Chapter 5

Examinations &
The Desolation Committee
I awoke that following with a rejuvenated outlook. I spent the entire weekend preparing
for my state assessments. I knew that it was put up or shut up and I most definitely was
not about to shut up. I took a shower and came out into my bedroom. I pulled on a black
fringed blouse, blue jeans, a belt buckle and white snakeskin cowgirl boots. I removed
my rollers and placed them inside a clear container and looked myself over in the mirror.
I applied some eyeliner and left. I grabbed my backpack and coat at the foot of my bed
and walked into the diningroom. Dad was sitting at the table reading the newspaper.
When he saw me he put it down and greeted me with a smile. I greeted him back with a
smile and walked over to the table. I sat down and spread some scrambled eggs on two
slices of toast. Dad broke the silence by asking me if I was nervous about my tests. I told
him I had butterflies but I believed I would do okay on them.
e patted my hand comfortingly and told me to just take my time. I smiled back while
dad sipped his coffee. We talked for the ne!t thirty minutes and daddy learned that I
wanted to go to college and major in "nglish and become a writer of fictional works. e
was surprised and told me that #carlet had the same dream of mine but wasn$t given the
chance to blossom. %t the sound of #carlet$s name the diningroom fell into a deathly
silence.& Dad and I looked at each other with smiles, we both believed it was to early in
the morning for tears and just laughed it off. %fter I finished breakfast I washed dad and
I$s dishes. When I turned off the facet I walked over and grabbed my backpack. I kissed
dad goodbye and told him to have a good. e wished me the same and good luck on my
tests. When I made it outside I saw 'illennia and Cassandra standing with Chivalry.
I locked the door and walked downstairs. When I came into close pro!imity with
Chivalry greeted me with a warm smile. I greeted him back and gave him a hug.
Cassandra greeted me perkily and hugged me tightly. I rubbed her back and we separated.
'illennia stared at me with coldness as we started walking. Cassandra broke the silence
and congratulated me on my performance at the concert over the weekend. I thanked her
and Chivalry complimented me as well. I told him that I was shitting bricks before the
curtains parted but the feeling subsided when I began singing. Cassandra said that I will
never be forgotten at West (each for my phenomenal vocals and for being the first
contralto to have her own concert. I told her that )erdy )ervosa was my biggest
influence to start singing.
Cassandra said that )erdy was the soul of the group. Chivalry, Cassandra and I had a
heated yet healthy debate as to whether *each or )erdy was the soul. Chivalry believed
*each was the voice despite +lirty %l being the lead singer. 'illennia remained ,uiet for
the entire walk. #he didn$t make eye contact with me once. I guess she really must$ve had
it out for me. (ut she was walking with me so I believed it could$ve been heading
somewhere. %t seven seven o$clock we arrived at school. We met up with -anner and
.iberty in the cafeteria. I saw #adie /obertson hugging the #pencer family. #he looked
like she was in her early thirties. #he had brown hair that was combed back into a sleek
bun. It looked almost like she was a porcelain doll. er eyes were a pretty earth green.
-hey spoke to me. #he had a slim physi,ue but looked fit and healthy. #he looked at me
and I could sense the distrust in her eyes. /ichie looked at me and pounded his fist. I
looked at him with a smile which let him know that I stood a chance against him
regardless of what form he took. When his eyes met with Cassandra he made a disgusted
look and she smiled back.
'illennia wore a murderous look as if she were ready to tear him to shreds. /ichie
gritted his teeth and looked back at #adie. #he hugged the teens and left the cafeteria.
Chivalry told me that was #adie /obertson the &mother& of the #pencer children. I looked
at her retreating figure. We then walked over to our usual table and sat down. .iberty
started discussing her e!citement for her tests. Chivalry looked at her with weirdness. I
couldn$t speak for anyone but I felt like wouldn$t ace it. We sat for the ne!t hour
discussing random things. Chivalry whispered to me that the Desolation Committee
would be coming soon seeing how they wouldn$t stop pestering me until I joined them.
