Free Gamer Girl by Mari Mancusi Page A

out
my story line. I examined my sketches with a critical eye. Was I just
kidding myself to think that my artwork was prize-worthy? Or was
Billy right? Did I completely suck?
    I shook my
head. Couldn't think like that. Had to stay positive.
    I flipped from
sketch to sketch, studying each one. I liked the drawings I'd done of
Fields of Fantasy Allora, but the ones of me in high school, facing
the Haters, weren't bad either. So should I do a reality manga--a
shojo set in high
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    school? Or
create a fantasy epic with dragons and knights in shining armor? It
was a tough choice.
    Then
inspiration hit me like a lightning bolt. What if a normal high
school girl started playing a video game and literally got sucked
into the virtual world? Suddenly she was an all-powerful magician,
living in a medieval land, instead of the friendless, emo girl she'd
been. And she'd have to go on some kind of quest to be able to get
home. This way I could combine both story lines and make something
that was unique.
    I grabbed my
pen and started sketching out a few rough scenes. This was going to
be so cool. "Whatcha doing, honey?"
    I looked up.
Dad was hovering in the bedroom doorway.
    "Just
drawing," I said, feeling self-conscious all of a sudden. I
instinctively put a hand over my drawing, then moved it away. After
all, I was entering a contest. I needed to get used to people
checking out my art. Still, it seemed weird. Something so personal
and private, out on display.
    Dad sat down
beside me and turned my sketch toward him. "Is this from Fields
of Fantasy?" he asked.
    I nodded.
    "You're
really a great artist," he remarked, turning to the next
drawings. "I'm very impressed."
    I blushed.
"You're a dad. You have to say that."
    "Really?"
He looked up, his eyes twinkling. "Weird, I must have skipped
over that part in the dad handbook."
    I laughed. Dad
always had a way of making me feel good.
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    "Thanks
for the game," I said. "I really love it. I met this
awesome guy who's been showing me the ropes and--"
    Dad held up a
hand. "Hold on a second," he said. "A guy?"
    I shrugged.
"Yeah. Sir Leo."
    "I see.
And who is Sir Leo?"
    "I don't
know. Just some sixteen-year-old kid."
    Dad rubbed his
chin with his finger and thumb. "I should talk to you about the
dangers of online gaming," he mused, half to himself, half to
me. "That would be in the dad handbook."
    I rolled my
eyes. Did he think I was two years old? This was the twenty-first
century. We kids were warned about online predators since grade
school. "Yeah, yeah, I know," I said. "I'm not
stupid."
    "If I
thought you were stupid, I wouldn't have bought you the game to begin
with," Dad replied with a smile. "But I need you to promise
me that you will play smart. Even if you feel like you're getting to
know some of your online friends, do not give out any personal
information to them. Like where you live or go to school. And I mean
not ever."
    "Okay.
Sure. Whatever." I'd heard this lecture a million times, though
usually about Facebook and MySpace. Parents were so paranoid about
stuff like that. "Anyway, I'm sure the guy lives a million miles
away."
    "Or he
could live right in your backyard. You never know."
    I nodded,
keeping a poker face, even though the idea of Sir
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    Leo living in
my backyard was extremely appealing. "Right. Well, I promise
I'll be careful."
    "Cool."
Dad rose from his chair, having fulfilled his responsible parent duty
of the day. "Well, want to play a bit? I set up a second
computer right next to mine in the study. We can adventure together."
    I grinned.
Finally! "I was hoping you'd say that!"
    We headed over
to the computers and logged in. I glanced over at Dad's screen. He
was a tall, handsome human knight with golden armor and a magnificent
white horse. Very fancy compared to the odds and ends Sir Leo wore to
battle.
    "Cool,"
I said, impressed. "How'd you get all of that stuff?"
    Dad laughed. "A
lot of wasted hours playing," he said. He pressed a button and
his horse reared and