"How is it?" I asked Mary, as our car bumped up and down the road. We were on our way to Forks to live with our cousins, Joseph and Lizzy. Our Aunt Libba and our Uncle Peter moved out of Forks years ago, but Joseph and Lizzy had a sort of attachment to it.

Me and my younger sister Mary were also orphans, in a way. Only our parents didn't just move out. They died a few weeks ago, both of them from a disease that I still didn't know how to pronounce.

So I, Charlotte Blyth at fifteen years old lost both of my parents. It was worse for Mary though, since she was only nine. We've both tried not to cry, and I was successful. The same could not be said for Mary. She wasn't as cheerful as she used to be and I could always hear her crying at night. I sometimes felt like crying, but I knew I had to be strong. If she saw that my eyes were red, she'd know that I was upset too. My staying calm was the only thing that kept us from losing it. That was what being an older sister meant.

Living with Joseph and Lizzy wouldn't be bad. They were really nice, both of them and very understanding. They said I could have the parlor room in their house as my bedroom since I wasn't good with stairs. Luckily they had a bathtub on their ground floor, so I could use that too.

"It looks so...green..." Mary said. "And wet. I heard that it rains all the time here..."

I could hear the rain too. It was distant, but there was a pouring sound.

Finally the car came to a stop and the driver helped us out. Mr. Stewart, our driver and also our caretaker had been instructed to bring us here. Joseph and Lizzy called to us from the doorway.

"Well well well!" Lizzy cried, running forward, and crashing into me. She almost knocked me over but then caught me in time. She sounded quite happy, but I knew that it was just an act. She wasn't happy about our parents' death either.

Lizzy guided us to the doorway. Joseph greeted all three of us with a kiss on the cheek. Well, maybe not Lizzy. Although they lived together in a brother-sister fashion, they were actually also dating. See, both of them were adopted, so neither of them were technically related to me. I wouldn't mind their relationship though since they were both mature adults and if they ever decided to get married, I had a feeling that their relationship would last a while because they knew each other so well.

"How's the house?" I asked Mary.

"I like it," Mary replied. "It's really pretty. I just don't like the weather here..." she added.

"It's always like that here," Joseph said. "Better get used to it, Munchy."

Munchy was Mary's official family nickname. I was the only one that didn't call her that. I didn't have a single nickname though.

"What do you think, Charlotte?"

"It's alright, I guess," I shrugged.

"Oh, right! I forgot!" Joseph said, and then he opened the door. "Well, welcome to your new home!"

I stepped inside into the warmer atmosphere. It had been rather chilly outside, but that was probably due to the lack of sunshine. That, and the fact that it was April and spring was kind of late here.

Lizzy led me to the parlor and then sat me down on my new bed. "I hope it's comfy," she said. "It used to be mom and dad's old bed..."

"It's fine," I said, recognizing the smell of Aunt Libba's perfume on the mattress.

"We had special bars put on the window, just in case there are any burglars or anything so you'll be safe," Lizzy said. "And there's an alarm button right under your nightstand to your left. Just press it and it'll wake us all up and call the police."

I nodded. They had really taken precautions around this place.

"How many people live here?" I asked.

"Around 2000-3000 I think," Lizzy said. "Used to be more, but many people've moved once they graduated high school."

"Which school will I be going to?"

Lizzy sighed. "The only one there is. Forks High School."

"But-" I started, but then she placed a finger to my lips.

"Listen Charlotte, I'm sorry about that. There is a school in Port Angeles but it's too far away to drive you there and since you're still fifteen and there are no other relatives nearby, we're afraid that you'll have to stay here with us."

I sighed and nodded, knowing that I would have to accept it.

"But they have books though."

"The school bought me copies?"

"We told them you were coming and so they did. In every subject. And they've also agreed to overlook your gym credit."

"Did you sign me up for art though?" I asked.

"Oh, you wanted to go? I'm so sorry, we only signed you up for the basic courses," Lizzy said.

"No, it's...alright..." I said, knowing that it wasn't. Art was...a good subject for me. It was the only one where I felt somewhat special.

Lizzy left me alone after that, and I got settled in. I made sure to remember where I put everything, including the shampoo bottles and so forth.

Then I went to sleep and prayed that everything would be alright. School, my new life, everything.

Ok, that was the first chapter, and I know that not a lot happened but I promise that it'll get better in the next few chapters when I finally get around to introducing more people. In the next chapter, our protagonist Charlotte will be going to school.

Please tell me what you think. :3