A New Beginning

by **Athaera** on August 28th, 2014, 11:36 pm

24th of Fall, 510

Tears were still cascading down her face as ten-year-old Athaera decided she'd leave. She saw her sister's face, pale and still looking a bit sickly. Nonetheless, she looked peaceful, and it looked like she had a hint of a smile at her lips. It had always been something Sara was good at; Finding the best in a bad situation, while Athaera was always a bit more negative. But now, it seemed ridiculous, mocking, to try to find the bright side. But it could've been the best way to keep Athaera from falling into the wallows of depression and sorrow.

Tears still cascading down her cheeks, Athaera grabbed a shovel, but realized just how cruel it was to just throw someone underground to rot away, whether they like it or not. She decided to leave Sara in her bed, comforting Athaera a bit more, because she could at least pretend her sister was just asleep. Athaera got up, walking to the other room. Okay, what am I bringing? She grabbed a bag, tossing it on the table.

A few hours and many sobbing fits later, Athaera was ready to go. Finally, the reality struck her. You're crazy, Athaera. You can't just go out into the wilderness, where pretty much ANYTHING can kill you. You're TEN for goodness sake. You won't survive. It was true. She wasn't prepared, but she couldn't stay either. Finally, she decided to risk it. She didn't have much to live for anyway. Besides, people had always told her she was advanced for her age. Hoping she'd successfully suppressed the voices in her head, she got up. Tears were still spilling from her eyes, but there wasn't much she could do about that. She took one last forlorn glance at her dead sister before walking out, towards the city gates.

While the streets and alleys might seem like a maze to some, for Athaera they were home. She vowed that she would have to come back someday and face the pain, but this was not the day. She approached the gates and took a deep breath. “Goodbye, Syliras.” It was just a whisper, but it was enough. She walked through the gates, and realized how strange she must look. A sobbing child with a huge bag. Athaera felt a hand on her shoulder, and turned around to see one of the guards. “Are you lost?” he questioned, “Where's your mother?”

“Six feet underground, she's been rotting away for five years,” she replied, shoving his hand off her shoulder. It was obvious his reply surprised her, but what use was there lying? A display of pity soon replaced his surprise, and he continued to ask questions. “What about your father?”

This resulted in a sigh from Athaera. “He killed himself a week later. Now, can you please let me leave?” Her tone was rushed, annoyed, but it only resulted in a scoff on the guard's part. It was evident he didn't quite believe her. “And who did you live with for the last five years?” he asked.

“My half sister, who was alive until pneumonia took her life about six hours ago.” It was at this point that Athaera decided she didn't like people who pried and asked so many questions. With this, the crying returned. Sobs shook her body, and the man patted her on the back. She didn't really need the pity, but it was comforting, in a way. She took a few deep breaths, and was about to leave before the guard spoke again.

“Well, you can't just go into the wilderness alone. How old are you? Eight? You'll die!” He looked surprised that she'd even considered it. Athaera rolled her eyes.

“I'm eleven,” she replied, “And I really don't have much to live for, do I?” She shoved the guard aside, deciding the conversation was over, as she continued to the Mithryn Outpost. She'd lied about her age because she wanted to make more of a point, and it seemed right at the time. Also, the older she made herself seem, the more likely he'd be to let her go. It wasn't surprising he thought she was so young, she was small for her age. At least her annoyance for him had taken her mind off of her sister's death.

by **Athaera** on September 20th, 2014, 1:53 pm

Now that she was successfully away from the man, she wondered what she would do when she got to the Outpost. Everyone would consider her too young, but she was capable enough, wasn't she? These thoughts ran through her head as she walked along the road, eventually leading back to her sister. It was almost impossible to think she was just alive that morning. Sick, but alive. The sun seemed to glow through the leaves, giving them an aura of whitish light. People passed by, plenty of them giving her strange looks, but none questioning her. They were all taller than her, but that wasn't surprising.

At this point, only her thoughts accompanied her as she walked, and she tuned out the people and things around her, concentrating only on the sound of her footsteps. Eventually, the Outpost appeared before her, and she wandered the streets until she found a place that said "The Fool's Errand." She'd heard the name before, but wasn't sure where, and knew it was an inn. She walked up to the door, and strode inside. She went up to the counter, and said, "I'll have dinner and your cheapest room, how much will it be?" The man at the counter looked shocked, but nobody would turn down money.

"Um.. eight silver." Athaera tossed the payment on the table and went to sit down. After a few minutes, her food was brought to her, and she quietly ate it and went up to her room. She collapsed on her bed before she thought of something. She'd always despised her long hair, it felt overly feminine, and she preferred a shorter haircut. She pulled the first sharp thing she could find from her bag, a dull-ish knife, and began to slice off her hair into a choppy look that looked nowhere near good. But Athaera liked it. It seemed uncontrollable, wild. Satisfied, she laid down on the bed, falling asleep almost immediately.