Entry Two

We came home that Labor Day morning. No words, no questions. My parents haven't said a word about our actions nor did Uncle Dumm say anything about Wilma. We haven't heard from them in the two hours that we've reached New York. The apartment was silent as well, even though I could feel a cheerful greeting from the white walls that supported our view of the tower above. We carried our bags into our designated rooms.

Em and I shared a room together. Our room had light blue walls, lined with posters of famous pop stars from Dad's time and what the cosmos would've looked like light years away. I never understood the meaning behind these posters so I never bothered to find the answers for them. I was never really interested in space. I was more of a speed kind of guy. Not like Em's speed by itself, but like how a machine can produce such speed and how is it able to withstand such pressure and functionality. I looked below the window, spotting a small mattress dressed in a teal fitted sheet. There was an undressed pillow and a navy blue quilt perfectly made. It's been that way since we left New York. I looked over to my bed, a ruffled-up ocean of the darkest royal blue you have ever seen and some toppled up pillows. One was half-dressed and the other had ruffles all around.

I sat on my bed, lying down as a relief of air escaped through my lungs. I stared up at the ceiling, the crooked surface of paint, or maybe cement, curling up for years to come and the years that had passed. I could edge out the grey shadows from the crevices and dunes by the slight concentration of my eyes. I looked down to the side by Em, who was lying down as well. Twirling his feet around as it was placed over his knee, he swung his bracelet around his glove-like hand. I never knew why and how his hands got that way. Maybe he's related to Mickey Mouse? Oh, right! Like he would be related to a dead man's imagination! Yeah, classic!

I resumed looking up at the sky of grey shadings, slowly allowing my eyes time to rest and reminisce about what happened that very night. I can't stop thinking about it, nor can I get rid of the thrill whenever the noises came back. Man, it felt like it was yesterday…and it was yesterday!

I could see those eyes…those angry, hungry beads of blood-thirsty rubies…flaring up as its pupils catch sight of the fear in my eyes! I could feel the fiery breath resting on top of my face, my chest tightening up, the pounding of my heart being heard throughout my body, the nerves reacting in my back, and the words I screamed out that night…but then we were saved!

Yeah, we were saved…by Wilma, through her new form. How come she can transform into a werewolf? Is she hiding something from me? Are my parents hiding something from me? I couldn't figure out the logic behind the transformation's origin. What was happening in my life, or better yet, what's going on in the world?

I soon got answers on September 7th, 2016. But before I tell you how my first day of school answered the far-beyond-scientific questions, let me tell you of this girl I know.

It was warm September morning, time for the heat wave to go down and the leaves to crunch up in such grotesque yet beguiling colors. I packed my bag for the day ahead: a binder for my morning classes and another binder for my afternoon classes. My Mom had packed me lunch. She seemed to have curbed off the silent treatment that was given to Em and I yesterday, but I can't say much about my Dad. He usually says goodbye to us before he leaves for work…but this time, I didn't hear from him. I brushed off the guilt by considering that he must've forgotten. I didn't want to start my day off with guilt.

I woke up around six in the morning, since my first class would start at seven fifteen. So I got ready, put on my regular outfit (a plain shirt and some jeans) and came down to the kitchen. There, my Mom was serving up some coffee and juice, one for her and one for me. Usually, we would have our daily discussions about how we were gonna tackle the day, academically and physically. We would talk about her body image and the story of how hard it was to lose her baby fat after I was born, and then we would plan ahead on how I would conquer out those Common Core testing that we both agreed our school systems didn't need.

Before I left the apartment, I returned to my room only to find my brother snoring away. The quilt was covering part of him and his hat was resting on top of his grey eyelids. With his legs sprawled out of the mattress, I bent down and kissed his forehead. I whispered, "Good morning, Em…"

I stepped out into the yawning streets of Midtown, travelling left to the East River side, where my school was. Crossing busy intersections, dodging oblivious cars and city buses, hearing people yelling on the phone about businesses and affairs I care nothing about, the atmosphere hasn't seemed to change for one bit. Looking across the street, through the stalled cars beeping at the horrendous traffic ahead, I saw some kids I recognized from my middle school.

Yeah, I remember that complexion, not too dark but not too light. She had those deep brown eyes, so dark that you had to focus on them to see how her pupils were changing size. Her dark frizzy hair was straightened and knotted up in a bon. I remembered from last year. Her name was Caryn LaMars. She was the chirpiest person I've ever met. No matter what day it was or what tragedy happened, you will always see her smiling.

I also recalled how delusional she could be. She would be ranting on and on how her family were uncovering the truths about myths and whatnot. We would never pay attention, especially our mutual friend, the girl I know. The last thing I remembered her saying was that she had encountered a dragon.

We all laughed at her and ignored it, but I was too oblivious to realize what had really occurred after that. All of us were. We didn't understand why Caryn had this speculation of witnessing a dragon, or why our closest friend had departed halfway across the world. Actually, speaking of her, I looked back again and found that Caryn wasn't alone.

Next to her flowing floral dress and clanking of sandals was a girl, a little taller than her, a little slimmer than her, and her skin and hair were as bright as the Sun that rose before us. I couldn't believe it. It was like going back three years ago, when she gave me the news that she was moving out in the midst of sixth grade. We were close buddies, so close that our mothers had shared numbers. Curiously, I wondered, how come Mom never mentioned her or her family?

I kept going my way and made it to school. I attended my first class, which was biology. Alphabetically, I sat in front of Caryn in individual desks. I looked to the side and found her again, the blonde from three years ago. I remembered the faint freckles on her face…though they seemed to be fading out like a worn-out painting. I looked at her for a while, and she looked at me. Our eyes met. My soft, brown eyes meeting her glowing, sapphire eyes. We remembered three years ago, those feelings we couldn't understand. I remembered when she told me that she was going away, but she didn't tell me where. It was Caryn who notified me her location.

I felt some taps on my shoulder and I turned around, just to see Caryn's smiley face. I grinned, waving. She waved back and jolted, "So Kellin! How was your summer? You see that Izzy's back? Aren't you glad?"

"Yeah…" I trailed off, turning more to my corner to catch a glimpse of her. I continued, "I remember her…"

"Yeah, she told me so many things about her trip to France…oh wait, when you do have lunch? We could share a table together!"

I looked at Caryn and agreed, "Yeah sure…"

Three hours later, we later found out that we had the same scheduled lunch. As we took a tour testing our new lockers, Caryn proudly demonstrated hers. Twisting the black lock on the violet metallic wall, our friend and I waited in silence. I didn't feel like referring to her as "our friend", let alone "our". I mean, calling her "our friend" as if I didn't know her. Of course, I knew her! She was the girl who taught me how to break out of my shell, how to take risks and told me that life was too short to worry about the consequences. I remembered our field trip to the Botanical Gardens, where she grabbed my arm and we ran the willow trees and rolled down the hill only for our parents to come and yell at us…with Em laughing in the background. Well, she never knew Em as a hedgehog. Dad told us that whenever we have company, besides Wilma and Uncle Dumm, Em should wear his HumaBand.

