The first day of April always meant the same thing. April Lancaster, the most popular girl at school, would pick her 'fool' and make them follow her around carrying her books, pulling out her chair, bringing her lunch or whatever else April wanted them to do.

It didn't stop there. April was also a witch.

You couldn't 'refuse' to be April's fool, or she'd do something horrible. Two years ago, she'd turned poor Becky Snider into a rat for the day, and not just any rat. Becky had become a full on feral packrat with all the instincts, and lived in the junkyard for the full 24 hours. She'd done all kinds of ratlike things including building a nest, eating garbage, and, well, mating with other rats, according to Becky. When April returned her to human form at midnight, Becky had respawned in a storm drain and she'd been stuck for two days until the fire department could get her out.

She'd never been the same since. Her head still darted around and sometimes we caught her wiggling her nose, or staring into the trash bin at lunch.

So, as the day approached, all of us were filled with dread.

You also couldn't just stay home that day. Bruce Symonds had tried that once and April had still cast a spell on him to talk with every other word to be 'fart.' At first it was kind of funny: "Hey, Fart, shutup fart, you fart, guys, fart, this, fart isn't, fart, funny!" He'd decided not to speak at all for the rest of the day, and instead of letting him off the hook, April had given him constant flatulance for a week.

"If you're not going to speak, then you can fart!" April said, after she'd teleported into his house.

Bruce let loose the first of what would be a nearly constant urge to pass gas. And not silently, but the loudest and most smelly...well, you get the picture. His reputation took a brutal hit, and we all still sorta held our breath if we passed him.

I really didn't want to be her fool.

April and I had dated for a time, until she found me talking with Mitzy Butterfly. It hadn't been anything serious, but I was laughing, and Mitzy was laughing and the next thing I knew April was screaming at us. The hate-filled tears in her eyes as she ended our courtship will haunt me forever. She'd never said a word to me after that, but I knew revenge was coming. Mitzy wanted to drop out of school because of April's harrassment, but I'd told her not to let April win. We'd become quite close after that.

Which is why I dreaded this April First so badly. That had happened seven months ago, and I'd seen April stealing glances at me ever since. I tried to laugh it off, girls will be girls, but some of the glances were pretty deadly.

Each year she'd make her pronouncement from the steps of High Valley High School at the ten minute warning bell before school. We were all seniors this year so it would be our last April Fools day...and I knew April Lancaster was saving the best for last.

"Dude, you think it'll be you?" Jeff Farnum said, as I got into the passenger side of his 1979 International Scout.

I sighed. We'd been talking about this for weeks, of course. "You know it's against the Accords for a magic user to wield magic against a non-magic user," I said. "She'd never endanger her position in the Coven for a stupid thing like this."

"I think she'd make an exception for you."

"It's all bullshit, man," I said. "She can't."

I thought about the way her eyes looked when she'd screamed at me and shivered. "She wouldn't. Would she?"

"I dunno, Seth," Jeff said, as we sped around Broadway and headed up 35th to the high school. "I mean, she doesn't have to use magic on you to declare you her fool."

That's what I was worried about. If you played along with her games, and did everything she asked, you could get off with little being done to you. Last year, Pete Dubois did just that, and she hadn't cast a single spell, or caused a single bit of havoc with him. He'd quietly done her bidding, and she'd released him at the end of the day. End of story.

"Too bad, the full moon was two nights ago," Jeff said. "Otherwise her spells would just bounce off you anyway."

I was a werewolf. So, technically, I was in the magic-users group, but also not because my use of magic was involuntary. It was a 'grey' area in the books.

"I can't use magic," I said. "End of story. If she tries to make me her fool, I can just walk away, she won't do shit to me."

"We'll see, I guess," Jeff said. He clapped me on the shoulder. "At the very least it will be interesting."

The steps in front of High Valley High, were where everyone hung out before school. The sidewalk in front of the school was city property, so the smokers used to stand on the sidewalk, while everyone else sat on the steps and talked, threw a frisbee, ate breakfast, or did last minute homework assignments.

April had already gathered her entourage, and 'held court' primping and posing for selfies with her other friends. They were the popular crowd, full of jocks and cheerleaders while the rest of us formed into our own crowds. Jeff and I were part of the other Were's group. Mitzy was also been a part of our gang, which was why April had been so pissed.

Mitzy hugged me as Jeff and I jumped up the first of the steps. She was a petite girl with short, multi-colored hair. She was also a butterfly-were, turning into human-sized monarch butterfly with the full moon each month.

"You know, it's going to be me or you, right?" Mitzy said, sticking a cigarette in her mouth. I lit it for her, and she stood on the sidewalk.

"We are not magic users," I said.

"That's not going to stop her, Seth, and you know it."

I sighed, and scratched my head. "I'm not going to play her stupid games."

"If we're picked we just have to do as she says, and she won't so anything to us." Mitzy inhaled deeply, blowing the smoke into the breeze. "Promise me you won't do anything stupid, Seth."

"It's all bullshit!" I yelled, looking at April, who's eyes turned black as she stared at me.

"Dude, don't antagonize her!" Jeff said.

"I'm going inside," I said. "If she makes me her fool, what the fuck ever." I started to walk up the steps, when the ten-minute warning bell rang.

Everyone's eyes swung to April. She gave a cute little smile.

"It's time," she said. "And for this year, for my fool, I choose..."

Her eyes roamed over the crowd. Many of the kids were eager to be near her, and several even raised their hands. You had to be pretty pathetic in order to...

"Mitzy Butterfly!" She said, pointing to Mitzy.

I looked at her, and she shot me a look so full of terror and fright I thought she was going to faint. "Seth!"

I sighed, thinking of Mitzy being forced to do all the horrible things April was going to make her do. She would be doing this out of revenge, and she was going to humiliate the poor girl. I mean, I didn't have romantic feelings for her, or anything, but it wasn't fair that April was going to torment her just for talking to me at the wrong place, wrong time.

April walked over to us, a wicked smile on her lips. She'd adopted wearing black lipstick and mascara lately, and had colored her hair a glossy blue-black as well. The rest of her crew had followed suit with all of them looking like goth dolls.

"Well, Butterfly?" April said. "As your first act, I command you to kneel and lick my feet."

"Fuck that," I said, putting my hand on Mitzy and pulling her back. "April, stop this shit and go to class. You can't force a were to do your bidding because we're all non-magic users."

"Your father sits on the High Council, does he not?" April said.

"Yes, but..."

"But nothing!" she glared at me with such hate in her eyes, I was truly afraid. "Unless you're willing to take her place, Seth Atkins, step aside and let my fool complete her task or face the consequences!"

I shook my head. I hated bullies, hated them with every bone in my werewolf body. As a were, I was pretty powerful, but only certain nights of the month, and Jeff was right, those nights were behind me.

But I couldn't let Mitzy be treated like this, not in front of everyone, not for April Lancaster--

Not because of me.

"Yeah, I'll be your fool, April." I said. "Leave Mitzy out of this."

"Then drop to the floor, Doggy, and LICK MY FEET!" she screamed, holding out a black patent-leather pump.

Sighing, I glared at her.

And dropped.

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