Welcome to the first installment in our OPS Authors series for the 2021 - 2022 school year. In this post we focus on an OPS Author from the fifth grade, Natalie, who has been kind enough to share her story, The Reverse Card. The story, has some twists and turns so we hope you enjoy it. When you are done, check out our interview with the author!
The REVERSE CARD
Prologue
Snow covered all that Stephanie could see very soon. Snowflakes that sparkled as beautiful as diamonds surrounded her. She was worried that everyone would get sick. She quickly told everyone to find shelter. Her face was covered thoroughly with cold, white snow. Stephanie had suddenly remembered she had to escape this and make the world back to normal...but how? 2 Days Earlier “Stephanie! Wake up! It’s time for school!” Stephanie woke up groggy-eyed as everyday. She always had her “kind” wake up call in the morning. Her mom was always in a rush. “Coming,” yelled Stephanie. Stephanie was super excited for winter break. She just had to wait and get through today. Stephanie was your usual fifth grader. She had long blonde hair and big green eyes. Her mom always said that she was a very bold girl. Stephanie put on her warm pink and blue jacket. She put on her fuzzy brown scarf and looked at the mirror. “I look like a potato with all this clothing on! Ugh, when will winter get over!” Stephanie told herself. She got downstairs and her mother greeted her. “Good morning Stephanie! I have made you some French toast. Get the sugar and whipped cream while I go get your younger sister to wake up.” Once Stephanie had gotten all the food ready, Zara came downstairs. She was the worst sister ever! “Good morning, potato! How are you liking winter?” Zara asked in her annoying voice. She was like the salt on the wound, always being the one who ruins everything. Zachary came running down the stairs. Zachary was always in a hurry, just like mom. He was also quite bewildered when he saw Stephanie. “Is it dress up like the moon day?” Zachary asked as he grabbed an apple from the fruit basket. Stephanie asked, “I literally prepared your french toast plate with the whipped cream and sugar! What are you doing!?” Zachary complained to Stephanie’s mom in his babyish tone of voice, “Stephanie is forcing me to eat the french toast!” You might be wondering, usually the younger siblings tell their parents about this kind of stuff that the older siblings do, but in this household, it was always the other way around. “Well more for me to eat…” mumbled Stephanie.
A Mysterious Feeling
Once Stephanie got to school, she saw her best friend, Nia, there. Nia wished, “Merry early Christmas! I am so excited for tomorrow!” “Me too!” responded Stephanie. Nia was Stephanie’s energetic, calm and logical bestie. She was unlike Stephanie with the calm part of her personality. Stephanie and Nia walked down the hall to their first class of the day. Once it was lunch time, the girls sat together. Stephanie could hear the usual chitter chatter of the cafeteria, just like every other day. Stephanie and Nia chatted about what they were going to do during the break. “I am going to my grandparent’s house!” exclaimed Stephanie. Nia answered, “I am going to my cousin’s house. She is going to bring me skiing for the first time in my life!” Both of the girls finished their lunch and they went out for recess. Soon, it was the end of the day, and Stephanie was so excited for the next day. At dinner, Stephanie’s mother started talking about the next day. “Stephanie, Zara, Zachary, we are all not going to your grandparent’s house.” Zara interrupted, “What do you mean `not all of us`?” “Well, it’s complicated, and I know you are going to be frustrated with this, but grandpa is sick and me and your dad think that it is best that we do not go as a family and I go by myself. You guys can stay here with your father.” Stephanie’s father chimed in, “Don’t worry, we'll have a fun winter break, nevertheless.” Stephanie asked, “What about you, Mom? You are not going to be here for Christmas!” “Do not worry, darling, I will come back soon. I may only be able to reach home by New Years, but do not worry.” That night, Stephanie was having a lot of trouble sleeping. She thought about why her mom had to go. She had planned that they would make cookies, a gingerbread house, and she would help with the Christmas food! Of course she cared for her grandfather, but it would just not feel the same. Stephanie had a bad feeling about this holiday, but she just thought that it was the feeling of her mom not being there. After a while, Stephanie fell asleep. Christmas Eve When Stephanie woke up, she still did not feel her usual Christmasy spirit. She was always peppy the day before Christmas, but it did not feel like that this year. Stephanie went to her father’s room to ask for breakfast. “I am hungry!” exclaimed Zachary. It took A LOT of energy for Stephanie to not laugh at her father’s face. He was looking