"So? How does it look?"

I snapped out of my daydream, took a glance at her and straight at Caryn. She spread her skinny hazelnut arms to show us her locker's interior. There was a metal, black net held as a shelf for her big binders, each taking a vibrant color with the huge labels of each subject. Some were shared due to shortages, perhaps. On the hanger, there was Caryn's backpack, a bright pattern of colorful butterflies. The interior matched her personality.

She relaxed her arms, clasping her hands and smiling at us. She chirped, "So where is your locker, Kellin?"

"Oh right um…my locker is…" I stammered, looking into my front pocket of my jeans and reading out the code. The jolt from Caryn's larynx gave my heart a jump for its life. She exclaimed in a higher octave, "Oh I know where it is!"

She grabbed my hand and I was pulled into her rough force of pressure. I looked behind and found that the girl I knew had followed us. We finally made it to my locker and before I could reach for the white-coded black knob, Caryn's hand was whisked before mine. She frantically twisted the knob until she pulled up the hook, opening up to my locker, which had nothing but my backpack. She placed her hands on her hips and tisked, "Oh come on! Kellin, what do you want your new school to know you as, the kid with a backpack in his locker?"

"Well, it's only the first day," I said, feeling insulted. The fact that she wouldn't even give us a chance to talk to each other, for me to talk to my friend. While she was smiling and all that, I slammed the locker, shook my pocket that had my money and went off. Caryn called after me, "Kellin, where are you going?"

I turned to the side and shouted back, "Lunch! I'm starting to feel hungry…" I scurried down to the cafeteria and found the farthest empty table there was in the vast, air-conditioned vicinity. There were children of my age and older reuniting and crowding the lines to the serving area. I joined the hot lunch line because I felt like having pizza. Yeah, I felt like it.

A few minutes later, while the hot taste of oily cheese slipped down my throat, I was oblivious to notice that a figure had joined my side. Finishing up to the crust, I placed it back on the Styrofoam tray and started on my chocolate milk. Lonely as I felt, I leaned over the table, resting my head along my arm and sighed. For a minute or so, I let my fingers play on my hair for a while.

A while later, a soft voice quivered, "So how was your summer?"

Assuming the position of the responder, I answered, "Nothing much…just feeling through the jitters before high school." I could sense a feeling of awkwardness so I turned my head and found that it was her. She must've escaped Caryn's clutches. I raised back in my chair, pushing my hands into the tight spaces of my jeans. I don't know if I could look at her without that memory from sixth grade. Then, like a knock on the door, I could hear myself think, "Kellin, leave it behind. She's here now. Talk to her!"

I rolled my shoulders and sighed. I turned to her and started our conversation, "Hey."

Her head was down but I could see her sapphire eyes pop up at me and looked back down. She was timid, burrowing her hands into a ball of sweat and anxiety. She looked at me again and replied, "Hi." She did a swift wave that she was not aware of.

Alright so that's a start…hmm what should I say? Well, maybe she doesn't remember you…you can try to be a new friend to her? Yeah, that sounds right! Thanks, Conscience. No probs, Kel!

I cleared my throat and positioned my body facing her. I rolled my hand through my dark hair and continued our dialogue, "So how are you? How's the first day treating you?"

"It's good," she spoke up. I could feel her warming up on the inside. Maybe she doesn't know me. "My teachers are nice and it was nice to have Caryn back to her normal self."

"Yeah, I know! You know, it wouldn't be the same without Caryn's…kookiness…"

"Yeah, I remember from my days at elementary school up to sixth, before I moved. Man, she was so flustered and distraught when I left. I didn't think she would be so happy to see me."

"Uh huh," I said, tasting some change in my tone as I leaned on my chair. "Well, I'm um…yeah…"

Man, was I feeling nervous just talking to her! I mean, she looked a little mature from the last time we met, which was three years ago if I may repeat. You know, now that I mention it…she does look different. Her golden hair seemed to take more of a darker tone as it reached near her waist. The places where she used to have freckles were now faint, like a smeared painting. Her lips were pinker than before. Then looking into her eyes, those baby blue, yet dark eyes, I could remember her face when she told me the news that she was leaving for France, except she never told me it was Paris.

I snapped out of it. Shooting my hand out, I introduced myself. "Hey, I'm Kellin."

She smiled and shook it. She replied, "Hey, Kellin. It's nice to finally meet you after all these years." Finally, it was her that broke the silence. For some reason, I was expecting to break down in tears, but she didn't. I smiled, for I knew what her name was, and responded, "The feeling is mutual, Isabel."

We let go of our hands and she leaned on her chair, playing with her hair. She looked up at me and asked, "Well, aren't you gonna ask where I was this whole time?"

My silence said it all. She rolled her eyes and scoffed, "Of course, Caryn's our messenger. Anyways, Paris was amazing but I got pretty homesick a little quick."

"Then why didn't you come back?" I blurted out. She swayed toward the table and after a moment of silence, she responded, "I wanted to, but I had trouble to take care of."

Trouble? What trouble does a twelve-year-old have in France? Realizing she may have said too much, she looked at me and said in a curt manner, "Well um, I-I, uh…I better get going. I don't wanna be late for the next class."

"Next class…" All of the sudden, the bell rang and she dashed off. As she went with the crowd, I turned around and watched as the flow of her golden angel hair left into the distance. Out of the thousand colorful shirts and sweaters, I could only see the golden wave disappear before my eyes. Little did I know what kind of power hid behind that hair.

I walked home that day and as soon as I got into my apartment, Em pushed into me like I had just come home from war. He squealed, "Oh Kelly Kelly! You know eight hours can really mess with you?"

His quills picked at my neck and jaw like a cactus and I shoved him off. "Agh!" I exclaimed, rubbing my neck. He held his hands behind his back and chuckled an apology. I dropped my bag by my room and descended into the kitchen. Em jumped up in his seat. While I searched in the fridge for food, Em informed me that our Mom has left for groceries and won't be back in a while. He asked me, "So how was school?"

I muttered, "It was good."

"Got any homework?"

"Not much, just a bunch of contracts about our grades and that we'll be good and not the pouty brats the seniors are…" I grabbed a container that said "FOR KELLIN". I placed it on the table in front of Em, scooped some up in a bowl and placed it in a microwave. I set it for 30 seconds but before I pressed start, I turned to the side to my bored brother and asked, "You hungry?"

"Nah, I'm good. I took a run to Coney Island with the spare change you had."

