From the very beginning, River and Storm had a strange childhood.
Born as Roanoke and Evangelina, the twins were born into a household ruled by an old Victorian-style macabre. Their parents were very fond of unique, vintage things mixed with a healthy dose of Brahm Stoker and Halloween. So, naturally, when they were born, the two were immediately introduced into the odd world their parents adored. They were spoiled from day one; both parents had good jobs, so money was never an issue, and they doted on the brother and sister every moment they could. Life was perfect, and despite their oddness, they grew up happy, healthy, and with plenty of friends and toys.
One of the family's biggest dreams was always to own an old Victorian home, a sincere piece of history, but the one had never come along. The year the twins turned thirteen, though, a house came on the market; it was three stories of rooms with hidden entrances, turrets and ornate original woodwork. It was absolutely gorgeous, and everything they had ever dreamed of- and they could afford it. First thing the husband could the following week was go to sign on the house; the owner was all too eager, and practically forced the contract into the male Kalon's hands; it took him by surprise, as he couldn't believe that no one else had even so much as made an offer on the place yet. He couldn't believe him luck- or, at least, what he thought was luck. Within a week, the sale was finalized and they were moving into their new home.The twins, of couse, set in to exploring every single hidden room and secret passageway, while their mother Serafina unpacked and their father set to making minor repairs wherever he could. Again, everything was perfect.
The first year in their new home was uneventful, save for a few strange noises and maybe a shadow or two in your peripheral vision, but no one really thought much about it. It was an old house that could be creepy at times, so it was most likely just them being affected by the amazing energy of the house. During the twins' 14th birthday, though, the energy seemed to shift; only slightly at first, then more and more. One of their friends had asked who the young grey Kalon playing alone in their room was, but neither the twins nor their parents had seen a grey Kalon, nor were any of their friends grey-furred. Quickly the parents went up to check, but never found anything. The day after the party, the house seemed to grow darker, colder; River and Storm began to have experiences and severe night terrors, things went missing, their mother began to get scratched... and things only snowballed from there. Soft creaks at night became knocks and opening doors, scratches became wounds, and the family no longer felt safe. Slowly the mother stepped out of her agnostic shell and went to a priest for help; things began to happen in threes, everything from sightings, to the number of scratches, to the number of times one of the twins would have the same night terror before they were allowed sleep. Everything pointed to demonic- and that scared Serafina.
Her biggest mistake? She went to the wrong priest.
One day she came home a wreck, crying and freaking out. She began throwing things out of the house that the twins held dear; anything considered "macabre" or "creepy" were thrown out to the street, including toys, games, books, everything. Very quickly the house was left barren of anything but the basics, and the twins were terrified of what was going on with their mother even moreso than the attachment itself, but that night they managed to sneak out, gather their most prized items, and hide them in a trunk in the outside shed. Their mother's tirade went on for two weeks without end; she scrubbed the house floor to ceiling, burned sage, threw holy water; finally the father went with her to meet the priest in an attempt to figure out what he said to make Serafina act this way. But when he returned, he was changed too. Suddenly there were crucifixes all over the house, a bible in every room, holy candles everywhere. They prayed at every meal, studied the bible, and it made the twins uncomfortable. Anything non-Christian was suddenly taboo, and they were grounded and punished for even the tiniest things that should not have been a big deal. When they weren't allowed to celebrate their 15th birthday, they snuck out and went up to the grocery store, bought a cupcake each, and sat on the roof quietly talking and celebrating. It was then they decided at 16, they were going to run away. They'd have their driving licenses, and they'd never be found. All of this religious mess was just too much, especially with the fact that whatever they'd done hadn't really worked, it'd only covered it up and made the monster more angry at night. River was no longer affected, but Storm's night terrors worsened more and more each day.
In the end, they didn't even made it to 16. Halfway through that last year, the priest had shown up at their door at Serafina's request and tried to exorcise Storm, holding a "holy water" soaked towel over her mouth in the process and almost suffocating her. River immediately stepped in, shoving the priest away and allowing her to breathe again. A huge fight between River and their parents ensued, leaving him "grounded" and Storm sobbing uncontrollably on her soaked bed. That night River stayed with her until their parents went to bed, and together they packed everything they could into backpacks and climbed down out of their second story bedroom. By the time the sun peeked over the eastern horizon, the two siblings were long gone. Though their parents would search tirelessly, River and Storm would never allow themselves to be found.
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were we chosen to be the new beginning ✾ though the sun surrendered its last light?
this age as we know is ending ✾ but we’re ready, we’ve waited for this time
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It took nearly a year, but by the time they turned seventeen, the two siblings had made it hundreds of miles away. With some old concert friends' help, they'd gotten fake identification cards with new names, managed to stay under the radar, and work odd jobs for cash to pay their friends for food and necessities. They were resourceful, if nothing else, and they had each other and they had a plan. Find somewhere new, set down roots; the day they turn 18 they'd enroll in a GED program, get their drivers's licenses, and be able to live freely under their real names because they'd no longer be minors. But the two quickly got attached to their nicknames, and decided that while their identification would be returned to how it should be, they'd always go by these new tags. They fit, and it made them happy.
Keeping to their plan was difficult, but they managed. Friends helped them get under the table jobs for cash, including at their favorite concert hall, the one their parents luckily didn't know about. They worked backstage and got to meet bands, get free merch, and listen to the concerts for free. It was perfect, but they knew that the longer they remained in their hometown, the more chances were that they'd be found. Plus they were tired of going from their "Safe House" to work and back, never really going out and enjoying life for fear of someone recognizing them. The summer before they turned seventeen the two got a cab to the next city over, bought plane tickets with part of their savings and left; they made it out unscathed, and no one recognized them. The entire flight, the two could do nothing but giggle and smile. It was then that they made their ultimate plan: They wanted to live in Romania. That was their endgame. So as their plane touched down in Houston for their first layover, they went to work devising a new plan. They needed money, of course, but luckily one of the bands they'd made friends with from the concert hall was going to be performing at their destination in the next few weeks. If they could get a hold of them, maybe they could hire the siblings as backstage helpers, doing little things out of the public eye. Maybe, just maybe, they could even convince the band to let them travel with them, too. What better way to never be found, than to always be on the move? They'd adhere to the band's schedule, of course, but it made the chances of being recognized much smaller. They had plenty of time to set down roots once they were out of the woods; but for now, they had a little chunk of savings to last them, and everything would eventually fall into place, as it should.
It was going to be a long road to 18, but if they made it this far, then what could stop them now?
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here we stand, at the genesis ✾ as the world is awakening
a new day, we’ll start again ✾ here we stand, at the genesis
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[ 1,500 words ]