like he had been poured ice cold water on. Zachary ran out of the room when he saw his dad’s face. “That is your new grumpy face, huh, Dad?” chuckled Stephanie. “Looks like I better get some breakfast ready!” responded Stephanie’s dad. After a meal of buttermilk pancakes, the kids got ready for the day. It was time to get started on the Christmas cookies. Stephanie made a Santa cookie with some sprinkles on the top. She loved her cookie. Her dad made ten cookies and all of them looked perfectly done. “Wow! You are really good at baking!” complimented Stephanie. Zachary and Zara were never interested in Christmas traditions other than Zachary’s gifts and Zara’s holiday shopping for toys. Other than that, the two did not care about the holiday at all. “You are doing a great job,” remarked Stephanie’s dad. “Thanks!” exclaimed Stephanie. They soon finished their cookies and started on the gingerbread house. Once they finished everything, they all took a nap. As every year, Stephanie could never sleep. They always took a nap so that they could stay up till midnight. Something was different this year, Stephanie could feel it. Just then, the phone rang. The Interesting Phone Call “Hello?” asked Stephanie to whoever was on the other side. Stephanie first heard a low rumble and then static. Stephanie hung up but the same number called again. She accepted. This time, it was Rhia. This is Nia’s older sister. Rhia was your typical fifteen year old. Brown hair with blonde streaks running through it, and blue eyes. Rhia sounded panicked. “Can you please come to 324 Birch Street. I know it is a tall order. Can you bring your mom since she is a police officer?” “Sorry, Rhia, my mom is at my grandparent’s house. I could come and see what’s going on. And also, why did you give me your cousin’s address?” responded Stephanie. “Alright, just come quick. Nia is missing.” “What! That is crazy!” “Just come quick! Ask your dad to drive you here.” As soon as Stephanie’s dad woke up, they were out of the house. “Well, this is an interesting situation. Your best friend is missing and they are at their cousin’s house. Your mom is not there to help. And here I am still taking the eye crust out of my eyes. Do you ever feel like the world is moving faster than you can blink?” “Just keep driving!” responded Zara. “What an impatient person you are, Zara!” Stephanie yelled. “How about the two of you calm down? We are here.” comforted Stephanie’s dad. Once they rang the doorbell, Leo, Nia’s brother, came to meet them. “We do not know where Nia is.” Leo answered. They got inside and Stephanie felt the same weird feeling she had felt the night before. “This is nowhere close to a normal Christmas Eve whether mom was here or not.” murmured Stephanie. A Cold Adventure The kids were all searching for Nia. “Nia!” Zara shouted. The kids were all looking everywhere. “Here!” exclaimed Stephanie. There were footprints the size of Nia’s trailing through the snow. Stephanie walked through the snow,but they were going on continuously. She could not follow for too long, otherwise she would get lost. It turned out, Zara was following Stephanie, and so was Rhia and Leo. Zara asked, “Whatcha doing? Why don’t we go back to the house, tell the adults about this discovery, and let them figure this out?” “No, if the adults find out about this, I just feel like something is going to go wrong. DO NOT tell them anything.” responded Stephanie. “Of course, Stephanie, you think you are so adventurous and affectionate doing this, huh?” Zara answered. Stephanie and the others came to a clearing. They were definitely far away and she was stuck with one annoying little eight year old she had to take care of. “Where is Zachary?” asked Rhia. No one knew. The group decided to take a break after a while. Stephanie thought about what her dad must be thinking and so will all the adults. “He would probably be freaking out that two out of three of his kids are missing.” Nia had to be around. “How far could an eleven year old go?” All these questions were bugging her. Soon it was dark.. “What do you think mom would think if this was the situation? I think of her being so cautious and anxious all the time. She would be ten times as afraid of what happened to her kids than dad is now.” said Stephanie. Rhia responded, “Your dad is an ambitious, attentive, and brave person. Of course he will keep calm until we get back home.” Stephanie asked, “What happened to your skiing trip?” “It was canceled since we couldn't find Nia.” responded Leo. Stephanie thought a lot about her solving puzzles with Nia, exploring with Nia, and playing outside. She could not believe that everything had changed. She thought about the binoculars Nia gave for her birthday and how they would play with it all the time. She thought about the scarf she gave Nia and the camera they played with. It was all pretty much done at this point. They had to find some tents. “Here!” exclaimed Leo. He had brought