My initial contemplation on this plan was the concern of the lycan's speed. Werewolves are incredibly fast and nimble on their feet, especially on the night of a full moon. The lunar glow feeds them power the same way a tree absorbs the sun's rays to grow. But when the moon is at it's fullest, they move like gods. I bit of an exaggeration, but the fact remains still very valid, compared to me, the wolf should've had me in it's teeth by now. My advantage was the forest itself. The crooked, ridged branches of the deathly trees were thick enough to stifle the white light in fragments. The furry bastard was still unconscionably fast, but the dead woods had more to offer to my benefit than his own. My human sent was still smothered with the foul stench of mud and putrid water, and I kept my shape close to the constant shifting forms of the tree trunks as I ran through the dark undergrowth, the only way he was able to track me was through sound. His greatest asset was his nose, but that was forced to take the bench to instead rely on his ears. To his credit, they were keen enough to keep a beat on me, but not viable enough to outmaneuver me. Every few paces I'd step on a twig, tear a root, any sound I could make that would prompt him to keep following me. Whenever I'd hear him get too close, I would slow my pace to a crawl, keep my form hidden, then create a misdirection.

But there was a merit to my madness, which at this point in my current state of circumstances, I've come to accept that's what I have succumb to.

I didn't escape my notice earlier that the moon, though for a moment, was blot out by passing clouds before he had been knocked off the roof. I had to buy my time until the main focus of his power was cut off, or, simply lure him deep enough into the thickest parts of the woods to cripple his speed.

"Okay...Enough games! I know you're out here...!" The lycan called out. This wasn't the first attempt. Halfway in the chase he tried to cue me out, offering fake bribes and empty promises to get me out from the shadows. Like the one he just said now and proposed, "I'm not gonna hurt you, really! Just want to make sure you understand where I'm coming from..."

I kept my body close to one of the bigger trees, stifling my breathing in short, nasal breaths. I was close enough to spy his shape, I'm no bat but I practically grew up in the sticks when I was a kid, some of best pastimes was hiding out in the woods after dark and being a punk shit to the neighbors I didn't like. I noticed he was trying to sniff me out again, arching his head up as his snout snorted in vane attempts to find me. I managed to keep him away from the girls, but I still had to find a way to get close enough without being detected before I can strike. I decided to seek a vantage point and climbed up the tree. I managed to get on top of a sturdy branch at the lower base, when I perched myself in an adjustable position, I gave the lycan one more hint.

The werewolf's ear twitched, he turned toward the source with patient steps as he continued to coax, "You don't have to be afraid..." His words were softer, but the glow in his hungry eyes burned with the devil's intent, "We can talk this out like gentlemen...?"

He was just under me now, close enough that he could easily spot me in the branches if he looked up. Fortunately the fragment light from the moon dimmed, the clouds blotting it out once more. This was my chance. Slowly, I pulled out a small, cloth sack, bound shut with leathery thread. Inside was silver dust. Incase you have lived under a rock, I'm sure you have heard of how potent silver is to werewolves. They have a very nasty allergic reaction to this type of mineral. For a time it was believed the only thing that could kill a lycanthrope, but I wasn't planning to use it for lethal tendencies. I had to wait for the right moment to simply subdue him, and, with how everything set up as it is, this was the perfect moment.

I dropped from the tree like an anvil, plummeting down on him, slamming against his back as I reached my arms around his thick neck to cement my grip on him. Needless to say it was a challenge as he thrashed and writhed. His speed may have been crippled but his strength was on par with that orc kid. I tried to unravel the sack but the wolf got me by a millisecond before I could apply the dust. His grip found my coat, I could feel his claws sink into my back like needles before he catapulted me off of him. I hit the ground hard but quickly recovered, the pain in my back was only minor, he barreled at me like a freight train, even with moon out of the equation, his agility was still impressive. I ducked as he lunged at me, his claws missing my head by centimeters. He tried to come at me again before I could react, swiping with his left. I managed to block it, but the weight of the blow forced me back down, pinning me. Before he could swing his right, I throw a left hook across his snout, the concessive force of the enchanted glove knocked him away but only temporarily stunned him. In that moment of free movement, I undid the sack fully, as he tried to come at me again, I swung my hand in a wide vertical sweep, spreading the dust into the air between us. Silver particles spat into the lycan's eyes, instantly burning deep into his retina. The wolf barked and snarled in irritation as he tried desperately to rub it out only to make it worse. I saw my opportunity, but I was too hasty. I sought to end this as soon as possible, however I misjudged my own timing, I tried to go at him with another punch, but the lycan flailed his arms widely, backhanding me back into a thick tree trunk. The impact knocked the wind out of me, a forced sound of pain escaped my lungs. I had blinded him, but his hearing was still acute. He turned over to where I was, his ears honing in on me. I struggled to gain my footing, my body was still disoriented from the blow. I wouldn't be able to counter in time. He bolted at me on all fours with jaws wide open to rip me apart.

