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Carmilla had Dani lead me back upstairs and to the door. Saying that she and Josephine had some things to discuss.

The dark haired girl, oh she was every bit as beautiful as the others I'd seen, just... edgier, more punk with her spiky hair, makeup and clothes, cheerfully led me through the maze towards the front door cracking jokes and teasing all the way.

“Are you always like this?” I asked her and at her curious raise of an eyebrow I made myself a little clearer. “I mean so bouncy and stuff?”

“Usually, kid.” She giggled, did a spin right in front of me and faked a curtsey because she was wearing black leather pants. “If ya can't enjoy what you got what's the point of breathing?

“Oh, right, I don't breathe.” She laughed and winked at me. “At least not a lot of the time.”

This gal was flaky, but kind of fun at the same time. I kind of liked her. “Uhh, I'll just let that last one go for now, if it's okay?”

“Whatever floats your barge, boat, canoe, or whatever.” She grinned then got a thoughtful look on her too perfect face. “Oh, don't be surprised to see me, or Josephine around a lot in the near future, not hovering, just watching. Mama San is really interested in keeping you alive, but if you don't see us — well that doesn't mean we aren't there or anything. Just scream real loud and we'll notice.”

The gal obviously had a few screws that weren't all that tightly fastened, but she was likeable, and I still got the impression that she really wasn't a person anyone with good sense wanted to have mad at them.

Much better to have as a friend, even if she was probably a friend who liked practical jokes a little too much.

At the door, Dani grinned at me again, flicked my chin with a finger so quickly I hadn't even seen her move and nodded. “Yeah, you'll do, honey. Remember, holler if you really get into a bad spot, okay?”

“I will.” I promised. Somehow, flaky as she was, knowing she would be around if I needed help was kind of comforting. Especially with how fast she could move. I was fast, or had been and was now faster, and not even seeing a hint of her hand and finger do that chin flick thing was kind of unnerving.

Okay, be honest here. It was really, really scary. I was glad she was on my side.

I was kind of quiet as Terry got out of his pickup to open my door for me. Even his over maleness and my still not quite welcome femaleness didn't really break through my thoughts for a few minutes. Until I heard him asking. “So where to now, princess? Home?”

“No.” I let out a breath. “Take me to dojo please.”

“You got it.” He nodded as he started the truck and didn't even ask where the place was.

Well, Ravencrest is a pretty small town. Anyone who lived there pretty well knew where everything was.

It was a really quiet ride.

When he let me out in front of the dojo, Terry gave me a long, serious look. “You know you can come to the Guardian anytime you need help. Even Hunters might think twice before storming into there, given a lot of the clientele and people who work there.”

“Thanks.” I answered, thinking that now I had two safe havens offered to me in one day. That had nothing to do with my own family. “I'll remember that.”

“Do that.” He nodded and got one of my larger problems going big time by giving me a quick hug. “You're a good kid, Cindy and I'd really be pissed off if someone killed you.”

Wow, first vampires and now a wolf was hinting that he'd defend me too. And that hug did things to me I really, really didn't want to think about. Not even a little.

I smiled, nodded, and waved as I headed into the dojo, taking the time to shout. “Thanks for the ride!”

He waved as he drove off. I wanted to wave a hand in front of my too warm face. I really had to get these hormonal reactions under control.

Getting to the locker rooms I stopped in my tracks so to speak. I'd always used the male side, but obviously I couldn't do that now. I'd nearly walked into the guy side without even giving it a thought.

“This is sooo messed up.” I grumbled while thinking that getting into the girls changing room last week would have been a dream come true. Until the girls in there beat the crap out of me.

Now it would just be a normal thing. And the really toned girls and women who used the dojo would just see me as one of them.

Worse, I didn't have any exercise clothes.

With a sigh I turned to go to the little shop that was part of the dojo to get some things I could wear to practice in.

There wasn't a huge selection, something I thought needed to be changed. I ended up with several pairs of what they call yoga pants. Tight, flexible, and with legs that just stopped right below the knees. A few sports bra/halter kind of things, leather fingerless gloves that looked way to small, some foot booties that passed for socks, and soft shoes that went up to my ankles.

All in all, less than satisfying and really pretty revealing. But you couldn't do the kind of things I practiced in sweats all that well. But I got a few sets of those, too.

I got changed, then just sat there in the locker room and thought for awhile.

I had some really big problems here.

Number one. Being a girl. I seemed to be falling into that way too easy and that bothered me. A lot. You'd think I would have had to take a bunch of time to adjust to that. But I was just falling into the whole thing like I'd fallen down a well or something. I didn't even want to think about what I would be like once I hit the water at the bottom of that figurative well.

