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| >> Campfire Creative >> Fiction >> Horror/Scary >> ID #1545204 |   |
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| [Introduction]
Many people are afraid of many things. Everyones of something. Wether or not that fear is rational, its has a name. Phobia. Bogyphobia. Fear of the Boogeyman. Arachnophobia. Fear of spiders. In this tale, people die, but are given a second chance, a second shot at life. One catch... they have to live it as there worst fears. --- -No cursing, sex, or graphic violence -You have four days to add -Have fun! |
 Wiskers  ---Okay, just to make this clear, in most cases you aren't literally what you fear. Ex. If your phobia is spiders, then maybe you have venomous fangs, can spin webs, or even grow extra arachnid legs. If your fear is of clowns, however, than your face may or may not be painted. Either way, our characters get abilities from their fears. They get a second chance, so they can live and help people, but they fear themselves, and the people they save usually fear them as well. Not an easy life. --- Name: Nicholas "Nikko" Downing Age: 17 Appearance: Shaggy dark brown hair thats sometimes mistaken for being black. Brown eyes with a tint of green in them, a lean body build, and is a very attractive individual. Usually wears pretty plain clothing, dark tee, jeans, Converse, and a black hoodie. Personality: Nikko has an attitude problem, and he's not afraid of using it. He's been in plenty a fight with much bigger people than himself, and can more often than not be found in the room they use for detention at the orphanage he lives at. Up front he may seem cocky, and rude, but he actually has a soft side. He's just chosen to hide it under anger. History: Nikko's father left when he was ten, leaving just him and his mom. His mother was a missionary, that ministered to tribes in Africa. She was killed in the service by a rival tribe that had cannibalistic rituals, one of which involved drinking the blood of the slaughtered. (Therefore his fear of "vampires".) That was three years ago. No one else wanted him, so for the past four years he's been living in an orphanage. Phobia: Sanguivoriphobia. Literally, it means fear of blood-eater. Pronunciation: Sang-wee-vore-ee-foh-bee-ah Because of what happened to his mother Nikko has a fear of, what modern day people call, vampires. Therefore he gets all the Hollywood stylized vampire abilities. He can fly, is very strong, has slight telekinesis, and can "persuade" people to do what he wants. Notes: When Nikko looks into a mirror, he doesn't see his reflection. He sees every bad thing he's ever done, in the form of a monster type creature. This has nothing to do with the myth that vampires can't see themselves in the mirror. In fact it has nothing to do with being a vampire at all. Its due to another phobia of his: Eisoptrophobia- Fear of mirrors or of seeing oneself in a mirror. Except its because he doesn't think he's a very good person, not because he's afraid of mirrors. FarynKatz: NaNoWriMo crazed! Name: Elizabeth or Lizzie von AldrigeAge: 17 Appearance: Long platinum blonde hair, big brown eyes, usually pale, and very petite. Personality: Shy but friendly, often jittery and paranoid. Usually doesn't get much sleep. History: Lizzie's dad was a multimillionaire of a large company. Therefore, her family had all kinds of trouble. When Lizzie was seven, she and her mom were taken hostage by some guy out for some money. Lizzie's father came to save them and pay the ransom, but once he handed over the money, the man pulled out his gun and shot her dad in the gut. The sick creep then proceeded to murder Lizzie's mother as well, and Lizzie herself watched the life leave both her parents' eyes and then saw them as ghosts. No lie. Liz has been terrified of ghosts ever since, but her special ability is to communicate with and see the spirits all around. Phobia: Necrophobia {Fear of dead things} mixed with Phasmophobia {Fear of Ghosts} Notes: Liz is not the type to be all outwardly emotional. She keeps it all bottled up and is normally in a sad, depressed manner. She only confesses these things and cries to her best friend in the orphanage they live in, Nikko. Lonewolf - Catching up Name:Tyler KnightAge:16 Appearance: Dark chocolate hair, cream colored skin with a hint of honey, intelligent light brown eyes, he stands around 5'8. he has a small frame due to his phobia he tends to not eat much. Personality:He's a bit jittery, and tends not to trust people due to severe teasing when he was in school of his phobias *kids would lock him in closets then laugh until they could no longer hear him bang on the door to be let out* he has a kind heart towards people, even though he doesn't trust them he'll go out of his way to be nice when their back is turned. He's extremely intelligent but tends to shy away from letting people know it. History: Tyler for as long as he can remember