7/25/15

Cursed

Chapter Two: The HIVE Academy

I run as fast as I can, putting as much space between me and the house as possible. Or what's left of the house, at least. I don't stop running until my feet hurt so much I can't stand. I collapse on the side of the road with tears running down my face. I don't even know where I am! How will I get home now?

Taking another look at my skin doesn't help. It's completely gray now. Mom and Dad wouldn't recognize me now, Felicity either. I unzip my backpack and check to see if I have a mirror with me. I find it, but I almost wish I didn't when I see my reflection. My hair and eyes are turning into a pale red that almost looks pink. As much as I love pink, why couldn't it be purple? Or better yet, why couldn't my hair stay black and my eyes stay brown? I used to think they were so boring, but now I wish they were still the same so my friends and family could recognize me.

I dump out the things in my backpack so I can see what I have to work with. My mirror, some My Little Ponies and LPS, my stuffed cheetah (Zippy) and unicorn (Clover), a probably expired granola bar, the sapphire pendant necklace Dad gave me for my birthday, my blanket, a copy of The Wizard of Oz, my money (only for emergencies), hair ties, my sketchbook, pencils, a brush, a couple DVDs, and other things like that. That's right, this was the backpack I was taking with me on our way to our new house- and I don't remember our new address. It was in Central City, I know that much. And Central City is what, 5 hours away from our old house? Just my luck. Maybe they're looking for me. But is there really any way to prove I'm me?

A gust of wind flies through my hair. I shiver and wrap the blanket around my shoulders like a cape. I organize my backpack and zip it up, leaving out the stuffed animals. Tying the blanket so it won't fly away, I put my backpack on over it and tuck Zippy and Clover under my arms. I probably look stupid but it's better than being cold. Why wasn't I wearing my coat when she kidnapped me?

I haven't explained the story yet, have I? When Felicity was born, our birth parents abandoned us. After that our foster parents, the Parks family, took us in because they couldn't have their own kids. They were about to adopt us, too, but then the agency changed the rules. Luckily, the only new rule that applied to us was that we needed a bigger house. So Mom and Dad bought a bigger house all the way in Central City, found jobs that were even better than the ones they had, and scheduled for us to be officially adopted soon after we moved in to our new house. Of course this is the part in all the movies where something goes wrong, so I can't believe we didn't see it coming.

It was the day of the move. All of our stuff was loaded up into the moving van, and we were almost ready to go. I asked Mom if I could go say goodbye to my best friends, Holly and Dawn, since the sisters only lived next door to us. On my way back, a woman came up to me and started asking questions. Mom came and told me to stay away from strangers, so I did. An hour later I completely forgot about the lady. Me and Felicity were in the backseat of the car, playing with our My Little Ponies and watching Finding Nemo, when Felicity announced that she had to go pee. The thing about 3 year olds is that they can't just "hold it in", no matter what you tell them. We pulled over at a gas station, and Mom and Dad made me get out even though I didn't have to. So I shoved my stuff back in my backpack and stomped into the store, when all of a sudden I felt really sleepy. When I turned around, I saw the woman from before (who I guess is that witch that was keeping me shut up in that house) and then I passed out. When I woke up, I was in the basement.

So now I don't even know where I'm going. All I can do is follow the road and hope I'm somewhere near Central City, even though I don't know what I'll do when I get there. After walking for a couple hours, my stomach starts growling. I start to wish I would've eaten that meatloaf. I didn't think this through very well, but it's not like I had time to plan my actions. I just had to do stuff and hope for the best.

The sun starts to set, and I feel like giving up. I can't do this anymore. If I walk for any longer, I'll pass out. My eyes start drooping shut, and I fight back a yawn. It's official. I'm going to die out here. And when they discover my dead body, they won't even know it's me. They'll just think I'm some freak who stole Linda's backpack. My family will never know what happened to me. There's got to be an end to these country roads somewhere, but it doesn't seem likely that I'll make it there.

