Chapter ONE

"Best friends forever."

Tally and Peris simultaneously mumbled the words as they pressed their palms together. Tallys left hand fell loosely beside her. In it was a penknife, the open blade shimmering in the midday summer sun. A slight tinge of red ran along the edge of the blade, the only visible evidence of what they had done.

Until Tally noticed the small trace of blood creeping down her wrist. The sight of their mingling blood sent her head spinning, so she tore her eyes from their clasped hands to look at Peris. The apprehensive look on his face showed that he wasn't so excited about the self-inflicted blood. But the promise of friendship could last forever now, blood for blood.

"Forever," Tally whispered as Peris's eyes flicked up to gaze into her own.

After a long minute, the two unclasped their hands. The sight of the blood seemed to make the world spin again. Tally blew slightly on her cut, then pulled out some medspray she had brought for this occasion. Spraying it on her hand, she sucked in her breath as the medicine stung her. As the anesthetic started to work, she handed the bottle to Peris and he did the same.

"This is our last summer as litlies. We might as well make the best of it."

----

Tally and Peris had known each other since birth. They were born only 3 months and 2 days apart, and they both lived on the same street of the middle pretty suburbs. They met the first day of little school, and were best friends since that day. Aside from seeing each other at school, they send pings, meet at the park, and go on adventures together. There are hardly any instances where Tally and Peris didn't talk for longer then a few days.

But their little life was soon coming to an end, as autumn would bring a new stage of life for them both...

Tally sat on a swing in the park, looking for Peris as the sun faded behind salmon-pink clouds. The street lights came on as dusk settled in, and she saw him walking up the street. Jumping up, she ran over to him, a backpack slung over her shoulder.

She grinned. "Took you long enough to get here!"

"Hey, you were late last time," he retorted.

"Fine, we're even now then," she said with a playful smile. "Let's go."

As nine o'clock rolled around the pair was heading down to the edge of the suburbs. Past that was the greenbelt, and then Uglyville – where they were headed. From experience, Tally knew they couldn't actually get into Uglyville thanks to their interface rings, but they could get pretty close. And close was all they needed: this expedition was all about spying on the Uglies.

Since this was the last summer Tally and Peris were spending as Littlies, they had more freedom then ever before. Tallys parents, Sol and Elli, said she could stay out until 10 if she wanted, and they never really cared if she came home a little late. They knew where she was, and of course she had her ring on if she got in trouble. Help was always only one ping away.

Peris stifled his giggles as they went to the edge of the greenbelt. He could never stay as quiet as Tally on their expeditions.

"Shhh!" Tally elbowed him in the ribs and he quieted down. "Look! Some people are coming!" She pointed out into the darkness of Uglyville, and they both stared as a group of Uglies whipped around a corner on their hoverboards. Both always had envied the Uglies, since littlies could never be trusted with more then hoverskates that let them float 7 centimeters above the ground at most. But Uglies could go hoverboarding. Whenever they wanted, it seemed. They usually saw a few out on their boards at night.

As the group passed, Tally felt her envy grow. They were laughing quietly as they banked corners and flew past overhead. "Don't you wish we could fly too, Peris?" she asked in a whisper voice.

"Yeah, and just think, in a few months we can! Just one more summer stuck out here," Peris whispered back, his gaze looking past Tally to follow the boarders. "But I've always wondered, how would it feel to fall off one of those? They always fly so high..."

Tally laughed quietly. Peris was always a bit hesitant about things that involved heights. "I'm sure it's safe. They probably have bungee jackets or something," she had to giggle again as Peris's face lit up. He loved the idea of those jackets. Even if he did dislike heights.

They sat together, concealed by the bushes of the greenbelt, staring off into the dark grounds of Uglyville. Laughter from the boarders faded off into the night. Tally leaned her head against his shoulder as they soaked in the moonlight. Far off in the distance she could see New Pretty Town silhouetted by fireworks just beginning to blossom in the dark sky. ...Someday, we'll be there... Tally thought to herself. Even though those days were far off. Tally was still only 11, and Peris had just turned 12. Pretties were 16 at the youngest, so it was going to be for long off years before they turned.

"It's getting late," Peris whispered in her ear. She saw him twist his interface ring, then he said "We need to head home if we want to be back on time, it's past 10 already."

"Okay, let's go home."

----

The two quietly got up and headed back into the suburbs, taking a shortcut through the park. As they reached the street where Tally lived, they softly said goodnight and she walked to her house, quietly going in and heading to her room.

She put her ring into sleep mode and murmured goodnight to her toys. The excitement of the day quickly turned to exhaustion as she pulled the covers over her and laid her head on the pillow.

Running her fingers over her scarred palm, she whispered into the silence of her room "...best friends forever..."

Tally fell asleep with sweet dreams floating in her mind.