has been afraid of the dark, when he was a child his older brother before he died would jump out at him in the middle of the night causing him to scream and run in fear. This brought a roaring laugh to his brother, but made Tyler withdraw into himself. The kids in school were no better always calling him names and some even beat him up after locking him in the school closet where he would see images jump out at him wanting to hurt him.One night when his parents were driving him and his brother to the movie theater their car went off the road. Tyler was the only one to escape the car alive because he didn't listen when he was told to buckle up. He had to watch them all burn to death, which is why he has a fear of fire. Since that horrific night he has been living in an orphanage. Phobia: Nyctophobia - nik-tuh-foh-bee-uh - Means the fear of shadows or darkness. Pyrophobia - pahy-ruh-foh-bee-uh - Means the fear of anything to do with fire. Note:Tyler's abilites allow him to control darkness ie. he can bring it to life and use it in any way possible, while being able to create a sort of fire from his other phobia. He likes to call it Shadow fire. Fire can't harm him in fact he can only make him stronger, he's able to use that in any way as well. If he wants it will radiate around him. Both abilities transform his body in someways which always scare the people he saves terribly. LdyPhoenix Name: Janet HowardAge: 16 1/2 Appearance: Choppy, layered hair hanging down to her shoulders that’s dyed electric blue, but is slowly fading back to her natural black hair. Her skin is dark olive with a deep paleness seeping in from her lack of rest and intense smoky grey eyes most have a problem looking into. Has the body of a dancer and stand close to 5'6" tall. Clothing is mostly made up of graphic tees, holey jeans, scuffed brown boots, and an old bomber jacket. Personality: Outwardly, she's aloof and closed off, often with a hard expression on her face. If she talks at all her answers are bitingly sarcastic meant to hurt those who venture to get close to her. Inwardly, Janet's damaged almost beyond repair. She's quite fearful of others and herself, afraid of more pain entering her life. Janet wants so much to give herself to others, to feel love and trust, but she knows that is something that can never happen again or more people will be hurt. History: Janet's mother died a few days after her birth, something Janet can almost swear she can remember happening. Her father, a man full of grief, did his best to raise his daughter on his own while working a double shift at a local car factory. Unfortunately, she was often left by herself in an apartment building that was in an extremely rough neighborhood. The noise and violence she witnessed during those late nights alone caused her to have night terrors around the time she was eight. As she proceeded to get older more bad things seemed to happen while she slept, (a major earthquake while she when she had fallen asleep doing homework; drifting to sleep on the bus in the wrong part of town leading to an violent assault; a horrific car wreck while her dad was driving) until Janet witnessed the sudden armed break-in of her apartment resulting in the stabbing death of father. Mentally scarred and blaming herself, Janet can no longer sleep willingly, and on the occasions when she does it’s only for fifteen minute increments before she wakes screaming from a nightmare. Phobia: Somniphobia [som.nee.foh.bee.uh] - A fear of sleeping Note: Because of past events, Janet suffers from classic hypersensitivity issues – sight, smell, hearing, etc. However, her second chance has given her the manifestation of “walking” into dreams of others, and controlling the outcome of the dream as well including absorbing pain. Even with this ability, she isolates herself to keep her thixophobia (fear of touch) at bay. To cope with being isolated in the orphanage Janet will often hum under her breath or sing to fill the quiet. `lemur` Name: Amy BurnesAge: 17 Appearance: Delicate on the outside. She's quite pretty, and short and skinny for her age. Pale skin and brown hair, with pretty, but unusual eyes, one is green and the other is blue. Personality: Tough on the inside. She may look like she can be walked all over, but she has a fiery spirit and stands up for what she believes in. After she gets over her shyness that is. History: She got her phobia when she was young. She used to live on a cattle farm, and while she was watching her parents leading a newly bought bull to a corral, it broke free and gored them both, no trouble. She had run inside but was permanently afraid from then on. Phobia: You can guess from the history. Wild animals- Agrizoophobia, and Animals- Zoophobia. Note: Her power means that she can talk to animals, understand them. Also, once she has touched a certain animal, she is able to transform into it for 15 minute intervals. Eg, if she touches a horse she can transform