30I don't own any of Charlaine Harris's characters only play with them a little.
First Day at Decatur High School
Claude was wrong, just as I though he was. We arrived at Decatur High School twenty minutes before class started and a lot of students were still outside socializing. That stopped when Claude pulled into the drop off lane in front of door one. I took a moment to look around my new school. It was one large two story building surrounded by cement sidewalks and parking lots. Off to the left there was a football field with a track around it. A tennis court sat neglected behind it. I guess I know what sport dominates Decatur High School. All in all the school was massive, from the tall beams holding the owing on to the student population. I remember looking at the brochure Claude brought home. Apparently over three thousand students are registered and most of them were staring at me right now. So much for not standing out I thought to myself. I was prepared for high school as much as I could be, read all the previous textbooks, and looked over the reading list. I have read most of them; some were on my own personal reading list. I conditioned my hair last night so it was curly and shiny falling to my waist. I almost always wear it down so my fairy ears are covered. They are slightly pointy at the top, I could have gotten them fixed, but never wanted to go under. I had to bring myself back to reality or I was going to be late for homeroom.
I got off the bike and took off my helmet, my cheeks were flushed from nerves and my legs a little numb from griping the bike so hard. Claude's driving scared the hell out of me some times. "Okay Annalisa, I don't know what exactly to say because I have never done this before, but it seems like I should wish you luck." Claude was looking in my eyes for something. I just smiled snapped the helmet on the back and gave him a hug.
"Thank you for this Claude, it means a lot." I whispered to my favorite uncle. He returned my hug and I could feel eyes boring into my back and the voices began chattering away in my head. Who is that guy he is sexy, what I wouldn't do to get him under me. Is she new I haven't seen her around before? What a slut going with an older guy … I had to mentally clear my mind or I would end up getting back on the bike and going home. Where would I be then? Still without friends that's who. I gave him a nod and started walking toward the entrance. All eyes seem to be looking in a different direction when I turned around.
Hearing Claude's bike zoom away I should have felt scared, being alone for the first time, but I wasn't. I was relieved. Now I finally had a chance to be normal like my real mother wanted me to be. Don't get me wrong being half fairy has its perks, but I want somebody other than my fairy godparents to talk to. Claude and Claudine have sacrificed so much to take care of me and I appreciate it, but I was lonely and wanted human experiences. They just don't understand because they aren't half human.
The lady at student services gave me a weird look when I walked up to her desk. She had short red hair most likely from a bottle and a muffin top from her too tight jeans. "Can I help you Miss…" the pudgy red head asked me.
"Crane, Annalisa Crane my uncle registered me last week and I am here to get my schedule." I bluntly said without any emotion. If all the adults here are like her I am going to have a blast. I silently joked to myself.
"Oh here you are Anna, and here is a map of the school. This school can be intimidating to first years because of its size. Did you come from a large middle school?" she looked at me with a questioning gaze.
"It's Annalisa, thanks for the map, and I was homeschooled my whole life so no." I said with a confident smile. She wished me good luck and turned around to type on her computer, completely forgetting I existed.
This school isn't hard to navigate, its moron proof really, everything was labeled with arrows and gray plates on the walls. My homeroom was in E hall on the 2nd floor and I still had a few minutes before the bell so I went to my locker. My homeroom teacher was a portly guy, totally gay in a bad way. He spoke with a lisp and walked like a stick a shoved up his you know what. I quickly found a seat in the back of the class next to a really dark guy with braces and polo pull over. He smelled like baby powered and had ordinary brown eyes. On my left there was a girl I remembered seeing on the way in. She had natural blonde hair that was cut longer in the front than in the back. She looked over at me with a huge smile on her face.
"Hey I am Reta. I haven't seen you around before. What junior high did you go to? Are you new to town? Who was that guy that dropped you off? Was he your brother? If you want we can be friends? Let me see your schedule." Her mouth seemed like it was on hyper speed. A normal person wouldn't have been able to understand a word coming out her mouth but I got every word.
"Hey I am Annalisa, nice to meet you." I held out my hand because I thought that was what normal people did when they meet one another. Well it's what I had seen on T.V. a lot. I guess it was because she gladly took my hand, a smile still on her face wide enough to show every one of her teeth. It actually made me think of Preston, my fairy cousin I met during my birthday a few years ago. Preston always had a creepy smile on his face. What do you expect with a shape shifting fairy? I focused my attention back on Reta. She seemed normal enough, but before I gave her any information I decided to read her thoughts. Gosh she is so pretty it's not normal. I hope I didn't scare her off with my rambling she is looking at me weird. Should I let my hand go now? Her brother is so hot I wonder if she could introduce me…Her thoughts were as fast as her speech. I quickly released my hand and smiled back.
