`listen to the skies s c r e a m

[ryanne gabrielle castillo]

It was one of those nights again.

The one kind that really shouldn't have made a difference in all the other nights in her life, whether or not the girl in question was currently walking alone in the midst of La Push wilderness. It wasn't really as scary as what her classmates had whispered about during geometry class, there weren't any stalking nine-foot wolves that one boy 'claimed' to have seen on one of his ventures. Probably just saw an overgrown squirrel, she mused quietly to herself, barely minding the soft crunches of leaves beneath her sneakers as she kept treading at a leisurely pace. It wasn't as if the young girl was in any rush to get back home and be all by herself for company. Mara had gone out with Audrey somewhere, she never really specified where she went to her little sister; and Mr. and Mrs. Castillo had called her a few hours before and informed her that she wouldn't be seeing them until tomorrow afternoon. Overtime work hours could be a real bitch, she assumed, but it wasn't as if they were required or anything. No, they wanted the work, for what reason Ryanne couldn't identify. They were hardly upper class, more working middle, and she was fine with that. But like everything else Ryan couldn't understand about her parents, sometimes what they had just wasn't enough.

The point being, anyway, that there was no real desire to be all alone in her room for hours to come with nothing but a TV remote to keep her company. Her homework had been done ages ago (most of it in class, since unlike the other students she actually paid attention), her chores were finished, and she had gone through all of her classes today. At least she wasn't completely alone in the forest - there were animals, like deer and rabbits and things of the like. Ryan sighed quietly, kicking a rock a good ten feet away before she stiffened at the crack of a twig snapping that certainly wasn't her. Of course, she had to be reminded that the past few trips she had wandered along the woods, something had been giving her a shiver down her spine. Stupid wild dogs,

[/color] she thought, annoyed as she kept walking. The shuffling soon became faster, and Ryan tensed with the increasing sense of foreboding; something wasn't right. Wild dog or not, whatever it was, it wasn't friendly.

Slowing down in pace, so did the other footsteps she could hear somewhere behind her in the darkness, and Ryanne swallowed. She shook her head, in disbelief; she was being stupid about all of this, certainly. Just a dog,[/color] Ryan told herself vehemently, not allowing herself to be frightened,Just a stupid wild dog that can't hurt me.[/color] Even though wild dogs had teeth and claws and... packs.[/color] She voiced the last word with dread, hearing another rustling coming from a different direction. From the sounds of it, it was in front of her hidden in the trees; Ryan's footsteps slowed to a complete halt. Okay, one stupid dog could be dealt with, but two or more? That just wasn't fair. Her brown eyes vainly darted back and forth in the darkness of the trees; she might have had great eyesight (for a human, anyway), but that didn't mean she had night vision for christ's sake. So it was pretty much useless for Ryan, nothing more than a defenseless lamb about to be torn apart by vicious dogs. Is this what I get for wanting the slightest bit of freedom? Crap.[/color] The shifting - coming from both sides now - were getting more frequent even though Ryan had stopped moving completely. She couldn't find it in herself to try to run - why would she, when she was surrounded to a point?

It was at this moment, as well, that Ryanne cursed herself harshly for not bringing her cellphone with her. It would have at least provided her with light to see what was hidden by the night, even if there wasn't any signal in the forest. And if there was, well, instant rescue - Mara would probably rush back within record time if she thought Ryan was in real danger. But with her luck, she wouldn't have to settle for just a cellphone - as a body began to emerge into the clearing, into view as there was suddenly a swift rampant of noise behind her.

A person?
[/blockquote][/size]

[Zacharia "Zac" Smith]

Mara was a naive girl to trust Zacharia, spilling things from her life to him that she shouldn't have. Mostly, he didn't care to particularly mess with Mara so much, but he just couldn't pass up the opportunity that Mara had unknowingly presented to him. Ryan is so sweet, so guarded. I worry that one day reality is going to show up and break her down. I don't want that to happen. Mara really shouldn't have been ranting to him that night, but apparently she hadn't been able to go to her best friend, whatever her name was, A something. She hadn't even told her best friend about him? How sad. Although he had to admit, Mara was perfect for his games - for his goals. She was just another piece in his game, and she didn't seem to mind he wasn't attached - in fact, she seemed to enjoy that fact quite immensely. She liked that their nights had little conversation and got right to the point - sex. But what she didn't seem to realize was that she was giving Zac far more than just a night of satisfaction, no, she was giving him information, and links to so many people that would be his next targets. Her popularity, at least in the sense of being known, was something he had counted on. She was both loved and hated by many, and that was precisely the connection he needed, especially to those god awful dogs. But for now, his target was Ryan. He would make sure she was not so naive anymore, not so sweet and guarded.

