CHAPTER 10

To Catch A Pig

Throughout the market, the Colonel was running his errands, not with the most success. The three of them managed to get lost on the way to the tailors three times, even though the sign was basically painted in florescent pink with the words 'Madam Seaming's Seams and Sewing'. It was an overly decorated store, to say the least. The customers were nearly blinded by pinkness, which was a gift to the viewer as to avert the eyes of Madam's fashion attempts that were hanging on tortured manikins. Though Madam Seaming was a terrific tailor and seamstress, it was questionable about her fashion design. It was an unwritten law in Midtown that one should never let the Madam attempt anything that isn't cautiously mapped out and coordinated, for the end result would be disastrous and shimmering in unwanted amounts of glitter. The three of them were greeted at the door by a jolly woman with needles and spools hanging out of her tall messy bun. Riven began to think that the needles were attached to her head, as the way they moved when the Madam shook their hands was unnatural and a bit disturbing.

"Madam, I am here to get my uniforms fitted. Now if you would so kindly as to help me," the Colonel said to her in his most official tone. The cheery seamstress's face was immediately shattered with a piercing cry.

"HEROLD!" her voice scratched their eardrums like nails to a chalkboard. "THIS YOUNG MAN WANTS YOU TO HELP HIM!" A muffled groan was heard in the back room. A thin elderly man came out and started to grab a few items from various drawers, not too happy with his wife's screaming. Madam turned towards the Colonel and ushered him off towards her husband. "I assure you that my husband will do the fitting for you as fast as he can. We don't want to keep you and your sons waiting," she said kindly. John's knees buckled at her last comment. He nearly fell to the floor laughing as Riven started to bellow and rage at the elderly woman.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A BOY WHO'S SO UNLUCKY TO HAVE HIM AS THEIR FATHER, TO WHICH GOD GAVE HIM MERCY AND MADE HIM HAVE NO RESEMBELANCE TO HIM WHAT SO EVER? I AM A GIRL!" Riven growled at the old lady. She almost leaped onto the Madam like a starving cheetah if it wasn't for Fernandina holding her back. The Madam cowered in the corner afraid that the frothing wildebeest would get loose from the armored grip of her sister.

"I am dearly sorry!" she apologized, her frail voice breaking the rampage. "I just thought that you were boys due to the bulky clothes you wear. There is hardly anything in those clothes that make you look feminine. I didn't know you were into that type of thing."

"WE ARE NOT CROSS DRESSERS EITHER!" Riven spat out making one last attempt to tackle the lady. John, who finished his laughter storm, started to shove Fernandina and Riven out the door.

"Why don't you two wait outside. If you can't resist the urge to kill someone over a little mistake, please feel free to take it somewhere else," John scolded them as he booted them to the curb. The last thing that the girls heard before the door was slammed in their faces was the many apologies from John to the Seamstress and her husband. Riven slumped down on the cement still seething from the battle, her sister stood over her with her arms crossed. The glare from her eye could have froze an ice cube in its tracks, while the shadows from the afternoon sun casted menacing shadows around her armor. Fernandina looked like she could kill.

"Sister," her voice came cold and annoyed. "Why do you have to be so harsh with people? Especially the elderly. You could have given her a heart attack."

"I am not sexist. I deliver my opinion no matter who they are. If that person is an old grandma who can't see the difference between plaid and spotted fabric, then by god, I will give her a piece of my mind. No one calls me a boy. They are gross, arrogant, and not worth a dime of anyone's time," Riven scoffed. Her sister plopped down to the ground next to her, purposely ignoring the fact that her sheathed sword hit the back of Riven's head.

The day dragged on as the clock in the church tower chimed 3:00. The sun beat down on their backs nearly roasting the girl's inside their armor and coats. The people were just as busy as ever running about their own business. Riven was watching dazedly with her chin resting on her knuckles. Fernandina let out a long lasting sigh that nearly knocked the crowding people over.

"Riven," Fernandina said slowly as to approach the subject like it was a rabid dog. "What are we doing here?"

"What do you mean, Fern?" Riven asked shifting around her metal limb which was baking her skin underneath her coat.

"What are we doing here with him, the Colonel? What are we doing in Midtown? What are we doing here? We have no money, we have no leads, we have nothing but our own two feet, and you only got one of those. I just don't like doing nothing." Riven was stabbed because she didn't know as well. When they left for Midtown she never gave a thought of how they were going to do anything, let alone why. It would have been easier to stay home and live their lives the way they were, but they didn't.

"I don't know," she said sadly looking away, afraid she might start to cry. "We came here to find a lead, anything I guess. Anything to fix this, to fix us. I just don't want to go back to Arrington, not like this. I don't want to admit we failed when there is nothing left to fall back on." There was a slight pause like the world was on both of their shoulders. The feeling started to press on them until Fernandina gave a little chuckle. This surprised Riven quite a bit.

"You were never the one to give up on anything, just like dad." Riven punched her arm playfully ignoring the feeling of crushing bones in her knuckles.

"I guess that's one thing that he taught us," Riven said standing up and stretching her back out. The Colonel just stepped out of the store to meet them. He was carrying two large pink bags with blue uniforms in them. They completely contradicted his growling demeanor. John walked over to the girls and gave them the bags to carry. John wasn't going to be caught dead with pink on him.

"Hope you had a nice time," he said tossing one bag to each of them. Riven scowled at the idea of being his pack mule but ignored it as she herself couldn't picture a colonel carrying these frilly bags. "You ready to go to the library?" he asked as if it wasn't even a question. Riven was about to answer but froze. Her face was ghostly white staring across the street into the crowd of people. Her body was completely tense as if in fear and anger at the same time. John dropped down in front of her and waved his gloved hand in front of her face. Her body was a board and her eyes still stood dead. "Fernandina, what's wrong with your sister?" he asked sternly but Fernandina was as flustered as he was.

"I don't know!" she said pushing him out of the way. She started to shake her sister back and forth but to no prevail. "Riven! Come on!" she scolded her as if her voice would pull her out of her trance. John wasn't expecting much to come from Fernandina, who was usually of the quiet nature, but he definitely didn't expect her to pull a round house on her sister. In a sudden flash, the armored girl connected her foot to Riven's right shoulder and sent her flying to the ground. Her expression didn't even show a sign of regret as John stared as if he saw a flying monkey. Riven scrambled to her feet and returned the gesture with a side sweep with her left leg, knocking Fernandina's legs out from under her sending her to the ground in a clatter. The white haired girl leaped upon her sister with her right fist raised to smash the grey matter out of Fernandina's head, even with the protection of the helmet. But Riven paused, her eyes shifted from pure adrenaline rage to normal shocked look. John nearly fainted from the intensity of the moment and was shocked to realize that his hands were raised ready to snap his fingers. Riven got off of her sister and helped her off of the ground.

"Sorry, it was just a reaction," she said more to the colonel that to her own sister. John lowered his hands and shook his head.

"If that's what you're like on a good day, please don't' let me be near you on a bad one," he mumbled to himself.

"Riven what happened? What were you looking at?" her sister asked her, but Riven just shook off her worrying and gave her a reassuring pat on the back.

"It was nothing, I just thought I saw someone I knew. I'll tell you later."

Okay the suspense is even killing me! I just can't stay up late enough to finish the next chapter. Curse long days and short nights. Okay so I haven't been able to write as much as I wanted to because I had to stay late after school for tech week to prep for the play. It took forever and was very tiring and guess what? I get to do it all again next week for the next play! So I will try to write as much as I can but don't expect much until the productions are over.