Story Sneak Peek: Mackenzie

Mackenzie Glenworth's world is tipped over when somebody comes to her house in the middle of the night and tries to kidnap her.

And fails.

On the run, she meets a boy named Ben who tells her that she is wanted by the Caines--people who kidnap kids and enroll them in their assassin school. Mackenzie doesn't want to believe him. But when something happens that nearly makes her want to give up life all together, she realizes that it's true.

The Caines are real. And they're deadly.

Racing against the clock, Mackenzie must choose between saving her best friend, and saving others from the Caines.

Whoa.

Just... whoa.

This idea has been one of my favorites in a really long time.

I wanted a really cool name for my main character and her best friend, and I decided to use the names of two real life best friends (well, at least they seem to be) whose blogs I really love.

Mackenzie and Rose? Step forward please.

You guys are so amazing, and I love your blogs... and your names. Which is why I chose them to be the names of my main character and her friend. I'm not saying this is what you're like in real life, but in the story Mackenzie is the more crazier glittery one and Rose is the quieter, "you're such a goober" best friend. :)

I thought it was rather funny that Mackenzie is the one that the Caines want to recruit... one of my favorite lines of the book (so far) comes from Rose and goes something along the lines of, "Mackenzie loves glitter and photography and sarcasm! Not killing people!" (OK, it sounded a little bit funnier when I was writing it... I also think I phrased it differently in the story...)

I just love Mackenzie in the book. (and in real life. But I mean as a character, too...) She has such a great mind that goes so great along with my own. Just the way she thinks is priceless.

Oh yeah. And we both agree on a big argument.

I'm not a big Hunger Games fan, OK? But there's this argument that we had in our house after we first watched it about who was better--Gale or Peeta. (my parents went with Peeta. Us kids went with Gale. Which is kind of funny...) I personally don't like Peeta because he's so... so... so... wimpy. And... come on... it's kind of creepy about the whole "I-threw-bread-out-to-you-that-day-and-I-noticed-you-always-wore-braids" kind of a thing. (at least, for me...) But Gale? Come on, he's the cool man who actually seems like he could handle himself.

In the book, Mackenzie thinks Gale's cool. (oh yeah... lol) And Rose likes Peeta. (sorry, Mackenzie. I think on your blog you said you were a Hutchette? Yeah, so so sorry.... anyway.....) OK, well, they don't LIKE LIKE either, they just have arguments among each other. It's actually pretty funny. Anyway....... that was kind of awkward...... moving on....

I believe I got over 100 pages on it, but I'm still not done. Does this sound like a story you'd like to read? I sure hope so. :) I'll post it on here as soon as I'm done. ;)

Until later...

Story Sneak Peek: Rain

Princess Rain has always felt second best to her sister, Snow. Snow has always acted the role of the future ruler, despite the fact that Rain is two years older. When Rain is framed for an act of felony that she didn't commit, she is forced to flee her father's kingdom or be sent to the dungeons by her evil younger sister. Confused, angry, and full of sadness to be apart from her beloved father, she wanders into the Lost Forests, where she encounters a strange group of characters. Upon finding out that Snow has a plot to kill their father on the kingdom's anniversary, the same night that Snow will be crowned the ruler, Rain goes into action and, along with a motley band of dwarves, elves, and an angry huntsman, they go to save him. But will they be in time? And can they save the kingdom from utter despair?

This... is just a little synopsis of my newest story idea. Yeah, yeah, I decided to redo the Snow White story in a way that's totally not Snow Whitey. Well, first off, it's not a totally random idea--I was just randomly reading this book at the library and on the back it said, "How to mix up a fairytale--make the hero the villain and make the villain the hero." And I was like, "That is such a good idea!" Then I was going through fairytales, and I realized that one that doesn't get redone that often, but it still one of the more famous ones, was Snow White.

And come on. Admit it. The idea of having the gorgeous Snow White as a cruel and ruthless younger sister princess is pretty scary, right?

It took awhile to get it all through my brain--so Snow White's the bad guy, so who on earth is the hero? Um, the huntsman? No, it has to be a girl. Obviously. But then who? The Evil Queen? And that's when  I realized I wanted her to be the good guy. And then I was like, "Wait. Whoa. That makes my main character like... wow... ancient. I don't want that!" Then I got a great idea, "Why not make her the older sister, but she looks old enough to be Snow White's mother?" Of course, I was feeling pretty stoked at that idea. So I grabbed my notebook and started writing down ideas.

Which... is when I got to the dwarf part. And I was like, "Now, how on earth am I going to make the dwarves totally characters of my own?" And I was thinking, "First off, there can't be seven. There has to be more." That's why I decided it was two groups of feuding outlaw dwarves. Oh yeah. I was on a roll by then, and I was, "Whatever! Let's add in some elves! Everybody likes elves!" (at this point I will mention that these aren't cute little elves. These are LOTR-Legolas-kill-the-orcs-with-huge-bows elves.) And then I was like, "Wait a sec. What about the poor Huntsman?" So of course he hates Snow and wants to join Rain's side. :)

Now, about Rain's name. I was trying to think of a really good name for her. And I just couldn't help but think, "Man, Snow White's really a stupid name. Why on earth would you name your princess in your story Snow?" And then it was just like BINGO. Lightbulb in the brain. What if their father was like this huge weather scientist dude? That's why he would've named Snow Snow. And that's why I picked Rain for Rain's name.

