PROLOGUE
Her parents were fighting.
Again.
"I can't believe you want to let her go! You know the dangers out there…"
The fight was about her.
Again. They always fought about
her. But even their fights were
cryptic.
"Hell, you were the danger out there! And you want to let her go unprotected?!"
What was it about her father that her mother just couldn't
let go?
"Goddammit! Will you
stop throwing that at me?! I made
amends, remember? If they could forgive
me and let it go, why can't you?!"
Who was the mysterious "they" her parents always talked
about? And for what did her father make
amends for?
Aurora swallowed hard at the knot forming in her young
throat. The sorrow-filled tears burned
behind her eyes. She wanted so badly to
go to America with the rest of her class.
The exchange project was only for a year. It's not like she was going away forever.
And she needed to be away from her parents and their damned
secrets. She knew they hadn't always
lived in Australia, but when she tried to ask about before, they changed the
subject. She'd only been able to find one
lone picture of her mother when she was a girl about her, Aurora's, age. She'd asked her mother who the pretty
redheaded girl or the cute boy was. Her
mother had gotten this nostalgic look on her face and said that they were her
best friends. Nothing more. And after that the picture disappeared
too. Even searches on the Network
couldn't shed light on her family's past.
It was like they started to exist the minute they stepped
foot on Australian soil. Aurora had
even entertained the thought for a while that her parents might be spies or
terrorists. That would at least explain
their lacking backgrounds.
Why were they so bent on keeping her locked away from the
world? They've made their secret world
her prison, and it's slowly driving her crazy.
Don't they realize that?
A sob ripped through her, and Aurora buried her head in her
pillow, trying to muffle the sounds of her misery.
She registered silence outside her door. 'Oh God,' she thought. 'Don't let them hit each other.'
"Aurora?" Her father's
voice floated to her. How did he hear
her crying over her mother's screaming voice?
"Honey, what's wrong?"
Her mother's hands gently pulling her out of her pillows, stroking her
hair and face with worry in her eyes.
"It's my fault!"
Aurora couldn't stop the words from blurting out and she just cried
harder. "It's my fault you guys are
fighting."
Her parents sandwiched her between them, encircling her in
their protective arms. "Aurora," her
mother soothed. "No, don't ever think
that."
"We love you more than anything," her father exclaimed,
kissing her hair.
"But if I didn't ask to go on the exchange, you wouldn't
have been fighting. It's my fault. I'm sorry.
I don't have to go." Aurora's
misery grew as her heart shrank.
Silence fell around her.
They were having one of their silent conversations, Aurora knew. How long do you have to know someone before
you don't even need to speak to talk?
"You really want to go, don't you?" her mother asked,
lifting Aurora's face to meet her eyes.
Aurora nodded miserably, tears still coursing down her cheeks.
"She's have to call everyday. And keep her grades up," her mother said to her father over
Aurora's shoulder. Aurora's heart was
taking flight.
"You mean it?" she asked excitedly, wanting to hope.
"And no boys!" her father amended. "You're still too young to date."
"Yes, Daddy! Yes,
Mommy!" Aurora agreed happily, pulling her parents to her for a bracing
hug. She didn't even notice their
slight grunts of pain. Aurora sometimes
forgot how strong she was.
****************
Los Angeles - Six months later
"Aurora Liam?"
"Yes?"
"You have to come with me.
Now. It is your destiny."
"What? Who are
you? I know how to defend myself."
"You are the Chosen One.
To every generation one girl is born who is destined to battle the
demons, vampires and the forces of darkness.
You are that girl. You are the
Slayer. You must come with me now."
"Are you insane?
Vampires don't exist. Now leave
me alone."
"Please. Come with
me, and discover your destiny for yourself.
I won't harm you."
"Well, okay, I'll go.
But only to prove that you're psycho.
Just remember that I know how to break your arm in five places with just
one move. My dad taught me, and he's
some Special Forces type guy."
****************
"I'm worried about Aurora.
She doesn't call anymore. Her
grades are suffering. Do you think this
exchange program's gotten to much for her?"
"She'll be okay.
She's her mother's daughter after all."
"You're worried too."
"Yes. What could be
wrong? Maybe we should go over there
for a visit?"
"No, it's only a few more weeks until the school closes for
summer. We should give her till
then. Maybe she'll tell us on her own
what's wrong."
"You hate that idea as much as I do, but you're right. Just a few more weeks until the
International Parents Convention. We'll
give her until then."
"I miss my baby. Do
you think we did the right thing in letting her go?"
"I hope we did. I
miss her too."
****************
Australia – one week before summer vacation and the
International Parents Convention
"She's been arrested!
My baby's in jail!"
"What are you talking about? Calm down, and tell me what's wrong with Aurora."
"Her principle called.
Aurora's been arrested for murder!
She was on a field trip with her class.
Apparently, she got separated from the group. People heard a struggle and they found her over a dead body. It must have been self-defense. Oh God, you don't think someone attacked her
to get to us, do you?"
"Get your things.
We're going to Los Angeles."
"I can't loose my baby.
What are we going to do, Angel?"
"It's going to be okay, Buffy. We'll get to the bottom of this."
END OF PROLOGUE