He had been watching and observing Ryan for days, waiting for an opportunity that would open up for his plans - that would help him on his quest. The stupid girl made it so easy for him, walking into the La Push wilderness all by herself? ( Tsk tsk. She should really learn some common sense. Going into the big bad forest all by herself? Wrong move. ) He was just about to make his move when he smelt the lightest fragrance coming from past Ryan. It wasn't a wolf, but it definitely wasn't a vampire. It would be harder to do what he wanted with a witness, but he could easily get rid of them - no human could stand up to him. It was when he got closer to Ryan when the scent got stronger and he realized it wasn't a human either. He was perplexed for a moment until he realized something - he remembered how Mara had smelt, and this smell was so similar. Mara, he had learned through much observation was a half-breed, and now, he believed, was another one about to ruin his plans. Of course, this half-breed certainly couldn't tell he was here, because he was currently using his power, keeping himself hidden, in case one of the dogs ended up showing up suddenly. ( Come on. You can at least take her without alarming the half-breed. They won't even realize. )

Harper had been absolutely sick of being stuck in her home and thus she found herself in the wilderness, where she seemed to spend much of her time. Lately, she had been paying attention to a certain area, drawn to it in a sense. Being out here was easy and beautiful - enough to help her keep her distance from her mother who seemed very on edge lately, for reasons Harper certainly couldn't explain. She didn't like being around her mother when she was like that, so she decided not to be. Tonight was slightly different, although a little similar to something she had noticed a few nights before. The last few nights, she had sense and smelt something or someone, but never went looking for whatever the smell had come from. Tonight, she decided to go looking for it, and it took her little time before she found her. It wasn't just a flower she could smell or anything, but the smell was still just as beautiful. When she set eyes on the girl, something clicked in her mind.

At first, she didn't know if she should go up to her, so she just followed her for a few minutes, staying ahead of her in case she turned back, but after moments of nothing, she had to break the silence, had to make herself known. She walked out from the trees and brush she had been behind and stepped in front of the girl. The look on her face was a cross between startled and frightened. The girl was absolutely beautiful, and she felt horrible for even following her, because it was wrong to do that to someone. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. I was just walking around thinking and I heard footsteps; I thought I would see who was out here by themselves, walking around as aimlessly as I was." she said, immediately wanting to slap herself. That certainly didn't sound creepy or anything. God, sometimes she could really make an idiot out of herself. "I'm Harper, by the way." she said, reaching out her hand to introduce herself properly.

The half-breed was a girl, and before he could make his move, she had made herself know to the girl, and shown she had been watching her. He was outraged, made that he had lost his chance, but he would make sure not to make the same mistake next time. Next time he would anticipate and get rid of the half-breed. He stopped one second and stormed off in a fast run, mad that he had lost his chance. He would not make any mistakes next time. No.

[ryanne gabrielle castillo]

There were two things Ryanne wanted to do: keep staring blankly at this new stranger, and look backwards simultaneously to where the crunching of leaves was becoming much more distant and faraway as the seconds ticked on mercilessly. Obviously the second was more important (should have been more important, was more appropriate), Ryan couldn't tear her eyes away for even a brief second. She was definitely... pretty,

[/color] Ryan finished weakly in her head, suddenly feeling lightheaded. She also thought she saw a quick flash of shame in her eyes - like she wasn't proud of herself for following her and making herself known. But that wasn't reasonable, no; Ryan wanted her to make herself known. And besides, (finally, for a very quick few seconds, turning her head to notice the other prescence in the forest was gone) she scared off the wild dog. "Thanks,"[/color] she gave the other a small, sheepish grin,"You'd think I was carrying around butchered meat or something, the wild dogs here get too close for comfort."[/color] She'd just have to carry something to ward it off next time if she were alone, that's all; a baseball bat or something, she was sure she could rummage for something in the garage.

