"Hya!"

I swung my foot into the guy's stomach. He fell on his backside and grunted loudly, joining his two pals already on the floor. "If I ever see you guys around this school again I'll do more than kick your ass! Get lost!"

The three punks got up and ran away as fast as they could. I picked up the little boy's backpack and handed it to the slightly bruised and relieved 6th grader. "Here you go."

"Thank you sempai!"

"Do you want me to take you to the infirmary?"

"I'll be okay. Thank you so much miss Petra. Thank you!"

I patted him on the head and smiled. I loved helping people. Especially kids in trouble like him. He took his bag and hurried inside the school's ground. Krista came running at me and gave me my bag. She looked concerned. "Thanks Krista. What's that face for?"

"Petra, what you're doing is dangerous! Someday you're gonna get seriously hurt!"

"Oh come on! It's not like we have really dangerous thugs around here. Besides I can't just be a bystander when I see things like that. I'm the strongest person in school."

"Just because your dad makes you take self defense classes doesn't mean you're invincible! I'm worried about you. These guys you beat up can come back!"

"Not these losers! Not if they know what's good for them."

"Petra!"

I looked at my small best friend. Krista had a bigger heart than anyone I've ever known. She could have been an angel fallen from heaven. But her cute face, adorable personality and frail stature made her an easy target for "wolves." The first time I met her I had to beat up a guy that was being a bit too touchy with her. I made it my job to protect her.

"I'm sorry Kris. I don't want to worry you."

"I don't want you to get hurt."

My name is Petra Ral. I'm seventeen years old and a junior at Rose High School. My mom died when I was a kid and I was raised by my dad, Commander Eric Ral, chief officer of Sina's police department. I go to Rose High. My hobbies : reading, hanging out with Krista, playing with my german shepherd Roork and fighting. My dad had made me take self defense classes since I was six. I'm not a particularly violent person but I love feeling strong. It means I can protect my friends better. Especially since my best friend is living in the Maria suburban which was not the safest place on earth. Actually it was the unsafest place in the whole city. And I mean thugs, murderers, thief, dealers and all included. When I learned that she lived ALONE in the middle of this shit hole, I started walking her home every day. I invited her to come live at my house but she wouldn't hear of it. She didn't want to be a bother. In the end, we decided that she would stay at my house the days we finished school late. Going in Maria during the day was crazy dangerous but at night, it was suicide. I asked Krista about her family but she just told me that her father was sending her a little money to survive. I deduced that her dad didn't want to take care of her. I was so mad at the thought of someone cruel enough to abandon his own child. Especially one as sweet as Krista. She was actually two month older than me, but I felt like she was my little sister. My dad would give us a ride when he could but most of the time we had to walk there. Today was one of those days.

Krista and I always changed before going back to her place. We wouldn't want to tempt any perverted punk with our short skirt sailor uniforms. We would always wear jeans and normal shirts to not stick out. As we walked through the dirty streets of Maria I was on my toes as usual. Anything could happen here. Even though nothing much for the past two months. "Hey Petra. You know you don't have to walk me. It's a waste of time."

"Nothing's a waste of time when it comes to protecting my friends."

"But..."

"Check it out man two cute chicks walking all by themselves. That's not safe."

The guy who had stopped us looked a bit older than us. He had blond spiky hair and an outrageous number of piercings in his ears. His pal had was wearing a gray hoody. They approached us. "Well it's safer than with you punks, that's for sure!" I spat back.

"You're feisty. I like it." The blond guy smirked and made a move to grab my shoulder but I was quicker. I grabbed his wrist with snake like speed and twisted so hard it dislocated. The guy screamed in pain. I brought myself closer to him and punched him behind the shoulder (at lung level) with my elbow. The guy instantly fainted. The other one had grabbed Krista but was too astonished by my performance to move. Seeing an opening and not knowing what to do, Krista acted by instinct. She kicked him right in the balls. The guy screamed and dropped like a rock. I grabbed Krista by the hand and dashed away from the punks. Guys like them were probably part of a gang. There could be more of them. We stopped a couple streets later completely out of breath. Krista had to sit on the ground. "See...I told you...I could...take care of it." I told her in between huffs.

"You two shouldn't be here. It's not a place for soft little girls."

We both turned around behind us was a bunch of five or six men. Some of them had knives or iron bares in there hands. The man who had spoken was barely taller than Krista. But his glare was so intense that my heartbeat accelerated. He looked quite different from the others. He was wearing black pants, a brown leather jacket over a grey shirt, biker boots and a white bandana around his neck. It was obvious he was the boss. He stared right into my eyes. I didn't look away but I couldn't deny he scared the hell out of me. I broke the silence by nearly screaming. "What's it to you shorty?"

The members of the gang snickered. One of them took a step forward and said. "You should watch your mouth. You've got no idea who you're messing with."

"Like I ca..."

I froze. This guy had a tattoo on his clavicle. It represented a blue and a white wing. The symbol of the Scouts. Their gang was renown to be super violent and involved in all sorts of crimes. Including murder and raping. They were the one thing I was truly worried about. I took a step back and brought my fists up. "Stay back!"

The guy snickered again and took another step forward. He was smirking. I jumped in front of Krista and got to a fighting stance. But then the small man put his hand on the guy's shoulder and said.

"Cut it out Oluo. You're scaring the little girls." The boy immediately backed off. "Like I said, high class brats like you have no business here. So I suggest you get lost quickly."

I forgot about fear. This guy pissed me off. "What's your deal? For your information my friend lives here."

"I was talking to you. If you keep showing up here I can guaranty you that things are gonna get nasty."

"That a threat short stuff?"

"A fact, stupid brat."

We had another staring contest for what seemed to be an eternity. I felt like this guy could slaughter me anytime he wanted. I was almost certain he could read my mind and hear my heart pound. I broke off and grabbed Krista by the arm. "Come on."

I dragged her off, half-expecting to have them stop us. I turned around once to check. The small man's glare was always on me. I walked faster until we finally reached Krista's house. I told her to be careful. "You're the one who should be careful. These guys aren't just your average punk Petra. They're the Scouts."

As I walked home I couldn't stop thinking about the gang's boss. He was short but so terrifying. Just remembering his glare gave me goose bumps. "Still thinking about the boss?"

I jumped out of my skin and looked at the dark alley next to me. A guy from the Scouts wearing a green sweatshirt was there. He had brown hair and bluish-green eyes. He walked up to me. I raised my arms. "Relax, I'm not here to give you a beating, Sparky."

"What do you want then?" I said without dropping my guard.

"Chief Levi sent me to tell you explicitly not to come back here for whatever reason."

"You mean shorty? Tell him that whatever I do is not his business." I walked away quickly.