Raven Rose and the Blackwood manor by JA Holland

[JAHolland]

I'm not a professional writer by any means, but I have a story in my head that I need to tell. I'm scared to death to post this, so please be gentle. Here's the first chapter, I hope someone enjoys it.


Chapter 1 Suck suck suckity suck
Raven stared down at her sopping wet, worn out, duct taped shoe and sighed. This day just all around sucked. Yeah...I know...Grams hates that word, but, it is what it is. They were supposed to go to the second hand store to get her a pair of shoes, but Grams started to feel kind of poorly so they ended up here at Blackwood hospital. She sat in the hospital hallway swinging her legs back and forth, hoping the air would dry her shoe and sock some since she had the pleasure of landing her foot in the world's largest puddle once they stepped off the bus. The torrential rains had soaked them to the bone and she was starting to get a bit of a chill in the coolness of the hospital. It was pretty quiet here, except for the occasional beep from the machines or intercom page. Nurses quietly bustled by, occasional giving her a sideways glance. Nobody talked to her, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. She really wasn't fond of having conversations with people she knew, let alone strangers...but then again she hadn't seen Grams in awhile so it was kind of starting to make her belly hurt and her heart feel funny. What on earth could be taking so long?

Raven slid off her chair, tossing her dampened black hair out of her eyes and slowly made her way to the rain streaked window that overlooked the small town. Squiiiish-kerfloop...squiiiish-kerfloop....squiiiish-kerfloop went her shoe. Suck suck suckity suck she thought. My stinking foot is going to shrivel up like a big ole' raisin from being so wet. Raven peered out the window squinting her eyes, trying to see through the raindrops. They were in downtown Blackwood...then again calling it "downtown" was pushing that word to the extreme. Blackwood's downtown would probably be another city's roundabout. Not much to it besides a barber, a comic book store, the lunch bucket cafe, some kind of farmer's market and Raven's favorite place, the second hand store "New to Ewe". Raven thought the name was hysterical since the owner, Mr Ewing, looked almost like an ewe himself. With that long face and a mop of curly hair....he was a nice enough man but he wasn't doing himself any favors with that name.

Hushed voices tickled Raven's ears and she turned to see where they were coming from. A robust pink cheeked lady in bright cheery nurse scrubs stood by the corner of the hallway and smiled sweetly at her. "Raven?" Raven shook her head up and down. "Hello sweetie, my name is Matilda. Would you come with me please?" Raven started slowly, trying to muffle the sounds of her squishy, flopping shoe. SQUIIIIISH-KERFLOOP, SQUIIIIIISH-KERFLOOP" the slower she went the louder it became. Sucky shoe. Raven followed the nice nurse and became a little happier. Grams must be feeling better. Wonder if she'll feel good enough to stop for shoes...and maybe some lunch.... as her belly gave a little growl.

As they turned the corner, Raven stopped abruptly. Grams wasn't there, only an older gentleman with a black suit and white collar. He smiled sadly at her and held out his hand. "Come with me child" he said softly. Raven wasn't sure what to do. Grams had always told her about strangers and not to go with them. The older gentleman could sense her apprehension and smiled at her and said "It's ok. We're just going to go right here into the church sanctuary to have a small chat about your grandmother." Finally, someone was going to let her know what was going on. Raven went with him reluctantly. He seemed nice enough, but she was still a little leery. She started forming a plan in her head like where she would kick him if he tried kidnapping her. She looked down at her floppy shoe...fat lot of good it would do kicking him with these. She sighed again.

The man opened the doors to what looked to be a small church. Sweet smelling fragrance wafted through the air as they passed by tall porcelain vases heaped with flowers which spilled over their sides. Their steps became silent as they padded across the thick carpet. Even her shoe seemed silent which was a miracle in itself. The clergyman lead her to another room which held a massive mahogany desk and two wingback velvet chairs set opposite the rich leather chair which stood behind the desk. Raven sank into the deep burgundy velvet and felt as small as a kitten. Even if she scooted to the edge her feet barely touched the floor. The older gentleman rounded the desk and sat down heavily. Making a steeple with his fingers, he tucked them under his chin and began to stare at Raven. She could hear the "tick...tick...tick..." of the clock and the quiet squeak of the man's chair as he slowly swiveled back and forth. All of this began to un-nerve Raven and she began to feel her insides shake. If this man didn't say something soon, he was going to find a wet, holy shoe upside his head. A nervous giggle almost escaped her lips as she thought of the funny she made with the word holy and the thought of her shoe flying through the air in a church.

"So..Raven is it? I'm Father O'Malley and I know things like this are never easy.....your grandmother...I'm sure she was a fine woman....but sadly she is no longer with us." Raven blinked and stared at him. She could see his mouth moving but she just couldn't wrap her head around his words. What did he mean? No longer with us? Where would she go? His mouth kept moving but she couldn't hear him over the loud buzzing in her ears. She had to get out of here. Grams would be really upset with her if she missed the bus to go home. She stood up to leave but felt a meaty hand on her shoulder. "Raven, do you have any family near by? Maybe an Aunt or an Uncle? Do you know where your parents are?" Raven just blinked at him. This isn't real. It can't be. Quickly she ducked under the beefy paw and bolted for the door. She began charging first through the church then out the hospital doors. Hot tears blinded her world but she didn't care, all she could do was run. Didn't matter where, she just had to get away.

