Sorry for the confusion about the first part. This story is being re-posted, the point of view was changed from Palla's point of view. It'll make it much, much easier to write. This story is not finished, I still have A TON of stuff to do. Just in case people were wondering. And sorry so much for the long wait, there was a slight family emergency (our family dog was put to sleep earlier this week) and things have been a little weird.
Also, a procrastinator is someone who constantly
puts things off. In other words me.
The dream ended and she leapt up. She felt like she'd just run the 50-meter dash. After a few minutes her heart slowed and she looked around at the familiar room, the walls looked gray and damp in the half-light. The house was quiet, not the creepy quiet from her dream. The kind early in the morning before everyone is up. Or at least everyone else.
Palla leaned over and picked her night clock from the floor. Sometime during her dream it must have been knocked off. She glanced at it as she set it on the stand. 5:24. About an hour after she had last woken up. This was the third time, Palla was ready to give up for the night. She pulled some shoes on and slipped downstairs.
Five minutes later she was sitting in a wicker-chair eating Frosted Toasted Oats, the bowl was on a coffee table Palla had pulled closer. A door closed and Palla looked up briefly. Her dad had come in with a plate and a manilla envelope with a half-dozen papers. He noticed her and sat down a couple feet away on another chair. "Palla, you're up early."
Palla swallowed some cereal and shrugged, "Didn't sleep very well." She noticed his papers, "Oh, that's right. Back to work." He looked up at her with a pained look. For a moment, Palla wished she could take it back, then he straigthened and quickly answered her, an expressionless look on his face, "I don't have a choice in these things...just wish I could see Kayla first."
"What time do you leave?"
"In an hour. Palla, I'll call on thursday." Thursday. Her birthday. Years ago it would have been a big deal for him to miss her birthday, it never would have happened when her mother was alive. His priorities had gradually changed, and Palla had accepted it. "Which reminds me. I have something for you." He gestured for her to follow and left the room.
He stopped in front of his door and turned to Palla, briefly she thought it was to make sure she was there. "Palla, I know you're upset and I'm sorry that I'm going to miss seeing you turn 16. I never meant for us to get this far apart." Palla lifted her eyebrows slightly, empressed with his little speech. It was the most he'd ever talked about. And definantly the only time he'd apologised.
Palla nodded and sith a simple flourish he opened the door. She took a couple steps inside then turned to look at her father confused as he stood expentantly by the door. Before she could ask anything, something struck her leg and whirled back around, scanning the room. Empty. The same had it had been when she first walked in. Movement caught her eyes as she was watching the french doors to a closet and she turned to look. A Small, brown and inconceivably clumsy it ambled and brushed against her thigh again.
The dog, or rather puppy, was covered in soft brown fur. Along the narrow fuzzy body a couple patches of white highlighted it's back and legs. The puppy reared up and placed his over-sized front paws on Palla's waist. He whined and shoved his nose into Palla's hand until she rubbed the top of his head.
"Normally I'd wait until your birthday, but he won't exactly keep." He explained as Palla sat on the ground and patted the floor in front of her. Even if she hadn't encouraged him the puppy probably would have reacted in the same way. As soon as she was sitting, the puppy crawled onto her lap and leaned against her, finally stretching far enough to reach her face. "I'm sorry," her father said again awkwardly. "I have to get ready to leave."
Palla nodded. He stood up and started to the door. "Dad, wait..." he turned, "thank you."
*****
"And in recent news," the radio announced, "This morning strikes among local airports intensified, leading police to-" Palla rolled over and hit the alarm, turning it off. Half an hour later she was readying stuff for school. She shuffled around in the light coming through the window and collected the schoolbooks from the desk and floor.
As soon as she stepped into the hallway Oshorndota was racing to the next door to wake Kayla. A trick that took the young dog forever to learn. Not that it was exactly fun to be waken up that way at 6:30. Not that Kayla ever seemed to mind.
About fifteen minutes later Kayla sat down next to Palla at the table. The news, on a television this time, played in the next room where their dad worked on company logs. Kayla rolled her eyes and giggled as Palla mimicked the anchorman, pretending to read an imaginary news bulletin she held up.
