Chapter One
Fi looked out the window of the bus as they pulled away from the hotel they had stayed in last night. With an exaggerated yawn, she flopped back in her seat and glanced over at Molly.
"So, Mom, you going to tell us where we're going so I can see if I have enough time to catch a quick nap?" Fi asked, grinning.
"You? Need sleep? All right, what have you done with the real Fi?" Jack asked, at which Fi stuck her tongue out at him.
Molly laughed. "We're going to see an old friend of mine. It shouldn't take more than an hour or so."
"Actually, that depends on how Ned drives. At the rate we're going, we'll get there in ten minutes." Irene commented from the front passenger seat.
"I am not driving that fast!" Ned replied indignantly, then pointedly stepped on the brake pedal, slowing the bus down.
"And now we'll get there in three weeks." Clu said, coming out of the back room and sliding into a seat.
"I thought you were studying?" Fi asked.
"I was. But then we stopped, so I came out to see what was going on."
"No, he came out to get a snack. After all, it's very tiring playing video games." Annie appeared in the doorway.
"Traitor." Clu told her, mock glaring.
"Blame Carey. He's the one who told me to come and get you."
"I did not!" A muffled yell came from the other room.
Annie nodded and whispered, "Yes, he did." Then, raising her voice, "Come on, Clu. You promised to show me how to beat that hedgehog game, remember?"
"Oh, yeah. See you later." Clu left with Annie.
"I'm going to go see who's on." Fi said, getting up to switch on her laptop.
Jack glanced around and sighed. "I might as well just go watch Clu."
"Yeah, right. You like that game as much as he does." Molly said as she pulled out her guitar to practice.
He glared at her as he walked by, but didn't say anything. Soon, though, his voice added to the yells that were coming from the game room.
~*~
A bit of bright light appeared in what seemed to be a café of some sort. After a moment, two female figures slowly came into view. They were the same two girls who had stood next to the tall blond man as he watched Fi. The shorter one drew back her hood, revealing hair of a dull black color. The taller one followed, showing her mousy brown locks.
The shorter one sighed. "I wish we didn't have to do it like this, Kyan...I hate my mortal personality. She's so...hyper. Good-natured. Generally, annoying."
"I'm not even sure I remember mine, Des. It's been so long..I don't know if I can fool anyone." Kyan replied.
Destiny shrugged. "Once you change, she'll take over...More or less. I can't imagine not wanting to kill, though."
"Well, with that depressing thought.." Kyan muttered, then closed her eyes and looked to be in deep concentration. The wings on her back quivered, then began to slowly shrink into her skin. Her mousy hair thickened, becoming a soft chestnut. Her skin lightened, turning from dirty brown to a golden tan. The color of her eyes remained the same, an icy blue, but they lost their coldness.
Destiny looked at her for a few moments. "Dim your eyes. They'll scare people."
Kyan glanced at her reflection in the dusty glass window. Sure enough, her icy eyes gleaming through the grime would definitely reveal her to be inhuman. She closed her eyes once more, then opened them. The blue had faded to a duller color.
"That's better." Destiny said, then moved over to view her own self in the glass. "My turn." She didn't close her eyes, simply moved her hands along her body. As they moved downwards, her features began to change. Her dull black hair brightened to a shining raven, and her sickly pale skin tanned to form a soft rosy color. The scar that ran from the far corner of her right eye to under her left earlobe faded, and her brilliant emerald eyes darkened to hazel. "Huzzah. Mortal." She commented, not looking particularly thrilled. "I can already feel her taking over."
~*~
The bus pulled into the dirt road that led into the small town. Houses could be seen over on the hill by the main part of town, which consisted of a few stores, a café, a gas station, and a small movie theater. Annie looked out the window as the bus slowed to a stop and raised her eyebrows at the person next to her.
"/This/ is Aubury?" She asked.
Jack chuckled. "Yes, Annie, this is Aubury."
"Where's the mall?" She wrinkled her nose slightly as she glanced around.
"You're looking at it." Fi said from behind them, gesturing to the stores.
"Well. This is going to be fun." Annie commented.
"Oh, come on. Where's your sense of adventure?" Fi asked, then started out the room.
Annie blinked. "Where are you going?"
"To the café. I'm thirsty." She replied as she disappeared.
Jack and Annie glanced at each other, then followed her. Clu and Carey walked out of another room at the same time and nearly ran into them.
"Hey, where are you guys going?" Carey asked.
"Fi went to the café." Annie muttered, as if wondering why anyone would want to do such a thing. "Figured we might as well follow her."
~*~
As soon as Fi stepped into the café, she felt an uncomfortable feeling, as if someone whose intentions weren't exactly pleasant had their eyes on her. She glanced around, but there was no one there except the two girls, who looked about her age, up at the counter. The taller of the two, with chestnut hair and light blue eyes, sat perched on the counter, an open magazine in her lap. The other had ebony black hair and green eyes, and was reading a book. Both of them looked up as the door made a ringing sound behind her. They smiled brightly, but the brunette's smile didn't reach her eyes. Fi shivered.
