War of the Emberstar (Unfinished)

Chapter 3: The Mysterious Person

Today seems like a normal day, except for the fact that my mom almost always stays inside every day. She manages the house, basically. But today, she's not here. That is because she has a one day class on cooking.

Yeah, I know, cooking. Why would she want to take a class on cooking, you ask? I have no idea. Honestly, I think it's because she wants to be able to teach me how to cook. She's always wanted to teach me the ins and outs of cooking, but I always blamed her for not taking cooking lessons, so I guess that's why she's doing it.

But today I get to do everything by myself. It's the perfect day to run away. After school today, I'm never spending another night at my house.

I know who I'm going to run away to, in case you were wondering: my grandma. She's like a mother to me. She doesn't live very far away either. Just about a three day's walk away, assuming you stop to go to the bathroom, eat, etc.

I'm about to go downstairs to get myself a bowl of cereal, when someone rings the doorbell. I hear a muffled thump, and then I hear the door trying to be opened. It scares the wits out of me.

I take a few deep breaths and decide to go downstairs and talk to the person who's at the door. I walk down the stairs and hear another muffled thump. Then the doorbell rings again.

I go over in my head what would happen if I opened the door. Would it be a monster? No, monsters don't exist. Maybe whoever was out there would beak in. Well if they did, I could just run away a little sooner. If the person tried to fight me, well, let's just say I wouldn't be standing here today.

I open the door. Standing there is a man dressed in black. He is tall and thin, and there is a black hood resting around his neck. His features are a bit obscured for some reason. It's almost like you're not sure if you're seeing something for real, or if it's in a dream.

"Hello, Ashlyn," says the man.

"Um, uh." Gulp. 

"How do you know my name?" I ask awkwardly.

The man smiles, but doesn't say anything. His teeth are very white, I notice. It's almost like they're glittering.

"Do you know what the color aqua, is?" the man asks me pleasantly.

"Um, uh," I stammer.

"Yes."

"Very good," the man says.

"I assume you must have a tough time in life, correct?" I have no idea how he knows all these things about me. Aqua is my favorite color, and I do have a tough time in life.

I pick my reply carefully. "Sometimes," I say, slowly.

"You see," the man starts. "You have a secret power, and it is very strong. If you are not careful, it may consume you. You must use your power for good, and to fight evil."

"So, what IS my power?" I ask, curious now.

"That," the man says, "is something you must figure out for yourself."

"Oh," I say, feeling a bit rejected.

"Good bye, Ashlyn. May we meet again."

With that, he smiles at me and walks away. I watch him walk all the way down my driveway, then disappear into the woods.

Well, I think. I can finally make myself that bowl of cereal that I've been wanting for over half an hour.

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