into a sort of clone when she wants to afterwards. But, she is deathly afraid of what she becomes, and only uses the animals to save and help people. Miss CCC Name: Beatrice ‘Barney’ SwanAge: 19 Appearance: Long fire red hair – it flows to her hips, green eyes and a cream coloured skin. Overall, she has quite a startling face; her features are bold and she has high cheek bones and thick lashes. She is of average height, with a large chest and a slender figure. Always wears a T-shirt, Shorts, and carries a soccer ball. She wears her mothers perfume, a cinnamon scent. Personality: Despite her appearance, thanks to her Mother, she is quite the tom-boy; opposite to her family’s ideals. She totally does not befit the surname ‘swan’ – graceful? Are you kidding? She loves to play football and she’s good at a load of sports, always laughing and having fun. She isn’t violent in any way, but she’s very competitive and quite rough in her manner. However, as if she has a split personality, she is very motherly and kind when someone is in need. If anybody is scared or sad, they often run to her. She has been at the orphanage since she was 7; longer than most, so she is known inside out by the other kids her age. She is friendly, bubbly and always smiling for everyone. History: Her Mother was manager of the Women’s book club, Women’s committee and was constantly arranging coffee mornings. On these days’s she urged her daughter to come too, tempting her with large poufy dresses with frills and trimmings, often in colours like yellow, baby pink and blue. Yuck. Barney didn’t dare set foot in those meetings, she didn’t intend to befriend any of those posh little drama queens. However, when her Mother and Father attended another of these meetings, and she escaped in secret from her window to play soccer – as was her usual morning routine, a mad man smash through the window and fired bullets into the audience. Her Mother was hit and her Father, after attempting to stop the mad man with a new surge of rage, was beaten and shot to death. On that awful day, Barney left home. She collected her belongings and ran away. She’s considered a ‘missing child - a lost cause’ – meaning, the police gave up trying to find the little girl. They’d never recognize her now that she was so much older anyway. Phobia: Hemophobia - meaning fear of blood. Pronunciation: Hem – Oh – Foh – Bia When the time comes that a new orphan is brought in – usually covered in blood, Barney panics and remembers the images of her family’s death. Horrified, she tends to scream a lot and almost goes crazy if she knows somebody is bleeding – even a little. This fear of blood brought on her powers to control bleeding. If someone has cut themselves, no need for Band-Aid’s – we’ve got Barney. She can just whip the blood straight back into the cut and heal it up, Easy. However, Barney’s powers can also kill – this scares her incredibly as she doesn’t know if she might kill someone just by lifting her hand, yet she doesn't let this shake her confidence. Notes: Barney is now old enough to leave the orphanage, but she decides not to, it’s her home. Right? She got herself a job at a local bakery store and became a pretty good cook. She also works at the orphanage now, since she isn’t considered an ‘orphan’ any longer, and takes care of the kids – tells them bed time stories and cooks for them. She’s the Mom of the house. She loves to teach the kids to play sports. Terrzielyn Name: Dena Sherman Age: 19 Appearance: Dena is taller than average and has brown medium length curly hair. She also has brown eyes and wears very large, dark, and baggy clothes for comfort. In recent years, Dena has not been taking care of herself and is becoming more and more unkempt and disheveled. Personality: Dena is quiet and tries to keep to herself, mostly because she’s looking out for her own interests and trying to keep herself safe. After her devoted older brother died her dependency needs turned inward, depending on herself only. Dena is trying to undo past evils by making the world right again; starting with the orphanage. She tries to help others at the orphanage cope with their demons and handle stress. She will often be lost in thought or catch herself staring at a wall with an empty mind. History: Even as a child, Dena had a history of stress and depression. Her older brother, Leo, always looked after her and went where ever she did; smothering her. Their mother and father ignored them all of the time and Dena hated them for it. Many times, instead of coping with stress in the real world, Dena would retreat to a fantasy world in her mind. During the years, her perception of reality began to blur into the fantasy. At the age of 16, after a heated argument with her parents about Leo, Dena cracked. Slipping into an insane, cold rage, Dena Sherman murdered her own parents while they slept. When Leo had seen what she had done, he broke her out of her rage and thought up an