Prologue
Disclaimer: I do not own Static Shock or any of the original characters, though I wish I did because Richie is just simply - So. Freaking. Cute. However all rights to Allyson Neal (Aka: Skye) are copyrighted to me. If you steal her or her idea, trust me - I'll know.
Allyson Neal stared, enthralled, out the tiny window of the airplane, watching puffy clouds tainted pink from the sunrise.She breathed a soft sighat the tranqil beauty. It was such a stark contrast to the flurry of excitement welling up inside her. And not just because this was her first plane ride.
No, Aly was excited because she was going to be spending an entire year with a family in Illinois as a foster daughter. If she likedthis family, and they actually approved of her as well,shewould be able to apply to stay. The man she had talked to on the phone, Mr. Hawkins, sounded almost toonice to be true. He ran a community center that helped out homeless teens, and he seemed to have a genuine interest in Aly - not the funds provided by the government for her welfare.
Nevertheless,Aly was eager to meet him, and his two kids, in person. Practically bouncing on her seat as they landed, the 15-year-old native Californian girl craned her neck to gaze out the small window in a fervent attempt to catch her first glimpse of Dakota, Illinois.
When the plane finally landed, the young teenagersnatched upher backpack. With an eager, hopeful heart, she stepped off theplane and into the long walkway, ready to meet her new "family." As she entered the main terminal of the Dakota Airport, she glanced around nervously and eagerly, suddenly awkward and shy in her new surroundings.
Biting her lip asher blue-gray eyes scanned the room, searching fora sign with her name on it. At long last, her gaze fell upon a large white poster proclaiming "WELCOME ALLYSON" in large purple and blue letters – her favorite colors. Grinning broadly, she strode towards the rather portly African American man standing beneath it with his daughter and son.
Mr. Hawkins looked about as nice as he sounded on the phone, with a warm, fatherly smile andbenign bespectacled dark eyes, a look she'd longed forever to see. His daughter wore a bright smile to match herglittering eyes, and seemed overjoyed to see Aly. This was just as well in Aly's case, considering she'd always wanted an older sister, but wound up with an older brother instead. Incidentally, he was the one who had sent her here because he couldn't support the both of them.
Mr. Hawkins' daughterlooked older than Aly, probably around 17 or 18, she would guess.His son was perhaps only a year older, with long dreadlocks and an impatient expression, but he looked, nonetheless, happy to be there. After a few moments, Aly realized that there was another young man, maybe around 16 or so, standing right next to him.
Instantly, Aly knew he must have been a friend of Mr. Hawkins' son not only because of his pale skin and blonde hair, but because of the way they seemed to be attached at the hip.Regardless, he was waving her over just as vehemently, blue eyes glittering behindsquare glasses, matching his broad grin.
Just the sight of the family made Aly's heart soar. Already sheknew she was going to love it here. Grinning and waving back, she trotted over. Upon reaching her foster family, she was enveloped in a hug by the older daughter, causing her to giggle in embarrassment and glee. Hugging her back, Aly grinned brightly as the older girl greeted her then abruptly handed her a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Aly sniffed their fragrant aroma appreciatively and offered her new foster-sister a grateful smile.
"Oh, you're finally here! Welcome, Allyson, I'm Sharon."
Aly grinned and shook Sharon's hand, her eyes gleaming with her delight. She already liked having an older sister. Why couldn't having an older brother be just as nice?
"Nice to meet you, too, Sharon."
Mr. Hawkins stepped up then, clasping Aly's hand warmly as he shook it, smiling down at her.
"Welcome, Allyson. We're so glad you're staying with us."
She had to grin at this. "It's wonderful to be here, Mr. Hawkins. I've never been anywherebeyond the West Coast."
He smiled and winked as he told her, "You'll like it here." Aly smiled back as he motioned to the two teenage boys beside him. "These two are my son, Virgil,and his best friend, Richie. He'll be staying with us over the summer." Nodding, she thanked Mr. Hawkins as he and Sharon offered to go get the rest of her bags as she agreed to catch up later. Turning to the two boys, she smiled and held out her hand. Mr. Hawkins' son shook her hand first, a light smirk on his dark features as he introduced himself.
"Nice to meet you, Allyson. Welcome to Dakota."
"It's great to finally meet you too, Virgil, but please – just call me Aly."
She smiled back, noting that he was actually pretty cute. But something told her it wouldn't go over too well if she fell for her foster brother. It would be weird, to say the least. Wiping those thoughts from her mind likechalk from a slate as the blonde approached, Aly mused that she might not have to worry about liking Virgil at all...His friend was even cuter. Was that an earring in his left ear? With a sense of mild amusement, Aly realized that there were going to be plenty of things to get used to around here.
"Hey, Aly, I'm Richie. Nice to—Ow!"
She reached out to shake his hand, but he jerked back suddenly as energy crackled between them, shocking him mildly. Electricity she created. Fearing her secret would be discovered, she laughednervously and apologized.
"Oh, sorry, did I shock you? Must be static electricity – happens all the time."
Thankfully, she was called away by Mr. Hawkins before she needed to explain further. With a playful salute to the boys she trotted over to Mr. Hawkins' side, joining him and Sharon to hunt down the rest of her luggage, unaware of Richie and Virgil staring perplexedly in her direction...
Author Notes: This is my very first Static Shock fanfic, so please be nice while reviewing, though I will accept flames. Any ideas or comments - or details I may have missed - are welcomed!
Love & Peace,
Anaia