Raven barreled through downtown Blackwood. Past the comic book store then the barber. She didn't even give a thought when she blasted past "New to Ewe". Nothing mattered except for the buzzing in her head which would not stop. It seemed to keep pushing her to run further and further. Soon she found herself sprinting down an old gravel road hitting puddle and after puddle, no longer caring about her wet foot or the stones that had jumped inside the hole of her shoe and were now pinching her toes. At the end of the road stood a massive, ominous, castle like building surrounded by thick dense woods and a wrought iron gate. Raven didn't even think, after spotting a low hanging branch, she hoisted herself up into the tree and then over the fence. After jumping down she proceeded with a brisk jog into the dark forest. No matter how deep she went, it just wasn't deep enough. She never wanted to see anything or anyone again. She could feel her lungs burning and her body rebelling but nothing could compare to the ache that was in her heart.

Soon the thicket became so impenetrable she was forced to walk. While her lungs and body were grateful, the awful piercing between her ears was louder than ever. Raven had no idea which way was which. It was so dark it she could barely see anything right in front of her. Trying to jump over a fallen tree, Raven went sprawling after catching her shoe on a limb hearing a riiiiiiip. She knew her shoe was finally history. She couldn't take anymore. She was broken. Her body shook as thick hot tears gushed from her eyes. She hugged her body, trying to keep it from going in all directions. She felt at any moment she would just simply explode. Grams...how could you leave me? What am I going to do? Questions, one right after another crammed themselves into her brain. Raven covered her ears with her hands to stop the intrusions. She knew she couldn't take one more thing, no matter how small...then her world went a little fuzzy then black.

Sensations of floating enraptured Raven as she began seeing bits and pieces of her life. Wispy images gently stroked her mind...Grams smiling at her, getting her picture taken after winning the 2nd grade spelling bee, she and Grams picking apples from old man Winter's orchard...suddenly piercing blue eyes invaded those memories and the pleasantries disappeared like smoke. She could feel her heart beating faster as she tried to back away from the soul penetrating gaze. A trail of voices hummed in her ears and with that the blue eyes disappeared. Raven could hear the voices louder now and she tried to open her eyes but her lids felt so heavy. She wasn't sure if the voices were real, or if they were like the sapphire eyes and would just simply disappear. Suddenly she felt light as a feather and could feel herself being carried by firm strong arms. A whisper played at the edge of her ear, telling her she was safe and with that, Raven drifted off back into her abyss of dreams.

Raven's eyes fluttered open as her heart pounded almost out of her chest. I was having a nightmare she thought...but what was it about? Grams! It was all just a dream! A wave of relief began to wash over Raven and as she went to place her hand on her head she felt the tug on her arm making it difficult to raise it. Raven looked down to see the tubes running along her arm and the small bulge in her skin where the tube entered. Her surroundings acutely came into focus. The hospital. Again. Raven could feel the panic in her chest return. Her attention was turned toward the door when she heard it close. Father O'Malley. Again. Full blown panic now as she felt the burning sensation creep across her chest and then to her cheeks. Wild-eyed she looked for a way to get away from this man but the tube in her arm held her in place, not to mention the police officer he had in tow. Father O'Malley, sensing her terror backed off and slid into a chair opposite her bed. "Raven" he spoke softly, "you gave us quite a scare. We were lucky someone from the orphanage saw you run into the woods. Officer Jake here is the one that found you" Raven peered at the officer and looked into his eyes, hoping he would have the blue ones that had haunted her dream. Nope, brown. They were kind eyes, but definitely not the ones that had shook her to her core. Father O'Malley continued "Raven, how old are you?" Raven whispered "12, almost 13" the old man smiled warmly "Ahhh. A very good age. But you know, even being an almost teenager, it's not possible to live on your own. Is there perhaps anyone in your family we can call to tell them of your predicament?" Raven shook her head. It had only been she and Grams for quite some time. As long as she could remember, really. Grams had said that her parents had been in an accident but their bodies were never found, so they never really knew for sure. She always told people that her parents had "mysteriously disappeared" she just thought it sounded a lot better than they were dead but the bodies never found. "Well Raven, I have places to be, people to see so we'll let you get some rest. I'll try to stop later this evening. Is there anything I can bring you? Magazines? Books?" Raven looked at her toes stretched out in front of her and whispered "shoes" The portly man guffawed loudly and shook his head and said "You really are a character Raven!" and disappeared out the door. Raven slumped back against her pillows. Wasn't really a joke, she thought.

Shortly after having her hospital lunch Raven drifted off into a fitful sleep. She dreamt of walking down dark dreary hallways where shadows lurked around every corner making her afraid to go any further. Then much to her surprise the blue eye returned. They seem to beckon her, pleading with her to walk further. Raven was petrified, she didn't know those eyes, how could she know if they were friend or foe? Her heart pounded as she took at step, then another step...the eyes....the eyes....they seem so close now. Maybe if she just held out her hand she could touch the face belonging to the penetrating eyes. Raven slowly lifted her hand and reached out..and woke with a start. Still laying in her hospital bed her heart hammered against her chest. She could feels beads of sweat on her brow. What in the devil!?! She thought. Why do I keep seeing those eyes? So many questions plagued Raven, but her thoughts were interrupted with the squeak of the door opening. Raven expected either a nurse or the old priest again, but it was neither. In the doorway stood a slender woman. She was older, but not as old as her Grams had been. Her grayish hair was pulled tight into a bun perched on the top of her head . She had a rather pointy face and her lips seemed to draw into a pucker. Either this lady was constantly mad, or she didn't like Raven and that couldn't be because Raven had never met her. She looked into her eyes...just incase, but no. This lady's eyes were dark. Almost black. Probably matched her personality. Raven hid a smile at the thought. "Hello. Raven? I'm Ms. Grumpky" Raven bit her tongue to stifle a laugh "I'm from the State of Children Affairs. It has been brought to our attention that you are now an orphan and that you will need placement." Raven's eye began to water at the word orphan. Her pain was still so raw from losing her Grams. The woman continued with a voice like nails on a chalkboard "it will difficult to place you because of your age. Not impossible, but definitely difficult, therefore you must stay at Blackwood orphanage until a suitable home can be found for you." Raven just stared at the spinster with her mouth agape. How could her life be turned this upside down in less than 24 hours? Raven felt the tears threaten to spill over her eyelids again and quickly peered down to her small hands resting on her blanket. "Hmp" said the old witch "Anyway. The doctor said you will well enough to leave this evening. Please have yourself presentable to meet the Blackwood orphanage Mistress" and with a click of her pointy shoes, that matched her pointy face, she was gone.

