A Wolf-Girl's Tale

A/N: This is the second of three parts of chapter one. Tell me what you think, please.


Layla
ducked beside him as white dust from the top of the boulder rained down.
Neither of them was panting from the run.
I looked to Kuzon and found him looking at me; I turned my head to Layla but kept
my eyes on Kuzon. He smiled at me and I wondered if he had done that most of
the way here. I really only looked at him when he spoke. I turned my attention
to Layla.
She was looking at the sky at an angle; blinking slowly, breathing deeply. She
lifted her right hand above her head in a loose fist; she arched her hand in
front of her body to her hip. A line of red glowing light followed her hand and
materialized into a red bow. She held her bow in her right hand and used her
left to point at the sky. She bent her elbow as her hand came down. An arrow
materialized from the same glowing light and floated for a few seconds before
she grabbed and cocked it into the bow. “Layla, don’t.” Kuzon released my
knees and grabbed her arm. She looked at him before shaking his hand off.
“Nobody lives forever.” She said it quietly before she got to her feet in one quick movement. Everything was in slow motion. The sound of wood sliding across metal as Layla let the
arrow fly. Shot from the gun was dull in my ears; I heard the bullet whistle
through the air; two, maybe three seconds from now it would penetrate Laylas
heart. I leapt from my place in Kuzon’s arms and ran into Layla, knocking her
off balance. She hit the ground the same second the bullet went through my arm
and into my right side. Air failed me, but I heard a lifeless body hit the
ground a few yards away. I felt myself hit the ground just seconds later.
“You saved my life.” There was a wonder in Layla’s voice. Everything went black as I slipped into unconsciousness. ~~``~~``~~``~~``~~``~~``~~``~~``~~``~~``~~``~~
I opened my eyes and light immediately stung them; I closed them tightly, but the light
remained. My eyes fluttered open again and this time took in my surroundings. I
was lying on a hammock in a small room. A wooden desk was below a small window,
the shades were closed. A wooden chair was between the desk and me, the back
against the wall. A hair salon style basin was in a far corner. The corner
farthest from me had a door on both walls. One had an actual wooden door; the
other was a wooden door frame with a closed black curtain. The wall with the
curtain-door also had three rows of hammocks on it. Three rows of three, a
grand total of nine; each hung on wooden poles and held to the wall by chains.
The bottom hammock closest to me had a shear red, lacey cloth hanging in front
of it; tied to the hammock over it. A candlelit chandelier hung from the
ceiling over a red rug with a gold diamond design on it.
I was covered up to my waist with a navy blue blanket and my head was resting on
a pillow. My right bicep was wrapped in gauze and every muscle in my body
ached. My mouth felt like it was filled with cotton. I remembered Layla, her
soft brown hair and sweet brown eyes; I remembered her forming a bow and arrow
from red light. I remembered Kuzon, black hair and amazing green eyes; having
taken a bullet and still had the strength to carry me.
I thought back to them. Had they survived? Was the follower alone? Had Layla’s magic arrow killed him? Was Kuzon taken care of? How did I get here? Was I dead? Dreaming? Neither of those possibilities felt right.
Pain shot into both of my arms as I tried to raise myself up. I gritted my teeth and
suffocated a scream of agony. I swung my legs over the side of the hammock and
my feet touched the cool wood floor. My body was not only sore, but stiff as
well. I had thought I had been out for maybe a couple of hours, but the way I
felt suggested it had been much longer. I pressed my left palm onto the seat of
the chair and eased myself up.
I felt like I had peg legs and my feet had disappeared. I wiggled my toes, trying
to get the feeling back. I took two steps forward before realizing that I was
dressed differently. I was wearing baby blue silk pants tied with a drawstring.
A baby blue T-shirt tied with a black string just below my collarbone. I found
my old clothes in a pile on the other side of the desk, the right side of the
shirt and right paints leg was red from blood. I turned back to the hammock I
had awakened from. Underneath was a pair of blue moccasins. I stepped back and
picked them up, in the right one was a folded piece of paper. I set the shoes
on the hammock and read the paper.