Out in the yard Oshorndota raced back and forth, lunging at the birds in the yard as soon as they landed. The two girls sat and watched him, laughing when his over-sized puppy feet skidded on the wet grass and he fell over before leaping right back up as if nothing had happened.
"Hey, Palla, what did you-" Kayla began. Waving her hands quickly, Palla hushed her, attention captured by the TV.
Palla was listening to her, or at least had been, but the conversation on the TV cut through everything else. Kayla fell silent and gave her an irritated, indignant look. Palla ignored her and walked into the other room to listen.
"An outdoor concert made the news yesterday in California when one of the entertainers, actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, resuscitated a drowning man in the nearby river. Apparently George Edelman leapt from the nearby sixty-story building to the river below. Schwarzenegger came to the rescue just minutes after hittig the water." The screen played a shot of a crowd next to the river. "A statement by lawyer Naomi _____ indicates a severe mental disability in Edelman." Kayla, irritated at being interrupted and walked out on came into the other room and sat on the edge of a chair.
"Why don't they just say 'really, really crazy'?"
"Because it's impolite." Kayla made a face at her fathers prompt, proper answer.
The TV showed a tape of the man spitting and slavering and screaming in a familiar language. "Gaffnur! Fraghent andalites," the man raved. Palla felt her heart slow down and almost stop. Kayla noticed and put her hands over Palla's, leaning close she whispered, "Don't worry the mental disability is in the TV."
Palla sighed. Maybe I'm going crazy, she reasoned. "Come on," she said, "let's go."
"And in other news," the television continued after they had left, "the Sharing organization spreads to several more states via online industries…"
***
The class sat, most turned around in their sits facing every which way. A study hall to be exact. Twenty or so kids doing almost everything except studying. As usual the students were in groups talking, generally ignoring the teacher. Who, luckily, knew the way study halls worked and seemed to be carrying on a conversation with a couple of kids in the front seats.
A girl walked in, handed a blue note to the teacher, and slumped into an empty seat a couple rows behind Palla. "My sister joined a club." She said to the girl next to hear, straightening slightly.
"Yeah, she called yesterday. The Sharing, I think it was."
The younger girl nodded. "And she's bein' really secretive, too. Won't tell me anything." She stressed the word 'anything' and looked around as if rallying troops for war. Support was less than enthusiastic.
"So? She's your sister, of course she's gonna be all superior if she knows something you don't." Anne added.
"What a bullshit excuse."
The teacher, with her supernatural hearing, looked at the girl belligerently glaring at the kids nearby. "I've had quite enough of your mouth, Bethany. One more outburst and it'll be your last in this room."
Bethany's scowl at Anne deepened. She looked like she was gonna spit on her. Few people ever glared at Palla like that, at least not if they knew who she was. Which wasn't ususally.
Anne glared right back at her. Aware of the teacher watching out of the corner of her eye. "So what are you going to do about it?"
"Spy." Was her quick retort.
Everyone rolled their eyes and snickered. "Spy," Someone in the room mocked, "What are you? Five years old?"
Bethany leapt to her feet in rage. "I wasn't asking for any volunteers."
"Bethany" The teacher said warningly.
.
"She's going to spy?" Was Kayla's incredulous answer after Palla told her later.
Palla shrugged. If Kayla was disappointed by her nonchalant answer she didn't show it. "Are we going to spy?" She asked hopefully.
"No!" Palla said quickly. "We're only going to promote the Sharing for dads company. Eat hot-dogs and say it's a great club. We don't even have to officially join."
The rest of the trip to the Sharing was spent
with me explaining first what "promote" meant and then why the Sharing
was called that. Although after spending a few minutes in speculation I
had to admit to not knowing why it was called that either. The Sharing?
What the hell are they sharing, anyway?
I love reviews. Just a hint. Sorry this one was slow, I promise more will happen. A lot more will happen. The dogs name does mean something, I changed a word around.