Ring, Ring, Ring.

The bell went off signaling the end of the school day. I grinned, and got out of my seat, grabbing my book bag and binders. Thank god math was over-I could never focus.

"Hey Peter, one more week until summer!" My best friend Max said, shouldering his backpack and walking by my side and out of Freyberg Maine Academy.

"Yeah, thank god. I can't even take another day," I say. We walk out of the school grounds and down the street towards my house. We usually go there after school.

"Hey, at least next year we won't be the newbie Freshmen, right?" Max says, smiling. I roll my eyes and put one hand in my pocket, fiddling with the dark green emerald in my pocket. A year ago when I turned 14, my dad gave it to me. He told me it was a gift from my mother, the one who left him after I was born. I resent her for that-he broke his heart. He's never trusted any girl again. I've just turned fifteen now, two days ago, on June 14th.

And so far, I've been out of luck with girls too. My messy but short blond hair and bright green eyes don't seem to attract any girls. Maybe it was my height. I'm 5'8, maybe I'm too tall? Or maybe it's my light colored freckles around my nose. Maybe only red heads can have freckles.

"Do you ever miss New York?" I ask Max as we turn down the alleyway-a shortcut to my house. He shrugs. He moved here to Maine in the beginning of the year, we were instantly friends. He has dark brown hair, deep chocolate eyes, and he's just below my height.

"You know, this public school is way better than the homeschooling I've gotten all my life," he grins. I smile. Max is always complaining about how much more exciting a public school is than his boring homeschooling. I always tell him to shut up, but he seems so content on convincing me at what a great life I have at a public school so far.

"Hey, what's that noise?" I ask, hearing a crash down the next alleyway we are supposed to go to. Max and I look at eachother and raise our eyebrows. Then we slowly creep around the corner. The sight we see makes me freeze. There is a giant black hellish dog facing a small dark brown wolf.

They snarl at eachother and circle eachother. Suddenly the giant dog leaps towards the small wolf and the wolf dives beneath it, coming out the other side and I hear a 'shing' sound and golden claws spring out from the wolf. The wolf rakes its claws down the dogs back, and the dog crumbles to gold dust. I am frozen with fear, clutching the emerald in my pocket. Suddenly Max has a long gold sword in his hand. I stare at him dumbfounded.

"Max what the hell-" I start but he shoots me a shut up this is serious look that is unusual for his face. The wolf stumbles a little bit on its paws, and then turns to look at us. It's eyes are a fierce purple and it analyzes us carefully, and pads towards us.

"What kind of monster are you?" Max asks, pointing his golden sword at it. The wolf bares its teeth and snarls. I flinch a little and Max stumbles back a foot or two. The wolfs eyes-dance with humor? It stops and studies us carefully.

"Max please tell me what is going on?" I ask. He ignores me and is fixated on the wolf.

"Um, Mr. Wolf, it would be nice if you left and didn't kill us-" Max starts but the wolf lets out a loud growl and runs towards Max, leaping ontop of him. Max's sword skids out of his hands and away from him. The wolf holds him down and snarls in his face. I don't know how I know it, but I pull the emerald out of my pocket.

"Sword!" I say. Suddenly ten emerald is a sword in my hand. I am about to strike the wolf when it starts to change. It's fur disappears and changes into medium length brown hair, the body turns into a short girl's body, and its paws are a set of hands wrapped around Max's throat.

Oh no!

-Amber❤️