Onyx House, 1950

"Amber! You call this dish clean?!" I put my hands up, "I-I." "Why do we even keep you here!? Maybe you are just dirt." I cry and try to run away, but the cook pulls me back by my hair. I scream and she slaps me, "Shut up!" I grab my arm tight as she stares into my eyes, "Now take that drink to Bullet! And don't you drop it!" She shoves a bottle to me and I walk out with it. The bottle shakes in my hands as I walk out to the table, butlers shout happily, "Happy 16th birthday, Master Bullet!"

I walk up and tug on Bullet's pantleg, he turns and looks down, "Ohh, there's that drink!" He carefully takes it from my hands and I look up at him in his seat. He looks back down with a smile, "Go on, little one." I turn to go back, then Cornelius shouts and I jump, "Dirt!" I freeze in place, am I in trouble?! He shouts again, "Dirt! Get the fuck over here!" I shiver over to him, his angered face looks down at me, "So rotten. Get out of my sight." I hiccup, then bawl my eyes out. Cornelius gets up and smacks me, I collapse to the floor. "Shut up! Tell the guards to put her in the barn." I scream as a guard picks me up.

They throw me into a cage and slam the door shut. I hug my knees and cry. A dog barks and rams against the bars next to me. I look over and it bites and snarls at me. I back up from the bars, but they bend at it's ruthless thrashing. The bars bend too far and the dog finally steps through. I scream and the guards shout in a panic.

"Cornelius! There's been a situation! A dog-" Cornelius holds up a hand to the guard and looks to me, "Bullet, go see." "Sir, are you sure-" Cornelius looks at him, "I don't care what happened! My one true son can handle it." I get myself up from the dinner table, "Yes, father." I follow the guards to the barn. "Bullet, Sir?" "Yeah, what is it?" "It's bloody." I sigh, "That's okay." I walk in and my eyes widen. That red haired girl from earlier. She's shivering in bloodstained rags with a rock in hand, a dog lays dead behind her. I get closer and she looks up at me, still shivering. "What's your name?" She doesn't respond as I take a knee and extend a hand out, "It's okay." "A-a-" I nod with a smile as she looks into my eyes, "A-Amber." I smile and raise my hand, she covers her face and turns away. I run my fingers through her dirty hair and she peeks out from her hands, "You're a brave little girl."

Cornelius shouts at me, "Absolutely not!" I scoff, "I never asked for a thing, Father. Hell, I owe you and mom for even birthing me. I only ask to have her to be trained." He growls, "No! She's dirt. A peasant girl." I smile and point outside, "You said it yourself, Father. I could handle what happened in that barn. And what I saw, she survived a dog trying to kill her. She's six!" Cornelius laughs as I tilt my head with a smirk, "You laugh, but didn't Mother endure something close to her situation?" He zooms up to me and smacks me so hard, I fall a couple feet from off chair, "Don't you compare her trials to a peasant's fate!" That's why you didn't pay for the cage replacements. I misjudged you, father.

Stolen story; please report.

I laugh wildly and get up, rubbing my cheek with a smirk. As I speak, his face flushes tomato red, "You know what? If she's a dirty peasant, you bet I can't complete a hunt with her clinging onto my back? So! You get out your puny little revolver and blow my knee out." He yanks it out and pulls the hammer down, "If I come back alive, she gets to hunt with me." I smirk, "Oh right, Wendell might not come back alive. If I don't, you'll have to remarry or adopt a peasant." He roars and fires, I scream at the pain and collapse too the floor, "You dare talk to me like that!?" His gun quivers towards my head as I grab at my knee and stare into his eyes, "It's tradition. So name the number of the damn hunts or lose an heir." He screams to the ceiling, then waves his gun to me, "A hundred hunts by yourself! Kinelt! Take that sack of shit with you! I hope you AND her die a most painful death!" I smile, "With pleasure, Father." I try getting up, he forcefully pushes me over and I scream at the pain, "Get up!" I force myself up and he smacks my back with his gun. "Now get the fuck out, you spoiled fucking child!" He keeps whacking me hard and I finally fall outside of his study. "I do this out of love, you brat!" He slams the doors shut and locks the five latches.

I limp inside the kitchen and the cook jumps at the sight of me, "Oh my god! Master Bullet!" "Where's that peasant girl?" She growls at the very mention of her, "Dirt?" I growl through the pulsing pain n my leg and back, "Her name is Amber, you bitch." She stands up straight, "I'll get her for you right away, Master." I growl, "You better." I swipe a kitchen knife and slide it to my pocket. "Master Bullet?" My vision goes black for a moment and I fall forward, but manage to grab onto a stovetop, "Master! I'll get the doctor!" He gets closer as I mumble, "I'm outcasted." He shakes his head, "Alright, sir." I laugh lightly as he lowers me to the floor. He puts a wood spatula in my mouth, "Bite hard now." He grabs a fire poker, red hot. He sticks it to my leg and I bite hard and smack the floor. I quiver as he rushes out the room, he comes back quick, he then squeezes aloe vera out onto the wound and rubs it in. Amber holds her arm tight as her and the chef walk in. I huff and puff as my vision gets a little better, "Amber, come here." She inches towards me and I run my fingers through her hair, "You're coming with me on a trip." "I-I-" I shake my head as she looks off, "No, no. It's gonna be better than this evil house." "R-really?" I smile, "I swear. And y'know what? You're not Amber Dirt anymore." She looks at me, "I-m not?" I smirk, "Nah, your name is Amber Steel. Toughest girl alive."