Camping Out

Well, it was someone's bright idea to get me to camp out last night!  I despise camping after a very bad experience and swore I would never do it again.  Well I'm clearly too soft and agreed this time; granted it was only in the back garden...  Anyways, my not so bad experience this time inspired this!  Hope you enjoy :

~~~~~~~ 

The crackle of twigs underfoot woke me and I sat bolt upright, the top of my head brushing against the thin tent material above me.  I looked over, squinting into the darkness, expecting to see Carla missing from her sleeping bag; the noise outside surely her needing to use the bathroom, but she lay curled up, her eyes shut tight, still sleeping soundly.  I sat quietly, pulling my fleece lined sleeping bag up under my chin and listened to the wildlife beyond the tent walls. 
An owl hooted in the distance, followed by the flap of strong wings as it swooped for some unseen prey.  The faint scurry of night animals in the woodland between where we camped and the road provided a constant buzz of noise, and the occasional call of a bird of fox cut through the otherwise quiet night. 

I shook my head, clearing it of all the scary camp fire stories from earlier that evening.  Picking up the torch from under my pillow I clicked the little power button and shone it at the thin walls.  Immediately I regretted my decision as the beam of light cast eerie shadows all around me.  The branches of the trees created knarled hands that clawed at the sides of the tent, grabbing for me where I sat.  Fumbling quickly for the button, the torch slipped and threw light on the far end of the tent where a huge shadow painted the material before the source of light disappeared, taking the shadows with it. 
The crackle of the dry autumn leaves and the snap of twigs pierced the extremely early morning atmosphere and made my skin prickle.  I considered switching the torch back on but my hands were sweating and it slipped from my grasp.  It bounced off my knee and hit the floor with a soft thump.  I leant over and shook Carla's shoulder as the heavy pad of footsteps on the breaking twigs drew closer to the tent door.
"Carla?  Carla wake up."  I whispered loudly into the darkness; afraid to move to search for the torch.
"Gerroffme!"  Carla grumbled, pulling away from my grip.
"Carla! There’s something outside."  I shook her again, this time eliciting a response.
"Huh?"  She sat up, scraping her head on the tent, "What do you mean..."  She trailed off as a grunt and a deep rattle of breath being drawn sounded right by the entrance to our tent. 
I could feel Carla staring at me despite the near darkness pressing in around us.
"What the hell is that Lissy?"  She whispered hoarsely. 
"I was hoping you'd tell me it was just a fox and to stop being silly.  It's huge.  The shadow was huge."  My hands shook as I ran them across the floor in search of the dropped torch.
"Shadow?"  Carla questioned.
"The torch."  I clicked the little button and the giant beast took shape in front of us.  I turned to Carla, her normally perfect hair all fuzzy at the back and her eyes widening at the shadow.
"What is that?"  She whispered again.  "Turn the light off!"
I shrugged my shoulders to answer her first question but shook my head as a low growl rumbled before us.  Shaking free of my sleeping bag I stood up and tiptoed forward, the light from the torch guiding my way.
"What are you doing?"  Carla accused in a stage whisper as I raised my hand towards the zipper.  "Lissy?  Come away!" 
Her hand wrapped around my upper arm, my towelling pyjama’s hard for her to grip, and she attempted to pull me back, "Lissy stop!"  She appealed.

My fingers trembled as they clasped around the cold metal of the little zipper.
"Aren't you curious?"  I asked.
"Curious?  Lissy are you suicidal?  You have no idea what's on the other side of this tent.  We’re lucky it hasn't come through it with you shining the torch at it like that.  It could be a wolf or anything."  Carla sounded panicked even though her voice was barely audible.
I knew she was right.  We'd heard the wolves howling at the moon the night before.  Deep down I knew that what ever was on the other side of the tent was dangerous, but that didn't stop the pull deep down inside me.  Carla was always telling me that I needed to be more adventurous; I'm pretty sure that this wasn’t what she’d had in mind.  But I took a deep breath and pulled on the zipper, letting the thin material fall away.

Carla muffled a squeal with her hand and scrambled backwards into the safety of the tent.  The dark looming shadow took form as a giant russet brown wolf stood illuminated by the full moon high in the sky.  My mouth fell open as I took in the mass of muscle and fur in front of me as another low grumble rumbled in the air around me.  The hot damp breath that the wolf exhaled felt clammy on my face.  Its breath had a sweet smell that encased me and I felt safe, despite the niggling reality that a wolf stood in front of me; close enough to reach out and bite me.
My eyes took in every detail of the wolf; from its beautiful bronzed fur that looked soft yet substantial.  I really wanted to reach out and run my hands through it; to the way that its ears constantly twitched, listening to the night around it, aware of every little movement made in the darkness.  It's jet black nose was damp, little beads of water crested it as if it had just had just been running it's nose through the grass, collecting the dew there, and the tip of it's pink tongue was visible between it's teeth; huge, sharp teeth I might add!
But the most fascinating feature of the amazing creature that stood before me, as my eyes met his, were the gorgeous chocolate brown eyes that stared into mine, searching my soul.  I’d expected to see green or yellow eyes, black slits like a dog; instead, I realised, as I stared back, that they weren’t animal’s eyes…  They were Human eyes! 

A night under the moon...

This one has been written a while, just needed some tweaking!  Let me know what you think.