I told Chivalry I would never join them because they were bad news. -anner asked me if I
had been attacked recently and I told him no and that I would kill them if they tried again.
-anner laughed and the bell rang and we headed to our second period class for our
science e!it e!am. %s I headed to Chemistry I had a gut feeling that 'r. *enning would
be smiling when he saw me. I guess he felt I would fail my test but the joke was on him
because I never procrastinated with my free time. -here were decisions to be made and
seeing his ugly mug for another year was non0optional. %s I entered the class Chivalry
put his hand on my shoulder and gave me an reassuring smile and a thumbs up. I smiled
back at him and walked to my seat. 'r. *enning did e!actly as I thought, he wore a smile
as he stood in front of his desk looking at me. When I sat down I reali1ed that I had
nothing to prove to anyone but myself. -he bell rang and 'r. *enning started passing out
our tests.
I looked at my test and back up at 'r. *enning. e told me that good and that I was
going to need it. I just smiled and ignored his comment. %fter everyone received their
tests 'r. *enning walked back up to the front of the classroom and picked up his test
manual. e began reading the instructions and all he could do. %fter I tore the tab from
my pamphlet I began my test. It was just as I was told there nothing but biology related
,uestions. I looked at the picture and read the ,uestions carefully. I circled the correct and
went on to the ne!t one. +or the ne!t hour and a half I worked on my test. When I
finished I handed 'r. *enning my test and he looked at me with a disgusted look. I
looked at him with a smile because I felt pretty good about my test. e walked back up to
his desk and I pulled out my notepad and started working on my novel.
I looked at my watch and reali1ed that it was ten minutes left of class. I closed my
notebook and placed it in my backpack. Chivalry had already handed in his test. e
looked at me and smiled. I smiled back and I thought to myself 'Chivalry and I have this
in the bag.' When the bell rung we left and walked to our fourth period class. 's.
emingway greeted us with a smile. When we sat down she placed clear cups on our
desks. #he then walked back to her desk and grabbed a jug of orange juice. #he walked
down each aisle and poured the orangish yellow li,uid in our cups. #he then walked back
to the front of the class and began reading the instructions from the teachers manual. I
tore the seal off my test and began my e!am. I read each story twice and highlighted
anything I thought was vital. %fterward I read the stories I answered the ,uestions that
followed. I circled what I believed to be the right answer.
I went on like that for the ne!t hour and a half. When I completed my test I handed it in
to 's. emingway and pulled out my notebook. I let 's. emingway read one of my
short stories and she was hooked. #he said that my writing could make me a promising
author. #he said that my punctuation and grammar were flawless, but on the contrary I
didn$t think so. %s time went by I made it to the penultimate chapter of my book. -he
heroine #carlet 'ayfair relocates to %ngelburg, )orth Carolina and her father sends a
brigade to look for her. When they arrive #carlet shoots them dead and battles her father. I
know its wrong to fight your parents but hey I love challenging social norms. When I
noticed I had five minutes left of class I put my notebook in my backpack and walked to
the trashcan to throw my cup away.
When I returned to my seat I put my backpack on and looked at the chalkboard ahead.
-he bell rang and 's. emingway bid is farewell and we headed to lunch. When I
arrived I stood in line and grabbed a tray and milk carton. I grabbed a few pieces of
boneless fish, salad and fruit. I walked to my usual table and sat down. -anner greeted me
with a smile and wave. I greeted and waved back. e asked me about my tests and if I
felt good about them. I told him that I felt confident about my "nglish test and as for my
science I felt okay because it was mostly biology. e nodded his head in agreement as he
placed a shoe string french fry in his mouth. #oon Cassandra, Chivalry, 'illennia and
.iberty arrived with their trays. .iberty wiped her forehead. I looked at her and saw how
bad she looked.