"Of course you did," I said, unimpressed. I muttered to myself, "Three less dollars to that dirt bike." I clicked start and I rested my head on my hand, in which my elbow was on top of the granite countertop. Listening to the whirring of the microwave, Em struck up a conversation that was hidden beneath our shadows. "Have you talked to Wilma?" he asked me.

I nodded. He continued, "Well, I turned on the TV and I saw the lower bar of that thing. Man, was it called? The first channel that pops up?"

My heart was starting to take a step. I looked up and asked, "The news?"

"Yeah, New York One! I saw on the lower bar that in Pennsylvania, they've captured a whole bunch of wolves lurking around some camp area, you know, giving people the fear."

"And?" They were just a bunch of wolves. There's no way Moon Tail or Alpha could be in the mix. That was when Em proved me wrong.

"I saw," he kept going, "on one of the wolves, there was an odd shape on his tail. Then I remembered it was the most wolves that tried to kill us that night! I saw Moon Tail! They got Moon Tail and Midnight Runner!"

"Are you sure?" How could I underestimate my own brother? He's a hedgehog for crying out loud! No pun intended.

"Yes, Kellin! I'm sure of it! They also reported hearing a huge roar from the forest that night! We were in that roar!"

"Oh my God…" I scratched my head, feeling the heat radiating through my forehead. What if Wilma hears this? I ran out of the kitchen and made it to my parents' room. I opened the chestnut drawer and found the paper with our emergency contacts. I phoned Uncle Dumm and he transferred me to Wilma. In a frenzy, I asked, "Hey! Did you hear the news?"

"Hey, short stack! Whoa, slow down," she exclaimed casually on the phone. I could hear her laugh. How can she laugh at a time like this? When she was done, she replied, "Of course we heard the news. Thank God they've captured Alpha's team before they could do any more damage!"

"Any more damage?" I repeated. "What are you talking about, and what was with that transformation that night?"

"Oh yeah, about that…is Em there? You two might wanna sit down."

I turned around and saw Em eavesdropping. I gestured for him and we both sat on the master bed, putting the house phone on speaker. She went through the whole story, how after her mom died, she had trouble adjusting to her distant uncle, how a simple chemical accident mutated her DNA code so she can become a werewolf…how she used her powers to defeat the evils in her town and soon, saved her entire state from being devoured by a powerful bacterium. It all sounded too far fetched, out of this world. I couldn't quite understand the logic of this, how this could really happen in the world we know.

Then she mentioned something that I remembered my Dad had mentioned. "Wait," I interrupted Wilma. "Go back to what you said before."

"Um…" she stammered, unsure of what I was getting at. "You mean, that part where Uncle Dumm would open the Portal?"

"The Portal?" Em repeated, looking for recognition of the word. He scratched between his quills and shrugged his shoulders. Wilma cleared her throat and, with a sense of anxiety in her breath, said "You know, I gotta go. I'm almost late for an event. Bye, Kellin and Em!"

"Bye, Willy!" Em waved to the phone. Before I hung up after my farewell, she stopped me and said, "Oh Kellin, I wanna say thank you."

Confused, I returned the phone from speaker to just my ears and asked, "For what?"

"For returning me to the resort. After using my powers like that, I get exhausted quite easily. I mean, it takes a lot of power to get Sonic Howl going."

Sonic Howl? It must've been that roar that nearly shook the world. She continued, "Usually, I'm alone on my missions so it's great to have someone to take the guts on carrying a werewolf home."

I chuckled, "Oh yeah…no problem. I'll see you."

"Bye, Kellin!" She hung up. I wanted to ask more questions, but I thought it'd be too soon. I assumed that we would find out on our own, with the knowledge from Dad and my godfather.

About an hour in, when Mom came back from grocery shopping, she placed a container in the fridge as we waited by the kitchen. As if we were one, we sat in the black chairs, our chins resting on the granite countertop. We blew our hair out of our faces and sighed. She, along with her dark-blonde/reddish hair stretched down to her midriff, swayed around, her young face almost covered by the frizzy hair. She laughed at our actions and rested her head on top of her arm. She asked us, "So what did you boys do today?"

It wasn't awkward to refer to Em as a boy since he was a hedgehog. We looked at a gender difference. For the years that we were alive, we never heard one of our parents refer to Em as a hedgehog, unless we were boasting about how he was the fastest hedgehog in NYC. I told her about my first day of school, which teachers I liked and if I had any reunions.

"Ah," she squealed, "so the LaMars girl is still behind ya? Man, I haven't heard from her or her family in a long while!" I lied and said that she was in California the whole time.

"You know, with all the hot weather, it's inevitable that they would have blackouts and such…" I trailed off, grabbing an orange from the fruit bowl near the sink. Pushing my thumbs into the center, I made myself busy while the conversation shifted to Em and our Mom. Mom asked Em the same thing. As if nothing had implied him to hide anything, he revealed that we had a conversation with Wilma. Upon hearing what he said, I nearly choked on the first slice of the orange. Mom gasped, "What?" She slowly rose from her seat.

I slammed my head into my hand, nodding in disappointment. Em felt the guilt sinking in. After a moment of silence, Em started back, "Sorry, Mom, if we disobey you in any way. We just wanted some answers."

"It's okay," Mom cut me off before I could even speak. "You were gonna learn about it sooner or later. I would leave it for your father to answer."

She grabbed her black leather bag from the floor and helped it up on her shoulder. The keys mimicked the sounds of jingle bells as she twirled them around her fingers. Em asked, "Where are you going now? You just got back!"

"They're having delays at Penn Station, so I gotta take the longer route for work."

I stretched my neck into the living room and found that it was getting late. Mom always worked a night shift at the hospital. No reason was implied about it. Before she left, she called out to me, "I'll be off to work. Kellin, make sure nothing blows up."

She closed the door and Em turned to me. He asked, "What happened?"

I shrugged and went to turn on the TV in the living room. I plopped myself on the plush, beige cushion and rested my feet on top of the coffee table. I always do this whenever my parents aren't here, otherwise it's Whack-My-Feet with a hot, moist towel…or my Mom's razor-sharp nails.

Em sat right next to me and we watched the news for a while. It was fun seeing Scott Pelley talk about worldly events while you have nothing else to do. Ha, hear the sarcasm in that? Em sighed, "I wish we could have more nights like that last one!"

"Yeah," I said, remembering the chills that crawled my spine and the intensity that my body raced through. Then I thought about what Wilma said to me…she mentioned how she usually went on these missions by herself. Did she really go to face Alpha herself? How bad could it get? How is her uncle dealing with all of this? Em and I never went on those kind of adventures before so we could never imagine how parents would react…that is, until that night with Alpha came up.

