Word count is now at 28,881

Katie, Jane and Sybil were at the park one day, it was the early morning hours, before the daily meeting, and they had decided to gather and talk about their books. Out of all the others, their books were the most alike. Also they found they were basing their characters after each other.
Katie was getting ideas for Kallen from Maddock; Sybil was getting ideas for Theobald from Reamann, Jane was getting ideas for Reamann from Theobald and Sybil was getting quite a few for Maddock from both Kallen and Reamann. When they discovered this they were very surprised.
“They are almost like brothers now, they are so much connected!” Sybil giggled. Maddock looked at Reamann and Kallen and shrugged his shoulders.
A soft summer breeze blew over the three girls as the warm summer sun shone down upon them. Small waves moved across the pond and caused the girls to smile as they remembered when Sam had announced that she knew who the pond pushers were. When it was discovered it was Gaberilla and Beth were the guilty ones R.K. had had a fit and threaten to lock them up with no hope of ever getting out.
That was when something very strange happened; R.K. and Pip had actually split! It was quite weird, but being authors they were used to weird things. Pip had told R.K. to can it and the villain and sulked off into a corner to read, sticking his long nose in his book. Pip had then explained that she was putting her alter ego into a book, “So he is now part of me and a character.”
“That last part in your story was so GOOD!” Katie’s exclamation and sigh brought Sybil out of her thoughts.
“Oh,” Sybil’s face reddened. “I am glad you think so!”
Jane smiled as she tilted her face back and let the sun shine fully upon it. “Katie and I were thinking,” she said with her head still tilted back. “Our worlds are a great deal alike.”
Sybil nodded in agreement. “And our characters are connected,” she giggly added.
Katie grinned and nodded in agreement and Jane continued, “We were thinking, seeing as our books take place in the same world, that maybe Hemlock, if you want, could be in the same world!”
Sybil’s eyes shone and she exclaimed eagerly, “Oh I was thinking the same thing!”
“You were?” Katie jumped up and spun around in joy.
Sybil giggled and Katie pulled her to her feet as Jane said, “Then we can write a book together!”
Sybil grinned and together she and Katie pulled Jane to her feet and the three danced around, giggling and not caring who saw them.
A few days later, at one of the meetings, they ran into a problem. They were sitting together on the swing, slowly rocking back and forth, when Katie moaned and said, “I can’t write! My muse ran off!”
“Neither can I!” Sybil moaned; Jane did not look up for she was writing away like mad.
“Maybe our muses ran off together,” Katie sighed and laid her head back.
Christina came up to them and smiled down upon them. “I do believe you three have the same muse.”
They all looked up. “What?” Katie asked.
“Well, it seems that when one of you is busy writing the other two cannot.”
Katie, Jane, and Sybil looked at each other and then giggled. That was how the Fates started.
“Ever hear the story of Hercules?” Katie asked a few days later.
“Who hasn’t?” Sybil asked as she rolled her eyes, she was not crazy about the Greeks.
“You know about the Fates then?”
Sybil shook her head. “Not really.”
“Well they were three women who shared an eyeball,” Katie explained.
“Gross!” Maddock interrupted.
Sybil glared at him and he fell silent. Katie continued. “I was thinking you and Jane and I are like the Fates…”
“You share an eyeball?” Maddock asked just to push it.
Jane glared at him then and Sybil looked for something to throw at him.  Katie remained calm. 
“No, we share a muse Maddock, like the Fates shared an eyeball.”
“Does your muse look like an eyeball?” Maddock was enjoying himself.
“No she doesn’t, she is gray and wispy, like the midst,” Katie’s eyes got a dreamy look in them as she spoke.
Maddock opened his mouth but Sybil glared at him and said, “If you don’t behave I will kill you!”
“Kill him!” Katie gasped as Jane said, “Yes Maddock, behave! Sybil has the power of the eraser you know!”
“You can’t kill him!” Katie wailed. “I won’t let you! I am his number one fan!”
Maddock grinned and moved closer to Katie, figuring she if anyone would protect him.
“Well, I think Theobald is better then Maddock!” Jane said boldly. “He is so mysterious and unpredictable!”
Laura sighed and joined in the conversation by saying, “I think Maddock is the best!”
Sybil shook her head as the other’s joined in, comparing who was the better of Maddock and Theobald, she had a feeling this was all going to Maddock’s head.
“I rather like Maddock,” Gabrielle said. “He is cocky and cheeky, and brave so that you have to forgive him.”
Maddock, who had been almost glaring at her over the cocky bit broke into a grin as Cherise said, “I shall have to cast my vote with Theobald.”
“Me too!” Meggy exclaimed.
“I would choose Maddock,” Leah said with her mischievous smile.
“I would pick neither,” Jules smirked. “Because neither is a pirate!”
“Theobald by far passes Maddock!” Beth threw in, and Ness nodded her hearty consent while Alex voted for Maddock.
Sybil shook her head at them all and said, “You have all lost it!”
“How so?” Rose asked with a giggle.
“Because, everyone knows Reamann passes them all up!” Reamann reddened at the praise but said nothing.
Later that night Hanz and Sybil were back on the chat room. They had set the record for spending the most time on there, they had been on every night for the last thirty days and were not about to loose their record. While they were talking, who should appear, but Spy.
“Why greetings my dear Hanz and Sybil, how goes the record?”
“Hi,” Sybil said by means of being friendly.
“Your back!” Hanz wrote. “YAY!”
“You are excited to see me Hanz?” Spy asked.
“Yes, I have wanted to ask you some questions, but you are never on at night.”
 “Yes, I am sorry about that, I am not much of a night person.”
“HA!” Sybil jumped at the chance. “A clue!”
“Oh dear, you caught me that time Sybil.”
“Good job!” Hanz wrote and then moved in on Spy. “Okay, what is your favorite color?”
“Well, I do like green, blue, shades of brown, just about anything.”
“What color is your hair?” Sybil asked as she grabbed her notebook and wrote down Spies favorite colors.
“I am sorry, I can’t answer that one right now.”
“Why not?” Hanz asked.
“Too much of a give away at the moment.”
Sybil shook her head. For the next hour she and Hanz asked questions, and by the end of the hour had only learned that Spy liked different colors and many different kinds of music.
“You two are quite stealthy with the question, I shall have to keep that in mind,” Spy wrote around eleven. “However I must now be off before I fall asleep. Adieu to you both.”
They bide him good by and an hour later Sybil turned in.
The next morning Sybil and Hanz shared what they had learned with the others, only to learn Spy had been on that morning. They were discussing him when R.K. walked up to them and bellowed, “Jules! Out of my chair! And Lewis, for ‘Eaven’s sake, how many more nights are we going to have to endure your sardines?”
Jules scowled at R.K. and muttered, “No one throws a pirate captain out of his chair!”
Sybil, who as everyone knew was using C.S. Lewis as her pen name, looked up at R.K. in surprise. “What sardines?”
Jules rose out of his chair, grumbling the whole time. R.K., with a sweep of his cloak, sat down with an air of grandeur and said, “That is better!”
“I only did it because there are ladies present, I make it a rule never to beat up villains in front of ladies,” Jules stood over him scowling.
“What sardines?” Sybil asked again.
“You only think you could take me on boy!” R.K. obviously had no objection to pushing boys to the point of sword drawing.
“You are pushing it!” Jules growled. “I would take you on right now if I was certain you were R.K. the character and not R.K. the...Pip.”
R.K. sneered and Jules’s slightly baffled looked. “I am confusing you, aren’t I?”
“What sardines?” Sybil pressed.
“You confuse everyone R.K.,” Jules muttered. “Probably even yourself.”
“Alter egos are confusing,” R.K. grinned. “Even Simi ones!”
 “WHAT SARDINES?” Both boys looked at Sybil.
“What in the world are you yelling for?” R.K. demanded.
“You asked if you had to endure my sardines, I want to know what sardines.”
“I said Lewis’s sardines,” R.K. muttered.
“I AM Lewis!” Sybil reminded him.
Jules cocked his head to one side and eyed the girl who was sitting on the grass. “What does sardines have to do with anything?”
“That is what I want to know!” Sybil exclaimed.
“Ignore her,” R.K. rolled his eyes. “I believe she is slightly insane.”
“We are all insane, especially you,” Hanz spoke up.
R.K. glared at him and Hanz returned the glare unblinking.
“I am not insane!” Pip said as she joined them, she smiled brightly at them all.
“Good!” Jules cried when he saw her. “If you are here that means R.K. is your character and I can fight him!”
R.K. stood up and changed into Pip, which was quite odd to see. Once R.K. was Pip he changed back into R.K. and sneering at Jules said, “Now I am Pip!”
“Coward!” Jules bellowed.
R.K. laughed evilly, as evil as a villain sharing an ego with a girl can, and said, “We, er Pip, failed to mention her characters are a bunch of Sassy cats, and rodent armies. The rodents live in the dungeon, but the cats are hanging about, ready to spring when I give the word!”
Jules did not look a bit worried, and who knows what would have happened if Sarah had not come by just then. “Cats, you are using cats to scare people R.K..”
R.K. spun on her and bellowed, “How dare you mock me?”
Sarah stared him in the eyes, and then said the thing that sealed her fate, “I am not scared of you, and you kittens!”
R.K. jumped forward crying, “Into the dungeon with you!”
Sarah was led upstairs as the others followed. They could only watch as she was tossed in. “And this time I am not letting you out after the meeting! You shall have to stay in there for each meeting until your friends get you out!”
“And how do we do that?” Sybil asked.
R.K. grinned, a purely evil grin and said, “You have to eat a can of sardines!”
“Gross!” Jules groaned.
Sarah glared at R.K. and said, “I am not scared! I know my prince charming will come rescue me!”
“A can of sardines?” Sybil asked with a moan.
“Yes, Jack Lewis, a can of sardines, you have a supply do you not?”
Sybil shook her head. “No, daddy hates sardines.”
“I don’t blame him!” Hanz groaned as he wrinkled his nose.
“Who should eat the can when we get them?” Sybil asked.
“Let her Prince Charming!” Hanz said.
“Her Prince Charming probably isn’t coming for years, it is up to us, her brave friends to get her out!” Jules exclaimed, and for a pirate it was a noble speech.
“Oh he will come!” Sarah said with a sigh.
“I am with Jules on this one Sarah, you are still young; you have to wait years for him. By then the rats will have gotten to you!”
One of the rats appeared, watching Sarah from a corner. The power of the pen had long since changed the box into a real dungeon, complete with moldy walls, and slimy straw. Sarah glared at the rat as it watched her with red eyes.
“You really want to stay in there for years?” Hanz asked as he looked through the barred window.
Sarah looked down at the rat and tried to kick it, it nipped at her and said, “Keep back miss, or else!”
Sarah shuddered and muttered, “Fine! Get me out of here!”
R.K. laughed and changed back from Pip into her character. She moved to the window, looked in, and then said, “R.K. you must be nicer.”
He just laughed.
“Well, who is going to eat the sardines?” Sybil asked again.
“One of the boys should do it!” Pip exclaimed, her eyes shone with mischievousness.
“Why us?” Jules demanded.
“Because you are boys, you should have a since of, gallantries!” Pip was enjoying their distress almost as much as R.K.
“I still think I should run R.K. through!” Jules turned on the villain.
“My prince will come!” Sarah was still sighing.
“You even think about it and back into Pip I go!” R.K. laughed.
“You should stop hiding behind me!” Pip told R.K.
“It is very cowardly R.K.” Hanz added. “A man should be able to stand on his own.”
“I could!” R.K. bellowed. “I just don’t want to harm the boy!”
“I am more gallant then you will ever be!” Jules cried.
“Oh really, you think so?” R.K. was sneering, pushing Jules.
“Yes!” the young pirate bellowed.
“Prove it!” R.K. laughed. “Eat the sardines and save the girl!”
“We don’t have any sardines,” Jules was greatly relieved as he said it.
“Then have our Jack Lewis go and buy some, seeing as how she is supposedly Sarah’s best friend.”
And so, by the end of the ordeal Sybil had to buy sardines, and Jules had to eat them at the next meeting.
Jules and Sybil met up after the meeting and talked it over, by the time they parted they had a plan, one that was only to land them in trouble.
The next day Sarah was tossed into the dungeon again while R.K. waited for Jules to show up. Sybil was missing too, apparently buying sardines. What was really going on was that Sybil had bought the sardines, and meeting Jules at the park they had emptied the can into the pond. When they showed up at the meeting they were bearing an empty can of sardines, and were being followed by a boy who was about the same age as Leah.
“Who is that?” Meggy asked when she saw the boy.
“This is my little brother Mark,” Jules said as he motioned back to the boy.
“Are you one of his crew?” Leah asked, she had a habit of speaking loudly at the meetings, speaking loudly and with a giggle.
Mark returned her grin and said, “No, I am an Australian Bounty hunter!”
R.K., who was R.K. the character that day, came up and slapped him on the back. “Bounty Hunter! I like it!”
Mark grinned wider as R.K. turned on his brother. “As for you pirate! Times up, you better eat those sardines!”
“I already have,” Jules said with a convincing grimace. He held out the empty can.
R.K. took it and looked at it closely as Sarah looked out the barred window.
R.K. said nothing for a long time and everyone was quiet as they waited. “Where did you eat them at?” R.K. finally demanded, he cast Jules a piercing glance.
“On the way here,” Jules said as he wrinkled his nose. “I did not want everyone gawking at me while I ate them.”
R.K. lifted his eyebrows and declared, “No good, I have to SEE you eat them, and seeing as you tried to sneak out of it, and seeing as YOU helped him!” R.K. turned on Sybil. “You both will have to eat two cans each!”
“You’re insane!” Jules yelped.
“No way!” Sybil took a step backwards.
R.K. sneered evilly. “Then Sarah stays in there until her Prince comes!”
Mariella shook her head and said, “You are one evil man!”
Mark was laughing the whole time obviously enjoying his brother’s distress. The others were giggling too by then. Sybil and Jules looked at each other, and wrinkled their noses. They were done for and they knew it.
Once the sardines were bought Jules and Sybil had to sit in the middle of the room and eat two cans each. Needless to say it was a nasty experience, but obviously there were worse things in life and both handle the sardine deal with bravery. Once they had eaten them both made a hasty retreat to the kitchen where they found some juice to drown the taste.
Mrs. Forbes happened by the kitchen about that time and shook her head at the two children gulping down juice as though it was going out of style. She grinned and continued on without asking a single question.
***
“I wonder if those sardines are still in there.” Sybil muttered as she looked into the pond. Maddock stood at her side shaking his head.
“Are you ever going to let the sardine thing drop?” he asked.
“No, not until I have had my revenge on R.K.!” Sybil giggled evilly and Maddock moved back a step.
“What are you thinking?” Maddock asked warily.
“I am thinking of eating sardines full time now,” Sybil said, and then grimaced as she remembered the taste.
“You have lost it,” Maddock muttered. “I think I shall find myself a new author!”
Sybil suddenly started to giggle. “Oh Maddock! I have an idea!” She giggled more.
Maddock rolled his eyes and groaned. He was now certain Sybil had lost her mind.
Sybil turned and was running back to her house when she came upon Joy and Laura. They smiled at her and waved. For a moment Sybil was tempted to keep running, but then she stopped and waited for the girls as they walked toward her. The early morning sun shone out of a cloudless blue sky, over head birds flitted about, singing their bright, cheerful songs.
“Sybil!” Laura giggled when she and Joy came up beside her.
“Hi Laura, Joy!” Sybil grinned at them. “How are you two?”
“Alright,” Laura said as she looked back at Thaddeus. “But I think Maddock has rubbed off on Thaddeus, he is being a pain!”
Joy nodded her head and glared at the man who grinned at them. “The same with Sonega, Maddock is a bad example!”
Everyone looked over at Maddock who muttered, “When something goes wrong I get blamed!”
Sybil rolled her eyes at him and taking Joy and Laura’s hands said, “Come on, let’s go talk about our NICE characters!”
Maddock watched them walk off. He looked back at Thaddeus and Sonega and said with a smile, “This would work out well! Very, very well.”
