Chapter 2 – Something weird on the moors

Shannon

I stood there in my bedroom…watching, and waiting. The bright bluish light of my laptop screen illuminated my face like the moon on a cold winter's day. 'Hurry, they are waiting' I wanted to scream but it was only 7 am and my parents weren't up yet.

What seemed like an hour later, the message showed COMPLETE and I bit on the sleeve of my thick brown cardigan and smiled widely. This is the moment I've been waiting for. My whole childhood I had searched and searched for this.

I grabbed the card and ran out of my house, past Bernie's and straight towards school. Of course, typical Shannon, I bump into almost everybody on my way here but I don't even say sorry to them – not today. Today, they will be sorry. Every snigger, every face, every word they ever whispered about me will be gone. I can hear them now, begging for more information and hungry as I am for the truth.

Fumbling slightly, I opened the door to the empty dark room and turn on the computer. I quickly flip through the photos I had taken yesterday in the woods and then…I saw it. I saw the eyes, lurking in the shadows, and it was as if I could feel them burning into my own, opening my eyes to the truth.

"Got ya."

Maddy

"Mam! Dad! I'm gonna be late…again…can ye drive me…please…hurry up, c'mon!"

Sometimes I really wished I was allowed to walk through the woods. I could imagine it. Running through endless greenery, and feeling the wolf in your veins…if I had any, that was.

"Alright keep your 'air on." Me dad laughed. I rolled my eyes and made a big gesture towards the car.

"Mads."

"What? Let's go, else Mr Jeffries will make me do extra history."

"All I was going to say was: don't forget your bag. Gosh, it's like you can't wait to get to school or something."

My dad turned around, "Yeah, no rush, we can always say-"

"No. I – er I just wanna get in, see Tom and Shannon you know." They were copping on I think. Okay Maddy, don't be so unbelievably obvious. I mean, it's like I wanted to get in for anything else…or anyone, I told myself.

I grabbed my bag and exhaled slowly.

On the way to school, all I could think about was Rhydian. Rhydian Morris. Where had this obsession come from? I kept thinking about him changing and him in wolf form. Even though he was scared and he had run about a bit, I could see the strength and beauty that seemed to radiate off his grey fur. I thought about the connection we had, the understanding we had when I lowered myself to him and the link in my mind I could feel that bound itself to him. Wait…whoa? Where is this all coming from?

Suddenly, the car stopped and my strange thoughts were disrupted. I murmured a thanks and Mam said that I would have to walk next time. I turn and smile as I jump out of the car and onto school grounds once again. "If I ran, I'd get here before the bus." She replies with an oh-so-mature face and I attempt to leave.

"Don't forget to invite Rhydian round for dinner. We need to talk to him," she glances around at the bustle of school kids and lowers her voice "You know, about transforming, safely." God, this would be bad, I can imagine it now. Me, Mam, Dad and Rhydian, awkwardly sitting at the table, in utter silence.

"Let me talk to him first."

Mam peers around to look for Rhydian when she declares "That's him isn't it?" In the corner of my eye, I see a blonde, tall figure slump into school. "You can't hide anything from a wolfblood." I grin. But she doesn't return it. "This is serious, what if he exposes us?"

I was getting angry now, Rhydian would never do that, I knew him, well I knew that he was scared himself about it and didn't exactly have many friends 'ere apart from maybe me, and possibly Tom and Shannon. So who would he say anything to? I just walk away and Mam honks the car and yells (across the whole school quad) "Tell him Wednesday night is hog roast night, yeah?" she holds her thumb up and I quickly run into school to avoid the situation getting any worse.

As I walk up the stairs, I see many people holding bits of paper. 'Strange', I think, 'what on earth is it?' I open the corridor doors and find a picture of the woods glued to every window. Peering closer, I spot a set of bright yellow eyes and I mutter "You idiot."

I walk into form and I hear Tom yell my name. "Incredible isn't it? Proof at last." The Three K's marvel at how it was scary and interesting and honestly, I am surprised they have time to talk to Shannon when they could be doing more 'important' things like curling their hair. "Seriously Shannon, we always thought you were just a bit mental." Kay laughs. The whole class was asking Shannon questions and staring at the picture when from behind us Jimi says "You call this proof?"

Silence spreads across the class and I glare at him. As much as I hated the situation, Jimi had no right to just break Shannon's bubble.

"Yeah. What do you call it?" Shannon utters.

"Photoshop, by the looks of it." he smirks and I wanna tear his face off right then and there because Shannon is muted and everyone else laughs. Her only hope of her ever being believed was once again thrown away.

"I have the original card with the RAW files on them. Ye can't fake those."

Jimi asks to see them so the rest of the class huddle into the dark room while Shannon…messes up the desk. Oh no. Someone had stolen the card, and three guesses who? Nope, not Jimi, as much as I'd like to say he isn't that smart, and it certainly wasn't the 3 K's so that left only one person…or should I say wolfblood?