Don’t freak-out, we didn’t kid nap you! Zulia said we got you here in
time to save you, but that you need peaceful rest. She said that the bullet
didn’t do any major damage, but that you’ll be sore for a while. I promise that
when you feel better, I’ll take you out for ice cream in my great Strawberry
and try to explain everything as best I can. I don’t know what Luna or Demetri
told you, but I’ll try and clear up as much as I can. Get better soon!!! -Layla
So Layla and Kuzon made it back together and Layla was going to explain everything. I was a
little surprised that she knew my Aunt Clara by her first name. Luna Clara
Saints was her full name. I also wondered what the great Strawberry was, but I
would find out soon enough I guessed. I set the shoes on the floor and slid my
feet into them.
I reached into the pockets of my old jeans and took out my only two possessions I
had left; an odd necklace I had taken from Clara and a pocket knife Demetri had
given me. My initials’ were carved into the handle. C. N. Cassandra Nightingale. I slid
them into the right pocket of the silk pants I was wearing and walked out.
I found myself standing at an intersection to the rest of the house. To my left was a short
hallway that led to a side door for the house; a black wooden door stood about
halfway down the hallway. The other wall for the hallway extended in front of
me, it too had two doors. I assumed one led to the bathroom, the other to
another bed room. Directly in front of me was the front door. To my upper right
was the living room; though it had no television, no couch or chairs, it was
carpeted and pillows were laid in a half circle around a fireplace. Layla sat
with her back against the ledge of the fire place absorbed in a book; an open
bag of M & M’s was on her lap.
A brick wall, about as high as my waist separated the living room from what I guessed to be the
kitchen. I placed my hand on the white block that hid it from my view; a
refrigerator. I was right, this was the kitchen. I heard rough straw bristles
scrape the hard stone -tile floor. I rounded the refrigerator and found a girl
sweeping with a broom.
She was my height with white blonde hair that came to the middle of her back. She
wore a soft grey long-sleeve shirt under a navy blue short-sleeve shirt; navy blue
pants and grey moccasins. All made of silk, including the gloves on her hands;
the same style as Layla and Kuzon’s, except hers were navy blue and held to her
wrists’ by grey ribbons that hung off about a foot. She had the exact same skin
tone as me.
“Hi.” My voice was dry and scratchy. She looked up at me; her eyes were lavender
swirled with a deeper violet color. She smiled at me.
“Hey, you must be the one I have heard so much about.” She had a soft English accent
to her voice. She leaned the broom handle on the short wall and wiped her hands
on her pants legs. “I am Yue,” she extended her hand, “and you are…?”
“Cassie.” I took her hand and shook it once.
“Cassie.” She repeated. It was almost like she expected me to have a different name. “It
is nice to see that you are finally awake.” Finally? “How long have I been out?” I asked. Her eyes swerved to the right, I followed them. Layla was sitting on the wall facing me; the bottoms of her feet pressed to the wall, her knees nearly poking my stomach. The bag of candy was in her left hand, a red and green pinched
between the index finger and thumb of her right.
“It’s December 22nd.” Layla said quietly. She popped the M&M’s into her mouth.
“Five days?” I was in shock.
How could I have been knocked out that long? Why? What had caused it? Couldn’t that
have been considered a coma? Why didn’t they just take me to the hospital?
Layla began massaging her temples, like she was getting a headache. Yue handed
me a small glass of water. She gave Layla a medicine bottle; one of the orange
kinds you get prescriptions in. Layla sat the bag of candy beside her on the
wall and starred at the bottle.
“We didn’t take you to the hospital because I don’t want the people in the white lab coats to treat
you like another of their little guinea pigs.” Layla spoke quietly. “The reason
it took you so long to wakeup is because of the coding they put on the bullets
of their guns. You’re lucky it came off in your arm; it gave Kuzon enough time
to get you here. I stayed behind and cleaned up the mess. When I got back, I
had just enough time to write the note before Zulia sent everyone out. Yue had
already taken care of Kuzon.”
“Zulia’s number one student… her only student, actually.” Yue said quickly. Layla had answered my thoughts. I had more questions than before. How had she known what
I was thinking? Why did she sound like there was pain in her voice when she
spoke of the people wearing lab coats? What did she mean by another one of their guinea pigs?
