Mary, Full of Grace: Chapter 2 Teaser

“How does this house get so damn dusty?” Marianne swept the bundle of feathers over the top of the bookcase, making a large cloud of dust billow up towards her face. She let out a few hacking coughs and a sneeze for good measure. The chair she was standing on rocked causing Marianne to yelp.

Mary, who was sitting on a blanket on the floor near the couch, began to giggle.

“Your mother is amusing, isn’t she, Mary?” Marianne tossed the duster to the floor and climbed down the chair she had been using to reach the top shelves. “Your father, on the other hand, is not amusing at all. In fact,” she turned toward the kitchen and bellowed, “He should be in here helping!”

“I’m not listening!” He called back.

Marianne picked the feather duster back up and shook it in his general direction. This made Mary laugh even harder and she threw herself back, her thin little legs sticking up in the air. Marianne watched warmly as her daughter became enthused with the socks on her feet and pulled them off.

“I just put those on you, Mary!” Marianne sighed then turned around and began to dust the bottom shelf.

Jimmy, being an accountant, had a large collection of books; algebra, statistics, and economics were his favorites and there were countless texts were stuffed into the Brandon bookcase. They didn’t interest Marianne at all and, if she had had her way, they would have stayed behind in the move. After all, how practical were statistics in one's daily life? Her thoughts were interrupted when a few books slid off the shelf. She jumped back so they wouldn’t fall on her feet as they settled into a heap on the floor.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake!” She had tossed the duster aside and was gathering her skirts to kneel when something pink caught her eye. Moving the top books aside, she found what she was looking for; one of the heavier books had fallen open and, nestled between the pages, there was a single blossom.

Marianne picked up the book and scanned the cover. It was a mathematics book indeed, something only Jimmy would read. But why would he be keeping a flower in a geometry book? It appeared to have been there for some time by the way it was paper-thin and completely dry. Marianne stroked it gingerly and pursed her lips.

“Honey?” She called out to her husband.

“Not now, dear,” Jimmy replied in a sing-song voice.

Marianne let out a huff and walked towards the kitchen. When she entered, Jimmy was sitting at the table with piles of paperwork on either side of him. He held a small stub of a pencil in one hand and was mumbling numbers to himself, writing with a frantic pace in his notebook. Marianne cleared her throat to get his attention. “Jimmy?”

He looked up, his smile disappearing quickly when he noticed the book in her hand. “Marianne, what are you doing with that?”

Mary, Full of Grace

So...I started a Twilight fanfic called Mary, Full of Grace. It's only two chapters in but I hope people give it a shot. Honestly, the thought of writing a story is terrifying. I don't have a stellar education, English is not my first language (or even the one I primarily speak at home), and I don't know where I'm going to squeeze time in. I must admit, however, that writing this has been the most fun I have had in months. This story has been begging to get out of me and hopefully I'll do it justice.

I'll be posting a teaser right after this. First I wanted to address some things that keep coming up. These are non-spoilers as far as I can tell. I'll be updating this frequently.

FAQ

How often do you update?
I'm trying to update every two weeks.

Do you respond to every review?
Yes. I still have some prologue reviews to catch up on (about five) but after that, every review gets a reply and a teaser.

Why is the story starting in 1910 instead of 1901?
People might think that's a product of bad research but it's not. I know Alice is supposed to be born in 1901 (sorta, maybe, no one knows for sure). I love the idea of proving canon wrong. Alice is the only character we know almost nothing about pre-bite. The Lexicon has "1901?" next to Alice's birth date and the only other certain pre-Twilight date is 1948, when she meets Jasper. I think making the date completely wrong sends a strong message that we really don't know a thing about Mary Alice Brandon.

Will the entire story take place in the past?
I'm not sure. I've thought of maybe going back to Franny at some point in the middle but we'll see where the characters want to go.

What's with the dialects?
Biloxi was a melting pot of people, even back in 1910. It had Hispanic families, Black families, Cajuns, Southerners, you name it. Although I ran out of space to make it clear, the families in the story are diverse. For example, the Lopez's are Hispanic, and the Pleasants are African American. Some of the families are scholarly, some have never set a foot into a classroom. This leaves us with different styles of speaking. It's clear in the way Edith uses an mix of slang while Mr. Brandon is quite formal.

SOTW: Dig

Song of the Week: Dig by Incubus (Live version)

SOTW: Fire Door

Song of the Week: Fire Door by Ani DiFranco

Losing It

I've been so busy it's hard to wrap my head around everything. I went to sleep last night at 8pm and woke up at 2pm, a sure sign my body is not getting the rest I deserve. But there's a lot I need to update on:

I'm writing a Twilight fanfic called Mary, Full of Grace. Those of you who are twi-hards are probably intrigued and the rest of the world is probably either shaking their head or have no idea what I'm talking about. It's alright, I think only fans will get the story. I'll be posting teasers on here eventually.

I got a molar removed, a process which was frightening, painful, and slightly embarrassing. I don't think I can ever look at my dentist in the face again. At least I was assured no one in the waiting room heard my cursing and screaming. The stitches are already out and the mouth feels fine. Funny but fine.

I'm in college. Oh dear lord, I know. I'm currently taking a math class that makes me want to poke my eyes out with the nearest sharp object or maybe my scientific calculator for the interesting visuals. The headlines will read "Math Killed Her" and it'll be the only good thing out of the whole ordeal. Honours Literature and Composition should be better.

Work is going well. It's work, obviously, but I love my job and I love my coworkers and my friends.

I got Rock Band II and I am kickass. If anyone plays and wants to rock out online, let me know.

I think that's all for now.

♥

SOTW: Walk Like An Egyptian

Song of the Week: Walk Like An Egyptian by The Bangles

The Venom

Let me start off by saying I love wi-fi. I adore wi-fi. I think it's the greatest thing since Susanna Hoffs did that sweet eye thing in the Walk Like An Egyptian video (SOTW, btw). The best part of Wifi is seeing the names assigned. Someone of them are boring. ITT's wi-fi is called ITT campus, for example. Not very creative. Sometimes I'll come across a few like "Sally's internet" or "Mike's wifi". The best, however, comes from right next door where one of my neighbours operate online as...The Venom.

Now, if you met my neighbours, you'd understand why this tickled me so. Neighbour #1 is a young father who plants individual grass blades and goes to medical school. Neighbour #2 is an insurance salesman who think his Bougainvillea is the most beautiful on the block. Despite their modest daytime personalities, I can't help but imagine one of them going into his computer room, turning off all the lights, rolling up his sleeves, and delivering a total beatdown to someone in Guild Wars or maybe WoW. Perhaps he's more of the Crysis type. Either way, game on, Venom. Game on.

SOTW: The Mission

Song of the Week: The Mission by Puscifier

I'm Bigger Than the Sound + SOTW

Cecilia broke down. Cecilia got fixed.

Kyle is going to Italy next year.

I'm going to be a Biology teacher in a few years (if I don't chicken out and switch to business).

I haven't picked up yarn in over a month.

I love UU.

I need to put away my clothing.

I want to write a story.

Song of the Week: Sing, Theresa Says by Greg Laswell

SOTW: The Garden

Song of the Week: The Garden by Mirah