I still haven't decided if there's going to be a prince/love interest for poor Rain. I mean, she's going to be seventeen about to turn eighteen. But still. Mushy gushy books are not what I like. I like having the guy in there, so that you can go and imagine what happens in the future (they get married? She ditches him? Who cares!) but I don't like having to go in on that in detail. (um... eww) Anyway, so, if there was one, I'm just saying, I think it should be an elf. Or maybe the huntsman! Wait, no, I made him old and he already has a family. Nevermind. =P

(if you can't tell, I'm still figuring some of these things out. Like... as I write this)

Anyway, so that's kind of a sneak peek of an upcoming story that I'm writing and hopefully going to be posting on here right before I go and get it published. :) Talk to ya'll later. ;)

The Cooking Disaster

Dear Readers,

Hi, this is Jessie.

Today was the first day of my summer cooking class.

And let's just say it didn't go so hot.

So, when we got there, Noah and I found ourselves sitting at this table in the middle school's cooking team's kitchen by the science labs. Ladasha, Maya, Summer, and Maurice all arrived. Maya was grumpily listening to Summer and Ladasha argue over shoe brands while Maurice sat nearby, looking bored. Each girl was used to being the most popular, but they'd had to settle for being in a popular group together.

Maurice was still the most popular guy.

Other then like Noah.

Yeah.

*awkward*

Several other kids came in, but I didn't really recognize any of them. They all had that "sort of familiar" look that I knew was because I'd seen them in the hallways at school.

Anyway, so we were just sitting there obediently (Me: I'm bored. Noah: I bet I'm more bored. Me: Don't count on it.) when all of a sudden a voice boomed from behind us, "HELLO, KIDS! WELCOME TO YOUR SUMMER COOKING CLASS! I'M MRS. KARP!"

We all turned, a little bit horrified by her loud voice. In front of us was the dread huge, fat, and ugly sixth grade history teacher that was rumored to have put the mayor to sleep in class as a kid. (and he makes the most boring speeches) She looked like a decaying dinosaur, except not quite as pretty. Her hair should've been white, but it was dyed a violent red, teased up into a huge beehive hairdo. Large black glasses sat like a block on her Roman nose. She wore old ucky eighties clothes that would've made us die if our mothers had even tried it on.

Oh my gosh.

This couldn't be real!

"We're going to die," groaned Noah under his breath.

"I HOPE YOU'RE ALL COMFY," she went on, "BECAUSE NOW YOU'RE IN MY CLASS! AND IN MY CLASS, 'COMFY' ISN'T IN OUR VOCABULARY! NOW, WHO WANTS TO START COOKING?!"

Nobody raised their hands.

"EXCELLENT! LET'S START WITH THE BAKED POTATO!"

Baked potato? What kind of a cooking class was this?!

"I'M BREAKING YOU INT GROUPS! YOU, YOU, YOU, AND YOU, TOGETHER! YOU, YOU, YOU, AND YOU, TOGETHER! YOU, YOU, YOU, AND YOU, TOGETHER! AND YOU?!" I was the last kid left, and she was giving me the evil eye. "YOU'LL BE COOKING WITH ME, YOUNG LADY!"

I was definitely going to die.

Noah was off with some kids that we didn't know, and the popular kids were all split up. Mrs. Karp grabbed my arm and hauled me over to another table so that it was just the two of us.

"WELL, GET COOKING!" she yelled, sitting down and putting her feet up on the table. She grabbed a book with a name that didn't look so great and started to read.

I stared at the table. A potato, fork, and plate were in front of me. I got to work, and placed the ready potato into the microwave when I was done, putting it on for... I glanced over my shoulder at Mrs. Karp. How long was I supposed to cook just one potato? At home, we always made four. (one for each of my parents and two for me, because I was always starving) So how long did you just cook one potato?

"Um, Mrs. Karp...?" I started.

"DON'T TALK, JUST COOK!" she shouted back at me.

I cringed, and put the potato in, my finger hesitating over the quick-cook numbers. Finally, I clicked the five. I was cooking it for five minutes. Yeah. That was right. Right?

I sat down awkwardly at the table, starting to twiddle my thumbs. Was that potato done yet? I avoided looking at Mrs. Karp, looking all around the room. I closed my eyes for a few moments.

What woke me up sounded like a hand grenade.

Someone screamed.

I jumped out of my chair and turned around.

My potato was exploding in the microwave!

"YEEK!" I cried, jumping over and turning it off.

I yanked open the door. The fizzled potato looked like garbage. A few more pops, and then it was only the smoke.

"THERE'S A FIRE!" one of the girls screamed.

Well... let's just say the fire alarm went off and we all got rushed out of there. I didn't want to go back the next week, but Mom made me.

So, yeah.

Could it get any worse?!

Love,
Jessie

*fictional

Jessie's Horrible Summer Plans

Dear Readers,

OH MY GOSH I'M SO MAD AT STORYTELLER THAT SHE HASN'T POSTED ANY OF MY STORIES IN LIKE FOREVER!!!!!!!