A thousands thoughts, between the blurs and numbness, raced through my mind, only a few I could process completely, none that seemed plausible. Suddenly, the lycan did something I didn't think could happen, he slipped. Not metaphorically, not trip on something, he literally slipped, clumsily too. The momentum forced his face into the soil as he plowed across the ground toward me dirt stuffed in his nostrils and powdered his eyes even more, bits of root had stuck between his teeth as he laid momentarily staggered. Regaining my footing I rushed at him as he tried to push himself back up, but not before my fist gave him a wet, sloppy, kiss. A pulse of blue energy threw him back down, but he tried another attempt only to get socked the other way. In desperate retaliation, he swung a claw back, but it was slow and awkward, easily evading it as I smashed another hook into him. For a giant ball of fluff, it felt like I was punching a high school jock jacked on steroids. I managed to corner him against a tree, he whirled another swipe, but I dodged it with ease before pounding a quick jab in his abdomen, the multiplied force caused a painful groan to hurl out of him as if I had just struck him with a battering ram. But he was still pumped with adrenaline and his persistence proved admirable. However, his movements were becoming slow and weak, even if he had managed to hit me, it would've barely made much impact. When I was finally able to wear him down, I stopped my swings, giving him a moment to breath. He panted exhaustively but managed to make a snarky, though be it hoarsely, remark after spitting some dirt out and said, "Is...that all...?"

I knew he was no longer a threat, the moon was no longer relevant and he was still blind from the silver, I doubt he even saw me clear enough to begin with to determine who or what I was. He was battered and beaten, fatigue was choking his consciousness.

I simply retorted back, "You tell me, pup...?"

He snorted weakly in amusement. Slowly, his form started to change, his snout shrank, fangs dulled, his fur receded into the pores of his skin, even his tail withered back into his lower spin and disappeared. Eventually, when his body stopped undulating like some reverse horror mutation, he looked more like an actual teenager again, only the bruises were much more visible this time.

"So you did see what had been going on...?" He deduces.

"You mean watching you fall on your ass from a three story building? Yeah, I saw that."

He spat again, closer toward me, "So who is my audience that witnessed such a spectacle performance...?"

"...I'm a guardian."

He almost let out a full hardy laugh, but was hushed back by the pulling ache in his stomach, "Are you now...? I Find that hard to believe..."

"Why's that?"

"Because you stopped punching. Not to mention the fact that you sound...older"

Older? Stopped punching? Those specific details got me curious. I continued with the facade

"Fair enough to be suspicious, but this is a new year, new openings, new rules. But I'm pretty sure attacking fellow students after school hours is definitely not a new one to you."

"Heh...Now you sound more like guardian...a fucking hypocrite like the rest of them...", he mumbled, a sudden edge in his tone dripped with toxicity.

What the hell was this boy talking about? This school must have some very contorted history. I was beginning to wonder just what kind of individuals these "Guardians" are.

He continued, "But I do have to say, you're a lot merciful, than the others...even with the silver...What's up with that...?"

"I fail to see how that's your business." I retorted sharply, but to avoid sounding too apprehensive, I continued and said, "But...lets just say that I'm a special case. I shouldn't be admitting this, but I report directly to the head of this school."

There was a moment of silence, but I could easily read the lycan's human expression even in the night's shadow.

With a hint of anxiety welling up in his throat, he pursed his lips before replying, "Oh...failed to mention that at orientations..."

"That's the point. I'm suppose to be low key. But seeing your recent activity forced me to intervene. So, here's what we're gonna do..." I walked toward him, somberly, letting him hear the weight of my every step. As I did, I glanced at something in my passing; a small patch of dirt that had been frozen over in a thin sheet of frost, right where the lycan had he misstep. He still couldn't see through the silver, but the sound of my approach was all I needed to keep his full attention. I leaned over, looking closely at him, he was still fairly big for a Japanese teen, looked almost as tall as me. Nevertheless, it would be my voice that would show him the gravity of my presence, "Promise to behave, tell no one about this night, and I won't report you to my boss. Understand...?"