alibi and lied to police. They had gotten away with it, but officials saw that Dena was shaken up and sent her to a mental hospital for recovery. While she stayed there, Leo died of a heart attack, and Dena was left officially homeless. Despite the situation, she recovered from the situation fully, but never told anyone about what she did. She hated herself for her evil crime, and still does to a degree, but now her main concern is to make up for it. Dena now lives at the orphanage, and lives in fear of losing control of herself again. Phobia: Agateophobia, Maniaphobia, Dementophobia; the fear of insanity. Or, in this case, the fear of going insane. Notes: Dena’s second chance lets her confuse and disorientate others and make them hallucinate; but she often sees and feels strange things herself, and is often losing control of herself. Wiskers Nikko looked out of the window, his head resting on his arms. It was too good a day to stay inside. Unfortunately since he'd got in a fight recently he was being punished. He looked at the clock and sighed. Every minute seemed like an hour. He was all alone in the empty room, used as the detention or "time-out" spot. Just him and the stupid ticking clock. No one would know if he snuck out... He looked around and got up out of the desk and peeked through the small window on the door. He didn't see anyone in the hallways. Nikko quietly opened the door and ran down the hallway. He stopped in a doorway as he heard Dena and Barney talking. They were the two oldest ones here, and both of them sort of worked here. They were his friends, but it didn't mean they wouldn't walk his butt back to the detention room if they found him. Gradually their voices quieted as they walked away, and he took the opportunity to head out the back door. Outside the rest of his friends were chilling in various places. Tyler was talking to Amy, who freaked out when she saw a squirrel. And Janet was resting under a tree. She looked tired, with circles around her eyes, visible even from this distance. But than again she was always tired. Because she never slept. Finally he saw Lizzie, making a flower necklace in the grass by the play set. No one ever used that thing anymore, since they had all long outgrown it. "Hey." He said, sitting in the grass next to her. "Hey." She smiled at him. "I thought you had detention." Nikko shrugged. "They let me out on good behavior." He and his friends were the only ones at the orphanage. And no one ever seemed too interested in adopting any of them. But, they made a family with each other, so it wasn't so bad. "Well since your out." Lizzie stood. "There's been something I wanted to show you for a while." They left the gate the surrounded the orphanages' personal park, and walked out into the street. No one ever really stopped them from leaving, since they never strayed too far, but the older kids seemed to always have a leash on them. They stopped in an alley by the orphanage. Lizzie kneeled and pointed to a small group of mushrooms, that seemed to have formed a circle. "This is what you dragged me out here for?" Nikko asked. "I saw it from my bedroom window." Lizzie said. "I think its a fairy circle." "A fairy circle." Nikko repeated, skeptical. "What?" Lizzie looked up at him with a smile on her face. "You don't believe in magic?" She placed the flower necklace inside the circle. "I don't know, Liz." Nikko sighed, kicking a piece of gravel with his foot. His friend had always believed in magic. She could even see ghosts. At least, thats what she said. Lizzie stood and stretched. "Its such a beautiful day, isn't it?" "Yeah." Nikko let the breeze ruffle his hair. The weather was as good as it had been for the past week. Suddenly one of the ribbons in Lizzie's hair came out. "Oh no!" She cried, reaching out to grab it, only to have the wind pick it up again. It landed a few feet away but when she reached it, it was moved again. Until she was in the middle of the street. He shook his head and smiled. "Liz, get out of the-" Nikko stopped in mid sentence as he saw a car coming down the street, the person apparently not noticing the girl in the middle of the road. "Lizzie!" He yelled. She looked up and saw the car but seemed to be frozen to the spot. Without thinking he ran and pushed her out of the way. Then everything went black. ---- The whole orphanage was outside as the paramedics came and put him in an ambulance. "Stop!" Lizzie yelled, pulling on one of their shirts. "He's not dead! Stop it!" tears were streaming down her face. "There's no heartbeat." The man said gently. "I'm sorry." "But he's not dead!" She continued to pull and struggle until Barney grabbed ahold of her, gently but firmly. "He's not dead!" Lizzie cried again. "I haven't seen his ghost!" Eventually the ambulance left, Nikko inside it, leaving his family standing outside. "Are you sure you didn't see his ghost?" Dena asked. "Yes." Lizzie said. "Then that means its finally his time to