Part 1

Dayna wondered why she had friends. She thought she was hideous as her mum made her keep the same hairdo and bought her the ugliest clothes you can imagine. Besides that wasn't the only thing Dayna hated. She hated her home town. Like most girls, Dayna came from a small town but had big dreams.

Dayna's hometown was a town called Pemreen. It was nothing! Nothing but a few houses, one shop that was literally blue mouldy, (go there if you want to make your own penicillin!), a filthy river that would make you be sick if you stood 20 yards near it and nothing else! Dayna didn't even know how her family could even live here! Besides Dayna didn't really understand her family!

First there was her mum Bailey and her dad Scott. Then there was her grandmother Geezie, her brother Brett and her grandmother's third husband, Sawyer. They all lived together in a three bedroom house. In fact it was more of a shack than a house. The grown ups shared one room and Bret and Dayna got their own rooms. Brett and Dayna were very lucky for that opportunity.

There was the usual things in the house that would happen. As Pemreen was poor (because Mayor Grizelda spent all of the town's money on things for herself), food was in quite short supply so Dayna and her family would have to share one vegetable pie between six people. No wonder they were all so slim. They had to form a line to take baths too. Dayna or Brett took a bath first as they were quicker and Geezie always went in last as she was older and slower.

Dayna was lucky to go to school. Brett was educated by Sawyer at home but Dayna travelled by train to Helsheild and attended the local school there. Because Dayna knew Thomas the ticket master at the train station in Pemreen. He let her get her ticket for free as he knew the conditions the people of Pemreen were living in.

Dayna usually travelled to Helsheild to see her friends there too.