The Guest & The Change - By M. D. Bowden Page 0,15

to see how Sarah would react. Would she hate him? It would be fun to see Daniel tormented. He couldn’t believe he was acting like this, and with a human! It was so unlikely. Hmm, but this Sarah was quite stunning, Sebastian could see why Daniel was so smitten. In fact, he was taking quite an advantage, she was obviously hurting. And she lived in another world. Maybe Sebastian could turn her. - If he could get her alone. He suspected Daniel would protect her now. He must suspect the danger in his situation.

Hmm, if he could just exert a little power, maybe Daniel wouldn’t even notice, he could plant an idea in Sarah’s mind. A location to visit.

Sebastian flew off, from tree to tree, back towards Jo and their night of hunting.

Jo awoke to find a bat hanging upside down, right in front of his face. The bat was staring at him intensely with those large dark eyes. They looked like they stretched to infinity. Sebastian. The bat looked amused and transformed back into a man. A man who perched next to him on his branch. From the light shining through the leaves Jo guessed it was mid-afternoon. He felt hungry, his throat dry, parched.

He breathed in deeply, taking in nearby smells. He could hear Sebastian’s blood pounding through his veins but it didn’t hold the same appeal as that delicious girl’s blood. Sebastian’s heart beat was slower, inhuman, and his blood wasn’t as fragrant. He listened to sounds of the forest. He could hear birds in the trees and small mammals scuttling in the leaf litter. But he couldn’t hear any people. He wanted to hunt.

‘Not yet,’ said Sebastian, seeming to read his thoughts. ‘We need to wait until late before we head into town, until the bars are buzzing and crowded, until people are intoxicated and won’t notice us.’

‘But I want to hunt now.’

‘I could teach you to hunt animals; they can still quench your thirst.’

‘Yes, let’s do that. What can we hunt? Bear?’

‘Yes, if you like. Deer and wolf are also good. You can eat small mammals too, but they don’t have much blood so it’s best to save those for when you have no other options.’

Jo wasn’t sure about the idea of animal blood, it didn’t sound as tempting as human. But he was so thirsty. He felt restless and wanted to learn.

‘Tomorrow I will teach you animal transformations, but you’re not powerful enough yet. You need more blood.’

The word blood made Jo’s thirst increase.

‘Follow me,’ said Sebastian.

Jo watched as Sebastian jumped down from the tree, landing lightly. Sebastian quickly transformed into a wolf, sleek and long and grey, but with eyes like a bat, dark and stretching to infinity. Eyes you could get lost in.

Sebastian shot off, faster than any normal wolf could travel. Jo hesitated for a second. Then he ran, following Sebastian’s trail. It wasn’t difficult, he could sense his movement ahead, and Jo found he was fast. He was racing through the woods, wind blasting against his face and neck. It was cool, and had Jo been human he would have been freezing. But he felt exhilarated, adrenaline pumping in his veins. Every tree Jo passed was in sharp relief, he just had to focus with his mind and he would zip past, narrowly avoiding branches, still keeping Sebastian in site.

Sebastian stopped by Jo’s car and transformed back into himself. Jo approached him at a rush and came to a quick halt, skidding on the forest floor and pounding into his old car, denting it lightly. He felt the bonnet, memories of past drives with his family flicking into his mind. Sarah. The thought of her filled him with an intense longing. Feeling his teeth extending, Jo imagined sinking his fangs into her neck and draining the life out of her.

Jo looked back at Sebastian, he was looking amused and mischievous. But Jo couldn’t care, so absorbed with the new sensations he was experiencing; his desires, his enhanced sensations. In fact, he felt care-free. He didn’t mind what happened anymore. He didn’t feel depressed. He didn’t feel torn. He felt full of life. Glory. Like his future was full of excitement and experiences. Blood. Power. He wanted to feed.

He looked at Sebastian, who was still watching him closely, and Jo waited for him to tell him what to do. He was at his command, eager for instruction.

‘Right, you listen. What can you hear?’ said Sebastian.

Jo concentrated on his surroundings, feeling blood