~~~~~~~

I dropped to my hands and knees, the damp ground instantly soaking into the denim of my charcoal grey jeans.  The ache spread through my body, ripping a groan from my throat.  The pain made my muscles tense and a sharp tingling sensation began to creep across my skin, reaching all the way down to the tips of my fingers.  I clawed at the mud under my hands, feeling it gather behind my freshly manicured nails as I pulled the earth towards me.  What was happening to me?  A fire set deep in my stomach and crawled through my veins at an annoyingly sluggish pace. 

The pain my body was feeling right now felt like I was being ripped apart from the inside out.  Yet at the same time, the surge of energy that was powering through me made me feel like I could take on the world.  My mind began to reel as my arms buckled beneath me, unable to hold my weight anymore.  I rolled onto my side, the wet ground cushioning my fall.  Again a groan escaped my lips as I tried to concentrate enough to work out my options for the situation I had found myself in. 

I heard the scream pierce the silence around me.  It echoed through the trees and took me a while to realise it had been me.  The crunching of my own bones shattered the quiet pressing in around me as my shoulders seemed to pop out of their sockets and readjust their position in my body.  Darkness swam in front of my eyes as my hips started the same process.  Pain seared through my joints and I vaguely remember hearing a strangled cry escape my lips before I lost my grip on consciousness.

I came too on my side, panting heavily; my body feeling like it had run a marathon.  I blinked several times to bring the world into focus, but couldn't quite clear the fog.  Still panting I began to look around and realised that the world wasn't blurry at all.  In fact it was startlingly clear.  I blinked again, confused.  I looked up into the treetops and could see the veins on the underside of the leaves.  The moon light bouncing off the branches into the clearing caused wispy light to fill the air, and as I blinked once more, the dust particles floating around into the light stream jumped into focus.

Something still wasn't right though; where was the colour I was used to?  The muted shades around me had to be more than the lack of light.  There was no vibrance left, a palate of grey painted everything around me, leaving me feeling cold and exposed.

The start of something...

