"I want my daughter back now!"

Maddox sat outside the kitchen door, wincing at each of Anna's shouts. Despite her tiny facade, her anger filled the room and left all the kids anxious.

"They outrank me!" Gray was almost as frantic as her. He felt useless as his authority was overridden. "There's nothing I can do!"

Maddox raised his eyes to Dominic as the shouts rang from the kitchen. Nestled in the hallway with Cveta, the three of them shared looks. Kadri had been oddly silent throughout the argument, yet it did little to ease the tension.

"So...I heard your dragon hatched?" Cveta asked in an attempt to dismiss the obvious.

Maddox nodded as he looked over his heart where the silvery lizard slept. Hardly the size of his hand, the nordic firescale was like a mini disco ball. Shining scales caught the light in vibrant reflections.

Maddox held a hand protectively over the sleeping dragon as if he could banish all harm. Ever since Gray found her nipping student's finger's in the school halls, Maddox hasn't taken his eyes off of her. She slept in his hoodie and nested deep in his pockets for warmth until his heart melted with pride.

"Yeah." He answered sheepishly as another one of Anna's shouts broke the silence. He smiled at the tiny beast. "I named her Fyisha."

"Like the Atlantean word for moonlight?" Cveta grasped the conversation like an escape. "She does kind of look like a celestial body."

"Or just another stupid thing that's gonna eat my fingers." Dominic added with hardly any concern. Curled up and bitter, he had little interest in everything happening around them. Over and over, he let darkness flicker across his fingertips in rapid sparks.

"Well, she can be a bit nippy..." Maddox trailed off, but Dominic had already moved on to toying with the light bulb.

On again, off again, the room was submerged into darkness at flickering intervals.

Maddox blinked away the strobe effect as Dominic repeatedly drew in the light through his fingertips, but he could hardly stand it alongside the arguing from the kitchen.

"Where's Kat and Robin?" He asked, pushing himself to his feet with a hand over Fyisha. The dragon stirred, but fell back to sleep with a puff of smoke from her nose. He couldn't stand the chaos around him.

"I know." Dominic snarled as the lights stopped flickering, instead compressed in his hand in a tiny ball.

"And..."

"And I promised I wouldn't tell."

"Aww, C'mon Dominic!" Maddox wrinkled his nose as the boy tucked bit his lip and toyed with the ball of light. "I'm bored outta my mind! Where'd they go?"

"Somewhere..." He mumbled while refusing to make eye contact. His face was lit by stray beams of light.

"That doesn't help me." He groaned, leaning against the wall in defeat. Another scream echoed from the kitchen and he twitched with anxiety. He couldn't stand to stay there a moment longer with Sharise missing and dangerous soldiers potentially searching for him.

"The forest."

Maddox looked down at Cveta as she hugged a book like a stuffed animal. Mousy and dwarfed behind ginormous glasses, she stared up at him in timid silence.

"Why'd they go there?" He asked, but she only shrugged her shoulders. "It's already dark out and everyone's on edge..."

"She just said she was going there. But don't tell Gray. She's still technically banned."

Maddox groaned as he glanced down at Fyisha. She was fragile and fast asleep, but he needed a breath of fresh air. Hopefully, she could sleep through the entire walk.

"I'm gonna go down to meet them."

"Maybe not the best idea?" Cveta piped up again, clinging tighter and tighter to the book. Her voice was high with tension. "It's a full moon tonight and you're luminescent...You could get moonburn."

Maddox shrugged his shoulders. "I'll be fine. I've got my hoodie."

She looked anxious to let him go, but only ducked her head instead. "Just...be careful. A full moon in powerful enough to kill."

