'Wazzup? I was asleep! This had better be important!!' Amazonia looked blearily around at her friends, quite a number of whom were surrounded by bits of foil and covered in...
'Chocolate?!'
'Of course, you silly cat! It's Easter, remember?? Honestly....' Sighed Jadis as Amazonia swung herself out of bed and looked at the generous pile of chocolate on the floor by her bed.
'I don't know why they bother! I can't even eat proper chocolate! It's poison!'
'Yeah, but they did stock up on the kitty chocs this year!' They looked around to see Tom standing in the doorway, eating a mars bar.
'To-om, this is the girls dorm!' Raksha looked playfully annoyed.
'I was looking for my sister. How do you remember your way around this place?!'
'Animal senses.' Chorused everyone.
'Second door on the right.' Added Raksha helpfully.
'Thanks.' said Tom as he wandered idly out of the door.
'I often wish I was still a human,' Sighed Rouge as she poked half heatedly at her chocolate. 'This stuff just isn't the same. I will forever pity the animals who are forced to eat it.'
'C'mon, Rouge! You would give up this for chocolate?!' Raksha the ever-optimistic (and really hyper) leaped off her bed, shifted into her magnificent cheetah form and ran around the room, jumping off the beds and doing back flips. She then ran over to her pile of kitty chocs and ate some of the unwrapped ones.
'Mmm! They taste nicer in that form!' she said, changing back. Jadis grinned almost evilly and shifted into her black cat form with bright green eyes. She attacked her pile of chocolate too.
'Yum! It does taste better!' soon the room was full of animals and bits of foil wrapping. Amazonia laughed her rough, leopards laugh. Being a Phase was awesome. Epic. Like she would ever give this up for chocolate!
'Well, I see you girls are enjoying yourselves.' everyone turned to see Devic leaning against the door frame. Jadis gave a yowl that clearly meant 'push off'. Devic just laughed, a cruel laugh. He wasn't in a good mood. Amazonia changed back.
'What's up, Devic? You not get enough Easter eggs of something?' Amazonia remembered with perfect clarity the insults and rough handling she'd received from Devic when he'd first captured her, so she was not going to be all that nice to him.
'Oh, nothing, nothing wrong....' replied Devic in a way that clearly indicated that there was something wrong.
'Then push off.'
'No.' His reply surprised Amazonia. Devic was rude, yes, but not so... well... defiant in his answers. Amazonia realized she was growling slightly.
'Go away, Devic.' That was Jadis.
'Why should I?'
'Well, this is the girl's dorm for a start.'
'But I am an Elder. I get to go where ever I like.' Oh dear, going back to school really hadn't changed Devic at all.
'Well go any way. You're ruining a perfectly good Easter.'
'Oh, Easter! I forgot!' Devic pretended to face palm himself, his withering sarcasm showing that he hadn't forgotten at all.
'You're due for a meeting at the Hall today. And it starts in... ooh! 5 minutes! Gotta go!' Devic shifted and ran along the corridor. The girls looked at each other, shifted, and followed him. Amazonia growled quietly to herself. This had better be important. She still had chocolate to eat. They skidded to a halt at the doors to the hall.
'What kept you?' Sneered Devic, back in human form. The girls just growled at him. Devic rolled his eyes and pushed open the doors, revealing the hall within. It was full of Phases, some as animals, some as humans, all with their eyes fixed on the Elders and the portal in the middle of the hall.
'Fellow Phases,' said the lead Elder, his voice echoing around the hall. 'I have some brilliant news! As you may have heard, (but I hope you haven't), we Elders have been working on a special project for times like these.' Due to the muttering and confused looks from the assembled Phases, they had not heard. 'We know that many of you have had to leave your friend and families and have been scared out of your wits, so we'd like to give you a bit back. If you would like to form an orderly line up to the portal....' the Phases did this all looking very confused apart from Devic and, oddly, Tom. Devic was trying to look bored but there was excitement building in his eyes, and Tom seemed to be having trouble not shouting out in his excitement. He was standing with Emarai and their parents, who also looked rather exited. As often happened when she saw the family, Amazonia felt the stirrings of jealousy and the pangs of sorrow. She desperately wanted to see her parents and sister, but was bound by the animal spirit inside her. Now, her family was definitely something she'd trade being a Phase for, but there was no reversing it. She would never be human again. She looked up from her mourning to see that the line was moving forward. Phase after Phase was stepping through, and Amazonia could faintly hear shouts and whoops coming from the other side. After what seemed like hours, she was next up to the portal. She stepped through...
Amazonia gasped. Trees, grass, sky, sunlight. She was standing a a meadow with the portal still open behind her. The grass felt so soft beneath her feet and the Sun so warm on her back. She laughed out loud and danced around the meadow. She could see the other Phases laughing and crying with joy, and then she was rolling around on the ground with Jadis, Rouge and Raksha, laughed and crying at the same time. It seemed to have been years since they'd been outside, and seeing the grass and trees and sky made Amazonia so happy she could hardly bare it. The Elders were standing a little way off, smiling at the child Phases pleasure. Before she knew it Amazonia and her friends had shifted and run off into the trees, and Amazonia did something she'd always wanted to do: climb a tree. It came naturally to her, the way she gripped with her claws, they way she pulled herself up effortlessly, and how she balanced on the thick branches, looking down at the other cats. Jadis came up too and sat on a branch just above Amazonia's head. Raksha and Rouge yowled up at them jealously and Amazonia gave a sort of apologetic moan. For the sake of their friend they both leaped down from the tree. When they were on the ground they all looked up as they heard the happy cries of birds above them. Everyone's happy thought Amazonia oh Elders, thank you. Thank you thank you thank you! This is the best Easter gift EVER!! The cats laughed and played in the forest, delighted at their liberty. After a while, they changed back and walked happily back to the meadow.
'But I suppose there is a barrier somewhere.' sighed Jadis.
'Oh, stop ruining it! I'm having fun!' cried Raksha, dancing and twirling around the other three, before Rouge stuck out her leg, sending Raksha head first into a bush.
'You ok?' called Amazonia, but she doubted Raksha could be hurt with a steamroller, so a simple case of falling over was nothing to worry about.
'Yes, though I'm not so sure about the bush,' Raksha walked out, dusting herself down. 'And you did that because...?'
'It amuses me to see you fall over.' Said Rouge the ever-blunt. They had entered the main clearing now, but found it deserted apart from an Elder whom Amazonia thought her name was Selvi.
'Hello, girls. Back so soon? You have the whole day, you know.'
'We do?!' Amazonia could hardly believe her ears. A whole day outside? Amazonia found that she was laughing again.
'And every holiday. We can't just keep you cooped up inside forever can we? A few of you might get some funny ideas about escaping.'
'Every holiday?'
'Oh yes. Wanna chocolate?'
'Hell yeah.'
The End.
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Yay! My first successful holiday story! Sorry it's a bit late, but I only started writing it on Monday. I hope you've enjoyed it!!
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