Oh, yeah, hi, this is Jessie Bender. :)

Welllllllll.... you probably wouldn't have liked the stories that I've been sending Storyteller lately, anyway. (Baby Will walking... Baby Will said his first word... Baby Will has an addiction to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang...) But she could've AT LEAST posted them... I mean, come on...

Anyway, I suppose you could say I, uh, *cough cough* hacked into her email account and are posting this right now. (OK, OK, she gave me her password for other purposes and I just came on. So what??) Anyway, so I should probably start explaining, right?

I can't believe it's already June!! School's out, so thankfully I'm not seeing the terrible three (Maya and the two other stinker girls) and Maurice (*shiver*).  And Noah has been coming over to help me with baby Will and play football in the backyard.

That's the good news.

The bad news is that Mom signed me up for a cooking class, Noah got signed up for it, too, and then our parents decided that we should both sign up for a class about first aid, and then another swimming class at the pool.

The worst part?

Maya, Summer, Ladasha, and Marcus are all signed up for the same thing.

Maya--OH MY GOSH SOMEBODY PLEASE HOLD ME BACK OR I'M GOING TO KILL THAT JERK!!

Summer--READ ABOVE.

Ladasha--READ ABOVE AGAIN.

Marcus--OH MY GOSH I'M GOING TO PUKE!!

The only thing that's going to make it better is Noah. And yet our phone conversation wasn't that happy on Friday.

Me: So.

Noah: So.

Me: We got signed up for lots of stinking awful lessons with our worst enemies.

Noah: You mean three of our worst enemies and the guy who has a secret crush on you.

Me: (hisses) DON'T EVEN MENTION THAT!

Noah: Sorry.

Me: It's not funny.

Noah: What?

Me: Marcus.

Noah: I know.

Me: You're laughing at me.

Noah: What? No I'm not!

Me: Yes, you are. I can just imagine your face.

Noah: Jessie, what on earth are you talking about?!

Me: It's horrible. It's just too horrible.

Noah: (sighs and says awkwardly) It'll... it'll be OK, Jessie. I'll be there to fend off the meanies.

Me: Thanks, buddy.

Noah: No problem.

Me: We're going to die, aren't we?

Noah: Yep.

Me: Bye.

Noah: Bye.

I don't think there's much hope for our future...

Love,
Jessie

Note from Storyteller: this is fictional story. Jessie is fictional, and so obviously nobody's hacked into my account. =P

Abigail Jane Applegate--The Rescue

Outside of New York City
1778
British Occupation of New York

The soldier looked about ready to fall over in fear.

That's Nathan! I thought again, even more horrified. Why on earth is Nathan being so stupid as to come out in the open and try and rescue me?! I mean... I'm ready to die for my country, aren't I?

"Don't...don't get any ideas," the other soldier begged.

The mask covered Nathan's face well. If he hadn't spoke, I wouldn't have known who it was. But I did. And I was still feeling like he was being stupid by trying to rescue me. Then again, maybe he was sent by my father to come and rescue me. I mean, he was my father's apprentice. And...

"Hand over the girl," Nathan commanded. "NOW!"

One of the soldiers quickly nodded towards me. "Get out," he hissed. "Quick, quick!"

I struggled to get out with the bonds on my hands and finally jumped out onto the ground, my skirts billowing beneath me. I quickly ran towards Nathan, keeping my eyes straight ahead and trying not to think of the fact that I might be shot in the back by the second soldier.

"Are you alright, Abigail?" Nathan whispered so that only I could hear it.

"Of course," I whispered back.

I managed to pull myself up behind him in the saddle. Nathan kept his gun trained on the driver soldier's head. Only when he was sure I was on did he yell, "YA!" and kick his horse into a gallop.

We took off across the countryside. I closed my eyes, the thought racing through my head--If it hadn't been for Nathan, I would have been hanged.

God was looking out for me.

The Day of Jokes

Dear Readers,

Hiya, this is Jessie Bender. ;)

I know I didn't write on April Fool's Day, but I was definitely busy. ;)

And so I thought I'd recount my adventures on that day.

[Just to warn you, others were busy, too....]

Anyway, so it's kind of unspoken rule in my house that you DON'T DO APRIL FOOL'S JOKES. But, of course, Noah hadn't said anything about them, right? =D I was fully prepared to hit my best friend--hard--when April Fool's rolled around...

Since it was a Monday, it was like perfectly perfect. First day of school for that week, and April Fool's. I'd been hoping that Noah would forget what the date was.

Amazingly, he did.

Me: (walks into school, spots Noah, smiles and runs over) Hey, Noah!

Noah: Oh, hey, Jessie.

Me: (see he's not wearing green. Pinches him)

Noah: (frowns) What was THAT for??

Me: (pinches him again)

Noah: Gee, Jessie, stop it!

Me: You're not wearing green.

Noah: So?

Me: It's April first.

Noah: Yeah...

Me: You know--April Fool's Day?

Noah: (light bulb goes on in his head) Ohhhhhhhhhhhh.

I was fully decked out in everything green that I could possibly think of--green pants, green shirt, green socks, green shoes, even a green ponytail!! (and I'd snagged a green bag of Mom's for my books)

"Wait," Noah started. "You're not going to launch anything else on me, are you?"

I just grinned. "Have you been by your locker yet?"

Noah's face paled. "No. What did you do?"

I shrugged. "Nothing. Hey, look over there!"