He nodded in response as Anna's countless warnings echoed through his head.

~~~

Maddox tucked Fyisha in his arms and silently continued down the forest path. From time to time, he scratched her head or she chirped, but the night remained a silent picture of moonlight and greek pomegranate trees.

"So..." Maddox spoke up, finally breaking the silence. Fyisha hardly lifted her head in response. "You know what Robin's up to this time? I know she's had this rebellious and whatever, but this seems a bit odd, even for her."

Maddox began to rattle off his thoughts as fast as they would come for his new pet. "Like, I know she's non-luminescent so she doesn't get moonburn, but no one goes out during a full moon, right? And what's with all the secrecy? Sharise just disappeared! She should be home and...hey!"

Maddox scrambled to hold the tiny dragon back as she jumped and scratched, distraught at something he couldn't see. Desperately, Maddox clamped his hand over her jaw, but her wings fiercely beat in his face. Maddox bit his lip to withhold screams of frustration.

"I said get off my face!" He yelped as her wings beat his nose. Again, the sharp tip of her wing smacked into his jaw and he fell back. Instantly, Fyisha jumped into the air, frantically flapping as she squeaked all the way down the rest of the path.

"Well I didn't mean you had to fly away!" He yelped as he clambered to his feet. Maddox listened to his feet beat against the soft ground as he scrambled after the dragon, his only hope of catching the silver flashes that lingered among the trees.

His feet pounded along with his heart and ever so slowly, he felt himself growing closer. Trees flew by without a trace, moonbeams gliding over his back as he ran faster than he knew possible. He could see her at the end of the path, could almost reach her...

And then he blinked and the silver flash was gone. Maddox paused, out of breath and energy to search for the pesky reptile. Heaving a deep breath of air, he took in his surroundings. Trees shadowed by the moons silver rays guarded the path like giant soldiers, their only movement the leaves in the wind. Dry leaves crunched underneath his feet. Occasional flowers sprouted up from the mess of plants, but even they coward from the moon, and in the distance, a silver river flowed across the forest floor and into a shimmering pool of moonlight.

Maddox began to make his way towards the silver stream, his eyes darting rapidly in sign of his dragon. It wasn't the first time Fyisha had ran, but the thought of losing her made his heart squirm.

"Fyisha!" Maddox's voice echoed breathlessly through the soldier-like trees. "You better get get back here or I'm gonna..."

Maddox trailed off, his thoughts twisted as his eyes drifted to the ground. Shrouded in the darkness of night, Robin stared up at him, curled against a boulder on the bank of the pool. Her eyes were the only thing that shone in the moonlight, but Maddox could still see the fear twisted across her face.

Robin pulled her hand off of the struggling bundle in her arms and held a finger to her lips, her eyes wide with a warning of fear.

"Get down" Maddox winced at the sound of the leaves crunching under his knees as he followed her instructions. His heart pounded painfully in fear, but staring at Robin's distraught face was all he needed to know that something was wrong. His hands shaking, he pressed his back gains the boulder, waiting for the terror to pass.

"What...what on earth are we hiding from?" He breathed the words, scared that if they were any louder, he would wake the monstrosities that hid in the forest.

Robin squeaked a whimper in response. Her face was drawn so tight in fear, she couldn't even cry the tears that lingered on her eyelids.

"Bad things." Her mouthed words were cut off by the sob that rose in her throat. Tightly, she pulled the struggling bundle close to herself, holding onto it as if it was her life. Maddox watched with a racing heart as the bundle squealed and a small snout poked out from the mess of twisted metal. Robin's arms were full of chains. Fyisha squealed angrily, but Robin quickly wrapped her fist around her snout, her eyes wild at the sound.

"You kidnapped my dragon?" Maddox yelped a bit louder than he intended to, and his heart jumped in response. Robin squeaked again, too terrified to speak. Maddox took a deep breath to settle his pounding heart, but the thought of a vicious beast plagued his mind. "Why in your right mind would you kidnap my dragon?"

"The, uhh..." Robin paused, her voice tight with fear. "He would have caught her."

"Who?" Maddox whispered. He reached into the bundle and grabbed Fyisha, who happily clambered up his arm. Slipping underneath his hood, Fyisha curled around the back of his neck. Protectively, Maddox ran his hand over her wings, just glad to have her back.

Robin shook her head with distraught. "You need to leave. You shouldn't be here."

"If this is about the full moon, I'm fine." He whispered harshly, sick of being reminded. "I have my hoodie. I'm perfectly safe."

"No, you're not." Her whisper grew, along with the fear in her voice. "It's not safe here. You shouldn't have followed me."

"Robin," Maddox's voice shook with fear. "What the pheonix are we up against?"

Robin shook her head again, too upset to speak. Her arms tightened around the bundle of cloth as her eyes grew wet with tears. Shakily, she raised her arm above the boulder, pointing to the pool of water. "Him."

Maddox listened to the subtle crunch of leaves under his feet as he shifted, slowly and carefully peering above the boulder. His eyes glided over the moonlit pool as his mind wandered. Every bit of misplaced shadow or ripple sent his heart into a flurry, but as he let his eyes glide over the scene, his heart just about stopped.

With a low growl in the base of his throat, the wolf stood at the base of the pool. His yellow eyes were shrouded by a mess of pristine white fur. His long snout was dripping wet with Suttungr water, all while a fish flopped lifelessly in his mouth. With a thrash of his head, the wolf threw the fish on the sharp rocks of the bank.

