Post by Despair on Jan 8, 2009 17:52:01 GMT -5
This is the first few chapters I have translated into PM form, so I'll get the others up ASAP. For anyone who notices/noticed, yes, the main character IS the same one as my character on this site, though someone modified.
The Apocalypse Saga in PM form
Chapter Five
It’s a Wolf-Eat-Wolf World
“…and then Ray’s call woke me up. I guess you know the rest from there…”
I pulled my knees up to my chest, wishing that I had thought to bring a jacket. I had never realized that September nights—well, technically mornings, but whatever—were so cold. It was really dark, too, but even the darkness couldn’t hide the smoldering gold of Michelle’s eyes as she stared at me. There was a very weak light on the horizon, a promise of morning yet to come. A reassuring thought.
The ever-so-faint light, despite it’s practically undetectable state, still managed to reflect off the metallic blue and gold swirls that flowed from the corner of Michelle’s left eye and down her neck to disappear beneath the collar of her thick winter coat. The weird symbols glittered and shimmered in a strange way, like moonlight on moving waters. Captivating and creepy all in one.
“Where’s Rayanna again?” I asked through my teeth, which were clenched together in an effort to keep from chattering. Michelle jumped slightly as though I had startled her from deep thoughts and stared at me blankly for a second. I sighed impatiently, not really wanting to repeat myself. “Where’s-“
“Right here.” A voice said from behind me. If I hadn’t been frozen to the log on which I sat, I would have jumped halfway to next year.
“Ray, if you ever do that again,” I began ominously, turning my head slowly to look at my dear friend. “I swear I will…I will…” Okay, I had nothin’.
“You’ll what? Threaten me to death?” Ray replied automatically, rolling her eyes but flashing me a quick grin to ease the sting of her words. I took it in stride, having dealt with her sarcasm for a very long time. Actually, I was usually the sarcastic one. Hmm.
Up until now, everything that had been said was automatic, engraved into us by years of friendship. Now, however, the gravity of the situation really hit home. I felt the suspense settle around us like a heavy blanket, minus the warmth. I had been trying to avoid meeting her gaze, knowing the initial shock we’d both get from each other’s change in eye color, but there was no more avoiding it. This time, however, the shock came even worse.
In an instant, I was on my feet, heat rushing through my body in response to my alarm. Adrenaline, I guess. My eyes were wide, mouth gaping as I stared at her. Behind me, Michelle jolted and let out a little gasp, but neither of us acknowledged her.
It was a very long moment before either of us breathed again. My breath had been caught painfully in my throat, my mouth moving wordlessly until I finally regained control. Rayanna looked as shocked as I felt, her eyes wide in alarm, half-crouched as though subconsciously preparing to either attack or flee. I realized that I was doing the same thing and forced myself to relax.
The mark on my collarbone burned painfully.
It’s Rayanna! Calm down! I yelled at myself inwardly, somewhat disgusted at myself for reacting like that to one of my closest friends. I didn’t even know why I had spazzed out over something so trivial…or maybe it wasn’t trivial at all. Some part of me knew that this meant trouble, but I pushed it away.
A shimmering purple and silver mark swirled from the corner of Rayanna’s left eye, contrasting with her mocha skin. The only part of that mark that was different from my own was the color, but that’s not what scared me. It was the fact that Rayanna’s eyes were the same silvery color as the eyes of the Yang wolf from the website that really got to me.
It doesn’t matter, I told myself firmly, giving her a small, hesitant smile. Who cares what color her eyes are? Although judging by her reaction…well, I wouldn’t think of that! Ray took a deep breath and slowly returned my smile, and I felt the tension more or less melt away, although a bit still lingered. I became aware of the chilly air again and shivered, rubbing my arms.
“Here,” Ray said just as something soft and warm was tossed onto my head. I pulled it off and held it out in front of me—it was a jacket!!! One of Ray’s winter coats! “I love you!” I gasped, pulling it on and marveling at the warmth. Ray grinned. “I had a feeling you were going to forget a jacket, being so dead-set on sneaking away undetected.”
“My savior,” I breathed. A second later, we all burst into laughter. Even if it was a bit too loud and slightly forced, it still felt good to laugh. After a second it died down, and it was back to business.
“Tell me everything,” Ray demanded. I sighed and began my story.
“Well, I was looking at this website…”
* * * *
I held my breath, slowly turning the handle of my basement door. Good thing I had left it unlocked-otherwise I’d be stuck outside.
My teeth dug into my lower lip as the hinges squeaked softly, hearing my heart pounding in my ears. An interesting and slightly disturbing sensation, let me tell you. I stepped into the basement as silently as possible despite my numb, clumsy limbs. Even with Ray’s jacket, I was beyond freezing.
Beep!
My watch made a little sound to announce that 4:30 had come. I nearly jumped out of my skin, but managed to keep from screaming and shot the watch a dirty look. Carefully shutting the door behind me, I crept up the stairs to the main floor and glanced around. Nothing. I was home-free. With a relieved sigh, I sank into one of the couches in my living room, feeling quite proud of myself. I had left the house for almost and hour and hadn’t gotten caught! It was awesome-I felt almost giddy. This was officially one of the coolest days in my entire-
“Roxanne…Terisa…Crown.”
Oh crap.
“Mom, please, before you say-“
“You are GROUNDED.”
I suddenly felt very, very tired.
“I know.”
Chapter Six
Go BARK Up Someone Else’s Tree
(Ray’s Words, Not Mine)
“Everyone turn to page 234. Now, as you can see from the chart…”
I stared blankly at the math book laying on the desktop right in front of me. Was I supposed to understand this? I must have missed that part of the instructions. My paper had my messy scrawl all over it, but at least half the answers were correct. I knew this stuff from last year, but the questions in the text book were tricky. I sighed and crumpled up my paper, shoving it into my desk. Shifting in my seat, I hung my head so my hair fell slightly over my eyes. My flaming gold eyes.
I could feel everyone’s gaze boring into the back of my head. I could hear some of the kids whispering about my sudden boldness. Whoever comes to school with a tattoo and color contacts and refuses to ‘take them out’ must be a rebel. And rebel, apparently, is the hottest stereotype of the year.
It was the same for Ray and Michelle. We were attracting whispers and curious glances from kids everywhere we went.
My math work was in my desk-crumpled into a ball from my constant folding and unfolding. Bad habit, I tend to do that to whatever I’m working on when I’m frustrated or anxious. No clue why, either.
“Psst!”
I glanced up at the sound. It was Jasmine, a girl I had met in the first year of middle school. She helped me with my homework a lot, and we were pretty close. Not like Ray and I, though. She was decently pretty, with long black hair down to her waist and tan skin. She wore glasses and was very petite. From what I’d seen of her work, she was a pretty darn good artist too.
I looked at her outstretched hand. There was a piece of paper in it—a note? Oh. I extended my hand and quickly took it from her, careful to open it under my desk.
What’s with the face paint and the contacts?
Hmph, figures. That was what everyone wanted to know. I glanced around, making sure Mr. Denton couldn’t see me before hastily scribbling back an answer.
Why so interested?
I tossed it back and watched her open it from the corner of my eye. A second later she had slid it back to me.
It’s pretty. The change in eye color is awesome too.
Well, that was unexpected.
You’re the first one to think so.
I handed it back under the desk. A moment later, her neat handwriting was below my own. I unfolded the note and peered down at it.
It doesn’t matter what other people think, it’s really unique.
Unique, huh?
“Miss Crown, is that something you’d like to share with the class?” Mr. Denton said. I looked up at him innocently. “Huh?”
“Is that a note?” He asked, walking over and holding his hand out as I shoved the note into my desk to buy some time. I’m screwed… I thought frantically, trying to think of something I could do to get out of the situation. Then I remembered my paper…
“You mean my work?” I asked, giving him my best confused look. “Give me the paper in the desk, Roxanne.” He said sternly. I reached into the desk, pulling out my crumpled assignment and smoothing out the creases hurriedly before handing it to him. He stared at it for a second and then gave me a suspicious glance from over his spectacles. I smiled innocently. He handed back the paper.
“The next time I catch you passing notes, it’ll be ISD.” He said threateningly. I scoffed quietly once he had turned away—In School Detention was nothing compared to the mess my life has been since finding that stupid little Ying-Yang half.
My gaze wandered up to where the clock was ticking on the wall to my left, just above some poster more suited for a kindergarten room than a 7th grade classroom. There was four more minutes until the bell rang and we would head to our next period, which was Study hall, the second-to-last class of the day. I usually hung out in the library, skimming through books and chatting with Ray and Michelle.
I glanced around the room. Jasmine was now doodling on a piece of scrap paper, Rayanna was immersed in a moderately sized book, and Michelle had her head on her arms, probably asleep. Everyone else was either whispering or finishing their homework, and Mr. Denton was filing some paperwork at his desk.
I sighed and looked at the clock again; two minutes to go. Did it really take that long to notice what everyone was doing? Hmph. My brain must be turning to goo.
So much had happened recently…I didn’t even understand it myself. I mean, let’s think realistically here. In two days, would you expect to loose your dog, find a weird pendant, have a creepy website logo scare the heck out of you, have a boy that’s so handsome he should be arrested bring said dog back, have hot cocoa spilled on you by that boy, pick up the pendant after which the boy runs out of your house like he was on fire, then feel like you’re on fire, jump into an icy shower, wake up because your friend calls telling you that everyone’s eye color changed and weird symbols are on their faces, sneak out to go and confer with said friends, nearly kill your best friend, sneak back in, get caught and grounded, then come to school the next day and have everyone whispering about/staring at you?
See? It is confusing.
“Roxanne!”
I nearly fell out of my chair as I was literally wrenched out of my thoughts by Rayanna’s scream in my ear. Letting out an alarmed yelp, I promptly toppled over, bringing my pile of books down with me. A moment later I was partly buried under papers and textbooks, with an impressive bruise forming on my stomach where my math book landed corner-down. The still-unfamiliar shock of meeting Rayanna’s silver orbs nearly killed me—I’d just had the breath knocked out of me, and now my body’s trying to loose it all over again—before my attention was diverted by Michelle.
“Come on!” The ginger-haired girl said. “We have an entire hour of freedom!” She was practically dancing around my desk.
“Oh yeah, sure. It’s not like I just nearly died under an avalanche of books or anything,” I said dryly, getting to my knees and gathering up my belongings. Ray rolled her eyes and helped me pick up the last few books before practically dragging me out of the room and down the hallway towards the library.
Things had become tense between Ray and I ever since the eye colors had changed. I couldn’t understand it—we’ve been friends for years—but something was telling me that there was something wrong with her, or that I shouldn’t be around her, or…something…while things between Michelle and I were as great as ever, if not better. It made no sense.
“Ouch!”
BAM!
For the second time in the past ten minutes, both my books and I went sprawling onto the floor. My rear was becoming quite sore from all of this ‘unexpected cushioning’. My head cracked against the tile, and for a moment all I saw was stars and dark spots fading in and out. Wow, they’re kinda pretty, I thought dazedly. A second later my vision came back, with a new arrival-an acute headache. I groaned and rubbed the back of my head, sitting up slowly. In the background of my throbbing head, I heard Rayanna stammering.
“WHAT THE…the…the…the…the…hi…can I help you?…With anything, anything at all?” Her voice became a little dreamy at the end.
Which meant one of two things. Either
A) the person she was talking to was extremely important/famous, or
B) the person she was talking to was extremely cute.
Judging by the context of what she had just said, I was betting on the latter. I slowly opened my eyes to see an oh-so familiar face, and nearly had a heart attack.
“Roxanne?!”
“Maximus?!”
And there he was, with his dark hair falling ever so slightly over his bronze eyes, brows furrowed in concern. He had been looking at something near my neck, but as soon as he realized that I was awake his gaze had switched to my eyes. I felt something around my shoulders and realized he was supporting me. Immediately, heat started rushing to my face, and I shot an alarmed glance over at Rayanna. Her mouth formed an ‘o’ shape as realization struck her.
