"Hey Zack, hey Rian! We haven't talked in a while, where've you been?" Alex called the two other boys. 

     "Hi Alex!" Zack and Rian replied from the other end of the line.

     "We moved to Japan, I thought we told you? I guess not." Zack added. "You and Jack should come visit soon! Speaking of Jack, is he there with you? I wanna say hi!" 

     "Yeah, about him…" Alex's voice trailed off. "You know how we're shapeshifters, right? Well, Jack turned into a dog and is now stuck like that. Could you guys… maybe… help change him back? Please?"

     "Wait, he's STUCK like that? Of course we'll help! When's the soonest plane departure from you guys to us? You should get tickets, like… NOW! They're almost sold out, plus if you pay an extra fee, you can bring animals onto the flight with you- not saying Jack's an animal, because he's not, he's just stuck in the body of one…" Rian exclaimed, fumbling with the phone, sending crashes and rumbles over to Jack and Alex. "I'm just making this worse, aren't I?"

     "Nah, man, it's fine. I'm booking a flight right now, where's your new place?"

     "We're living on top of this mountain called Mount Witherwood, I'm not sure if you've heard of it but the villagers all think it's haunted, for some reason. Eh, it was cheap, so we bought it!" Zack said.

     "Alright, thanks, bye!" Alex hung up on them, dashing around his and Jack's room in a frenzy, haphazardly chucking clothes into a suitcase before nearly tripping on his feet as he skidded into the entryway. He grabbed his wallet and keys, slipping on shoes and a jacket in the process. "C'mon Jack, we have to go!"

-time skip to airport-

     "All passengers boarding flight 12A to Japan, please line up here. If you have an animal pass or are in first class, please line up here," the announcer's voice crackled overhead as the two males walked through the airport.

     "12A? That's our flight!" Alex's head shot up. "Oh my God, we're gonna be late, we're so gonna be late…" he fretted, pulling Jack behind him toward the lineup. 

     Jack barked at him, as if to say "Calm down, we aren't gonna miss it." He nuzzled his cold, wet nose into Alex's palm reassuringly. He ran ahead, yanking at the leash clipped to his collar as he almost ended up dragging Alex to the line.

     "Alright, we made it," Alex panted as he and Jack came to a standstill. Soon, an attendant let them on the plane, where they found their seats. He pulled out his phone to text the group chat he, Jack, Zack, and Rian were all part of.

[All Time Low]

A: Jack and I just boarded the plane, we should be taking off any minute now :)

Z: Ri and I can't wait to see you! 

R: ^ :D

     Alex shoved his phone back in his pocket as Jack laid his head across his lap. "Hopefully they can change you back."

     Jack simply hummed in response.

     As the plane took off into the wide, cloudy blue sky, the boys fell asleep, waking only to eat and use the toilet. They slept for hours at a time, until over the tinny-sounding speakers a voice sounded. "Please fasten your seatbelts, we are landing soon. I repeat, please fasten your seatbelts."

     The voice jarred them awake, as they tiredly blinked their eyes to rid them of sleep. As the plane descended toward the runway, Alex texted the group chat again.

[All Time Low]

A: We're landing!!!!!!!!

R: yES OHMYGOD WE'RE AT THE AIRPORT WAITING FOR YOU I CAN'T WAIT AAAAAAAAAAAA

Z: COOL IT, RIAN! We really are at the airport, though, we've got the big neon green sign, you can't miss it!

A: Awesome! We can hardly wait to see you guys as well :D

     Soon, the aircraft's wheels touched the asphalt, and everyone was instructed to undo their seatbelts and leave the plane in an orderly fashion, which didn't happen. Everybody raced into the aisle between the seats, jostling and knocking over each other. As the boys rushed down the airplane's stairs, they immediately saw the enormous Day-Glo green sign emblazoned with the words "RIGHT HERE!" which they assumed meant Rian and Zack were, well, right there. They headed toward it, and had almost reached it when a body flew through the air and landed on them.

     "I MISSED YOU!" Rian shouted as he clung onto Alex. Jack started bouncing around excitedly, panting happily as he rubbed his head into his friends' palms in an admittedly rather cat-like fashion. Rian grabbed one of Alex's hands, dragging him toward the airport exit while Zack and Jack followed. 

     In only a minute or so, they reached the outside and set off toward the town. They saw the dark, looming shape of the supposedly haunted Mount Witherwood in the near distance, its massive size growing larger and larger as they approached the otherwise picturesque village before them. Before they could get too close, though, a mob of villagers swarmed them.

     "Who are you?"

     "Mount Witherwood is haunted, you can't go up there!"

     "They bring a curse! I can feel it!"

     Those were only a few of the things yelled at the four; however, Zack and Rian were already well-known in those parts for being the only wizards around, so they knew the yelling was directed at Jack and Alex instead.

     "We come in peace," Alex tried to tell them, to no avail. They just kept yelling nonsense at the two. "We're with Rian and Zack, see? We won't hurt you!"

     "It's true!" Rian piped up. "They're just trying to turn the dog, Jack, back into a human. Please let us through?"

     With many groans and muttered words, the crowd gradually parted until there was more or less a path through the center. The four boys passed through safely, but they still got suspicious glares from mostly old people. The younger ones just smiled or kept their faces blank, and let them through.

A/N: Look who updated her fic for the 1st time in months! This bitch!!!

1016 words