It's time to begin

Chapter 1

Loudly Hidden

When Luna Loud opened her eyes, her nightmares were coming true. Sweat immediately clung to her skin like an old friend, bashing her spirit hard as her body felt encased inside a coccoon of which no escape could be made. She winced and struggled, but it was all for naught. She was frozen stiff, an open target for the evils of the world to at last claim her soul. A fly caught in the spider-web; she screwed up, and now her life was over.

She grimaced once her vision became clear. There was no house, nor her lovely bed against her back. No Mick Swagger staring down, nor the adorable snores of Luan to keep her alert. It all blew away into an endless downpour, drowning her body out against its unforgiving snare, all while the darkness of the night took over quick. She was far from home, high above the world against a mountain's summit, with the pale moon above watching like a terrible ghoul, grinning mischievously at her struggles.

All Luna could do was scream. Her voice became hoarse as the wind blew heavier and heavier, before at last all energy had escaped her system. She looked down at her body, but saw nothing holding her down. Just her own body forcibly locked down, floating against the white grass kissing against her booted feet. Her eyes grew wide staring down; she knew that grass. She knew that moon; she knew this mountain.

She was back to this horrible place. Her screams became begs. "W-Why? Why am I here?" She questioned amidst tears she knew slid down her face.

Behind her, she heard the sound of heavy boots marching forward, a confident strut that chilled her blood to the core. Alongside their movements, the sound of a deep-throated chuckle filled the night air, perfect for stabbing the young rocker deep.

The voice was sultry, and when it appeared right over her left ear, Luna nearly leapt out of her body completely. "Luna... dear Luna Loud... Oh, you poor thing..."

She hated that voice. Even to this day, it haunted her to no end. She grit her teeth, doing her best to hide away her fears. "Abraham..."

When was the last time she uttered that name? Every day of her life, honestly. It never left. Those three syllables, forever tarnishing the tongue she used to sing with. The crazed man she once adored as a lead singer of a band, before quickly revealing just how sick and twisted he was. He brought her to this mountain and nearly took her life, along with stealing the brother she loved so much.

Abraham Loudson. Even in death, he stalked her, chasing her down until she had nowhere else to run. Sadly, this was the moment she knew was coming. Cold fingers brushed themselves against her face, and though he was hidden behind her vision, Luna could already see that scowl contorting into a sinister smile, eating her fears up and devouring her dread.

"Luna... my little killer..."

She just wanted it to end. "You're dead. I... I didn't want to kill you..."

"And yet you did. Murderer. Murderer."

"You left me no choice! You... you hurt my bro! You monster!"

"Hm, but aren't you doing the same thing?" He laughed like a twisted witch, "Hurting your bro. Always hurting him. Always so bad with him. Poor kid, trapped with a psycho like you..."

"S-Shut up! I... I'm not..."

His fingers grazed just underneath her eyes. "If only you died that day. He would've been so much happier..."

Luna's tears burnt away. "I... I know..."

Abraham's laugh caused the moon to turn red. "He know gets to live with a girl that killed so many. That lives the rest of her life knowing she did all that. Such a shame, you little girl. All you had to do was obey. I would've loved him no matter what. Always would've..."

"Heheh... out of things to say?"

She was. Luna closed her eyes, feeling his fingernails dig deep into her cheeks. She saved her brother from a grizzly fate... but was the fate she gave him now any better? Alone with a sister that held so much burden against her shoulders? Was that good for the rest of the family? Good for the world?

What good was she?

Abraham's smile reflected off the wind. "No good at all!"

The slicing against her cheeks brought Luna shooting up from the bed, panting and gripping her chest. She quickly felt her face, but no marks could be found. She was fine and safe, though her sanity left a lot to be desired. She sat up for what felt like an eternity, waiting for her breaths to finally cancel out, eyes closed to it all.

"Just a nightmare... just a nightmare...," she muttered to herself.

Of course it was. The mountain was gone, and so was Abraham. That night was a thing of the past, and she had to move on. She survived, and that was that. She was back to being good ol' Luna Loud, like she always was. Lover of music, lover of the arts, with a penchant for being good at school and having the best girlfriend around. She was normal; she was pure.

But that was too easy, wasn't it? It never worked out like that. The endless nights of experiencing that place was more than enough to prove that. She was losing it, and it was a battle she had no hope in recovering from. She winced staring down at her body; at times, it felt so foreign to her. The scars still made themselves known, be it scratches she endured or the horrific line that showed just where her hand was separated from. It was all so damn disgusting.

Disgusting, but not enough to dissuade her. She quickly brought a slap to her face, hoping to calm herself down. "Stop thinking like that!" She accidentally shouted. It was still night out, and the last thing she needed was waking up Luan.

Wait... was that possible? Once her mind cleared a little, she quickly saw where she was, and it definitely wasn't her room. Of course it wasn't; she barely slept there these days. Rather, she was in a small room that barely qualified as a closet, with a small window above showing the brief snowstorm that was happening. A zord sat on a shelf close by, with a row of orange shirts making themselves known in the dim lighting.

She knew this place well, and when the voice beside her spoke, there was no doubt where she was. "Luna? You okay?"

The voice of Lincoln Loud, her beloved brother. The one she went to hell-and-back to save, and though she regretted parts of herself, she held no regret in saving him. She quickly darted her eyes to him, seeing the white hair matching perfectly with the snowflakes outside. He was worried stiff, but she could tell just by staring into his eyes that he held a similar dream. A nightmare that plagued them both since returning from the hospital.

That was the only thing keeping her sane, wasn't it? Staring at him. For some reason, even a brief look brought her soul some ease. She gave a weak smile, one that even she knew failed immensely. "I'm... good. Just another nightmare, I guess."

He nodded, before looking down at his orange blanket. "... Same. Another one, and another one. You... want to talk about it?"

Talk about it, and relive the night some more? She knew she had to one day, but she was scared stiff to ever try. Lincoln wasn't any better, both keeping their minds to themselves. It was clear, though, that they suffered through the same hell. The only thing they could have was each other.

In the end, though, Luna did exactly the same thing she did every time this happened. She hugged Lincoln, who immediately responded with a hug of his own. "I... just want to try again. Just... you know..."

Lincoln nodded. Even if she didn't make any sense, he never bothered questioning. "I know. If you need to hold me, I... I think I need a hug too..."

So damn defeated. His smile seemed less and less these days. Luna shook her head; the sight of Abraham in her head made her wince. "Of course, little brah. Of course."

The two rested back on their pillow, holding each other tight as the snow fell harder and harder. The night was only just beginning, a phrase Luna hated with a burning passion.

That, and a murderer.

A murderer like her.

FROM: An old Folktale from Scotland

"A long time ago, there lived three young children. One was noble, clouded by anger. One was free, clouded by pride. And the last? They were kind, clouded by ambition. The three children had no known parent to call their own, but they lived like a family in the wood. They were just like you and me, but one major difference separated them from the populace: they had white hair, pure as snow, beautiful like a princess.

"And in that hair, it's been said, holds a power that only can be guessed by commoners like us."