nothing is as it seems

Girl Meets World Fanfiction "nothing is as it seems"
Summary: WerewolfAU. What do a star football player, an artist, a theater kid, a genius, a cheerleader, and the cheerleader's older brother all have in common?/ Or, Maya Hunter has been forced to live with her uncle following the sudden death of her parents. She finds herself in a small town just outside of NYC. And for the first few months, life is relatively calm. Until, she is threatened by a bully and saved by the school golden girl. Now she finds herself helping the werewolves that attend her school every full moon. And along the way, she and her new friends will face her uncle, his creepster friend and lizard creatures just to name a few.  Maya-centric.
Rated:
Genres: Friendship, Drama, Supernatural.
Warnings: Suggestive Language, Violence, Mentions of Rape,
Disclaimer: I do not own Girl Meets World, Batman, Goldfish Crackers.

Act One
Maya enters her home, softly closing the door behind her. She looks around, seeing no one else. She pulls her book bag up her shoulder, clutching her sketch pad. She tiptoes across the foyer to the spiral staircase. She really didn't want to face her uncle tonight, or any night, or any time of day. Being forced to attend human school was not something she would have wanted, but it was better than she thought it would be. Losing her parents was bad. But being placed into the custody of her mother's estranged brother was a nightmare. Over the course of the last few months, she could easily see why her mother had cut contact with him. She had only seen him once before then, and she was just a small child. All she really remembered was seeing him and her mother arguing, before her father had blocked her view.

While staying in a house this big would be a dream for most kids her age. Her uncle's presence ruined it. He only let her leave the house for school, and he himself never left the house. They were both witches, so they could just conjure up anything they needed. And she doubted he had friends. She was new to school, and couldn't leave the house, so she had no friends. She reaches the top of the stairs finally. She was so close. She looks behind her, down the other end of the hallway.

"What are you doing?"

She jumps, turning around to see her uncle standing in front of her. His signature frown was fixed onto his face, and she had to resist the urge to grimace at the distinct smell of raw onions. "Uncle Roderick, I was just going to my room. I have homework."

Roderick narrows his eyes, getting uncomfortably close to her face. He says slowly, most likely knowing that there was no possible argument. "Okay."

His breath matches the smell of his body, and he luckily pulls back. "Just don't go outside. It's a full moon tonight. You know what happens on a full moon?"

"Is it a full moon?" She lies. She knew very well it was a full moon tonight. The kids at school wouldn't stop talking about it, apparently it had something to do with an urban legend in town. But she had her own reasons to have an interest in the full moon. But she also sure as hell couldn't tell him that. "But I won't go outside."

"Good." Roderick walks past her.

Maya breathes a sigh of relief, rushing into her room.

That night, she waits until her uncle goes to bed to grab her backpack. She stuffs a few things into them, including but not limited to, her sketchbook and some of her other art supplies. She opens her window, throwing her backpack out. It floats in the air, and she jumps down, grabbing the backpack out of the air. She lands on her feet, running into the woods. As she runs, she hears a wolf howl. She smiles, she had to be close.
She keeps running until she sees through the trees, several wolves running around a grass field. She cloaks herself, pushing through the trees. The wolves are below her, as she's standing on a bit of a cliff that slightly obscured her from view. But she couldn't take any chances.

She takes a seat in the grass, pulling out her sketchbook and her pencils. She knew her schoolmates would be searching in the wrong place. They were only human, so they had no real talent for tracking werewolves. Or any supernatural being for that matter. She gets to work, sketching the scene. She doesn't know how long she's sitting there for, but only that as she's almost finished with her sketch, she notices one of the wolves staring at her. Her breath catches in her throat, as the wolf continues to stare at her. She knows they can't actually see her, but it still feels as if he's staring at her.

Eventually, the wolf turns away, running off with the other wolves. She sighs, shaking her head. She closes her sketchbook, putting her things back in her backpack. She runs back to the house, floating up and climbs in the window. She closes her window, climbing into bed.

She arrives at school the next morning, walking past all the cars dropping off their kids. The Matthews kids are getting out of their car in the parking lot. Riley Matthews was popular and a cheerleader, dating star football player Lucas Friar. She seemed nice enough from the few interactions they'd had. But she was a cheerleader, and all the cheerleaders seemed nice on the surface. But anyone outside of the popular crowd knew differently. Josh Matthews was almost the exact opposite of his little sister. He was popular, but only by association. A rebel without a cause was the easiest way to describe him. Josh turns his head, looking straight at Maya.

Maya rushes inside the school, feeling his eyes bore into the back of her head. As she enters the school, she sees a fellow student being harassed by another student. She only knows the victim as Zay, a theater kid and class clown. They only had a couple of classes together, but he seemed like a nice kid. She didn't know the other kid's name, but he was a known bully. The bully pins Zay against the lockers, saying something that Maya can't hear. Maya looks around, making sure that no one is watching. She points at the bully, the end of his jacket catching fire.

The bully screams, as one of his few friends comes over to put the fire out. Maya picks up on several expletives being shouted as she walks to her own locker with a smirk. Unbeknownst to her, someone had seen her good deed. And this public display of magic would change her life forever.

After school, she exits the building, out onto the parking lot. There's a cluster of popular kids gathered around a car. She walks past them, until she's off school grounds. She walks into the woods, taking the long way. The longer she could go without having to go home, and face her uncle, the better. Her mind flashes back to that morning, and the bully. She smiles. Roderick would kill her if he found out she'd used magic in school. But there's no way they would figure out it was the work of a witch. Let alone that she specifically was behind it. And it's not like Roderick would care enough to look into her school activities.

Suddenly, there's some shuffling from behind her, and she turns around. No one other than her would dare come into the woods. The urban legends had scared enough of the town's residents that they wouldn't go into the woods. Unless they were either really brave or really stupid, depending on who you'd ask. She looks around, seeing no one there. She turns back around, continuing to walk through the woods. It was probably just an animal, or she was going crazy. She laughs to herself.

"I wouldn't be laughing if I were you." A voice says from behind her. She turns around to meet the smirking face of the same bully from earlier.

"What is it you want, whatever your name is?"

