Long before the earth was created there was a pact made. Between those of light and those of the dark. The light had promised its darling sister, the dark, that there would always be an equal balance between the two. Thus creating the sun and moon. However the light was not always truthful and had just said what it deemed necessary to get her sister to allow her to create life. Dark had become jealous and felt betrayed! While the glorious creation of her sister was in the making the dark inserted a piece of her essence into the earth during its birth. The dark was still not satisfied with having only a sliver of herself in the new creation and decided to block the sun whenever possible. This formed the event known as the solar eclipse. However the dark could not control the moon for more than a little while. This formed the rarity of the solar eclipse.

Despite having nearly sacrificed herself for revenge, her darkness did not live. For only her sister was able to create life. The dark had been a failed clone of her sister. She could not speak, or move on her own. She was a shadow. She was nothing more.

Laura was always a strange girl. During recess, when she was in primary school, Laura would talk to her shadow. She talked in whispers and in another language. Everybody around believed it was a language she had made up. But she was not the only one with this specific quirk.

Amara, a girl from England; Milo, a boy from Brazil; Leah, a girl from the west coast; and Tate, a boy from Texas. All these children just turned 17 and had the same quirk as Laura.

The alarm clock was deafening. She may be just turning 17 but she didn’t feel a single second older. It took a few slams on her night table before she properly hit the snooze button. Within a few minutes Jared ran up the steps and pounded on Laura’s door. “Come on Laura! Get up! Mum has made us breakfast!” Laura groaned as she turned over in her bed. She sat up and froze for a few seconds. She whispered something in another language before moving again. She threw a black shirt on and her favorite pair of jeans. As she put on her converse Jared pounded on Laura’s door again. “I’m coming, dude!” Laura sighed and opened her door. The hallway was dark, the stairs were dark. Laura rubbed her eyes hoping she was asleep. There wasn’t a sound to be heard. She turned around and stepped back into her room shutting the door and shouting angrily, again in the same mysterious language. She opened the door and the hallway was brightly lit. “Thank you,” Laura muttered under her breath. “I don’t get you Laura, you’re always talking to yourself.” Jared was leaning on the wall next to the staircase, Laura just shook her head and walked past him to go eat breakfast.

Bella was already at the kitchen table, waiting to take Laura to school. “What would I do without you Bells?” Laura joked causing Bells to smile. Laura’s girlfriend was the only one who didn’t find Laura crazy. Although she thought Laura was strange, she didn’t once think of her as crazy. Bella was always seen as the crazy one between the two in public. But she didn’t hold a candle to Laura when they were at school. Bella was seen as a punk, she had several face piercings, rode a motorcycle, and had spikey purple and green hair. Bella also had a huge tattoo on her back, a depiction of angel wings. Laura was snarfing down her breakfast while looking at Bella. She never drifted into the shadows when Bella was around. “Are you ready, Laura?” Bella laughed at the milk dripping down Laura’s chin. Laura nodded, wiping the milk off her face with her sleeve before grabbing her bag. Laura made it outside first hopping onto the bike shouting for Bella to hurry up as she put her helmet on. Bella sighed and zipped up her leather jacket and putting her helmet on. Bella kicked the stand off before speeding off.

"Ms. Samson, Ms. Carver; you two are late."

“Sorry teach.” Bella shrugged grabbing her seat next to Mike and Laura. Mike was Bella’s childhood friend. When seeing them individually you’d never have guessed that they were friends. Mike was a class clown, and Bella always seen as a punk. But together, there was something about them that clicked. Laura was always avoided in school. Nobody could forget her episodes of drifting between the realms.