Dark Chocolate, White Diamonds

By Dixxy

Chapter Nine: Attacked

(Keisha)

It was Friday the eighteenth. We still weren't allowed outside and I was beginning to get testy and irritable. Evan was just bored out of his mind. We both needed to get out of that house as soon as possible. Sometimes, just to save my sanity, I took out the note Kento had written. It made me feel better and reminded me of the outside world.

The day went by slowly. There wasn't anything we could do and Grams gave us no work. Plus, we'd LONG finished our homework assignments, but strangely, Grams made no action to get more work for us. I think I actually ended up taking a nap that afternoon. It was THAT boring. There was just NOTHING to do.

Around six o'clock, it started to snow. "This is going to be a real nasty one, folks. A full blown snowstorm, and it's a shame for the kiddies that this didn't strike last night because with the way this looks on the satellite they would have DEFINITELY canceled school. Folks, stay indoors after the storm hits because this is going to be a REAL whopper of a snowstorm," the weatherman had said.

And we were running low on batteries and non-perishables.

"What if we have a black out? I'll starve!" said Evan, thinking of his stomach. He whimpered at me, pouting. The two of us were sitting in the kitchen, me idly stirring a cup of hot cocoa while Evan began to get an early case of cabin fever. "I don't wanna starve, Keisha!"

"You won't starve, Evan. We still have cereal and plenty of water. Plus, I think there are some cookies in the back of the cabinet," I said. "If you get hungry and we loose power you can attack those. But unless that happens we have PLENTY of things to eat. That should be the last of your worries."

"Good thing I'm not grounded from the fridge," said Evan, opening the said appliance. He hummed around as he started to pull out some ham and cheese that Grams had bought the day before. As he began to pull out more food, he turned to me with a smile. "Feel like a sandwich?"

"Sure," I said. "I could go for one of those." For some reason, Evan makes the BEST sandwiches in the entire world. He always uses just the right amount of mustard, a hint of mayonnaise, and somehow manages to find the most crisp and juicy piece of lettuce even in the soggiest of heads. I kept telling him to open his own deli when he got older- he'd be rich.

Once the sandwiches were "constructed" ("Sandwich building, Keish, is an ART FORM!"), we ate and talked, mostly about how Grams was treating us. There wasn't anything else to talk about. Realizing we'd beaten that discussion to death, we tried to talk about "sandwich theory" and tried to think of other interesting combinations Evan could experiment with.

Eventually, Grams came out into the kitchen and we ceased our conversation. She had a smile on her face, and suddenly, it seemed as if maybe the old Grams was back. We noticed she had a hand on his hip, as if she were in pain. "Hello, you two," she said, sitting down. "The snow hasn't picked up yet, has it?"

"No, it hasn't," said Evan. He finished off his sandwich, patted his stomach, and belched. I giggled as my older brother let a content grin cross his face. Grams looked less than pleased. Evan ignored the look as leaned back in his chair, balancing himself on the two back legs. "Ah, that felt good."

"Evan! Say 'excuse me'. NEVER belch infront of ladies, young man!" she said.

"Excuse me," he said. Evan looked outside. "How long before it gets bad?"

"Probably another hour or so before that happens," said Grams. "But. . . power."

"We don't loose power often," I said.

"But this is going to be some storm. If we do loose power, it'll be a while before the public service workers can go out and fix the lines. We'll be stuck in the dark all night if that happens. Which is why someone has to go out and buy some food from the corner store," she said.

"Okay, Grams, just be back soon and safely," I said.

Our grandmother put a hand on the small of her back, wincing. Instinctively Evan stood to check on her. She shook her head. "No, my back's bothering me tonight, Keisha dear." She turned to me, her eyes showing me kindness for the first time in a long time. "Would you go out and get some things for us?"

My eyes widened. "I'm allowed outside?"

"Well, I can't go. Just go straight to the store and head back as soon as you're done, all right?" she said. She walked over to her purse, her hand on her back. She pulled out a twenty and handed it to me while I put on my boots and jacket. "Get a few things of soda, some potato chips, and a package of cookies. Junk food. You kids have been on good behavior and it's high time we just had a good time together."

"Can I go, too?" Evan asked enthusiastically. His cabin fever was much worse than mine and he wanted to go out just as badly as I did. He whimpered as Grams shook her head. "Oh, Grams, why not? I'm a big boy, I can handle a stupid little snowstorm! Besides, Keisha might like company, right?"

"Keisha can handle it by herself, Evan, and I'd like some company. You wouldn't want to leave your dear old grandma alone with a bad back in the middle of a snowstorm, would you?" she said. Evan shrugged in response and sat down. He looked disappointed, but he knew the argument was over.

"See you in a little while, Keish," said Evan.

"Okay," I said. I kissed Grams' cheek and gave Evan a quick hug. She smiled at me, and I smiled back. Maybe things were going to turn around soon. I waved as I opened the door, preparing to go outside. "I'll see you both in a little while." With that, I walked out into the softly falling snow.

I tromped down our front walkway, skipping a little. If Grams was being this lenient, maybe she'd start letting us hang out with our friends again. Maybe, maybe I could get back with Kento again! I hadn't seen him of the others in weeks. I just hoped he hadn't gone after some other girl in my absence (though he did say in his note that he hadn't and I don't have any reason to believe he was lying).

Once I left our property, I felt a dark presence. My armor began to react, my weak psychic senses doubling the affect. Cautiously, I looked around and saw nothing but the familiar neighborhood houses. A shiver went up my spine. I laughed a little. "Relax, Keisha," I said to myself. "There's nothing here."