"You asked me what junior high I went to. " Reta nodded. "I was home schooled up to now, my uncle dropped me off today, I live with him and my aunt" I kinda lied a little about Claudine living with us still. Most people would find it weird to live with just your uncle. I wanted to tell the truth as much as possible, because I don't want it to back fire. Reta's eyes widened and her face flushed.
"Oh he is your uncle, but her looked to young", she said in a soft tone a lot slower than her pervious ramble. I didn't have a chance to reply because the teacher called attention to the front.
"Quiet down now kids, yeah you to Cory don't think I haven't been informed of your water balloon prank last year." The boy I now know as Cory crossed his arms over his desk and replied.
"Mr. Pindragon, it wasn't me I swear, they got it wrong." Cory replied in a southern drawl. He had a grin on his face and you could see the obvious tobacco stains on his teeth. He had brown close cropped hair and a lot of muscle, tan face and forearms. To think of it, everyone looked tan in this room, everyone except the girl who sat in front of me. She had long straight brown hair with caramel highlights. She never looked up always keeping her head down looking at her notebook. Her right hand was moving erratically. I leaned up to see what she was doing but stopped because Mr. Pindragon was speaking again.
"Ok, Cory, but your guilty until proven innocent to me." He narrowed his eyes to Cory who visibly shrunk in his seat. "Now let's get started shall we? I am Mr. Pindragon and teach Latin for upper classmen, so you aren't going to be in any of my classes. I do not tolerate laughing or snickering of any kind. You will spend your homeroom time reading or working on school related things. Now who wants to stand up and tells us about their self-first?" there was a brief pause while he was looking around the room. Everyone person he tried to make eye contact looked away. Weird why won't anyone make contact with him? That was until he looked at me and I held his gaze looking straight at him not blinking. "You girl with the inappropriate shirt. You go first." He pointed his chubby finger in my direction. I glanced around the room trying to find out what I should say. I wonder what would happen if I told said Mr. Pindragon I am half fairy that can read minds and move objects with my mind. But, I decided to go with the short version.
"Hey I am Annalisa Rose Crane and this is my first year of public school." I said in a firm confident voice. Everyone was looking at me like I was an alien that just dropped in from a spaceship. "I was homeschooled" I said slowing deliberately pronouncing each syllable.
"Well, that's interesting Anna". Mr. P said and went on to torture other students. The class went on that way until the bell rang. I found out the girl in front of me was named Ashlie and she wanted to become an artist. I guess that is what she was doing on her pad of paper earlier. She was shy and barely raised her voice above a whisper. The first two classes went smoothly no more introductions thankfully. People asked a lot of questions including Reta. I just gave them half answers and white lies. My third class was trigonometry and I was not looking forward to it. But, I was glade it was after lunch because I was starving. If I went into a math class hungry the fairy side of me might come out.
I was walking to my locker to grab my lunch when Cory the guy from my homeroom grabbed my arm to get my attention. "Hey Annalisa right? Well I was wondering if you wanted to eat lunch with me in my car." I politely declined but, he insisted. "Com'on it would be fun. A hotty like you should be on the arm of the quarterback." Before I could decline again someone spoke up behind me.
"Leave her alone Cory, she just might not want to have sex with you during lunch." The voice said in a defensive but mocking tone. I turned around to face Ashlie the shy girl from homeroom.
"Sex, sorry Cory I don't want to have sex with you." I said surprised there was a hidden meaning behind his question.
"Sorry for butting in like that I just didn't want him to take advantage of you. You seem different in a way." I finally got a good look at the girl she was slightly taller than me, but skinner. Her brown hair came to her shoulders. She had chocolate brown eyes and soft delicate features. There was something different about her too. I tried to read her mind and only go a few bits and pieces, mostly emotions. Yes, Ashlie was definitely different.
"Thanks, I am Annalisa. Ashlie right?" I said with a smile on my face reaching my hand out to shake. She smiled back and shook my hand. I flash of thoughts popped in my mind the instant out hands met. She was a shifter! I knew she was different. From what I seen her animal was a fluffy looking dog. I didn't want to scare her off so I didn't show any reaction to the touch.
