Twisting the Stars
By: Firefly
Chapter 1 – Mirror, Mirror
- - - - -
AN: Ok peeps, this is a new type of story, for it's an interactive one. YOU are the one who chooses the fate of the characters within! At the end of each chapter I'll list off choices that could happen. You get to choose which will happen in the story through reviews and, if along the way you want to add something not in the list and I'm intrigued by it – I'll add it! Will Gordo end up with Lizzy? Will they fall astray to others? It's all up to you, the readers! New characters added to spice things up as well! Enjoy and review!
- - - - -
"So your cousin's going to live you for like what.. a year or two?" Miranda's voice inquired through the telephone.
Lizzy rolled her eyes, though no one was there to see it. Like usual, she was having a three way conversation on the phone with her two best friends Miranda and Gordo when she had just informed them of the new development in her life. Apparently her cousin Lain, who she hadn't seen since she was a baby, was being dumped on her family until well.. "I'm not sure," Lizzy said with a sigh, "but I hope it's not for TOO long! I mean, I have to share my room!"
"Harsh," Gordo's voice could also be heard through the end. "But you never know, she could be cool."
"I don't know that!" Lizzy almost hollered. "I mean, what if she's a geek? Or worse.. what if she's a Kate?" The three of them shared a silent shudder on that one. "What if I have to live with her forever, or if she takes over my life and-"
"I think you may be overreacting," Gordo said.
"Well I'll find out soon enough," Lizzy let out a small sigh. "She'll be here any minute."
"Lizzy, Matt! Come on, Lain's here!" Jo's voice rang as if on cue to Lizzy's statement, causing the young girl to let out an exasperated sigh. "Guess I better go.."
"Call me later!" Miranda called. "Tomorrow's the first day of school, and you HAVE to help me with something to wear!"
"I know I know, I will." Lizzy promised. "See you guys later."
"Bye."
"Bye."
Setting the phone aside, Lizzy began to rush down the stairs, both dread and excitement mixed within her. After all, what if Gordo was right? What if she was just overreacting? And yet..
Before the doorbell rang Jo had swung the door open.. and all of their eyes went as wide as saucers. The girl standing right before them all, the one known as Lain, looked exactly like Lizzy. For a while all they could do was stare, Lain herself looking right at Lizzy as if she were some alien clone who had stolen her body. As much as she looked like Lizzy however, her attire was definitely not that of anything Lizzy would wear.. at least, not out of the house anyway. Clad in nothing more than tennis shoes, jean shorts and a long red shirt, her hair tied back with a red bandana on her head, she seemed almost.. tomboyish.
"Well at least I know I'm at the right place, I guess." Lain finally spoke up, causing the alarm to rise as the family realized that not only did she look like Lizzy, but she sounded just like her as well! Save for the bit of edge she put to her words, almost like a laid-back slang.
"Lain.. oh my God! Come in!" Jo was the first to grab her voice, and immediately ushered the young girl inside their home. "You look just like Lizzy!"
And that's when a scream was heard.. a scream of terror that rang through the walls like that of a man who has seen his end.. well, more like a little boy. Everyone turned to Matt who had just entered the room, their moods lighting a bit by his terrified look. "NOT ANOTHER LIZZY!!!!"
Lain smirked. "You must be Matt. And the name's not Lizzy, it's Lain."
"It's amazing!" Sam stated, still blinking in surprise. "I've heard of identical cousins before but.."
"Wow.." Lizzy finished the sentence.
Lain turned now, facing her twin. "Bizarre, huh?"
'Well,' Lizzy thought, 'I definitely wasn't expecting that..'
"Lizzy, why don't you go show Lain up to your room. I hope you don't mind sharing a room."
Lizzy's jaw dropped, her mind screaming, 'I MIND! I MIND! Hello, anyone there? I MIND!!!!'
"It's all right," Lain assured. "I'm used to sharing a room. I don't have any siblings but my friends are practically family."
Lizzy rolled her eyes, and turned to go up the stairs, trying to ignore the fact that Lain was right behind her, bags in toll just as she entered, around her shoulders. She didn't say a word as she followed her cousin, though when they entered Lizzy's room her face did twist a bit in.. was it disgust? Lizzy felt her nightmare already coming true..
