“Trent and the new guys, straight into the principal’s office.” Mr. Huxley, the gym teacher stood over us, his arms crossed as he glared at us. I let go of Trent’s shirt and his head slumped down on the ground. Nigel let go of the guy too at the sight of him, raising his arms like he was getting arrested. He coughed violently for air. In the brief moment, my brain rushed to every memory asking how I was even in the situation. I didn't plan to get caught but here I was standing in front of the gym teacher with a big nervous smile plastered on my face. Mr. Huxley's eyes nearly twitched with anger. 

The gym locker room smelled like a wet dog. The smell was worse but that's how I come close to describing it. Nigel, me and Enzo sat on the bench facing Mr. Huxley. The whole time Enzo sat with a scared look on his face. I didn’t focus much but he was picking at his fingernails. I don’t know why he got dragged here even though he wasn’t a part of the fight. The coach’s face clearly told us he didn’t want to deal with such shenanigans. 

              “On the first day of school? Seriously? What had gotten into your little mind to pick a fight on the first day of school? There has to be a better explanation on why you boys decided to act like animals.” he scolded.

               “The guy was being bullied right in front of us so I had to intervene. Besides, Trent attacked me first..” I defended myself. 

“You saw who was getting bullied?” he asked as he raised one eyebrow in suspicion.

“The guy with brown hair.” I said in a low voice. I heard his name but I couldn’t remember. 

“The guy who was wearing the old flannel shirt. With freckles and stuff.” Enzo gave the description. Mr. Huxley thought for a moment. 

“Ethan Flores?” 

“They did call him Ethan.” Nigel remembered. 

“That boy is always getting bullied. It's best you guys stay away from him.” 

“How can I see someone getting hurt and not stop it?” A worried look came over my face. “Trent literally pushed him down.”

“Look, I didn't take you to the principal's office for a reason. It's the first day of school and you are new in town. You are good boys and you better stay good throughout the whole year. So stay out of trouble and if you get that itch then fight out in the yard, not in the school corridor.” 

The bell ring screamed through the school. Great, the whole lunch break is over now. I think about my half eaten sandwich still sitting on the cafeteria table. The bread going stale in the horrible air saddens me. I had put all my heart into making it. 

“You boys make it to class.” he gestured at the door.  

“Dude!” Nigel whistled as soon as we walked out the gym locker room. “Who throws a punch like that?” He mimicked me. 

“It wasn’t that bad.”

“Jason, Are you okay? We are going to nurse right now,” the panic appeared in Enzo’s voice.

“I’m fine, Enzo. Trent calling him a demon really got to me ”

“Yeah the demon thing bugged me off.” Nigel agreed with me. 

“They were throwing water at him like an exorcism too.” 

“I don't know, man. It's just.. I hope it doesn't get worse.” 

“Dont worry. What's good is that the whole school thinks we are cool.” Nigel patted me on the shoulder. I gave him a slight smile. 

“I wonder if it will be cool when Dad finds out about it.” Enzo sulked.

“Dad would be more than happy.” He emphasized on the more. 

 We turned right down the corridor. The banner hung low right by the entrance. Welcome back! was written on the white banner in bold letters. The exclamation mark made it look happy in this empty school corridor. Like it somehow makes the day a whole lot better. 

 “Jason.” Nigel whispered. He was already standing at the door, his hand on the doorknob. Enzo was gone into his maths class. I gave Ethan one last look and followed Nigel into English. 

—------------

The tree's croony branches swayed in the wind casting shadows on us as we walked. The clouds covered the sky, barely showing the moon. The leaves crunched under our feet. A light sound of the flowing water came from far away. The woods were flourishing with primroses. The fresh smell nestled deep into my house. Myrefalls was more woods than land. It was a perfect place to stay. For us at least. The house’s chimney became visible from over the trees. To be honest, it was more than a house. A mansion would be appropriate to say. 

 “There’s no full moon.” Enzo pointed out. 

 “We don’t need that.” Nigel. He flexed his hand. His nails elongated, taking the shape of sharp claws. He dug his nails into the tree bark and scratched a mark. Three gashes embedded into the wood. Enzo followed him too. He left little scratches here and there. 

 “This is not going to end well.” I nodded in disapproval.

 “Don’t ruin the fun, party pooper.” Nigel pulled a face at me.