I could only imagine that the one thing scarier than a guardian, would be the guy running this whole school. To the pup's bleak expression, I must've been right on the money.

He languidly raised his hands up in surrender, trying to hide his fear with a meek grin, "Alight, alright, I've learned my lesson, I'll control my impulses better from now on."

"Good." I straightened myself and lightened my tone after hearing his compliance. I turned away to recover my hat and made my way toward the refuge.

He could sense my exit and inquired hastily, "Wait...you're just leaving me like this...?"

"Yeah. I am. Just stay there for a bit and you'll recover. But if I catch you out here after school hours again, you and I are gonna have a problem..." But then I stopped for a moment, and realized I might have an opportunity before me. I turned back around and said to him, "I just remembered someth'n. Your name's Gin, right? President of that News club...?"

A sarcastic smile curled across his cheeks, "The one and only..."

"Maybe you can do more for me than just keeping your muzzle shut then."

"I don't suppose declining is an option either?"

"Smart wolf. I've been told that this is your second year at the academy, yeah?"

"Last time I checked..."

"I'd assume you're more aware of the layout then? I have a specific...assignment my boss has given. Apparently there is a student here that's an even bigger pain in the ass than you."

"Give it time, then you'll be sure."

"Point being, I need help finding him, he's been abusing his shapeshifting abilities to...avoid classes and harass classmates without attracting any attention to himself. It would be nice to have a pair of extra eyes around."

"And you can't ask the other guardians because...?"

"They're...Well, you already know what they're like: not exactly the easiest to work with."

He snorted, "Oh, I know all too well..."

"If you do this for me, I'll be more lenient on you further on. I just need you to be attentive. Notice anything that might be odd to you. If you've seen anyone that might not've been acting like themselves, going to places they usually shouldn't, any kind of behavior that might strike you as abnormal even within the abnormal."

"Yeah, not so sure if I can invest so much of my time in something like that. My attention is focused on...other things."

"Oh, right, you're too busy taking pictures of girls changing in the locker rooms and attacking students in the late hours of the night, yeah, you should check your calendar first..."

He sank lower down the trunk with an irritated frown, "You saw that too..."

Taking that as his sign of conformity, I continued by explaining the standards and arrangements of our semi-mutual agreement. A system of private communication would be established between the two of us, at least, to him it would be just the two of us. I planned to fill Pinktop in about this later, after I'm done chewing her out that is.

I swear, it's like these occurrences are becoming episodic...

Once the deal was concluded, I told him to take it easy from now on and warned him one more time of the consequences if he tried something like this again. I overheard him mutter a colorful name for me as I left him behind and entered deeper into the woods. A part of me was actually surprised he bought that whole story. I just hoped I could keep it up long enough to get out of this hell-made school. But I had only resolved one problem. There was still one more issue to address, one that had been following me around for long enough.

I stopped, still feeling the vague chill linger. I let out a minor sigh and spoke up, "We can either pussyfoot around this or you can actually come out..."

I heard a pair of timid footsteps slowly move from behind a tree, the moonlight was starting to brighten again, and through the crippled luminosity, there she was; the ice girl. She only showed a third of her appearance, shyly spying from the protection of the tree as her milky blue eyes cautiously studied me as though I were an animal that could easily be provoked. I made sure not to give her any reason to run, no tricks, no hostilities, just honest benignity. Though to my unawareness at the time, I must've looked menacing regardless, what with me smelling like pond muck, looking mangled after fist fighting an impulsive werewolf, and not to mention I've had a pissy day so my tolerance was wearing thin.

She steadily approached, leaving the protection of the tree and shadows. It seemed she had recovered well from the pollen. The quiet girl was hesitant, but prepared to open her mouth to say something, but whatever it was quickly receded and stayed when she was suddenly cut off by the one person I did not want to deal with at this very critical moment...

"Bugger me..." I heard him mutter before emerging from behind a random tombstone. Fucking Jack. He had his hands up, as though he had been caught by a police officer and was preparing for the cuffs, "Look, before ye get homici..." His words retreated back into his fat mouth almost as fast as the grapehead that looked at him with such shock. The realization drained the color from his face like a thousand leaches, just comprehending how massive his mistake was.