I asked her if she was alright and she said that she was making it and that the tests were
wearing her out. Chivalry tried to comfort .iberty by saying that it was going to be okay
and to take it easy. .iberty thanked him with a smile and began eating her lunch.
Cassandra placed a bobby pin in her hair sweeping her bang to the left region of her
forehead. I asked her how she was doing and she said that she was great I smiled and said
that that was great and began eating my lunch. 'illennia looked down at the table. er
tray was bare. #he had only peaches and a carton of milk. I asked her if that was all she
was going to eat and she didn$t remove her eyes from the table. I just furrowed my
eyebrows and resumed eating. I wasn$t one to pry into anyone$s business but it seemed
like every time I came around 'illennia something changed.
2ne time I saw her smile and as soon as I came it vanished. I couldn$t figure her out. %s
we ate our lunch Cassandra asked me what my weekend plans were and I told her that I
didn$t have anything planned. #he said that she was glad because she wanted to take me
shopping with her. I wanted some new cowgirl skin boots despite snakeskin being my
favorite. %s the lunch hour drew to an end I threw my trash away and placed my tray in
its respective area and returned to the table. I looked around the cafeteria randomly and I
saw /ichie glaring at -anner and I. e was cracking his knuckles. 'illennia sniffed the
air and her her e!pression changed from cold to murderous in milliseconds. #he looked
back at them and lowered her eyes in anger. /ichie tapped (ryan$s shoulder and he
looked over at the table. e eyed Cassandra and looked away. Cassandra knew
immediately why he did that and smiled. -he bell rang and we all left the cafeteria. %s we
left everyone cleaned threw their trash away. I parted ways with the Warchild$s and
headed to my si!th period class to take my history test. I loved history and 's. #awyer
has taught me everything I needed to know for this test and my second semester final
e!ams.
(ut at the moment I needed to pass this e!it level test to ensure I would graduate high
school. When I entered 's. #awyer$s class I took a seat in my usual desk. #he then began
passing out the tests. #he always drilled in our heads that from 3445 to 3675 were
important years in our country$s history. I always felt that the 8nited #tates was like
lukewarm water. -hey always stuck their nose where it didn$t belong and only helped
others if it would be beneficial to them. % lot of people give me hell for thinking that way
but its the truth. %ny who I sat tore the seal from my test and 'r. +rankel read the
instructions and I began my test. 'ost of the ,uestions were pictures and whatnot. -here
were a few vin diagrams and that was pretty much it. I finished my test in an hour and
handed it in.
'r. +rankel was a little surprised that I finished in that amount of time. I told him that
's. #awyer worked us to death to remember the information. e smiled and
complimented her and walked away from me. I remained in 'r. +rankel$s class for the
rest of the day. When the bell rang I headed out of the classroom to find Chivalry and the
others. I saw them standing outside the school. I walked over to them and we headed
home. We only had #cience and 'ath left and then we would resume our regular
schedules. .iberty was ecstatic about tomorrow being our final day of e!ams because she
felt her teachers worked her nonstop because there was nothing she could do about it.
Chivalry smiled at me every once in a while when we looked at each other. I$d ,uickly
grown accustomed to the west coast weather despite having only been living there for
two months.
Dad grew to love it but 'aryland was on his mind all the time. When I arrived home I
saw dad in the den sitting in front of the fireplace holding a photo album. I greeted him
which brought him out of his thoughts. I sat down and asked him how his day was and he
said it was good. e said his mind had been bothering him and he went and got the photo
album. I sat down ne!t to him on the couch. .ooking in the photo album at mother and
my siblings had old memories flood my mind. -here was one in particular that always
stood out to me. It was picture of me and my sisters. (altimore was standing on my right
and #carlet on my left and I was in the middle. It was 3659 and we were standing on the
porch of dad$s mansion. We were wearing those poofy dresses of the era. (altimore was
wearing a dark green one that had ruffles on the top.
er hair was in a flip. I wore a peach one that was short sleeved. I had on matching arm
length gloves. 'y hair was in a beehive style. .astly there was #carlet. #he had on a
white knee length blowout dress. er hair was wavy and she had her right hand on my
mid back. :ou could tell her plump physi,ue was there but she didn$t care. #he flaunted it
like it was no one$s business. We were going to one of (altimore$s friends parties.
