The 25th

Prologue
THE WAR: IS IT OVER?
Brenna couldn't quite understand those words yet, for she was only five. What exactly did it mean? Would things go back to normal? Or would Brenna be stuck in this filthy, cold doctor's office? She was sitting in the doctor's waiting room, glancing at the news article her mom was reading on a cracked phone, one of the only useful things that Brenna's family had left.
"Julie and Brenna!" The receptionist called from across the room.
It was time. Brenna's mom had told her there was a special vaccine she had to take. "What for?" Brenna had asked.
Her mom shrugged, and to Brenna, that meant, "Mind your business."
Brenna began panicking, for she was deathly afraid of needles. As the doctor placed a cold, wet cotton ball on her arm, she began to think of what life could be like afterwards. Would her father and brother return? Would she get her house back? She stared at her mom, who had mascara smudges below her eyes and hair in severe knots. Brenna's hair was just as knotted, but Brenna only being five, she didn't care one bit.
Brenna grabbed onto her jeans and saw the needle approaching her arm. She squeezed her eyes shut and felt the needle pierce into her skin. Little did she know that life would never be the same.

Chapter 1
I stared at myself in the mirror with that dark red dress. I loved the dress but not the reason behind it. I was sixteen now, so I had to wear it to the North Holiday Opening, where I would have to pray to a Santa Claus statue that was located in the middle of North. I faked it every year since I was about eight, usually by quietly standing up when everyone was crouched down with their eyes closed and mumbling nonsense.
I always asked my mom what exactly the prayer meant. She'd always reply with, "Darling, it's in the language you speak! Surely it's easy for you to figure out! Just crouch down, lose your eyes, and wait for it to come to you!"
But when I tried doing that at around seven years old, nothing came to me. It was just me and my thoughts. That's when I knew that everyone in this town was... Different from me, except for my boyfriend Max.
"Are you ready?!" My mom called from downstairs.
I dashed downstairs with my high heels and phone. My older brother, Mark, ran behind me.
"Dad started the car already," my mom said.
I ran out the garage door.
"I call shotgun!" Mark exclaimed.
I sighed and crawled to the backseat. I stared out the window and watched all the trees pass by, and right after the Holiday Opening, the Christmas monitors would dress them up with glowing lights and bright ornaments. I felt my phone buzz and saw that I got a text from Max, saying that he wanted to meet at his place. I accepted and told him that he could come to my place for dinner, which he accepted.
Once my dad found a parking spot, I leaped out of the car and saw Max coming out of his. He was wearing a hideous green suit with color coordinated pants. He also had on a bright red tie. I laughed hysterically. "I feel so bad for you," I said, still laughing.
Max started laughing, too. "Why did we want to be grown up when we were kids?"
I shrugged. "We were just stupid, I guess." We gave each other a hug when all of a sudden, the church bell started chiming. Max and I sighed dully.
"Guess it's time," Max said, letting go of me.
Everyone began to make a circle around the golden Santa Claus statue. It got a new coat of paint last week, which was apparently a big deal to everyone.
"It means that Santa's spirit is restored!" my mom had said cheerfully in the car. "He will be more giving than ever! He might even grant us more snow."
I rolled my eyes thinking about what my mom said. Everyone here except Max and I was completely mindless. When would they learn? How could they not see that something was wrong here?
As the prayer was beginning, I stood up and stared at Max, then at the North Noose. I always considered myself lucky to still be alive. Usually, the North Police would catch the non-believers and suspend them on that noose in front of the entire town. As a young child, like most children, I was forced to watch the entire thing in order to see what would happen if I went against my beliefs and to assure that I would always be a believer. Obviously, that didn't work out for me, but I was left traumatized, and I was often scared to go near any North Police officer.
As I turned back to Max, I saw someone out of the corner of my eye slowly stand up, which was unusual since only Max and I stood up each year. It was a girl with a dark red dress. I stared at the girl, then back at Max, knowing we had the same crazy idea.