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Authors: Alan Tucker
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in shifts into the river for a much-needed bath.
Jenni, Sara, and Tori went with three other girls, Rachael, Bonnie, and Faith, when it was their turn to wash up. Rachael was a pretty blonde-haired girl who was active in the drama club. Bonnie and Faith were both tall and athletic, each playing on the basketball and volleyball teams. Bonnie had long dark hair she wore in a pony tail, and Faith had light brown hair that was curly and cut short. They were nice girls, but Jenni didn’t know them very well.
At least we didn’t get paired up with Alisha and her crew , Jenni thought in relief.
They moved behind some large green bushes that grew along side the river. The girls stripped down and ran the few feet to the water. The frigid cold stole Jenni’s breath, but it did feel good to wash away the days of sweat and grit she had accumulated. They quickly scrubbed, then ran back to the bushes, shivering in the setting sun, and dried off with some blankets the gnomes had provided.
“Ow!” Sara exclaimed as she dressed.
“What happened?”
Sara picked at her teeth and produced something shiny. “Part of my braces came off,” she said. “One of the wires was poking me.”
“Weird,” Jenni replied, relieved it wasn’t something more serious.
They finished dressing and hurried back to join the others for dinner.
Sara spent the rest of the evening pulling metallic bits and pieces out of her mouth.
“I don’t get it,” Sara said later, scraping pieces of cement off her teeth. “I’ve had wires and stuff break before, but all at once?”
Jenni shrugged. “I don’t know but your teeth look amazing. How much longer were you supposed to have the braces?”
“Another year, and then a retainer for another year after that,” Sara replied. “They really look good though?” She flashed a smile at Jenni and struck a pose.
“Unbelievable! Like a freakin’ super model!” Jenni laughed.
Later, Jenni decided to listen to some music before going to sleep and noticed her MP3 player hadn’t lost any charge, even though she’d used it often since they left home several days ago. She turned to ask Sara about it, but saw her friend was fast asleep already. Tori was listening to music with her eyes closed, so Jenni got up and walked quietly to where Ms. Pap and Mr. Kain were talking.
“… And it was the strangest thing,” Ms. Pap was saying, “even though Crank was there to translate for me, I could have sworn I understood some of the words — just here and there — that the Old Ones were saying.”
Mr. Kain gave her a look of surprise.
Ms. Pap shrugged. “I don’t know. This place is getting weirder by the minute.” She then noticed Jenni standing beside her. “Yes, Jenni, what is it?”
Jenni sat next to them and showed her MP3 player to Ms. Pap. “I was just realizing my player is still on full battery. Has anyone else noticed that?”
Ms. Pap frowned and looked at Mr. Kain. He reached in his pack, pulled out his PDA and checked it.
“Wow,” he said. “She’s right. It’s still fully charged and I haven’t turned it off since we got here.”
Ms. Pap sighed. “Well, one more thing to add to the ‘weird’ list.” Then she smiled. “At least you kids will have things to keep you occupied on our trip.”
Jenni giggled. “Are we there yet?”
* * * *
The remaining adults divided up the night into thirds to keep watch, though they felt relatively secure with the river on one side and empty plain on the other. It would have been difficult for anything to sneak up on them. Crank had gone out earlier to scout around and pronounced the area clear.
Jenni slept fitfully. The prairie grasses were more forgiving than the lake shore had been, but she couldn’t seem to get comfortable. She was angry and grateful to see the first rays of the approaching dawn. Angry she hadn’t gotten much sleep, and grateful she didn’t have to fight it anymore. She got up and went to the river to splash
Jenni, Sara, and Tori went with three other girls, Rachael, Bonnie, and Faith, when it was their turn to wash up. Rachael was a pretty blonde-haired girl who was active in the drama club. Bonnie and Faith were both tall and athletic, each playing on the basketball and volleyball teams. Bonnie had long dark hair she wore in a pony tail, and Faith had light brown hair that was curly and cut short. They were nice girls, but Jenni didn’t know them very well.
At least we didn’t get paired up with Alisha and her crew , Jenni thought in relief.
They moved behind some large green bushes that grew along side the river. The girls stripped down and ran the few feet to the water. The frigid cold stole Jenni’s breath, but it did feel good to wash away the days of sweat and grit she had accumulated. They quickly scrubbed, then ran back to the bushes, shivering in the setting sun, and dried off with some blankets the gnomes had provided.
“Ow!” Sara exclaimed as she dressed.
“What happened?”
Sara picked at her teeth and produced something shiny. “Part of my braces came off,” she said. “One of the wires was poking me.”
“Weird,” Jenni replied, relieved it wasn’t something more serious.
They finished dressing and hurried back to join the others for dinner.
Sara spent the rest of the evening pulling metallic bits and pieces out of her mouth.
“I don’t get it,” Sara said later, scraping pieces of cement off her teeth. “I’ve had wires and stuff break before, but all at once?”
Jenni shrugged. “I don’t know but your teeth look amazing. How much longer were you supposed to have the braces?”
“Another year, and then a retainer for another year after that,” Sara replied. “They really look good though?” She flashed a smile at Jenni and struck a pose.
“Unbelievable! Like a freakin’ super model!” Jenni laughed.
Later, Jenni decided to listen to some music before going to sleep and noticed her MP3 player hadn’t lost any charge, even though she’d used it often since they left home several days ago. She turned to ask Sara about it, but saw her friend was fast asleep already. Tori was listening to music with her eyes closed, so Jenni got up and walked quietly to where Ms. Pap and Mr. Kain were talking.
“… And it was the strangest thing,” Ms. Pap was saying, “even though Crank was there to translate for me, I could have sworn I understood some of the words — just here and there — that the Old Ones were saying.”
Mr. Kain gave her a look of surprise.
Ms. Pap shrugged. “I don’t know. This place is getting weirder by the minute.” She then noticed Jenni standing beside her. “Yes, Jenni, what is it?”
Jenni sat next to them and showed her MP3 player to Ms. Pap. “I was just realizing my player is still on full battery. Has anyone else noticed that?”
Ms. Pap frowned and looked at Mr. Kain. He reached in his pack, pulled out his PDA and checked it.
“Wow,” he said. “She’s right. It’s still fully charged and I haven’t turned it off since we got here.”
Ms. Pap sighed. “Well, one more thing to add to the ‘weird’ list.” Then she smiled. “At least you kids will have things to keep you occupied on our trip.”
Jenni giggled. “Are we there yet?”
* * * *
The remaining adults divided up the night into thirds to keep watch, though they felt relatively secure with the river on one side and empty plain on the other. It would have been difficult for anything to sneak up on them. Crank had gone out earlier to scout around and pronounced the area clear.
Jenni slept fitfully. The prairie grasses were more forgiving than the lake shore had been, but she couldn’t seem to get comfortable. She was angry and grateful to see the first rays of the approaching dawn. Angry she hadn’t gotten much sleep, and grateful she didn’t have to fight it anymore. She got up and went to the river to splash
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