“We’re too late, Shelly,” She said regretfully. “That’s Max. Roxy’s got first dibs.”
I could have slapped her. Luckily for her, and probably Michelle too, Max called my attention back to him by lifting me up slightly and leaning in closer. “Roxy, are you alright? I’m sorry, I was just looking for my next class…”
“I thought you went to D.D. Academy?” I asked blankly, barely absorbing his words. He flashed me a stunning smile that had my heart beating about a million miles a second. “I did, but I… well, I kind of was hoping that if I went to a public school, I’d find more girls like you…”
Okay, that was totally sweet. I nearly hugged him, but totally kept my cool. “Um, thanks,” I said slowly, hesitantly giving him a small smile. He returned it and lifted me to my feet, taking my newly gathered books from Michelle and handing them to me as soon as he was sure I could stand. “I’m fine, really.” I said after an awkward moment.
“I’m glad,” He said earnestly. Then his expression became a bit embarrassed and apologetic. “Hey, about the other day…”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said instantly. “It doesn’t matter.” He looked relieved. “That’s good. I wasn’t sure how to apologize…”
Hey, he was really cute, and he only ruined one of my favorite shirts. I would totally survive.
“Hey Max,” Rayanna piped up suddenly. “It’s study hall right now, so we can help you find your next class if you want,” I shot an alarmed glance in her direction, but it was too late-he was nodding. “I’d really appreciate that,” He said with a sheepish grin. “I’ve got Mrs. Corbin next.” I glanced at his schedule.
It was identical to mine.
“Um, cool, so do I. Come on, I’ll show you,” I said slowly, beginning to get a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.
It wasn’t until after I’d shown him around and had gotten onto the bus home that I realized he hadn’t even looked surprised at my sudden change of eye color or face art. It was like he had known what to expect. And he had been staring at my neck…
The symbol. Oh yeah, something was going on here.
Chapter Seven
In A New York Minute Or Less, Guaranteed.
“Is it really that bad?” My mom asked, staring at Rayanna and I. I guess we looked pretty stupid, with our hands cupped over our mouths and noses, trying to breathe as little as possible. I nodded, trying to focus on the sign of the outdoor Café we were eating at rather than think about the awful, polluted air of the city entering my lungs at that moment. Nobody except Rayanna and I seemed bothered by the horrible stench, but man! I’ve been to the city loads of times before, and it’s never been this bad. Ugh, gross!
It was supposed to be a shopping trip, on which Rayanna and myself were usually in a ‘joy-to-the-world-it’s-time-to-hit-the-stores’ kind of mood, but this time around our attitudes were more along the lines of ‘-omg-get-me-out-of-here-NOW-before-I-suffocate-from-the-stink’.
My mom had no idea.
“You’re absolutely sure you want to go home?” My mom asked for like, the fifth time, looking kind of disappointed. I felt really bad for making her drive all the way out here and then wanting to turn around and go back home, but neither of us would be able to take an entire day out here without collapsing. The traffic and well, loud city noise was killing me too, and that’s coming from a girl who listens to her Ipod on high. When I complain about something being too loud, you know something’s wrong.
“Sorry, Mrs. Crown.” Ray said in a guilty tone. My mom smiled at her, though the smile was a little strained. I could almost hear her thoughts-That’s 50 dollars worth of gas down the drain. It’s funny; my mom barely reacted when she saw my new eye-color and tattoo. She had been a little miffed that I hadn’t ‘told’ her before ‘making such an immature move’, but she accepted it as my choice…as long as it had come out my pocket. I promised her that it had.
Sighing, my mom handed the waitress some money and signed the receipt a moment later, and then stood up. “Alright girls,” She said, grabbing her purse. “Let’s go.”
As we began walking down the busy sidewalk, I glanced over at Ray. For normality’s sake we had put our hands down, and the smell was even more unbearable. She looked as disgusted as I felt. Maybe I looked that way too. Who knew?
Finally, Ray voiced my thoughts. “It makes you wonder…did the person who created the car know just how bad the freakin’ smell would be?”
Well, maybe not exactly my thoughts, but close. “If said person did, then they were even more sick and twisted than I originally gave them credit for.” She nodded seriously in agreement as we joined my mom waiting to cross the street with a couple other people.
Suddenly, my entire life came to a halt, and not just any normal old halt. It came to a screeching, skid-in-on-your-side-at-80-mph, total-wipeout, screaming-in-pain but laughing-your-butt-off-at-how-stupid-it-was halt.
Right beside us, not two feet away, was a massive. Black. Wolf.
I froze, my blood turning to ice. “It” came up to Ray’s shoulder. I could see the power of its muscles rippling beneath its ebonite fur, feel the menace and evil intent radiating off it. I heard Rayanna catch her breath beside me…but nobody else seemed to notice the rabid monster sitting on the curb, silver eyes fixed on someone to my left. There was no screaming, panicking, gasps or jolts. Nothing at all. My mom shifted her purse to her other shoulder as the man being watched by the wolf glanced at his watch impatiently.
I felt the Yin-mark blaze up like a living inferno. Rayanna reached for my hand and grasped my fingers until they felt like they were going to shatter under her grip. I squeezed back, hardly daring to breathe. It didn’t move, gaze never wavering. It might have been made of stone.
My heart was pounding in my chest, each breath shaky and ragged. I was trembling.
And then…everything sped up.
With a bloodcurdling snarl, the monster revealed its fangs, lunging at the man next to my mother faster than I could blink. This time, the man saw. Letting out a strangled yell, he jolted backwards and fell into the road. I realized what would happen a split second before it did.
There was a loud screech and awful thud as he fell beneath the tires of a passing bus. Blood splattered. People screamed. The bus swerved and honked.
The poor guy never stood a chance.
Time seemed to slow down as my eyes returned to the…the demon. It was now observing the bloodbath with a canine smirk on its face, tongue lolling out as it panted like a dog watching a tennis ball being thrown. Anger, like white-hot metal, blazed up inside me. That monster!
And then it saw us.
A sudden expression of interest flashed over its visage as the wolf studied first Rayanna, then myself. Then it gave a few short barks, like cruel laughter. An inhuman snarl was ripped from the depths of my through as I glared at it, teeth bared angrily. I felt an overwhelming surge of hate for the despicable murderer. I heard Ray echo my growl and knew she felt it too. It was like a gate flew open, a gate that had been barring the entrance to knowledge that was just out of reach. My body reacted of its own will, and suddenly I wasn’t me anymore. I was lunging for the creature-the Yang, my instincts told me-and it was lunging for me. I heard powerful strides and knew that Ray was only a step behind as we attacked the creature.
Fur flew. Fangs flashed. Growls and snarls split the air as humans screamed. But I wasn’t human anymore, I was something more. We were something more.
And then it was over.
With a final growl, the Yang turned and disappeared in the shadows beneath the bus. I was exhausted, but there was this thrill of energy still running through me. I threw back my head and let out an exhilarated howl to the heavens before glancing around. Everything was clearer, somehow…but the stench, if possible, was worse. I was going to be sick.
Then, the surge of strength I had felt was gone, and I was on my knees. I glanced around for Ray, and got the shock of my life as I met her shocked silver orbs.
Not three seconds before, she had been a wolf.
Chapter Eight
We’ve Barked Up The Wrong Tree This Time
“Wait, what?” Michelle asked blankly from where she sat, cross legged, on my bed. There were three pairs of eyes fixed on me as I paced back and forth in my bedroom, fighting down the overwhelming urge to panic. I could tell that I wasn’t the only one feeling it, either; Ray was fiercely braiding her curls with single-minded intensity, a sign that she was stressing out. I glared irritably at my red-headed friend; sometimes I wondered if she wasn’t really a blonde. Not that I have anything against blondes, but you know the type.
Michelle shrank back under my frustrated gaze. “Don’t get mad at me!” She said, frowning. “It’s not my fault you’re not explaining this whole thing clearly!”
Argh, I would have happily throttled her right then if she weren’t in this mess because of me. As she was, I felt obligated to spare her this once. “There’s no clear way to explain it!” I snapped. She crossed her arms. “Then how do you expect me to understand you, Roxy?!”
“ARGH! SHUT UP! I DON’T KNOW!”
I exploded, whirling on her as the frustration and irritation welling up inside of me choose that moment to overflow. My sleep had been plagued by nightmares of the horrible scene we had watched play out yesterday, powerless to stop it. Black wolves ran through my head, ripping and tearing with razor-sharp fangs. Michelle looked shocked and hurt at my outburst, causing a pang of guilt to tug ruefully at my heartstrings. “I’m sorry, okay?” I said, suddenly feeling drained as I flopped down onto the floor. “I don’t really understand it myself.”
What had happened yesterday was impossible to put into words. What that sick excuse for a wolf had done was nothing short of horrendous, heartless, atrocious, and vile. I shuddered as the sound of brakes screeching and blood splattering echoed in my ears…
And then there had been the…the transformation. Somehow, the pendant had taken over, influenced whatever it was that happened. Somehow turned us into…wolves? I recoiled at the thought of being anything like that thing, which I knew to be a Yang. Whatever they were.
We’re nothing like that…that thing! I snarled at myself inwardly. It was evil and twisted, while we were…we were…
Well… I actually haven’t gotten to that part yet.
Ray groaned, dropping her hands into her lap. “Michelle, she’s doing the best she can! Roxy…chill.” She said, obviously fed up with our inability to understand each other. We fell silent for a few minutes before I made another attempt to get my point across.
“Look…whatever happened yesterday…nobody else saw it. We were the only ones who saw the…the Yang. There has to be something significant about that.” Everybody nodded in agreement. Ray frowned a second later as she thought about my words. “Wait…how do you know what they’re called again?” She asked. I shrugged. “I’m actually not sure. I just know.” It was a lame explanation, but also the only one that made sense. There was really no clear way to put it into words. “Instinct, maybe?”
“It makes you wonder how long this has been going out with nobody realizing it.” Ray said. I glanced over…she looked like she was going to be sick. She had a point, though. “To anybody else, I bet it looked like an accident…so how many deaths are really caused by those monsters?” She asked. We all fell silent, a heavy blanket of despair settling over us.
“Maybe we’re supposed to stop them.” Michelle said abruptly. I glared at her, irritated. “Michelle, don’t be-“
“I’m serious!” The intensity of her voice made me fall silent and look at her a bit closer. Her brow was furrowed and she was biting the inside of her mouth, like she was concentrating really hard. “You and Ray were the only ones that could see that thing, right? Well, what if we’re supposed to stop them? And Roxy says that they’re called Yangs, so…”
Oh.
“So what you’re saying is that we’re the Yin? We’re supposed to…” I trailed off, then shook my head. “Michelle, we’re a bunch of teenage girls! We can’t do anything to stop those things! You didn’t see it, it was huge! It could have swallowed you whole and still had room for the rest of the city!” Michelle jumped to her feet, totally psyched out.
“Fight fire with fire!” She yelled. Ray and I exchanged concerned glances…Michelle had finally cracked. She sighed loudly in frustration and stomped her foot. “When you two got angry, you said you didn’t feel human anymore, right? Well what if you weren’t? What if you were wolves? Then we’d have a chance!”
“Michelle, are you insane? That’s absolutely idiotic! Not only is that impossible, but how the heck would we go about proving it if it were true? Do you want us to go find another one of those things? Because if you’re wrong, we’ll just get eaten! You’re insane!” I yelled. Rayanna rolled her eyes. “You know, by arguing with her you’re admitting that she’s got a point.”
I ignored her.
“What if that’s not the only thing that triggers it? Roxy, we have to try! Do you want those things to keep killing innocent people?” Michelle replied. She had me there; I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if we didn’t at least try. I probably knew she was right from the beginning, but I just didn’t want to admit it. I looked over at Ray helplessly. “Do you really want to do this?”
She stood up and walked over to me, face to face, silver to gold. “Roxy, do we have a choice?”
We’ve gone and barked up the wrong tree this time for sure, haven’t we?
