Octavia was looking out her window longing to be like the other girls. Most girls at the age of thirteen long to be pretty, unique, to stand out and be popular. But all Octavia wanted was to fit in, to be normal. She sometimes looked out of the oval window that separated her world from theirs. Mainly people ignored her, the girl who never talked and who always looked out her window for hours. But Octavia knew different her window wasn’t just a window it was a nightly portal to the world of the unknown a world that was not like the pretty, happy, Disneyland fairytales. A world of people who treated Octavia differently. A world with people who never act or look like people they weren’t monsters, or vampires, or ponies, or fairies, they were shadow crawlers. They came at night and welcomed Octavia into their world. But she was young then only five and she sold her soul to them. She promised that she would come every night to visit them and change her own world to match theirs. In return she was granted an everlasting life. She never wanted this, but you see she was tricked like many people, people who walk the streets everyday who seem normal are really miserable slowly living their life until their 100th birthday on that day they slowly become shadow crawlers. On that day would be the last day that they saw light. Octavia hated having to put a smile on her face every day, even if she knew she was one day closer to an everlasting jail cell. And only hours away from their world. She walks toward the door, and slowly shreds her undone homework. She delicately slinks down the hardwood floors. Her mother hears her on the landing and asks if she finished her homework. Octavia ignored her as usual and went to the kitchen to get an apple. Even though she was a very skinny and tall girl, she always had an appetite. After she ate her snack she went back upstairs and looked in the bathroom mirror. She hated what she saw, even more then yesterday and the day before. She was tired of seeing dark bags under her glossy blue eyes, from staying up all night, she was tired of seeing the same old hip length straight blond hair that never had any body to it, hair that everyone dreams of not having. So today, October twenty fifth two thousand nine, one day till’ her fourteenth birthday, Octavia Remmington chopped all of her hair off. Maybe it was out of frustration, maybe anger. But all she knew was that the new wispy chin length hair cut was by far worse. She grabbed her phone and ran to her sisters window. Slowly she cracked it open and crawled out. She was fearless and barely made the landing when jumped from the second story. She thankfully landed on a pile of neglected sand, a reminder that her mom never redid the backyard as she had promised. But she slowly got up not wanting to reminisce on the past anymore than she already had. She opened the back gate slowly then slammed it shut behind her and ran, she didn’t stop running until she reached the corner market. Before she walked in the door she pulled her black hood over her head and casually walked in as to not direct attention, as she always seemed to do. But of course she tripped over the newspaper stack sending the Sunday paper into the air she didn’t even answer the people asking if she was okay, she was tired of that. So instead she left her mess for someone else and quickly went to the hair product aisle. She didn’t even think about it, she just grabbed a bottle of hair color and went straight to the register. On her long walk home she thought about what the shadow crawlers would make her do tonight. She fretted every night because of that exact reason. So instead of working herself into tears she thought about what her hair would look like when she finished. As she approached her front lawn she saw that her dad was not home yet, so she had nothing to fear, YET! She knew her mom had heard her slam the gate behind her when she left and that’s why she had done it. She once again feels brave as ever walked right through the front door. Her mom didn’t notice, so she turned around reopened the front door and slammed it shut as hard as she could.
“Is that you Octavia, thank heavens your alright,” said Mrs. Remmington
Octavia ignored her; she didn’t want to deal with all of the drama that would come if she walked into that kitchen. So instead she walked right upstairs and into the periwinkle bathroom. She looked at the purple hair dye, read the instructions and followed all but one of them, the one that said to cover all counters and surrounding furniture or clothing because the product will stain. But quite frankly she didn’t care if the ugly black sweatshirt she wore did get stained, because then she wouldn’t have to wear it and look all Goth and weird, and make her basically stand out from the in crowd. At one point she thought the jacket was something she wanted, and her mom even said she would buy it for her if she promised to wear it every day. But now she realizes the anything and everything that she promises turns out completely and utterly wrong. As for the perfect periwinkle bathroom, she would be glad if it was ruined because she has hated it every day since they got it!!! After her hair was dyed she looked in the mirror. NO! to perfect, the next thing she knew her hands were guiding her to the pair of scissors on the counter in front of her she cut each and every strand until her hair was a messy pile of purple layers. Perfect. She quickly smeared eyeliner under her eyes to side track from the bags. She disposed of the evidence and was ready to walk downstairs until, uh oh. Daddy’s home. She pulls her hood over her head and briskly walks down stairs as not to look suspicious. She thinks that she may possibly make it through the night without getting grounded, until. Dang it mom brings up my sneaking out and tells me to take off my hood. Now they are getting suspicious and asking questions and talking about my needing therapy. Just wait till’ they see my hair they’ll think I’m loony for sure. Well at least dinner is almost over then I can have a happy quiet peaceful nights sleep, oh wait no I cant that’s what normal people do and me being normal for once in my life would just be a death sentence. Instead though I get kidnapped by ugly shadow catchers that want me to join them and help them take over the world, goody. That’s me, a normal teenager. Wait are my parents still talking. This is the most boring thing that I have ever done, but sadly it is a high point in my life!!! Shadow chasers and over barring parents, ya, doesn’t get much worse than that.