Noah looked and then turned back to me with a confused frown. "There's nothing..."

"I was sure there was," I joked. "Come on."

"Oh, I get it," Noah called up to me as I started walking towards his locker. "You've been on blogs figuring out how to do April Fool's Jokes, haven't you? That was all a joke!"

My friend's obviously not stupid.

By the time lunch came around, I'd run out of jokes to play on my friend.

But he'd just started.

I opened my locker after lunch to find all of my books switched up. I glared. Now how on earth had he gotten in to my locker?! Then I got so confused by our teacher switching up our seats for a joke that I didn't think about it when Noah yelled, "Look over there!" And then everybody laughed at me. OK, maybe these jokes weren't so funny. But at least I'd done them between just us!

And THEN I stopped by my locker just as school ended and found a note that read, "I hate you."

"This is horrible," I whispered.

"What's wrong?" Suddenly Noah showed up.

I showed him the note.

He burst out laughing.

"What?" I demanded.

"It's April Fool's," he pointed.

"So?" I snorted.

"So that means that whatever it says is the opposite," he pointed out.

Oh NO!

This was even WORSE!

As you can probably guess, Noah wouldn't stop laughing the whole ride in his mom's car back to his house. (I'd made a deal with him--we'd both stop doing jokes on each other, and I'd come and help him with his homework.... Mom, of course, had approved.) l

As for me... HOW AM I GOING TO LIVE?!!!!????!?!

Love,
Jessie

Jessie the Intercom Lady

Dear Readers,

Hey, what's up? This is Jessie Bender, coming back to you to tell you that...

OK-it's-really-not-like-that-I...

Wait, Noah hasn't told you?

Oh, thank GOODNESS!

I really thought I was dead meat, but...

Oh, stink, now you want to know what on earth I'm talking about?

OK, fine, I'll tell you guys.

But you'd better not laugh, alright?

So I was in the newspaper office when I just thought of something.

"I really don't like the newspaper," I whispered. "And I always get paired with the jerks that I hate."

So I went and resigned.

Pretty much.

Noah: *at lunch* Why on earth?! Now I won't show up on the newspaper's front cover as much!!

Me: Um, excuse me??? Is that all I really am to you? Your publicity?

Noah: Well, of course not, I mean...

Me: You mean the only reason that you're friends with me isn't because I'm amazingly funny and everything interesting happens to me but because you just want to be in the newspaper...? I can't believe that you would DO that to me!

Noah: Of course not! Calm down, Jessie!

And that's when I came up with the great idea.

"Noah," I started, "I want to be over the intercom."

He looked at me. "What?"

"You know," I snorted. "Like I say the Pledge of Allegiance in the morning, I give out all of the reports, I tell people they have to go to the principal's office... Look, didn't you know that an eighth grader girl did it last year?"

Noah laughed. "Yeah, but you're not an eighth grader. You're a seventh grader."

I glared at him. "That's not the point. That's the job I want to do."

"Jessie," Noah sighed, "are you sure?"

I snorted. "Of course I'm sure! What could possibly happen?"

So then I got myself signed up. Like everybody in the entire school knows me, so of course they wanted me to work the intercom.

At first it was pretty awesome--"Zach Hall, Zach Hall, please get down to the principal's office" "Everyone must turn in their reports for Girl of the Year before Tuesday" "I pledge allegiance, to the flag..."--but then something really awful happened.

OK, that's the end.

Just kidding.

I was sitting in side of The Box, as I called it, and was about to get started on the huge list of things I had to say over the intercom when somebody knocked on the glass.

It was, unfortunately, Maya.

I groaned and opened the window. "What on earth do you want?"

She just smiled, handed me a note, and walked away. I turned it over. It read please read over the intercom immediately. I rolled my eyes. Really, Maya?

I sighed, turned on the mike, and started reading.

"Marcus has a secret crush on... oh my gosh, I'm going to puke!" I couldn't believe I'd just said that. I stared in horror at the mike, and then quickly switched it off. "MAYA!" I shrieked.

And that's not even the most horrible part.

I get back to my house, horrified, tell Mom and Dad, and then what happens? I get a phone call. No, no, not from Marcus, from Noah.

Me: Hello?

Noah: It's true. He confessed.

Me: What're you talking about?

Noah: Um, the thingy on the intercom? He just confessed to me that it was true.

Me: YUCK I'M GOING TO PUKE RIGHT NOW!!!!

Noah: Just relax.

Me: How can I?! It's not like it said "Maya has a really huge overly noticable crush on Noah" it SAID "Marcus has a secret crush on Jessie Bender"!!! I'm going to DIE!

Mom: *from the other room* Oh, lighten up. It's not like you're really going to marry him.

Me: ?!!!!!!?????

Noah: Jessie, just relax.

How can I? I'M GOING TO DIE!!!

Love,
Jessie

P.S. MAJOR HELP!!!!!!!

Abigail Jane Applegate--The Man in Black

Outside of New York City
1778
British Occupation of New York

I couldn't believe it. I was going to be hung as a Patriot spy. Which, of course, was true. As part of the Culper Ring, I knew the risk that I took every day. But until I saw the look in the British leader's eyes did I realize what he'd just told the men--I'm going to die.