"It's Eli. And I don't like having my clothes set on fire." Eli moves his backpack, revealing the part of his blazer that had been burnt away. Her facial muscles tense. She didn't know what he was going to do to her, but she didn't imagine it would be very good.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yeah you do." He walks over to her, playing with her hair. "So what are you? A witch? A fairy? You're short but you're too tall to be an elf. A hybrid?"

"I still don't know what you're talking about."

Eli laughs, smirk still fixed onto his face. "If only I believed you."

He steps away, his eyes changing to a wolf's, and fangs grow from his teeth. Her eyes widen, just before he pins her against a tree. She groans in pain at the impact. He snarls in her ear, "I'm going to make you pay."

She looks away. Maybe it's the shock, but she temporarily loses her vision. She expects him to do something, but instead she hears him scream, and a girl grunting. The heat from his body disappears, and she hears the sound of a body landing roughly on the ground. She looks straight ahead again, seeing a girl in the school cheerleader uniform. Her vision returns to her, and she clearly sees who's in front of her.

"Riley Matthews?"

"Sorry. This is not how I wanted this conversation to go." Riley smiles nervously. Eli is laying on the ground, unmoving. "He'll be fine. Werewolves heal faster than humans… unfortunately in this case."

Maya laughs awkwardly. "Y-you're- a werewolf?"

"Yes."

Riley Matthews was the last person she expected to be a werewolf. Not that she expected any of her schoolmates to be werewolves, but certainly not Riley Matthews. She was popular, a cheerleader.

"And my hope is that you're a witch."

"I am. But what does it matter?"

"You know werewolves turn every full moon? Well, we need a safe place to turn. Turning in the grass fields outside of town, isn't a good spot anymore. The other students have been getting too close to finding us."

"Okay. But what can I do to help?"

"My parents have a cellar, but we need a witch to lock it." Riley grabs Maya's arms.

The desperation in the cheerleader's voice was clear, and Maya wanted to help her. And the other wolves, whoever they were. But there's no way she would be able to hide this from her uncle. And her uncle was way more powerful than her. But at the same time, werewolves were known to be quite feral during the full moon. And if the other students were really getting close to discovering the wolves spot. And if they stumbled upon the wolves on a full moon…

She sighs. "Alright, I'll help you."

"Yay!" Riley quite literally jumps for joy, embracing Maya tightly.

"Oh okay."

Riley eventually releases Maya. "I'll see you on the next full moon."

Act Two
She wakes up to her alarm. Maya groans, getting up from the bed. She grabs her mother's spell book from her magic safe, putting it in her backpack. Tonight was the full moon, and she had promised Riley that she would help her. But she still hadn't figured out a way to cover up the fact that she most likely wouldn't be home after school. The spell was very complicated, at least for her. And it would most likely take hours to complete. Then she wanted to stick around to make sure that the spell would work. She really didn't want to be trapped by who knows how many feral werewolves.

Maya sighs, hoping that a lie would come to her after a shower. She walks into the en suite, removing her pajamas, tossing them into the hamper. She snaps her fingers, and the showers turn on, already at the perfect temperature. She gets in the shower. After showering, she gets out of the shower. She snaps her fingers, her body becoming dry. She snaps her fingers again, now fully clothed. She uses magic to switch between hairstyles, before landing on one she liked. She opens the bathroom door, nearly running into Roderick.

"Uncle Roderick! What are you doing?!"

"I will be gone for the night." Roderick states matter-of-factly, his face unreadable. But what he says next is in a more threatening tone, "do not go out during the full moon. I will know."

"I wouldn't think of it. But I have a group project. We're supposed to meet at The Matthews' after school."

Roderick groans, and she could feel the frustration coming off of him. "Fine! Just stay there all night!"

Roderick stomps out of her room, slamming the door shut. Maya sighs in relief, grabbing her backpack and walking downstairs to the kitchen. She conjures herself up some breakfast, which consists of scrambled eggs and pancakes with maple syrup. After finishing breakfast, she leaves the home, feeling her uncle's eyes burning into the back of her head from the top of the stairs.

Maya walks to the front of the school, where Riley had told her to meet. She looks around, seeing no one else around. Eventually, a van pulls up in front of her. Riley gets out on the passenger side, walking around to Maya. "Sorry we're late. Cheer practice ran long."

"It's fine." Maya says, clutching her backpack. The windows were tinted on the van, so she couldn't see who else was inside. She could only assume Josh was probably driving, since it was his van. But she could only guess who the other wolves were. Were they more of Riley's friends in the popular crowd? If that was the case, she couldn't imagine spending the entire night with a bunch of populars. Or were they random kids?
She was about to find out as Riley led her around the van. Riley opens the door, revealing who else was in the van.

It's Riley's boyfriend, Lucas. As well as Farkle Minkus. Farkle was a genius. Lucas gets out of the van, allowing Maya to get into the third row of seats. She takes a seat next to Zay, who's dressed in a magician's costume. "Nice outfit."

"It's for drama club. I didn't have time to change." Lucas and Riley both get back in the van, and the group drives off.

The car ride is silent. She doesn't know how long they're driving for, but it feels like forever. The van finally comes to a stop, and everyone gets out. A house, which she assumed was Riley and Josh's home, stands before them. It's in the middle of nowhere, with no other house in sight. Just grass. The house is just as big as her uncle's, if not bigger. Maya sighs, clutching her backpack to her body. She looks over, following the others to what must be the entrance of the cellar. It looked like a big storm cellar in the middle of the grass.

There's a flimsy looking lock atop the cellar, which Riley breaks with ease. Which she supposed was why they needed a witch to lock the door. Riley smiles, "let's get inside. It's still light out so we have a while before we have to get into the cellar."

Everyone walks inside the house, with everyone walking off in different directions. Zay runs off downstairs, presumably to the basement. Farkle walks into another part of the house. Riley and Lucas head up the stairs, and she probably didn't want to know what they were planning to do. Josh sits down on the couch, producing a book from his backpack. Maya bites her lip, unsure of what to do. She looks around the house, taking note of the few family photos in the house. "This is a nice house."

"Thanks." He doesn't look up from his book, and his voice lacks any emotion.

Maya looks back at him. "But I don't see a lot of family photos. Where are your parents?"

"They're like werewolf diplomats, so they're hardly ever home. They're somewhere in Ohio right now. But what does it matter to you?" His voice still lacks emotion, and he still doesn't look up from his book.

"Nothing. I was just curious."

