Thank you for reading my story, I've tidied it up a little but it's essentially the same as the original. I'm going to be honest and say that it isn't finished and it probably never will be, my apologies. But thank you anyway and feel free to read on if you'd like ^-^ ~EternallyJaded
The silhouettes of a group of people were the only things moving in the still city scene. Their shadows crept along the alleys and clung threateningly to the walls. It was a well rehearsed routine, almost like a dance, although anyone who voiced that opinion would have been quickly dealt with.
Their ages seemed to span from eleven to eighteen but in reality the youngest was only eight, far too young to be involved in the terrible things that a group like this would certainly be doing in the dead of night. The boy in question moved along reluctantly behind the rest of the group as they sauntered forward. Another boy, slightly older than him, tugged at his sleeve and forced him to walk faster.
The youngest boy fidgeted nervously with his newly pierced ear, a habit he had already picked up, and stood still as the group came to a stop. They were standing outside a bakery, their target for the night. It seemed an odd place to break into, but apparently the owner had done something to offend Skull, the leader of the gang and they were there for payback. It was an easy enough place to break into; no high-tech security systems and the people around it weren't exactly the type to rush to the aid of someone in need.
"Here's the plan," Skull announced in a stage whisper, "We smash the windows and bust in. Then we'll have about thirty seconds to get in and out before old Mr Bear drags his ass outta bed. Take what you can, do as much damage as possible."
Fear pumped through the youngest boy's veins and he shivered. He adjusted the hood on his black sweater so that it covered his face.
"All got your weapons?" Skull asked, bringing a crowbar out of his jacket. An array of knives, lighters and the occasional gun were held in the air. The boy felt the sharp blade of the tiny Swiss army knife press against his palm in his pocket. "Good." Skull grinned and turned to the window, swung back his arm and smashed the glass.
In the seconds immediately after the sound of the glass shattering all hell broke loose as shrieking and war cries filled the air. The riot had begun. The mob streamed into the shop stopping only to smash up the 'Beardsley's Bakery' sign on the way in. The youngest boy took a deep breath and followed them, stepping over the jagged remains of the glass panes. A cold sweat broke out over his face as he stood near the door, not wanting to get involved but hoping his lack of enthusiasm would go unnoticed. Smoke filled the air as anything that would burn was set alight. The place was trashed; everything that could be broken was and everything that didn't had lumps taken out of it.
"Come on!" One of the boys, whose name was Michael, called to him, "Smash somethin' already!" Not wanting to get hit for his disobedience, the boy threw some loaves onto the floor and kicked them. Michael shook his head and dragged the younger boy towards the back of the shop dodging fires as they went. Upstairs, the owner of the shop could be heard rattling around and making his way towards the end of the stairs.
"Alright, get out!" Skull called and started towards the front of the shop holding handfuls of money. People shoved each other out of the way in a rush to get away from the scene of the crime. It was survival of the fittest and the weakest found himself at the back.
A shot rang out and he fell to the ground, howling in pain. Terrified, he looked down at his arm to see blood pouring out of a bullet hole. Tears streamed down his face as he screamed in pain. Scrambling around he caught sight of his friend climbing out of the broken window.
"Michael!" he screamed, "Help me!" Michael stopped and turned to face him, a conflicted frown on his face. But it only took a second for his mind to be made up and ducked out of the shop, disappearing into the cold night air.
Emmett woke up from the nightmare in a sweat the same way he always did. Groaning he sat up and warily took in his surroundings. The room was painted in a dark blue but was so old that the paint was peeling off the walls. There were a couple of tattered posters of heavy metal bands but it wasn't enough to cover up the damp which seeped through from the ceiling. The only furniture was a wooden dresser, a tiny wardrobe and a single-person bed which was much to small for someone of Emmett's size. It was the same room he had been in for four years and the room he was leaving today.
He dragged himself out of bed and down the hall to the bathroom before anyone else was awake. He turned on the facet and splashed the freezing water on his face to wake himself up. Looking up, he caught sight of his reflection in the cracked mirror. Bright blue eyes glared at him from behind the glass, a mouth turned down at the sides and curly black hair hung over his face like a veil. He sighed and pressed a towel briefly to his face before dropping it back onto the ground where it usually stayed.
