A few weeks pass, maybe a month or so. I soon found myself with Logan and Raiden, trying to help Marcellus in a chemistry experiment. Apparently he flunked the class last year so he's redoing it this year with his other classes. We sat there after getting things set for him as he struggled to figure out which chemicals the directions say to mix. Yet he refused help because that "ruins the fun" or whatever. We were doing it during our lunch hour no less so some of we getting hangry. And by that I mean all 3 of us.

"Why did you bring us for help if you won't let us help?"I ask

"Bro, you should really be careful with that stuff!"Raiden says

"Can we please go eat? I'm starving!"Logan says

"No! I want you to see me win this!"He says

"It's a graded experiment, not a game."I groan

"You know what? I'm just going to dump a bit of each in!"He says

"NO! Don't-!"My brother and Raiden begin

Too late. He already did.

It quickly bubbles up as he fled behind the teacher's desk. The bottle rattled on the desk. And then it blew up, spilling everywhere. The force of it knocked me down, momentarily knocking me out. I felt burning all over my head and arms and legs. I let out a groan and glance around, seeing the chemicals splattered everywhere and a small fire starting. I get to my feet and stomp it out the best I could. I see Logan and Raiden laying on the ground, the chemicals sizzling into them. Marcellus peeks out, completely unharmed.

"What the hell, Marc? You could've killed us!"I snap

"I'm sorry, I was getting impatient and-"He begins

"AND nothing! I don't care why you rushed, you shouldn't have done it!"I cut him off

"Here, let me carry them to the nurse."He says

"No. I think you've done enough."I say, scooping the two up the best I could

The two wake up, leaning on me as we each struggle to walk down the hall to the nurse. She was horrified at our conditions, quickly trying to treat us and wash the chemicals away. They left sizzling burns on my brother and Raiden, burning through patches of their clothes. She sent Marcellus to the principal and I shudder, feeling a painful zap go through my spine. My head felt heavier...different...

"Oh dear....What did that boy do?"The nuse says

I look at her confusedly, then to my brother as he was getting bandaged. He looked at me in just about the same amount of shock, swiping a hand across his face as a signal to me. I reach up, feeling along my face, only to find a snout, a nose, and sharp teeth extending from it. My hand slithers up my head and I felt two fluffy ears.

What in the-?

"Oh my goodness! Hugo!"I hear a voice shriek

"What's wrong with him?"Another shouts

"Someone get help!"A third screams

I hear sick laughter trying to drown the yells for help out.

"I'll call for an ambulance for you three to get treated."The nurse says

"I have to go."I say, running out

I stumble down the stairs to the cafeteria and enter to find Hugo gasping for air on the floor. His neck was red with rashes all over his skin, now bumpy and unsettled. He kept reaching for his throat, choking at each breath. I see the jocks just laughing as bystanders stood by, lost on what to do. I see my friends running past me to get help, Rosaline going out an exit to call for help and flag down an ambulance or something she said.

"What the hell happened?"I growl, running over and lifting Hugo up slightly

"We heard from Marc that he was vegetarian and has real close animal buddies, so we switched out his lunch with a chicken sandwhich to see how he'd like tasting one of his animal friends! He seems a bit overdramatic, don't ya think?"One says

"How pathetic!"Another chuckles

"He has a severe food allergy to poultry you idiots! You shouldn't mess with anyone's food ever! You should know that Kyle since you have a shelfish allergy!"I snap, glaring down one of the jocks laughing, who went quiet at my words

"Wait...So he's not faking it?"One asks

"No! You're risking his life! Now where is his bag? Give it to me now!"I order

One of them tosses his bag to me. I unzip it, digging through it for the EpiPen. I snatch it out, open it and quickly inject it into his leg. He visibly tensed, his eyes shutting from the shooting pain. I pat the side of his head as I tuck the used shot away again, massaging the spot gently.

"Stay with me, Hugo. You're going to be okay. I hope somebody called 9-1-1!"I say, shouting the last part

I heard ambulance sirens nearing the school. I get up, the burns still stinging my legs, scooping Hugo up as his arms hung limp.

"I hope you boys like detention or expulsion, cause that's where this is getting you."I say as some vice principals come in

I carry Hugo back up the stairs, right down the hallway to the exit by the nurse's office. I see Marcellus peeking out of the mian office. I could only glare at him, growling.

"How dare you tell them about his quirks and not tell about his allergy! They are the most untrustworthy people here, looking for pranks to pull! You gave them ammo and now Hugo is hurt because of it! It's real rich that you call yourself a friend yet do nothing to keep friends safe, just so you can have fun. Don't ever pull shit like this again."I snarl at him, then run out to the ambulances that pulled up

Paramedics were already pushing Raiden and Logan into two of them on stretchers. One tried to put me on one but I refused to let go of Hugo.

"He needs help. He's having an allergic poultry reaction. An EpiPen was already used. I'm not letting him go until the hospital."I say

The paramedic argued with me a bit, but came to a compromise by allowing me to hold him as we were on the stretcher together. They hooked us in and sped off to the nearest hospital. I rest my head against Hugo as he weakly opens his eyes.