"Wait a minute," I said to myself. I felt Em turn his head to me as the thought appeared to me. I looked at Em and asked, "What if they're talking about it now?"

"Who is?"

"The news. You said that New York One had covered it, but this was in Pennsylvania. Oh wait, what if they're doing more investigation on this? What will they do to Wilma?"

"Oh no, they'll know it's Wilma…unless she hasn't revealed herself yet."

"What do you mean?"

"Everytime I'm out in public, everyone sees me as a human. They have to because of this bracelet." He took out the bracelet from under his cap. "They never suspected that I would be the fastest hedgehog in the city because they never saw my true powers. The power I would possess as a human is just fancy footwork and precise vision."

"That is true…so maybe nobody knows Wilma as a werewolf. They just know her as Uncle Dumm's niece."

"Or maybe they don't even know who Uncle Dumm is. Maybe whenever they see the news on TV about a mission she did, they just keep a low profile. Nobody knows but them and that's how they cope with it."

All of a sudden, my fears were starting to level down. It was like someone was telling my younger self that everything was going to be okay, and that's all I had to believe in. It was good to not know everything and it was okay to hide something in order to save yourself and your family. All Wilma had was her uncle so going on these "missions" must've been an ordeal for her, especially losing her mother in that accident. Man, it's gotta be tough being a teenage werewolf!

"Yeah…" I said to myself, "Wilma's okay. She knows what she's doing! But we still gotta look out for her! We'll keep a watch on Alpha."

"Right on, big brother!" Em agreed. He switched the channel and found that there was a robber on the loose. He grabbed my arm and exclaimed, "We gotta get there!"

"What's with the rush? I'm pretty sure the police will catch the guy!" Seriously, we've watched a bazillion robberies and killings on TV. Why this one?

"Don't you see? This is our call to help! We should be out there, reigning victory and justice to those who defy its powers!"

"But Em! What if they catch us? What if they bring you to the government? You know how Mom and Dad will freak!"

"I know! I know! But there's this thing, you know. It's like a fire and I can't push it down!"

"Well then put a lid on it 'cause we ain't hunting the streets tonight!" I put on the accent he always has. It sounds like a Brooklyn/New Jersey accent, but a little more coherent. He looked at me, unimpressed and said, "Don't mock me, bro. That ain't cool!"

We resumed watching TV and Em propped his huge sneakers on the table. Good that someone is following my lead! Letting my head fall back, I dozed off for a while, reminiscing about my reunion with Isabel. Man, I could've done so much better! I could've told her about how I got on the soccer team, the many ways you trick your opponent with just feet and a ball, or all the amazing facts about the world's fastest cars. But I didn't.

"At least we have tomorrow, right Em?" I thought out loud, turning to his side. It didn't take me more than a second to realize he was gone. "Em!" I shouted, running through the hallway. Oh man! Oh man, is my Mom gonna kill me! Gah, why do I have to be the big brother in these situations?

As I kept running, I felt my heart pounding fast again. I searched all the cupboards, under couches and tables, all of our rooms, even the bathroom! Where is Em? I returned to our room so I can relax myself, trying to calm myself down. "Okay…there's no need to worry. He couldn't have gotten off that far, right?" I panted to myself, hanging over my desk. I felt a chilly breeze coming from my window. Funny…I never remembered opening it.

I walked up to it, admiring the night skyline of my home. Man, was it beautiful. Tall buildings with bright lights, all standing like statues. It may not look like it, but each window always has a story. Then it came to me!

"Oh no, Em must've came out through the window!"

I immediately closed it , grabbed my keys and dashed out of the apartment. I hopped on my bike by the doorway and rode out of there like a speeding bullet. Of course, I had my helmet on! It's an emergency but I rather not get a concussion on the way there. Riding on the bike lane, speeding past honking cars, I saw flashing red and white lights coming from around the corner. I followed in its direction.

As soon as I got near, I parked my bike by an alley and tried to investigate from afar. There, I saw two police cars, one ambulance that was still blaring and yellow tape surrounding the store. "Huh," I grunted. "How am I gonna get through there without getting caught?"

Behind me, a familiar, accented voice replied, "Well, you do have a brother that ain't human!"

"Yeah, you're right…but—Huh?" I stopped myself and turned around to see my grinning brother. Shocked and angered, I spread out my arms and exclaimed, "Em!" Expecting to get a hug from me, he opened out his arms and closed his eyes, only to be shaken up by me. I roared out of rage, "Where were you this whole time? Did you know our parents could kill us if they find out we were here?"

"Hey, hey man! Chill!" Em said, pushing my arms off. He explained, "I only did it for you."

"What? Have me running through the streets, shouting your name?" I exaggerated. He placed his hands on his hips and said, "Well, you didn't want to do justice with me and I wanted you to be there! So I devised a foolproof to lure you out here and ta-da! It worked like a worm on a trout!"

"You're glad you're not the worm because I would definitely throw you back!" I grunted out of anger. "Now come on, we gotta get home before anybody finds us here!"

"Oh, why are you all tense, man? I wanna know what's going on!"

"Em, the police are doing their job. We should go now," I ended our conversation. I searched in my pockets for the house keys…only to my realization that I had forgotten them at home. Oh no! I snuck out behind my parents' back and now I've forgot the keys for home! Okay relax, Kellin, relax…maybe Em has them! You know how he always pickpocket us without looking and put stuff in his hat…Yeah, he might have them!

I tapped Em on the shoulder and asked him if he had the keys. He cocked his head to the side and said, "I thought you had the keys."

"Are you…" I was about to hyperventilate. I took a deep breath in and spoke, "Are you serious? You should have the keys. You always put that stuff in your hat."

"Nope, the only thing I have in my hat is my HumaBand," he said, showing me the evidence. I threw my back against the wall and exhaled an uneasy breath. Slowly drawing my hands through my face, I muttered, "Oh Jesus, are we gonna get it tonight…"

"Kellin, relax! If any trouble comes, I'll be there to protect you! It's the job for an amateur hero!"

"Okay," I said half-heartedly, "I'll believe that."

We heard a rattling further in the alley. It was past the garbage bags and a huge dumpster. Bursting through the door, a green speck raced before us. The wind cut through us like a blade that left no mark. Insulted, Em got on his feet and shouted, "Hey, get back here, Speedy!"

He dashed after the lime green presence. I jumped on my bike and sped as fast as I could. Tracking down my brother's aura, I followed them up to a bridge where I witnessed Em holding a figure up by his throat. I couldn't see clearly but my eyes could trace the outline of a sharp beak and flailed-out crest. Em growled, "Alright buddy, return that item or you're gonna get it!"

