A New Kind Of JuiceThalia looked down at the odd colored concoction in her jar. She knew what was in it. She knew what it would do to her. But was she really in the right mind to make a choice? Probably not. Her grief over the news that her father truly was gone had hit her hard. And the fact that she was all alone in this awful world was less than palatable. There were a few people who understood that feeling. It was something Neo Jasper Juice (her name for this new drink) just might be able to help ease a bit.
Made from the berries that made the brain go a bit haywire and hallucinate, it was strong smelling and even stronger tasting. She'd should know. She was drinking it right this minute. Downing every drop of it. Seemed her hands had made the decision for her.
And once it hit her stomach, she started to notice something odd.
Her world was a mixture of black and white and grey, ever since her father's death. But when she tried to focus her eyes, everything got a bit dizzy. Her stomach rolled and rioted against the drink. Truthfully, she wasn't as good as Jasper and Monty at making drinks, but if it was for her own use, who cared about the repercussions? Thalia watched thoughtfully as the jar slipped from her hands. It seemed to move in slow motion, landing on the ground and bouncing up from the Earth, only to land again and roll away from her feet.
Like it was running away from her.
A giggle escaped her lips and she covered her mouth quickly with her hand. Slowly, far too slowly, she moved her head to look up and around her. Was everyone looking at her? It felt like it. She didn't like it. Have to move. Have to get somewhere else. Her feet moved without her and it took a minute for her head to catch up with the rest of her body. A slow sort of whiplash, but her staggered gait was actually a bit soothing.
Everything got fuzzy, since she was moving too fast over the surface of the Earth. And why shouldn't it? The Earth was spinning and she she was moving on that spinning Earth, which was spinning around the sun. How come she never noticed how fast she moved before? It was like being an ant on an anthill before rain and realizing that you were not only the art but also the kid watching that ant. Coming out of her dizzying thoughts, she looked up and around her once more.
The world around her had changed. No more people. That made her feel better. Instead everything was starting to color, like a digital coloring book that they had once had in the early days of school on the Ark. Everything was so in between the ache in her chest fell down to her stomach and the fog in her mind came out of her ears to fill the air around her. Funny, funny, funny how she was putting Jasper to shame right now. But all the Juice was gone, gone, gone and she couldn't share anymore than she could laugh on her own.
But she could laugh and so she did and all the fog ran away from her, like that jar on the ground that was a million miles away. Everything felt too clingy and it was almost as bad as people watching her. Only now it was the trees and sky that watched her. They were a far more polite company than people. People should learn their manners from the true pros. Only, wasn't it rude to be in such a manner of dress in front of all of them? They scolded her for being so rude and she blushed in shame, which only lit more color in the world.
Thalia shuffled off her shoes and staggered forwards still. She couldn't stop moving, what with the world spinning around the sun and the Earth spinning with her on it. Once you moved in the universe, you couldn't stop until the laws of science gravity said an equal and opposite reaction. No wait. That thought was all wrong. She could see her thoughts floating around her head and tried to rearrange the words, but the letters simply wouldn't cooperate. Maybe it was lunch break for them. That made sense.
And so the world moved, carrying her with it and everything got colder. Thalia realized why, but once she did that blew away from her too. Colors were getting brighter by the second and the wind was flirting with her and she wondered why the trees still thought she was being rude. The blue on her skin had replaced with pink and it was all soft and smooth, but stars of darkness were sprinkled all over it. How embarrassing, but Thalia couldn't figure out why. Moving her head from side to side, she made a mistake of shaking up the world and all the colors bled into one another.
Gravity was grabbing at her, but she was strong enough to struggle against it. The forest was embracing her, but she felt shy and vulnerable and resisted it's advances. Everything was too saturated and shaky and she just needed some air.
But then she everything was black. Her body felt cold, but like a spirit fitting itself back into its home, or a reversed video of a butterfly breaking from its cocoon, she felt comfortable in her own skin once more. With her eyes closed, she didn't feel the onslaughter on the world. Everything was quiet too. But the ground no longer felt soft and flexible beneath her. Instead it jutted and pinched her. Like she was lying on the ground in the woods and it was hard enough to get through her clothes. Her clothes. She wasn't wearing any clothes. Her eyes snapped open.
The ground was there. The light was still in the sky, though it was fading. She still felt cold. The effects of the juice must have lasted for hours. Sitting up Thalia realized that it hadn't just been her imagination. Her clothes really were gone. She was completely naked. Well, except for her socks. She still had those.
Looking around her face heated. At least she hadn't wandered too far away from camp. But...there were still Grounders in these woods. And what if she ran into someone on the search for her clothes? Feeling raw and a bit grubby, she got to her feet slowly. Her throat felt raw and her mouth sour, so she must of thrown up. When, of course, she had no idea.
On her feet, she knew it was growing darker fast. Which meant she couldn't waste time looking for her clothes. Arms wrapped around her chest, the dark haired girl begrudgingly walked forwards towards camp. It wasn't going to be a pleasant trek back, but she hoped it would give her enough time to steel herself for everything to come after. Because even though she was usually invisible to others, they certainly would notice a naked girl outside the camp. And rumors spread fast.
She floating hated those berries.
Nova Above, please let female guards be manning the gate.