"Hey I was just heading to the lunch room. Wanna eat together." I asked with a smile on. What are the odd that the first day of school I meet another supernatural being? I guess its fate for us to be friends.
Lunch was a lot of fun. It turns out we have a lot in common. Both of us loved music, I played the guitar and she could sing. We also like the same books and had a love for nature. I told her it was my fifteenth birthday today and she gave me her charm bracelet. I didn't want to accept it but she wouldn't allow me to give it back. It was silver and had two charms one of a dog and a cougar. She seemed really nice and didn't sense and hostility so I decided she was ok to hang out with. After we exchanged phone numbers I went to math class pouting the whole way. The rest of the day went without incident; thank goodness I didn't run into Reta or Cory again. Before I knew it I was headed outside to meet Claude. I found him leaning against Claudine's BMW right in the front of the door. His shirt was halfway unbuttoned and looked like the statue of Adonis. Every teenage girl and some of the guys were gawking at him. Claude seemed to be completely clueless as usual.
"Claude you are going to have to tone it down a bit. People already think you're my boyfriend". I said as I walked up to him. He just smiled and opened the door from me to get in.
"Happy Birthday darling Annie, how was your first day of school. Was it absolutely horrible like I predicted." He grimaced. He seemed upset about something I just couldn't figure it out.
"You know you're the only one allowed to call me that. It wasn't a complete waste. I met a friend, Ashlie. She is a shifter, but doesn't know I know. She seems nice. Where is Claudine? She never lets you drive her car." I said the last sentence with caution. I know Claude and I didn't want to set him off in any way.
"Shifter really? How… interesting. Claudine is at the club getting ready for the party. We are having some special guests." He sounded like he was hiding something, but I didn't push it. Claude would never do anything that would put me in harm's way. "Hold on a sec Claudine bought you something." he reached around to the backseat and pulled out a rectangle box with a smaller box tide on top. "She said she wants you to wear it tonight for your party." I gave him a confused look and opened the small box. There was a beautiful pair of silver heals with a strap that wraps around the calf. I quickly opened the other box to find a dark blue strapless dress. Beautiful silver crystals covered the dress from the top to the waist. The rest cascaded to my upper knee it looked like. I have never owned something so elegant before. I couldn't wait to put it on.
"It's beautiful Claude, what's so special about this birthday that I receive so many wonderful gifts?" I said almost just to myself.
"Turning fifteen is a big point in half fairies life. It's the point where all of their powers are shown…" Claude was about to say something else but he stopped himself. There was something going on and it seems like I was the only one who didn't know.
"You should change in the backseat. We will be at the club in twenty minutes and everyone will be expecting you right way." He looked at me with pain in his eyes. It was starting to get on my nerves. This is my life and I am the one in charge.
"Claude, I know something is going on and you're going to tell me or I am not going anywhere. I have a right to know!" I demanded almost feeling bad when I saw him cringe. He let out a puff of air and began speaking slowly
"Anna, when you were little Claudine told you that you were in a prophecy. That is was said you were the key to the greatest treasure." He said almost reluctantly. "Well in the prophecy it said the child born of the fairy princess and a human will prove she is the key on the fifteenth day of her birth." He stopped speaking and the car fell silent. My thoughts were going crazy. I mean what was I supposed to think he just told me I was supposed to prove something I didn't have. Was it an actual key? Was I going to get some freaky new power?
"Claude what exactly does this key open?" I said in a shaky unsure tone. He looked at me and frowned.
"The key isn't really and actual key. It's more like a gift. The key is supposed to hold the ultimate weapon that could destroy any supernatural being with a mere touch of the flesh. It would also allow you to see into the future. This kind of power in the wrong hands could end us all. You understand why we must make sure it is you so we could protect you. There is a civil war going on between fairies and it is important to predict the next move. Now let Claudine finish explaining everything. You get dressed."
"There is no way I am the key I mean I don't even have my telekinesis under control." I blabbered on. He just gave me a tired look and told me to get dressed again. It isn't fair I don't want to be the key. I am only fifteen the thought of being used as a weapon made me sick to my stomach. I almost wish that I didn't eat that second ham sandwich.
Review and tell me what you think! Godric is coming into the story here in a the next two chapters. I can't wait to write him. Much love, Amy :-)