Wings of a Feather

Chapter 9

As Riley had promised, he led Heather through the woods and back into town in the direction of the school. She hadn't been out of the woods since she had first arrived, since she had only just learned how to conceal her 'identity'.

Heather glanced at all of the people walking around. She shouldn't have been surprised. After all it was a pleasant Saturday morning, and if circumstances were different, she would want to spend it walking around town with friends too. Everyone looked so content and carefree, and Heather couldn't resist the pang of envy that sparked inside of her.

She pushed aside her trivial emotions and used the opportunity to asses her surroundings as she kept pace with Riley. People of all ages were walking from store to store, some carrying shopping bags and others carrying some sort of food product.

They passed by a cafe that seemed pretty busy, and Heather figured that it was the source of the food. A little farther down the road behind them, Heather recognized the little diner where she had eaten when she had first arrived. It also looked surprisingly busy, but then again it was about the time of day that people ate breakfast.

All in all, it looked like a pretty average little town. No immediate dangers were present, which was a refreshing change for Heather.

She continued looking around as she walked, oblivious to the fact that Riley was watching her with a small frown.

There was a group of teenagers walking on the sidewalk a small distance in front of them, heading in the opposite direction. Three boys and two girls, all looking to be around the same age as Riley and Heather.

Heather eyed them curiously as they passed, but none of them seemed to take any notice of the two loners. That is, until one of the girls spun around to openly gape at Heather.

Heather and Riley faced the girl with equally confused expressions. The girl's friends had also turned around to look at their stopped companion.

Does she know me? Heather wondered nervously. If she happened to be recognized by anyone, she knew that she would have to move on from this town, regardless of her just arriving a few short days ago.

But no, Heather couldn't recall ever seeing this girl. She was small in stature- even smaller than Heather herself- with long brown hair and blue eyes that were stretched wide as she gazed at Heather. She was pale and freckled, but certainly pretty, and Heather was positive that she would have remembered meeting such a girl.

"Wow!" The girl squeaked, pointing a finger at Heather. Heather instantly recoiled from her hand, her body easily falling into position to flee at the first sign of trouble, a survival technique that was hard-wired into her brain.

But the girl didn't attack her, though Heather was positive that she could easily defeat the smaller girl if she did. Instead, she let out a loud gasp and exclaimed, "Oh my god, you're so pretty!"

Heather blinked, then turned to look at her companion, who shrugged. She turned back to the girl who had confronted her and relaxed, no longer feeling threatened. "Uhh, thanks?"

The other girl in their group let out a loud sigh, shaking her head. "Penny, why are you always so straight forward? It's rude." The two of the guys chuckled in amusement, and the third one scowled at the ground.

"But Anna!" Penny whined. "It was a compliment! How can a compliment ever be considered rude?" She turned to me expectantly. "Right?"

"Ummmm... Well I guess." Heather responded, and Penny's face lit up.

She turned back to Anna. "See! Besides, if anyone of us is considered rude, it's you, Miss Grumpy-all-the-time-pants!"

Anna rolled her eyes, before she turned back to Heather. "Please excuse my friend, she has the intellectual capacity of a third grader."