Rhydian.

But Shannon didn't know so suddenly she cries out at Jimi "You took it didn't ya. To make me look like an idiot." To which he leers "You don't need any help with that."

Luckily, I sit next to Rhydian in art so I will have one whole lovely hour to inquire about why he took the memory card.

"I know you took it. And ye did it to cover your own back."

"I'm always guilty until proven innocent, aren't I?"

But I knew it was him because our pack hadn't been spotted in Stoneybridge for god-knows how many years and then Rhydian comes along and BAM Shan has a picture. Think of the odds.

"I took it to protect us Maddy."

At that he lowers his eyes to mine. For a split second, I almost forget I was angry. But soon Rhydian takes the card out of his shirt pocket and slams it on the table.

Shannon is obviously devastated as she put more posters up around school – this time for the stupid memory card. Why did she do this to herself? It like she wanted to be the laughing stock of Stoneybridge. I find her in the corridor and I begin to try to comfort her but she resists.

Then the 3 K's walk by and shout "It's so sad. But not as sad as her dress sense." And walk away as they tend to.

I try to get Shan to come to mine. It must be truly awful because she refused to come over, for chocolate biscuits! "Who are you and what have you done with Shannon Kelly?"

Rhydian

It didn't take me long to find the place – of course. Man, did I sometimes like being a wolfblood – okay, you got me. I loved being a wolfblood all the time. My hearing was exceptional, I could smell a mile off and my sight was better than HD.

There, Shannon was crying, leaning against the moss covered log and I slowly sat next to her and for a brief moment we sat in silence.

"Hay fever?" I grinned but she didn't seem to find it funny. Oh, I kinda did screw this up.

I wanted to make things right with Shannon. Not because I felt bad, I mean really I couldn't care lees about her stupid monster thing and I knew that I had saved our backs. No, I was doing it for Maddy. Even if I didn't realise it, I hated having her mad at, so I decided that I should attempt to fix things with Shannon.

The ground was still dewy and the thick silence definitely didn't help the situation but I proceeded to talk to Shannon. "Why are you so interested in it then?" I softly inquired, hoping I wasn't treading on difficult ground here. So Shannon went on to talk about how she saw the beast one night on a camp trip and had been searching for it ever since – no wonder she had therapy! I also couldn't believe it when she said she was friends with Kay – from school Kay.

I found it quite hard to hear about the monstrous face. That was me. I was a beast. To her anyway. However to Maddy I would never, could never be that as I was the same as her. That made me think about the argument we had earlier and so I said "It's not nice to be accused of lying, is it?"

Maddy

I was searching through the photos on the card. Yeah, through all 249 of 'em! Shan was obviously getting more and more worked up about her 'beast' and thus closer and closer to discovering the truth. I didn't understand why I couldn't tell her – and Tom as well – as I'm sure she would accept it and also she would stop making a fool of herself and know the whole truth.

Mam came in and asked (again) about Rhydian but I wasn't in the mood to talk. "You've had yer tail between your legs since you came in. What's brought this on?" Mam remarked. "I'm just fed up of lying all the time. Especially to Shan and Tom. They're me best mates and I cant even be myself around them – my true self."

"There's one friend you don't have to lie to." She smiled and I knew she was pushing this new relationship with Rhydian but at the moment, I didn't want to talk to him. He was new and angry a lot…but since he came, he made me realise that there is more to everything than always meets the eye.

The next day in school, I was surprised to find that Shannon wasn't feeling as bad as I thought which was good…until I realised that she wanted to go beast hunting – with Rhydian. (Oh, and me and Tom of course). "He was really sweet." Shan sighed and pulled out a veggie chocolate bar.

I couldn't find it in me to feel jealous at the time because I was more than slightly confused yet at least Shannon was happy and Rhydian was being 'nice' to her so she no longer pined after the SD card but sweet wasn't exactly an adjective I would use to describe Rhydian. Impulsive, strong, good-looking definitely…whoa, where was this coming from? Maddy Smith, stop it now!

In the dining hall, I found Rhydian straight away.

"Hi I'm really sorry about the memory card and all. I should have believed ya the first time. I just…you know it's hard lying to my only friends let alone the world and then you come along and you kinda I dunno opened my eyes to see that it is a good thing…you know being us…and well you're all alone and all so my Mam was wondering if ye wanted to come over. Tonight?"

"Yeah. Totally." He smiled; then went back to staring at the food in the canteen. And me being completely stupid and ignorant just kept talking about wolfing out safely and I should have stopped not only because it was embarrassing but Rhydian wasn't paying one bit of attention to a word that came out of my mouth so I continued to say "And me and Mam are gonna braid your hair. With ribbon…and take pictures!" he still wasn't listening and was very distressed to find that it was Veggie Day and Stoneybridge High.

