Prologue

There were many things in my childhood I blocked out. Not intentionally, but I guess I just... forgot. Something in my past that shaped me as a person. But what was it? I don't know... It was a long time ago...

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"Termin! That's not fair! You're older than me! I can't keep up!"

Since I wasn't paying attention while I was shouting, I tripped on a loose rock and face planted with my light up Dora The Explorer shoes above my head. Dry dirt and wild grass flew into my mouth on impact with my chin stinging from the fall. I moved onto back and saw my knee scraped and bleeding. My face went into a pout and I started to cry.

Termin came running back to me and looked at my knee with annoyance.

"Dani, why did you hurt yourself?" he grumbled. I cried even more. "Okay! Okay! Here, I'll take you home."

"Later-" I mumbled in between sobs, "L- L- Later, can I be the Alpha this time?" Termin sighed and frowned.

"Fine, but you have to go fast. You're always so slow." I nodded, still crying. Termin turned around and bent down to give me a piggy back ride. I latched on and he immediately took off through the brush into the cool trees back towards my home. He ran so fast it made me bounce up and down but I didn't complain this time, even though he made my knee hurt worse.

When we made it back down the mountain and reached my house at the edge of the woods, he stopped and set me down, hesitating.

"Are you stopping because Mommy doesn't like you?"

"Yea..."

"I like you, though. Your fun to play with."

"You're okay... But you suck at being the Alpha."

"You promised I could next time!" Termin laughed and messed up my tangled hair.

"I know. I will. Be good okay?"

"I will."

And with that, he walked back into the woods.

I went underneath the hole in the chain link fence that marked my backyard, and through my back door while crying.

"Daddy!"

Mommy walked out of the kitchen with the same expression she always had on her face. Tired. She saw the scrape and sighed, putting her hands on her hips and gave me "The Eye". I lowered my head and put my hands together, not wanting to look her in the eyes.

"You were in the woods again weren't you?"

I sniffed and shook my head. She grunted and sighed.

"Danielle, we've talked about this over and over! You can't keep running off into the woods with your imaginary friends!"

"Termin's real! He took me home!"

"Then where is he?"

Daddy came running down the stairs from the noise.

The next thing that happened was almost a blur. It started with my parents fighting, my mother breaking things and long periods of time where she was gone. Then, I moved. I figured out later that my parents divorced and my mother got almost full custody. Dad was allowed to visit, but only on Christmas, Easter, and sometimes other holidays when my mother allowed me to see him. I never got to go back and see my lovely home in the woods again.

Till today.