Midsummer Shadows

[Mangaholic]

Alina Aderyn Tomescu paused on the doorstep of her house, struggling to compose her face and erase all traces of her earlier shock. She wasn’t tired from her frantic sprint, since after all, she was one of the fastest girls on her track and cross-country team, but the sight of the ravens and the sense that something was terribly amiss had left her rather terror-strickened. The fact made her angry; she was never one to be afraid of mere superstitions and the like until…

 

Until Fane’s death, whispered a tiny, cruel voice in the back of Alina’s head. and it’s all your fault. You brought this upon yourself. You did this.

 

Shut up, and stop bothering me, stupid brain, Alina retorted silently, willing the mocking voice to disappear. She hated her annoying conscience and how it never allowed her to forget her dear brother’s death. Go away and bother someone else who can stand you. If she couldn’t chase the voice away in time, she would remember, and soon enough, the memories began flooding back to her, memories that she had vainly tried to block out since it happened. They were as vivid as that horrible day, because that terrible voice prevented her from forgetting, as if it wanted her to forever drown in her own misery and guilt.

 

The young sixteen-year old probably would have stood there rigidly on her doorstep all night, under the weight of remorse that that tiny voice brought upon her, like it always did, had it not been for a soft, frantic scratching sound at the door. Alina snapped out of her despair almost immediately, feeling slightly dazed, and stared at the front of her house’s door in confusion. The scratching continued, this time along with an anxious whining, and Alina smiled, remembering where she was again. She reached into the pocket of her thin, gray sweater to pull out a small chain of keys, careful to keep her precious pocket watch from slipping out.

 

No sooner had she thrown open the door was she nearly tackled down by a massive frenzy of slobber and white fur. She didn’t fall over, however, since she had braced herself for the impact that she had known would come for sure. Laughing now, with her apprehension and anxiety evaporating at the sight of her eagle dog, Alina stooped down, taking the white dog’s face in her hands.

 

“Oh, Elak! How are you, Elak? Did you miss me?” murmured the girl as she cooed Elak’s name affectionately. She gently ruffled his creamy-white mane, peering into the dog’s dark brown eyes. Elak whined in response, before pushing his damp, black nose past Alina’s arm, sniffing her in the careless manner of a happy dog. Suddenly, he froze and bared his sharp teeth, growling angrily, and Alina thought she saw the dog’s eyes flash warily. “Are you okay?” she asked carefully, not wanting to provoke her dog anymore. What’s wrong with him? Do I smell weird or something?

 

The dog continued to sniff and probe her, searching for some unknown scent, and the girl sat rigid, waiting for the dog to complete his search. Finally, the dog withdrew from her, his hackles slightly raised. Something long and black hung limply from his mouth. A raven’s feather.

 

”Oh, that must have come from those idiot ravens from earlier. Is that what you’ve been going crazy over, Elak?” Alina teased, but she watched the eagle dog with cautious eyes. It wasn’t like him to go crazy over such a little thing, like a feather. After all, she had seen him chasing birds all the time, and he had never acted as strange as this. Reaching her hand slowly out to Elak, she murmured, ”Give me the feather, boy, and I’ll get rid of it for you.”

 

Elak stared at his mistress for the longest time ever before lowering his head and trotting back to Alina. Whimpering, he dropped the feather into Alina’s head and suddenly swung around, his ears perked up.

 

“Alina, dear? Is that you? How was it at Natalie’s place?”

 

Alina glanced up from the black feather to look at her mother, an average-sized woman with long, black tresses. Before she had time to reply, her mother briskly asked, “What are you doing with that feather? Black feathers bring nothing but bad luck, and I suspect that that one belongs to some raven, doesn’t it?”

 

Great, Alina groaned inwardly. Here comes my mother with all of her crazy superstitions. Everyone in Alina’s immediate family was superstitious, with the exception of Alina, herself. Even Fane was somewhat into folklore and superstitions, and she found it annoying at many times.

 

Her mother seemed to take her silence as an invitation to continue. “You know what our people believe, don’t you Alina? The raven, seen with a Varg, a wolf, is considered good luck and fortunate, but a raven by itself is-“ She broke off, horror and the realization of what she was saying dawning on her. Her hand flew to her mouth, and she stared at her daughter apologetically. Due to his love of wolves and his ability to get along easily with dogs, Alina’s parents had often called Fane their “Varg,” while Alina was known as the raven, for her love of birds and her raven-black hair. After her brother’s death, they avoided calling her by that pet name, so as not to bring back the memories.

 

Alina stood up quickly and walked past her mother, smiling sadly. “Forget it. You didn’t mean it. Besides, it’s just a pigeon’s feather, but it looks black because it’s so dark in here. And Natalie’s place was okay too.”

 

With those words, she headed for her room, Elak trotting loyally at her heels. Upon entering her bedroom, she veered towards the trash bin, holding the raven’s feather above the opening. Strangely, she couldn’t bring herself to throw it away, and sighing, she gingerly placed it on her nightstand. Elak laid himself down at the foot of Alina’s bed, his eyes watching his mistress as she retrieved her simple guitar from its stand. Alina sat down on the corner of her bed, properly holding her guitar as she stared down at the white eagle dog.

 

“Maybe I really am nothing but bad luck,” Alina murmured to her dog. “Things have been going so wrong when he died. Today, Natalie’s inconsiderate boyfriend went and broke up with her, and I had to spend the rest of my time at her house trying to make her feel better. On my way home, I come across a bunch of this ravens that give me the creeps, and now, my mom’s gotten all sad and worried about me. Again.”

 

Elak sneezed, causing Alina to smile, and she, in an attempt to forget, gently began strumming the strings and singing. “It's something unpredictable, but in the end it's right.

I hope you had the time of your life…”

 

So absorbed was she in the music that she didn’t notice the tiny black feather that floated down from her hair. Elak stared at it, his fur bristling once more, though it seemed that the dog had thought better of snatching the feather from the air.

[jaina]

Shira had quietly made her way to her front door, her sense of foreboding only growing with what she had seen on the way. She had spotted masses of ravens flying across the park she walked by on the way home and the fact that they had circled over an area near her had only set her nerves further on edge. She reached into her pocket for her key before opening the door and announcing her presence by saying, in a fairly loud, clear voice, "Hello mom, I'm home!"

 

"welcome home Shira," came the immediate reply from the kitchen, "dinner will be ready soon, honey, so go wash up."

 

"Got it mom" was her reply, she slid her shoes off, leaving them by the door before heading down to the bathroom to wash her hands. As soon as she was done, she headed to the kitchen and began to quietly and efficiently set the table for their meal tonight. There were times she wished she wasn't an only child and this was one of them, she loved her parents greatly, but sometimes she just wanted someone she could confide in differently then her parents.

Edited December 22, 2009 by jaina

[RheaZen]

Sen walked quickly through the park, eyes darting rapidly. The bad feeling still wouldn't go away... Did I eat something bad? Ugh. Spotting a movement in the corner of his eye, he whirled around. The only thing there was a businessman in a grey coat, who rushed past Sen without so much as a glance. The boy sighed in relief. Just get home... Get some rest.

 

Some time later, he arrived at his apartment. He was, upon opening the door, greeted by a loud and discordant yowl. "Hi Muffin! Hai!" He ran towards the cat, but Muffin dove under a couch.

