Badwolf

Cerise (2)

After last night's strange experience with the wolf girl who looked scarily similar to me, I couldn't wait to get as far away from my community has possible. There are a lot of wolves there, and none of them particularly like me. Being home in general is not all that fun.

So dad and I had quickly left home in a rush to come back to school. Which, I don't know anyone who actually wanted to come back to school, but I did, because I feel much more comfortable around my friends who understand me (for the most part) than at home in my own village.

So dad and I had gotten to Ever After and parted ways so that we wouldn't be associated as parent and child. We never were, but it was still worth it to pretend like we wanted nothing to do with each other. What would Red Riding Hood's daughter be doing around the Big Badwolf anyway?

And now I stood with my friends and boyfriend: Raven, Dexter and Daring. It was relieving to see them, but I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched.

"I'm so glad there's only one more month left of Legacy Year and we still haven't pledged our destinies," Raven said calmly and contently. A piece of her purple hair got caught in the late spring breeze, making me double check my hood to make sure it wouldn't fly off in front of everyone. Raven was still the only one who knew.

"That reminds me- we're taking the Legacy Yearbook photos this week," Dexter said, sliding his backpack off his shoulder and fishing for his MirrorPad in it. On the MirrorPad were the vote calculations for the Best of the Class awards. When kids sign in on the EAH website, they can vote for things like best dressed and best smile and Dexter, who runs the voting, keeps track of the votes on the MirrorPad.

Daring wrapped his arms around me and put his chin on my shoulder. "Cerise and I are going to win best couple for sure," he said.

"Wow, Daring, I'm impressed you're making a bigger deal of that nomination than your Best Smile nomination," Raven pointed out, and we all laughed.

"Actually, you two are in second right now," Dexter noted as he viewed the voting calculations.

"To who?" I asked.

"Me and Raven," Dexter smiled bashfully and Raven leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

The first warning bell rang, telling us there was five minutes until first period. Raven and I said goodbye to our boyfriends and then walked off into Ever After High's main entrance. Me and Raven's classes were close so we walked together in the mornings.

"So," Raven said, her heels making soft noises on the old tile floor, "Legacy Year prom is in two weeks. Did Daring ask you yet?"

I ducked my head, thinking about how silly a prom dress would look with a hood on, but I had to wear it. "No, he hasn't," I admitted, "has Dexter asked you yet?"

"Not yet, but I have a feeling he will today or tomorrow. Soon," Raven and Dexter has started dating before Daring and I had, so it seemed only natural that Raven would be asked to prom by her Charming boyfriend first. "Oh, hey, did you hear Darling's friend Luke asked her to go with him?"

"No, I didn't! Aw, little Darling has a boyfriend! How cute!" I smiled, thinking about how Darling had told me that she kind of liked Luke for a while but didn't want to tell him since she wasn't sure if he liked her back or not. Darling doesn't like showing too much emotion, and she was especially sensitive on the topic since Luke is the next Romeo in Romeo and Juliet- and you know how Romeo's reputation with the girls was.

"Right? Alright, well I'll see you later," Raven said, turning into her classroom.

I sighed and continued down the hall to my first period class, which was crownculous, aka snoozeville.

I slipped into my seat just as the bell rang, indicating the beginning of class. "You were so close to being late!" Cedar Wood, another one of my good friends, whispered. She was seated to my right, and to my left was a big window with full view of the bookball field. It was vacant at this time in the morning.

"Good morning class! Please open up to a fresh page in your notebooks and take out something to write with! I'm going to cue up the spellboard, and then we'll begin!" Our teacher, an overly-peppy Charming with a sparkling gold crown on her head and surprisingly dark hair announced cheerily to the class.

I flipped open my cherry red spiral notebook and searched for the first clean page. Next I fished a red pen out of my purse. Red is my color, it's in my DNA.

So is a wolf-like sense of smell. The very same sense of smell that could tell there was someone here who didn't belong. Someone wolfy.

I ever so slightly glanced to the left... AND THERE SHE WAS AGAIN. The wolf girl who looks JUST LIKE ME, right outside the school window, staring. At. ME.

My hand shot up and I turned toward the teacher. "Um, may I please go to the bathroom right now please?" I rushed, without waiting to be called on.

"Um, yes, sure Cerise," the teacher answered, still staring at the crownputer screen, trying to load up the spellboard.

I dashed out of the classroom, but instead of turning into the bathroom, I made a beeline for the nearest exit. Time to find out who this wolf girl is and what in Ever After she wants from me.