Hope Everlasting. [COMPLETED.]

Prologue-Losing Hope.

A/N; Hi! So, this is my first original full-length story on Wattpad. Normally, it's been fan fiction or short stories, but this idea came to me so I've decided to go for it. Yes, I plan to follow it the whole way through and shiz. I do have several medical conditions and have just come home from being in hospital for one month, so if there are delays in updates this is why. I do however love writing more than I can say, so I will keep at it! Note; this story contains sensitive topics from the beginning. I'm not putting an age limit on it as I feel only you can judge it, but you have been warned. ^.^ Updates will be as soon as possible, so enjoy! Vote and comment if you like, I always love to hear from you and get constructive critiscm. So, enough of me warbling, enjoy! :3

NOTE: This is currently unedited and will have some thorough tweaking once the story is complete. The errors are minimal but will be changed. :)

Hope Everlasting.

Prologue.

Our story begins on a warm summer's day, year 2000. A young girl of the age of five runs, long red hair tumbling in messy waves down her back. She continues to prance, through a blanket of flowers, an elated look upon her youthful face.

"Hope! Slow down!" Another girl, identical in looks yet clearly more timid in nature, shouts to her sister, running just a few metres behind, slower and more careful than the other.

"Come on, Ashy! Last one to the lake's a rotten tomato!" The first--Hope, it seems--calls back, cackling in excitement as she speeds up, running as fast as her miniscule legs will take her.

"Hope! You're going too fast!"

"Don't be such a spoil sport, Ashlynn!" With that, Hope changes direction, rushing off into the distance. Ashlynn stops, clutching a stitch in her side as she attempts frantically to catch her breath. After a few moments, the worried looking girl stands up, eyes scanning the colour filled horizon.

The blazing, mid morning sun taints the crystal sky, blankets of flowers in every colour gracing the long green grass. Everything is peaceful, everything is right. Everything is in its place; apart from Hope. For a moment, Ashlynn's face fills with terror, as she begins to think she's lost her sister, her twin. Her everything. Her loving heart begins to thud, much too vigorous for her tiny body. With that, she takes off at a speed seemingly non-existent beforehand.

"Hope? Hope! Hopie!" She runs frantically, the blazing heat becoming too much for her

. "Boo!" A shout. A scream. We all fall down.

"Hopeeeeee!" Ashlynn squeals, staring up at her grinning sister from her place on the ground. "Don't do that!" The other merely laughs, glancing back at where she'd jumped out from.

"Come on, silly. Let's go to the lake!" Hope exclaims, holding a small hand out to help her sister up. Within seconds, she is running again. This time, too frightened she will lose her sister, the other follows.

"Yes! I won, I won, I won!" Hope cries as she reaches the lake a mere second after the girl does, dancing around in a circle as she celebrates. "You are a rotten tomato!" Hope proclaims, grinning at her sister.

"It's not fair! You're faster than I am..." the other whines in reply

. "Yeah, yeah. You just worry too much! Now, I bet you won't dare to go paddling!" The girl provokes, turning to face the crystallized water that makes up what the children knew as Demon's Lake.

"No, I won't! And neither will you! You know Mother doesn't let us even go near the water!"

"What Mother doesn't know won't hurt her. We can let our feet dry in the sun--"

"No, it's too deep! You'll drown!"

"Oh fine! But I hope you know you're boring." Hope mutters finally, sitting down and crossing her arms with a huff. Clearly, she found her sister's reluctance to do anything rather irritating. "You never do anything fun! All you want to do is sit and get Mother to read you books all day," she grumbles, sulking somewhat.

Her sister sighs, walking to join the glum girl on the edge of the water's face. "I just don't want you to get hurt," she murmurs quietly, staring at the ground.

"I won't, I'm great at escaping from danger! I never get hurt! Just watch! I bet I can walk along that wall without falling off!" The first jumps up, excitement clear in her hazel brown eyes. She skips, head tilted at an angle towards the still blazing sun, gaining ever closer to the water's edge. A small hand reaches out, pointing at the thin beam framing the lake. It was known around here--there was a reason why they called it Demon's Lake.

"No Hope, you can't!" Ashlynn is on her feet in seconds, rushing to her sister. "You'll get hurt! Y-you know what happened to Mrs Johnston's daughter," she adds, voice scarcely a whisper.

"Oh boohoo. Tallulah Johnston was fat, she didn't know how to balance properly. I do gymnastics, it'll be fine!" Before her sister could utter another word, the young girl clambers up onto the thin, forbidden wall and begins to walk along the water's edge, arms out to steady herself. A sweet sound echoes around them, the sound of a child's sweet song, while Ashlynn watches on in horror. "Ring-a-ring-a-roses, a pocket full of posies, a tissue, a tissue, we all fall down. Fishes in the water, fishes in the sea, we all jump up with a one-two-three!"

Hope repeats this song over and over as she climbs, becoming more and more unsteady on her feet. Not that she notices--the young girl is in her own world, oblivious to the danger her sister can clearly see. Her feet, moving one after another begin to slip, still unnoticed by their owner. Ashlynn runs, as close to the water's edge as she dares, a worried expression upon her face.

"HOPE!" she yells, body shaking with fear. Fear for herself, fear for her sister...fear for Hope's life.

The balancing girl turns quickly--too quickly. The new tone to her sister's voice scares her, an unknown emotion filtering across her features.

The girl begins to slip, losing her footing. A scream bursts across the lake as she falls, somewhat gracefully, into the murky, unforgiving depths of Demon's Lake.

A shout, a scream, we all fall down.

And Hope Carter was no more.