The Apocalypse Saga in PM form
The Apocalypse Saga: Book 1
Full Moon
Full Moon
New Moon
Apocalypse
It’s amazing how the littlest things can completely turn your entire life upside-down. I used to be normal. Now, well…let’s just say it’s a good thing I like canines.
Notice I didn’t say dogs.
Chapter One
A Total Waste Of A Friday Afternoon
You know, I’ve always been more of a cat person than a dog person. Not that I dislike dogs or anything, but you just have to admire the silent dignity of a cat in comparison to the wild, overwhelming nature of the creature we call the dog. Man’s best friend? Pfft. Actually, the thing I like best about cats is the simple fact that they have less of a tendency to run away.
“Oliver, you pathetic excuse for a canine, where the heck are you?”
Which leads me to my current predicament: trudging through the woods with my two best friends in search of my oversized poodle, Oliver.
“Roxy, I don’t think he’s-ow-here. Ow!” I turned in time to see Rayanna yank her pant leg free of the thorny underbrush and begin weaving her way through the hazard to human life I like to call Nature to where I stood, balanced precariously on an old fallen tree. The bark was already rotting, and the whole thing was pretty unstable.
“What do you think made this tree fall?” I asked randomly, looking down at the giant trunk. It looked like a pretty old tree, not that it really matters. This was actually the forest behind my neighborhood, pretty far from my house but close enough that I came here every freaking day for…no apparent reason, actually.
“I don’t know…maybe your dumb dog ran into it. Look! I think I see the imprint of his stupid face!” Rayanna said sarcastically, pointing to a hollow in the old bark. I rolled my eyes and didn’t reply, instead focusing on not laughing as my tall friend ducked under several branches and had to crouch on the fallen tree trunk.
“Well this is convenient.” I grumbled irritably. “Stupid dog.” Okay, I know it sounds like I hate my dog, but that’s hardly the case. He just happened to totally ruin my Friday afternoon by chasing the milkman, or whatever he did.
“OUCH!”
A crash, cry of alarm, and thud alerted me to Michelle’s less-than-graceful entrance into the little clearing. I turned around, almost toppling over as the rotting bark shifted and crumbled, to find the petite form of my friend sprawled out, face down, in the dirt. To be honest, it was pretty funny. Her orange hair was splayed all around her head, mixing in with the dead leaves and dirt on the forest floor. I could even see the hole in the underbrush that she had fallen through.
“Nice one, Shelly!” Rayanna said appreciatively as I promptly fell off the log, doubled over with laughter. “I’ll give you ten bucks if you can do that again!” Michelle shot her a dirty look as she picked herself up off the ground, brushing the dirt and particles of leaves from her clothes. I couldn’t breathe, I was laughing so hard. Trust Michelle to do something retarded and totally highlight my suckish day.
“Oh, shut up.” She muttered, blushing from her toes to the roots of her hair. “Did you guys find Oliver?”
That shut me up. I got to my feet with a sigh, my gloominess setting back in. “I wish,” I groaned, rubbing my arms against the chilly September air. “If we had, I would’ve been home like, ten minutes ago.”
“Hey, don’t worry.” Rayanna said in a heroic attempt to make me ‘lighten up’. “Maybe someone found him and called your house by now. We could go back and check, seeing as he’s not out here.” I paused, struck by her point. “You know, you just might be right. Let’s go!” I said, my optimism (or what optimism I possess) renewed. Temporarily.
“Well that’s just great! Now we have to go all the way back through this stupid forest, and through the stupid creek, and…” I tuned out Michelle’s voice, occasionally catching little snippets of “stupid life” and “stupid air” as we began the long trek back to my house.
Before I continue, I suppose I should let you in on a bit of information. Like, who I am, and who Ray and Michelle are. Not that I doubt your ability to figure it out on your own, but it’s just easier this way. So there.
Okay, let me introduce myself. My name is Roxanne Crown, but my friends all call me Roxy. I’m thirteen years old as of yesterday, which happened to be the fourth of September. I’m in my second year of Middle School, the 7th Grade. Fun, huh? Not really. I mean, I’m not the most popular girl in school, but I have my own little group of friends and we like it that way. Hence, Rayanna Johnson and Michelle Goff, my two best friends since…well, ever. I mean, it feels like forever, we know each other so well. Rayanna is kind of tall, probably about 5’5. I’m a few inches shorter than her, but I’m the oldest. Haha. Anyway, she’s half white and half black, which made her skin a kind of creamy coffee color. It’s cool, in my opinion. She has this really thick, curly light-ish brown hair that falls to her shoulders, and she hates it but I’m so jealous of it. She’d trade me any day, according to her. Well, whenever she decides to, I’m SO there. Her features are strong, but they suit her bold personality perfectly. Michelle is kind of short,-okay, really short- about 4’10 or 4’11. I’m not sure. She’s got bright orange hair that’s mostly straight and falls just above the center of her back. She’s got pale white skin with a few freckles sprinkled across her face and bright brown eyes, as opposed to Rayanna’s really dark brown ones. (in my opinion, they look almost red. Creepy, yet cool.) She has delicate, thin features.
Me? I’m nothing special. I’m about 5’4, with dark brown hair that falls in layers to my shoulders, but it’s wavy and curly if I don’t straighten it, so I’m growing it out before it drives me insane. My best feature is my eyes, because they’re really dark with unusually long eyelashes, but the coolest part is that my eye color changes depending on the time of day. In the early morning, like 1:00am, they’re a pale gold with a red rim lining the iris. As the day goes on they get darker and darker, until they’re nearly pitch-black. It’s like they rise and set with the sun. My features are sort of balanced; not exactly delicate, but not out of proportion.
In our little group of friends, we’re all unbelievably different, but we complete each other. We have an unspoken set of rules that keep our friendship together, and none of us would ever break them. For example, friends over boys. Always. Not that any boys are even worth our time, they’re all idiots in our school. Anyway, we also seem to have a sort of hierarchy thing going on. I’m the leader, I tend to make the final decision in any situation. I guess it’s because I know how to talk my way into-or out of- anything. I think fast. Rayanna’s my second in command, my advisor-she handles any personal issues in the group, which consists of more than just Ray, Shelly, and I, but we’re the main part. As for Michelle- if the second in command had a second in command, that’d be her.
Anyway, so now you know who we are, or at least now you can visualize us. Back to the story, then.
“Roxy, are you gonna cross?” Rayanna’s voice tore me from my thoughts, and I looked up in surprise to find Ray and Michelle watching me impatiently from the other side of the stream, while I was just standing there like a moron. “Um…yeah.” I said, taken off guard. That didn’t happen often.
Just as I prepared to take a running start and leap over the stream, I saw something glittering in the water. My foot slid out from under me, and the next thing I knew I was on my butt in the middle of the water. “Roxy, are you okay?!” Ray asked in shock, easily clearing the stream and wading in to my side. I barely heard her, my gaze fixed on the thing that had been glittering from in the water.
It looked like part of a necklace, one of those friendship necklaces that have two halves and fit together. It was white with a black dot, from what I could see of it, seeing as it was partially submerged in mud. Actually, it looked kind of like the white half of that Chinese symbol, Yang-Ying or whatever it was. I got to my knees and carefully began digging it out of the mud, ignoring the confused looks on my friends’ faces.
“What is she…?” Michelle asked as though questioning my sanity. Rayanna only shrugged, looking just as confused. “There’s something in the mud,” I explained, finally freeing the thing and lifting it out of the water. It sparkled weirdly in the bright September sunlight, which brought to mind the fact that the water was FREEZING. I was shivering, but at the moment I didn’t care.
“Cool,” Rayanna said, helping me up. “What is it?”
“I don’t know,” I said slowly, turning it over in my hands. It was about half the size of a gold coin, and looked like a semi-circle except for the weird way it curved widely at the top and became thin at the bottom. If I had two white ones and flipped one upside-down, they would fit together perfectly. “That’s the white half of the Yin-Yang sign, right?” Ray asked curiously, holding out her hand for it. For some reason, I was loathe to hand it over, but I forced myself to place the little pendant in her palm. “Looks like it,” I said, jumping over the stream and looking ruefully down at my soaked jeans. “What does it mean?”
“I forget what the white one means, but I know that together they symbolize some sort of balance.” Ray shrugged, but I saw that her eyes never looked away from the pendant. A bad feeling twisted in my stomach, and I quickly reached out for the pendant. “Ray, let me see it.” I started to panic when she stepped back. “Ray!”
“No!” She hissed, glaring at me with a scary glint in her eyes. “It’s mine!”
“Ray, cut it out! This is no time for games!” I yelled. Rayanna never acted like this. “What’s wrong with you?! Give it!” I lunged for her.
“No!” She snarled out, sounding like an angry dog. I grabbed her wrist and snatched at the pendant frantically, terrified of what it was doing to her. “Let it go!” I shouted. “No!” She yelled back.
Smack!
Michelle’s hand connected with the back of Rayanna’s, sending the pendant flying from her grasp. I quickly snagged it from the air, sending Michelle a grateful glance before looking hesitantly at Rayanna. She looked like she was going to freaking eat me for a second, but then her murderous expression faded to shock, then confusion. “Ray?” I asked cautiously. She stared at me blankly. “Roxy? What just happened?”
Michelle and I stared at each other for a long moment before I finally looked back at Rayanna. “Um…”
Chapter Two
He Had Me At “I Found Your Dog”
“Yang-Ying…Yin-Yang…come on already!” I glared at my computer screen with murder-intent. The internet was being obnoxiously slow, and I wasn’t particularly patient at the moment. It had been a good hour and a half since the little ‘possession’ incident, and I was currently at home—poodleless—with that stupid little pendant sitting on the keyboard in front of me as I browsed through suggested sites (via Google) for information. None of them seemed particularly interesting, all having dull logos and names, and most written in Chinese characters. I mean, hello! I speak ENGLISH!
I skimmed the names of the websites and glanced briefly at their logos before scrolling down on the page. Down…down…down…d-Wait!
“Apocalypse-dot-com. Huh.” I read aloud, my curiosity captured. Then, my eyes fell on the logo and I froze.
The face of a wolf gazed out at me with gleaming eyes. It was separated into two parts, half white and half black, by a curved line. The Yin-Yang sign, in wolf form. The eye on the white half was a smoldering golden color, whereas the black half’s eye was an icy silver. I couldn’t seem to look away from it, our gazes locked…
Ding Dong!
The sound of the doorbell ringing broke the trance, and I jolted out of my chair and practically ran down the stairs, nearly falling over my own feet in my haste to escape the computer. I skid to a stop right in front of the door, taking a deep breath and trying to appear calm before opening it.
The boy was handsome. Extremely handsome. His raven hair was messy and just long enough that some of it fell over his bronze eyes. He looked to be about fifteen, but I wasn’t sure. “Um, hi,” I said breathlessly, forcing down the blush threatening to rise to my face. “Can I help you?”
He smiled, showing flawless white teeth. I felt kind of light-headed. “Hello,” He said. He had one of those voices, the smooth, rich kind that could make you do anything. “Are you Roxanne?”
“Roxy,” I corrected automatically, offering him a small smile. “And yes.” He took my hand and raised it to his lips, his eyes locked on mine. I felt heat rushing to my face. “Hello, Roxy. My name is Max. I believe I’ve found your dog.” For the first time, I realized that there was a leash around his wrist and large black form beside him. I gasped.
“Oliver!” At his name, my poodle looked up from his surveillance of the front yard and barked happily, panting and wagging his pom-pom tail like he hadn’t seen me in years. I almost expected his tail to fly right off from the way he was wagging it. “Thank you so much! Where did you find him?” I asked, stepping aside so they could come in. Maximus smiled and nodded, leading Oliver in, and I shut the door behind them. “Here, do you want something to drink?”
I know what you’re thinking right now. Why did you let him in!? What if he was a serial killer or something? Okay, yeah, I know. Not the smartest thing in the world for me to do, but I mean, he found Oliver. And he was hot. But that’s not why I invited him in. Okay, maybe it had something to do with it, but it was only right that I get him something to drink after he comes all that way—where did he live, anyway?—just to bring my dog back. Right?
