Here's the second chapter, people. Sorry I kept you waiting so long...I've been crazy busy lately. Have fun reading!
Chapter 2: Welcome to the Jungle
"Welcome to your new home, kid," said Amlaith, throwing open the door to his small townhouse. I went in and glanced around. It wasn't anything fancy—just an ordinary house. The only really unusual things about it were that the walls were painted bright blue and there were no chairs or tables anywhere, just a bunch of cushions scattered around on the floor. The first floor seemed to consist of only two rooms, this big one and what appeared to be the kitchen.
I liked it immediately. It seemed way more comfortable than my house.
"You live here by yourself?" I asked.
"Yes and no," said Amlaith. "I'm the only one who officially lives here, but I have a lot of friends so there's almost always someone coming and going."
"So why isn't anyone here now?"
"I told everyone not to come by until you were settled. Didn't want to overwhelm you."
"Cool," I said. "So is my room upstairs, or what?"
"Yep. I've got to take care of a few things; you can go check it out for yourself. Second room to the left."
I carried my bags up the stairs (which were kind of narrow and creaky, not that I'm complaining) and opened the door of my new room. Well, actually, there wasn't a door. There was a curtain. I just pushed it aside.
What kind of freaky house is this, anyway? I thought. No chairs, no tables, no doors—DUDE, this room ROCKS!
It did, too. The walls were painted green, the bed consisted of a mattress lying on the floor, and there was a gigantic window facing the ocean (which I could actually see, because the whole city was pretty much built on the beach). Totally simple and totally awesome.
I set down my bags, stuck out my tongue at my reflection in the mirror on the wall, and went back downstairs to talk to Amlaith.
"So I've unpacked and checked out my room and stuff," I said. "What do I do now?"
Amlaith looked up from the pile of papers he was sorting through. "Well, if you're living in my house now, we've got to lay down some rules.
"Rule #1: Don't break anything. If you do, fix or replace it.
"Rule #2: Don't do anything too stupid. This includes things that will get you killed or injured, because if you get killed or injured your dad will have my hide.
"Rule #3: Never be afraid to tell me if you disagree with something I've said. I'm not your father; I can handle your opinions.
" And finally, rule #4: Paint the town red all night if you want, but breakfast is at eight sharp and if you miss it you'll have to survive on leftovers.
"Got all that?"
"Only four rules?" I asked. "What kind of place are you running here?"
"A better one than you're used to," said Amlaith, smiling. "Go off and explore the city if you're bored. Make some friends. Supper won't be for a while."
Make some friends? I didn't make friends. My only friends were my older brother Maedhros and my friend Dirgon from up north. But hey, I was in a new town now, where no one knew how weird I was considered back home. Maybe it was time for a new beginning.
"Okay," I said. "I'll be back in a couple hours."
"Have fun."
I went outside onto the sidewalk and looked around. Like Tirion, there were a bunch of people walking along the streets, but unlike Tirion, everyone didn't seem to be in a huge hurry. People here seemed way more chill. My kind of town.
Okay, I thought, so where do I go now? I'd never been in Alqualonde before, really. I didn't know these streets. So where to?
I started wandering around a bit, not really sure where I was going and not worrying about it. Even if I got lost, I could figure it out. I'm a city kid born and bred.
Eventually I found myself on a little side street that seemed to be nearly abandoned. There were no people on the sidewalks, and no noise coming from the houses. A bit creepy, really.
"Hey, Hotshot!"
I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sudden yell and looked around to see who was calling me. After all, I was the only one there. They had to be talking to me.
"I'm talking to you, Hotshot. You, with the reddish hair. Over here!"
Turning around, I finally saw three kids sitting on the doorstep of a building that looked totally ancient and falling apart. And I gotta say it, folks: These were the three weirdest-looking kids I'd ever seen.
The girl in the middle, who I assumed was the one who'd spoken, was wearing a yellow dress that was way too big for her, and had green eyes heavily circled in charcoal and—no kidding—pink hair. Yeah, you heard me. She had BRIGHT PINK HAIR. How it had gotten that color I had no idea, but there we were. The guys sitting on either side of her were pretty strange, too—they both were wearing grungy, ripped-up clothes and had silver hair with oddly colored streaks in it (the guy on the left had black streaks and the guy on the right had green).
"Um…hey," I said.