Possibly the start of something?  I'm not sure... Who do you think they are and what do you think they're doing?

~~~~~~~

"Did you see that?  Liv, I did it, I really did it!"  I squealed in excitement.
"That's not fair, I've been practicing much longer than you.  What am I doing wrong?"  Liv answered, her face dropping as her attempt failed again.
"I don't know, that's the first time I've made it work." 
I flicked my wrist for a second attempt but nothing happened.

The Result of a couple of Rough Days...

Nel's Bad Day!

I stood in the shadows.  It had been a long and hard day and my patience was wearing thin.  My usually peaceful and undisturbed slumber had been well and truly wrecked by the development company that had decided to put their new housing estate on the lovely, open space beside my quaint little block of flats.  I guess I was going to have to get used to it; they weren’t exactly hurrying with their work.  Or I was going to have to find somewhere else to sleep during the daylight hours. 

Now I was exhausted and irritable and that was affecting my judgement.  My strength was low and the need to feed was getting stronger.  I watched the last few people hurrying home, shuffling quickly along the sidewalk, trying to ensure they weren’t the last person out at night.  They didn’t want to be caught by the likes of me.  This time of night made them all jumpy, they didn’t own the night anymore, darkness belonged to the vampires. 

Now this wasn’t my style.  I had sources.  The club; my club, I had people there that trusted me, that let me feed.  I didn’t have to resort to this.  I didn’t have to stoop to their level; shadow dwellers, that’s what most people called them.  They were right.  That’s exactly what I was doing now; lurking in the shadows, waiting for the right unsuspecting victim to walk by me.

I surveyed the stragglers.  A waitress just finishing work, tottering quickly down the path in her sleek black heels.  A couple hurrying home with their last minute groceries, hand in hand as they cast weary glances towards the shadowy shop doorways.  A tall man carrying a briefcase and wearing a very expensive looking suit, his shoes echoing in the silence around him. 

I was getting bored.  This wasn’t appealing to me as much as I had expected it to with the mood I was harbouring.  I was just debating heading for the club when a rustic, spicy scent drifted past me.  I looked up to source the glorious smell and laid eyes on a tall dark haired man dressed entirely in black.  My instincts told me he was a bouncer and they were rarely wrong.  I listened to the scuff of his shoes as he drew closer and concentrated on his uniform.  The badge on his arm confirmed my suspicion, and the red writing across the left of his chest told me he worked for Hell’s Circle; a club barely six blocks from mine.  I remembered seeing the bouncer’s out front of the building on my way to The Basement a few times, but I'm sure I would have remembered a scent like that.  I watched as he passed by my shadowy hiding place then stepped out onto the path behind him. 

He turned immediately at the sound of my heeled red boots on the concrete.  His face showed the surprise of seeing me their, I was sure he’d thought he was alone on the streets.  However I was also sure that this, seeing me standing in front of him, was exactly what he had hoped wouldn’t happen on his way to work.  I surveyed him as he stood looking at me.  A slight sheen of sweat had started to bead on his forehead and he was clenching his fists where his palms had begun to go all clammy.  Typical symptoms.  I'd only ever found one person who’d not reacted this way, and they’d been worth keeping around. 

“Can I help you miss?”  A deep voice accompanied the thick muscled body of the stranger in front of me.

A typical question though.  "Let’s try and pretend that I don’t know what she is and hope that I'm mistaken and that she’ll go away."  So predictable. 

“Let’s not waste my time or yours,” I nodded to the badge on his arm, “We both have somewhere to be.”

I smiled then, baring my fangs and advancing on him as he backed himself up against the wall; the look on his face telling me that he couldn’t decide whether to scream and run or just stand and take it.  Fear won.  He stood still as I placed my hands on his chest and pressed him to the brick wall behind him.  He tried to speak but I pressed my finger to his lips before moving the collar of his shirt out of the way. 

“This will only hurt a bit.”  I whispered as my lips grazed his neck.

I sank my fangs into the tender pink flesh of his skin and pierced the vein.  Drawing the warm, sticky blood straight from the source was the most enjoyable act any vampire could take part in.  Some liked their victims to be scared; the fear making the blood pump faster.  Some liked their victims unconscious so that there was no force necessary.  Usually I opted for sexually arousing my victims, causing their hearts to beat faster, therefore making their blood pump more quickly.  Plus that way they enjoyed it too.  Certain humans found the act of giving blood to a vampire a highly sexualised act and got pleasure from taking part in such activities; to me that was a much better way of feeding that frightening the life out of someone. 

Tonight had been different.  As I made my way to the club after letting the bouncer go, I evaluated my night.  I would have been just as satisfied with one of the bar staff at The Basement, or even one of the regulars.  Most people that went there knew I owned it; knew what I was.  Why had I chosen to act like this tonight?  Had I actually gained anything from it?  I pushed open the heavy black door to the club and stepped inside, the red glow instantly surrounding me in familiar warmth.  I think I’d stick to my territory from now on.  Shadow dwelling just wasn’t my thing. 

Bring on the Bank Holiday :)

So, I started off the Bank Holiday with a DVD night with my mom :)  Neither of us can sit still and just watch the telly, so while she 'zentangled' I wrote of course! 
This is the first time I've written about this character... so I can add her to my bank of them, I tend to reuse them over and over once I've set them up with a background etc.
I hope you like her :)

~~~~~~~

 

I stood in the corner of the room; just watching.  No-one ever noticed me.  My mother had always called me a wall-flower, I guess she was right.  I noticed a lot more about other people than they ever noticed about me, and that’s if they even noticed me at all.  Take now for example; people milled around the house quietly minding their own business.  Bella sat on the floor playing with her brightly coloured building blocks.  She’d just learned to sit up on her own only a couple of weeks ago and was now making the most of it, flying solo in the middle of the room. 

