Prologue

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St Catharines, Ontario

July, 2000

The day was bright and sunny, and the park was filled with children of all ages, parents watching from the sidelines. Two girls were on the swing, pushing themselves impossibly higher.

"You ready?" One called, a spattering of freckles adding character to a smile filled with mischief, green eyes sparking with adventure.

"You bet!" The other called, somehow softer than the other, her blonde hair whipping as she swung back and forth.

"One! Two! Three!"

At the height of the swing, the two girls jumped off. The mischievous one lived in the thrill of the fall, challenging the ground. The soft one both adored and feared the fall, nervous of what would happen when she landed.

The soft one landed on her feet, but stumbled and fell with a laugh. The mischievous one however, fell roughly, the soft pebbles bracing her fall.

"Dean!" The soft one called, rushing over to her friend. But Dean only laughed as she sat up, her knees and hands bruised and torn.

"That was awesome!" She said with a grin, "Let's do it again! C'mon Opal, I bet we can go even higher!"
"Seraphina! Celeste! Time to go!"

They both turned at the call of their first names. They quickly scrambled to their feet and ran across the playground, where Dean's mother, Daisy, waited.

"Dinner will be ready soon," she said as she began to lead the girls down the sidewalk away from the park, "Oh, Celeste, what did you do to yourself?"

"I jumped off the swing!" Dean informed her with a grin, "I went so high, you should'a seen it!"

"You need to be more careful," Daisy tutted before grabbing the girls' hands and looking before crossing the road to their street.

"I'm fine, Mom!" Dean insisted.

Daisy only sighed as she led them to the house that sat in the very centre of the crescent-shaped street, and the girls could smell barbeque the back. They suddenly realized just how hungry they were, and happily washed up. Well, Dean wasn't too happy that she had to wait while Daisy cleaned her knees and hands to make sure they wouldn't get infected, but her frustration quickly disappeared when Opal brought her a hot dog.

While the girls shovelled down their food, their mothers chatted about school and the other parents, while their fathers talked about how Opal's house was getting a new porch, and the best way to build it.

After dinner, the girls ran around the backyard, doing cartwheels and jumping on the trampoline, pop music playing from the speaker placed on the table.

Once the sun set, the girls became tired, laying in the grass together as they watched the stars come to life.

"I'm gonna be an astronaut," Dean said matter-of-factly, "I'm gonna go up to the stars!"

"I'll come with you," Opal agreed, "We can live on the moon together."

"And have all the cheese we could want!"

They both laughed, interrupted as Opal's mother appeared with a smile.

"Okay Seraphina, time to go home."

"Aw," Dean complained as they sat up, "Can't she stay over? Please?"

"Not tonight," Daisy said, "She can come over some other time. Besides, it's time for you to go to bed too."

Dean frowned, but she was more tired than she'd like to admit, so she allowed her mother to lead her to the back gate, where Opal's mother held her.

"We'll see you tomorrow," Daisy said with a smile.

"Of course. Good night!"

"Good night Opal!"

Suddenly, Opal squirmed in her mother's arms. Confused, she let her down, and Opal stood in front of Dean.

"I have a bad feeling. You should stay with us tonight."

"No, sweetie," her mother said, "Maybe on the weekend, but not tonight."

"But something bad is gonna happen!" Opal insisted.

"We'll be fine," Daisy assured as Opal's mother grabbed her hand, "We'll see you all on the street."

"I'll see you later!" Dean said with a grin, and Opal allowed herself to be dragged away as the parents bid each other good night.

Once they were gone, walking across the street to their house two doors down, Daisy turned to her young daughter.

"Okay little miss, it's time for bed."

"But I'm not tired!" Dean insisted, then yawned. Curse her tired little body.

Dean's father, David, just laughed and scooped her up, "Oh, you're exhausted, Dean. You can hardly walk!"

Dean just laughed and let her father carry her inside and up to her room. She got ready for bed, feeling sleep already begin to overtake her. By the time she was tucked in, Dean was already half-asleep.

*******

It was a little after three when Dean was jarred from her sleep.

She wasn't sure what had woken her, as the room was still dark. But then she noticed her eyes stung, and she smelt smoke.

She gasped and threw the covers off, screaming, "Mom! Dad!"

She ran to the door, and she threw it open, coughing as smoke poured into her room. She saw a shadowy figure approach, backlit by the fire downstairs.

"Celeste!" Daisy cried, scooping her daughter up, "Come on sweetie, let's go!"
Dean let her mother scoop her up and carry her out, both of them coughing. Daisy clutched Dean's head close to her shoulders to try and block the smoke from her face, but Dean could still see over her shoulder, looking into the living room.

It was entirely aflame, and in the centre of it was a burnt something, writhing around and screaming.

"Dean! Daisy!" It cried, and Dean recognized it, "Get out of here!"

"Dad! Dad no!" She yelled, struggling against her mother's strong grip, "Mom, we have to go back for Dad! Mom!"

But Daisy did not go back, she just ducked her head, threw the door open, and ran out into the street.

It wasn't long before the fire trucks, police, and ambulance came, but it was too late. They stopped the fire before it could destroy the whole house, but it was still dangerous to go inside. David was brought out in a bodybag, and the neighbours gathered in their pyjamas and robes, watching in shock and horror.

Daisy stood away from the crowd with Dean and Opal's family.

Opal and Dean were crying heavily, but Daisy merely stared at the burnt house, her jaw setting as a look of determination settled on her face.

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