 

Sen sighed again, then went to the bathroom - he'd gotten a few scrapes from climbing the tree. Nothing serious, of course, but he wanted to wash them clean. He entered the bathroom without really looking around, quite familiar with his surroundings, and turned on the faucet.

 

Glug... glug... water, swirling down the drain. Small dark bits - bark and dirt - also washed down the drain. Sen stared, somewhat mesmerized, then looked up into the mirror.

 

Shock.

 

I definitely didn't dye my hair. What...? He raised up a wet hand and ran it through his hair. It didn't feel any different... he turned around and flicked on the bathroom light, then turned back to the mirror. It was only a tint of green, but it was definitely there. Well, how do I explain this to mum and dad? And how did this... maybe it was the tree. Something in the tree? Should try to wash it out... He undressed and stepped into the shower.

 

He was disappointed to see no green dye or anything of the sort swirling in the shower water. He puckered his lips up, frustrated and worried. Then, he began to wash his hair. Very vigorously.

[Kira1]

Danni quickly gathered her things together, stuffing the clothes and such into her duffel bag. She had just finished another day's lesson of Hapkido and was preparing to leave for home. She lifted the duffel bag up, resting the strap on one shoulder, before turning to leave.

"Fujiyou-sensei, I'm leaving, I'll see you tomorrow," she said to her Hapkido teacher, waving a hand towards him as she made her way to the front door.

"Be safe, Danni," Fujiyou replied, waving to her as well, "pay attention to your surroundings."

"Sensei, I'll be fine, nothing is going to happen," she replied, wondering if he was just being superstitious.

"Just be careful," he cautioned once more as she opened the front door to head out.

"Yeah, I will," she replied before she let the door close shut. With the sun to her back, she headed down the street for home which was about a block or so away. Since her home was so close, she chose to walk to and from her lessons everyday instead of having her parents waste money on gas to drive her the short distance. It was good exercise too as well as a good cool down after practicing her martial art.

Despite that she was still kind of sweaty from practice, she shivered a bit and glanced around a bit, starting to feel a bit uneasy. She just shrugged off the uneasy feeling. It was probably just the way her teacher had told her to be careful. The way he sounded all ominous as if there was some catastrophe coming, but of course there was no way something like that would happen. Everyday would go on like usual so there was nothing to worry about. Though, when a black feather drifted down in front of her she felt that little chill again. She looked up at the telephone polls high above her and saw at least ten ravens sitting up there, flapping their wings and preening themselves. Did ravens normally gather like that? Danni didn't know if they did or didn't and she just shrugged it off. Who cares what the ravens were doing. They were just birds.

She continued on, walking like she normally did down the street, getting through the crowd of people waiting at the cross walk. She didn't need to cross the street. Danni needed to turn right around the corner and continue on until she came to the apartment complex. Crowds were so annoying though and Danni was glad when she finally pushed through it. People always bumped into her, and if she wasn't quick on her feet they probably would have run her over. She had learned how to dodge through a crowd after having to do it so many times. Now on the last stretch home, there were only a few people she passed by. There were a few who would not be looking where they were going and she would have to walk around them, but other than that there usually wasn't any other problem.

Once at the apartment complex, she used her card key to open the small side gate and entered. She then made her way over to her apartment and went inside. It was good to be home.

"I'm home," she called out to let her mom and dad know she was here. She headed down the hall to the right of the front door to her room where she dumped all her things onto the floor.

"Welcome home, hun!" Her mother called to her from the kitchen. A tasty smell wafted down the hall as Danni exited her room to head for the kitchen.

Her father was sitting on the couch reading the newspaper while her mom was cooking dinner. Her dad, Steven, greeted her when he saw her come into the room and Danni said hello back, plopping down on the couch next to him. She grabbed the remote and flipped through the channels, trying to find something good to watch.

"How was your practice today?" Steven asked her.

"Fine," she replied, the typical teenager answer.

"Did you work up an appetite for your mum's cooking?" He asked her.

"Of course," she answered and her dad chuckled.

Her mum, Alicia, then called that dinner was ready and brought the dishes to the table. Danni and her father quickly stood up and came to the table to eat the meal.

 

After dinner, Danni went to her room and opened up her laptop to go onto the internet. Of course, the ones that she would usually talk to online weren't on at the moment. Didn't bother her much since there were other things to do. She thought about taking a walk around the neighborhood because she didn't like to stay in one spot for too long.

Edited December 22, 2009 by Kira1

[Key2Universe]

Sadie pushed through the glass doors of the gym attached to her apartment building. She could see many people working out, running on treadmills, lifting weights, and such. Sadie nodded to the woman behind the desk who had seen Sadie enough to know that she was a member. Sadie made her way to the back in a more secluded area. She pulled out her MP3 player, slipped in the head phones and began her run on the treadmill.

 

As she was running, Sadie's anger came back to her. I hate this. They always make these false promises they can't keep. I wouldn't mind them not attending as much, if they didn't keep promising they would. And I know something is wrong. I don't know what, but something is definitely wrong. Sadie's thoughts raced through her head. The more she thought, the angrier she got. After about ten minutes into her vigorous jog, someone tapped on Sadie's shoulder. She was jolted out of her thoughts to see the woman from the front desk looking worried. Sadie pulled out her headphones.

 

"Yeah? What is it? What's up?" Sadie asked. She wanted to snap at her, but the woman looked so concerned she couldn't. The woman put the back of her hand up to Sadie's forehead for a moment, then quickly pulled it away.

 

"I was coming over to let you know that the air conditioner is broken and it's actually hotter in this room than outside. But, you feel hot. I think you have a fever, you should go to the hospital." The woman said, all in a hurried voice. Sadie gave the woman a skeptical look. The room felt perfectly fine, and she could see in the mirror that she wasn't flushed at all. The woman reach out and grabbed Sadie's arm and her hand seemed so cold.

 

"Are you sure it isn't just you? Your hand feels super cold." Sadie asked, still working to be patient with the woman. The woman grabbed Sadie's things and handed them to her. Then, she grabbed Sadie again and pulled her out the front doors of the gym.

 

"No, it is not me. It is most definitely you." The woman said. Once they were out of the gym, the air seemed much cooler to her. Sadie looked down and saw the woman was still touching her. She pulled her arm out of the woman's hold.

 

"Okay, well, I'm just going to go back up to my apartment and lay down. No need to call the hospital." Sadie said. She started backing away from the woman.

 

"Are you sure?" The woman asked, still looking skeptical.

 

"Absolutely positive. Thanks for your concern." Sadie said, turned, and headed back up to her apartment. She just wanted to be in her warm room. The day's events certainly were strange.

[SandMessiah]

Clay was among the first to arrive back at the warehouse, which meant he didn't have to pay for the pizza! One by one the rest of the Heaven's Assassins entered the warehouse. They began to dance around and cheer as if they had won a long and bloody turf war. Zax quickly ran to the storeroom and brought out a 14'inch television set and placed it on the large table. There he attached the cable to an extension cord hanging above the table and turned it on. Everyone gather around the table to see if their art had made it onto the evening news. By the time they had turned to channel seven, the news had already started.

 

"We just received some late breaking news, it appears that the infamous "Heaven's Assassin's" have struck again. For this we turn to our Action Corespondent Chuck Steel." Said the female caster in her professional, monotonic voice. The camera turned from a studio news set to video feed of a subway train. On one side was a picture of a desert wasteland. Everyone began to shout and cheer as the Corespondent began his story.

