In my infancy, doctors discovered several things: (1) I was epileptic, and though my secures weren't always the uncontrollable movement, I did have frequent secures though most of the time they were small and just a lapse in time I'd miss; (2) At the age of five, I was attracted by and animal one day when Caleb and I had been playing hide-and-go-seek, and the wizard doctors came to the conclusion that it had to have been a were-wolf after three closely related illnesses that weren't exactly illnesses around the time of the full moon (and before you ask, no I'm not a werewolf. I just get sick as the full moon nears); and (3) I had low blood sugar and low blood pressure, resulting in fainting if I didn't have enough protein and a slower pulse.
Anyway, I wasn't the healthiest of kids, and that resulted in few sports I could participate in. Soccer, softball, tennis, basketball, and many more sports involving a ball and the need of constant focus were…a little to dangerous for my attention span. So I took up ballet, a dance that didn't need constant movement nor did it involve a ball. It's also easy to improvise and fix a mistake. Music was another thing that I did. While I didn't perform on stage, or to the general public, I could write music with ease, something my mom and her friends enjoyed listening to even with my lapses. And though I mostly stuck to the quieter instruments (the string instruments, the flute, the piccolo, and the clarinet) I could also play percussion, if only to piss Caleb of when I woke him up from afternoon naps.
But art and drama were my favorites. They had only few rules and I could be as creative as I wanted.
Between taking me to my lesions, Caleb to swim, and the both of us to school, well I wouldn't be surprised if my parents were glad to have a chauffer. I also had a nanny with medical training that was with me constantly.
Any who…
By the time I was three, I could read and write. At five, I could speak three different languages besides American, English, Canadian, and Australian. Those languages happened to be French, Italian, and Chinese. Of course thoughts were the prominent languages spoken in my household and I heard them just as much as I heard English.
And so my mom had me sit with her, Mrs. Parry, Mrs. Garwin, and Mrs. Simms, when they'd come over and after I'd tired of the boys' games, and learn etiquette. All I learned was a bunch of stuff I didn't find important and which girls take after their mothers. Most importantly, I got to realize, I'd have rather been born a boy because then, none of this would have mattered.
Anyways, it was about then that my ballet teacher decided that I needed to learn to Ball room dance.
And what type of person would I be if I didn't show you little snippets of my child hood? So come over here to the pensive, and lean into it a little…Come on, it won't bit you (I hope). And here we go…
~Flashback~
"Hey, André, what'cha doing?" Reid asked, sneaking up on me as I waltzed with my Pit Bull, Hades, who was surprisingly good at ballroom dancing.
"The waltz," I answered, trying to focus on my steps.
"Well…shouldn't you be doing it with a person not a dog?" he asked, looking from me to Hades.
"Well sure… But daddy's not home from work yet and Caleb's at swim. And Gorman is working on something for mommy," I explained to him. One, two, three, four… One, two, three, four… One, two, three, four…
"Well then, how about you show me how to waltz and then I'll waltz with you?" Reid suggested, already pushing Hades out of the way.
"Well then," I told him sternly, " your arms go like this." I took his hands, placing one on my hip and the other in my hand. "And you move like this"
I spent all of the next twenty minutes showing how to dance. And then I got feed up with leading.
"You know, your supposed to be leading, not me," I told him.
"Well I don't know how to dance as well as you, so you'll have to lead," Reid responded.
"Well if I'm going to lead, you'll have to be the girl, because the boys the one that leads," I snapped at him.
"I don't want to be no stinkin' girl!" He shouted.
"And what's wrong with being a girl?" I asked, angered.
"Girls don't now how to do anything," Reid told me.
Of course at 5 years old, I had not mastered the art of bitch slapping. So I settled for the next best thing. The oldest move in the book, the "lady like" thing to do. I stomped on his foot with class, wishing I was wearing a pair of my mothers high-heeled stilettos, and thought about spitting on him.
Only before I could (and get away with it), I heard clapping behind me and turned to see my father leaning against the door frame.
