I REALLY DON'T NEED TO EXPLAIN MYSELF BUT FOR SOME OF THOSE CRITICS OUT THERE WHO ARE LIKE, MOVE THIS TO FICTIONPRESS, I MUST EXPLAIN. ALL MY STORIES ARE ON FOR A SPECIFIC REASON. I SAY THIS STORY IS MY OWN YES, BUT THERE IS A LOT THAT SOME WOULD CLAIM THAT CREDIT FOR SOME PARTS DOES NOT GO TO ME. SO I KEEP IT ON THIS SIGHT FOR THAT REASON UNDER MISC. BOOKS. I GET SO MANY IDEAS THAT I REALLY DON'T REMEMBER WHERE HALF OF THEM COME FROM. SO FOR THOSE COMPLAINERS, THAT IS MY EXPLANATION WHY I DON'T MOVE IT.

PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!

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My name is Leodora Taylor. I'm an average 16 year old girl from Alaska, dirty blond hair, fair skin and slim figure. My almond shaped eyes were a pale blue and were the only unusual thing about me. My dirty blond hair went to my lower back and was always straight with a part on the left side. When my bangs were long enough, it hid most of the right side of my face. I'm about 5 foot 2 inches and weighs about 110.

I was in the school marching band until my stepfather's business forced us to move. That was normal considering that he was in the Army, always on active duty. My mom was a waitress, only because she wanted extra money.

I had an older brother who was seventeen. Dylan was an interesting skate boarder and really good at it. His dirty blond hair was almost always hiding his dark blue eyes. He almost a foot taller than me and he took more care of me than our parents cause they were always working or fighting.

Dylan went to every band competition I had and got to be on the sidelines and recorded me. I was one of the main dancers. The color guard held about 15 girls and 5 guys. I was the captain and was skilled with the saber and flag; hated the rifle even if I was good at it. So when it came time for us to move, it was problematic because the band was heading to Texas for Nationals.

"Leodora, for the last time, start packing!" Mother yelled.

"No, I'm not leaving! Not right before Nationals! I am a huge highlight of the show, but you wouldn't know that because you never go to my competitions!" I snapped. I hardly yelled at my mom, I usually took it silently but I had had it.

"We're leaving tomorrow for Chicago, you don't pack then I will!"

"Mother, you don't understand how much this means to Leo," Dylan came in.

"Dylan, back off!" she whirled on him.

"No not this time. This means the world to her and I'll see it through," he snapped. "We'll pack, but I'm going with Leo to Texas for nationals. After that, we can fly to Illinois and meet you."

"No, I will not have it!"

"I'm not going to let Leo just drop her life because Jack's job is making us. Every few years we do this mom, ever since you married him seven years ago. I won't let you or him ruin Leo's life."

"He is your father, Dylan. You don't get to speak that way about him," mother snapped.

"Our father is dead, Jack is just a replacement," I muttered.

She spun on me and slapped me hard, her pedicure nails raking against the skin. Dylan growled and pushed past her and knelt in front of me. He touched my cheek and I winced, his fingers came back with specks of blood.

"I...I am so sorry, Leodora..." mom whimpered. "Y-you...you may finish nationals..."

She walked out of the room with tears in her eyes. Dylan pulled me into my bathroom and put rubbing alcohol on my cheek and I hissed. I looked in the mirror and saw three shallow cuts.

"You okay Leo?" Dylan spoke.

"Sure," I muttered. "Remind me to never get slapped by her again."

"Oh, Leo..." he laughed half heartedly. "Let's get you packed."

I smiled and Dylan tapped up boxes and helped me. We had my whole room packed in two hours and I was even packed for Texas and the next couple days of school. I helped Dylan pack then Jack came home.

Dinner was silent and I skillfully hid my face with my hair. After dinner, mom started talking to Jack, telling him our plans to go to Texas for nationals. He smiled and agreed that I needed to finish my band year.

