*** Walking through the empty hallways, I grip on a black covered book as I quickened my pace. This is the third days since JongIn told me that he and the pack have to going back to the Reaper empire to sort somethings out, I have to hold my disappointment that day as I bid them good bye. I’m sticking to my decision, I’m staying, even if a part of me dying of curiosity of how the infamous lost Empire looked like. After I officially -for real this time- make a truce with the Royals, I really can’t leave, not now at least,   I look around at the ominous atmosphere around me, feeling rather scared at the cold feelings it gave me. This house has always creeping me out but tonight though, it seems taking it to a whole different level, everything seems hostile towards me. I took a sharp turn on my right and almost bumped into someone as I halt on my feet in time only to come face to face with poker faced Nara,   “going somewhere?” she ask and I huff in annoyance, blowing my bangs a little as I step aside to continue my journey but Nara, being an annoying and pain in the that she was, step aside too, blocking my way once again with a smirk on her face, “I ask you dear sister, are you going somewhere?”,   I gritted my teeth “step aside Nara, I’m not in the mood to play your games”, Nara just let out a sinister laugh at my answer. Usually she will immediately shrieked like a banshee in labor -its deafening, really, not only it’s a banshee, its in labor too- calling for her mom to tattle about me, but now, she looked rather calm and may I say, eviler than usual, it gave me creeps,   What’s her problem?   “your sister is asking you, why are you so snappy?” she said again in a fake sugary tones and I unconsciously took a step back. Something’s not right,   I frowned “I’m just gonna take a stroll at the backyard, there, you happy now?” I answered finally, feigning a brave looks when deep inside I freaks out at the looks she gave me. Its been awhile since Nara confronting me directly like this, usually its either the boys or her mother accompanying her because the last time we stood face to face alone like this she end up blow up and tried to kill me. The boys might  try to stop the attempt but her mother? I’m sure she wished for the time to join her daughter if ever she blow up again which is luckily haven’t happened yet,   Nara smirked as she step aside “its not that hard to answer your own sister, isn’t it?” she slurred and I start to walk again before she grab my elbow and lean to my ear and speak in a whisper “enjoy your time JooYeon, I’ll watch out for my neck if I were you”,   And with that ominous words she let go of my elbow and walk away, cackling like a mad woman while I stood rooted to my spot,   What does she mean?.   *** Flipping through the book I drown in the story that written in the thin elegant writing as I imagined the hand that dancing on each page, pouring down her daily life there, everything she did, everything she saw. Smile never leaves my face as I read my mom’s diary that I found in one bookshelves in the attic when I come to stay with JongIn and the pack the other days. Well I didn’t told him that I bring this book back with me but then again, this is my mom’s and surely I didn’t really need his approval, right?,   But one strange thing though, she didn’t even write her name in it. Ugh mom what’s the point on having a diary if you didn’t even write your identity or whatsoever in it?!. But well, its better than nothing,   I pouted as I read the part that telling about her childhood. Apparently my Grandmother wasn’t a very kind mother I thought she'll be. She’s cold, distance and ruthless, she even told my mom to kill a bird that my mom found dying from a predator attack. Freed it from its pain, she said and I felt nausea coming up. My mom did what she told her to, she snap the poor thing’s neck and end its life. She love my Grandma enough to do whatever she told her,   “I don’t think I want to meet her now” I muttered as I close the book, looking up and recalling that day my stepmother took me and Nara to her household, the Nam’s living in a village far from here, their mansion was huge but smaller than the Lee’s. A big aristocrat family that having too many family members than they could afford, their good reputation and pure lineage was the only thing that keeping them from erased from the big shot list. Marrying their youngest daughter off to one of the big six family was surely their life boat from falling from the cliff. They sold their daughter to the high council to safe their name, and my dad, being the Head of the Council that time lose in vote and forced to marry her,   As cruel as it seems, believe it or not, Lady Nam -its how I call the late woman by the way- was a loving Grandma to Nara, even if she once sold her daughter off, she still the kind and warm Grandma to her grandchild. That’s why I always dream of meeting my Grandmother, wondering how she looked like, did she looked like my mother, did she have the same red hair like we do and many question came through my mind as I witnessed Nara and Lady Nam exchanging story in the garden under the cherry blossom tree,   Contrarily to her, our Grandmother from the Lee was a strict and ruthless woman, she’s the one who trained my dad sister -the former Queen for the Vampire thrones- and formed her to one of the fiercest Heiress for the thrones. I meet her once when she paid a visit to watch Nara’s training, she just spare me a slight cold glance and proceed to watch my stepmother train Nara, but even from that short encounter, she left me a big impression, not a good one if I might say,   Now that I think about it, my mom’s mother was more similar to the late Lady Lee than I thought, I was hoping for a loving, kind and warm Grandma like Lady Nam and here I am having my dream crushed to pieces!,   I mentally screamed in agony and cringed before shake my head slightly to erase the wild picture in my head before a rustling sounds came from my right side. The sound came from the bush not so far away from the oak tree I’ve been leaned to and I put my mom’s diary aside while straightening my back in case a sudden danger came,   “whose there?” I called and the bush shake as I start forming my shadows before someone suddenly rushed out of the bush, looked panic and scarred to death. I hold the strong hunger inside me as the intruder fear and negative feelings came inside my radar,   I frowned as I recognized who she is, “Ahn-sshi?” I call her as she look around wildly before walk towards me. Ahn SoHee, one of the maid that always stood at the back and silently doing her job, I knew her because she’s one of a few maids that will always look at me sympathetically and helping me as much as she can whenever I get a punishment from my stepmother, but we didn’t really have time to talk to each other until now,   “miss JooYeon please, you need to get out of here now” she said in hurry with hushed voice as she grab on to my arms. I widened my eyes,   “what? Why? And why did you looked like you’ve being chased by a savage Hellhounds or something?”, she just bite her lip as she begging me to leave again and again,   “please miss, we don’t have time, we’ll be dead if they knew!” she sound hysterical now,   “dead?! What? Okay this is ridiculous, can you just please calm down and tell me from the start now?” I tried to calm her down and she bite her lips more as she tried to calm her ragged breath and I start to worry if she’ll bleed from how hard she bite her own lips,   She beginning to calmed down while keep her alarmed looks as she look around “miss, you need go, quickly!”. Okay the urgency in her voice start to freaking me out!, “but why?! Just tell me what’s wrong!” I start yelling out of frustration before I regretted my raising voice when I saw SoHee’s eyes widened at my loud voice. Good, now you terrified the poor girl more, you dumb ,   Sighing heavily, I put calming hands on the girl shoulders and throw her apologetic looks “sorry, I didn’t mean to raised my voice, but please could you tell me what’s happen? Why’d you suddenly urging me to get out of here?” I start,   SoHee bit her lips and look behind her slightly before turn back at me “yes, you should get out of here quick miss, your life is in danger as we speak”, my eyes widened at this. What?,   “what do you mean? My life?”, she nod her head then move to grab my hand and pull me to the back of the tree, where there’s more shadow in there as our cover. I watch SoHee looked around once more before she continue her explanation in hushed voice,   “the assassins are coming miss, they’ve been paid highly for your head, I heard they talk when I clean Master Lee’s office early this noon,” she start to weep while I just stood there rooted on my feet, trying to process this information,   “I’m sorry I couldn’