Ten minutes later Emmett was eating his third slice of dry toast and leaning on the kitchen counter. He was looking absently across the snowy lawn and thinking about what was happening today. He was being transferred for 'bad behaviour'. Apparently he'd been in one too many fights and been caught with things that were a little too illegal; the foster home were done with him. They were unloading him onto another home up-state who would 'deal with him'. But he was a lost cause and everybody knew it -the carers knew it, his parents knew it, Hell, even he knew it. Luckily for just about everyone he was almost eighteen and soon he wouldn't be anyone's burden.
"Well, the McCarty kid's leaving today," the cheerful voice of one of the carers echoed down the stairs. The reply, as if to prove Emmett's thoughts, was just as optimistic.
"Yeah, to tell you the truth I can't wait to get him off my hands. I feel bad but..." The voice trailed off.
"I know what you mean, he's bad news. I don't like to give up on a kid but he's he's rotten to the core." Emmett could almost hear his head shaking in disapproval and he felt a pang of something at the words but couldn't quite define it. Whatever, he'd heard the words so many times they no longer had any effect.
"Oh please," the second voice laughed, "He's hardly a kid, he's about seven foot and built like a brick wall."
"Um hmm," the first voice agreed, "I'm glad I've never been on the receiving end of one of his punches. Still, he'll be eighteen soon enough and then he can rot in prison where scum like that be-"
The man stopped short as he walked into the kitchen to find Emmett staring at him icily, one eyebrow raised in arrogant defiance. Immediately the colour drained from his face and he felt a certain pride in knowing that his stare had such an effect. It was well known that it was dangerous to be on Emmett's bad side. And it was almost as well known that he didn't actually have a good side.
"Oh, um, Emmett, I didn't see you there..." The care worker stuttered quickly, not-so-subtly pulling the other carer in front of him as a makeshift shield. Emmett strode across the tiny kitchen and leaned in closer to the carer's face. If he was pale before he was startlingly puce now.
"Obviously," he growled before pushing past him and back to his room where he would shoving his small amount of possessions into his battered rucksack ready to be carted off to yet somewhere else where he wouldn't belong. It'll be over soon, He reassured himself, soon you won't be anyone's problem.
Alice Brandon was a strange child; crazy and even more curious than most children of her age. Some of the workers at the care home called her 'lively' others 'inquisitive' but they were just being nice. The truth was that Alice was weird. Even from a young age she had been good at predicting things like the weather and how well someone's practical joke would turn out. That freaked out the other kids but it made them respect her all the same.
As a teenager Alice preferred to be described as quirky. She had a sense of style unlike any others; modern and fresh but with her own eccentric twist. She didn't have many designer clothes (due to a lack of funds) but really admired people who did. Every day without fail her many social networking sites were updated. Alice had an obsession with Facebook that rivalled her obsession with fashion; the world had to know everywhere she went, everything she ate, every time she breathed... This was because (and any therapist Alice had ever seen would tell you the same) she had no identity.
It's a cold, dark night in Biloxi, Mississippi. A frightened teenager timidly pushes open a gate to her safe haven, and for once it doesn't squeak. Quickly, she steals down the path clutching the package in her arms closer to her body. The door looms in front of her and suddenly she hesitates, reconsidering what she's about to do. Maybe she shouldn't go through with it... But what else is there to do?
She bends down and lays the package onto the dusky ground. Peeling back the blankets, she uncovers the face of a cherub which peeks out at her with huge blue eyes. The baby is tiny in the extreme- too small to abandon. She takes a deep breath and knocks the door three times. Pausing only to take one last glance at the baby the girl flits back down the path and closes the gate.
She fades like a ghost, leaving behind no trace of her ever being there. She doesn't even make a sound. All that's left behind is the baby girl with no note, no belongings, not even a name.
"Alice?" Edward's voice brought her out of her daydream. Alice blinked a few times and looked towards him. They were in the small but cosy dining room of the care home they both resided in. It was lunch time so the room was crowded by about twenty kids, all of whom were chattering noisily. It was times like these that Alice was glad that she could tune out the noise and disappear into her own little world.
"Um-hmm," she answered Edward who was looking at her in disbelief.
"You weren't listening to a thing I just said, were you?" he asked, already knowing the answer and shaking his head at her. But the corners of his mouth were pulled into a familiar smile.
"Well..." Alice considered guessing from reading Edward's face but when he turned the full power of his emerald eyes on her she smiled sheepishly, hoping he would forgive her, "Not really..."
Edward laughed. "I said, the new guy arrives today," he repeated for Alice's benefit, "What do you think he'll be like?"
Alice was thoughtful for a second. "His name's Emmett, isn't it? It's kind of a shy person's name."
