And now, what I think is the longest chapter I've written so far for this story; the New Moon Night Race!
Unfortunately, I was unable to feature every single character in this chapter, but there are scenes with quite a few.
Enjoy! =)
"Here we go," Courtney said, rubbing her hands together in excitement, as well as to bring some warmth back into them. The late October night was chilly, but not too cold to be unbearable.
"Excited?" Leshawna asked.
"Very!" Courtney exclaimed. "Ugh! When are they gonna tell us the partners?"
"Right now," Bridgette said in response, walking to the spot in front of the group. "Ready for this year's official New Moon Night Race teams? Here we go: Geoff and Cody, Alejandro and Tyler, Lindsay and Leshawna, Gwen and Trent, Katie and Sadie, Noah and Courtney, Duncan and Heather, Bridgette and DJ, Harold and Izzy, Ezekiel and Justin, Beth, Sierra, and Owen."
"Sounds good, surfer girl," Duncan replied, throwing his arm around Heather's shoulders. The raven-haired girl pushed his arm off with disgust.
"Don't touch me. Sure we're a team, but that gives you no right to touch me," she scolded, crossing her arms and turning away from Duncan, who just shook his head with an amused smile.
"Alright, now that we have our teams, let's get this show on the road," Owen said excitedly. "Come here Beth; we've got this in the bag!"
"Oh, you're going down!" Courtney replied just as energetically.
"Competitive much?" Noah asked sarcastically. Courtney spared him a quick side glare, but her excitement was too great to remain mad at anyone.
"Ok, teams assemble," Alejandro announced. "Line up behind the crosswalk mark." The TMA members did as they were told. The chill of the night began to disappear as adrenaline took over. The darkness lost its edge as the teens' eyes began to adjust to the moonless environment. The time was right for a monster race.
"Start on the count of three," Alejandro continued his instruction. "Quick reminder, only scare each other no regular people. And the code for something seriously going wrong is 'broken curfew'…"
"Why?" Sadie asked, as this all was still new to her.
"Because it seems normal. What if you run into the police or something?" Izzy asked in response. Sadie's eyes widened, as well as Katie's as the two looked at each other.
"Are we breaking the law?" Katie half asked, half exclaimed.
"No. The police just love finding new ways to bust monsters. You're out after dark? Arrested! You're in the woods while some families were camping out there? Arrested! You're reading Twilight, which could give you vampires and werewolves ideas? Arrested!" Geoff replied jokingly. "We're fine." Katie nodded, still looking a little nervous.
"So back to the count of three," Alejandro said. "Everyone ready?" Positive comments replied. "Alright. One… two…th…"
"WAIT!" The TMA turned to see their human friend Alexander running down the side street towards them. His coat was unzipped and flying behind him as he practically flew towards them.
"What's up Alex?" Geoff asked, leaning back out of his ready stance to meet the blonde as he skidded to a halt in front of them and bent over to catch his breath.
"W-would I be... be able to film this?" Alex asked, holding up a small video camera as he fought to regain his breath. "I mean, I totally understand if you'd prefer me not too. But wouldn't it be cool to actually see what was going on with some of the other teams?" The TMA all turned to Alejandro. He did assume the leadership position most of the time, and the vamp was the most likely to be opposed to such a thing.
But going against usual Alejandro protocol, the boy simply shrugged and smiled over at the blonde human. "Sound good. Just make sure to hide the tape somewhere no one, and I repeat no one, will ever, ever, find it." Alex nodded excitedly and turned his camera on. "Oh, and the best angle for the start would be in front."
"Got it, thanks!" Alexander replied, running a little further down the street so he could fit all of the teens into his camera frame.
"Okay, one more time," Alejandro said, leaning back into his ready position. "Ready? One… two.. three!" And with that, the race was on!
~With Harold and Izzy~
Izzy's race plan, no matter who her partner was, had always been to ride on her newly renovated hover scooter. As soon as Alejandro said three, the mad scientist had pulled Harold onto the scooter with her and hit the ignition. They took off and quickly overtook all of the other teams.
"IZZY! WE'RE GOING TOO FAST!" Harold exclaimed. "SLOW DOWN!"
"I CAN'T! THIS IS WAY TOO FUUUUNNNN!" Izzy exclaimed, throwing her head back and letting out an energized; "WOOOOOOO-HOOOOOOOOOO!"
~Duncan and Heather~
"This feels so primitive," Heather muttered as she held on to the werewolves back. Duncan had suggested that she ride on his back because they'd cover ground faster. That didn't make the predicament any less weird for Heather. She hated animals with a passion. And even though Duncan was part human, it didn't make this situation any better.
