Attached.

My entire life changed. My mom and I moved in with Emma and the man she had apparently been living with. Franklin was his name. Emma and I shared a small room with on mattress on the floor to serve as a bed with just one thin blanket. I didn't really mind, and she didn't seem to either. Actually, to be honest, I more than just didn't mind; I liked it. It was warm; she was warm, just like she always was. Who needed a lousy blanket when you could just cling to your own personal, human heater all night?

Neither of us went to school anymore since my mom homeschooled us everyday. The man, Franklin, helped Emma and me learn to control our powers. Emma ended up doing most of the cooking since Franklin and I both had the cooking skill of a pebble and my mom had other things she needed to do when she wasn't busy homeschooling Emma and me.

I was happier than ever there. For the first time in my life, I felt special, important. I could move things with my mind. And I got better at it really fast. Within just 2 days, I was able to keep Emma suspended in the air whenever I wanted, which was always. She got nervous and started freezing everything near her the first few times as she got used to not having the ground beneath her feet. Then it became second nature for both of us. I even did it accidentally sometimes. Having Emma floating off the ground really annoyed my mom though and she demanded that I stop. The demand didn't last long though. I turned to keeping Franklin's and her feet off the ground along with telekinetically messing up her hair constantly and she changed her mind within a few minutes.

It helped, too, that Emma couldn't figure out how to control her powers unlike me. I knew it was horrible to be happy that she was failing, but she had done everything else in our lives nearly flawlessly while I blundered it all, so I was glad to finally be the flawless one while she blundered. Just a bit of balance was all I wanted. She could keep the good grades, the perfect charisma, the beauty I wanted. I could move things with my mind and I was good at it. And, best of all, my mom was proud of me, no matter how annoyed she was with having everything floating.

The homeschooling aspect of my new life was a bit of a buzzkill though. It reminded me that Emma was smarter than me. She understood everything the moment she was told it and I had to hear it what felt like 20 times before I could understand. And while I would get to the point that I just wanted to scream in frustration, she just sat there, completely calm and cool. Just as I was about to act like a little kid losing Monopoly and throw everything, Emma would silently place her hand on my back and quietly explain what had been confusing me and my frustration seemed to vaporize. I didn't get how she could just stay so calm whenever I'd get so frustrated. I wasn't sure if I envied her or admired her for that. Probably a mix of both.

Sometimes, I couldn't understand Emma at all. I clung onto her, physically and emotionally, because she was warm and had always been able to comfort me since the day we met. I felt safer and happier with her arms around me and her voice in my ear. And, most of the time, she acted like she wanted me around just as much as I wanted her around. But there were exceptions. Sometimes, she seemed to be afraid of me.  And her fear was tangible. The heat in her would fade and everything around her would start to freeze. I felt guilty whenever she acted like that. I assumed that I had done something wrong, something to scare her. I got to close or something. She distanced herself and I mimicked the action. Then, out of nowhere, she would act like the Emma I was used to again, my Emma. I was always too afraid to ask her why she had been acting strange in the overwhelming fear that I might remind her of whatever I had done wrong and she would distance herself again. 

Then, when she started floating away from me as she slept and I tried desperately to cling to her warmth, I was even more confused. The first few nights this happened, I thought I was accidentally doing it. I was angry with myself for literally forcing her away from me and leaving me with only the thin blanket to keep me warm. She was annoyed with me when she'd wake up suddenly, fall out of the sky, and land painfully on the mattress which wasn't exactly soft. At least the first time. But I told her I didn't mean to, and she believed me. 

I stopped being able to sleep after a few days of this, too afraid that I would unconsciously lift her into the air yet again, and, still, she would end up floating up, despite my deliberate focus not to. Slowly, I realized I wasn't doing it and it only made my fear worse. Something was wrong with her, not me. I didn't know how to help her. I left our room before she'd wake up often, not wanting to hear her groan of pain as she smashed into the mattress yet again. 