 “We came here to hide, not put ourselves on display,” I rubbed my face. They walked away without me not listening to a word I said. I let out a sigh. Maybe Nigel is right, I’m being a party pooper. It’s not like we are going to find something. We reached the mansion. Bricks became visible going around in a circle. Grass and vine covered the pathway which seemed like it used to be a pathway. The supposed fountain was also covered in vines and plants growing from the fountain. A cold breeze blew, sending chills through the body. The mansion was as grey looking as the dark sky. Its windows were broken in some places. The iron grate creaked as Enzo pushed it. Smashed beer cans and alcohol bottles littered the entrance. Graffiti marked the outside walls. Inside the mansion, the huge hall had wide stairs going up from both the sides. A fireplace was built on the other end of the corridor. We went round the back to discover a line of rooms. I lit a torch to look inside the room. Biomes of fungus bloomed on the walls. Large specks flew all over the room with spider webs clustered on the chandelier. Enzo gagged at the sight.

 “I’ll give you a hundred for spending an hour in this room.” I elbowed Nigel.

 “Don’t underestimate me.” Nigel warned. 

 “Why would you even think to do that?” Enzo gave him a horrified look.

 “A gold digger would do anything.” I scoffed.

Sounds of multiple footsteps tingled in my ear. Voices emerged from the gateway. A flash of light entered through the hallway mirror, reflecting on the walls. 

“They are here.” Enzo said with a smile. We walked out the door to see Penny and Izzy entering through the gate. 

“I thought you guys were going to ditch us.” Nigel teased.

“In your dreams.” Penny sneered. A branch snapped nearby in the silence and fell beside the gate. Nigel let out a little scream at the sudden noise. We all slowly burst into laughter. 

“I’m so macho.” Enzo mimicked him. 

“That was all of a sudden.” He defended himself, a wash of embarrassment coloured his face.

“You should definitely go first.” Izzy poked him on the side, causing Nigel to flinch. 

We started to walk towards the north side of the woods. According to Penny, it was the direction they had found their evidence before. A little into the woods and we came across one of Nigel’s planted pieces of evidence. A half footprint in the mud.

“This could be a rabbit’s.” I shrugged my shoulders. Honestly, if I hadn’t known I couldn’t have told if it was a werewolf’s. 

“It kind of looks like one but doesn't." Izzy and Enzo inspected the evidence, shining the torch right over it. 

“It’s very…. Artiste.” she said after a thought. Enzo nodded beside her. We continued to move forward. The ferns brushed against my legs as I walked down the path. Suddenly, Penny turned towards me. 

“By the way, what happened at the Principal’s office?” She asked.

“Mr. Huxley didn’t take us to the principal’s office.” 

“That’s different.” Penny said with a confused face. She turned and continued to walk.

“What’s Trent’s problem anyway?”

 “Nothing except he chooses to be an asshole everyday because his dad eats dinner with the mayor.”

 “What a sad life.” Enzo commented.

 “I know right!” 

 “And, what's with the exorcism?” Penny looked the other way and got distracted by Nigel calling her, leaving my question in the air.

 “They throw holy water on Ethan because he thinks he’s a demon.” Izzy spoke. 

 “Why?” 

 “After.. The incident… Trent started to pick on Ethan.” she breathed. “Forget that, how are you finding Myrefalls?” her face changed into an uplifting expression.

 “I liked the place at first until the neighbours started to recommend hanging cow intestines on the curtains to ward away spirits.” 

 “You’ll get used to that once you go to Magic Anne’s.” 

 “It better be good.” I smiled.

 “Their pasta would spellbind you to this place.” I raised my eyebrow in speculation. “Mhmm,” She nodded. 

 “Honestly speaking, the intestines are non-negotiable.” She moved ahead of me, walking towards Penny. I joined them ahead by the bushes. 

 “Aye, we have been doing this for ten years.” I overheard Penny.

 “Creepypasta videos in the middle of the night don't count.” Nigel shot her a look.

 “OK five years.” She rolled her eyes. She stopped and stared up ahead. She directed her torchlight at the birch wood trees, revealing the scratches longer in length.

 “We are getting there.” She said proudly.

 “Nigel, those are not the same scratches as you had left.” I whispered to Nigel.

 “It looks exactly the same to me.” He whispered back. I gave him a look but he just nodded.  

 “Where’s Enzo?” Izzy questioned. I looked back. Not even his footprints remained.

 “Enzo?” I called his name. The bushes didn't rustle and the wind didn’t tell of any sign. I strained my eyes and stretched my ears but there was no sign of him. Stay calm, Jason, stay calm. I kept repeating to myself. 

 “Enzo?” Izzy yelled into the woods again whilst my brain was busy contemplating that Enzo could be pulling a prank. Nigel and Enzo would have made this plan up behind my back. I nearly believed it but Nigel’s face was telling a different story.

