absolute child while I throw myself into their arms, clutching them tightly in my embrace. They chuckle at my enthusiasm, but they still wrap their arms around me, reciprocating my warm welcome.

It's only been about a day since I last saw them, but it felt like an eternity. Especially after finding out they're my mates, and I just couldn't contain my excitement.

"Hey, kitten! I'm guessing you missed us," Cole snickers, and I giggle, slowly separating myself from their warm bodies.

"Of course I did." I shove his shoulder playfully, wiggling my eyebrows.

"What has you in such a good mood, princess? Not that I'm complaining. Just curious," Xavier asks, one brow raised.

"Oh nothing," I giggle mischievously, looking over to Ash. He winks at me, and I turn back around to the other boys. "Just that you're my mates," I finish, hands clasped behind my back while I rock back and forth on my feet.

"What?! How did you find out about that, Ava?" Xavier asks, eyes wide in shock. He directs his gaze over to Ash who is currently looking at the floor like it's a mosaic. "You asshole! Why would you tell her without that?" He yells at him, and I put my hand on his chest comfortingly. He looks back down at me, and his features soften.

"I made him," I answer for Ashton. "He accidentally slipped up and said the word mate, and I practically forced him to tell me," I continue, and Ash looks up from the floor to give me a thankful smile. I return it gladly.

"So," Cole starts. "You aren't mad?" I turn to him in shock, eyes wide in frenzy.

"Of course not!" I answer quickly. "I'm so happy I think my heart is going to combust, actually."

"Whew," he blows a breath of relief, sweeping the nonexistent sweat off his forehead. "I thought you were gonna freak out," he admits, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

"She kinda did, dude," Ashton chuckles, and I turn to glare playfully at him.

"Shut up," I grumble, though I'm not actually irritated.

"Come on, guys," I'm quick to change the subject. "I wanna play with your wolves. It's been a while since I last used my magic, and I might, quite literally, explode if I don't let it out soon."

They nod eagerly. They're either excited for their wolves to finally be able to play with me again, or they don't want their house to burn. Either way, I don't really care. It's not like the fire could burn brighter than Cole's eyes, anyway. I practically skip to the backyard, completely content with my life as of this moment. My magic is buzzing within me, and it's difficult to keep it from emitting all at once.

It's like a lightning storm in a bottle. Bolts are constantly striking against my skin like it's the thin glass that contains them, and they want so badly to be free. So they never stop trying, and soon, they're able to make their fateful escape -- theoretical bolts shooting out of me in the form of a bright, golden light. They're emitting everywhere, from my toes to my fingertips, surrounding me in a blinding glow.

"Holy shit, Avelyn," Cole gasps, covering his eyes like the other two, trying to block the blinding light from damaging his retinas. "Has it always been that bright?" I'm unable to answer him at this moment because the glow doesn't falter -- continuing to surround me in its too-bright fluorescence and draining all of my energy.

But finally, the bursts of golden magic finally begin to subside, and I fall to the ground, already completely exhausted. But my boys are fast on their feet, arriving at my side in a matter of seconds.

"Fuck! Are you okay, babygirl?" Ashton asks frantically, and I try to catch my breath to no avail. I feel like a heavy weight is being pressed on my chest, constricting it and cutting off any possible air flow. He lifts me up, cradling my body and tucking it into his strong chest. My breathing soon begins to even out, and at last, I feel like I'm not being suffocated to death. My chest rises and falls with heavy breaths. They're greedy as I try to inhale as much oxygen as physically possible.

"That's it, Avelyn. Breathe for me," Xavier says, grabbing my hand and caressing it comfortingly as he crouches down at my other side.

"What the fuck was that?" Cole questions no one in particular, not expecting an answer.

"I-I don't know," I confess, still breathing in roughly. "I think it was just because I haven't used my magic in a while."

"Well damn, I knew you said you'd explode, but I didn't think it was actually going to happen," Cole comments. "The trees around us that were hit by the blast literally disintegrated," he says in awe.

My eyes widen. I've never been without using my magic for more than a month, so I never actually knew what would happen if I didn't. I just knew I felt like I was going to combust.

'Poor trees.'

I sigh, sitting up slowly in Ash's arms, and he lets me up begrudgingly, still wary for my health. I glance down at him and sigh.

"I'm fine, I promise. That was just the most power I've ever felt before, and my body didn't know how to handle it. So it just collapsed. But I'm all good now. I can assure you," I announce, turning to the other two so they could get the message, too. "Now let's go play."

"Are you sure you can still play? I don't think it's a good idea. I know you said you're fine, but we can't actually be sure right now, Ava." I roll my eyes at Xavier's words.

"If you guys don't come, I'll leave without you," my voice is determined, and I will not be swayed. I flick my silver hair over my shoulder, looking at all of them seriously to convey my message. They sigh and slowly follow me as I turn my back to them to walk into the woods -- my happy place.

"Are you sure we should be following her? She doesn't even know where she's going," Cole mutters, most likely thinking only they would hear.

I scoff. "I heard that," I declare, rolling my eyes. "I figured I could keep walking until I found something interesting." They chuckle behind me.

"You wanna know some place interesting?" Xavier asks, and I turn quickly to meet his eyes, practically jumping in excitement.

"Ooh, yes, yes! Show me!" Okay, now I actaully am jumping in excitement. They laugh, and he grabs my hand, leading me to 'some place interesting'. I follow along happily, basking in the breeze and its gentle caress on my soft skin.

Soon, we're arriving at an open field. The open plain is covered in flowers of all types: dahlias, sunflowers, tulips, chrysanthemums, and more. I've never seen a place so beautiful. I giggle, spinning around joyously.

