House of the Unique

Chapter One

I wake up in the middle of the night to hear my phone buzzing it's alarm. I'm running away from home. I quickly shove all of my belongings into my backpack. I didn't have much anyway because I've lived in a poor family my whole life. Soon I'm looking around my room one last time, memories flooding my mind. It makes me yearn to stay but I know I must go. Daylight will approach soon and I don't want anyone stopping me. The reason I'm running away is because my mom found out I'm not like her, not like the rest of the family. I shake my head and leave, leaving the door open so they can find me gone easily. It's September 1st so it's starting to get cold. The morning air feels nice against my warm skin. My brother keeps messing with the thermostat and keeps it up high all night. So it's nice to feel cool. Soon the wind starts to whip up and leaves start circling around me. Not now I think. I am in the middle of walking down the street. I brush away a leaf on my shoulder and have my hood cover my head while pulling the drawstrings tight. I walk into the wood to find my quiet place. I've had it ever since I was 8 and I wanted to escape the screaming of my older brother and mother. They always fought about his drinking. "You shouldn't be drinking Charlie!" "That's how your father died!" "I don't care if that's how he died! I'm different than him. Your nagging is probably what killed him!" Soon, he realized what he said. He covered his mouth and took a step back. Mom's face was very red. She slapped him as hard as she could. He went to school the next day with the mark on his face. After dinner CPS arrived at our house. Mom convinced them he was being bullied at school and they left. I shook my head and walked straight into a tree. Ow! I blinked and put my hand to my head, I was bleeding. Damnit.. I need to start paying attention. I looked around me to see I was lost. Great I said in my mind. How smart I am. I heard a rustle in the trees and I freeze in place. My heart starts to beat faster and I can hear the pounding in my ears. Suddenly I heard a thump behind me. The hairs on the back of my neck stand up. "h- hello?" "Who's behind me?" I say in almost a whisper. My voice is clogged with fear. "turn around." A female voice comes from behind me. I slowly turn around, my arms up. Then, my eyes see the sword almost touching my neck. I take a big gulp and look up. I see the woman. She has dark brown hair that goes to her shoulders. Emerald green eyes and an intimidating glare. "state your name." She says in a stern voice. "L- Luna Montgomery ma'am." The wind around us seems to blow hard. The woman becomes alarmed and looks around. "Is that you?" She asks me. I look down and nod. She looks at me for a couple of moments, then lowers her sword. "I'm Nova. You can come with me." I become really confused as she starts dragging me by my arm. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you, at least, not anymore." She smiles to herself. Now I'm scared AND confused. "I'll tell you when we get to our destination."