Josh laughs stiffly, "so where are your parents?"

"They're dead. I live with my uncle."

"Oh, I'm sorry." He sounds genuine, and it was the first time that she'd heard any emotion in his voice since they'd been talking.

"It's fine. My uncle is just great." She lies. "I should look over the lock spell one last time."

"You can use the dining room. It's right through there." He points over the couch and behind his head. His voice is back to being emotionless.

Maya walks into the dining room, putting her backpack down on the floor. She pulls her mother's spell book out, placing the large book on the dining table. She opens it to the bookmarked page, the words 'lock spell' written in black ink at the top of the page. She looks over the spell, which was written in witch's tongue. She sighs, running her index finger over the page. The mention of her parents had brought up a lot of emotions that she'd spent the better part of the last three months trying to bury.

She shakes her head, in an attempt to clear it. She had more pressing matters at hand. Her phone buzzes in her pocket, and she pulls it out. Roderick's face is on her screen. "What are you doing?"

"I told you I'm at the Matthews'."

"So where is everyone else?" Suspicion is dripping from his voice, and she doesn't know what has him onto her. He's usually never this interested in what she gets up to. But she's also never gone against him like this.

"They're here." Fortunately, Josh walks into the dining room. "Oh, here's one."

Roderick narrows his eyes, before his face disappears from her phone, the screen returning to black. Maya puts her phone back in her pocket. "What was that about?"

"It's just my uncle. He's a little overprotective." She lies. "What is it?"

"It's time." Josh walks out of the dining room. Maya exhales through her mouth, grabbing the book and backpack. She walks into the living room. Zay comes out of the basement, and Farkle is sitting on the couch. Riley and Lucas come downstairs. Riley's hair is not in its usual ponytail, and her skirt is hiked up. Everyone walks outside, and over to the cellar. Riley opens the cellar doors, and the wolves start to climb inside. Josh says in a voice to Riley, perhaps thinking that Maya couldn't hear him, "I hope you're right about this."

Riley laughs nervously as Josh goes down inside the cellar. "Sorry about him."

"It's fine."

Riley climbs inside the cellar herself. Maya goes to the cellar, closing it. She sighs, throwing her backpack down on the ground. It was already dark out so she had to get started. She sits in the grass, putting the book in the grass in front of her. She opens it again to the lock spell, chanting the spell. Leaves pick up off the ground, swirling in the air. As she keeps going, she hears screaming and the telltale sounds of bones breaking. She tries not to focus on the pained screams of the wolves in the cellar below. She closes her eyes, no longer following her mother's spell.

The screams are replaced by animalistic growling, as they must've fully turned. There's scratching against the cellar door, and something bumps against the doors. She closes her eyes again, trying not to be afraid. The lock spell was finished, so they shouldn't be able to get out. All there was left to do was add a time limit, so they would be able to get out if she fell asleep. Which she probably would. But she'd never done the spell before, at least outside of a practice scenario. The bumping continues, but the doors never open.

Maya finally finishes the spell, and the bumping finally comes to a stop. She closes the book, putting it back in her backpack. The scratching and growling continues, and it is still going on as she falls asleep in the grass.

Act Three
She wakes up in the morning, still laying in the grass. Maya looks up, and Riley is standing over her. Her hair is down, and she's not wearing her uniform. She'd almost started to think that the uniform was seen into her skin, because she was always wearing it. "You did it."

"I did it." Maya laughs, sitting up.

"How about some breakfast? As a thank you."

"Uh, sure."

"Great. How do you like your eggs?"

"Uh, scrambled."

Riley runs inside the house. Maya stands up from the ground, grabbing her backpack. She couldn't believe she'd pulled it off. She laughs again, walking into the house. She stops in her tracks, as a shirtless Josh is standing in the middle of the living room. She finds herself staring at his bare torso. He was quite fit, and there was a scar on the left side of his chest. Most likely from childhood. "You're still here?"

"Y-yeah. Riley offered to make me breakfast."

"Of course she did."

Riley comes into the living room, from what Maya assumed was the living room. "Josh! Go put a shirt on."

"Right away, mom." Josh walks up the stairs.

"Sorry about my brother." Riley apologizes. "Now, what do you want with your eggs?"

"Pancakes would be great."

"Pancakes it is then." Riley scurries back into the kitchen.

Riley convinces Josh to drive Maya back to her uncle's. Riley seems like a nice girl. At least from the twelve hours Maya had spent with her. Sure, she seemed a bit… extra, but nice. And not the fake nice that some of the other cheerleaders at school were known to give off. But genuinely nice. And then there was Josh. He still came off as just as standoffish as he did at school. She looks over at the elder Matthews child through her eyelashes. She couldn't deny that he was quite attractive, especially when she'd seen him without a shirt on. She looks away. She couldn't think like that. There was no way Roderick would allow her to date a werewolf. He hated any species that was not his own.

The van comes to a stop. Maya grabs her backpack, rushing to get out of the van. She could only hope that her uncle hadn't come home yet. She hurriedly says goodbye to Josh, getting out of the van. Josh drives off, and she runs up to the house. She unlocks the door, walking inside. She looks around, and it still looks the same as it had when she left the previous morning. Maya looks around, seeing no one else around. She breathes a sigh of relief, seeing that at the very least Roderick wasn't downstairs.

Then the door opens again, and she jumps. She turns around, as Roderick enters the house. But he's not alone. There's a pudgy man next to him, and she's overwhelmed by the smell of vanilla. The man looks familiar to her, but she can't quite place it. "Who's this?"

"This is Darius Floyd. He used to be a friend of your mother's."

Upon hearing the name, Maya instantly remembers who he is. "Really?"

Darius approaches her, brushing her hair off her shoulder. "You look so much like your mother."

Roderick grabs his friend's shoulder, pulling him back. Maya crosses her arms over her chest, taking note of how Darius was staring at her. Roderick begins to pull Darius in the direction of the basement. "We'll be down in the basement for most of the day. Don't bother us."

The threatening tone in his voice isn't lost to her. "I wouldn't think of it."

She runs up the stairs, rushing inside her room. She magically locks the door, putting her backpack down on the bed. She opens her closet, walking inside. She grabs one of the many boxes of her mom's things. She opens the box, pulling out her mom's diary. She swears her mom had told her about Darius, and if something had transpired between them it would be in her diary. She opens it, casting a spell to see if Darius was mentioned. It turns to a certain page.