(altimore didn$t want us there but when she saw how adamant I was about going she
gave in. I smiled as dad turned the page. e commented that (altimore and #carlet had
dreams they wanted to share with the world. We went through several pages which had
daddy and mother together in their younger days. -hey spent a lot of time in (altimore
before moving to Westmore in 3654. I discovered that Curtis and (altimore were born in
(altimore which is how (altimore got her name.
%fter looking in the photo album daddy closed it and placed it on the table. e looked at
me and asked how my day went. I told him it went great and that I felt good about my
tests. e was happy that I was finding confidence in my science. e was well aware that I
hated science but nonetheless knew that I wanted to pass in order to graduate. I walked to
my room and sat down on my bed. I pulled off my boots and placed them in the closet on
the left shelf. I hung up my coat and came back into my bedroom and sat down. I couldn$t
wait for testing to be over myself so .iberty and I found some common ground on that.
%s I laid down on my bed my telephone rang. )ow mind you this was the seventies and
caller identification was invented yet, so we had to answer the phone to find out who they
were. When I answered the phone it was Chivalry.
We talked for two hours about random things, mostly the summer break. I told him that I
wanted to go back to 'aryland primarily because I missed it but also because I wanted
seafood. Chivalry sounded a little down because he wanted to train with me. 2ne reason
was because he said that Cassandra told them that the Desolation Committee planned on
coming very soon. I still hadn$t met them and I wanted to see them face to face and tell
them I don$t want to be apart of their organi1ation. I surmised that he wanted to spend
some personal time with me as well but was afraid to say it. e asked me what I thought
of his wolf form and I told him it was very handsome and that 'illennia, Dream$s and
Cassandra$s were beautiful. e said that every human that saw 'illennia$s wolf form
wished they were a wolf so they could mate with her. I laughed and said that 'illennia
would find love one day.
Chivalry agreed and said that 'illennia was having a hard time warming up to me due to
my full fledged human heritage. I said that I understand told him maybe we could find
common ground if we spoke to each other. Chivalry jokingly wished me luck because the
only people she were close to and conversed with were Dream and -anner. I wasn$t naive
to the fact that not all siblings were close but I would think she would$ve conversed with
.iberty and Cassandra because they were kind people to be around. Chivalry said as nice
as they are 'illennia wished they were a lot more tougher emotionally. I said that not all
women are distant and cold like myself. %s I said that I thought about #carlet. -here were
times she could be distant and I stuck close to her because she was made fun of because
of her physical appearance.
-here wasn$t anything she could do about it. #he had been born with a predisposed
genetic trait. (ut in all honesty I believed she embraced despite the adversity she faced,
and that$s why I had a deep respect and regard for her. I shed a tear thinking about her and
what she could$ve accomplished. Chivalry heard me sniffle a bit and asked me if I was
okay and I said I was. e wasn$t convinced but didn$t ,uestion me about it. %t five o$clock
I hung up with Chivalry and headed into the bathroom. I stripped myself and placed my
clothes in the hamper. I turned on the shower to a sustainable heat and stepped in. %s the
water droplets hit my body I grabbed my body sponge and s,uee1ed a dab of body wash
on it and began scrubbing my body. I was really concerned about 'illennia. #he seemed
so tormented, I could see it in her eyes. 'y mind then drifted to dad. e seemed to be
getting back to his old self. :eah our loved ones weren$t with us but we had each other
and that was better than him being alone.