I didn't avoid it completely though. She woke up in the middle of the night, suspended in the air, and fell crashing down onto the mattress beside me, making me jump. It caught me off guard and I couldn't form any coherent words. I was scared, and crawled into the corner, terrified I might do something to make it worse for her. She looked confused, scared, and in pain, but fell asleep quickly. 

Much later, when I was sure she was asleep again, I crawled back over to her, wrapped my arms weakly around her neck, and rested my head against her shoulder. I started crying suddenly and was unable to hold back my tears any longer. I selfishly wanted to wake her up so she could comfort me, but I knew that, for once, she couldn't comfort me. I was scared for her beyond reason. I knew she was scared just as much as me, if not more. That wouldn't help. What I needed was to understand what was going on and for her to no longer be scared either. 

I was so absorbed in my worry for her and my crying, that, at first, I didn't notice her arms had moved to hold on to me as she slept. But when I did, my tears slowed and I lifted my head to look at her face. She looked happy. More than just happy, actually. She must have been having an amazing dream. Her hand touched my hair softly and then I felt her start to float into the air. Instinctively, I tightened my grip on her. My arms clung to her neck for dear life and my legs and wrapped themselves tightly around her waist. Logic occurred to me a moment later though and I let go, falling to the mattress while only a few inches above it, while she continued to float higher and higher. 

Was it selfish to let go like  that just because I knew I'd get hurt when she woke up and gravity pulled her to the mattress? No, she would have been more hurt had she hurt me too. And I wasn't helping her by clinging onto her like that. I hadn't wanted to let go. I shook my head angrily.

Morning came before I knew it and my mom came in quietly, obviously because I wasn't up yet. Immediately, she jumped to the conclusion that I was making Emma float, just as I had originally assumed. I hadn't expected her to be surprised though, since I was sure she had already read my thoughts. She figured it out quickly though, just as Emma suddenly woke up and fell to the mattress with a thud! Somehow, though, this was funny to my mom, who began laughing as Emma turned bright red. I felt the mattress begin to freeze and the air in the small room followed suit.

"Emma!" I said quickly. I could see my breath. And still my mom was laughing. The room warmed again and I relaxed a bit.

"You do realize you're completely mental, right, Emma?" my mom laughed even more. I couldn't understand what was so funny, but quickly followed her out after she mentioned Franklin burning breakfast. 

Emma seemed to be much more cheerful mood for the rest of the day, which I was thankful for. It wasn't until later that night, after I had assumed Emma was asleep, that I found out why she was suddenly so cheerful. 

Warmth.

Emma sank to her knees a moment after walking in and whispered something.

My mom ran over to me quickly and tried to break the chains. No use. They wouldn't break.

"Emma," My mom said, "freeze the chains, we might be able to break them if you do." Emma nodded and came over.

"I shouldn't have left . . ." She whispered. /You shouldn't have come back either/, I thought meancingly The chains grew colder, but not enough to break them. Emma swore and my mom grabbed her arm and yanked her back.

"She's faking it!" my mom realised. I sprung up, freeing myself from the chains and used my mind to send both of them flying into the wall behind them. Emma jumped up immediately and checked to see if my mom was still alive. She was just knocked out. I silently walked up behind Emma.

"Come to pretend to be a hero again, Emma?" I snarled in her ear. She spun around. "Just like when you attacked me in the alley and made it look like someone else did it?"

"What?!?" She said, trying to act innocent. I knew better though.

"Oh, don't play dumb, Emma. I know it was you. Trying to look like a hero, but you're not. Ever since second grade, you've always been trying to act like your a better person than everyone else, but you're not!" She stumbled backward and fell. "Oh, poor Emma fell? Guess what? I don't care! I HATE YOU! I'LL KILL YOU!" Then I lunged at her, ready to strangle her. Ice appeared out of nowhere between us though and I smashed into it. I saw stars for a split second, but shook them away.

"Luna--" She said, now standing.

