Post by Kira & Lee Norris on Sept 12, 2007 18:20:09 GMT
"With jet black nights,
Comes a thousand sparkling lights,
Famed by a nursery rhyme,
Always there, every time,
They're watching you, and watching me.
And watching us.
Can you see?"
The words joined together in melody, the little tune fading out as Kira echoed the verse's last words. She couldn't really remember the rest of the song- this was the verse she'd learnt. She wished she'd made more of an effort to learn it though. It was pretty. Hauntingly so. Perhaps the lyrical content seemed strange to listeners, but Aunt Black rarely thought of them.
She was all about herself. Did that make her selfish?
"No," Deron said softly, leaning back against the base of the Cardsdale clock where they sat down, darkened by its shadows. "I wouldn't say so."
"Mum said she was selfish," shrugged Kira. "Mum likes to do the whole 'Holier-Than-Thou' thing. But they loved each other fiercely. Isn't that weird?"
It was late... Really, really late. Kira had gotten back her clothes now, after sucking the moisture out of them and scratching the now dry mud off. Her hair was a wild tangled mess, but she'd tied it up now, so it didn't look half bad. She wasn't sure of the time anymore, but the town was shrouded in blackness- the school silhouetted by the moon on its distant hilltop...
The Square was completely empty now- and so quiet. It was a strange contrast to the everyday hustle and bustle of Cardsdale. Kira found it so strange that everyone could just... fall away as evening fell; retreat to their homes and sleep...
The world stopped.
Before, she thought of Cardsdale as a pleasant little place- filled with cottages, cows and children's laughter. But now, she was seeing it from a whole new angle. Distant metal domes; mirror images of Deron's home, leered at her from the distance. Where they too filled with families that hated Orchid- perhaps resented it for shrouding their home in the war? She thought Cardsdale was a haven for those who supported Prof. Hoodham.
"Well, not everybody could move out of here and pass through No Man's Land," shrugged Deron. "It's expensive. House prices have shot way up, and people are really competitive for property. If you can't afford it, you can't move."
And Orchid Hill... Orchid Hill... why would you go to Orchid if you didn't support him either?
"Some people were already at the school, and they weren't about to give up their places!" he cried, looking quite surprised. "And others... why would they pass up the opportunity to get that kind of education, even if it came at the cost of brushing elbows with the enemy."
Kira had never felt so naive.
He laughed. "You have your moments, there's no denying it."
She grinned sheepishly. "Thanks. Hey, that's weird. I think that's the first time you've insulted me all day."
Deron paused thoughtfully. "Hmm... and you're reminding me of this because...?"
"I don't know," she laughed. "It just feels... weird."
He laughed. "I don't feel like insulting you."
Kira tilted her head, a questioning smile on her face.
"You've been insulted enough for one day," he replied, with a deep sigh.
Kira's smile slid off her face like slime. "Ah."
"Ah," he repeated heavily, his face darkening. "I think I owe you an explanation."
"No," Kira butted in quickly. "No, you don't owe me any- "
"Okay, fine," he frowned at her, "I want to explain myself to you, even if I don't need to."
Kira opened her mouth to argue, but found that she could not protest. And- she admitted it to herself with a wince- she couldn't help but be glad he wanted to. She was curious. Curiosity always got the better of her.
It was a common trait. At least she wasn't alone.
"I wasn't close to my aunt or uncle," he sighed heavily, stretching out his legs. "Still ain't overly popular with that side of the family. Not like you, and your cousin," he paused to smile at her, which she returned. "That'd be great. But it just wasn't for me. My mum and her brother had never gotten along but... then... whenever I was about 11 or so... Gee, that makes it four years ago now! Anyway...
"It was a student from your school, we know that much. It was the beginning of another school year, and students were flooding out from the train station. It's always hectic the first day when new students are arriving- they mill all over the village and sometimes end up causing a heck of a lot of damage. That past summer, Marius Hoodham had made history by daring to leave the school, and starting to build up an army. The whole system was in tatters, and Major Hoodham himself was a wreck. Cardsdale was arguing bitterly within itself as to which Hoodham to remain loyal to. But then...
"Zara was two at the time, and like Kerry said, she hasn't spoken since that day. Funny really, she used to be a right chatterbox- she drove us all mad! All we ever got her to do was draw pictures. Always the same one. A scribbled figure, with black, wild hair and an explosion."