tents from an old campout. The kids would be hungry for the night. The morning brought its own adventures. After settling into her tent with Zara, Stephanie heard a sound as if someone was talking. “I am dreaming? Go back to sleep!” Stephanie told herself. But, it was getting louder. Zara asked, “What is that?” “I don’t know!” exclaimed Stephanie. After a while, silence filled the air. The Adventure Continues “What is going on! Is this a prank by any chance Leo! Not funny!” exclaimed Stephanie. “That was not me!” responded Leo. “Well, it is already six thirty, I am pretty sure we should head out right about now.” said Rhia. “Mhm, I could really go for some fried rice or pizza now…” interrupted Stephanie. The group decided it was best to get something to eat. Stephanie was missing home a lot during lunch. It was berries that were most likely deadly, and some water from a nearby reservoir. Stephanie missed the pop music her parents always played on the radio, the National Geographic show she would bug her brother to watch, her Sisters’ Grimm books, her teddy bear, and most of all, her mother, father, and her best friend. The group continued and suddenly, the footprints they had been following stopped at a fork in the road. “Just like the movies!” exclaimed Zara. Stephanie yelled, “How about we go to the right?” Everyone murmured to each other about the decision and it was difficult to decide. They finally wanted to go left,but Stephanie’s overconfidence led them on the wrong side. It was a dead end. “Now we really are going to waste time!” exclaimed Leo. They all went back to the left and continued down the path to a waterfall. Just then, Stephanie thought to herself about how much she had wanted to become an explorer who goes down in history. “Who has an idea how we get out of here?” asked Rhia. “Down!” exclaimed Zara. Rhia had always loved Stephanie as a great friend for always being there and helping even though she could be a little persistent at times. Rhia herself was lonely so wearing those glittery earmuffs she got from Stephanie was amazing. Once they were down, they all went to have a snack. “Merry Christmas!” shouted Zara. “I totally forgot today was Christmas because of all the rush!” chuckled Stephanie. Leo decided to lighten up the mood, “Remember when mom was always busy and she forgot we were even there? She was always bored of taking care of us and sometimes bossy! Dad on the other hand was way different. He was always capable of helping us and careful, but charismatic at all times. Last Christmas, when grandma visited, we all accidentally scared her! We got in a LOT of trouble for doing that!” “Well, you are compassionate and all, but in the long run, you are still over the top competitive and clumsy.” responded Rhia. The group continued and soon came across the next problem. “We need to get across the river. Who can help?” asked Stephanie. “I can!” exclaimed Rhia. She loved reading and writing. Thanks to Rhia’s help for reading survival guides, they effortlessly built a raft to get across the river. On the raft, Rhia thought about what happened to her sister. She also wanted to go home and relax with everything back to normal. She thought about her competitions with all the medals, ribbons, and trophies. She thought about the ice cream cake her sister loved, the pop music that she pretended she did not like but secretly thought was awesome, the Nancy Drew movies and novels she liked to read, and her especially loved brother because she wanted the best for him in his future since he was going to her grade soon. Her thoughts stopped as a black insect made its way on the ride. “Bug!” Rhia exclaimed. “Relax, it is an ant that wants a ride! It's fine!” responded Leo. As everyone got off the raft, Rhia thought about something, mainly, the thoughts of her flashback on the raft, but something stuck out to her about where Nia is. She knew and had proof, only, where was the thought and proof? The Intriguing Palace The group was back for another night. It was another night with no food. Leo sat on a log and watched as the group started a fire. Leo thought about the normal kids they all were before this whole thing with his sister happened. He also thought about his best friend Ryan, who was always confused, conscientious, but considerate. Leo thought about how insecure he was during the adventure but how he progressed as well. He thought about his soccer matches with his dad, the math competitions he used to try in, and the arcades they used to go to that Rhia really did not like but Nia loved. “Do you want any chocolate?” asked Stephanie. “We found some left on the ground.” Leo could not turn down chocolate whether it be fresh or from centuries ago. “Okay!” responded Leo, being quite angry about Stephanie making him forget his thoughts. As he ate his chocolate that had some dust in it. He continued thinking. He thought about his backpack and photo album at home that he treasured