In the Depths of Porcelain (A Depths book) (book 1)

Chapter 2: Nova

I'm just Nova, the girl with super-sensitivity.  It's not that uncommon.  Mine's just super strong.  My ears are sort of like a cats.  They can move so that I hear certain things better.  

     My sister, Ruby, got a cool power. She can make crystals appear out of thin air.  She's so lucky that it didn't affect her appearance.  If it had, it would have destroyed her.  But since it hadn't, it made her a prize.  People had tried to capture her when she was younger.  Of course she had thrown a bunch of blade-like crystals at them and they had died, but they had still tried to capture her for her crystals.  No one ever tried to capture me for my super-sensitivity, but I don't know if I would consider that a bad thing.    So I guess I was having a super good life.  

      Until I went to the shop to find that there was a man kneeling over investigating something.  The porcelain girl, Luna, was staring at the man with fright and fear.  Her red lips were forming words, but no sound came out.  Well, nearly no sound.  I could hear what she said, so that was a bonus.  

     She had said "I was only gone for a moment, and now we don't know where he is," and it was quiet, even to me, but of course, she was just thinking.  She finally noticed me and looked me in the eyes.     

      Her painted blue eyes were a weird thing to look at, but she noticed my cat-like ears, slightly covered in fur.  I tucked my blonde hair behind one of my ears.  

     "Super-sensitivity," I said.  It was loud to talk for some reason.  Might be because of my super-sensitivity, so I was often quiet.  But now seemed important, so when my voice echoed in my ears, painfully loud, I didn't regret it.  

     The man looked up and revealed the fact that he had dog-like ears sticking our of his head and a dog-like nose.  He even had a snout.  And whiskers.  

     Him in his detective outfit was a weird sight.  His nose twitched.  "Detective Gray Hound," he said.  He stuck out his hand, which was more of a paw, and I shook it.  

     "Miss...?" he said and looked at Luna curiously.  

     "Luna Porcelain, Mr. Gray Hound," she replied and also shook his hand.  I noticed how sharp the heels of her red shoes were.  A slight blood stain was on the blade.  The way her painted-red lips moved was strange because she was made of porcelain. 

     "Miss Porcelain, I would like to inform you that your guardian has been kidnapped and we are searching for the captor," said Detective Gray Hound.  A tear dripped down her face, seeming soft and inconvenient.  She wiped it away and looked at the detective with deep seriousness.  

     "And will I have to pay for the investigation?" she asked.  She looked down sadly and slightly hopefully.  

     "No, Miss Porcelain.  It will be paid by the state.  It is for you and also because of the fact that the shop will have to be closed temporarily," he said and looked at her with his dog eyes.  His furry face wrinkled slightly, like he had smelled something bad.  

     "And why are you here, Nova?" Luna said and turned around to look me in the eyes.  

     "I just came to purchase the usual crap that we have to buy for my sister," I replied coolly.

     "So you're here to help your sister with her crystal-sleep problem?" she asked.  She would no doubt continue this.  

     "Yes, that is accurate," Lucky for me, I can take an interrogation extremely well.  She could tell that I was telling the truth.  She clearly didn't want to test my patience.  For I had similar hands as the detective, but like a cat's with extremely sharp claws.    

     She looked at the detective, her porcelain skin by her cheeks were turning a pink in perfect circle.  It was indeed a strange sight, but I had known her since we were little.  I guess you get used to it.  

     "So you're looking for the shop keeper?"