Tada look guys I finished the actual story-line chapter. Since no one gave me an answer, I went ahead and made a Coati chapter since I thought it'd be cool. So here it is. If you have any ideas at all about what my next chapter should be about, please please please let me know because I officially have writer's block. Also, I did set up a poll in my profile, so please check that out and vote for what I should do in this story. If no one votes, the poll will end in 7 days, but if someone does, then an extra day will be added to that time. Ok so without further ado, have fun reading!
Coati
"Hey, what's up?" Coati said as he watched Qibli open the door to his house and come in. Plopping on the couch, Qibli looked around for something, and Coati got up from his spot at the base of the couch, went into the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, and pulled out two cans of soda. When he walked back out into the sitting room, Qibli had propped his feet up on the arm of the couch and was staring at the ceiling with his hands folded across his chest.
"Hey, you ok?" Coati asked as he handed Qibli a cold soda. Qibli nodded absently, popped the soda open, and took a long drink. Coati sat at the base of the couch, and also took a drink of his soda. Qibli finished the drink and handed the soda down to Coati. Coati set it on the floor beside him, and Qibli's trap burst like a flood gate.
"She's amazing, and she has the prettiest brown eyes with silver sparkles, and she loves books and reading and she's shy and-" Coati hated to interrupt the description of this girl, but he had too. Qibli was talking too fast for Coati to understand, and that was almost impossible.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold up, who, where, and how pretty is she?" Qibli took a calming breath and grinned.
"Well, let's just say her name is Moonwat-" Coati's eyes popped.
"She's a Night?!" Qibli grinned wider.
"College, my brother. You should try it out; lot's of girls." Coati reached up for a high five, and Qibli didn't leave him hanging.
"Let's start over. Who is she, what does she look like, and why do you like her that much?" Qibli rolled his eyes and started over for the third time.
"Ok, her name is Moonwatcher, but everyone calls her Moon, and she's a Night." Coati's eyebrows came together, but he didn't interrupt again. "She has dark skin, black, straight hair, soft brown eyes with silver flecks in them, and she wears a normal t-shirt and jeans. And I like her so much because…" He paused, and Coati knew what was coming. He groaned.
"Oh no, not you too…!" Qibli smacked Coati's shoulder, and they burst out laughing. Qibli kept thinking, and Coati kept waiting for an answer.
"Well, she's shy, she likes reading, and she's cute when it's like she can read your mind. I mean, she can't, but it seems like she can because she blushes when you think about her, and-" He stopped, and his eyes got big.
Coati propped up his elbow on the couch, and turned around to face him.
"Bro, you like a mind-reader. That's interesting." Qibli blinked, and then blinked again.
"You really think she can read my mind?" Coati nodded.
"Well, first off, if she blushes when you think about her, then yeah, I'm pretty sure she can read your mind. And also, the little silver speckles part? That was in the history books, remember?" Qibli moved his head in what looked like a nod and a shake.
"Well, yes, I remember the history books. They said that if a Night has silver in their eyes, they have the power to read minds, and sometimes they can see the future." He seemed to realize something then, and Coati laughed quietly.
"You gonna tell me, ot do I have to guess? Is this charades?" Coati started flapping his arms like a chicken, and Qibli smiled.
"Yeah, yeah. So earlier, she passed out. She started out by going stone blank at first, and then suddenly she was clutching the counter with both fists, and then she fell. I caught her though, right in front of Winter," he smirked, and Coati guessed that this Winter guy also liked Moon.
"And then we took her to the nurses, and she came out and said usually headaches were it. I was confused, because I thought she had a sickness or something, but now I guess she can see the future, and when she does, it gives her headaches." Coati nodded in understanding.
"So, the big question is now: What are you going to do? You gonna play it off, keep your thoughts in check? Or are you gonna confront her and ask questions?" Coati, personally, would use it to his advantage in getting the girl.
Qibli… well, Qibli changed his mind a little too much for Coati. Where Coati's only goal in life consisted of one word; girls; Qibli's goal changed. First out, it had been a master thief, lockpick, and pickpocket.
Yes, he had accomplished that and had been one of the best in the district. Then, he wanted into the Circle of Sands. Yes, he had accomplished that. THEN, it was high school grades. Check.
Before right this very moment, it had been college. Now, well, Coati looked at Qibli's face. Even he didn't know what his goal was. Would he go after Moon, and probably get her with Coati's help; or, would he stick to college and please Thorn? It was like Qibli had Moon's ability and could suddenly read his friend's mind.