Listening as the girl explained herself, Ryanne found herself shrugging it off quickly given the fact she really did just get the shit scared out of her (though that was mostly due to unwanted company of a vampire stalker, not the friendly half-breed in front of her), not wanting her to feel bad. "No, it's cool,"[/color] she brushed it off, shaking her head,"I just get freaked out too easily. Too many reruns of Texas Chainsaw Massacre, you know."[/color] Which, admittedly, had not been far too much of a stretch from the truth: Ryanne had a chronic problem of watching horror movies that would leave her up in the night for hours on end, fearing nightmares of whatever serial killer she had just watched decapitate some well-known celebrity. After she had slipped out her comment, though, she winced internally. Wow, no wonder people think you're lame, Castillo.[/color] Alright, so, she just admitted to someone she met two seconds ago that she gets scared of fictional movies in the middle of a dark, dense forest where it really wouldn't be that hard for anyone to dispose of a body before it decomposed so much the decaying matter wouldn't suit evidence in a court case (... I gotta stop watching CSI Miami, too, god damn.[/color]). It wasn't exactly the smartest move, but the girl definitely seemed harmless. She did pretty much just save her from... whatever that thing was, so she couldn't have been all bad.

Harper.[/color] So that was her name.... pretty name to suit a pretty face, she guessed. Ryan shook her hand, always having been taught it was the polite thing to do not to grasp too loosely ot shake too firmly. Funnily enough, she never paid much attention to small details such as those, until one of her parents had something to say/correct/criticize her about it. "Ryanne,"[/color] she introduced herself as well, offering Harper a bright smile,"Most just call me Ryan, though."[/color] It was usually a speculative raise of eyebrows - usually commenting on the weirdness and/or cool fact that her parents gave her the feminine names of two very male names: Ryan Gabriel. She secretly suspected the doctors told her parents that she was supposed to be a boy, to his error reading the ultrasound, but her parents vehemently denied such. It was.... unique? Yeah, sure. Whenever people brought it up, Ryan was always just reminded of an incident in a jungle gym when she was a child. Good times; at least they learned not to make fun of her. Stupid boys and their teasing.

Ugh, Mara might throw a fit if she found out Ryan was alone in the La Push wilderness at dark alone (at least until Harper came along); when it came to her little sister's safety, she didn't mess around. Not that she wasn't appreciative of having a big sister looking out for her (God knows all her parents did was criticize and tell her not to do it again), but it wasn't like she was going to end up dead in a ditch somewhere. It was then Ryanne hoped that the girl didn't go to Forks and/or had any classes with Mara, or even knew her on any sort of terms. If Harper told Mara... she didn't even want to think about it. But then again, Ryan hadn't ever remembered seeing this girl around, and usually she was pretty good and remembering faces and names. With a sudden realization, Ryan had to stop herself from rolling her eyes at herself. She was on the La Push reservation; obviously this girl went to the separate school for kids living here. She threw herself out of her thoughts, and returned her attention back to Harper.

"So... you like walking in creepy dark forests, too?"[/color][/blockquote][/size]

[Harper McNeel]

Harper was probably going crazy, no, she was certainly going crazy. This girl was beautiful, maybe the most beautiful thing she had ever set eyes on. ( Wait! Get a hold of yourself. You don't even know her. ) Harper, if paying more attention, might have heard or sensed someone else running from the scene, but currently she was mesmorized by the girl in front of her, the complete stranger in front of her. How was it that a stranger could pull at her this way just by Harper setting her eyes on her. Besides, Harper swore there were no girls anywhere surrounding La Push that would even slightly mean anything to her, or could mean anything to her - especially with her trust issues, but she found that as of this moment, her entire trust lied in the very stranger before her, allowing her to make or break it as she may please. It wasn't until the girl's majectic voice vocalized, that broke her thoughts. "You're welcome." she said, a smile spread across her face. "Wild dogs? Hmm. I didn't see any.. maybe I am blind. It is kind of dark out here." she said, wincing at the words wild dogs. She was technically part wild dog, if she thought about it. She didn't smell any werewolves around, or any vampires when she had come into the forest. She hadn't even sense any larger animals. It was weird that the girl thought wild dogs were around her. Then she thought of the steps that she had heard running from the scene. Someone had been out here, but they certainly weren't a dog. Luckily, it seemed, she had scared them off. (Or more so, pissed them off.) "I don't think it is smart to walk out here by yourself, especially if you seem to be a fiesta for 'wild dogs'." she joked, looking around and stretching before she sat down on the ground. She assumed the girl would talk with her, and if she didn't want to, then she would leave, but right now, Harper had no intentions of leaving.