"I started school a couple of years after that," Kira said slowly. "I remember hearing about it. It really scared a lot of people."
"That an Orchid Hill student would do that to a couple of citizens?" Deron said darkly. "Of course it was scary. It was a reminder of just how powerful Orchid Hill really is. And it was common knowledge my aunt and uncle were neutral in the war. That scared people more than anything else.
"That's the day my life changed for... well, again," he continued softly. "My cousins came to live with and me and my mum- who was recently widowed. Well, that's how she thought of it whenever he went insane. Actually, my dad died just this past year, but the second he went off his rocker my mum knew she'd lost him forever. Funny way to go really... He escaped into the street ran off through No Man's Land around this time last year; crossing the border into the enemy bases. They shot him dead at first sight. Still, we managed to get them sent us back his corpse. That was nice... sort of."
Kira felt her stomach twist uncomfortably. The photo of Deron's father 15 years ago was still fresh upon her mind- his smile an exact mirror of Deron's...
"You okay?"
That was the trouble with Deron. He was really perceptive.
"It's fine," she half-smiled at him.
He laughed harshly. "It you say so, Kira... Hey, I dunno' if this means anything to you, but you've got the makings of a Head."
She jumped, panic exploding suddenly in her chest. Her best-kept secret- exposed? No student was to talk to anyone outside of Orchid about the Heads! Their identities were secret to all but those in the school. It was the only safe way.
And if Deron knew, it meant one thing, and one thing only.
She'd never be able to see him again.
"What d'you mean?" she laughed shakily, trying to keep calm.
"Oh," he sighed, his face falling. "It was a compliment. Didn't go very well did it? I mean, you're just coping well with all the grisly details of my past, so I reckon you'd cope pretty well as a Head too."
Kira was overwhelmed with relief- more than she'd expected to feel. A warm glow encased her, and she embraced it for a few, blissful seconds, before turning her attention back to Deron's story.
"I'm sorry they're so bitter," he continued, a bitter smile twisting his lips. "My cousins, that is. It's left Armelle... well... she was what? 6? Well, she's been left pretty chewed up by the whole thing- that's why she's so suspicious of people from Orchid Hill now. Same to Kerry. She puts on an act in the village but whenever she's at home... she caves in on herself. And now she's getting to be a bit rebellious- she doesn't know how to cope with her anger, so she vents it on us all. Zara lost her arm and her voice. But she cries a lot, and throws terrible tantrums on an hourly basis. It's a pretty stressful environment... I guess that's why I like getting out of it to see you."
Kira felt herself go red, and silently thanked her shadows for shielding this from Deron. He wasn't looking anywhere near her anyway, his gaze firmly fixed on the stars above.
"There've been loads of bomb scares over the past years- too many to count. My earliest memory is my mum running into my room to drag me outside to the old bomb shelter. Then a particularly nasty bomb detonated most of Hoodham Cross, and a couple of other streets around the outskirts of Cardsdale. My grandparents were one of the casualties. My relatives tend to have a nasty habit of getting blown up. Anyway, some bright spark thought the domes were a good idea. The end result protects us, but it depresses us too.
"I'm an only child, and my mum's the only person in my family I really care about. My cousins resent us, and the way they came to be with us, and I resent them for making my life a living hell. Then every year, nearly every day, I see you lot..."
"Us?" frowned Kira. "As in... students?"
He nodded fervently. "Students. You're at the centre of it all- the reason all these explosions are going off around my head and despite all the fighting and violence... you're all still... there. Orchid Hill means a lot to me, even though I've never set foot inside the place. I have the deepest respect for Prof. Hoodham, for holding his own, and fighting the fight. I have even more respect for the Heads of the school- the students who are fighting to stop all of this mayhem. I was determined to join the school too but..."
"You don't have any powers..." Kira provided softly.
He sighed. "I don't have any powers. Orchid Hill hasn't managed to get that far yet. I still can't join up, it'd cause a direct attack from the enemy. And by now, I'm too old anyway. I can't go to Orchid Hill, and get an education. I'm doomed to spend my life beneath all of that, dealing with my ruddy family."