Jamie, my older brother, sat by himself on the bay window staring out into the late autumn morning.  He’d always loved this time of year; he liked to roll in the piles of leaves my dad had raked together.  It usually resulted in him getting into trouble, but it never stopped him the next time. 

I watched him for a few minutes before my dad came sweeping through the room.  He checked on Bella and took Jamie a drink, briefly glancing in my direction, before leaving again.  He was probably going to check on my mother.  She hadn’t been out of bed in days.  I hated seeing her like this, I was helpless to do anything to help her and that made me feel even worse.

 

I followed my father out of the living room, running my hand over Bella’s light blonde hair as I passed.  She looked up, grinned at me and chuckled.  Jamie looked around at Bella’s laugh, but quickly turned back to the window, seeing nothing to keep his attention.  I left quietly; trudged up the stairs and through the open door to my mother’s room.  She laid in bed, the duvet pulled up under her chin and Jinx, out black cat, curled up against her back.  Jinx was like my best friend, he always noticed me.  He normally slept on my bed, curled up by my feet, but recently he’d been sleeping here with mum.  I didn’t mind, she needed looking after right now. 

As I neared the bottom of the bed Jinx looked up, his vibrant green eyes piercing me with a stare.  I leant forwards to stroke behind his little velvet ears and he tilted his head in appreciation.  He took a playful swipe at me with his little white front paw, the only white on him, and my mother stirred.

“Evan, are you there?”  Her voice sounded tired and as if she’d been crying again.

When no answer came she simply rolled over, disturbing Jinx who jumped down, and closed her eyes again. 

 

I tiptoed from the room and went in search of my father.  I found him in the only other occupied room in the house; mine. 

Lily sat on the edge of her bed, her eyes full of tears threatening to spill down her face, my favourite scruffy brown bear cradled in her arms.  She fiddled with a stray strand of cotton on the bear’s red plaid dickey-bow.  My father sat beside her, his arm around her little shoulder.  He was trying to comfort her, but failing miserably.  She needed mum, but she couldn’t help right now, Lily reminded her too much of me.  The tear marks on Lily’s face told me that she’d already been crying again.  Last night she’d laid in my bed and cried herself to sleep, my bear held tightly in her arms.  She was sobbing now, her head on my father’s shoulder.

“Why daddy?  Why did they have to take Anna?” 

I felt the tears well up in my eyes as he tried again to explain to my twin sister why I wasn’t here anymore.

“Sweetheart, Anna-Marie was very poorly, you knew that.”

Lily nodded, her ginger ringlets bouncing on her shoulders. 

“Well, God needed another angel in heaven; an Anna-Marie was perfect for the job.  She’s with him now Princess.  He’ll look after her.”

He choked back tears as Lily looked up to him and tried to smile.

“Does she have wings?”

“Yes sweetheart, she does.  And she’ll be watching over you and your brother and sister now, she’ll always keep you safe.”

I left the room quietly and made my way back downstairs to Bella.  I sat on the rug by her side and pointed to her blocks.  A smile crept across her little face and she picked up the block I was pointing at.

“You know I'm still here don’t you Bella?”

She looked up and stretched her empty hand out towards me.  I wrapped my hand around her tiny fingers and brought them to my lips and pressed a feather soft kiss to her skin. 

“I love you Bells.”  I breathed.

“Love Anna-rie!”  She squeaked leaning in for a cuddle.

I smiled, feeling the tears roll down my cheeks.  If only the rest of them could see me too…



The daydreams of an Exam Invigilator!!

