Photographs and Video Tapes

Fingers to plastic
Plastic to glass
Glass to the world
Face reflected backwards

The sunlight a contradiction
Lense to the right
Lense to the left
There remains a glare in my direction

Strings of the instrument you pluck
Are shining like gold
Eyes glittering
In our time, we don't believe in luck

Open doors are slammed shut
Words on my lips
Words on her heart
How to speak, and with what?

Interpretations only reveal our biases
Things spoken
Understanding given
Passing strangers, in the worst of places

I ticked off the years one by one
Hope is lost
I am leaving
No surprise, but I'm the one who won


-Argentia

An Excerpt~

 I've recently been working a little on 'The Summer Colors of You' and then today, inspiration for 'And Then There Were Seven' went racing through my head. So here's a short excerpt from my extremely small, young, and yet rather bold and unruly brain-child. Any opinions are welcome, even bad ones.

 -Day 12-

Erin stared at Kevin with an accusatory glare. He continued munching the honey bun he held between his long sticky fingers, dripping with a mixture of sweat, dirt, and sugar frosting. If it hadn't been for the five o'clock shadow of peach fuzz sprouting on his chin and his grand height of five-ten, he could have been four.

 "Kevin...you realize that getting suspended is very serious, right?" I can't believe I'm giving this lecture to a guy five years my junior. It just feels like yesterday that Dad was doing this to me.

 "Rules, rules...I got it, Miss Law Enforcement Officer. Can't you keep it out of the home?" Kevin replied sarcastically, popping the last of the bun into his mouth and starting in on another.

  Erin let out an exasperated sigh. People had often told her she had excellent patience, but at this juncture she was uncertain if they would say the same when they saw her dealing with Kevin, or any of the other Chan children for what it was worth. For a long moment, she just stared at his dirty clothes, still far too intimidated by his dark gaze.

 "Is my rough and outdoorsy male looks so sexy that you can't take your eyes from my biceps, or are you so mad at me that you are trying to bore a hole through to my soul with your intense green laser eyes?"

 Erin wanted to laugh but held it in, plastering her face with a 'you are so dead when your mom gets home' expression. In one moment of frustration I forget how much fun teenage boys can be.

 "Just make sure you don't cut corners on explaining your suspension to your mother."

 "Oh, come now. You know that being suspended is probably the least troublesome thing I've ever done." Kevin whined, finishing his second frosted pastry and going for a third.

 "Don't-that's for Zane," she turned in the barstool chair and hopped down, wondering if there was a way she could make her small stature less obvious next time, "if you say it like that, Kevin, I'm willing to begin seperating what you do out of school from what you do in school. Fair enough?"

 "Yeah. It makes me seem like an angel." Kevin replied, giving her an endearingly sweet, but completely fake smile.

 "Just shut up and go mow the yard. At least I can say you did one thing right today."

Sprout

You sprouted before the snow fell
Protected in here from the outside hell
Now you grow during the cold months

Though your strength is tried by the cold, who
Each day, tries without success to eliminate you
I believe someone hopes to see your fruit

Small enough to rest in my hand
Makes me want to take a stand
Shielding you from the ice and snow

When you grow tall and strong in summer
When July breaks and the love grows warmer
Others will admire your fragrant blossoms

Am I necessary; do you seek the answer now?
Well, all number of others won't know how
To survive without you

The happy child, with a beaming smile
When they taste your fruit in just a little while
Will thank you for your growth

Now don't give up simply because you seem
Unwanted and ignored, harboring a hopeless dream
The future, the summer of life...they wait for you.


-Argentia

And Then There Were Seven-Cast Part 1

Alex Chan

Age 21
Interests: Music, language, culture, writing.

Alex spends a majority of his time alone, playing his guitar, writing lyrics, or perfecting his Japanese. He is completely in love with his music and in many ways, never wishes to leave it. His English skills are poor and due to time spent seperated from his parents and family from the age of seven to nineteen, he has closed himself to them completely. Outwardly, he is very friendly to strangers and attempts to speak to them when they address him, but in the home, despite being able to converse freely in his native Chinese, he is nearly mute.






Kevin Chan

Age 17
Interests: Music, government, politics, law, martial arts

Despite Kevin's exterior appearance of a high-flying, lawless teenager, he is highly intelligent and deeply interested in correcting mistakes and enforcing the 'right' rules. In contrast to his interest in government, he feels little to no allegiance to his country. He spends a majority of his time either reading, playing the violin, and street fighting. He feels most closeness with Ren and Alex out of all of his family members. He has a mildly intimidating demeanor due to his strong gaze, but generally tries and succeeds in adjusting his outer appearance and mannerisms to match those of his peers at work and school.




And there are the first two boys in the Chan family.


-Argentia