A few minutes later, we were seated at the kitchen table with steaming mugs of hot cocoa, perfect for this unusually cold day. There had even been frost on the windows, this early in September! So messed up. Anyway, at this point I had regained some element of control and was able to act remotely normal.
“He was sitting beside my driveway when I got home from school,” Maximus said, stirring his hot chocolate for a moment. “It was quite a surprise.”
“I’ll bet,” I said, sipping my own mug of cocoa and wincing when it burnt my tongue. “Where do you go to school?”
“D.D. Academy,” He replied, a slightly embarrassed look on his handsome face. “Private school?” It wasn’t until after I’d blurted that out that I realized I sounded kind of accusing. “I mean, that’s cool. So you’ve got a lot of money, then.” That was a pretty safe assumption; D.D. Academy was EXPENSIVE, with a capital E.
“I guess so…My dad’s a scientist for the government, he comes up with new weaponry ideas and makes them work.” My jaw dropped at his words. He was in on top secret information if his dad really was part of that particular war effort! “You mean, he develops stuff like the hydrogen bomb?” I gasped, leaning forward intently. Max chuckled slightly at my enthusiasm, nodding. “Yeah, kind of.”
The way he said it was like he didn’t want to press the subject, so I had to let it slide. Unfortunately. There was a strange dullness to his eyes, like a door had shut behind them. He was staring down at his cocoa with an almost troubled expression on his face, jaw clenched and eyebrows furrowed. “Is something wrong?” I asked curiously. I guess I startled him from his thoughts, because his hand jerked and the hot chocolate splashed all over the table and onto my shirt.
“Ouch!” I yelped, leaping up as the steaming liquid touched my skin. He jolted up as well, apologies pouring from his mouth. “I’m so sorry, Roxanne! Are you alright?” Despite the pain of my skin burning, I felt kind of lightheaded at the way he was so concerned about my well-being. “Yeah, I’m fine. Let me just go change my shirt and find a new tablecloth.” I said with a small smile. Dude, that stuff was hot! Ignoring his constant apologies, I darted up the stairs and down the hallway to my room.
Ripping off my shirt hastily and throwing it on the cluttered floor where I stood, I turned to the mirror and surveyed the damage. The skin was red where the cocoa had burnt it, but it was hardly a third degree burn. Walking over to my closet, I started pawing through the shirts my mom had hung up. Why had Max been so surprised? It was like I had reminded him of something bad…
I took a red hoodie with black vines and roses on it off its hanger and pulled it over my head, still lost in thought. Opening the door, I started to step out when I caught sight of the little pendant sitting on my computer keyboard. I don’t know why that caught my attention, but it did. On impulse, and for no other reason, I walked over and picked it up. The little white symbol rested in my palm, glinting a bit in the light from the lamp. I couldn’t help but think that, just for that moment, there was something magical about the Yin symbol.
“Hey, Roxy-oh!”
The sound of Max’s dismayed gasp made me turn around in confusion. “What? What’s wrong?” I asked, bewildered by his expression of shock and horror, and the way his golden eyes were fixed on the Yin emblem resting in my hand.
“No…” He whispered. “Where did you…? I’ve got to go.” With that, he turned and bolted down the stairs and out of my house. ”Wait!” I yelled, running to the top of the stairs and staring at the door he had left ajar. After a moment I looked down at the pendant I was clutching tightly, confused beyond belief.
“What…just…happened?”
Chapter Three
I’d Rather Be Eaten By Wolves. Literally.
The Yin Yang symbol originates from the Chinese culture. It is said that the Yin and Yang symbol represents the wolf spirits living within us all, one evil and one good. The Yin is the white half of the circle, representing the following: good fortune, happiness, generosity, honor, peace, love, hope, empathy, truth, compassion, and faith. The Yang is the black half of the circle and represents the following: anger, envy, sorrow, pain, greed, regret, guilt, resentment, lies, self pity, and arrogance. Each half has a time when it is at its strongest potential to affect the universe. For the Yin, this is the night of the New Moon. For the Yang, it is the night of the Full Moon. It was said that anyone with the Yin Yang symbol on their person should not venture outdoors on these nights, least the forces choose to influence him in their favor...
“Really…” I muttered to myself in disbelief, reading the explanation below the picture of the Yin-Yang wolf, this time carefully avoiding meeting the silver and golden gaze of the wolf in the logo. “What’ll they do, turn you into a werewolf?” I asked aloud sarcastically, trying to keep from shuddering as the logo’s gaze burned into me. What was wrong with that thing, anyway? I couldn’t get the way it had froze me earlier out of my head. On top of that, I was still trying to understand Max’s problem.
Something is totally wrong with this world.
With a sigh, I leaned back in the computer chair and spun around. I had a killer headache from everything that had happened today. Outside, the moon was shining so brightly I had to close the blinds. It was full tonight, a big ole’ round disk in the sky.
Closing out of Internet Explorer, I stopped the spinning chair to stand up. The world spun, and I had to lean against the wall for support. Note to self: No more spinning on roll-y chairs. As soon as everything had more or less settled down, I made my way as quietly as I could down the stairs and to the door that lead to the deck. I wanted one last look at the night sky before I went to bed-rather later than I had originally planned, if my watch was right. It read 11:56pm. I wasn’t sure why I bothered to sneak around-my dad was away on a business trip, and my mom was at some party with her friends. She wouldn’t be back for at least another hour.
The cool night air was a huge relief. I walked out to the railing and leaned over, looking over at the dark expanse of trees that symbolized the forest we had been in earlier. The moon was right over the forest, and was unbelievably big, even for a harvest moon. There was something weird about it tonight, though. You know how most Harvest moons are big and orange? Well, this one was big all right, but it wasn’t orange. Nope, it was as silver as the Yang-wolf’s eye. I shivered, my hand moving to the pendant around my neck on instinct.
Big. Mistake.
Immediately, the Yin symbol seemed to light on fire. I yelped and fumbled for the latch-it felt like metal heated until it glows red, pressing against my skin. My fingers were clumsy, and I couldn’t seem to unlatch it. I yanked at the chain, intent on getting the pendant off before it branded into my skin permanently, my eyes watering from the pain.
Suddenly, the fire was everywhere. Burning in my eyes, my skin, even my heart…it coursed through my veins, alighting every nerve in my body with agony. The pendant was glowing more and more brightly. I lunged for the door to get inside, stumbling to the nearest bathroom and turning on the shower. I threw myself into the icy spray, feeling it drench my hair and my clothes. It didn’t help, the fire igniting every fiber of my being until I couldn’t even see…
Three minutes later, it was over.
I opened my eyes, breathing like I had just run a marathon in record time. It took me a few seconds to realize where I was, curled up in a tight little ball in the shower, with freezing water raining down on my head. For a while, I was too afraid to move. If the burning sensation had come back, I think I might have died. Shivering, I slowly stood up and turned off the water. The only sound left was the dripping of my clothes and hair. I reached up for the pendant, but there was nothing on the chain. With a sense of cold dread, I turned slowly to look into the mirror.
Right where it always was, just below my collar bone, was the pendant. The only difference was the fact that the Yin symbol was no longer hanging around my neck.
It was tattooed into my skin.
For the Yang, it is the night of the Full Moon.
The words I had read on the website earlier abruptly echoed in my mind. My eyes widened as I remembered what else I had read.
‘…those with the Yin Yang symbol on their person should not venture outdoors on these nights, least the forces choose to influence him in their favor…’
Look, I’m not a superstitious person. I don’t carry around good-luck charms or nail horseshoes to my front door. I don’t know what made me do it, even to this day. Slowly, I lifted my gaze from the pendant-shaped tattoo on my chest to meet the eyes of my reflection, and the second I did, the brown eyes of my reflection became brilliant, smoldering gold.
My watch chimed midnight just as I fainted.
How cliché.
Chapter Four
Waking Up Has Never Been So…Eventful.
“Wake me up! Wake me up inside! I can’t wake up! Wake me up inside! Save me! Call my name and save me from the dark…”
I was wrenched away from the sweet silence of oblivion by the sound of Evanescence’s Bring Me To Life blaring directly into my ear. Wincing, I rubbed the now-throbbing ear and wearily groped around for my cell phone. The ring tone was still going, loudly. Finally I located it, stuck halfway under my pillow. The thing was vibrating like crazy, rock music thundering so loudly I was surprised I hadn’t gone deaf from the racket. Only half-conscious, I flipped open the cell and put it up to my ear, muffling a yawn with one hand.
“Ray?” I asked sleepily, glancing at my digital alarm clock. “What do you want? It’s three in the morning.”
“ROXY, WAKE UP! IT’S AN EMERGENCY!” Rayanna screamed frantically. Panic was evident in her voice, and I snapped to attention…well, as well I could, given the fact that I felt like I had gone to sleep only three minutes before.
“Calm down, I can’t exactly understand you when you’re screaming.” I said, trying to sooth her. Why was I so tired? And why did my entire body feel like one giant bruise?
“I’ve been calling you since midnight, Roxy! Something unbelievably weird just happened to me, and to Michelle too! Go look in the mirror, right now! GET UP!” She yelled frantically. Bemused, but willing to humor her, I picked myself off my mattress and staggered over to my vanity. “You’d better have a good reason for waking me up this early, Ray,” I warned her.
“Just look in the mirror!” Came her reply. Sighing, I did as I was told.
And promptly dropped the phone.
Everything that had happened only a few hours ago came rushing back like a tidal wave as I stared at the golden-eyed girl in my mirror. There were more changes that had occurred while I was asleep, though. My eyes had become less of an amber and were now bordering the color of a solid bar of gold in the sunlight. From the corner of my right eye, a swirling, tattoo-like symbol had appeared on my skin, lacing down the right side of my face, down my neck, and disappearing beneath my shirt. It was intricate and beautiful, with swirling patterns that were a bright, shimmering gold, but right then it was just flat out freaky. I could hear Rayanna’s voice coming from the phone on the floor, and clumsily picked it up.
“Do you have a weird mark on your face too?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. “Oh GOD, Roxy…” She panicked, and I could hear her voice rising with anxiety. “What’s going on? What’s happening? It’s that stupid pendant you found, isn’t it? ISN’T IT?”
Wow. Ray isn’t one to panic under any circumstance. I mean, she’s been known—at the age of 11, no less—to open the door to a complete stranger after being scared half to death, barely give him time to ask for a phone, and go off like she was some sort of phone police. The whole ‘who the heck do you think you are? You just scared the crap out of me and my friends! Who the heck does that?’ and about 30 minutes later… ‘So if you need a phone, you can go ask the neighbors!’ Slam! Point to Rayanna!
“Okay, we need to…we need to…”
I needed a cup of hot chocolate, a warm blanket, and a psychiatrist right now more than anything. I know I’m not insane, but there was no other explanation! But maybe if it was happening to Michelle and Rayanna too, it really was the pendant. The website had been right…and it was technically my fault for being an idiot and ignoring the information I had just read. Then again, my actions were actually justifiable. You’d have to be insane to think that some random little thing that looks like it came off of a charm bracelet would have the power to alter the lives of both you and your friends. See? I feel insane for just writing that! So maybe it wasn’t the pendant after all…
“ROXY!” Ray’s voice snapped me from my reverie. “Stop zoning out! We need to talk. Like, now.” I stared blankly at the phone, wondering if Rayanna was the insane one. “Ray,” I began slowly. “It’s three o’ five in the morning. Normal children don’t go outside at three o’ five in the morning! My mother is not going to-”
“Roxy, would you open your eyes?!” Ray’s voice rose as she cut me off, making me hold the phone about a foot away from my ear and wince. “Normal children do not wake up in the middle of the night with different eye colors and weird markings on their faces! We obviously do not qualify as normal! Therefore, it doesn’t matter what your mom says! This is an emergency!”
Okay, she had a point. But really, I so did not want to sneak out of my house this early.
“ROXY!” Rayanna screamed.
I sighed. Facing a hysteric Rayanna this early in the morning without at least four cups of coffee was cruel and unusual punishment.
