A loud siren noise blared through the room. “Ughhh! 5 more minutes!!!”, Addison grunted. “Ria, can you get that?”, Addison said. Soteria was lying at the foot of her bed in the form of a black cat. She just turned away and licked her paw. “Fine.”, Addison said. She sat up and her palm landed on the snooze button. She rolled off the bed and accidentally hit her head on the nightstand. She winced in pain, rubbing her head. Addison heard footsteps coming up the stairs. “Addyyy! Breakfast time!!”, someone said in a sing-songy voice. Addy looked at Ria. “Where is HER snooze button! It's 6 am! It should be forbidden to wake up this early”, she thought. “Coming Aunt Gemma!”, she shouted. She quickly got dressed and rushed downstairs.

Gemmaline turned to Addy as she walked downstairs. “I made your favorite! Enchantaberry Waffles!”, she said.  “What’s the occasion?”, Addy said, as she put a waffle in her mouth.
“Your first day of high school silly!”, Gemma said in a joyful voice. Addy slumped into a chair. “Was that today?”, she said in a muffled voice. “C,mon Addy. I know you are scared but-”, Gemma said, but was interrupted. “No, I'm not scared. I’m just... not a people person, ya know?”. “Not a people person, huh? What happened to the Addy that used to run around with other kids at the playground pretending to cast spells?”, Gemma said in a smug voice. “Oh, she’s still there. Just deep, deep, deep, deep, DEEEEPPP down.”, Addy replied. “Just- promise me you’ll at least TRY to have a good day”, Gemma said. “Ok, fine. I'll try.”, Addy said. “Thank you.”, Gemma said, as she kissed Addison on the head. Addison smoothed her hair out and walked towards the door. She slumped her bag onto her shoulder and unlocked the door. “Bye Aunt Gemma”. Gemma blew a kiss as Addy walked out the door.

Addison took a deep breath and headed towards the bus stop. She sat on the bench and looked down both ways of the cobblestone road. She pulled out her magic scroll. She started swiping through old pictures of her as a kid. One picture caught her attention. It was a picture of her holding her first wand. It was a basic starter wand, with a safety strap. “Was I really that danger-prone?”, she thought. The next photo was one of her dangling in the air, hanging from her wand. “Nevermind”, she thought.

Rain pouring. Clouds looming over the horizon. Leaves rustled under her feet as she ran through Dark Forest. A dark and mysterious creature weaved effortlessly through the trees. It was as if she could feel it breathing down her neck. Panting, carrying something in her arms. Her amulet flashed, seeming to be in rhythm with the lightning. Just then, shock traveled through her body.

She fell to the ground, her amulet flung off, along with the bundle in her arms. The bundle rolled behind a log, the amulet next to it. The creature lunged towards the amulet, only to be launched back by some sort of barrier. The creature pounded on the barrier, to no avail. The castor of this magical shield was an Enchantress named Indala. She was trying her best to hold the barrier, but her energy was close to depletion.

The barrier fell and the creature tried to grab the amulet. “Famalios Artcurus!”, Indala shouted. A flash of deep purple flew out of the amulet. “Soteria! Take Addison to Valdera and bring her to Gemmaline!”, she shouted. Soteria morphed into a Gryffin and picked up Addison and the amulet. Soteria flew up into the sky. She looked back at her master. “Go! I shall handle this”, Indala shouted as she opened a portal in the sky. Soteria flew into the portal, and it warped shut.

Red: It's definitely Cyan
Yellow: Yea, I agree
Pink: I-i think it's Red
Black:Shut it Pink
Pink: Oh, s-sorry...
White: So it's settled. We're voting Cyan
Cyan:floats into oblivion
Cyan was not the imposter
Yellow: Oh-whoops.
Pink: cries in Spanish
White: Yellow what did you do?!
Yellow: ME?! Blame pink!! She should've tried harder to stop us!!
Pink: W-well, Black told me to be quiet...
Black: No I didn't.
Yellow: Yes you did black-_-
Black: No, I told her to shut up. Not be quiet.
Yellow: That's the same thing!!
Black: No it's not. There's a big difference.
Them:inaudible arguing
Red: Sits in chair and sharpens ****** knife
Them:Still not paying attention
Ghost of Cyan: looks at tail WHERE ARE MY FEET?!?!

Prisoners. Forced to work or die. Children practically stolen from their cradles by the crooked system. Placed to work before they even knew what work was. Children deprived of their childhood so that the rich could have a childhood. They weaved the carpets the privileged walked upon. They sewed the silk curtains the wealthy used to shroud themselves in the darkness of their inhibitions.

Through all this suffering, the true injustice was the minuscule pay they received. Hours of work for a single penny. Having to endure the pain that society has placed upon them like shackles from which they can never be freed. Mansions built on the tears and broken bones of suffering children.

While they sat in their dining halls sipping wine and chatting with each other, children were struggling to get a single drop of water. Children working like it's all they know how to do because it is. Their employers didn't care if they got hurt. They just threw a band-aid on the wound, no matter how severe, then tossed them aside like a forgotten teddy bear.

But why should they care? The press wouldn't bother bringing the error of their ways into the spotlight of the world. Their handkerchiefs laced with children's tears, their pockets lined with shattered dreams, their mouths full of misled truths, and their hearts filled with greed. As some slept on piles of silk sheets and feathered pillows, others slept on the floor, if they were lucky enough to sleep.  Children trying to sew the fabric of their lives together while corporations tore the threads apart.

Little ones turned to slaves.
Rich turned to monsters.
Justice turned to stone.

You were a gift to me. You brought joy to my life. As I held you in my arms, I knew I would never let anything happen to you.  

I stayed by your side through thick and thin. Helped you work out your issues and let out your frustration. We would hand ornaments on the tree and bake cookies together. We spent our childhood together.

Until that one day, when we were ripped apart. The result of some petty argument. I felt powerless. We had no say in anything. I would give up everything just to be with you again.

To this day, I resent Christmas, because it brings back too many memories. I lay under the tree, and things just aren't the same without you.

That dark, ominous feeling. The feeling of your inner monsters taking over. That empty taste in your mouth. Your eyes bleak, but your thoughts are spinning faster by the minute. The windows to your soul are broken and cracked.

You live in a world of comparison. Longing for perfection, you force your body to take a shape it doesn't want.
You text a ":)" to everyone,  just to cover up the fact that you can't do this alone.  Throwing the phrase "I'm okay" around like confetti, while your inner voice is screaming "I'm broken".

Death, an inevitable factor of life. You never stop to appreciate the days you spend together. Until that one moment. Time freezes, and reality seems as if it's an illusion. A shattered heart does no good. Tears won't bring them back. You never truly acknowledge their presence until they're gone.

Stop to cherish every moment and be there for each other.  Remember, no moment is permanent. The sadness will pass like clouds on a rainy day. The sun will shine through, and joy will return to your heart. Just have patience.