 

"Shut up guys, we can party once we learn the skinny!" Said Zax as he turned up the volume on the television. Everyone became quiet as they listen to Chuck's story.

 

"It appears that nothing is safe from the hands of Graffiti Gangs. This brand-new subway train was vandalized just as it was heading for it's first stop. According to eye-witnesses, the Graffiti Gang "Heaven's Assassin's" flew from the rooftops onto the subway train as it went above ground. But according to opinions from the people who first saw the train, they are considering this a message from the community to the positions of power."

 

Once the camera feed went to other people, everyone was slightly miffed that they were called a "graffiti gang." But Clay knew that some people would hate what they do. As the public opinion ended, the camera feed went back to Chuck Steel.

 

"Is this really a warning that people should do something, or is this just another graffiti gang trying to get "up?" Back to you Susan."

 

Zax turned off the television as the rest of the group began to mutter comments of an offensive nature. Clay walked away from the rest of the group, he was among the most upset. He proceeded to the door and walked out of the warehouse, he needed to cool off. Once he was outside, he was quickly greeted by an unkindness of ravens. They all eyed him with interest before they flew away, leaving behind a jet-black feather. As he proceed to pick up the feather, he noticed a piece of broken glass. But he saw that his eyes were turning pure black, which completely shocked him. He mentally shook it off, thinking that it was just an illusion. He picked up the black feather and walked back inside.

[dani-xo]

Skye reached home twenty minutes later, hair messed up and out of breath. "Mom! I'm home!" When there was no reply, she took off her shoes and carefully arranged them on the place mat. "Mom?"

 

Skye shrugged the uneasy feeling she had deep in her gut. Her mom was probably just caught up at work - it wasn't anything completely out of the ordinary. She set down her school bag near the bottom of the spiraling staircase, then walked over to the kitchen for a small snack. She opened the fridge door and bit her lip, wondering what she should eat. There wasn't much - some slices of apples in a plastic bag, a salad, some frozen dinners... Skye froze. Her silver-blue eyes had landed on a carrot stick, one of those big ones, and what she saw made her heart stop and her mind race.

 

The carrot was moving. Before her very eyes, the surface of the dingy orange fruit froze over, making the tint of the color hard to see under the ice. The carrot moved; hopped out of the refrigerator and landed on Skye's shoulder.

 

Needless to say, she let out a scream.

 

[Skarx]

As usual she was on her way to the school swimming pool. It was six in the afternoon now and soon the whole swimming club would invade the pool and if she wanted a good spot, on the side of the pool where no one would bother her, she had to get there fast. She didn't have anything against the other swimmers, but when they were a bunch of friends together they would cross in her line and chat over her. It annoyed her a lot and she had told them dozens of time not to. They ignored her of course, everyone in her class and most of the school too as a matter of fact, knew she was always pestering people about crossing her space. When she opened the door leading to the locker room she found it empty. She smiled, she was probably the first here. She put her bag in her locker and went to change. Minutes later she was swimming in the pool, she had it for herself for a couple of minute until the club came in. She enjoyed swimming which is why she had entered the swimming club in the first place. It calmed her somehow made her forget her problems for a little while. That is until some bright kid brought it back to her.

 

"Hey look there she is again, swimming away from us. No wonder she has any friends!"

 

She glared at the boy. How dare he put his nose in her social life! So what if she had no friends! She didn't need any... not like them anyway. Nosy people were the worst. She left the pool and quickly went to the shower to get the chlorine off her skin. She didn't need it dryer than it already felt. She then left the school ground and walked back home. It was not far so walking was just fine. When she got home though her annoying brothers did what they do best play a trick at her. The second she put a foot in her room she slipped on something and fell to the ground. She then yelled to her brothers who were just in the next room.

 

YOU BRATS!! COME HERE RIGHT NOW!

 

She then heard he father in the kitchen.

 

"Welcome back Sophia. Dinner is ready.

 

She glared at her brothers and stood again to get to the kitchen. The rest of the supper time passed quickly, usual school talk and work. She didn't really enjoyed these talk, but she enjoyed being with them. She quickly went to bed after supper since she needed to be well rested for the next day.

 

((5 in the morning... If it feels really weird... you know why. *Run to it's bed to sleep*))

[Mangaholic]

Sleep took long to take hold of Alina that night, and she slept most of her time in bed staring at the ceiling above her. Even Elak, who lay at the foot of her bed, had fallen asleep before she had, and his quiet, rumbling snores filled the silence until it was starting to give Alina a major headache. The foreboding that gnawed at her was still there, but she had finally learned to ignore it while she lay there, restless and tired as the seconds ticked by. At last, sleep came, though it didn’t bring her much peace.

 

Alina dreamed that she was in a clearing, blanketed by snow and surrounded by barren trees. The moon hung overhead, full and bright as the night Fane had been killed. It lit the empty forest with its pale, silvery light, adding to the eeriness. There was no wind of any sort, and despite the snow, Alina didn’t feel cold at all as she stood there, wondering where she was.

 

Then a caw rang out in the silent forest, jolting Alina slightly, and the young woman glanced around her, her eyes settling on the black raven that perched on one of the snow-laden trees. The sight of the bird annoyed her for some reason, and she glared at it as it stared back at her silently. Suddenly, it flapped its wings violently, before opening its beak. Surprisingly, Alina understood the words that came out of the bird’s mouth, but the wind had decided to arrive at that moment, and though Alina strained to hear the urgent message, all she could hear was: “…lina…Forest Par… more of your kind-”

 

At that moment, the wind grew savage, howling at the moon like an angry wolf, and it ripped at the barren branches of the trees. Alina strained her eyes, trying to find the raven once more amidst the flurry of snow that bit at her skin. She took a step forward, shielding her eyes with a frozen hand, and something smacked her hard on the back, causing her to fall face-flat on the snow.

 

She woke with a jolt, forgetting almost completely about the dream. Her back ached terribly for some reason, and Alina wondered for a second if she really had been hit by some branch that day. She sat up in her bed, intending to rub her sore, stiff back, when… scritch… scritch…scritch.

 

Alina froze, remaining silent as she listened intently. Something was scratching just below her window outside. Probably just some squirrel, Alina thought, forgetting completely about her stiff back. She had barely lain down in her bed again when the scratching became more violent, as if the creature was ripping at the house, and Alina thought she could hear snarling. She held her breath, watching Elak to see the dog’s reaction, but he didn’t move at all. Finally, the noise faded away into the night, as mysteriously as it had arrived, and Alina relaxed hesitantly, fearful that the animal would return. Okay, probably someone’s rabid stray dog, Alina decided, though the idea of a rabid dog just outside of her house didn’t provide her with much comfort. She screwed her eyes shut, this time desperately willing herself to fall back asleep. There was no way she wanted to be awake if the dog, or whatever it was, got more violent and actually managed to break into her room.

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

It was already 8:37 A.M. when Alina awoke again. Her back hurt again, and it felt like she had been sleeping on something lumpy and uncomfortable. Yawning, she sat up and stretched. She hadn’t forgotten about the events of last night, and she wondered if it had all been a dream. She had had dreams like that before, where it seemed like the dream was over but it actually wasn’t. Yeah… that was probably the answer. She yawned again, wondering if she should go back to sleep. After all, school for her had already ended the week before and there was no need to wake up right now.