And then I see it. In the distance, there's a building! An actual building! My heart beats faster as I realize I'm one step closer to getting home. Maybe they'll have a phone I can use to call Dad! I stop to shove the blanket and my stuffed animals into my backpack, zip it up again, and run as fast as I can. With only my backpack to hang onto, I can run a whole lot faster. The building gets closer and closer, and I soon realize it's a gas station. Good, maybe I finally get to use my emergency money! I could definitely use a snack.

A car zips past, but slows down once it sees me. It backs up on the road and comes to a stop. A woman rolls down the window and asks, "Are you lost?"

I nod my head. "Do you know the way to Central City?"

The woman laughs. "Central City is a long way from here. We're in Jump City, dear."

Jump City? Never heard of it.

"Where's that?" I ask.

"California."

I feel my eyes widen. "But... I was in Missouri or Kansas when the witch kidnapped me! How did I get here?"

"A witch you say?" the woman asks. "I suppose that would explain the hair."

I duck my head in embarrassment. "How do I get home?"

"Why? Your family will only laugh at you. I've seen this situation a million times. Parents don't understand. The kids at school will pick on you too. Or, of course, you could come with me..."

"How do you know my family won't love me anymore?" I frown.

The woman copies my frown. "I run a school for children like you. Most of them have been outcast from their families. Many were beaten, countless were almost murdered by their parents. Believe me, I wish your parents would still love you, but the chances are so slim. So why risk it? Come with me, and I'll teach you to shine."

The thought of Mom and Dad trying to kill me is ridiculous! Why would they do something like that! They love me! I start to feel angry at this woman for suggesting such a thing, when my hands start glowing pink again. I scream as a wave of pink hits the side of her car. Maybe they wouldn't try to kill me, but what if I accidentally killed one of them? Tears fall down my cheeks as I make up my mind.

"Can you teach me to control this?" I sob. The woman nods her head. "Okay, then I'll do it."

The woman smiles, opening the car door. I climb in and buckle my seatbelt, setting my backpack on my lap. "What's your name, child?"

I think for a moment. I don't want to tell her my real name, because you're not supposed to tell that to strange adults- even if they are helping you. What about my middle name? I've always liked that better than Linda.

"Call me Mallory," I say, wiping away my tears.

"Welcome to the HIVE Academy, Mallory. You've made the right decision. You'll see."

Why does that statement feel so wrong, yet so right? As if this wasn't a good decision, but it's the place where my destiny needs me to be? Instead of voicing my doubts I smile and nod like the good little girl I am, all while wondering what kind of mess I've gotten myself into this time.

…

Hey guys! Spectrobes Princess here! I was going to try to get this written by Friday, but I guess updating a day later than planned is better than not updating at all. You know, I'll just go ahead and warn you guys. If I ever specify what day I'll update on, expect the update at least a day later. Readers of my Hunger Games fanfics know this well. In fact, I haven't updated one of them in 2 weeks. 2 months for the other one. Oops. But don't worry. Since this is kind of my main project at the moment, I probably won't fall behind THAT much.

It's really nice writing a fic for my first fandom again. I deleted all my other Teen Titans fanfics because quite frankly they sucked as much as My Immortal did. You might remember Titan Pets Waffles, The End Again, I Did Not Drop Off The Face Of The Earth, The Last Unicorn Teen Titans Edition, The Remaining Enemy, or either version of Metamorphosis. If you do, you can clearly see how much I've improved, even if my writing is still a mess.

Thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited, or reviewed. I usually do a "review response" thing, but I'm feeling lazy today. I'll do that next time, so if you've got any questions now would be a good time to ask them.

Now that you've made it through this terribly long authors note, I'll continue my little tradition of putting a quote at the end.

"Crying helps me slow down and obsess over the weight of life's problems." –Inside Out, Sadness

Yeah, I saw that movie last night. Me and my sister had the theater to ourselves because no one in their right mind would take their kid to see a movie that ended at 11:00 pm. It was awesome.

Titans Go!

Spectrobes Princess