Part I

Semolina, Anton, and Luna were sitting on a dirt road of their hometown of Verdigris, minding their own business, when the old man approached them. Luna, Semolina’s pet wolf, was lying on her back while Semolina and Anton rubbed her stomach. She panted and let her tongue loll out of her mouth while she smiled a canine smile.

“Greetings,” came a voice from behind them. 

Semolina jumped up in surprise. Anton turned around to look so fast that he got a cramp in his neck. Luna just kept lying on her back and panting contentedly.

“Greetings,” the old man said again.

“Um, hi,” said Semolina. 

“Hello,” said Anton.

Luna purred, even though wolves aren’t supposed to purr.

“Verdigris is in grave danger,” said the old man.

“Excuse me?” said Anton.

“Verdigris is in grave danger!” the old man said again impatiently. 

Luna stood up and started to rub against the old man’s legs. He patted her head stiffly two times. 

“Are you sure?” asked Semolina.

“Ugh!” said the old man. “Do you people have any ability to listen?!”

Semolina undid her braid, and then rebraided her long brown hair. This was something she often did when she was nervous or uncomfortable. She glanced at Anton in confusion. Everyone knew that Verdigris was completely safe.

  The king himself had labeled their town the safest town under his rule. This was true because ever since the king’s daughter had married a commoner and announced that she would settle down in Verdigris, the town that her husband had grown up in, the king had made Verdigris the most heavily protected town in

  his kingdom in order to protect his daughter.

“You know what,” said Anton carefully, “I think you should go straight to Arthur Greene for this. It’s too important to be handled by two twelve-year-olds and a wolf, like us, right, Sem?” He winked knowingly.

The old man rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right, kid. I’m not going to the king’s wannabe. He’ll say I’m a crackpot. But you kids, you’re just crazy enough to believe me.”

“First of all,” said Semolina, “thanks a lot for that ‘crazy enough to believe me’ comment. Second of all, you are a crackpot if you think we’re going to believe

  you. And third, Arthur Greene is my mom’s cousin: He’s not a wannabe, he’s the man the king has trusted enough to put in charge of Verdigris.”

“Nice speech,” said the old man sarcastically, “but we’re burning daylight, here. Get a move on. I’ll take you one of my favorite places in Verdigris.”

Anton’s jaw dropped when he saw where they were going. “The woods?!”

“Don’t get yourself all twisted in a knot just yet, kid.” The old man rolled his eyes.  “We’re only going past the first line of trees. Away from prying eyes”—

the old man lowered his voice conspiratorially—“if you know what I mean.”  

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Semolina asked the old man.

“Oh, live a little,” he replied, quickening his pace.  

Luna looked around, seeming worried. Semolina noticed this, and stroked her head soothingly. “It’s okay, girl,” she said softly.

They strode into a clearing. Anton shielded his eyes from the sudden brightness without the tree cover. The old man grunted as he sat down on a log. Semolina, Luna, and Anton remained standing in front of him.

Semolina put her hands on her hips. “Okay, we’re here. Now, what do you want?”   

“I want you to come here tonight and find the werewolf of Copper Woods.”

“The werewolf of Copper Woods?” Anton repeated disbelievingly.  

“Yes, that’s what I said. Weren’t you listening?” the old man said impatiently.

Semolina and Anton then took turns explaining at the top of their lungs WHY they could never come into the Copper Woods at dark—My mother would notice I’m missing!/My dad keeps me under lock and key!—WHY there was

  definitely not a werewolf in Copper Woods—We would have heard it!/What would it eat?—and finally, HOW the king was undoubtedly correct in saying the the old man was a certified crackpot.  

When they stopped to take a breath, the old man said calmly, “Are you finished? Perhaps you should humor an old man and have your pet wolf have a talk with the monstrosity that roams these woods at night.”

Semolina and Anton glanced at each other. “Well, if it will make you stop talking..."

That night, Anton, Semolina, and Luna crept into Copper Woods. It looked very different in the night than in the day. The chirping birds had retreated to their nests. The lush green trees now cast eerie shadows on the hard, dry ground. Semolina felt Luna shivering against her leg and reached down to comfort her.

Just then, Anton heard a rustle in the trees. “Did you hear that, Sem?” he asked nervously.  

“Hear what?” Semolina replied.

“Never mind; it was probably nothing,” said Anton, not really believing it.

“You don’t think the old man was right..."

“No! Of course not. There’s no way..."

Then they both heard growling. Anton’s fingers twitched, so he grabbed a thick stick from the ground at his feet. Semolina realized that it was Luna growling next to her.  

“Shh, girl. Calm it down,” she said.  

But Luna kept growling softly. She jumped in front of Semolina and Anton and full-out snarled. “Luna!” Anton whispered sharply. “What’s gotten into

you?!”

Another wolf jumped out from behind a tree. It arched its back, turning its spine into spiky ridge of jet-black fur, unlike Luna’s silver fur which shone brightly in the moonlight.

Anton and Semolina started backing away slowly. Luna, however, crept forward. The two wolves began circling each other, both snarling fiercely. Luna arched her back, too.

“Luna,” Semolina hissed. “Come back. You’re worrying me. We have to go!”

Luna snarled and lunged forward, raking the other animal’s back with her claws.

It yelped in pain.

“Luna!” Anton tried. “Come on. Leave this really creepy wolf and let’s go!”

The other wolf leapt forward and bit Luna’s neck. She yelped and launched herself backwards, away from the black wolf. She whimpered in pain as she looked at the other wolf, fear in her eyes.

“Oh, no!” said Anton.

“Poor Luna!” Semolina said.  