 

She quickly glanced down the side of her bed, trying to find Elak, and the sight that met her was quite a surprise. The white eagle dog was staring at her angrily, with his hackles partly raised and his canines bared. When their eyes met, he began barking hysterically.

 

"What’s gotten into you, Elak?” Alina asked sternly, slipping out from under her blanket. She jumped back when Elak snapped at her heels. “Elak, what the hell is wrong with you?” Her voice rose angrily now, but there was a note of fear in her words.

 

Elak paid no heed to his mistress, continuing to snarl and occasionally lunge at her. Alina jumped back onto her bed and managing to escape around the crazy dog, ran to the bathroom. She quickly shut the door in the dog’s face before proceeding to trying to calm herself. Elak better not be rabid, Alina told herself as she washed her face, trying to relax. She glanced in the mirror and gasped out loud.

 

My eyes… what’s wrong with my eyes? She stared in horror at her reflection, trying to make sense of it. Her eyes, once a stormy shade of blue-gray, had suddenly turned black, completely black. A soulless, empty black. Like those ravens, she realized with a jolt. But it’s just a trick of the light. You’re still sleepy, and now you’re seeing things.

 

She started humming, trying to calm herself, and avoided looking into the mirror. Instead, she pulled out a brush and began combing her hair. Sadly, if she thought that nothing would come of a simple task such as combing, she was wrong. Out of the corner of Alina’s eye, she noticed that from her hair floated down many things. She stopped and stared at what was on the granite floor. Black feathers, all over the place. She reached slowly into her hair and pulled something long and sleek out from it. A raven feather. She gaped, trying to make sense of everything. Suddenly, a realization struck her.

 

“I think I knew what’s next," she muttered, turning her back to the mirror and pulling her sweater off so that she wore only a tank top. In spite of the fact that she was a bit right in her guess, she nearly choked in her horror. On her back, just below her shoulders, was the massive tattoo of two intricate raven wings spread wide across the span of her upper back. What added to her astonishment was the sight of an actual wing slipping into her skin, where it was quickly replaced by the tattoo. In awe, Alina reached back to touch the delicate wing, and it suddenly began to slip back out of her skin. Quickly, she pressed her palm over it, hissing, ”Get back in there.”

 

The wing froze, before obediently dissolving back into her skin. After a minute, Alina sighed, still trying to register what had happened. This day is going to be really interesting… she thought with immense distaste as she kneeled down on the cold, hard floor, gathering up the long, black feathers that had fallen from her hair.

Edited February 13, 2010 by Mangaholic

[jaina]

((took me a while to post, just got dragon age: origins it's pretty good))

 

Shira changed quietly into her simple sleeping clothes; a pair of shorts and a tank top, before she slipped quietly into bed. The day had been good, she had spent a lot of time with her friends, she had had a pleasant dinner with her family, and she had finished a painting that she had been working on for a while. The only thing that bothered her as she slipped under the covers of her bed was that she hadn't managed to shake that awful sense of foreboding.

 

Around midnight Shira bolted upright in bed, she could swear she was hearing something scratching around, but it was probably just their cat she reflect as she laid back down again. Only in her dreams something visited her.

 

She stood quietly in her normal clothes in what she now recognized as Forest Park. A blurry figure stood before her and as she struggled to focus on it, it only seemed to fade from her vision. When she blinked, it was there again. The figure spoke quietly, almost imperceptibly, "come here, and find your answers..."

 

"Answers to what? I don't have any questions." She replied back at the figure. The figure didn't respond other then to repeat it's message before the world faded around her.

 

Shira woke with a start, it was already 9:00 a.m. when she looked blearily at her radio. Dismissing the dreams of the last night she made her way to her bathroom and splashed some water on her face and dried off before really opening her eyes. When she finally did, what she saw shocked her. Her normally light brown hair was silver white, shot with streaks of silver and gold. Her brandy colored eyes were now a dark gray, a few shades shy of whitish silver, flecked with gold. She took a step backwards, only to fall down into a sitting position on the toilet as she struggled to understand just what had happened. Thinking back to her dream she whispered, "Well now I certainly have some questions for that person..."

Edited April 14, 2011 by jaina

[Kira1]

Danni decided against the walk that night because she had lost track of time and soon it was after nine. She figured it was best to shower now and then head to bed.

 

After her shower, she pulled on her pajamas, blow dried her hair, and then climbed into bed. She drifted off to sleep after a short period of time, her room dark and filled with the soft sound of humming machinery. Overtime, the soft hum became something that helped her fall asleep and without she always had a hard time falling asleep. She may have fallen asleep like usual but her dreams were very different this night.

 

She found herself in her street clothes, standing at the corner of a busy intersection, in the midst of a crowd of faceless people. Danni frantically looked around, knowing something was wrong and began to walk across the street with the faceless crowd. When she crossed the street, the crowd became rowdier and started to shove her around which she hated. She looked for a way out of the crowd and eventually broke free and found an empty sidewalk laid out before her.

She wouldn't be able to go back the way she came since the crowd of faceless people were still there and still seemed to be quite rowdy. Instead of going back, she moved forward but she had no idea where she was going. All she knew is that she couldn't look back and had to head forward as if there was something behind her. As the panic started to set in, she began to run down the sidewalk, still not knowing where she was going until she came to the entrance to Forest Park. A chill went down her spine and she dashed into the park for some reason, looking around at the place. She saw out of the corner of her eyes in the shadow of a tree, some thing sitting there, staring at her. It was just a dark blob however and she couldn't make out what it was exactly. She did hear the scratching sound it made though, which made her panic more and her heart race at hearing it.

 

Danni's eyes snapped opened. Her heart was racing quickly and she felt panicked for some reason. Slowly she sat up, trying to calm herself down when she heard this scratching sound coming from somewhere. Frantically she searched for what might be the source of the noise but couldn't locate it. Soon, it stopped, leaving her with just the hum of the machinery left. Tired and spooked she laid back down, pulling the covers up close to her face and shut her eyes. Hopefully she wouldn't have another nightmare for the rest of the night.

 

 

When Danni woke up that morning, it was about nine o'clock. Groggily, she sat up in bed, stretching out her arms with a yawn. She swung her legs over the side of her bed but stopped there as she remembered her dream last night. Well, it was more of a nightmare, but it troubled her. She then decided that she would go to Forest Park today. But wasn't that place closed? Why would she dream of that place when she had never really been there before. She only knew of it because she had passed it at times before. No matter, it was just a dream.

 

Danni dressed in a pair of dark blue, jean capris and a black, short-sleeve, V-neck shirt for the day. She then went to the bathroom to brush her hair and teeth but when she looked in the mirror she was shocked at what she looked like. Her hair was practically a silver color now, and her eyes were shockingly gray. She had no idea what was going on and decided to get out of the house before her parents saw her hair. They would think she dyed it, when she didn't, and then ask questions to which she would have no answer. To make sure they wouldn't see her hair as she slipped out, she grabbed a black baseball hat from her room and tucked all her hair under the hat. From the pantry in the hall way, she grabbed a snack bar before calling out that she was leaving. Her mom asked if she had her cell phone with her and Danni answered that she did before closing the door behind her.

 

She hurried out away from her apartment to the street before her parents caught sight of her leaving. She had no idea where she was going though. Maybe she would go to the hair salon and ask why her hair had turned this color. She headed in that direction, making her way through the crowds of people, and soon found herself nearing where Forest Park was located.

