~ Prologue ~
That Dreadful Incident

Sirens blared off from an close distance, their cries growing louder as it got closer, eventually coming to an halt when they arrived at their destination. A bunch of students huddled outside near the swimming pool with curious eyes, prying over the situation. Murmurs echoed throughout, each person chatting with one another about all of the possible outcomes of this tragic event.

I for one, truly hated myself. Truth be told, I knew who was behind the whole Smashbook burn page yet I couldn't even gather the fucking courage to tell everyone. If only I was more like my brother, then maybe she would still be smiling, laughing and giving every person hope for an brighter future.

My heart shattered, not knowing the gist of her current state or if she even survived that fall. I sigh deeply, trying not to give off any action or look of suspicion whatsoever. The various reactions which covered my vast surrounding began overwhelming me, almost causing me to snap in mixture between pure rage and underlying sadness. Nobody knew how much I actually cared for the victim, no, I actually loved her since the first day I laid eyes on her four years ago yet never confessed to her. Out of everyone on campus, she was the one whom I could share every teeny tiny secret or even vent out my own frustrations without feeling judged. However, she's gone now and it's all because of that fucking witch!

Speak of the devil, I happened to glance up just at the right moment to see the metropolitan police force questioning her. The woman frowns, obviously putting on a façade as she pretends to act devastated, putting on a show for everyone around her. She's been nothing but plastic since I first encountered that vile demon when I started my high school journey as an mere freshman two years ago.

Never have I've absolutely truly loathed anyone in my life until now. That woman, no, that bitch was nothing but poison, depriving others of their hopes and dreams all because she never achieved hers. How petty.

Since then, I came to terms with myself, wanting to seek the uttermost revenge on this shitstain of an human being. I don't care how pathetic I sound right now, I just want this woman to know the true meaning of suffering, and furthermore, the dire consequences of her own actions. I want to see her fall down, hard.

One thing I did realize though is today was the day that hope withered away.

Pretty short prologue but I felt that simple and to the point was for the best. Now, I'm currently in an writing rut, so I decided to try to slowly, but surely execute another idea this time writing it in first person POV instead of the usual third person.

For those of you who are new, I welcome you to the Prequel of my current ongoing story, The Rise and Fall of Marth Lowell. Now, for those who are avid readers of TRAOML, then this might be an special treat for you and you already know the events of what exactly happened.

I originally didn't plan on writing an prequel but I couldn't help but wanted to try out an story that doesn't sugarcoat people's opinions about others as well as how people actually are.

This is definitely going to be shorter than TRAOML, I'll tell you that much. :)

Anyways, let's get down to the optional story questions.

1. Should I make the chapter based on Dark Pit's POV alone or should I alternate POVs between him and the victim? Or perhaps, even the suspect as well? Note how I alternative between POV is not like one part of an chapter is Character A, the next part is Character B, etc. as it will only confuse me, so instead, I do Ch. 1 from Character A's perspective, Ch. 2 from Character B's, etc.

2. (Super Optional) I was thinking of making an community for SSB AU fics to make it easier for those who are fans of Alternative Universe stories to find such, whether it be your coffee shop AU, western AU or yes, I hear you guys moaning, the typical high school AU.

3. (Super, super optional because unless you have read the The Rise and Fall of Marth Lowell, then this question wouldn't make sense) Since this takes place before Senior year, what things do you want to see in the story? What do you want to see answered?

And now, it is time for me to take off for school. I always dread the middle of the semester, seeing how work always piles on. Hopefully I can manage to get part III of Here I Am, Here I Stand along with Part 2 of Ch. 18. Before I go, just a heads up, I'm slowly on an editing process for the older chapters in the sequel to this as chapter 1 is officially cleaned up!

Also I didn't address this before but I recall someone being influenced from the sequel to write their own AU fic and I just wanted to say how happy that made me feel since I didn't think it would inspire, let alone influence someone to do their own AU. :)

Until next time!
-Ash