Then they turned around and ran. They tore through the bushes and trees and tall grass, back toward the dirt roads of Verdigris. Expecting the wolf to give

  chase, Anton had thrown his stick at it when they started running, but it had not ran after them. He wondered why.

“Hey, Sem, why do you think that the wolf didn’t chase us?” he asked.

“I don’t know, but I’m certainly glad that it didn’t decide to hunt us down and maul us,” she replied.  

Luna moaned, the saddest sound either of them had ever heard. It was a sound that made you want to hug her and never let go and do everything in your power to make sure it never happened again.

Part II

Semolina was worried. Luna had whimpered and moaned all night. She had seemed to be in pain from the bite, obviously, but she also seemed to be having nightmares. So the next morning, she and Anton found the old man and took him to Luna.

“I don’t know what’s going on and she cried all night and she got bitten by a wolf last night and I don’t think she’s okay and you told us about the wolf and I’m hoping you can help her and I don’t know what to do..." The words felt as if they

were pouring out of her and she couldn’t stop; she was so glad to finally tell someone about the worries she’d been having all night.

“Shh,” the old man said with uncharacteristic gentleness. “It’s okay.”  

Anton knelt next to Luna and stroked her back in what he hoped was a soothing way. The old man squatted down next to her too, letting out a gasp as he settled. Then he, too, began to pet her.  

“Can you cure her?” Anton asked quietly.  

“Anyone can,” said the old man. “All you need is a full moon and the Caliginosity Stones.”

Semolina crouched down next to Luna, Anton, and the old man. “Tell us more.”  

The old man was tempted to reply, “More,” but he decided not to. So he explained that the Caliginosity Stones were two iridescent stones about the size and shape of peach pits. If you put both Stones on the highest point in an area at midnight during a full moon, it was supposed to banish all werewolves from the area, and cure all bites in the area.  

“Where are these Stones supposed to be?” asked Anton.  

“At the top of that mountain,” the old man replied, pointing at a tall

  mountain just behind the Copper Woods.  

“Mount Cuprum,” Semolina breathed.  

“So we go through the woods, up the mountain, get the Stones, back down the mountain, back through the woods, and up to the top of the Arthur Greene Clocktower, which I think is the tallest place in Verdigris, since Mount Cuprum is in Argenti,” Anton clarified.

“King’s wannabe,” said the old man under his breath.

“What did you say?”

“I said ‘Yep.’”

Anton whistled in awe. “That’s a long way, Sem—”

Semolina opened her mouth to start arguing, because she was sure he didn’t want to come, but he held up a hand so she let him finish.

“—we better start packing. We’ll leave after dinner.”

Semolina gripped the straps of her bag as she and Anton journeyed through the Copper Woods.  Inside their packs there was enough food to last until midnight, some spare rope, and a drawstring pouch to tie around her neck

once they retrieved the Stones. Every time a bird flew from its nest, they both jumped—that’s how high-strung and nervous they were.  

“I think we’re almost there,” said Anton when the sun was going behind the trees. “Just past the clearing and then we’ll climb the mountain.”

There was another rustle, but neither of them jumped. “It’s just another bird,” said Semolina offhandedly.  

Then they heard a low growl, a familiar growl. The growl of the werewolf. “Or not,” said Anton. “Run!”

They raced across the clearing, stumbling over rocks and sticks. The wolf

ran behind them, closing the distance quickly. Semolina ripped a branch off a tree as they ran by, and she threw it at the wolf. It might have slowed it down; she could not tell because she did not stick around to find out. Anton grabbed a stick, too.  

By this time, they were starting up the mountain. The wolf followed them, a bit slower than it had been going, but certainly fast enough to keep up. Semolina glanced behind them and saw that it was getting closer and closer.

“Come...on,” she said, pulling on Anton to make him go faster.

“I’m...trying,” he said, panting. “So...tired.”

They both knew that they couldn’t keep this up forever. The wolf, however, seemed fully comfortable running their speed with no effort at all. A little voice inside Semolina’s head said, “It would be so easy to just...stop.” Wait, what? she thought. I can’t give up. I’ll get eaten!  

“But my legs are tired,” the voice complained.

No! I have to save Luna.

“Let Anton do the saving—and the running. My chest hurts,” the voice whined.

No way. I’m going to find us a way out of this.  

“I already did: we just stop, and then all our troubles end!” the voice argued.

Yeah, right. Semolina tried to think of a way to fix this. Wait—is that a cave up ahead? We can hide and then when the wolf leaves, we leave!  

“But—” the voice tried to say.

Oh, be quiet! Semolina hit her head with her palm in an attempt to get that annoying little voice out. She swiftly snuck a glance at Anton, to make sure he hadn’t seen her.  

She tugged on Anton’s arm, pulling him into the cave. “Wha—” he started

  to say.  

“Shh!” She pulled him down behind a rock and covered his mouth with her hand. “Don’t—move—a muscle!”

His eyes widened. Thoughts flew through his mind like hummingbirds. What if it finds us? Semolina just threw our head start down the drain. Doesn’t she know that wolves have amazing senses of smell? It’s going to find us! Wait a second—what’s that behind us? Is that—

“Whoa,” Semolina whispered when she saw what was behind them. “It’s a lake.

In a cave!”

Anton pushed her hand off his mouth and whispered sharply, “Shh! Do you want it to find us?”  

But Semolina wasn’t listening. “Hey, Anton—what’s that in the water that’s glinting so brightly?”

He turned around to look. “Okay, we can check it out, but we have to be quiet!”

They crept across the damp mud toward the lake. Looking down at the two glinting things at the bottom of the lake, Semolina said, “I wonder what that