Thaddeus grinned, there was rebellion in the air.

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 I read a book once about one of the great awakenings. This awakening was brought on, mainly, by one pastor who dared to do what everyone said was impossible.  He got together with a bunch of poor, what most called scum, of the city of New York, and prayed with them. God used this man's bravery to bring a wayward nation back to Him. Through prayer he turned America on its head, shook them to their core, and showed them He is God.
 God can use prayer to change the world. Today we need prayer. Join me in doing what that pastor did all those years ago, gather as many as you can, and pray. God can still revive our nation, and we as Christains need to do what He has called us to do. 
 We need to unite, not only for important events, but in all things. However, seems to me this is a good day to start. Will you join me and pray as the fate of our country is decided over the next few days?
 Heather

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My word count is now 25,497
It wasn’t really a lake; it was just a duck pond in the park, without the ducks. For some reason ducks avoided it, why no one knew. Maybe ducks had never visited it, if that was the case the question should be asked as to who named it a duck pond to begin with.
However, Gaberilla could have cared less about ducks and ponds and names. All she cared about was that it was wet and deep, and had slopping sides. She and Beth had thought up the idea the other day when they had been walking around the pond and Beth had nearly fallen in.
As Gaberilla had pulled her up Beth had said, “It would be very easy to push someone in there!”
Gaberilla’s eyes lit up and she grinned. “Yes it would!”
Beth looked sideways at her friend. “What are you thinking?” she asked warily.
“That R.K. could use a good dunking!” And so had begun the pond, or lake, dunking.
It was one thing plotting to dunk someone; it is another matter entirely to carry it out. The first order of business was getting R.K. to the pond. This was solved when Beth suggested they all meet early one day for a picnic at the park.
Hanz and Justyne were the first two at the pond, soon followed by Sybil. “Hi!” she greeted her two friends as Maddock eagerly went over to talk to Jordaan.
“Hi,” Hanz said. “How are you today? How has Maddock been behaving?”
“I am fine,” Sybil said as she sat on the green grass. “Maddock has been being a pain as usual. How are you two?”
“Doing good,” Hanz answered.
“I would be, but I lost my invisible sword again,” Justyne joined Sybil on the grass.
“You really have to stop doing that,” Hanz said as he sat by them, Sybil nodded her head in agreement.
“Find somewhere to put them were you will always remember,” Sybil suggested.
“I do, but my enemies steal it,” Justyne groaned.
Sybil shook her head. “That is rotten.”
“Next time they show up call us,” Hanz said eagerly. “We will help you fight them!”
Sybil grinned at the memory of their last battle. “I will,” Justyne promised.
Their conversation turned to their characters, mostly Maddock and Jordaan who were still being pains. “He is still misbehaving?” Hanz asked gravely.
“Yes, he has completely taken over!” Sybil moaned.
Hanz looked up at the character who grinned a little sheepishly. “You really should listen!”
Maddock shrugged his shoulders. “The story is turning out so much better, isn’t it Sybil?”
Sybil scowled but admitted, “Yes.”
“See!”
“But you could have at least asked first!”
Maddock rolled his eyes, and Jordaan muttered, “They fail to give us credit, I did the same thing for Hanz and he killed me!”
Maddock shook his head. “I still can’t believe he did that.”
“Neither can I!” Timothy shook his head gravely.
Jordaan glared at Hanz. “See, you should keep me alive!”
“Not a chance!” Hanz scowled at him.
“I think he should leave you dead!” Sybil smirked evilly. “I would kill Maddock if I could get away with it!”
“You should!” Hanz said eagerly while Justyne shook her head.
Maddock scowled at him as Justyne said, “No, you should let him live, killing hero’s is so cruel!”
“Thank you Justyne, see Sybil, this is why Timothy likes her! Besides, you kill me and Katie will have your head!”
“Put a sock in it!” Sybil muttered and spent the rest of the day ignoring Maddock.
The others arrived between then and the next hour. Once everyone was there they all sat down to eat, mostly baloney sandwiches and vinegar chips. But with imaginations and the handy thing called pens they were able to make a very good meal.
No one else knew about Beth and Gaberilla’s real reason for the picnic, had they known they most likely would have eagerly helped out, but as it went they were left in the dark and the two friends had to try and lure R.K. to the pound. This turned out to be easier then they thought.
After eating Sarah walked over to the pond and said with a sigh, “All we need is a boat and we could go out rowing!”
“That would be fun!” Sybil said eagerly as she came up beside her. “Then we could rock the boat and through each other in!”
“You are so evil Sybil,” Sarah said as she rolled her eyes.
“Ah come on, it would be fun!” Sybil cried.
“I was thinking more along the lines of having some handsome fellow rowing the boat for me…” Sybil cut her off. “A boy?” she shook her head.
“Yes a boy, unless you were thinking a monkey?”
Sybil tossed back her head and laughed. “Well, there are some boys here, maybe one of them would row it for you,” she said when she had stopped laughing.
“Have Jules row it, since he is a pirate and likes the water!” Leah joined in the conversation.
“There you go!” Sybil exclaimed. “Jules! Come here, we need some help!”
Jules came running over as Sarah said, “You two have lost it!”
He bowed low and asked, “What is it you need first mate?”
“We need you to row Sarah to the other side of the pond,” Leah said with a grin.
“Why?” Jules asked. “Can’t she just walk?”
“No, that does not have the same effect,” Sybil said as Sarah glared at her.
“Exactly what effect?” Jules asked warily.
“Who knows, it is Sarah, she wants a boy to row her across, we find her a boy and ask no questions. You are a boy and a pirate and therefore like water, so you can row her across!”
Jules looked at Sarah who muttered, “They are nuts, don’t listen to a thing they say!”
Jules rolled his eyes and fiddled with the patch he had started wearing. “You are all nuts,” he said.
“We are authors, we are ALL nuts!” Sybil said with a laugh.
“We should find a boat though,” Jules said thoughtfully. “It would be a lot of fun to row one up and down the pond!”
“I think my uncle has a boat we can borrow,” R.K. said as he joined them, he pushed his cloak back as he walked. “Rather should I say Pip’s uncle. I will force her to ask him for us, I am sure he will agree to it!”
Beth and Gaberilla looked side ways at each other and grinned. Alex was standing near by and saw the look, without a word he moved back from them, knowing they were up to something. The two of them crept forward as, without really meaning too, Leah, Jules, Sarah, and Sybil distracted R.K.
“I would gladly volunteer as rower for everyone,” Jules said eagerly.
“You will get tried the first time over at back!” R.K. scoffed.
“Oh yeah!” Jules challenged.
“Yes, you would,” R.K. smirked as he spoke. “I on the other hand would be able to keep at it all day!”
“Then YOU row!” Jules tossed his head.
“And deprive you the pleasure?” R.K. asked.
Hanz happened to come up at that moment, and having missed most of the conversation, asked, “Row what?”
“We are getting a boat, maybe and Jules is going to row it for us, all day.”
Hanz looked side ways at Jules who grinned. “Your arms will get tired.”
“That’s what I said!” R.K. muttered. “But the boy doesn’t listen to me.”
“Boy?” Jules demanded. “I am older then you!”
“Not to mention he will get wet when he rows Sybil,” Sarah added with a snicker.
“Why would he get wet?” Hanz asked, but his question was never answered. The moment the word wet left his mouth Beth and Gaberilla leaped forward, and pushed R.K. into the pond.
R.K. came up sputtering and yelling, “Who did that you villains?”
The moment they had pushed him in Beth and Gaberilla had turned and fled, so the only ones standing there were Hanz, Sarah, Jules, Sybil, and Leah, who all looked as surprised as R.K., being as they had not seen who had done it. “You!” R.K. thundered as he climbed out of the pond. “It was one of you five!”
“Us?” Sarah held up her hands. “Don’t look at us!”
“Why not?’ R.K. had pulled himself out of the pond by then and was glaring at them.
Most of the others had seen who it was, but a single look from the guilty party had silenced them. And so, everyone watched silently as the scene unfolded before them.
R.K., who was still dripping wet, was pacing in front of the five friends, glaring at them and accusing them of every crime ever committed. “I know it was one of you! You were the only ones close enough to push me in, and if the guilty one does not step forward I will throw you ALL in the dungeon!”
“It wasn’t me!” Sarah cried. “I wasn’t even near you!”
R.K. turned his piercing eyes on the others, Jules first. “Things go wrong and everyone blames the pirate!” Jules exclaimed.
R.K. looked at Leah and Jules, to his credit, ran to her aid, resting a hand on her shoulder. “You mess with my first mate you mess with me!” he rested his hand on his sword hilt as he spoke.
R.K. eyes drifted to Sybil who held up her hands and said, “I am too sweet to do it!” Sarah snorted and Hanz remembered her battle fighting but said nothing.
Lastly R.K. glared at Hanz, who simply returned his glare. One did not take on Hanz with they valued their life.
Stepping back a step R.K. continued pacing, eyeing the five other them as though he was a judge and they were all being sentenced. Finally he stopped and stood before them again; then he addressed everyone. “It seems we have a mystery here,” he said. “One of these five has pushed me into the pond, and it is up to us to find out whom. The first person to do so shall receive a pass that shall get you out of the dungeon for a full week!”
That was tempting to any Inkling. It was like waving a chocolate candy bar in front of a child’s nose and telling them they could have it if they told them who was stolen a cookie out of the cookie jar. Everyone looked at each other, and those who had seen Beth and Gaberilla got very nervous while the two guilty girls looked undeceive of what to do.
The five that were being accused eyed each other, instant doubt arising. They all began to believe it was one of them that had done it, and being as they all wanted the pass, they immediately became suspicious of each other. And it was only to worsen.
That night when Sybil got home she got on the chat room, and found Hanz was on. They were later joined by Gaberilla and the three of them talked for a few hours.
“Can you believe someone actually pushed R.K. into the pond?” Sybil typed.
“I wish I had thought of it,” Hanz replied. Gaberilla grew suddenly quiet.
“So do I,” Sybil admitted. “Not saying that I DID do it,” she quickly added.
 “Same here,” Hanz answered.
Sybil opened her word document and started writing.
“What are you doing?” Hanz asked after a lull in the conversation.
“Writing, you?”
“Same. How’s it going?”
“Badly, Maddock is being a pain. I threatened to run him through but he laughed and said I couldn’t.”
“You should do it,” Hanz said after a while.
Sybil laughed quietly and typed, “I should.” Maddock just smirked because he knew she wouldn’t.
The conversation lulled again as the two friends returned to their writing. After a while Sybil looked at her clock. It was nearing midnight, she should get to bed. Then again Hanz was still on, maybe even Gaberilla, and when it came down to it Sybil would rather stay up late talking to her friend’s then sleep.
“How’s it coming?” Hanz asked.
“Better then earlier,” Sybil answered as she yawned widely. “Though Maddock still refuses to listen.”
“I still think you should kill him, it does wonders; they really listen after that. Trust me; I do kill Jordaan after all.”
“Jordaan isn’t liked by every girl in Inklings. If he dies I am as good as dead!”
“I would back you up!” Hanz said gallantly.
Maddock scowled at the scene, was Hanz’s actually trying to get Sybil to kill him? The very never of that boy!
Sybil giggled as she thought about everyone’s reaction if she did kill Maddock. By that time Reid was becoming what Katie called a GOOD villain. He had somehow managed to weasel his way into the book and seemed a worse villain then Ulrich ever was. And very single time he appeared he created a GOOD scene for Maddock and Carlyss. So, needless to say, Maddock was well liked from his gallant efforts to save Carlyss.
Sybil was about to answer Hanz when a new name appeared on the screen. It read, Spy.
“Greetings!” Spy said.
“Who are you?” Sybil asked after a moment.
“Your friendly neighborhood Spy!” came the reply.
“Gaberilla?’ Hanz asked.
“Do I LOOK like Gaberilla?” Spy asked.
“How should we know, we can’t see you!” Sybil typed.
“WAHAHAHAHAHA!”
“Mariella!” Hanz typed.
“It has to be!” Sybil typed eagerly. “Only she laughs like that! Are you Mariella?”
“I could be anyone, for all you two know I am one of you two, all I shall tell you for certain is that I am an Inkling, the game is up when you guess who I am.”
“I promise you it isn’t me!” Hanz typed.
“And it isn’t me!” Sybil said all the time thinking, he would say that to throw me off.
By the next meeting Spy had made himself know to all the members, but only through the chat room. He said they could call him a he, adding that he was very likely to be a girl, though could be a boy. He had given some of the members, who had been on that morning, some rules.
“We cannot ask him questions like, are you a boy or a girl. We cannot ask him if he is not one of us, as in, ‘You are not Jo are you?’ We are only allowed to ask him things about himself, learn more about him. He will not give us many hints, just a few everyone now and then. And he promised that he was an Inklings member.” Sarah read off the rules.
When she was done everyone looked at each other, suspicion written all over their faces. R.K. kept shifting his glance to the five he was still accusing of the pond pushing.
“So how do we ask him?” Leah asked. “I mean, do we just start asking each other, or…” her voice trailed off.
“This is weird!” Rose exclaimed.
“Can we just start accusing?” Jules asked as his eyes landed on R.K.
R.K. slammed his fist down on the table, just for effect, and bellowed, “I would not be accused of spying by a pirate!”
“I think it is Mariella!” Leah exclaimed, Jo gave hearty agreement.
Other accusations were thrown out, in the end Sarah had to stand up on a chair and yell for everyone to be quiet. “Weren’t you all listening to what I read? We have to ask him questions about himself to guess who he is. And he said he is only going to appear on the chat room! So there is no point in getting all riled here!”
Sybil was sitting on the grass grinning. “But he is here Sarah, he is one of us!”
“This is very, very weird!” Alex said as he shook his head.
“You know what is very weird?” R.K. asked. “I could be anywhere in the world right now, robbing banks in England, bit no, I chose to share egos with a little girl and now I am stuck here with all you nuts.”
“We may be nuts,” Ness said. “But at least we are not insane like you.”
R.K. glared at her and demanded, “Are you wanting to go in my dungeon too?”
Alex glared at him and said, “You leave my sister alone!”
If someone was to walk past at that moment they would have thought everyone was made at each other, little knowing they were all enjoying the whole thing a great deal. It is a little known fact that authors are also great actors.
Sarah, who was still in the chair, interrupted R.K. and said, “I would say that rather then going after each other we all get back on that chat room and interrogate that spy until we find out which one of us he is!”
All eyes were on Sarah and Sybil wondered if she was the spy.
After the meeting Sarah stayed a little longer then the others. “We need to talk,” she said as the last member disappeared.
“What about?” Sybil asked eagerly.
“R.K. and his insistence on finding who pushed him in the pond, and the Spy.”
“What about them?” Sybil was grinning, she was enjoying the whole thing.
“Well, I know you did not push R.K. in because I was watching you at that moment. And I am also dead certain you are not the Spy.”
Sybil was not sure wither to be grateful of disappointed. “How do you know I am not Spy?”
“You, pull of something like that? It is completely against your character! No, I am thinking Spy is either Mariella or Pip, er R.K.. But that does not matter, what does is I think you and I should team up and figure out who is behind all this.”
“Like detectives?” Sybil asked eagerly.
“Yeah!” Sarah grinned. “We can call ourselves Kibbles and Bits!”
Sybil looked closely at her friend to see if she was joking. Sarah had a completely serious face and so Sybil did not giggle.
“Who do you want to be?” Sarah asked.
“Bits!” Sybil claimed the name that sounded less like a dog food brand.
“Okay then Bits, what say you and I find a pond pusher and a Spy!”
Sybil giggled. “I am all for it!”
And so, the two girls set out with the intent of bring to justice those who had framed five innocent members. As it turned out their job was not at all that hard. It seems guilty conscious is a dead give away.
Everyone was surprised when Sarah and Sybil came to the next meeting wearing trench coats and carrying magnifying glasses.
“NOW what are you two up too?” Jules asked, he was wary of them after the song.