Kira was silent, her head bowed as she absorbed all of this. Something inside her mind was finally beginning to click into place, and the cogs were turning.
All he ever wanted...
"All I ever wanted was to join up, and belong to something stable. Something that didn't explode into a million pieces before my very eyes. Orchid's a boarding school too- providing a safe haven from my family. Orchid's part of the war- to me, it represents... everything that I've lost, and everything that can be gained."
"No wonder you want to come on the camping trip," Kira said suddenly, turning to him. "You want to get a taste of the life you could've had."
Deron jumped, turning to her, a slightly sheepish grin on his face. "Yeah. You're kind of like an insight into the school for me. Stupid though, isn't it? I mean... I've probably just created an idealized image- I see the glory. I bet you see nothing but grime."
"That's one way of putting it," she said grimly, before she could stop herself.
This surprised Deron into laughter. "Dark."
"Look who's talking."
He laughed again. "I'll tell you one thing though- everything in my life has taught me that... no matter how safe the world can seem, it isn't. People die, things change, wars start and things explode. There's no point wasting your time on trivial things- you can't let yourself hold you back because if you blink, you can miss the world, because it's not going to wait."
"You seize the day," Kira said quietly, smiling into his eyes.
"I seize the day," he agreed quietly, and quite suddenly, leant forward, and kissed her on the lips.
This completely shocked Kira- a strange feeling sweeping over her as her stomach flipped around itself and her brain tried to process what the hell was happening. And once Kira had finally got her head around the fact that their lips had met, it took a few moments before she realised she was kissing him back.
In those brief few minutes, a thousand years seemed to go by. Kira felt... she didn't know what she'd felt. She'd always had an inkling of the feelings she had for Deron but she'd never expected something to happen. Everything seemed to just have exploded within her. Deron was right, an explosion had devastating effects. But this was a new sort of explosion- thoughts and feelings she'd never even dared entertain before.
It was chaos... in all it's glory.
Gently taking his lips away from her's, Deron kept his arms around her, and hugged her close. She hugged him back, his breath tickling her neck as strands of her hair fell forward to brush his. Stupid, stupid, stupid, wonderful, cheesy, brilliant romance.
It never happened to Kira.
And it was a long time before either of them even thought about going home.
Comes a thousand sparkling lights,
Famed by a nursery rhyme,
Always there, every time,
They're watching you, and watching me.
And watching us.
Can you see?"
The words joined together in melody, the little tune fading out as Kira echoed the verse's last words. She couldn't really remember the rest of the song- this was the verse she'd learnt. She wished she'd made more of an effort to learn it though. It was pretty. Hauntingly so. Perhaps the lyrical content seemed strange to listeners, but Aunt Black rarely thought of them.
She was all about herself. Did that make her selfish?
"No," Deron said softly, leaning back against the base of the Cardsdale clock where they sat down, darkened by its shadows. "I wouldn't say so."
"Mum said she was selfish," shrugged Kira. "Mum likes to do the whole 'Holier-Than-Thou' thing. But they loved each other fiercely. Isn't that weird?"
It was late... Really, really late. Kira had gotten back her clothes now, after sucking the moisture out of them and scratching the now dry mud off. Her hair was a wild tangled mess, but she'd tied it up now, so it didn't look half bad. She wasn't sure of the time anymore, but the town was shrouded in blackness- the school silhouetted by the moon on its distant hilltop...
The Square was completely empty now- and so quiet. It was a strange contrast to the everyday hustle and bustle of Cardsdale. Kira found it so strange that everyone could just... fall away as evening fell; retreat to their homes and sleep...
The world stopped.
Before, she thought of Cardsdale as a pleasant little place- filled with cottages, cows and children's laughter. But now, she was seeing it from a whole new angle. Distant metal domes; mirror images of Deron's home, leered at her from the distance. Where they too filled with families that hated Orchid- perhaps resented it for shrouding their home in the war? She thought Cardsdale was a haven for those who supported Prof. Hoodham.
"Well, not everybody could move out of here and pass through No Man's Land," shrugged Deron. "It's expensive. House prices have shot way up, and people are really competitive for property. If you can't afford it, you can't move."
And Orchid Hill... Orchid Hill... why would you go to Orchid if you didn't support him either?