Problem number two. Hunters. In town, knowing what I was and after me now even if they hadn't tried anything yet. But they'd just spotted me earlier in the day so I didn't think that point counted all that much or had been really driven home to me yet.

Problem number three. The rather ordinary looking family at least one of those Hunters was stalking. And their child who I seemed to have an obsessive need to protect. Which would bring problem two back into things.

Much as part of me hated to admit it, the first problem kind of fell into the background considering the other two. I had things to deal with here that made becoming a girl kind of unimportant at the present.

“Looking good, uhhh, Cindy.” Chris commented while I was taking a break from punching and kicking the bags.

“My balance is off.” I answered, then blushed, actually blushed when what he'd said really got into my brain and told me what that could mean.

“Not that much.” He answered. “Just remember that your real power is from you hips now, not your shoulders.”

“I know.” I grimaced and gave the bag in front of me one last, spiteful kick.

Which broke the chain the held it to the ceiling.

“Got to watch that.” My brother chuckled. “We're stronger than we used to be.”

“No shit.” I grumbled but still kind of impressed at what I'd just done. “But my moves don't fit my balance any more.”

“Give it a little time.” He reassured me. “You're really close as it is, and I've seen girls that were — born that way — have more problems with it.”

“Yeah, about that.” I shook my head.

You need to braid all that hair before you spar with someone, you know.” He told me quite practically then nodded. “Yeah, ready to have that talk yet?”

“Maybe?” I answered with a little lurch in my tummy. Okay, since when did I start calling my stomach my tummy?

“I can wait till you're ready, Cindy.” He shrugged.

“No, I think it's a good time.” I told my twin.

“You sure about that?”

“I'm not sure about much of anything just now.” I let out a sigh. “But I have to face what happened and what is probably going to happen. So yes, I'm sure.”

“Okay.” He gave me a hesitant smile and finished. “Office?”

“Good idea.” I nodded and followed him there.

The office was comfortably familiar. Given that this was a real working dojo, there weren't any of the crap you see in some places to get people to join and spend their money for something they might or might not use.

There was a desk, a laptop that was closed up, some chairs and a few posters about upcoming events and competitions. It was a familiar, comfortable place.

“This is so weird.” My brother shook his head and sighed as we settled into chairs. The desk was Carly's and our father's before that, neither one of us had ever sat behind it.

“Try it from my end of things.” I told him.

“Rather not.” He kind of grinned then got all serious and confused looking again. “I mean your were my identical twin, but now you're this hot looking sister that I feel like I have to protect. What's up with that?”

“No idea.” I said quietly then shook my head. “But it happened and now we have to deal with it. And I'm pretty sure I could protect myself just fine thanks. But the thought was nice.”

Where did that come from?

“Must be instinct, or something like that.” He nodded thoughtfully. Chris didn't carry my grade point average, but he was far from stupid.

“Probably.” I nodded. “But I don't know, I really don't know what's going on with me right now.”

“You are falling into the 'being a girl' thing really fast.” He answered. “Why?”

“If I knew that,” I grumbled, “I'd have half the problem solved here.”

“Instinct.” He said it again. “I heard Lady Moon not only touched you, but came when you called, too. Maybe she's helping you adjust. But we are coyotes as well as human, and instinct is something that rules us as much as thought, you know.”

“Been finding that out lately.” I grumbled again, but what he was saying made sense. “I've been having thoughts and feelings, doing things, that I'd never have been caught dead doing before our birthday.”

“Well, look at this way.” He offered. “At least you aren't some guy stumbling around in a girl body. And don't say you are a guy. I've seen you at school, in town, and you move like a girl, react like a girl, and face it. You really look like a girl, and a pretty hot one.”

I so didn't need to hear that from my own brother. I shot back with a halfway snide response. “So that makes me a girl? And why would you be at all interested that your new sister is hot?”

“Our --my friends talk.” He answered with a sheepish little smile and shrug. “You know how guys talk when they're with each other. I've had to stop myself from crawling all over a few of them about you already. You may not be my brother any longer, but you're still family. Now that you're my sister I kind of get all defensive about how other guys think of you and really get pissed off at what they sometimes say about you.”

What could I say to that? My brother still loved me.

“Thanks.” I felt tears starting and furiously tried to stop them, which only made things worse. There I was, crying, in front of my own brother. But it was a good cry, about feeling good about someone and happy.

Still, it was crying. Sheesh.

“It's okay, sis.” He actually moved up to hug me. And I didn't get any of those really uncomfortable feelings when a guy would do that. It just felt good. Then he gave me an evil grin. “Just glad it happened to you and not me. But you'll handle it, like you always do with things.”

“Better be really glad about that one.” I slapped his shoulder and managed a grin. “You'd make a really awful girl.”

“Would have said that about you before last weekend.” He quietly answered. “Why just you? Why didn't it happen to both of us?”