"Daddy!" I yelled, turning my back on Reid, and running into my 32 year old (40 year old looking) father's arms.
My dad grabbed me and through he up into the air before sitting me on his hip.
"Reid was being mean," I whispered in the manner of a little kid: cupping the ear and whispering loudly.
"Well then you did well, my little princess," my father replied. The he turned to face Reid. "Mr. Garwin, I think your mother's waiting for you downstairs."
Reid, now wide eyes and scarred, nodded before sprinting out of my room.
"Now, mommy's told me you need a dance partner?" my father asked me, setting me down.
~End of Flashback~
I got Hades when I was three. He went everywhere with me. He could tell when I was having a secures and would get Calpinura, my nanny. He slept in my bed, and he was a trained guard dog. He would alert the staff of people braking in, or in some cases, breaking out. The only people who'd get past him was Reid and Pogue, whose' parents didn't have the best relationship ever. Both wound up in my bed nine times out of ten.
We'd gotten Hades because of the sleeping disorder that lead to me going to bed in my room and waking up in some one else's with no conscious knowledge of how I got there. Said disorder lead to my room being two rooms divided by two walk in closets. But still, Reid, Pogo, and I had some fun nights growing up.
~Flashback~
Reid had come ten minutes before Pogue. I was 10 and we'd been playing poker before Pogo had so crudely interrupted us. I collected three bags of skittles, two starburst sticks, and 5 packs of red vines for my winnings and Reid snatched back the bag of twislers that I'd won from him, exchanging it for his collection of hard candies.
"Pogo, you want us to deal you in?" Reid asked shuffling the cards.
"I don't play poker…with you two cheaters," Pogue laughed, pulling his jacket off, and flopping down on my black and white bed.
"Aw, ruin our fun, P man. Ruin our fun," I mumbled.
"So what other form of embarrassment shall we use on the Pogo stick, madam Shakespeare?" Reid asked me devilishly. For a minute or two, Reid and I just looked at each other, smiling devilishly, already knowing what we wanted to do.
"Truth or Dare, all dares will be written down to do tomorrow," I told Pogue, turning away from Reid.
"Fine," he mumbled as I grabbed a notebook and a pencil, and climbed on to the bed between Pogue and Reid and Hades lay on my other bed.
"So, since your supposed to be gentleman, we'll go by the Gentleman's law," I told them both once we were comfortable. "Lady's first. So Pogue, Truth or Dare?"
"Truth," he muttered.
"So, who's this girl you like?" I asked.
"Kate," he replied in a whisper. Reid snickered, but I, on the other hand, gasped.
"Kate Tunney?" I asked shocked, to which he nodded. "You'd be a cute couple."
"So, Reid, Truth or Dare?" Pogue asked, still blushing because of my comment.
"Dare, 'cause I'm not a sissy like you," Reid replied, with his genuine smart-ass smirk.
"Kiss Dree," Pogue commanded, smirking right back at the blond. Reid's jaw dropped, and he looked from Pogue to me and back to Pogue. "Innless your…scarred."
"Fine!" Reid whisper/yelled. And then he took my chin, and turned my head so that I was no longer glaring at Pogue and instead looking right up at him. And then he kissed me.
I'd kissed Reid before, back when I was four and Tyler had dared me to. But this time it was…better. If I hadn't known any better, I'd say my hormones had jumped from a ten year olds to a teens. The kiss…was amazing, and all to soon, it was over.
"Well, Book of the Damned," we both gasped when it was over.
"Pogo, T or D?"
~End of Flashback~
That night was…incredible. I can't describe it any other way. So how about we move onward in my life.
Halloween has always been my favorite holiday. Being little kids in a very large gated community had it's advantages. The boys and I had the ability to run around for hours. And so by the time we'd all get back to my house we'd be uber-tired and have a 50 lb load of sweets. The other advantage: the neighbors got the good stuff and the big stuff to put into our bags.
