"I'm going to get you!" Alana Yelled After her brother. She was chasing him through the grape vines, eating the ripe grapes as she ran by. "Not if you keep stopping to eat, you pig, dinner's almost ready!" Her brother, Mikey yelled back at Alana. Mikey was already out of the grape fields, heading toward the apple orchard. He looked back at Alana and sat under an apple tree. The apples were near ripe. Mikey sat there waiting for Alana's nasty comeback, But she said nothing as she stared through the line of grape vines, past the apple orchard, and right in front of the corn fields, in the middle of the trator's clearing. A beautiful female Moutain Lion Was staring right back at Alana. Alana knew it wasn't going to hurt anyone. In fact she wanted to get closer. "Mikey, shush, look behind you." Mikey followed Alana's directions and smiled at the sight of the mountain lion.
"It wasn't full grown, Mom." Mikey explained to Mrs. Landen at the table. Mrs. Landen was looking up at mikey from her chair. "Besides, I could tell she wasn't going to eat me, I could see it in her eyes. She was gorgeous, probably just out hunting for a little evening snack." Mikey had ruined it. That was the last thing Mrs. Landen wanted to hear regarding the Mountain Lion. "Exactly. Hunting. For Food. For little careless kids like you, Mikey. Do you realize what trouble you kids could have gotten yourselves into back there. Plus, You shouldn't be playing in the fields, not this late, not ever, we make a lot of money off those feilds, you can just stomp through them and expect then to live, and what if you happened to be in the corn feilds, and a bear comes through, you can't see it or a snake. Those little rattle snakes. Have you forgot about the snakes? Alana, You got bit once, you want that to happen again? No? So be careful. Stay out of the feilds unless you have permission from your father." Mrs. Landen said, gradually raising her rusty voice, "now set the table and we'll eat." Alana rolled her eyes and ran up the stairs to wash her hands. "You forget, Mom, I'm fifteen, I'm not an adult, but I'm not a kid," Mikey said as he set the table, "Alana's birthday's next week, just in case you fogot, Mom" Mrs. Landen's eyes shot open. "Shit! Alana's birthday! I can't believe I forgot that!" Alana Heard all of this from upstairs. She was turning seventeen.
No one spoke during dinner. No one ate except for Mrs. Landen. Mrs Landen was an alcholic, which was one of the reasons Mikey and Alana are outside almost all day, and it was one of the reasons she forgot how old her children were, and it was also one of the reasons she forgot Alana's seventeenth birthday. Mrs' Landen Started drinking heavily when she was eighteen, when she killed her newborn son in a car accident. Mr and Mrs. Landen, and their new son were coming home from the hospital on a foggy night. The road was wet and slippery. They ran off the road and slid backwards down a steap hill into a tree. The car was totaled, And their son was dead.
"Alana and I are going down to the creek. Now." Mikey said looking at Alana, then to Mrs. Landen."Fine. Go ahead," Mrs Landen quietly replied as she slamed her fist on the glass table. The table shattered as it hit the floor. Mrs. Landen started to scream, and cry. Mrs. Landen almost never cries, or never cries in front of Alana and Mikey. Alana grabbed the broom and stared sweeping the glass pieces into a pile. "Just leave! Now! Go away!" Mrs. Landen screamed. Alana walked out quickly and Mikey slowly followed shaking his head at his mother as he passed by. As soon as Alana was away from the house she fell to her knees. "We're losing her, Mikey," She whispered looking up to Mikey, "we need to do something!" Mikey held Alana close. "There's nothing we can do, Alana. She can't be healed, she's too far from our grip. We have to let her go." Mikey whispered back. Alana stood and began walking to the creek. It was about a mile away. They went through many people's crops, making sure not to damage them. The people who lived there noticed but never seemed to mind. As they neared the creek they saw trails of ash...and salt. The followed the trail to see hundreds of Mountain Lions dead in cicles of salt. The hides of the lions were burnt. "Dude, holy crap. This is crazy," Mikey quietly said to Alana. Alana did not reply. She didn't move, talk, breathe. She was lifeless.
Mikey saw the high thick grass move apart and the young female Mountain lion poke her head out into the clearing. She moved slowly past the bloody, lifeless bodies and stood in front of Alana. The lion had'nt eaten in days, Mikey could tell. She was thinning and weakining. Her eyes were drooped down. She knew what happened. She knew that she was the very last. Alana fainted, too much had happened in one day. She couldn't keep up.
Mikey left Alana under an apple tree in the trimmed grass. Mikey waited for her to wake. He thought about the many lions by the creek with their hides burnt. only the hides, as if nothing else could have burnt. He thought it was physically impossible. He also noticed how the young female, the last of all the lions, was following him around, watching him, as if she were gaurding him and Alana. Mikey and Alana were in no danger, and if they were, Mikey could get them out. he was was valiant, strong and caring. Mikey cowered to no one. Mikey thought of the...salt. Why was there salt circled and trailed around the dead animals? He could think of no explination...except for spiritual practices. Some people believe they can bring back the dead, and to protect themselves from the zombies they circles themselves, or others in salt. Mikey wasn't the spiritual type, but he knew much about their practices. There might have been someone who brought someone else, or something else back to life. Then....Mikey could no longer think. He was afraid of something. But he didn't know quite what it was yet.
Alana shot up from the green grass and backed up into the apple tree. "Alana! You woke up," Mikey said smiling. "No, you think? How long was I asleep, Mikey?" Alana replied. "Half an hour or so, it was a long hlaf an hour," Mikey said looking at the ground. Alana started walking home and Mikey followed close behind. Alana could sense his fear but said nothing about it and continued walking.
Alana heard a scream from the house. Her walk became a run, her breathing quickened. Mikey pulled her back behind a bush. He didn't want her hurt. He didn't want anyone hurt. But he couldn't keep that from happening. The screaming from the house stopped. Mikey grabbed Alana's arm and pulled her down. The house Burst into flames. Mrs. Landen's body was flung out of the house, stripped and burnt...but only her skin was burnt, nonw of the tissue had been damaged everything but the skin was perfectly fine. Except for the fact that she herself was dead.
Mikey did not see what had caused this. However Alana did, she felt it's unwelcomed presence, She saw it's flaming eyes, it's black hide. She heard it moving when Mikey did not. She had the advantage over the beast. Where Mikey knew nothing at all. He was stunned. The house just blew up in seconds.
Mikey found this amazing, he wanted to know, to explore these strange happenings.