To avoid any more damage or chaos, I took a few more steps in my bike, calling after Em. They both looked at me and the figure slapped Em on the side of his face. He let go, watching the foe jump high up on top of a cable. His legs looked weird for a human: skinny, his feet looked more like talons and between them, we saw a feathery-like tail. His presence marked a distinct look in the face of the moon. We all stood in astonishment. Meanwhile, there were several cars passing by us. Some were oblivious and others had their front-seat passengers taking a snapshot. Nobody stopped to investigate.

I rested my bike on the side and called out to the fella, "Hey, nobody's looking for any harm. We just want some peace. Please, return the item and we'll leave each other alone!"

Em, knees bent and fists up, looked at me with an astonished look. He couldn't believe that I would be taking such a passive stance in this situation, but I have to. I didn't want the news to pull up and see that a hedgehog and its owner were up against whatever-that-thing was.

"Please!" I called out. I tried my best giving him a smile. I saw the guy cock his head and held out the bag. "Yes please, would you be a kind person as to giving it to me?"

I heard him laugh and he snarled, "Oh you are so cunning in your words. I would listen to you, but you see…you're on the wrong side of the war here, buddy!"

He jumped off, letting go of the bag and grabbing it by his talons. Yep, definitely not human! He flapped his wings, lowering himself to our eye level. Crucial mistake.

Em latched out his hands, grabbing the bag from him. It was a tug-of-war between two animals. I just stood there, watching my brother struggle with a creature that we have no idea about. The hedgehog had his feet implanted on the ground, using all his might to pull the bag but the opponent had an advantage. While he was holding onto the bag with one claw, the other was free, free to release its sharp talons and grab Em. I knew it was now or never. I couldn't hold back.

I made a run for it, pushing Em out of the way and snatching the bag out of his grip. Em fell and tumbled onto the sidewalk and watched as the sharp claws clashed against my jaw. The force was more than I thought I could take. I lost my balance and flipped over on my back. Feeling immense pressure, my head fell back and my eyes examined the blur that became the ground I was falling into.

Em shouted, "Kellin!"

I screamed out of terror and felt the fierce wind cutting through my body like knives. I knew this would be the day I would die. I knew this would be the end, only it wasn't. I wouldn't die this way...

As I was tumbling through the sky, I noticed a bright glow racing alongside me. The wind's force had me rolling around until I felt a huge blast in the air. My heart was racing like an I-don't-know what! Thoughts were racing through my mind that I nearly grew numb of what was happening. Soon, as I was making my last minute prayers and confessing for the little things in my life, I was starting to realize that I was no longer falling. My heart started to slow down and I discovered I was resting on the back of something.

My hands went to touch the dry back of a huge creature. My eyes turned up to see the slowly moving sky and still-moving moon. I flipped over and saw the dark violet scales of the subject Caryn were ranting about. When she said that she saw a dragon, I felt like a fool laughing at her and not believing in her. I sat up on my knees and looked at the humongous wings lowering and elevating themselves. They soon stopped as the creature practiced its gliding.

I looked around the moving scenery of my hometown. The buildings started to move as if they were on a flat escalator, like you know, the ones in the airport. I crawled to reach the dragon's neck. Ooh, the scales were rougher than they look, like they needed lotion or something. I felt a rush of energy surge through my system as I realized that I was riding on top of a dragon. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that fate had slid me with. I never thought I'd see the day that I would be riding on top of a dragon! Now I can finally believe in Caryn. While my excitement was soaring on cloud nine, I started to have doubts about this fateful encounter. How did this creature know I was falling off the bridge? Where did it come from? Is it here to harm me? Where did more of its species originate? There were so many questions that I couldn't figure out which one to ask…so I went with the one worth asking.

I shouted to their ears, "Hey! Can you get me home please?"

I watched the head turn to my side and those eyes, those exotic eyes. The outside of the black pupil was a bright yellow, yellow like the highlighters they give you in class, and coming to its pupil was bloody red, red like the ones Alpha had that night. It still scares me to this very day. The dragon growled in a contented manner and looked back out to the horizon.

After a tour around the city, the dragon dropped me on the roof of my apartment. I looked up, to notice that the creature was two feet taller than me. Before it left, I said, "Hey! Thanks for saving me."

The back facing me, I saw the head bow down and the creature ordered its wings to fly back into the horizon, disappearing before my eyes. I walked to the edge of the roof, jumping off to land on a fire escape and climbed down to my window, where Em was sitting on my bed, waiting for me. I knocked twice, watching the scared fella's eyes brighten up as he saw me. He opened the window in a fast pace and embraced me in a hug, forcing me to fall through. We crashed on the floor and laughed.

The next day at school, where everyone was talking about their own business, we heard seldom about the encounter last night. At lunch, I was accompanied by Caryn and Isabel. Caryn, as her chirpy self, bragged about her father's newest plans for helping the projects in upper side of the Bronx. Her tightly-held bon was now switched to two puffy pigtails. Her eyes were closed as she went on and on about her family's financial legacy. I looked to Isabel, who leaned in and asked, "Are you okay?"

Perplexed, I replied, "Yeah, I'm okay. Are you?"

"Good," she gulped. I could tell she was hiding something. I couldn't tell what it was exactly, but it seemed fishy enough.

Caryn excused herself to the bathroom and Isabel started to speak up. "Um well, how was your day yesterday?" she asked, kind of looking away and twirling her hair. Trying to ignore it, I replied, "It was good yesterday. You know…sorted out my books and had some brotherly time with Em."

"Right…" she said. Her long, golden hair stretched down to her Capri's as she cleared her throat. She perked up, "So my mom was in the grocery yesterday, that's where she met your mom."

"Oh really?" Huh, Mom never mentioned Mrs. Englow. In fact, I thought out loud, she just came home and left for work.

I felt a heavy brick on my chest as I blocked out the part about my cousin. Isabel started to show a bit of a smile and she continued, "Yeah, the two of them spoke about their summers and all. She even said that France was a great to go to! My mom, not yours…"

I chuckled at her nervousness. I rubbed her shoulder and said, "Hey, there's no need to be afraid. It's me, Kellin, the same Kellin from before."

"Yeah, before…"

"How many years was it?" I was anxious to tell her how much I've missed her, but that would be too soon. I mean, it's only the second day! I shouldn't rush things too far. Like yeah, I know she's nervous and all, but it can't be just that we're reuniting. There's something that she isn't telling me…I'm gonna find out what it is.

"I believe I was about eleven or so…"

"Three years! Yeah…" I interrupted, feeling a surge of guilt fall through. "Three years ago…"

"Right," she said, looking down again. Her voice started to tighten up a bit. "It was three years ago, the first week of school. My bags were all packed for Paris."

"How was Paris? Did you make any new friends?"