"Get used to it, honey," Duncan growled back as he ran. "You wanna win? We gotta run. And you should consider yourself lucky; I'm one of the scariest monsters the TMA has. We'll be earning those extra points by the bucket load."
"If you say so," Heather sighed, rolling her eyes and holding on a little tighter as Duncan bounded into the woods.
~Bridgette and DJ~
"I see Lindsay and Leshawna," DJ relayed to Bridgette as she steered her broomstick for Mount Acadia. "What do you say we throw them off course a little?"
"Who do we want to scare? Lindsay or Leshawna?" Bridgette asked.
"Leshawna. She's scared of spiders and that's easier to make a reality than fashion disasters and the moment," DJ answered.
"One creepy, crawly, spider at your service," Bridgette responded, waving her wand in the direction of the sparkling pair a few feet ahead and under them.
~Lindsay and Leshawna~
"How much farther till we reach the mountain?" Lindsay asked the miniature shape shifter on her back. Until they needed her to be something productive, the girls had decided that Leshawna would just remain a mini version of herself.
"Still a while off. But I think I see Noah and Courtney up ahead and the trio down below. Which would you care to scare?" Leshawna asked in reply, slightly enjoying her clever little rhyme.
"Um… how about the trio. I don't think it'll be that easy to scare off Nolan and Colleen," Lindsay replied.
"Sounds good to me. What should I turn into then?" Leshawna asked. "How about a worm; Beth's scared of those, isn't she? Or what are they other two scared of? It has to be something good; something that'll totally throw them off course like a… like a…." Just then, something fairly large and hairy fell onto Leshawna's head and bounced off onto Lindsay's back. "SPIDER!" Leshawna cried when she saw what the falling object really was.
"Where?" Lindsay asked, scanning the ground.
"On you!" Leshawna exclaimed. Usually a spider only partially terrified her because she was so much bigger than the tiny bug. But this spider was practically her size! "You have to grow back to your original size and get it off!" The eight-legged creature began to crawl closer to Leshawna, who only became more freaked out and edged back away from it.
"Ok," Lindsay said, swan diving towards the pavement. The force sent both Leshawna and the spider flying back wards. The shape shifter was able to get a hold on to a fold in Lindsay's dress while the spider just blew away into the night. Just before they made impact with the ground, the fairy flipped up and landed with her feet on the sidewalk, now back to her usual size.
"That was a close one," Leshawna sighed, dropping to the ground and also changing back to her usual size.
"Where did the spider go?" Lindsay asked, turning around trying to look at her back.
"It fell off when you dived down," Leshawna explained, looking towards the sky just as Bridgette and DJ flew over them. "And I know exactly where it came from. Curse those wizards and their wands."
~Courtney and Noah~
"I think we're in the lead," Courtney said excitedly. Competition was something that Courtney absolutely loved, and she excelled at it. Winning was one of her favorite past times.
"We're at least ahead of the people we can see," Noah commented. "Who knows about where some of the others are? They could be in the woods, or swimming, or even simply taking side streets. And you can't forget that Gwen and Beth can turn invisible if they want. Beth did that last year and that's how she and DJ won."
"Aw, but that's like cheating," Courtney said. She may have loved competition but cheating just didn't fly with Courtney.
"Not really. You can do anything in your power to win that doesn't harm you, any other monsters, or any civilians," Noah replied. Those were the rules, Courtney remembered. But that didn't mean she found it fair.
Noah wasn't exactly a competitive guy, and Courtney felt as though she was annoying him with her constant chatter. So she decided to fly in silence for a little while. Courtney had never flown before, let alone with a harpie. It felt wonderful to be up in the cool night air, the wind bowing her hair back like in those romantic movies.
"Wanna scare someone?" Noah asked.
"I'm like to, but how? We're the best with those sneaky, hide in the closet until all the lights turn off scares," Courtney answered.
"You're right. We aren't naturally scary, we rely on the element of surprise, which believe it or not, we have right now," Noah replied. "Who shall we go after? I see Geoff and Cody and I think that's Duncan and Heather in the woods below us. Take your pick."
Courtney thought about it, making her decision quick. "Let's take both. Go for dragon boy first." Noah nodded and redirected his dark wings so the duo gained height. "Wait, don't we want to go down?"
"Yep, but one must first go up," Noah responded. "Courtney, when we reach them, I want you to brush your fingers along Cody's neck or something that'll give him that freaky feeling. I'll startle Geoff enough with this and I also don't want you getting too close to a dragon."
"Got it," Courtney nodded.
"On your command," Noah said.
"Bombs away," Courtney commanded. Noah shot down towards the ground at a diagonal angle, heading straight for Geoff and Cody. Courtney had never actually seen Geoff in his dragon state before, and it was kind of cool. He was still about the same height, maybe only a foot taller. Orangey-gold scales covered his skin and large wings of about the same color extended from his back. A long tail almost as long as his body also added to the image.
