A World Above (To Be Rewritten)

Chapter 1: A New Life

Only a year had passed since I was born and I'd already relearned how to walk and even talk. As soon as I relearned these basic skills, I started to help around our little hole as best as I could. My hair and skin were paler than my parents' and siblings' so, it was dangerous for me to go outside at all 'less I get sunburnt. Father is out hunting again for our lunch, he'd taken my older Brothers with him. Mother, Sister, and I did housework while they hunted, just like everyday. We lived in the slums of a city called "Cyt'Ra", the capital of this country we found ourselves in, and so everyday was a struggle just to survive.

"Mother?" I'd finally say, handing Mother another tattered cloth to rip up and clean.
"Yes, Dear?"
"When will I get to go outside?"
"not until dusk, Dear. It's too bright outside, and besides, we have to get your cloak repaired. You know how our 'Neighbours' take to demons like yourself."

Unlike my parents and siblings, who were human, I was a demon, just one of many different races in this new world. As Mother suggested, those who lived in the slums despised demons. Why? I've no clue. I've heard rumors that the Demons of higher society looked down upon us, treating us as if we were the garbage of the world. A plague upon this world. I shook away the thoughts that had begun to emerge and continued washing the torn rags we used as bandages or patches for our clothes. I worried that I would be killed, or worse, if I were found out. Just as I was starting to lose my internal battle, I heard Mother's voice.

"Hush now, dear Myribel" she sang in a soft, soothing voice, "May you dream of Winter Nights and Silverbells"

I could feel my fears drift away and my movement slow as she continued to sing.

"Peaceful and cool as the night, your shine brighter than the morning light," She lay my head in her lap as drowsiness took hold and soon, I slept.

"Goodnight, my dearest Myribel." Mother whispered into my ear while I lay calmly in her lap, a single tear rolls down my cheek.

~~

I soon awoke to the smell of a fresh kill. Father and my Brothers had returned.

"How was she today, Margaret?" I heard Father ask Mother.

"She seemed to do well. She wants to go outside again but, I don't know how much longer her cloak will last." Mother sounded worried. . . And understandably so. My skin was pale and prone to sunburn and, though I was demon, I was terribly sensitive to heat in general. Mother didn't want to say but, the spell on my cloak was wavering just as much as the cloth itself. I knew that it would take a fortune to repair.

"Hah! Unlucky her for being so sensitive!" My older sister, Aya, exclaimed.

Aya was always making fun of me. For being pale as the snow itself, sensitive to the heat despite being a demon. I was tired of it all but, what could I do? I was a year old and my magic had yet to manifest, unlike Aya, who was older and had control over her magic rivaling that of the young adults in the slums.

"Aya! Do NOT speak so lowly of your sister!" Cassius, one of my older brothers, was defending me once more, as he'd always done. "Myribel might be the runt of us all and unable to do much outside, but she works so hard for all our sakes even though she's only a year old!"

"That's enough! Aya, go check that the water's boiling. Cassius, start washing the Byra Berries"

Byra berries? Father had gotten lucky. Byra berries are extremely nutritious and sweet berries. They resemble rose thorns with bright red points, the flowers even resembled roses. They're highly sought after in the slums both for their value as food and in making medicine or potions. I sat up in my bed and looked out my window. It was night, the only time I could go outside.