An eight year old grey griffon walked around a pond, holding a stick in one of her hands. She wore a yellow raincoat and splashed in puddles. She stopped splashing when she saw a frog hop out from a stalk of grass.
“Hello Mr Frog, I’m Gabby.” She greeted. The frog stared at her with blank eyes and let out a loud croak. Gabby picked up the frog, petting it’s head lightly.
“You shouldn’t be out here, there’s a storm coming.” Gabby stated as she placed the frog on a lily pad. The frog hopped in the water and swam away. Gabby smiled and looked at the sky to see storm clouds rolling in. Her eyes widened in realization.
“I’M SUPPOSED TO BE HOME BEFORE DAD GETS THERE!” Gabby shouted in fear. She quickly opened her wings and flew off. She dodged tree branches and large boulders, desperate to get home before her dad did. She did a sharp left turn, taking her shortcut. There were thorny branches and poison ivy scattered all over the place but Gabby didn’t have time to dodge any of them. She flew through prickly branches, cutting up her wings and ripping her raincoat. Gabby stopped flying when she saw a hole made of thorny branches. There was no other way around it. It was as if a bunch of trees had fallen over.
“I can do this.” Gabby encouraged herself. She slowly crawled through the hole, her wings pressed firmly against her back. If she went any faster, she’s permanently damage her flesh and feathers. Gabby gripped onto some vines, pulling herself forward. The thorns scraped against her left leg, cutting it open. Gabby stayed silent, knowing that if she didn’t get home she’d feel pain far worse.
“Almost there.” Gabby grunted out as she saw light at the end of the hole. She reached her hands out and gripped the edge of the hole, pulling herself out. She landed on the hard stone ground with a thud. She quickly stood up and looked around to see a small house in front of her. She was in her backyard. Gabby ran towards the backdoor, which she had left open. Once she got in she slammed the door shut and made her way to the basement. The basement was dark and very cold. The only light source that was there was a small unlit candle and a tiny window that she could squeeze herself through. Gabby took off her raincoat and looked at it.
“He’s not gonna be happy when he found out a ripped this.” Gabby said fearfully. She tossed the raincoat to the corner of the room and faced her bed. Well it wasn’t really a bed, more of a blanket and a dirty pillow. Gabby reached under the pillow and pulled out a first aid kit. She took out an ace bandage and started to wrap it around her rear leg.
“Gabriella!” A male voice exclaimed from upstairs, making Gabby jump in fear. She quickly kicked the first aid kit to the other side of the room and flew upstairs. She was greeted by an angry looking griffon. He was grey like her but had brown legs like any other griffon.
“Yes father?” Gabby asked, trying to look as innocent as possible. Her father looked her up and down, before looking at her hind leg.
“What happened to your leg?” He asked. Gabby thought of an excuse on the spot.
“I tripped going down the stairs.” She lied. He gritted his teeth and raised his hand, slapping Gabby across the face. She let out a loud yell of pain and cowered to the ground.
“WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU ABOUT LYING TO ME?!” He shouted angrily, getting ready to slap Gabby again.
“I went to the swamp and cut my leg!” Gabby admitted, covering her face. His face turned into a scowl and he slapped Gabby again.
“You’re a pathetic little liar just like your mother!” He shouted, the slaps now turning into punches. Gabby curled up into a ball, trying to shield herself. Once her father finished punching, he looked at his knuckles that were now covered in blood.
“Go to you room.” He commanded. Gabby quickly stood up and limped back towards the basement. She closed the basement door softly and limped down the stairs. The stairs creaked with every step she took. Soon, she made it to the bottom of the stairs. She grabbed the first aid kit she had kicked and started to pull out some bandages, rubbing alcohol, and cotton balls.
“At least he didn’t throw glass at me again.” Gabby muttered, trying to stay optimistic. She took a bandage out of the first aid kit and placed it on her face. She placed more bandages on her arms, legs, and sides. When she was finished, she wrapped her small blanket around her and curled up into a ball. She knew that her father wouldn’t want to see her right now so she might as well sleep until he cooled down.
Gabby awoke to a loud crack of thunder and the sound of rain hitting her flimsy window. She could feel cold water dripping on her head. She looked up to see her window opening and closing rapidly due to the wind. Her stomach growled and she licked her lips.
“I’m hungry.” Gabby said to herself. She got up from his blanket and walked towards the stairs. Once she approached them, she started to flap her wings a little bit. She walked up the stairs, her claws grazing over each step. The stairs didn’t make a sound as Gabby grazed over them. Soon, she made it to the top of the stairs. She placed her hand on the door and slowly pushed the door open, making sure it didn’t creak. Gabby crouched down low and listened for any noise.
“And that was jazz with Griffy, I’ll see you tomorrow.” A faint voice said from the living room. Gabby let out a breath of relief. Her father was listening to the radio which meant he had fallen asleep while drinking. He only listen to the radio while he drank and it put him right to sleep every time. Gabby stayed close to the floor, avoiding every creaky floorboard. She had learned how to move silently around her house without being caught.
Gabby entered the kitchen, which looked very messy. She crawled towards a cabinet and opened it. There were many different sweet snacks that her dad loved to eat. Gabby reached towards the back, getting the ones he liked the least. Without any warning, the shelf broke. It landed on the floor with a loud thud and all of the items fell on the floor, a few jars breaking. Gabby’s heart started to pound in her chest as she heard heavy footsteps make its way to the kitchen. She tried to turn around to rush out of the kitchen but came face to face with her very angry father.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” He practically shouted, his face turning red from anger.
“I-I-I...” Gabby stuttered out, it able to get a complete sentence. Her father grabbed Gabby’s throat and slammed her into the cupboard.
“YOU PIECE OF SHIT!” He shouted. Gabby instinctively clamped her teeth on her father's hand, making him let out a scream of pain. He released his grip on her throat and Gabby flew over his head.
“Get back here!” Her father commanded. Gabby ignored his shouts and ran into the basement, slamming the door shut. She quickly grabbed a old raggedy book bag and started to shove random items in there.
“I need to leave.” Gabby said in a panic. The basement door slammed open and Gabby could see the shadow of her father, who was holding a belt.
“I’m going to beat you until you’re blue!” He shouted. Gabby slung the book bag over her shoulders and started to climb out of the shaking window. She turned around to see her father approaching her quickly, looking angrier by the second. Gabby slipped through the window with ease and cold water started to cover her body.
“Get back here you piece of shit!” Her dad commanded, peaking his head through the window. Gabby ignored his calls and started to run. She didn’t know where she was going but all she knew was that she had to get far away from home. She couldn’t even see due to all of the rain. The ground squished under her claws and her feathers were soon holding dozens of leaves.
“Where am I?” Gabby asked herself as she looked around. She looked down to see that she had managed to get to a cliff. The bottom of the cliff led to an endless forest. She turned back, trying to go in an opposite direction. A large gust of wind pushed her back and her rear legs dangled off of the cliff.
“Help somebody please help!” Gabby exclaimed. Her screams couldn’t be heard over the howling wind. Her claws dug into the mud before she slipped off. Gabby let out a high pitched scream, falling into the forest.