Alright, my plans on finishing this thing fell through, so I'm updating again now. Time for a trail ride. :D
I felt Fang move behind me, getting out of bed. I opened my eyes to quickly close them again. The daylight was much too bright. I groaned stretching my stiff bones. I think I should have gotten the massage last night, not Fang. I yelped when hands suddenly picked me up, bridal style.
"Fang put me down right now!" I kicked my legs fruitlessly. I didn't want to struggle too much or else he would drop me. I crossed my arms and glared at him as he sat me down at the breakfast table where everyone was already sitting. With a quick kiss, he was instantly forgiven.
I grabbed the closest food, realizing that it was pancakes with bacon and fruit. I loved my mom so much, especially for the pancakes that looked like a bear.
We all were laughing and talking with our mouths full when Ella stood up. Tapping her piece of bacon on her plastic cup, we all looked at her curiously.
"Now that I have your attention, watch me eat this piece of bacon." She shoved the whole thing in her mouth, chewing quickly. I was never more confused than now. Gulping down the remains of her bacon with a swish of OJ, she continued.
"So, the agenda for today is pretty complicated. Since it is our last full day on Pirate Island for the winter season," everyone groaned, including me. "We will be doing as much stuff as possible. Otherwise known as AMAP. Beginning the day we will go for a quick ride on the trails in the day light, then pick up the toboggans for Snake Hill. After that it will be lunch, and after lunch we will make wacky things to pull behind a snowmobile. After racing these things, we can skate and then dinner. Since we forgot to go last night, we will go on our midnight run. After the ceremonious fireworks, bed time!" We all cheered. "Well, that's all I have to say. Gazzy, pass me the bacon." She sat back down, eating more bacon.
Thank God for Ella and her speeches, or I would never be able to get through cottage times. We all got ready for the day, brushing our teeth and getting dressed. It was clear outside, but wicked cold. I put on and extra pair of mitts and found my sunglasses, the sun dangerously bright to our sensitive eyes.
I helped Angel with all of her equipment, and managed to make Gazzy stop imitating the snowmobiles. Nudge was rambling the entire time of not wanting to drive because the trails were winding and dangerous and she was going to break something….yeah, I'm starting to turn into her.
We all got out the door and went to pick up the kids from the other families. Dan's cottage was quiet, most of them sleeping, but Dan was up and willing to go. He left a note for the girls in case they got up in ready in the next ten minutes. David's cottage was a bit busier, with the girls up and ready to go for a ride along with David himself.
Finally after acquainting five more riders, we got to the open ice, gazing at our snowmobiles appreciatively. Making pairs for the other families, David was the leader of the pack, hoping onto his sled with Anne Marie on the back. She was so small she was considered a kid when taking tallies.
We all followed suit, and because I drove him nuts last night, I let Fang drive. It was warmer than sitting in the front. The engines roar drowned out any conversation, only David's booming voice actually making sense.
"GO FAST, KEEP UP, AND DON'T DIE!" We all nodded in agreement and followed his speeding sled across the lake. Keeping a tighter grip on Fang, looked behind me to see my mom, Angel and Nudge and, well, everyone else. We were directly behind David.
The wind nipped through my snow pants chilling me the tiniest bit. David waved at the men sitting in front of those huts that were on the lake. Closer inspection, they were ice fishing. No Erasers. What a relief. We went under a bridge the noise of the machine sounding funny for brief seconds. Then without any warning, David swerved to the right, cutting through an almost invisible gap in the trees. Ducking slightly, we followed in to the forest.
We were riding a groomed trail, but a very narrow one. If you turned the wrong way, you would tip yourself. Fang was perfectly fine with it, moving with the trail, not really doing any serious zig-zagging. We continued on this trail when it slowly widened, allowing two snowmobiles to pass each other. But when I looked around, I was put in awe.
The sun was just trickling between the branches of the evergreen trees or the naked arms of the maple and elm. There was snow, gently sitting on the branches it belonged there, the sun illuminating it. Looking up, the tree branches reached over the trail, creating an all natural tunnel to ride through. We passed a stream, bubbling away, rocks covered in snow sitting in the middle, giving me a sense that the Who's from Whoville were around.