"Moon, or college, Moon, or college, Moon, or pleasing Thorn…" Coati crossed his worn fingers. Please God, let Qibli choose Moon. I can finally help him get with someone. PLEASE. Apparently, the Lord was reflecting on all of Coati's bad moments. The one where he'd stolen, lied, run away, and disrespected the law.
"I gotta get good grades. I got to. For Thorn, and for me." Qibli shook his head, his face downcast. "I want to go after her, I really do. But Thorn…."
Coati cursed. "C'mon, Qibli for old time sakes? Please? Wouldn't you have done it for Taipan?" Coati stretched out her name, emphasizing who he was talking about. Qibli swatted his shoulder.
"Aww, man, you just had to play her card, didn't you?" One thing Qibli had promised in his young and idiot years: promised to do almost anything if Taipan's name was asked upon. At the time, it seemed like a good way to get noticed by his loyalty to her. After that year though, he stopped liking her, and people used her against him. In this case; Coati was using it against him to help him out.
It was a fine cause, Coati thought. Sure, Qibli might drop a tiny bit in his grades. But he sure as heck knew enough to get by with A minuses. Coati wouldn't be slowing him down, he'd be helping him out. And by helping, he meant getting Qibli a girlfriend, which was always help.
"Fine," Qibli muttered, and reached down for his soda. Coati handed it up to him, grinning.
"Awesome. Now, when do I meet her?" Qibli jerked up, and pulled out his phone. "Well, it's a good start that you have her phone number." Qibli nodded absently, put in a password, and then started typing again. Coati heaved himself up, went around the couch, leaned against the back of it, and watched Qibli text a person that had an ID of Moon. "Nice," Coati said.
Hey Moon, do you guys mind if I bring my friend? He says he wants to meet all of you… if you don't want to, then it's ok.
Qibli sent it, and Coati hung an arm around his shoulder.
"That, my friend, is how you introduce a guy to a girl: friend to friend, and if you don't want to, it's fine?" Qibli rolled his eyes and looked over his shoulder at Coati, who removed his arm and splayed himself over a chair.
"Nah, you gotta be more… well, not demanding, but more firm. Like, for example, Dear girl, whoever you might be, I'm gonna invite my friend to wherever we're going for whatever reason. I thought you'd be cool with it, and if I'm mistaken, lemme know. Then finish off with one of those typed wink faces." Coati grinned, and could tell Qibli knew what was coming next.
"Winks work wonders," they said in unison. Both laughing, they heard the ding off Qibli's phone, and he picked it up again. Coati waited, his hands folded across his chest, staring longingly at the soda he had left on the floor by the couch Qibli was on.
"'Sure, we picked a table with six spots, and four of them are currently filled since obviously Carnelian wasn't coming. Hurry a bit though; Winter is about to go order, and me and Kinkajou are looking over the menu. Won't be long before we eat the place out.'" Qibli showed Coati the screen, and he noticed at the end of the message was a typed face. :P.
"Bro, you got yourself a meet-and-greet to get to. And I'm coming too." Laughing, Qibli pocketed his phone, grabbed his soda, gulped down what was left, and handed Coati his as he got up from the chair and walked over. They left, locking the door behind them, and Coati assuring Qibli he had a set of lockpick wires. Qibli rolled his eyes, and set off down the street towards the cafe.
Well, Coati thought, It's gone good enough. Wonder what she'll look like… well, I mean, obviously what Qibli described her like, but that only gives you such a good image. Hmm, I wonder… Coati busied himself with pointless thoughts, and absently started walking.
When he looked back up, Qibli was a good fifty feet down the road from him, running. Rolling his eyes at nothing, Coati sprinted to catch up, and then settled into an easy run alongside Qibli.
He realized he still had his soda, which he was surprised hadn't sloshed everywhere, but he drank all of it quickly, throwing it basketball-style into a trashcan nearby. The neighbor scowled as he walked outside, and warned Coati not to do it again. Running, Coati only caught a few words, and ignored all of them.
Four minutes later, they were both outside the cafe, catching their breath. It didn't take long; they both knew how to run long distances without getting tired too easily. It was another skill among many that had helped in the Scorpion District.
Qibli pushed open the door and headed over to a group of four sitting at a table. Coati could see an Ice, a Rain, a Night, and a Sea. He quickly sorted out the names he knew.