The costumes were fun too. Considering our moms were all best friends, as were our dads, we were constantly together, which probably was the biggest elements that lead us to isolate our selves. We were best friends, and always there for each other. We never needed anyone else.
But costume shopping was one of the many things we participated in doing together.
~Flashback~
I was 11. It was the last Halloween I'd be spending in Ipswich. And I needed the coolest costume.
As an infant, I was piglet. Caleb was Pooh, Reid was the Rabbit, Tyler was Tigger, and Pogue was Eore
At 2, I was a lion. We were all African animals, Tyler was a zebra, Pogue was an elephant, Caleb was a cheetah, and Reid, much to his distaste, was a hipo.
At 3, I was a Tinker Bell, Caleb was Peter Pan, and the other boys were Lost Boys. Our parents dressed up as pirates, and my daddy was Captain Hook.
At 4, I was a ballerina. The boys were pro-athletes.
At 5, I was Sleeping Beauty. Pogue was the prince, and Caleb, Tyler, and Reid were the fairy women.
At 6, I was a princess if the Renaissance and Tyler was my prince. The other three were knights, and our parents played the role of commoners.
At 7, I was Alice from Alice in Wonderland. Caleb was the Mad Hater, Tyler was the rabbit, Pogue was the Mad March, and Reid glared as he walked around as the mouse in the teapot.
At 8, I went as Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz. Caleb was the wizard, Tyler was the lion, Pogue was the scarecrow, and Reid was the heartless tin man.
When I was 9, we all went as demi-gods with orange "Camp Half-Blood" T-shirts.
And at 10, I dressed up as an X-man. And of course, so did the boys.
So this year I had to come up with something entirely knew, something grand.
Reid, Pogue, Tyler, Caleb, and I ran through the Party City, trying desperately to find something, anything. And then it came to me.
We'd go as a Rock Band. Black clothing, instruments, a bunch of fake tattoos, and outrageous hair styles, and we'd be set.
And come Halloween, we were dressed as exactly that.
"I want to be the singer!"
"Let me play the guitar!"
"Why do I have to be the dumb manager?"
I was the lead singer. Reid was dresses as the drummer, drumsticks and all. Pogue and Caleb were guitarist. And Tyler, much to his own disappointment, was our "faithful" manager. Caleb wanted to be in my spot, and Pogue wanted Reid's. Reid and I, though, could care less.
"I want a new role!"
"Why does Reid get the drums?"
"Why can't I be in the band?"
I placed my hands over my ears and screamed as loud as I could. Unfortunately, one of my mom's favorite vases broke. "Caleb, look at what you've done! Now that I have your attention, I would like to go Trick-or-Treeting already."
"Before you go…what happened to my vase?" my mom question as she walked into the room. "Never mind. Anyway, Ki will be joining you four this evening, so you had better be on your best behavior."
~End of Flashback~
Ki had never gone trick or treating with us before. She'd never participated at all. Her parents wouldn't allow her to. I should have noticed then that something was wrong. I'd seen her bruises and thought nothing of it; she was a klutz after all and had always bruised easily. I should have noticed how she got tired faster or how all the adults looked at her sadly. I should have noticed her lose of weight or how she saw the doctor more often then usual or the new scares. But I didn't. I believed her new fashion of wearing wigs was just a phase.
I was too wrapped up in thinking about Hogwarts to see the change in my friend. I didn't notice how I'd see less and less of her. I should have noticed what with her good-bye to me as I said good-bye before leaving for London and, with it, Hogwarts.
"I'm going to miss you, Adree. Don't cry for me, make new friends. Wright me letters, everyday, and tell me what it's like. I'll treasure them, I sear." And them she pulled out a necklace. It was
Pendant necklace with a crystal heart shaped pendant, a Rope chain design with clip clasp fastening. "Don't miss me when I'm gone from your life. But never give up on true love. Never settle because you couldn't find the right one."
"But what if it take all my lfe to find the right one?" I whined.
"Then it's a lifetime worth waiting. Promise me you'll wait, A. Promise me." She told me sternly.