since it was from Ryan. He thought about burgers, soda, classical music, sports channels, Bridge to Terabithia, and his parents. Everything he loved was all probably miles away from where he was. It soon started to lightly snow. It was dark but everyone had to see as clearly as possible. Unfortunately, snow covered all that Stephanie could see very soon. Snowflakes that sparkled as beautiful as diamonds surrounded. She was worried that everyone would get sick. She quickly told everyone to find shelter. Her face was covered thoroughly with cold, white snow. Stephanie had suddenly remembered she had to escape this and make the world back to normal again...but how? The kids looked around for the tents. They were not there. It had seemed that they had been swept by the wind. They worked together to build a shelter out of branches on the ground. The next morning, Leo looked around and saw a bug. Soon, he started staring at it. “Wake up, sleepy head!” exclaimed Zara. Leo looked away from the bug and saw darkness. “Ahhhhhh! What? Is it still nighttime? Please save me! A monster has gotten me!” “What? I am eight and I am done with monsters! A fourteen year old is still scared! You need help, man!” Zara screamed. Leo kept on trying to solve math problems in his head as they all continued on the road. He had his final thought about his drawings back at home and then Rhia yelled, “Look! It is a gem castle! Who do you think lives in it?” “Let’s go in!” yelled Zara enthusiastically. “Let’s find Nia!” Scarlet “Well well well! What is your name? I’m Scarlet!” A girl that looked like Nia was sitting on a big throne in front of the group. She had brown eyes and black hair. She was only different from Nia in three ways. That is, that she looked like a thirteen year old, had blue and dark purple streaks in her hair, and she was way worse than any angry/frustrated Nia that Stephanie had ever seen. Then again, she may have rarely seen the fits of rage due to how calm Nia was, but that’s not the point. “What are you doing here? Where is Nia?” asked Leo. “There is no Nia! Only Scarlet and Kara.” Out of the darkness, a girl approached Nia and asked, “What would you like me to do for you, master?” Although it was not clear, Stephanie could notice the voice. It was Nia’s other friend that Nia had introduced Stephanie to. Rhia spoke up. “Nia, come back home. You are under some sort of trance. You are right now being coldhearted, cruel, and evil to us. Please just come home and turn back to your sweet, kind self!” “Excuse me, but I want to say that I am concerned about what is wrong with Scarlet? You should all go to the chambers. There, you will be disciplined!” demanded Kara. “Go to the chambers with them, Kara! Come back after you send them there!” agreed Scarlet. The children walked as slowly as possible to the chambers. Scarlet thought about how much she loved being friends with Stephanie. How they used to draw, scheme plans to trick their parents into giving them more time to play, their times when they would help their other friends, the snow globe she got for Christmas back at home, Stephanie’s 3D model of a cabin, and the bracelets they got from Rhia. Scarlet/Nia also thought about chocolate and the taste of victory she got from this evil doing. Speaking of victory, “Kara! Do you want to listen to rock music?” She wasn’t a total villain, nor a real “thirteen year old”, but she liked being feared. Unlike real life at least. They listened to the rock music and as that played, Nia resumed her thoughts about Stephanie. They used to watch detective movies and read the Grimm’s fairy tales. Scarlet especially missed her true self, her friends, her parents, and most of all, Stephanie. “I really want to get back home and be a good kid again!” Scarlet exclaimed. “I want to go too, but we have to please the main master.” reminded Kara. The Chambers The children were stuck inside a chamber that they probably would be stuck in for eternity until “Scarlet” decided to give them up. “I miss home…” cried Zara. She had her big baby doll brown eyes and caramel colored hair all messed up to show that. “I want my mommy!” “Do not worry, Zara. We’ll get out, don’t worry!” comforted Rhia. Zara asked, “I miss Melony!” Melony was Zara’s best friend. She is pretty courageous, daring, and curious, just like Stephanie. “Zara, Melony is waiting for you!” said Stephanie in a calming voice. “Speaking of friends, I know this is super-childish for a fifteen year old to ask, but do you want to be friends, Stephanie?” asked Rhia in a hopeful voice. “Of course!” chuckled Stephanie. Right before their eyes, they were all becoming the best of friends ever. Rhia asked, “I have been getting this weird feeling lately. I feel like I have evidence to prove that Scarlet is Nia. Does anyone else feel that way?” Stephanie answered, “Yes! I have been feeling that for two days now! It’s like Nia is playing a reverse card on us! First, she is the nicest person