the black.
- - - - - - - - - -
The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was also the last thing I saw before I passed out - the gleaming green of my nutcracker's gaze. I knew that much. What I didn't understand, though, was why his eyes were blinking. I mean, how can an inanimate object blink? I closed my eyes again, then opened them. Now the supposedly painted brow was set in an expression of concern. "Are you okay," a deep voice said. "Yeah, I'm fine," I croaked, and pushed myself up off the ground.
"Good," the same voice said, "Because the way I figure it, the Rats should be coming any second." My head whipped around to the direction it was coming from. Once again my gaze met liquid emerald. Confused, I looked this mystery guy over. He had shoulder-length black hair that flowed like a waterfall, was wearing a plain black tee-shirt and blue jeans, and had the same expressive eyes as my nutcracker. That made me even more confused.
"My name is Danny, just in case you were wondering," he quipped. I slowly nodded and tried to calm my thoughts. They were rushing around my head like little cars, severely late for some important appointment. Most of them were yelling at me to see the obvious, and the others were telling them that they were crazy and that I should ignore it. Of course, "the obvious" was that he looked exactly the same as my nutcracker, who, may I add, was mysteriously missing.
Before I jumped to conclusions, though, I asked, "What rats?" Danny laughed and asked, "You mean you didn't get the briefing?" It seemed like the more I talked to this Danny person, the more confused I became. "What briefing," I demanded. He laughed
[BREAK]
again and said, "Basically, we've been thrown into The Nutcracker. Everything that happened there has to happen here, or else we'll be stuck in time forever. So, since you're awake, that means the Rats are coming."
"Do you honestly expect me to believe that garbage," I fumed indignantly. His eyes widened incredulously and he said, "Uh, let me think about that . . . Yes! Clara, I was a nutcracker five minutes ago! Of course I expect you to believe this!" Once again, my thoughts were divided. Half of me wanted to believe him and accept the fact that he really was my nutcracker, and the other half was still telling the first half that they were crazy.
"Listen," he said, "I'm sorry for yelling, but seriously. I'm not lying to you. I need you to cooperate, or else one of us is going to get murdered by a bunch of freaks wearing rat robes, okay?" I looked into his eyes for a second to try and make up my mind. As far as I could see, he really wasn't lying, and I definitely didn't want to die, so I said, "Okay. But how are we going to defend ourselves?"
He smiled and walked over to a dark corner. When he came back, he was carrying an aluminum baseball bat and what appeared to be a black tree branch. "Where did those come from," I asked. "That A. Nonymous guy told me they would be here," he stated simply. I nodded my head and took the bat from him. There was no way I was doubting anything he said again. After all, he was the one got the briefing. "When they come, stay behind me," he warned, " I don't want you getting hurt."
I was taken aback. This guy hadn't even known me for five minutes and he was already worried about my safety. I reasoned that it was probably only because I'm a girl. "That's sweet, but I don't need a guard," I laughed. He sighed and turned around as if to
