The Blame Game

Chapter One

A/N; First of all, a huge thank you to all of my friends that have been helping me write this. You are my inspiration... quite literally. I know this first chapter is a bit boring, but please bear with me and continue reading. I promise, it will get better.

It's not often the carnival comes to town. In fact it's not often any travelling fair, circus, market, or show comes to town. And when they do come, they only stay for two or three days and they pack up extraordinarily quickly and leave just as unexpectedly as they arrive.

Mayor Rodgers says it's because the town can't afford to have them come all the time. But I know that's not the reason behind the terrified expressions the performers wear, and the hired gypsies that follow the travelling groups and cast protective spells around their tents and equipment, and the lack of entertainers that come. It's because of the stories.

There are seven founding families of this town. Raine, Emerson, Travis, Porter, Rositta, Michaelson, and Deadwood; my family. My family founded the town first, and payed the funding to have the town built. Because of that, the town was renamed in honour of my family. And now, it's somewhat of a curse. My great grandparents were all oddballs. they always got into mischief, and they were selfish right to their bones, or so my Grandma tells me. Her father was the eldest of his generation of Deadwoods. And it's because of him our family name has been dragged through the mud, our family honour; drowned in bad blood.

I tilt my head back, close my eyes, and raise my arms up to bask in the sunlight. We have only two seasons here, no in-betweeners. Summer is ending, and soon, at the beginning of October, we will enter a seemingly endless winter for six months until next March when the first rays of summer engulf us in its fiery heart once more. Possibly, today will be the last time I see the summer sun until next year; a thick black storm is brewing just over the Giant's Bed. I never understood why historians had to give the massive mountain range such a 'creative' name. I would've called it something like 'the Mountains of Hell' but I guess that's too long for a mountain range name.

The carnival has been set up in the random clearing in the middle of the forest that borders the town and isolates us from the rest of civilisation. I can hear the heartbeat of the carnival; the rides and the screams of the terrified people on the rides, the carnival music, and the blare of voices being amplified over speaker phones as they shout their wares. I am supposed to be meeting some friends by the carpark entrance. We have been close friends since we were young; we are the next generation of the founding families, after all.

I finally emerge from the dirt road avenue and stare around in wonder at my surroundings. The space that is ordinarily empty of all traces of human life is bursting with activity. The carnival looks to be possibly the biggest that's ever come to town, and yet it still only manages to fill roughly a quarter of the clearing. I don't understand how such a seemingly small carnival- in comparison to the space available- can generate so much noise. I have been asking that same question of the three-person choir that sings at church every Sunday morning.

I navigate through the hazardous carpark, heading in the general direction of the entrance to the carnival. As I get closer, I am able to pick out small details of the people milling about around the gates, and I catch a glimpse of someone very familiar, and yet strange at the same time.

I wave up arm above my head, and Li waves back enthusiastically. She begins walking towards me, her nose buried in her phone. Pretty much everyone in the town knows that if you want an electrical appliance fixed, refigured, updated, or simply want something downloaded, you talk to Li. That girl knows tech like it's nobodies business. As she walks though, I can't help staring at her hair. Long beautiful strands cascading down her back in..... green waves. I suppose it brings out her already capturing turquoise eyes even more, and it frames her olive face nicely.

I pull my eyebrows together in a confused look and shake my head slightly. "What'd you do to your hair?" I ask in a light tone.

She laughs and flicks her head, sending her hair flying out in all directions. "Do ya like it?" she asks in return. I nod enthusiastically. It's not a common colour, and it's a refreshing change from the typical browns, blacks, and blondes. "You should see Alaska's hair." she adds as she spins around, links arms with me, and starts walking back the way she came.

"Am I the last to arrive?" I ask her, trying to pick out the rest of the group from the swarming crowds. Li shakes her head. "No, we're still waiting for April, Sierra and Victoria. Brodie and Alaska are just over there.... it looks like April's arrived now too." she says, pointing to the small cluster of people standing just outside the gate. I can't help staring at Alaska. She's dyed her hair... purple.

"Wow." I say. "So, why'd you guys dye your hair?"

"Um, we were both sick of our old hair colours, and I was curious to know what these colours would like on us so...." she looks at me, a sheepish smile on her lips. I shake my head and laugh. When Li says 'I was just curious...' it never ends well.

I can't remember when I first met Li. I suppose we have been friends since childhood, as our parents were close family friends. I grew close to Li during my short time in gymnastics. She was a lot quieter than the rest of my friends at that time, and more observant, which I liked about her. She is still like that, though our influence on her as made her a little louder than way back when we were five years old. I was always rubbish at gymnastics, but Liliana was amazing, and over the years she has become an incredible athlete in the sport. Me, I quit after three weeks.

Finally we are within ear shot of the rest of the group, and I call out in greeting. Sierra and Victoria are still yet to arrive, and April is getting anxious to go in.

"Can't we just go in and go on one ride? The lines will be humongasaurus by the time those two get here." she whines, prancing from one foot to the other, never keeping still.

"Humongasaurus?" I say raising my eyebrows. Brodie is standing with his arms crossed, trying desperately to keep a straight face. There has been a longstanding competition between April and Brodie to see who can keep a straight face for the longest, and it seems they've been at a stalemate for at least six years.

"Hey guys! Over here!" I turn my head to see Victoria and Sierra walking towards us.

"Hiya Tori!" April calls teasingly.

"Hi Vicki!" Brodie chides.

If there's one thing I know Victoria hates, it's being called anything other than 'Victoria'. I watch as she scowls, her beautiful brown eyes darkening with her mood. "Very funny guys." She says, pouting.

"So... should we go in now?" Li asks, waving in the general direction of the ticket booth. We all agree enthusiastically, and rush towards the gate, crowding to get our entry tickets.