She reads aloud, "Darius showed up to the house last night. Things have been tense between us lately. I thought he was just upset over Danica's death, but I was wrong. He showed up in the middle of the night while Shawn was out and Maya was asleep. He came onto me, professing his love. He tried to kiss me, and I lashed out at him. He broke a vase, before storming out of the house."

Maya trails off, closing the diary. She puts it back in the box, putting the top back on the box.

Maya arrives at school after the weekend. She walks across the parking lot to the door. The wolves arrive in the parking lot as she does. Riley and Lucas get out of a car with some of the other populars. Zay gets out of a car, and is dressed in a red suit and tie. Farkle pulls up in a car, getting out on the driver's side. She notices that Josh isn't among them, and can't help the disappointment that she feels. She turns back around, walking into the school. She walks to her locker, opening it. As she puts her things inside, her locker suddenly slams shut, a scratched up hand planted firmly on it.

She looks over at the snarling Eli. He had been out of school for the last month, as Riley had done quite a number on him. But apparently he was back now, and he didn't seem too happy about what happened the last time their paths crossed. He still looked pretty banged up with scratches all over him, and a decent sized bandage on his free hand. Other students pass them by, paying no mind to what was happening. People had gotten used to Eli's bully behavior, and knew better than to get between him and whoever he chooses to pick on that day.

"Not so tough without your little wolf friend."
She doesn't say anything. She couldn't use her magic, there were too many witnesses this time. She could fight back, and risk getting in trouble. Then have to face the wrath of her uncle. Suddenly, Josh comes in between them. "This doesn't concern you, Josh."

"I'm making it my concern."

Eli scoffs, rolling his eyes. He takes his hand off Maya's locker, walking away. Josh turns around so he's facing Maya, "are you-"

"What was that?" She cuts him off.

"I was trying to help you."

"I don't need your help."

"I'm sure you don't. But it's not like you can use magic in school. And Eli isn't going to fight me. He only fights people he thinks are weaker than him, and he doesn't think I'm weaker than him. I know this guy, Maya. I know him better than you do."

"That may be, but I am more than capable of handling myself. If I need your help, I will ask for it."

Josh scoffs. "Fine. Whatever you want."

Josh walks off.

At lunch, she takes a seat at her usual table with her lunch box. As usual, there's no one else at the table. She had no friends here, which was a fact that she had grown to accept. Sure, she missed her friends back at witch's school, but there was nothing she could do about it. She opens her lunch box, taking out her sandwich. Just as she takes a bite out of her still warm ham and cheese sandwich, Riley comes and sits across from her. Maya raises an eyebrow, "what are you doing?"

"I'm sitting with you." Riley says with her usual cheerful tone of voice.

"Why? Wouldn't you rather be sitting with your friends?"

"I don't really have any friends. Except for Josh and Lucas." The smile has slipped from Riley's face, and her shoulders are slumped

"What about the other cheerleaders? You're always hanging out with them." Maya grabs a potato chip out of her lunch box.

"We have to be nice to each other. But that doesn't mean we're friends. I mean, can you really be friends with someone when you can't be your true self around them? When you have to hide a part of yourself from them?" The conversation has taken a serious turn, and Maya doesn't know what to say or do. Riley smiles, but it doesn't reach her eyes like it usually does. "But I can be myself around the other wolves, even if we don't talk at school."

Riley inhales through her mouth. "Speaking of the other wolves, we're gathering at my house after school. And we'd like for you to join us."

"Uh," Maya hesitates. This was bound to cause suspicion from her uncle. But he had been busy with Darius lately. And she could just say she still had a group project if he did ask. "Sure."

"Yay! We'll meet out front." Riley's phone dings, and she swears under her breath. Maya is startled, as she'd never heard of her swear before. "That's Josh. I have to go."

Riley grabs her lunch box, running out of the cafeteria. Lucas gets up from the popular table, following after his girlfriend.

Maya walks out to the front of the school. She looks around for the others, playing with the sleeves of her sweater. She checks her phone to see if Roderick had reached out. But he hadn't. She's considering whether or not she should text him herself. The last thing she needed was for him to track her down with a spell, and show up at The Matthews'. Then do who knows what. Just as she starts to type out a text message, she hears a motorcycle approaching. She looks up, as Josh stops in front of her on a motorcycle. He takes off his helmet, getting off the motorcycle.

"You drive a motorcycle?" She finishes typing out the text message, putting it back in her pocket. "Why am I not surprised?"

"Yeah." He comes to stand next to her.

"So how are you going to get it home?" She can't help the smile that comes to her face.

"Well…" he trails off, looking over at her. She sighs, putting her backpack down on the ground. She extends her arm out, and the motorcycle poofs away. She picks her backpack up, slinging it back over her shoulders.

"I'm sorry about earlier.  You were just trying to help."

"It's fine. Eli's father is a witch hunter, and I wouldn't put it past him to send his father after you. And," Josh trails off, staring at her with something unrecognizable in his eyes, "I don't want you to get hurt."

Maya looks at the ground, heat rising to her cheeks. Then her phone dings, and she pulls it out of her pocket. It's a text from Roderick: 'Fine! Just be back by 11:00.'

She can imagine his signature frown fixed on his face, and even in a text she can feel his frustration. Her change in mood must be obvious as Josh asks, "are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She puts her phone back in her pocket. "I'm fine."

The same car she saw Farkle drive that morning pulls up in front of them. "That's them."

He touches her shoulder sending chills through her body, even though she's wearing a sweater. Josh walks around the car, and she follows after him. They both climb in the backseat with Riley and Lucas. Then they drive off unaware that they're being watched.

She's sitting on the bleachers, drawing in her sketchbook. Football practice is going on below her, but that's not what she's focusing on. She's completely immersed in her work, which she most likely won't get the chance to do for the rest of the night. It was another full moon, so her night was full. Fortunately, Roderick had been away with Darius for a few days. And it had been months since the first full moon, so they had started to get the hang of it. But it would still take up the entire night, even though she had gotten the hang of the lock and timer spell.

Zay comes to sit next to her, dressed in a batman costume. Maya had since gotten used to Zay's costumes. She smiles, continuing to draw. "What's the point of the costume today?"