“We are going to find out who did the pond pushing, and who the Spy is!” Sybil declared as she looked at everyone. “You are all under observation!”
Gaberilla looked at Beth who quickly lowered her eyes as R.K. scowled. Sam caught the whole thing. She was about to mention it when Jane stood up and said, “Katie and I have an announcement to make.”
All eyes turned on them, more out of surprise that it was quiet Jane who had spoken and not talkative Katie.
Jane shifted her feet and said, “Katie and I have been having a great many troubles with our book, as Sybil well knows.”
All eyes drifted to Sybil and then back to Jane. She continued. “Katie and I have tried our best to make this story work, we have tried to get the characters to behave, but all has failed. And so we have decided to drop it, hence forth we are no longer writing it!”
Sybil did a very dramatic thing, quite out of character for her. She sank to her knees and moaned.
“You are doing WHAT?” Anna demanded as Christina stared in horror.
“We are giving up,” Katie said bluntly as she glared at Kallen.
“You can’t give up!” Sybil pleaded.
“Let’s face it, our book will never be any good, Hemlock has shown us that,” Jane said gravely.
Sybil felt like someone had hit her. SHE, her book, had stopped Jane and Katie from writing one of the best books ever penned. The very thought that Reamann and Kallen would never back it out into the world was heart breaking. “You can’t do this!” Sybil wailed.
Jane looked sideways at Katie who suddenly grinned. They both started to giggle and Sybil looked up in surprise.
“What are you two doing?” Christina asked.
Jane smiled. “We are splitting.”
Sybil looked at her two friends. “Splitting?”
Katie nodded her head. “Yes, we now have two completely different plots going, and Kallen is really needing to be changed, so we are splitting. Hence forth our book is not going to be together. It is going to be two separate stories”
Sybil was not sure if this was good or not, but she was greatly relieved that they were not giving up, and so decided to be happy over the change rather then push them in the pond and then lock them up in the dungeon. Jane grinned at Sybil and said, “I am sorry, I could not resist it, I had to frighten you a little.”
“A little?” Sybil demanded. “You about killed me!”
Jane smiled sheepishly as Katie pulled Sybil to her feet. “Never fear Sybil, the only way we would stop writing is if you did.”
“And the only way I will stop is if you two do,” Sybil replied.
“Seems our worlds are connected then,” Jane said with a giggle.
Sybil nodded in agreement as Sam sauntered over to Sarah and whispered, “I believe I found the pond pushers!”

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 This is a shorter chapter I fear. I am now at 22,294 words

 “I am a pirate!” Jules sudden proclamation the moment he entered the yard caught everyone off guard, just the effect he was hoping for.
Katie and Jane where sitting under a tree, discussing their book again, they were running into serous problems with it. Mariella was sitting by Pip who was R.K. at the moment, discussing which was a better way to achieve world domination, wither to attack with fear the leaders of the world or win them over with sweet words and then toss them into the nearest dungeon.
Sarah and Cherise were talking about the best way to end a book, romantically while Meggy, Beth, Gaberilla, and Christina were debating which was the best means to use when tormenting a character. Sam and Alex were talking about wars, Rose and Ness were talking about how hard it was to get a books flowing smoothly, which Hanz, Justyne, and Sybil were in a heated debate with their characters. Jules sudden announcement stopped them all.
For a moment everyone was speechless, even the characters did not know what to say. They all watched as Jules walked over to one of the lawn chairs, moving with the air of a pirate captain commanding his ship. He sat down, eyeing everyone has he did so. Sitting back he said, “Hence forth I shall be known as Captain Jules!”
“Are you moving in on my world domination?” Mariella demanded as she held up a small cage.
Before she could continue Jules exclaimed, “No! I watched the third Pirates of the Caribbean last night.” It wasn’t much of an explanation but no one was going to argue.
“A pirate in blue jeans and a tee shirt,” R.K. said as he shook his head scoffing.
“Give me a break! I just started today!” Jules glared at the villain.
R.K. said nothing, just wrapped himself tighter in his cloak and sat back returning Jules’s glares. Finally he said, “Captain or no, you leave us with a cliff hanger and you go into the dungeon!” He was in a bad mood being as no one had left a cliff hanger for about a week.
“You need an eye patch!” Sarah declared eagerly.
Jules nodded his head thoughtfully. “And a sword,” he looked at the characters as he spoke; all moved back a step, putting their hands on their swords. “Come on guys, I can’t be a pirate without a sword!”
Before anyone could answer Sybil suddenly giggled and broke out singing, “Jules is a pirate who doesn’t do anything! He just stays at home and lies around, and if you ask him to do anything, he’ll just tell you, ‘I don’t do anything!”
Jules rolled his eyes as Sarah joined in, walking over to Sybil and tossing her arm about her best friend’s shoulders, they sang as loudly as they could. “Well he’s never been to Greenland and he’s never been to Denver and he’s never buried treasure in St. Louis or St. Paul, and he’s never been to Moscow, and he’s never been to Tampa, and he’s never been to Boston in the fall!”
Sybil swallowed her giggles as she continued singing, “’Cause he’s a pirate, who doesn’t do anything, he just stays at home and lies around, and it you ask him to do anything, he’ll just tell you, ‘I don’t do anything!’ And he’s never hoist and mainstay and he’s never swabbed a poop deck, and he’s never veers to starboard ‘cause he’s never sailed at all, and he’s never walked a gang plank, and he’s never owned a parrot and he’s never been to Boston in the fall!”
“’cause he’s a pirate who doesn’t do anything, he just stays at home and lies around, and if you ask him to do anything, he’ll just tell you, ‘I don’t do anything.’ And he’s never plucked a rooster and he’s not too good and ping-pong and he’s never thrown his mashed potatoes up against the wall, and he’s never kissed a chipmunk and he’s never gotten head lice, and he’s never been to Boston in the fall!”
“Huh?” Sarah asked as she managed to keep a straight face. “What are you talking about? What’s a rooster and mashed potatoes have to do with being a pirate?”
“Hey, that’s right!” Sybil exclaimed as everyone around them laughed at the two girls. “We’re supposed to sing about pirate-y things!”
“Oh…” Sarah said; then added in another voice, “And who’s ever kissed a chipmunk? That’s just nonsense! Why even bring it up? Am I right? What do you think?”
“I think you look like Cap’n Crunch!” Sybil declared.
“Huh? No I don’t!”
“Do too.”
“Do not!”
“You’re making me hungry!” Sybil rested her hand on her stomach.
“That’s it, your walkin’ the plank!”
“Says who?”
“Says the captain, that’s who!”
“Oh yeah? Aye, aye Cap’n Crunch!”
“Arg!” Sarah bellowed as Sybil continued the song.
“And he’s never licked a spark plug and he’s never sniffed a stick bug, and he’s never painted daisies on a big red rubber ball, and he’s never bathed in yogurt, and he doesn’t look good in leggings…”
“You just don’t get it do you?” Sarah asked before they both sang loudly, “And he’s never been to Boston in the fall!”
Jules rolled his eyes as he laughed and tried to keep from falling out of his chair. Everyone else had given up and where sitting on the grass laughing until tears rolled down their cheeks. “You two think you are so funny,” Jules muttered soon as he could talk.
“We know we are funny!” Sarah said as she hooted with laughter. She had a very loud laugh.
It took everyone a good half hour to regain something of an air of calm, but even then the slightest thing would set them all off again. Once Sybil was able to stand without falling over laughing she went over and joined Jane and Katie who once again looked a little gloomy.
Being as they still had a while before the members read their stories aloud, she asked, “What is wrong? Anything I can help with?”
Katie moaned and dropped her head into her hands. “It is Kallen, I don’t like him.”
Kallen was leaning against the tree they were under, for all the world he looked heart broken.
“Why not?” Sybil gasped.
“He is such a wimp compared to Reamann and Maddock!” Katie wailed.
“What!” Sybil shook her head in disbelief. “He is so much nicer then Maddock!” Maddock received a glare as Sybil spoke.
Reamann shook his head as his two companions were ridiculed by their authors.
“But Maddock is so cool! He rates up there with HIM!” Katie’s face showed the despair she felt.
Sybil was stunned. Maddock, her rebellious back talking Maddock, like HIM? HIM, or HE, was none other then Reamann. All three of the girls adored him. He was brave and gallant and was stabbed in the book while trying to save his queen. Who could not help but like a guy like that?
The very idea that Maddock had weaseled his way up to HIM, making himself a hero and pushing poor Theobald into the shadows but shocked and annoyed Sybil. HE was so much better then Maddock could ever dream of being!
“What makes you think Maddock is like Reamann?” Sybil gasped. “And poor Kallen! I think he is just as cool as Reamann!”
Kallen turned red and grinned, then frowned when Katie looked sadly at him.
“Maddock is so, so, GOOD!” Jane finally spoke; she had a day dreamy look in her eyes.
“How so?” Sybil asked. Jane and Katie called all romantic things GOOD, it was like a code among the three of them.
“That scene you wrote yesterday!” Katie said, surprised Sybil did not know.
“You mean the scene with Reid?” Sybil asked with a cock of her red head.
“Yes!” Jane smiled widely.
Reid was a bad guy who had showed up and had been tormenting Maddock. Sybil was not really worried about him, the guy thought he was evil but he was not half as evil as Ulrich, the evil king. In the last scene Reid had found out Maddock was plotting against the king and had threaten to kill him and Carlyss.
Sybil had changed Carlyss in the book, she was no longer the perfect, brave girl who did everything right. She was now an untrusting, shy girl whose only friend was Maddock. In the scene she had been surprised by Maddock’s behavior and was staying to feel she could not trust him.
Sybil twisted a strain of red hair around her finger as she looked at her two friends.
“Kallen will never be like Reamann and Maddock,” Katie said with a deep sigh. “I might as well give up!”
Jane and Sybil looked over at R.K. who thankfully was distracted. “You can’t give up!” Sybil hissed. “Jane help me out!”
Jane shook her head. “I have been trying all day!” she said sadly. “She refuses to listen!” Jane shook her head. “I have been trying all day!” she said sadly. “She refuses to listen!”
Sybil looked desperate. “Katie you can’t do this!”
Katie shook her head and said with dead seriousness, “I have to!”
Sybil looked up at Kallen who was looking at her with pleading eyes. “Talk some sense into her, please!” he begged.
“Oh hush!” Katie moaned as she glared at him. “We would not be having this problem if you were more like Maddock and Reamann.”
Kallen shook his head. “But you made me this way! I was just obeying!”
“You should take matters into your own hands Kallen!” Maddock exclaimed. “Sometimes authors have no idea what they are doing,” he looked meaningfully at Sybil as he spoke.
“But, I like Katie, I always obey her!” Kallen sounded very confused by then.
Reamann shook his head as Maddock opened his mouth. “I believe there is away for us to do both, obey and help our authors out. I mean look and Jane and me, we get along fine!”
“Jane didn’t make you into a wimp,” Maddock grumbled. “You got off easy!”
“Hush you three!” Sybil told them; then turned her attention back to Katie. “You can’t give up Katie, there has to be something we can do!”
Katie shook her head and muttered, “All is lost.”
“We won’t let you give up!” Sybil said; she looked over at Jane who nodded her head in hearty agreement. “Come, show us your chapter and we shall see what we can do to help!”
The three girls worked hard for the next hour, they would have worked longer had not a cackling caused them too look up. Pip and Mariella were at it again. It had started when Pip had asked what was in the box.
“My Turtle of Doom!” Mariella declared with an evil laugh.
Pip, who had removed her black cloak, flung it back on so she could be R.K. again. It was a good thing none of the members cared much about fashion or Pip would get a scolding, being as she wore brightly colored skirts and shirts, with a black cloak.
“I don’t care if you own a Bear of Doom, you keep this up and you are going into the dungeon!” R.K. growled.
“And how many times do I have to tell you I am not scared of your dungeon?” Mariella demanded. “Do you fail to understand what Empress of Doom means?”
“Do you think I even care?” R.K. crossed his arms over his chest.
Mariella looked R.K. in the eyes. “Are you sure you want to cross swords with me?”
“You are trying my patience Mariella!”
Mariella patted her box, and smirked at R.K. as she said, “Nothing you ever do will make me free you!”
R.K. turned quickly and turning to Jules snapped, “You there, pirate! I demand you toss this, this rebellious author into the dungeon!”
Mariella glared at Jules and he muttered, “Why me?”
“Do you dare disobey me?” R.K. thundered.
“No,” Jules muttered. “All I mean is that I am a captain, I should not have to take orders!”
“You guys are all nuts!” Sarah exclaimed. “We got so many power hungry members here!”
“Never fear, once you see my secret weapon you will all bow to my power!” Mariella said with a laugh, an evil laugh.
Everyone was now watching the three of them, Mariella grinned when she noticed she had everyone’s attention. Opening her box she reached inside and pulled out a small turtle. For a moment everyone was so surprised they just stared at her, and then they all burst out laughing.
“That is you secret weapon?” R.K. said with a grin. “That cute little thing?”
“It looks like it is just a baby!” Jules cooed.
Mariella did not so much as bat an eye. She patted the little turtle on its head; it was so small it could nearly rest comfortably in the palm of her hand.
R.K. sank to the ground as he laughed, he was holding to his sides, tears rolling down his face. Mariella shook her head and said, “My turtle of Doom does not like to be laughed at.” R.K. only laughed harder.
Mariella allowed a smile to tug at her lips as she leaped forward and trust the little turtle close to R.K.’s nose. The villain was caught off guard when the turtle took a snap at him. Stumbling backwards R.K. landed on his back. Mariella stood over him grinning.
Jules stopped laughing and put on straight face. “What a violent little beast!” he exclaimed.
Mariella patted the turtle’s head again and with an air of grandeur put him back into the box. “Maybe you shall think hard next time, R.K. before you choose to cross blades with the Empress of Doom and her turtle!”
***
Sybil was never sure how kids found out about Inklings, but somehow they did. For a long while she was certain Inklings was not going to grow anymore, this changed the day two sisters came, Jo and Leah. Jo was a talkative girl who immediately was liked by all. Her younger sister Leah, who was the youngest member, was also talkative. She and Jules hit it off well.
No sooner had they joined and been given the newest Inklings warning, “Avoid R.K.” then another girl joined. Her name was Laura; she was a sweet girl who was very shy at first. When Sybil realized this she decided to do all she could to make Laura feel welcome, being as how she knew what is was like to be shy.
At her first meeting Sybil shyly went up the girl and said with a little stammering, “Hello, my name is Sybil.”
“I am Laura,” she said as she pushed her brown hair behind her head.
Sybil shifted her feet and tried to think of something to say that did not involve the weather. “I am glad you joined, how did you learn about it?” she finally asked.
“Jo told me,” Laura relied as she looked back at the other girl.
“Is that your character?” Sybil asked the obvious of a girl that was standing behind Laura.
Laura nodded her head. “This is Elsa.”
Sybil smiled at the girl and then made the fatal mistake of introducing her to Maddock. Maddock smiled at Elsa and stepping up beside her said, “I am pleased to meet you Elsa.”
Elsa nodded her head in return and the two started to talk in low voices as their authors tried to come up with things to say. By the end of the meeting Laura felt at ease around Sybil, and Maddock had own Elsa over, to the rebelling side.
The last member to join Inklings was Joy. She and her family moved to Dale the first of the summer and she started to attend the church Sybil and her parents went to. Sybil had observed the girl the first week she had come with her brother, sister, and parents.
Sybil knew she should go say hi to the girl, but her shyness got the better of her and she didn’t. She forgot about the girl until the Sunday after she had talked to Laura. She could not forget how talking to Laura had put Laura at her ease, or how Sarah talking to her had changed her life.
And so, with a prayer for strength, Sybil did the last thing anyone expected after the service. She left her mom’s side, and on trembling legs walked up to the brown headed, brown eyed girl. At first all the two girls did was eye each other, then Joy beamed a grin and said, “Hi!”
“Hi,” Sybil stammered.
“My name is Joy!”
“I am Sybil,” she lowered her eyes and then quickly raised them.
