Brightest {A RotG Fanfic}

Chapter 1 - White

A/N: Just so you guys know, One Dire Action will be on hold as I try my best again with that plot. Sorry if I disappointed you guys for the very long wait. =.= This new story will be updated every two weeks, and from now on I'll stop myself from having writer's block. ;) May I present: "Brightest"

Enjoy and vote! :)

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Chapter 1

WHITE

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    Her aunt never liked it when she closed up the window; it always made the air in their room stuffy. But she didn't mind, not at all.

    Clara hated the wind. Clara hated the cold. Clara hated the snow. Clara hated winter, especially the ice. She hated it the most when the season brought nightmares along with it when she slept.

    After all, what goes better with 'dark' other than 'cold'?

    Clara found herself snuggling up too often under her duvet, all because of nightly terrors. She stayed warm since the room heater was fully on.

    However, her aunt was always known for cracking the window open at night. The hard-headed woman loved windy nights and chilly mornings. This was a problem she had to deal with every morning.

    This morning was in no particular way different.

    Clara woke up that Monday, happy that it was finally the holidays and there was no school. Unhappy that it was the winter holidays and there was no escape.

    Her hate even included Christmas; it only reminded her of how lonely she was.

    No parents, no siblings... Just one aunt who couldn't care less of the girl who basically despised the fun season: the season of giving and receiving gifts from everyone she held dear.

    But her relatives were all a good distance away from where she and her aunt lived. All they could do was send her presents through post, which was disappointing for Clara as she grew up.

    That was what they all did to her: disappoint her. She even felt like they mocked her and her 'situation' by sending her heaps of Christmas-themed sweaters.

    Peachborough was apparently known for having cold, if not windy or rainy, weather for the whole year. If the sun was out, there would still be enough clouds to shield them from the summer heat.

    Through the years, Clara has become obsessed with keeping her own body warm. She now owned more than twenty sorts of long-sleeved shirts; you know the rest.

    Hey, she gets free loads of winter clothing every year, so why should she complain?

    Clara inhaled the freshness of the air to jumpstart her senses. The scent of wet grass... Wait, wet grass? Fresh air?

    She sat up abruptly; her flyaway hair stuck out from the back of her head like a bird's tail feathers.

    A short gust of wind almost entered the room, and she won't be in the right state to cope with the cold sensations. Her breathing would hitch, and it would set off palpitations within her heart.

    There was no way in this world she'd ever let that wind enter the room.

    After rubbing her eyes free from 'sleep sand', she quickly jumped out of bed and slammed the windows shut... loudly.

    "Clara!" she heard the voice of her aunt calling just a second after she forcefully banged the glass panes to a close, sealing the heat inside.