ever, then she becomes a real bad seed!” Zara asked, “Can we go home soon? I miss my painting, drawing, singing, teddy bear, blanket, lemon soda, pasta, pop music, Double Dare, and The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig.” Basically, all Zara’s favorite stuff. Zara started biting her nails, just like she always did when she was nervous. “I think Nia is Scarlet.” remarked Zara. Stephanie responded, “Yeah, that is what we all think.” “Remember, you only think that. Nia had said that she had a friend named Scarlet that could help with your old art project and when she came, she was exactly this person. She also did not bring Nia which is unusual since it was both your project. So what if Nia is Scarlet, it would have evidence written all over it!” “You’re a genius!” exclaimed Stephanie. “That also means that the person talking while we were camping was Nia! She would’ve taken the same route as us, just faster. It would make sense!” added Leo. “Hello everyone!” a voice from the shadows said. Nia came and Leo asked, “You were the one talking while we were camping. You knew we were coming.” The person from the shadows disappeared. “You are much smarter than I remember you being, Leo! Now come, we have to go and get out of this palace! I am getting away from here with Kara. We have both vowed to not tell anyone! You better not tell the master! I mean… anyone… Anyways, let me get you out, then you have to follow me.” The kids got out of the chamber and ran out of the palace. “Coach!” exclaimed Nia. “You get free rides! We spent two days getting here!” Leo exclaimed. In the coach, Rhia asked, “What happened! And you better say you are Nia, not any of those `Scarlet` lies! “I had been working for the master during this year. I was going to become the CEO of Bad and I just couldn’t think of leaving. I did not know it would involve making this whole thing such a scene. I did not expect...well this…” The kids all were getting off the coach, looking to keep these secrets to themselves and lead a better life from then on. A Year Later A year after the incident had happened, the kids were back to their usual Christmas routine and making up for last year’s celebration. Leo yelled, “Duck!” while throwing a snowball at Rhia. Nia and Stephanie were chatting and Kara became a closer friend to the girls. Zara stopped arguing as much and everything was looking up. Stephanie’s mom had gone to visit Stephanie’s grandpa last year, and it turns out, he’s fine! He just needed someone to take care of him as grandma would go to get something or cook. On a different note, Zachary has not changed. He was the one who REALLY should have come on the adventure. The kids’ parents were okay with the idea of them leaving the house on such an unknown basis even though they are never allowed to go out alone until they are eighteen. Not that great of the next seven years for them then! “Nia?” Stephanie asked. “Yeah?” replied Nia. “Who is the master?” “I don't even know!?” answered Nia. “He always was in the shadows, never in the light.” Stephanie thought, “Well, I guess I will never know the answer then! Unless…!” The Reverse Card by Natalie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. author interview:
Your story The Reverse Card has a lot of twist and turns in the story. Did you plan out the story before you wrote it or did the plot twists come to you as you wrote it?
I planned and did some of it as the story unfolded. Some of it was planned in the beginning but at other times I would just go with where the story was at. What inspired this story? My inspiration for this story was a winter theme. I was fascinated with a winter wonderland theme and was really excited to try this out for the story. How long did it take you to write The Reverse Card? It took me about a month. I started in early July and worked on the story till the end of July. Did you ever get stuck writing the story and if so, what did you do to get your ideas flowing again? If not, any advice for your fellow writers on how you keep from getting stuck? I did sometimes get stuck with the next chapter of the plot and whether or not to incorporate the most important events while writing some chapters. When I get stuck writing the story, I take a break and brainstorm about more ways to continue. How did you decide how to end your story? Did the ending come to you before you started writing the story? I wanted there to be a surprise twist. Something that readers would not suspect and lead the story to a cliffhanger. Again, some of it I planned but for other events, I rolled with the story. Do you plan on writing throughout your life? I would write often and make writing a hobby. I like to write and express myself. It also makes me feel less stressed when I write down a story and hopefully makes the readers happy. Thank you to Natalie for sharing her story and for answering our questions.
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