Audrey walked out of her room and slid down the banister of the spiraling staircase that spiraled around the perimeter of the large circular house. She could hear her mother, Joy, and her sister-in-law, Antcipation, sewing costumes for the whole family and for the needy and homeless that lived at Mercy’s hotel. Anticipation was saying some joke and Audrey’s mother was laughing with her usual mirth.

“I’m going out.” Audrey called out as she headed for the door.

Her mother was abruptly quiet and slowly called out from across the house, “You can help us, Hope.”

Audrey gritted her teeth and refused to answer to that name. She slammed the door behind her, leaving her house that looked like a bird’s nest and stomped out into the purple cement road. She couldn’t understand why her parents wanted her to change her name. Audrey was a perfectly normal name & the names of Storm Clouds were foreign and rather stupid, in Audrey’s opinion.

Audrey hitched her bag on her shoulder & trudged off in no particular direction.