The last cardboard box exited her home, carried by a man as he retreated quickly to the moving van. She watched him pass; silently observing his movements to ensure her belongings were handled with care. The last thing she needed to deal with was shattered make-up or broken treasures. Not that she owned many.

The quaint cottage before her remained the same, even when her life seemed to have cracked and broken, collapsing around her. Surrounded by identical homes, the small area of her neighbourhood seemed to be trapped in its own inescapable bubble. She remembered how, at an early age, she had felt safe in the little village nestled in the valley. Now, the borders felt foreign and restricting.

At one point in time, the large front garden had acted as her playground, a stage for the time she spent with her family. Playing on the outdoor swing set, her mother gently pushing her as she rose higher and higher into the sky, seemingly able to reach the clouds. Her mother had even once told her that one day she would soar into the air, as free as a bird spreading its wings. Only now did she realise how wrong her mother had been.

Her wings were clipped, keeping her grounded. There would be no freedom for her, not for a long time.

Her brother used to stand beside her father; Jack would be holding a remote-control and would frantically mash the buttons as a minitaure car responded to his movements. Her father would laugh at the joy on the faces of his children; her mother would join him, the picture of pure serenity and the perfect family.

All of a sudden the picture contorted and faded as her memories shifted, only to be replaced by the deafening howl of sirens in the pitch black darkness. The unknown surrounded her, she wanted to cry out to the little girl on the swing, warn her of the future that would come.

''Yo, Krystal, you coming?'' The girl, Krystal, was tugged back to the present. She turned to see her brother waving an arm in the air, motioning for her to get in the car.

Nodding, she returned the smile that he flashed her and approached him slowly. Her summer dress billowed out around her as a cool breeze stirred her blonde hair, ''Sorry, I dozed off for a minute there.''

He stopped her, placing an arm on her delicate shoulder before she could enter their father's car, ''Would you like to see it. Look around for one last time?'' His words were spoken softly, his grip gentle.

Krystal turned and ran her gaze over their familiar home once more. She observed the quiet surroundings, the empty windows that now held nothing for them. ''No. Let's just get out of here.'' Her final words were spoken with confidence, her brother nodding as he agreed with her.

In her books, this scene would be so different. The main character would be optimistic; excited for the opportunities she would face in the upcoming future that her new town 'Linemell Grove' would provide. How cliché to be moving home to escape the past, she thought to herself.

Krystal lowered herself into the back seat of their small car, filled to the brim with several boxes despite the masses of space in the moving van. Jack had entered the front of the car and was now sat beside their father who sighed, his hands placed firmly on the wheel, ''Ready?''

He began to drive, not waiting for the predictable answer.

-

The journey was long as their father, Nicholas, had planned it to be. The more distance the better in his mind. His children silently agreed.

Krystal was startled when the car began to slow down. They had stopped for lunch, speaking little as they each ate and reminisced in their thoughts, and she hadn't realised how long it had been since then for them now to be arriving.

She refused to call it a 'home' just yet, especially considering how unwelcoming it seemed from the exterior. To a passer-by, the house may seem idyllic where it rested in the woods, surrounded each side by dense forest made up of towering trees. Krystal, however, did not see it this way.

The dark walls of the building were covered in a pale green moss, making the walls seem aged and unkempt. The outside garden, or what could be seen of it, was also in a state of neglect. Plants that may have once seemed beautiful were wilting and crooked, bent over their stems as they struggled to survive in the dry, cracked soil. The grass surrounding the house was overgrown, even to the point where it reached the ground floor windows. It was fairly obvious that nobody had taken it as their responsibility to keep it in order, and this saddened Krystal, making her wonder why her father had chosen this dump over any other of their options.

Her father had been the only person to see this house, and even then he only looked at pictures on the internet, before he jumped to the conclusion that it was 'perfect' for them. The sight before her had Krystal wondering why her father had been so taken by the place. Maybe the pictures were dated, and showed a different, more appealing time.

She was surprised then when her father showed no signs of disappointment, ''Amazing! It's just how I knew it would be, isn't it wonderful?'' At first, Krystal was sure that her father was either being sarcastic or was witnessing a completely different scene. Then again, maybe her negative thoughts had made her go slightly crazy.

''Sure it is.'' Jack spoke, raising an eyebrow and turning in his seat to share a confused glance with his sister.