The next day at school, everyone noticed my mellow behavior. I was practically on top because color guard was one of those popular things, even higher than the cheerleaders and capriells. I told my close friends that I was going to nationals and hours later the whole school knew. I was a junior and a few people were surprised at how fast I had gotten to the top in two years. Dylan wasn't so hot on the popularity scale but he didn't mind.

The band was flying out to Texas and Jack bought Dylan and me first class tickets while the other 200 students were in third class. Jack and mom saw us off at the airport then left on their road trip to Chicago. Once in the air, I wandered to third class to find the band director, Paul Nelson, and the color guard director, Kaylie Leishman. They were on the first row so I sat on the floor in front of them.

"What is it Leo?" Mr. Nelson asked.

"I won't be returning with you to Alaska. My mom and her husband are already on their way to Illinois and I'll be flying straight there after nationals with Dylan," I whispered. None of the band knew.

"Are you not coming back?" Kaylie asked.

"Jack's job is moving is to Chicago. When everyone is flying back to Alaska, we'll be getting on a different plane. Nationals will be the last time that you may see me." Paul's face was filled with surprise and sadness. "I was barely able to get my mom to let me come to nationals."

"We'll miss you, Leo," Kaylie spoke sadly.

"Hey Mr. Nelson? How long is this flight?" one of the sophomores asked. "Oh, hey Leo."

"About 5 hours, get some rest if you can," Paul spoke.

"Kay," he sighed and walked back to his seat.

"You go get some rest too, Leo," Kaylie smiled.

Little did I know, Paul and Kylie were talking about me as I made my way back to the first class. I sat in my seat and closed my eyes. It took a few minutes before I could finally relax. As I sank into sleep, Dylan got up and walked back to third class.

Dylan woke me up as the plane started descending to Houston airport. We had four charter buses waiting in the parking lot as we came out with our bags. We got onto the buses and went to the hotel that was reserved for the band. Jack had gotten a room for Dylan and me and also had a personal driver. Whatever his job was, he made a lot and tried to make us feel more comfortable so everyone looked at us like spoiled brats.

At dinner, everyone was actually kinda quiet. Every now and then a student would look at me sadly the look away. I was confused until Paul spoke up.

"Everyone, for Leo's last competition, we need to make it the best of it," he announced. "Dylan brought a video that he wants us to see."

We walked into the mini-theater of the hotel and Dylan pulled me along.

I was in my backyard tossing my saber over a year ago when Dylan started to record my practices.

"Hey Leo!"

"No! No cameras!" I laughed.

"We want to remember these years, don't we? Why do you dance, Leo?"

As I started to speak, video clips of my practices with the band and funny moments.

"Dancing is everything to me. It's always been there for me and it's not something you can just take away. When I step out onto that field, I know that I was born to dance there. The moment the band starts that music, I start pouring my heart to the music and let my body become like the music. I want to leave behind a legacy to encourage dancing to everyone."

"What will you miss?"

"Everything... The marching band was my family and I love every one of them, even if there are a few trouble makers," I laughed. "I will miss them the most."

"Well everyone, you heard it from the captain herself," Dylan spoke as a video footage of me catching a quad with my saber. The movie ended with a picture of me sitting on a human dog pile of the low brass.

The lights came on and everyone cheered. I stood up and hugged Dylan tightly. I buried my face in his shirt and dried my eyes.

"Thank you," I whispered

"Okay everyone, time to go to your rooms," Paul called out and there were a few groans. "We have three days to make the most of this trip. Get some sleep we'll meet in the morning for rehearsal."

Everyone shuffled out after Dylan and I and almost everyone hugged me before walking off to their rooms. In our room, Dylan flung himself on one of the beds as I closed the door. I laughed at him as I walked into the bathroom to shower.

I came out of the bathroom in a towel and saw Dylan asleep under his covers. I pulled on my sports bra, spankies, and tank top then towel dried my hair. Instead of getting in my bed, I crawled next to Dylan and snuggled against him. We were always close and on trips, if we were out in the same room, we shared a bed. He stirred a little and wrapped his arms around me as I fell asleep.