Now I was being hauled out of the barn that they'd brought me into by the soldiers. They threw me up onto to a cart. The man's words echoed in my brain--She'll be hanged tomorrow morning with the rest of them. Where were they going to take me?

"Don't move," glared one of the soldiers. "We're watching you."

One of them sat in the back of the wagon with me and the other jumped up onto the seat and whipped the horses into a canter. I bit my lip to keep from crying. I was going to die. The thought just wouldn't go away. I'm going to die. I'm going to die. It kept on going through mind, time and time again. Was I ready to die? Was I really ready to face God for all of the sins that I'd committed in my lifetime? I felt like this was all wrong. There was so much more that I had to do. The wagon bounced me back to real life.

We were away from the barn and the farmhouse, traveling down a bumpy dirt road. I was thrown about by the ruts. My eyes strayed ahead, hoping, praying, that somehow I would find a way to get out of this. Some way. I didn't know how. But God was on my side. I knew that.

That's about the time when the man dressed in black flew on horseback in front of the wagon. In his hand was a gun.

To avoid a collision, the soldier driving pulled hard on the reins. The horses cried in protest but pulled to a halt right in front of the man. His gun was trained on the soldier driving's head.

"Let the girl go," he commanded.

I recognized that voice.

Nathan.

Lime Baseball

Dear Readers,

This is Jessie. You're not going to believe what happened!!!!!!

OK, so, the other day I got an invitation to go to Noah's house for a party. (I was pretty sure it was something about the football... [because, you know, I did save them by dressing up as the mascot that one time...... ONE OF THE MOST HORRIBLE DAYS EVER.] but my best friend's emails aren't always the easiest to interpret. =P)

Anyway, so I talked to my mom, and she was like...

Mom: Of course your going! Noah's your best friend!

Me: Are you sure? I mean, from Noah's email, it sounded like just him and his football buddies.

Mom: Of course! I know all of their parents. It'll be fine.

Me: OK, but I'm not going to be wrangled into dressing up as a mascot.

Mom: O course not!

So that's how I found myself standing in front of Noah's house.

"Hey, Jessie!" Noah ran out of the house. "Come on--we're about to start playing Imaginiff." He paused, and then leaned forward and hissed, "By the way, I've just got to warn you that Marcus is here."

NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"WHAT?!" my voice squeaked. "Are you kidding!?"

"No," he answered.

"Look," I hissed, "I can't go in there. I hate that kid. I'll probably starting throwing food at him, and I don't want to do that."

"Look," Noah whispered, "it'll be fine. Come on."

He practically dragged me into the house, where his mom was trying to save all of her precious vases and picture frames. (I would've given it up.) Noah's football buddies were running around the house like crazy. (I'm serious. Middle school boys are so immature. =P) Marcus was sitting like a board, glaring, on Noah's couch.

"I need to leave," I hissed. "My mind's already thinking of ways to booby trap Marcus!"

"It'll be fine," Noah told me. "Just relax. Hey, you can go and help Mom in the kitchen, OK?"

I watched his mom catch a picture that was falling off the wall. "Noah, your mom's not IN the kitchen."

"Well, you know what I mean." He pushed me towards the door. "Go on."

I went into the kitchen. Paper plates and cups sat on the kitchen table, next to a bowl full of limes and oranges and a platter of sandwiches.

"What's this party really for, anyway?" I muttered, picking up a lime and throwing it between my hands like a baseball.

CRASH!!! The sound made me cringe and then run angrily into Noah's living room. Marcus was standing with a smug smile over a broken vase.

"YOU HOOLIGAN!" I shouted at him.

And then I did something really awful.

I threw the lime at his head.

"OOF!" He fell to the ground, rubbing the back of his head. Then he stood up and glared at me. "What was that for?!"

As you can imagine, I was horrified.

It ended up that I apologized, Noah's mom cut the party short, and we went home.

HAD I REALLY JUST THROWN A LIME AT MARCUS???????

Oh stink.

Love,
Jessie

Relations Conversations

Dear Readers,

Hey, this is Jessie!!

Well, ever since the "newspaper rebuke" (=P) I've been carrying a camera around everywhere and snapping pictures. What do you guys think of these??

Oh, stink, it's not letting me upload. Sorry. =P

Anyway, so I've got news on the baby.

I mean, Willie.

(Don't remember him being called Willie? Skip over here.)

Anyway, so Mom and Dad have just been ecstatic over Willie. And Mom's got a bump now. I think he's supposed to be due in June or something like that. Anyway, I'm excited. Soon I'll be Jessie, the crazy and dramatic older sister!!! :) Yay!!!!!!

This morning Noah called me to talk about Willie.

Noah: So, like, what's he like?

Me: Noah, duh, he hasn't been born yet. I have no idea what he's like. Baby cuteness?

Noah: haha, very funny.

Me: Well, you said it...

Noah: Anyway, you'll let me know when Willie comes, right? I feel like I'm his uncle or something.

Me: *snorts* His uncle? Are you kidding? That would mean that like..... oh my gosh I'm going to puke....

Noah: What's wrong?

Me: NOAH!

Noah: Oh, sorry, I didn't mean an uncle like THAT!

Me: I hope not.

Noah: Of course not.

Me: *glares even though he can't see it* Yeah, well, I'll let you PRETEND that you're his uncle, OK?

Noah: Wait a sec. If I was his uncle, it would not be like I was married to you!

