The Wolf Girl

Chapter Forty Four

Molly's POV

I cling to my father's arm, smiling lightly. After four and a half weeks- a month- of recovery, the day has finally come.

Penny steps onto the small podium, and the crowd around us goes quiet.

"We have arrived here, in the training area, to celebrate several extremely special things," Penny starts clearly. "Some of our campers have been through some amazing things. They also went through horrific things. In the end, they have made history in Camp Pureblood. We want to give special attention to Molly Marie Reynolds, Alex Nicholas Walsh, and Bella Grace Dobbs recently returned from a mission to find Jack Reynolds. Not only was the Great Angel found, but they also retrieved Hillary Jay Wilson, her Companion, Phantom, and Eric John Quinn from their mission! They also met new people- Adrianna Saybrook, Wes Firewalker, Morte Ash- our first Demon camper to be accepted- and the deceased Jason Malcom. The legendary Dreaming Wanderer accompanied them as well."

She locks eyes with me and smiles softly. "To honor these heroes, we will reward them with their own keepsakes and allow Molly, Alex, Bella, Eric, and Hillary to return home, if they wish."

Cheers and applause roar through the clearing, and Penny tells us to come up to the podium through it. I grab Alex's hand, dragging him through the crowd with my father. I let go of them as we approach Penny, and we slowly walk up to the podium. Morte is first. Penny bends down and slips an average wooden blade into his hand. I grin, knowing that she's giving him his weapon.

She performs the ritual, and when Morte opens his eyes, he jumps into the air and shouts with excitement. The campers clap, and Morte steps down, standing right next to the podium.

The line continues- Adrianna gets two bouquets of flowers; one for Jason's new grave, and one for herself. Hillary gets a collection of medical books and supplies so that she can expand her studies. Everyone else gets their items, but soon, Dad, Alex, and I are the only ones waiting- even Nikki showed her face to the campers, bravely pulling her hood down and letting her hair flow down her back, pumping a fist into the air, causing an uproar of cheers from the crowd.

Dad steps forward first. "Mr. Reynolds," Penny says. "You've been missing for a decade, and word had spread quite quickly when we discovered this. Now, to celebrate your return, we reward you with this." She pulls something from her jacket, and it is wrapped in white cloth. Dad carefully takes it and unravels it, tears in his eyes. He smiles a little, letting it a soft cry when he sees it.

"Thank you for returning my sword," he whispers to Penny. She smiles warmly and nods as Dad shoves his long, white blade into the air. The campers go wild again.

Alex steps forward, and Penny grins. "You were quite a good camper," she laughs. "We wanted to congratulate you on receiving your full Ancestor form." She holds two items out- a headband with fake, dark gray wolf ears attached- even I laugh at this- and a set of beautiful bronze throwing knives.

  Alex looks back at me and smiles softly before walking down. I take a deep breath and step forward.

  "Molly," Penny says. "You fought hard. You really, really wanted to go home. And nothing was going to stop you from getting there. We know now that you and Alex have mastered your skills. Therefore, you get to go home, if you choose to." She beams. "If you do leave, feel free to come back to visit whenever you want."

  She tells me to turn around, close my eyes, and lift my hair, so I oblige. I feel something cold and smooth around my neck, and I hear a gentle click.

  "Okay," she whispers. "Open your eyes."

  My eyes open slowly, and I look down to see a beautiful, thin golden necklace. Attached to it is a heart locket with a pair of angel wings engraved into the metal. I turn the charm over to see a bow and an arrow scratched into the other side. I smile, tears coming to my eyes.