"It's beautiful, Xavier!" I turn around and jump on him, wrapping my short legs around his waist. I give him a hard kiss on the lips, jumping down just as fast as I jumped on. He looks at me completely flabbergasted.

"Aww, I wanna kiss, too," Cole whines, and I giggle, skipping over to give him a peck as well.

"Um," Xavier starts, unable to find the words to convey his shock. "D-did you just kiss me?" He asks. I roll my eyes.

"Jeesh, you act like I've never done it before. What? Can't a girl kiss her boyfriends?" I quiz back, wiggling my eyebrows teasingly. He smiles, astonishment leaving his face, and joy successfully taking its place.

'That rhymed!'

Nobody cares, Ava. Nobody cares. I roll my eyes once again, this time annoyed with my brain and its constant inner-monologues.

"I was just surprised, that's all," he chuckles. "It's been a while." With his admission, he rubs the back of his neck bashfully. I grin at his cute, nervous behavior.

"Well, I'll make sure to make it a more regular occurrence, then," I wink, making him blush. It makes him even more cute, the blush blending in slightly with his auburn hair and accentuating its natural vibrancy.

"Come on, guys," I whine childishly, grabbing Ash and Cole's hands since they were the closest. "I wanna play." They chuckle but follow along, anyway. I suddenly let go of their hands and put my hands over both eyes, turning away from their direction. They laugh once again.

"What are you doing, Avelyn?" Xavier asks, smile evident in his deep voice. I sigh, hands not leaving my eyes.

"You have to shift, right? I'm just sparing my eyes," I explain, and I can feel their burning stare on my back.

"It's not like you won't see it all soon, anyway. And besides, I'm sure you'll enjoy the view," Cole teases. If my palms weren't pressing against my eyes right now, I'm sure I'd be rolling them, but it's not like I could argue. I know he's probably right; I would enjoy the view. I'd probably enjoy it a little too much, actually. So I don't reply. They seem to realize this, and I can tell they've started to undress by the sounds of clothes falling to the grassy, flower-covered plain.

And before I know it, I feel something gently pressing on the small of my back. I giggle, turning around immediately knowing exactly what it is. I look down, but not that much considering they're almost as tall as me in their wolf forms, and see honey blonde fur. I'm quick to run my hands through his soft tendrils, and I hear a low, satisfied rumble coming from Cole's chest. Well, Comet's chest. At least, I'm pretty sure that was what Cole said his wolf's name was.

I look over to the left to see Ash and Xavier rolling around in the field of flowers, fighting playfully. I sigh in content, basking in this wonderful, comforted feeling I have within. And my tattoos buzz in agreement -- their names creating a tingling sensation on my pale skin. I've said it once, and I'll say it again...

'This is happiness.'

☆☆☆

They look so joyful, so at ease and carefree. I smile at the sight. My sister, Avelyn, she truly looks happy with those dogs. Um, I mean... wolves. I'll probably have to get used to calling them that from now on. My grin slips a little when I see her use her magic. I'm happy for her. Honestly, I am. But I can't help but feel a little jealous, too.

I'd gotten my wings taken away the moment I'd killed my parents' murderers -- taking my magic along with it. I don't regret it, though. I learned from it. As psychotic as it might sound, I enjoyed it. Not the murdering part. That's just sick. I enjoyed the revenge aspect. I enjoyed seeing the light leave their guilty faces and watching their souls be condemned for their evil personalities and ugly conducts.

I guess I deserved to get my magic taken away, but it's still taken me awhile to get used to its absence. I can no longer shoot that familiar golden light out of my palm as my innocent sister can, but she always deserved a fate better than mine. I wish they would've taken me instead of her, but it's too late to turn back time. And sadly, that wasn't an inclusion on my old list of powers.

Once you've committed a sin as great as murder, you're basically no longer "clean" or "pure". And you get everything taken away: your wings, your magic, your purity. A guardian's once pure blood turns black. It runs thick and without authenticity or innocence. It loses its healing properties, and, if ingested, can be lethal -- killing someone within minutes.

Though, I don't just go around killing innocent people. I only do it if they deserve it. If their fates aren't worth living any longer. If they're literally just wasting the air someone else deserves to breathe more than them. I'm not evil, and I'm not malicious. I promise. I just like to do the work of other angels by other means. I mean, it's not like I have the same powers as I did before, and it's not like they'll be able to actually obliterate evil unless they want to tarnish their immaculance. So how else would I get justice for another? By revenge, that's how.

That's why my sister's second abductor is dead -- murdered ruthlessly. That was the fate she deserved, and I don't regret a thing. Actually, I do regret something. I regret not letting her wolves join. I'm sure they would've enjoyed some good-old-fashioned revenge. Karma, if you will.

Though, I'll make damn sure Avelyn never truly knows of my sins. I don't want her innocence to be tainted. She's the good in this world. The kind of person that can burn brighter than the sun. And I'll be damned before anyone lets her light burn out.

She may be the sun, but I'm the moon -- always following in her bright shadow, looking on from a dimmer, more bleak distance and existence. I may not be able to outshine her, but I can sure as hell make sure her shine never dulls. Because the day the sun stops shining, is the day the world crumbles--me following right along with it.

____________________________________

So don't worry, there will definitely be quite a few more chapters in the future! I also foresee much more smut in the future for those of you who only really came for that. You know who you are! Lol, I'm just kidding. And I'm definitely not judging. Lord knows I like it just as much as the next girl, and at least I'm not afraid to admit it.

And one last thing, even though I know I've already said it before, my other book Fairytales Don't Exist is out now. So you should go and read it. *wiggles eyebrows suggestively* Come on, you know you wanna. Anyway, that's enough ranting...

So, as always. Until next time...

Sincerely,

The Annoying Author Lady