She gaped at me but now that I've had the idea, it seemed like the best thing in the entire world. After I was able to force some food down mother's throat, I made her wear some new clothes. We would need a car and I needed to find something for mother to do during the days. Activity and interaction with other people were going to snap her out of her downtrodden mood.We braved Catwoman again and after an hour of her lectures on about all things Llanwrtyd, mum was able to get a word in edgewise and ask her for directions to a realtor. "Looking to buy a house here? Oh, that's such wonderful news! I knew you were here to stay just by the looks on you." She gushed happily. "Why, my nephew works in the real estate office. I'm going to get you his phone number right now! You and I going to make truly wonderful neighbours." She prattled on but I'd tuned her out, frozen as I was in terror. Neighbors? I'd have to see her on a daily basis for the rest of my life?

 Okay, so apparently, a new continent meant new rules. As I stared disconsolately at the old Victorian house three days later, I begrudgingly had to admit that the first rule was, NEVER ever go against Elsie Ballad. The building was ancient, asymmetrical and had so many creepy windows. It looked like a place where dreams went to die, not where future leaders were being molded. It felt like the gothic building was stolen from a medieval time. “You know, I'm legally considered an adult in this country. That means I can make decisions myself and shouldn't be coerced into going to school if I don't want to. Do you know that a sixteen year old can seek emancipation?”  “Yes. But we’re not in America at the moment. We’re in Wales so the emancipation clause does not count. Also, I’m not forcing y

Sarah was quite tall for a girl. She was at least 5’6 which put her six feet over me. She was not only tall but had the shape of a model, all legs and a very curvaceous body. She was blonde and blue eyed, ticking off each box for a heroine in every stereotypical high school teen movie there was. I just hoped she wasn't as vain and mean as them.  I clasped her hand gratefully. “Nice to meet you Sarah. I'm Kiera. Kiera Ba….Brooke.” My new surname was going to take some getting used to. I don't know how mother had done it, but she had convinced someone at the records office that not only had we been victims of a house fire, we had no families whatsoever seeing as she was a single woman raised in the orphanage and my dad was dead. We got new names, papers a

 “I've got chemistry next and the best seat..” “...... is the middle one?” I finished for her.  “Yes! Not too far from the board and not so forward the teacher has to call on you all the time.” Hmm. I never thought of it that way. I always chose the back because it was as far away as I could get from the teacher AND all the mini monsters in my school. I stared at Sarah again, trying to imagine which side of the coin she would have fallen on at my old school. She was way too pretty to be bullied. Maybe she'll do the bullying? But I couldn't reconcile this bubbly, affectionate girl with those vapid bimbos at my school. Tamara and her cronies were nowhere as pretty Sarah but were meaner than actual street cats. “C'mon!” She urged again, pulling on my arm. I got up and glanced to my right but

Kiera's POV You could hear a pin drop. They stared at me in shock and I stared back aghast. What in god's name was I to do now?  At Littlerock high school, we had some unwritten rules as well. For example, everyone knew that the best table right in the middle of the cafeteria only belonged to the soccer players and their darling cheerleaders. Even if for some unforeseen reason -like when the coach lost his mind and made the soccer team practice an entire afternoon- no one in the entire school would dare brush their hands against the table let alone be brave enough to sit down there. It would seem the same is true for St. Patrick. In my school, making a level 3 faux pas like that made you the number one target of all the bullies in school aka the jocks, their cheerleader girlfriends and all their popular friends or any i