“Meet me by that old fallen tree in fifteen minutes,” I finally said. “And bring Michelle.” With that, I snapped the phone shut and wearily looked around for some good, spy-worthy clothes.
The things I do for my friends. Hmph.
Full Moon
Full Moon
New Moon
Apocalypse
It’s amazing how the littlest things can completely turn your entire life upside-down. I used to be normal. Now, well…let’s just say it’s a good thing I like canines.
Notice I didn’t say dogs.
Chapter One
A Total Waste Of A Friday Afternoon
You know, I’ve always been more of a cat person than a dog person. Not that I dislike dogs or anything, but you just have to admire the silent dignity of a cat in comparison to the wild, overwhelming nature of the creature we call the dog. Man’s best friend? Pfft. Actually, the thing I like best about cats is the simple fact that they have less of a tendency to run away.
“Oliver, you pathetic excuse for a canine, where the heck are you?”
Which leads me to my current predicament: trudging through the woods with my two best friends in search of my oversized poodle, Oliver.
“Roxy, I don’t think he’s-ow-here. Ow!” I turned in time to see Rayanna yank her pant leg free of the thorny underbrush and begin weaving her way through the hazard to human life I like to call Nature to where I stood, balanced precariously on an old fallen tree. The bark was already rotting, and the whole thing was pretty unstable.
“What do you think made this tree fall?” I asked randomly, looking down at the giant trunk. It looked like a pretty old tree, not that it really matters. This was actually the forest behind my neighborhood, pretty far from my house but close enough that I came here every freaking day for…no apparent reason, actually.
“I don’t know…maybe your dumb dog ran into it. Look! I think I see the imprint of his stupid face!” Rayanna said sarcastically, pointing to a hollow in the old bark. I rolled my eyes and didn’t reply, instead focusing on not laughing as my tall friend ducked under several branches and had to crouch on the fallen tree trunk.
“Well this is convenient.” I grumbled irritably. “Stupid dog.” Okay, I know it sounds like I hate my dog, but that’s hardly the case. He just happened to totally ruin my Friday afternoon by chasing the milkman, or whatever he did.
“OUCH!”
A crash, cry of alarm, and thud alerted me to Michelle’s less-than-graceful entrance into the little clearing. I turned around, almost toppling over as the rotting bark shifted and crumbled, to find the petite form of my friend sprawled out, face down, in the dirt. To be honest, it was pretty funny. Her orange hair was splayed all around her head, mixing in with the dead leaves and dirt on the forest floor. I could even see the hole in the underbrush that she had fallen through.
“Nice one, Shelly!” Rayanna said appreciatively as I promptly fell off the log, doubled over with laughter. “I’ll give you ten bucks if you can do that again!” Michelle shot her a dirty look as she picked herself up off the ground, brushing the dirt and particles of leaves from her clothes. I couldn’t breathe, I was laughing so hard. Trust Michelle to do something retarded and totally highlight my suckish day.
“Oh, shut up.” She muttered, blushing from her toes to the roots of her hair. “Did you guys find Oliver?”
That shut me up. I got to my feet with a sigh, my gloominess setting back in. “I wish,” I groaned, rubbing my arms against the chilly September air. “If we had, I would’ve been home like, ten minutes ago.”
“Hey, don’t worry.” Rayanna said in a heroic attempt to make me ‘lighten up’. “Maybe someone found him and called your house by now. We could go back and check, seeing as he’s not out here.” I paused, struck by her point. “You know, you just might be right. Let’s go!” I said, my optimism (or what optimism I possess) renewed. Temporarily.
“Well that’s just great! Now we have to go all the way back through this stupid forest, and through the stupid creek, and…” I tuned out Michelle’s voice, occasionally catching little snippets of “stupid life” and “stupid air” as we began the long trek back to my house.
Before I continue, I suppose I should let you in on a bit of information. Like, who I am, and who Ray and Michelle are. Not that I doubt your ability to figure it out on your own, but it’s just easier this way. So there.
Okay, let me introduce myself. My name is Roxanne Crown, but my friends all call me Roxy. I’m thirteen years old as of yesterday, which happened to be the fourth of September. I’m in my second year of Middle School, the 7th Grade. Fun, huh? Not really. I mean, I’m not the most popular girl in school, but I have my own little group of friends and we like it that way. Hence, Rayanna Johnson and Michelle Goff, my two best friends since…well, ever. I mean, it feels like forever, we know each other so well. Rayanna is kind of tall, probably about 5’5. I’m a few inches shorter than her, but I’m the oldest. Haha. Anyway, she’s half white and half black, which made her skin a kind of creamy coffee color. It’s cool, in my opinion. She has this really thick, curly light-ish brown hair that falls to her shoulders, and she hates it but I’m so jealous of it. She’d trade me any day, according to her. Well, whenever she decides to, I’m SO there. Her features are strong, but they suit her bold personality perfectly. Michelle is kind of short,-okay, really short- about 4’10 or 4’11. I’m not sure. She’s got bright orange hair that’s mostly straight and falls just above the center of her back. She’s got pale white skin with a few freckles sprinkled across her face and bright brown eyes, as opposed to Rayanna’s really dark brown ones. (in my opinion, they look almost red. Creepy, yet cool.) She has delicate, thin features.
Me? I’m nothing special. I’m about 5’4, with dark brown hair that falls in layers to my shoulders, but it’s wavy and curly if I don’t straighten it, so I’m growing it out before it drives me insane. My best feature is my eyes, because they’re really dark with unusually long eyelashes, but the coolest part is that my eye color changes depending on the time of day. In the early morning, like 1:00am, they’re a pale gold with a red rim lining the iris. As the day goes on they get darker and darker, until they’re nearly pitch-black. It’s like they rise and set with the sun. My features are sort of balanced; not exactly delicate, but not out of proportion.
In our little group of friends, we’re all unbelievably different, but we complete each other. We have an unspoken set of rules that keep our friendship together, and none of us would ever break them. For example, friends over boys. Always. Not that any boys are even worth our time, they’re all idiots in our school. Anyway, we also seem to have a sort of hierarchy thing going on. I’m the leader, I tend to make the final decision in any situation. I guess it’s because I know how to talk my way into-or out of- anything. I think fast. Rayanna’s my second in command, my advisor-she handles any personal issues in the group, which consists of more than just Ray, Shelly, and I, but we’re the main part. As for Michelle- if the second in command had a second in command, that’d be her.
Anyway, so now you know who we are, or at least now you can visualize us. Back to the story, then.
“Roxy, are you gonna cross?” Rayanna’s voice tore me from my thoughts, and I looked up in surprise to find Ray and Michelle watching me impatiently from the other side of the stream, while I was just standing there like a moron. “Um…yeah.” I said, taken off guard. That didn’t happen often.
Just as I prepared to take a running start and leap over the stream, I saw something glittering in the water. My foot slid out from under me, and the next thing I knew I was on my butt in the middle of the water. “Roxy, are you okay?!” Ray asked in shock, easily clearing the stream and wading in to my side. I barely heard her, my gaze fixed on the thing that had been glittering from in the water.
It looked like part of a necklace, one of those friendship necklaces that have two halves and fit together. It was white with a black dot, from what I could see of it, seeing as it was partially submerged in mud. Actually, it looked kind of like the white half of that Chinese symbol, Yang-Ying or whatever it was. I got to my knees and carefully began digging it out of the mud, ignoring the confused looks on my friends’ faces.
“What is she…?” Michelle asked as though questioning my sanity. Rayanna only shrugged, looking just as confused. “There’s something in the mud,” I explained, finally freeing the thing and lifting it out of the water. It sparkled weirdly in the bright September sunlight, which brought to mind the fact that the water was FREEZING. I was shivering, but at the moment I didn’t care.
“Cool,” Rayanna said, helping me up. “What is it?”
“I don’t know,” I said slowly, turning it over in my hands. It was about half the size of a gold coin, and looked like a semi-circle except for the weird way it curved widely at the top and became thin at the bottom. If I had two white ones and flipped one upside-down, they would fit together perfectly. “That’s the white half of the Yin-Yang sign, right?” Ray asked curiously, holding out her hand for it. For some reason, I was loathe to hand it over, but I forced myself to place the little pendant in her palm. “Looks like it,” I said, jumping over the stream and looking ruefully down at my soaked jeans. “What does it mean?”
“I forget what the white one means, but I know that together they symbolize some sort of balance.” Ray shrugged, but I saw that her eyes never looked away from the pendant. A bad feeling twisted in my stomach, and I quickly reached out for the pendant. “Ray, let me see it.” I started to panic when she stepped back. “Ray!”
“No!” She hissed, glaring at me with a scary glint in her eyes. “It’s mine!”
“Ray, cut it out! This is no time for games!” I yelled. Rayanna never acted like this. “What’s wrong with you?! Give it!” I lunged for her.
“No!” She snarled out, sounding like an angry dog. I grabbed her wrist and snatched at the pendant frantically, terrified of what it was doing to her. “Let it go!” I shouted. “No!” She yelled back.
Smack!
Michelle’s hand connected with the back of Rayanna’s, sending the pendant flying from her grasp. I quickly snagged it from the air, sending Michelle a grateful glance before looking hesitantly at Rayanna. She looked like she was going to freaking eat me for a second, but then her murderous expression faded to shock, then confusion. “Ray?” I asked cautiously. She stared at me blankly. “Roxy? What just happened?”
Michelle and I stared at each other for a long moment before I finally looked back at Rayanna. “Um…”
Chapter Two
He Had Me At “I Found Your Dog”
“Yang-Ying…Yin-Yang…come on already!” I glared at my computer screen with murder-intent. The internet was being obnoxiously slow, and I wasn’t particularly patient at the moment. It had been a good hour and a half since the little ‘possession’ incident, and I was currently at home—poodleless—with that stupid little pendant sitting on the keyboard in front of me as I browsed through suggested sites (via Google) for information. None of them seemed particularly interesting, all having dull logos and names, and most written in Chinese characters. I mean, hello! I speak ENGLISH!
I skimmed the names of the websites and glanced briefly at their logos before scrolling down on the page. Down…down…down…d-Wait!
“Apocalypse-dot-com. Huh.” I read aloud, my curiosity captured. Then, my eyes fell on the logo and I froze.
The face of a wolf gazed out at me with gleaming eyes. It was separated into two parts, half white and half black, by a curved line. The Yin-Yang sign, in wolf form. The eye on the white half was a smoldering golden color, whereas the black half’s eye was an icy silver. I couldn’t seem to look away from it, our gazes locked…
Ding Dong!
The sound of the doorbell ringing broke the trance, and I jolted out of my chair and practically ran down the stairs, nearly falling over my own feet in my haste to escape the computer. I skid to a stop right in front of the door, taking a deep breath and trying to appear calm before opening it.
The boy was handsome. Extremely handsome. His raven hair was messy and just long enough that some of it fell over his bronze eyes. He looked to be about fifteen, but I wasn’t sure. “Um, hi,” I said breathlessly, forcing down the blush threatening to rise to my face. “Can I help you?”
He smiled, showing flawless white teeth. I felt kind of light-headed. “Hello,” He said. He had one of those voices, the smooth, rich kind that could make you do anything. “Are you Roxanne?”
“Roxy,” I corrected automatically, offering him a small smile. “And yes.” He took my hand and raised it to his lips, his eyes locked on mine. I felt heat rushing to my face. “Hello, Roxy. My name is Max. I believe I’ve found your dog.” For the first time, I realized that there was a leash around his wrist and large black form beside him. I gasped.
“Oliver!” At his name, my poodle looked up from his surveillance of the front yard and barked happily, panting and wagging his pom-pom tail like he hadn’t seen me in years. I almost expected his tail to fly right off from the way he was wagging it. “Thank you so much! Where did you find him?” I asked, stepping aside so they could come in. Maximus smiled and nodded, leading Oliver in, and I shut the door behind them. “Here, do you want something to drink?”