Who put coding on the bullets? Why had they tried to kill Layla? But every one
of my questions was wiped away except for the one I asked aloud.
“Where is Kuzon?” Layla smiled and pointed the bottom of the bottle behind me. I turned
around and saw that she had motioned to the black door.
“His bedroom.” Layla paused. “Okay, I know I promised a one-on-one-ice-cream-explain-everything-day in the note, but I promised to take Yue and Nicola out for lunch today. But if you want to do it some other time, I totally understand. We’re leaving in ten if you want to come.”
“Um, sure, I’ll come.”
Layla squealed. “I’m going to go get ready. Be back in a flash.” She nearly flew off
the wall and dove into the room with the curtain door. “She’s…” I began but I couldn’t find the words to describe her. “…something.” I said finally.
Yue chucked softly. “Something. Indescribable, that one; but she knows more about
real life than anyone gives her credit for, except Kuzon, of course.” “What do you mean?” I asked.
“Kuzon knows her better than her own mother. He is her step brother, but he acts much
more like a father, for lack of a better term. He tries to keep her out of
trouble, but it is nearly impossible to keep Layla on a leash, no matter how
long it is. But her mother is more to blame than she herself.” Yue spoke
quickly. “Her mother, Marash, kept her on a chain for so long; this is how she
rebels to her. She wants to be heard, but does not know how to speak.”
Layla walked out of the room; she wore gold trimmed red silk pants; a short sleeve
gold silk shirt over a red long sleeve silk shirt. She wore the same gloves and
necklace she had the night I met her. She was twirling a chopstick in her hair.
“Ready?” She asked.
“Ready.” Yue said.
“Ready.” I kept my voice low.
A sigh came from behind the wall. “Ready.” A girl rose into view.
She had brown hair cut at her shoulders, wavy. A sandy brown colored short sleeve
silk shirt trimmed in dark brown. Sandy brown silk pants tied with a dark brown
sash at her waist; dark brown moccasins. Her golden tan skin and clothes made
me think of a chocolate bar. A silver tree pendant hung on a silver chain
around her neck. Her hands were bare except for a silver ring with a light blue
stone on the ring finger of her right hand. Her eyes were a swirl of brown and
red. She looked at me.
“You must be the heroine I’ve heard so much about.” She sounded exhausted, but she
smiled.
“What?” I asked.
“The two of them wouldn’t shut up about what you did. There aren’t very many people
who would take a bullet for a complete stranger.” She paused. “What made you do
it?"
“They were helping me.” I said.
She nodded her head, “I don’t mean to sound like Connie, but did Kuzon have
anything to do with it?”
“I don’t understand the question.” I said as Layla spoke.
“Where’s my purse?” Layla asked.
“Under your bed.” Nicola answered. Layla ducked back into the room. “Do you think he is cute is what she means.” Yue said.
“I don’t know, I never really noticed.” I lied, I did think he was cute, but I would never tell anyone that.
Nicola lifted her eyebrows but said nothing.
“At least you won’t have Connie on your back.” Yue said.
Layla came out of the room carrying a red purse with a gold buckle in front. She grabbed
the bag of M&M’s off the wall, folded the top over and stuffed them in her purse. She grabbed my elbow and led me toward the front door, Yue and Nicola following us.
“Have you ever ridden in a Ferrari?” she asked as we walked out the door.
A/N: There you have it, part two. Tell me what you think and until next time, Peace!!!

Sooo tired. I want to sleep...

EEP!!!

Can you believe that The Hunger Games has been dubbed 'The New Twilight'?! I love them both but I wouldn't consider comparing them like that. I can not wait until The Hunger Games MOVIE comes out! Sooo excited!!! I recommend to read the book before you see the movie. The books are always better in my opinion! Peace!!!

update

This is and update to whoever cares. I'm going to try to update the story tonight. Part 2 of the first chapter. Part three will be up shortly after. Peace!!!

A Wolf-Girls tale

A/N: This is the first posting of one of my books. it is still in progress and I don't think it is very good, but tell me what you think, please.


