//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2 
// Story: RAINBOW DASH 
// by Sunshine dash 
//------------------------------//

 I bolted upright in bed, gasping, my hand over my heart.

     I couldn't help checking my nightgown. No red laser dot. No bullet holes. I fell back on my bed, limp with relief.

     Geez, I hated that dream. It was always the same: running away from the school, being chased by Shadowbolts, me falling off a cliff, then suddenlywhoosh,wings, flying, escaping. I always woke up feeling a second away from death.

   Note to self: Give subconscious a pep talk re: better dreams.

     It was chilly, but I forced myself out of my cozy bed. I drew on clean sweats - amazingly, Fleetfoot had put the laundry away.

     Everyone else was still asleep: I could have a few minutes of peace and quiet, get a jump on the day.

     I glanced out the hall windows on the way to the kitchen. I loved this view: the morning sunlight breaking over the crest of the mountains, the clear sky, the deep shadows, the fact that I could see no sign of any other people.

     We were high on a mountain, safe, just me and my family.

     Our house was shaped like a letter E turned on it's side. The bars or the E were cantilevered on stilts out over a steep canyon, so if I looked out the window, I felt like I was floating. On an "cool" scale from one to ten, this house was an easy fifteen.

     Here, my family and I could be ourselves. Here, we could live free. I meanliterallyfree, as in, not incages.

     Long story, more on that later.

     And of course here's the best part: no grown-ups. When we first moved here, Wind Rider had taken care of us, like a dad. He'd saved us. None of us had parents, but Wind had come to close as possible. Two years ago, he disappeared. I knew he was dead, we all did, but we didn't talk about it. Now we were on our own.

     Yep, no one telling us what to do, what to eat, when to go to bed. Well, except me, I'm the oldest, so I try to keep things running as best as I can. It's a hard, thankless job,  but someone has to do it.

     We don't go to school, either, thank god for the Internet, because we wouldn't knownothin'.But no schools, no doctors, no social workers knocking on our door. It's simple: If no one knows about us,we stay alive. 

      I was rustling around for food in the kitchen when I heard some sleepy shuffling behind me.

     "Mornin', Rainbow."