 “Let’s go back, maybe he just got lost.” Izzy moved forward first. I went after her. The darkness was as strong as the night. Our torchlights made a patch in the stronghold of the darkness. Izzy’s back is outlined with the rim of light. She stood there and stared into the hollowness between the trees.. 

 “What’s wrong?” I asked. A hole dug into the dirt. Large paw prints surrounded the dirt. Red blood marks stained the brown soil, sticking to the crevices of the print. Larger gashes scarred the tree above. Not one but multiple scratches over one other. I turned my head towards Nigel. 

“That wasn’t me,” he defended.

“Then-” The bushes behind us rustled. All of us moved closer. I held my breath not moving a single step. The light shone on the moving leaves in the dark. A figure bursted out of the bushes falling near the tree bark. 

“Get off of me!” He screamed as he fell. 

“Ethan?” Izzy asked. Ethan lifted his face. His eyebrows knotted together as he looked at us. His hair was a mess with leaves sticking out here and there. A red scratch formed on his cheek. 

“You guys are not supposed to be here.” His voice was hoarse. He stood up and dusted off his jacket. 

“Why not?” I asked. 

“Did you see Enzo?” Izzy’s voice panicked.

“Don’t tell me he’s lost.” 

“Um guys.” a tremor rose in Penny’s voice.

I turned around towards Penny. She stood with her back towards us, staring ahead. My grip tightened around the torchlight. My heartbeat pounded against my ears. None of us dared to move as he stared at the abomination in front of us. A humongous furry animal occupied the background. Its hollow eyes stared right into my soul, commanding me not to look away from it. Ribs protruded out of the gaping wound as the intestines dripped out, dragging on the ground. Saliva, no, more like foam dripped down from its unhinged jaw. I took a large gulp. The bear took a step out of the darkness. It opened its jaw wider and howled. I covered my ears and looked away in pain. The sound of the beast felt its way through my body. The roar stopped and we all broke into a run. I pushed Izzy forward. Not looking back at the beast, we ran through whatever path we could find. The mansion came into our sight like a lighthouse, guiding us towards a safe haven. We ran with our might. I could feel the heavy footsteps of the beast behind us. Nigel yelled all of a sudden. Before he could fall behind, I grabbed his arm and ran. The bear’s claw had grazed his arm. Red gash tore through his sleeve. We bursted through the mansion door and locked the handle. Nigel and I dragged the overturned desk in front of the door.

“Izzy?” Penny called. I look around and my heart falls heavy. Only the four of us are present in the mansion. I curse to myself. Both Enzo and Izzy are out there somewhere. I rub my face as my mind rushes to places. 

The beast scratched at the mansion's doors but the thick wood bore its weight. The door nearly bulged from the beast’s weight crashing against it violently. I clutched my fists. 

“What the hell is that thing?” Penny asked in panic.

“I wish I knew.” I took a deep breath.

“I… It possessed a dead body so it could kill others.” Ethan finally spoke. Colour drained from his face, making him look sickly pale.

“It..what?” Nigel asked.

“A spirit was chasing me,” he confessed in a shaky voice. “It kept screaming at me to give its life back. Maybe that’s what got Izzy and Enzo.” 

 “So that’s a possessed bear.” Penny questioned. 

 “No, that’s a possessed werebear.” I speculated.

 “It can’t be.” Nigel said in denial but then he took another look at the beast and his face softened. “If its is already dead, then how do we finish it?”

“Through the spirit.” I mutter. “That I don’t know how.” 

“A.. A mirror. Spirits get trapped in mirrors.” Penny suggested. 

“But that’s after we get it out.” Nigel said. He clutched his injured arm. 

“Th…. the heart! I once read it in a theology book. Spirits usually… reside in the heart.” she blurted as she tried to remember it. Her frustration grew with each word. 

 “Ok you go find the mirror, I’ll do my best…” I paused for a moment. My eyes fell on the fire poker sticking out of the fireplace. There's no way I can hold that. Not that I'm sure but I'm not taking chances. “I'll distract it.”

              “Ethan..” I looked towards him. “You would have to kill it.” He stared at me as if he hadn’t heard me right. He nodded slowly. Penny and Nigel hurried towards the corridor, her torchlight wavering as she ran. Ethan grabbed the fire poker sitting in the fireplace. My breathing grew ragged. I said I would try my best so gallantly but now I’m panicking. There is no way I could turn into a werewolf right here. It would beat all purpose. My jaw clenched tight. I watched the bear ram on the door. Sweat dropped across my back. 

The glass shattered first. I felt my feet sink into the floor yet I stared at the door. One more push and door snapped into pieces. I gritted my teeth. There was no time to decide anymore. It was too late.