They had already moved another bed into the room, taking Lizzy's things and moving it to one side, the other stood almost empty. Besides sharing space and privacy, Lizzy also found herself having to scrunch up everything in her closet, 'half and half.' And if it wasn't bad enough, that look!..
However, Lain didn't say a thing against it, and instead tossed her bags on the bed, zipping them open. She didn't have a whole lot of stuff, Lizzy noted, and the first thing she went to put up were her clothes.. which were most definitely nothing like Lizzy's, as she had suspected with her first appearance.
She watched for a moment as Lain began putting her clothes away in the closet, no skirts or even dresses, hardly any color to them all, before she finally spoke up. "Would you like some help?"
"Uh.. sure, if you don't mind."
'Well,' Lizzy thought, 'at least she's not as mean as Kate.
"Just rummage through that bag, it's got all my clothes in there. Doesn't matter to me where they go, though I don't have a lot so most of the closet space is yours. I'm gonna go set up my computer."
Lizzy looked to the bag. Indeed, she did not have a lot of clothes, nowhere near the amount Lizzy had. Four pairs of jeans, some shirts.. however, she didn't say anything about it, merely doing as she simply asked. "You have a computer?"
"Yeah, it's kinda big really. Had to take it apart into practically a hundred pieces, heh." Lain approached the desk by her bed, then wandered to the shelves. "I guess I could hang a lot of this stuff up.." She grinned. "Well, best get started." Turning to Lizzy she inquired, "Mind if I add some tunes while I work?"
"Some tunes?" Lizzy seemed confused for a moment, definitely not used to her sort of talk, but then her face lit up. "Oh, you mean music?"
"Yeah," Lain stated. "Mind if I use your stereo?"
"Um sure, I.. guess." Lizzy stated nervously. "Um, what kind of music do you listen to?"
"Well I'll compromise," Lain opened another bag, beginning to rummage through that. "Let me guess, you're the kind of person into the Backstreet Boys, Brittany Spears, and all that?"
"Yeah," said Lizzy. "Aren't you?"
"They're all right," Lain went to say, grabbing out a few CD's, "but I'm more into the hard stuff. Though as I said, I think I may be able to compromise." She smiled, going to Lizzy's CD player and popping it in. Before Lizzy could say anything else she already hit the play button, and a nice song filled the room. Mixed with some dark, yet hollow lyrics, and filled with the silent piano melody it seemed a nice mixture indeed.
Grinning, Lain went back to her disassembled computer, beginning to drag out the parts and set them on the desk, her ears closed off to the racket she made, the only sound streaming into her ears being that of the song in the background.
"What is that song anyway?" Lizzy inquired, her curiosity piqued as she finished setting her clothes in the closet, not even hesitating to move her cramped clothes down more with the extra room. "It's nice."
"It's called Smoke," Lain tried to explain while a bit of wire dangled from her mouth, her hands at the current time occupied. "by Natalie Imbruglia."
"Natalie Imber.."
"Imbruglia," Lain corrected, now taking the wire from her mouth. "Not many people have heard of her, that's ok."
"Is there anything else I can help you put away?" Lizzy offered, trying to be nice despite the fact that Lain was technically invading her room.
"Not unless you know swords," Lain muttered, replacing the wire back in her mouth.
Lizzy's eyes widened. "What-swords? You're joking, right?"
Lain leaned close to her bed, her hand reaching out to grab at the final bag. Zipping it open, she brought out the hilt of what was indeed.. a sword. "It's a Japanese style katana, I had that one especially made."
Lizzy's eyes widened, as if they could get any wider. "Y-you actually have swords! Do you.. collect them or something?"
"Not really collect as much as train with them," Lain went to say, leaning her body over the other side of the desk, tipping part of the computer as well. "My best friend is a great swordsman, and I got him to take me in as his student. Took a lot of persuading, but he finally agreed." She grinned at that last part, tipping the computer back up as it should be. "Well it actually fits, what do you know… heh, almost snugly, but that's all right.. I can deal with that."
Lizzy looked to her oddly, not really getting what she was saying. However, she failed to question it, afraid to sound like an idiot.. yeah, that was how she wanted first impressions to be..
