Four - Friends (.008)

She stood in the door way in pure awe. Hearing the festivities was nothing remotely close to actually seeing the energy pour out of very available crack and crevice. "Don’t rock the Jukebox" by Alan Jackson could have easily been heard by anyone who was more than two miles away. The band strung and banged each instrument they had, creating a tune that made the crowd go wild. People of all ages were lined up on the wooden dance floor. Women in their fluffy dresses and cowboy attire were being tossed through the air, and kids were chasing other kids through the feet of their parents. There was so much chaos erupting right in front of her very eyes, it was starting to make her head hurt.

No one, with the exception of Faven, seemed to care about her entrance; they were too sucked into their own conversations. Ellyn was somewhat relieved by this, but with the Faven was carrying on; her prescience would be known in no time. The tan haired woman waved frenetically until she got Ellyn's attention. Nervously, the blonde waved back.

She was sitting next to a group of women around her age. Faven rose from her seat, immediately running over to where Ellyn stood. She looked nothing like she did earlier. Her tan mane was no long straight and lifeless. The auburn, wavy strands of hair cascaded down her shoulders onto her voluminous white tank. She completed the rest of her outfit with a simple pair of jeans and boots. Although it was so simple, Ellyn couldn't help but love it as a whole.

"What took you so long? Thought you had gotten lost or something! You look amazing in your dress!"

"I can't feel anything." She wasn't lying. Literally, her entire body had gone into a state of shock, due to the tightness of the corset within the dress. The threads of the pale fabric were invincible. There was no evidence of the threads giving into Ellyn's torso and curves. She was sure she would suffocate, or past out from the lack of oxygen to her brain.

"Oh you'll be fine. Round here, beauty is pain sweetheart." Smiling, she grabbed Ellyn's hand and led her toward the three women she was sitting next to only moments ago.

"Noel. Zoey. Chantal. this is Ellyn. She's not from round here, but she staying with Old Lady Brenton." The women's faces lit up with interest.

The red haired woman on the left was the first to speak. "Oh, so you's a city girl?"

Ellyn stood there contemplating how she should go about answering that question. Answering it wrong could result in a bunch of harsh judgment and lead to many unanswerable questions that she wasn’t prepared for. In order to avoid pandemonium, she gave the woman a brief nod.

A redhead smiled up at Ellyn."Oh don't be nervous honey. We don't bite, unless you bite first." What was up with everyone saying that?

The women had drifted off into another conversation that didn’t seem to concern her, leaving her eyes free to roam the festivities. People were laughing and catching up on old times, basically enjoying their time with their neighbors. She noticed Isaiah laughing and chatting with a man with a head full of brown hair. So quickly, he went from being stone faced and pissy to smiling and enjoying himself. Mentally, Ellyn rolled her eyes.

Suddenly a woman appeared from behind his shadow. Ellyn could feel her self-esteem plummet into the negatives. It was something about the way the light hit the woman's face that made Ellyn want to cry. Her presence mimicked a black raven soaring the through the breeze of twilight. A small bob consumed the majority of her sharp, pointed face. Her freckles danced as she laughed at whatever was said to her, but behind the laughs appeared to be a tattoo of mystery within her psyche. The raven covered her body with a simple black tunic, jeans and a pair of cowboy boots. An outfit so simple, screamed elegance and poise. Even though Ellyn didn't even know the name of the woman, she wanted to be her in every shape or form.

The raven ceased her conversation with person she was speaking to and turned to face Isaiah. Her hazel eyes smiled up at his face. She mumbled something in his direction, making him chuckle slightly. Their lips met suddenly. When they parted, the raven's eyes shifted in Ellyn's direction, nearly burning a hole in her skull. Ellyn immediately turned her attention to something harmless.

"Ellyn. Ellyn!" Faven's voice restarted Ellyn's fried mind.

"Sorry, what?"

"Dinner's starting. Come on."
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A knife chimed again a glass, gathering the attention of the dinner party. The side conversations fell, and the interest turned toward the front of the room. Mrs. Brenton rose to her feet. Since Ellyn last saw her, she had changed into something more comfortable than that skirt and shirt. Like many of the quest in attendance, she wore a pair f dusty cowboy boots and purple tank over a gray tunic. The outfit alone seemed to take twenty years off her face. Through her thick caramel glasses, her eyes roamed over the twenty people that were present. Ellyn's table was positioned directly in front of the family table, which consisted of Gabriel, Isaac, Faven, Isaiah, and surprisingly the raven. Every few minutes, she would turn and glare at Ellyn, causing her skin to dampen with sweat.

Instinctively, Ellyn picked the table that Noel, Zoey and Alexis sat at. Being that they were the only people she knew other than the family, she had no other choice but to sit there. Once again, she had been excluded from the conversation. Now, she was left to the malicious eyes of the black raven. She found herself trapped under her gaze. It was almost like she was paralyzed. Only when she finally broke her gaze was Ellyn allowed to use her normal five senses. It was illogical as to why this woman suddenly had a hatred for her. For heaven sakes she didn't even know the woman's name! Mentally, Ellyn sighed. She already had an enemy and she had only been here less than twenty four hours.

"Evening my fellow neighbors. On behave of the Brenton family, I would like to thank you for allowing us to host this dinner once again. Now before we start dinner, I would like to introduce a guest that we have with us tonight," She paused and looked at Ellyn. "Ellyn would you stand up please?"