The Ice, he guessed, was Winter, and the Night was most definitely Moonwatcher. She was very pretty, but Coati wasn't interested in her. For three reasons. One, Qibli was his best friends, two, she was a Night, and three, yes, she could-
He thought of his dad's cadillac. It was black with red flames against the sides, and it had caused him and mom to get a divorce. The Night glanced at him, shook her head, and went back to talking to the Sea and Rain. Qibli walked over, sat down in a chair by the Rain, and nodded at a seat across from him for Coati.
The seat next to it occupied the Ice, and Coati guessed Qibli either didn't like him or thought of him as a prank friend. Either way, Coati sat down, and looked at the menu.
"Hi Qibli." Moon said as soon as he sat down. Qibli concealed a grin, and Coati guessed Moon didn't noticed.
"Hey Moon." He nodded at Coati. "This is my friend by the way. Coati meet Moon, Winter, Kinkajou, and Turtle?" He said the last name questionably, as if he'd never met the guy before. The Sea nodded, and KInkajou beamed a smile at Coati.
"Hi!" Her hair shifted from brown to bright blond, then back to brown. Coati tried not to let the sudden shift mess with his vision, and blinked out black spots. Winter gave him a once-over, and then snorted.
Yup, that answered Coati's question. He was in a higher class than everyone else; maybe even royalty. Coati put on his most crooked grin, and Winter turned his head away in disgust. Qibli kicked Coati's leg under the table, and grinned at him. Coati grinned back, and looked up at the menu.
There were several items on the menu, and besides, Coati had no idea what anything tasted like. Even though he had moved to Jade Mountain six months ago, he didn't go out much for one, and for two, he didn't have a ton of money he could spend on whatever he wanted.
So, bored, he walked up to the line and dug around in his pockets for a few dollars. Qibli joined him, and handed him a ten dollar bill. No, Qibli wasn't rich either, but he had a bit more money than Coati did. And besides, Qibli bet so much, he would probably get it back in the next two days. A dollar here, a dollar there, soon added up to a lot.
"What're you getting?" Moon asked, as she walked up behind them. Kinkajou followed, and soon everyone but Winter was in the line.
Qibli spoke first. "Four biscuits, a milkshake thing, and probably a sandwich." Moon seemed a bit startled.
"Well, I mean, that's quite a bit, but whatever works." She smiled and turned to Coati.
"What about you?" Hmmm, decisions, decisions.
"Welp, guess I'll just get something to eat, because honestly, I don't even know what they have, or what it tastes like, or if I'll want it. And possibly a smoothie." Moon laughed a little.
"Kinkajou?" The little Rain bounced in excitement.
"A double strawberry smoothie, and a mango." Turtle was still examining the menu when Moon asked him.
"Um, a coffee?" Moon's eyes crinkled into a smile. Qibli quickly spoke up again.
"What about you, Moon?" She paused.
"Well, I think I'll get a blueberry smoothie with a blueberry muffin to go with it." She looked down and smiled. "If you can't tell, I really like blueberries." Qibli gave a smirk-type smile.
"Yeah, I gathered that." She smiled up at him, and Coati noticed that she acted like they were best friends or something. And, according to Qibli, they had literally met this morning. Well, as long as he was getting closer. Coati quickly filled up his head with random thoughts, making sure he didn't think about anything important again.
They all reached the front of the line, and Coati leaned against the counter. A bored looking Sky was behind the counter, rubbing her fingernails across her palm.
"What can I get for you?" She asked, looked up at him. When he gave her his most charming smirk, her eyes stopped wandering and locked on his. Still smirking, he looked up at the menu, breaking contact.
"Well, what's best?" He questioned casually, and her eyebrow popped up. They locked eyes again, and this time she was the one who broke eye contact. Looking up, she pointed to a small chalkboard that had on it in bright green chalk; Peppermint Ice Cream With Cherries, Daily Special! Coati nodded.
"Then I'll have that." She quickly glanced up into his eyes, looked over her shoulder and called to someone, and then turned to look purposely behind Coati, as if looking to see who she was dealing with next. Coati shifted so she couldn't look behind him, and they locked eyes once more.
"What's your name?" He asked, another smirk forming.
"Poppy," she answered, and folded her hands on the counter. "Yours?" His smirk morphed into a sly smile.
"Coati." She nodded, and then grew suddenly fidgety. Coati knew everyone from Qibli's friend group was watching him, so he slowly let his flirty act fade.
