Hidden in Plain Sight (Working title)
Chapter 7: Audrie

Audrie woke up with bright light shining into her eyes. At first, she thought she'd fallen asleep in class and the teacher had woke her up. However, she didn't recognize the area around her. There was a huge area of grass with bright lights hanging from a ceiling high above her. There were willow trees by a line of water nearby but she was next to a redwood trunk that had been hollowed out. It was smaller than hers though. There was a rock pile stivking out of the water where a girl sat, wrapping her hands around her knees. She had huge night blue wings. Her wings had beautiful white feathers scattered through them like stars. She was wearing a bright blue dress. She looked over at Audrie who still had her wings wrapped around her. The girl bit her lip (Audrie thought, she couldn't see her well from afar) and looked down at her feet.

Audrie wrapped her wings tighter around herself. She assumed the girl was some kind of creature but she didn't know since the creatue had differently colored wings than any creature Audrie'd seen before.

Suddenly, another creature popped outfrom what seemed like thin air.

Which wasn't possible so...

"Oh good, you're awake!" she said. Her wings were pink and she was wearing white velvet clothes. "I'm Riley!"

"Wha-?" Audrie said sleepily.

"The other girl says she knows you," Riley said. "Her name's Avery. But anyways, nice to meet you."

"Ok, too bubbly right now," Audrie complained. "Tone it down a bit."

"Sorry, I'm always like this with new angels or creatures."

"Yeah.... Ok, so where am I?"

"No clue! Been here a year and have never found out."

"Great."

Audrie scooted a little closer to the redwood trunk. She looked around. She didn't see Avery anywhere but she had to be here. She began to ignore Riley as she rattled off about how cool everyone was here.

"...except one of the humans." Audrie looked back at Riley. Riley's wings were folded behind her and she looked worried. "I hope he's not feeding us today."

"Hold up the humans feed us? Nope. Fuck that." Audrie looked around for an exit.

"Well, you can't get out so..."

"Why not?"

"Doors are locked."

"Oh, yeah, because of course they are."

"Anyways, you're a creature, right? Just a normal one?"

"What do you mean 'just a normal one'?"

"There are different kinds of creatures and angels. She's called a night creature by the humans and I'm a love angel."

Oh. Riley was an angel. Made sense.

"So... What's this place like?" Audrie asked.

"Oh it's great," Riley replied. "The humans feed us like any normal person and we're sometimes taken outside. There's constantly tourists watching us though. And this," - she pointed to a collar around her neck - "is a microphone connected to something up there so the humans can always hear what we're saying."

"And you're totally comfortable here?"

"Yup."

"Ok, then."

"There's a lot outside we can do. Not much normal things but there is some. Like painting and sand and crafts and more sand... I like sand. It reminds me of the beach where I lived." Riley sighed. "I wish there was something closer here to being a beach. All I can do is see the one nearby but I know it's not the one where I lived," she said sadly.

"Oh..." Audrie looked at the redwood trunk. It wasn't like the redwood trunk she'd lived in but at least it was something. She looked back at Riley.

"Did you live in a redwood forest?" she guessed.

"Yeah," Audrie replied. "I lived inside a big fallen redwood trunk. Hey, where are my things?"

"Oh, they're in the trunk. The humans didn't touch anything if that's what you're wondering."

"Ok, I'll go grab them real quick."

Audrie went inside the redwood trunk. She grabbed her things out of a hole in the redwood trunk that led into the hollow of another tree. Just like her redwood. She came out with the bag.

"What's in it?" Riley asked.

"Oh just a hair brush, some food, a lot of make-up to make me look like other teens, and a notebook and pencil box. The pencil box has pencils, obviously, markers, a box of crayons, one of the big boxes, pens, and paint with a few paint brushes."

"That's a lot of stuff you don't need anymore."

"Yeah, I know."

"Anyways, let me show you around. Maybe we'll replace your friend."

"Don't you know where she is?"

"Nope, she used to be over there but she moved."

"Oh, let's go then. And she's not my friend."