The hair salon was this way, right? Danni thought to herself. Curious though, she headed towards Forest Park.

 

((...did i go too far? Everyone else stopped at when they looked at their new appearance but i just went on. I got carried away, haha. I guess Danni will be the first one there...sort of.))

[Skarx]

Her dream was a strange one. She was walking along a park she vaguely remembered. She never went close to it. What was its name again? As she tried to find the sign to read the name, something inside the park caught her eyes. A mist she didn't realized what there before was now filling the park. The sudden mist worried her, especially because of all the disappearance these days. Something caught her eyes again, lost somewhere in the mist. While she wanted to run away she felt attracted to the creature. Slowly she entered the park going toward the form. The closer she was to it the more familiar it looked to her and the thicker the mist seemed to become. She tried to call the familiar figure, but her voice seemed stuck in her throat. She stopped moving, scared, and when she looked back she could not see anything anymore because the mist was much too thick for that. She then heard something coming from the park entrance. A growing similar to that of a dog or was it a wolf? Even more scared she stepped back and yelled as her foot entered cold water. She looked down to see what she had stepped in and quickly regretted yelling as the sound of a big animal running towards her came to her ears. She had been heard! She was so scared now she couldn't move anymore. Was she going to get attacked like all these poor folks in the news? A voice then came from what seems to be the pond she had stepped in.

 

"Come over here. It's safe here."

 

She looked around trying to see what had spoken, but the only thing she could see was a strange horse and water. As far as she knew both were not supposed to talk. She then noticed how deep the horse was in the water. That horse was neck deep in it. Why was it so deep in the water anyway? When she saw the horse open its mouth again and speak she didn't know what to believe in anymore. It was all just a dream and a bad one at that she hoped.

 

"Quickly girl!! Do you want to die so much!?"

 

Scared and confused she jumped into the water and as soon as she did everything went silent. No more growling, she could not hear any footstep either. She was well and felt safe. Where was the horse though? When she looked in front of her everything started to blacken, as if she was falling into a nice deep sleep.

 

"Here is where it all begins."

 

The last thing she saw was the horse smiling to her.

 

---------------------------------------------------

 

She woke up in her bed. As stupid as it seemed she though for a second she was supposed to be in the water not in her bed. The second thing that hit her was how thirsty she was then quickly followed by the sudden scratching coming from her window. Scared and remembering her dream she quickly ran out of her room and hid into the bathroom since it had no windows. There she waited a while hoping nothing had came into the house. After she had counted up to 400, she opened the door again keeping the light close just in case. No sound. Maybe it was just her imagination. She quickly went back to her room refraining from pouring herself a glass of water scared to make any sound and having the scratching come back. She went back to her bed and fell asleep only to wake up the next morning quite early because of her parents calling her for breakfast.

 

"Yeah I'm coming give me a minute please!"

 

She grabbed some clothes and started changing herself. Something was off, but her sleepy mind could not pinpoint what it was. It was while she was putting her top that she found out what was so strange. Her skin! She knew it was pale, but this was way too weird! It had a slightly bluish tone to it. She looked more sick than weird though... It was not that apparent, but she could see it was not her normal tone. She finished changing herself and quickly ran to the bathroom where she looked at herself. Her hairs! They were all like her green lock now! How did it... If this was a joke it was a bad one! She immediately suspected her brothers, but sense quickly came back to her. There was no way they could have done this. Why? Why did this happen? Her mom snapped her out of her though as she called her again. She quickly grabbed a hooded sweatshirt she kept for winter went downstairs. When her family saw her they looked worried at first then a nice variety of feelings passed through them.

 

"What happened to you? You look sick. What's with these hairs!? We told you to stop coloring them!"

 

Just that would have been good, but her brothers were now laughing at her and her father didn't seem happy about her new hair color either. Angry, she quickly grabbed a bottle of water in the nearby fridge along with an apple and ran outside the house. She was not in the mood to get laughed at! They were not the ones who had waked up to see themselves changed! After walking a couple of minute, she wondered where she should go when she realized she was near a park. Like the one in her dream. Thinking about it, it was the same. Why did she come here? She never came here before because she had no business with it. She wondered why she never bothered to come and visit it. Well now was as a good time as ever so she walking in until she found that pond in her dream. No matter how she looked at it there was no way a horse would ever fit in it up to its neck. She sat next to it wondering what she should do. Maybe she had caught something and her skin would go back to its normal tone again. Her hairs were only coloured so they would be back to normal in a week or so. Thinking about that she stared at the small fishes swimming happily in the pond.

 

"You guys have it so easy. I wish I could be like you guys. No one is expecting anything from you.

 

((Hope I didn't over do it....))

Edited December 27, 2009 by Skarx

[SandMessiah]

One by one, the members of Heaven's Assassins left the warehouse. Clay had learned a long time ago that they had homes and families to return to. Ever since he had been brought here thirteen years ago, he has called the warehouse his home and the Heaven's Assassins his family. Clay took a seat next to the large table and placed his feet up on the table. The warehouse, which was full of life and activity now stood silent. Clay looked up and saw a single light, which hanged from a cord above the table. He reached up and pulled a cord, turning the light off. He closed his eyes and began to fall asleep.

 

Soon, Clay opened his eyes and looked around the dark warehouse. He closed his eyes again, but this time he focused on listening. He could hear faint whispers coming from all around the warehouse. He reached for the cord and pulled it, but to his shock no light came on.

 

"Damn it" muttered Clay as he got out of his seat. The whispers grew from faint to hushed. But as Clay moved closer to the whispers, they seemed to move away from him. Clay, who was getting slightly irritated continued to follow the whispers, all the way towards the door. He opened the door slowly and was immediately greeted by a blast of wind and snow. Clay shielded his face away from the blast and moved away. Once the wind subsided, Clay walked towards the door and set his gaze beyond the door. He saw snow and ice all around him, the howl of the wind filled his ears. And as he took his first steps outside, he expected to feel cold...but he didn't even feel a chill. As he turned to the waterfront, his dull and lifeless eyes filled with utter shock. The frozen water body stretched on for miles, it seemed endless...almost like all of the water was entirely frozen.

 

The howling of the wind suddenly chased, and was replaced by the whispers. But this time, Clay could hear what they were saying perfectly.

 

"Head for the green heart..." Said the whispers before the wind began to pick up. Clay turned his head towards the source of the whisper, but found no one there. Clay continued to look at the same spot while he thought about the whisper.

 

"The green heart? What the bloody hell did i just hear...Alright Clay, think. What, or where is this green heart?" Thought Clay as he began to walk around, trying to think about the whisper said. Suddenly, the sound of spray paint could be heard. Clay quickly rushed towards the sound. When he got there, he found a mural with a picture of a forest and a figure in black. As Clay approached the figure, he stopped what he was doing and stood there. But before Clay could speak to the figure, he turned around and showed his face, which was covered by shadows.

 

"The Elves may guard the green heart, but they were no match for what greeted them." Said the figure before he ran away. When he was far enough he suddenly morphed into a raven and flew away. Clay watched the scene in the same state of shock, what did he just witness?

 

Clay suddenly found himself back in the warehouse, in the same chair and in the same position. He looked around, and after a moment he let out a sigh of relief.

