Child of Five

Prologue

When Zoe was three, she first showed signs of powers—she could move things—but her mother taught her how to conceal it. At seven, her parents saw she was a great beauty—so great that it could cause questions and unwanted attention. Again, her mother taught her how to shift her body to conceal her beauty—gone were her luscious honey golden locks, her intense emerald eyes, her perfectly tanned skin, and her full lips. Instead she was just a plain little mouse with mousy brown hair that was rough and hard to contain, a vague hazel eye, dark olive skin with a slightly crooked nose and simple lips. The only thing that remained were her strong eyebrows, because her mother believed that strong eyebrows suggested more than outer beauty and thus that was how Zoe grew up.

When she turned eight, she learned she could control aspects of the weather. As her father was a farmer, she began to help in the field. There was only so much an eight-year-old could do but she began to use her powers secretly. Helping the crops grow, bringing rain when they need it, blocking any twisters that could threaten her fathers' harvests, and soon, she found she could control the earth and the lifespan of the crops. She began to accelerate their growth so her dad could spend less on fertilizer and make better profits. That year was the best of her life. Her family was well fed and thriving.

But soon, the profitability of her father's farm brought unwanted attention. Soon people began to frequent the farm, especially news people. One day, someone, her father's friend and business partner, saw her talking to the plants. She was so focused on the plants that he saw her transform before his very eyes. Her unruly hair changed into beautiful honey hair and her plain, simple face changed into a thing of beauty. She realized too late that they caught her powers and she was so scared she couldn't change back. She was stuck in her beautiful form. She tried to shake her head at a man she thought she could trust. But she was wrong. That day she was dragged from that farm. That day she closed her eyes and sent a thought into the world, praying that her parents would understand and say nothing and do nothing and pretend they didn't know that she was powered. And that day her parents did nothing.

At 10 years of age, she was alone and terrified, but she knew one thing. She had to escape and once she did, she would never wear her beautiful face ever again. If she made it out alive, she would learn to control her powers and never allow anyone to see beneath her façade. That day she made that promise: never trust anyone again. And with that she entered the Place.