~Tribulations in the Tribeworld Ch. 9 by Savannah Larsen aka Happydapy
MOONSHINE STOPPED running and started walking. She walked for hours. She walked until she was at the city's end and was into the countryside. She walked all the way to her old high school. The doors were locked so she broke a window and climbed in. She found herself in the sophomore hallway. She wandered around until she found her old homeroom and walked inside. It was amazing. Everything was almost exactly as she remembered it on the day the school was closed. The desks were in line sort of and the only thing that was different was that the teacher's desk wasn't under three layers of assorted papers, folders, books, inboxes and outboxes, coffee mugs, guitar picks, and the occasional fork or spoon. It was completely barren. She almost expected to see her homeroom teacher walk in.
The school must be the only place that wasn't looted. Thank goodness this was an English classroom. I haven't had time to read lately and there are hundreds of books here, she thought. She walked over to the messy bookshelf. Freshman year she had tried to organize the bookshelf. About an hour later she had found it would be futile there were just too many books and not enough room. She found a book that had a lobster with human legs on the cover and settled down to read it. She got to her favorite part of the book when she heard a noise. She hid her bag of food and picked up one of the many guitars in the room to use as a weapon.
How stupid can you be Moonshine? Of course people would be here, she yelled silently at herself.
The person got closer until he or she was right outside the door and Moonshine positioned herself and swung the guitar, closing her eyes as she did so. There was a crack as it made contact with the person. When she opened her eyes she saw, judging from the fact that it was wearing a skirt, a female face down on the floor. She bent down and flipped the female over. It took a few seconds but Moonshine recognized the person she had just knocked out.
"Savannah?" Moonshine said as she was shaking her. It took a few minutes of shaking but Savannah finally responded.
"What? Where am I?"
"Your at Oak Valley learning conservatory. In Mr. Cameron's old room actually. Room 107. Savannah why are you here and where is you brother?"
"My brother is dead he died right before my parents did. The tribes were moving into the neighborhood so I got together everything important and left. I ended up here."
"Oh I'm so sorry."
She nodded
Moonshine helped Savannah up and happened to look down at Savannah's arm. There were pink lines all over it. Some made shapes and some where just curly cues. They appeared to be scars. Savannah noticed Moonshine was staring at her arm so she pulled her sleeve back down.
"Where are you getting your food?" Moonshine asked.
"Oh here and there. I don't eat much anymore."
"Oh. Are all the rooms like this? Untouched I mean."
"Yeah pretty much. At least the three rooms I inhabit. I hardly ever leave sophomore hall."
"Is Mr. Summer's room one of the rooms you inhabit?"
"Yeah. It has the best books. It's almost dark. Do you want to sleep here tonight?"
"Sure."
"Okay then we need to go to the home ec room to get you some blankets."
They did so and then went to a room and set the blankets out. Moonshine lied down and fell asleep. Savannah stayed up for a little while latter thinking about things. When she could no longer think straight she laid down and fell asleep.
*
ORPHEUS WAS still trying to stem the bleeding of Endor's many wounds when Endor woke up and didn't know where he was.
"Why am I here and what did I do to deserve having the stuffing beat out of me?"
"Well apparently you kissed Moonshine. You also insulted her recently deceased husband. And once you are well again you are going on your way. What you did was inexcusable."
WHEN MOONSHINE woke up she saw that Savannah was still asleep so she decided to explore the other classrooms to see if they held anything useful. She grabbed a piece of wood for protection and went silently down sophomore hallway. She went strait and found her old locker. She opened it. Inside was a slim purple book. She took it out of her locker and looked at the cover. It was black and shinny. There were no words on the cover so she opened it. On the first page it had writing on it and Moonshine read it aloud.
"The book of anything having to do with Sabina Crusher. Also known as the diary/ journal of Sabina Crusher. Started on February seventh, 2008. If you are not authorized to do so I would request that you do not turn this page in this book, unless I am dead or something. If this is the case then please read as much as you like. I would like to think something of me would survive death. TTFN, Sabina."
Moonshine walked back to the room she and Savannah had spent the night in. When she walked in she found Savannah was awake and folding the blankets that they had slept on. Moonshine walked up to Savannah and showed her the diary. Savannah opened the front cover and read the first page.
"Sabina Crusher... she sounds so familiar."
"Sabina was the person I shared my locker with. I can't believe she would forget something like this unless something was on her mind. She disappeared like a week before school was closed. They searched for like a day but Do you think it would be unethical to read it?"