 

"It was just a very, very weird dream." Sighed Clay as he relaxed against the chair and began to drift into sleep. But then, the loudest scratching could be heard all over the warehouse. Clay quickly got out of his chair and ran over to a corner of the warehouse. He picked up a bat and quickly ran towards the door, yelling "I don't *** need this at three in the morning!" But by the time he reached the door, the scratching had stopped. Clay, still irritated by the noise opened the door, hoping to find a straggler to beat up. But as he got out and searched the outside of the warehouse, he didn't find a single living thing. Clay threw the bat to the ground and headed back inside, too furious to even speak. He got back into his chair and went back to sleep

 

Zax walked into the warehouse, which he does every morning at nine a.m. He saw Clay sleeping in a chair with his feet on the table. "Gotta get a bed for the guy" Thought Zax as he walked over to the table.

 

"Clay, wake up" said Zax as he laid a hand on him. He didn't move, he merely said in a irritated voice "if you try to wake me up again, I'll take a bat and crack it over your head."

 

Zax merely laughed at that comment and said "Nice to see your up Mr. Sandman. But right now i need you to run an important errand. It has been two weeks since we have received any word from the Forest Park Elves about the territory claim. I need you to head for Forest Park and try to find out what has happened to them." When he received this news, Clay got out of his seat in shock.

 

Zax turned to him to further address him, but he stopped in his tracks when he got a good look of Clay. He said with worry "are you feeling alright Clay? I mean your eyes are totally dark and you look pale as well."

 

Clay looked at him with confusion, but he tighten his hoodie and mention "yea, I'm alright" before he grabbed his backpack, fasted his black straps and headed towards the roof. Once he got onto the roof of the warehouse, he pulled the cord and released his glider. He took off into a run and jumped off the roof. The glider lifted him into the air and carried him towards the direction of Forest Park. As he was gliding towards Forest Park, thoughts about the dream, the scratching and Zax's comment filled his mind. But that clear once he saw he was getting closer to Forest Park, he began a gradually descent.

Edited December 27, 2009 by SandMessiah

[Key2Universe]

Sadie hurried away form the crowd of people from the gym, and headed back to her apartment. She nodded to the door man and took the elevator up. When she reached her apartment and opened the door, Sadie found it still empty. She sighed and dropped her things. For some reason, the emptiness didn't seem important. Sadie just needed to get into bed and get this day over with. The foreboding feelings were making her almost sick. Sadie showered on the hottest water setting and didn't both to dry her hair before she laid down in bed. Sleep came to her quickly, as did the dream.

 

Sadine opened her eyes to see a park filled with sunlight. She looked down and saw that she was seated on a picnic blanket in a long, formal black dress, white gloves, and a huge hat. She looked like Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. For some reason, the formal attire didn't seem out of place at all. Sadie sat there, basking in the sunlight. After a few seconds, ravens started filling all the trees. Every branch had one of the black birds perched on it. Sadie stood, filled with a sense of urgency to get away from the birds. As she started running, all of the birds flew towards her. Sadie used her arms to protect her face as she attempted to keep the birds off of her. Her vision was black because of all the raven feathers. Sadie slowed to a stop when she noticed nothing was touching her. She was surrounded by complete darkness.

 

Suddenly, the bright orange of a flame filled the area around her. Everywhere she looked, there was fire. But, unlike with the ravens, Sadie didn't feel panicked. She just watched the flames, and soon enough, figures began appearing. They moved with an inhuman grace, their motions mimicking the flames. Sadie watched in awe. Quietly, she heard their whispers.

 

"The park, the park, you must go to the park." The whispers came form every direction and Sadie turned, trying to see them all. One woman in particular stood out. Sadie just looked at the woman, her golden eyes wide. The woman put her palms together and pushed towards Sadie. A spiral of flames came from the woman's hands and seared Sadie's skin, seeming to set her whole body alight.

 

Sadie shot up in bed as she woke up. Her whole body was warm, warmed than she had ever been. She took deep breaths, trying to calm her racing heart. Sadie looked around her room, trying to force herself back to reality and away from the disturbing dream. The sound of loud, saw like scratching filled Sadie's ears. It seemed to be coming from the windows and the door of her room. Sadie put her back against the headboard and wrapped her arms around her knees. She was shaking, Sadie had been afraid of monsters at night when she was a child. This seemed like her worst nightmare. After what seemed like hours of agony, the scratching stopped. Sadie laid back down and forced herself back to sleep.

 

The rest of her night was event less and Sadie was woken up by the buzz of her alarm. She liked to make sure she was awake at 9, even on days without school, Shito-ryu, or dance. She rubbed her eyes and headed into the bathroom to begin her morning rituals. When Sadie looked in the mirror, it was strange. Her eyes seemed brighter, her hair more orange, and her skin more flushed. Sadie's lips were darker and her cheeks were pink. Sadie shook her head, forcing attention away from her brightened reflection back to getting ready.

 

When Sadie was headed out the door, she stopped by her parent's bedroom. Her mother was in the large bed, alone. She had fallen asleep still in her work clothes. Sadie shook her head. Her mother always looked vulnerable in that big bed when Sadie's father was away on business. Sadie closed the door to their room and wrote a note to her mother in the ornate cursive she had been forced to learn.

Mom,

 

I'm headed out to the dance studio. I have my cell on me, so call if you need anything.

 

Love,

Sadine

 

Sadie smiled as she finished. She knew that her anger with her mother was gone. She headed out of the apartment, down to the street below. Once there, Sadie's feet seemed to have a purpose of their own. She began walking and didn't stop until she reached the gate to Forest Park. Sadie stood there, unsure of whether to enter or not. It seemed silly to follow the whims of a dream, but something was telling her she needed to be here.

[jaina]

When Shira made her way down stairs after recovering from the shock of her body's changes she peaked in te kitchen only to see a note on the counter for her. She quietly walked over and picked it up and read it.

 

Shira,

 

There's an art expo today that

I got called off to be a judge for.

I hope you aren't mad.

 

Love,

Mom

 

Shira sighed in relief, both her parents were out for the day, so she might be able to make it to forest park without having to try and explain the changes to her parents. She quietly had breakfast before tucking her hair up underneath a cap and sneaking out the door with her wallet, cellphone, and house key. With that she headed towards the park, the sense of foreboding she had had yesterday had returned, and now it was stronger then ever. It was still cool this morning so it was fairly pleasant as she made her way there. Though nothing assuaged her unease at the situation, someone telling her in a dream to come to forest park, her hair and eyes radically changing, and all of it in one night, something weird was definitely going on.

Edited December 29, 2009 by jaina

[RheaZen]

((I'm so sorry, I didn't see the OOC thread post at all.

 

Re-making a post... blargh.))

 

Dinner was... touchy, to understate it. Sen's mother was the most vocal about his odd hair color, but he could also sense disapproval from his father. Honestly, he didn't understand why it was such a problem to them, but what was their problem was his problem...

 

He flopped down onto his bed and sighed, tired. As he drifted off to sleep, a random thought occurred to him. Hm... could be like a sloth, I been outside too much and algae... in head...?... tired...

 

A forest of large trees - massive. All of them the size of redwoods, but they were all different species. The air was moist, humid and hot, and felt like spiderwebs. Sen moved forward, not sure why. Vines, thick and dripping water, hung from the limbs of the trees. There was a sloth hanging from one vine. It gave Sen the middle finger.

 

"Uh, what?" Sen scratched his head. The sloth then jumped down and ran deeper into the forest. "But, sloths can't move that way!" Sen followed the sloth, the trees getting smaller and younger the further in they went. The sloth was getting further and further away...

