A/N: ok, I started this story forever and a day ago and I’ve been meaning to put it up and I kept forgetting so here it is, my pride and joy, Eyes of the Mountain.

Eyes of the Mountain

Chapter 1

“So… are we on for the dance?”

“Jonathan, I…”

“Great, so I’ll pick you up at eight.” Jonathan walked away. Ginger, a tall, slightly over-weight, ginger haired girl, came running up to Julie, a very attractive, slender, raven haired, Japanese girl, and quietly whispered “Did you two make up?” Julie just glared at her.

“I’ll take that as a, no. So why don’t you like him again?” asked Ginger, a sarcastic tone in her voice.

“I… I just don’t, ok?” said Julie, not looking at her friend.

“Julie, the dance is two weeks away and you don’t have a date and if my best friend is seen without a date then,” Ginger darkly looked at Julie, an evil sneer on her face. “I will have to bring out Yenta!” The whole school suddenly became quiet but Julie just rolled her eyes.

Yenta was a student matchmaker and was good at what she did, but she was expensive. Not only that, she was also the world’s biggest bully. Everyone feared her except Ginger. For one thing Ginger always gave Yenta customers and two she was Yenta’s twin sister (Ginger was older by 15 minutes). How ever, Yenta had tried to hook her up so many times, she had concluded that Julie was un-dateable.

“I just don’t like anyone here because-”

“I know, I know,” said Ginger, cutting Julie off. “Because you don’t think you belong here. But why? Because you were adopted?”

Julie was adopted by her single American mom from an orphanage in the center of Japan. Julie’s birth parents only wanted sons so they dropped her off at an orphanage one month after birth. The only thing Julie had to remind her of her birth parents as a scar, on her upper arm, where she was beaten when she cried when she was home with her mother.

Julie was adopted when she was two months old by her American mother, Jennifer Wallis. Jennifer had seen Julie’s picture online and immediately fell in love with her. Being only an animal breeder and writer of non famous books, Julie was almost six months old when she was finally in America. The orphanage people were quite glad to get rid of Julie. She had shown signs of “ancient abilities” unique to an “extinct village” that scared the staff. However the orphanage staff also thought she was just crazy. Jennifer didn’t care. She just wanted the beautiful child.

“Earth to Julie.” Ginger waved her hand in front of Julie’s face. Julie shook her head to pull herself back to reality. “You were in ‘Flashback’ mode again,” said Ginger, crossing her arms. “What was it this time?”

“The usual.”

“PLEASEstop brooding on the past and look toward the future!! Jonathan is the most popular guy in the school and out of all of the girls in the school, he picked you. If you go out with him then you will be popular, and if you are popular then I am popular. Think of the laughter, think of the parties, think of the boys!!!!!” Gingers eyes became crystal and teary as she looked into space, thinking of the popular traits she would benefit from.

Julie rolled her eyes again. She didn’t understand all of the fuss was about. They were just guys and she didn’t like any of them here. They were just so, immature.

“So what class do you have next?” asked Ginger, pulling her mind out of her fantasy world.

“Japanese,” Julie answered simply.

“You mean “Free time” don’t you?” asked Ginger, trying not to giggle.

Julie had surpassed even the senior Japanese language class in her very first class. As soon as her teacher, Professor Raiden, asked the class how it was, Julie answered in fluent Japanese. He was surprised that she knew the answer to his question and even more surprised that she answered fluently.

When the class was over, he called Julie’s mother asking if she had taken Japanese before. Her mother answered no, Julie wanted to take the class to learn more about her heritage.

So instead of taking the class as a class, he had her write in a journal in Japanese. Thinking, she would come to him for help, he was astonished that, when he read her journal, that she had all of the characters correct, and in the right order.

The sound of the school bell interrupted Julie’s flashback

“Au revoir,” waved Ginger (she took French).

“Sayonara,” waved Julie, walking in the other direction.

Julie walked into the school courtyard and looked around. Since, no one had lunch yet, the courtyard was spotless. No wrappers or food remnants, littering the ground. Julie sat down on the ledge of the fountain. The fountain was a memorial to Jane Namo, the founder of the school. The fountain had cranes flying out of the base. Only here, Julie felt like she belonged at school, with the Japanese cranes. At home, she felt like she belonged but something was missing.

She sat down on the edge of the fountain, opened her dark red notebook, and began writing. In her journal were all of her hopes and dreams and how she felt about her life here and how she felt she belonged somewhere else. Of course, she had two journals. One had things for her class, the other was the one filled with her thoughts and feelings. She heard only silence until…

“Miss. Wallis.” Julie looked toward the entrance way of the courtyard. There stood Ms. Watson, the principal. “Miss. Wallis, your mother is on the phone.”

