30. Dec, 2016

When Things Got Weird Part 17

My mouth dropped open and Anastasia looked like she was about to scream. "A mini Mrs Sweet is on her shoulder!" She whispered to me. I nodded.

"Do you think anyone else has noticed?" I asked.

"I dunno." Anastasia said thoughtfully.

"Girls! What are you whispering about?" Mademoiselle Chantelle smiled knowingly.

"Oh, we're just… uh…" Anastasia stammered. "Uh… Tell her, Kenz!"

I glared at her. "Sorry about that, Mademoiselle Chantelle. We were just whispering about, uh, the - our outfits for the school disco!"

"The disco happened in July." Mademoiselle Chantelle frowned.

"I meant next year's one - You know how hard it is to get outfits sometimes, right?" I smiled.

Anastasia shook her head worryingly, but I waffled on. "Yeah, I'm thinking of wearing a blue glittery dress with a white belt, or maybe a white glittery dress with a blue belt, or-"

Mademoiselle Chantelle stopped me. "Something's up. TELL THE TRUTH!" She thundered. A massive awkward silence fell over the classroom.

"Mrs Sweet is on your shoulder," I whispered nervously.

"Sorry? Please speak up Mackenzie," insisted Mademoiselle Chantelle.

"MRS SWEET IS ON YOUR SHOULDER!" I screamed and everyone looked up to see that I was telling the truth. Mrs Sweet jumped onto the floor as she grew to her full size. The class watched in amazement as she stood triumphantly before them.

"You've done well," Mrs Sweet said to Mademoiselle Chantelle. "I shall reward you later."

My classmates fought to be first out of the door. Mrs Sweet yelled, "GET 'EM!" Mademoiselle Chantelle chased everyone around the room in a mega game of tag.

I walked up to my principal bravely and said, "What did these kids ever do to you?"

"Nothing!" She replied. "That's my point. They haven't ever helped me - the ungrateful little sods."

"But - but we're just students and you've never asked anything of us except to keep the playground clean," I pleaded over the other kids' screaming.

"This really isn't a very good way to start things off, Mackenzie," Mrs Sweet grinned maliciously. "Especially with your best friend missing!"

I gasped. I looked frantically around the room but couldn't see Anastasia anywhere. I hurried out, not even caring about Mrs Sweet. I bolted across the schoolyard and with difficulty clumsily climbed over the fence. I made my way for the small gap in the bushes, then froze. I could now see the old house where I had last seen my crazed sister. What if she was still there? I peeked through the shrubs and saw Anastasia on the balcony. She was gagged and being bound with ropes by a hooded figure. The adrenaline got the better of me as I shouted, "Hey! What are you doing with my friend?" I knew this was a bad idea as soon as they turned around…

Who was the hooded figure? Vote in Blog Comments to find out. Your email address will not be published.

 A. Mr Quarterbrain - my teacher turned vampire

 B. The mad clown from the circus

 C. My zombified sister 

22. Dec, 2016

I relax and pick up my latest book and become a hero. I am transported through time to a land where I have to face a woman who can turn me to stone at a glance. In another chapter I am ordered to jump off a cliff. I turn the pages further and become a god. Now, I am forced to stay in the land of the dead for a third of each year, indefinitely! I can't put my book down as I am shut into a tight-security bronze cell. How will I escape?

I close the book and take a breath. These stories can be scary. There is romance, but if you ignore the vast amounts it's not that bad. Where did I find these cool new stories? Who are these awesome authors? What if I told you they have been around for thousands of years? Now for the reveal: It's Ancient Greek mythology!

I owe thanks for my discovery of the Ancient Greek myths to Rick Riordan; his Percy Jackson series was the perfect introduction. I continue to enjoy his modern spin on these stories, but have also checked out the original stories, which are just as exciting. I'll give you the start of some of the legends, but not the whole thing!