I would$ve liked for him to have found happiness. I think the reason why he didn$t get
with another woman was because he didn$t want me to think he was replacing mother.
%lthough no woman could ever replace her he deserved happiness and that$s what she
would want. I poured some shampoo into my hand and began scrubbing my scalp. It felt
really good as the li,uid penetrated my roots. It was like I was being cleansed of all my
worries. I then rinsed out the shampoo and put in my conditioner. I scrubbed my scalp for
several minutes and rinsed out the substance. I then washed my backside. %fter I finished
I rinsed myself off and turned off the water. %s I opened the door I felt the cold air slap
my wet body pink. I ,uickly grabbed my robe off the hook and put it on to keep my
nipples from becoming erect. I grabbed my body towel off the rack and blew dried my
hair. %fter that I rolled my hair and put a bandanna on and left the bathroom.
%s I entered my bedroom I saw a card in the center of my bed. 'y curiosity kicked in
and I walked over to my bed and picked it up. It was from dad and it had three hundred
dollars inside with a note on the right page. It read that he was going out of town for the
weekend and that he wanted to make sure I was financially taken care of. %pparently he
left while I was in the shower. )ow I know most of you are probably thinking 'Now that
your dad is gone you could have a party or invite a boy over.' Wrong answer I never
really a fan of parties nor boys, and I didn$t believe in disrespecting my fathers
household. %nyway getting back to the story I placed the money inside my cash bo!. I
walked to my closet and pulled out a gray nightgown. I removed my robe and pulled on
the gown. I felt rela!ed as the material made contact with my skin.
I went back to my bathroom and hung up my robe. I walked back into my bedroom with
my hands on my hips. I thought about dinner and walked to the kitchen. I grabbed three
pots and filled them with water. I grabbed the brown rice from the pantry and fro1en
sausage and shrimp from the free1er. I placed the sausage in the pot and turned on the
burner to a low heat. In the meantime I deveined the shrimp. -hat was the longest part of
the entire process to me and I hated it. %s it heated I grabbed one more pan and that was
for the noodles. I filled it with water and placed it on the left burner and turned it on.&
I poured a cap full of oil in the pot to prevent the noodles from sticking. In the meantime
I turned on the oven to three hundred and fifty degrees. I got a bowl and cake pan. I
gathered the ingredients for a cake known as #mith Island Cake. It is a popular dessert in
eastern 'aryland. %lthough I$m from western 'aryland my family and I traveled there to
participate in the cake walk. It was so much fun and we won first place in ;anuary 3657. I
placed the pan in the oven and timed it for an hour. I checked the sausage and saw the
water was beginning to boil. 'y favorite dish is shrimp and sausage with creamed
noodles. (efore mother died she taught me how to make it. I separated the rice to keep it
from sticking. I looked at my watch and saw it was twenty minutes to si!. I decided that
after I finished the cake I would take it over to the Warchild$s. %fter I let the sausage boil
for twenty minutes I turned off the burner and drained the water. %fter drainage I placed
the pot on the stove and on a non heated burner. I pulled out a cutting board and started
chopping up the sausage. %fter I finished I placed the deveined shrimp in the pot to let
them boil.