"Meat."

"Where?" Rhydian cries, suddenly turning around and staring at me deeply.

"They are veggies Maddy. My foster parents that is…"

"Look, come to mine cuz Wednesday is hog roast night. Imagine…a whole pig to yerself."

That got him…I just hoped it wouldn't be as awkward as I picture it.

Of course, no surprise, Jimi makes some stupid poster making fun of Shan and we all get detention. I swear that Mr Jeffries is obsessed with making student's lives harder than they already are. I had to tell a small white lie to Shan who wanted me to come out tonight to go beast hunting but I'd already said to Rhydian and my parents that we would have a meal. Luckily, Tom agreed with mild force to go with Shan.

Later, I changed and came down the stairs (if you can calling frantically falling that) when I smelt the roast. And oh did it smell as good as ever.

"Maddy, your mother went to a lot of trouble. After all, the steaks are high!"

"Stop it, you silly sausage!"

"Seriously no guys." I whined. Why did they chose today of all days to be themselves?

"Hey, I ham stopping!" Dad laughed.

"Okay I'm calling him. No way is he coming now." I sigh – right when I was looking forward to it.

But as fate would have it Rhydian arrives and all my dad can say is "Pleased to meat ya!"

So dinner goes on and my parents look pretty shocked when Rhydian quickly devours his meals – yes, all 3 of them. Rhydian seems to be acting 'nice' as Shannon said earlier and even my parents seemed concerned for him even though he is new and we know nothing about him. Although, he seems to know nothing about us either as he starts asking questions which leads us to the den in the cellar. Which is a lot cosier and nice than it sounds.

Until I find out about the Wild Wolfbloods. It turns out that not every wolfblood keeps themselves hidden away in the community as some separate themselves completely from humans – even hate humans! Apparently, they are dangerous and not to be trusted. However this is no excuse for Mam and Dad to keep this from me. What did they think was gonna happen? I would run away and join 'em or something? I mean it's not like there were any around he…oh no.

"It really wasn't you in that photo. C'mon we need to get to Shannon and Tom!" I drag Rhydian outside and we race into the thick darkness before my parents can catch us.

Shannon

Tom arrives at exactly 5 and I try to pick up my bag but I fall over with the weight. If that had been with anyone else…well let's just say the probability of someone else laughing is 100 to 1.

We make our way into the woods and the night becomes dark as soon as we get to the place where I last saw the beast. Tom being Tom decides to fool around and only wants food – and I knew this so I packed us a full on feast. Bacon, pasta, beans and hot coffee.

"Shan, got any crisps?" tom asks which I reply with a sarcastic stare. Then we heard a snap. And far out in the fog I saw a pair of bright yellow eyes.

"It's really close. 6 o clock." I whisper carefully.

"Nah, its more like 7." Tom whispers back.

"No Tom I mean" I turn around 180 degrees "Its right behind us."

Suddenly, Jimi and his friends jump out at us bragging about my failure at beast hunting when somewhere in the woods a great howl echoes.

"A dog maybe."

"I'm not waiting to find out."

Jimi, Liam and Sam attempt scarper off like the cowards they are so its just me, them and Tom left alone…with the beast…in the fog….at night. But then Maddy and Rhydian come screaming at us to run. We disperse into the woods when I see the beast and take some photos but then suddenly I hear another growl and it disappears.

Maddy

I grab Shannon's camera and run back to find Rhydian knocked over on the floor and the other wolf poised over him. My eyes turn into their yellow colour and the wolf turns to me. that was all I needed to grab its attention long enough to use the flash of the camera to scare it away.

Then Rhydian collapses on the cold, leaf covered ground beside me and I have no idea if what to do.

I drag him to a tree so he can lean against it and we sit for a minute in stunned silence until I say "I'm sorry." I look through the pictures trying to decide which ones to leave for Shannon when I have a great idea. I get up and leave Rhydian to go and find Jimi and his bunch of mates. "Don't worry about me Mads, you know, I can find them on my own." I hear Rhydian sarcastically yell.

I sniff them out and attack them…with my intelligence as I snap a photo of them screaming and running away. Yes, a little pay back I think!

I find Tom, Shan and Rhydian again and we walk on until my parents find us.

"Er, Dan likes stargazing." My Mam nods (so convincingly).

As we get in, I hear Mam query Rhydian "Was this you? Did you bring my daughter out here?" but he didn't reply. I wanted to say something but Tom starts talking about how he couldn't believe it so I leave it for another time.

Tomorrow, in school we put up the posters of Jimi, Liam and Sam in the woods and label it 'Cry-babies of the Moor'. I think it serves them right for treating poor Shan the way they did. We all stand smugly in the doorway as Jimi huffs and storms out in that stupid posh black coat of his.