"What? You have to use ice to protect you? Ha! Won't work." I used my mind to send the ice flying at Emma. She put up her arms and shot flames out of her hands, melting the ice and burning my shoulder.

"Sorry! You okay?" She said, trying to act like she was a hero still. I scanned the room for something to mentally throw at her. There was a knife on the floor and sent it right towards her head. She ducked and it pierced the wall. "Have you lost your /mind/?!?" Emma screamed.

"No, but you're about to have no need for one. Once I KILL YOU!" I lunged at her again and she pulled me down to the ground with her.

"Luna!" She yelled back, pinning me to the ground. "Why the hell are you trying to /kill/ me?!? I'm your best friend!" Her words hit a nerve.

"No, you're not!" I screamed, tears leaking from my eyes. I tried to hit her as hard as I could, still screaming. "You're not! You're not! You're not!"

"Luna--" She was looking at me like she actually cared and I couldn't figure out if she was faking it or not anymore which only made me madder.

"SHUT UP! I HATE YOU!"

"I'm sorry!" She screamed in my face.

"No, you're not! You're just a stupid liar!"

"I was trying to protect you!" She lied. But part of me didn't think she was lying. I stopped screaming as much.

"Ha! Yeah, right. From what?"

"From me! And from someone taking you to get to me." She stopped. She seemed to be thinking, then whispered quietly, "'Let me feel you, carry you--'"

"'--Higher. Watch our words spread hope like--'" I continued. It was a song that we used to sing together all the time. I stopped hitting her and started crying even more. I missed her and I felt stupid for trying to kill her.

"--Fire.'" Bright orange flames lit up in her hands for a brief moment. "I shouldn't have left like that, Luna. I'm sorry. Can you forgive me?" I nodded and she stood up then helped me to my feet too.

"As long as you can forgive me for trying to kill you," I muttered. She laughed and nodded then walked over to my mom. My mom woke up a moment later and looked between Emma and I quickly.

"It's okay now," Emma said.

"Sorry, Mom," I muttered.

"Don't worry about it, Luna," my mom said. "Let's get Franklin and get out of here." She got up. Emma put her hand on my burnt shoulder as we walked out and the pain disappeared.

A man I didn't know was limping in as we walked out. "Oh, you already got Luna?" he said. I noticed another man who loked almost exactly like him, frozen solid. Emma must've done that.

"Emma got her," my mom said. "Let's get out of here before your brother and his friend defrost." The we walked outside with him. The man who had taken me and talked me into wanting to murder my mom and best friend was lying on the ground in an awkward position, also frozen. I realised Emma probably could have easily stopped me when I was trying to kill her. She could have been mad, but she wasn't. Her arm was over my shoulder and I could feel her warmth. I smiled as we walked down streets I didn't know to a place I didn't know, but I wasn't scared.

Murder Plot.

"Wakey, wakey, little moon girl," the cold voice from before laughed menacingly. Chills went down my spine as I woke. I was in a dim room, my wrists and ankles tied together by thick rope. The ground I was sitting on was filthy and a man with dark hair and bright green eyes was smiling terribly at me. I glared at him as darkly as I could. He laughed. "You're exactly like your mother. Want to throw me into a wall? Try it, go ahead." He laughed again and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. "It won't work. You can't use your powers, can you? Mommy let the bad guys take you away and now you can't escape. Poor little moon girl."

"Whadyawanwime?" I said. He laughed again. I realised I could barely move my mouth and tried to move my arms. They moved sluggishly. My head seemed cloudly.

"Like the drugs? Your entire body has slowed down. If we gave you any more, it could kill you because your heart wouldn't beat fast enough." Anger surged through me, though rather sluggishly too, and he stumbled backward a step or two.

"Let . . . me . . . go," I forced myself to say slowly. He snarled then began laughing again.