&-wenty minutes later I placed the sausage in the pot with the shrimp. When the noodles
were tender I mi!ed them in with the shrimp and sausage. It wasn$t done yet but I was
famished. I grabbed some cayenne pepper and sprinkled it inside. %s it boiled I stirred it
thoroughly. -en minutes after si! the timer dinged and I pulled the cake out of the oven. I
placed the cake pan on the island and timed it to cool for an hour. I then gave my
attention back to the shrimp and sausage dish on the stove. I stirred it and after another
thirty0five minutes I finished it. I placed the pot on the back burner and walked into the
diningroom. When I sat down I rolled some red and white dice that were on the table. I
would check every ten minutes on the cake. When it finished cooling I placed the frosting
on it and cut myself and daddy a piece. I then removed the cake from the pan and into a
recyclable container.&
&I changed into a dark blue blouse and jeans. I grabbed my car keys and jacket. I went
back into the kitchen grabbed the container and left. When I pulled into the driveway I
saw Dennis and Dream$s car. I turned off the engine and grabbed the container. I walked
upstairs and rung the doorbell. %fter several seconds I heard Dream ask who was it. I
answered with my name and she opened the door. #he was wearing a 1ebra print
nightgown and her hair was wrapped in a bandanna and rollers. #he stepped aside and let
me in. We walked to the diningroom where I saw everyone.-hey all looked at me with
smiles e!cept for 'illennia. I walked over to the table and placed the container on the
table. -anner removed the lid and saw the cake. Dream s,uealed with joy knowing
e!actly what it was. -hat$s when I found out she was from 'aryland too.&
&#he said that she loved #mith Island Cake and hadn$t baked it over a century. I asked
what ingredients she used and she said she made hers from scratch. -hat was the only
difference between mines being that I used cake mi!. -he boys took a bite of it and were
sold. -hey looked like they were reaching their se!ual clima!es.Dream took a slice and
was her closed and she held her cheeks. #he told me it was scrumptious. Dennis took a
bite and liked it as well. 'illennia got up and left the diningroom. I told them that I
would see them that weekend and left. I returned home and changed back into my
nightgown and went to bed. I turned on *each (auer and listened to her song *lus #i1e Is
(eautiful. I awoke the ne!t morning and took a shower. %n hour later I came out dressed
in a ruffled psychedelic blouse and some blue jean bell bottoms.
I removed the rollers and bandanna and lightly ran my hands through my hair. When I
was satisfied with the look I headed out the front door. I saw Chivalry alone and we
walked to West (each igh #chool. When we arrived we saw his siblings and walked to
their table. I got a strawberry yogurt cup and some fruit and walked to my usual table.
When I sat down -anner was telling me how the taste of my #mith Island Cake still
lingered on his tongue. I laughed as I placed the spoon in my mouth. Cassandra and I
discussed where we wanted to shop. .iberty just sat at the table eating her breakfast.
Chivalry was reading a book and 'illennia conversed with -anner every once in a while.
-he bell rang and we headed to our math classes for our mathematics assessments. 'r.
Woodard was standing at the chalk board writing good luck. When I sat down he came
and sat in the desk ne!t to mine. We talked for ten minutes about random things and the
upcoming summer break.&
&I found out he was retuning to 'aryland to spend time with his siblings and parents.
e asked me if I was going and I said that I hoped so. 2ur conversation was cut short by
the oncoming of the students flooding the classroom. I cleared my desk and 'r. Woodard
began passing out our tests.& e read the instructions and we began testing. %fter an hour
and fifteen minutes of e!ecuting math problems I handed in my test. 'r. Woodard wore a
confident smile and winked at me as he walked back to his desk. When the bell rang the
principal came on and told us that our regularly schedules were back into effect and we
headed to our second period class. I didn$t really care about seeing 'r. *enning because
there was only one more month and I$d be through with him forever. When everyone was
settled down 'r. *enning started lecturing us about college.&
&I was going to college for "nglish so I felt his mediocre speech didn$t apply to me. In
'aryland we took final e!ams but at West (each we didn$t take final e!ams our final
tests were our state e!aminations. +or the remainder of the year we did small reports in
every class so the teachers could have grades to turn in. In my spare time when I finished
gathering information for my report I worked on my novel. -he day went just as fast as it
came and I headed home. Dad would be coming back tomorrow and I had eaten a lot of
the shrimp and sausage dish I made. I walked to my bedroom and put my backpack
down. I began writing my reports for Choir, istory and 'ath. %round eight o$clock that
night I finished and placed them in three separate folders. I showered, wrapped my hair
and climbed into bed.
