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"Hey."It was 7 in the morning at the Whittaker house. The first day of a new school year. With eyes closed and hands resting on her knees, Sage sat crosslegged in the middle of the Persian rug that lay on her
bedroom floor. Thick blue smoke rose from an incense burner nearby as the scent of Nag Champa permeated the air. Gentle ocean waves could be heard emanating from her bluetooth speaker making the area a sacred oasis. A relaxing escape from the hectic world residing beyond her four walls. She had woken up about an hour earlier, around 6 a.m., like she did every morning. Making sure to practice a little bit of yoga before showering and getting ready for the day.
In the middle of her daily meditation, a voice called out waking her from a hazy trance. Peeking one eye open, Sage immediately saw her black cat Bageera lounging at the edge of her bed. His multicolored eyes were staring at her. Unmoving and steady in their gaze.
Oh. My. God.
Did... did Bageera just talk to me?
Has it finally happened? After all these years..."Bageera?" Sage murmured incredulously, her jade eyes wide and staring at the feline in cosmic wonder.
A snicker interrupted her reverie, the sound coming from the entrance to her room. Feeling a slow blush creep across her face, Sage turned to see her little sister Mae.
"Dude. Forreal?" Mae spoke with a rare half-smile on her black-painted lips. Her cornflower-blue eyes accented with thick winged eyeliner squinted with amusement.
"Did you really think Bags was talking to you? What are you on? Can I have some?"Biting her lip, Sage looked down at her chewed nails in embarrassment. She knew that she was quirky, borderline a total weirdo, but that didn't mean she liked parading her eccentricities for the world to see.
"Hey. I can dream can't I?" She responded quietly looking up to meet her sisters' gaze.
Mae had arrived at the Whittakers almost three years ago. Like Sage, she was an orphan and had kindly been taken in by their foster parents Nigel and Shakti. Dressed in all black, from her a-line haircut to her chunky gothic boots, Mae stood tall with a vivacious attitude that Sage envied. An obvious Scorpio. With hands on her hips Mae shook her head, her pale face still displaying that sarcastic smirk she always wore. She was 14 years old and today was her first day of high school much to her chagrin.
"That's all you ever seem to do." She frowned crossing her arms at her chest.
"Anyway, I was sent over to summon you. Breakfast is ready, so get your butt in gear." Without another word, Mae winked before turning her heel and closing the door behind her.
With a heavy sigh, Sage hesitantly stood up and walked around the room to gather her belongings. A worn beige messenger bag covered in doodles and various buttons hung on the coat rack near her window. The buttons depicting various cliches like: "Save the World!" or her favorite, "Earth without art is just 'Eh.'" After taking her cellphone off her charger and sliding it into her back pocket, she was ready to tackle whatever life had to offer. Before heading downstairs she noticed Begeera stand and stretch into a yawn before lazily making his way at her side.
"Good kitty." She crooned as she kneeled to scratch his back.
Sliding down the railing Mary Poppins style, Sage entered the dining room with a graceful air that only she could demonstrate. Almost magical. She smiled for a moment, pausing to glance around the newly renovated
kitchen and the beautiful family she was so fortunate to have. Her mother Shakti was over at the counter cleaning up the mess she had made while preparing breakfast. To her delight, Sage noticed that the meal was one of her favorites, fruit salad and oatmeal. Nigel sat at the table along with Mae and Ian. Being a college professor, he was busy multitasking in an attempt to grade a few papers while simultaneously munching on a cantaloupe.
Mae seemed to be doing the same thing intermittently glancing at her phone with interest.
"Amber and her brother are taking me to school today." She sniffed without looking up.
Amber was her sidekick and best friend. Usually, Shakti would take Mae to school like she did with Ian, but Amber's brother did get a new car recently so it made sense.
Shakti wiped her hands on a small towel before walking over and sitting down next to her husband.
"I suppose that would be alright... I was looking forward to seeing you off on your first day, but I understand what it is like to be at your age." She spoke with a slight Indian accent, a smile forever at her lips.
"Just please be safe and make sure to call me if you need anything."Mae nodded, still glued to her cell.
"Good morning family!" Sage grinned, practically skipping to her seat next to Ian.
Ian was the newest member of their misfit family. The Whittakers had taken him in only a year ago and he immediately seemed to fit in. Almost effortlessly. Being five years old he was obsessed with exploring space and learning about all the planets that inhabited our galaxy. Recently he expressed that his dream was to become a spaceman and be the first person to visit Jupiter.
Taking a moment to ruffle his curly brown hair, Sage smiled fondly as she watched him play with his favorite toys. An alien was currently hurling a few grapes at the mini astronaut taking refuge at the other end of the table.
"Good morning sweetheart." Nigel responded smiling up from a stack of papers. His British inflection strong and unyielding.
"Ready for your big day?""Always. Finally, my last year of torment."She finished her breakfast quickly, almost inhaling her food.
"Unfortunately I have to leave early... I have to swing by the post office before school."One of Sages' passions is art. Her favorite forms are painting, sketching, and sculpting. Due to her popular profile on Etsy, she was able to occasionally sell a few of her pieces. A means to add to her savings in which she was extremely grateful for.
After grabbing her lunch from the fridge and saying goodbye to her family (including Bags), Sage exited the kitchen and walked towards the garage. By the back door were a few of her paintings already boxed and ready to go to their new home. There were three in total. It was going to be a challenge to juggle that and her messenger bag, but she was up for it. More positive than ever.
Wincing, she noticed that her bike had a flat tire.
Probably from the broken glass I ran over the other day." She noted with a frown.
I guess today I will be taking the skateboard."Resting her precious AirPods in her ears, she gathered her things and rolled out of the garage. Slightly bobbing her head to the reggae beat her
music provided.
♪Cos if we're really that intelligent then tell me something
Why are we the only ones who pay to live on this planet?
I said the animals and trees, they don't pay nothing
The birds and the bees they nah pay no renting♪Stopping by the post office she took a moment to smile and greet Mark, one of the managers that worked there. Having known her from how frequently she stopped in, he always seemed to have a friendly demeanor.
"Have a good day kiddo!" He shouted with a wave.
Sage flashed him a peace sign as she passed the building, in a hurry to get to school on time.
After about 20 minutes she arrived at Rosefell High. As she neared the school with every passing moment she felt her usual positive persona fade away. Because of her negative, borderline traumatic, experience with the foster system, Sage seemed to build walls around the people she did not know very well. Instead of acting outgoing like she did with her family, at school she shrank into herself turning into an isolated wallflower. She weaved around people she recognized but didn't know. All the while staring down at their feet in an attempt to avoid eye contact. Slowing to a stop, she kicked up her board before hooking it in the crook of her arm.
"Attention all Rosefell Juniors' and Seniors'." A disembodied voice announced over the speaker system.
"Please report for your mandatory welcome back assembly in the auditorium at eight-thirty sharp. Thank you. That will be all." I was going to put my things in my locker... But I guess I shouldn't be late.With a shrug, she made her way over to the auditorium noticing that she was one of the first students to arrive.
Always good to be early.She sat in one of the middle rows but at the very right end. One of her biggest triggers is feeling caged. She didn't want to have people on either side of her if she could help it.
***If you would like to view pictures of Sage's family, I went ahead and edited my Character Sheet.***
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