Solstice sisters

Chapter 1

Chapter 1:Ivy's POV

I stood alone on a vast battlefield, my once dark brown hair was a bright white. It swirled and spiralled in the wind, whipping this way and that way like a cape made from ice. My shoulders were weighed down by scratched silver armour, my chest plate had two large gashes running through its once sleek surface. My chain mail was broken in places and beneath it I could feel small cuts and slices bleeding out, dying my protective gear a coppery colour. A solid silver sword felt heavy in my grasp, rivulets of cold, crimson blood trickled from its intricate hilt right down to the wicked point of its blade. All around my feet lay corpses, their blank faces staring up at me with dead, accusing eyes. I dropped the shield I had been holding in my left hand and began to back away from the bodies, but they were everyone. Cadavers littered the battlefield that surrounded me, I couldn't escape from them. I began to run blindly. All around me the corpses began calling my name, softly at first but then it rose and they chanted my name like a battle cry. I kept running dropping my sword as I went. The chants got louder and louder til they morphed into one voice.
'Ivy! Ivy! Ivy!'
My eyes flew open and I bolted upright. My chest was heaving from the nightmare. I looked around frantically for the bodies but there was no battlefield, just my new bedroom. I relaxed and sunk back down into my pillows, shutting my eyes briefly. I was snapped out of my dozing by a voice.
'Ivy get up or you'll be late!' My adoptive mother, Helen was calling me from the kitchen. Late? What was I going to be late for? Then it hit me! School!
'Crap!' I leapt out of my bed with a soft thud pas my bare feet landed on the plush white carpet of my new room. I padded over to my walk on wardrobe to choose the perfect outfit for my first day of school in America. My adoptive dad, John, got given an unexpected promotion at the start of summer and it resulted in the three of us moving from our townhouse in England to an even bigger house in America. I wasn't complaining about moving. Instead of living in a semi-detached in the Yorkshire countryside where it rained almost constantly, I now lived in a house so big it was almost a mansion, in the sunny California. I pulled on a pair of dark jeans, a band t shirt and a pair of scruffy converses. Over the top I wore a long, thin cardigan. Not a great outfit but I hadn't been shopping in a while.

I jogged downstairs for breakfast. The smell of pancakes wafted through the vast ground floor. My head was full of thoughts about my latest dream. This was the third one I'd had since being told I was moving to America, but this was the first one I'd had since actually arriving in America two days ago. What did they mean? Why a battlefield? And why was my hair always white? I pulled on my dark brown hair thoughtfully. I'd lined my icy blue eyes with simple eyeliner and added some mascara to enhance them. Nothing special. Around my neck hung my gold locket. I'd been given it by my birth mother. She died in a car crash when I was born. My dad was also killed in the same crash, I'd been there too but luckily I'd escaped with only one scar. It was a crescent moon shape on my shoulder. I hadn't really known either of my birth parents so I didn't miss them that badly, I just wish I had memories of being with them. I had a photograph of them which I kept in my bedside table. My birth mother was beautiful, she had long mousey brown hair which she usually had tied up in an intricate braid, her green eyes were sharp and intelligent. I'd been told that I had her nose, I could almost see it. My father had shirt dark brown hair, his eyes were blue like mine, except his were warmer, ocean blue, mine were pale ice blue. Both of them wore dazzling smiles in the photograph, in the background I could see beautiful mountains with lots of verdant Evergreen trees painting the landscape green. Helen and John Waters, my adoptive parents, were great though and more than made up for my absence of birth parents.

'She lives!' Smiled John from where he was sat at the breakfast bar. He had sandy blonde hair and wore thick glasses. He was a university lecturer in Latin. Helen had strawberry blonde hair that was slightly curly and fell to her shoulders. She had a job as a nurse lined up for her at the local hospital but she was going through extra education so she could qualify to become a doctor. I grinned at John and took a seat next to him at the breakfast bar.
'You ready for your first day of school kiddo' he asked ruffling my hair. Even though I was fifteen now, John insisted on calling me "kiddo". I faked a scowl at the nickname.
'Yeah I'm looking forward to it' I smiled back, I was looking forward to school even though I'm skipping a year, I'll be a junior instead of a sophomore.
'Good, I'm glad' replied John 'now I want you stay away from these American boys, I've seen a lot of films-'
'Oh my god stop!' I said with a laugh.
'Stop teasing her John' scalded Helen from the coffee machine
'Thankyou' I smiled at her, turning to pull a face at John.
'You see what she does when your not looking!' John spluttered in mock offence.
'No, because I'm not looking' she said with a grin as John folded his arms in protest.
'You're just a bully' he told me in a childlike manner.
'That's nice' I said with a fake smile. John stuck his tongue out at me.
'Mature' I replied and then stuck mine out in return.
'Children, children' Helen settled us 'we have to celebrate Ivy's first day in American high school'
'To Ivy and her first day of American high school' John said as he raised a slice of pancake into the air, syrup dribbled off it and pooled on his plate.
'To Ivy' Helen echoed, raising her cup of coffee, a proud smile on her face.