Soon after a nurse came and removed all the dreaded tubes that were poking her and she was allowed to shower and brush her teeth. After her shower, Raven found a small closet which held her belongings. There sat clean and folded her clothes. Raven slid on her favorite jeans. They were a little frayed at the bottom and the material was beginning to thin from being worn so many times but she didn't care, they had become sort of a security blanket to her. She then slipped on her "mud monkey" t-shirt which had a cute little monkey on the front covered in mud. Grams had bought this for her during one of their many garage sale adventures. She said it fit her perfectly since Raven loved mud just as much as any pig. Raven's eyes misted over with the memory. Retrieving off the hanger was her olive green soldier jacket. It too was beginning to fray on the cuffs, but she didn't care. She loved this almost as much as her jeans. Raven looked for her shoes...erm, shoe but none were there. Ok...she thought. I can go with one shoe, but with no shoes? I don't think so. She started feeling around the bottom of the cabinet, but there again was nothing. Raven was perplexed. Maybe they were under her bed. Peaking under her hospital bed, again nothing. Standing up Raven bumped the side table and heard a thud. Turning around, at her feet sat a hiking shoe, and not just any hiking shoe, but Southpaw hiking shoe! Those are to die for! Spying the other shoe on her bedside table, Raven in complete awe slipped on the shoes feeling her feet sink into the blissfully cushioned soles. Raven sighed. This must be what heaven feels like. She was going to have to remember to thank that old man.

Heading back into the bathroom to give her teeth a good scrubbing, Raven looked deep into the mirror. Her hair was getting really long again. Grams always said that her parents had named her Raven because she was born with the longest, blackest hair anyone had ever seen. She ran her fingers through the thick onyx mane to try and restore a little order. She looked closer as her tiger green eyes stared back at her. Kids at school sometimes made fun of her because of her eyes. Some said they were spooky or scary. She never understood why someone would think her eyes were scary...then the thought of the blue eyes drifted back into her mind. She now understood. Raven could hear her door to her room softly open and close. Poking her head out to let whoever know she would be out in a minute she was greeted by the familiar face of the priest.

Ever so cheery he smiled broadly at her as she finished wiping the toothpaste from her mouth 'Hello Raven, I hear you're being sprung tonight, no more hospital food for you" he grinned. Raven shook her head and fiddled with the strings on the cuff of her jacket. He was nice, but she still wasn't that comfortable chatting with him. "Well...I just wanted to wish you luck and to let you know if you ever need to talk, you know where to find me." Raven nodded and the gray haired man began to back away. As he was ready to walk through the door, Raven remembered. "Father O'Malley?" he stopped and turned "Yes dear?" "Thanks for the um..shoes." The old man looked puzzled. "Shoes?" Raven held out the toe of her boot and turned it for his view. He looked even more puzzled. "I'm sorry dear, I would take credit for those, but alas it was not me. Perhaps the police officer that found you?" The priest clicked his tongue as he thought "yes...that must have been it. No matter, those are are very smart looking, good for you, young lady" he beamed. Raven backed away as the old man left the room. She knew it wasn't the police officer. She had overheard a nurse talking about him and his wife and how she went into labor but she was having it at a different hospital. There was no way he could have gotten back to Blackwood to give her new shoes. Raven sat on the edge of the bed and thought...and for no reason, the blue eyes thrust themselves into her attention.

©protectedEEII-GPTJ-LNUV-A2YI

[Steven Hunley]

You're too modest. Good stuff.

[JAHolland]

Thank you!!

[JummpyMetal]

Very nice and well-written, good job!

[108 fountains]

I enjoyed this, too. It was an interesting and well-written story. It had believable dialogue and characters that were presented with just enough detail and description to make them unique and memorable.

A couple of minor suggestions:
- The phrase "she hadn't seen Grams in awhile" in paragraph one confused me. To me it sounded like she hadn't seen Grams in several days or even weeks, but I think you meant it to mean a couple of hours, so you might want to just say something like "she had been sitting in the waiting room so long it was kind of starting..."
- The flashback paragraph two I thought was a little awkward in that I didn't realize it was a flashback until paragraph three. (I'm not sure you need paragraph two at all.)

What was most problematic to me was the "blue eyes" that was so central to the story. Maybe it's just me and maybe I'm just missing something or too dense, but I couldn't figure out to whom/what the blue eyes were a reference. I didn't see anywhere what color Father O'Malley's eyes were, so they could have been his, but he also denied any knowledge of the shoes. Possibly the blue eyes refer to Gram's eyes, but there is nothing that I could find that gave a clue to Gram's eye color. So, I would suggest that since the blue eyes are such and important, recurring reference in the story, you might want to provide some more hints to what is their significance.

Even as is, though, I thought it was an interesting and well-written story. I hope you'll share more with us.

[JAHolland]

Thanks so much for the feedback, I will definitely revisit those paragraphs.

As for the "blue eyes". Not to give anything away...but they or more so who they belong to will be explained in the next chapter. I wanted to keep the mystery in the first chapter. I'm currently working on the next chapter and will post when done. Thanks again for reading!

