Families

by Katrina Kahler

  Mrs. Shade nodded. “Smart girl! Of course, some rumors are based on truth. Others become truth. Being a history teacher, I am very aware of how rumors have shaped the world.”

  “Ah, okay,” I said, not really sure where Mrs. Shade was heading with all this.

  “Mrs. Shade, what are you getting at?” Jimmy asked.

  Mrs. Shade smiled at him. “Smart young man there, Jimmy. This rumor is indeed true. There is a new girl in our school. She is in Ms. Mars’ homeroom. She and her family transferred here from India, and she is quite an extraordinary student…perfect English, perfect record, perfect everything. I believe both her parents will work in the hospital.”

  I had never seen Mrs. Shade act like this before. She always seemed so cool and in control. I actually felt surprised that she had emotions. Before today, you could have told me Mrs. Shade was a robot, and I would have said, ‘yeah, that makes sense.’ Only now, Mrs. Shade, the coolest teacher in school, seemed captivated by this new girl. Yes, this was not normal.

  I heard a voice in my head say, “Come to the bathroom now.”

  I decided to ignore that voice. No voices in my head tell me what to do. Well, except for my own, of course.

  The voice repeated, “Come to the bathroom now,” then added, “please.”

  Now, that was more like it. Raising my hand, I said, “Mrs. Shade, I need to go to the bathroom.”

  Mrs. Shade gave me a stern look. “Nina, you only just arrived! In future go to the toilet in your own time, before the bell. Oh, hurry up then!”

  Arriving in the bathroom, I wasn’t at all surprised to find a tall girl with black hair and brown eyes. I was surprised to see cheerleader, Micki May in the bathroom along with fellow cheerleaders, Randi, and Sandi Dunn.

  “Ah, what’s going on?” I asked.

  Randi spoke up. “Micki came here because she was worried she might have BO. When you’re a cheerleader, you just can’t have BO.”

  “Yeah, it’s bad for morale,” Sandi said.

  “We came here to assure her that she doesn’t have BO,” Randi said. “And we met Adra, perfecting her perfect makeup!” She looked at Adra in awe.

  “Adra assured me I don’t have BO,” Micki said. “Even though I did forget my deodorant today! There are so many things to remember in the morning!”

  Sniffing the air, I noticed Micki did have a scent of BO. But it wasn’t my place to mention anything.

  Adra patted Micki on the head. “Now, you girls please go so I can properly greet Nina.”

  Micki, Sandi, and Randi all smiled and walked out of the bathroom.

  “Nice girls,” Adra said to me. “Simple, but nice. Nothing like us.”

  “I’m nice,” I said, walking up to Adra. I offered her my hand.

  She leaned in and hugged me. “Silly girl, I’m a hugger.” Releasing me, she took a step back and said, “The name is Adra Anagal. You can call me Adra or A.”

  “Why are you here?” I asked.

  “Why are any of us here?” Adra smiled. “That is a question which philosophers have been asking for centuries….”

  “What brings you to this school?” I asked.

  “I walked. I love walking!” she joked.

  I looked at her.

  “My parents were offered jobs at the hospital. They wanted me to see the world, so we moved here. It’s a nice place,” Adra said.

  “Fair enough,” I replied.

  “You’ve never met one of us who you haven’t been related to before?” Adra questioned.

  I shook my head. “So…you are?”

  “Special,” Adra said. “Yes, very.” Adra walked towards me. She lifted me off the ground. “Which brings me to my next question. Why are you attacking the mummies?”

  “I’m not,” I said. “In fact, I was going to ask you why you are attacking the dark mummies. And vultures.”

  “Vultures, yuck,” Adra said. “Those big birds are gross. I want nothing to do with them.”

  “Does that mean you are not knocking them from their trees?” I asked.

  “Honey, I don’t even know where the vultures hang out,” she said.

  Looking into her eyes, I saw that her pupils didn’t change at all. Her eyebrows didn’t move a tad either. I concluded she was telling the truth.

  Before Adra could answer, Ruby burst into the room. Pointing at Adra, Ruby shouted, “Put down my best friend now!”

  Adra dropped me to the ground. “Um, whom do we have here?” she asked.

