Some middle school kids are about to find out what is really important to them- and realize they're going to lose it if they don't do something about it.
"What do you mean she's gone?" asked Leyna, obviously puzzled.
I mean, if I was told that my friend walked into the bathroom after crying and just went "poof!" I wouldn't believe it either.
"I came in there, I checked all of the stalls. Nobody was there. But I did find this." I showed them Marissa's purple scarf.
"Maybe she fell into the toilet and got flushed down?" suggested Barry helpfully.
We all burst out laughing, but not Amber.
"Guys! We need to find her!" Amber reminded us.
"Maybe she went to the Ministry of Magic through the toilet!" I guessed. (Ahem, Harry Potter reference.)
"Possibly," pondered Amber. "But we still need to find her. She can't have just vanished!"
"Funny, since that sounds like exactly what happened," I responded, my sass immediately turned on full mode.
Amber rolled her eyes. "She could've left the bathroom without us noticing. Which is pretty unlikely, but we should check the school anyway."
"Right," Leyna chipped in. "We should split up and look for her."
"Uh, but we have three more minutes till break is over," said Barry. "We won't have enough time."
Just then, we heard the principal's voice over the PA system. "Everyone, there is an intruder in the school. Please head back to your classrooms and follow the code red procedures."
"No. No, no, no." I buried my head in my hands, panic building inside my chest. "This guy might've taken Marissa. What are we gonna do?"
We could see students rushing back to their classes in tight groups, concern written on their faces. Literally. I could see some kid with a sticky note stuck to his head that read "concern". Bullies were always mean to him and were apparently "concerned" about him because he was lame and slow. I felt bad for him. The wild pack of wolves that students had been before were no longer that way. They spoke in hushed tones as if afraid that a sudden loud noise would catch the intruder's attention.
"We should go back to class," Barry said, evidently worried.
"We can't just leave Marissa with that psycho!" Amber said.
My friends and I reluctantly ran towards the place in front of the bathroom where we'd been before. On our way, I heard a voice that sounded like my classmate Ethan. He yelled,"Where are you guys going?"
I couldn't turn his direction. We had to find Marissa.
We stopped in front of the bathroom.
"I am going in." Anger flared in my chest. How dare this psychopath mess with one of my family members.
Amber placed a comforting had on my shoulder. "We are all going in." Despite her gentle voice, her dark brown eyes were deadly. She never let anyone hurt us. Amber always protected us, no matter what. And I really appreciated that, especially at that moment.
We all walked inside. In there was the largest dog I've ever seen. It was at least 7 feet tall with deadly yellow glowing eyes and a dark coat of fur. It also had a short bushy tail. That made it look funny, but I couldn't laugh because it was so terrifying. I felt my friends tense behind me. I was also shaking with fear.
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It growled at us and it's sharp fangs gave me goosebumps. I gulped.
"Maybe we should leave..." suggested Leyna, backing towards the door.
" Good idea," Barry said quietly. That wasn't like him at all.
"No! We aren't leaving," decided Amber stubbornly.
Just then, the furry beast charged. We all tried to move out of the way, but I wasn't fast enough.(Ha, ha, laugh at me because I was slow.) It grabbed my coat's hood with its teeth. It's warm breath made me shiver.
"Veronica!" Leyna yelled.
"Dammit!" I yelled. I kicked it as hard as I could, but it wouldn't let go.
Suddenly, I thought of my cousin's dog, Pupcake. It was a small breed of yorkie and something else. It's fur was long before, but they shaved the dog because she kept getting fleas. I though of it's small black noise and it's little tongue. I don't know why I was thinking of something so cute, when an ugly beast was trying to kill me. Just then, I felt myself shrink. I dropped to the ground on all fours. I examined my hands, but they weren't hands anymore. They were paws. Just like Pupcake's.
I let out a shriek of surprise but instead, it came out as a bark. I had become a dog. What the heck. The big ugly dog, barked loudly and I nearly went deaf. With doggy senses, my nose had become sharper and I realized that the big dog- you know what, I'll just call him Max- Max, smelled really bad. Had he just rolled around in a mound of dead squirrels or something?
Barry's shout cut my thoughts short. "OH MY GOD VERONICA YOU BECAME A DOG CAN I PET YOU"
I saw Leyna slap his head.
"Watch out!" Amber yelled.
Max lunged at me, obviously mad. His size made him slower. He was about to scoop me up in his mouth, but I was faster. I leaped out of the way with my doggy powers. Then, Amber couldn't take it anymore.
"DON'T TOUCH MY FRIENDS YOU BIG UGLY DOLT" she screamed.
I thought she would bust some mad judo moves on him or something but as she screamed, a gust of wind erupted from her raised arms. Amber stared at her hands in awe and surprise. Then, all of a sudden, from Barry and Leyna's corner, a combination of fire and lighting shot at the dog. Max was weak. All of a sudden, the bathroom door burst open and a knife landed on Max's snout. He fainted. At the door, stood Ethan.
