Ander ran blindly through the streets, trusting memory to guide him where his tear-blinded eyes couldn’t. He always did this. He always let his guard down, always slipped and let his foster parents or supervisors see his true self. They saw the freak inside him, the monster that hid underneath long sleeves and downcast eyes. Ander finally found what he was looking for, a deserted alley. He followed it to a dead end, a 15-foot brick wall he could climb in five seconds. He slumped down against it and began to rock back and forth. Another foster home shot to Hell, another second chance he’d blown.

“Idiot, idiot.” He muttered. “You’re a freak, you’re a monster, nobody wants you, you beast, you monster!” His claws came out and he began to tear at his arms violently, in self-loathing generated by the years he’d spent hiding his true self, the monstrosity that lived inside him. When his arms went numb and he could no longer feel pain, he switched to his face, tearing great swatches out of his cheeks and leaving gashes that marked him from hairline to jawbone. “Idiot, idiot, idiot.” He moaned as he rocked, finding comfort in the pain.

“Stop, stop.” Arms were holding him, pinning his hands down, stopping him from hurting himself.

“Lea’ me alone. Lea’ me alone!” He screamed, trying to break free of the grip that held him.

“Shh, shh, it’ll be alright. Stop it, Ander, please.” The woman told him, pulling him onto her lap and wrapping her arms around him. He roared and leaned in, tearing a huge chunk out of her collarbone. Her flesh came off in his mouth and he instinctively swallowed, then vomited it and the rest of his dinner up onto the pavement. The woman held him until he finished, then cradled him on her lap as he cried weakly. She rocked him softly until he finally fell asleep.

---

When he woke up, he was in a strange bedroom. He bolted up, spilling the blankets to the floor, and saw the woman from last night watching him. She was tall and slender, with blonde hair so pale it was almost white. Her collarbone showed no wounds or scars, though. Ander looked down at his arms and saw that they were also unmarked.

“It wasn’t a dream.” He said out loud.

“No, dear. I can heal.” Ander looked down, moving his lips as little as possible so she wouldn’t see his fangs and forked tongue, and asked,

“Where am I?”

“The Duchene Home for Abnormal Children. My name is Terri Duchene, and I’m a teacher here. I’ve spoken with the foster system, and they say you can stay here, if you want.” Ander nodded slowly. Another second chance. Soon he was going to run out, and then what would he do?

“Do you want to meet the other children?” Terri asked. Ander shrugged. Terri stood up, and he followed her out into the hallway. She led him downstairs into a large living room, where several teenagers and children were sprawled on furniture watching TV.

“TV off.” Terri commanded. A little girl with red braids pointed at it and it flickered off. Ander blinked. The other children looked up at him. He ducked his head hastily, avoiding eye contact.

“Kids, this is Ander. Ander, this is Jane, Thom, Linda, and Alex.” Ander nodded once in their general direction.

“Hey, kid, nice to meet ya. You new here?” Linda asked in a slightly patronizing tone. He nodded again. “Well, don’t worry. You’ll fit riiight in.” Her tone was definitely condescending.

“Ignore Linda, she thinks she’s all that cuz her mom’s some bigwig among witches.”

“Be nice, Alex,” Terri chided gently. Ander looked up cautiously.

“Her mom’s…a witch.” He repeated.

“Well, she was, until the witch-hunters caught her. Which is why Linda’s here.” Ander looked back to Terri.

“Abnormal children?” Terri nodded. Ander grew quiet. Even strangers thought he was a freak, which was why they put him in a house with obviously deranged children who thought they were witches. Is witchcraft so much more unbelievable than retractable claws and a forked tongue? A little voice inside his head asked. Ander shook his head.

“I…I’m not feeling too good. I wanna go back.”

“But you just got up!” Thom protested. Terri hushed him and smiled at Ander.