"We're playing superheroes for the week."

"Why?" She pops a goldfish cracker in her mouth.

"Because Mr. Dalton is letting the drama club write this year's school musical, and he's decided to have us act out a scene from the top five submissions. And one of the top five submissions is something called Superheroes the Musical." Her face must show what she thinks of the idea. "Yeah, I feel the same way. Fortunately, it doesn't seem like Mr. Dalton is going to pick that one."

"That's good." She looks back at her sketchbook, sure to keep Zay from what or rather who she was sketching. She turns to the side to conceal her sketch from the wolf.

Suddenly, she hears Zay in her ear, "is that Josh?"

She quickly closes her sketchbook, putting it in her backpack. "Yes. It's nothing."

"I didn't say it was anything." Zay raises his hands in surrender. "But if you like Josh, then that's-"

"I don't like Josh! It's just a sketch." She protests, but doesn't fully believe her own words. She didn't want anyone knowing that she had liked him. Not just because she feared it getting back to her uncle, but because he was her friend. And her other friend's brother. Sure, she was always aware of the fact that the elder Matthews sibling was an attractive guy. But as she had spent more time with him in the past several months, her feelings for him had grown into more than just an attraction.

A whistle blows as practice must be coming to an end. Maya and Zay make their way down the bleachers to the field. Once they reach the field, Riley and Lucas run over to them. The four run off to the parking lot where Farkle and Josh are waiting for them. With few words exchanged, the four get inside Josh's van and drive away.

A couple hours later, everyone gathers outside The Matthews' home. Riley walks over to the cellar, opening the doors. Just as she does, a high pitched whine breaks through the quiet night air. The wolves drop to the grass, covering their ears, screaming in pain. "Guys, what's wrong?"

She gets nothing but screams in response. She could do a spell, but there was only so much she could do if she didn't know what was causing this. "I'm going to try a spell, okay."

Riley makes a noise that sounds something like a forced 'okay'. Maya turns around, running towards the front door. Even though she had memorized her mother's spell, and her own modifications to it, she still brought her mother's spell book every full moon. Just in case she needed it. Even though she had started on her own spell book, she could use her mother's spells for guidance and inspiration. She jumps on the porch, almost to the door. But Roderick blocks her from going inside. She stumbles, nearly falling off the porch. She turns around, seeing Darius blowing a conch shell. She turns back around to her uncle.

"Uncle Roderick, what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing. I thought I told you not to go out during the full moon."

"I was just trying to help them. What did you do to them?" Roderick slowly approaches, and she backs away, eventually stepping off the porch.

"A little thing known as the siren's conch. My mother, your grandmother created it. I found it in my sister's things, mother must have given it to her. Now, I've made some changes, so that only your little wolf friends will be affected. Don't worry, they'll be fine." Roderick finally reaches her as she has nowhere else to go. "You on the other end."

He grabs her arm so roughly that she thought it would break. "You're coming with me."

Roderick starts to pull her away, as Darius continues to play the conch shell.

Suddenly, Josh screams, "don't touch her!"

He shakily stands up, a look of anger and determination on his face. As well as something else that she couldn't recognize. Darius reaches out with one hand, casting a spell. Josh falls to the ground on his back.

"Josh!" Maya screams.

Roderick throws her to the ground, and she lands several feet away on her stomach. She groans in pain, lifting her head up. When she does, she sees six lizard feet in front of her. She scurries away backwards. She hears the sound of bones breaking, and Darius screams. Roderick swears, going over to help his friend. Maya looks up at the three things who stood before her. Two of the lizard creatures grab her, beginning to haul her off. Suddenly, Josh comes barreling towards them, knocking the three lizards to the ground. Then he himself falls to the ground. She kneels down beside him.

"Josh, are you okay?"

"You should get inside the house. We could turn any second now. We'll handle these guys." He manages to get out, but his voice is barely above a whisper.

"I can leave you."

"You can't stay out here. They're after you. And we're about to turn. Teleport now."

She closes her eyes, and she's inside the house.

She wakes up on the couch. Riley and Lucas are staring down at her, and there's a blanket draped over her. Riley and Lucas stand up straight, looking at the ceiling. For only the second time since Maya had known her, Riley isn't wearing her cheer uniform. But what looks like Lucas' football jersey, over pink leggings. "What happened last night? Where's Josh?"

"He's in his room." Riley says. Riley takes a seat next to her on the couch. "But why don't I make you breakfast before you go up and see him?"

"What happened last night?" Maya asks again.

Riley and Lucas exchange looks. Riley says, "um, the lizards are dead. But your uncle and his friend got away. Now, we did do some considerable damage to them, but they did get away."

Maya nods her head, biting her lip. "You're going to stay here. Our parents shouldn't be back for another couple of weeks. And when they get back, I'm sure they'll understand."

Riley pats Maya's hand. "And Josh?"

"He'll be fine. Your uncle's friend hit him pretty hard, and turning right after didn't help matters. But he'll be fine. Werewolves heal fast, so it'd be a lot worse if he was human." Riley stands up from the couch. "I've already made up the guest room for you. And I'll make you some breakfast, then you can go see Josh. He's been asking for you."

Riley gives her a knowing smile, and it makes Maya think about what exactly had gone on after she teleported inside the house.

Maya takes a seat at the kitchen table as Riley slides over her breakfast. Riley and Lucas take a seat across from the blonde. Maya eats a forkful of her eggs, as Riley feeds Lucas a bite of a pancake. Even from the little bit Maya had seen of the couple in school, and from the months they had been spending together, the couple had presented as the perfect couple. The kind of couple you would see in a romance movie. As unrealistic as it sounded. But even as the three ate breakfast, the couple still kept up the image of being the perfect couple.

Lucas finishes his breakfast first, standing up from the table. "I have to get going."

He bends down, kissing Riley's cheek. He puts his plate in the sink, then walks out of the kitchen. Maya looks at Riley, who is staring out the doorway. "Do you have to try hard to be this perfect?"

"I'm not perfect, Maya."

"Really? Perfect boyfriend, perfect house, perfect clothes. Everyone at school loves you. Your only flaw is that your parents are rarely ever home. But other than that, you have the perfect life."

"Thank you, Maya. But I don't think I'm perfect. And werewolves love differently than humans. Lucas and I are soulmates."

