An irritating bell rang across the giant building, heard by anyone inside. A ten-year-old Danielle covered her ears by wrapping the pillow around her head. Since she was moved into this prison-like facility, her sunrises have become identical.
Rasping, she opened her eyes, attempting to adapt to the sunlight before the white, artificial lights were switched on. But when her eyelids separated, the luminosity burnt her pupils. The other girls in the room whined with her. They forced themselves out of bed, racing for a spot in the grand mirror, hurrying their beauty routine before the reincarnation of the Devil came.
"Ladies, get dressed and meet in the great hall to have breakfast in fifteen minutes. Good morning to all of you." The French woman bellowed from the end of the hall, voice loud enough for all girls to heed. Instantly, everyone in the room hurried away from the mirror and back to their personal areas, putting on their uniform.
It had been over a year since the girl had to dress in those ridiculous clothes: a white polo with a crimson tie, a midnight blue cardigan, and a red, plaid skirt. It was a remarkably boring look, which drove Dan to discover means that made it special each day, it could be altering the hue of her tights or perhaps going barefoot if she was feeling bold.
"Danielle, what's taking you so long?"
The girl took a glance around, no one but her was left. She shut her eyes and sighed, recognizing the tone. For months she had been finding setbacks with tying her ribbon and none of her mentors took the chore of teaching her, taking satisfaction in ridiculing the blonde to sustain their fragile ego.
"It's surprising that you still struggle with this at your age!" The middle-aged woman aggressively withdrew the girl's hands from the ruddy material, fastening the tie around her neckband, perhaps a little too tight. Dan opened her eyes, glaring at the woman as she bolted to the corridors, escaping a scolding.
Dan entered the Great Hall, head beginning to throb at the sudden chatter. The room was packed, girls on the right, boys on the left. She found her friends sitting in the invisible barrier that separated them, as they would normally do. The group had quite a reputation in there, being one of the motives boys would get castigated for trying to make a move on them. At the age of ten.
Sitting down between a ginger and another blonde teen, she went for her corresponding portions, chomping it all down in a matter of seconds. Then she helped herself with some tea, unhurriedly sipping as her ears caught what her friends were whispering. They were jabbering about this absurd drama between some French celebrities. Unimportant to her.
"Good morning children." A round of groans and dramatic eye-rolling followed the cheerful yelp. The kids turned their heads in direction of their director. "We have some great news. For starters, seven kids had been adopted―" cheers, murmurs, and many other sounds interrupted him. He allowed them a few seconds before demanding silence. "Second of all, today the sun is really strong and has dried the rain from yesterday, meaning you will be having physical education again."
This time, he allowed the kids to celebrate and make plans. All except for one, Dan. She knew that for the insurance of everyone else she had been barred to exercise with the rest.
When the time for the class came, Dan was instructed to find her English book ( a language she had chosen to learn with hopes of one day visiting other parts of the world ). Her mentor was a gorgeous British woman with dark hair and a warm smile that made her look forward to every lesson.
It was barely twenty past ten in the morning when she went back to her room to enjoy her free period. She paced around for a while, babbling to herself in English, taking the benefit of this isolated moment. But then narrating in the language became boring, and the girl had no other idea than to visit her favorite spot in the Institute.
Dan climbed to the roof of the grand home, using the window to break out. She paused, one foot still inside the prison, the picture was extraordinary. Large buildings, dirty roofs, people relishing their visit, and the Eiffel Tower, which wasn't too far from the building she was in.
A grin crawled onto her face as she counted five minutes until she had to go back inside. It would be about ten twenty-five, implying her roommates would be back and they could not realize she ran away when the chance presented. One final time she viewed the metal structure, admiring its simple art.
Five minutes.
Puffing out her faith, she stood up, ready to leave this beauty behind. Then, something terrifying happened. The ground began trembling, making the girl fall on her butt and begin sliding down the damp tiles. Holding back a scream, she attempted to hold onto anything, finding temporal security on the fringe of a roof. But the thin metal could only resist so much weight.