"Hi!" The black haired one greeted. "I'm Samantha, Sam for short, and this is Reese. Welcome to the Eaglefeather Café. Anything I can do for you?"
Fi glanced up at the menu. "Can I get a chocolate shake?"
"Yeah, I'd like one, too." Clu said from behind her.
"Vanilla for me." Annie added.
"Chocolate Banana." Carey commented.
"And I'll take another chocolate." Jack finished.
"Sure thing." Reese replied, moving over to the shake machine while Sam rang up their price.
"What brings you into town?" Sam asked.
"Our mother's here to see a friend. We're on tour, so we stopped by." Jack said.
"Oh, who's your mother?" Reese asked, handing Annie her vanilla.
"Molly Phillips." Clu said with a grin.
Reese and Sam glanced at each other.
"Your mother's Molly Phillips? She's probably here to see my mom, then. Mom says they were really good friends when they were little...Talks about her sometimes. She never told me Molly had any kids, though. I've only met her once, and that was a long time ago." Sam told them.
"Yeah, Mom never told us about any kids, either." Jack replied.
"Well, now I gotta give you the shakes on the house. See what I get for asking questions?" Sam said with a wink as Reese walked up with the rest of the shakes.
"You better stop doing that, Sammie. You're going to lose all of our business." Reese teased.
The group sat down at one of the tables, and Carey glanced over at the two girls.
"You want to join us?" He asked. "Our parents have probably already found each other...You know how parents love to talk."
Sam nodded. "Sure!"
She and Reese sat down.
"I'm Reese, for those who didn't hear, and this is Sam." Reese told them.
"My name's Carey, and that's my brother Clu. Our mom's Molly's manager, and our dad drives the bus." He winked.
"Jack, and that's my little sis Fi." Jack introduced.
"You're Molly's kids, right?" Sam asked, to which Jack nodded.
"And that just leaves me. I'm Annie. I'm just along for the ride." She commented.
Sam laughed, then glanced out the window. "I think our parents did meet up...Mom promised she'd be back in an hour and it's been over an hour and a half. Maybe we should go meet them?"
"Sure." Carey said, standing up.
They headed out the entrance, laughing and talking, and leaving Fi to slowly follow them. She didn't like these girls, even if everyone else seemed to. They just gave her a bad feeling....Really bad. Like there was more to them than appeared...
Fi looked out the window of the bus as they pulled away from the hotel they had stayed in last night. With an exaggerated yawn, she flopped back in her seat and glanced over at Molly.
"So, Mom, you going to tell us where we're going so I can see if I have enough time to catch a quick nap?" Fi asked, grinning.
"You? Need sleep? All right, what have you done with the real Fi?" Jack asked, at which Fi stuck her tongue out at him.
Molly laughed. "We're going to see an old friend of mine. It shouldn't take more than an hour or so."
"Actually, that depends on how Ned drives. At the rate we're going, we'll get there in ten minutes." Irene commented from the front passenger seat.
"I am not driving that fast!" Ned replied indignantly, then pointedly stepped on the brake pedal, slowing the bus down.
"And now we'll get there in three weeks." Clu said, coming out of the back room and sliding into a seat.
"I thought you were studying?" Fi asked.
"I was. But then we stopped, so I came out to see what was going on."
"No, he came out to get a snack. After all, it's very tiring playing video games." Annie appeared in the doorway.
"Traitor." Clu told her, mock glaring.
"Blame Carey. He's the one who told me to come and get you."
"I did not!" A muffled yell came from the other room.
Annie nodded and whispered, "Yes, he did." Then, raising her voice, "Come on, Clu. You promised to show me how to beat that hedgehog game, remember?"
"Oh, yeah. See you later." Clu left with Annie.
"I'm going to go see who's on." Fi said, getting up to switch on her laptop.
Jack glanced around and sighed. "I might as well just go watch Clu."
"Yeah, right. You like that game as much as he does." Molly said as she pulled out her guitar to practice.
He glared at her as he walked by, but didn't say anything. Soon, though, his voice added to the yells that were coming from the game room.
~*~
A bit of bright light appeared in what seemed to be a café of some sort. After a moment, two female figures slowly came into view. They were the same two girls who had stood next to the tall blond man as he watched Fi. The shorter one drew back her hood, revealing hair of a dull black color. The taller one followed, showing her mousy brown locks.
The shorter one sighed. "I wish we didn't have to do it like this, Kyan...I hate my mortal personality. She's so...hyper. Good-natured. Generally, annoying."
"I'm not even sure I remember mine, Des. It's been so long..I don't know if I can fool anyone." Kyan replied.
Destiny shrugged. "Once you change, she'll take over...More or less. I can't imagine not wanting to kill, though."
