Hi! Don't worry - I haven't forgot my other story. I was just struck with some inspiration today! This story is called Rogue. Originally, I started the story with different Characters and Setting, but to get it read, I changed the names and places to fit the fanfiction world.
Originally, it's about a girl named Anja Malika, a sixteen year old, mutant girl growing up under the care of her deaf and mute much older brother, Atieno or 'Ati.' Her father died long ago and her mother fell into a catatonic state right after she was born due to unknown reasons and resides in the city's mental institution. The story takes place in our present day Egypt, but is referred to as Missionary. The Missionary is a massive city ruled under a man named Nathan Mays, the man who claims to be God, and his family.
Anja is a mutant because she has the ability to manipulate the four elements as she pleases, and on rare occasions - the weak minded. And after possessing and almost accidentally killing one of the Mays daughters, she and her brother are banished to the outskirts of the Missionary - only allowed to come in for educational purposes and special occasions (school, holidays, mother visits, etc) The citizens view her as a sin and a mistake of nature - they believe her to be a demon.
One day, the Prophets of the Missionary foresee the complete destruction of the Missionary by a pack of savage, face-less creatures, and begin planning their escape to the Promise Land (United States/Canada)
Nathan, however, decides that this move brings up the perfect time for a rebirth of the Missionary, or a Cleansing.
Only the highest of the human race will be accepted and saved.
This is the story of how Anja and her family try to survive.
I fall to my knees, whimpering in frustration at the shallow end of the river. I almost had it. Another catfish just slipped out of my hands for the who-knows-how-manyth time in the last forty-five minutes. I can't take anymore. I put my head in my hands and cry a little. The hunger is so bad. My bones feel so weak and my stomach growls at me. I want to scream at it. "I know! I know! There's no food! Just leave me be!"
But my stomach is right to be rumbling. I haven't had food in almost three days. I'm not sure how much I have left in me. The walk home is long and the sun has almost set, casting that pretty shade of pink and orange over the sky. I flop back onto the sand and shut my eyes, wondering if today is the day I die. I've never felt so weak, so worthless - so helpless.
I feel something brush the hair off of my forehead and I allow my eyes to flutter open. My gaze connects face to face with a dark man with Onyx eyes.
Gale.
"Gale," I croak. "I couldn't catch anything. I'm so sorry -" He holds up his right hand to halt my apologies, and then uses his left to help me up. His mouth lifts in a small grin, releasing me and then points to the water. "Yeah, go ahead a take a swing at it. I give up." I sign. His eyebrow raises, and then he shakes his head, understanding. He makes a pushing motion with one arm while splashing water at me with the other.
Oh.
"You're okay with that?" He nods his head and grins, flashing me a string of pearly white teeth.
I let out a deep breath and shake out my limbs.
Focus.
I let my eyes shut, feeling the tingling spread of electricity crawl up my arms. I lift my hands, the sizzling intensifying. Allowing myself to peek, I fling my arms up and out, watching as half of the lake water is shot into the air. A flood of falling catfish find their way to the river bank and flop around drowning in the stale breeze.
A burst of noise falls from Gale's lips at the same time one does from mine.
Food.
We both leap at the fresh meal. Gale makes quick work of gathering the slowly dying fish and collecting it in his basket as I lay my hand on them and fry them inside-out. Once I know the fish is completely cooked through, I plop on the ground and pull out my hunting knife to begin slicing away at the scales, smiling to myself. I hardly have the patience to not bite through the rubbery skin.
Gale takes a spot next to me, observing me quietly as he always has.
You may be thinking – "Wow, Gale isn't much for conversation, is he?" Well, yeah. He can't hear. There's never been a time I can think of when he could. It's always been just me and him. My mom's a living corpse taking residence at the Community's asylum. I've never heard her voice even though I've visited her every week since I was a little girl. And since I had no one to talk to, I didn't speak until I got to school. I had no need to – I communicated with Gale using my hands, and that's all I ever needed.
When we walk through town, people assume I'm his child rather than his sister. He told me that he was seventeen when I was born – a considerable age difference for most siblings. But it apparently was very difficult for my mother to conceive – and it was merely an accident that I happened. Unfortunately, my father died a week before she discovered she was with child. He never even knew I existed.
It took a toll on my mother, to say the least.
Gale became my sole care-taker when he was only a teenager. I feel guilty sometimes about burdening him with my needs and my...problems. He's relentlessly harassed about it by townspeople the few times we actually are allowed to go into the city. They ask him cruelly in front me what it's like to have a sin for a sister and if he's finally sending me back to the Hell from which I came, but he simply smiles at them and walks it off. He seems completely fine with it – but I'm pretty sure that's only because he can't hear or read lips. The townspeople don't know that he can't read lips, and it keeps things less hostile.
You see... I'm not like everyone else in my town.
Girls, of course, all have enemies in high school, but I have a certain brand of enemy. Typical foes simply call the girls mean things behind their back and start rumors – but mine throw Holy Water at me and try to get me to expel my evil demon spirit out of the human body I have.
I can sort of understand where they are coming from through – I'd be a little apprehensive of a girl I didn't know that didn't talk, that had the ability to control everything around her...sometimes including people.
It's only happened once, but boy, was it scary. It was a freezing February and I was walking to my home on the outskirts of the city (they banned Gale and I from living in city limits because of my...gifts. They said I was a hazard to public property and other citizens. I'm only allowed in for school and special occasion.) The Chief Prophet's daughter, Clover Snow, thought it would be hilarious if she were to dump a freezing bucket of holy water on me.
It was so cold that half of the water was already sleet. I can't remember too much from that point on – only little blurs. My mind was so clouded with hatred that I went into Pilot Mode and set the Apothecary's dumpster on fire with a flick of the wrist. Then, without even thinking about it, I was suddenly inside the mind of Clover Snow and guiding her towards the fire. If it hadn't been for Clover's sisters Glenda and Madge, I probably would've killed her.
I don't think I meant to...I just couldn't control myself and my emotions got the best of me.
From that day on, Gale took me out into the desert everyday and taught me to control my emotions and use self-discipline. Sometimes I would simply try catching catfish with my bare hands or bury objects in the sand, only to retrieve those days later – without using my powers. That was the hardest part.
I feel like they helped in the long run. For the most part, I live like a normal person.
I hand over the catfish I just finished de-scaling to Gale so he can eat before I start filleting mine. He smiles widely and hastily sinks his teeth into the meat with a juicy sounding crunch. He groans at the taste and signs a thank you to me. I nod in reply. I shed the fish much sloppier than the first because I'm just so dang hungry I can't wait anymore. The chomp I take out of mine could put Gale's man bite to shame. He notices and lets out a warm laughter – a sound I haven't heard in months.
We sit in silence for a while longer before the violet sky alerts us we need to head home. Gale picks up his basket and I, my knife and we start off on the long journey home, but then Gale stills, putting a hand on my shoulder. He lifts a single finger – telling me to wait.
He scurries down the gradual slope of the river bank and heavily frolics around a pink lotus patch until his face lights up with recognition. He bends over, plucking one from the ground and rushing back to me to present it right in front of my face.
It's a lotus – but a grayish blue color, like the color of my eyes. The color that lets all Onyx-eyed citizens of District 12 know that I, Katniss Everdeen, am a mutant.
Smiling sadly, I bow my head to hide it and thank him.
He taps my chin up with his finger like I used to watch the fathers in town do with their children when they were pouting.
He shows me another comforting smile and signs to me, "Just because something is different doesn't mean it isn't beautiful."