Apart From Them

[PancaKe]

Okay, the title may really suck, but I am just trying to come up with a title at really quick notice. I finally figured how to post the fic Iv'e been wroking on. So chapters may come really slow but that's just because I have to transfer each one form my computer onto floppy disc, onto mum's computer and then post from there. And when am I allowd on mums comp? Hardly ever.

But I will try.

Anyway, AFT (apart from them) is also acting as therapy to get me out of writers blcok so it's not going to be all flash kablam like LVH was. But anyway, enjoy!

Apart From Them

One

“Conker, what are you doing?”
Conker grinned back, before jumping off the rock and tumbling along the ground. “Relax, Hippie,” Conker grinned back. “You’re always so cautious!”
“Well, I have to be,” Hippie replied. “Seeing that you’re so damn reckless.”
“It’s the perfect combination!” Conker exclaimed, giddy from tumbling. He stumbled, and wound up on the floor.
“We’ve been out too long,” Hippie told him. She glanced around, warily. “I think we’d better head back.”
“We’ve got ages,” Conker shrugged.
Hippie looked concerned. “Conker, please, let’s go back. You know around this time they come out. Everybody here knows!”
“Come on, Hippie,” Conker groaned. “Stay out for longer. Look, everybody’s still out, practically.”
“Squeak and Cooper are out here, and that’s all,” Hippie retorted. She paced around the forest floor, glancing up at the sky. The sun was not there though, it had already begun its journey behind the mountains, casting long shadows and golden streaks across the sky as it went.
“What about Pepper, Werner and Quay, huh?” Conker shot back.
Hippie sighed. “I’m worried, Conker,” she admitted. “Please, can we go?”
Conker shook his head. “You worry too much, get over it!” he snapped.

Hippie took a step back from Conker, and looked around. Conker continued his rambling and tumbling, calling out to Hippie to watch him. Hippie couldn’t stay focused though, she looked around nervously. Squeak and Cooper stayed in their spot, eating and talking, ignoring the young ones running around them. Pepper, Werner and Quay were supposed to be back the same time as Hippie and Conker, and Hippie knew this. So did Quay, those two often had interesting conversations, and both knew what it was like to have friends who refused to listen.
She watched Conker running around. He didn’t have a care in the world, he was happy just to ignore everybody else and do exactly what he wanted. Which is what he did, regardless of what others thought or felt. Hippie knew this; she had experienced it first hand. But she loved Conker, and was willing to forgive him. Anyway, she knew that he was truly, different to the way he acted. He just wasn’t going to admit it to others – a lot of the deep emotional feelings that were inside him stayed there. He didn’t share them with anyone but Hippie, and that was only on rare occasions.
Hippie knew that she was so different to him. She was out there with her emotions, at least, she had been. Conker had caused her to withdraw slightly. She was still out there with her emotions, as long as they consisted of happy, excited, and happy. Everything negative that ran through her body stayed there until she got over it. Sometimes those negative feelings and emotions would be there for so long, she considered the fact that she may die before they were released. With nowhere to escape, Hippie had learnt how to deal with things in her own way.
Pretend they weren’t happening.
This made her very wary and conscious of what was going on around her emotionally. She was concerned as it was getting late, and before it got to her, she wanted to get out of there. And she wanted to take Conker with her. She didn’t care for the well being of Squeak or Cooper, or Pepper, Werner or Quay. Not as much as she cared for the well being of Conker.