join us." Everyone looked back at the elderly owner of the orphanage. "All of you have gone through the same thing. Now we just have to wait." She said. "And see what he comes back as." ---- Nikko opened his eyes and saw... nothing. He lifted his hand and found that he couldn't see that either, and that wherever he was he was in a very tight place. He began to panic. Where was he?! "Help!" He yelled, and found that in whatever confined space he was in, it echoed. He pounded his fists on the top of whatever it was he was in. "Help, someone!" He cried again. Then he started kicking. When he kicked the wall he saw that a little light was coming through. He put his hands on the ceiling and pushed, finding that when he did that he started to move towards the light. Finally he made it out and looked around. His stomach dropped. He was in a morgue. FarynKatz: NaNoWriMo crazed! Lizzie was shocked. Nikko was gone now, all because she had to show him the fairy circle and she just had to go chase her stupid hair ribbon. What kind of person was she? "No! He's not dead! I haven't seen his ghost!" The last part come out a whisper, and only Barney and Dena could hear it. "You haven't seen his ghost?" Barney asked. Lizzie shook her head. There was an pregnant pause, filled only with the sounds of the ambulance driving away and her own heavy breathing. Then the owner spoke. Lizzie whipped around. "What do you mean?" she whispered. "You are all dead, in a sense," he told them. "You, Lizzie, were killed with your parents." he said. Lizzie gasped. "How is that possible?" she whispered. "I assure you, it is quite possible." "So we're all . . ghosts?" she had to force the word out. The owner shook his head. "No." It seemed the man would say no more on the subject. He glanced at his watch and then turned to Barney. "Beatrice, would you mind collecting Nikko from the morgue in about an hour's time?" he asked. Barney nodded, and the old man walked away. "Barney," Lizzie said as the others turned to follow the owner back to the orphanage. "Can I come with you?" Miss CCC Barney glanced down nervously at the girl, Lizzie had caught a hold of her jacket sleeve and was tugging at it slightly, almost pleadingly. "You want to come too?" she asked in a whisper, so as the other's wouldn't hear. Was that the reason? Or was she still a little shaken? Hopefully no one would notice that she wanted to get away. As fast as possible. There was Blood on the road. Blood. Everywhere. Barney's hand was shaking and Lizzie gripped it tighter. Thats the thing about orphanages; they're family and they can tell when something is wrong. Barney pulled a smile, and crouched a little lower to the girl's height. "Will you keep me company?" Barney asked timidly; totally out of character, a side effect of seeing blood. The red-head shivered at the thought, she didn't want to be alone when she went to the morgue. People had died there and it stank of blood. Her fear was an embarrassment to Barney, a flaw that she didn't want. Wasn't she supposed to take care of the younger kids? Lizzie nodded and shook Barney's hand firmly, shaking the tension from Barney's arm. "Lizzie's coming with me! I'll take care of her!" Barney yelled to the group who walked solemly back to the Orphanage gates. They turned and sent her a tight smile in return. A "Yes" right? No one objected? Barney was still a little jittery, but she let go of Lizzie's hand and, smiling at her, followed the others back through the gates. In her room, Barney shook out the pony tail that had pinned back her hair that day. She let the waves of red flow around her waist and she forced a smile. From experience, Barney knew that taking a shower helped her forget her fears. So, she got her radio blaring her favourite punk bands and calmed herself with a cold shower. She stood drying her hair with a towel and singing along to the lyrics when there was a knock on her door. Turning off her radio, she walked to her bedroom door. An olive skinned girl with electric blue hair stood at her door; she was crying. "Janet!" Barney cried, holding herself back from touching the girl with thixophobia. "Whats-" Before Barney could finish her sentence, the girl said in her usual sarcastic tone. "Can i sleep with you tonight Barney?" Not admitting that the reason was her fear of sleeping, Barney understood and smiled at the girl. "Stop crying. Of course you can, im always here when you need me, Alright?" Janet simply nodded and stalked down the corridor and back to her dimly lit room. What a strange child, Barney pondered. A little while later they reached the morgue. It was a dark, ugly building with greying walls and chipped paint. Barney's shiny red car didn't agree with its surroundings, like a jewel inside a rock. Maybe it would be safer to park in another road, where her car was less likely to be jacked? Barney parked a few roads away from the morgue and the two girls, Lizzie holding her hand firmly, walked back toward it. Lizzie was glancing around nervously, looking for ghosts? Nikko's ghost? Could be, the girl was definitely worried about him, those two were always quite close. Barney stepped inside the building and immediately felt sick. The room stank of sweat and blood. Blood. Barney began shivering again, it was cold inside, she was sure it was. Despite the smell, the room was presentable. It was tiled with stone white flooring and white walls. There was a desk in the centre of the room where a tight-lipped lady sat punching at her computer keys. "Good Afternoon, i am here to collect my brother's body for a burial tomorrow." She lied. "My name is Beatrice Downing and the boy's name is Nicholas Downing." 