Me: *pauses* Oh, right, duh. He's my brother.

Noah: I'd have to be his brother-in-law.

Me: Which isn't happening.

Noah: Duh.

Me: Anyway, so.... yeah, I'll call you once Willie's born.

Noah: Can I go with you guys to the hospital?

Me: Noah, I don't think you're going to be with us. Besides, who's going to drive you over? Your mom? She works.

Noah: I'll walk.

Me: To the hospital. On probably a school day.

Noah: Yeah, sure. I'll fake puking, so they'll let me out of school.

Me: Don't you think they'll get suspicious when you just walk off down the sidewalk?

Noah: Jessie, they'd take me back to my house and then when they're gone I can just walk to the hospital. It's foolproof!

Me: *snorts* I doubt it. What if they watch your house?

Noah: What do you think they are, the FBI?

Me: Hey, I read a book once about librarians being spies... anyway...

Noah: What?! Seriously?

Me: Yeah, it was called the Brixton Brothers series. ANYWAY, we'll figure out something. Either way, you'll eventually see Willie.

Noah: OK. Hey, I gotta go. Bye!

Me: Bye.

So, yeah.....

And if you want to hear more about the Brixton Brothers, I can badger Storyteller until she writes a book review. ;)

Until later!

Love,
Jessie

Heads up, this is the continuing story...

(Remember--I'll give you choices, and you guys get to decide where the story goes.)

My name is...

1. Willow Fletcher
2. Raven
3. Bree Keyne

...and for all of my life that I can remember, I have lived in an orphanage.

Nothing interesting happens to most people. But I know that something "interesting" happened to me when I was younger. Why else wouldn't I remember before I was eight, and why else do I always have memory flashes at the strangest times?

I stare out ahead, my [1. Green, 2. Blue, 3. Hazel, 4. Violet, 5. Brown] eyes watching the kids coming in and out of the back doors of the orphanage. I push my [short, long, medium] [1. Brown, 2. Blonde, 3. Black, 4. Red] hair over my shoulder.

At just that moment...

1. A kid comes out that she's never seen before, dressed in black clothes and looking mysterious.

2. Somebody grabs her arm and whirls her around.

|it's your choice|

About Jessie and other things...

I've got some updates on the magazine!!

I AM going to put Rubberboot Girl in. We got it fully edited and it's already sent in.

I'm not sure when if/when/or what I'm going to do about the website. It hasn't even been put up yet, since the magazine hasn't even been PUBLISHED yet....

All keep you updated.

Meanwhile...

I'm really excited for summer, since I've got some interesting adventures lined up for Jessie!! This is a summer you guys won't forget!!

Jessie's convinced that all she needs is a relaxing summer away from Maya and the annoying kids at school. But her Mom, the baby on the way, has a very different idea...

Let's just say that you'll want to stay tuned. :)

Later gator. ;)

How Jessie [accidentally] started the second spaghetti fight of the year

Dear Readers,

This is Jessie. I'd been so happy about the baby, that when I went to school on Monday something really horrible just had to happen. I should've NEVER forgotten what Maya had yelled at me at the dance! And now I was going to pay.

I was walking into the cafeteria when all of a sudden Maya jumped up on one of the tables. Ladasha looked at her like she was nut (I could see it all over her face--"That girl just got herself demoted to most unpopular person in the school...") and Summer looked horrified.

"Jessie!" she shouted.

I cringed and stopped, turning around.

"I heard that..."

You can kind of guess the rest. You know--she went off and convinced everybody in the cafeteria that Noah and I were dating. (I didn't want to right the whole thing, because she said a lot of nasty stuff, too, and I didn't want you guys to have read that.)

I was hopping mad. Still, I prayed to God for help and walked over to where Noah was sitting at the table. Michael who, if you remember, used to be the most popular kid in the school and also head of the school newspaper which I was apart of, came over and started talking.

"You know," he started, "no offense, but it seems that you haven't done much for the newspaper lately."

I sighed. "Sorry. I need my camera so I can take some pictures and stuff."

Michael handed me one. "You can start today. We need some school life pictures for the yearbook people."

"OK,"  I sighed.

Michael walked off.

And that's when Maya stood back up on the table.

"Jessie!" she yelled at me. "You think you're something, huh?"

I didn't answer.

"Jessie, look at me! Unless you're a coward!"

I didn't do anything.

But I was thinking.

And thinking hard.

I really had to do something about this problem.

I glanced down at my plate.

It was spaghetti.

I turned and stood up on my own table, Noah giving me a bewildered look.

"OK, Maya," I started. "Stop harassing me, or I'll throw this spaghetti at you." I'd grabbed my plate and picked up a glob of spaghetti in my hand.

She snorted. "You wouldn't."

Splat! But it wasn't ME who'd thrown it!

I glanced around the side of Maya and saw the Sisterhood Squad--Spy, Addy, etc.--all holding globs of spaghetti. Before I could stop them, Spy screamed at the top of her lungs, "FOOD FIGHT!"

And so started the second spaghetti food fight of the year for poor Dayton Middle School.

And, no, I actually never threw any spaghetti.

You know what I DID do?

I grabbed my camera and started snapping pictures left and right.

And, of course, dodged spaghetti.

