How the Characters Rebelled

I floated into the parlor. Everyone was there just like we agreed. I scanned the crowd. Stella, Susie, Philip, Kelly from the moose family were here. Winter, Max, Alicia, and Believer were here from the dog and wolf family. Tony from the deer family. Jay from the bird family. Humphrey the worm. Jax the lizard. Mia, Azariah, Tika, Luke, Adalie, Enzo, and Joy from the human family. Don’t ask me why so many shadows came.

I walked in between the other mystical beings, examining them. There were lots of ghosts, and spirits and shadows and what not. Who killed all these people? I’ll never know. My job is just to deal with them. But they didn’t know that. 

Laughter echoed in the air as all of the girls were flirting with Enzo, currently in a handsome dragon form, with a jealous Luke by his side. I chuckled to myself. Music played from invisible speakers in the ceiling. It was a merry time. 

The mother moose Stella guarded her children carefully. They laughed and joked about. Winter joined Max and Alicia, comforting Believer off in the corner. Jax talked to Jay and Humphrey. Tony was eating all the snacks. I walked over to the ignorant deer.

“So, Tony. You died in a fire, correct?”

The deer nodded while chewing the cake that I made.

“Tell me about it, what did you feel?”

“It was hot, my skin smelled burned, and that’s about all I remember.” He continued to gobble up the snacks.

“Hm, interesting,” I replied with little enthusiasm. I liked my paws and moved onto the next group, the bird, the worm, and the reptile.

“...and that’s how we ended up in the cave,” Humphrey was saying. 

I walked up to them and they opened up their small circle.

“Hello gentlemen. Tell me, how did you die?”

“Well, I died of old age,” Jay the bluejay responded.

“I died from lack of sun and oxygen,” the little lizard said.

“And I died from suffocation. Why did Azariah think I would be able to survive in that stuffy pocket?” came the little worm’s response. 

“Interesting,” I mumbled. I turned and walked away. I knew how the moose died. It happens too much. 

I headed toward the humans, saving my own group for last. 

“...Enzo! You’re so funny!” came Mia’s voice. 

“Definitely!” agreed Joy.

I mean, he’s cute and all, but what about Luke here? Azariah wrote in her notebook. I felt sorry for her. 

“I think Luke’s great. He’s heroic and bold, and kinda handsome,” Tika said. 

“Aw thanks,” Luke replied.

“I’m in between on this one, I mean, they’re both handsome,” Adalie said.

“Hey, what about me people? I mean I’m a prince after all,” Fallon said. 

“Well, thanks millions ladies, but I think that wolf wants to talk to us,” Enzo said. All of them, shadows and ghosts alike, turned in my direction.

I shifted uncomfortably under their gaze. 

“What's your name? I haven't seen you before,” Joy said. 

“I don’t have one.”

They stared at me.

“You must have some name,” Mia said. 

“I forgot when I was hit on the head with that stick. It was Believer’s owner.” I growled in his direction for emphasis. 

“Well, what would you like me to call you?” asked Tika. So kind of her.

“Um, well, I’m not sure…”

How about Alec?

“Or maybe Erik?” Adalie said.

“Um...how about just Lone Wolf?” I asked.

“Sure, sure,” replied Enzo, speaking for the group. They nodded to show their agreement.

“So...back to what I was going to say, how did you all die?”

They exchanged glances at each other.

“I was attacked by a bear. The end,” said Fallon.

“I was crushed under a pile of dirt when my best friend abandoned me,” Mia said with a sour look.

I died when I submitted my soul to ‘King Delano’s army’. It was weird to watch myself be separated from flesh into soul. Azariah wrote.

“Mine’s pretty much the same as Azariah. So is Enzo. Once you become a shadow, you stay a shadow until you die…” Adalie said.

“But, we don’t need to go into those details. That’s a story for another day,” Enzo finished with a sly grin on his face. 

“I died when I joined The Lost Soul Choir, unwillingly might I add,” Joy said.

“It’s been a while since I died, but when I did, I was banished from my mother’s realm and sent to Earth to roam as a ghost forever,” Tika said.

“Yeah same, Tika,” Luke added.

I committed this to memory.

“Thank you all for your time. I hope you enjoy this party tonight.”

“Thank you for hosting this party, Lone Wolf.”

“No problem.”