''Well, we should go and help unpack. I can't wait for you two to see inside.'' Following his words, their father hopped out of the car and proceeded towards the derelict building. He greeted the men carrying their boxes into the house with a wide smile, seemingly too wide for Krystal's liking, almost fake.

''Are you seeing what I'm seeing?'' Krystal asked her brother, her hand poised to open the car door and begin her venture into the house.

''If you're seeing a complete dump, then yes.'' Neither of them laughed, each of them curious as to why their father had chosen such a ridiculous place for them to settle and call home.

Jack exited the car first, faster than his sister to reach the threshold and launch himself into the building, spurred on by competitive excitement. ''Shotgun the biggest bedroom!'' His words reached Krystal's ears as she stumbled along the cobblestone path leading to the doorway, far too slow to have any chance of beating her brother.

''No fair! You got a head start!'' She yelled back, finding herself stood in a small hall with a stairway leading up to the second floor, and a door to her right. Without glancing at the door, she sped up the steep stairway, hoping she didn't trip and fall flat on her face as she ran. Childishly, her thoughts were now centred on the race, desperately hoping that she wouldn't be stuck with a tiny room much like the one she had in her previous home.

''Too late! This one's mine.'' Jack's voice came from one of the doors positioned on either side of the landing at the top of the stairs.

The small corridor had only four doors which Krystal imagined were three bedrooms and one bathroom. Without confirmation, she walked towards the doorway that led to her brother, already breathing heavily due to the small amount of exercise she had done. Clearly, she was not accustomed to such physical excursion.

''That's so not fair!'' She cried, observing her brother who lay splayed out in the centre of a mattress, which had obviously been left by the previous owners.

''Yeah it is, Krys. You know how it works, you snooze you lose.'' He chuckled, his hands behind his head as he took in the disgusted expression on his sister's face. ''Go and enjoy one of the other, smaller rooms. I'm sure that they'll be more to your liking.'' He smiled cheekily, his brown eyes sparkling with delight.

Krystal grunted, annoyed as she exited the larger room, stomping her feet down the corridor as she opened another door. This room was bare; the only item of furniture being the double bed resting in the centre, and to her utter disappointment, her father was already sorting through boxes that lay scattered around him.

''Sorry, this one's also taken.'' Krystal stared at her father in disbelief, astonished at how alike he and her brother were, and how unfair they were already being.

''Really?! Real mature, dad.'' She scoffed, closing the door behind her and heading to the last bedroom, positioned at the end of the hall and farthest from the stairs.

She turned the handle slowly, the door creaking as it swung inwards. Krystal's eyes widened at the sight inside, ''Oh, that's just great!'' Exasperated, she took her first step into the room, shards of glass crunching under her feet.

''What's great?'' She heard from behind her, Jack falling silent when his eyes landed on the mess.

''You tell me, Jack. You tell me.'' Her voice quieted as she began to comprehend how catastrophic of a mess her new room was in.

The bed frame was snapped, the mattress ripped where it was pushed up against the far wall. The floor was covered completely by shards of glass, plastic and marble. A lone bookcase was positioned in the corner of the room, the only extra addition left behind by the previous tenants that set apart the room from her father's and Jack's. Though, instead of Krystal being delighted by this realisation, she was devastated to see the shelves were covered in a thick layer of dust, various scratches on the frame as if a wild animal had been let loose to wreak havoc. All of this was displayed in crystal clear clarity due to the lone slant of sunlight that streamed through the massive window on the far wall behind the bed.

''Ah, guess you drew the short straw, huh?'' At Jack's failed attempt of covering up his amusement, Krystal lost it.

''You think this is funny!? How am I supposed to live in this? I'm not a damn wild animal, I have standards!'' She swung her hand out, planning to slap her brother to display her frustration, but Jack only batted it away as he cracked a grin at her feeble attempt at violence.

''I'm sure you can do something with this.'' Jack attempted a serious expression, but as he looked at his sister's pursed lips and drawn eyebrows, he couldn't stop himself laughing again.

''Stop laughing! Is that a spider? Jack, kill it!'' Krystal screamed as the hairy insect scrambled its way around her feet, causing her to run out of the room and hide behind her brother.

''Calm down, you're acting stupid.'' He rolled his eyes at her predictable actions, scooping the wriggling creature into his cupped hands. ''Ask dad to help you.'' He walked past her, heading down the stairs with his hands full of the disgusting arachnid.