"Soulmates?" Maya laughs, before taking a sip of her juice.

"It's a werewolf thing. We are soul-bonded." Riley pulls her shirt down, revealing what looked like a bite mark just above her right breast. Riley pulls her shirt back up. "Our souls will forever be bound together. I am his mate and he is mine."

A slight smile breaks out on Riley's face, her eyes full of love. She sighs in content. "Now, let's go see Josh. He should be awake by now."

Riley stands up, grabbing a saran wrapped plate off the kitchen island. Riley walks out of the kitchen, and Maya follows. Both girls walk upstairs, and down a hallway. Riley stops at a door with the letters J.M. on the door in black and red letters. Riley knocks on the door, "we're coming in."

Riley opens the door, and they both walk inside. Josh is sitting up in bed, legs hidden under the blankets. Maya bites her lip, acutely aware of the fact that Riley is standing next to her. Riley puts the plate down on the bedside table. "I forgot a fork. I'll be right back."

Riley walks out of the room, winking at Maya as she does. Riley closes the door behind her, leaving Maya and Josh alone. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm good."

She takes a seat at the foot of the bed. "I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for? You did nothing wrong."

"Roderick and Darius only attacked you because of me. I knew how Roderick could get, yet I still allowed myself to get close to you. All of you."

"This is not your fault. This is their fault. And I'll be fine in a couple of days. And they can't get you here, not if Riley and I have anything to do with it." He grabs her hand, stroking the back of it with his thumb.

The door opens, and he drops her hand. Riley enters the room with a fork in one hand and a bottle of water in the other. Maya stands up from the bed, "I should get settled into my room. You know, move my things in. Change out of this shirt."

She touches her sleeve which was covered in dried green slime. She walks out of the room. "What was that? Did you ask her out?"

"No Riley. I told you-" His bedroom door closes, cutting him off.

Act Four
Maya walks out of the bathroom, already fully dressed. She had been getting accustomed to life with The Matthews' over the last few weeks. Riley and Josh would always eat breakfast together before school, and dinner together at night. Lucas was here often, as his dad apparently 'didn't care what he did'. In Lucas' words. He and Riley would often stay in her room when he was here. But this was still a step up from staying with her uncle. Who they still hadn't found. Maya grabs her backpack off the bed, leaving the room. She walks downstairs, and into the kitchen.

Josh is standing there putting already made plates on the table. She stops in her tracks, staring at him. Another plus about staying here was the fact that she could spend time with him. Josh often spent his days in the garage working on his motorcycle. Or locked in his room reading. She had caught him on numerous occasions, outside walking around as a wolf. She didn't know why, but he just did.

"Hey, where's Riley and Lucas?" Maya says.

"Where do you think?" Josh puts the towel in his hand down on the kitchen island.

"Of course. I'll go get them." Maya turns around, walking out of the kitchen. She exhales through her mouth, mentally chastising herself. She doesn't need to be in a relationship right now. She walks back up the stairs, and down the hallway to Riley's room. Her door is ajar, giving Maya a peek into the wolf's room. Riley and Lucas are laid on her bed, with her head rested on his chest. Their mouths are moving, but Maya doesn't hear any words. Maya slowly raises her hand, knocking on the door.

The couple breaks apart, and Riley comes to the door. "Hey, we'll be down for breakfast soon."

"Right. Sorry for interrupting." Maya turns around, walking back to the kitchen.

The four arrive at school. They all get out of the van, eliciting a few stares from Riley's fellow cheerleaders as usual. Riley runs over to them, coaxing her 'friends' inside the school. Lucas walks over to one of his teammates who was trying to get his attention. Josh starts to walk in the direction as well, and Maya does the same. As she does, a black car pulls up in the parking lot. Eli and a man, who she assumes is his father, get out of the car. The man has shoulder length blonde hair and blue eyes, and has a familiar air about him. Eli taps the man's shoulder, pointing in her direction. Maya hurries inside the school, feeling the man's eyes on her as she does.

Maya wakes up to someone knocking at her bedroom door. She sits up, moving her mother's spell book out of the way. She must have fallen asleep while looking through it as the last thing she remembered was studying her mother's spells. She gets out of bed, opening the door. "Josh, what is it?"

"There's two girls here. They claim to be friends of yours."

Maya narrows her eyes, leaving the room. She walks down the hallway, and down the stairs. Riley is standing in the front door, talking to two girls. "Jessica, Isadora?"

Riley turns around, and Jessica runs inside the house. Isadora stalks behind her. "What are you guys doing here? Shouldn't you guys be in New York?"

"Well, there was a bit of a plumbing emergency at the training center. So half the building is flooding." Jessica explains.

"Is everyone okay?" Maya says.

"Oh yeah. Everyone got out. But it's going to take about a week to," Jessica trails off, looking around the room.

"It's okay. You can talk about magic here. Riley and Josh are both werewolves."

"Oh." Jessica looks between the two wolves. "I guess that confirms you aren't still staying with your uncle."

"Yeah, that's a long story. But how did you find me? You don't know where my uncle lives, let alone that I've been staying here."

"We were worried about you. So we did a tracking spell." Jessica admits.

"You. You did a tracking spell." Isadora interjects.

"It doesn't matter, Izzy." Jessica says. "Anyway, we should catch up. You clearly have a lot to talk about."

"Yeah. You have no idea." Maya pulls her two friends upstairs to her room, only half-noticing Riley shouting after her to not be late for breakfast.

Maya catches up with her friends, almost forgetting to get ready for school and go downstairs for breakfast. For a short while, it takes her back to her old life. As much as she did like life with The Matthews', she also missed her life back home. Jessica and Isadora make their leave, or Isadora does. Maya stops Jessica in the doorway. "Jess, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"You wouldn't happen to know anything about lizard creatures, would you?"

"No." Jessica says slowly. "But you know my mom has a pretty big collection of books, so she might have something. If I find anything, I could send it to you. But no promises."

"Thank you."

"Of course." Jessica pats Maya's shoulder, leaving the room. Maya sighs, grabbing her backpack. She walks downstairs to the kitchen, finding Riley and Josh already eating breakfast. Or rather finishing their breakfast. Riley stands up from the table with her empty plate.

"You're late."