[JAHolland]

Chapter 2 The orphanage

Raven plodded slowly behind Ms. Grumpky's clicking heels on the cobblestone pavement. Ahead of them stood in its Gothic glory, the demise of Raven's world. With every step her heart became heavier, to the point where she didn't think she could carry it anymore. Things were becoming all too real. It began to hit home that Grams was really never coming back. She was never going to see her home or sleep in her bed again. She had been allowed a quick trip to their tiny house, to collect some of her things. They really never had much, so there wasn't really a lot to collect. Some of her clothes, her favorite toque and a picture of she and Grams on her 12th birthday. Raven would never forget that day...it was probably the best day of her life. Grams had surprised her with a trip to the coast. It had been chilly, being in October, but it certainly hadn't dampened their spirits. By day they collected seashells on the beach and in the evening had cuddled together in front of a cheery fire sipping cocoa. Raven's heart ached at the memory and tears threatened to give herself away again. Swallowing the huge lump in her throat, Raven straightened her spine and stiffened her shoulders. She had to be strong now. It's what Grams would have wanted....no time to be a weepy willow, which was what Grams used to call her when she was little and pouting because she wasn't getting her way. With all the courage she could muster she pushed her shoulders back and lifted her chin high, and stepped into the shadow of the massive fortress.

Ms. Grumpky banged the lion-headed knocker on the giant wooden door. The hollow thumps matched the beating of Raven's heart. She could feel the nerves beginning to bubble up inside her again. She whispered to herself "don't be scared, don't be scared" and with a dry mouth and shaky fingers, she began fiddling with the frayed strings on her jacket. Ms. Grumpky gave a "tsk tsk" and tapped her fingers with her clipboard just as the old oak doors gave a loud groan and slowly opened. Ms. Grumpky quickly ushered her inside the doors, seemingly afraid they would close again at any moment
Raven's eyes took a bit to adjust to the candle lit room, but they widened like saucers when standing before her was the tallest woman she had ever seen! Raven tried not to stare....she really did try to remember her manners that Grams had taught her, but she just couldn't help herself. This lady had to be at least seven feet tall! Not to add insult to injury, she was also the weiiiiiiirdest looking person she had seen in a long time. She outweirded even Mr. Ewing. Her blondish-whitish hair encircled her shoulders, but it looked like she had stuck her finger in a light socket. The frizz was almost as big as her hair was long. She had a puckered mouth, much like Ms. Grumpky's, but it seemed even more sour if that were possible. A small pair of spectacles sat on the bridge of her very pointed nose which magnified two very fierce looking eyes. Raven immediately took a step back with a loud gulp. She knew at that very moment this was not place for her.

"Good evening Petunia, this is the child I was telling you about" explained Ms. Grumpky. Petunia?!? Seriously?!? If Raven hadn't been scared out of her wits, she would have found the small flower name hysterical for this woman.

"Yes...yes" croaked the frizz master.

Raven could feel her skin almost crawl as the woman looked her up and down. She wasn't quite sure why, but she looked absolutely disgusted with her. She wasn't sure if she was seriously inconveniencing this woman to the point of disdain or perhaps the look was just a permanent one.

"C'mere girl" crowed the old woman.

She grabbed Raven by the front of her favorite T-shirt and peered deeply into her eyes. The woman had lifeless eyes, like dolls eyes. They seem to search for something, but was having trouble finding whatever she was looking for. Raven gave a small cough as the stench of the old lady began to overwhelm her. Her smell reminded her of the funeral home she visited when her great uncle Sal had died. A cross between death, decay and obnoxious flowers. She could try and hold her breath...but she already felt like she was ready to pass out.

The woman abruptly shoved her back, almost sending Raven sprawling. She was lucky, or unlucky enough (depending how you look at it) to land on Ms. Grumpky, who as usual gave her one of her generic "tsk".

" Right...first thing is first. Those clothes will simply not do at Blackwood. We pride ourselves here on conformity. Angeliiiiiiique!!". Shrilled the oversized matron.

A beautiful blonde girl appeared from the shadows, beaming at the humongous witch.

"Yes Ms. Teeny?"

Scared or not, Raven had to bite her tongue in order not to laugh at that one.

"Take her bag and then get her a uniform. After that, show her to her bed....I think 3rd floor will do. Bed number 13. We'll go over the rules with her in the morning"

Angelique smiled sweetly and grabbed Raven by the elbow. "Very well Ms. Teeny".

Raven stopped Angelique as she tried guiding her from the room.

" Um....excuse me...Ms. T-Teeny?". The old woman glared at her. "I...um..haven't had dinner yet...". The old woman smiled a yellow toothed smile at her and paused before saying... "Well, that's just too bad for you...... innit?". Angelique regained her grip on her arm and escorted her from the room.

The two girls walked in silence down the long corridor. Raven's thoughts swirled as her belly grumbled. She slid a sideways glance at the girl walking next to her. Her golden hair seem to shimmer even in the poorly lit hallway. She was definitely older than Raven. Maybe 15 or 16? The girl looked over at Raven and glared. Raven blushed. She knew it was wrong to stare but she couldn't help it. Angelique was so pretty and looked exactly like what Raven hoped to look like some day.

They reached a large oak armoire which looked like it could hold a small country's wardrobe. Angelique ripped open the doors and began rummaging through the shelves. First throwing a shirt, then a skirt, blazer and socks at her. Raven held them up to inspect size and fashion....yuck. These were gross. A plaid blue and green skirt, a powder blue blouse and a navy blazer that was much older than she was.

" you look like a small, so I gave you a small. If they don't fit....not my problem" snipped Angelique. "What size shoe do you wear?"

"S-s-seven" stammered Raven.

"No sevens so you'll have to make eights work" as Angelique threw two black clodhoppers at her feet.