'Beatrice', as she hated to be called, was polite and kept her manners in check for the woman. However, Lizzie's face went pale, why is Barney lying to the woman? Her surname is Swan..not Downing. Barney smiled sadly at the woman behind the desk, glancing her up and down as she did so. The woman wore a tight shirt and high-waisted skirt and her hair was tightly wound into a neat bun at the back of her head. The lady nodded briskly and asked Barney to sign a peice of paper and a cheque for a small sum of money for transport and collection fee's. As Barney did so, the woman stood and stalked down the corridor to the left, gesturing that the two girls follow. The corridor was dimly lit and the lights flickered eerily as the girls ran to catch up to the woman. "The boy arrived today. He is in this room to the left." The woman snapped, pointing at a room where a man stood; prepared to carry the body back to a loading truck for them. The Woman's nametag read 'Angela Snittil." Fitting. Angela's sharp words shocked Lizzie, and she jumped a little. "Thank you Angela" Barney said, earning a glare as she spoke Angela's first name. The woman tottered back to the corridor in her heels without a word. "Alrite me dears? We're a gettin' ya' Nikko Downin', aye?" The hefty man sitting by the metal door frame asked, a heavy accent coating his words. "Thats right." Barney said, nodding towards a shelf with her 'brothers' name on it. After much effort, Nikko was loaded into a truck which followed Barney and Lizzie back to the orphanage. The staff helped carry Nikko to his bedroom and layed him down on the bed; still covered in a white sheet which everyone was too afraid to look under. Barney could smell the thick scent of rust that hung heavy in the air; blood. She quickly scurried from the room to grab some perfume and air freshener. The rest of the kids hung around in the corridor outside Nikko's room, awaiting for him to awake with his 'second chance'. Barney thought that she would stay too, despite the smell, and she sat herself down beside Tyler Knight; a handsome kid who Barney had become good friends with. LdyPhoenix Janet sat with her back against the wall in the far corner of the hallway. Night had settled over the orphanage like a thick blanket, the air seemingly choking with uncertainty. A few of the older kids waited outside of the dead kid's room, but most of the young ones had drifted off to bed. When one got a "second chance" nobody knew how long it would take to be brought back around.For her own sake, Janet tapped out a soft melody with the heel of her right boot, an old song her father used to play. The song to help pass the time, he use to say. But for the life of her, she didn't know why she was waiting. Sure, the Nikko kid was somewhat pleasant, at least what she observe about him. But he meant nothing to her in the long run. Nobody did. And nobody ever could. Pulling her jacket closer for warmth, Janet let herself sink into the song as everything around her began to fade away. Gentle, hypnotic lyrics passed her lips without a second The music soothed what little soul she had left. A little guy slowly crept closer, his softly shuffling feet sounded like popping balloons to her ears. Janet suddenly held herself as still as possible, cutting off the song, hoping beyond all hope he was heading for Barney for comfort. Luck, however, was not on her side when the little guy stopped a couple feet from the tips of her boots and stuck his thumb in his mouth. A cold sweat formed on the back of her neck on how close he stood to touching her. "Yeah?" The word came out harsher than she intended, making the five-year-old jump a bit. Uncertain, he fiddled with the hem of his blue nightshirt, taking his thumb out of his mouth to speak. "I'm s'pose to tell you thanks. You chase'ed the bad guys 'way in my dreams." Janet ducked her head, a curtain of blue hair hiding her expression. She remembered the red-headed little boy well. His screams still echoed through her head most nights; the screaming that only she had been able to hear because he had been dreaming. The little guy had ochlophobia - a fear of mobs - in a huge way. Telling everyone in his head to take a hike hadn't been a big deal. The grateful look