At age seven, Temperance was a dark haired beauty showing signs of the exotic beauty that plagued her deceased mother. Long tendrils of raven hair flowed to the floor and her pale moss green eyes sparked with her young childish amusement. She had slipped out of the house and waited in front of her brother's school, being seven she looked odd in front of the huge school. "Ally!" She squealed and threw herself into Alexander's arms before noticing the pretty blonde haired and bluish gray eyed boy. Stumbling, when Ally recovered from the shock of seeing his sister, pushing her away.
"What are you doing here? Do you want to get us in trouble?" He hissed and glared at her not noticing her dress had slipped up showing harsh black and purple bruises on her legs and arms. "Sorry Toby, I gotta run. Come on." He snapped at her and Temperance uneasily made her way to her feet; tears rolled down her face unnoticed as she tried to follow her brothers back that was quickly making its way gracefully through the crowed. A soft hand grabbed her arm and she found herself lost in a sea of concerned stormy eyes.
Holding Toby's hand as he led her without a word in the opposite direction she relaxed feeling safe. "I will get you home but first you need to have someone… kiss? Your…Booboos?" Giggling Temperance understood why he felt uncomfortable. He was nine and he thought she was five instead of seven because of her size. Glaring at her he spun around only to see her hold up to hands, one with all five fingers up the other with two. Smiling he understood, a pink mist filled his cheeks and he felt his little heart start to beat faster as he looked at the happy, beautiful girl before him hide the pain he could see in the depths of her eyes. "Come on, what's your name?" He asked, Toby mentally kicked himself for not asking sooner.
"Temperance" Was her breathy reply and she smiled at him, that day was the first of many 'Adventures' to the Kennish house hold when his parents weren't looking, days hidden in 'his' garage playing with Pokémon cards and making up games. But he always got her home before she could get in trouble. Her bruises faded and one day she wasn't at the gate to meet him, growing worried he walked to the locker rooms of the JR. High he still shared with Alexander and found that he wasn't there. At age eleven Toby had his heart broken. Forgetting about her and his old friend three years pass and he hears on the news about the kidnapping of a young girl of the age twelve. She was last seen at her foster parent's home three nights before and the older male neighbor has also been reported missing.
Temperance had been bounced from foster home to foster home sense she had been forcefully removed from her father's home three years before. Now she could feel the ropes binding her hands behind her back and could hear the bald mans jeers from the front seat. "Aren't so tough now!" He called along with not so nice names; his voice was rough and smooth. Hypnotic and lucid. It was her fathers and the tears that slipped from her eyes plastered her hair to her cheeks. Rough hands grabbed her from the trunk when the car jerked to a stop. "Your slut of a sister thought she could get away." She heard her father say and she looked up into the Carmel colored eyes of her older brother. His tawny skin was an amazing contrast to her porcelain cream toned.
"Ally?" She asked her voice shaking, Temperance could sense this was not going to go well for her. Jerking her he shoved her into a small cabin and down to the cellar. His face showed no remorse and for the next year she was beaten and raped by her family and their friends she became mute do to all the times she was told to be quite until one day the forest rangers raided the house on the grounds of a search and rescue of her. The found her and took her to the hospital, for days she stayed there and the doctors grew worried she would never speak again. And then she was gone. She just disappeared.
Temperance ran into the nearest park and cried, wearing nothing but her tattered shorts and a hospital supplied sweater. "Hey, are you ok?" A deep resounding voice slide over her, looking over her shoulder she saw Toby walking toward her. Her raven locks were matted and her face and body covered in brusis. Yet he knew, he knew who she was "Tempy? Oh my god!" He said and the brief rage soothed her. She was safe with her knight like friend. "Come on, I'll take you to my home." He was only six teen but he did have a car so he got her to his home and sneaked her inside.
Instead of leaving her to wash herself he followed and as she sat in the ultra bubbly bath he worked out the mats. Toby couldn't believe that all the time and seeing her looking like some homeless waif hadn't stopped her from causing his heart to beat rapidly in his chest. "Down, Eyes closed" He instructed as he started to wash her hair. It felt so right yet so wrong to wash her, Temperance didn't mind she just continued to bath in the bright bathroom feeling the heavy mist filled air that was filled with the sweet scent of jasmine and mango body wash and shampoo. "I missed you" He whispered before she silently told him to leave so she could get out.
Toby's t-shirt dwarfed her and she slept in his bed easily, as to not disturb her he slept in the room down stairs but didn't sleep much. He kept her a secret from his family as too make sure she felt safe but one day, after months of living with him she wrote a note and left. In the note she explained her love and her need for him but also the fact that she needed to find herself in the wreckage that her dad and brother had made before she could truly be with him.
Now, three years later he had al but forgotten about he's raven haired beauty, the moss eyed princess that he had saved, the creamy skinned nymph that had romped in the park with him. Was just a distant dream. He had his band, his family had been turned upside down, and he was dating a girl he wasn't sure he liked. Temperance had learned to talk again but preferred ASL, She had made her own band and gained her emancipation as long as her high school degree early. Now she was coming back to see the boy she had fallen in love with long ago; secretly hoping he still loved her.