Chatterbox: Inkwell

OK, I need a volunteer to help me write a story! It is about this 12-year-old orphan girl named Yosari who has to live in an orphanage. She has a secret-she is an Animalspeak, a person who can talk to animals. She tells no one, least of all the horrible headmaster, Mr. Smeltkins. She has been here for nine years, ever since she was three, but this year there is one bright spot-she gets to go to Magic Riding School. It starts in the winter, and you start going when you are twelve. Lucky Yosari-she turns twelve in the winter and gets to go as soon as it starts! You learn to ride unicorns, then pegasi, then griffins, then dragons, then kelpies. Kelpies are last because unless you are really really careful, they head for the nearest large body of water and try to drown you in it. So yeah.

Anyway, so I'll start the story, and whoever gives me the best response gets to help! Just a couple more things about Yosari:

1. Yosari has no friends. NONE.

2. Even if people wanted to be her friend, she wouldn't want any, because she is very aloof.

3. She has long black hair and big blue eyes. She enjoys reading, writing, the outdoors, and animals. She does not enjoy Mr. Smeltkins, Shashana, the snob, and the orphanage, especially school. She is also slightly claustrophobic, meaning, for those who don't know, that she is afraid of small, closed-in spaces.

This is the story: Yosari awoke with a sudden jolt. For a moment she lay awake in bed, staring at the still-dark sky outside through the window and wondering why she she had awoken so suddenly. Then she remembered. Magic Riding School! Today! I'm twelve! It starts today! I can go! Finally!

Jumping out of bed, she leaped away for the dressing room. Her roommate, Navara, slept in the other bed. All the roommates made friends with each other. Except Yosari and Navara. Whenever Navara woke up and saw Yosari up, she squeaked and ran out of the room. However, Yosari could enjoy herself at Magic Riding School without either Shashana or Navara to bother her, as neither would be turning twelve until the spring. Three whole months! Shashana had been whining about Yosari starting riding before she could, but there was nothing she could do. She had actually gone to Mr. Smeltkins about it. Yosari had heard them talking. Mr. Smeltkins' low, oily voice:

"Well, if it was up to me, Shashana, of course you could start riding before Yosari, but unfortunately, the supervisors of the school have set down the rules, you may only start when you are twelve-"

"You'll pay for this!" Shashana had shrieked, cutting him off. "I'll make you pay!" Then she had stormed off in a huff. Yosari had laughed about it to herself for the rest of the day.

All through brushing her teeth, getting dressed, and making her bed, she went over the Magic Riding School guidelines, rules, and procedures in her head. Twelve-year-olds started on unicorns. When they turned thirteen, they rode pegasi and helped twelve-year-olds get started. When they were fourteen, they rode griffins. Fifteen was the year for dragons, and sixteen, four years before you became an adult, was the time for riding kelpies. Until you left the orphanage at the age of twenty, after you tunred seventeen, you got to ride your unicorn, pegasus, griffin, dragon, and kelpie while you helped out. All the starters were required to wake up at 3:00, then, after getting ready (brushing teeth, getting dressed, making bed, eating breakfast, getting into riding uniform), you had to walk down in a line to the stables, where you would be given your unicorn and paired up with a thirteen-year-old, who would help you out.

Which reminded her, she had to run down to the breakfast hall and eat if she wanted to make it to the stables on time. Giving her bed a final straightening out, she hastened down the stairs, stifling a yawn. She had barely gotten any sleep. They made you go to bed two hours earlier, but you hardly managed to get to sleep anyway.

While going down the long, winding, creaky wooden staircase, Yosari remembered first becoming aware of the riding. When she was six, she had seen the stables, and seen twelve-year-olds being matched up with their unicorns and their thirteen-year-old helpers. And then-something had happened-her heart had leaped into her throat, or maybe her throat had jumped down to her heart, but she had suddenly realized that one day, she would be doing that too. It was the one thing that kept her going, kept her from running away, the knowledge that, one day, she would be riding a unicorn.

When she was eight, the flying teacher, Ms. Kemper, a strict, stern, gray-haired lady, had told all the other current eight-year-olds about Magic Riding. Yosari had taken in every word, memorized them, whispered them to herself at night. Navara had even complained to her friend, Rayan, that Yosari talked in her sleep, about the guidelines.

