2017+Dunbar+and+Pillans+Middle+Schools

Story & Illustration Emily Dunbar Middle School - 8th Grade - Ms. Duffis Moriarty sat quietly in the guard tower, sighing. Once again he was shoved into night duty. Looking to the West, he smiled. Twinkling lights from his village greeted him cheerfully. His determination filled again, because he knew what he was protecting, and why he was. Somewhere amongst those lanterns, Isabelle was dreaming. She was safe, and as long as he remained diligent, she would stay that way. Locking his jaw, he looked back into the south, he glared into the darkness. They'd be coming soon, but when was uncertain. He kept his flare close to him, his only way to alert the village for any sign of hostility. He would protect her, 'til his dying breath. Isabelle knew she shouldn't be there, out and away from the rest of the village. She kept running though, tripping over stumps and holes. If she just saw It, just saw the sign, she could speak to it. She could convince It not to hurt them. She had heard the rumors, the words behind locked doors. She knew more than most regular civilian adults. Moriarty thought he was alone. She smirked. His job was that he had to protect her, but this time the tables would turn. In her mind, she could be the hero this time. She would save the village, and not a single drop of blood would fall. A sharp cry split the night. Looking up in surprise, she saw It. She knew it. She wouldn't live, she couldn't live. This was it. This is why they called the Scout Crow the bringer of death. The only thing she wished is that Moriarty didn't see It. That'd he look away. Because as she fell, she felt his unwavering gaze on her. Moriarty stared in horror. Isabelle, no, it couldn't be. It must have been a deer, or something. Anything but his little sister. The bird, the demon who had been sweeping the villages clean of their living inhabitants, was here. He saw It's eye glinting in the night. Standing on the crude stone wall window, he yelled and fired the flare. It hit the bird straight in the heart. Glare unmoving, he knew it did nothing. Its brothers would be arriving soon, and they'd be lumped with the rest of the fallen villages. As he continued firing flares, he knew three things; the village would fall, they were not the heroes they were destined to be, and he would soon join Isabelle. || ||
 * Scout Crow