So... My Year 4's have done their Reading SAT's this morning...  The test that all Teaching Assistants hate because we're not allowed to help in any way, not even read the questions :(
Anyway, whilst sitting and watching them sit the test for an hour and a half this morning; what did Miss Brown do?  She sat and wrote of course, no point in being bored!!
It's not a full story... Just one of many characters that I have written about - hope you like it :)

~~~~~

 

Darkness had descended.  The people of the town hated the night, but this; the quietening atmosphere, the glow of streetlights, the low hum of electricity lighting up the shadowy shop front, this was my favourite time of day.

Tonight there was an eerie mist lingering just above the ground.  Even better.  The neon light of the sign flickered above the entrance to my favourite place to eat.  As I drew closer, the echo of my foot falls were the only noise cutting through the near silence of the night.  The heavy black door stood slightly ajar and the heavy beat of music drifted out into the night air.  I put my hand on the soft black leather that coated the club’s door and pushed.  A red glow illuminated my pale skin as I entered the club.  The door thudded softly shut behind me as I followed the familiar corridor to the main room.  I ran my fingertips along the red suede walls; chuckling quietly to myself once more at their choice of décor.  Reaching the end of the corridor I leant forwards over the elegant black railings and looked down into the pit of bodies writhing to the music. 

Immediately I picked out several of the regulars; two men and a woman I had seen before many a time here.  A bouncer nodded to acknowledge my arrival as I flashed him my membership card, his eyes straying to the low cut neckline of my blood red halter neck top.  Smiling to myself, I descended the spiral staircase and weaved my way through the hot, sticky bodies on the dance floor.

 

Once at the bar I ordered my usual, mentally clocking which bar staff were on tonight.  A little metal badge attached to his belt loop told me that my host’s name was Mark.  He must be new, I would have remembered a body like that.  The uniform here didn’t leave a lot to the imagination.  The tight black leather trousers and buckled biker boots were all the men wore; leaving their perfectly toned chests and abdomens bare to the eyes.  I looked him up and down with admiration and smiled to myself.  His well sculpted stomach was a gorgeous shade of chocolate and the definition ran straight into the top of his trousers.  His broad shoulders made me think of being wrapped up in them and his jet black hair shone under the spotlights above the bar like spilt ink. 

“Will you be dining with us tonight Madam?  Can I interest you in our specials menu?”  His voice was deep and husky and had me going weak at the knees.

His dark brown eyes sparkled as he looked me up and down.  Oh the irony!

“I won't be needing a menu.”  I smiled, “Is Rosie working tonight?”  I asked while I still had my host’s attention.

He nodded towards the throngs of people still moving to the music,

“She’s on the floor tonight.”

“Thanks.”  I smiled my appreciation, downed the Martini left in my glass and hopped off the bar stool. 

I made my way onto the dance floor, winding my way thought the crowds.  I saw Rosie before she saw me.  Her characteristic red hair, the reason for her nickname, glowing under the colourful strobe lighting framed her pretty, round face.

‘On the floor’ basically meant being a presence on the dance floor, keeping the guests happy and acting as a bouncer where necessary.  Now trust me when I say that Rosie definitely had presence.  I watched as she danced with the crowds.  Her short figure was towered over by the majority of the club goers, but boy did she know how to get noticed.  Her curvy figure fit nicely into her uniform; and just like the guys, the girls didn’t leave a lot to the imagination.  Black buckled straps covered the necessary parts of her upper body and wrapped around her neck in a halter neck.  The bottom was a short skirt covered in similar buckles and in Rosie’s case, there was nothing underneath it.  The flawless white skin of her legs looked perfect against the black uniform and under this light she looked almost good enough to eat.  A smile crept across her face as I approached her amidst the bodies around her; her hands immediately sought my waist, pulling me into the dance.  Her fingers dug into my waist as her body pressed up close to mine.  Feeling the music coursing through me I let her guide my body along with hers.

 

After a couple of songs she slipped her hand into mine and led me back towards the bar.  She slapped her hand on the marble surface and called over to Mark that she was going on her break.  Pushing through the side door she led me straight into the stock cupboard and closed the door behind us.

“Long time no see Nel.  I thought you’d got bored of me.”  She pouted as she spoke, taking a small step towards me.

I shook my head, “Never.”

I closed the distance between us, putting my hands on her waist and lifting her up and backing her up against the closed door.  Without hesitation she wrapped her legs around my waist, her hands around my neck and leant in to kiss me. 

As her breathing accelerated I heard her heart begin to beat faster, pumping more blood around her petite body.  She smelled divine as I kissed her neck, both hands roaming her body as her legs held her firmly in place.

“Not my neck Nel.  I can't cover it with this dress.”  She panted between breaths.

“I know darlin’.”  I answered as I lowered my kisses to her collarbone, sliding one of her straps out of the way.  I drew my fangs, sank my teeth into her chest and began to feed.

Listening to her shallow breathing as she began to pant told me that she was enjoying this just as much as I was.  No change there then!!