*Chapter one*
The thunder rolled in,storm clouds gathered in the horizon; the promise of a coming storm definite. The golden light of a fire glowed behind the cover of leaves that hid a small cave in the side of Ravenclaw Point, a mountain in the woods between the worlds.
A girl lay to the left of the firelight. Her golden brown skin nearly glowed in
the light; glossy black hair came nearly to her waist when she stood. She wore
a baby blue long sleeve shirt and a black sleeveless over shirt; long black
pants and black moccasins. Her eyes were closed and her breathing steady with
sleep. To the right of the fire a boy sat cross-legged. Black T-shirt and pants, both
made of silk. Thin black, fingerless gloves covered most of his hands, which
were folded and his elbows rested on his knees. He had the same skin tone as
the girl and short black hair. His green eyes flecked gold as he watched her
rest. A smile spread across his face as he gazed at her.
“Sweet dreams, Cassie.” He whispered softly.
But that comes later. Our story-well my story, actually-begins two years before
this. On a cold winters night on a deserted street, in the lost city on Earth;
where fear never loosened its hold on the people.
I walked on the sidewalk of an old and cracked street. The buildings on both sides of the street were boarded over. My name is Cassandra, but I prefer people just call me Cassie. I will
turn thirteen on December 23, six days from now. I spent most of my time at the
Down Low, a bar-slash-karaoke club. Jake, the tavern keeper, liked my company.
He usually kept me in the kitchen to keep me away from the ‘bad’ people. He was
a nice guy. He had given me a journal I had yet to use. I was waiting for
something exciting to happen, something worth sharing.
I approached an intersection where a street light spilled blue on the side walk. To
be honest, I had no clue where I was, but I knew how to get anywhere. It was
one of the many strange things about me. Like the way my teeth stayed white and
were pointed like fangs, on the top and bottom, but not extended like a
vampires would be. I can hold my breath for extended periods of time. I can be
completely still, like a statue; I can go thirty-four minutes without blinking.
Or the fact that when I feel threatened, my fingernails turn to claws. My
hearing was extremely sensitive; I could hear a pin drop from a mile away. I
understood animals more than I did people. I didn’t like to stay out in the sun
for very long. I had been planning how I wanted to die since I was five years old,
when I first met my Aunt Clara.
I had no blood relation to Aunt Clara. To anyone, for that matter; my birth
parents abandoned me when I little. A nurse took me in and raised me until she
was murdered on her way home; I was one year old. A friend of hers, Mishloto,
took me in and I stayed with him for four years. Then I ended up at Aunt
Clara’s. That was all I remembered of my past. I wasn’t entirely sure why, but
the details of my past were blurry at the best. I remembered…certain things
better than others, but nothing was clear.
I stopped under the street light; I stood there for a few seconds before I
realized someone was following me. I heard the soft tap of shoes on the wet
pavement behind me. I turned my head slightly to the right, trying to the
follower in my peripheral vision. The footsteps stopped abruptly and a rush of
panic shot through me. My follower was male; he wore a black shirt, black
jeans, and black boots; I assumed they were steel-toed. I couldn’t distinguish
any facial features. When I went to public school a couple years back I took
track, I wasn’t the fastest, but I wasn’t the slowest either. I wondered if I
could lose him if I made a break for it. I heard metal rubbing leather and I
imagined him pulling a gun on me. I ran. His footsteps came after me once more.
I suddenly got the feeling I was being watched. Not the person chasing me, but
someone else; watching me from above. I wasn’t a religious person and I didn’t
believe in angles; but if someone, or something else was watching me, there was
no hostility from them. Like they were merely observing how I handled the
situation.
I turned into an ally, ran halfway in and stopped. It was a dead-end. Red brick
apartment buildings blocked me on the right and the left, only the higher ones
had balconies. The end I was facing was blocked by a wall, a big blue dumpster
pressed against it. The lid was down. My heart rate was slowing, but it sped
when I heard the footsteps behind me. A thought struck me; if I could get some
ground on him, maybe I could somehow threaten him. I ran for the dumpster. I
jumped onto the top of it; my waistline collided with the edge. My arms were
stretched in front of me, holding me onto the lid. I began pulling myself up
when a cold hand wrapped around my ankle. I didn’t yell; I didn’t try to kick
him away. I gripped the dumpster with my left hand and brought my right across
his face. He jerked away, covering his face.