  Ruby took a karate stance. “I’m Ruby! I’m Nina’s BFF! You mess with her, and you mess with me!” Ruby barked.

  Adra smiled. “I am an expert in Kalaripayattu, the world’s oldest martial art.” She took a strange kind of animal stance.

  “I stick with good old karate,” Ruby said, almost growling, staying in her ready stance.

  “Guys, we’re all on the same team here,” I said. “At least, I think we are.”

  The two girls circled each other.

  “I want to test the little human out,” Adra said.

  “Oh, I excel at tests!” Ruby told her.

  Ruby leaped up in the air, kicking at Adra. Adra caught her leg a split second before it would have clocked her in the jaw. Adra drove Ruby to the floor. Spinning, Ruby kicked Adra in the nose. Adra smiled. Adra put a hand on Ruby’s forehead, pinning her to the floor.

  “Give up?” Adra asked.

  Ruby squirmed but refused to say she gave up. That’s what I loved about Ruby - she had a strong, stubborn streak. If she decided she was right, she would not back down. Even if she should back down for her own safety.

  “Let her up!” I ordered.

  Adra turned to me. “I’m not....”

  Adra didn’t manage to finish as Ruby kicked her square in the mouth. The force of the kick sent Adra’s head back. Adra turned red. “Why…you!” She formed her hand into a claw.

  I blurred forward and caught Adra’s claw hand. “Enough!” I ordered.

  Adra fought against me for a moment, trying to force her arm forward.

  “I said ENOUGH!” I shouted. “We are all on the same side here!”

  Adra stopped trying to force my arm forward. She looked down at a gritty Ruby. “Sorry, I do have a temper.”

  “I think it comes with vampire blood,” I told her as I helped her to her feet.

  “Funny, my mom is as calm as a cool breeze, but my dad needs to do a lot of yoga to stay focused and calm,” Adra said. Leaning over, she offered a hand to Ruby. Ruby crossed her arms, refusing her help.

  “Ruby!” I said.

  Ruby took Adra’s hand. Adra pulled her to her feet.

  “I am very defensive when it comes to my friends!” Ruby said.

  “I get it,” Adra replied.

  Filling Ruby in, I said, “Apparently, the black mummies think Adra attacked them.”

  “How did you convince them that you didn’t?” Ruby asked.

  Adra smiled. “I told them they have to believe me or else.” She paused. “Like I said, I have a temper. My parents also backed me up. They told the mummies we were here to help, not to cause problems.”

  “Okay,” Ruby said slowly.

  “The mummies didn’t want to mess with us. We gave them some marshmallows, and they seemed happy.” Adra paused. “Any idea who might be trying to set us up?”

  “We still can’t be sure you aren’t behind this!” Ruby said suspiciously.

  “Ruby!” I cautioned.

  Adra smiled and nodded. “I understand. You are defensive. I respect that. Now, I’d better get to class. I want to make a good first impression.”

  “I don’t think you have to worry about that,” I told her.

  Adra smiled and walked out the door.

  “Do you trust her?” Ruby asked.

  “Not sure…” I replied. “After all, none of these problems popped up until she arrived here!”

  Ruby nodded. “True, but the funny thing is, now that I’ve calmed down I kind of believe her
.”

  Pointing to the door, I said. “We’d better get to class. We have enough problems without annoying Mrs. Shade!”

  “Oh, good point. Let’s get going,” Ruby said.

  Nina Note: Okay, there was now another family of vampires in town. My first impression was that Adra didn't seem too bad at all. True, she did jump at Ruby...but being a vampire, I know sometimes we react before we think. I've done the same thing before, myself. But I needed to figure out if Adra was a friend or a foe.

  I could sure use another friend!

  Chapter 4: A Worthy Opponent

  Interestingly, for some reason, my schedule and Adra’s schedule were totally different. In fact, we only had one class together. That just happened to be gym in the last period of the day. I actually preferred having gym class at the end of the day. That meant I could go home and shower in peace and quiet. Sometimes a girl needs peace and quiet, and good quality soap! And when you don’t have to share the locker room showers, you don’t have to deal with comparing yourself to anybody else. Yeah, even I feel subconscious about that.