She nodded her head in assurance. "Yeah," she said curtly, "I have, but many of them I don't keep in contact with…" She trailed off and by that time, Caryn had returned and resumed her rant about how her family gonna transform this huge financial empire. Sick of hearing about her, I cut to the chase. "Listen, Caryn! Nobody wants to hear about you or your family. That's your business so keep it that way."

Isabel and Caryn gasped. Caryn slid back her body as she was insulted by my speech. Isabel watched me in astonishment, as if she had never seen me stand up for myself. Feeling embarrassed by the looks I was getting, I continued, "Hey, I don't want to create any drama, but I'm sick of hearing you talk about your family for the past three years! You always have something to say about other people and yourself, but you never bother to ask us about ourselves, or even let us make our own decisions!"

Feeling as though I had violated their space, I grabbed my books and lunch. Before I departed from the table, I finished off, "If you learn how to respect how other people feel, then at least you're trying something. If not, I'll be sitting over there."

I gestured to the direction of an empty table, in the corner by the garbage can. I made my way through the crowded lunchroom and had my solace there, rethinking over what I had just said to Caryn. I know I meant what I said, but I didn't mean it like a harsh way. I know she's Isabel's best friend, but I just can't tolerate myself around people like her. I spent the next few classes not speaking and learning about subjects that were irrelevant to my life and the questions that were bestowed upon myself.

That is, until I was on my way to English and I heard someone talk about seeing a purple light racing through the city. Oh no…my heart thumped like the biggest drum in the quietest room you could think of, a rhythmic pattern that had about three quarter rests in between but you didn't know when it was gonna sound. But there it was…

Thump!

What do they know about it?

Thump!

What are they saying?

Thump!

I ran near the lockers to hear the conversation:

Speaker A: "Yeah, the other night I was driving out of the city with my family. I didn't know what it was but I could see it. It was all lavender-like, raced before our eyes. My step dad didn't stop to see, but Gina and I saw it. I tried taking a snapshot but the data was too much for my phone."

A sigh of relief there.

Speaker B: "Are you sure you saw a light? Maybe you were seeing the city lights or something?"

Speaker A: "Oh no, man! It was a speedy, little thing! I saw it raced about a quarter of the way on the bridge."

Speaker B: "And what else did you see after that?"

Speaker A: "I tried to track it down with my eye, but it seemed to fade off. Nothing but shadows on that spot!"

Speaker B: "Were you on drugs?"

That could be a factor.

Speaker A: "Dude! I was over that about a year ago! Why would I start again?"

Speaker B: "Hey, hey! Just asking! Now maybe it was your mind playing tricks on you…"

Speaker A: "Dude, I know what I'm telling you! I saw a purple light race before me and I'm gonna find out what it is! Plus, I got a witness!"

Speaker B: "Yeah, a three-year-old witness who still can't say her full first name!"

Speaker A: "Hmm, some friend you are…"

Speaker B: "Whatever, stay strong and see you tomorrow!"

Speaker A: "Yeah, you too, bro!"

I walked out into the open and watched the two guys take their separate paths. I took some short breaths as I realized what was happening around me. Oh man…man, oh man! Now I've discovered that there's more than just humans and animals, everyone's starting to discover my brother. I don't want him to be caught by Animal Control, or even worse…the government!

Agh! I could feel the ominous future pressing against us if anybody finds out Em's true identity. What am I gonna do? Oh please don't make me do this, Conscience…oh fine! But it's only to teach him a lesson!

An hour later, when I arrived home, Em was happy and jolly to see me again. He held onto my legs and squeezed them. He rubbed his spiky head all across my right thigh, sending the love through my veins. As much as I wanted him to be happy, I had to put my foot down. I gulped in my pride and started walking to my room. Em broke free of his grip on me. I could feel him looking up at me, confused and guilty.

I silently told myself to ignore the fast pace of my heart and the thoughts running through my head and kept going for my room. There, I dropped my bag on my bed and kicked off my shoes, watching them tumble under the frame. I went to leave, seeing Em in my way. Knowing that if I spoke, I would break…I pushed him out of the way, slowing my pace down to the kitchen but not by a great amount.

Oh I could feel him trailing behind me, his sad and mopey face wondering what he did wrong. I wish I could apologize to him but he needs to realize that there are certain things that he shouldn't involve himself in. Those last two events, he could've gotten himself killed, I as well! Thank God Wilma and that dragon was there to save us!

Although there's a robber on the loose, we need to keep Em in place and show him that there are other people that are handling this situation. Yeah, I know! I sound all brother-like and such, and definitely did not repeat any of it from his hard-working mother…okay, yeah I did take it from her and she was real stern about it this morning. She told me that I shouldn't let Em get carried away and it would be a hero's intuition, whatever that is!

I'm guessing hero's intuition would be someone who has that urge to save someone the instant they see an opportunity on television. Yet I have to be a witness of it, otherwise who would be there for Em when he needs help?

I felt tugging on my shirt as my little brother wailed, "Come on, Kellin! Talk to me! Did somebody hurt you in school? If they did, then show me the chump and I'll give him a one-two with these fists!"

Annoyed, I swung around and watched my brother from above. His expression changed from determined to scaredy-cat as he chuckled, "Okay, maybe not now…but uh see, a brother for a brother?"

Ignoring him, I lashed out, "So what? You can be Superman and save the day, risking another day as yourself?"

"What are you…" Em quivered, his vocals starting to shake on themselves. I could see his baby blue eyes watering up. Oh Kellin, what are you doing? You're scaring him!

He deserves to be scared, after all the trouble he put us through!

But he's your brother! How will he look at you tomorrow?

He'll know that at some point in life, he needs to be treated with some tough love! He's no baby hedgehog anymore, nah…he's a twelve-year-old hedgehog that can best the speed of fastest car around! He needs to be put in place!

But Kellin-!

Don't you "Kellin" me, Kellin!

"Kellin, what's going on? What happened to you? Is it about those two nights?"

"What do you think?" I remarked carelessly, going for something in the kitchen's cupboards. Em crossed his arms and exclaimed, "Hey, I only did it because I like adventure and I don't wanna stand here oblivious to the things around me! Besides if we weren't there, then how else would Wilma come to rescue us? Or if you hadn't stalled that robber, I wouldn't have gotten his scent and she would have never saved you from that river!"

I remembered that chilling night clearly. Oh, that surge of fear and terror…daunting thoughts that I may never live again! Yeah, thank God that dragon was there…in New York City? Whatever, we'll figure it out later! But first, deal with your brother!

"Listen, Em! This is for our safety! The news nearly got us twice, even Wilma!" I ranted, looking him straight in the eyes. His large crystal blue eyes started to water as his pupils widened. I noticed his nose twitched a bit, the moment I knew I may have crossed the line of harshness on him…but I couldn't stop myself.

"Seriously, Em?"