I climbed to my feet and found my balance. I took a step back, eyeing the balcony
closest to me. Black metal bars and a wooden platform, a glass sliding door led
into the dark apartment. I measured the platform to be about seven feet above
my head. Before I could change my mind, I took two steps forward and jumped.
Three seconds later my fingers wrapped around the base of two of the metal
bars. My legs swung under, the tips of my worn-out shoes scraping the bottom of
the wood and came back under me. I bent my arms, extended my left up and
hoisted my body over the bars. I looked back down into the ally; my follower
looked up at me, pale skin and black eyes. Dark red liquid covered the hand he
had pressed to his face.
“You’ll pay for this!’ His voice was cold, hard. He ran out the ally and disappeared around the corner.
I lifted my right hand so that it was in front of my eyes; the tips were covered
in the same dark red liquid. His blood was on my hand. I looked back up the
ally but he was gone. The other presence was gone also.
“Cassie, is that you?” I spun around quickly. Aunt Clara stood in the now open doorway.
Her long white blonde hair was pulled in a messy French Braid; her skin was paler than mine, but not by much. Her eyes looked like a sandy beach behind a wall of clear water. She was wearing white sleep pants and was holding her white robe closed. Her feet were bare. “It’s freezing out here. Come on inside.” She pressed her free hand to my bare arm. Her touch wasn’t exactly warm, but it was soft and comforting. I stepped into her apartment, unsure of
what to expect.
“Go to the bathroom and wash up, I’ll make something for us to eat. Spend a little girl time together.” Clara walked straight to the kitchen as she spoke. I stood in the same place for a minute before making my way to the bathroom.
I walked right to the sink and turned the knob that had the little red circles on
it. I scrubbed the blood off of my right hand and splashed water onto my face.
I lifted my head and looked in the mirror as steam swirled around my face. My
black hair came down slightly past my shoulders. My eyes were blue, sort of.
Blue and gray swirled and almost created the illusion of a storm ready to
burst. My skin was a tan color and on more than one occasion I wished I had the
same flawless pale skin that Clara had. I watched the water droplets fall from
my face and splatter into the sink. I wiped my face and hands on a black hand-towel
and walked out of the bathroom. I slid my hand on the wall and turned out the
light.
Aunt Clara’s table was small, about the size of a coffee table. It was square and
four chairs were pulled up to it, though only three were ever used; for me,
Aunt Clara, and her son, Demetri. Two unlit Wicca candles stood in the center
of the table. I pulled out the chair closest to me and sat down; I stared at
the sliding door. I pictured my follower and a sudden shock came over me. The
similarities were undeniable and unwavering; my follower was Demetri.
Clara sat a plate of Texas Toast in front of me; sat down in the seat to my left and watched me. She flicked her finger at the candles and the wicks came to life with flame. Her
robe had come apart revealing a white undershirt. She plastered on a fake smile
and sucked in a deep breath before speaking.
“So how have you been doing?” Her voice had taken on a strange edge; almost like
she didn’t want me to answer. “What could have happened that you wouldn’t know?” My voice was quiet; I didn’t like
to talk over a whisper. I liked to remain in the shadows as much as possible.
“You don’t know the dangers that lurk outside these walls.” Her voice was sharper and her smile had disappeared. I had run away one week before this; what could have happened,
seriously?
“I can take care of myself.” Subject closed.
We sat in silence for a moment.
“Have you met any guys you think are cute, yet?” I was a little shocked by her
question. The way I saw it, there were two reasons why she would ask such a
question. First, she might actually be interested in my personal life; could
have been nice, she was the closest thing to a mother I knew. Second, she may
have wanted to know if I would be missed if she killed me, or worse. I stared
at her for a moment before answering.
“Yes.” I lied. In truth, the only other person outside this house I ever talked to was
Jake, and he was in his mid-forties. “What’s his name?” Could she tell I was lying? “Kuzon.”