"Moonshine, don't you see? I did you a favour. They never cared about you. Mommy and your so called friend both left you," he hit a nerve and my anger towards Emma and my mom exploded inside me. "Mommy let us take you. She doesn't want you. Niether does your little friend. And daddy's dead. Why would you want to go back?" He knew he was getting to me and smiled cruelly. Then I realised he was just trying to turn me against them.

"You liar. . . . They care . . . about me," my anger was giving me more strength to speak. "My mom loves me." He looked at me sadly.

"Mommy sent your friend away. Mommy could have stopped me from taking you very easily, but she didn't. And your friend could have saved you too, but she left instead."

"You're lieing. Emma . . . would never . . . leave me."

"And yet she did, didn't she? She doesn't want to be around you. She hates you. She hopes I'll kill you."

"Shut up!" I screamed, starting to cry.

"All she cares about is herself and that boy."

"SHUT UP! I HATE HER! I WANT HER DEAD!" My face was drenched in tears and hate was boiling through me.

"She'll be here soon enough, to make herself look like a hero and 'save' you even though you clearly don't want to be saved. Mommy got her buddy who's going to electrocute you after they save you. Mommy and Emma will look like heroes, saving you, then their friend will kill you 'accidentally.' That's their plan, at least. But you can kill them first, right, my little moon girl?" I nodded darkly. There was a crash outside and voices. One, I recognized as my mother's and more hate boiled within me. Someone shouted Emma's name.

The man untied the ropes around my ankles and wrists and motioned for me to get up. I did so and he walked me over to a wall with chains on it. "These are fake and you can open them with your mind anyway." He "locked" me to the wall. "Focus your mind. Your mom can hear your thoughts. Don't let her." I nodded and tried to make myself think I was miserable and wanted to be save. "I've got to 'fight' them. You kill them though." I nodded. He ran out and I hear more crashes, shouting and waited for Emma and my mom to come in. I sent random objects in the room flying while I waited.

Then they walked in.

Lightning

"Luna. Luna. Luna! Wake up!" I was back in my room. Everything was still scattered everywhere, and everything was broken. My mom looked extremely worried. "Luna, we need to get out of here." I heard a thud from the front of the house. My mom looked back suddenly then turned back to me, looking even more worried. "Get up!" She grabbed my arm and flung me out of my bed. "Don't hesitate to use your powers; they already know."

"What?! Powers?!"

"Telekinesis. Moving things with your mind. That's why your room and half the city looks like a tornado came through it right now. C'mon, we need to get out of here, Luna." She ran out, dragging me along with her. There was another thud thuding. She pulled me against a wall just outside of the entry room and covered my mouth and eyes. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.

Another thud and the door must've broken. Heavy footsteps ran past us. A man ran toward my room, as if he knew exactly where it was. My mom grabbed my arm again and pulled me out of the house and down the alley. It was almost dawn. Lightning shot out in front of us. My mom flung out her arm to stop me from running into it. It disappeared a moment later and then she pushed me forward.

"RUN, LUNA!" My mom shouted. Another flash of lightning lit up a older man's face. The lightning seemed to come straight out of his hands and hit my mom in the chest. I saw her lit face tighten determinedly and then the man's hands jumped towards his head as more lightning shot out of them. He screamed in pain. The man that had run into our house ran back out toward me. He leapt in the air at me and sudden fear hit me. A split second later, he shot backward and hit our house with a crack. A hand grabbed my forearm and started pulling me down the alley. A moment later, another flash of lightning and my mom, the one who had grabbed my arm, fell to the ground.

"Mom!" I quickly knelt down beside her and tried to pull her up. Then I saw more bright light and felt myself knocked backward and electricity shoot through me. I screamed just as a hand closed around my wrist and pulled me straight off the ground.

"Don't worry, little girl," A cold voice snarled above me. "We don't want mommy. We just want you." Then a foot smashed into my skull and I blacked out.

Moonlight.

The moon moves oceans. The moon is the constantly scapegoat for abnormal events. The moon brings light to the otherwise black night. The moon silently guards in the darkness. but the moon could not light our way without the Sun to reflect the light from. My name is Luna, or "moon."


