Shining Snow

Prologue

Amber ran along the dirt path, breathing fast. She didn’t dare look behind her. But it wouldn’t have mattered anyway; she could hear the gang of kids behind her. Quickly, she hid behind a tree.

“Where’d the runt go?” she could hear one of the kids behind her say. Then he called loudly, “Little pig, little pig, may I come in?”

No, she thought fiercely.

Slowly she squatted. Maybe she could crawl away-

Amber tipped over and in her attempt to stay upright, thrust out her hands, sweeping dirt in all directions. She tried to stand up and realized her hands were bleeding.

“I believe we found our princess,” one of the boys sneered, seeming to appear right in front of her. She was knocked to the ground by another person she couldn’t see. He raised his hand to slap her, and she watched, anticipating his move. And in one quick motion, he swept it at her, and he disappeared.

At least, that’s what it looked like.

The person who was forcing her to the ground looked over the edge of the dirt path that ended in a cliff, and she got up and looked herself. She saw the boy dangling from a tree branch.

“I believe my prince took a detour,” she called back, laughing. He turned red.

She turned around and saw all of the kids on the ground, groaning. “What-” she began questioningly when a hand covered her mouth and another picked her up. She gasped. Am I getting kidnapped? She thought frantically. She tried kicking at the person who was taking her.

“Geez, settle down, kid, I’m saving you,” the person who was carrying her said, who sounded not worried and not stressed.

She was definitely getting kidnapped.

“Who are you?” she tried saying, but the hand covering her mouth muffled her speech.

Suddenly Amber was set down and the person who “rescued” her darted away.

“Wait!” she called, taking a few steps back to the woods. “Who are you? What’s your name?” She could feel the figure pause, right through her bones.

“I’m a hero,” she called.

“My name is Lightwing.”

Chapter One

Arctic Snow jumped from rooftop to rooftop, going as quickly as she could. She could almost smell her demise coming. One minute, in fact.

Her necklace was piercingly hot, signaling that she was about to transform. She figured she was the only one with a Miraculous that could do that.

She dove into an alley, twisted her ankle, and limped out as normal Amber.

"You need to stop saving yourself in the nick of time," Glasshul said, flying up next to her with a piece of cheese. "You'll be discovered."

"Better a hero known by one than a hero known by none."

Glasshul shook her head sadly.

Quickly Amber walked into the apartment building and up the stairs to the apartment, unlocking the door with a key and going into her room. Fortunately, her foster parents weren't there.

Quickly she picked up her iPhone and texted Rebbecca, how's it hanging?

She waited and suddenly there was a response; your SNL jokes aren't funny, even if they do match the season.

Quickly she texted, just because you have no taste buds of your own.

She threw her phone on her bed and collapsed into her rolling chair, and slid across the room to her desk where a pile of homework had gathered. "Being a superhero with the downside of never being in class," she muttered.

She spun her pencil in her fingers, and right when she put her utensil on the paper her phone roared. Amber jumped out of her chair and ended up on the ground, rubbing her hip.

"Ow," she complained to her phone. Rebbecca had called her, and she missed it from her jumpscare ringtone. Isn't my fault Claire told me to, her mind grumbled.

Amber looked at her phone more closeky and realized that Sawyer had called her. "Well, then," she said. "Unexpected."

Glasshul flew up to her with a smirk. "I think he likes you."

"And I like LW," she replied evenly. "Not my fault if Silver Rat disagrees. Who even cares about his opinion?"

"Tawny Sparrow," her kwami said, playing with her head feathers.

"Do you know what 126 minus 342 is?" Amber asked, frustrated.