Areus
April 6th, 2008, 11:53 PM
This is the first chapter of the novel I am currently working on. It's rather short, and kind of more an introductory thing, so no real action, but that changes in later chapters. If you like it and want to read more, Click Here! (http://www.freewebs.com/areus13/)
Chapter 1
I was the first to feel it.
I was the first to embrace it.
And I was the first to change.
But I’ll get to that.
Call me Alex. The girl kind. As in “Alexandra”. Except that’s not my name. And don’t expect me to tell you my “real name”. I don’t like it.
Anyway. I’m thirteen, tall for my age, and a little crazy. No, not delusional. I guess the word would be ecstatic. Even though that doesn’t quite make sense...I’ve got black hair and green eyes, and am all-around athletic-looking. My friends say I should join volleyball. And I would. If soccer didn’t exist.
Up until now my life hasn’t been very exciting. Nothing of any interest. I was just an average school kid. It was only recently that anything abnormal happened. I was hanging out with my friends, Alia and Jordan, at The Pillar. The Pillar is basically a little tree fort we constructed out in the middle of the woods. And not just the three of us. Our other friends – Jason, Terri, and Nick – contributed to our little stronghold. So, you’re probably wondering... Why were we hanging out in the middle of the forest? Well, it’s because we’re all naturally drawn to the forest. None of us knew why at the time. I know why now. But I really should stop jumping ahead.
Alia was my best friend. And still is. We’ve known each other for years. And trust me, she can make a lot of semi-insulting smart remarks in that time. She has dirty blond hair and blue eyes. She’s also short. Well, O.K., not too short, but shorter than I am. Which is a good thing, because it gives me a means by which to counter the occasional remark. The strange thing about her, though, is that despite her size, I had always looked up to her. All of us did, I guess. I discovered why later. Another thing is that no one had ever seen her cry. I’m not joking when I say you could sell one of her tears for well over two billion dollars. With these qualities, it’s no surprise that she became the Alpha...
Her younger brother, Jordan, is a... different story.
He’s disorganized, does not know the meaning of the phrase “take initiative”, and is content to sit around making jokes. Well, O.K., I’m being a little hard on him. The way I described him made him sound lazy. He’s actually pretty active, athletic, and a he’s nice guy. Like Alia, he’s short. He has black hair, which is so much like mine I’m convinced he stole it from me while I was sleeping one night.
The sun was beginning to set, and we were watching a squirrel fight from within The Pillar. Believe it or not, watching squirrels maul each other is actually quite entertaining. After one squirrel took an extreme tumble off of its branch, the fight broke up and the victor made off with the acorn which had caused the whole scuffle. When the woods became silent, we just sat there and admired the forest. You see, there’s a distinctive beauty about the New York Adirondacks that even Jordan can appreciate.
As the sun’s light began to fade and the leaves’ colors became nearly indistinguishable, Alia stood up. “I think we should go,” she said. Jordan and I rose to our feet as well.
“Yeah,” Jordan replied. “Wouldn’t want the werewolves to get us.”
“Ha ha. Very funny.” Alia shoved him as they descended the ramp going down from The Pillar and began to walk away into the woods. I hesitated, and Alia turned to me.
“Coming?” she asked me.
“Nah. I think I’ll stay out here for a while.”
Alia gave me a questioning look, and I said, “I’ll be fine. I live right on the edge of the forest. It’s not that hard to get back.”
“Well, good night,” she said, turning reluctantly. She walked into the darkness, where Jordan was muttering something about tree trunks appearing out of nowhere.
When the sound of their footsteps died away, I descended from The Pillar as well. I stood there for a little while, doing nothing, just enjoying the cool night air on my skin. Then, for no reason at all, I began to run. I didn’t know why, or what direction I was heading in. All I knew was that I was going deeper into the forest. There was no particular reason for running, except that it just felt good for some reason.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, I stopped, panting. I felt an itching on my arm that usually indicated a mosquito. I slapped at it, but the itch persisted, spreading up my arm. I looked down, and saw that something had sprouted on my arm.