"It's OK. I actually just got new shoes before I came here. I can just use my own".

Angelique whipped her head around and sneered at Raven.

" yeah....kiss all of this, goodbye" pointing up and down at Raven's clothes and shoes.

"Ya but, these were just bought for me, and I can't help but think someone would be pretty disappointed if I didn't wear them..."

Raven didn't want to argue but she was not about to give up her shoes that she so desperately needed and finally got. At least not for a pair of shoes that wouldn't even fit her! Raven's thought were interrupted as Angelique threw her up against the hard wooden door of the closet. Raven could barely catch her breath with the door handle painfully poking her in the small of her back.

"Listen here princess" Angelique snarled just inches from her face. "what I say goes around here. You make trouble for me.....well, let's just say I can make things extremely difficult for you. You do as I say, period. No lip, no questions. Got it?!?"

Raven could barely breathe let alone speak. All she could do was shake her head yes.
Angelique smiled sweetly at her "good. We'll get along great as long as you remember that. Follow me"

Raven's mind was absolutely blown. How could someone so beautiful be so ugly? Raven followed the not so angelic girl through a maze of twists and turns and then finally up some stairs. Arriving at a set of double doors, Angelique opened them, motioning for Raven to enter.

"Bed 13. You'll find a nightgown on the bed and a small nightstand next to it. Leave your clothes on it....INCLUDING the shoes. Roll call is at 6am. I suggest you not be late".
Raven dropped her head and shuffled into the large, dark room. There were two rows of beds. Six on one side, seven on the other. Raven looked and could see on each bed hung a number. " 1...2...3..." Raven quietly walked through the room, being careful not to disturb any of the sleeping beds. She certainly didn't want another Angelique episode, that's for sure. There it was. Bed 13. Raven eased herself down on the cot and sighed. At least it was by the window she thought as she glimpsed out the moonlit glass. Finding the old fashioned nightgown that just had to be from the 1800's, Raven began to undress. While folding her clothes and placing them and her shoes on top of the small nightstand as instructed, Raven fished out the picture of she and Grams out of her jeans pocket. Gripping the picture tight, she crawled on to the tiny cot under the thin blanket. Staring at the two familiar faces, Raven could feel the tears begin to leak from her eyes. Hugging herself tight, she began to pray for sleep, and for someone....anyone.... to get her out of here.

Raven was awaken quite rudely the next morning by insistent tapping on her shoulder. "Five more minutes Grams" she mumbled.

"Get up, get up get up!" A small insisting voice whispered.

Raven's eyes fluttered open, blinking rapidly against the pain of the morning sun. She groaned and tried to flip onto her belly to get away from the assault.

"C'mon! You're going to get in trouble, and Angelique is especially testy in the morning!"

Raven sat straight up with the mention of that name. She was greeted by brown scraggly hair, a button nose and a pair of happy, aqua blue eyes. The girl looked at her quizzically like a puppy would with its head cocked sideways. She had a large friendly smile and her warmth shown through the gloomy room like a beacon. She liked her immediately.

"Here, get dressed and tie your hair back with this" handing her a frayed ribbon. "They like to threaten to cut off all your hair if it's not tied back, I'm Jax, Jaxyn is my real name but everyone just calls me Jax. I take it by your reaction you had the displeasure of meeting Angelique already, or as I like to call her, Devilique. She's a warped mess, that one. Did they give you shoes that don't fit? They take great pleasure in making us uncomfortable....".

The girl talked a mile a minute and jumped from subject to subject like a cat on a hot tin roof. Raven appreciated the distraction from her misery and listen intently while she dressed in her newly acquired, hideous clothes. First thing she noticed, after the onslaught of course, was all of her personal belongings, including shoes were gone. Her heart sank just a little bit more. Even if she couldn't wear them, it would have been nice just to have them. Raven slipped her feet into the clunky shoes and frowned. "These are way too big" she thought. "Monster blisters for sure in my immediate future"

"Those too big?" Questioned Jax. "Lilly's are too small, maybe you guys can switch". Jax called over a tall, thin, seemingly shy girl and had her slip on Raven's shoe. A slight smile crossed the girl's lips, proving they fit. Raven slipped on one of the other girl's black Maryjane shoe and even though they were a far cry from her South Paws, blister city would no longer be her final destination. They fit.

A deep bell tolled and Raven watched as 11 girls scrambled frantically to find their place at the foot of their bed. Raven turned and watched in amazement as Jax expertly made Raven's bed in a matter of seconds. Even Grams would have been impressed. Raven slipped on her blazer trying to stifle a gag after getting a whiff of mothballs and body funk. She doubted the thing had ever been cleaned. Jax tugged on her sleeve and desperately motioned for Raven to take her place. Raven obliged and stood next to her " No. 13". Jax quickly scampered to the foot of her own bed "No. 6", which to Raven's delight sat directly across from her.

The room fell silent but Raven could see Jax happy eyes smile at her. She knew she didn't really know Jax, but she had saved her life 3 times already and it was only 6am. Come what may, Raven just knew and felt in her heart that she had a true friend in Jax and she would do just about anything to keep that friendship intact. The silence was broken by the creaky wooden doors opening slowly. Clop, clop, clop was the sound of the giant woman's shoes as she entered the room with Angelique in tow. Raven could hear the two stop at each girl, telling them to straighten this or tuck that. Her heart began to speed up the closer they got to her. The dreaded duo stopped next in front of Jax.

" I swear Jaxyn, what are we going to do with you. Always a total mess. Look at this hair. It's beyond me why I just don't shave your head and be done with it.".