  I also loved gym class at the end of the day because it allowed me to release any frustrations I might have. I have to admit I usually rock gym class out, even without using my powers.

  Today we had basketball. I loved basketball. I guess it is the tiger in me that enjoys chasing down the ball and putting it in a basket. Coach Jeff split us up into two teams. Since Coach Jeff is actually a troll, he could sense Adra was also a vampire. Therefore, he put her on one team and me on the other.

  Starting the game off, Coach Jeff held the ball between Adra and me. He smiled and said, "I expect this to be an interesting hard-fought game." Looking directly at us, he quietly reminded us, “Remember, you both have teammates.”

  “Coach, how do you know if I’ll be any good at this basketball game?” Adra asked him.

  “A coach knows things,” he answered.

  He tossed the ball between us. I leaped up a little higher than Adra, tapping the ball to Ruby. Ruby dribbled down the court and sank the ball into the basket. How did she score so easily? Probably because Micki May tried to play defense without lifting her arms. She was so afraid she might offend somebody with BO.

  “First round to you,” Adra told me.

  “Hey, it’s not a competition,” I told her.

  “Honey, of course it is!” Adra said.

  Micki May passed the ball to Adra. Adra dribbled maybe a foot or two, swerving in and out between my teammates. Wow, she could move fast, even without using blur speed.

  She stopped fifteen feet from the basket, pulled up and hit a beautiful jump shot. The ball swished through the net. Her teammates clapped. Adra took a polite bow.

  “Wow, she’s good,” one of my teammates, Kate Crow, said to me.

  Another teammate, Sally Brown nodded. “She may be as good as you, Nina.”

  “Well, the game is young,” I said.

  “Yeah, I suggest you guard her tightly,” Ruby told me. “I analyzed their other players against ours. If you can neutralize Adra, we can win. Mainly because Micki is afraid to lift her arms up.”

  “Sounds like a plan!” I said.

  Of course, just because we had a plan that didn’t mean it would work. Turns out that our plan, like most things in life, was a lot easier said than done. Adra moved quickly and almost hypnotically. Nobody on our team besides me could stick with her. She blazed by everybody else as if they were standing still. The girl could dribble, pass and shoot like a pro. I could hang with her, but it took all my effort.

  The only reason we kept the game close was the fact that Micki tried to play and shoot by keeping her arms by her sides.

  “Okay, we have a minute left,” Coach Jeff said, looking at his watch. “And the score is 38 to 38. Great game, girls!”

  “Coach, I need a time out!” Adra called.

  Coach Jeff shrugged. “Sure, it's the end of the day anyhow.”

  Our two teams gathered at opposite ends of the gym. “We’ve got this!” Ruby said. “We can leave Micki wide open since she can’t shoot without lifting her arms.”

  Using my vampire hearing, I heard Adra tell Micki, “Micki, you don’t smell that bad at all. Besides, this is gym class, we all smell!”

  “You don’t!” one of the girls told Adra. “You actually seem to smell better!”

  “This isn't about me,” said Adra. “It's about Micki. Here's the plan. I'm going to dribble down the court, but instead of shooting, I'm going to pass to Micki. Micki, don’t worry about BO or anything else. You take the shot and win the game for us!"

  “Right!” Micki said.

  Now I knew the plan. I could have shared it with my teammates, but I felt kind of bad about using my vampire abilities. I figured the only fair way to handle this was to guard Adra and then steal her pass myself. Doing that would give me a clear path to our basket. We had this.

  Adra quickly dribbled the ball down the court. She slowed down a bit so her teammates could catch up.

  I stayed on her, arms out like I was ready to block a pass or a shot. She moved up towards our basket. My defense didn't seem to bother her very much. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Micki standing near the basket, all alone. Adra went to pass. I moved in that direction to intercept her pass. Adra pulled up, jumped into the air, and shot the ball towards the basket. The ball hit the rim and trickled in.

  Coach Jeff blew his whistle. He loved blowing that whistle. “Game over! Team Adra wins!”

  Adra looked at me. “Nice game. But I knew you’d be listening to me when I talked to Micki. I had to fake you out!”

  “Well played,” I said.