It was...
Fur.
Chapter 1
I was the first to feel it.
I was the first to embrace it.
And I was the first to change.
But I’ll get to that.
Call me Alex. The girl kind. As in “Alexandra”. Except that’s not my name. And don’t expect me to tell you my “real name”. I don’t like it.
Anyway. I’m thirteen, tall for my age, and a little crazy. No, not delusional. I guess the word would be ecstatic. Even though that doesn’t quite make sense...I’ve got black hair and green eyes, and am all-around athletic-looking. My friends say I should join volleyball. And I would. If soccer didn’t exist.
Up until now my life hasn’t been very exciting. Nothing of any interest. I was just an average school kid. It was only recently that anything abnormal happened. I was hanging out with my friends, Alia and Jordan, at The Pillar. The Pillar is basically a little tree fort we constructed out in the middle of the woods. And not just the three of us. Our other friends – Jason, Terri, and Nick – contributed to our little stronghold. So, you’re probably wondering... Why were we hanging out in the middle of the forest? Well, it’s because we’re all naturally drawn to the forest. None of us knew why at the time. I know why now. But I really should stop jumping ahead.
Alia was my best friend. And still is. We’ve known each other for years. And trust me, she can make a lot of semi-insulting smart remarks in that time. She has dirty blond hair and blue eyes. She’s also short. Well, O.K., not too short, but shorter than I am. Which is a good thing, because it gives me a means by which to counter the occasional remark. The strange thing about her, though, is that despite her size, I had always looked up to her. All of us did, I guess. I discovered why later. Another thing is that no one had ever seen her cry. I’m not joking when I say you could sell one of her tears for well over two billion dollars. With these qualities, it’s no surprise that she became the Alpha...
Her younger brother, Jordan, is a... different story.
He’s disorganized, does not know the meaning of the phrase “take initiative”, and is content to sit around making jokes. Well, O.K., I’m being a little hard on him. The way I described him made him sound lazy. He’s actually pretty active, athletic, and a he’s nice guy. Like Alia, he’s short. He has black hair, which is so much like mine I’m convinced he stole it from me while I was sleeping one night.
The sun was beginning to set, and we were watching a squirrel fight from within The Pillar. Believe it or not, watching squirrels maul each other is actually quite entertaining. After one squirrel took an extreme tumble off of its branch, the fight broke up and the victor made off with the acorn which had caused the whole scuffle. When the woods became silent, we just sat there and admired the forest. You see, there’s a distinctive beauty about the New York Adirondacks that even Jordan can appreciate.
As the sun’s light began to fade and the leaves’ colors became nearly indistinguishable, Alia stood up. “I think we should go,” she said. Jordan and I rose to our feet as well.
“Yeah,” Jordan replied. “Wouldn’t want the werewolves to get us.”
“Ha ha. Very funny.” Alia shoved him as they descended the ramp going down from The Pillar and began to walk away into the woods. I hesitated, and Alia turned to me.
“Coming?” she asked me.
“Nah. I think I’ll stay out here for a while.”
Alia gave me a questioning look, and I said, “I’ll be fine. I live right on the edge of the forest. It’s not that hard to get back.”
“Well, good night,” she said, turning reluctantly. She walked into the darkness, where Jordan was muttering something about tree trunks appearing out of nowhere.
When the sound of their footsteps died away, I descended from The Pillar as well. I stood there for a little while, doing nothing, just enjoying the cool night air on my skin. Then, for no reason at all, I began to run. I didn’t know why, or what direction I was heading in. All I knew was that I was going deeper into the forest. There was no particular reason for running, except that it just felt good for some reason.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, I stopped, panting. I felt an itching on my arm that usually indicated a mosquito. I slapped at it, but the itch persisted, spreading up my arm. I looked down, and saw that something had sprouted on my arm.
It was...
Fur.