"Some people were already at the school, and they weren't about to give up their places!" he cried, looking quite surprised. "And others... why would they pass up the opportunity to get that kind of education, even if it came at the cost of brushing elbows with the enemy."
Kira had never felt so naive.
He laughed. "You have your moments, there's no denying it."
She grinned sheepishly. "Thanks. Hey, that's weird. I think that's the first time you've insulted me all day."
Deron paused thoughtfully. "Hmm... and you're reminding me of this because...?"
"I don't know," she laughed. "It just feels... weird."
He laughed. "I don't feel like insulting you."
Kira tilted her head, a questioning smile on her face.
"You've been insulted enough for one day," he replied, with a deep sigh.
Kira's smile slid off her face like slime. "Ah."
"Ah," he repeated heavily, his face darkening. "I think I owe you an explanation."
"No," Kira butted in quickly. "No, you don't owe me any- "
"Okay, fine," he frowned at her, "I want to explain myself to you, even if I don't need to."
Kira opened her mouth to argue, but found that she could not protest. And- she admitted it to herself with a wince- she couldn't help but be glad he wanted to. She was curious. Curiosity always got the better of her.
It was a common trait. At least she wasn't alone.
"I wasn't close to my aunt or uncle," he sighed heavily, stretching out his legs. "Still ain't overly popular with that side of the family. Not like you, and your cousin," he paused to smile at her, which she returned. "That'd be great. But it just wasn't for me. My mum and her brother had never gotten along but... then... whenever I was about 11 or so... Gee, that makes it four years ago now! Anyway...
"It was a student from your school, we know that much. It was the beginning of another school year, and students were flooding out from the train station. It's always hectic the first day when new students are arriving- they mill all over the village and sometimes end up causing a heck of a lot of damage. That past summer, Marius Hoodham had made history by daring to leave the school, and starting to build up an army. The whole system was in tatters, and Major Hoodham himself was a wreck. Cardsdale was arguing bitterly within itself as to which Hoodham to remain loyal to. But then...
"Zara was two at the time, and like Kerry said, she hasn't spoken since that day. Funny really, she used to be a right chatterbox- she drove us all mad! All we ever got her to do was draw pictures. Always the same one. A scribbled figure, with black, wild hair and an explosion."
"I started school a couple of years after that," Kira said slowly. "I remember hearing about it. It really scared a lot of people."
"That an Orchid Hill student would do that to a couple of citizens?" Deron said darkly. "Of course it was scary. It was a reminder of just how powerful Orchid Hill really is. And it was common knowledge my aunt and uncle were neutral in the war. That scared people more than anything else.
"That's the day my life changed for... well, again," he continued softly. "My cousins came to live with and me and my mum- who was recently widowed. Well, that's how she thought of it whenever he went insane. Actually, my dad died just this past year, but the second he went off his rocker my mum knew she'd lost him forever. Funny way to go really... He escaped into the street ran off through No Man's Land around this time last year; crossing the border into the enemy bases. They shot him dead at first sight. Still, we managed to get them sent us back his corpse. That was nice... sort of."
Kira felt her stomach twist uncomfortably. The photo of Deron's father 15 years ago was still fresh upon her mind- his smile an exact mirror of Deron's...
"You okay?"
That was the trouble with Deron. He was really perceptive.
"It's fine," she half-smiled at him.
He laughed harshly. "It you say so, Kira... Hey, I dunno' if this means anything to you, but you've got the makings of a Head."
She jumped, panic exploding suddenly in her chest. Her best-kept secret- exposed? No student was to talk to anyone outside of Orchid about the Heads! Their identities were secret to all but those in the school. It was the only safe way.
And if Deron knew, it meant one thing, and one thing only.
She'd never be able to see him again.
"What d'you mean?" she laughed shakily, trying to keep calm.
"Oh," he sighed, his face falling. "It was a compliment. Didn't go very well did it? I mean, you're just coping well with all the grisly details of my past, so I reckon you'd cope pretty well as a Head too."
Kira was overwhelmed with relief- more than she'd expected to feel. A warm glow encased her, and she embraced it for a few, blissful seconds, before turning her attention back to Deron's story.