"Well, with that depressing thought.." Kyan muttered, then closed her eyes and looked to be in deep concentration. The wings on her back quivered, then began to slowly shrink into her skin. Her mousy hair thickened, becoming a soft chestnut. Her skin lightened, turning from dirty brown to a golden tan. The color of her eyes remained the same, an icy blue, but they lost their coldness.
Destiny looked at her for a few moments. "Dim your eyes. They'll scare people."
Kyan glanced at her reflection in the dusty glass window. Sure enough, her icy eyes gleaming through the grime would definitely reveal her to be inhuman. She closed her eyes once more, then opened them. The blue had faded to a duller color.
"That's better." Destiny said, then moved over to view her own self in the glass. "My turn." She didn't close her eyes, simply moved her hands along her body. As they moved downwards, her features began to change. Her dull black hair brightened to a shining raven, and her sickly pale skin tanned to form a soft rosy color. The scar that ran from the far corner of her right eye to under her left earlobe faded, and her brilliant emerald eyes darkened to hazel. "Huzzah. Mortal." She commented, not looking particularly thrilled. "I can already feel her taking over."
~*~
The bus pulled into the dirt road that led into the small town. Houses could be seen over on the hill by the main part of town, which consisted of a few stores, a café, a gas station, and a small movie theater. Annie looked out the window as the bus slowed to a stop and raised her eyebrows at the person next to her.
"/This/ is Aubury?" She asked.
Jack chuckled. "Yes, Annie, this is Aubury."
"Where's the mall?" She wrinkled her nose slightly as she glanced around.
"You're looking at it." Fi said from behind them, gesturing to the stores.
"Well. This is going to be fun." Annie commented.
"Oh, come on. Where's your sense of adventure?" Fi asked, then started out the room.
Annie blinked. "Where are you going?"
"To the café. I'm thirsty." She replied as she disappeared.
Jack and Annie glanced at each other, then followed her. Clu and Carey walked out of another room at the same time and nearly ran into them.
"Hey, where are you guys going?" Carey asked.
"Fi went to the café." Annie muttered, as if wondering why anyone would want to do such a thing. "Figured we might as well follow her."
~*~
As soon as Fi stepped into the café, she felt an uncomfortable feeling, as if someone whose intentions weren't exactly pleasant had their eyes on her. She glanced around, but there was no one there except the two girls, who looked about her age, up at the counter. The taller of the two, with chestnut hair and light blue eyes, sat perched on the counter, an open magazine in her lap. The other had ebony black hair and green eyes, and was reading a book. Both of them looked up as the door made a ringing sound behind her. They smiled brightly, but the brunette's smile didn't reach her eyes. Fi shivered.
"Hi!" The black haired one greeted. "I'm Samantha, Sam for short, and this is Reese. Welcome to the Eaglefeather Café. Anything I can do for you?"
Fi glanced up at the menu. "Can I get a chocolate shake?"
"Yeah, I'd like one, too." Clu said from behind her.
"Vanilla for me." Annie added.
"Chocolate Banana." Carey commented.
"And I'll take another chocolate." Jack finished.
"Sure thing." Reese replied, moving over to the shake machine while Sam rang up their price.
"What brings you into town?" Sam asked.
"Our mother's here to see a friend. We're on tour, so we stopped by." Jack said.
"Oh, who's your mother?" Reese asked, handing Annie her vanilla.
"Molly Phillips." Clu said with a grin.
Reese and Sam glanced at each other.
"Your mother's Molly Phillips? She's probably here to see my mom, then. Mom says they were really good friends when they were little...Talks about her sometimes. She never told me Molly had any kids, though. I've only met her once, and that was a long time ago." Sam told them.
"Yeah, Mom never told us about any kids, either." Jack replied.
"Well, now I gotta give you the shakes on the house. See what I get for asking questions?" Sam said with a wink as Reese walked up with the rest of the shakes.
"You better stop doing that, Sammie. You're going to lose all of our business." Reese teased.
The group sat down at one of the tables, and Carey glanced over at the two girls.
"You want to join us?" He asked. "Our parents have probably already found each other...You know how parents love to talk."
Sam nodded. "Sure!"
She and Reese sat down.
"I'm Reese, for those who didn't hear, and this is Sam." Reese told them.
"My name's Carey, and that's my brother Clu. Our mom's Molly's manager, and our dad drives the bus." He winked.
"Jack, and that's my little sis Fi." Jack introduced.
"You're Molly's kids, right?" Sam asked, to which Jack nodded.
"And that just leaves me. I'm Annie. I'm just along for the ride." She commented.
Sam laughed, then glanced out the window. "I think our parents did meet up...Mom promised she'd be back in an hour and it's been over an hour and a half. Maybe we should go meet them?"
"Sure." Carey said, standing up.
They headed out the entrance, laughing and talking, and leaving Fi to slowly follow them. She didn't like these girls, even if everyone else seemed to. They just gave her a bad feeling....Really bad. Like there was more to them than appeared...