I smiled brightly the entire time, always moving my head around, trying to get the most out of my surroundings the entire time. There was so much stuff to see, from the bunny tracks on the side, or the bright red cardinal that added some spicy color to the scenery. I hoped Fang was seeing all of this too, but since he was driving, I doubted it.
We reached a spot on the trail that had a few potholes in it, mostly from dumb kids trying to be cool. I was unaware of this because I saw a chipmunk, so when Fang took one full force, the visor of my helmet smashed against the back of his. It didn't hurt, but it did startle me.
I felt Fang's hand on my left knee, patting it in apology. I smiled and wrapped my arms around him again, my way of saying apology accepted.
We were on the trail for a few more hours, just enjoying everything. We pulled in a clearing, three possible different trails to chose from. Instead of starting down one of them, David got up, turning off his snowmobile. Fang turned off his with everyone else. It was eerily quiet when everything was powered down.
"Alright guys. Take ten. Stretch your legs or you'll never be able to stand again. How are everyone's toes?" I shrugged. I couldn't feel them, but that didn't mean anything. Fang got up very slowly, moving at an old man's pace. I hadn't moved at all, so I made fun of him.
"Fang, you're like a old man. Where did the last 30 years go?" I chortled. He turned ever so slowly, glaring at me.
"Why do you get up Max. You'll be eating your own words." I scoffed. A few hours on a snowmobile was nothing. I braced my hands on my knees ready to pop up like nothing. When I actually did the popping, I cried out, falling to the side in the snow.
I slowly sat up, not moving my legs at all.
"Ow! I take it back, I feel older than you." Fang smirked at me, and after he lunged each leg, held his hand out. I took it gladly, feeling the intense stiffness in my legs. After taking a few steps it didn't hurt as much and I moved around more. My legs were alright, but I don't think that they will ever be the same again.
"Alright, we're heading back. We'll be on the trails again tonight, so don't fret." David said as he pulled his helmet back on. We all nodded, and followed him down the same trail that we just came out of.
This time, we let all the other riders go before us, putting us at the end of the line. It was different, and we could see everyone riding the trails with expertise. The ride back seemed to be much faster than before, and pretty soon, we were pulling up in front of the island.
"Grab the girls and the sleds and go, go, go!" Dan shouted. Cheryl ran up the steps towards Dan's cottage, calling out for his daughters. Me and Fang hopped off the sled, our legs cramping up as we tried to run to where the sleds were stored. Anne Marie and Angel worked on pulling the trailer on the back of a snowmobile for the sleds.
Under the cottage where the sleds were stored, it was completely clear of snow. The sleds seemed like they were teetering precariously on top of each other, a simple breeze could blow them over. I pushed the pile down, throwing them to Fang who was waiting. He pushed them down the slope of the island to were the people were and they loaded them in the trailer. Finally, after we loaded all of the sleds up, we jumped back on quickly. I drove this time, though Fang did give me a face.
I laughed as we all sped off, not knowing why it was such a rush. But it was fun and it added to the suspense. The girls added 2 more snowmobiles to the chain, making us look like an army of snow bunnies. I felt Fang's grip on my waist tighten the tiniest bit, letting me know that he heard my laughter and shared it.
We followed David to a whole new part of the frozen lake. There were many more snow huts here and they were all occupied. We continued down further and finally came to a dead end, I didn't see anything but sheer rock covered cliffs, but when I looked to my left, my mouth hung open in shock.
This hill was huge. It snaked up and up, sharp turns almost everywhere. With my raptor vision, I could see the jumps that were set up on various places on the hill. There were trees on either side of the trail down, so it would be a hard landing if you fell. The patches of bare ice gleamed in the sunlight, blinding me momentarily.
"Woah." I heard the Gasman breathe as he took in the hill. I quickly unclipped my helmet pulling it off of my head. It was even a brighter snow when the visor wasn't clouding my vision.
"That," David said in an announcers voice, "Is Snake Hill."
Snake Hill is by far the most dangerous hill I even went sledding on. Next chapter the flock actually goes down this monster. D: Review if you think that a ninja is a ninja no matter how ninja they are.
Ella