"Now," Noah whispered as the approached the duo. Noah swooped in so the wind created by the impact would whack both Geoff and Cody and throw the off guard. Courtney did as she was told, running her fingers like a spider over the back of Cody's neck. She felt him shiver and tense up before Noah took to the sky again to prepare to dive bomb Heather and Duncan.
"CURSE YOU, NOAH!" Geoff yelled up as the attacking duo took the lead over them.
"We got em," Courtney said triumphantly. "Ready for round two?"
"Yeah. Do the same thing you did to Cody to Heather," Noah instructed. "It really completes the scare." Courtney nodded again as Noah dived down beneath the trees to get to their new prey. The rag doll had been expecting to feel tree limbs and leaves hitting her face, but was surprised at how well Noah could maneuver through the trees so that they hit nothing and made no sound. A harpie would not be a fun thing to be followed by, she concluded. You would never know where it was till it had you pinned.
"Now," Noah whispered again as he swooped down. The sound made Duncan flinch and Heather nearly went flying off his back. That natural terror only increased as Courtney spider fingered her neck. But Heather was smarter than Cody. She grabbed Courtney's hand, not knowing that it actually was a person.
Her arm now imprisoned by Heather's hand, Courtney was jerked backwards as Noah tried to fly forward. In an instant of panic, Courtney quickly pulled the strings out of her left elbow and let from her elbow down stay with Heather and Duncan so she and Noah could keep moving forward.
"OMG! EW!" Heather shrieked when she realized that all she had was half of an arm.
"RELAX! IT'S JUST LIKE A STUFFED ANIMAL IN ARM FORM!" Courtney called back as she and Noah disappeared into the trees. "Next stop, Mount Acadia."
~Gwen and Trent~
Lacking any natural means of transportation, Gwen and Trent had opted to simply sneak through the back roads up to Mount Acadia. That route had proved to be the fastest anyway, as flying could be thrown off by wind or weather patterns.
"We're getting close; I can see the gate up to the mountain," Gwen said, able to see better in the dark than her companion.
"It seems we're the only ones who took this route tonight," Trent said. "I haven't seen or heard anyone else. Have you?"
"Nope. Which means we should keep our eyes out up ahead. Someone could be waiting there," Gwen replied.
"Yes," Trent agreed, nodding his consent. The two ventured on in silence for a little while, both not sure what to say next. Gwen had been crushing on Trent for a while now, and had always secretly hoped they be teamed together for this. But now that that dream was a reality, she didn't know what to do. Gwen was thankful for the darkness that hid the nervous blush that had begun to rise in her cheeks. She heard her companion coughing which gave her a reason to talk.
"You're sure you're feeling better?" she asked. "You still sound kinda death like."
"Yeah, I feel mostly back to normal," Trent replied.
"You came back just in time for tonight," she said.
"Yeah, I was worried my mom was going to say no to participating even though I was back at school yesterday. But she was fine with it so we're all good," Trent replied.
"I'm glad your back. History is so boring without you," Gwen continued. "Speaking of, when are we going to write our version of the history book?"
"Hm, we'll have to get started on that soon if we want to get it to Mr. Sorge by the end of the year," Trent said, sounding like he was thinking hard. "How about after Halloween? Then maybe we'll have more than three stories to add to the book." Gwen laughed softly.
"We'll have more than three. We haven't even covered anything exciting except the American and French Revolutions," she said in response. "Just wait till we get to the world wars. Then we'll have some stories."
"And you can't forget about the ever so important imperialism phase; we could probably make some humorous stories out of that," Trent added. "This book is going to be awesome."
"Yes, yes it is," Gwen replied, happy that history had given them something to talk about. Mostly because I get to spend time with you.
Footsteps farther down the street caught their attention. The two teens continued to walk though, thinking nothing of them. People had a right to walk at night. Maybe it was just an avid athlete out taking a midnight walk.
But as they reached the end of the back road, with the path to Mount Acadia not five feet away, the duo came face to face with the owner of the footsteps; a police inspector.
"Good evening. Out a little late, aren't we?" the inspector said in an unpleasantly pleasant voice.
"Good evening officer. Yes, it is pretty late, but curfew is one a.m. so we're not breaking it," Trent answered. Gwen noted how grown up he sounded, making her feel as though Trent had handled guys like this before.
"I know. You're not in any trouble," the inspector replied. "I just have a few questions for you two, if you don't mind." Gwen looked nervously over at Trent. He looked back at her, trying to communicate through his eyes for her to stay calm. He took a hold of her hand and squeezed it gently. Gwen tried to focus on the butterflies his touch gave her rather than the potentially dangerous officer speaking to them.