I know what you’re thinking right now. Why did you let him in!? What if he was a serial killer or something? Okay, yeah, I know. Not the smartest thing in the world for me to do, but I mean, he found Oliver. And he was hot. But that’s not why I invited him in. Okay, maybe it had something to do with it, but it was only right that I get him something to drink after he comes all that way—where did he live, anyway?—just to bring my dog back. Right?
A few minutes later, we were seated at the kitchen table with steaming mugs of hot cocoa, perfect for this unusually cold day. There had even been frost on the windows, this early in September! So messed up. Anyway, at this point I had regained some element of control and was able to act remotely normal.
“He was sitting beside my driveway when I got home from school,” Maximus said, stirring his hot chocolate for a moment. “It was quite a surprise.”
“I’ll bet,” I said, sipping my own mug of cocoa and wincing when it burnt my tongue. “Where do you go to school?”
“D.D. Academy,” He replied, a slightly embarrassed look on his handsome face. “Private school?” It wasn’t until after I’d blurted that out that I realized I sounded kind of accusing. “I mean, that’s cool. So you’ve got a lot of money, then.” That was a pretty safe assumption; D.D. Academy was EXPENSIVE, with a capital E.
“I guess so…My dad’s a scientist for the government, he comes up with new weaponry ideas and makes them work.” My jaw dropped at his words. He was in on top secret information if his dad really was part of that particular war effort! “You mean, he develops stuff like the hydrogen bomb?” I gasped, leaning forward intently. Max chuckled slightly at my enthusiasm, nodding. “Yeah, kind of.”
The way he said it was like he didn’t want to press the subject, so I had to let it slide. Unfortunately. There was a strange dullness to his eyes, like a door had shut behind them. He was staring down at his cocoa with an almost troubled expression on his face, jaw clenched and eyebrows furrowed. “Is something wrong?” I asked curiously. I guess I startled him from his thoughts, because his hand jerked and the hot chocolate splashed all over the table and onto my shirt.
“Ouch!” I yelped, leaping up as the steaming liquid touched my skin. He jolted up as well, apologies pouring from his mouth. “I’m so sorry, Roxanne! Are you alright?” Despite the pain of my skin burning, I felt kind of lightheaded at the way he was so concerned about my well-being. “Yeah, I’m fine. Let me just go change my shirt and find a new tablecloth.” I said with a small smile. Dude, that stuff was hot! Ignoring his constant apologies, I darted up the stairs and down the hallway to my room.
Ripping off my shirt hastily and throwing it on the cluttered floor where I stood, I turned to the mirror and surveyed the damage. The skin was red where the cocoa had burnt it, but it was hardly a third degree burn. Walking over to my closet, I started pawing through the shirts my mom had hung up. Why had Max been so surprised? It was like I had reminded him of something bad…
I took a red hoodie with black vines and roses on it off its hanger and pulled it over my head, still lost in thought. Opening the door, I started to step out when I caught sight of the little pendant sitting on my computer keyboard. I don’t know why that caught my attention, but it did. On impulse, and for no other reason, I walked over and picked it up. The little white symbol rested in my palm, glinting a bit in the light from the lamp. I couldn’t help but think that, just for that moment, there was something magical about the Yin symbol.
“Hey, Roxy-oh!”
The sound of Max’s dismayed gasp made me turn around in confusion. “What? What’s wrong?” I asked, bewildered by his expression of shock and horror, and the way his golden eyes were fixed on the Yin emblem resting in my hand.
“No…” He whispered. “Where did you…? I’ve got to go.” With that, he turned and bolted down the stairs and out of my house. ”Wait!” I yelled, running to the top of the stairs and staring at the door he had left ajar. After a moment I looked down at the pendant I was clutching tightly, confused beyond belief.
“What…just…happened?”
Chapter Three
I’d Rather Be Eaten By Wolves. Literally.
The Yin Yang symbol originates from the Chinese culture. It is said that the Yin and Yang symbol represents the wolf spirits living within us all, one evil and one good. The Yin is the white half of the circle, representing the following: good fortune, happiness, generosity, honor, peace, love, hope, empathy, truth, compassion, and faith. The Yang is the black half of the circle and represents the following: anger, envy, sorrow, pain, greed, regret, guilt, resentment, lies, self pity, and arrogance. Each half has a time when it is at its strongest potential to affect the universe. For the Yin, this is the night of the New Moon. For the Yang, it is the night of the Full Moon. It was said that anyone with the Yin Yang symbol on their person should not venture outdoors on these nights, least the forces choose to influence him in their favor...
“Really…” I muttered to myself in disbelief, reading the explanation below the picture of the Yin-Yang wolf, this time carefully avoiding meeting the silver and golden gaze of the wolf in the logo. “What’ll they do, turn you into a werewolf?” I asked aloud sarcastically, trying to keep from shuddering as the logo’s gaze burned into me. What was wrong with that thing, anyway? I couldn’t get the way it had froze me earlier out of my head. On top of that, I was still trying to understand Max’s problem.
Something is totally wrong with this world.
With a sigh, I leaned back in the computer chair and spun around. I had a killer headache from everything that had happened today. Outside, the moon was shining so brightly I had to close the blinds. It was full tonight, a big ole’ round disk in the sky.
Closing out of Internet Explorer, I stopped the spinning chair to stand up. The world spun, and I had to lean against the wall for support. Note to self: No more spinning on roll-y chairs. As soon as everything had more or less settled down, I made my way as quietly as I could down the stairs and to the door that lead to the deck. I wanted one last look at the night sky before I went to bed-rather later than I had originally planned, if my watch was right. It read 11:56pm. I wasn’t sure why I bothered to sneak around-my dad was away on a business trip, and my mom was at some party with her friends. She wouldn’t be back for at least another hour.
The cool night air was a huge relief. I walked out to the railing and leaned over, looking over at the dark expanse of trees that symbolized the forest we had been in earlier. The moon was right over the forest, and was unbelievably big, even for a harvest moon. There was something weird about it tonight, though. You know how most Harvest moons are big and orange? Well, this one was big all right, but it wasn’t orange. Nope, it was as silver as the Yang-wolf’s eye. I shivered, my hand moving to the pendant around my neck on instinct.
Big. Mistake.
Immediately, the Yin symbol seemed to light on fire. I yelped and fumbled for the latch-it felt like metal heated until it glows red, pressing against my skin. My fingers were clumsy, and I couldn’t seem to unlatch it. I yanked at the chain, intent on getting the pendant off before it branded into my skin permanently, my eyes watering from the pain.
Suddenly, the fire was everywhere. Burning in my eyes, my skin, even my heart…it coursed through my veins, alighting every nerve in my body with agony. The pendant was glowing more and more brightly. I lunged for the door to get inside, stumbling to the nearest bathroom and turning on the shower. I threw myself into the icy spray, feeling it drench my hair and my clothes. It didn’t help, the fire igniting every fiber of my being until I couldn’t even see…
Three minutes later, it was over.
I opened my eyes, breathing like I had just run a marathon in record time. It took me a few seconds to realize where I was, curled up in a tight little ball in the shower, with freezing water raining down on my head. For a while, I was too afraid to move. If the burning sensation had come back, I think I might have died. Shivering, I slowly stood up and turned off the water. The only sound left was the dripping of my clothes and hair. I reached up for the pendant, but there was nothing on the chain. With a sense of cold dread, I turned slowly to look into the mirror.
Right where it always was, just below my collar bone, was the pendant. The only difference was the fact that the Yin symbol was no longer hanging around my neck.
It was tattooed into my skin.
For the Yang, it is the night of the Full Moon.
The words I had read on the website earlier abruptly echoed in my mind. My eyes widened as I remembered what else I had read.
‘…those with the Yin Yang symbol on their person should not venture outdoors on these nights, least the forces choose to influence him in their favor…’
Look, I’m not a superstitious person. I don’t carry around good-luck charms or nail horseshoes to my front door. I don’t know what made me do it, even to this day. Slowly, I lifted my gaze from the pendant-shaped tattoo on my chest to meet the eyes of my reflection, and the second I did, the brown eyes of my reflection became brilliant, smoldering gold.
My watch chimed midnight just as I fainted.
How cliché.
Chapter Four
Waking Up Has Never Been So…Eventful.
“Wake me up! Wake me up inside! I can’t wake up! Wake me up inside! Save me! Call my name and save me from the dark…”
I was wrenched away from the sweet silence of oblivion by the sound of Evanescence’s Bring Me To Life blaring directly into my ear. Wincing, I rubbed the now-throbbing ear and wearily groped around for my cell phone. The ring tone was still going, loudly. Finally I located it, stuck halfway under my pillow. The thing was vibrating like crazy, rock music thundering so loudly I was surprised I hadn’t gone deaf from the racket. Only half-conscious, I flipped open the cell and put it up to my ear, muffling a yawn with one hand.
“Ray?” I asked sleepily, glancing at my digital alarm clock. “What do you want? It’s three in the morning.”
“ROXY, WAKE UP! IT’S AN EMERGENCY!” Rayanna screamed frantically. Panic was evident in her voice, and I snapped to attention…well, as well I could, given the fact that I felt like I had gone to sleep only three minutes before.
“Calm down, I can’t exactly understand you when you’re screaming.” I said, trying to sooth her. Why was I so tired? And why did my entire body feel like one giant bruise?
“I’ve been calling you since midnight, Roxy! Something unbelievably weird just happened to me, and to Michelle too! Go look in the mirror, right now! GET UP!” She yelled frantically. Bemused, but willing to humor her, I picked myself off my mattress and staggered over to my vanity. “You’d better have a good reason for waking me up this early, Ray,” I warned her.
“Just look in the mirror!” Came her reply. Sighing, I did as I was told.
And promptly dropped the phone.
Everything that had happened only a few hours ago came rushing back like a tidal wave as I stared at the golden-eyed girl in my mirror. There were more changes that had occurred while I was asleep, though. My eyes had become less of an amber and were now bordering the color of a solid bar of gold in the sunlight. From the corner of my right eye, a swirling, tattoo-like symbol had appeared on my skin, lacing down the right side of my face, down my neck, and disappearing beneath my shirt. It was intricate and beautiful, with swirling patterns that were a bright, shimmering gold, but right then it was just flat out freaky. I could hear Rayanna’s voice coming from the phone on the floor, and clumsily picked it up.
“Do you have a weird mark on your face too?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. “Oh GOD, Roxy…” She panicked, and I could hear her voice rising with anxiety. “What’s going on? What’s happening? It’s that stupid pendant you found, isn’t it? ISN’T IT?”
Wow. Ray isn’t one to panic under any circumstance. I mean, she’s been known—at the age of 11, no less—to open the door to a complete stranger after being scared half to death, barely give him time to ask for a phone, and go off like she was some sort of phone police. The whole ‘who the heck do you think you are? You just scared the crap out of me and my friends! Who the heck does that?’ and about 30 minutes later… ‘So if you need a phone, you can go ask the neighbors!’ Slam! Point to Rayanna!
“Okay, we need to…we need to…”
I needed a cup of hot chocolate, a warm blanket, and a psychiatrist right now more than anything. I know I’m not insane, but there was no other explanation! But maybe if it was happening to Michelle and Rayanna too, it really was the pendant. The website had been right…and it was technically my fault for being an idiot and ignoring the information I had just read. Then again, my actions were actually justifiable. You’d have to be insane to think that some random little thing that looks like it came off of a charm bracelet would have the power to alter the lives of both you and your friends. See? I feel insane for just writing that! So maybe it wasn’t the pendant after all…
“ROXY!” Ray’s voice snapped me from my reverie. “Stop zoning out! We need to talk. Like, now.” I stared blankly at the phone, wondering if Rayanna was the insane one. “Ray,” I began slowly. “It’s three o’ five in the morning. Normal children don’t go outside at three o’ five in the morning! My mother is not going to-”
“Roxy, would you open your eyes?!” Ray’s voice rose as she cut me off, making me hold the phone about a foot away from my ear and wince. “Normal children do not wake up in the middle of the night with different eye colors and weird markings on their faces! We obviously do not qualify as normal! Therefore, it doesn’t matter what your mom says! This is an emergency!”
Okay, she had a point. But really, I so did not want to sneak out of my house this early.