Suddenly, the phone rang. Snapping out of her daze, Lizzy picked up her cell, glancing once over at Lain who just gave her a quick grin then continued with her work. Snapping it on, she turned around, propped in her usual phone stance and said in a quaint tone, "Hello."
"Hi Lizzy!" It was Miranda.
"Oh hey Miranda, called for tips about your outfit?"
"And to check up on your cousin." Gordo's voice.
Lizzy turned a bit to Lain. She was busy with her own work, her back to her as if whatever she said was dead to her. Smiling a bit, she turned her back and stated in the phone, "I think.. it turned out pretty well."
"No Kate Sanders then, huh?" Gordo inquired.
Lizzy grinned. "Far from it."
An hour passed and neither had left the room, Lain occupied with the project of setting up her part of the room both technological and decorative, and Lizzy on the phone with Miranda swapping outfit fashions and hair designs, Gordo leaving the conversation early because of it. Their lives were put on hold as Jo happened by the door, peeking in since it was at the time open.
"Hey guys, dinner's ready." Her voice caused them to snap from their business and turn to her, as if the whole world suddenly went dead.
- - - - -
Lizzy spent the dinner chatting excitedly about the first day of school, as well as her and Miranda's plans for dress. Lain didn't seem to mind the talk, perhaps that she wasn't much of a conversationalist herself, Lizzy mused.. or that her talk wasn't much into her interests. At any rate, all the family, save for a disgruntled Matt, didn't seem to mind one bit the usual chatter.
After dinner Lain returned to her project, and Lizzy went to being busy with her homework. The night drew on in almost serene silence, and by 10: 30 they were both crawling into bed.
"Are you excited?" Lizzy asked out of nowhere. The silence was nice, but she did enjoy talking to good people, even if it were late at night.
"Come again?" Lain sunk down into her bed covers dedicated to a night wolf, her pillows and bedspread matching it well.
"About tomorrow," Lizzy reiterated. "You know, your first day at a new school and all."
Lain shrugged. "It's nothing too big. I'm used to moving around a lot, so a new school to me really isn't that new at all."
"Oh.." Striking conversations with her cousin was definitely hard, she noted.
Lain smiled. "But you make it sound fun the way you talk and all. And this is the first time I entered a new school at the beginning of the year, so I guess it's something to look forward to." Reaching her hand to the wolf lamp by her bedside, she turned it off. "Night."
"Good night.."
- - - - -
The next morning, Lizzy woke to the sound of her mother hollering. Groaning, she rolled over in bed, blinking away her sleep as her eyes fell on Lain's bed.. it was empty. Yawning and stretching, she began to slowly get out of bed, wishing no more than for just a few more minutes.. when suddenly her brain registered what day it was. The first day of school!
Quickly jumping to her feet now, Lizzy was about to rush to her closet when suddenly a noise brought her from her excitement. It almost sounded like.. Curiosity getting the better of her, the small blonde peered out of her window to which the sound was registering.. and her eyes went wide with shock.
It seemed as though Lain was teaching Matt some karate moves.. or at least that's what she thought anyway. Her moves were so fluid, so well-put together.. they almost looked like..
Her eyes widened even more. If she tried out for the cheerleaders, she would definitely make a spot. Her style was so accurate, so well put-together.. Lizzy seemed thoughtful for a moment. She could make cheerleaders but.. what if she didn't want to? What if.. an idea began to cross Lizzy's mind. What if she could make LIZZY get the spot?
She gripped her own hands, nervousness washing over her. They were almost exact doubles.. right? If she could convince her to try out for cheerleading as her.. maybe, just maybe it could work! She could be popular, looked up to! All she would need to do was play sick, or go to school disguised as someone else. It could work, she thought with delight. It COULD work!!
- - - - -
AN: All right people, so here's your chance to vote! What should Lizzy do? Should she convince Lain to try out for cheerleading for her, or should she skip the whole thing? The first vote in the story – and believe me, this is definitely nothing minor. Could determine the setting of the entire story as we know it ^_~ So pick carefully! And if you have any other suggestions as well, feel free to submit! If I like it, I'll use it! So..
Does Lizzy go through with the plan?
Or does she can it?
It's up to you.. VOTE NOW!!!
