Chapter 7 - FIRE!!!!!!!

Logan was awoken by a huge crash, smash, and fizzle. “AAAHHH!”

“GET GUBGUB IN HIS TRANSPORTATION UNIT!” Shanaynay's voice called from somewhere down the hallway.

“I HATE THIS FAMILY THIS IS WHY I RAN AWAY IN THE FIRST PLACE!” Levi sobbed from his nest under the staircase.

“MAKE SURE MY HAIR STRAIGHTNERS DON'T EXPLODE IN THE HEAT OF THE FLAMES!”

“WHERE'S MOTHER?!” “FIRE!! AHH!”

Logan rolled out of his bed, plopping on the floor. AH! The floor was hot! He scrambled to his feet, tumbling into the hallway and down the stairs.

In the living room, Levi stood in the middle shaking. A second later, Lukas and Shanaynay plummeted down the stairs pushing a bathtub with wheels attached to the bottom. Hundreds of hair straighteners fell out of Lukas's arms behind them.

“Don't freak out,” Logan said as their refrigerator caught on fire and exploded behind him. “Alexis Grace is probably down at the tavern. Just remember the fire escape that she taught us!”

“Right,” Lukas said.

The entire ceiling above them groaned, shifting slightly. Sparks spewed everywhere. “GO!”

Logan, Lukas, Shanaynay, Gubgub, and Levi sprinted into the kitchen. Across the room, the door leading outside was blocked by charred wood. The group turned around to see the doorway they just ran in collapsing.

They searched around desperately. “THROUGH THE WALL!”

They charged at the wall. They smashed right through it, and collapsed in the dining room.

The house was crumbling down on them, fast. Remembering the route, they jumped up on the dining room table, checked to see if the coast was clear, jumped off, and sprinted away.

This led them back to the living room. The five simultaneously leaped on the TV and sprinted across it, and pranced up the stairs.

They pounded down the hallway, and into Logan's room. Everything was smoldering like a salted snail. A hole burned in the middle of the floor. “JUMP!”

Lukas and Shanaynay first threw Gubgub's bathtub down, then leaped after him. Logan chased after them, followed by Levi.

They landed back in the living room.

“So far, so good,” Shanaynay said.

“Now we just have to run through the wall and out the front door,” Logan said.

They sprinted at the wall, flew back, recovered, repeated the process five times, and finally crashed through the wall, leading them back into the dining room. They ran for the front door, racing out a couple of seconds later.

They ran to the wishing well.

“What has happened?” Lukas whispered, watching his house burn.

“Who would start a fire at our house we're soo innocent,” Shanaynay sobbed into her hankie.

“All 6 of my memories from this house, gone,” Levi said with little to no emotion.

“All of Gubgub's campaign propaganda!” Shanaynay gasped. “How will he ever compete in this campaign without his lovely propaganda?!”

“ALL OF MY BABY HAIR STRAIGHTENERS!” Lukas screamed into the wilderness.

Logan looked up to see a group of people carrying a torch rushing away into the shadows.

“The Disaster Berries!”

Logan stumbled forward once, then took off running after them. He picked up a brick from their destroyed house and threw it at Jolene. She spun around, caught the brick midair, and devoured it hungrily, mortar falling from her mouth.

Logan sprinted after her.

“FIGHT BACK!” he roared. “FIGHT BACK, YOUR COWARD!”

Jolene hissed.

“You DARE mouth off to... the HALF BLOOD PRINCE?!”

“... Huh?”

“Alexis Grace. Your mother assigned this role to us, the Disaster Berries. Go away, now that you know I'm an innocent. Good day to you all.”

Jolene tipped her hat and made to leave.

“Umm first of all it's night and - “

“I SAID good day.”

Jolene sprinted away to catch up with the rest of the Disaster Berries, leaving Logan quietly sobbing in the dirt.

Why did his own mother want them dead?! And how was next on the Disaster Berries' hit list?!

“Logan?!”

He looked up.

It was Maria.