Rising Anew
#12 of Rising Anew
Rising Anew
Regular...
That was all his life seemed to add up to anymore.
It was just another regular morning in Narcenac's life. He would once again, wake up, get dressed, walk out his door and down the sidewalk to one of the many class buildings. He would yet again pass by the same people and yet again sit in the same desk, listening to the same proffesor lecture over some lesson.
It was an exhausted existance. One he would dearly love to give up.
Narcenac longed for the life hidden away in his dreams. He wasnt just another boring human, he was a beautiful and deadly creature. Life was never the same from day to day. It was always exciting.
But... they were just dreams. Nothing more...
He often day dreamed of escaping class and running wild through the fields nearby. Escaping all of the horrid school drama, all of which eventually ended the same. Escaping from the scathing lectures and homework. To be free, wild and free...
*****************
Narcenac looked long and hard at the creature before him in the mirror. "He wasnt bad looking for a human," he thought to himself. He wasnt the handsome kind of guy that girls chased after, but he wasnt ugly either.
Narcenac stood back and ran a hand through the ragged hair on his head. That strange hair that he had always had. The purple shined slightly as he ruffled the blonde strands. He still couldnt figure out why his hair changed to purple at the ends. It had been like that for as long as he could remember. Quickly he glanced over at the family crest tattooed on his shoulder. The tiger stared back regal and strong, the family crest all the blood members of his family had tattooed on their shoulders.
He thought back to the story his great grandmother had once told him.
"The tiger will show in this family again..."
Her story had always ended with that line, although no one else in the family would even discuss the matter.
"I wonder what she meant..." he said to himself as he slipped into the felt shirt she had given him the year before her passing. It was a deep purple color with tiger stripes across the back and sides. Easily his favorite.
Narcenac walked slowly down the street that morning. He was not in a hurry to go through the bore of class just yet. His mind was filled with the memories of his great grandmother. He missed her, her and her feline grace and fluidity. Even at her great age, she was in amazing shape.
It often amazed him when she would catch things falling before he could blink. Her affinity for the color was parralleled by only his own. She said it was good genes on his part. He would spend his summers with her, she would insist going to the woods and smelling everything. Relaxing in a small hallow she had discovored on one of her many walks, they would sit together and discuss their pasts, Narcenac's great granfather, and the lives that lay ahead for them both.
Then one day, she was gone. All that was found was torn and shredded clothes and a broken door. He never believed she had just been taken and never found. She was far to wild and sly for that to happen. He had a feeling she had done this on purpose.
****************
The classroom was cold, there was not enough color or scents for Narcenac to feel comfortable. He felt more imprisoned than a student in a classroom. The students slowly streamed in and sat down at the various desks sitting around the room. It was morning so they all seemed to want to remain quiet for now. He was thankful, he didnt need the noise to ruin his mood at the time. He was enjoying those memories.
The proffesor walked in just a few minutes later, did his usual writing on the board, took a silent roll, then sat behind his desk. It was exactly like the day before, and the day before that, and all the others. It was an unending pattern. It disgusted Narcenac. Routines, patterns, everyone seemed to follow one. All he could think about now was that horrible reoccurance that happened everyday of his life. Narcenac thought to himself, "There has got to be a better way to live than this..."
The class began, just as it always had, with a replay of the previous lecture and slowly dragged on. The next was the same, as was the next. In fact it seemed that all of his classes that day seemed to last an eternity. Narcenac would move from one eternity to the next, slowly wishing that it would end.
*****************
"Lunch time at last!" he thought. The only good part of a routine. Narcenac took his lunch out to the autumn sunlight and sat under his favorite maple tree. This was were he often would sit to relax and reflect on bygone times. Usually his cousin, the hard headed Narina, would come to eat with him there, and would try to cheer him up.
He still didnt know how they ended up graduating the same year. She was three years younger than him. Narcenac still couldnt believe that this hard headed little girl was that smart. She was very outspoken, and although he didnt approve, a very active sexual girl. He would often scold her after she came back to their house late in the mornings. But, he wasnt about to tell her to stop because he knew it wouldnt work.
Her bright blonde hair had that same strange purple tinge to it as his did, and she had the same feline grace that their great grandmother had. It astounded him really. She was a very close image of his great grandmother. From the bright purple eyes to the curved pointed nails, she was almost an exact replica.
Today they both sat together under the tree eating the nearly raw meat sandwiches that they both loved so much.
"Have you been thinking of her today?" Narina asked quietly.
Caught off guard a little, all Narcenac could do was nod. "Why do you ask Narina?"
"Because, I keep remembering that story she used to tell us." she replied quietly. "The tiger will show in this family again..." she murmured.
Narcenac looked into the sky and half wishing to see his great grandmothers face saying those words.
"I dont know, the story seemed kinda unbeleivable, but then again, no one else would talk about it..." he reflected.
"It may mean something about our future, only Purrma knew the answer to her riddle." Narcenac set back against the tree and watched the clouds soar by quietly. "We will probably understand it eventually."
"I hope so, it has been eating at me for a little while now, everything she said always had a hidden meaning" Narina said thoughtfully.
Narcenac closed his eyes and remembered being little again, and how Purrma had always called him "kitten". It always made him beam with joy to hear her call him that.
"Dont worry too much kitten." he said with a smile.
*****************
The gym was empty as Narcenac walked in. "Good," he thought to himself. "No one to bother me while I do Purrma's stretches." People often found it amazing how flexible Narcenac was while being as big as he was.
He slowly began the complex manuevers that she had taught him when he was little. Flowing from one to the next fluidly and without a sound. The whole process lasted for twenty minutes giving him time to think on what he would do with his evening.
Narcenac looked out of the window at the sun as it told him that it was three quarters through the day already. He quickly put on his loose clothes and put all of his things in his locker. It was going to be a night to run.
He quietly walked out side and looked around to make sure the area was clear of people. Narcenac then walked around to the side of the gym where the fire escape was. Stopping in front of the bottom of it, he looked up to the top. Without a second thought he grasped the ladder and pulled himself up. It was an easy matter to climb to the top.
Once he was there, Narcenac stood on the edge of the roof top looking down to thr ground below. This wasnt the first time he had come here. He often would climb up to the gym roof to start his run home.
Narcenac walked to the other side of the roof where the next building was. He still remembered the first time he had done this. The next building was not as tall but was a good twenty feet away. He hadnt been sure he could make it to the next roof, but he jumped anyway.
Slowly he took several steps back and bunched his muscles for the jump. With a burst of speed he launched himself towards the edge of the roof and hurled himself off into empty space. For just a few split seconds the world melted away around him. The air roared in his ears and his heart slowed. "This is freedom." he thought to himself.
Without a sound he landed on the other roof and sprinted forward jumping from one roof to another.
******************
"Home, I guess I should make dinner." Narcenac thought to himself as he dropped from the roof of the house next to theirs.
Suddenly he smelled a strange smell, like that of blood mixed with fruit. It was repugnant.
He walked in the door and the smell grew stronger. "Narina!! Are you home?" he called out.
"In here!" came the reply from the kitchen.