He twitched back for a bit, raising his glove-covered hands and cringing his mouth. He quivered, "Kel…what?"

I had to stop myself, or else the flushness on my face would consume my entire soul inside out, like some zombie apocalypse movie with psychotic plots…which in this world, could happen…

Pushing all the guilt out of my system, I finished off, "Em, if you want to be a hero, then why don't you go and save a cat or something? Not bring up a citywide mystery?"

Looking at me through those baby blue eyes of his, watery as can be, he shut them for a moment. My heart was put on a halt until he opened them again. There, I could see that his fright had transformed into some kind of energy, but not the scientific kind. It was the kind that when every trial you were put through had the same outcome, but to only receive a different yet peculiar result. The rev that you were given when they said you couldn't, under all the circumstances they put you under…but still, that little scared you had to get out on the outside.

Realizing what I had just said, I looked down with despair as Em ran into the hallway. Oh, what was I thinking? I was trying to protect him, not put him down! I'm bad at this job of being the bigger brother! Why can't I live in a society where facing these events are just the norm?

That question was later answered in future entries. Not all at once, but just scattered along the way so you wouldn't be surprised when the whole thing blows up. Literary.

But let me digress before I give too much away. You see, the next day when I arrived home from school, I was surprised to see Mom and Dad seated at the living room. Mom sat on a leather-plush recliner by the window-side, reading Vanity Fair, while my Dad was reading about the sports on his phone. It was a shocker to see that he has upgraded his source for global news from a bunch of papers to a touchscreen that can fit in your pocket.

When I dropped my bag by my room, I heard my Mom call out, "Kellin? Is that you?" Her voice sounded different than before. I went back to the living room and, chuckling, greeted, "Hey Mom, hey Dad!"

I went to receive a kiss from Mom and a hug from Dad. Everything seemed to be normal, other than the fact that Dad was home. He must've had an early shift. They all had smiles on their faces, but I was certain something ominous was about to happen. Are we gonna talk about that night when Wilma went all Cujo, or did Em tell them about our argument yesterday? Whatever it was, my heart was set to take any criticisms they had.

Mom, smiling brighter than the Sun, leaned over from her chair and slapped the couch twice. It was a signal for me to sit. I walked around the coffee table and took a seat, feeling uncomfortable about this meeting. We almost never have family meetings so why are we doing this now?

"So," Dad started, "Kellin, how's school for you?"

I nodded, gulping in whatever was holding down my throat. I croaked up, "It was good. Yeah, school was great. My teachers are fun, and I've made a few friends…"

"Oh really? Anyone we know?" His voice made it seem like he knew what was going on, but he wanted me to crack up about it. I don't know how this will end up, but it's going to surface anytime now.

"Uh yeah, um…Caryn LaMars is in a few of my classes. She's chirpy about her freshman year."

"Oh," he said, waiting for me to say it. Like a brick off my chest, I finished, "And Isabel came back to New York."

"I know…"

"You do?"

"Of course, you two were bound to meet up one day. So how was she?"

"She said France was amazing, that it would be on top with New York. She said she had some business to take care of in France, and she missed us! Em and I…that is."

"What business did she speak of?" He ignored the fact that she missed seeing the Kane brothers. I told him the honest truth.

"Ah, so she bailed out before she can confess…" he said to himself. He pushed his hand through his thick, brown hair and sighed, continuing reading on the sports column. He grunted, folding up the papers and slapping it on the table. Mom guessed, "No soccer update?"

"All they care about is basketball, football and baseball! Never stuff for us soccer lovers!"

I chuckled for a bit. He was always a soccer fanatic, so he always pushed me and Em whenever we had soccer practice, which, by the way, is on the weekends. Our team is looking good and so is my close teammate Chris. His mom had recently been divorced and was looking to relocate to the city, just to be with her mother and Chris's adoptive grandmother. It was no surprise that he was adopted because what kind of genetics gives a kid blue hair and a weird birthmark on his right eye? He told me that the mark was a sign of "greatness against darkness".

Anyways, before we get to Thanksgiving, time to tell you how our family meeting went. After much interrogation about the Englow family, I asked Dad, "What's with all the questions about Isabel and her family? She was happy to see me again."

"Her family and ours have a history that no one will ever know. I've never told anyone but Dumm and Amelia. Your mother doesn't even know about this…"

Mom leaned in. Before he got started, I looked around and found that one member wasn't here. I turned back with a frightened face and Dad, calm and collected, reassured, "Don't worry. Em is sleeping. Please wake him up because he needs to listen to this."

"Um, okay then," I said, preparing myself for the awkwardness to come as I entered our room. There, I saw him, sound asleep and harboring the thoughts from yesterday. He must still be angry about the things I said to him. I didn't mean the things I said…I mean, I did mean to say those things but in the way I said them…agh, what's the point? Just wake him up!

I knelt down before the window, laying my hand on his shoulder. I felt his torso expand, then contract, and his soft snoring. His purple hat was hanging above his head by a nail. We never knew why the nail was there, but Em made some good use of it. His huge matching sneakers were the only things sticking out uncovered by his blanket. He never minded too much of it because it was just the way he liked it. I nudged him even more and finally, he was able to budge out, stretching out his arms and squealing out a tiny dinosaur roar as he rose up from his pillow. After the tiny roar was done, he opened his eyes, smacking his lips.

I patted his back and said, "Come on, Em! Dad needs us in the living room!"

He rolled his eyes at me and remarked, "So what? So you two can better decide how I should spend my 'hero' days?"

I sighed, "Come on Em! I'm sorry for what I've said to you yesterday. I was just angry."

"At me?"

To myself, I muttered, "At myself…" I rose up and turned my back on my brother. Before I left the room, I whispered my breath, "Someday we'll find out the answers to these questions…and pretty soon, the world."

That was most relieving thing I've ever said.

Minutes later, we all met up in the living room, where Dad was preparing himself for what was about to happen. Em and I sat awkwardly on the couch, as if we were about to watch TV. Our legs were crossed and we dared not to look into each other's eyes. Not only were our absence of actions were causing the tension but our parents just witnessing spurred up even more of a rift within the atmosphere. It was like you could breathe, but you couldn't. You could speak, but you couldn't…

To break the ice that was building among us, Dad spoke up, "So now that we have the family together…" He chuckled nervously. "…let's start with the main topic. Now I've been working late these past few days, but that does not mean I wasn't watching the news…"

I couldn't keep the questions from fumbling in my thoughts. I couldn't figure out which one to ask without looking like an idiot, nor even find a space in my father's breath to cut in. But I let him talk his way through, as I felt he was about to get his point across. He told us how in the office he worked at, there was a row of TVs overhead as soon as you enter that broadcast the latest news. He expressed his astonishment as he revealed to us how he found out about Em and that weird burglar.