“That is a pretty name,” Joy said with a smile as bright as the sun.
“Thank you,” Sybil said. “Yours is pretty to she added.” Partly to be nice, but more so because she really did think it was a pretty name.
“I am glad you think so!” Joy exclaimed. She then set about chattering about this and that, until she landed on the subject of writing. Sybil’s eyes brightened.
“You like writing?” she asked.
“Yes I do!” Joy said in excitement.
“So do I!” Sybil could not stop the excited giggle that tickled her throat.
“What do you write?” Joy asked eagerly.
“Well, my main book is a fantasy of sorts, but I also have others. What about you?”
“I am working on a fantasy too!” Joy laughed happily. “It is about dragons!”
Sybil and Joy talked for a good half an hour, until their parents said it was time to go. But by then Sybil had invited Joy to join Inklings and so Monday afternoon she was delighted when Joy showed up on her front lawn armed with her laptop and a notebook.
A couple days after this that Pip announced, “We need pen names!”
“Pen names?” Sarah asked; she raised an eye brow. “But I like my real name!”
“Not that kind of pen name!” Pip rolled her eyes at Sarah. “No, we need pen names for when we are at Inklings. All of you know I am R.K…”
“That is a pen name?” Jules asked.
“It is short for Rudyard Kipling,” Pip explained. “He is my favorite author. We should have pen names from our favorite authors!”
Everyone thought about this for a moment, and then agreed. Laura declared she was going to use Laura Ingalls Wilder’s name. “Not only is she my favorite author, but we also have the same name!”
Katie claimed Beatrix Potter, Christina chose Edgar Allan Poe to which Hanz said, “I read a story by him, it was so good and creepy!”
“Have you ever read the Tale Tell Heart by him?” Sybil asked Hanz.
He nodded his head. “That one was great!”
“It was so creepy, but I liked it!”
Christina smiled at them but said nothing. Though she was not a naturally creepy girl she did seem to have a darker side, though it did not worry anyone because she was so sweet.
Jane decided to use Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and so it went until it was Sybil’s turn. She chose C.S. Lewis, this was very important, rather would be, later on. It led to a great many things; thankfully most of them were funny.
“How does someone get thrown into the dungeon?” Leah asked one day. Jo was sitting in one of the lawn chairs and Leah was perched on the arm. Jules was leaning on the table, lost in thought, either that or just plain lost.
“By ending your story with a cliff hanger, or trying to steal power from R.K.,” Ness said as she walked past.
“Oh, too bad,” Leah said sadly.
Jules looked over at her. “Too bad?” he asked. “You want to be thrown in?”
Leah grinned. “Sort of, everyone is always so friendly to be, it might be kind of fun to get thrown in!”
“But you only write short stories,” Jo said as she looked up at her sister. “It is kind of hard to end them on a cliff hanger.”
“Besides, you got on everyone’s good side with your story of George Washington!” Jules laughed as he thought about the tale. Leah had read it to them a couple days ago.
George Washington, a very young Washington, grinned as well as he thought about the tale that had made him popular amongst the Inklings.
Leah shook her head and grinned. “But I think it would be fun to be a little villain-ish.”
“Then,” Jules rubbed his chain and rested his hand on his curved pirate sword; it was actually a replica but served its purpose. “How would you like to join my crew?”
“What crew?” Jo asked.
“Well, if Leah joined then she would be my crew.”
Jo rolled her eyes and Leah looked up with excitement. “I would love to Jules!” she exclaimed eagerly.
“Alright then!” Jules said and hopping up on a chair announced, “Everyone I would like to introduce you to me first mate, Leah the brave!”
Sarah grinned and said, “Good, now you can keep him in line Leah!”
“Very funny,” Jules said as he jumped off the chair. “I should make ye walk the plank girl!”
“Just try it!” Sarah threatened as Mariella, just for good measure, patted her box.
R.K. glared at Mariella who said, “I was just worried about us being over run with pirates, I wasn’t going to released him on you!”
“You better not!” R.K. grumbled. Everyone knew he was in a bad mood because no one was leaving any cliff hangers.
“You need to cool off,” Gaberilla told him, and she cast him a meaningful smirk as she glanced sideways at Beth. R.K. had a feeling they were plotting something, something that involved him.

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 Day Three...already? Rather should I say, ONLY?! Surely I have been at this for weeks already, haven't I? Feels like I have. Day Three and I am at 20,000 words, *blink* odd. Anyhow, after three days I have not seen much of the outside world.
 Usually it is Maddock who holds me locked in my room, sword point at my throat, as he insists that I write more. However, this time it is someone else who is holding the sword...and that someome is me. I know, that sounds odd, maybe even a little creepy. Sure Authors have split personalites, but they do not hold swords on themselves, that is a sign of craziness! I assure you all I am not crazy.
 However, as this stories weaves itself, spinning a tale that is, well just plan fun to write, I find I cannot stop writing. If it were possible to forgo sleeping and eating I would until I finish this book. This is the funnest book I have penned of late. The story is light hearted and with a message as deep as, say election, well maybe not that deep. But let us face the facts, friendship is a message we can all learn from. I fear I am not bring the message out as well as I would like, but this is the rough draft, and I am shooting for 50,000 words, so it is understandable that it will be a little choppy, er, rather a lot, like a storm tossed sea. Me being the sea sick captain who insists on sailing into the storm like a mad man, laughing loudly and shaking my fist into the wind.
 As I look over the last three chapters, or is it four? I am rather surprised at them. This is not my typical style, as you may have noticed. This light hearted tale is a new thing to me, but it fits the book, and try as I might to change it, it won't, so I suppose I shall leave it. After all, Inklings is not Despair and Hope or Treason and Loyalty!
 However, enough rabbling, I am at the moment at 21, 421 words and the day is only half over, I am off to write!
 Ever yours, Sybil Forbes

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 My word count is now up to, 18,173 words.

Part Two, summer of Adventures
Chapter Four…Of pirates and Battles
The chat room turned out to be a big hit. Sybil found that someone was always on it, and so she always had someone to talk to. This helped break through those sudden cases of writer’s block and the urges to give up. Maddock had finally over stepped his bounds and done what no other character had dared to do yet, take over the book.
Sybil would have killed him off but for one tiny problem, Katie adored him. If she so much as glared at the man Katie ran to his aid. Maddock knew this fact and with great delight continually told Sybil there was nothing she could do to him, if she valued her life.
One fine Saturday Sybil found herself all alone. Her parents had been planning a date; they were heading over to one of the bigger towns for the day, just the two of them. Sybil was rather delighted when she learned she was to have the house all to herself. However, after spending her morning writing, and arguing with Maddock, she found she was quite board.
The Inklings never met on Saturdays, so after reading a book for a while Sybil decided to get on the internet and see if anyone was in the chat room. It was a little before two, she figured no one would be on in the afternoon, but she also figured she had nothing to loose.
It took her a while to get on, and when she did she was surprised to find someone was on, Hanz.
“Hi,” Sybil typed.
“Hi!” Came back the reply. “I didn’t think anyone would be on today. Justyne said she was coming on at two.”
“Well, I am alone today; my parents are out of town, mind if I hang around to chat?” Sybil typed after a moments thought.
“Not at all,” Hanz wrote. “I am writing at the moment, if I vanish do not panic, I shall be back.”
“Okay,” Sybil leaned back in her chair and looking out the window debated if she wanted to go out or not.
A few moment’s later Justyne got on, and for a while the three talked about their books and writing, typical Inklings stuff. They then talked about their characters, and Sybil could not help but complain about Maddock.
“He is such a pain, he has taken over the story and set himself up as the hero,” Sybil typed.
Maddock leaned over her chair to read the words. “Are you still complaining?” he asked.
“Yes I am!” Sybil grumbled. “And I won’t stop until you behave!”
Maddock turned and ran downstairs; Sybil ignored him and returned to her chat. Not five minutes later then a new person joined the chat, Maddock.
“Ignore anything she says about me!” he typed.
“Why don’t you listen?” Hanz asked.
“I do, I am just helping her out; you should have seen the book before I started!”
“It wasn’t that bad!” Sybil argued.
“You really should be nicer,” Justyne said. “You do not know how hard it is to be an author!”
“And you do not know how hard it is to be a character!”
“I agree!” a fifth person, named Jordaan, typed.
“Who are you?” Maddock asked.
“I am Hanz’s character!” Jordaan answered.
“I thought Prinz Eugen was?” This from Maddock.
“He is, he is the one who is a suck up; if Hanz told him to jump he would ask how high.”
“Sounds like Theobald!”
“What are you doing on here?” Hanz demanded.
“Talking, what are you going on here?”
“Get off this moment!”
“Come and make me!”
“Come on, no fighting!” Justyne interrupted. “Jordaan be nice!”
“He started it!”
Sybil shook her head. “I feel sorry for you Hanz.”
“Ah don’t worry, I can handle him.”
“How?” Sybil asked. “Maybe I can try it on Maddock.”
“You really must try and get along with him Sybil,” Justyne typed. “Surely he can’t be that bad.”
“Thank you Justyne, you tell her!” Maddock threw in.
“You should be more respectful to her Maddock, she did create you!” Justyne scolded.
“Yes,” another name came up, Timothy. “It is possible for authors and characters to live in peace.”
“Not with mine!” Maddock argued.
“Same with Hanz!” Jordaan typed.
“Need I remind you Jordaan that I kill you? Keep this up and I shall kill you early.” Hanz said.
“You KILL him?” Maddock demanded. “You can’t kill a hero off!”
“Yeah you tell him Maddock, that is what I said but he ignored me.”
“You can kill some hero’s,” Timothy typed slowly. “Some die very brave deaths, as I heard you do Jordaan.”
“Who cares?” Maddock asked. “He dies, that goes against every rule in writing!”
“Tell me about it,” Jordaan grumbled.
“Not only do I kill him, but I can beat him with my eyes closed,” Hanz typed.
“Sure you can,” Maddock was pushing it and Sybil knew it.
“I can!” Hanz said. “Just ask him!”
“Did he?” Maddock asked.
Silence, then, “Yes, he did.”
“Well…” Maddock was at a loss for words.
“Well what?” Hanz demanded. “And keep this in mind Maddock; I can beat any character that comes at me!”
“Not me!” Maddock wrote quickly. “I am known in Hemlock as a bold fighter!”
“That is in Hemlock, in my world I am known as a great warrior, as I am in this world!”
“You willing to put force behind those words?”
“I would, if you think you are brave enough to take me on!”
Sybil was gigging so hard by then she could barely type.
“Come on guys,” Justyne typed. “Let’s not fight with each other!”
“But there is no one else to fight with!” Maddock said.
“Not quite true,” Jordaan typed. “I was out scouting earlier and saw a small band of men out on patrol; they were from one of the enemies camps.”
Everyone’s ears perked up. “How shall we get to them?” Sybil asked eagerly.
 “Are you joking?” Justyne typed. “We have the power of the pen!”
Sybil giggled, and the next moment, with a little writing, found herself on a grassy hill with Timothy, Jordaan, Maddock, Hanz, and Justyne. They grinned at each other and for a moment enjoyed the feel of the warm summer sunshine and the feel of the breeze blowing over them.
Suddenly Prinz came running up the other side of the hill. He stopped in front of Hanz and saluted. “There is a band of about twenty men coming up the hill,” he reported. Jordaan scowled at the man but Prinz ignored him.
“Seven against twenty,” Hanz said thoughtfully.
“Ah that is nothing!” Jordaan exclaimed. “We can take them!”
The others nodded in agreement and Hanz drew his sword. “Okay then! Let’s show them they shouldn’t mess with us!”
Sybil giggled excitedly and drew her sword. Over the stillness the seven of them could plainly hear the tramp of feet as the men came closer. There was the distinct sound of clanking armor. Justyne drew one of her invisible swords, her face grim. Timothy stood at faithfully at her side.
Jordaan shifted his feet eagerly as the men topped the hill; they stopped when their eyes landed on the seven standing against them.
“They must be joking!” the leader said.
“Or insane,” another man added.
“I am insane!” Sybil said with a giggle.
Maddock rolled his eyes. “You got that right.”
Hanz looked the captain in the eye and called out to him, “I suggest you take your men and leave!”
“And of we don’t?” the captain said with a laugh. “What do you plan to do boy?”
“If you don’t we shall have to kill every last one of you!” Hanz said boldly.
The man tossed back his over sized head, he was a bad guy after all and one knows most bad guys are anything but handsome, and laughed a deep booming laugh that seemed to shake the earth. “You are funny! You really think you can stand against us? We out number you ten to one, and we are warriors, you are children!”
“Children?” Prinz asked with a scoff. “Do I look like a child to him?”
“Yes you do boy!” the captain sneered.
This probably should be added to the list of things one does not do in one’s life, call a warrior a child. No sooner had the words left the man’s mouth then a spear left Prinz’s hand, and struck the captain right in the chest. He fell dead with a sneer on his face.
The other soldiers blinking and looked in amazement at their dead captain. Hanz lofted his sword as with one voice the men all yelled and charged the seven of them. None of them moved as the men came on them like a flood. The first to reach Sybil and them were struck dead.
Once they were down Maddock leaped over the dead bodies and jumped into the center of the enemy, cutting the men down left and right. Jordaan laughed almost insanely and ran to join him, but did not make it far before he was surrounded and found himself facing enough me to content him for a while.
 Hanz and Prinz were nearly side by side, cutting and chopping with great skill. Timothy remained at Justyne’s side while Sybil found herself facing a couple of overly large men who looked like Huns who had done a major work out. She could not help smiling at them before she ran and them, stabbing one in the chest, pulling her sword out and hitting the other man in the legs. As he fell she hit him in the back, killing him before he hit the ground.
Turning she found herself facing even more men, and as she looked out over the battle she realized there was more then twenty men there, more like two hundred. Where the men had come from Sybil was not about to ask, in stead she killed three more and began to hack her way to Maddock’s side. Might as well fight next to someone then alone.
Across the battle field Justyne had dropped her sword by accident, a real pain considering it was invisible, and so had grabbed her bow instead. She shot at the men with great speed, dropping them as they came at her, Timothy stood behind her, killing the men who were trying to stab her in the back.
Jordaan found himself pinned against a tree, the only tree on the hill. He wondered how he was gotten there, but as the men did not seem the type for answering questions he did not ask. He simply slew them where they stood, or rather fought.
Nearly on the other side of the little hill Hanz and Prinz were still holding their own, even though they had been separated. Prinz had drawn his dagger which he was tossing into the guys, once he tossed it he would fight his way to the man it was in, pull it out, and toss it again.
Hanz had given up on his sword for a while, and sheathing it, had drawn his pistols. He was now shooting them off, firing with great speed, and dropping men before they got within ten feet of him. The wonderful thing about writing is that you do not have to reload pistols unless you so choose to do so. And at the moment Hanz did not choose to do so, and so fired without fear of running out of bullets.
Sybil was somewhere in the center of the field, though nearer to the spot Justyne and Timothy had been at when Justyne dropped her sword. They had by then made their way upward, closer to the top of the hill.
Sybil was finding it was one thing writing about battles, and quite another actually fighting in them. She was dropping men rather well, but felt like she was fighting a loosing battle when she happened to trip over something. Looking down she saw nothing though she could feel it at her legs.
A man was rushing her, but when Sybil tried to rise she tripped again. She gave up on rising, waited till the man was closer, and tossed her sword at him. She was surprised when it hit him in the chest and dropped him. However before she had time to delight in her victory another man took his place.
“Blast!” Sybil muttered as she reached down at her feet, and cut her hand on the sword.
Yanking her hand back Sybil gasped in pain, then realized what it was, and reached for it again. The tricky thing about invisible swords is finding the hilt. Sybil fumbled for it as the man come closer. She pricked her fingers a few more times before she located the hilt and stumbling to her feet ran the man through, who was shocked at being jabbed with something he could not see.
No sooner had he fallen to the ground then Sybil pulled out the sword and running over to the other man grabbed her sword. By then the men had thinned out, and Hanz was finishing off most with his pistols. Sybil saw Justyne near the hill top and called up, “I found your sword!”