on his cute face told a different story. Looking at him made her feel things she knew she shouldn't. Janet snickered. "Don't worry about it, kid. I just wanted you to shut up and get out of my head." The little guy's lip quivered for a second, but he sucked it up and nodded as if that were the answer he had been expecting all along. The reaction made Janet wonder what kind of life must he have had to expect indifference. "What's your name, kid?" "Eli." The little boy stopped walking and turned back, a snarl on his face almost identical to hers as if he were practicing. Something bubbled up inside her, but Janet suppressed it. "Well, Eli, I'll keep watching your back if you don't bug me. Got it?" The imitation snarl gave way to a gleeful smile. Eli bobbed his head up and down like an excited puppy before running off. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the little guy run to Barney and whisper something in her ear. Both turned to her in speculation. Janet simply went back to tapping her boot. A few moments later the shy one named Lizzie walked out of Nikko's room. Everyone waiting in the corridor gathered in; Janet took her time standing, feigning disinterest. "He's coming back," Lizzie announced with a watery grin. "Nikko coming back to us." Terrzielyn Dena stood above Barney in the hallway, waiting with the kids but trying to keep an eye on them as well. While Barney and Lizzie were gone, Dena had made the kids a meal, one that Barney had taught her to cook. She figured it was important to get some food on the table, to sort of ground everyone and bring them back to reality, but no one seemed to be in the mood to eat. Looking at them, she realized how much she needed this place, and how much they needed it too. She had stumbled upon the orphanage quite by accident; and stumbled was the right word. After she got out of the hospital, she wandered around in the woods away from the streets, and it was a rough hike. One fall, she remembered, was particularly nasty. It had knocked her out and left her neck aching for days. After some hiking, she had seen the orphanage on the edge of the forest and was strangely drawn to it. Looking at the door to Nikko’s room Dena wondered exactly what Lizzie and the owner were doing in there with Nikko. Were they waiting, just like them? Or were they watching? She could only hope that Lizzie was alright in there, with her necrophobia… As she tapped her fingers nervously against the wall, she saw little Eli talking to Janet. Dena didn’t know why he was talking to her, and hoped that Janet wasn’t being too rude to him. He was just a boy. She starting thinking about the owner again…earlier, he said that they were all dead, in a sense. Dena’s brow furrowed in confusion. She knew that Lizzie could see ghosts, and she knew that some of the other kids here had…unique abilities, but dead? Did that mean Barney was dead too? Did that mean that Dena herself was dead? She certainly didn’t remember dying, but then again, neither did Lizzie. She would have to ask him about it later. Just as she was about to say something to Barney, Eli walked over to her and said quietly, “I told her thank you Missus Swan.” Dena couldn’t help but smile at Barney’s annoyance at being called that. Barney, smiling to hide the frustration, said back, “That’s good Eli. It’s dark already, why don’t you head off to bed and get some sleep?” She ruffled his hair and he hurried along to his room. Confused, Dena squatted down next to Barney and asked, “What was that all about? What did Janet do for him?” Leaning back on the wall, Barney sighed as she tried to think of how to explain. “Janet can…” she thought for a moment, “…she can see people’s dreams and…control them. I guess Eli was having a nightmare, and she helped him out.” “Oh…so that’s what Janet can do…” Dena wondered out loud as Barney nodded. She stood back up and leaned against the wall again, thinking. If…if she can see into everyone’s dreams, then… Dena’s eyes widened in realization. I’ll have to talk to her, later. Just then, Lizzie walked out of the room. Everyone in the hallway stood up as she said, “He’s coming back. Nikko’s coming back to us.” Barney and Dena acted quickly; they calmed the other children and told them to sit still. Barney went in first while as Dena heard the owner say, “Dena, close the door, we don’t want him to feel crowded when he wakes.” Before doing so, she thought maybe she should stay outside with the children. “I’ll keep an eye on them.” She said as she closed the door to the room. She turned to the kids in the hallway and assured them, “Everything’s going to be fine.” © Copyright 2009 Wiskers, FarynKatz: NaNoWriMo crazed!, Lonewolf - Catching up, LdyPhoenix, `lemur`, Miss CCC, Terrzielyn, (known as GROUP). All rights reserved. GROUP has granted Writing.Com, its affiliates and its syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work. |
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