AMARA - THE FIGHT BETWEEN ETERNAL LOVE AND HATRED

Prologue- "The Arrival"

My dark eyes scan the trees as they zoom by, disappearing behind me. The car glides gently on the road of the highway towards my impending doom known as Ellistown, Pennsylvania. It's a small area, and only a few hundred people occupy its land, unlike the bustle of Chicago I was accustomed to. It hardly makes any sense to me why anyone would decide to move somewhere so small and unknown; however, it makes perfect sense to my dad. My father, also known as Andrew Frasher, is a self-proclaimed "Master Monster Hunter," although he never even saw a glimpse of a "monster" with his own eyes. He dedicates everything to researching all kinds of mythical creatures, which, if you ask me, is just deplorable. Sacrificing everything over stupid legends is reckless, especially when you have a daughter. Regardless, this never stopped him, which is why we're moving to Ellistown. It's said that this city has a rich history of supernatural creatures roaming its land, and their vicious rivalry dates back centuries. One is described as half human, half beast, and the other as "the cold ones," or more commonly known as werewolves and vampires. He's done extensive research on the history of Ellistown and finally accumulated enough means to move here. However, I wish he would've waited one more year until I turned 18. That way, I wouldn't have to be dragged here, either.

The long journey is finally approaching its end as we enter the quaint town. The car roams the neighborhood before stopping in front of a long stripe of homes. I stare out the window at a rather small home I must now become familiar with. It has a faded dark gray exterior, bordered by a small white picket fence. It blends in perfectly with the neighboring houses. They, too, are small, painted with pale, faded colors, and encircled by short, rickety old fences. There are large evergreen trees that rustle gently in the wind and extend for miles, creating woods. They make up the homes' backyards. I open the door to our 2012 Honda Civic and deeply breathe the air of our new environment. It's crisp, cold, and soothing. I never minded the cold. The sky is covered in gray clouds as if it were to burst into rain at any second. Fitting. It only adds to my dampened emotions. I sigh before helping my dad unload our belongings from the car.

"Amara, I promise you it won't be so bad here. I think you'll like it here." He inquires, acknowledging my obvious disapproval of the new move. I don't respond directly; I instead sigh again and begin carrying my luggage to the doorstep. It's not the town I am mad at; it's him. My father. He puts these myths and creatures before everything, no matter how much harm it does to the people around him. I know now that we are living in a town surrounded by these legends, his behavior will only get worse, and that is something I'm not willing to deal with.

When we finally enter the home, the interior looks even smaller than the outside. Its walls are colored with chocolate truffle brown. The room is layered in dust and cobwebs like it's been unoccupied for a while. When you first walk in, you're greeted by an old stone fireplace with a TV mounted on the wall above it. A small space was left with just enough room to fit a little couch. The rest of the room made up our kitchen. There are a few countertops, a stove, a sink, and a door leading to the backyard. Across from the entranceway was another door cramped next to a staircase. Behind that door leads to my room, and the stairs lead to an attic-like area where my dad will stay. My room is relatively large, well at least larger than my old one. I can finally fit my desk, bed, bookshelf, and easel (that I have yet to use) comfortably in the space without feeling cramped. So that's a plus. The color of my room, reddish plum purple, didn't bother me either, so there was no need to repaint. At least there is something I can enjoy about this move. Though a hole nearly the size of my head sits on one of my walls, other than that, my room has potential.

My father and I spent all day cleaning, decorating, and installing our furniture, only taking a small break to eat some Pizza. I found several other holes and cracks in the house's walls, something I do not know how to fix, and I know my father won't do it either. They bother me, though, so I will eventually have to learn how to repair them. As for my room, I hung up some lights and posters and placed my fake plants on various surfaces. I love nature and plants but am hardly responsible enough to remember to water them, so fake plants are the best I can get. Now, I'm hanging up a mirror to try and cover the hole in my wall, but it's not wide enough to hide it. I sigh, taking a long look at myself. My dark brown eyes stare back at me. I take in the long black hair that framed my face and the chunky gray highlights that run through it, still unsure if I like the color. I then look at my face and the shiny silver piercing that occupied my left nostril. I smile fondly, remembering the night my friends and I impulsively decided to give each other piercings at a sleepover once. I was grounded for a week because of that. 

I throw my hair in a ponytail and change into something light for bed. I have to go to bed early because I start school tomorrow at Ellistown High, and "nervous" isn't even close to describing how I'm feeling. The anxiety is crushing. Enough to keep me up all night. It's a new environment with new teachers, students, and ways things work. It all is terrifying. Everyone is acclimated to how the school is run, and I'd be the odd one out. My brain keeps reminding me of this every 5 minutes; I can't sleep. I push my covers to the side and stumble to our new kitchen, hoping we have something in a cabinet somewhere to help knock me out. I rummage through all the different drawers and cupboards, hoping we brought some over-the-counter medication from back home. Finally, I found some Zzzquil buried somewhere. I took a shot of it and headed back to my room. I stare up through the darkness at my ceiling, my mind racing with all the different scenarios of tomorrow until I feel my eyelids grow heavy and let them close into a slumber.

Hello! This was only a snippet of what the book will be like, as this novel is still a work in progress! I wanted to put something out there to see how the response will be, so please let me know if I should continue with the project!