She smiled as the girl explained why she seemed scared. She was amazed to hear she wasn't the only one to get freaked out by scary movies sometimes. Harper was a half-breed, sure, but it didn't mean she was super brave. There is a difference between fighting off bad guys in vamp form, and then being killed in horrible and tragic ways. At least with a vampire, you usually know what is coming. Serial killers don't give you the pleasure of having that satisfaction, no, they kill you in horrible ways, and scare the living hell out of you. "Wow. I thought I was the only one to get freaked out by some of those horror movies nowadays. I can't even watch them without getting nightmares, or being convinced that I am going to be killed by some guy when I am in the shower, or when I go down a dark alley or something." she explained, usually wanting to keep that to herself, but feeling so easily ready to tell this girl any detail about her life she wanted to hear. She still felt silly admitting that. It was one thing when you were in a dark forest, sort of paranoid (because that is understandable) but when you are scared of your own home because of a movie you watched? ( It is a wonder anyone is my friend. I am such a freak.

[/i] ) Harper's friends, however few and far between understood that she was a weirdo most of the time. Her two friends that she really trusted were mostly Kody and Dakota for now, although, maybe she could hope to make even more friends, if she wasn't so crazy and wild in front of people all the time.

Ryanne. Her name was beautiful, and it practically melted her heart. How could someone this beautiful in every way be talking to her right now. How did she even find her? Maybe it was a dream - or more like a fantasy. That was it. Ryanne was a fantasy, that could walk and breath. It was funny how for the last few years, she doubted she would ever find someone she thought could be a potentially amazing influence in her life, but just in the last few minutes of talking to Ryan, she was sure she would mean something in her life, or mean everything in her life. She didn't know quite how yet, but she just felt it in her heart and her gut. "Ryanne. What a beautiful name! It is so unique. I love it. You don't mind if I just call you Ryanne, do you? I know everyone else mostly calls you Ryan, but your name is awesome, so it shouldn't be shortened."[/b] she said, taking a breath. ( That wasn't a creep thing to say or anything, especially to a girl I just met, who probably doesn't like girls at all, and who probably is only talking to me because I am the only person around, and the forest is dark and scary. ) She wished her name was a lot more interesting, although a lot of people would argue that her name /was/ interesting. But Harper really wasn't, that interesting, not compared to Ryanne.

Harper wondered how come she had never once seen Ryanne around before. She was here on La Push soil, but she didn't remember seeing her at school - and she certainly would have remembered a face that beautiful. It wasn't something so easy to forget. Maybe Ryanne was an angel or something, because she had magically come into Harper's life, and right when Harper was feeling more lost than ever. It didn't occur to Harper that Ryanne might have come from Forks, or that in fact, she happened to be the sister of the very girl who had broken her trust and hurt her not too long ago. Most of Harper's high school years had been protected by her mother, making her come home at decent times - always having to approve of her friends. Her mother hadn't always been worried about her like this, but lately something was going on with her mom that was making her on edge. Harper didn't have the slightest idea what it was, and it made her anxious, so she would take her walks in the forest, after proceeding to sneak out of her house through her very own bedroom window. She could have said she was going to Dakota's, but she didn't want to lie to her mother - she just wanted to get some air, some space.