I started down the familiar way towards the corner store. The walk was quiet, the light snowing making it seem almost peaceful. I spun around, catching a few flakes on my tongue. I laughed, feeling happy and free for the first time in a long time. I liked snow. I liked the warm weather better, but I liked snow all right.

Once the corner store was in sight, I picked up the pace of my walk. Just another minute of walking and I could talk to Jack, the kindly old owner of the store. Everyone knew him as a good source of advice and gossip because of how well known he was in the neighborhood. Besides, conversation with anyone outside of Evan and Grams would be welcome. I could ask if any of my friends had been by or if he'd heard anything interesting.

"GET THE GIRL!"

The next thing I knew I was surrounded by five men dressed in black. I tried to scream, only to have one grab me from behind and throw a gloved hand onto my mouth. I kicked and punched with all my anger, desperate to break free. The others laughed at my attempts to escape from him.

There's got to be a way to get out of here. . . ah ha! I thought. I moved my arms around as much as I could, getting an idea. Self defense lesson number 101- always aim for the most painful spot you can think of, and make sure that you hit that spot at all costs.

"AHH!" The man dropped me and fell to his knees, clutching his now extremely sore crotch. He'd be singing soprano for a while, if you know what I mean. Perhaps he'd have some trouble getting a woman pregnant as well. The other four then lunged at me, but now I was ready for them.

"All right, you losers, you're gonna pay for messing with ME!" I said, jumping into a high flying tornado kick, connecting with all four heads. I laughed teasingly, then tried to make my escape. I darted towards the store, knowing they wouldn't attack me there. Not with witnesses!

"I don't think so!"

Someone lunged at me from the side, bringing me down into a snow bank. I wrestled with this assailant, a woman, before getting a good grip on her shoulder. I wrenched it back, dislocating it. She cried out and clutched it, giving me a chance to get up. See how the store wasn't a good idea as they knew that's where I was headed, I took off down another street.

I began to pick random streets and turns, not caring too deeply where I ended up. If it was away from them, then I'd be happy. If I got lost, I'd just find a pay phone and a street sign, then call one of my friends to come and pick me up. I didn't want to call Grams- she'd have a fit that I'd gotten myself lost and wouldn't let me leave the house again. Course I was screwed anyways, especially if I called a friend. But at that point all I wanted was to get away.

I noticed that the four goons from earlier had recovered from my kick and were chasing after me. I screamed and took off as hard as I could, but the icy roads were working against me. I lost control and slid into a snow bank. Seeing that running away was out of the question, I had to fight back.

One of the men was ready to pounce on me. I threw up one leg, smashing him in the forehead. He cried out, one arm lashing out at me. I got up and stepped into the lawn I'd fallen into. I started to pick snow, happy to see it was heavy and wet. That was just the kind of snow I needed right then

Snowball snow.

I began to pelt my attacks with as many snowballs as I could make in the little time I had. Their black outfits were now littered with snow, making them resemble zebras. I almost laughed at the thought, but I had to keep my defenses up. If I could hold them off long enough I could try and run away.

I sensed someone behind me and spun around to see two more men were ready to try and bring me down. I leapt out of the way, avoiding them as they lunged forward, their arms grabbing at nothing. I ran behind them, into the woods. If I could get into the trees, then I was home free.

Two MORE imbeciles were in the woods as well. What were all those ding-dongs coming after me for anyways? I groaned, getting more annoyed with the whole situation rather than frightened. Grabbing a fallen tree branch, I knocked the two away and used it as a small pole vault, making small jumps throughout the woods to get away from them.

Undaunted by my defenses, the two in the woods and few of the others started to chase after me. I continued on, trying to find someplace that I could hide. I looked up and saw a series of low branches that could get me decently high into the tree tops. No way were they going to catch me from up there. Concentrating, I dropped the stick and jumped into the tree.

I clung to the branch, dangling a good fifty something feet in the air (probably with help from my armor and the branch). I was impressed with myself for managing such a feat, and almost laughed to see the figures down below, trying to figure out where I was. They eventually retreated, leaving the woods. I breathed a sigh of relief, watching them go.

Once I was sure they were gone, I slowly made my way back down the tree, careful to not make too much noise. I landed softly in the snow and looked around. I swore, not sure where I was. I sighed heavily, knowing that I would have to try and find my way out on my own.

I closed my eyes and my armor pointed me in a direction that it deemed safe. I started to walk, the snow beginning to pick up the pace. "Great," I said to myself. The full blown blizzard was about to hit and I was stuck outside in the middle of it. "Now what do I do?"

I walked on as the blizzard hit. Winds gushed from every direction, the howling of the trees adding to an eerie disposition. Icicles began to form in my hair, my clothes clothing soaked all the way to my skin. If I didn't find a warm place, soon, I'm catch hypothermia. Knowing that if I kept on going I could create some heat, I didn't stop. But it was getting harder to go. The snow was up to my knees and it was a tiring hike to try and get through to wherever my armor was trying to lead me.

Despite the fact I was following something I deeply trusted- my armor- I was still scared. I was alone, it was in the middle of a blizzard, and I was in the middle of the woods. I tried not to think about someone finding my frozen body after the blizzard ended. No! I wouldn't die. I was going to make it. I was going to find someplace to warm up and everything would be all right. I just had to believe that and everything would be okay no matter what happened.

Eventually, the woods began to take on a familiar pattern. I tried to think of where I was, my mind foggy from the blizzard. The loud gales didn't help me collect me thoughts and neither did the fact that I was cold, wet, and tired. Eventually, my mind settled on what was familiar and I knew that shelter was close by.