Maddox bit this lip to withhold a scream as the beast it hunkered over its prey, the sound of gnashing teeth filling the forest. He couldn't help imagining what the teeth would look like up close with their blood stained fangs and its...

"Get down before he sees you!" Robin's voice pulled him out of a daze, and Maddox jumped down slightly louder than he intended to.

"I thought wolves didn't attack unless you made them." He heaved, his voice too tight with fear to speak clearly. Instantly, Maddox pulled Fyisha into his arms, terrified that he might find her in the jaws of the beast if he wasn't careful. Fyisha nipped at his fingers, but generally settled down enough for Maddox to hold her tight.

"Not a normal wolf."Robins voice was more of a heavy breath of fear than a whisper. "It's not even a wolf. It's..."

"Some kind of creepy magic thingy?"

Robin shook her head again. "No...no, not really. He's not magical, he's just different."

"What are you talking about?" Maddox's breath shook with fear.

"I mean that he's still human, but I can't make him realize that. Not tonight."

Maddox paused as thousands of theories ran through his mind. "There is no way that thing is human."

Robin clutched the chains tightly to her heart. Every breath she took shook her back and forth like a rocking chair, all while Maddox saw the gears in her head spinning. Finally, Robin opened her eyes, carefully moving to her knees. " I need to talk to him."

"Uhh, didn't you just describe him as some kind of monster?" Maddox harshly whispered. His mind seemed about to explode by just trying to process what was going on. "Talking doesn't exactly seem like the best idea right now."

"It's just about the only option we have."Robin's voice shook, but she clambered to her feet anyway. Bravely, she stood above the boulder, staring firmly at the wolf. Maddox felt tears of fear gather in the corners of his eyes. There was no way he could let her walk into a minefield of threats, but he was paralyzed with fear of being the wolf's next victim. he watched helplessly as Robin stood in plain sight, her voice choked by tears, but a fearless determination shielding her face. With the confidence of a warrior, her lips moves softly.

"Katlego, I need you to come home." The wolf's head snapped up, bits of fish clinging to the hairy mess. His eyes were filled with an untamed hunger, and each heaving breath seemed like preparation for an attack.

Maddox slammed his back against the boulder again, feeling the fear course so deep into his body, his bones felt like ice. "Wait, so this thing is your brother?"

Robin's eyes remained on the wolf, who's footsteps echoed through Maddox's head with a thud of pain. He was getting closer, but he didn't dare to look out of fear that he would be met with a mouthful of thrashing teeth and bloody stains. Robin's shaky breath held strong against the approaching beast.

"This is enough Kat. Come home." Maddox glanced up at his sister, her gaze held in a model of trembling bravery. Biting his lip to stop the scream, Maddox planted his feet firmly on the leaf strewn ground and before he could change his mind, pushed himself up to stand next to Robin.

The beast was closer than he had expected, so close, that it could leap and he would be dead in an instant. His claws were like daggers poised to kill with paws the size of his face. Channeling his bravery, Maddox forced himself to speak. "This isn't a good idea. You have to stop this."

Robin's strong voice echoed through the forest again. "It's okay, Kat. I'm not mad." Her voice choked, her thoughts so rampant with fear, but also something Maddox didn't understand. Something so beautiful, so lost, and helpless. Her voice held a shining, shattering light, so delicate it could be broken by a single word, but strong enough to hold the world together. Gently, she held the beautiful light in her voice with a tender touch as she spoke. "I still love you."

Maddox stood speechless, entranced by the sudden beauty her voice held. The light inside wrapped around his mind so tenderly, he couldn't pull himself free even if he tried.

But the words weren't meant for him, and their grasp faded as he watched Robin reach out to the wolf, her arm extended towards her enemy in a gesture of kindness. Holding himself close, Maddox clung to feeling of the words as he watched the wolf come closer.

It's claws left deep gashes in the dirt, but it held a different stance about it than it did before. With a strange, twisted grace, the wolf lifted a paw like a dog asked to shake, and Robin wrapped her hand around the fur stained with fish guts.

"Please Kat." She held a plea in the moment, asking for more than she had ever asked for before, and as the moonlight decorated the silver fur of the beast, everything began to change.

As if a trick of mirrors, the silver fur seemed to fade to the moonlight, each strand evaporating to join the curse of the moon. The paws we're no longer paws, but hands, clinging to Robin like a lifeline, and shrouded beneath a mess of fur, Maddox caught sight of the beasts eyes. Surrounded by the darkness of night, the hazel eyes stood out clearly, holding thousands of memories in a single glance.

Robin's cry hiccuped with tears of relief,shaking Maddox from the trance of her words to see the beast again. The wolf's fur stood on end, its teeth bared in attack, and its eyes trained on its prey.without a moment of hesitation, Maddox jumped towards Robin, thoughts of losing her pushing him to keep her safe.

"Get away from that thing!" Robin crashed to the ground, her face scraping against the ground while Maddox crashed on top of her. Pausing to catch his breath, Maddox crouched above and waited for her to speak up, but instead, he was meant with a sharp pain on his cheek.

Maddox fell backwards into the soil, the slap still stinging his face. "Are you crazy? I Almost had him!" Robin stood above him, her voice suddenly tight with anger and hate. Maddox wanted to crawl back to moments before with the soft, lightened tone that somehow made him feel safe.

"We didn't have him!" He shot back. "He was going to have us for dinner!" But the anger quickly faded as a low growl filled his ears. With fear coursing through his blood, Maddox forced his head to turn and stared straight in to eyes of the beast.