"Yeah, creepy forests are just so tempting. You just have to go exploring, especially in night... Mostly, I just come out her a lot of nights to think, and I guess, feel less alone? If that makes sense? My mother has been really weird about me being safe and stuff lately. She has kind of been sheltering me. I just had to get away to think and to get some air, you know?"
[/blockquote][/size]

[ryanne gabrielle castillo]

Even her smile is mesmerizing…

[/color] It was like… like seeing the sun for the very first time, or not seeing, actually, but feeling. The sensation of the warmth you can’t see but only feel, connecting everything with light and clarity – something that honestly Ryanne couldn’t explain even if she tried. She had seen girls her age fawn over the latest celebrities in teen magazines, tried to decipher some type of alien beauty in rugged, masculine faces smiling up at her in staged grins. But it wasn’t her. It wasn’t Harper, and that made all the difference. Ryan wasn’t sure how, or why, these thoughts had suddenly struck her; sure, there were always pretty girls around the streets or cities like Port Angeles, but this was so significantly different that it flustered her. A new categorization of beauty all on its own, perhaps. It made no logical sense, but logic didn’t seem to be an important issue as she shook her head and grinned back. “Don’t make me second guess myself, I’d really prefer to think they’re just wild dogs and not anything more treacherous,”[/color] she reprimanded her lightly, jokingly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Maybe Ryanne really was just being paranoid – an actual dog might have followed her a couple nights before, and now she was just imagining things. It was easier for her to comprehend, to swallow as truth instead of fiction, than deal with the actual fact she was being followed. Of course, it was always easier to handle fictitious beliefs than deal with something people generally wouldn’t want to think; something Ryan had unknowingly, and unfortunately picked up along her years while living with her parents.

She pursed her lips and stuck out her tongue at her next comment, smirking in response. “Well, lucky for me I’ve got my very own super hero to ward off any offending rabid dogs,”[/color] she scoffed lightly, raising an eyebrow at Harper. Ryanne did, however, tilt her head to the side when she sat down on the ground rather leisurely and continued to chatter away; she seemed so at ease, so comfortable and willing to talk into the night, even if they were both in dark wilderness, and therefore not exactly in the safest of places. Hesitating for several moments, she bit down on her lip with uncertainty: it was clearly an open invitation on whether or not the two strangers would create small talk for a little longer, or continue to talk for who knows how long. The decision had already been claimed as hers alone, and it was with that realization that Ryan moved to sit down next to her, even going as far to lean back and direct her gaze towards the star-filled sky. In that instant, even being close to the other girl calmed a beating in her heart, and she sighed softly. She smiled at Harper’s explanation of her own fear, brown eyes sparkling at a held-back chuckle. “Okay, so apparently my super hero isn’t all that brave; it’s cool, I always thought Wonder Woman was lame, anyway,”[/color] she spoke into the air, not looking over at Harper to see her face; she was perfectly content just lying next to her.

Listening quietly as Harper carried on about her apparent fascination with her own name, she shook her head, bemused. “Breathe,”[/color] she requested of her, after she had finished and taken a breath; Harper was certainly interesting, all right. The sarcastic edge to her voice seemed to be more prominent around Harper – like she could say what she wanted, be bold in language that other teenagers had typecasted as lame, without thinking of consequence. She felt… somehow, utterly assured that she wouldn’t be judged and didn’t have to hold back her thoughts. It was new, something she was not at all used to, so she wasn’t as ‘out there’ when it came to her words; though of course, anyone that had spoken to Ryan before would know unless you became a good friend of hers, she wouldn’t have let her sarcastic and playful side come out. But to a stranger? It was too good of an experience to question, so she simply didn’t. She became quiet for a few seconds, letting the words sink in. “Yeah,”[/color] she agreed with a slight shrug of her shoulders,“I don’t mind.”[/color]

As Harper explained her presence in La Push wilderness, Ryan wondered what she could say in reply. She wasn’t even sure why she had had a pull of some sort to wander alone on her own the past few nights, but if it lead her to strangers like her, Ryan figured she didn’t really mind all that much. Her eyes were on the stars up above, and she lingered on a small, yet infinitely bright one. “The stars,”[/color] Ryanne stated quietly, “The stars make me feel less alone. They always seem to shine the most when I’m looking for some sort of sign.”[/color] She supposed she sounded stupid, or maybe ignorant, but at that point Ryan seemed to be talking more as something to share than something to impress someone else. She wasn’t aiming to impress anyone, even Harper; while stealing a glance, temporarily tearing her gaze from the sky, her eyes locked onto Harper’s.

