A/N: This is the first chapter of a book I'm writing. You're not allowed to use any of it in any way unless you have my specific permission. Enjoy xD
CHAPTER 1
The rain came down relentlessly. I looked down at Artemis, who was curled up by my side, fast asleep. I stroked her long, silver hair and stared out the window. I didn’t understand how she could sleep through such weather. The drops smashed against the windowpanes ceaselessly. The constant drumming of it almost lulled me to sleep.
Artemis stirred and sat up. “Did I fall asleep?”
I nodded.
She yawned and curled back up beside me. I smiled at her. Her actions always seemed to remind me of a cat. I played with her hair and kissed her head.
“It’s been raining for a while,” I stated.
She looked up at me with her glistening eyes. “Yes, it has.” She looked out the window, troubled, “our crops will drown if it continues any longer….”
I stared out the window to where our garden was. It looked gray and forlorn at the moment, but it was one of my favorite places to be on a sunny day. We relied on the garden almost entirely for our food.
I avoided going to the Village unless it was completely necessary. I groaned inwardly at the thought of having to go there if our crops drowned. The people were severely unpleasant; I was greeted with hostile stares and mean words everywhere I went. If they recognized who I was, that is. I never let Artemis go to the Village. I knew she understood a lot about the People, but I would never want her to deal with them at such a young age. I would protect her from them with everything I had if I needed to.
Artemis tugged on my sleeve, pulling me out of my reverie. “It will be alright,” she said as she stared at me. “The crops won’t drown, I mean. The weather will clear up.”
“I hope so. Going to the Village is the last thing I want to do,” I sighed, “although I need to go there soon for winter clothes.” I stared out the window once again.
She laid her head back in my lap and sighed. “I should go, Kamaria. You do not need to this year; I’m old enough to go now.”
I gave her a stony look, “you are eight, Artemis. You cannot go.”
She reached up for a piece of my hair and started braiding a strand. “I’m old enough. Why do you worry so much? I know about the things they tell you, but they do not know any better. The People have a set mentality on us….”
“Yes, a mentality that we are monsters; an abomination. I will not let you go out there, where you could get hurt. It is not necessary. It is not so far away for me, but you would get lost out there. The answer is no.”
“If you would just take me with you, then… I could learn how to make my way through the forest. By then I would be old enough to go to the Village by myself.”
I knew she was right. As much as I hated to admit it, I had to teach her how to survive by herself soon. With us, you never knew what would happen that would throw us into life-threatening situations. I looked at her, calculating whether I should agree or not. I examined her soft features, her delicate heart-shaped lips and large, cat-like eyes. Seiko would have loved Artemis. I could almost hear her saying how much Artemis looked like me. Of course, all of the Dimensians looked alike. Or so I had heard. I had only ever met two other Dimensians in my entire life: Seiko and Artemis.
I thought again about how much the People abhorred us. Artemis needed to know how to defend herself.
“Alright, I will take you hunting with me when it stops raining. You do need to learn. Not just about the Village, but about how to survive if anything happens to me.”