Yosari jolted herself back to the present and darted into the breakfast hall, sitting down at the long twelve-year-old table, next to Rayan. Rayan had beautiful brown eyes and brown hair to match. She glanced nervously at Yosari and looked away. Yosari sat herself as far away from her as possible. It was lucky she was seated at the end of the table.

Waiters came and served their breakfast. Yosari didn't even notcie what she was eating. All she could think about was the stables, and the unicorn waiting for her.

Waiting. It was all she could think about. When she thought of her unicorn, first she thought of its appearance. White. Powerful yet benign. A spiraling horn. Pale blue eyes. Then gender: A stag, probably. Maybe doe. Then she thought of its possible name, but all she could think of was Waiting. Her unicorn was Waiting, it was both its name and what it was doing.

Finally, she realized she was finished and walked in the line down the hall to the uniform closet. She was handed her winter uniform, and walked away to a changing stall. It was warm, padded, pale blue with streaks and spirals of silver. It had a dark green number on the back: 23. She was the 23rd twelve-year-old. What she liked most about it was its warm black fur ruff around the neck. She slipped into it and admired herself in the mirror. Then she slipped on the matching boots (complete with fur ruffs) and headed for the line.

It was a beautiful still white, the ground covered in snow, a foot of snow. They crunched through, single-file, stepping in each other's footprints, until they reached the stables.

The stables were made out of dark brown wood. They had a tan sign hanging above them: Twelve-year-old stables, unicorns.

Yosari nearly jumped in the air, but controlled herself and listened to what their nineteen-year-old leader was saying.

"Wait out her while I get Ms. Kemper," she said, sternly, "and no talking." Then she left for a room at the end.

The minute she was gone, everyone started talking.

"I can't wait, can you?"

"I wonder what mine will be!"

"I hope it's a stag."

"I hope it's a doe."

Then Ms. Kemper and the nineteen-year-old came out of the room and they all stopped talking to look at them.

"Alright, boys and girls," said Ms. Kemper, briskly. She always said everything briskly. "Listen up. Today is your first riding lesson. Now, these are the rules..."

Yosari knew the rules so well, she whispered them along with Ms. Kemper as the latter spoke.

"When the unicorns are brought out, they will be released and each will head for a single person. Do not attempt to grab one away from another person; they have those horns for a reason.

"When each of you has a unicorn, you will be paired with a thirteen-year-old, who will help you tack up, mount, and ride for the next week.

"Never wander from the group, never disobey orders, and alwyas cooperate." She said the last word glaring at them all, as if she would dearly like to add, "Or else!"

"Now, the unicorns!" And then the unicorns came.

Everyone gasped. Trotting towards them, beautiful, white, shining, were twenty-three unicorns, each led by a handler on an animal of their choice. Each wore a different color halter, with a lead rope to match. As one, the handlers unclipped the lead ropes and the unicorns were free.

For a moment they did nothing. Then, one by one, they headed towards a single person. Some walked up to their chosen hesitantly, sometimes running away. Others strided up boldly, confidently.

Yosari's came last. But he was one of the bold, confident ones. (She knew it was a st by the golden buckles on his crimson halter and the golden ring for clipping on the lead rope. Does had silver buckles and rings.) He was slightly smaller than all the others, and Yosari thought that he had just been waiting for all the others to get out of his way so he could get to her.

She reached out with a trembling hand and took hold of his noseband. He breathed in her face, gently, then said, "I'm White Lightning."

She jumped. Usually she had to tell an animal that she was an Animalspeak. "How did you know?" she asked him.

He snorted. He was laughing, she realized. "Unicorns always know. All magical creatures do. What's your name?"

"Yosari," she said. "Is White Lightning your real name or the name they gave you?"

"Real," he said. "They call me Snowbank. You can if you want," he added.

"I don't want to," she said. "White Lightning sounds much better."

"Thank you," he said.

They didn't have any more time to talk, because just then Ms. Kemper was handing her the crimson lead rope, ordering her to attach it, and saying, "What do you think you are doing with that unicorn, Yosari? Quit making noises and pay attention."

"Yes ma'am," she said, politely, attaching the lead rope and muttering, "Sorry, I have no choice."

"I know," he said. "You don't have to apologize."

And then Ms. Kemper was standing in front of them all and saying, "The thirteen-year-olds are coming! Be on your best behaivor. You are now going to be paired up."

And then they arrived.

OK, it's your turn! The one who writes the best response gets to be my partner! Good luck!