Project Chaos

Part 6: Fish

Scarlett swam back over to the part of the creek with the current. Unlike the boy, she was at zero risk because of her age, size, and swimming capabilities. The water was only about three feet deep here anyway. Phoenix swam over to join her.

"Oh, hey Phoenix!" Scarlett said. Bob jumped off of Scarlett's shoulder and onto Phoenix's. "Looks like Bob missed his mom."

Phoenix threw sand at Scarlett. "Don't call me a 'mom'." She scoffed. "That term implies that Bob will be extremely dependent on me."

Scarlett laughed a little. "Well, you DID create him......." she said, sitting down in the shallow, reddish water.

Phoenix threw more sand. This time, it landed in Scarlett's eyes.

"Oh, that's it." Scarlett snapped, rubbing her blinded eyes. "You are so dead to me. How DARE you teach Bob that kind of behavior!"

Phoenix laughed, knowing well that her sister was helpless when it came to fighting. This was especially true when she couldn't see. "Oh yeah?" She challenged. "And what are you going to do about it?"

"Declare war." Scarlett said, attempting to sound threatening.

"With what army?" Phoenix questioned, clearly amused by her sister's statement.

"What do you mean, 'what army'?" Scarlett asked, putting Bob back on her shoulder. "I'm Queen Scarlett of the Blob Nation!"

Phoenix's necklace started to glow. "Sure," she said. "And I'm Phoenix, Queen of the Fish Kingdom."

Then she transformed.

Before Scarlett's eyes was a dark blue fish. She had golden spots along her fins and dark brown eyes that reflected in the sunlight.

What the....... Scarlett thought. Holy sugarmuffins, did she just......

Phoenix marveled at her new form. "Woah. This is new." She said. "I wonder what else I can turn into?"

As Phoenix attempted to figure out how her transformation worked, Scarlett took off silently towards the rope swing. Amber, Victor, and Brian had been watching.

"Wait, so your sister can transform now?!" Victor asked, concerned for his safety. No one questioned why he was scared, as Phoenix hated him almost as much as she did Scarlett.

Scarlett climbed onto one of the tree trunks. "Yup. And I declared war with my imaginary Blob Nation."

Brian sat down on the wodden ledge halfway up a tree. "Are you sure that was a good idea? She's gathering a fish army...." he said, pointing at the left side of the creek.

Scarlett found another tree and climbed it. Much like the one Brian was on, this tree had several wooden planks nailed into it for climbing purposes. Phoenix the fish swam over to the group, a school of fish behind her.

Scarlett stuck her tounge out at her sister. "Ha! You and your fish can't get me HERE!" She exclaimed, holding onto the tree tightly.

Amber stood in front of Phoenix. "Dude. You're gonna make her get stuck up there." She said.

Phoenix looked up at her sister. "Good."

"Um..... guys? I think that already happened....." Victor said, pointing up at the tree Scarlett was in.

"What? No.... no, I'm not stuck!! I'm just.... staying safe...." Scarlett whimpered. She looked down, realizing her mistake. "Oh who am I kidding. this was a bad idea!"

Phoenix turned back into a human. "You're scared of heights now?" She prodded.

"No," Scarlett replied. "I'm scared of falling. There's a difference."

"Do you need a widdle help, bay-bee?" The short-haired preteen teased.

Scarlett glared at her sister. If looks could kill, Phoenix would be dead. "N o , y o u i d i o t ," She growled.

Then her hand touched something.

"Holy sugarmuffins!!!" Scarlett exclaimed, still holding on with her one hand as she lifted the other. Imbedded in the tree was a silver bracelet. On it was a beautiful purple gemstone. Scarlett pulled it out, monetarily forgetting the issue at hand.

"Woah... this is so pretty!!!!" She squealed. Phoenix facepalms at the sound of her sister fangirling.

"Scarlett, focus." Amber said, sighing. "You have to get down, remember?"

Scarlett looked down. ".........Right......" she replied. After a deep breath, she put the bracelet on her arm and her foot on the wooden plank below her. She managed to climb down two planks before panicking again.

Brian climbed down from his perch on the other tree. "See?" He said. "You won't fall. Alright?"

Scarlett's eyes were as wide as marbles and pupils as small as dust. "You.. you never know what could happen!" She said, tears forming in her eyes. "I-I could lose my balance and....."

Phoenix transformed into a blue and gold tiger. "Shut up, Scarlett! Hurry your butt up and get down here!!" She roared, baring her fangs.

Scarlett's fear immediately turned to annoyance. "Seriously?" She asked. "Your sister is stuck in a tree and you react like THAT?!"

"What? Is there a specific policy I should be following?" Phoenix responded.

"I dunno, maybe make use of your transformation and help me? That would be nice, don'tcha think??" Scarlett said, eyes burning with frustration.

Phoenix returned to her human state. "What? No. Figure out a way down yourself."

"I could help."