Let's just say that by the time the teachers got everybody under control, nobody was too sure who'd really started it so we all get sent home with a warning.

Hmm................ ;)

Love,
Jessie

Updates and... BASKETBALL!! =D

Dear Readers,

OK,  so, first off, way sorry I couldn't get on yesterday and comment on your lovely blogs. ;) I was "babysitting". Anyway, I'm almost finished with Connie 2. Unfortunately, I'm not sure I'm going to be able to post it. :( (Because of the magazine and everything.....)

Also, me and my friend just got talked to about maybe writing this story thingy majiggy for this dance recital thing. Any advice? It might be very.... interesting. Anyway, I'm trying to see if I'm going to do it. =P

I've realized that I really like basketball. Yesterday night I went to a basketball game, and it was the first time I'd ever really gotten into a game. (Like not yelling anything or something like that, but more like watching the ball and hissing to myself, "No! NO! Oh, yes! Come on! Drive the ball in NOW! Wait, no, what're you doing?! Urgh, you should've..." yeah, stuff like that. =P)

It was really fun, because we won last night. But anyway..... =D

Later, my friends.

Love,
Katrina

Abigail Jane Applegate--The Invisible Message

New York

1778

The British Occupation of New York

I sat before the fire, staring into the flickering flames. I could hear Father's quill pen scratching behind me on the rough paper. I got up and glanced over his shoulder. The fake message that I'd written in my own hand, addressed to an Aunt Mary, was there on the paper. In between the lines Father wrote swiftly with ink that slowly disappeared as he wrote it.

Invisible ink.

"When I'm done with this," Father started in the quietest of whispers, "you'll need to take it to the woman at the edge of town. If the dresses are out on the clothes line, then all's well. If there are men's work shirts out on the line, then that means that you've been followed. If there are trousers on the line, then that means that the soldiers are nearby. And if there are sheets..."

"Yes, Father?" I prodded in a whisper.

He hesitated and then glanced up at me. "Then, Abigail," he whispered, "you must run for your life and destroy the letter, for the British are at her house and know that somebody's coming. If they know that she's part of the ring, they'll suspect anybody coming near the house to also be part of the ring."

I nodded solemnly. "You can count on me, Father."

He smiled. "I know I can."

He finished the letter and then handed it to me. I stuck it in my skirt's hidden pocket and then walked out of the back room and back through the stable. Nathan was still pounding away on the blacksmith's anvil.

He stopped hammering as I walked past. "Abigail," he whispered.

I paused. "Yes?"

Nathan's brown eyes met mine. "Be careful, alright?"

"Aye," I nodded. "I will."

He smiled a wan smile, one which I shared. Both of us knew that if I was caught with the message, despite the fact that I was a young woman I would be hung for my deeds. For being a spy for the Patriots.

I started out along the street. I passed a troop of soldiers with my head down, but they didn't even pay attention to me. The thing about the British is that they would never think a woman smart enough to be a spy. That's why there were so many of us in the ring.

The Culper Ring.

I finally reached the border of New York. I spotted the house, just on the outskirts. I started towards it, looking for the line. My green eyes peered around the house, and that's when I saw something that made me gasp.

There wasn't white sheets hanging on the clothes line.

There wasn't anything.

I paused. What should I do? It couldn't be good if there were no sheets. But what if the woman had just been struck sick, or was too busy and had forgotten? I paused, my hand straying to the secret pocket.

"I've got to do it," I whispered.

I strode boldly forward towards the house.

But what would I find?

The Agent Files, sticky oranges, my wantings, and a question

Dear Readers,

I'm proud to tell you that my friends and I (Piano Bookworm, Hadassah) have finished the first The Agent Files and are working on the second one, which seems to be going better than the first one. (Very Hobbitish. And funny........ if you haven't read the book or watched the movie The Hobbit you might want to do so......)

Anyway, does anybody else get irked when they're eating an orange and their hands get all sticky? Even when they've washed them?! I know that's kind of random, but I just ate an orange...... =P

Sometimes I wish that I could be like other bloggers. I wouldn't show a picture of myself (of course) but I wish I could at least give an age-range, kind of what I look like, my first name, and then use like "I live in Xxxxx". (You kind of get the picture.) But I don't. Oh well. =P

I was wondering.... should my next post be Abigail Jane Applegate, the Patriot spy, or Jessie Bender, the hilarious Ohioan? Please tell me. :)

Love,
Katrina

P.S. Don't forget to enter the design contest!! It ends the first of February. :)

I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE BABY!

Dear Readers,

This is Jessie.

And I've to come to say that.....

.......I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL SUMMER!!!!!

Mostly because of that fact that then I'll never have to see Maya again.

Until school starts back up.

Ugh.

And more baby news--we found out that it's a little boy, and my parents decided that his name's going to be William. Then they decided we'll call him Willie while he's really little, and then when he's starting to talk we'll call him Will. Interesting.

Anyway, so the old room down the hall that used to house all of our old junk is now being converted into a baby room. We've got it all painted, and now Mom's always driving us around to Good Wills and such getting all of these baby supplies.

And, you'll be proud to know, I've kind of come to accept it.

And now I'm actually kind of excited!!

I mean, a little baby brother?! SWEET!