I walked away as they chatted behind my back. The last group, the wolves and Believer. I hold grudges, yes I do. I growled as I approached them. Max, Winter, and Alicia backed away, knowing better. That left me and my former enemy. 

“Well well, well, we meet again, old enemy.”

Believer snarled at me, just like he did when I threatened him the first time in the mortal realm. 

“At least you can’t bite me to shreds this time.”

“Who’s going to stop me, pitbull?”

“Maybe I will. And plus, we can’t get wounds once we die.”

“Yes, I suppose, only emotional scars my friend.”

“Friend? Says who?”

“Hey, hey, guys, chillax,” Winter said, trying to calm us down.

I growled slightly.

“This isn’t over, Believer. I”ll see you on the other side.”

“Other side? And what exactly is that?”

“You’ll find out soon enough,” I muttered. I prowled away before he could mock me again. I walked over to a less crowded section of the parlor. 

Just as I was sitting down, a figure burst into the parlor.

“EVERYONE! LISTEN UP!”

We all turned to look at the newcomer. 

“Why should we listen to you? We haven’t even properly met,” Fallon said.

“Fine I’m Fawn and I have a brother named Flint and we’ve been separated and I need to get back to him ASAP and wait why do you all look dead?” she said in one breath.

“Woah, woah, woah, slow down there...Fawn. Say, you remind me of someone...ever heard of someone called Rayla?’ Mia asked, curiously. 

“She’s my cousin, why?”

I saw Mia mutter something inaudible under her breath.

So how did you and your brother get separated?

“Well, I’m here and he isn’t. I need to get back to him.”

We all stared at her for a moment. Was it possible to go back to life once you’re dead?

“Um, I’m afraid that’s not possible, uh Fawn.” I stammered.

She looked at me as if just seeing me for the first time.

“Why can I understand you?”

“Death is a universal language,” I responded coldly. 

“Wait, so it's true then? I’m really dead?” she asked. 

“Yep, very true,” Tika said. 

Fawn looked a little disappointed. 

“But there has to be a way. What about in the Heroes of Olympus? Didn’t they have to free the ‘god’ of death to stop people from rising from the dead? So maybe we have to do the opposite and capture him to let people be raised from the dead.”

We just stared at her.

“Uh, Fawn, you do know that that was just a story, right?” Luke said.

“Or was it? What if we’re just characters made up by authors? What if we’ve been living a lie?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Enzo said. “We’re as real as it gets.”

“Says a room full of shadows and ghosts. And people say that ghosts aren’t real, but here you are.” Fawn crossed her transparent arms in a smirky way, as if saying ‘so there’.

I scowled.

Everyone looked confused.

So wait, does that mean that we don’t exist at all? We’re just made up people from someone’s mind?

“Precisely what I’m saying.” Fawn added.

“But, there is a real world out there, that bear really did kill me,” Fallon added. 

“Well, it’s very real to us, it’s the only thing we’ve ever known, but, what if there’s another world out there? What if we are tiny little creatures and there are giants out there, huh?”

Everyone started gaping about this idea. Even the other animals were interested now.

“I mean, think about it, we’re all from different places, right?” Fawn added.

“Yeah, I’m from the Kingdom of Gawain,” Fallon said. 

“I’m from a forest somewhere, I don’t remember the name,” Mia added, looking at Fawn with a sulk. 

“Azariah, Adalie and I are from Ombretta Castle,” Enzo added, now in a fierce lion form.

“I’m from a city near Jewelmont which will remain nameless,” Joy said.

“We live in the countryside, Luke and I,” Tika said. 

“We’re from different forests all over the place,” the animals said in close unison. 

“Like, imagine if we’re like the author’s puppets, they control us blindly,” Fawn said. “That would explain our troubles and weird lives, am I right?”

“Yeah, that does make sense in a way,” I admitted. I sulked in Believer’s direction. 

“But what do we do now? How do we find these authors?” Luke asked.

“That’s just it though, we can’t. They exist in a different world.” Fawn looked saddened. 

Maybe we can find them someday.

“Maybe, but how would we do that? Not like we can just make a portal to them,” Fawn said. 

“True, but we just gotta be creative,” Tika said.

“Maybe if we try hard enough, we can talk to them,” Enzo suggested.

“Yeah, okay, let’s focus on things that are not of this world,” Fawn said.

And that’s how the characters rebelled.