Dunbar Magnet School
 * Emilie

Brooke opened the door and waited for her dad to enter before she ran to her room. She had just gotten home from school ready for a weekend of nothing. Brownie, the puppy she adopted last week, was waiting at her feet with her brown tail wagging. Brooke bent down after dropping her stuff to pick up her furry friend. She ran to her room and plopped on the floor near her window with her fuzzy green blanket and a book to read. Outside, there were a few bird chirping from the trees and there were no clouds once so ever. “What a wonderful day to do nothing.” After sitting on the ground Indian style, she covered her lap with the blanket. Brownie jumped into her lap and curled into the blanket after licking Brooke’s face. Brooke let out a sigh and picked up her book. || Mia Eighth Grade - Dunbar – Ms. Duffis Once upon a time there was a little girl selling hearts. One day a man came by her. She looked up at him with her hopeful eyes and ask “Sir, would you like to buy a heart?” With a soft smile he replied “I don’t know if I need to buy a heart, but I need to know if you can repair hearts.” The girl’s smile faded away, but lite up again and replied “I can’t, but there is a heartsmith down the street.” “Thank you little lady.” He replied while leaving. “Your welcome dear sir” She said while waving good bye. He ran down the street ‘til he came up to a small shop that said “heartsmith”. He knocked on the door, but there was no answer. So he just walked in. When he walked in he saw a young man working on a heart. “Um excuse!” He called out. The young man looked up from what he was doing. When he realized there was a person in his shop. “Oh a customer, Hello!” He said with a wide smile. He walked over to the man and took his hand to shake it. “What can help you with today?” “I was told by the girl down the street that you fix hearts, is that true?” “Yep. What seems to be the problem, sir?” The guy pulled out his heart. When he pulled out his heart, which was shattered into piece. The smith man’s smile slowly faded. “Wow, your heart is really damaged. But, don’t worry I’ll be able to fix it” He said with a reassuring smile. You may have to leave it here with me though.” He let out a huff The heart smith carefully took the heart the gentlemen’s hands and set it on his work place. The young man wave goodbye as walked out the door. The heart smith looked down at the heart as he let out a sigh. This is going to be hard he thought and went straight to work. ….next day… There is nothing, nothing, the he can do with the heart. Unless he takes a piece of a whole heart there is nothing the heart smith can do. Unless. He looked over at the locked box over in the corner as he got a thought. “What if I used my own heart” he said aloud. He walked over to the box and took the key that was hanging on his neck and stared at it. He bent down unlocking the little box only to reveal his own heart. The heart smith picked up his own heart deciding to use his own heart for the pieces. After hours of hard labor he fixed the gentlemen’s heart, but now his own heart was now fractured. As the gentlemen walked into the shop the heart smith looked up with a warm smile. Standing up the heart smith held out a box with a bow on it. With a great big smile the gentlemen ask “Is that my heart?” “Yes sir, it is. I fixed it with all the love and care that I could use.” The heart smith replied proudly. “Thank you so much!” The gentlemen said as he walked out the door happily. As the gentlemen left the heart smith let out a great at big huff. It became night time fairly quickly as the heart smith closed up the shop. Taking a small break, he sat on the steps of his shop and looked up at the stars. That is until he heard a small voice. “Why did you use your heart to fix that gentleman’s heart? Your heart was so beautiful and bright, but now it’s fractured and ruined. Why you do that to your own heart?” the voice of a little girl said sadly. The heart smith looked away from the beautiful, shimmering stars to the little girl the sold hearts down the street standing in front of him. “Well little lady, I did it because He needed it more than I did. There is someone very important to him that needed his whole heart to show them that he loves that person and to me that is worth using my own heart.” He replied The little girl held out a glowing heart. “Take it you need it more than I do. She said The heart smith burst out into tears and cried out “That’s the most beautiful thing anyone has ever done.” ||
 * A heart for a heart

Kyntrell Baskin Palmer Pillans She had me, she kept me Warm and Safe She even put me in line When I was out of place But still my mother’s Child I am She loves me so much But it’s sad to say I have to grow up A little birdy she helped fly Flying all the way to the sky A greatful mother she is Doing everything she can in her will Looking and watching over me for a while But I am still ………………my mother’s child ||
 * My Mother’s Child

Palmer Pillans Middle School Eighth Grade Days and Days away From my birthday, Will it ever come? Or will it ever stay. I will be turning Foxteen On that day but why? Why is it so far away? Everyone is coming, That’s all I can say. We’re going to line up, And have a big race. But I can’t wait Because … We’re 3 days before my Birth-date. Next a second day. Now we’re 1 day before my birth-date. I tried that night to go to sleep Like I rarely. But I ate my food and rushed to bed early. Foxteen! Foxteen! I’m finally there Family, Friends Everywhere! Gifts on the table, Just for me. Can’t wait to open them to let everyone see. The best day that’s what I mean. But the really best day is when I turn Foxteen. ||
 * Kyntrell Baskin

Frederick Hall Pillans Middle School – Grade 6 What inspired me to draw this picture is the world. The two birds I drew represent the sun and the moon light and dark, life and death. The reason I drew both is that one can’t live without another or it would be chaos. The egg represents the fate of the world. It has to be ????? or it might go haywire. It might be able to turn to light, but nothing good lasts forever. The waves represent the two different forces classing and the darkness is losing the battle. As you can see one of the birds is a bird of paradise, the other is a woodpecker. In the picture, the woodpecker is getting pushed back. The bird of paradise is the light in the world. There is more light than there has ever been and it is thriving, but it wasn’t always like this. The woodpecker, which is darkness, once thrived. There is still some left. There will always be darkness; it will again someday, but today there is light, hope, construction, and love. ||
 * Representing the World