Clouds rolled over the hills, bringing darkness from above. A young male with bright blond hair and piercing blue eyes smiled, stretching out his arms to feel wind on his skin. A content sigh escaped his lips. He wore a blue t-shirt with a maroon hoodie tied around his waist and tan pants. Next to him lay black archery gloves with a golden sun stitched into them. He stood on a hill, overlooking the valley below. The farm he lived on could be seen on the far edge of the valley. Pastures with cows, pigs, sheep and horses littered the valley. A chicken coop stood next to the enormous red barn that loomed over everything. A small cream colored two-story house sat on the opposite edge of the valley. The pond at the foot of the hill had been filled with turtles and koi fish.

Happily humming, the blond boy played his acoustic guitar. Birds seemed to sing along to the tune. He strummed the instrument, a gentle medley flowing with the breeze. His blue eyes stared up at the sky, tracing the clouds and creating poetic stories in his mind. The music seemed to enhance his imagination. He loved it.

"There you are, Idiot. I've been looking all over for you." The blond turned and smiled at the shorter teenager. She had majestic purple eyes, silver hair and a mix of indigo and purple highlights. She wore a navy blue dress with star patterns with a hood, black thigh high boots, cloth gauntlets with stars on them. Her hair was pinned up in a messy bun by a crescent moon pin. "Orion, what are you doing up here?" she asked, sitting next to her brother.

Orion set down the guitar and rolled his eyes. "Partying, what does it look like Layla?" he scoffed, tuning the guitar. "I just wanted to get away for a little while." He finished tuning and glanced at his sister. "Why?" He fidgeted with his gloves, finally putting them on.

"Well," Layla smirked, twirling her stiletto daggers in his hands. "I was thinking we could go hunting in the forest. Mother is busy and Father...well, you know...is being Father," she trailed off, looking longingly toward the trees.

Orion looked down at the house, frowning. Their father wasn't the best. An alcoholic and a workaholic was not a good mix. He was prone to yelling at everyone and making big scenes. Orion hated the yelling and the fights between his father and his mother. "Yeah," he agreed. "Let's go hunting, little sister," he smiled at his sister.

"I AM TWELVE MINUTES OLDER!" Layla yelled, pointing a finger at him. She glared at her brother, crossing her arms over her chest. "Come on. We don't have much daylight left."

Orion laughed, grabbing his guitar, slinging the strap over his shoulder. Layla handed him his bow, rolling her eyes. He smiled at her and ran to the woods, enjoying the feeling of the wind on his face and arms.

Part of him couldn't wait for the letter to come. Since he could remember, Orion wanted to explore the world, see everything, and protect as many people as he could. He wanted to save kids from being hurt by the ones they loved and looked up to. He wanted to make a safe haven for all. Some children didn't deserve the parents they got. Because the sad truth is, some parents are neglectful, abusive, manipulative. Orion hated that. He hated it more than anyone because he experienced those kinds of parents.

"Is Dad home yet?" Orion found himself asking, wincing immediately after the words left his mouth. Their father was always a sore subject for both of them. Multiple times Orion and Layla hid in their secret spot when he was experiencing one of his violent episodes.

"No, not yet," Layla whispered, glaring at him. She crouched down to the forest floor, staying low as she drew her bow and shot down the rabbit. "Hopefully, we will be gone before he gets back," she finished, approaching the dead animal and picking it up by its back leg.

"Yeah, hopefully," Orion muttered, shaking his head. "I just worry about Mother. She shouldn't be alone with him. It's not safe for you."

"Oh my Oum!" Layla rolled her eyes, exasperated. "You need to get rid of this Savior Complex! You can't protect everyone. Mother will be fine. She had been fine for years."

"You don't know that!" Orion snapped, narrowing his eyes. "Dad keeps getting worse. You don't know what could happen. I had...nevermind." A gold glyph with the sun insignia appeared above his hands and yellow glowing ravens appeared, flying high above him, and glowing snakes appeared, slithering around. "I've been practicing," he smiled weakly.

"I can tell," Layla nodded in approval. "Listen," she stepped forward and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Things will be better once we get out of here. There is a whole world out there."

"Yeah, you're right," Orion grinned, the animals disappearing into golden shimmers that looked similar to the rays of the sun. "Have you been practicing, or am I still better than you?" he smugly smirked.

Silver glyphs with a crescent moon design surrounded them and majestic silver deer formed. A mix of bucks, does, and fawns wandered around, looking slightly faded. Layla's semblance worked best at night. "I am still better than you, Ori," she laughed.

"Don't call me that!" Orion snapped, summoning a giant golden python that strangled one of the bucks. Thunder boomed in the distance, causing both twins to flinch. "Shit, Dad is going to be home sooner than expected with that coming in," he looked up at the sky and grimaced. "He hates bad weather."

"I know," Layla whispered, holding the plump rabbit as her glyphs faded into a silvery light. "If we hurry back, we can make it home before he gets there."

Orion gulped. "Race you there." He bolted toward the house, laughing as Layla shouted in protest. The wind whipped his shaggy hair around, and he felt a few raindrops hit his arms. He laughed as leaves dropped water onto him. The rain seemed to wash away any worries he had. Maybe Layla was right. maybe things would get better once they left...if they left.

"Orion Hyacinth!" Orion's entire body froze as he heard hisfather's booming voice. Suddenly, everything came crashing down around him. No, things wouldn't be okay. Father was home, and the sky darkened.

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Hey guys! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Comments and votes are appreciated! I love hearing from you all!

Have a wonderful day!

~Kat