Justyne came running back down, weaving her way through the dead bodies, as Hanz’s joined them. “Thank you,” she said as she took the sword form Sybil. “These things are so hard to keep track of!”
“That was almost too easy,” Hanz said as he held his smoking pistols in his hands.
“That was easy?” Justyne asked as she looked at the dead men.
“Yes, I was expecting more out of them.”
Sybil looked confused. “You mean more of a fight? If you ask me they found quite, well. I had a hard time keeping my head on my shoulders!”
Hanz shook his head. “I am sorry to hear that!”
“So am I!” Justyne almost scolded. “I take it you have not fought much?”
“There has never been much near for it in Hemlock,” Sybil said thoughtfully. “Come to think of it this is my friend real battle!”
“Then I would suggest you stay close to one of u until you get better at it.”
Sybil looked down at the two men she had killed. He was probably right, she had almost been killed after all.
“Justyne!” Timothy’s sudden broke their conversation.
Justyne turned and looked up at her character. “What?” she called up. He was on the hill top.
“There were more then twenty!” Timothy looked a little worried.
“We know that!” Sybil yelled back as she looked at all the dead men.
“A lot more,” Timothy said as he looked down the other side of the hill. “We are going to nee some help!”
Justyne took off up the hill followed closely by Hanz and Sybil. The moment they topped the hill Sybil gasped in amazement. Below them was another valley, and this valley was crowded with an army of at least a thousand or more. A heavily armed army that looked fresh and ready for a fight.
Hanz shook his head and Jordaan, Maddock, and Prinz joined them. Maddock looked out at the army and then over at Hanz. “Can you take them on?”
Hanz looked at the army before them. It was like looking out at one’s death, there was no way seven could stand against so many. However they were a little stuck now. “Yes, I believe I can, I believe we all can!” Hanz said with smile.
Sybil suddenly could not stop the grin that pulled at the corner of her mouth. This was going to be one grand battle!
“Hanz, we are going to need back up of we plan to live through this!” Prinz said with clam urgency.
Hanz nodded his head. “You are right, Prinz you are the fastest. I need you to run and get the armies here as fast as you can. We shall hold these guys off until you return.”
Prinz was reluctant to leave but he bowed quickly and darted off, moving quickly. Sybil watched him go thinking, “Now it is a thousand to six, we are done for!”
The enemy was now moving up the hill, slowly as though they had nothing in the world worth hurrying for. Sybil gripped her side tighter and faced the see of men. She could not see the end of the army, a fact that brought her no comfort.
Sybil heard a whoosh by her ear and turning saw Justyne had released an arrow. One of the lead men fell from his horse. Sybil blinked and Justyne grinned, “Why wait for them to come, the more I kill now the less we have to fight!”
Sybil grinned as Justyne shot her bow again. Hanz yelled and rising his pistols shot at the men as they advanced. Sybil looked around and found a bow one of the dead men had been using. She picked it up and collecting some arrows began firing upon the army.
The first rank of men began to drop, falling off their horses. They second rank however was armed with bows and arrows as well. When they saw their comrade’s fall they started to ran arrows down on the six who stood atop the hill. Quickly they ran for cover, ducking behind anything that offered protection, the tree, rocks.
Once the arrows ceased the six of them, being as Maddock, Jordaan and Timothy were now also armed, ran back to the hill top and dropped more of the men before they had to seek cover. They were able to come out more time before the enemy was on top of them and they had to content with swords for close range fighting. Hanz, however, still used his pistols.
Maddock was still standing on the hill top, now fighting with two swords, when a crack from one of the pistols reminded him of his rocks. They were special rocks that exploded, something. Thankfully Maddock always carried them about with him.
Sybil found herself alone again, not in the best position either. She found herself on very rocky ground, big, white rocks stood out from the green grass, making moving hard, and fighting next to impossible. Sybil ran one man through, hit another in the head, and leaped up on a rock to avoid the third man’s sword. However she lost her balance and fell backwards.
The man leaped over the rock and stood towering over her, she turned and reached for her fallen sword. The man kicked it away and lifting hi sword prepared to drive it into her, killing her were she lay. “Man this would make one grand scene in a book!” Sybil gasped, famous author’s last words.
“What?” The man asked with a shake of his head as a man ran up behind him and with a quick blow cut his head off.
As the man fell dead Jordaan tossed Sybil her sword and said, “Be more careful!”
Sybil grinned at him and said, “How sweet, you saved my life.”
“Someone had to,” Jordaan muttered as he ran back into the fight. An Earth shattering blast stopped him in his tracks. A man ran up behind him and prepared to kill him as he stood, frozen for a second.
Sybil saw the man and running in between him and Jordaan killed him. Jordaan turned, say the dead man at Sybil’s feet and gasped as she said, “Be more careful!”
Another explosion shook the ground, it was followed by Maddock yelling, “Take that you cowards!” And the sound of marching, only this time the marching was coming from the other direction, behind the six fighters.
They all turned as a trumpet blast announced the army. At first Sybil thought it was more of the enemy, until her eyes landed on Prinz who was leading the army. Hanz whooped and cheered, yelling, “Way to go Prinz!”
A soldier lifted his knife to throw it at Hanz, trying to catch him off guard. Hanz quickly ducked allowing the knife to wail past his head. He turned and shot the man, spun the pistol around, and holstered it.
“Show off!” Maddock called as the army continued its advance and Justyne continued shooting off arrows.
Maddock turned and once more starting throwing his rocks as the army lead by Prinz charged up the hillside. Sybil picked up another sword and began to swing them both as Timothy fought his way to his author’s side. He had somehow been separated from her, how he was not sure.
Jordaan was still within ten feet of Sybil, which was probably a good thing as the way she was swing both swords almost made her an ineffective fighter. She needed someone to make sure she kept her head.
Behind the fighters the army came up, and Prinz ran to Hanz to get his orders. They were brief and simple, “Kill them all.”
Prinz ran back, relayed the orders to the general and then fought his way back to Hanz. The army moved into place, pushing cannons up to the top of the hill where they rained down cannon balls on the enemy. This, coupled with Maddock’s rocks, did a great deal of damage.
Justyne turned and fired her arrows on the men fighting her friends. Timothy made it to her side again and once more took to guarding her back.
Jordaan and Sybil found themselves side by side, a dangerous place for Jordaan considering she still had both swords. After nearly loosing his head when he was standing too close, Jordaan moved back and left Sybil alone as she fought. Loosing his head to an enemy would be explainable. Loosing his head to a girl who was wildly swinging two swords, Hanz would never let him live that one down!
Once the cannons arrived on the scene the men began to fall back, though most did not make it far before they were killed. As they retreated Hanz mounted one of the rider-less horses and yelled, “After them!”
Sybil caught a horse as it ran past, she quickly mounted and rode after Hanz and Justyne who had a head start on her. They rode into the valley, leading the others after the fleeing enemy, and fought on until every last one of the men where slain. Needless to say it was not a pretty sight.
No sooner had the battle ended then Justyne and Timothy had to leave to go to dinner. It was quite disappointing to have them leave, even though they promised they would be at the meeting on Monday.
Maddock walked up to Sybil and Hanz just as Justyne and Timothy vanished. Prinz was talking with the General of the Army, discussing battle plans from the sounds of it. Jordaan was still on the hill top, slowly making his way down.
“I must say, you are an impressive fighter,” Maddock said as he bowed his head in Hanz’s direction.
“Thank you,” Hanz said as he holstered his pistols. “You are a gallant fighter yourself.”
Sybil was cleaning off her sword, an overly long French rapper. Maddock eyes her and looked as though he wanted to say something, but it was probably something kind and it would not do to say something kind to his author. Besides, Jordaan had joined them by then.
Sitting down on a rock Jordaan grinned. “Well that was exciting, but I am hungry now.”
Hanz shook his head at his character. “You are always hungry.”
“I am a growing boy,” Jordaan said, his stomach rumbled as though in agreement.
Behind them Prinz was dismissing the army. “I am hungry too,” Maddock said as he watched the man. Then turning to Sybil asked, “What is for dinner?”
“Mom left some money for pizza,” Sybil said as she struggled to sheath her sword.
Hanz helped her saying, “You need a shorter sword Sybil.”
“Tell me about it,” she muttered. “I am buying a claymore next time.”
“Why?” Jordaan asked. “Why not a board sword?”
“Claymore’s are Scottish,” Sybil said with a giggle.
Maddock rolled his eyes.
Sybil looked out over the battle field. “We sure got a lot of them.”
Hanz grinned. “I warned him!”
Jordaan cleaned his sword on the ground as his stomach continued to growl. Once his sword was clean he muttered, “I am starving! I am going home Hanz to find something to eat, I will see you there.”
Jordaan vanished before Hanz could say anything. He moaned and said, “He is going to eat us out of house and home!”
“Shall I go and keep an eye on him?” Prinz asked.
Hanz broke into a wide grin. “If you won’t mind, I will be there soon but if you could watch him till then…” Prinz nodded and with a salute vanished after Jordaan.
Maddock’s stomach rumbled and he looked at Sybil. “Are you going to order the pizza soon?” he asked hopefully.
Sybil rolled her eyes. “I will go order it now if you will stop acting like you are dying!”
Maddock grinned. “Deal!”
Sybil groaned and said to Hanz, “I will see you Monday I suppose, if you are coming?”
Hanz nodded. “Yes I will be there.”
Sybil smiled and said, “Okay, see you then!” Before she vanished leaving Maddock and Hanz alone.
For a moment neither said anything, then Hanz said, “We kind of made a mess of the valley.”
“They started it, and most of the mess is my fault.”
Hanz eyed the young man. “How so?”
“I killed most of them,” Maddock muttered. “With my rocks.”
Hanz rolled his eyes. “If we are counting who killed the most you are not allowed to count the ones you killed with your rocks.”
“Why not?” Maddock demanded.
“Because none of the rest of us had rocks that explode and take out hordes of them all at once.”
“That is not my problem. You choose your weapon I choose mine.”
“Then I can count the ones killed with the cannons,” Hanz said with a satisfied smile.
“But you didn’t even shoot them!” Maddock argued.
“Then you can’t count your rocks!”
Maddock grunted. “Fine, I don’t need them anyways! I killed more then you without them!”
“In your dreams maybe.”
“You want to count them and see?” Maddock demanded.
Hanz waved his hand up the hill. “Be my guest!”
“You count them!” Maddock exclaimed. “You are the one who wants to know!”
“No I don’t, you are the one who is doubting me! I already know I beat you,” Hanz smiled as Maddock rested his hand on his sword hilt.
That was when Justyne happened to come back. “I forgot my sword,” she said with a sheepish grin and she searched for it. Her eyes landed on Maddock and Hanz, both looking slightly riled. “What are you two up to?” she asked.
“Nothing,” Maddock said as he lowered his hand.
Hanz shook his head. “Nothing much, just debating who killed more men.”
Justyne shook her head. “Boys,” she said. “And to settle it you two were going to have a duel?”
“Of course not!” Maddock cried.
Hanz shook his head. “Not at all!” he said with an innocent look.
Justyne didn’t look convinced, but she did not press the matter. “Why don’t you have contested to settle it?”
“Huh?” Maddock asked, his brain did not function well when he was hungry.
“Contests, like knife throwing, pistol shooting, things like that,” Justyne said as she started to fade, her sword forgotten. “Nut no duels!”
“We won’t, we promise!” Hanz called as she disappeared.
“Now what?” Maddock asked who rather liked duels.
“We have contests I suppose,” Hanz said with a grin.
Maddock shrugged and pulled his dagger from his belt. “Shall we do knife throwing first?”
Hanz found a knife in the ground, this he pulled up as he said, “Yes, let’s”
And so for the next hour Hanz and Maddock had their contest. Maddock was so intent with it he failed to hear when Sybil called him to dinner. After they completed the knife throwing they moved on to bows, and then ended with pistols. By the end of the day Maddock was starting to think authors really weren’t that bad.
As he and Sybil ate their pizza that night while watching Sybil’s favorite movie, “Narnia, The Lion, the witch, and the wardrobe.” Maddock said, “Hanz really isn’t that bad of a guy.”
Sybil nodded her head. “I had a lot of fun with him and Justyne today.”
Maddock nodded his head and as Sybil sank back into the couch said, “I think he is going to be the first author I actually get along with!”
Oh how wrong he was!

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 I fear this chapter may be a little choppy at the end. Being as I am running without much of a plot until I get farther along...I fear it may sound rushed, bear with me, keep in mind this is a rough draft, and don't clopper me if I get your character a little...not like you.
 Ever yours, Sybil.

Sybil found all her fears flee when she met Christina. Though the girl was shy and a little gloomy, she was sweet and thoughtful and Sybil found that she liked her right off. Christina herself found she liked the shy red head who cast her beaming smiles every now and then.
Christina did not really have a main character that followed her about as the others did. However, she was welcomed and the very day she read one of her stories the other girls gasped in wonder. To say Christina had a way with words was to say birds flew. To ay Christina could weave words and change them from dull and boring into wonderful pictures was truer.
It was nearing the middle of spring when the first boy member joined Inklings. His name was Alex and his character was Damrin. By then other girls had joined the little group and though Sybil felt shy at first she quickly got over it around the girls and their characters.
There was Beth and her character Cael who was so gloomy one would fall over with surprise if he so much as turned his lips up into a half smile. Beth was some what like him, but not nearly as gloomy.
  Cherise and Meggy joined together. They were followed by Mariella and her character Anna. Mariella had an obsession with world domination, this was discovered right off. However, she was, in the less, a kind world ruler. Gaberilla joined soon after her. Then for a long while no one joined, until Alex came.
What he was thinking, joining a club over run by girls, maybe no one will ever know. However, one could not help but admit he was a brave fellow, marching up into the attacked armed with his notebook, Damrin at his side.
He entered the room to find a heated debated going on between Mariella and Meggy. What the debate was about and who had started no one knew for sure, but the two were going at it. They were at the point of calling down fire from Heaven to strike the other.
Alex blinked when he heard the two girls, he stood in the doorway as though unsure wither he should enter or flee while he had the chance.
“Will you two hush?” Sarah grumbled from the chair she was sprawled out in, head resting on one arm, feet draped over the other.
“I will hush when she admit she is wrong!” Meggy exclaimed.
“You will admit you are wrong now because I am the Empress of the world and demanded your respect!”
Sybil could not help the giggle that escaped her throat.
“You are only egging them on Sybil!” Sarah moaned.
Katie openly giggled with glee and danced about the room as Enya’s “Flora’s Secret,” played.
Sarah flopped the book she was reading over her eyes and moaned.
 “Give in or I will release my Turtle of Doom on you!” Mariella squared her shoulders and tossed her head back.
“I fear no turtle!” Meggy exclaimed. “I have powers beyond your imagination!”
“On what planet?” Mariella demanded.
Alex cleared his throat and said, “Have I come to the right place?”
All eyes turned on him and the room fell dead quiet. Katie stopped dancing so suddenly she lost her balance and fell to the floor. Sybil moved back into the shadows as Sarah lifted her book and grinned said, “You are in the right place.”
To his credit Alex did not turn and flee as he had every right to do at that moment. Sarah sat up and spreading her hands said with a grin, “Welcome to Inklings! Make yourself at home! Care for a cookie? Mrs. Forbes made them, they are good!”
Alex smiled and entering the room clamed one of the chairs where he munched on a cookie. Thankfully his entrance had broken up the debate, for the time being.
The meeting went rather well, Sybil soon felt ay ease even with all the new members. She was delighted with a new turn in her book, though not to keen on reading it aloud. After much begging, done mostly by Sarah and Katie, Sybil did read it to the others.
As she read Maddock stood in the background a scowl on his face. Reamann joined him to see if he could soften his sulky mood. “The story is turning out quite well don’t you think?” Reamann said quietly.
Maddock turned his head to look at his friend. “No, I do not think so!”
Reamann was taken off guard by his rather sharp tones. “And why not?” he said in a low voice. He really did not want Sybil to heart them.
