Fantasy

1

Part One

Run! I think to myself. My pursuers are close behind me. The silver locket I'm wearing bounces against my sternum as my feet pound the spongy ground. Run faster! I mentally scream. My name is Abigail E. Worldd (I know, weird last name, right) and I'm eleven years old. Currently, I'm being chased by one of my fifth-grade classmates, Jade Tyson, and her year-older sister, Olivia. To make matters worse, its pouring rain! My soaked T-shirt clings to my torso as I fly down the road with my drenched backpack weighing me down. I can barely see through my wet and smudgy glasses; these things really need windshield wipers.

Honestly, I'm not sure what the girls would do if they caught me, but I really don't want to find out. It's a good thing my house has come into view. I barrel towards the front door, unbelieving that I might actually make it! Once I reach the door I twist the knob...but it doesn't turn. Oh come on, it's locked, really? From the front patio I can see my fourteen year old sister, Sarah, sitting at the dining room table doing homework.

"Sarah! Let me in!" I shout as I pound on the door. She looks up from her textbook to see me standing outside getting drenched. Her lips break into a smile, which morphs into laughter. "Open the door!" I yell again.

"Sorry, homework," she mouths, suppressing her amusement and pointing to her papers. Isn't she just the sweet, compassionate sister that only-children wish they had?!

Meanwhile, Jade gains on me until I have no choice but to bolt. I round the side of the house and tunnel between the outside east wall and the garage into the backyard. Out of the corner of my left eye I see movement and turn my head to find Olivia approaching. While my eyes are on her Jade advances on my right enough to grab my backpack and try to stop me with force. In a mad frenzy I shrug off the book bag and keep running. Jade drops it in the yard and continues to chase me.

I'm coming up on the hayfield that my parents use to feed our beef cattle. A sense of relief surges through me; the girls will have to stop at the edge of the field, right? They wouldn't want to squash the crop. But as I get closer they're still running at top speed. Seeing no other choice, I plow right into the field; they follow, but they're losing ground fast thanks to the tall hay.

One moment I'm sprinting through the field, then my feet slide out from underneath me and the next moment I find myself sprawled on the muddy ground with my glasses slid halfway down my nose. I hear Jade and Olivia slow to a stop.

"Where did she go?" Jade wheezes, out of breath.

"I don't know," Olivia pants in response.

"Come on, let's leave before we're spotted; we can catch her tomorrow," Jade suggests. Their sneakers make a squishing sound as they depart my property. When I'm sure they're gone, I pick myself up off the ground, clean my lenses off on my shirt, put them back on my face, and realize that my back is completely covered in mud from head to toe. Not a spot on me is left unadulterated. As if that's not bad enough, my dad is pulling up in the driveway! He would flip if he saw me like this. I race toward the house and grab my backpack on the way. Luckily it's not muddy, just wet. I continue on through the rain and rush in the back door. Of course, it's unlocked.

"Abby! What happened to you?" Marie, my sixteen year old sister, gasps as soon as she catches sight of me. I glare at Sarah, who is laughing again.

"Ask her," I exclaim, jabbing a finger at Sarah. At that very moment I hear the sound of keys jingling and one being inserted into a keyhole. Dad! He'll kill me if he sees me covered in mud! I rush upstairs as the doorknob turns. When I make it to my room I drop my book bag on the floor, then hastily peel off my muddy attire and wipe the mud from my skin. As I hear footsteps on the stairs I finish pulling on a fresh T-shirt and shorts. Right before the door to my room creaks open, I grab Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows out of my backpack and throw myself onto my bed. Good thing it's not wet.