The Dome

Chapter One

Her heart beat quickly, steadily, as she raced away beside the two other figures. On her left, a tall, blonde boy. He shared her face, her hair, her eyes. They shared everything, especially their family, and Nora was lucky to have Nova as a twin. Their mother had always told her that being twins meant that he would always be with her, no matter what. The words brought comfort to Nora, even now, as she was dashing away with a ragged backpack full of stolen goods thumping against her back. She glanced to her right, where a petite girl with black hair wrapped up into a bun atop her head was leaping over the obstacles that appeared in her way. This girl, Iris, was her best friend. They had been together since they were children. The twins' late mother had raised Iris like a second daughter from the time she was twelve. Nora treated Iris like a sister, and Iris soon became the reckless girl's voice of reason. The blonde smiled as she rolled under a very low hanging tree branch, and the others halted beside her where she now sat on the dusty ground.

"Think we lost them, Nov?" Iris chirped, raking in short breaths.

The boy nodded and reached a hand out to his sister, who gripped it firmly and pulled herself to stand. Nova ran a gloved hand through his hair and breathed a sigh of relief. He swung a torn bag off of his shoulder, kneeling down to start sifting through the items. Every minute or so, Nova would toss a piece of trash behind him, and after about five minutes of sorting, he piled the usable items back into the bag and stood beside the girls.

"Let's get back to Cain. He'll be waiting for us to get home." Nova turned to his sister and friend, flashing them both a smile before dashing off towards the forest.

The two girls grinned at one another before running after him. Nora ran at a slower pace, going around each obstacle until her toes collided with something metal, pulling her down to the ground with a heavy thud. Groaning, she craned her neck to see what she had tripped over. Under her leg was a large, gray circle that was poorly covered by leaves and grass. The blonde shoved herself upwards, sitting on her feet for a moment while she pushed herself back up. A curious smile crept across her lips as she turned back towards the forest to follow Iris. Ducking and dodging tree branches and roots, she was the last of the trio to skid to a stop in front of the large clearing encircled by tall, wide trees. Nova had shoved his bag through a gap in the trees, attempting to squeeze through the same gap, and Iris was standing on the other side of the barrier, brushing dust and loose bark off of her clothes.

"Nora, you coming?" She asked teasingly, her usual, charming smile on her lips.

The blonde nodded quickly, pushing herself through one of the spaces and falling to the ground with a thud on the other side. As she tilted her head upwards, Nora found a tall, brown-haired boy towering over her.

"You'd think after all these years you'd figure out how to get inside without falling." He chimed, pulling her to her feet once more.
"Thanks, Cain." Nora muttered, an edge of sarcasm to her tone.

The boy walked over to where Iris and Nova were chatting around a pile of their stolen goods. Nora turned her eyes up to meet a dimly lit sky, the sun having already fallen below the tree tops and now filtering through the leaves. She paced towards one of the four logs that had been set up as chairs around the small circle that would be their campfire in a few minutes. Dragging in a breath, the blonde smiled as the others sat beside her, patiently waiting for Nova to get the fire going for the night. Iris and the boys talked mindlessly, but Nora never stepped in. All that was on her mind was the thought of what could lie beyond that grate. Her mind reeling with thought, she stood up and walked towards her small pile of blankets and pillows. They had seemed so cold when Nora and Nova first left home, but now, their tattered edges and poorly-sewn patch jobs welcomed her with open arms every night. Carefully, she pulled up the top blanket, curling up underneath it and gazing out at the fire. It didn't take long for the warmth and comfort of the fabrics and blaze to lull her to sleep.