"True," Edward agreed, "What else? If anyone can predict what he'll be like, it'll be you, after all." Alice grinned happily and her eyes lit up at the prospect of delivering another accurate prediction. She took pride in her amazing track record and found it fun to creep everyone out with her 'paranormal powers'. Everyone, that is, except Edward. Since the day that Edward had arrived at the care home he and Alice had formed a special connection. Edward was the only one who had ever fully appreciated the way it felt to be alone or to be different. The way it felt to be a freak.
"Well, I see a tall, dark and handsome stranger in your future," Alice said in her most professional and mystical voice. Edward laughed and told her to be serious. "Oh, I am quite serious Mr Mason, don't doubt the powers of the occult." Alice shot him a very serious look and his eyes widened in slight concern as he held up his hands apologetically. "The stranger has had much suffering but he has no voice. He walks alone; he requests no company and no one volunteers it."
By now Edward was enthralled and Alice's act moved into its next stage. Her voice deepened and became more urgent. She started to sway almost invisibly and her eyes lightened to an icy blue that almost looked white. When she spoke, the wisdom of the spirits seemed to fill her and possess her to speak, "His aura is darkened and tinted red- he has pain and he brings it with him. He inflicts it on those around him to lessen his own heartbreak. Only one can save him from his vicious circle. Otherwise his suffering will be eternal..."
Alice trailed off and, even though they were still surrounded by people, the air was silent for a moment. Then the atmosphere rippled and burst into life again. Edward stared at her in awe, the slightest tint of fear present in his eyes.
"Alice, that was unbelievable," He laughed nervously, "You never fail to amaze me with your 'powers'" Alice laughed along with him a little shakily, knowing that Edward was a follower of reason and a sceptic of the supernatural. He pretended that he didn't believe what Alice could do, but deep down she knew that he believed her act. And if she was honest she wasn't sure if she believed it too.
"Well, on a brighter note, let's see what you have in store," Alice smiled at him, turning over a cereal bowl and using it as a crystal ball, "I see...a beautiful woman," Alice winked at him, "She will try and tempt you from your true path. But do not fear! I also see happiness in your future. You will have to wait for it, but when it arrives, it will be glorious!"
Edward laughed visibly calmer, and smirked at her, "Sure Alice, if all that happens I'll eat my hat."
Without missing a beat Alice replied, "You don't own a hat, Edward dear, but if you ate that neckerchief you're so fond of, I for one wouldn't be complaining."
About two o'clock, a car pulled up outside and a knock was heard at the door. Alice and Edward left their game of chess, which Alice was quite happy about as she was about to lose, and went downstairs to greet the new arrival. The hall was crowded with people desperate to see their new house mate but, being small and agile, Alice guided Edward close to the front of the crowd.
What she could see there was quite uneventful, nothing but the care workers at this home speaking to the care workers from the other one. Eventually, Sally (Alice's favourite carer) stepped forward and said with a bright smile, "Alright everyone, this is Emmett. I want you all to be nice to him and make him feel welcome." And with that she gestured towards a gargantuan man who Alice had assumed was another care worker. Although on second thoughts, that was probably a silly assumption to make.
Emmett was almost twice the height of Alice and suspiciously muscular. He was dressed entirely in black, from his studded Doc Martins all the way up to his Metallica t-shirt and sweeping leather jacket. Combined with his pale white skin and his blade-straight black hair, he looked like he'd just stepped off the set of a movie about vampire slayers. His face would have been handsome if he hadn't been glaring coldly at anyone who dared to make eye contact and wasn't mutilated with as many piercings as would possibly fit onto his face. Alice counted: Two rings above one eyebrow...one stud through the left side of his nose... his lip, five piercings on one ear and two on the other. And she guessed that his tongue was probably pierced too. She shuddered, that meant twelve piercings. She would never understand who people could do that to themselves –it wasn't even fashionable!
"Would you like to say something about yourself, Emmett? We're very share-y people here at The Husky Dog!" He gave her a death glare and her smile faltered, "Oh, yes, well, no worries! We've got a shy one here. I'll show you to your room, dear."
While Sally attempted to push her way through the crowd of children Emmett returned to scaring people into staying away from him. His eyes fell on Alice and narrowed threateningly. Her throat felt dry but she didn't back down, she met his eyes and smiled warmly at him. His eyebrows raised slightly in surprise before he looked away and followed Sally easily parting the horde of kids like the red sea.