The stars were definitely sending her a sign this time.[/blockquote][/size]

[° LiNDSeY °]

She feared what might be out here that Ryanne had sort of sensed. She wasn't fearful for herself, but for the innocent human before her. It was hard knowing how far the human mind could perceive subconscious registers in their enviornment and encounters. In some way, this girl was making Harper feel so much less human, even though the feelings and thoughts were all human. She wanted to get inside her head, figure her out. She felt like she was in science class, searching for an answer that was right in front of her, but yet no where to be seen. "I'm sure you're right." she said, looking around with a sigh and then shrugging. "You are probably actually making it more than it is. It was probably just some lost cats, or squirrels." She tried to play along, and believe that it was something so simple, but she couldn't. Harper was more than aware of the things that lurked in the world unknown to most humans. She was the joining of two of those unknown things. She wasn't human. Even if she looked like it, acted like it, and felt like it - she wasn't human, and never had been. She was born as a different species. Like there were different species of 'dog' there were different species of the typically perceived 'humans'. That was how she chose to look at it, how she needed to. She often wondered what a life would be like for her kind, or any of the other supernatural beings should the world come to know of them. The idea was frightening. Some might be accepting, but there could be riots. Right now, she wondered what this human girl might think if she ever came to know about the forces behind the night.

Harper put her hands to her hips and turned her head upwards to showcase her sitting version of the heroic pose. She laughed as she finished. "Just call me Harper, though. I don't think I'd like a superhero name. That just wouldn't do."

[/color]Joking came easy, which seemed different with Ryanne. Her best friends, Dakota Black, and Kody Alexander both could make her laugh - but this was different. She couldn't register how, or why, but it was. When Ryanne sat down, accepting an unspoken invitation, she smiled to herself. Well, at least she wouldn't be alone on her outing to think. It seemed thinking time was over, and talking time had begun. It was amazing the people you could meet, and the things that could happen when you simply wanted to take a walk. She raised an eyebrow at the comment of her hero not being so brave. "I'm brave." she mumbled like a child, for effect, and loudly enough that Ryanne couldn't actually understand it. She scoffed loudly and dismissively. "Well, even Wonder Woman was afraid of things. Just like Indiana Jones - he was afraid of snakes, if I do recall. And he was pretty brave against guns, booby traps, and more." She sort of nodded quickly to show triumph and a little hump of fake sadness for being considered not very brave.

There were times that, when a subject came up that excited her, Harper would forget to take a break in talking and allow the other person to talk, but she had never, ever before actually talked enough or just quickly enough to almost lose a breath, and over something that could have been a simple 'that's pretty'. Instead she had rambled, and probably just made this girl she had just met feel insanely awkward. Somehow, her usualy confident demeanor and blunt expressions wouldn't falter, but somehow this girl, who she had only just met, was making her stumble and rant. And most of all, making her feel more than insecure. The reassurance from Ryan to breath wasn't like a funny joke her friend might have said if she got too excited, but more to her, relieving the thoughts that she was being creepy or making her uncomfortable. It wasn't like Harper was use to meeting new people every day. She'd lived in La Push forever, and most of the time, new people didn't move in. Even though Ryan had just assured her with a simple word, she still felt sheepish, and awkward. "Okay, cool." She didn't bother saying more or trying to. She had embarassed herself enough of the subjects of names for now. She better try working on something else, even to embarass her, or her cheeks would begin threatening to show just how pathetic she felt. ( Good thing it is dark... sort of. )

Most of the people weren't so preoccupied with a visit to be under or with the stars in any sense, and often forgot they were there until they happened upon seeing them. It was easier to do in the La Push area, where the weather always kept you on your feet, and the clouds continuously rolled in and out, no matter the time of the day. "I guess I never really thought of how they could make you feel less alone. When I look at the stars, I think how small my troubles really are, when there is so much more than just this world out there in the universe." She had looked at the stars at first, and at the end looked down to the forest floor. It was interesting to think the stars could almost be a company for you, even if you couldn't see them all the time. Her curiosity peeked as she fully comprehended the end of Ryanne's statement. "Why are you looking for signs?" She wondered what this girl could need a sign for. It was probably about a boy she liked, or a conflict with a friend. But somehow, the answer didn't matter. It just intriguied her that such a well put together girl, or one who seemed like it, would need a sign. What could the stars be telling her that Harper couldn't understand?[/blockquote][/size]