Kuzon? I had never heard the name before, nor met anyone with it. Yet it came
out easily, like I’d known the person my whole life. Clara stared at me with an
unreadable expression; for a split second, there was fear.
“How did you meet him?”
“Does it matter?”
“Yes.” “Why?”
She was silent for a moment. “He is a killer. Believe nothing he says.” She paused,
“Believe nothing his sister says either.”
“Yeah, right;” I stood, “I’ll be sure and do that.” I took two steps toward the
sliding door before she grabbed my arm, tight. “Stay away from all of them.” She hesitated, “Don’t underestimate any of them,
especially Lathia.” She released me quickly.
I walked out the sliding door, swung my legs over the bars, and jumped down. My
feet collided with the lid of the dumpster and the shock of impact pulled the
top half of my body down; my hands landed flat on the lid and my chin collided
with my knee, which was bent up. I rose, leapt off the lid and jogged out of
the ally. I continued on my way to my previous destination: the public school
gym.
Lathia; where had I heard that name before? It didn’t seem like it would be a common
name, but I remembered it.
I turned onto a short dirt road that was boarded by thick forest on both sides. The school was out in the middle of nowhere, I could have gotten there by a paved road, but this was faster and it
was already starting to snow. My breath became hazy white clouds and a shiver
trickled down my spine. I was being followed again.
My senses went into high alert and I listened for every sound I could. Someone was
running in the woods. Towards me, from far away; I focused on that. He was
running faster than humanly possible, and he wasn’t alone anymore; another was
flanking him, and another farther back from them. But it didn’t sound like
human feet, it sounded more like paws. They got closer, I could hear their
breathing; husky. They were dogs.
Horror came over me as I realized I had been focused on the wrong thing. I listened
for any other sounds, but it was too late. Something hard and cold smacked into
my back and I fell forward. The palms of my hands hit the cold, packed dirt and
my mouth filled with grit. I gasped for breath, but none came. I felt a cold
hand close around my neck and lift me up off the ground. I was turned to face
my captor, I found myself looking at Demetri. Four red lines ran the right side
of his face. Three started just below his eyebrow; one started near the outer
corner of his eye, most likely from my pinkie. They all ended along his jaw-line;
his eyes matched his black clothes. His black hair was stuck to his forehead
with sweat; it contrasted with his pale skin. My hands wrapped around his wrist
as he lifted me up, my feet dangling over the ground. My nails dug into the
flesh of his wrist; my mouth opened, searching again for air. My vision
blurred, but I saw him lift his weapon, a metal pipe, with his free hand and
prepared for the blow that would kill me. I closed my eyes tightly. I prayed
God would have mercy on my soul.
I hit the ground once again; he had never hit me, he just sort of dropped me. I
landed on my side but rolled onto my stomach; I planned to crawl away if I had
to. But all I could do was just laid there, coughing and gasping. My arms and
legs wouldn’t move.
A new pair of hands wrapped around my shoulders. Soft and gentle, hesitant but
assuring; the persons breathing was heavy, like they’d just ran a long way.
“Can you move? Where were you hit?” It was a girl, her voice sounded like a quiet
flute. She was kneeling on my left side. “Help me; I don’t want to die.” I pleaded. My voice was harsh from the restrain Demetri had
placed on it.
“You’re not going to die.” She spoke quietly.
I moved my right arm so that I could use it to turn m self over and look at this
girl. She helped turn me over until I was lying on my back. A loud rustle came
from the right side of the road and her head shot in the direction.
She was dressed head-to-toe in silk. A short sleeve red shirt, rimmed at the ends
in gold color. Red pants tied at her waist with a gold sash. She was wearing
red silk fingerless gloves that only covered her palms and the back of her
hands, held to her wrists by gold bangles. A strip of red silk was tied around
her neck, a gold peace sign hung from the front. Light brown hair was cut in
layers; the shortest at her shoulders, the longest was nearly to the middle of
her back; red and yellow highlights spread throughout. Her skin was a shade
lighter than mine, but it had more of a glow to it; like a gold tent. She
couldn’t have been a year older than me.
“Thank you.” I wondered if she had heard me. I began to shiver but she showed no sign of being chilled.