"She did say if she was dead she wanted people to read it. I say go ahead and read it."
So Moonshine sat down and started reading the diary.
February seventh, 2008. Well today I stayed after school to talk to my bio teacher about my grade. He said unless I got a hundred on my final my grade for the trimester would only be a ninety-one. I can't get a hundred on my final. I don't study well anymore. My parents are going to flip a ninety-one is only a B. They are going to ground me again. Plus when I got home I switched on the news channel and they were doing a report on how there was a virus in Australia that is killing all the adults. There are hundreds of thousands of orphans. I'll have to bring that up at the next youth group meeting and see if we could raise some money for them. Well I gatta go. See you soon,
Sabina.
February eleventh, 2008. Well I am listening to the song Jesus Freak. I love this song. My parents hate it they say its too loud and aren't to happy with the term Jesus Freak. If they were to just listen to the song they would understand that it is saying they could care less if a person called them a Jesus Freak and that they weren't going to hide their beliefs from anyone no matter what. Well they screamed at me when they saw my progress note in Calculus. It was only an 85. I am a sophomore taking Calculus and they are freaking out because it isn't perfect. Oh well they are right. I could be studying instead of hanging out after school doing nothing. But its my only time to vegg out and compose myself before I go home. If I am only getting a "B" then I better work harder. I talked to Hunter today and he was wondering what would happen if the virus were to strike in the USA. I said we would need to get together because all the kids would fight over what was left. He said that was a good idea. Hunter is sooo hot. I wish he liked me like I like him. But he doesn't so I gatta learn to suck it up and deal with it. I gatta go, Sabina.
June eighth, 2008. I haven't written in a while because I kind of lost this book of anything oops. Well school ends in five days. My grades this term are all "A"s and that way my parents won't freak out. My parents just yelled that supper was ready so I gatta go. TTFN, Sabina.
Moonshine scanned the pages after that and pretty much got that Sabina went to a summer school that her parents made her go to. She did end up having fun and meeting some friends. But she wasn't that happy there. Moonshine kept scanning through until she saw the last two entries.
January first, 2009. The virus has killed all of my friends parents. They have decided to shut down the schools next week. Our last day will be Friday January 16, 2009. What if my parents are next? I don't think I can live without them. My friends and I have decided to form a group to protect ourselves. We had heard on the news that kids were forming gangs and calling them "tribes". We decided to call ourselves a "tribe". We as a group have decided to get as much food as we can whatever way we can. It's survival of the fittest... so they say but I don't think I could kill anyone for food. I don't think I could kill anyone for any reason. Why would GOD let this happen? It's so hard to keep believing that he/she/it (what ever GOD is) is still up there. But he is, I have to believe that. I'm going to read my Bible now so TTFN, Sabina.
January seventh, 2009. The tribe is leaving for the countryside after school tomorrow. There is no more need for education they say. I'm going to go with them but I don't want to. Mom and Dad are in one of the clinics they set up for the dieing. They don't even call them hospitals anymore. They said to try and get out of the city so I am going to. I need to pack but I don't know what to pack. I'll figure that out. I gatta go, TTFN, Sabina
That was the last entry.
"Wow that was unique," said Moonshine.
"So what are you planning to do today Moonshine?"
"Actually I was planning to go back to my tribe. Do you want to come with me and be part of the tribe I am in?"
"Well I would have to think about it. I love the place I have made for myself here."
"Ok. Well I think I should leave soon. Thanks for allowing me to stay here." Moonshine got her bag of food and held it out to Savannah "Here. I want you to have this." Then she told Savannah how to get the church if she wanted to.
"Ok. Thanks. Are you sure you need to leave so soon?"
"Yeah."
Moonshine got up and left the school. She made her way to the church and went inside.
She looked around and saw that everything was pretty much as it had been when she had left except for one thing: there wasn't anyone there. She headed to her room and happened to glance at the mirror in her room. On it were the words Back Up Place written in black lipstick. She instantly knew what that meant. It meant that the group was at the old Town Hall. They had made a back up plan for if they were ever attacked again. They knew where to go and they had already packed emergency supplies. Moonshine knew if she went to them they would depend on her as a leader again. She didn't feel that she should be the leader as she had already let at least twenty-four people die.
Well now you have a choice Moonshine. You can go with them and most-likely kill the few survivors, or you can go out on your own and find a place to live. The latter sounds good to me," she thought.
She packed her stuff and decided she would go back to Appledale. She slung her backpack on her back and headed out of the church.