“My only propose in the whole book is still comic relief!”
“Well…” Reamann’s voice trailed off. What was he supposed to say to that?
“The whole story is about Theobald!”
“Is that bad?”
“Let me put it this way,” Maddock turned to look at Reamann. “I end up marrying Carlyss in the end, she is one of the main characters, Theobald is the other, but for some weird reason I, who is not a main character, marries her. If Sybil keeps this up the whole story is going to be ridiculous!”
Reamann rubbed his chin, he was starting to understand. “You are right, but what can you do, it is her story!”
“Well, why can’t characters help their authors out?”
“Because we are just characters,” Reamann reminded him.
“But the stories are ours; now don’t tell me you and Kallen like everything in your book?”
  “I sure don’t!” Kallen said as he sauntered up munching an apple. “Katie has turned me into a wimp! Compared to Reamann I am a coward!”
“I wouldn’t say coward…” Reamann started before Maddock interrupted him.
“And you like every single thing they do to you in the book Reamann?” he pressed.
Reamann shifted his feet. “Well, not really,” he admitted after a while.
“My point proven!” Maddock’s loud voice caused the other characters to look over at the three of them.
“You have proven nothing,” Reamann said with a shake of his head.
“Well no matter what you think Reamann,” Maddock muttered sulkily. “I am going to do something about that book!”
Kallen grinned and Reamann gave one final attempt saying, “At least ask her about the changes!”
“Let me know how it goes!” Kallen said as he grinned wider. “I may have to follow suit!”
And so, that was how the trouble in Inklings started.
No new members joined that spring, and for a time there just remained the eleven of them. For the most part they all got along very well, in spite of Mariella’s constant talk of world domination and a small war started between Gaberilla and Katie. Sybil was slowly being drawn out of her shyness and the only one who never talked was Christina, she preferred to sit quietly and listen to all the proceedings, laughing softly at the members.
Meanwhile Sybil continued the changes to her book, making Theobald into the hero she knew he was meant to be. All the while, in the back of her mind, she was planning Maddock and Carlyss’s marriage, but to her it was nothing important and she did not spend much time thinking on it. All the while Maddock stood near by and watched as the book turned into a disaster, as he put it.
He could often be found trying to reason with Sybil, trying to give her pointers to make the book flow smoother. She, of course, did not heed him. She did heed Christina though at one of the meetings.
After reading a part in her book Sybil lowered it to hear Christina say softly, “I am glad Theobald is not the real king; that would have been cliché.”
Sybil’s head shot up. She did not say anything at first, but it did not matter as it was then Katie and Jane’s turn to read. The fact of the matter was Theobald was the king, she had only written that part to throw the reader off, which it seemed to have done. But the very idea that Theobald being king, the mysterious stranger who hid his face, being predictable…her thoughts trailed off. That was predictable wasn’t it?
Sybil thought about it through the rest of the meeting. The meeting was nearing its close when an idea came into her mind. She broke out into a grin and in her excitement failed to notice Maddock, who had been standing behind her whispering the suggestion in her ear for a good hour.
Sybil waited until the meeting was over, then went and pulled Jane and Katie aside to tell them her idea. Both girls thought it was wonderful, and from that day forth Theobald was not the king’s son, but his nephew, and with that change many others came tumbling in. It also meant Sybil had to restart the book, something that delighted Maddock.
Katie and Jane were having the same problem, having to restart their book, when they added a new plot and some new characters. Reamann and Kallen were starting to feel horribly confused over the whole thing but held their tongues and never uttered a word as for about the fifth time the book was rewritten.
As spring changed into summer Inklings once more met in the yard to enjoy the warm weather. Often the eager young writers could be seen sprawled out in the Forbes front yard armed with laptops, notebooks, and head phones, for every writer knows they must have music to listen to while writing.
One day Mariella came a little early to the meeting, she found Sybil setting up lawn chairs and glasses of lemonade. “Hi!” Mariella called out cheerfully.
“Hello,” Sybil lowered the tray of glasses to the table. Over heard birds where singing in the trees as a soft late spring breeze stirred the leaves and the sunlight filtered through lighting up patches of the green grass that was tickling Sybil’s bare feet.
“How are you today?” Mariella asked as she sank into one of the chairs.
Sybil sat down on the grass shyly spreading her long green skirt over her legs. “”I am doing well, how are you?” Sybil did not looked up as she spoke but instead looked down at her hands. She still felt a little shy around the girls she did not know that well.
“Oh alright, Anna is mad at me though.” Sybil had noticed that Anna did seem to be in a bad mood.
“How come?”
“I am torturing her something dreadful!” Mariella grinned as she spoke and Anna scowled, her face twisting as though she had eaten a lemon.
Sybil smiled though she did fell bad for Anna, she could only imagine the sort of torture Mariella could come up with. “I do believe she hates me,” Mariella was saying. “I am starting to think all my characters do.”
“That is too bad,” Sybil said.
Mariella grinned but gave no comment. Anna did a childish thing and stuck her tongue out at Mariella. Sybil giggled and could not help saying, “I have not really tortured my characters yet, so they still like me, I think.”
“You think?” Mariella asked.
“Maddock is a little sulky.”
“Aw, well tell him to get over it!”
Maddock scowled and walking over to Anna patted her arm and said, “I feel sorry for you.”
“I feel sorry for me too,” Anna muttered.
And so the spring passed and Inklings stayed the same size. Sybil’s story was in a way becoming quite popular amongst the members, though she felt this had nothing to do with her writing but a certain character. She had no idea all the trouble this was going to led to and continued writing. By the end of that spring she had completed the first draft, and for the most part it turned out very good. But as summer rolled along, and as Katie and Jane’s story grew she found much she wanted to changed and so started to rewrite it while Maddock smirked in the background.
It was the first day of spring when Alex brought his little sister Ness to the meeting. Ness was a writer as well and was welcomed with open arms by the other members. Even Sybil seemed delighted to have her and her character Justin.
A few days later Jane brought her little sister Rose and Rose’s character Cedryck. Sam and her character Mark, and Jules and his character Jason came the next day. They were followed a week later by the notorious Pip whose sole purpose seemed to be to stir up Inklings. Then the last two to join for a while was Justyne and Hanz. Justyne’s character was named Timothy, Hanz’s was Prinz Eugen. And so, once more Inklings fell into sort of a routine, but not for long.
It all really started the day someone brought up what books were the best ones to read for inspiration. The suggestions thrown out where ones that could be expected. Narnia, Lord of the Rings, and some suggested Eragon and others like it. As the books were being discussed Sybil made the fatal mistake of saying, “I have only read Lord of the Rings once.”
Dead silence fell over the members and it only deepened when Beth happened to say, “Me and my sister have never read them.”
There are certain things you do not do in life. One, try and kill really cool kings. Two, steal chocolate from a man bigger then you. Three, announce to a bunch of Tolkien fans, most of whom had so much as memorized the books and could speak elvish, that you have only read the books once, or even worse, not at all.
All eyes turned upon Beth and Sybil and both knew they were done for. “That is like, a crime!” Alex said, breaking the silence.
“A national crime!” Christina was so shocked she actually joined in the conversation.
“I do mean to read them, someday,” Beth stammered as a means of defense.
“And I do intend to read them again,” Sybil threw in; in a feeble attempt to escape what ever punishment it was clear the others were planning.
“I say we through them in a dungeon!” Katie declared.
“A rat infested one!” Jules added.
“With slimy walls!” Sarah added eagerly.
Sybil’s eyes brightened. “Hold your tongue Sarah!” she said meaningfully. “Or else!”
Sarah got the meaning, and wished she had never told Sybil that the only reason she could quote Lord of the Rings so well was because she had watched the movies at least fifty times each, she had never even opened the books.
Sybil smirked at her friend as Sarah sat back quietly, knowing she would have to try and get Sybil out of this or be drug down with her.
“Where shall our dungeon be?” Pip asked as she leaned forward in her chair, resting her elbows on her legs.
“We can close off a place in the attic,” Jules said thoughtfully.
Beth and Sybil looked at each other as their fate was decided. After much debate it was decided they would be thrown into the dungeon, and have to wait there for three hours, being when the meeting was over. Alex and Pip ran up to prepare the dungeon while the others lead the two girls up. And so began an incident that would forever change Inklings.
There are some people in this world who are naturally evil; they are probably born this way. Most of them become bank robbers and such; very few are saved from that path. What saves an evil person from becoming a robber? Maybe it is loving moms who make cookies, maybe it is an over dose of sweetness, the truth is no one will ever really know.
The Inklings all knew Mariella was one of the sweet evil people, all of her talk of world domination proved as much. For the most part her sweetness won out and though she would threaten she never really did anything. Pip was another matter entirely. Her evilness was found out with the dungeon.
When the Inklings learned they now had a means of punishment they did not fail to use this at every opportune moment. It seemed that even the slightest offence could land someone into the dungeon, which was no more then a corner really. The boys took turns guarding it. Rather Hanz and Jules guarded it; though Alex had as much fun throwing people in as the others he did not have the same delight in keeping them in.
After Sybil and Beth were freed with a scolding as to the importance Lord of the Rings had on writing, the dungeon sat idle for about a week, before another offence was made. This time it was Meggy, who made the mistake of ending her book with a cliff hanger. She was tossed in and once more Hanz and Jules took up the guard.
Meanwhile Pip sat back in her chair eyeing the whole proceedings with a somewhat evil grin.
During this time Sybil’s book took another change, thanks to Maddock who was using all his will power to change certain things. She was amazed when, one day, she found nearly everyone was left, not quite breathless but close enough to surprise her. However, she had made the fatal mistake, ending with a cliff hanging, and ended up in the dungeon. This time it was Alex and Hanz who where placed on guard being as Jules was reading his book.
Sybil sat on one of the old boxes, smirking to herself as she worked out a plan. Once Jules had everyone wrapped in his story Sybil cleared her throat, causing the two boys to turn. She smiled and in a low voice whispered a little shyly, “I have more of the book written.”
Alex looked over at Hanz who for all the world was trying to keep a straight military face; he took his duties as guard quite seriously.
“Why did you not read it all?” Hanz asked after a long silence.
“Because I did not want to give this one part away until I had decided if I liked it,” Sybil stammered. “But if you two release me, I will let you read it.”
Alex shook his head gravely and Hanz looked doubtful. However, there are certain facts one must always keep in mind with a story. However bad it is, if you stop on a cliff hanger everyone will be dying to know what happens next, and so the bribe worked. This fact came in handy later on for Sybil, at least for the next few days. Whenever she was thrown in she was always able to bribe her way out.
While all this was happening everyone noticed a change was coming over Pip. She started to develop evil laughs and rub her hands together. She was the sort of person who did resemble an evil villain, tall, thin, sharp nosed. She was cut out for two things in her life, being a villain or playing the female version of Sherlock Holmes.
However, she was running into some troubles over the whole villain thing. In all reality she was a sweet person who wrote very wonderful, God honoring stories. She was finding it odd, as where the others; that one moment she could be cackling and threatening the other members and the next be reading a story about a girl who was learning to rely upon God.
Mariella also was starting to feel threatened by the sudden evilness. “There is only one evil person in these parts!” Mariella declared one day.
“And it is me!” Pip laughed.
“Not a chance, I could strike you down where you stand!”
“Just try it!” Pip cried. “I don’t fear your lightening bolts!”
“But you shall fear my Turtle of Doom!”
“Turtle of Doom?” Pip cocked her head to one side.
“Yes!” Mariella laughed gleefully. “All shall learn to fear him.”
“Fear a turtle?” Pip started to laugh. “Not on this planet Mari!”
Gaberilla entered the room and looked at the two of them, facing each other, hands on their hips. “I don’t want to know,” she said when they looked at her.
Justyne, who was sitting in one of the chairs reading, looked up from her book long enough to say, “Trust me, you don’t.”
Gaberilla sat down next to her. “Where are the others?”
“Avoiding those two,” Justyne said without glancing back at the two girls who were going at it again.
“Smart of them, but I wish they would hurry up! I have news.”
Mariella was cackling again and Pip was shaking her head as though Mariella had gone insane.
When the others arrived the two girls sat on opposite ends of the circle and cast evil glances at each other every now and then.
“Does anyone have any news?” Sarah asked as a way to open up the meeting.
Gaberilla nodded her head and Sarah bowed in her direction. Rising Gaberilla faced the group and said, “I have heard many of you say you are up into all hours of the night writing, I myself have been known to do this. I know how lonely it is to stay up late alone writing, so I have come up with a solution. I have created a chat room online. Only Inkling members can get on, being a sit is protected by a password. Thus we shall have a place were us all night writers can talk and be safe from all those internet surfers who would jump at the chance to…talk to us I suppose.” Gaberilla let her voice trail off as she thought.
“I have the site and password with me, if you would like it come ask me for it after the meeting,” she finally concluded before sitting down again.
Sarah nodded and once more raised the question for announcements. It was Pip who stood up next.
She faced all the members, her face grave, her air almost dark. “I am certain you have all noticed I have a, evil shall we say, side.” Mariella rolled her eyes and Pip cast her a look that said, “Don’t say a word.”
“The truth of the matter is,” Pip continued. “Inklings has a bad guy, you may all be thinking this notorious outlaw is me, but it is not. I have an alter ego, his name is R.K. and he has an obsession with throwing people in the dungeon.”
Pip grinned widely as everyone stared at her opened mouthed. “I assure you, he is not dangerous, but he is evil and has, as you have noticed, been showing up a lot lately. He had only come a few weeks ago, before I had no other egos, I was just Pip.”
Sybil looked a little lost, but so did everyone else. The fact was it was going to take them all, including Pip, a while to get used to R.K. and his habit of showing up with the sole purpose of tormenting the others. Sarah and Hanz seemed to be the only ones who thought the whole thing was rather amusing, saying it was just like a Ted DeKker book.
After Pip announced the notorious villain R.K. stayed quiet for a while. However, he was not to stay gone for long. He showed up again the day Sybil marched into the room, a scowl on her face.
She had been having a great deal of trouble with Maddock, who with all the adoration he had been receiving had gotten a little, prideful. His latest act however had been a little too much for Sybil. She walked up to the table where Katie and Jane were sitting trying to work out the latest troubles in their book.
At one of the other tables, they had had to mare the circle bigger and add more tables so all the members would have a place to sit, were seated Meggy, Pip and Cherise. They were all writing as they waited for the others to arrive.
“I quit!” Sybil exclaimed as she tossed her notebook down on the table.
Katie’s head shot up. “What?” she demanded.
“I quit!” Sybil repeated. On discovering she was writing much the same kind of book as Jane and Katie Sybil often went to them with her troubles.
“Why?” Jane asked in amazement.
“I can’t stand it anymore,” Sybil glared down at the notebook and then turned to glare at Maddock who was standing beside Reamann and Kallen.
“What happened?” Jane asked as Katie said, “You can’t quit! If you quit then I shall!”
Sybil shook her head and addressed Jane. “Maddock! He has completely taken over! He has set himself up as the main character and kicked poor Theobald into the shadows!” Maddock received another glare, only this one harsher.
“But, he is so cool!” Katie gasped. “I am basing Kallen after him!”
Sybil froze as Pip rose from her chair with a threatening air. “You did?” Sybil said with wide eyes.
Katie nodded her head. “He is a wimp so I am basing him after Maddock!”
Sybil shook her head and opened her mouth when Pip, or rather R.K., said, “How dare you even think of quitting?”
Sybil turned. “What?” she asked.
“No one quits writing in this club!” R.K. said, hands on hips. “To even say so lands you in my rat infested dungeon!”
“I am not scared of your dungeon! I can just bribe the guards into letting me out again!”
It was probably a good thing Hanz and Alex were not in the room that moment. R.K. glared at Sybil and crossing his arms over his chest said, “Just you wait Sybil, just you wait!”
Sybil thought nothing more of it until the next evening.
Pip entered the room backwards; everyone was there that evening, most talking in low voices, some writing. Sybil, Katie, and Jane were discussing their books. Everyone looked up when they heard the racket at the door.
