Prologue

Prologue: The Insane Asylum

Water lapped against the sand. No matter how many times the depths of the ocean pulled it back, the waves insisted on cooling the sand for little feet that wanted to walk across. Seashells glistened as the foamy water ran over it. Seagulls flapped their ivory wings, some diving down to let their feet touch the chilly surface of the ocean, then propelling themselves back up into the clouds.

 

The wind picked up whisps of little Ashton Cooper's jet black hair and swung it around her. She pushed as much of her long hair as she could behind her ear so she could admire the shore. Something ran over the top of Ashton's foot, and she looked down in alarm. A dark blue crab scuttled across the tops of her feet, and a smile pulled the edges of her lips.

 

It was too cold to be at the beach, for it was late November, but Ashton was there anyway. She didn't want to miss the sunrise, so she snuck away from her house a block or so away to go see it. She was still in her bedclothes, a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. She should have been cold, but she wasn't. She was too focused on the beauty of the sun rising.

 

The lava colored sun reflected it's powerful light on the water that seemed to snake around. Ashton imagined that the fish underneath the surface cried out in joy once the light brushed against the tops of the water.

 

Ashton had been standing in one place so long, that the sand and fully encased her feet. She removed her feet from the little sand pockets and took a few steps back. She turned when she heard a voice calling out her name.

 

"Ashton!" The voice screamed. When she looked, she saw her housekeeper, Mishell. She had ashes smeared on her face. "Ashton you need to come home! There's been a horrible accident!" Ashton gulped as her eyes widened. Mishell's light brown hair fell in her face as she grabbed Ashton's hand and pulled her arm. "Come, come!"

 

They scurried up the side of the beach. Ashton didn't say anything, but her heart was thumping as loud as possible in the 9-year-old's chest. Mishell didn't say anything either, but guided the young girl to the road. Mishell loaded Ashton into her car and they sped down the road. Ashton was frightened because Mishell never drove that fast.

 

"What happened?" Ashton murmured softly. Her large, pale green eyes filled with tears as her house came into view. Her large, two-story house was aflame, like a giant torch lighting her way home. But her home was being torn apart. Tears streamed down Ashton's face when she didn't see her parents outside the house. "Mom? Dad?"

 

When Mishell didn't say anything in response, Ashton knew what happened. She was only 9, but she knew what death was. And she'd have to cope with it at too young of an age.

 

As soon as the car stopped, Ashton was out of it, and running up to the flaming house. She frantically looked around for the warm, welcoming faces of her parents. She gulped and whiped the tears away from her eyes.

 

"Mommy?!" she shrieked. "Daddy?! Where are you?"

 

Her eyes fell to the house. They were inside. She bolted from where she was standing. Her feet hit the porch, and they singed her feet, but she didn't care. She pushed on the door, and it broke open. The wood was weak from the fire.

 

"Hey!" one of the firefighters shouted. "Don't go in there!"

 

Ashton didn't listen. She ran into the midst of the flames. She had to find her parents. She had to tell them she loved them, and she had to save them. The smoke filled Ashton's lungs, and she coughed. She navigated carefully through the fire, licking the walls and the floors. She was still crying, and the smoke didn't help.

 

She made her way upstairs, where the fire had started. She had run into her parent's bed room first. She froze in her spot when she saw them, collapsed on the floor.

 

"Mom! Dad!" she exclaimed in horror. She ran to them, and grabbed their hands. "Are you okay?! Please wake up! Don't leave me!" She glanced around, not sure what she was looking for. "Guardian angels please save them," she pleaded.

 

Strong hands picked her up, and Ashton went limp. She stared into the empty eyes of her parents as tears blurred her vision. Instead of screaming or kicking, she let the firefighter pick her up and carry her away. She couldn't take her parents being dead, so she just let the sound of crackling flames push her to unconciousness.

Author's Note

Prologue. Just so you know, the rest of the story will be in Ashton's POV, but I wanted to do this part in third person's. I hope you like it, I'm really trying to work on better imagery and describing things better. Some of the descriptions might be weird, but I'm trying stuff out. KEEP IN MIND: this is a rough draft, so I will be going back and editing when I finish the book, (If I finish the book.) So, if you see any grammatical errors or spelling things or just suggestions on how I can word stuff better, please leave a comment. Oh, and please leave your opinions and ideas of what should happen next.

Also, there will be a lot of fun appearences of famous characters for you literature nerds :P I HOPE YOU LIKE IT GUYS, I LOVE ALL MY READERS. THANKS EVERYONE!

UntilNextTime
-Jenna

Reviews

[TheConjuringCat]

Ashton COOPER? I see whatcha did there! ;) You're such a Panhead... But that's why I love you! Anyway, great write and can't wait to read the rest! Keep writing! :D