-he ne!t morning I awoke showered and got dressed. #ince it was 'ay I decided to wear
silky short sleeved blouses, bell bottoms and comfortable hay stacked heels. I walked to
the Warchild$s house. When I arrived I saw Cassandra on the porch. #he was wearing a
white t0shirt, black jeans and belt around her stomach. #he came downstairs and hugged
me. I saw Chivalry standing on the porch. I waved at him and he waved back. We got in
Dream$s car and headed to the mall. When we got there the first place Cassandra headed
to was the shoe store. We each a bought a pair of high heeled boots for ten dollars. We
then went to a clothing store and bought several tops. I was in heaven when I saw the
boot section. I rushed inside and looked for a pair of snake and ostrich skinned boots. I
was in luck as they had a pair of white *ython and ostrich skin. #ince I had been working
before I moved to 2regon I asked to be transferred to an 2regon store location.
When summer started I began work as a cashier at *olly$s (ridal #tore. I had been
working there since ;une of 3649. I paid one hundred and si!ty0nine dollars for both pairs
of boots. I walked out of the store and Cassandra and I headed to the food court.
I had a small breakfast and wasn$t full so I got two cinnamon rolls and apple juice. We
spent the ne!t three hours walking around the store. %t the end of the day I bought daddy
and Dream a watch and necklace. We headed back to their house and I handed Dream her
necklace. It was a one carrat diamond necklace. #he put it on and was satisfied and
thanked me. -anner playfully joked that I was a billionaire and I said that I was just like
everyone else that saved for nicer things. I hugged Dream and Chivalry and Cassandra
drove me home.
When she pulled in front of my house I hugged her and grabbed my bo!es and dad$s
gifts. I headed inside and saw daddy. I handed him a black bo!. e was shocked at the
gift and hugged him. I told him it was a early birthday gift. e acted like a teenager and
ran to his bedroom to try it on. When he came out you could see it sparkle. It was satin
silver and the store was having a special sale. e then walked to the kitchen and warmed
up last night$s dinner. %fter he placed some on his plate he sat down at the table with me.
I asked him where he went and he said )ew :ork. I was shocked because he hadn$t been
there since he was fourteen years old. e said he had been wanting to visit there for
sometime and went yesterday. e took a bite of the shrimp and sausage dish and his eyes
lit up with delight.
e said he loved it and that my mother and I had made it differently. #he used fresh
herbs while I bought mine from the store. I said that I could never even come close to
surpassing mothers cooking, even in death. e then took a bite of the #mith Island Cake
and slightly leaned his head back. e said it was unforgettable and was made with love. I
told him that I was a proud 'arylander and that I would take great pride in it as I baked
and was very careful to make sure it had lots of volume and not flat. We talked for an
hour before going to our rooms. I sat on my bed and looked at my television. I didn$t feel
like watching it so I began working on my novel. -he following 'onday I turned in my
reports a week early. 'r. Woodard told me that I would make a great secretary or editor
due to me being punctual and beating deadlines.
I thanked him and spent the rest of the period working on my novel. 'ay ended sooner
than I thought and there we were in heat dropping ;une. I had asked dad if we were going
home to 'aryland and he said he didn$t know but would think about it. In the meantime I
went to the Warchild$s where I soon learned that the Desolation Committee were coming
to meet me in person. I was ready and Dennis told me to be careful because .illy ;ay had
power negating abilities. I told him that I would be just fine. If she didn$t say or do
anything neither would I. I spent the entire day sparring with Chivalry. 'illennia stood
on the back porch watching me train. -hat$s when I saw for the first time that she wore an
e!pression of impressment and smiling. %fter I choke slammed Chivalry to the ground
and helped him up I walked over the porch and stood in the grass.
Chivalry walked upstairs. %s he passed 'illennia he placed his hand on her shoulder.
