From Rix_Scadeau‘s commission: Something happening at the school during the time of the post-apoc stories. I fudged this a year or two to get the generations right.

Addergoole Year 57, Hell Night Morning

Ardah had intended to sleep in on Saturday. It had been a busy week, and she was still trying to figure out exactly what was going on around here. People were weird-shaped, sure. She’d seen a few weird-shaped people here and there, although her parents always tried to hide them.

More than the strange body shapes, however, was the strange way people were acting. You’d think the weirdest of it was over, but no, they all seemed to be twitchy, like the worst was yet to come. It made Ardah’s skin itch.

So she was awake, trying to pretend she was sleeping, staring at her dark ceiling, when someone pounded on her door. Years of duck-and-cover training had her out of bed, shoes on and a long shirt over her nightclothes, before the second knock came.

Her brother stood on the other side, lit strangely by red emergency lighting, looking even more demonic than his Changes normally made him. “Ardah. Hard choice time. Trust me, take the quick way. It won’t be the easiest but it won’t be what you’ll get out there.”

She eyed him cautiously. Ferris had changed since coming here, not just Changed but changed in personality. He seemed less trustworthy with every passing day. “What’s the other option?”

“Head out into this,” he gestured at the hallway, “and take your chances with the rest of the school.”

“So it’s trust you… or trust myself to be able to handle the hallways of the school.” She wrinkled her nose at him. “Come on, Ferris. What gives?”

“Come on, Ardah, just say you Belong to me and I’ll take care of everything. I promise.”

She shook her head, staring at him. “I don’t want to belong to anyone, Ferris. And you’re scaring me.”

“C’mon, don’t be like that. When have I ever hurt you?”

“Well, there was that time you got me stuck in the bramble bush…”

“That was the brambles hurting you, Ard.”

“Semantics.” She frowned at him, but she could tell he was getting agitated. Good. He paid less attention to his words the angrier he got. “How about the time you locked me in the cooler?”

“That wasn’t, exactly, hurt.”

“Except the part where I nearly died.”

“Come on, Ard, trust me. I’ll take care of you.”

“Or,” came a voice over Ferris’ shoulder, “you could trust me.”

“Go away, Marlon, this is my sister.”

“She is, indeed, and a lovely girl. Does she know what you were planning?”

“Crew business, Marlon, butt out.”

This was kind of fun to watch. Ardah leaned just inside her doorway and watched them. The slim, hawkish boy, who either didn’t have a Change or hadn’t un-masked yet, was smirking at her brother, half again his size. Challenging him, she realized.

“She’s not your Crew. I’m not your crew. She could be mine, though.” He held out one long-fingered hand to Ardah. “Which will it be? Me or your brother?”

Genealogy:
Ardah’s four sets of grandparents come from the following parings: Jamian/Tya, Eris/Shad (Wolf), Sarita/Finn, Kailani/Tolly

Her half-brother Ferris comes from: Jamian/Tya, Eris/Shad (Wolf), Mea/Taro (Petra), Mea/Rozen.

All I know about Marlon so far is that one of his grandparents is Raven, son of Wren and Phelen.

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