She turned to me. Her eyes looked the color of sun brewed tea; they were rimmed on
the outside in a sky-blue color. “You’re welcome.” She smiled and I noticed
that she had the same teeth design as me.
Gunfire sounded from the forest; the girls head shot back up. A few seconds later,
someone walked out of the cover of the trees. I rose up on my elbows and craned
my neck to see who it was. A boy, but not Demetri; someone I didn’t recognize.
He was dressed in complete black, a sleeveless shirt and long pants; barefoot. His
black hair grew just past the top of his ears. His shirt almost looked like a
piece of cloth wrapped around his torso and tied down on one of his sides or
his back. His skin was just a little darker than the girls, but it had the same
kind of glow. He had the same style of gloves the girl had, but his were black.
His left hand was pressed to his right side and his breathing was sharp.
“What happened?” The girl asked.
“The traitor got in a hit.” He answered between breaths.
“Zulia will take a look.”
“I know.” He turned his eyes to the sky; it was too dark to distinguish the color
of his eyes.
“Can you move your legs?” The girl asked. I was afraid to use my voice for fear of it giving out; I shook my head vigorously from side-to-side.
“Where were you hit?” She asked.
“My back.” I stared at her. Why was she asking these questions? Why couldn’t she just be like a normal person and ignore me like everyone else? I had put trust in the wrong people before; I
wasn’t going to do it again.
“Well?” I jumped at the sound of the boy’s voice. He was across from the girl; sitting
on his heels.
His shirt was lined in a dark grey; he had released his hand from his side, but the coloring was darker. A blood stain. I remembered the gunfire sound I had heard and a wave of guilt
came over me. The bullet had been meant for me, not him. He looked down at me;
he had soft green eyes with flecks of gold, looking at them was like looking
into a grassy field full of dandelions’.
‘She can’t move her legs; she is scared of us, but she will freeze to death if we leave her here.’ She had said it in some other language. Snow was beginning to pile around us. I wondered if they were going to kill me. I caught a glimpse of dagger tied around the girl’s waist,
the red handle and sheath had blended into her clothing. ‘I wish Ashton were here.’ The boy looked at her in surprise.
‘I thought you hated her.’ His breathing was becoming steadier.
‘I hate Connie.’
‘They’re pretty close to being the same person.’
‘Ashton is nicer and she doesn’t rely on her muscles twenty-four seven… I’ve also seen her gift in action, Kuzon.’
They continued to speak, but I couldn’t hear; I was overrun with shock. Kuzon, the
imaginary boy I had told Aunt Clara about was right in front of me. I
remembered Clara’s words: He is a killer. Believe nothing he says. Believe
nothing his sister says either. Was this girl his sister? Or was it Connie; or
Ashton, maybe Zulia? Clara had said to not underestimate any of them. How many
of them were there? I didn’t want to stick around and find out. I was starting
to plan my escape when the girl spoke to me again.
“I am friends with a healer, she can help you. But we won’t take you without your consent.”
“I c-can’t m-move.” It wasn’t until I spoke that I realized I was shivering. “Kuzon can carry you; it’s not very far from here.”
“W-who are you?” I asked.
She looked up at the boy-Kuzon; he looked down at me. “My name is Kuzon, and this
is my sister, Layla.” I looked back to the girl. She smiled at me and held up
her right hand in a peace sign; she lowered it quickly.
“Where d-do you live?” I asked.
“Shadow cave forest.” She answered. She was right about it not being far.
The school rested on the edge of the tree line of Shadow cave forest. But how could anyone live there; anyone who went in never came out; those who did come back died; either on the school’s campus or on their way to the hospital. Rumors of anything from a witch cult to vicious wild
animals to demon haunting filled the forest. Whatever they were, they didn’t
want to be revealed and they stayed in the cover of the trees. Demetri had once told me about it. He said that a half mile into it was a wide river
with only one way across, a bridge. He told me he had seen it with his own
eyes. According to him, the half of the bridge connected to the town was made
of metal; the other half made of wood. The sides were supposed to be lashed
together with rope.
I took in a frigid breath that chilled my bones. I nodded to her and hoped she knew what I meant.
I had planned to use my voice to accept the invitation, but I knew it would
fail me.
