Breaking every dawn

Chapter 1: Forest Cottage - Lily

Lily woke up to the rise of the Autumn Sun. The cold light filled her room with a leafy warmth. The small rocking chair, built by her dad, shone a deep ash wood brilliance, and gently started to rock to and through. The desk's carvings of foxes, sprites, faeries, and werewolves seemed to leap up in the air and dance above the girls' head. All the ancient books on the bookshelf seemed to shout their information and secrets to the overwhelmed girl. This was what happened every single morning since Lily's 10th birthday. A lovely awakening of soft lights followed by an interrogation from inanimate objects. Lily's room, when it wasn't misbehaving, was rather simple yet cosy, perfect for a bedroom in the middle of a forest. She sighed, she loved living here but, she could no longer deal with this nonsense any longer.

As she pulled on her scratchy school uniform, sighing at her uneven skirt and plain clothes, she traced her finger on the side of her carved desk. If only this school, much like her old one, had the sense to let children wear 'normal clothes' (plaid skirts, scratchy office shirts and thin jumpers with meaningless Latin words embroidered all over it doesn't count as normal clothes) she'd be able to feel like herself and not look like such a turnip. She sighed again as she fumbled for her ancient and cracked phone to text anyone up at this time. As usual no one had the sense to wake up at the golden hour. She shoved her phone into the leather backpack on the floor, sprayed her favourite perfume, swept her braids down from its bun, semi-ready for the day. Making her bed she gazed at the carvings etched on the sides. They were identical to the ones on her desk, but they had weird words on them. She got up, knowing she'd wasted time, and walked along the corridor to go downstairs.

Butter. Lily had never liked the taste of the solid however, it adds a soft aroma and the makes the pickiest of eaters ravenous with hunger, especially on a cold Autumn morning. Her Dad was humming one of his indie rock songs under his breath as he lathered butter and jam on his toast. Living with his only daughter for 16 years, the father knew to let her choose her own meals and not to meddle with such unimportant things. A quick hello was said to each other, which soon followed by a departure as they walked away to their different lives. Father going to catch the bus and daughter going to make her oats.

Ever since her mother died in a cold midwinter, her relationship with her father grew distant until they never really talked with each other. Lily pondered such thoughts as she crunched on her breakfast. She sighed. Maybe they just weren't meant to. She looked at the clock in the warm kitchen. She loved that clock more than she could even say. It didn't match the whole aesthetic of the kitchen, yet it was one of the only reminders that her mother had ever existed. The clock was a dark grey, with golden images of wolfs, deer and rabbits chasing each other. The same words on her bed were etched around the clock too "It's creating emphasis!" her English teacher would've said had she seen the two objects and their similarities.

The clock chimed seven times. Time to wait for the brush. After brushing her teeth, doing her hair, locating money for the cafeteria, and putting on her blazer, Lily was physically ready for going to second Hell (the first hell was the genuine place). She'd have to leave the crème walls of her cottage, the interesting carvings, and the buttery smell of the forest cottage to the horrid hallways, unnecessary bullying, and general stupidity of her school. Her friends, however, did make day to day life more bearable. A leaf shaped lanyard was grabbed, and the door was soon to be slammed as the one of the heroes of this story left to drown herself in her education.