I'm actually really, really, really excited. (And it's not only because Mom says she's going to actually teach me how to change the baby and that she'll probably be doing it most of the time.) And now I'm going to have the sibling that I kind of (secretly) always wanted. And then I can be like all of those girls who walk around the park, carrying their little sibling...

Aww. That's so cute. :)

I JUST CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!!

Love,
Jessie

Magazine Update!

Dear Readers,

GUESS WHAT?!?! I'M GOING TO BE ABLE TO PUT A STORY OF MINE IN THE MAGAZINE!!!!!! GAH!!!! I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!!!! (Yesterday I was jumping up and down and screaming. If you can imagine that..... that's kind of what I did when I thought I was going to get to be an extra in a movie...... =P)

The story I've decided to put in is actually Connie (Rubberboot Girl). So I've had to pull the story off the blogs that they're on because it's being published. Sorry! I hope you guys understand. Soon, hopefully, I'll have the link to the magazine's website so that maybe you guys could subscribe!!!! That would be really awesome. :)

I'll keep you updated.

Love,
Katrina

I might have a story in a magazine...?

Dear Readers,

Guess what?! I might be (might be) having a continuing story in a magazine! (like again and again) (and a real magazine) (by a really awesome person I know) Anyway, we haven't figured out everything out, but I'm pretty sure it's all going to work out. :) I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!! I really love the lady who's going to be doing the magazine. I just can't wait!!

The editor of Connie has told me that they have gotten to the end (I believe) of chapter eight, and when they start editing again they can get to chapter nine. Like I said, they're thorough. I'll make sure to keep you updated, and if/when I get Connie published/agreed-to-be-published I'll make sure to let all of you know!!!!! :)

So, did you guys like the new Abigail? Well? (Well, I did!! =D)

I'll tell you guys more about the magazine later.

(I'm also probably going to have an add for it. And a place where you can subscribe. And of course a link to the magazine's website.)

As for now, I'll be seeing you later....

Love,
Katrina

Spy--Chapter 1

My name is Abigail Jane Applegate, and I was ten years old when the British started taxing us horribly. And it's not fair. Mother has refused to buy tea anymore. Instead, we drink coffee, which isn't quite the same, but it has to do. It comes from our friend's plantation. And if coffee was taxed, then we'd go to water. I know it. My parents do not like the British. They would do anything to oppose them.

Last night, my father came home, his hat in his hands. I was just telling Betsey to get her hands off the table and Priscilla to stop trying to pull off little chunks of bread from the bread plate when the door burst open.

Mother, who'd just been bringing out a pot of stew, nearly fell over in surprise as Father burst into the house, a happy smile on his face. By the scared look on my mother's face, I knew that she had thought that my father was one of the British.

"Oh, Beth, you won't believe it!" he cried merrily.

"What is it?" she whispered.

"I just got news from... some friends of mine that something wonderful has happened," Father told her. He glanced over at us and then said, "Abigail, please get your sisters into your room, please. Thank you."

I sighed. "Come along, Betsey, Priscilla."

The girls bounded out of the room with me on their heels. They started up the stairs to their room, glad that they'd gotten out of hearing of the conversation that they, no doubt, thought was boring beyond belief. And me? I stayed behind, moving towards the door into the dining room again, pressing my ear to crack to ear my father's words.

"...and the Sons of Liberty have gone and dumped tea in the harbor!" Father was whispering excitedly. "The British are furious. It's got to be war!"

"I wouldn't be so sure," answered Mother.

"But don't you see?" Father whispered. "We've shown that we don't need the British, or their tea! Soon every man will be raising their arms against England!" His voice had risen into a happy cry.

"Lower your voice, William," Mother warned. "These walls have ears." She stared right through the crack where I was listening. "Abigail, please come in."

I sighed and opened the door. Mother was frowning but Father was smiling.

"Abigail, my lass," started Father, "you're about to witness something amazing in American history. Did you know that?"

"Yes," I whispered. "I do."

He smiled. "Are you ready?"

"I'm not quite sure," I answered truthfully. And I wasn't.

***

Five years later

1778

I hurried through the streets of New York, my eyes trained to the ground before me. Clutched in my hand, hidden under my shawl, was an important message that I needed to get to my father as soon as possible. 

I glanced up ahead and saw several British soldiers marching towards me. I glanced around and saw a woman peeking out of one of the doors.

"Girl," she whispered.

I quickly came over and slipped inside the house just as the soldiers turned down the street. Panting, I leaned against the wall, waiting for the soldiers to pass. I glanced over at the woman and saw her staring at me, her eyes scared.

When the sounds of the soldiers' stomping feet had left, she whispered, "Is it urgent?"

I nodded. "Thank you so much. May God bless you."

I quickly left the woman's house and continued down the street. I spotted the old stable, with the sounds of a blacksmith's hammer inside, and quickly went in. My father's apprentice, Nathan, was there, pounding away.

"Where's Father?" I queried.

He got the meaning. "He's in the back room."

My skirts swept around my legs as I walked over the old hay and came to the big wooden door in the back of the stable. I knocked three times and then kicked the door. It promptly opened. My father's worried face melted into relief when he saw me.

"I didn't think you'd make it with all of the soldiers marching around," he whispered. "Thank goodness you're alright."

My hand came out of my shawl. "Here's the message."

He nodded. "Thank you, Abigail. You're a true Patriot."

No. I was a spy.