"It's going to be okay, Hugo. You're going to be okay...."I say, but felt my eyes grow heavy and it was as if my throat was tightening now.

He grips my hand tightly, taking labored breaths before I shut my eyes.

I woke up to monitors beeping. I look around, finding myself in a hospital bed, hooked up to monitors with my arms and legs heavily bandaged, legs in casts. I look around, seeing that I shared the room with at least four other people behind curtains. I try to sit up the best I could, then see that it was night outside. The curtain to my right opens and I see Raiden beside me with his body also bandaged and his arm in a sling.

"And this is why I don't trust my brother. And he wonders why I'm so anxious all the time. Logan, you still awake?"He says

I hear broken humming and a batch of flowers flew over to Raiden.

"I'll take that as a yes."He says

A pencil spins and goes up and down in the air to spell words out it seems as the cracked hums continued.

"What is-"I begin

"Oh hey, Marilyn. Logan, your sis woke up. Okay so Logan can't exactly talk right now but when he hums, he can have objects hover or levitate. Are you alright?"Raiden says

I hear humming and the curtain to my left opens, revealing my brother beside me. His legs were in casts and he had a neck brace, various wires hooking him up to monitors. He looks at me and smiles, his eyes hardly open.

"Logan...Are you going to be okay?"I ask

He nods. Then I start hearing thuds against the windows and chirping. I see birds trying to get in.

"Are you okay, Marilyn?"Raiden asks

"Don't worry, I'll be fine."I say

"You literally are growing wolf parts and got the worst burns out of the three of us. I have a reason to worry."He says

"G...Guys? What are you doing here?"A voice says from behind the last curtain across from us

Hugo's voice. I hear a few clicks and beeps, then see him push the curtain aside with a walking monitor and IV on a pole with wheels. He didn't have much else besides that since he had an allergic reaction, not exposure to chemicals.

"Two words. Marcellus and Chemistry."Raiden sighs

"His impatience caused an overflow of chemicals that we got in contact with..."I say

"Then why isn't he here?"He asks

"He somehow hid and was untouched by it."Raiden says

Hugo goes to my brother, gently feeling his head.

"Why wasn't a teacher there?"He asks

"Lunch break or something. Told him to get some friends and start without them."I reply

He looks at me and his eyes go wide. He pulls his monitor so he could stand beside my bed.

"How did you get exposed? I remember seeing you....Blurry in the cafeteria with me. I could hear you...You helped slow my reaction..."He says

"So that's where you ran off to!"Raiden says

"Oh and you couldn't tell? People were screaming in there!"I say

"Logan is wondering what you mean by slowing a reaction."Raiden says when a pen zig zags in the air

"I...Somehow got exposed to chicken and I had an allergic reaction....Marilyn came and gave me an EpiPen shot from my bag and brought me out to get help....Marilyn, did you seriously do that in this condition?"He asks

"Someone had to. Clearly those sports jocks or whatever weren't going to. They just thought you were being dramatic as you were on the ground having your reaction. Apparently Marcellus told about your animal buddies or vegetarian meals, leaving out your allergies, so they switched your food when you weren't looking. Besides, I'm fine."I say

"He did what?"Raiden snaps

"T-Thank you...But you could've worsened your conditions...Your health matters too.."Hugo says, putting a hand gently on my head

"I am so telling our mother!"Raiden snaps, even more annoyed at his brother

I feel his hand gently feel my ears, which slowly lowered to relax but revealed my inner sense of worry.

"Kids!"I hear my dad yell

He runs over, hugging Logan first, checking his condition. Then he comes over to me, glancing at Hugo.

"Don't tell me you were exposed too."He says to Hugo

"Nope, I'm just getting monitored after an allergic reaction."Hugo replies

"What? Schools are supposed to supervise to prevent that! Have your aunt or uncle come to see you?"He says

"Not yet. They're probably arguing as my uncle tries to pull out of the driveway or something."Hugo says

"I'll add it to my list of charges against the school to sue them for. The teacher shouldn't have ever left you kids alone for the experiment or got you three involved and you should've been protected better. I know how dangerous those reactions can be."

"Sue them? But Dad, where are you going to find the time? That's a big stressful mess for you on your already full plate!"I say

"I don't care. This cannot slide! And they called me during a meeting with my bosses who have a speaker-only call rule so they heard the school's nonsense too. They already plan to sue and told me to do so. It's not like I'll be the only one."He says

"Excuse me, Hugo's grandfather came to sign him out."A nurse says

I see Hugo's face go pale. He grips my hand tightly.

"Sorry Miss, I already was filling out the papers to sign him out. He'll just have to wait."My dad says, lifting a clipboard up

"Okay, I'll go tell him he's out of luck."The nurse says

"Are you okay, Hugo?"I ask

"My uncle warns me that my grandpa isn't a good guy....And that he'd hide me away the first chance he gets. Custody problems and stuff...I've never met him though and don't think I want to."He says

"How about I give you a ride home to your uncle?"My dad offers

"No, I want to stay here until they are released."Hugo says

"Well I will at least call so they don't worry."Dad says, going into the hall to speak with doctors

Hugo sits on my bed, leaning over me.

