Adopted By Hadestown

A Young, Hungry Girl

"I'm done with your nonsense!" A wild, blaring voice screamed, causing a small individual to shriek.

"Stop, Mama, please!" Her pastel blue eyes blinked back tears of fear and she shielded her face as her mother held a bottle angrily in her hands.

"This is the last time. This is the last time, Courtney Hammond!" The wails of her mother continued and the girl in the chair curled up in a ball, sheltering herself.

And boy, was she lucky.

A second after she prepared herself, this girl's mother hurled the bottle straight at the wall. The shattering noise alone was enough to strike fear, but it was the impact that was the real shock. Shards of glass narrowly missed Courtney yet crowded her as she cried. Her mother's eyes showed no compassion. Only intoxicated anger and truly baffling emotions to the child. All that she really knew was that 'Mama' kept yelling like this nearly every day, and it was always for what felt like no reason.

The screaming, the crying, the pain.

This little girl had had enough.

She knew she couldn't run anywhere now, the brown, bulging eyes fixated on her presence, but this child waited for her to leave the plain living room, while she remained scared for her life. Courtney's mother grumbled things to herself, cursing out her daughter quietly and thundering up the stairs. It was still bright as day outside, but her poor mother suffered from too many hangovers to know the exact time... Her cognitive function had also worsened over time, which gave Courtney something of an advantage.

A plan came into action, but it involved something risky. In fact, not just one thing! Several things...

I better give it a shot... The distressed girl thought. It was then she realised just one possible problem with said plan.

Her mother was upstairs.

She knew better than to take any chances snooping around her own bedroom, the place she felt... Comfortable in, to some extent. While Mama let herself shake off the copious amounts of alcohol in her sleep, Courtney shuddered, cold and tired. Most nights and days she glared at her dream catcher and prayed that it worked. Pretty feathers hung down in various shades of orange and yellow, with a web sitting atop it. Although everything seemed calm when she stared at the gadget, she couldn't help but feel fearful of everything going on around her.

The thing was, if she even attempted to enter her bedroom now, then all hell would break loose! Her thoughts began to tick.

I just have to go there...

Sneaking around the house like a thief, she crept through the living space, careful not to let her footsteps be too heavy. The slightest thing could set her mother off... Courtney held her breath just a bit as she ascended the staircase one stair at a time until she reached her room.

One last goodbye.

It was a silent farewell, this. Sunlight streamed in through her window and her cupboards stood tall and wide. All her belongings were packed neatly inside. Oh, how she wished to retrieve them, but as aforementioned, she could do nothing of the sort. The slightest thing could set her mother off...

Holding her breath, the child clambered onto her bed, tugging gently at the dream catcher that seemed stuck to the ceiling. She was hoping, wishing, willing the item away from the surface! And just like that, it came true. The dream catcher ended up falling off the ceiling and was then caught swiftly in the girl's hands, leaving her relieved.

No pride could burst into her chest.

Not yet.

Clutching the soft feathers to her body, the girl with light brown hair made her descent.

Down the stairs.

Navigate the living room.

The door.

Lucky for robbers and lucky for her, it cracked open a slither with a slight gust of wind. A smile laced her face, but she couldn't be complacent. It was then she used all her might to wriggle out of the house without making a sound, and she ran.

Courtney bolted out, dashing across the driveway and letting the wind flow through her hair. She had no way of telling where she was even going, but she headed towards the people. The lights, sounds and buildings.

Adrenaline coursed through her veins and her heart pounded as she manoeuvred through upcoming crowds, squeaking out, "Sorry!" To every giant person she crashed into. The towers of people stretched on forever... This would never end.

I'll be running forever... The girl's mind raced.

It was at that moment her thoughts were contradicted.

The last things she sensed were the words, "You little squirt!" Her own screaming, searing sensations at her sides, and the world fading to black.