“ROXY!” Rayanna screamed.
I sighed. Facing a hysteric Rayanna this early in the morning without at least four cups of coffee was cruel and unusual punishment.
“Meet me by that old fallen tree in fifteen minutes,” I finally said. “And bring Michelle.” With that, I snapped the phone shut and wearily looked around for some good, spy-worthy clothes.
The things I do for my friends. Hmph.
Chapter Five
It’s a Wolf-Eat-Wolf World
“…and then Ray’s call woke me up. I guess you know the rest from there…”
I pulled my knees up to my chest, wishing that I had thought to bring a jacket. I had never realized that September nights—well, technically mornings, but whatever—were so cold. It was really dark, too, but even the darkness couldn’t hide the smoldering gold of Michelle’s eyes as she stared at me. There was a very weak light on the horizon, a promise of morning yet to come. A reassuring thought.
The ever-so-faint light, despite it’s practically undetectable state, still managed to reflect off the metallic blue and gold swirls that flowed from the corner of Michelle’s left eye and down her neck to disappear beneath the collar of her thick winter coat. The weird symbols glittered and shimmered in a strange way, like moonlight on moving waters. Captivating and creepy all in one.
“Where’s Rayanna again?” I asked through my teeth, which were clenched together in an effort to keep from chattering. Michelle jumped slightly as though I had startled her from deep thoughts and stared at me blankly for a second. I sighed impatiently, not really wanting to repeat myself. “Where’s-“
“Right here.” A voice said from behind me. If I hadn’t been frozen to the log on which I sat, I would have jumped halfway to next year.
“Ray, if you ever do that again,” I began ominously, turning my head slowly to look at my dear friend. “I swear I will…I will…” Okay, I had nothin’.
“You’ll what? Threaten me to death?” Ray replied automatically, rolling her eyes but flashing me a quick grin to ease the sting of her words. I took it in stride, having dealt with her sarcasm for a very long time. Actually, I was usually the sarcastic one. Hmm.
Up until now, everything that had been said was automatic, engraved into us by years of friendship. Now, however, the gravity of the situation really hit home. I felt the suspense settle around us like a heavy blanket, minus the warmth. I had been trying to avoid meeting her gaze, knowing the initial shock we’d both get from each other’s change in eye color, but there was no more avoiding it. This time, however, the shock came even worse.
In an instant, I was on my feet, heat rushing through my body in response to my alarm. Adrenaline, I guess. My eyes were wide, mouth gaping as I stared at her. Behind me, Michelle jolted and let out a little gasp, but neither of us acknowledged her.
It was a very long moment before either of us breathed again. My breath had been caught painfully in my throat, my mouth moving wordlessly until I finally regained control. Rayanna looked as shocked as I felt, her eyes wide in alarm, half-crouched as though subconsciously preparing to either attack or flee. I realized that I was doing the same thing and forced myself to relax.
The mark on my collarbone burned painfully.
It’s Rayanna! Calm down! I yelled at myself inwardly, somewhat disgusted at myself for reacting like that to one of my closest friends. I didn’t even know why I had spazzed out over something so trivial…or maybe it wasn’t trivial at all. Some part of me knew that this meant trouble, but I pushed it away.
A shimmering purple and silver mark swirled from the corner of Rayanna’s left eye, contrasting with her mocha skin. The only part of that mark that was different from my own was the color, but that’s not what scared me. It was the fact that Rayanna’s eyes were the same silvery color as the eyes of the Yang wolf from the website that really got to me.
It doesn’t matter, I told myself firmly, giving her a small, hesitant smile. Who cares what color her eyes are? Although judging by her reaction…well, I wouldn’t think of that! Ray took a deep breath and slowly returned my smile, and I felt the tension more or less melt away, although a bit still lingered. I became aware of the chilly air again and shivered, rubbing my arms.
“Here,” Ray said just as something soft and warm was tossed onto my head. I pulled it off and held it out in front of me—it was a jacket!!! One of Ray’s winter coats! “I love you!” I gasped, pulling it on and marveling at the warmth. Ray grinned. “I had a feeling you were going to forget a jacket, being so dead-set on sneaking away undetected.”
“My savior,” I breathed. A second later, we all burst into laughter. Even if it was a bit too loud and slightly forced, it still felt good to laugh. After a second it died down, and it was back to business.
“Tell me everything,” Ray demanded. I sighed and began my story.
“Well, I was looking at this website…”
* * * *
I held my breath, slowly turning the handle of my basement door. Good thing I had left it unlocked-otherwise I’d be stuck outside.
My teeth dug into my lower lip as the hinges squeaked softly, hearing my heart pounding in my ears. An interesting and slightly disturbing sensation, let me tell you. I stepped into the basement as silently as possible despite my numb, clumsy limbs. Even with Ray’s jacket, I was beyond freezing.
Beep!
My watch made a little sound to announce that 4:30 had come. I nearly jumped out of my skin, but managed to keep from screaming and shot the watch a dirty look. Carefully shutting the door behind me, I crept up the stairs to the main floor and glanced around. Nothing. I was home-free. With a relieved sigh, I sank into one of the couches in my living room, feeling quite proud of myself. I had left the house for almost and hour and hadn’t gotten caught! It was awesome-I felt almost giddy. This was officially one of the coolest days in my entire-
“Roxanne…Terisa…Crown.”
Oh crap.
“Mom, please, before you say-“
“You are GROUNDED.”
I suddenly felt very, very tired.
“I know.”
Chapter Six
Go BARK Up Someone Else’s Tree
(Ray’s Words, Not Mine)
“Everyone turn to page 234. Now, as you can see from the chart…”
I stared blankly at the math book laying on the desktop right in front of me. Was I supposed to understand this? I must have missed that part of the instructions. My paper had my messy scrawl all over it, but at least half the answers were correct. I knew this stuff from last year, but the questions in the text book were tricky. I sighed and crumpled up my paper, shoving it into my desk. Shifting in my seat, I hung my head so my hair fell slightly over my eyes. My flaming gold eyes.
I could feel everyone’s gaze boring into the back of my head. I could hear some of the kids whispering about my sudden boldness. Whoever comes to school with a tattoo and color contacts and refuses to ‘take them out’ must be a rebel. And rebel, apparently, is the hottest stereotype of the year.
It was the same for Ray and Michelle. We were attracting whispers and curious glances from kids everywhere we went.
My math work was in my desk-crumpled into a ball from my constant folding and unfolding. Bad habit, I tend to do that to whatever I’m working on when I’m frustrated or anxious. No clue why, either.
“Psst!”
I glanced up at the sound. It was Jasmine, a girl I had met in the first year of middle school. She helped me with my homework a lot, and we were pretty close. Not like Ray and I, though. She was decently pretty, with long black hair down to her waist and tan skin. She wore glasses and was very petite. From what I’d seen of her work, she was a pretty darn good artist too.
I looked at her outstretched hand. There was a piece of paper in it—a note? Oh. I extended my hand and quickly took it from her, careful to open it under my desk.
What’s with the face paint and the contacts?
Hmph, figures. That was what everyone wanted to know. I glanced around, making sure Mr. Denton couldn’t see me before hastily scribbling back an answer.
Why so interested?
I tossed it back and watched her open it from the corner of my eye. A second later she had slid it back to me.
It’s pretty. The change in eye color is awesome too.
Well, that was unexpected.
You’re the first one to think so.
I handed it back under the desk. A moment later, her neat handwriting was below my own. I unfolded the note and peered down at it.
It doesn’t matter what other people think, it’s really unique.
Unique, huh?
“Miss Crown, is that something you’d like to share with the class?” Mr. Denton said. I looked up at him innocently. “Huh?”
“Is that a note?” He asked, walking over and holding his hand out as I shoved the note into my desk to buy some time. I’m screwed… I thought frantically, trying to think of something I could do to get out of the situation. Then I remembered my paper…
“You mean my work?” I asked, giving him my best confused look. “Give me the paper in the desk, Roxanne.” He said sternly. I reached into the desk, pulling out my crumpled assignment and smoothing out the creases hurriedly before handing it to him. He stared at it for a second and then gave me a suspicious glance from over his spectacles. I smiled innocently. He handed back the paper.
“The next time I catch you passing notes, it’ll be ISD.” He said threateningly. I scoffed quietly once he had turned away—In School Detention was nothing compared to the mess my life has been since finding that stupid little Ying-Yang half.
My gaze wandered up to where the clock was ticking on the wall to my left, just above some poster more suited for a kindergarten room than a 7th grade classroom. There was four more minutes until the bell rang and we would head to our next period, which was Study hall, the second-to-last class of the day. I usually hung out in the library, skimming through books and chatting with Ray and Michelle.
I glanced around the room. Jasmine was now doodling on a piece of scrap paper, Rayanna was immersed in a moderately sized book, and Michelle had her head on her arms, probably asleep. Everyone else was either whispering or finishing their homework, and Mr. Denton was filing some paperwork at his desk.
I sighed and looked at the clock again; two minutes to go. Did it really take that long to notice what everyone was doing? Hmph. My brain must be turning to goo.
So much had happened recently…I didn’t even understand it myself. I mean, let’s think realistically here. In two days, would you expect to loose your dog, find a weird pendant, have a creepy website logo scare the heck out of you, have a boy that’s so handsome he should be arrested bring said dog back, have hot cocoa spilled on you by that boy, pick up the pendant after which the boy runs out of your house like he was on fire, then feel like you’re on fire, jump into an icy shower, wake up because your friend calls telling you that everyone’s eye color changed and weird symbols are on their faces, sneak out to go and confer with said friends, nearly kill your best friend, sneak back in, get caught and grounded, then come to school the next day and have everyone whispering about/staring at you?
See? It is confusing.
“Roxanne!”
I nearly fell out of my chair as I was literally wrenched out of my thoughts by Rayanna’s scream in my ear. Letting out an alarmed yelp, I promptly toppled over, bringing my pile of books down with me. A moment later I was partly buried under papers and textbooks, with an impressive bruise forming on my stomach where my math book landed corner-down. The still-unfamiliar shock of meeting Rayanna’s silver orbs nearly killed me—I’d just had the breath knocked out of me, and now my body’s trying to loose it all over again—before my attention was diverted by Michelle.
“Come on!” The ginger-haired girl said. “We have an entire hour of freedom!” She was practically dancing around my desk.
“Oh yeah, sure. It’s not like I just nearly died under an avalanche of books or anything,” I said dryly, getting to my knees and gathering up my belongings. Ray rolled her eyes and helped me pick up the last few books before practically dragging me out of the room and down the hallway towards the library.
Things had become tense between Ray and I ever since the eye colors had changed. I couldn’t understand it—we’ve been friends for years—but something was telling me that there was something wrong with her, or that I shouldn’t be around her, or…something…while things between Michelle and I were as great as ever, if not better. It made no sense.
“Ouch!”
BAM!
For the second time in the past ten minutes, both my books and I went sprawling onto the floor. My rear was becoming quite sore from all of this ‘unexpected cushioning’. My head cracked against the tile, and for a moment all I saw was stars and dark spots fading in and out. Wow, they’re kinda pretty, I thought dazedly. A second later my vision came back, with a new arrival-an acute headache. I groaned and rubbed the back of my head, sitting up slowly. In the background of my throbbing head, I heard Rayanna stammering.
“WHAT THE…the…the…the…the…hi…can I help you?…With anything, anything at all?” Her voice became a little dreamy at the end.
Which meant one of two things. Either
A) the person she was talking to was extremely important/famous, or
B) the person she was talking to was extremely cute.
Judging by the context of what she had just said, I was betting on the latter. I slowly opened my eyes to see an oh-so familiar face, and nearly had a heart attack.
“Roxanne?!”
“Maximus?!”
And there he was, with his dark hair falling ever so slightly over his bronze eyes, brows furrowed in concern. He had been looking at something near my neck, but as soon as he realized that I was awake his gaze had switched to my eyes. I felt something around my shoulders and realized he was supporting me. Immediately, heat started rushing to my face, and I shot an alarmed glance over at Rayanna. Her mouth formed an ‘o’ shape as realization struck her.
