"Ivy dear, time to get up."

The voice flowed down the dirt-packed hallways and only the ears of a sleeping girl. Her dark hair was in disarray from sleep, and she snorted softly.

At her mother's summons, she snorted and sat up. She shook her head for a moment and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

"Ok. I'm up," She called back, stretching her arms and legs in turn.

She stood up and combed her fingers through her knotted hair for a moment before walking blearily into the main room.

Her entire family sat around a tiny wooden table.

Her mother and father sat together, and on her father's right side sat her two older brothers. On her mother's left side sat her two younger sisters.

She took her place at the small table, fighting for elbow room as she did every morning. There were no chairs, so they all sat on their knees or their bottoms.

Her mother smiled at them, her long black hair waving perfectly. She stood up and went to the back of the room, pulling a small pan off of their tiny stove.

At every place sat a small clay plate, and her mother dumped a small portion of the pan's contents on each one.

When the pan was empty, she sat it in the middle of the table, crowding it even more. She said a quick blessing, then everyone began to eat with gusto.

They had no silverware, just their hands. But that didn't stop any member of the family from grabbing a chunk of steaming hot eggs and shoving it in their mouth.

In a matter of minutes, every plate had been licked clean. Ivy, as the eldest daughter, took the plates and put them in the washbasin.

She walked slowly back to the table, listening in on the conversations.

"As you all know," her father's voice came in a hurried whisper.

"Today is the fifth day. We're due at the chapel any moment now. Snake, as the oldest it is your job to take care of everyone while we're gone."

Ivy knew what came next. She strained her ears, keeping to the shadows of her dimly lit home.

"But most importantly, we need all of you to keep an eye on Ivy. You know how she gets on these days. Keep her in the house. We can't have her run away again."

Ivy smirked to herself. Did they really think that they could contain her? They failed every time. What was their plan now?

She sauntered back to the table, noting the surprise on her father's face.

"So," she said, sitting back down. "What are we talking about?"

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

"Be good while we're away!" Ivy's mother cried, throwing her arms around each of her children in turn.

Ivy hugged awkwardly back. Why did her parents have to make such a big deal out of this? They went to the chapel every five days.

Her parents left through the open doorframe, small bowls of rose-scented water in their arms.

Snake turned towards his siblings. "Alright. You heard mom and dad. I'm in charge today." He shot a quick glare at Ivy before continuing.

"We all have chores to do. Quail, you sweep the floors and make the beds." The dark haired boy nodded.

"Dawn and Cinder, you two collect water." He turned towards Ivy. "And Ivy-"

"But the girls can't go to the well by themselves!" Ivy exclaimed. "They're seven and five, Snake! That's too young! Do you know what kind of nasty people hang around the well?"

"Then I'll go with them." Snake argued. Ivy rolled her green eyes.

"Snake, you have to be here to make sure that Quail does his job. And men don't go to the well."

Snake dragged his hands down his face in defeat. "Fine," He growled. "But all of you had better come back."

"Don't worry about us!" Ivy called cheerfully, dragging her sisters by the hands.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

It was very busy at the well, as usual. There was a long line for what little water every family was able to get their hands on.

The three girls stood in the line, a bucket clutched in Dawn's hand. The little seven-year-old girl was the only one in the family with red hair. Everyone else had black hair except their father.

Ivy shuffled awkwardly from foot to foot, anxious for this to be over. Get the water and go.

It wasn't long before several other families had gathered behind them. Ivy was already sweating, even though it was just the morning.

And it was only the children of the families. The grown ups were at the ceremony. The children's ceremony would be later.

Ivy groaned aloud. Her sisters were deep in conversation, but she had no one to talk to.

Thank goodness for Ebony. The pale girl with black hair suddenly appeared by her side, as she normally did.

Ivy took a double take. "There you are, I was wondering when you'd get here."

Ebony flashed a grin, showing off her strange white teeth. "Yeah. Sorry I wasn't here earlier, my mom lectured me forever."

Ivy could feel the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth as they talked. The line grew shorter and shorter, until only a few families remained in line before them.

"Are you going to skip the ceremony today?" Ebony asked.

Ivy snorted in response. "Of course. Why wouldn't I? It's so stupid and boring."

"C'mon Ivy, you haven't gone to a ceremony since you turned seven. Just give it a chance!"

Ivy rolled her eyes. "Stop it, Ebony. You know I don't believe all of that nonsense. And I'm not letting my hair fall out again! My own family was scared of me for another three ceremonies because they thought I was cursed or something."

Ebony's shoulders slumped. "Fine," She muttered. "I guess I'll see you around sometime, Ivy."

Ivy sighed as she watched her friend walk away. Even though they were best friends, Ivy refusing to go to the ceremonies always put Ebony in a mood.

Ivy turned back to the present. It was their turn at the well.

Sweat trickled down her neck as she tied the bucket to the rope. Her muscles strained while she cranked the rusty pulley down into the only black depths of the well.

It took all three girls to bring the bucket back up. Water splashed on their ratty clothes when they pulled it over the clay brick lip of the well.

Hauling the small bucket full of warm water took a lot more effort than Ivy would have liked. Her arms ached, her legs ached, her back ached. Everything ached.

They lost a third of the water along the way, but they couldn't go refill the bucket. Someone would complain about them getting more water, and then they'd all be in big trouble.

When their house was in sight, Ivy passed the bucket to her sisters. "You'll be okay. It's not that far." She assured them.

When she was satisfied that Dawn and Cinder could carry the bucket themselves, Ivy ran.

She ran and ran and ran. Away from all of this nonsense.

Once she was far enough away for her liking, she sat down on the side of the dirt road. She sighed heavily and put her face in her hands.

"Maybe I should just go to the ceremony," She thought. "It can't be that bad."

She shook her head at herself. "No," she shouted. "I won't! I'm not going, and nobody can make me!"

She attracted a couple of stares, but she didn't care anymore. She stood with newfound purpose and strode deeper into the village.

She passed sad looking plantations of wheat and corn. Sweaty farmers cut the wilted stalks down with dull scythes.

Ivy knew that the plants would soon be processed into the bland little patties that were served twice a day with their meals.

She ducked her head and walked a little faster when one of the workers turned her way.

After the plantations came the pens of animals. Chickens with very few feathers clucked feverishly at her feet, begging for food.

She passed large cages of snakes, their skin peeling off from malnutrition.

Ivy felt a pang of sympathy for the animals, but she kept walking. There was nothing she could do for them.

The sun was at its highest point when the small hits finally thinned out into the open, barren plains. Ivy craned her neck upwards to see the mountains, but the sun prevented her.

She walked down the slope, her leather sandals slipping a couple times. She let out a small shout of surprise as she tripped over her own shoes and went tumbling down the hill.

She landed in a tangle of her own limbs and clothes. She sat up, spitting dust and hair from her mouth.

She stood up shakily, brushing herself off. She turned around and stood on her tiptoes, peering upwards at the village.

She grinned, whirled around, and kept walking.

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So, there's the first chapter! Word count was 1515, not including this note.

Feel free to correct any grammar mistakes I may have made, and give constructive criticism!

Let me know what parts you liked or didn't like, or if anything confused you.

Don't forget to comment and vote!

-Cream