Em, offended at his mention, rose up and exclaimed, "Hey Dad, I was just trying to be a hero! I mean, you can't expect people to deal out crime on their own! Just like with Wilma—!"

Our Dad cut him off just by the whisk of his finger. You could see through his face that he was angry at us so coming up with a defense would be an embarrassment to us, especially in front of our Mom who believed we would be good sons. He took a deep breath and continued, creating a counter-argument towards Em and hopefully answering some of our questions, "I've learned that Em has taken a voyage towards the Queensboro Bridge…behind our backs."

His dead eyes swerved to me. "And," he continued, shifting tables for a slight moment, "it seems that he had some witnesses along the way. I gotta say, Kellin, I'm disappointed that you would let your brother run off on his own."

But before I could come up with my argument, he barked me down, ranting, "And yet, you had the audacity to risk not only your brother's, but your own life. Do you know what I saw on Facebook?"

We wouldn't know the answer since we don't have any phones or accounts to those websites. We just stood silent and took every bullet he threw at us. What hurt even more was that we deserved it. "Here is what my coworker sent me," he shouted, pulling out his smartphone and playing a video for us. The quality was pretty poor, but the audio was nearly crystal-clear. All you saw was the blurred out lights and dim color of the bridge…nothing but traffic and such. All of a sudden, boom! A green light raced before your eyes and you discovered that it was being chased by a purple aura.

Twirling his ankle, Em murmured, "I was only trying to help…"

"Well, help isn't enough when you have a hedgehog around, now ain't it?" Dad growled. We never heard him shout like this and I could feel our hearts pounding at the same rate as it did that night at the Great Wolf. Em and I burrowed ourselves in the couch, covering our faces from the fury that was our father. But before he could launch his final blow, we heard a sharp grunt and I stood witness to our savior. I watched as she held out her arm, the veins of a hard-working woman caring for two sons, one of which who isn't human, and getting enough pay to provide a home for all of us, across her husband's chest. I saw the shock in his eyes, as he realized at what he had become. I watched as they froze like statues, as if time had stopped and I was the only thing that was able to move around. I could if I wanted to, but I decided to watch how this one goes.

Everything just seemed to be stopped for the time being…all you heard was the pulsing of my ears and the pounding of my heart. I had the courage to twist my head and found that Em was in the same state as I. I turned back and was relieved to see Mom blink a few times. At least she was still living. She lowered her arm as Dad regained himself back into reality. He held onto the arm as if he was holding on for dear life. He shook his head, leaving. Before he left, we heard him whisper, "I'm so sorry!"

When he finally departed and the tension lessened, there was a moment of unsettling fear and confusion. Is Dad angry at us for what we did? Of course! He sure sounds like he would be angry! I would be angry too if I found out my kids were dealing with some burglar...who swung me off a bridge in which I was luckily rescued by a mysterious, friendly dragon. Wow, my life really is taking a turn!

Watching as we took our time breathing comfortably, she came over and nudged her way in between us. She laid each arm around our shoulders and brought us closer. She rubbed our shoulders and said softly to us, "It's alright...it was your first time dealing with this situation, your father was only trying to teach you a lesson…" She sighed and continued, "Much less than I can say when his father found out that your father and the Nites started working together…"

She swung her head around, swaying her reddish hair back and added on, "Don't worry, by tomorrow your father will turn around!" She angled her head to see the window and came back. She ended off, "Well, it's getting late. You boys should get some rest."

She rose from her seat and before leaving into her room, her last words for the night were as clear as a shard of crystallized tempered glass, "No matter what happens to us, remember to hold onto each other. You are each other's strength."

She left the hallway and we heard the bathroom door shut. She must've gone to take a shower. Em and I looked at each other, remembering our fight before the confrontation with Dad. Losing control over our emotional overflow, we fell in to embrace each other in a hug, the hardest I've felt all year. We shed tears, muttered and wailed indistinct apologies, and spent five minutes just hugging. I should've known better than to yell at Em and discourage him from his dreams. I just wanted to be the older brother and let him that what he was doing was risking our life together.

Finally, we slowly let go of each other, watching through our watery, puffy eyes. I almost couldn't stand to watch the puffy bags underneath his turquoise eyes, drowning with tears like a waterfall and his sclera break up like a bloody earthquake that would soon mend together. I looked away and hugged my brother once more, apologizing with a crack in my voice, "I'm sorry, Em...I-I'm sorry...I promised myself that I would protect you from any harm and trouble...I just didn't want you to get hurt!"

I could feel him smiling as he responded in soft, heartwarming voice, "It's alright, Kel. I wanted to protect you too…"

We departed the couch for a good night's rest, enough time for my brain to ramble on how to mend for tomorrow. After today's meeting, I've realized how unruly I've become the past few days because of what was going on in my personal life. After witnessing Dad's wrath almost unleashing itself on us and Mom's comforting words to us about the incident, I've discovered how history had almost repeated itself and how it should've gone differently. But overall, I don't blame my Dad for reprimanding us like that and I soulfully curse myself for yelling at Em like that. This is the first time in our family that we've encountered this and I had belief that we were gonna get through this together, no matter what obstacles faced us.

While on the topic of mending my wrongs, I've thought about how I treated Isabel and Caryn. Yeah, Caryn was annoying and boisterous about bragging about her family, but her presence along with Isabel's may be more than meets the eye. I know that Caryn may be right about that dragon sighting she had claimed to have seen and Isabel...she'll know about it sooner or later. Hopefully, the dragon comes back so I can thank it properly...wait a minute.

I remembered a conversation with Em and I, speaking about those two nights. The second night, where that dragon saved me hitting head-first into the East River and landed me safefully on the roof of my home, Em mentioned, "...and she wouldn't have saved you!"

Who's she? Is "she" the dragon? If so, then how did Em know that the dragon was a girl? Did Em see the dragon firsthand? Then that would mean the dragon must've came down from the bridge where Em was standing. So many questions crowded my exhausted membrane and I let out a huge sigh, roughing up my dark-brown hair as it fell on top of my left eye. I blew it up and fixed myself on my bed. Half-closed, I took a glimpse at the sleeping Em in his miniature bed, beneath the skylight of the full moon. I wonder how Wilma's otherside reacts under the full moon. Does she get hyper werewolf mode, or does she even go werewolf under this condition? I will never know, unless I phone her after school is done. I wonder if anyone in her school knows or suspects that she is a werewolf? Well, however she's dealing with it, I'm pretty sure she's safe for the most part.

Ha...it's amazing how I worry so much at night, but pay attention to so little in the day...school-wise. Well, for tomorrow, I have my mind set straight to where I need to go to make things right. First thing tomorrow, I just hope it goes right!