The Striking Tale of Mandy LaCrosse

Prologue

Prologue

Age Four,

The sun is lazily rising through the sky, leaving beautiful orange red waves in its wake. The darkness runs to hide in the shadows, knowing it cannot fight the impending light. I look over to see my mother, her green eyes sore and red. Her normally tan face now pale, as if all the blood has left it, her black hair matted and sweaty. She is wearing a gold sun dress so light, it is as if it was made from the sun, but her expression made it darker than I had seen it before.

We pull up to my father's house; my mother opens the car door, then walks around and opens mine. Her hand shakes on the handle making me more nervous than I already am. We go around to the back of the car, and she opens the trunk. She regarded me, tears streaming down her face now glazed. As if, if she shows an expression her calm facade will crumble. My body shakes with anticipation, as if I somehow knew this day would come.

Tears pour down my face; blurring vision and making me choke.

"Mandy please don't cry" mother squeaks.

"I will come back, but for now" she pulls a small, green, pet bag from the trunk.

She shakes, causing tremors down her body, and the bag. She opens the bag and pulls out a little black fur ball, the ball shivers in the new morning cold.

"This is Jonvian, he will love and protect you always, when I cannot." Tears are now rolling down her face like a waterfall, her once solid facade now just a shadow, to a new doleful one.

She gives me the little ball, and when it comes into my arms it unfurls. I see its cute large green eyes that sparkle in the dawn light. The ball's fur is warm and soft like a feather down. The nose of this little creature twitches, and its ears perk for a second. I look into those unnaturally deep green eyes, and feel immediately calm and safe, my tears stop. But my mother's tears become worse, her once doleful expression, inexplicably bleak. The cat mews and closes its eyes to sleep, my mother smiles her bleak expression now somehow pleading for this moment not to end.

"Mandy I love you remember that, now come let's go inside" she gets my bags out of the trunk, and walks me to the door.

She has stopped crying, and composed herself. Her black hair flowing down her back like a veil, her posture straight. She rings the doorbell; my father opens the door. His usually blue eyes are red from drinking, his body exudes the smell of alcohol. His brown hair messy from mourning bed head, he is wearing a white under shirt stained with what looks like vomit. He does not wear any pants just a pair of dirty of boxers. I look over to where my mother was, she is gone. Our little green Bug Volkswagen disappeared, as if it evaporated and this is some sort of nightmare.

"Mandy what are doing here, where's your mother" he barks. I look around astounded that my mother has left me alone with him. The tears start again, burning my already sore eyes, my face feels like all the blood has left it. My dad holds out his hand, I hesitate, and then I take it.....