“Hey! There are still some out!” a voice yelled.
Hippie snapped out of her thoughtful state, and froze. Her green eyes widened, and panic rushed down her spine.
“Conker!” she hissed.
“Yeah what?” Conker asked.
“I heard some!” another voice yelled also. Conker’s eyes grew wide in realization of what was happening.
It ran through his head, maybe he should’ve listened to Hippie.
But that didn’t matter.
All that mattered now was getting out of there.
Hippie looked left and right. Their home was just behind the trees in front of them, but getting there meant dashing through a clearing, where they would surely be seen. They could hide. Hippie looked for Squeak and Cooper. They had both hidden. Pepper, Werner and Quay had frozen, and didn’t know what to do.
“Let’s run across,” Conker suggested quietly.
“No!” Hippie replied. “Please, don’t. We’re better off if we go around.”
Conker turned his back on Hippie, and waited. “Now!” he whispered, and dashed through the clearing, Hippie close behind.
“They’re going across!” Pepper cried out in his squeaky voice. “Let’s follow!” The three young ones ran after them, bounding across the grass. Their speeds were no match for those of Hippie and Conker.
Hippie and Conker made it to the other side, and dived down into the long grass. They shrank as small as they could, and waited, their ears pricked, listening for the slightest sound. Two more thuds landed next to them, as Pepper and Quay landed. Pepper and Quay looked around, and waited for the third thump of Werner.
But there was none.
“How many?” one voice asked.
The owner of the other voice strode into the clearing, and picked up the weapon he threw. He turned around to his partner. “Only one this time.”
“Damnit!” the first cursed. “We really need to be more careful.”
“But, what can we do?” the other asked. “What does he expect from us?”
“More than only one!” the first retorted. “Now come on, we need to look for other types. Maybe if we get enough others, he won’t notice.”
Hippie looked at Conker, her eyes watering. “You didn’t listen, did you?” she whispered to him, as the voices walked away. “You didn’t listen to me.”
Conker shrugged. “I’m here, you’re here, what’s the big deal?”
“That could’ve been one of us,” Hippie replied. “That could’ve been you, back there, stuck in the clearing.”
“You know it’ll never happen to us,” Conker replied smartly.
Hippie shook her head and walked off to camp sadly, Conker following behind.

“I can’t believe it, another one.”
“Can you believe it?”
“Of all, why Werner?”
Hippie glared at Conker, as they sat in the circle in the middle of their village. Their parents, neighbors and the village elders surrounded them. Their village leader sat at the head of the circle, staring at each of the members of the village with his cold eyes.
“Listen!” he began.
“I can’t believe it happened to us,” Quay continued.
“I know,” Pepper added.
“Would you listen, Quaytallis and Pepperon?” the village leader roared. Pepper and Quay closed their mouths, their eyes wide with fear.
“Sorry Kinregital,” they muttered.
Kinregital sighed, and looked around. “We all know what happened here this afternoon. We all know about the number of us that disobeyed the curfew and risked not only themselves, but also our whole village! We were not lucky at all, as one of our own is now in their custody. They now have one of us, but we are indeed fortunate that it was only one – as it could have been many more.”
Silence followed. They looked at each other, worried. Hippie glared at Conker, who simply shrugged.
“We have to be careful,” Kinregital continued. “If you don’t want to obey the curfew, you are putting us all at risk. Therefore, this village will disown those who do not obey the curfew. We do not want you here if you are going to be a danger to us all.”
Hippie stomped on Conker’s toes. Conker glared back at her.
“This new rule officially starts from now,” Kinregital finished up. “And there will be no second chances.”
Conker shrugged, and shoved Hippie as they left the meeting. Hippie stumbled and landed on the ground.
“Ha!” Conker laughed.
Hippie looked up at Conker sadly. Conker seemed to notice this, and stopped laughing at her.
“What’s up your nose?” Conker asked her.
Hippie got up by herself. “You,” she replied.
Conker stared at her blankly.
Hippie turned and walked away.
“Hippie, wait!” Conker called. But Hippie continued walking, her back towards Conker. He sighed and ran after her.

There she stood, a reflection staring back at her. It couldn’t possibly have been her reflection, could it? She looked so different, she hardly recognized herself.
“I can’t believe it! What a transformation! November, you really do turn out good when you ditch the punk clothing!” Jemima exclaimed. “I can’t believe how good you turned out!”
“I hate it,” November replied, looking up and down at the tight mini skirt and boob tube she wore. “Take it off me.”
Jemima raised an eyebrow. “Honey, this is your transformation. You promised me I could do this.”
“I promised you that you could do this if you got me more credit for my phone,” November reminded her, reaching over for her jeans. “Now that’s it, I’m getting changed. And I hope that you come up with it soon.”
Jemima scowled. “Just because I know how to get things and you don’t.”
Now it was November’s turn to raise an eyebrow. “I beg to differ with you, sibling. Who was it who got the biggest room?”
Jemima turned away, and picked up her belongings. “Fine!” she spat. “Take off my clothes and give them back. I’m leaving. I’m sorry that I even bothered to waste my time.” She stalked out the room. November sighed and began taking off the clothes her sister had given her. “Tell mum I wont be home tonight, there’s a party at Tiffany’s and we’re going to stay at her house after.”
‘Whatever.’ November rolled her eyes. She was sick to death of this same scenario over and over again, her younger sister trying to change her way of clothing and style, and then chucking a fit and going clubbing. Tiffany was a non-existent friend, all of Jemima’s friends took her out clubbing and then went home with guys they had known for about two hours.
And Jemima was only fourteen.