“We’re too late, Shelly,” She said regretfully. “That’s Max. Roxy’s got first dibs.”
I could have slapped her. Luckily for her, and probably Michelle too, Max called my attention back to him by lifting me up slightly and leaning in closer. “Roxy, are you alright? I’m sorry, I was just looking for my next class…”
“I thought you went to D.D. Academy?” I asked blankly, barely absorbing his words. He flashed me a stunning smile that had my heart beating about a million miles a second. “I did, but I… well, I kind of was hoping that if I went to a public school, I’d find more girls like you…”
Okay, that was totally sweet. I nearly hugged him, but totally kept my cool. “Um, thanks,” I said slowly, hesitantly giving him a small smile. He returned it and lifted me to my feet, taking my newly gathered books from Michelle and handing them to me as soon as he was sure I could stand. “I’m fine, really.” I said after an awkward moment.
“I’m glad,” He said earnestly. Then his expression became a bit embarrassed and apologetic. “Hey, about the other day…”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said instantly. “It doesn’t matter.” He looked relieved. “That’s good. I wasn’t sure how to apologize…”
Hey, he was really cute, and he only ruined one of my favorite shirts. I would totally survive.
“Hey Max,” Rayanna piped up suddenly. “It’s study hall right now, so we can help you find your next class if you want,” I shot an alarmed glance in her direction, but it was too late-he was nodding. “I’d really appreciate that,” He said with a sheepish grin. “I’ve got Mrs. Corbin next.” I glanced at his schedule.
It was identical to mine.
“Um, cool, so do I. Come on, I’ll show you,” I said slowly, beginning to get a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.
It wasn’t until after I’d shown him around and had gotten onto the bus home that I realized he hadn’t even looked surprised at my sudden change of eye color or face art. It was like he had known what to expect. And he had been staring at my neck…
The symbol. Oh yeah, something was going on here.
Chapter Seven
In A New York Minute Or Less, Guaranteed.
“Is it really that bad?” My mom asked, staring at Rayanna and I. I guess we looked pretty stupid, with our hands cupped over our mouths and noses, trying to breathe as little as possible. I nodded, trying to focus on the sign of the outdoor Café we were eating at rather than think about the awful, polluted air of the city entering my lungs at that moment. Nobody except Rayanna and I seemed bothered by the horrible stench, but man! I’ve been to the city loads of times before, and it’s never been this bad. Ugh, gross!
It was supposed to be a shopping trip, on which Rayanna and myself were usually in a ‘joy-to-the-world-it’s-time-to-hit-the-stores’ kind of mood, but this time around our attitudes were more along the lines of ‘-omg-get-me-out-of-here-NOW-before-I-suffocate-from-the-stink’.
My mom had no idea.
“You’re absolutely sure you want to go home?” My mom asked for like, the fifth time, looking kind of disappointed. I felt really bad for making her drive all the way out here and then wanting to turn around and go back home, but neither of us would be able to take an entire day out here without collapsing. The traffic and well, loud city noise was killing me too, and that’s coming from a girl who listens to her Ipod on high. When I complain about something being too loud, you know something’s wrong.
“Sorry, Mrs. Crown.” Ray said in a guilty tone. My mom smiled at her, though the smile was a little strained. I could almost hear her thoughts-That’s 50 dollars worth of gas down the drain. It’s funny; my mom barely reacted when she saw my new eye-color and tattoo. She had been a little miffed that I hadn’t ‘told’ her before ‘making such an immature move’, but she accepted it as my choice…as long as it had come out my pocket. I promised her that it had.
Sighing, my mom handed the waitress some money and signed the receipt a moment later, and then stood up. “Alright girls,” She said, grabbing her purse. “Let’s go.”
As we began walking down the busy sidewalk, I glanced over at Ray. For normality’s sake we had put our hands down, and the smell was even more unbearable. She looked as disgusted as I felt. Maybe I looked that way too. Who knew?
Finally, Ray voiced my thoughts. “It makes you wonder…did the person who created the car know just how bad the freakin’ smell would be?”
Well, maybe not exactly my thoughts, but close. “If said person did, then they were even more sick and twisted than I originally gave them credit for.” She nodded seriously in agreement as we joined my mom waiting to cross the street with a couple other people.
Suddenly, my entire life came to a halt, and not just any normal old halt. It came to a screeching, skid-in-on-your-side-at-80-mph, total-wipeout, screaming-in-pain but laughing-your-butt-off-at-how-stupid-it-was halt.
Right beside us, not two feet away, was a massive. Black. Wolf.
I froze, my blood turning to ice. “It” came up to Ray’s shoulder. I could see the power of its muscles rippling beneath its ebonite fur, feel the menace and evil intent radiating off it. I heard Rayanna catch her breath beside me…but nobody else seemed to notice the rabid monster sitting on the curb, silver eyes fixed on someone to my left. There was no screaming, panicking, gasps or jolts. Nothing at all. My mom shifted her purse to her other shoulder as the man being watched by the wolf glanced at his watch impatiently.
I felt the Yin-mark blaze up like a living inferno. Rayanna reached for my hand and grasped my fingers until they felt like they were going to shatter under her grip. I squeezed back, hardly daring to breathe. It didn’t move, gaze never wavering. It might have been made of stone.
My heart was pounding in my chest, each breath shaky and ragged. I was trembling.
And then…everything sped up.
With a bloodcurdling snarl, the monster revealed its fangs, lunging at the man next to my mother faster than I could blink. This time, the man saw. Letting out a strangled yell, he jolted backwards and fell into the road. I realized what would happen a split second before it did.
There was a loud screech and awful thud as he fell beneath the tires of a passing bus. Blood splattered. People screamed. The bus swerved and honked.
The poor guy never stood a chance.
Time seemed to slow down as my eyes returned to the…the demon. It was now observing the bloodbath with a canine smirk on its face, tongue lolling out as it panted like a dog watching a tennis ball being thrown. Anger, like white-hot metal, blazed up inside me. That monster!
And then it saw us.
A sudden expression of interest flashed over its visage as the wolf studied first Rayanna, then myself. Then it gave a few short barks, like cruel laughter. An inhuman snarl was ripped from the depths of my through as I glared at it, teeth bared angrily. I felt an overwhelming surge of hate for the despicable murderer. I heard Ray echo my growl and knew she felt it too. It was like a gate flew open, a gate that had been barring the entrance to knowledge that was just out of reach. My body reacted of its own will, and suddenly I wasn’t me anymore. I was lunging for the creature-the Yang, my instincts told me-and it was lunging for me. I heard powerful strides and knew that Ray was only a step behind as we attacked the creature.
Fur flew. Fangs flashed. Growls and snarls split the air as humans screamed. But I wasn’t human anymore, I was something more. We were something more.
And then it was over.
With a final growl, the Yang turned and disappeared in the shadows beneath the bus. I was exhausted, but there was this thrill of energy still running through me. I threw back my head and let out an exhilarated howl to the heavens before glancing around. Everything was clearer, somehow…but the stench, if possible, was worse. I was going to be sick.
Then, the surge of strength I had felt was gone, and I was on my knees. I glanced around for Ray, and got the shock of my life as I met her shocked silver orbs.
Not three seconds before, she had been a wolf.
Chapter Eight
We’ve Barked Up The Wrong Tree This Time
“Wait, what?” Michelle asked blankly from where she sat, cross legged, on my bed. There were three pairs of eyes fixed on me as I paced back and forth in my bedroom, fighting down the overwhelming urge to panic. I could tell that I wasn’t the only one feeling it, either; Ray was fiercely braiding her curls with single-minded intensity, a sign that she was stressing out. I glared irritably at my red-headed friend; sometimes I wondered if she wasn’t really a blonde. Not that I have anything against blondes, but you know the type.
Michelle shrank back under my frustrated gaze. “Don’t get mad at me!” She said, frowning. “It’s not my fault you’re not explaining this whole thing clearly!”
Argh, I would have happily throttled her right then if she weren’t in this mess because of me. As she was, I felt obligated to spare her this once. “There’s no clear way to explain it!” I snapped. She crossed her arms. “Then how do you expect me to understand you, Roxy?!”
“ARGH! SHUT UP! I DON’T KNOW!”
I exploded, whirling on her as the frustration and irritation welling up inside of me choose that moment to overflow. My sleep had been plagued by nightmares of the horrible scene we had watched play out yesterday, powerless to stop it. Black wolves ran through my head, ripping and tearing with razor-sharp fangs. Michelle looked shocked and hurt at my outburst, causing a pang of guilt to tug ruefully at my heartstrings. “I’m sorry, okay?” I said, suddenly feeling drained as I flopped down onto the floor. “I don’t really understand it myself.”
What had happened yesterday was impossible to put into words. What that sick excuse for a wolf had done was nothing short of horrendous, heartless, atrocious, and vile. I shuddered as the sound of brakes screeching and blood splattering echoed in my ears…
And then there had been the…the transformation. Somehow, the pendant had taken over, influenced whatever it was that happened. Somehow turned us into…wolves? I recoiled at the thought of being anything like that thing, which I knew to be a Yang. Whatever they were.
We’re nothing like that…that thing! I snarled at myself inwardly. It was evil and twisted, while we were…we were…
Well… I actually haven’t gotten to that part yet.
Ray groaned, dropping her hands into her lap. “Michelle, she’s doing the best she can! Roxy…chill.” She said, obviously fed up with our inability to understand each other. We fell silent for a few minutes before I made another attempt to get my point across.
“Look…whatever happened yesterday…nobody else saw it. We were the only ones who saw the…the Yang. There has to be something significant about that.” Everybody nodded in agreement. Ray frowned a second later as she thought about my words. “Wait…how do you know what they’re called again?” She asked. I shrugged. “I’m actually not sure. I just know.” It was a lame explanation, but also the only one that made sense. There was really no clear way to put it into words. “Instinct, maybe?”
“It makes you wonder how long this has been going out with nobody realizing it.” Ray said. I glanced over…she looked like she was going to be sick. She had a point, though. “To anybody else, I bet it looked like an accident…so how many deaths are really caused by those monsters?” She asked. We all fell silent, a heavy blanket of despair settling over us.
“Maybe we’re supposed to stop them.” Michelle said abruptly. I glared at her, irritated. “Michelle, don’t be-“
“I’m serious!” The intensity of her voice made me fall silent and look at her a bit closer. Her brow was furrowed and she was biting the inside of her mouth, like she was concentrating really hard. “You and Ray were the only ones that could see that thing, right? Well, what if we’re supposed to stop them? And Roxy says that they’re called Yangs, so…”
Oh.
“So what you’re saying is that we’re the Yin? We’re supposed to…” I trailed off, then shook my head. “Michelle, we’re a bunch of teenage girls! We can’t do anything to stop those things! You didn’t see it, it was huge! It could have swallowed you whole and still had room for the rest of the city!” Michelle jumped to her feet, totally psyched out.
“Fight fire with fire!” She yelled. Ray and I exchanged concerned glances…Michelle had finally cracked. She sighed loudly in frustration and stomped her foot. “When you two got angry, you said you didn’t feel human anymore, right? Well what if you weren’t? What if you were wolves? Then we’d have a chance!”
“Michelle, are you insane? That’s absolutely idiotic! Not only is that impossible, but how the heck would we go about proving it if it were true? Do you want us to go find another one of those things? Because if you’re wrong, we’ll just get eaten! You’re insane!” I yelled. Rayanna rolled her eyes. “You know, by arguing with her you’re admitting that she’s got a point.”
I ignored her.
“What if that’s not the only thing that triggers it? Roxy, we have to try! Do you want those things to keep killing innocent people?” Michelle replied. She had me there; I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if we didn’t at least try. I probably knew she was right from the beginning, but I just didn’t want to admit it. I looked over at Ray helplessly. “Do you really want to do this?”
She stood up and walked over to me, face to face, silver to gold. “Roxy, do we have a choice?”
We’ve gone and barked up the wrong tree this time for sure, haven’t we?