"Is it bad that I'm sorta amazed that he messed up this badly? I mean, what was even in that stuff that he screwed up so badly that you grew wolf parts, your brother could hum to levitate objects, and who knows what Raiden is going to turn out doing."He says quietly

I chuckle the best I could.

"Nah...I'd be surprised too...."I say

He smiles at me.

"I'm glad you are okay."I tell him

"I could say the same to you. Hmmm...."He says, seeming to get an idea

He gets up, pacing back and forth.

"Where did Raiden go?"He asks, noticing an empty bed

In the blink of an eye, Raiden appeared back in bed.

"Someone call me?"He asks

"Wha-How did you do that? What did you do?"Hugo asks

"I was picturing being home to see my mother and pop! I'm there. She was grounding my brother and snapping at him for his mistakes or impatience, then I heard a faint voice call so I thought of you guys and popped back here."He says

"Okay so we have wolf, musical levitation and teleportation. What the heck did Marcellus use?"Hugo says with a shake of his head

"Dunno."Raiden says

"Well I'll take care of you guys and help you recover! Whatever that may require!"Hugo says

Then he climbs back into the bed set for him as if it was his non-verbal way of saying CONVERSATION OVER, NO DEBATE.

A few days later, we were discharged from the hospital. Raiden just had to heal himself up a bit more with his arm in a sling. My brother's left leg healed so he was on crutches. Neither of my legs were healed so I had to be pushed around in a wheelchair. Hugo eagerly pushed me along, helping me into my father's car. He took Logan's crutches as he got his seat and shut the door for Raiden. He hopped in another seat beside me and my father drove us home. He drops Raiden off at his house, unaware to the new ability he gained.

Then he drove home to find a crowd of animals on the front lawn. They dropped flowers at the pathway to the front door. Our friends stood on the sidewalk, holding cards and signs with loving messages. Hugo was the first to leap from the car, getting Logan's crutches for him and making sure he was steady. Then he got the wheelchair from the trunk, helping me climb into it again.

"Hey, guys."Logan says

"Logan!"Kelvin exclaims, hugging him

Logan nearly dropped his crutches from the impact.

"Oh! Sorry sorry! I was just so worried about you guys!"Kelvin says as Flora and Sloane help my father carry his things through the doors and keep it open for us.

Hugo wheels me around the car onto the path and I could see the shock on their faces. Rosaline quickly came over to me, hugging me. Then she hugged Hugo.

"I'm so glad that you both are okay! Oh and those jerks got suspended from the school and Marcellus has been getting detention! Some teachers are in trouble too with the cases being sued now. But it only made things more scary since nobody would say how you were doing!"Rosy says

Hugo smiles.

"Marilyn here made sure I was okay."He says

My ears lowered at the reminder.

"Hugo..."I say softly

"It's true."He says

He wheels me inside the house. Our friends sat around, chatting with us or getting things so Logan doesn't have to get up. I was given some medicine and my snout slowly shrank away to a more human face. I sigh, relieved.

A few days later, I was back in school. Hugo was wheeling me around or Logan would push me away with one of his crutches to give me a boost. Every afternoon Hugo would wheel me to his house for a few hours of peace in his backyard, his critters gathering curiously. Eventually the casts were taken off and physical therapy started. Nobody at school dared say a word about the accidents or about our conditions. The school was trying to get the court cases settled still, there were so many. They knocked my father down but then Raiden's mother took a go, not to mention all his coworkers and bosses at his big technology job stepping in as well. It's a big corp but started out as a family business, so they consider staff and their families family as well. And you don't mess with family.

Anyways, I started practicing walking with Hugo's help as well. He smiles at me and I felt a weight leave my head. I feel my head and the ears had left. I guess the chemicals wore off or whatever.

"So...I hear a dance is coming up next month. What's that about?"Hugo asks to make conversation as he walks me along his fence

"Oh! It's a Pearly High tradition! It's the Winter Pearl, a dance held on the night where the full moon shines as bright as ever, like a pearl! There's some superstition that it's an event to partake in for good luck. Plus it's a nice way to end the year."I explain

"Have you gone to them?"He asks

"I am literally friends with two hyper balls of energy that love dancing and dressing up. And Sloane gets dragged along, so of course I've gone with them. I can't really get out of it, they know where I live."I say with a giggle

"True. Is it fun?"He asks

I nod.

"Interesting..."He says

"Have your old schools ever done dances?"I ask

"Nah...They viewed it as a waste of time or a distraction from classes."He says

"Well I'm sure you'd love this one. It's always fun."I tell him

"I'll...think about it."He says

Then the deer nudged him, noticing that it started to get dark out.

"Oh! Guess it's time for you to head home, huh?"He says

"Yeah, or my dad will get worried."I say

The buck picks me up with its head and antlers, tossing me onto his back, looks to Hugo with a nod before running off. The buck drops me off at the front steps of my house and I go inside after thanking him. The buck gallops back to Hugo's street, into the dark. I lock the door and head to bed, feeling along the walls for support.

TBC