- - - - -
By: Firefly
Chapter 1 – Mirror, Mirror
- - - - -
AN: Ok peeps, this is a new type of story, for it's an interactive one. YOU are the one who chooses the fate of the characters within! At the end of each chapter I'll list off choices that could happen. You get to choose which will happen in the story through reviews and, if along the way you want to add something not in the list and I'm intrigued by it – I'll add it! Will Gordo end up with Lizzy? Will they fall astray to others? It's all up to you, the readers! New characters added to spice things up as well! Enjoy and review!
- - - - -
"So your cousin's going to live you for like what.. a year or two?" Miranda's voice inquired through the telephone.
Lizzy rolled her eyes, though no one was there to see it. Like usual, she was having a three way conversation on the phone with her two best friends Miranda and Gordo when she had just informed them of the new development in her life. Apparently her cousin Lain, who she hadn't seen since she was a baby, was being dumped on her family until well.. "I'm not sure," Lizzy said with a sigh, "but I hope it's not for TOO long! I mean, I have to share my room!"
"Harsh," Gordo's voice could also be heard through the end. "But you never know, she could be cool."
"I don't know that!" Lizzy almost hollered. "I mean, what if she's a geek? Or worse.. what if she's a Kate?" The three of them shared a silent shudder on that one. "What if I have to live with her forever, or if she takes over my life and-"
"I think you may be overreacting," Gordo said.
"Well I'll find out soon enough," Lizzy let out a small sigh. "She'll be here any minute."
"Lizzy, Matt! Come on, Lain's here!" Jo's voice rang as if on cue to Lizzy's statement, causing the young girl to let out an exasperated sigh. "Guess I better go.."
"Call me later!" Miranda called. "Tomorrow's the first day of school, and you HAVE to help me with something to wear!"
"I know I know, I will." Lizzy promised. "See you guys later."
"Bye."
"Bye."
Setting the phone aside, Lizzy began to rush down the stairs, both dread and excitement mixed within her. After all, what if Gordo was right? What if she was just overreacting? And yet..
Before the doorbell rang Jo had swung the door open.. and all of their eyes went as wide as saucers. The girl standing right before them all, the one known as Lain, looked exactly like Lizzy. For a while all they could do was stare, Lain herself looking right at Lizzy as if she were some alien clone who had stolen her body. As much as she looked like Lizzy however, her attire was definitely not that of anything Lizzy would wear.. at least, not out of the house anyway. Clad in nothing more than tennis shoes, jean shorts and a long red shirt, her hair tied back with a red bandana on her head, she seemed almost.. tomboyish.
"Well at least I know I'm at the right place, I guess." Lain finally spoke up, causing the alarm to rise as the family realized that not only did she look like Lizzy, but she sounded just like her as well! Save for the bit of edge she put to her words, almost like a laid-back slang.
"Lain.. oh my God! Come in!" Jo was the first to grab her voice, and immediately ushered the young girl inside their home. "You look just like Lizzy!"
And that's when a scream was heard.. a scream of terror that rang through the walls like that of a man who has seen his end.. well, more like a little boy. Everyone turned to Matt who had just entered the room, their moods lighting a bit by his terrified look. "NOT ANOTHER LIZZY!!!!"
Lain smirked. "You must be Matt. And the name's not Lizzy, it's Lain."
"It's amazing!" Sam stated, still blinking in surprise. "I've heard of identical cousins before but.."
"Wow.." Lizzy finished the sentence.
Lain turned now, facing her twin. "Bizarre, huh?"
'Well,' Lizzy thought, 'I definitely wasn't expecting that..'
"Lizzy, why don't you go show Lain up to your room. I hope you don't mind sharing a room."
Lizzy's jaw dropped, her mind screaming, 'I MIND! I MIND! Hello, anyone there? I MIND!!!!'
"It's all right," Lain assured. "I'm used to sharing a room. I don't have any siblings but my friends are practically family."
Lizzy rolled her eyes, and turned to go up the stairs, trying to ignore the fact that Lain was right behind her, bags in toll just as she entered, around her shoulders. She didn't say a word as she followed her cousin, though when they entered Lizzy's room her face did twist a bit in.. was it disgust? Lizzy felt her nightmare already coming true..