They both must have understood because the girl- Layla- stood; Kuzon wrapped his
right arm around my shoulders and his left around my knees. I wrapped my arms
around his neck as he stood. He stayed still; I followed his gaze to Layla, who
stood with her head turned to the forest where Demetri had disappeared.
“Layla.” Kuzon spoke softly.
“We should leave now, he will tell them we are here.” After she spoke she turned to
Kuzon and me.
I knew she was talking about Demetri, but who would he tell? Were Kuzon and Layla not supposed to be here? Were they the ones committing all the murders? Was I next? Layla’s eyes
zeroed on me, like she had heard every word I thought. She didn’t look
disgusted or appalled, she just looked at me with a blank expression, but I saw
a mess of emotion behind it.
Kuzon began to turn and Layla walked toward us; they walked at a slow pace on the
dirt road. I noticed that Layla’s eyes were level with Kuzon’s shoulders and
that she walked with a slight limp. There was a cut on the right side of her
collarbone, no, not a cut, a scar. I thought back to Demetri’s face, what I had
done to his once perfect face.
“What happened to him? What happened to Demetri?” The question was for both of them, but mainly Kuzon. Layla looked to Kuzon, seemingly curious about it as well.
“He ran off.” Kuzon said softly. He kept his eyes forward, avoiding eye contact. He was lying, I knew it.
“That’s it? He ran off?” Layla asked. Kuzon looked at her and she raised an eyebrow,
daring him to confirm it.
“We’ll talk later.” Kuzon spoke to her.
*I’ll clue you in.* Laylas voice rang in my head. I looked at her and she smiled at me,
showing her teeth and stressing her neck; I bit back a smile and she bent her
head forward laughing. It sounded like wind chimes in a small breeze, I
wondered if she was trying to make me laugh. Hers faded after a few moments and
I tuned my ears to listen to my surroundings.
I heard the soft tap of Kuzon and Layla’s feet on the cold dirt. I heard their
heartbeats; slow and steady, like nothing was out of the ordinary with them. I
heard running feet in the forest, stopping every few seconds. Every stop there
was the sound of hands rubbing against tree bark.
“We’re being followed.” I whispered. They both stopped immediately. Layla began
looking around; Kuzon tightened his grip on my shoulder and eased quickly, like
he was afraid he would hurt me. “From where?” Layla asked.
She looked at me and I jerked my head over Kuzon’s shoulder. She looked in the
direction, took two steps, and froze. “Run;” She said quietly, “run; run; run!” She began screaming.
Kuzon ran; Layla was two steps behind him. Dirt sprang up from the ground where Layla
had once stood as bullets collided with the ground. Bullets continued to fire
and miss, all aimed at Layla. The person was careful to stay in the cover of
the trees, never offering Layla a clear shot back. After a few moments of
running Kuzon ducked behind a boulder that was in a large clearing; the school
was visible a few yards away. Layla ducked beside him as white dust from the top of the boulder rained down...
A/N: This is my first time posting one of my stories so please tell me what you think. I'll try to post more soon. Until then, Peace!!!

I just read the main page so...
My inspiration is my dreams. I have been told multiple times that I have a creepy mind. But it helps with my writing! I love looking at pictures of nature like clouds and water and fire. I'm a nature freak basically. I listen to country, southern Gospel, some pop, a little rock, and recordings of storms and running water. It helps get me into a creative mood. By the way, I'm upset that we didn't get rain today. I like the Pirates of The Caribbean movies. I don't know why for sure but I really like them. Memories...hmm. My Grandmother always encouraged me to do whatever. My brothers gave me a lot of memories that helped. They made me consider flying teenagers when they tried to jump off of the roof of our three story house a few years ago. I miss that house...
PEACE!!!

This is my first post, so I'm not really sure what to say. I want to keep my identity a secret so here is some general info about me. I'm a teenager; I go to Parkview High. I enjoy writing fiction stories which I will upload...eventually. I love wolves and my favorite metal is copper. I'm not sure why you would need to know that, but now you do. Oh, and the initials in my screen name stand for Cassandra Virtue Nightingale. And that is not my real name. Peace!!!