 

And then, suddenly, the air turned cool. Sen slowed to a walk and looked around. Ahead of him was a fence with a metal sign affixed to it, but the sign was so faded and scratched that he couldn't read was on it. Yet, at the same time, the sign was shiny enough to let him see himself in the dream...

 

Scratch, scratch. Sen turned over in his bed. There was a sound at his window, like scraping, as if something was scratching at the glass. It went on for a few more seconds, then went away. He ignored it and went back to sleep, wishing he'd continue dreaming the same dream. It wasn't so bad, so far as his dream went, and he wanted to know why the sloth didn't like him...

 

The rest of his night was dreamless. Sen was woken by rays of sun shining through his window blinds. He yawned widely, then stumbled over to the bathroom. A glance at the mirror-

 

"Aw, bloody hell. Mom's gonna blow a gasket."

 

Sen's hair had turned a dark green, the color of holly leaves. He rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was dreaming. But, no, his hair was the same color. I better stay out of sight for as much time as possible today, I don't want to listen to mum lecturing again... blast. Where to today...? He went back into his room and sat down on his bed, thinking about where to go and what to do. How about... Forest Park? No, it was closed due to the death of a few people... but, a murderer's not going to be climbing trees. I'll be fine. Sen stood back up and got dressed.

[Mangaholic]

With the feathers safely hidden away in a trash bag beneath the sink, Alina sat down on the tiled floor of her bathroom, still trying to decide whether or not she was still in a dream. After about a minute of silence and inactivity, she pinched her arm with her right hand and nearly yelped in pain. She glanced down at the mark that her nails had left and winced. It was quickly turning bright red. Then she noticed her nails; they had grown significantly longer and keener. Like talons, Alina realized with her shudder. That just about answers it. Well, at least Elak’s not rabid or anything. I just smell like some monster to him.

 

She picked herself up off the floor and opened the door carefully, checking to see if Elak was waiting to attack her again. He was nowhere in sight, and she quickly ran to her room to get clothes and then back to brush her teeth and take a quick shower. By the time she made her way out to the kitchen, in a pair of dark blue jeans and a loose gray jacket, it was already a couple minutes past nine. Her mom was standing there, washing dishes, and she tried to sneak through the kitchen to get out of the house unnoticed. Unfortunately, she failed at her attempt, because Elak, who happened to be beneath the breakfast table, exploded in a frenzy of mad barks and snarls.

 

“Elak, stop your insane barking and sit down!” her mother rebuked the dog harshly. Elak lowered his muzzle and crept back under the table, though he continued to growl angrily under his breath. “And Alina, where do you think you’re going?”

 

Alina halted in her tracks, only a few inches away from the door. “I’m going out for a walk, Mom. It’s a nice day, don’t you think?” She carefully avoided her mother’s eyes. There was no telling how much shock her mother was going to go through if she saw her eyes. Weren’t jet black eyes considered to be bad omens?

 

“I don’t want you leaving this house today. Your father just called and told me that people all over the world have suddenly gone missing this morning. There are still people disappearing as of now. I don’t want you to be one of those people,” Alina’s mother said, her brow creasing with worry. “Too much going on lately. One would think that the world is angry with us.”

 

“Mom, we’re in New York. The biggest city in America! What are the chances of me getting kidnapped? Out of a million people, that’s a really small chance,” Alina scoffed, though the news shocked her. Today, of all days, she wakes up with dramatic changes and finds that so many people have disappeared just earlier that day. Was it just a coincidence? The sense of foreboding came back again, causing her to feel dizzy and nauseous.

 

Her mother watched her, probably pondering her words. At last, she nodded, if not a bit reluctantly. “You’re right. The chances are slim. But come back for lunch, okay?”

 

“Don’t worry. I’ll call around noon.” Alina turned to leave, feeling a bit nervous. She could feel Elak glaring at her behind her back, and she could even taste her mother’s deep worry and fear for her. She quickly opened the door and slipped out before anything could change her mind.

 

As soon as the sunlight hit her pale skin, she flinched, for some unknown reason. Shaking her head, she ignored the feel of warmth upon her skin and began walking to the closest bus stop. Eventually, as she waited for the next bus, she grew used to the golden rays. When the bus pulled up, she boarded it, and showing the driver her bus pass, she found herself a seat. The bus was echoing with the usual chatter of passengers as she sat, thinking about her dream and contemplating about what had happened that morning.

 

What did that raven tell me? Alina couldn’t remember, as much as she racked her mind. It had said the name of a place and that she would find more people like her, but what was the name? It made her feel idiotic that she actually thought the dream of importance, but she knew, as much as she didn’t want to admit it, that the dream had been telling her something important. What was it, though?

 

A voice jolted her from her thoughts.

 

“Hey, there are a bunch of feathers in your hair.” The speaker was a young man, looking several years older than Alina.

 

Alina smiled nervously at him, pulling her loose, damp hair forward so that it was away from him. “Yeah, I know that. My friends decided to dump a ton of feathers on me. I guess I didn’t get them all out.”

 

The boy seemed to believe her lie, and he said, rather boldly, “Want me to take them out for you?”

 

Alina blushed furiously, taken away by his audacity. Without thinking, she reached up and pulled the bell line. Almost immediately, the bus screeched to a stop. “Sorry, this happens to my stop. Gotta go.” In an instant, she left the bus, leaving the boy staring after her in embarrassment.

 

One she got off, she paused, unsure of where to go next. It obviously wasn’t her stop, but she didn’t want to stay on a bus with a total flirt. Besides, it wasn’t like she even had a planned destination. She began walking aimlessly about, lost in her thoughts again. As a result, she didn’t notice that the crowd of people around her was steadily thinning until there was barely anyone left. It was then that she realized that she was standing just a couple of meters away from the entrance to Forest Park. The dream vaguely came back to her then. Forest Park? Wasn’t that the place that the raven mentioned?

 

Alina glanced about. There was no one around anymore. She quickly walked over to the gate and gently pushed it. To her surprise, it opened with ease, and she stepped inside the park nervously.

 

[SandMessiah]

Clay landed on the ground with a nice, clean thud. He continued to run as he pulled the cord to collapse the glider. Once it was back in his backpack, he slowed down his run and stopped moving. He began to walk again towards the direction of the pathway. If he had seen the park correctly from the air, he couldn't have landed far. As he looked for sign of Forest Elf activity, his mind turned to the news he had heard about Forest Park. Apparently this was the sight of several disappearances, which made Clay more alert. If the news was true, he wouldn't have to worry about people being here and seeing him in his graffiti clothes.

 

He soon found himself on the path that link one side of Forest Park to the other. Once he was there he placed his hands on the sides of his mouth and shouted "Anthony, are you here?" He waited for several seconds, but not even a sound was returned. He was beginning to wonder where the Forest Elves were. He began to walk down the path, shouting the same words in the air in hopes of finding Anthony, leader of the Forest Elves or anyone else. His eyes, ever vigilante moved with fury, he wanted to find the Forest Elves, ask them what happened and leave.

 

((Just noticed the time thing, thanks for including my little intro into it))

Edited December 28, 2009 by SandMessiah

[RheaZen]

((Wow! I like what you're doing with the News/Time/Temp./etc. Very detailed.

 

... I'll have to work on keeping track of things. Sorry.))