They had already moved another bed into the room, taking Lizzy's things and moving it to one side, the other stood almost empty. Besides sharing space and privacy, Lizzy also found herself having to scrunch up everything in her closet, 'half and half.' And if it wasn't bad enough, that look!..
However, Lain didn't say a thing against it, and instead tossed her bags on the bed, zipping them open. She didn't have a whole lot of stuff, Lizzy noted, and the first thing she went to put up were her clothes.. which were most definitely nothing like Lizzy's, as she had suspected with her first appearance.
She watched for a moment as Lain began putting her clothes away in the closet, no skirts or even dresses, hardly any color to them all, before she finally spoke up. "Would you like some help?"
"Uh.. sure, if you don't mind."
'Well,' Lizzy thought, 'at least she's not as mean as Kate.
"Just rummage through that bag, it's got all my clothes in there. Doesn't matter to me where they go, though I don't have a lot so most of the closet space is yours. I'm gonna go set up my computer."
Lizzy looked to the bag. Indeed, she did not have a lot of clothes, nowhere near the amount Lizzy had. Four pairs of jeans, some shirts.. however, she didn't say anything about it, merely doing as she simply asked. "You have a computer?"
"Yeah, it's kinda big really. Had to take it apart into practically a hundred pieces, heh." Lain approached the desk by her bed, then wandered to the shelves. "I guess I could hang a lot of this stuff up.." She grinned. "Well, best get started." Turning to Lizzy she inquired, "Mind if I add some tunes while I work?"
"Some tunes?" Lizzy seemed confused for a moment, definitely not used to her sort of talk, but then her face lit up. "Oh, you mean music?"
"Yeah," Lain stated. "Mind if I use your stereo?"
"Um sure, I.. guess." Lizzy stated nervously. "Um, what kind of music do you listen to?"
"Well I'll compromise," Lain opened another bag, beginning to rummage through that. "Let me guess, you're the kind of person into the Backstreet Boys, Brittany Spears, and all that?"
"Yeah," said Lizzy. "Aren't you?"
"They're all right," Lain went to say, grabbing out a few CD's, "but I'm more into the hard stuff. Though as I said, I think I may be able to compromise." She smiled, going to Lizzy's CD player and popping it in. Before Lizzy could say anything else she already hit the play button, and a nice song filled the room. Mixed with some dark, yet hollow lyrics, and filled with the silent piano melody it seemed a nice mixture indeed.
Grinning, Lain went back to her disassembled computer, beginning to drag out the parts and set them on the desk, her ears closed off to the racket she made, the only sound streaming into her ears being that of the song in the background.
"What is that song anyway?" Lizzy inquired, her curiosity piqued as she finished setting her clothes in the closet, not even hesitating to move her cramped clothes down more with the extra room. "It's nice."
"It's called Smoke," Lain tried to explain while a bit of wire dangled from her mouth, her hands at the current time occupied. "by Natalie Imbruglia."
"Natalie Imber.."
"Imbruglia," Lain corrected, now taking the wire from her mouth. "Not many people have heard of her, that's ok."
"Is there anything else I can help you put away?" Lizzy offered, trying to be nice despite the fact that Lain was technically invading her room.
"Not unless you know swords," Lain muttered, replacing the wire back in her mouth.
Lizzy's eyes widened. "What-swords? You're joking, right?"
Lain leaned close to her bed, her hand reaching out to grab at the final bag. Zipping it open, she brought out the hilt of what was indeed.. a sword. "It's a Japanese style katana, I had that one especially made."
Lizzy's eyes widened, as if they could get any wider. "Y-you actually have swords! Do you.. collect them or something?"
"Not really collect as much as train with them," Lain went to say, leaning her body over the other side of the desk, tipping part of the computer as well. "My best friend is a great swordsman, and I got him to take me in as his student. Took a lot of persuading, but he finally agreed." She grinned at that last part, tipping the computer back up as it should be. "Well it actually fits, what do you know… heh, almost snugly, but that's all right.. I can deal with that."
Lizzy looked to her oddly, not really getting what she was saying. However, she failed to question it, afraid to sound like an idiot.. yeah, that was how she wanted first impressions to be..
