The Coyote's Embrace Ch. 1:Strange

Gayle

         The West Virginia sky was covered by a dark blanket as I looked out my bedroom window. Of course, it was only five o’clock, but I knew that in a half hour Mum would be up to wake us. For me, waking up early was a habit even for someone who only got a few hours of sleep. I blame it on the Trig. homework. And as usual, I slipped my feet into my green fuzzy frog slippers and my arms in to the sleeves of my dark brown leather jacket to go feed the dogs.
         When I got outside, I felt the cool autumn wind as it brushed through the leaves as if it were admiring the vibrant colors of red, orange, green, and yellow. I breathed in the fresh air and felt slightly like the leaves. Alive. As I walked to their kennels, I felt a strange chill go down my spine. I never usually felt that unless something was creeping me out. So I looked around to see if the dogs and I were alone.
         Quit being so paranoid. Nothing is out here besides you and the dogs, I thought as I ran my fingers briskly through my short untamed hair. When I came to Duke’s kennel, his old brown eyes seemed to light up with joy. “Hey, Dukie-Bird, did you sleep well?” I asked him when I opened the door. As I was filling his food bowl, he became frantic and started to growl. I looked toward the direction of his eyes, but all there were was the closely lined up regiment of oak trees that lead into the woods. To calm him, I lightly patted his head, told him all was well, and filled his water bowl. Then I continued with Angel and Mia, who were also growling towards the woods.
         Even as I walked back, I again felt the chill, but I thought I was just getting cold so I pulled my jacket closer around me. After coming inside, I took off my slippers and jacket in my room. Then I quietly took out some clothes out of my dresser and went to the bathroom to take a shower.
         The warm water relaxed me but the feeling was still there. The feeling that something or one was out there and that it wasn’t just the wind or fatigue playing tricks on my senses. Thoughts raced through my mind even after I was done but changed when I turned around to look at myself in the mirror.
         Ugh, I thought I was a little old for Halloween. I definitely look scary and grotesque. Well, trick or treat, I thought with disgust as I ran my hands down my sides. I sometimes wished I had a beautiful body, but that usually made me frustrated and depressed. After dressing in my comfortable pair of jeans, Twilight t-shirt, my black “geek chic” horn-rimmed glasses and black Chuck Taylor’s, I looked again into the mirror. “Well, at least, the only thing I have to worry about is my hair,” I muttered to myself. Then I borrowed a little of my brother Tobey’s hair cement, rubbed my hands together and ran my sticky finger through it. Since I couldn’t style my hair any other way, I shook my head like the dogs did whenever they were done swimming in the creek. When I was satisfied with the effect, I put on some deodorant and went to the living room where I found Mum sitting on the couch half-asleep.
         “You’re up early again,” she said with a yawn. Her mid-length blond hair was in a mess and her eyes looked as if she just went to sleep. I nodded and plopped myself next to her.
         “How was work last night besides being hell,” I asked giving her my normal small smile. Mum worked in the evenings at Wendy’s in Mineral Wells and was also trying to earn a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education at West Virginia University at Parkersburg.
         “Chaotic,” she answered, “and the new general manager Mitch was being a jerk. If I didn’t have to pay bills and student loans, I wouldn’t have to work there.” She yawned again then I repeated her action.
         “Geesh, Mum, your yawns are contagious. I already fed and watered the dogs, but I haven’t woken up Alixe and Tobey yet,” I laughed.
         “Well, have fun with that. I’m going back to bed. I got class at ten forty five and I really don’t want to fall asleep during a literature lecture again,” she replied standing up then walking back to her snoring husband. Tobey would be easy to wake, but with Alixe……..it was better said than done.
         So I went back to the room I shared with her and in the bed in the left corner was a mountain of moving blankets and quilts. As I approached it, I thought of excellent ways to wake her, like getting a wet washcloth and squeezing the excess water so it would drench her face. But I didn’t, so I just nudged her.
         “Wake me and I’ll kick your ass,” I heard her grumble. To avoid any conflict, I backed out of the room. Normally, I would of stayed and argued, but I really didn’t feel like it that morning. When I got to the kitchen, Tobey was eating a bowl of Lucky Charms.
         “She up?” he asked after swallowing the tiny marshmallows. I shook my head and sat down at the table. I knew I needed to eat, but I wasn’t hungry. When Tobey finished his last bite of cereal, he placed his bowl and spoon in the sink, then he headed towards our room. The next thing I heard was yelling and it amazed me that it didn’t wake our parents up. More yelling commenced, which only made me roll my eyes. Then Tobey came jogging out of the hallway. “Okay, I think I ticked her off, Get ready for the Alixe Siegfried Drama Hour,” he chuckled with a grin.
         “It’s a little early for the popcorn,” I said smiling a little. His brownish-green eyes became worried.
         “You okay?” he asked, his eyes narrowing.
         “Still a little tired,” I answered. Then my angry auburn haired sister Alixe came into the kitchen and threw a wet dish cloth at him. Her face was covered in little droplets. I guessed that Tobey had the same idea and that is was a pretty good idea that I didn’t act on it that morning, because she had her “going on the rampage” look and her hands were balled into fists.
         “Tobey, you’re an asshole,” she growled through clenched teeth. Before he was going to throw up a retort, I decided to intervene. Normally, I would just sit back and laugh, but it was my duty as the elder sister to stop it. Besides the decibel of her yelling was giving me a slight headache.
         “Guys, how about putting the energy you have to squabble into getting ready before the bus gets here,” I scolded them. Tobey nodded solemnly.
         “Fine,” Alixe huffed, “Are the dogs fed?”
         “Yeah, they’re fed. Don’t worry,” I replied.
“Who said I was, you idiot,” she growled. Instead of answering back with a snide sarcastic remark, I just sighed, shook my head, and rolled my eyes.
“Someone needs a Midol,” I heard Tobey mutter. I snickered quietly so she wouldn’t hear. A few minutes before the bus came, again I felt it, the chill down my back, and I felt as if someone’s eyes were digging into my face. I quickly looked around.
“What’s wrong with you?” Alixe asked still in a sour mood.
“Nothing just cold,” I blurted. Then the bus stopped and we went on.





Sean
         
My eyes didn’t leave her not even the first time she came outside in that jacket, those dark green pajama pants, and those ridiculous slippers. How could I not? She looked strange but everything was strange to me. The clothes, the vehicles, and so on made me feel homesick, but what could I do? I couldn’t go home looking like this. People would have an arsenal of weapons just waiting for me and Rothella………. What would she have done if I ran off? She would probably kill me or worse: my family. I couldn’t remember how long it had been since I left.
I wanted my old life back, but I had to wait. My attention again centered on the girl. She wasn’t one of those beautiful girls that looked like Sandra Dee or Marilyn Monroe. Her hair was so short and sticked out in places, not like the girls with the pony-tails and long curls that I went to school with. I couldn’t tell if she had a nice figure due to the brown leather jacket, the oversized black shirt and shapeless jeans. And those glasses. They reminded me of the ones that Mrs. Fringe, my old school librarian, wore. I couldn’t find anything about her that was appealing from this distance.
When the bus left, I decided to go look for food. I knew that if I didn’t catch anything, I would starve. When I got to the clearing, I spied a young rabbit. But as I came closer, it hopped away. In some ways, I was glad to have four legs, yet being this way would be hard during the winter when food was sometimes scarce. When I finally caught it, I knew it would also have to last me for dinner.
I can’t go on living like this. If Rothella doesn’t kill me, then Old Man Winter would, I thought gloomily, this has to end.