My favourite story has to be Psyche's. She was unbelievably beautiful and though she was mortal the others went as far as to worship her. They did this in place of Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. She was angry and sent her son Eros to take care of things. Eros fell in love with Psyche but didn't dare tell his mum. Psyche was given a prophecy from the Oracle that she should go to the highest spire of rock on a certain cliff and jump. There she would marry a monster…

I also like Hercules. He's probably the most famous Ancient Greek hero ever, but his tale is really gruesome in some parts. His mortal mum was cursed by Hera (the goddess of marriage) for marrying Zeus (the king of the gods), who was already Hera's husband. Once born, Hercules made it obvious that he hated Hera. Frightened, Hercules' mum left him in the wild to die. Zeus was watching out for Hercules and sent the wise goddess Athena down to collect him. Athena decided that she should give Hera the baby to look after - she wouldn't even know who it was…

In the tale of Theseus he faces the dreaded Minotaur in a labyrinth. His mum Aethra married a king, Aegeus, but had a fling with Poseidon, the sea god. Aegeus wasn't that angry. Earlier that day, Aegeus and Aethra had prayed to the gods for a son (everyone wanted one in those days) so this was their answer. Aegeus said he would claim the baby for his own though, if it was a boy. Aethra agreed. Theseus was born but he didn't even know who his dad was… It's a really interesting story.

Perseus' grandfather King Acrisius was a nasty piece of work. There was a prophecy that his daughter Danaë would have a son who would kill him and take his throne. Acrisius was so worried that he shut Danaë into his hardiest cell so that she could never marry. She cried and prayed for help and Zeus heard her from up on Mount Olympus. He thought she was beautiful and visited her as golden glitter through the air shaft. They had a baby, which was Perseus. Acrisius found out about this and was furious. His guards built a large box with a few air holes. He didn't want to kill Danaë outright or the gods would kill him, so he did this instead. But anything could happen to them out at sea and he wouldn't even be blamed for it…

And now for some gods. Persephone was absolutely beautiful and she was Demeter's favourite daughter. Demeter, goddess of the harvest, denied all marriage requests because she didn't want anything to happen to her. All the other gods accepted that Persephone was a bad choice except for Hades. Hades was the god of the Underworld which is, according to Ancient Greek Mythology, the place where you go when you die. He asked Zeus for help, and Zeus assisted Hades in kidnapping Persephone. She was terrified and knew that if she even ate one thing in the Underworld she would have to stay there for eternity…

So there are chunks of some Ancient Greek myths for you. They are not for the faint-hearted - a dad eats his children, there is torture in unimaginable ways, sacrifices and worst of all, LOVE. But personally, I think these age-old tales are awesome!

27. Oct, 2016

When Things Got Weird Part 16

"Extra homework?" Anastasia and I moaned in unison. "Are you for real?"

"Yes I am," said Mrs Sweet. "You should be grateful it's not something worse."

I groaned. The Extra Homework Club was a group of dorks who wanted, well, extra homework. Which is what they got.

"In fact," Mrs Sweet continued, "I will sign you up myself to make sure you carry out your punishment for the rest of your school years. And if you miss one week, trust me, there will be consequences!" She left the room with a glint in her eye.

*

Anastasia and I trudged back to school feeling horrible. Of all the things that had happened to us, this had to be the worst.

"Mrs Sweet's normally really nice, do you reckon this time she was an imposter?" I asked curiously.

"Maybe." Anastasia muttered.

"Also, what will everyone think, we haven't been at school for ages!" I exclaimed.

Anastasia shrugged. "Who cares? Anyway, we're here now."

We walked through the front doors of the school and headed up to our classroom. A stunningly pretty casual teacher was taking the class.

"Ah, Anastasia, Mackenzie, you're here just in time to start learning your fifteen times tables!" The casual teacher smiled, using a French accent.

"But-but how do you know our names?" I stammered as Anastasia and I took our seats.

"Oh, you've earned quite a reputation. I'm Mademoiselle Chantelle. Come on class, you know the drill, let's start."

"15"

"30"

"45"

"60"

"75"

"90"

"105"

"120"

"135"

"150"

I stood up and said, "155." Mademoiselle Chantelle looked at me and I realised I had got it wrong. "Sorry, it's 165," I said.

Anastasia jumped up and said, "180."

"Good job everybody! I'll write your next task on the whiteboard for you to complete for homework."

"Oh great," I complained to Anastasia. "Homework on top of the Extra Homework Club."

Anastasia groaned in reply.

After Mademoiselle Chantelle turned around I saw something clamber up her back and onto her shoulder. I freaked out.

What is on Mademoiselle Chantelle's shoulder? Place your vote in Blog Comments to find out. Your email address will not be disclosed. 

A.   A rat

B.   A spider

C.   A mini Mrs Sweet