Raven thought that was pretty ironic coming from the lady that looked like she had her hair done by an electric mixer. The mistress' hair wasn't like that this morning though. It was pulled tight into a bun fashioned on the back of her head. While the frizz seemed to be contained for the moment, Raven couldn't help but notice how it made her nose look even larger and pointier. Raven shivered at the thought of having to look at that face for the rest of her life. They were still giving Jax the business and a small fire started to burn inside of Raven. Jax had been the only one to show her an ounce of kindness since she stepped foot in the place and here they were treating her like something they found on the bottom of their shoe.

Raven cleared her throat. "Excuse me ma'am?" Angelique's head whipped around and her eyes narrowed. "How dare you interrupt Ms. Teeny, you worm!" Sneered the blonde headed viper.

"My dear Angelique, tis quite alright, Raven hasn't been notified of rules yet. Yes Raven, did you have a question?".

Raven couldn't think of a thing to say. Her plan had worked, she had distracted them from Jax, however that's where her plan had ended. Now what?

"Well...seeing how the cat has got your tongue, I think now is as good as time as any to go over a few house rules" said the massive matron. "Rule number one, Raven, is that no orphan is to speak, unless spoken to by myself, or Angelique. Rule number two is that everything here is earned. You earn your food, you toiletries, your electricity, your bathroom privileges all by merits. You do a certain job, you earn a merit. You do something wrong, you lose two or more merits. Rule number three...you are to be up and dressed and ready for inspection before breakfast at 6am sharp. There are more rules, but it's more fun teaching them to the new orphans than it is telling them. " she said with an evil grin. "Anyway, those are the main ones. Do yourself a favor and abide by them...or else."

With that Ms. Teeny swept out of the room in dramatic fashion. A whistle blew and all the girls lined up at the door. Jax grabbing Raven's hand whispered a sweet "thank you" which made the whole debacle with the wicked witch and her Toadie worth it. Raven followed as the line of girls joined other groups of girls walking down the shadowed hallway. The term "silent as the grave" popped into her head, as not one peep was spoken by one girl. Arriving at what looked like a giant cafeteria Raven and the others took their seats. Raven wasn't sure what was going to happen next, everyone just seemed to be sitting there in some sort of trance. Just when she thought she couldn't take anymore of the weirdness, another door opened on the far side of the massive room, which began rows and rows of boys filing in.

Raven sat there a bit stunned. She never thought to ask if there were boys that lived here as well. She watched as each boy took his seat, just as silent as the girls had been. Once everyone was seated, another whistle was sounded and tubs of some kind of food was rolled out. Raven's belly was quite hungry by this time since she hadn't had supper the night before, but the smells that were permeating from the bins of food, were not pleasant ones. All she could smell was grease and something that had been burnt. Badly. Bowls were passed down each table to each child who would place it in front of them. Once all the bowls were delivered, two tables at a time, one from the boys and then one from the girls, were ushered to the giant tubs of food. Raven watched table after table line up and get their food Finally it was their turn. Raven didn't care if they were serving leather shoes, she was starving. Holding her bowl allowing the food lady put breakfast slop in it, she stared into her bowl filled with some kind of burnt eggs and oatmeal combo, and the thought a leather shoe just became more appetizing. Turning to go back to her table, her eyes locked with the bluest eyes she had ever seen. She knew instantly they were the very same ones that had invaded her dreams! Raven couldn't move. She was frozen with shock. A quiet giggle and a slight nudge from Jax snapped Raven back to reality and she began again the walked back to her seat. Raven's head was spinning. How could those eyes actually exist and actually belong to someone?!? Raven scanned the room, finally finding the owner of the crystal blue eyes. He had dark hair...almost as dark as hers. He was kind of tall, at least compared to the other boys sitting by him. His blue eyes met hers again and a small smile graced his lips revealing a perfect set of pearly white teeth. Raven blushed deeply and stared into her half eaten bowl of breakfast that she didn't even remember eating. She still couldn't wrap her head around how it was at all possible.


Raven Rose Chapter 3


After breakfast, Raven was escorted to a small office and given a sheet of paper with room numbers on it. According to this, it was her new class schedule. She could feel the tightness in her chest as her uncertainty overwhelmed her. What if they didn't like her. What if there were more "Angeliques" around here? Entering her first class, Raven breathed a sigh of relief as Jax waved like a maniac at her. She must be the same age as me mused Raven. She took a seat next to Jax as the tension drifted away.

"So, what was that all about in the lunch room this morning?" Prodded Jax "I mean, you looked like you had just seen a ghost or something..."

Raven thought...how do I explain to my new found friend about seeing that boy's eyes in my dreams without coming across like a complete flake? Raven thought it was best not to mention her dreams at this point, and decided to use some lame excuse instead.

" He just reminded me of someone from home. Just surprised me is all" explained Raven.

"Oh." Said Jax with just a hint of disappointment. "Well, in case you want or needed to know, his name is Nikolas, he's 14 and he's gorrrrrgeous, but you already knew that" she giggled. "He's nice, helps the little kids a lot. But be careful, even though he's a year younger, Angelique has her sights set on him"

Raven internally groaned. Not that she was interested in him per se, but it drastically cut down on any ideas she had of getting to know him. A portly man entered the room, putting a pause on her current thoughts.

"Settle down everyone. Take your books out and turn to chapter 3". Raven looked around, not quite sure what to do. A shadow cast across her desk and she looked up into kind brown eyes.