"Sorry. I kinda got carried away catching up with Jessie and Isadora."

Riley sighs. "Okay. I made your plate for you."

Riley points over her shoulder to the saran wrapped plate on the kitchen island. Riley walks out of the kitchen. Maya walks over to the island, removing the saran wrap from the plate. As she's magically heating up her food, someone touches her shoulder. She jumps, and Josh pulls his hand away. "Sorry. But I just wanted to apologize for Riley. Her and Lucas got into a fight last night. It wasn't pretty."

"Really?" She laughs. "What would the perfect couple fight about?"

"There's a football game tonight. And it's a full moon. There's some concern about whether or not we could… turn during the game."

"Oh, well can't he just sit this one out?"

"He could. But Coach Buford is threatening to kick him off the team."

Maya sighs. "Well, I could do a spell, but I don't know if it'll work. And the least I could do is hold it off until after the game."

She sighs. "Looks like I'm going to a football game."

Maya takes a seat on the bleachers. She exhales through her mouth, playing with the sleeves of her sweater. She'd completed the spell, but there was to tell if it had worked until the moon reached its apex. If the spell didn't work, and the wolves turned with this many people around, well… their secret being exposed would be the least of their concerns. There was no telling how many people could be hurt if five feral werewolves were on the loose. Her eyes zero in on Riley and Lucas down on the field as the game starts. Josh comes and sits next to her, and she glances at him through her eyelashes.

"So did you do the spell?"

"I did. Now I just have to hope that it works." He nods his head. "So where are Farkle and Zay?"

"Oh, they're here. They're a few rows behind us."

She looks back, seeing Zay and Farkle sat just a few rows behind them. Zay isn't wearing a costume as usual, and is instead in a black sweater and jeans. She turns back around. "Why aren't you sitting with them? It looks like there's an empty seat."

"I know. But I thought you could use some company." She looks away to hide her blush. He clears his throat. "Um, did your friends get home okay?"

"Yeah. Jessica sent over some things about the…" she whispers the next part, "lizard creatures. So I can only assume they've teleported home, okay."

Her phone vibrates against her leg, so she pulls it out. "The moon's at its apex. Do you feel like-"

"Like all my bones are about to break? No. But I'll let you know if anything changes."

She smiles weakly, putting her phone back in her pocket.

The game goes off without a hitch. After the game, the group runs to a previously selected spot behind the school. They wouldn't have time to drive to The Matthews', so Maya would have to teleport them all there. It was a lot of magic for one day, but she had the weekend to rest. Just as she starts to cast the teleportation spell, she teleports to the inside of a barn. There's green slime everywhere.

"Hello niece."

Roderick appears from seemingly nowhere. There's a scar on his forehead, presumably from the last time they'd seen each other. "U-uncle Roderick, where are we?"

"A place where no one will be able to find you. And don't worry, your little wolves will be unharmed. They pose no threat to my plans now."

"What plans?"

"You see, I made a deal a while back. The lizards have been searching for a queen, and I am in desperate need of money. You happen to look a lot like the queen in their prophecies, so when your parents died and I was asked to take you in. I thought it was almost too good to be true. Now the lizards didn't believe me at first, but after a few months they must've seen you. I went to meet them to discuss things, and I ran into Darius. An old friend of mine. He was in need of money as well. And just like that, our plan was formed."

"You sold me?" Her voice breaks, and she fights back the tears. She would not cry in front of him.

"Yes. But you have no life here. Your New York friends will soon forget about you, and those werewolves will do the same. How well do you really know each other?" The barn door opens, and Darius enters the barn. "What is it, Darius?"

"We have a problem. The lizards are dead."

"What do you mean they're dead?"

"I mean, someone killed them. The whole species! Just dead!"

"How the hell do you kill an entire species?!" Maya looks around, hoping to find an exit. She could teleport out of here, but they could easily find her.

"They were near extinction. There were less than fifteen of them left in the entire world. It wasn't that hard."

Roderick groans, looking over at Maya. He grabs her arm roughly, pulling her hand enough that she thought it would break. "No matter. We'll come with something else."

A dart comes flying, hitting her in the shoulder. Roderick releases her, and she falls to her knees. Roderick says, "what the hell?"

The barn door flies open, and Eli's father enters the barn. Roderick says, "Kermit? What are you doing here?"

Kermit says nothing, reaching his hands into Roderick and Darius' chests. He rips out their hearts, and both men fall to the ground. Kermit drops their hearts onto the barn floor. "Hello, daughter."

"What are you talking about? You're not my father."

"Oh but I am. Of course your mother would lie to you. But don't worry, I'm not going to kill you. Today."

Kermit walks out of the barn, right before she loses consciousness.

She wakes up staring at a ceiling. She looks around, and she's in her room at The Matthews'. She sits up, and the door is open enough to see that Riley and Josh are talking to each other. The last thing she remembers is being in some barn, when Eli's father killed Roderick and Darius. Then he claimed to be her father, and said he was going to kill her. Then it all goes black. She must have lost consciousness, and that dart must have been some sort of tranquilizer dart. She couldn't believe it. Why would her mother lie to her? If what he said was even true. Josh said he was a witch hunter, so why would he sleep with a witch? And why would her mother hide it from her?

She pushes the blankets to the side, trying to get out of bed. Her feet touch the floor, and her legs feel weak. As she stands up, she feels weaker, balancing on the bed. This must catch Riley and Josh's attention as they both rush into the room. Josh helps her back into bed. Josh says,"You should stay in bed. Your friend Jessica made an antidote, but it doesn't completely stop the effects of the sedative."

"How did you guys find me?"

"Apparently, your friend Isadora had a vision. Your friend Jessica did a tracking spell, and we found you in some barn. Your uncle and his friend we're dead on the floor, and you were unconscious." Josh says.

She doesn't say anything. Riley touches Josh's shoulder. "We'll leave you alone."

Riley turns around and walks out of the room. Josh turns around, starting to do the same. "Josh?"

He turns back around. "Yes?"

"Can you bring me my mother's journals? They're in a box in the closet."

"Sure." Josh walks over to the closet, opening the door. He turns back around, holding the box, closing the door with his foot. "Where do you want it?"

"Just put it on the bedside table." Josh does as told. Maya reaches over, feeling a pull in her side.
Josh opens the box, handing her one of the journals. She sighs, "thank you."