“What on earth?” Mariella asked as Pip stumbled in, yanking a tall card board box behind her.
“What are you doing with that?” Hanz asked. He had thing against cardboard boxes ever since the day he had had to chop them up.
“This!” Pip stood back and looked proudly at her box. “This is R.K.’s dungeon, and from this day forth anyone who leaves us with cliff hangers or threatens to stop writing, shall be thrown in with no chance of bribing their way out!”
All eyes turned to Sybil and she knew she as done for. Turning her head she glared at Maddock and mouthed, “This is all your fault!” He just smirked.

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After the incident with the popcorn maker and Jake becoming visible to Sarah things seemed to change between Sybil and Sarah. Sybil found it very easy to talk to her, why she did not know. More like she found it easier to pick on her. She was always saying things like, “You make any popcorn lately?” “Is your house still standing?”
Sarah had had a tricky time explaining the smashed machine to her family. In the end she had explained that it had caught fire and she had thrown it outside in the hopes of putting it out. Her dad had laughed and said, “That’s my Sarah!”
One day Sybil was walking down the street pondering over the fire and the movies. She was tossing around ideas as to how to add them into her book. And in some small way she was trying to think of away to maybe use the ideas to torment Maddock. He, of course, did not like this idea. 
When Sybil reached the park she climbed up into a tree to watch for Sarah while Maddock stood below not uttering a sound. Sybil failed to notice his sulky mood. “Maybe a bad guy should start a fire…”
“There is no bad guy in Hemlock,” Maddock reminded her.
“Then we need one!” Sybil’s eyes were shinning.
A bad guy? Why on earth did they need a bad guy? What was wrong with the story the way it was?
“I think the king should be more evil,” Sybil was saying.
“Which king?” Maddock looked up; Sybil was sitting on one of the top branches, legs dangling over, face lifted up, and he knew she was lost to this world.
“The king who took the throne from the right king. He should be very evil!”
Maddock shook his head. What was she thinking of?
“He could ride about killing the villagers…” Sybil’s voice trailed off.
“Sybil what are you thinking!” Maddock suddenly exclaimed.
Sybil jumped, lost her balance, and came crashing down. Maddock caught her and set her firmly on the ground. “Are you trying to kill me?” she demanded as she picked up her fallen notebook.
“No! Of course not!” Maddock exclaimed. “I was, I mean, you really can’t do that to us!”
Sybil looked down at her scribbled notes. “But it would make the story better!”
“No it wouldn’t!” Maddock nearly wailed.
“Oh stop it Maddock,” Sybil muttered as she sank to the ground.
Maddock flopped down beside her and looked over her shoulder as she wrote. The scene was unfolding before him even as he watched, he found himself at the mercy of her pen, not the best thing.
He was back in the forest; Sybil was at his side though she looked different somehow. Sure she always played the role of Carlyss, but she never really looked like Carlyss, this girl did.
“Carlyss?” he asked.
She turned her head and looked up at him, she smiled, it was Sybil’s smile, and her eyes, the rest of her features her not hers. “Yes Maddock?” she asked.
“What’s going on?” he felt a little dazed.
“We were going for a walk, remember?” Carlyss looked at him as though he had lost his mind.
“Oh yes,” he was remembering now, it always took him awhile to get completely back into the book. He was also a little nervous, wondering what Sybil had in mind.
He and Carlyss, or Sybil, or whoever she was, set off into the forest. The trees seemed thicker, rather they were thicker, then last time he had been through here. What was going on? Why was everything changing? This was a little unnerving; Sybil must really be up to something!
Something stepped on a twig up in front of him and Carlyss. He looked at the girl at his side. She was about fourteen he would guess, yes, he was about fifteen and Sybil had made Carlyss younger then him. So about fourteen or thirteen. She was wearing a short sword that she had drawn. Looking down he realized he too had drawn his sword. This was weird, he was starting to do things without knowing it; Sybil was actually commanding him!
A shadow moved through the trees, Maddock found himself walking toward it. His heart was pounding in his chest and his palms were sweaty, Sybil was making him scared? How dare she?
Snap. Sybil’s head shot up and Maddock was yanked back to earth. That snapping twig had not come from a book! Looking up Sybil saw two girls walk past, arm in arm. Their heads were close together and they were whispering and giggling. They were both dressed in long flowing dresses; one was wearing red, the other green.
Sybil watched as they walked past. Something about them made her stare openly. Maybe it was the way they were dressed, not every girl went about dressed in medieval clothing; Sybil wished she had the courage to do it. One of the girls, the one in red, turned her head slightly and her eyes met Sybil’s. Sybil smiled shyly and the girl returned her smile as her continued walking with her friend.
Sybil rested her head back against the tree and tried to get back to her writing, but for some reason her thoughts had been shattered. Maddock sighed with relief; he was safe, for now.
Sarah showed up a little later to find Sybil still sitting against the tree lost in thought. “What is wrong with you?” Sarah asked as she sat down beside her friend.
“Nothing really,” Sybil answered as she looked up at the big white clouds over head.
“You look distracted,” Sarah glanced over her shoulder at Jake who was standing a few feet off under a tree. “He has been following me, is that normal?”
Sybil giggled. “Yes it is; they do that. Maddock has not stopped following me since the day I made him.”
Sarah shook her head. “He has also been giving me suggestions for my book.”
“Maddock does that all the time, you don’t have to listen to them.”
Maddock looked at Sybil but she did not pay him any attention, he finally stood up and walked over to Jake. “What’s up?”
“Other then the fact Sarah thinks she is insane, nothing.”
Maddock shrugged. “I say all authors are insane. But guess what I saw!”
“What?” Jake asked dully.
“Two more characters, they walked passed with these two giggly girls, and they were dressed like me!”
“The giggly girls?”
Maddock rolled his eyes. “No, the two characters!”
“Aw, got it, so what is your point?”
“Sybil and Sarah are not the only authors!” Maddock grinned. “There are more of us about.”
“So, it isn’t like we get to meet them,” Jake muttered.
Maddock grinned. “Just wait, just you wait.”
***
In some weird away Maddock was right, years later he admitted to Jake that in passing he had spoken to one of the characters and they had agreed to try and get their authors together. But as it turned out they needn’t have bothered with it. It happened one day during a spring rain shower.
Sybil had woken to find the world wrapped in gloom and fog. She bound out of bed and rain to the window to find the sky over cast and holding the threat of rain. “Maddock!” Sybil called excitedly.
Maddock came running into the room and up to Sybil. “What?” he asked.
“It is going to rain! What to see if Sarah and Jake want to go for a walk?”
Maddock grinned and whole heartedly agreed to the plan. Sybil rushed downstairs and called Sarah, only to find her friend was otherwise engaged, being that she was holed up in her room with a book. Sybil, however, was not to be deterred and rushing back upstairs threw on a warm dress and jacket. She then ran outside, followed by Maddock.
By then a drizzle had started, only adding to the foggy grayness that hung over the little valley like a blanket. Sybil took a deep breath of the damp air, delighting in the dull morning. There was something magical, at least to her, and gloomy weather. Why it was she really could never explain, but it set her imagination running full speed and she was always able to get new story ideas.
Maddock did not mind rain and gloom; it reminded him in a small way of Hemlock. Being that Hemlock was an island it was nearly always stormy there. He smiled, then as quickly frowned thinking again of Carlyss. To him Carlyss had always been Sybil, but lately, well he couldn’t explain it. Sybil was really starting to change some things and it was making him nervous.
Maddock ducked under a low hanging branch as the rain fell faster. “Come on out!” Sybil scolded. “A little rain never hurt anyone!”
Maddock rolled his eyes at her. “I am not hiding!”
“Sure,” Sybil went back and yanked him out from under the tree and back into the rain. She giggled gleefully.
Maddock sighed as he shoved his wet hair back; he tried to hide the sudden grin that tugged at his mouth as Sybil tossed back her head and spun. She looked like Carlyss…she was Carlyss! Or was she? Who was Carlyss, really? Maddock felt very dizzy and had a sudden urge to sit down.
Moving toward the curbing Maddock was preparing to sit down when giggling broke the rainy stillness. Sybil stopped spinning and ran toward the tree, hiding behind it. Peaking around she watched as two girls walked into view, the same two girls she had seen at the park.
They were wearing old fashioned dresses and walking arm in arm again. Sybil watched them closely and as she watched she suddenly grinned for behind the two girls walked two young men who were dressed much the same like Maddock. It takes an author to recognize a character, and right away Sybil knew these two young men were characters.
Maddock, one seeing the young men, ran up to them grinning. “We meet again!” he exclaimed as he passed the girls.
“Who are you?” The one with light brown hair asked.
“I am Maddock,” he said with a quick smile.
“You are a character?” the girl with dark blond hair asked softly.
“Aye!” Maddock said with pride. “My author is behind that tree.”
Sybil scowled at Maddock but he did not care, he was busy talking to the two young men. The two girls looked over at Sybil and the one with brown hair smiled shyly and slowly made her way to the tree, the blond headed girl still clinging to her arm. Once they reached the tree the three girls looked at each other shyly, saying nothing for a long time.
Meanwhile Maddock was talking to the two young men. “My name is Maddock,” he said as he thrust out his hand. The taller of the characters smiled and said, “I am Reamann, I am Jane’s character.” He pointed to the blond headed girl as he spoke.
“And I am Kallen, I am Katie’s character.”
Maddock grinned wider. “I think we are about in the same time period too! Well I am please to meet you both!”
“As we are I am sure,” Reamann said gravely. Kallen grinned widely. “But come, our authors seem a little shy, I believe they need a little help meeting each other.”
Kallen smiled mischievously because all characters know it is easier for characters to become friends then it is for authors. Especially when those authors are shy. Walking up behind Jane and Katie the three characters smiled and said, “Shall we introduce you three?”
Sybil turned red as Maddock stepped up to her side and said, “Girls, this is my author, Sybil.”
Reamann stepped to Jane’s side and said with a bow, “Sybil this is Jane.”
Kallen grinned. “And this is Katie.”
“Pleased to meet you,” Katie said while Jane smiled but said nothing. Sybil thought she had a very pretty smile.
“I am pleased to meet you too,” Sybil stammered while Maddock stood at her side, grinning as though it was all his idea. If only he had known where this friendship was going to land him he would not have been so happy.
It took Sybil longer to be at ease around the two cousins, however they understood her troubles with Maddock, that were slowly growing, and over time their friendship grew. Sarah found she liked the two girls a great deal and so the four of them spent a lot of time together, mostly writing.
Over time however, Sybil ran into a new problem. There could be no doubt in her mind by that time that Sarah was her best friend. Their ties were unbreakable, even tighter then the ones she had ever had with Lisa. After so many years she at last had a best friend, she was content.
However, now she felt that she was becoming best friends with Katie and Jane. Surely that could not be! A person could only have one best friend could they not? Was she being a traitor to Sarah to be spending so much time with Jane and Katie? Why surely she was! So what was she to do about it?
As these thoughts plagued her night and day she found another problem facing her. With great reluctance Sybil had been sharing her story with the other three girls. They had been doing the same with theirs as a way to help each other out with them. At first Sybil did not want to do it, but the others were so ready to share how could she not?
Jane and Katie were writing a book together; Sybil loved the book and nearly bounced up and down when it was there turn to read. Sarah’s was very exciting and kept them all on the edge of their seats. But Sybil’s, hers, in her mind, could not hold a candle to theirs. And the more she looked at Maddock the more she realized how whippy he really was.
It is rather crushing for a character to learn their author thinks them whippy. In a very short space of time Maddock found his world crashing down on his head and discovered he knew no more about who he was then Sybil did. It was a strange thing not knowing yourself, finding everything you had been created to be was somehow messed up, and in the end you were just a nut who was around for comic relief.
No one could really blame Maddock for the gloom he fell in for the next couple weeks. And so while Sybil tried to figure out her friendships Maddock decided it was time to take certain matters into his own hands. How he was going to do this he did not know, he just knew he was.
One evening Sybil was out in her yard with Katie and Jane. Sarah had had to go home to dinner so the three girls found themselves alone, hard at their writing. Maddock, Kallen, and Reamann were sitting under one of the seven trees that dotted the yard, deeply engaged in a game of go fish; rather they were trying to figure out how to play.
Suddenly Sybil grunted and tossed down her notebook. “I can’t do this!” she groaned as she ran her hands through her bangs.
“Do what?” Jane asked gently. Since the day they had met they had learned to over come their shyness with each other, Katie so much so that she talked non stop when she was not writing.
“Write this book!” Sybil muttered as she glared at her notebook.
“Why not?” Katie asked as her head shot up and her eyes widened.
“It is too, dull,” Sybil said sadly. “Nothing like your book!”
“I think it is great!” Katie gasped.
“Not at all!” Sybil muttered. “It is a disaster!”
“How so?” Jane’s voice remained gentle.
“Maddock is a complete wimp!” the words cut into Maddock like a knife, a dull knife.
Reamann winced and looked over at his friend while Kallen scowled. He had been called wimpy so many times by Katie he knew how Maddock felt.
“I wish he was more like Reamann!” Sybil wailed.
“Reamann is a pain,” Jane muttered.
“They aren’t half as bad as Kallen,” Katie threw in.
Reamann shook his head while Kallen muttered, “Why is it when authors get discouraged they blame us?”
“Because they fear to admit it is their faults?” Maddock muttered. “They did create us after all!”
“Come now, don’t get riled,” Reamann said in an attempt to keep the peace.
Maddock scowled and bit his tongue, but he was unable to shake Sybil’s words.
“I really do like your story Sybil,” Jane was saying. “However Katie and I were talking and we have a suggestion.
Sybil perked up. “Yes?” she asked.
“Add romance!” Kaite said with a sigh.
Sybil wrinkled her nose. “Romance?”
“Yes!” Jane giggled.
“With who?” Sybil sounded doubtful. Romance? Her, she was the most unromantic girl alive!
“Well who does Carlyss end up marrying?” Katie asked.
“Maddock I suppose.”
Maddock’s head shot up again. He was marrying Carlyss? And when was Sybil going to inform him of this little fact?
‘I thought so!” Katie squealed.
Jane smiled and Sybil looked confused. “You were planning his marriage?” she asked.
"Well we were wondering if Carlyss would end up marrying Maddock or Theobald.”
Theobald was the good king in the book. He was Sybil’s favorite character. “I suppose Theobald is much too gloomy to marry,” Sybil said thoughtfully. “I suppose, if she does marry, she marries Maddock.”
“Well then, it would make more sense if she, you know, showed that she loves him,” Katie pressed. “We cannot tell if she likes Theobald or Maddock.”
Once more Sybil wrinkled her nose, she was not keen on the thought of romance but she said, “I will give it some thought.” She was not sure if she meant it or not.
Later that night as Sybil lie in bed, Enya playing gently on her CD player, she found her thoughts wandering back to the subject of romance. Could there be some promise in it? Should she give it a try? And al the sudden Sybil felt very nervous, because she realized Hemlock, and Maddock, was about to change.
Sybil did not see Jane and Katie again until three days later. In that time she had spent a lot of time with Sarah, laughing and running about plotting together. They had embarrassed Maddock and Jake when they had declared chocolate doughnuts evil and warned their families not to eat them.
Sarah’s sister refused to such terms and ate the doughnuts anyways; Sybil’s dad ate them just to pick on her. Sybil’s parents could often be seen smiling for seemly no reason, but deep down they were so happy they could not help but smile, because Sybil had last had a true friend.
The day Sybil met with Katie and Jane it was once more gloomy out, the other hanging clouds promising another spring storm. Sybil ran up to her two friends and gabbed their hands spun them about; they were in the park that day. The wind tugged at their hair and skirts, causing them to billow out.
Maddock found Kallen and Reamann sitting on one of the tables that were scattered about the park. Sitting down beside them he watched as his author danced about with her two friends.
“What has gotten into Sybil?” Kallen asked.
“She has decided to write a romance between Carlyss and me,” Maddock grumbled.
“There is nothing wrong with that,” Reamann said kindly. “Kallen and I both end up married.”
