animal jam - the first fox (book one) under editing

chapter eight, the mentor

the tour went smoothly for the first hour. mira manifested the great ballrooms and the magnificent dining areas with silverware of gold. she showed us beautifully designed frames of former alphas, which hung in the hall of the heavens. the hall of the heavens was a grand corridor with statues of warriors and royalty lining the wall. there were many tall windowpanes, and mira had chuckled smugly, "there's a wonderful view if you look out one of those. go ahead. take a peek."

and we had, all seven of us scrambling over one another to see: the view was indeed gorgeous. you could see all of jamaa; we could even catch a glimpse of mount shiveer, snowing distantly over yonder. there were gasps of amazement and awe, but soon, mira called us back over once again.

the tour ended in a large gym-like room. mira detailed it as the training chamber and began an overly extended speech about how many alphas had succeeded and achieved their dreams in this very place. she had meant to impress, but most of us weren't even listening (except for gilbert and greely, who seemed very intent on the history of the training space).

i knew i should have been paying attention, but my thoughts were all over the place at that point. i was still replaying the scene in my head, where my name had been called publicly at the redeeming. true, it was a life-changing moment for me, but i seemed not to grasp the honest aspect of it all. i mean, me? an alpha?

i could have been lucky enough to at least get a job as a lifeguard for marine animals.

plus, it had been a long day. my eyes were exceedingly heavy, and i felt as if i could fall asleep on the spot. aching with weariness, i yawned unknowingly on my behalf and gave my ears a quick scratch. i toned in on mira's social studies lesson and was glad to realize that she had finally finished talking.

"any questions?" the heron asked.

many raised their paws, including the gray and white monkey, graham, who was inquisitively intent on asking a question. but without being spoken to, peck asked, "where do the shamans go for their training and stuff? like, where do they live?"

annoyed mutters hissed throughout the small crowd, but mira answered peck anyways: "they live west of appondale in a place called the miesta. you'll learn more about it later, but thank zios we didn't have to walk as far as they did to get there." she cringed at the name she had used - zios - and continued to answer questions, though more daunted than before; zios was mira's past lover who had abandoned her and jamaa in disbelief that the animals would thrive under his rule. it had been said that he didn't mean to hurt mira in any way. privately, i thought that he just didn't care.

"yes, liza?" mira sighed, as the panda had been waving her paw and wincing in desperation. "like greely said back at the staircase - " she purred, shooting a passionate glance at the wolf with her sparkly, purple eyes. "we're not gonna have to share rooms. correct?"

the blue heron's feathers ruffled in amusement. "no, liza. you are most definitely not going to have to share rooms with anyone." more snickers of delight sounded from the former alphas.

liza breathed a sigh of relief and smoothed out her green dress pompously. "thank you. it's completely unsanitary, sharing a room with someone. i mean, what if you get paired with someone utterly disgusting and - and... dirty? i can't imagine it," she muttered half to herself, but everyone heard it. i frowned, feeling eyes direct theirselves towards me. my orange and black fur began to stand on end for i knew liza must have been speaking of me.

cosmo whispered a little bit too loudly to gilbert, "she's talking about amelia! haha." both the tiger and the koala shot a quick glance at me, but i was entirely unbothered. and even though he must've noticed that i was careless, gilbert still acted tremendously uncomfortable and rebuked cosmo quietly.

mira was the same and cleared her throat. "alright, that's enough," she ordered. "the tour has ended. all of you separate with your mentors; they'll show you to your rooms, and in the morning, they will discuss with you your lesson plans. i will not be here, unfortunately, but i will return the next day. no need to explain, so please go with your mentors." obediently, everyone departed.

only i remained, sitting awkwardly before mira. peck glanced towards me for a split second before turning and trotting after kirk.

"greetings, amelia," mira welcomed me. "how are you?"

"fine." i answered shortly, self-consciously itching some dirt out of my claws. am i not going to have a mentor? i asked myself worriedly, trying hard not to let my anxiety show to the sky goddess.

thankfully, mira didn't seem to notice. "i know you must be wondering about who your trainer will be. i considered asking someone of the navy, but i remembered that that particular animal is away. so, for the time being, i will be your mentor," she told me warmly, leaving me shocked.

"b-but," i stuttered, disrupted by a wing wrapping around my shoulders. "don't worry! you'll be fine. i'll have you in shape in no time, amelia fox. for i believe," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "that you have the best mentor in jamaa."

i grinned and laughed along with her, but all the while, i was mortified. i didn't want to prove myself a failure in front of the sky goddess herself! the one who had created all the animals and cities and towns and landscapes! but silently, i knew that it was acutely inevitable.

once again, i found myself incapable to listen to a word mira was saying, and instead focused on planning my funeral.