"I'm sorry they're so bitter," he continued, a bitter smile twisting his lips. "My cousins, that is. It's left Armelle... well... she was what? 6? Well, she's been left pretty chewed up by the whole thing- that's why she's so suspicious of people from Orchid Hill now. Same to Kerry. She puts on an act in the village but whenever she's at home... she caves in on herself. And now she's getting to be a bit rebellious- she doesn't know how to cope with her anger, so she vents it on us all. Zara lost her arm and her voice. But she cries a lot, and throws terrible tantrums on an hourly basis. It's a pretty stressful environment... I guess that's why I like getting out of it to see you."
Kira felt herself go red, and silently thanked her shadows for shielding this from Deron. He wasn't looking anywhere near her anyway, his gaze firmly fixed on the stars above.
"There've been loads of bomb scares over the past years- too many to count. My earliest memory is my mum running into my room to drag me outside to the old bomb shelter. Then a particularly nasty bomb detonated most of Hoodham Cross, and a couple of other streets around the outskirts of Cardsdale. My grandparents were one of the casualties. My relatives tend to have a nasty habit of getting blown up. Anyway, some bright spark thought the domes were a good idea. The end result protects us, but it depresses us too.
"I'm an only child, and my mum's the only person in my family I really care about. My cousins resent us, and the way they came to be with us, and I resent them for making my life a living hell. Then every year, nearly every day, I see you lot..."
"Us?" frowned Kira. "As in... students?"
He nodded fervently. "Students. You're at the centre of it all- the reason all these explosions are going off around my head and despite all the fighting and violence... you're all still... there. Orchid Hill means a lot to me, even though I've never set foot inside the place. I have the deepest respect for Prof. Hoodham, for holding his own, and fighting the fight. I have even more respect for the Heads of the school- the students who are fighting to stop all of this mayhem. I was determined to join the school too but..."
"You don't have any powers..." Kira provided softly.
He sighed. "I don't have any powers. Orchid Hill hasn't managed to get that far yet. I still can't join up, it'd cause a direct attack from the enemy. And by now, I'm too old anyway. I can't go to Orchid Hill, and get an education. I'm doomed to spend my life beneath all of that, dealing with my ruddy family."
Kira was silent, her head bowed as she absorbed all of this. Something inside her mind was finally beginning to click into place, and the cogs were turning.
All he ever wanted...
"All I ever wanted was to join up, and belong to something stable. Something that didn't explode into a million pieces before my very eyes. Orchid's a boarding school too- providing a safe haven from my family. Orchid's part of the war- to me, it represents... everything that I've lost, and everything that can be gained."
"No wonder you want to come on the camping trip," Kira said suddenly, turning to him. "You want to get a taste of the life you could've had."
Deron jumped, turning to her, a slightly sheepish grin on his face. "Yeah. You're kind of like an insight into the school for me. Stupid though, isn't it? I mean... I've probably just created an idealized image- I see the glory. I bet you see nothing but grime."
"That's one way of putting it," she said grimly, before she could stop herself.
This surprised Deron into laughter. "Dark."
"Look who's talking."
He laughed again. "I'll tell you one thing though- everything in my life has taught me that... no matter how safe the world can seem, it isn't. People die, things change, wars start and things explode. There's no point wasting your time on trivial things- you can't let yourself hold you back because if you blink, you can miss the world, because it's not going to wait."
"You seize the day," Kira said quietly, smiling into his eyes.
"I seize the day," he agreed quietly, and quite suddenly, leant forward, and kissed her on the lips.
This completely shocked Kira- a strange feeling sweeping over her as her stomach flipped around itself and her brain tried to process what the hell was happening. And once Kira had finally got her head around the fact that their lips had met, it took a few moments before she realised she was kissing him back.
In those brief few minutes, a thousand years seemed to go by. Kira felt... she didn't know what she'd felt. She'd always had an inkling of the feelings she had for Deron but she'd never expected something to happen. Everything seemed to just have exploded within her. Deron was right, an explosion had devastating effects. But this was a new sort of explosion- thoughts and feelings she'd never even dared entertain before.
It was chaos... in all it's glory.
Gently taking his lips away from her's, Deron kept his arms around her, and hugged her close. She hugged him back, his breath tickling her neck as strands of her hair fell forward to brush his. Stupid, stupid, stupid, wonderful, cheesy, brilliant romance.
It never happened to Kira.
And it was a long time before either of them even thought about going home.