" Raven is it?". Raven shook her head yes. "I'm Mr. Thomas, welcome to my class" he said with a warm smile. "Miss Jax, if you would take Raven here to the cupboard and give her, her books it would be much appreciated"

Jax smiled and grabbed her hand, dragging her to the large closet in the back of the room. Handing her copies of books covering English, math, history, and science plus a thick notebook filled with paper and a package of pencils. Raven sank back into her desk and sized up her score. She felt kind of good. This was the first bit of normalcy she felt since......the thought trailed off. She still couldn't think about Grams without tears. But even in her old life, she loved school. She didn't have a lot of friends at home...not a one actually. She wasn't exactly "in fashion" according to her classmates, and the reason was simply because Grams couldn't afford it. There wasn't a lot of girls there that could appreciate her ability to pick out a rockin' outfit at the second hand store. That's where school came in handy. She loved learning and listening, imagining herself back in history with the fancy gowns, or living on a prairie making her own candles and soaps. No need for a lot of back biting friends when you have a great imagination she always told herself. Stealing a glance at Jax, Raven knew she had just been fooling herself all this time. She truly did want a friend, and was so glad one had finally came into her life. As Mr. Thomas began the history lesson, Raven dove head first into the pages. Even if she had a new friend, the knowledge was still a welcoming distraction for everything else.

The rest of the morning and afternoon went fairly smooth. She had a total of three teachers. Mr. Thomas was of course her history teacher, Mrs. Wallace was math and science, and finally Miss Vargo her English teacher. English was the only class she had to take a test in, and Miss Vargo had said it was to make sure she was in the proper class or something. Raven hoped she would stay in her current class. As it were, Jax was currently in all her classes and she couldn't be more happier about it

Before English they had lunch in the same silent cafeteria as they did breakfast. Raven tried to be nonchalant about looking for the blue eyed boy but she's never really been ninja like. She surprised herself when the feeling of disappointment snuck into her head when she realized he wasn't there. Why should she care if he was there or not? Raven became a little irritated with herself. Interested in a boy...let alone a boy that Angelique liked, complete madness. Nothing like begging for trouble.

After their last class the girls were escorted back to their rooms to find smocks laying across their beds.

"Chore time?" Whispered Raven.

With a theatrical roll of her eyes, Jax shook her head up and down. Rows of buckets filled with soapy water and brushes lined the wall. A list tacked on the door gave instructions on who cleaned what. Raven and Jax searched for their names together.

"Well that's some rottin' luck" groaned Jax.

"What is?" Asked a very curious Raven

"You have to clean the second floor bathroom" explained Jax, continuing "it's the little kids bathroom, so it's always stinky, sticky and gross. But that's not even the worst part. Some of the teenagers, namely Devilique and her crew like to hang out in there sometimes. Ms. Teeny hates little kids so they really don't have to worry about her inspecting the place. Whatever happens just keep your head down and keep scrubbing. Second floor bathroom is down the stairs, turn left and then last door on your left." Raven grabbed her bucket and brush and began her descent to the second floor hoping and praying Angel.....correction, Devilique and her friends were nowhere to be found.

Raven walked slowly, careful not to spill the sloshing water. She passed rows of closed doors with what she assumed were small children behind them. A sadness clouded over her, thinking of all these children with no parents, or even a Grams to love them. She wondered if they had ever known one day of happiness in their young lives. As she passed a half open door, she paused hearing a soft voice reading what sounded like a children's book. Curiosity getting the better of her, Raven peered in the opening only to find Nikolas surrounded by a dozen or so five and six year olds. She had been right, he was reading a book to them and considering how enthralled they all looked, he was reading it quite well.

Raven stood there mesmerized by the soft voice and simple story. It took her back to the days of when Grams used to read to her, and how much she loved and missed it. Even though she had been able to read at a young age, Raven still had taken great pleasure in snuggling with Grams in her big chair, listening to her voice rise and fall with description of the story. The memories wrapped around her like a warm blanket on a cold winters night. But as with every happy feeling or thought at Blackwood Orphanage, it was fleeting. Raven's warm blanket of memories was ripped away with the sound of clicking shoes coming from behind. Grabbing her bucket once more, Raven walked in earnest away from the noisy shoes. Luckily she wasn't far from the last door on the left. Raven slipped inside, shutting the door quietly, hoping she hadn't been seen.

Raven dropped her bucket splashing a little water and gave out a long, loud sigh. Jax had been right, this is one stinky, sticky mess. She groaned inwardly realizing she had no gloves to scrub the grossness. "Just typical" she thought. Raven walked to the far corner and began scrubbing. She tried making a game of it but it really wasn't working. Yep, still totally gross. Raven was making pretty good progress, getting about half the bathroom done when the noisy shoes returned. First the squeak of the door, then trampling shoes, followed by conversation.

"What do you mean you saw her staring at him?"

Raven knew that voice immediately. She remembered what Jax had said and lowered her head even further and continued to scrub.

"Yep, saw her staring, or more so moooooning over him like this" said an unfamiliar voice.

A third voice chimed in laughing "as if, what is she...like 10? Please girl, why are you trippin' ?!?"

The second voice agreed "ya, that's true, she's got nothing on you. You're the bomb girl...you know it".

Raven heard Angelique laugh, but it sounded more menacing than it did genuine. She was really trying not to dip into their conversation but her curiosity always won out. She knew she needed to move over to clean a different spot since she had been scrubbing the same one since they walked in but she was frozen in place with fear and fascination. Secretly she had always wanted to be a part of a group. Gossiping, putting on makeup, doing each others nails...it all seemed so glamorous to Raven. Even if they didn't know she was there, she could still sort of pretend she was part of it. Deep in thought Raven hadn't realized their conversation stopped until her dirty water was splashing everywhere as a red heel kicked her bucket.

" Speak of the devil...hello worm"

Raven made the unfortunate mistake of looking up into the face of pure evil. It still baffled her how such a face of an angel could be so nasty and mean. Trying to return to her scrubbing, she felt a hot shooting pain through her skull as Angelique began dragging her by her hair.

"Lookie what I found ladies" Angelique cackled while pulling Raven to the center of the bathroom.