Suddenly, the phone rang. Snapping out of her daze, Lizzy picked up her cell, glancing once over at Lain who just gave her a quick grin then continued with her work. Snapping it on, she turned around, propped in her usual phone stance and said in a quaint tone, "Hello."
"Hi Lizzy!" It was Miranda.
"Oh hey Miranda, called for tips about your outfit?"
"And to check up on your cousin." Gordo's voice.
Lizzy turned a bit to Lain. She was busy with her own work, her back to her as if whatever she said was dead to her. Smiling a bit, she turned her back and stated in the phone, "I think.. it turned out pretty well."
"No Kate Sanders then, huh?" Gordo inquired.
Lizzy grinned. "Far from it."
An hour passed and neither had left the room, Lain occupied with the project of setting up her part of the room both technological and decorative, and Lizzy on the phone with Miranda swapping outfit fashions and hair designs, Gordo leaving the conversation early because of it. Their lives were put on hold as Jo happened by the door, peeking in since it was at the time open.
"Hey guys, dinner's ready." Her voice caused them to snap from their business and turn to her, as if the whole world suddenly went dead.
- - - - -
Lizzy spent the dinner chatting excitedly about the first day of school, as well as her and Miranda's plans for dress. Lain didn't seem to mind the talk, perhaps that she wasn't much of a conversationalist herself, Lizzy mused.. or that her talk wasn't much into her interests. At any rate, all the family, save for a disgruntled Matt, didn't seem to mind one bit the usual chatter.
After dinner Lain returned to her project, and Lizzy went to being busy with her homework. The night drew on in almost serene silence, and by 10: 30 they were both crawling into bed.
"Are you excited?" Lizzy asked out of nowhere. The silence was nice, but she did enjoy talking to good people, even if it were late at night.
"Come again?" Lain sunk down into her bed covers dedicated to a night wolf, her pillows and bedspread matching it well.
"About tomorrow," Lizzy reiterated. "You know, your first day at a new school and all."
Lain shrugged. "It's nothing too big. I'm used to moving around a lot, so a new school to me really isn't that new at all."
"Oh.." Striking conversations with her cousin was definitely hard, she noted.
Lain smiled. "But you make it sound fun the way you talk and all. And this is the first time I entered a new school at the beginning of the year, so I guess it's something to look forward to." Reaching her hand to the wolf lamp by her bedside, she turned it off. "Night."
"Good night.."
- - - - -
The next morning, Lizzy woke to the sound of her mother hollering. Groaning, she rolled over in bed, blinking away her sleep as her eyes fell on Lain's bed.. it was empty. Yawning and stretching, she began to slowly get out of bed, wishing no more than for just a few more minutes.. when suddenly her brain registered what day it was. The first day of school!
Quickly jumping to her feet now, Lizzy was about to rush to her closet when suddenly a noise brought her from her excitement. It almost sounded like.. Curiosity getting the better of her, the small blonde peered out of her window to which the sound was registering.. and her eyes went wide with shock.
It seemed as though Lain was teaching Matt some karate moves.. or at least that's what she thought anyway. Her moves were so fluid, so well-put together.. they almost looked like..
Her eyes widened even more. If she tried out for the cheerleaders, she would definitely make a spot. Her style was so accurate, so well put-together.. Lizzy seemed thoughtful for a moment. She could make cheerleaders but.. what if she didn't want to? What if.. an idea began to cross Lizzy's mind. What if she could make LIZZY get the spot?
She gripped her own hands, nervousness washing over her. They were almost exact doubles.. right? If she could convince her to try out for cheerleading as her.. maybe, just maybe it could work! She could be popular, looked up to! All she would need to do was play sick, or go to school disguised as someone else. It could work, she thought with delight. It COULD work!!
- - - - -
AN: All right people, so here's your chance to vote! What should Lizzy do? Should she convince Lain to try out for cheerleading for her, or should she skip the whole thing? The first vote in the story – and believe me, this is definitely nothing minor. Could determine the setting of the entire story as we know it ^_~ So pick carefully! And if you have any other suggestions as well, feel free to submit! If I like it, I'll use it! So..
Does Lizzy go through with the plan?
Or does she can it?
It's up to you.. VOTE NOW!!!
- - - - -