The beat of Ellyn's heart pulsated though her ear drums. She found it hard to breath every second or so. Slowly, Ellyn's exterior rose from the chair she sat in, allowing her face to become the center of attention. She scanned a few faces within her focus, trying to find any disapproving face. Nothing. Smiles and twinkling eyes stared at her waiting to see what she would do next. Seconds later, the group broke out into applause. The blonde couldn't help but blush and return a smile to her new found acquaintances.

"With that being said," Mrs. Brenton continued, "Dinner is served!"

*************************************************

Each second she spent around this family, she began to notice more and more habits that were foreign to Ellyn. Politeness. Manners. Love. All of which Ellyn never seen in its basic form until now. She was too young to understand any of that when she was given away by her parents. Seeing it now almost made it seem wrong. She hadn't seen happiness in two decades. Not real happiness anyway. The only happiness she was accustom to was the kind she was forced to see on a strangers face each and every day for ten years. She had never been happy, until now. Although, she couldn't really call this happiness. More like, stability for the time being. She knew this luxury wouldn't last forever, and it would only be a matter of time before he finds her and takes back what is rightfully his.

The last few guests had dissipated from the party and headed back to their homes. Ellyn had managed to make a countless amount of friends. All of them had extended a generous invitation to visit their home and receive a home cooked meal. These people were pretty serious about their food consumption. Like the Brenton's, everyone had taken her in with open arms. It was like they had known Ellyn for years.

When she appeared from the bathroom, she caught a glimpse of Isaiah and the raven, who's name turned out to be Viviane, walking hand in hand out toward the barn entrance. The name alone sounded inhuman and perilous. After suffering a few more harsh glares throughout the dinner, Ellyn was exhausted. To her surprise, Viviane was the only one who had seemed to have any abhor toward Ellyn. She had expected to be judged, but now that it happened; it stung harder than she liked.

"Ellyn..." A motherly voice called a few yards away from her. The blonde turned toward the hall were dinner had taken place. Mrs. Brenton was stacking up the plates and cleaning the tables. The barn house was a ghost town. The last and final band member had gathered their belongings and left. It was just them. She held her breath as she walked toward the open door. What could she possibly want? Did I do something wrong? D-did she know? Many of these questions stung like needles against the side of her skull.

When she passed the threshold that separated the dance floor from the dining area, her walking died down.

"Come, grab a sponge and wipe those tables over there." 'Was she serious?' Ellyn thought. Her feet were screaming inside of her shoes, and from her lack of sleep last night, she need a full ten hours of unconsciousness. Obediently, Ellyn grabbed the sponge and began to scrub away blotchs of food that managed to miss someone's mouth and land on the table.

Silence lingered as they cleaned, but the tension levels were sky rocketing.

"Did you enjoy yourself tonight?" Mrs. Brenton finally spoke, but her focal point remained on the table she was cleaning.

"Yes. Yes I did, and thank you for inviting me. I don't know how I can ever repay you for your hospitality."

"Actually," the tone of her voice suddenly went from dead to interested, "that’s why I asked you to come over." She sat the sponge she was using by the stack of plates, turning her full attention to Ellyn. "You know dear, nothing in the world is free. As a young lady like yourself, you have to work for everything you want. I know who you are Ellyn." The blonde could feel her heart explode in her chest. How did she know? I'm caught. It's over. It's all over.

"A lost soul, stumbling through her life, not really knowing who she truly is, trust me, I have been down that road a time or two." Mrs. Brenton drifted off into thought and a smile played at the corners of her mouth. Ellyn took a deep sigh of relief, throwing the sponge on top of the table she was cleaning. "I can't help you get there Miss Granger, but you have to help me help you. Now, just because I'm letting you stay here, doesn't mean it's gonna be a free ride. You have to earn your stay. With that being said..."

Mrs. Brenton picked up the sponge she was using earlier and handed it to Ellyn. "This is how you will earn your stay." Ellyn grabbed the sponge, looking between both it and Mrs. Brenton. With the most sincere smile, Mrs. Brenton turned on her heels and headed toward the barn door.

"When you're done, put the dishes in the sink over there," she pointed toward the doors that lead to the bathrooms, "and don't forget to take out the trash, too." Swiftly, she disappeared into the shadows of the night.

Ellyn stood there staring at the sponge in complete shock. She had just been bought over by a senior citizen. Running her finger through her neatly pinned up hair, she squeezed the sponge and continued scrubbing the tables, one by one.

************************************************************

She could feel each muscle in her back about to shut down. Her hands were throbbing from scrubbing the plates and tables free from the residue. The small cut on her finger didn't make the cleaning process go any quicker. Each time she dunked her finger into the soapy water, the blonde couldn't help but yelp in pain.

She walked up the steps slowly. Each step proved to be more painful than the other. There were only four steps she had to climb, but it felt like it were hundreds.

Finally making it to the top, Ellyn leaned toward the door handle, only for it to be knocked away by another aggressive hand. Before she had time to react her back was pushed against the paneling and a black figure towered over her trembling body. She wanted to close her eyes and pretend that he hadn't found her, but the shock pinned her eyelids open wide. As her pupils dilated, she could finally make out the face in the darkness, but she didn't know whether to be comforted or even more terrified.


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