The first time it happened was in second grade. We were playing dodgeball. Jeremy, the hardest thrower, threw the ball straight at me. I froze and the ball stopped an inch away from me. It stayed hovering in the air for a moment before dropping to the ground in front of me. Jeremy ran away screaming things about me being a witch or the devil and the other kids all followed. I started crying and decided I was going to run away. Then a girl in my class who no one talked to sat down right next to me.

"He's just mad he didn't get you," she said quietly and put her arm over my shoulder. "They're all just jealous." She didn't say anything else after that. I just cried for the rest of recess and she just sat there with me. And after that day, she became my best friend.


Nothing weird happened again for years. Sometimes, I'd feel like things around me would move on their own, but I didn't pay attention. It all started again 6 years later though.

I had been having the worst week of my life and didn't want to go home, so I asked my best friend to stay after school with me. I wish I hadn't though. Everything changed that day. She changed.

My house was down an alleyway and she always refused to let me walk down it alone, especially that day because it was already dark out and the alley was even darker. I don't really remember what happened. We were attacked by someone and whoever it was knocked me out. I don't remember anything until the next day. My mom told me Emma (my best friend) had saved my life that night and I don't doubt she did, but I wish I could remember it.

Emma wasn't the same after that though. She had hurt herself really bad and fractured her skull while protecting me, so my mom decided she could stay at our house for a few weeks. It was a dream come true to live with my best friend. At first. But she started acting weird. She stopped sleeping and eating. She'd stay up all night writing things and then ripping them up and throwing them away. She wouldn't talk to me or look at me in the eyes anymore either. I knew something was wrong, but she wouldn't tell me anything. She just kept telling me she couldn't tell me and it was for my sake that she wouldn't tell me anything.

Then she left. I don't remember what we said, but she finally told me she was leaving in the middle of the night, got up, and left. I ran after her and she wouldn't listen to me. I screamed, "I HATE YOU!" as she ran away from me, but she was gone.

I ran back in the house and into my room, wanting to break everything in sight. My clock lept off my night stand and flew across the room and crashed into the wall. My lamp flew in another direction. Everything in my room started flying into walls. My sheets tore themselves apart. Then I was knocked over. Everything in the air fell straight down and stopped flying everywhere.

"Luna! Are you insane?!" My mom yelled at me. I scrambled back to my feet.

"She's the insane one! SHE JUST RAN OUT!" I screamed at her, tears suddenly streaming out of my eyes.

"I know."

"EMMA LEFT!" I screamed some more. She hugged me and I tried to get away, but her grip on me was too strong. "I HATE HER!"

"No, you don't," she said softly, still not letting me go. "She didn't want to leave, but she had to. She's been risking our lives by staying here and she would have risked yours even more if she told you anything." I stopped struggling.

"How did you know she didn't tell me anything?" I looked at her suspiciously.

"She promised."

"Wait, this is your fault, isn't it? YOU MADE HER LEAVE!" I wrenched myself out of her grip and started hitting her as hard as I could.

"Luna, she'd be dead if it weren't for me. She nearly killed herself trying to save you."

"LIAR!" She suddenly flew across the room and struck the wall with a thud. It was like glue was holding her suspended off the ground on the wall. For a moment, she looked terrified, then she closed her eyes. A moment later, I felt my head explode and fell to my knees, clutching my skull. She fell to the ground. The pain in my head stopped.

"Luna, calm yourself." I looked up. She was walking towards me slowly. She outstretched her hand towards my head and I sprung up and ran out of the house, everything around me flying and crashing into walls again. I ran through the alley, just as Emma had done not long before me. Everything kept crashing. The moon was shining brightly and my mom was running after me, shouting things, but I didn't listen to her. It was like a moonlit tornado was surrounding me, destroying everything in my path. My mom caught up to me just after I got out of the alley and grabbed me. Then I fainted.