“You remember the way?” He inclined his head and went back upstairs to the bed he had vacated five minutes ago. He lay there, staring at the ceiling, motionless, his thoughts spinning around undecipherable. A while later, a bell rang. He ignored it. A few minutes later, there was a soft knock on his door. He ignored that, too. The door opened and Alex stuck his head through.

“Hey, Ander?” He called softly. Ander turned his head to face him. “That was the dinner bell.” After a moment, Ander got up and followed him downstairs, through several rooms, into a very large dining room that held about 50 children and teenagers, plus Terri. Alex nodded to a group of teenage boys at the far end of the table.

“I saved you a seat.” He offered. Ander didn’t reply. Alex shrugged and led him to two empty chairs amidst the boys. Ander sat down next to a skinny boy who was shoveling food into his mouth as fast as he could. Alex introduced them all to Ander, but he wasn’t paying attention. He picked at the food on his plate and hardly ate anything.

“Hey, all! Sorry I’m late.” A short, buxom teenager walked in. Ander looked up at her and blinked. She was wearing all black, with 10 silver chains around her neck and an equal number of rings on her hands.

“How was your date, Crystal?” Terri asked as the punk girl sat down.

“Horrible. He tried to make out with me during the PREVIEWS. On the FIRST DATE. I mean, come on! A girl’s got to have standards.”

“Crystal’s half-Seer demon.” Alex whispered, noticing Ander’s attention. At his blank look, he added, “She has visions.” Ander nodded. They’re not crazy, I am. He thought. I’m hallucinating all this in a padded room somewhere. And that explains the hot girl, too. My hormones are interfering with my subconscious. Crystal’s voice broke into his musings.

“Who’s the new kid?” Alex nudged him in the ribs. Ander looked down at his plate and only moved his lips slightly.

“I’m Ander.”

“Nice to meet you, Ander.” Crystal greeted. He inclined his head, and went back to picking at his food. The conversation continued around him, but he ignored it. He was good at ignoring things. After dinner, the other kids left to go do whatever. Ander grabbed some plates and looked around for the kitchen.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that!” Crystal was standing right in front of him. “It’s my night to do the dishes.” She explained. Ander shrugged. “Well, if you really want to help out…” She gestured to the table, and gathered up an armload of dishes. Ander followed her into the kitchen. When she started back out, Ander stopped her and said, head down,

“You load, I clear.”

“OK.” Crystal shrugged. “Thanks.” He didn’t respond, just went into the dining room for another load. When the dishes were finished, Crystal said goodnight and left. Ander headed back to his room. On the way, he was stopped in the TV room by Alex.

“Hey, Ander! Come watch TV with us! Seinfeld is on.” Ander shook his head and walked faster.

Once in his room, Ander locked the door and slumped against the wall. Catching sight of himself in the mirror, he stood up and got closer. Ugly, he told himself, looking at his reflection. Why would Crystal want anything to do with you? Why would any girl? You’re hideous. He pulled off his shirt and opened his mouth. Smooth, hairless skin; dark green, forked tongue; overlong fangs; hair that wouldn’t grow more than enough to cover his scalp; and retractable hooked claws. He was a monster.

“Monster!” He yelled suddenly, falling to the ground and ripping at his face. “Monster!” He screamed. Blood flowed down his hands, but he didn’t care. He was hopeless, a reject, locked in a crazy bin where people thought they were witches and demons. Nobody wanted him. Why would they cradle a snake to their bosom? He began to moan softly.

“Ander? Ander, stop it! You’re scaring me!” He ignored Thom, too busy with his own pain. He had no idea how Thom had gotten in through the locked door. He began to tear off huge strips of his own flesh, intent on mutilation, uncaring as to the consequences. There was an inrushing of air as Thom disappeared, then another whoosh of air as he appeared holding Terri. She barely glanced at him before telling Thom,

“Get Alex and Zadai.” Thom disappeared again. Then there was a horrible pain in Ander’s eyes and the world went black. There were screams in a voice he barely recognized as his own, hands holding him down, and a cool touch on what was left of his bloody face. Then blessed oblivion.