"Why?" I asked, pouting.
"Because I know you. You never wait for anything," she teased.
"Fine. I promise to wait for true love, whatever the consequence may be. But only because I want to prove you wrong."
I haven't taken it off since except to clean it or to shower. I placed my "True love waits" ring on the chain, too. After Ki died, I promised my self that sex would be another thing I'd wait for.
Ki and I had met through dance classes. Our friendship was…instant. It's hard, somedays. And other days…I'd rather not say.
Well that's enough for today, let's get onto happier things.
~Flashback~
I'd used to think castles were only for only for royals and rich people…like my family. And then I saw Hogwarts. And to think, I thought Spencer Academy was huge.
Anyway, me being me, decided that it wasn't fun enough to ride in a boat across the Black Lake. So I screamed and faked a secure. Needless to say, the other five riders in my boat…er, jumped ship into the lake that supposedly has a giant squid inside. Needless to say, I was laughing my ass of the rest of the ride. And when I got out of the boat, a small blond ran up to me and started bouncing excitedly. Now, she's probably my height so I admit to being short.
"Ohmyfattypants!" she squealed. "Gosh, I've been wanting to do something like that to my brother since ever." And then she sealed again before throwing herself at me and hugging me senseless. "Oh my…were are my manners. I'm Chantal. But call me Shawn or I'll sneak into your dormitory at night and no one will be the wiser."
"Adrian Danvers. And I normally would guess that threat would mean you'd try killing me, but your more likely to terrorize my wardrobe or, in my case, steal my cloths and wear them during the summer," I teased. She looked at me shocked, eyes widened. Then a large smile grew onto her face.
"Ohmyskinnyjeans!" She squealed. "Gosh, are you like a Seer or something? Oh we are going to be best friends."
"All right Shorty," I mused, smirking.
"Cool MFH," she commented. After receiving was questioning look from me, she explained "Midget from Hell."
"Sweet," I replied, thinking of the possibilities.
"I hate you," a soaked brunet guy who'd been in my boat told me as he walked up. He then threw an arm lazily around Shawn's shoulder and extended a hand out for me to shake. "Sebastian Everson. Seb for short. Tinker Bell, hear, is my twin."
"Adrian Danvers, a lawyers kid," I told him shaking his hand.
"And I won't sue you," he commented, jokingly. "But seriously, these are Italian leather shoes you just ruined."
"Well, if I've learned anything in life, it's that if you can buy one pair, I'm sure you can buy another," I told him. "I grew up with an older brother and three guys who are around constantly. The whole trying to make me think your gay buy complaining about your shoes being ruined thing doesn't work on me. Nice to see some one try though."
"And to think, I thought I'd get to see you naked sometime soon. Shucks," he joked and the three of us laughed together.
By the time we entered the Great Hall, we were thick as thieves (a possible career path for the three of us). Professor McGonagall started calling out names as we schemed. I wasn't paying attention until my name was called.
"Danvers, Adrian!"
"What? You called. Oh…" I skipped over to the stool, and sat down elegantly.
The hat, evidently, was an inch off my head when it shouted a loud "GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindor table broke into applause though I could still hear the soft mummers of people gossiping about my sorting. Evidently I didn't listen much more, only to hear Shawn's sorting, as I stared longingly at the platters, which would probably give me the food I wanted so dearly.
"Adrian…Adrian…Hey!" Shawn whispered in my ear trying to gab my attention. I refused until I saw the food appeared.
"Yeah?" I asked, piling the mouthwatering food onto my plate.
"So food is your ultimate weakness, I see. Same as my brother and most boys. Considering the fact you grew up with four boys, I'm not surprised," she smirked. "You could tell I was a shoping fanatic with out so much as giving me a look over, and I can tell you're the type of girl who doesn't take anyone's crap and can beat up some one twice your size."
"How?" I asked, skeptical of her correctness.