Together Julie and Ms. Watson walked down to her office. When they arrived, Ms. Watson motioned to the chair closest to the phone.

“Line 4.”

Julie picked up the phone pushing the small button that said ‘line 4’ on it as she did.

“Mom?”

“Julie, did you register yourself for a scholarship to a school called Mt. Yasu?”

“No, mother.”

“Well,” sighed Jennifer. “You are off to Japan.”

“Wh… what do you mean?”

“I mean you are going to Japan. You have a scholarship to this school. Who could pass up a scholarship?” said Jennifer. “Ypu know we don’t have a lot of money any if you got a full paid scholarship, then we need to take it.”

Julie was speechless. What did she mean?

Some time later, Jennifer was on specker phone in Ms. Watson’s office. There was Julie, Ms. Watson, Professor Raiden, Rachel Upland, Ms. Watson’s student assistant, and Mr. Fanmay, the assistant principal.

“Mt. Yasu… Mt. Yasu… it rings a bell,” muttered Professor Raiden.

“It is an old mountain in Japan that is the resting place for an old tribe that became extinct hundreds of years ago,” said Julie saying it as though she had known it all her life, though she had never heard of the place.

“How do you know?” asked Rachel, snottily.

Rachel never liked Julie mostly because Julie always showed her up when it came to…well…everything.

Julie just shrugged. She knew it was true but she didn’t know how. When it came to Japan she seemed to know everything. They could ask her something that she had never studied or heard of and she could answer it truthfully and without hesitation.

When Rachel shot out this question, Ms. Watson glared at Rachel and asked her to leave the office.

“So…” said Mr. Fanmay, interrupting the awkward silence. “Is she going? We have never heard of this school and out of nowhere, she gets a scholarship? Is that even safe??”

“Julie was adopted from Japan and she was said to have certain abilities from an “extinct” tribe and she just happen to be adopted by an American woman? no offence Miss. Wallis” said Professor Raiden.

“None taken,” said Jennifer, over the speaker phone.

“Is it possible that the tribe she descended from still exists?” asked Professor Raiden. Silence. Then…

“I’m going.” Everyone looked at Julie. Julie was standing square-shouldered and looked intently at everyone. Her brown eyes had a fire in them that no one had ever seen. Her raven hair shined and shimmered in the sun, streaming through the wide windows.

“This could be the only way to find out about my past. Maybe, when I go, I will find where I belong,” said Julie, power in her voice.

“She’s right,” said Jennifer. Everyone looked to the phone, sitting on the desk. You could hear the tears in Jennifer’s eyes through the phone. “Julie deserves to find out who she really is. Maybe she will find her real mother.”

With this thought, Julie face turned sour. She knew what her mother and father had done to her and was not interested in finding her parents. In her opinion, Jennifer was her only parent and she would not have it any other way.

At that moment there was a knock on the door.

“Ms. Watson? You wanted me?” said a voice outside the principal’s door. It sounded like Ginger’s voice. It was Ginger, looking scared, as though she was confused on what she had done wrong.

“Miss. Rosa-pansy!” shouted Ms. Watson, her face as red as a ripe tomato, eyes bugging out. She was obviously furious. “How dare you! We are in the middle of a privet meeting! Who sent you???”

“Ms. Watson, please understand, Rachel called me down on the intercom and said I needed to see you.” Ginger was cowering as Ms. Watson gazed down at her.

“A likely story and do you have any proof?”

“Yes, every person in my class. They will vouch for me.”

Just as Ginger said, her whole French class said they heard the announcement. Ginger and the principal talked outside her classroom.

“I’m so sorry Miss. Rosa-pansy,” said Miss. Watson, her face less red now. “Please forgive me. Say… you’re friends with Julie Wallis are you not?”

“Best friends,” answered Ginger, grinning brightly.

“Has Julie expressed anything to you about her past?”

“Only that she was from Japan but was adopted by Miss. Wallis, but…” Ginger lowered her voice and motioned to Ms. Watson to come closer. “She has told me a lot that she does not think she belongs here and the only place she feels at home at school is in the courtyard by the crane fountain.”

“I see, well you can go back to class Miss. Rosa-pansy. Thank you for your help.” With a curt nod, Ginger, smiling, returned to her class. Ms. Watson returned to her office.

“So, I guess it is decided,” said Jennifer more strength in her voice then before. “Julie will take the next flight to Japan and according to the letter they sent, a privet jet will take Julie to Tokyo, Japan, that takes off at five o’clock in the morning… TOMARROW!!!!!!”

A/N: ok, this is chapter one. The next chapter is coming up really soon. Until then, Sayonara!