#he looked at him and back at me. #he walked downstairs and over to the picnic table. I
followed her and sat down. We sat in silence for several minutes before 'illennia decided
to speak. #he told me that she was envious of me. I was shocked and asked her why. #he
said that her parents abandoned her as a a child and that my life looked perfect. I
corrected her and told her that my life wasn$t glittering with gold. #he looked at me
intrigued and asked how so. I told her of how my siblings were killed by big cats and
bears and why we moved to 2regon. #he placed her hand on her chest and her
heterochromatic eyes were clouded with sympathy. #he genuinely apologi1ed for
attempting to kill me. %lthough I was angered by her behavior I understood why she had
felt so threatened. I forgave her and she began telling me more about her childhood. I
learned she was from .acer, )ew :ork and her parents put her in beauty pageants at a
young age.
-hey couldn$t deal with the fact that their only child was mi!ed with wolf.& When she
was seven she was raped by a man and again when she fourteen in 3<5<. -he most
shocking part to me was when she told me she had been set up for rape I was almost
brought to tears. ow could your own parents ser you up for se!ual assault was
unforgivable. It was heartbreaking and unbelievable. #he said that the incident triggered
her wolf to awaken. #he killed the men and returned to upstate )ew :ork and awaited her
parents return. When she found out that they used her beauty as a means to escape )ew
:ork she fell apart but more importantly grew to resent them for what they did to her. #he
said when Dennis found her things got better but it took a while. -anner tried to break her
out of her coldness and was unsuccessful.
'illennia eventually accepted Dennis and Dream as her foster parents and -anner as
something more than a brother. #he told me that she hasn$t confessed to him how she felt
and is waiting for the perfect time. #he felt like -anner was the only man that could
understand her on an emotional and mental level.We both were happy that we found
common ground and had more in common than we first thought. %s we were getting up
Cassandra came rushing outside. #he said the Desolation Committee were coming in five
minutes. 'illennia and I rushed to where they were coming from.We saw four
individuals in black attire approaching. #uddenly arold$s =laring arrived in their +elinae
and *antherinae forms growling in disgust at the four humans. #tephanie #teward the
leader had skin as pale as chalk.
#he had e!,uisite tur,uoise eyes, long blond hair that she that was pulled back with her
bottom half flowing down her back&. #he was your worst nightmare. 2n her right was
;ack. -heres was cute a innocence about him that made you ,uestion it. e had short
brown wavy hair and peach skin. I never thought I$d see a teenager in a group that was so
heinous. )e!t to him was another girl named .illy ;ay. #he had long black with white
streaks and gray eyes. -here was this blatant arrogance that seeped from her. It was so
outrageous it made you want to rip her apart. er eyes were fi!ated Dream and myself.
.astly to #tephanie$s right was /oyce. %lthough though he was a sworn enemy he was
very handsome. e was si! feet tall with hair red as blood. is light brown eyes were
devoid of emotion. e had a muscular build that girls wanted to caress and guys envied
and wished that had.
#tephanie had in,uired me about my rejection of their invitation. I bluntly told her &I
wasn't going to join them and that's all she needed to know." 'illennia commented to
.illy that &the ugly warthog was back." %ngered by her remark .illy tried to use her
torture inducement ability but was stopped by #tephanie. #tephanie told me that &my
ignorance and stupidity of being there was a danger to them and all of the human
hybrids of the world. arold roared viciously at #tephanie$s arrogant yet calm insult and
tried to attack but was stopped by .illy$s pain illusion. #adie intervened and weakened
her and arold$s torture was over. /oyce utili1ed his sublimation ability and -iffany
summoned a tornado and inflicted massive damage on him.
%fter that we just stood face to face with the Desolation Committee. )othing happened
after that however #tephanie said &that now that I learned who they were as well as
the Warchild's she would kill me." With that said they left. %t that moment I thanked
my mother for teaching me martial arts but I felt useless because I had no supernatural
ability. We then walked back to the Warchild$s mansion to come up with a plan.&