 

Sen munched contentedly on an apple as he wove his way through the crowds of people, taking a path that led in the general direction of Forest Park. Pausing in front of a store with television screens in the window, he absent-minded watched the news while he continued eating. Some celebrity getting divorced from another... an ad... and then, 95 people having disappeared. Sen arched his eyebrows in worry and perplexion. 95?! People don't just vanish overnight. And why...?

 

He pondered various explanations and scenarios as he strolled along, his ideas varying from a coincidental pickup in kidnappings and people just going off to places without telling anyone to alien abductions. Although, he thought dryly, with 95 people having just up and gone, almost everything is as plausible as everything else.

 

He turned another corner and caught sight of the park. Nothing seemed especially out of place at the moment, despite there having been people killed there. Heck, there was even a girl entering the park, although she did look a bit peaky. Having finished his apple, he tossed it into a trashcan and went to the crosswalk, waiting for the light to turn. He didn't notice that the apple seeds in his tossed core had begun to sprout.

[Kira1]

During her walk, Danni stopped by Forest Park since it was on the way there. She didn't know why she was choosing to come to this place. Maybe it was just that weird dream and the fact that in the dream she had ended up in Forest Park. Though, that dream seemed more like a nightmare and the scratching she heard when she awoke didn't really help. Still, this place had her interest now and since she was here, she might as well take a look. She watched the people passing by, hoping none of them would stop from going into the closed park. No one seemed to be paying much attention though. It seemed like no one really cared what some teenage girl was doing.

 

Danni then walked up to the gate, staring past the bars to see inside the park. A bit to her surprise though, the gate was open. She shrugged it off as just some other people who decided to come into the closed park. Since something that was closed off was usually too tempting for others' to resist entering. And here she was about to enter this place. Why was she doing this? It was just some dream that didn't really matter and she should just keep on walking and then head home. Yet her curiosity was getting the better of her and she felt like going into the park. It would be a nice change of scenery anyways, instead of all the buildings and people that filled New York. And she had never been in this park before, so maybe it would be worth her time.

 

She slipped past the gate, relieved that no one started to tell her to stop, and went inside the park. Since it had been closed, the gardeners didn't seem to trim the place very well and lots of the plants were overgrown. It was kind of nice though, seeing it like this because it just looked a bit more natural. The plants had an untouched by human hands kind of look which was something you didn't see in a populated area like New York. Though, she had the strangest sensation that she was not alone in this park and would have turned around and left but she was curious to see if anyone was in here. It might be dangerous, but she knew Hapkido and would be able to protect herself.

 

((I hope everything is fine in this post...))

[jaina]

Shira gave a silent prayer of thanks as she arrived at one of the entrances to Forest Park, with only having drawn a few unwelcome stares on her way there. She did a quick check in the immediate vicinity for anyone else that might have been watching before using a running jump to get fairly high up on the wall. She scaled the rest of the way with ease before quickly dropping over the side. She was lucky to land onto a dense patch of moss below, greatly softening her fall. She stood up, brushing the dirt and small pieces of plant matter off of her clothes before making her way further into the park. She took in her surroundings at a glance, much of the greenery was beginning to run wild in the areas prepared for it, causing her to guess the gardeners hadn't been in since before the murders had taken place. With that in mind she set off towards the area from the dream where she and the figure had spoken.

[RheaZen]

Sen, after doing a quick check to see if anyone was watching, scrambled up a small tree. Normally he would have picked a larger, more stable tree, but since he was pretty much alone he'd decided to try something new. Squirrels try it all the time... what's to say that I can't hop from tree to tree? And that maple over there looks close enough... He was near the top now, and had begun to crawl to the outer reaches of the branches, trying to reach one of the maple's limbs, when he heard a noise below. He looked down, and saw a girl picking herself up off the ground and dusting some dirt off herself. Aw, shoot. Another person here? I figured more would be frightened and staying at home. I can't try the trick now, if I mess up I'll look like a-

 

-snap-

 

The branch he was clinging to had begun to crack. Oh, no, not now...

 

SNAP

 

"Aw, fudge."

 

WHUMP

 

Sen landed in a heap, almost squashing the girl. He lay still for a moment, then groaned. I just HAD to... stupid branch. Now I look like a complete fool, idiot, moron! In front of a GIRL, no less! He lay there, mentally beating himself up for a while.

Edited December 29, 2009 by RheaDark

[jaina]

Shira had been quietly taking stock of her surroundings when something heavy clipped her in the back, knocking her forward onto her face. She slid a foot or two before getting back up on all fours, spitting out a little bit grass that had ended up in her mouth from when she landed. She sputtered almost angrily in surprise as she moved into a crouching position and swiveled around to find out what had knocked her forward. Her hand instantly moved towards the knife she had in one of her cargo pants' pockets. She checked the motion however when she saw the boy on the ground behind her.

 

The boy's hair was a mess of dark green hair and his skin was a light brown color, something akin to dry soil. It was his eyes that set her a little off balance the most, his eyes were a bright green, and they seemed to sparkle with something that might have bordered on idiocy or simply curiosity. "Hey, you alright? and what were you doing in the trees?" Shira asked pointedly. She moved forward a little and set one hand on his shoulder, her other hand landed on something soft, and made of cloth, it was her hat. It was at that which caused her to realize that her hair was loose, letting her now white-silver tumble down onto her shoulders as she leaned over the boy.

Edited December 29, 2009 by jaina

[RheaZen]

((

they seemed to sparkle with something that might have bordered on idiocy or simply curiosity.

... that fits him so well ))

 

Sen stared at the girl, frightened at first because she looked rather aggressive and angry - any who wouldn't be, if you fell out of a tree onto them? Hearing her ask if he was okay, and what he was doing in the trees - darn it, they always asked that - he opened his mouth to reply, just as she set a hand on his shoulder and her hair cascaded down. It was a strange silver-white, a color that didn't seem possible even with the help of bleach. He stuttered, trying to answer, but his mouth seemed to suddenly become as dry as a desert.

 

SAY SOMETHING IDIOT oh my goodness girl why must I act like such a freaking idiot oh well she probably just thinks I'm a little boy and but she's kinda cute and JUST ANSWER HER QUESTION ALREADY-

 

"Uh, I'm fine, fine, yeah, er, I'm dandy, see, and I'm Sen hi what's your name and I was in the tree because I like climbing trees and whatdoyouliketodo?" He sat upright, wincing a bit, then stood up stiffly and brushed himself down to show her that he was fine.

 

((... I guess I've now made Sen one of those guys who can't think properly around girls. Not that he'd have much experience, spending most of his time in the trees and doing other random things.))

[SandMessiah]

After searching for the Forest Elves with no anvil, Clay decided to head directly to their hideout. He took off into the surrounding trees, and there were a lot of them. He stopped moving when he approached a clearing. He then heard a cracking sound, almost like a tree losing it's limb. As he approached closer to the sound, he saw a small boy, who couldn't have been older then ten and a girl, around his age.

 

"Oh bloody perfect." Muttered Clay under his breath, there wasn't supposed to be people here. He also noticed the boy's crazy green and the girl's silver hair, with made Clay even more cautious. He had run-ins with other street gangs with crazy hair color. He began to sneak his way around the two, if he was seen in his graffiti clothes, he was done. But if he wasn't caught, he was going to run, forever and ever and ever.

 

((Cookie for the reference in my last sentence))

Edited December 29, 2009 by SandMessiah