  Adra’s teammates surrounded her, patting her on the back.

  Nina Note: Wow, score…Adra one - Nina none. Adra proved to be as cagey as she was pretty and powerful. She tricked me and used my powers against me. I had to hope Adra really was one of the good vamps because if not, she would be a very tough foe. BTW, I don’t lose very often. It felt weird. My dad always said that losing builds character. I had to hope he was right. After all, he was super smart and a brilliant mad scientist. Right?

  Chapter 5: Rubbing It In

  “Did she really fake you out and sink the basket?” Jimmy grinned.

  “Yep,” I said as we walked home. “She made me feel silly.”

  “Man, she’s pretty, smart, and good at sports!” Frank said.

  “How do you know she’s smart?” I asked.

  Frank itched his head. “Ah, I heard her talking about robots and chemistry with Chris and Wayne. They both walked away in awe. And they both said they were in love…”

  “She’s too good for both of them,” Ruby said. She put her hand over her mouth. “Oh, that was mean.”

  “But truthful,” Jimmy said.

  “Come to our house and hang out,” I told Jimmy.

  Jimmy hesitated. “Our moms are still a problem. They tolerate us being buds, but I don’t think they like us hanging out…” he sighed.

  “Well, your mom is working for Sasha’s mom now. Therefore, she is busy!” Ruby stated.

  “Good point,” Jimmy smiled.

  “And our mom is still at the North Pole!” Frank said excitedly. “Which means it's safe for you to come and hang out with us. Mumford makes the best brownies!”

  “He really does,” I agreed.

  “Truth,” Ruby added.

  “Okay, that sounds like fun,” Jimmy said. “My house is kind of lonely with Mom working, and Sasha’s mom’s people are working at our antique store now.”

  Reaching Barb Bash’s home, we found Barb waiting for us near the fence that wrapped around her house.

  “Took you long enough to get here,” Barb said cynically.

  “Sorry! Didn't know you planned your day around us,” I said with just a touch of nastiness in my voice. Yeah, I didn’t like being nasty, but Barb brought out the worst in me. “What do you want, Barb?” I asked.

  “How does it feel?” she snick
ered.

  “How does what feel?” I asked. I really had no idea what she was getting at.

  “How does it feel not being the top girl at school?” Barb asked. “Funny how the old new girl just got surpassed by the pretty new girl.”

  “I’ve never been the top girl at school,” I insisted.

  Barb rolled her eyes. “Come on, honey, don’t give me any of that false modesty. You know you’re better than 99.9 percent of the kids in the school.”

  “I’m not sure your math is accurate,” Ruby told her.

  “She knows what I mean,” Barb said. “She used to be the top girl at school. Even the older girls would move aside for her. Smart, pretty, strong...she had it all.”

  “Ah, I’m not gone,” I said.

  Barb laughed. “No, but this new girl, Adra, she beats you at everything. It must hurt.”

  “Nah, I’m good,” I told Barb.

  “I heard she burnt you on the b-ball court,” Barb taunted, grinning.

  “Hey, Nina scored sixteen points in that game,” Ruby said, defending me.

  “Yes, but you're still a big LOSER!” Barb insisted, holding her fingers in an L shape.

  “Ah, go inside and suck your thumb!” I ordered Barb.

  Barb’s eyes glazed over. She popped her thumb into her mouth. She waddled into her house.

  “Oops, that slipped out,” I said.

  Frank patted me on the shoulder. “Sure it did, sis.” He smiled. “Come on, let’s get home. I can taste those Mumford brownies already.”

  “How can a mummy make such good brownies?” Jimmy asked.

  “Mummies know stuff,” Frank said.

  “True,” Ruby agreed.

  Jimmy pointed to Barb who was looking out her window, frowning and sucking her thumb. “That IS going to wear off. Right?”

  I grinned. “Yeah, she should be fine in an hour or two…three tops.” After all, I really didn’t mean to hit her with a mind zap.

  Nina Note: Sadly, I did let my power slip out. I didn’t mean to mind zap Barb. Still, it did feel good shutting her up. It shouldn’t have... Barb had kind of asked for it. But really, I shouldn’t have let her get under my skin like that. Although, I guess she did strike a nerve.