They'd survived the night, but there were some more dangerous waters ahead... ----- Chapter 22. "Seika's been looking forward to coming over so much," Mr. Cooper said, with a broad smile. "She could barely wait to get into the car. Thought she might just run over here herself!" Holly smiled back, as did Trayne Owen. But inside, Holly felt roiling nervous tension that was taking everything she had to hide. I'm so worried . . . Worried that Seika would run away when she learned the truth. It shocked Holly how much [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 21
October 6, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Well, they'd beaten the monster, but sometimes that's just the start of the problems... _____ Chapter 21. "Daddy!" Holly jumped up from the stiff-backed plastic chair that sat on one side of the simple table and leapt into Mr. Owen's somewhat startled embrace with such force that even the much taller man was almost knocked over. She was disconcerted to realize how little of her joy and relief was feigned, and how much of it was real. For a moment . . . it was like having my father show up when I needed him most. [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 20
October 4, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Holly was in a battle... ----- Chapter 20. Take care of Seika. The words had been thought to Silvertail simply, but he was used to seeing what lay behind the words; Holly would not tell him to do, or not do, anything else, but she knew, or thought she knew, what had to happen now. Count on me, he replied, and knew that she understood completely. Seika cooperated by backing away quickly from the two combatants, placing her back against one of the classroom doors. It was simple to use his magic to cause the door to [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 19
October 2, 2017 By Leave a Comment
The girls' game had been gruesomely interrupted... ----- Chapter 19. The first thought that came into Holly's head after the shock was a crushing sense of guilt. There was no doubt in her mind now that this was the next manifestation, and that meant that Mr. Jefferson was dead in either reality. I managed to stop the first two without deaths. I . . . I hoped I could save everyone. "OhshitOhshitOhshit . . ." Nikki was mumbling from behind her. Caitlin was simply frozen, staring in utter shock. "Let's get the hell out of this [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 18
September 29, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Holly had made a friend, so let's go forward a bit in time... Chapter 18. "I push the door open slowly," Seika said, miming the action across the broad table. Her voice echoed in the mostly deserted cafeteria, giving an appropriate overtone to her words. Holly glanced at the other three members of the Steampunk Adventure Club. "Any of you doing anything while the Countess opens the door?" Caitlin Modofori shrugged. "Iron Jake's got his flux baton ready, but other than that he's just watching." "By my [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 17
September 27, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Well, Holly had made a new friend... ----- Chapter 17. "Wow," Seika said, looking around. "Nice house!" "It's a little big," Holly said. "I mean, for me and Dad. But everywhere we've lived we ended up finding some way to fill the space, so Dad said—" "—this time we'll make sure there's always enough space," Trayne Owen's voice finished. "Hey, Dad," she said, noticing how that phrase was actually becoming normal, and trying not to let the Steve part of her freak out, "This is Seika, Seika, this is my dad Trayne [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 16
September 25, 2017 By 7 Comments
Well, Holly was finally going to school... ----- Chapter 16. "Hey, um, Holly?" Holly looked up to see another girl looking uncertainly down at her. Black girl, average height, just a little heavy, big poofy hair she's forced into two huge ponytails . . . dammit, brain, give me her name! Steve knew he was usually bad with names, so he'd been working on trying to do some mnemonic associations with the classmates he'd heard the names of. Hair wasn't tied back, looked like a starburst first day, name was strange, and [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 15
September 22, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Holly had had a bit of a jolt at the end of her first day of school... ----- Chapter 15. "Holly, calm down and tell me what is wrong!" Trayne Owen struggled to keep from losing control and reverting to Silvertail. "You walked in the door and started talking so fast I can't make heads or tails of—" "Dex is at my school!" she said, voice unsteady. "He was right there, getting on the bus, my God I was so lucky he didn't look at me, but he could have and someday he will and—" "Holly!" he shouted. She jumped and fell [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 14
September 20, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Today, our hero Holly faces her most daunting challenge yet: High School! ----- PART II: AWAKENING THE MAIDENS Chapter 14. She stood in the cool September morning, watching as the yellow school bus grumbled its way up to her driveway, and felt an eerie sense of frightened déjà vu. It had been almost twenty years since the last time Stephen Russ had boarded such a bus, and the memories of that and earlier bus rides wasn't a pleasant memory to recall. Maybe I should've talked about that with Silvertail. The faint whiff of diesel [ Continue reading... ]
Princess Holy Aura: Chapter 13
September 18, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Even heroes can get a case of nerves before a big day... ----- Chapter 13. "Holly? You need to go to sleep!" Mr. Owen said, looking in and seeing her sitting at her computer. Holly sighed, tried to smile and failed. "I can't sleep, Dad . . . Silvertail." The confusion that had made her change the name she used threatened to overwhelm her. Sometimes I almost forget being Steve Russ, and that terrifies me beyond words. He sat down in one of the other chairs, pushing back the graying black hair that needed a [ Continue reading... ]
What You’re Saying