He waited in silence until she handed the ice cream, and nodded at Qibli behind him. Coati thanked Poppy, handed her the ten, took his change, and sat down by Winter again. Coati wolfed it down, and then watched everyone else order.
Qibli was wrapping up his order, and Coati waited until he sat down beside him. At the exact time Qibli sat down with his breakfast-sized snack, Winter got up and went to the back of the line. Qibli had a smile playing in his eyes.
"Well, he hates you," Coati said, licking the bowl that the ice cream came in. Qibli snorted a laugh and bit into a biscuit.
"Nooo," Qibli said, drawing out the word and coating it with sarcasm. Coati didn't pay attention that much, and was staring at Moon.
"Hush child, I'm trying to listen to your future girlfriend." Qibli snapped his head around, and apparently his foot snapped out at the same time, kicking Coati in the leg again.
"Oof, watch it please. My leg isn't made of steel, even though my muscles might very well be." Qibli's mouth twitched, and then he laughed.
"Sadly, far from it my friend. Far from it." It was Coati's turn to laugh, and by that time Moon was coming back to the table with her blueberry items.
She took a bite from her muffin, and then pulled a book out of nowhere. She sat there, reading and eating and drinking, while Coati tried to think about a movie he had watched, and while Qibli ate his "snack." Kinkajou came back next, sipping on her strawberry smoothie.
Moon put her book in her seat and started chatting with Kinkajou. Qibli rattled off some joke, but Coati didn't hear it. The only thing he noticed was that Winter from the line kept looking back at Moon, who didn't seem to notice, but must have since she was probably reading his m- Moon's head snapped up and she stared at Coati. Coati, luckily, had enough time to change his thought to "mood," and Kinkajou looked up at Coati surprised.
"What's a'matter Moon?" Moon's eyes widened, and Qibli glared at Coati. Coati managed to put a confused face on, and forcibly made himself think about sleek cars.
"Nothing," Moon answered, shaking her head. "I just thought I saw something move, but it was nothing." Kinkajou looked confused, but went back to talking to Moon.
"Me and Coati are gonna go outside, we better figure out what time his mom wants him back," Qibli lied smoothly, and Moon nodded absently, tugging on a strand of her long black hair. Coati made sure he was thinking about the times he spent with his mom, and followed Qibli outside. They walked a ways, sitting down on a bench about fifty feet from the shop.
"What were you thinking?" Qibli asked, staring at Coati. Coati kicked the ground, and muttered.
"Sorry, I let my thoughts get ahead of my logic thoughts." Qibli snorted, and then grinned.
"Wait, what are you talking about? I thought we talked about this. I have all the logic thoughts, you have all the run-everywhere-and-rat-us-out thoughts." Coati laughed too, and then rubbed the back of his neck.
"I'll be more careful, I promise." Just then, Coati's phone rung. Brows furrowing, he took it out of his pocket at looked at the caller ID. He shrugged at Qibli, and pressed the talk button. There was no caller ID, and he also didn't recognize the number.
"Hello?" Coati asked into the phone. A deep, rouge voice spoke.
"We have your mother. Drop off a sum of 1,000 dollars cash at the address 132, Kael Street. If you want to see her alive again." The caller hung up, and Coati looked startled.
"Ok, well, that was unexpected." Coati told Qibli what he had heard, and Qibli suggested he should call his mom.
Coati dialed her number, and waited. On the third ring, a deep voice answered, "What?" It was the same voice the caller had been. Coati snorted, and then mouthed to Qibli who it was.
"Mom, don't you think the whole, hand over 1,000 dollars cash trick is a bit old?" His mother, back in her normal voice, cursed loudly and hung up. Coati rolled his eyes and told Qibli what happened.
"Man, your mom is whacked up. I mean, mine sold me, but yours wants 1,000 dollars cash from you? That's possibly more screwed up that my mom." Coati smiled grimly.
"Well, that's mom for ya." He pocketed his phone, and remembered why he was actually outside.
"Oh, should I go home now? Won't at least someone, probably your girlfriend, be suspicious?" Qibli rolled his eyes.
"Y'know, she's not my girlfriend, and possibly will never be. But yeah, although I hate to just blow you off." Coati shrugged.
"It's fine man. Just let me know how it goes," he added with a grin. Coati took off down the sidewalk, heading back home.
That was eventful, he thought.
Ok, so here's another question for you guys to think about. Should Coati or Qibli slip, and let Moon find out they know, or be able to keep it secret? This is one of the main reasons for my writer's block, so if you guys could help, that'd be great. Thanks for reading!