“I don't know.” I shook my head and just looked at him. “I just don't know, and no one else seems to either.”

“Shit happens.” He was back to his usual 'so what' mode, but that was comfortable given that was the way he'd always been around me.

I had my brother back, though I knew I'd never really lost him.

Being his sister was still kind of a shock to the system, but you can't have everything.

“Better hit the showers, sis.” He grimaced as his phone buzzed and he looked at it. “Aunt Cecily wants us home. Now.”

“Uh oh.” I grimaced, too. “As in now like in twenty minutes or as in NOW like an hour ago?”

“All caps.” He answered.

“Oh, boy.” I sighed and got up to head to the showers.

“Why would she warn me about strangers in town?” Chris asked just a got to the door.

“Uh, right now you really don't want to know.” I said very quietly. “Just stay away from anyone you don't recognize on the way home, okay? I'm sure we'll get told about it once we get back.”

Oh, yes, I was sure of that.

“Well it must be important, Uncle Patrick is coming to pick us up.” My brother told me with a worried look.

“It is.” I told him with a worried look of my own. “Tell you about it later, okay?”

I had just enough time to gather my clothes and new purchases, when the locker room door opened and one of the girls entered to inform me. “Your uncle, is waiting for you. I'd get a move on if I was you because he doesn't look happy.”

So much for a shower.

It was a quiet ride home. Uncle Patrick didn't say more than greet me and Chris, then hustle us out to his Lexus. He did sniff when I approached, and his posture became more watchful until we left the dojo when it shifted to things besides me. He did give me odd looks off and on all the way home, though. When he wasn't checking the rear view mirrors.

When were within the gates of the estate, he seemed to relax some and glanced at me. “You smell of Wolf and Vampire, Cindy. What have you been doing today?”

“I met some people and talked to them.” I answered quite truthfully. Uncle Patrick could catch someone in a lie faster than a mongoose going in for the kill on a cobra and sometimes the results could be just as unpleasant.

“There's more to it than that, young lady.” As usual he zeroed in the 'not all of the truth thing' which had made it really tough to get away with much of anything when we were growing up. “But it can wait until we get into the house.”

So he and Aunt Cecily could double team me. Wonderful.

And I'd thought I had problems before.

Mary Jane and Clarissa were in the conversation nook when we got there. Both wearing puzzled expressions but their noses wrinkled a little when I walked in and sat down, too.

“Didn't have time for a shower after my workout.” I explained and apologized at the same time.

“There's more than sweaty girl there, cousin.” Mary Jane answered quietly.

“Yes there is, Cindy.” Aunt Cecily had been sniffing along with the other two. “Maybe you'd like to explain?”

“Uh, like I was telling Uncle Patrick.” I shrugged. “I met some new people today and talked with them.”

Again the truth, just not all of it.

“We'll talk about that later.” My aunt nodded and I knew I wasn't going to be able to dodge my afternoon activities much longer with either her or my uncle.

“Okay.” I agreed. Well I did have to do it, and I needed answers I still didn't have. So I took a deep breath and asked. “Is this about The Order of the Divine Heart?”

“Yes.” She answered shortly then stared at me for a second or two. “How would you know about them already?”

“I've seen them here in town.” I told her then winced at her dark expression over that admission. “Carly told me after we spotted them and got out of sight.”

“She didn't tell you the actual name they use.”

“No.” I answered slowly. “I asked some other people.”

“And they of course, told you when you asked.” Aunt Cecily was watching me very carefully.

“They kind of just told me.” I shrugged. “I didn't really ask to be honest.”

“Who told you?” Her eyes bored into me and the Alpha Female of the clan was looking out of them.

“Carmilla.”

“Just like her, trying to frighten a child.” My aunt spat.

“No, she was warning me.” I countered.

“Why? Did she tell you that?” Uncle Patrick asked.

“Yes she did.”

“That woman doesn't do anything for altruistic reasons.” My aunt answered. “What does she want from you?”

“She doesn't want anything.” I answered. “Other than me staying alive.”

“I find that hard to believe.” She responded while my brother looked on in confusion and my cousins looked worried.

“She said that I'm a bridge.” I quietly answered. “That her helping to keep me alive would gain her some goodwill in places she didn't have it. And she hates the Hunters as much as you do.”

Aunt Cecily gave me a hard, long look, then nodded. “She would have more reason than anyone around here but the Lockes to feel that way, I suppose. But she never does something for nothing. You remember that next time you see her.”

“Why did she even talk with you?” My uncle asked.

“I don't know, really.” I shook my head. “She found me in the park when I'd first seen a Hunter and told me they were bad news, and that I could come to her for help if I needed it.”

“You weren't in the park today, were you?”