The other two girls burst into a fit of giggles as Angelique circled her like a shark. Raven sat silent taking in the trio. Angelique's henchmen stood staring at her with arms crossed. The girl on the right was a bit on the chubby side. She had short, dark curly hair that framed a broad looking face. She had a beauty mark right above her puffy lips, but Raven didn't know if it was real or makeup. The other girl was the complete opposite. She was tall and thin, so thin in fact if she turned sideways, she would probably disappear. Brown mousy hair hung unevenly around her shoulders and a pair of protruding teeth stuck out behind her thin lips. Angelique came back into view and Raven noticed her outfit. She had the same uniform as everyone else, only she was wearing it much differently. Her skirt was a lot shorter than it had been, it looked like the waistband had been folded over a few times to create a mini skirt. Her blue blouse was buttoned only a few times and then tied in a knot at the bust line. Her blazer was left open and the sleeves rolled up to her elbows. The ensemble was completed by the tacky red high heels that were so kindly used to kick over her bucket. Raven wasn't impressed. Maybe it was because she knew she couldn't pull off that look in a million years....but even if she could pull it off, she wouldn't. No Thank you.

Angelique stood by her toadies and crossed her arms like the other two. If not for the knot in her stomach and her aching skull, Raven might find the warped Cinderella and her two ugly step sisters standing before her amusing.

"So worm...I hear you were enjoying story time today...."

Raven didn't know what to say or do so she just stayed silent, staring at the floor.

"No? Well....if you weren't enjoying story time, then that means you were enjoying staring at my boyfriend!!" shrieked Angelique.

Raven could feel her face burn with a deep blush. How could she possibly explain that it wasn't like that. That she had only been thinking about her Grams and that she didn't know him, nor did she want to! Raven knew there was no reasoning with the she devil. There was a look of crazy in her eyes that no person in their right mind would dare challenge.

"What to do, what to do...." Angelique mumbled as she tapped a painted hot pink finger on her chin. "Got it!"

The malicious excitement was so thick in the room, you could cut it with a knife. The ugly paired giggled with gleeful anticipation of the torture their ring leader had dreamed up for Raven. Whispering to her two cohorts, loud laughter erupted from the three of them. Angelique sashayed by Raven into the bathroom stall, and the tinkling sound gave no mistake what she was doing in there. After Angelique was finished, the tall skinny girl rushed by Raven, giggling nervously, entered the same stall that Angelique had used and as before used the bathroom. As the short chubby girl sauntered past with a slow lazy smile, Raven's heart began to pound. No, they wouldn't. They couldn't be that evil!

"Grab her!!" Someone shouted.

Raven could feel claws grasping her arms, legs and hair and began dragging her to the used stall.

"Little worm, you look all hot and bothered...I think you could use some cooling off" the three of them again erupted in laughter. Raven did the only thing she could do. She began to scream for all she was worth. Her scream must have surprised them because their grip relaxed a bit which gave Raven just enough room to start kicking. If she was going down, then she would go down fighting. Raven felt her foot connect with something soft and heard an "oooopf" she guessed she had kicked the fat one in the belly. Still screaming and scrambling Raven broke free and began crawling towards the door. Feeling a hand slap over her mouth, Raven bit down and felt a salty liquid on her lips and a scream in her ear. A dull thud to the side of her head made everything in her world shake. She could feel the hands on her again but she was too stunned to think or fight. Yanking her back to the urine filled toilet, Raven had accepted her fate. She just couldn't fight anymore, when suddenly a voice made the wheels of malevolence come to a screeching halt.

"Angelique?"

Angelique's head snapped up and all four of them stared at the blue-eyed boy.

"Sweety!" Oozed Angelique. The way she could shift gears was absolutely incredible to Raven.

"What's going on?"

"Ohhh you know, just having some fun with the newbie" Angelique slithered around Nikolas like a snake, laying her head on his shoulder smiling sweetly at him.

"C'mon, picking on little kids is beneath you. I need help passing out the juice and cookies to the little ones. Come give me a hand"

Angelique looked back at Raven and then at Nikolas. Raven could tell she was torn at what to do. Nikolas gently stroked her face with the back of his hand and smiled.

"Please?"

Angelique melted. Raven thought she was going to Luke, and not from the concussion she probably had.

"Let's go help Nikky girls" grabbing on to his arm. Raven felt a wave of relief wash over her.

"We'll talk later" Angelique said pointedly to Raven, then flipped her hair and strolled out with the boy and her two groupies.

Raven stood on shaky legs and began making her way back to her room. Slow at first then when she realized they were not going to fail her, she began to run. Taking the stairs two at a time Raven could not get there fast enough. Throwing open the door Raven collided with the happy aqua eyes. Raven couldn't hold it in anymore, she burst into tears and collapsed in Jax' arms. Jax held her for a bit, completely bewildered. Eventually they made their way to Raven's bed and sat down. Raven told her the whole horrible story and watched as a cloud of anger passed over the happy eyes.

"I'm so sorry Raven. We're going to have to buddy up from now on when we clean. They can't do that to the two of us!". Raven shook her head and gave Jax a hug. She was so grateful for her, she wasn't sure she would ever be able to show her how much. Hearing the dinner bells chime, the two girls got in line for the cafeteria.

" Is there a Raven Rose in this line?" shouted the line monitor.

Now what.

Raven stepped out of line and raised her hand.

"Right then, you won't be going us for dinner. Your chores were not completed"

Jax gave her an apologetic look. Raven smiled and shook her head making her way back to her lumpy cot. Once the room cleared, Raven laid on her bed, letting the stress from the day release through her tears. By the time she was done, she wasn't sure if she had been crying about Angelique or what Nikolas had said. "Picking on a little kid....".

How dare he.

©jaholland 2015