Will didn't cry out. He rolled his eyes and pushed the person off him. "Cut it out, Cassie," he snapped.
The girl grinned. She had rust-colored red hair, catlike green eyes, and a face full of freckles. "I scared you, didn't I?"
"You didn't," Will snapped. "I think you scared Grady, though."
"Is this how everyone here greets each other?" Grady asked.
Will laughed. "No. Just me and Cassie."
"Great, a new kid," said Cassie, staring at Grady. For some reason, her stare made him uncomfortable. Her narrow green eyes seemed greedy, hungry as they stared at him. He noticed Will was staring at him in the same way, his dark eyes flashing greedily.
No, it must've just been his imagination. Their stares only lasted for two seconds, anyway. "I was just telling Grady about what night it is tonight," said Will.
Cassie's expression grew serious, her green eyes narrowing again. "Oh, right. The night of the full moon."
"What's so great about it?" Grady asked.
"Because…" Cassie lowered her voice. "It's the night when the werewolves come out."
Grady laughed. "Very funny, guys."
"It's not a joke," Will insisted. "It's true. And the werewolves are from this swamp. Fever Swamp."
"I bet you tell all the new kids that," said Grady. "It's a funny joke."
"No, it's true," insisted Will seriously. "You've heard the rumors, haven't you? Someone goes missing every month here. Animals go missing in the swamp all the time as well. Sometimes trees are found fallen or destroyed."
"That doesn't mean there's a werewolf," argued Grady.
"Don't believe us? Stay up late tonight and listen," suggested Cassie.
"And I'll hear the howls of werewolves?" asked Grady sarcastically.
"Yes," said Will seriously.
To be honest, it did sound like the kind of thing Grady liked. He loved mythical creatures and stories about them. "Well, you're right that tonight is a full moon," he admitted. "But if there was a werewolf, wouldn't he have been caught?"
"That's because we don't know who the werewolf is," said Cassie. "But we have a theory."
"A theory?" Grady asked.
"Animals aren't the only things that live in the swamp," said Will. "There's also a person who lives here. The swamp hermit."
"The swamp hermit?" Grady asked.
"He lives in a shack in the middle of the swamp, all by himself," said Cassie.
"Why does he live there?" asked Grady.
"Nobody knows," said Cassie. "Nobody dares to talk to him. But there's a rumor about him."
"What rumor?" asked Grady.
"A rumor that he's the werewolf," said Will. "The werewolf of Fever Swamp."
"What?" Grady burst out laughing. "You can't be serious."
"It's true," Cassie insisted. "The rumor, I mean. That's why he lives in the swamp. That's why he never talks to anyone. He's the one who causes the howls at night."
"But how do you know?" asked Grady. "Have you tried talking to him?"
"No," Will admitted. "Everyone's too afraid to talk to him. He looks and acts so creepy. Living in the middle of the swamp. And his shack is all rundown."
"He sounds a little weird," admitted Grady. "But that doesn't mean he's a werewolf."
"Then why would he live in the swamp?" asked Will. "And why would he not talk to any human? Maybe, every full moon, he transforms, and that's what causes the howls."
"That's ridiculous," said Grady. "Maybe you should try talking to him."
"No way," said Cassie. "He's way too creepy."
"Maybe if you tried talking to him, you'd find out he's actually a normal guy," suggested Grady.
"You try talking to him, then," suggested Will. "Go up to him and ask if he's a werewolf."
"Fine, I will," said Grady boldly. "Show me where he lives. I bet you just made him up to scare me."
"We didn't," insisted Will. "I'll show you to his shack. Follow us."
Grady followed Will and Cassie through the swamp. They walked off the path, and the trees brushed against Grady even more. Several red marks were left on his legs. Suddenly, the trees cleared to reveal a clearing, blocked by more trees.
Cassie peered through the trees. "There it is," she whispered. "His shack."
In the middle of the clearing was a small, rundown shack that looked like it was falling apart. It had a thatched roof, a door made of tree limbs, and walls made of palm leaves tied together. A pair of boots and a large black pot on top of steaming rocks stood in front of it.
