Wings

Prologue

When it rains, it always seems to pour endlessly. Water droplets hit the tin roof like a thousand small fists that pound away, time and time again. Storms came earlier than expected, leaving Kara Winston feeling down in the dumps. As calming as it was, it was also ruthless. A low growl of thunder boomed overhead, making Cori, Kara's best friend, tunnel himself under the blankets in fright. Only moments ago, he was barking at the window.

In her living area, sound was a rarity. She lived with her father, secluded from everyone else by a fine clutter of woods, so, for Cori, hearing such sounds must be rather scary. Kara placed a comforting hand on her friend's forehead, scratching behind his ears and then looking out the lonesome window at the soaking grass, which seemed to be dancing in the rain and wind.

The lights quickly flickered and Cori let out a whine from under the covers, snuggling closer to the girl's side. She wrapped an arm around him, giving him more room to move closer.

"You're such a baby," She teased, although she didn't get a response. Not that she would, anyway.

Lightening hit nearby, followed only seconds after by a deafening boom. Even Kara found herself a little frightened. She pulled the covers over her torso and closed her eyes, just as the lights shut off. But when she opened her eyes, she swore to herself that she saw what deemed to be a shadow. And not one of a tree branch.

Quickly, she uncovered herself and dashed towards the living area, grabbing the nearest coat from the brass rack. Following her anxiously, Cori waited at the door.

Kara slowly pulled open the front door, lifting the hood to cover her head. All she had on was her jacket and night garnets, leaving her legs very cold. She quickly realized that she didn't have anything to defend herself, nor see the intruder. She could only hope that his intentions didn't involve a fight. Or being able to see.

She slowly stepped off the porch and into the yard. Her bare feet immediately froze as she was standing in the wet grass, and soon, all of her was cold. Moments passed, and the girl gave up heading back towards the door.

She placed a hand on the doorknob, pushing the door inwards, but before she could do so, a loud yell caused her to jump and scream. She turned around to find her father, doubled over in laughter after successfully startling her. Kara felt rather idiotic, having fallen for his jokes.

"It's wet and freezing and you're laughing because you managed to scare me." She muttered, pushing open the door and removing her coat.

"Hey," He retorted, pointing a finger at her. "you're the idiot that walked outside."

"If you were a murderer, I could have taken you." She plopped on the couch, turning the lamp on, glad that the power was back on.

"With what?" He raised an eyebrow, removing one of his boots. "your annoying additude or your infinite Star Wars knowledge?"

"Both," She giggled, propping her feet up on the table in front of her. Cori was clearly excited for Henry to have returned.

Her father gave the lab a pat and sat his shoes in the correct place, sitting on the other side of the couch, giving Cori access to the middle seat. He reached for the remote, but his daughter stopped him.

"My turn,"

"But," Henry whined. "you had your turn.'

"No, you had it last night. My turn."

Her father huffed and she grinned, grabbing the remote and changing it to the appropriate channel. He left after a few minutes, clearly bored with her television choice, to go make midnight cereal. She felt victorious, as it was her who had the remote the night before.

As time passed, Henry went to bed and Kara started feeling drowsy. Cori had his head laying on her lap, obviously as tired as she was. She turned the television off and headed to her own room, tucking herself under the covers and drifting off with Cori lying next to her.