"Good ahead," Trent nodded his consent.
"Where are you two headed and where are you coming from?" the investigator asked, pulling out a small notepad and a pen.
"She was over at my house, we were filming a movie for English that involved it being dark outside; that's why it's so late. I'm walking her home," Trent answered, not a trace of uncertainty in his voice.
"Is that really what you were up to?" the officer asked, directing the question at Gwen.
"Well… yeah," she said quietly. "Sort of."
"Sort of?" the officer asked. Gwen froze. She hated this. But just when things could've gone for the worse, Trent wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him.
"So maybe we got a tad distracted," he said smoothly.
"Ok, now, have you two seen anything strange tonight?" the officer asked. "Anything out of the ordinary?"
"Like what?" Trent asked, sounding completely oblivious to the fact that monsters were currently running through the streets.
"Well, not to cause any alarm, but we have reason to believe that there are monsters on the loose tonight," the investigator answered. "So anything monster related."
"Nope," Trent said taking his head before sliding his phone out of his pocket. "Sorry, just got a message from my mom. Give me one second," he said, quickly shooting off a message. Gwen saw that it wasn't to his mom at all; Trent hadn't even gotten a message. He was simply sending Alejandro the message 'broken curfew. Tell the others'. Gwen knew this guy had been bad news from the start.
"Have you ma'am?" the officer asked her suddenly.
"I uh… no," she said, shaking her head.
"Are you sure? You seem a tad jumpy," the investigator continued to grill her. Gwen looked away from his cold gray eyes. They made her feel uncomfortable.
"We were watching a horror movie before we left his house," she lied on the spot like Trent had been doing. "I may not seem like it, but horror movies tend to stick with me and scare me." The officer nodded. She'd told a good lie.
"I see. So, where do you live?" he asked.
"I live down by the lake, right over there," Gwen answered, pointing to the group of houses over by the shore. That was true.
"Alright, so…" the officer began but was interrupted by two new sets of running feet as Justin and Ezekiel ran over to them.
"Guys! Did you get Alejandro's text?" Justin asked before his eyes fell on the officer. He tried to stop them from widening in fear, but it was too late.
"Don't worry, none of you are in trouble. I'm just wondering if you've seen any crazy behavior tonight; any monster activity," the investigator said to reassure the new additions. "But may I ask where you're coming from, going to, and what message you're referring to?"
"Oh, we were heading home from our friend's house," Justin said quickly, as though he had been the whole time. "School project. Zeke and I were on our way back to my house when our friend Alejandro sent us a message. Have you seen it Trent?" Trent slipped his phone out again and pretended to look at a new message, then showed the phone to Justin.
"This one?" he asked, actually showing the alien the message he'd originally sent to Alejandro.
"Yep, that's the one," Justin nodded. "He was asking if we wanted to meet at his house tomorrow to finish up the project. He couldn't make it tonight."
"I see," the officer said, writing all of this down. "So no monster activity?"
"Nothing," Zeke shook his head. The officer nodded, continuing to write on his notepad.
"Have any of you teens ever heard of or seen any monsters in Totalsville?" he asked.
"Nope," Zeke answered loudest over all four of the negative answers.
"Alright then. Thank you for your cooperation. Please call the station if you kids see or hear anything strange going on," the investigator said, sounding like he was about to leave. But then his gray eyes fell on something of interest; Justin's head. "Son, what is that on your head?" Justin froze as the others turned to their friend. His antennae were still sticking up.
"They're props for our project," Justin said quickly. "I guess I forgot to take them off. They're kind of comfortable once you get used to them." The officer seemed ready to continued when an unusually large gust of wind knocked into the little group. The weather report had said that winds were supposed to be rolling in during the night. The wind cast a shiver through the teens, except Zeke who didn't feel such things.
"Alright. Thank you for your help. Stay warm," the officer said before walking away. When he was out of earshot, the foursome turned in to face each other.
"Close call. I'm happy you chose the school project excuse too," Trent said. "That's what we'd just said."
"Oh good," Justin sighed. "Should we continue up to Mount Acadia or head to TMA headquarters?"
"Headquarters; it's safer," Gwen replied, still clinging close to Trent. He made her feel safer about this whole situation, and she didn't want to let go of him as he was still shivering slightly from the wind.
"I'll tell Al we'll be there," Justin said. "Come on. The streets aren't safe anymore." Then he turned to Ezekiel. "I'm sorry your first NMNR had to end this way."
"Oh don't be," Ezekiel replied with a smile. "This night was the most fun I've even had!"
Are the police on to them? Or not?
R&R please!
Next chapter soon! (Hopefully!)
Read on! =3