"Hey," said the girl. "You're new in town."
"How do you know I'm new in town?" I asked. "I could have lived here for ages. Maybe you've just never met me before."
"Nope," said the girl, shaking her head. "I know everyone, and I've never even seen you before. And besides, no one in Alqualonde has red hair."
Technically, I don't have red hair. I have reddish-brownish-blackish hair. But I wasn't going to argue with some weird girl I'd just met about my hair color (I mean, I have SOME dignity).
"So, like, who are you, man? What's your scene?" asked the guy with the black streaks in his hair lazily.
"I'm Maglor," I said, wondering what he meant by my "scene." "I'm from Tirion."
"Don't tell me your name, Hotshot, I won't remember it," said the girl. By now I'd pretty much figured out that she was the leader of the group and that if she didn't remember my name, no one would. "I never remember anyone's names—that's why I give everyone nicknames. The only name I can remember is my own."
"What is your name?" I asked, sitting down next to the guy with the green stripes.
"It's Melania. But you can call me Strawberry if you want to. Lots of people do, because of my hair. This is Skunk—" she indicated Black Stripes— "and Lucky—" she indicated Green Stripes.
"We're brothers, me and Skunk are," said Lucky. "I'm a year younger. And no, Skunk didn't get his name because of his hair—it's 'cause he smells bad. The black highlights just emphasize the point."
"Cool," I said. "So how did you guys get your hair all funky like that? No way is that natural."
Skunk jerked his thumb toward Melania. "She dyed it."
Melania smiled proudly. "Yeah, I did. I live with my aunt, see—I'm kind of her apprentice—and she's a weaver, and she des her own cloth, so sometimes I steal the dye and use it on my hair. You'd think it'd fall out, but it doesn't, so there we go."
"Wicked awesome," I said. "You live with your aunt? Where are your parents, do they live in Alqualonde?"
"They live in Deep Lake," said Melania, rolling her eyes. "Thank the gods I only have to go back there twice a year."
"Deep Lake?" The name sounded familiar to me—maybe I'd been there. "As in the tiny hick town twenty miles south of here?"
"No, as in the thriving metropolis of all things awesome," said Melania sarcastically. "But enough about me, I want to hear about you! What are you doing here? Why'd you leave Tirion? What's your family like? When did you get your ear pierced, and how much did it hurt?"
"Okay, this is kind of a long story," I began, "but to sum it up, my grandpa's king of the Noldor—" (gasp from Melania, impressed looks from Skunk and Lucky) "—and so I've got a lot of pressure to be smart and a good smith and all that, but I'm not, I'm good at music, and so one day I skipped out on a forge lesson with my old man and he made me come up north with him to Aule's, and then I met this guy Amlaith, and he asked me to come back with him as his apprentice, and I said yeah, and so I dropped out of school and came here. And my friend Dirgon pierced my ear a few days ago and it didn't hurt that bad."
There was a pause, and then Melania nodded.
"That's cool," she said. "That's extremely cool."
"Yeah, like, hardcore, man!" said Skunk. "You're Amlaith's apprentice? The King himself?"
"Uh…the King?"
"Yeah, dude," said Lucky. "He pretty much rules the West Side music scene right now. He's like some kinda god."
"Oh, I love King," said Melania. "He's awesome. I can't believe you're his apprentice. You must really rock."
I shrugged. "That's what they tell me."
"You gonna show us?" said Skunk.
"Sometime, sure. Right now, nah. I don't randomly start singing in public places anymore. It tends to get me into trouble."
Melania nodded sympathetically. "I hear that. Hey, you know what you need?"
"What?" I asked cautiously.
"You need, like, blond highlights in your hair. That'd look so cool. Wouldn't it, guys?"
Skunk and Lucky nodded obediently.
"Hey, hey, hey!" I said. "Hold it! What is it about me that always makes people feel like they have to change my appearance? I need my ear pierced, I need my hair dyed—what's with that?"
"Because you, my dear Hotshot, have untapped potential," said Melania. "You're a blank canvas, if you will. Come on, what do you say? I promise it'll be quick and painless."
"Okay," I conceded, "you can dye my hair. But not today. I have to go home for supper."
"Excellent," said Melania. "Meet us here tomorrow at three. We'll take care of business then. Oh, and Hotshot?"
"Yeah?"
She grinned evilly. "Welcome to our world."