"Four boys, presumably older, is a lot to put up with. You have to be tough to deal with them," she told me, winking. "Your probably the type of person who pranks people quietly to. You've learned how to frame other people."
That presumption wasn't something I was going to argue with.
~End of Flashback~
Dear Ki,
Letter #1
Hogwarts is great. I can't say the same for Harry Potter, he's sort of like a mini (but worse) Caleb. Only Harry gets in trouble constantly with out even trying. I don't see how we're related other than the similarity's in the looks department. And before you ask, no I haven't gotten a detention, though I don't think I will.
There's these two guy's, Fred and George, who are hard core pranksters. I like them already and I haven't so much as said "hi" to them yet. But the pranks they do…god I wish I'd thought of some of their pranks. Then there's Shawn, who is by the way a girl. She and I were instant friends. We're dorm mates. Oh and I'm a Gryffindor! Anyways Shawn is a mega shopaholic. The first thing she did before unpacking was ransack my luggage.
I miss you terribly, and I know you said not to but I do. I miss all of you. I swear to god I'll see you at Christmas.
Sincerely,
Adrian N. Danvers
Dear Ki,
Letter #16
What's up girly? You never responded back to the last fifteen or so letters I wrote, what's going on with you? Surly you've had time considering I sent the last one a month ago, and none of my letters are consistent.
Anyways, something weird is going here at Hogwarts. It started with Filch's cat and now students have been petrified. I'm worried for not only my safety but also the schools. It's times like this I miss having Hades around. It sucks that the school won't let him stay hear. I miss him and from what Caleb has said, he misses me, too.
Shawn and I are almost inseparable, but so are she and her twin, Seb. And I loathe Seb. We argue constantly, and we've gotten into a couple of fistfights, too. Truth is, he's a suck ass, scumbag from Slytherin. I…do not wish him well. Since to boat incident, he's died my hair pink (the worst color ever, but you knew that), I've given him a swirly (flushing his face was exhilarating!), he almost murdered Mr. Tedders, I stole his underwear and made them mysteriously show up all through the day, and he handed my bras out for twelve sickles each. I then pickpocket him and made a super-super-super-super secret stash of the good stuff as well as getting new more frilly bras and underwear sets. Mom would be disappointed but more for the amount of candy I have hidden then the pick pocketing.
I've been putting all my efforts into Seb so I haven't been big in the prank department so far. You might be proud. Might, if your even getting these letters, much less reading them.
Sorry I can't write more,
Sincerely,
Adrian N. Danvers
Dear Ki,
Letter #35
I'm dead scarred. The Weasly chick is acting totally mysterious, and completely out of it. She's gone as far as acting un-Weasly-ish. More kids have been attacked and… I could have sworn I saw a giant snake tail slither down a hallway last night. I'm shitting my pants hear, Ki. I miss you and the guys terribly. I want to go home. It's almost December now and… I don't know how much more of this I can handle. God, I feel like a Jew running the Germans.
Oh and I had a blackout in Charms so bad I fell to the floor uncontious. I had to tell Shawn about… well you know what.
I have homework that's going to last me till midnight so… well you know the deal.
Love you like a sister,
Adrian N. Danvers
P.S. Seb and I have finally gotten over our differences, we're friends know. Write me, will you!
Oh God Ki,
I'm losing it here. I… Oh yeah.
Letter #97
I feel like I'm in a bad Steven King book, well bad for me, good for the reader. I can't sleep at night because I'm too freaked out. My epileptic fits are more periodic and the position of the moon isn't helping one bit. God it two weeks I've gone from Letter 35 to Letter 97.
Shawn isn't helping. She's pureblood nobility and fells like she has nothing to be scarred of. Seb's even worse, and I'm starting to hate his guts again.
I'm scarred, Ki. I…am on the verge of running away from this place crying for my mommy.
If you could just write me, Ki… Just one letter…
Oh for the love of God, I going to puke…
Adrian N. Danvers
To my best friend, Adrian Nicole Danvers,
I'm so so sorry.
Ki Nickels
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