November, on the other hand, was sixteen. She was old enough to do things on her own, and was old enough to tell her parents the truth and be allowed out. The only thing her parents really had a problem with was some of her choices. November’s father was a hard worker, and expected November to continue on the family traditions, whereas November’s mother expected November to become more of a girl and not be so rough and blunt. November respected her parent’s wishes, but filled neither of their desires for her. November Ferguson was quite content with her part time job at the chicken shop, her school life and her social life. They all worked out nicely and she didn’t want any to change.

Jemima slammed the front door, and November heard the wheels of the car out the front screech as they drove off. November couldn’t care. She would simply tell her mother that Jemima went clubbing again, and then her mother would be angry with Jemima.
November whirled around, and looked down at the little creature at her feet. “What are you doing inside, Fluffy?” November asked the pet at her feet. She bent down and patted him, his tail wagging to and fro. “You know how angry mum will get if she sees you inside.” She took Fluffy by the collar and led him down the stairs and outside, locking the door after him.

Darkness came, and swallowed the day. The kitchen was busy with bubbling pots and chopped vegetables, with November’s mother rushing around to get it all done. November sat in her room, her legs crossed, sitting on her bed, listening to music. Everything was fine and normal, and Fluffy was outside.
“What the hell are you screaming about?”
Even through November’s loud headphones, she could hear her mothers shriek. Fearful of what was going on downstairs, November removed her headphones, and moved towards the door, not leaving her room.
“Sixteen! Only sixteen!”

November knew that her father was yelling about her. She gulped; dread rushing through her body. He must have heard about something her and her friends had done, but what had they done that was against the law? She tried to think what they had gotten up to, but the worst she could think of was dropping oranges into the toilet at the public toilets, and making grunting noises. She chuckled at the thought.

“Calm down! She might be only sixteen, but she’s going to be seventeen.”
“And your point?”
“Is it absolutely compulsory?”
“Read it for yourself!”
November heard her father slam down something onto the table. There was silence throughout the house. Her mother’s strangled gasp broke the quiet air.
“No.”
“See! I told you!”
Her father began to rampage.
“Why are they doing this though? Why? What on earth would make them do this to our little… our little girl?”
Her mothers voice sounded as if she were fighting back tears. November had no idea what was going on now. She was almost certain it had nothing to do with the oranges in the toilet. But if not that, then what? It had something to do with the whole town.
“She’ll make it through. They won’t break her.”
“What would happen if she agreed to it?”
“We both know she wouldn’t do that. She’s not that stupid.” Arthur felt sick at the thought.
“I know.”
“We can’t do anything…” Arthur had never felt so helpless.
“You know, you’re going to have to talk to her about this,” Mary-Anne’s wise words informed him.
“I know,” Arthur replied. “I’m going upstairs now.”

November dashed from the doorway to her bed, and grabbed the nearest magazine. Putting her headphones on, she flicked through the pages, pretending that she hadn’t heard any of what went on downstairs.
There was a knock at her door, and it opened slowly.
November removed her headphones.
“Hey Dad, how was work?” November asked him cheerfully.
Arthur took a seat on the end of her bed.
“November,” he began, clearing his throat. “They’ve made their selections.”
“Cool,” November shrugged. She didn’t show it to her father, of course, but inside she was dying with curiosity to know what was going on. “How does this affect me? Selections for what, anyway?”
“According to the selections, you will be going away for a while,” Arthur told her, trying to be strong and manly, fighting back the tears that were welling up in the corners of his eyes.

[mr_pikachu]

Interesting... and confusing. What's up with the kidnapping and the "sending away" of villagers? I feel like I've arrived an hour late to a movie...

Hold on. Wait... a... second. They're "sending away" November... that one kid was kidnapped by some creeps... could these be related? Could they be sending away people... to appease someone?

Odd... very odd. But very unique, as well.

There were som punctuation errors, but nothing too serious. You're doing a good job with this so far, it seems. I'll be looking forward to the next development to this mysterious saga. See you then!

[PancaKe]

Thanks dude ^.^ I like getting replies. They're often so encouraging.

Lol and dont feel like u arrived an hour late. I'm still trying to get my head around the plotline, n I think this fic will be far from perfect cuz I'm sort of developing the story as I'm going rather than knowing what will happen.