The class story, Skookum, will be released June 18, 2019. Check the sample below for a teaser.
Shocked
Daisy was completely shocked by all the chanting. She wasn’t sure what they were even chanting about. Something about all the energy of the crowd made her want to join in, it was addictive.
She had never seen so many people interested in one thing. Jersey’s and flags were waving from poles, vendors were selling food and hawking items, and in every window ledge, there was a huge candle.
In a trance, Daisy walked into the street and bumped into a stand selling chenberries. “Hey, ouch!” she said.
Before the words escaped her lips, a boy flashed into action. His body contorted and flowed like moving water. He grabbed the basket and deftly caught every chenberry before they landed on the ground. Without breaking a sweat he said, “Are you okay?”
Daisy looked at him with wonder and excitement in her eyes. “That was amazing. I’ve never seen anyone move like that before.”
The boy replied, “Thanks, I’ve been working on my Spider-technique for the Festival of Light. Do you think I have a chance?”
A group of people wearing different colored jerseys circled around Daisy and the Spider-moving boy. One of them said, “Hey, sweet moves kid. My name is Ethan, you should try out for my skookum team.
The Spider-mover said, “Hey, my name is Ethan, too. Don’t you think it would be too difficult to tell us apart if we were on the same team?”
Another boy said, “Ethan, you’re right. Ethan, my name is Ryan and you should join my skookum club instead for the Festival of Light.”
Daisy finally met a few people who could answer a question that had been nagging her for years, “Why is the biggest skookum match of the year called the Festival of Light?”
The skookum captain, Ethan, said, “We throw water balloons,”
He was cut off by Ryan. “On the summer solstice, Desert City dumps their candles into a giant bucket.”
Ethan finished saying, “Paused you. Then the candle giant bucket is lit on fire. While it is burning, the most successful skookum clubs, like my team, have to get as many of their players across a pit of sand as possible and grab flags.”
Ryan sneered at captain Ethan, “Unpause. This year, my team will collect all four flags. We will win the Festival of Light!”
Both boys were doing whatever they could to get Ethan on their team. They were willing to cut each other off to make each other look strongest.
Daisy was confuzled and she had only one question. “Why is it called the Festival of Light if the teams run across a pit full of sand?”
Ethan and Daisy looked at the two skookum captains. They were busy in the midst of a serious game of Pause and Unpause. Both of them were demanding the other captain unpause them while still trying to pause the other.
Spider-technique Ethan laughed out loud and his curly hair shook. “They call it the Festival of Light because most teams don’t send their players across the pit. Any designated player can circle the pit and throw water balloons at players. Before you can say, “Oh Doctor,” the pit of sand turns into a pit of wet sand. Usually, no one gets all four flags so the giant candle’s light burns out.” Ethan should have mentioned the Festival of Light was held on the summer solstice, the day of the year with the most sunlight.
Daisy was confuzled and she had only had one question. “Why did you say, “Oh Doctor?” I don’t see any doctors around.”
Ethan shrugged his shoulders and his hair bobbed up and down, “I’m not sure. I think it has something to do with a troll or something.”