She did not realize it then, but the roof of this house was closer to the ground, unlike the one on the Institute. Her own sweat betrayed her, loosening the weak grip she had, fingers slipping off. She prepared for the worst. A broken leg or arm, losing a limb, dying. Then, in a nervous blink, she fell onto the ground, knees taking the fall. It'd barely hurt.
Adrenaline sent her straight up to her feet, filling her body with energy. She glanced around the street. She was lost. Following her basic instinct, she looked at the desperate crowd running in one direction, so she did the same. They lead her towards her favorite sight, the Eiffel Tower in all its glory. Had it not been for the quacking ground and anxious noises, Dan would have enjoyed being there.
The conclusion of being lost hit her like all these adults did. She knew the Institute was near, but how close? The building could not be seen from there ( as the structure could from that special spot ). The constructions looked identical, it would be difficult to figure her way back. She hated herself for having that small desire to escape that place and never go back because she now missed that security. Who would protect her out there?
She pushed through the crowd, wishing to escape the suffocating mass. Then, when she reached an opening, it was only her, the sound drowned out as she focused ahead. Six children sporting a way cooler outfit stood before the Tower, identities hidden by a raven mask. A smirk materialized on their faces before they proceeded to levitate.
Dan's jaw dropped, they were just like her. She had finally found some kids like her, she wasn't alone anymore. They would certainly accept her, make her feel comfortable in a place for once. Her mind wandered with numerous possibilities of their encounter
"Little girl you can't be here," a police officer carefully dabbed her shoulder, scaring the shit out of her. "You have to stay behind the line," he pointed to the infamous yellow tape. Attending to his orders, she took a step back and looked up at the structure, fascinated by these children.
A terrified gasp left her mouth when she saw a fraction of the tower, declining toward them. She began finding a quick solution. Sprinting away would end up with the policeman dead; making an effort to drag him would get them both annihilated. There was only one strategy.
Holding her breath, Dan shut her eyes and extended her hands. The metal shattered into small pieces, falling like rain over their heads. Confused expressions were directed at her after witnessing her exceptional efforts. Fingers were pointed as though she was an aberration. Why wouldn't they treat her like those kids up there? She had just protected someone.
The judgment overwhelmed her. She saw no other choice but to run away from there.
Maybe the best thing she was allowing the recognized superheroes to handle what was occurring.
She agreed on knocking on doors, ask for any aid at all. That's when the adorable tourists from Britain unlocked one of the entrances, receiving her with open arms among the catastrophe. They were a charming family, two children, a great amount of capital, and everything she could want.
Her destiny would be stable with them, they were going to amend her life.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
"Danielle Fleur Thompson, would you marry me?" Dan covered her mouth with her hand, nodding at the man on his knee. He smiled widely and got to his feet before shoving her away playfully. She snickered and nudged him too, snatching the onion ring he had borrowed to propose and devouring it. "Oi! Come on! I hate when you eat the last portion of everything."
Glowing stupidly, she grabbed her notepad from the furniture and sauntered to a vacant table, scrubbing it to perfection, not cigarette or beverage stains. "Well, maybe, Roger, if you got your own food instead of walking into my lunch break to eat mine, I would leave you the last anything," she took the order from a twosome before grabbing the portable basket from the table her adoptive brother was sitting on, "but since this is my lunch, I eat as much as I want. So shut your face and go to work."
"Work? Look outside," he stood up and walked to the vast window the pub had, motioning to the picturesque sky, "a sunny, nice day in the city of London! Who would want to work with weather like this?"
As he spoke, Dan had prepared the only customers their drinks and served them before joining Roger in gazing out of the window, "not everyone has rich parents or a successful business, Rog. Some don't even have someone to spend a day like this with. You are a lucky man, go and celebrate it, but don't think that it's this easy for everyone―" she closed her eyes at a suspicious sound. Metal. A safety being turned off. Guns. "Get away from the window!"
Her hand tugged the collar of his shirt, hauling him down. She quickly glanced over her shoulder to detect the two clients on the floor, their trembling hands linking. Numerous gashes began to forge on the crystal as they fired. Dan knew that the proprietor had some bizarre connections with even weirder people but never she had imagined for someone to ambush the lounge.