"Okay, there is a shack," Grady conceded. "But maybe it's empty."
"Go knock on the door," Cassie suggested. "Maybe he's inside."
"I will." Grady ducked under the trees as they scraped his legs and entered the clearing.
"Grady, wait!" Will called.
Grady walked up the rocky trail that led to the shack and stopped at the door. It smelled old and musty, and looked shabby. He didn't know how anyone could live in there, and he hadn't even entered yet.
Ignoring Will call to him again, he raised his hand and knocked on the door. It felt like tree bark, and made a hollow noise.
"Come back here!" Cassie called. "Then we'll watch him come out while staying hidden."
Grady ignored him. He wanted to see this mysterious hermit himself. For a while, nothing happened. Grady stared at the door and backed away a little.
"Maybe he's not home," Will suggested.
Grady started to turn around, but jumped as he heard the door open, the tree limbs creaking. He turned around and saw a man standing there. He had long, scraggly, dirty white hair in a ponytail and a darkened, scarred face. He wore a scraggly white T-shirt, smeared with dirt, and equally dirty jeans. But the most unusual thing about him were his eyes. They were a distinct dark green, the color of forest moss, a shade Grady had never seen in someone's eyes before. They stared curiously at Grady, seeming to bear into him.
Grady suddenly felt very nervous. "Uh… sorry," he stammered. He turned around and tried to run away, but tripped, throwing his hands out helplessly. He fell hard on the rocky ground, pain radiating up his leg. He looked up and saw the trees shift as Will ran away. Great guy, he thought sarcastically.
He forced himself to his feet. He had fallen on something sharp and green. It looked like a shard from a bottle. His knee was now scraped. He forced himself to run forward.
"Wait," the man called. He froze. "You hurt your knee, didn't you?"
Grady didn't reply and tried to run forward, but his knee hurt him more than he thought. He tripped over again, but managed to reach out his hands and avoid hitting his knee again. The man said, "Wait. I have something for you." Then he heard him disappear into his shack.
Grady knew he should've taken the opportunity to run away, but he didn't. Then he heard the man exit again.
"Take these." Grady turned around and saw him holding a grimy, open box of bandages. He stood there while the man approached him, concern shining in his strange eyes. He took a clean bandage out of the box an offered it to Grady, who stared at it.
"Don't tell me I have to put it on you," he joked as he opened the bandage.
Grady accepted the bandage and placed it over his knee without looking. "Th-thank you," he stammered.
"You tripped on part of a bottle," the man noted, staring at a green shard on the ground. "Sorry about that. I leave them lying around."
"Uh… it's okay," said Grady.
"What's your name, boy?" the man asked.
Grady hesitated. "Uh… Grady."
"What are you doing here?" He didn't sound angry, just curious.
"Uh… I…" Grady felt his heart pounding. The man was staring at him curiously with his green eyes.
"Wait. I know why you were here," the man said, his voice sounding angry for the first time.
"You do?" Grady gulped.
"You were dared, weren't you?" he accused. "Dared by one of the other children. They dared you to knock on the door and then run."
"No," Grady denied. "Well, they did tell me to. But it wasn't because they told me. I… I wanted to see who was living here."
"You wanted to see me?" His angry tone disappeared.
"I was curious," said Grady. "I heard people talk about you."
"Of course." He sounded bitter again. "Did they tell you how mysterious and scary I am?"
"Uh… kind of," Grady admitted.
"And you wanted to see me to see if they were right?" the man guessed.
"Well… yeah," admitted Grady. "But I also thought it was weird that they said all that about you without even talking to you. So I thought I'd try talking to you."
A smile spread across the man's darkened face. "Really?"
"I'll leave now. I didn't mean to bother you," said Grady, turning around. "Thanks for the bandage."
"Wait," the man called. Grady froze. "My name's John." He noticed his gaze trail to the silver watch he was wearing.