“To queens!” Kallen said with a grin.
Maddock looked side ways at them. “Both of you?”
Reamann nodded. “Aye.”
“Oh,” Maddock shook his head and after a moment’s silence said, “This is so unlike Sybil, I am worried what she will do next!”
Reamann rested a heavy hand on Maddock’s shoulder. “Never fear, we are here beside you no matter what she does to you!”
Maddock looked sideways at the man beside him. “That is not very comforting,” he said. Kallen laughed gleefully.
“Sorry, I am not sure how to comfort a man who is upset that he is getting married at the end of a book.”
Maddock grunted in reply.
Meanwhile Sybil was talking over the change with Katie and Jane. Both girls, needless to say, were thrilled over the whole thing.
“Maddock deserves it,” Jane said with a smile.
“I suppose, he is getting sulky though,” Sybil was still having her doubts.
“He will get over it now that he gets married in the book!” Katie said with a giggle.
“Are you sure?” Sybil asked warily.
“Oh yes!” Katie laughed and danced about as the wind picked up.
Sybil smiled and gasped as Katie grabbed her hands and danced with her over the green grass. Jane laughed at them; then her giggle grew until she was laughing as loudly as them, and chanting with Katie, “Maddock gets married!”
Maddock’s face reddened and he felt ready to sink into the table. This was so embarrassing! He had no idea who he was going to live this one down. He knew he was done for once Sarah found out.
***
The day Inklings officially started was the day all four girls met out in the yard again. They had not been able to so much as start reading before a light ran begin to fall. With squeals of horror they grabbed their laptops and ran into the house where the stood in the living room and scowled out at the rain.
“Now what?” Sarah asked.
“Go home I suppose,” Katie said right as Mrs. Forbes entered the room.
“Go home!” she exclaimed, causing all four girls to turn. “Why on earth would you do that?”
“It is raining mom,” Sybil said sadly. “We cannot go out in the rain.”
Mrs. Forbes looked out the window then at the four girls. “I would say a little rain never hurt anyone, but it can kill computers. I would suggest your room Sybil, but if you four mean to keep up this club you need an official meeting place, preferably not the front yard.”
The wind howled as though in agreement.
“Where then?” Sybil asked hopefully.
Mrs. Forbes eyes shone with girlish fun. “Why not the attack?” she asked.
The girl’s face lit up. “You mean it?” Sybil gasped.
“Of course I do!” Mrs. Forbes laughed. “It is all yours; you shall have to clean it first…”
No sooner had the words left her mouth then the girls, and characters that Mrs. Forbes could not see of course, rushed upstairs to set to work. Mrs. Forbes laughed as she turned back to the kitchen to finish her baking. 
The attack stretched the length of the house and was full of boxes and old furniture. Most of the stuff was left from the previous owners. Not that the girls cared much, the furniture would come in handy. But first they had some major cleaning to do. Sybil brought her radio up and they spent the whole day cleaning and moving the furniture about while Josh Groban and Enya played loudly.
It took a great deal of work to get the floors clean, which when they were done were really a lovely, polished wood. The windows also required a great deal of cleaning, but when they were done the gray light was able to actually shine through, Sarah found lacy curtains in one of the boxes and these were hung over the seven windows. All of the boxes were pushed to one corner of the attack, while the furniture was neatly arranged on the other side of the room.
Jane found thick rugs that, once they had a nice beating to get all the dust out, where spread by the couch and chairs. Katie found a lamp, this they set on one of the tables.
Sybil found a fat, old fashioned stove that burned wood; it even still had its chimney in tacked. “I bet daddy could set this up for us, it would keep us warm in the winter,” she said as she moved it by the furniture.
By the time the sun was setting the girls had a nice little corner all set aside, and it did look quite cozy and snug. The girls all giggled in glee, and when Mrs. Forbes brought them fresh cookies up they thankfully sank down onto the couch and chairs and rested.
Maddock, Kallen, Jake, and Reamann clamed the other chairs. They had been the ones who had moved the furniture and were now grateful for the rest. Sybil smiled contentedly and murmured, “We shall have such fun up here!”
Sarah sighed. “Yes we shall.”
“What shall we call our club though?” Katie asked.
Sybil opened one eye while Sarah rubbed her chin. Jane leaned forward in her chair and the relaxed mood was broken as they all ransacked their brains for a name.
“We could use the name from Little Women,” Jane suggested. “The Pinwick Club.”
“Or we could call ourselves the Wandering Muse Club!” Katie giggled.
“How about Inklings?” Sybil suggested, her face reddening.
“Inklings?” Jane asked.
“Like the club C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien were members of.” Sybil smiled sheepishly.
Jane, Katie and Sarah broke out into wide grins and before Sybil knew what had happened the name was voting on, and agreed on. Inklings it was.
“I was wondering,” Katie said after a pause. “Can I invite my friend Christina? She writes too, she writes very well, and she would love to come!”
The other girls grinned, though Sybil a little nervously. She as not sure she wanted more girls to come, but how could she say no? It would be selfish! And so, Sybil agreed with Jane and Sarah, and once more, stepped into another change in her life.    

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Sybil stood on top of the small hill, looking out over the flowery meadow. The wind tugged at her long skirt, pulling it out behind her, causing it to dance. A sad smile tugged on her lips as she pushed her long red hair back. This was the perfect scene, the flowery meadow and the spring wind carrying with it the smell of flowers and rain.
Below her, in the meadow, Sybil could see a girl dancing. She had long red hair like Sybil’s, but she was tall and graceful. Her eyes, a wonderful green hue, shown out in all brilliance, all in all she was beautiful. She moved with the ease and grace of an elf, moving in and out of the tall yellow grass.
Sybil sank down to the glass, pulling her knees up to her chest; she continued to watch the girl. The girl was giggling now, her giggles rising on the wind and carrying up to Sybil. She was happy, and why she was happy only Sybil knew, because Sybil was the only one that could see the girl.
When Sybil remembered this she saw with sorrow the meadow fade, and the girl vanished. They were replaced by a small local park and loud children who were at play. Sybil sighed and rested her head against the tree she was sitting under. It was horrible being able to imagine such wonderful things, and not being able to actually go there. No, Sybil was stuck here, in this little town, friendless.
Some boys were tossing a ball about ten feet from Sybil. She watched as one boy missed the ball and rolled close to her. She pressed her back against the tree and tried to hide as the boy ran to get it. He spotted her and cast her a friendly smile, Sybil just pressed back farther against the tree.
Once the boy had gone Sybil stood up and tried to find another, less crowded place to sit. She found it under a pine tree, dropping to her knees she crawled under and hide behind the low branches. Yet she was not there long before a young man in a long cloak, tall boots, and a sword joined her.
“Maddock,” Sybil said.
Maddock sat down by his young author and smiled at her. He was handsome; he resembled Peter from Prince Caspian, only with red hair. Sybil had decided on this when she had made him.
“Are you hiding again?” Maddock asked Sybil.
“No,” Sybil grumbled as she played with the pine needles that covered the ground under the tree.
“You know if you always hide you will never find a friend,” Maddock said with a smirk as though he knew everything.
Sybil rolled her green eyes and demanded, “Did you come here to lecture me pr help me with my book?”
Maddock sighed. “”I came to help of course.”
Sybil slung a leather bag off her shoulders and reaching inside pulled out a notebook and a pen; she also removed the book she was reading. “Now, where were we?”
“You were bringing in a new character,” Maddock reminded as Sybil turned to a black page.
“Oh yes,” Sybil’s voice grew quieter as she spoke. Slowly her world faded again and she found herself carried away in her book.
Maddock looked sideways at his author. She was fifteen, not very tall, but rather pretty in her own way. Her smile, when she smiled, was lovely, like sunshine coming through storm clouds. However, he himself found he was fading to his world, and once more found himself in Hemlock where he was a young shepherd about to have a grand adventure.
In this scene he was supposed to find a girl sneaking up on him and his friend Carlyss, but he wasn’t really crazy about the scene. It just didn’t fit, though what could he do, he was just a character. He had to do whatever Sybil said, or did he? The thought was not a new one; he was just not brave enough to carry it out yet.
Sybil wrote until evening fell; then she put away her notebook and went home, Maddock walking at her side. When they reached her house Maddock slipped up to the attack where he slept. Sybil went into the kitchen where her mom and dad would be. However, as she neared the door way she heard them talking, about her.
“I am worried about her,” Mrs. Forbes was saying.
There was a soft clank as he dad set a plate down on the table. “So am I, but what can we do? She is too shy to talk to anyone, and no one seems to be willing to over look that.”
Mrs. Forbes sighed heavily. “I know, she just seems so lonely, I wish she had a friend! Someone her age to be around!”
Mr. Forbes was silent for a moment. “All we can do is pray,” he finally said.
Tears pricked at Sybil’s eyes when she heard her parents. She knew the move had been hard on them as well as her, but they seemed to have adjusted so quickly, where she, she was still without a single friend. She had only had one friend at her old home, and when she moved she had not heard a word from her friend. Now loneliness was her constant companion, loneliness and Maddock.
However, that night Sybil continued to think about her parent’s words. She as unable to shake them, the thought that they were sad for her touched her deeply. Her parents still wanted her to be happy. That comforted her.
God wants you to be happy too, a voice whispered as she started to fall asleep. He does not want you to wallow in despair. He has given you and your family hope, it is time to stop feeling sorry for yourself and live in that hope.
Sybil rolled over one her bed, partly in hopes of stopping the voice, but it refused. It plagued her all through the night. God did want her to be happy, and she had been in despair for months, four to be exact, ever since she had her parents had moved here.
“I am sorry,” Sybil prayed as she started to drift off to sleep. “I will try better.”
You will, the voice seemed to be laughing as though it knew something she didn’t.
The next day was Sunday. Sybil was pulled out of a lovely dream by a screaming alarm clock. Moaning she rolled over and turned it off muttering, “Alarms are the worse muse killers ever!”
Stumbling out of bed Sybil showered, dressed, and then hurried downstairs to breakfast. She found her dad in the kitchen burning sausage. He grinned when he saw his daughter, pausing in his burning to give her a hug. “How is my ray of sunshine?” he asked as he tugged on her braid.
“Very well!” Sybil exclaimed as she hugged him tightly.
Mr. Forbes grinned. “Glad I am then; and how comes the book?”
Sybil wrinkled her nose. “Alright, Maddock is kind of misbehaving over a certain scene.”
Mr. Forbes never knew what to make of Sybil’s talking to her characters, nor did he understand why she could just not write them to do what she wanted them to. However he gave her a hug and said he hoped she could get Maddock to listen.
After church the little family went back home where, after lunch, Mr. Forbes too a nap while Mrs. Forbes read. Sybil went up to her room, climbed into her window seat, and turning on her MP3 player and laptop, set about writing. Maddock join her, sitting on the floor below her perch. Neither one noticed that Sybil was being watched by someone in the street below, a someone who would forever change Sybil’s life.
The next day Sybil woke early and as usual went for her morning walk, accompanied by Maddock who wanted to talk to her about her book.
“I am telling you Sybil,” he said as they walked under the bright morning sunshine that was starting to dry the world after a midnight shower. “If you simply moved the scene to the cave it would work better.”
Sybil shrugged her shoulders. “I will think about it.”
Maddock doubted she would, once she had a scene in her head there was no turning her from it; she could be stubborn. Maddock sighed and titled his face up to the sky, letting the sunlight warm him. He was going to have to work on her.
Sybil closed her eyes and imagined herself in a heavily wooded forest. All around her birds were singing. She smiled as she opened her eyes and took it all in. She and Maddock were nearing the village in the Under Forest. The Under Forest was a region in Sybil’s made up world which she had named Hemlock. The castle was on a hill above the Under Forest, but it played a very little role in her stories.
In Hemlock Sybil played the role of Carlyss, a bold heroine who had many friends. She was pretty, tall, graceful, and talkative, everything Sybil wasn’t. Maddock was Carlyss’s best friend in the stories, but Sybil wanted to add a girl, hence the scene she was working on.
Up ahead there was a stream, a small creek that wove through the trees. Sybil and Maddock walked over to it and sat down on a log that had fallen over it. Sybil dangled her feet into the stream, letting the cool water tickle her toes, the sun warmed her back, seeping through her light cloak and green dress.
“I have heard a rumor,” Maddock said as he removed his tall boots.
“Oh?” Sybil asked, she turned her head and smiled at her friend as he moved out along the log and sat beside her, dangling his own feet into the stream.
“Aye, I have heard the king is coming!”
Sybil’s breath caught. The king who ruled Hemlock now was not the real king. Though he was not really evil he was also not very nice. The real king has supposedly been killed as a boy, but everyone held to the belief that he was still alive and would one day return and stop the false king.
“Do you believe it?” Sybil asked Maddock.
He shrugged. “I am not sure, I guess we can only wait and see.”
“Pardon me?” The voice came crashing through Sybil’s daydream. Her head snapped up as Hemlock faded from her vision and she found herself back in Dale, Wyoming, sitting on a curbing.
Looking beside her Sybil realized Maddock had vanished along with the forest and her medieval clothing; once more she was dressed in her blue skirt and white tee shirt. She wore two red ribbons at the bottom on her braids. The only thing that hadn’t changed was her feet, she was still bare footed.
Slowly Sybil looked up to see who had torn her back to earth. Her face turned as red as her hair as her eyes landed on the girl who was standing above her. She had long brown hair, sparkling hazel eyes, and a wide grin. She was wearing a long blue jean skirt, a brown tree shirt, and tennis shoes. All this Sybil took in, in a single glance.
The girl was smiling at Sybil as Sybil tried to think of something to say. In the end she lowered her head and wished she could vanish.
“Hi!” the girl spoke again. Sybil didn’t look up. “My name is Sarah, who are you?”
Sarah, Sybil loved that name. Slowly she lifted her eyes and looked once more at the girl. “I am Sybil,” she stammered.
“Oh!” Sarah gasped. “What a lovely name!”
Sybil didn’t think so, but she was not about to argue.
“Mind if I sit down?” Sarah asked, and before Sybil could stop her she was sitting next to her.
“You are new here aren’t you?” Sarah asked after a moment’s silence.
“Sort of,” Sybil answered as she looked down at the street.
“I say you yesterday,” Sarah continued. “You were in your room with your laptop! You looked so pretty sitting in your window seat. That was the first day I had seen you, but I saw you looked lonely so I decided to find you today and introduce myself.”
Sybil looked side ways at Sarah; she had never heard anyone talk so fast in her life. Sarah grinned at her. “What were you doing yesterday?”
“Writing,” Sybil stammered.
“Writing!” Sarah squealed. “I love writing!”
Sybil’s eyes brightened. “You do?” she asked shyly.
“Oh yes! I am working on a book right now!”
Sybil smiled though it was a shy smile. “So am I.”
“What is your book about?” Sarah pressed excitedly.
Sybil was reluctant to tell, but Sarah was being so nice and friendly, and she really looked as though she wanted to know. Sybil lowered her head and nervously twisted a strain of hair around her finger. “Well,” she began quietly. “It is about a kingdom called Hemlock, and a boy named Maddock and a girl named Carlyss, and they try and help the king get his throne.” Sybil stammered quickly. Her hands shook as she spoke.
“Oh! That sounds like a wonderful story! Mine is about a man named Jake…”
Jake, who had been standing in the shadows of a tree, smiled at the mention of him name. He moved closer to his author, when he did so Maddock say him and walked over to him.
“Greetings!” Maddock exclaimed causing the man to turn.
Jake grinned. “Hi, my name is Jake, and you are?”
“Maddock, Sybil’s character.”
“I guessed as much, I am Sarah’s.”
“What kind of book?”
“Modern thriller of sorts, she is thinking of tormenting me something awful in it. Yours?”
“A sort of fantasy. I don’t think I get tortured much, Sybil is not the sort.”
“Glad to hear it, when an author starts torturing there is no stopping them, it is like a disease.”
 Maddock smiled and said nothing, because he knew Sybil would never do anything like that to him. If only he was able to see the future, he would have run for the hills.

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