The shooting soon ceased but the menace had just started. Without reciting any words, she commanded them to take cover behind the counter, where she informed the couple about a backdoor, talking them into using it as a getaway. They thanked her with tears before scampering away.
Roger tugged her arm and leaned into her ear, "We should go too. Make sure we're safe, call the police, let them handle this." Dan shook her head, feeling that the police wouldn't capture them, they barely ever did. She thought hard on the choices before her, and one resolution always came back. Fighting back. He sighed and whispered: "you can't protect this place, let's leave I will pay the owner later―"
"It's not about that," she tooted, sealing her mouth when the door creaked open. Slow but confident steps resounded on the old flooring, she could tell there were about five different people, all walking in the same direction: them. She carefully squatted closer and uttered very low, "you've got to trust me, okay?" Dan pushed away to see him frown, she lifted her eyebrows and he gave a slow nod. "Please don't hate me."
Roger knitted his blonde blocks of hair closer and loosened his mouth to inquire but she had already launched her plan. She'd taken a bottle from the bar, crawling closer to the edge of their cover and tossing the glass object against a led light. The volume of the glass crashing caught the aggressors' vigilance and they turned that way. Sneering, she lunged on top of the counter, giving her brother an optimistic nod.
The five men noticed her and aimed in her direction, shooting mercilessly, but she was sharp and utilized her birth gift: powers. The bullets turned into golden dust, receding to the floor. They were stunned by this, yet kept their fingers on the trigger until nothing came out. With an intense swing of her hands, the firearms were knocked out of their clutch, and out the window.
She hopped down the counter and waited for the first one to charge, getting into an intense confrontation as one by one the others engaged. They were better than her, gaining power. One punch in her eye was all it took for Dan to lose composure, her abilities escaping her grasp.
It felt as though her surroundings were in slow motion. She unleashed a furious cry and all five attackers were pulled away by some foreign force. Her gaze observed each body as they reached their destination. Two were knocked over the furniture. One glid all the way to the busted window, chunks of glass burying into their skin. The rest landed near the counter, where a frightened Roger peeked to see what was going on.
Dan fell on her knees, weeping. It had been so long since she felt her powers dominate her, and the last time hadn't ended so well. Carefully, her brother left his securing counter and glared at her wide-eyed.
"H-how did you do that?" He exclaimed, performing the contrary of what she craved right now. Her head shot up and her eyes confronted him, imploring for understanding. "I get it now," tears proceeded to fall, they were thinking about the same person. Recollections of that night bombed her mind, she loathed herself more than anyone ever could, there was no sympathy for her actions. "Anna wasn't hit by a car, was she? You did it to her. You murdered her!"
Dan sobbed, finding it difficult to speak at the moment, but she had to explain, she didn't need Roger detesting her as his parents did. "Rog, I didn't kill her," her voice cracked, making him feel compassion for her, but it soon flushed away. "Anna knew about my powers and wanted to help me control them, use them for something good but I wasn't good with them and she was sent to a hospital, where she was safe until the whole city's electricity went out. I didn't kill her―"
"She wouldn't be in that hospital if it wasn't for you," he abstained looking at her, realizing that the decision his parents made of booting her out was right, she was dangerous. Taking about £200 and tossing them to her he spat: "I want you away from my family as soon as possible. Get your things out of my house before the weekend. I don't wanna see you anymore," after announcing that, he walked away, pretending those fifteen years together never occurred.
Dan grabbed the money, knowing she had no other resource. She shoved it into her apron before attempting to get on her feet and escape the bar, run away from everything she had worked so hard for, and lost in a matter of seconds. The first place she went was her apartment, Roger's apartment, now. She packed all her stuff and left as soon a possible.
By the end of the day, she found herself waiting for her plane, willing to start over, from another continent even. A voice called for all passengers in her flight, announcing the gates should be opening shortly. Taking a heartfelt drag of air, Dan raised from the seat and steered for the portal.
Here goes a new life.