“Uhh, no.” I lowered my head and admitted it. “I saw one of them last weekend when Carly and I were there.”

“Why didn't you come to us?”

“Because all you told me about them was that I should stay away from them when I asked.” I answered. “I wanted — needed, to know more.”

“Why?” Aunt Cecily questioned.

“I have dreams.” I softly told her then handed out the real whammy. “And they noticed me today.”

Now that caused an uproar.

I was grounded.

I mean really grounded. Nothing but school and home.

When that pronouncement was made Aunt Carly kind of grinned at me while Uncle Patrick took my keys to just about everything in the house. Including the doors to outside that locked and needed those keys to open even from the inside if they were locked.

“I know you could pick the locks, dear.” She actually smiled at me. “But don't do it right now.”

Crap. Okay so I had spent one summer working with the local locksmith, and carefully watched what he did when he had to get into a place where the only keys were lost or still inside. Then tried that myself. You needed the right tools, but I was working for a locksmith so those weren't all that hard to get.

Hey! It was something fun to learn and I happened to be kind of good at it.

“But grounded, Aunt Cecily?” I asked almost plaintively. “Nothing but school and here?”

“It's for your protection, honey.” She told me.

“Okay.” I sighed. Besides there were other ways out of the house, even with all the electronic surveillance stuff. I hoped my aunt and uncle didn't know I could do that kind of thing.

But with the way they are, and what they are, I didn't think that was all too likely, either.

Well, just more of a challenge, I suppose.

The window at the end of the hall really wasn't supposed to open at all. But a little jimmy in here, and bit of oil there... I'd have to remember to mention that to my aunt and uncle. Later.

Now getting down from the third floor was another problem entirely.

Then I remembered the fire ladder that was kept in a nearby closet. Doh!

It wasn't really much of a ladder. Rope with wooden rungs tied in at convenient intervals. But it reached the ground once I'd hooked it to the eyelets below the window sill and very carefully lowered it so it wouldn't bounce off the house while going down.

That was time consuming, let me tell you.

But now I had a way out of the house, and more importantly, back in once I was finished with what I wanted to do. If our security people didn't find it and rat me out, anyway.

But they spent most of their time at the walls and patrolling the more obvious ways to sneak in 'without being spotted'. Right, our security people were coyotes, too. No one was going to just sneak up on us without them knowing.

Plus, the window I'd chosen for my 'escape' faced a large expanse of lawn without so much as a birdbath for cover. Lit by soft spotlights I might add. The light may have been dim, but it was still light.

“Bad planning.” I cursed myself about my choice of egress from the house, but truthfully, I'd taken the best of a number of not so good ones. “Gotta find an easier way after tonight.”

Then it occurred to me that I didn't even know the schedule our security people kept, or if they kept to one at all. I thought the last one to be more likely because even I know that regular patrols give the bad guys a chance to get in.

“What to do, what to do?” I was tapping a finger to my lips while I figured out what my next step was going to be.

Aha!

Keeping to the few shadows offered where I presently was, I carefully moved around the house to a spot that allowed access to our gazebo, then a lot of well cared for shrubbery.

My night vision was a LOT better than it had been. So was my hearing. Big surprise, right?

But it was my sense of smell that saved me there.

I smelled the guy coming before I even saw him, though to be truthful that was pure luck and the wind was in my favor. I'd remember that bit for later, I promised myself. Stay downwind of people you don't want smelling you. So even if I didn't accomplish another thing tonight, I'd learned something new, and probably very valuable.

I went supine on the ground right at the foundations of the gazebo. Oh yeah, I could move a whole lot faster since my change. And tried my best not to make a shadow that seemed out of place.

The guy walked past, even looked right where I was hiding and seemed to hesitate for a second. Now I know what it means when people use the phrase 'My heart was in my throat.' before he looked away and continued his rounds.

After a quiet sigh of relief, I used the shrubbery, shaped into kind of ridiculous things I'd always thought (I mean who really wants an elephant shaped hibiscus?) and reached the wall.

Another problem.

The wall around our little homestead wasn't just a fence. It was a real wall. Ten feet high, made of native stone sheathed in very smooth concrete that was maintained very regularly.

“I need a grappling hook and some rope.” I muttered while trying to find a spot with enough purchase on the thing to get me over it.

That took me another twenty minutes of stealthy movement and testing. I finally found a place that maintenance hadn't gotten to yet and used the chinks in the concrete armor to scramble to the top.

Sheesh, if civilization were to come to an end, and decent people had to fight off ravening gangs, our place would make a pretty good stronghold.

I'd lightly dropped to the ground on the other side when someone lightly tapped my shoulder and whispered. “Nice job kid.”

I bit my tongue to keep from screaming and just about jumped right out of my skin.