"You're welcome. Why do you want these anyway, if you don't mind me asking?"

She touches her shoulder with her hand, feeling a bandage beneath the fabric of her shirt. "The man who did this to me, he said that he was my father. I just… I need to know if it's true. And unfortunately I can't ask my mom if it's true, and these journals are about as close as I'm going to get to do that."

"Well, there's a lot of journals here. You can't possibly read them all."

"Actually, I could if I was strong enough to use magic. But I can't." Josh sighs, sitting on the bed. He grabs another one of the journals out of the box. "What are you doing?"

"It's going to take you forever to get through all of these by yourself. At least this way, you'll get through them twice as fast."

He opens the journal in his hand, looking down at it. A smile forms on her face.

Act Five
Someone shakes her shoulder, and she groans, not even opening her eyes. Josh whispers in ear, "Maya."

She startles, rolling into her back. Josh backs away, the journal dropping to the floor. "What are you doing in here?"

"We fell asleep looking through your mom's journals. Don't worry, I slept on the floor." He stretches, before picking the journal up off the floor. "But I think I found something."

He hands her the journal, opening it to a page. She reads the entry aloud. "Kermit came to the house today. He demanded to see Maya. He was so angry, I thought he was going to kill me. It's been years since I last saw Kermit, and I don't know why he's shown himself now. I know that I cannot fight him off. I couldn't fight him off the first time. I could barely move after the beating he gave me when I first encountered him. I lived in fear the entire time I was pregnant with Maya. I was afraid that he could show up and finish the job. After a few years, I moved on as best as I could. I found love, and I got married. Maya has a father, and not someone who spends his days killing members of her species.

But he's back now. He had his bow and arrow, and I know he wouldn't hesitate to kill me. Fortunately, Shawn got home, and Kermit left. I had to tell him the truth. That I was raped."

Maya trails off, unable to speak. Josh takes the journal from her. "Maya? Are you okay?"

She doesn't respond. Tears must have fallen as Josh wipes something from her face with his sleeves. He pulls her to his chest, crouched down next to the bed.

"Are you okay?" Josh looks back at her from the driver's seat. She looks up, as she had been staring at her lap. Riley had asked her that same question three times that morning, and each time she had lied and said she was fine. Maya wasn't sure what exactly Josh had told her, but either way she didn't want to talk about it. And now Josh was asking her that question. She fixes her lips to repeat the same answer she'd given previously, but Eli walks in front of the van. Her breath catches in her throat. He was her brother, and knowing that she was biologically related to such terrible people both disgusted and frightened her.

Eli turns his head, looking directly at her. He smirks, mouthing the words 'good morning, big sister.' Something told her that he wasn't just being nice. Josh tenses, a low growl bubbling up. Riley grabs his arm, as if in an effort to keep him in place. "Don't."

Riley looks back at Maya, her eyes pleading. Maya touches Josh's shoulder. "It's fine. Eli isn't the brightest bulb, but he can't be dumb enough to do something at school."

Eli walks away, and Josh seems to relax just a little. "Let's get inside, before we're late for first period."

Josh gets out of the van with his backpack. Maya and Riley look at each other. "He's just worried about you."

"I can see that."

"And our parents are coming back tonight, and they're… well, he just has a lot on his plate right now." Riley tries to explain, and Maya gets the sense that the brown haired cheerleader is hiding something.

"Is there something wrong?"

"No! Let's just go inside." Riley gets out of the van, just as hurried as Josh had. Maya slowly gets out of the van as well, following after Riley.

It's later in the day, and Maya is at her locker. She pulls out her science textbook just as the bell rings. Riley and Lucas walk past her, rushing into their next class. Maya shakes her head, closing her locker. When she does, she jumps as Farkle is standing in front of her. "Damn, you scared me."

"Sorry."

They keep walking to science. It was the only class they had together, and her being a witch had a lot to do with it. Potion making had a lot to do with science. If your measurements are off by even just a tiny amount, instead of a healing potion you could wind up with… jello. Or an explosive in the worst case scenario. "So did Riley put you up to this?"

"No."

"Did Josh?"

"No!" He says louder than he probably intended to, judging by the covering of his mouth afterwards. His eyes dart around the nearly empty hallway, with the two of them and a handful of other students being present.

"You're not a very good liar." Maya walks into the classroom, hearing the genius sigh behind her.

There's a knock at her bedroom door. Maya is reading her mother's spell book on the bed. School had been mostly uneventful. Eli hadn't tried anything, as she had predicted. But the wolves had each walked her to a class. Josh was a grade above the rest of them, so she'd only seen him sparingly in the hallways. But it didn't seem like his mood had changed much since that morning in the school parking lot. Maya gets up from the bed, closing the spell book. It was probably Riley at the door, telling her that dinner was ready. Maya opens the door, seeing Josh on the other side.

She blinks. "Josh? What is it?"

"Can we talk?" His hands are in his pockets, and he seems nervous.

"Sure." She lets him into her room, putting her mother's spell book on the floor. She sits on the bed, beckoning him to join her. He shakes his head, standing at the foot of her bed. "What's going on?"

"You know I graduate soon, right?"

"Yeah." She looks down at the bed. His graduation would be soon after the prom. Only a couple of weeks after.

"Well, I'm sure you've heard by now that I won't be going to college. But what I'm sure you haven't heard is that after graduating, I'll be helping my parents with their job."

"Oh. So how long after graduating will you be leaving?"

"I don't know. The job is quite unpredictable, but it probably won't be long." She nods her head. He sits in front of her on the bed, reaching for her hand. She looks up, pressing her lips to his. She doesn't know what prompted her to do it, just that she couldn't stop herself. He puts his free hand on her waist, kissing her back. His lips are soft, the kiss is just as soft. She's never kissed anyone before, but it was everything she was told a first kiss would be like. They pull apart, and she pulls away from him.

"Sorry." She looks back at the mattress.

He clears his throat. "Don't be. I liked it."

"You're leaving."

"Not right now. I don't graduate for another month and a half. And there's still a chance of me being here for the summer. And you graduate next year, and if you decide to join me in a year, I would be fine with that." A smile creeps onto his face.

She laughs, smiling as well. "Is that your way of asking me out?"

"Yes. Yes it is." She laughs again, before kissing him again.