Krystal shivered, hoping that no more of those creepy crawlies had taken up residence in her room. ''Dad? Have you seen this?'' She called, stepping once again into her bedroom.

''What's all this racket about?'' He strolled past her, hesitating when he caught sight of the shattered belongings. ''Who did this?''

''How am I supposed to know? It was like this when I opened the door.'' Krystal was puzzled, wondering why her father had not known the current state of the place.

''There's not much we can do about it right now. There'll be cleaning supplies somewhere downstairs probably. That's all I can think of.'' He shrugged, confused as to how the room was in this state, and sorry that his daughter had to face this as soon as they moved in. This move was supposed to be for the better, for all of them.

Krystal sighed, her shoulders sagging as she followed her father's instructions. Once downstairs, she walked through the door at the bottom. It led into a small living area, complete with several boxes arranged around the room, and even a few pieces of furniture already in place. Without much observation, she continued into the dining room, joined to a small kitchen with dark counters and hardwood flooring throughout. A small door off of the kitchen seemed a best bet, maybe a cupboard that the previous family had left some seemingly useless cleaning supplies in.

Without a second thought, Krystal turned the door handle and crouched to be sure not to hit her head on the low frame. Inside was dark, so dark that she couldn't see her hand as she fumbled around on the wall for a light-switch. Eventually, she managed to flick the switch and the room was engulfed in a bright light, hanging from a single string.

The room was definitely a supply cupboard. The walls were lined with shelves, most of them empty. Krystal sneezed as she poked around the tiny space, dust floating around and visible in the air. The musty smell became stronger as she continued her search, pushing aside empty boxed until she finally found something of use. A small dustpan and brush – just as her father had predicted – lay on a bottom shelf, covered in a thick layer of grime. Krystal reached for it, cringing at the dirtiness of the object. It would surely take a while to sweep up all the mess with this.

Just as her fingers touched the handle of the brush, the door slammed shut behind her, making her jump violently and almost bang her head. Thinking it was Jack playing a cruel joke, she called out, ''Jack, you can't scare me. Stop being so immature.'' Her eyes narrowed as she waited for a response, but none came. ''Jack? This isn't funny!'' She muttered, her voice fading as no sounds came from outside of the room.

She placed the dustpan and brush on another, higher shelf before she tried the door. Tugging the handle produced no results, as it refused to turn in her hands to release her. Uttering a curse, she tried again with both hands to be faced with the same jammed doorway.

She hammered a fist on the door, ''Jack? Are you there?''

No reply.

As she raised her hand again to knock, the light above her flashed out with an audible 'pop'. Instinctively, Krystal looked up, searching for any sign of remaining light. Faced with nothing, she ran her hand along the wall to find the light-switch once again. Sure that she had found it, she flipped it several times, only to be met by the same dead silence and darkness surrounding her.

''Jack?'' She asked again, her voice shaking as her heartbeat sped up and adrenaline began to kick in.

This time there was a reply.

Heart racing in her chest, Krystal's eyes rapidly searched the space around her, only to be met with the now suffocating darkness.

Laughter echoed around her, male laughter, but she was certain that it wasn't her brother. Krystal shook, sliding down the wall, making herself smaller as the laughter continued, becoming louder and louder. It consumed her thoughts, everything around her disappearing as her sole focus became this new voice.

She hid her face in her hands, making no difference to what she could see around her. Tears sprung to her eyes as the small room became suffocating, and the laughter continued, being the only sound ringing in her ears.

She whimpered. The chuckling ceased.

Cautiously, Krystal looked up, faced with the same pitch-black room as before. Her breaths were heavy as she stretched her arms, her hands searching above her again for that silly light switch. Her movements stopped abruptly when she felt cold breath tickle her ear.

''Leave.'' A deep voice spoke directly to her. She could feel the cold exhale of breath on her cheek as she realised she was most definitely not alone.

Somebody was in there with her.

She screamed as loud as she could. The high-pitched shriek was desperate and continuous, alerting her brother and father upstairs that something was terribly wrong.

Behind the desperate cries for help, the laughter began again.

-*-*-*-

A/N Hey! So, this is chapter one, thank you for reading! I would be so thankful if you could leave some feedback, as this is a new story I'm totally open to anything. Like, was the chapter too long? Is there anything you'd like to see? I would love to chat! :)