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Sorry for such a long wait. I had hell with my laptop... so for you few people reading:
HERE GOES CHAPTER ONE!
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Rosabella and I walked four miles, in three long, agonizing hours, in which the initial shock what had taken place began to settle, yet I still felt a deep trembling of fear and an aching pain in the very depths of my soul, but I forced myself to not dwell on it. We passed city borders and entered villages, building numbers thinning to less then ten in a street. Our scenery changing from the expensive stone mansions of aristocrats, to the wooden farmhouses of rural areas. We were surrounded by nature, but food was scarce unless you hunted, something I wasn't willing to do in front of Rosabella; even if I had the tools, knowledge or coordination to do so, I would never hunt in front of her. She was far too young to see death.
We'd thrown our shoes around half an hour ago, as they'd torn under the wear of walking so hastily; the fragile fabric was not suitable for the hard country roads we travelled. I'd slowed my pace to match Rosabella's, her small legs unable to keep up with me. My aim was to reach Giugliano by early evening. Which, at 3 miles away was looking rather unlikely, we'd reach the municipality borders if we were lucky.
We had two hours left to reach our goal and my naked feet were becoming increasingly smarting to match my grumbling stomach. Each minute that passed by caused even the leaves on blossoming trees to look attractive. My stomach roared loudly, feeling neglected after almost 24 hours without food, and Roasbella giggled loudly, a magnificent, high-pitched melody with a hint of sadness and desperation. I looked knowingly into her eyes as she quietly whispered "Ho fame." I'm hungry.
The small sentence spun round in my head on a constant, excruciating loop. Her small voice ringing with the innocence only a child could hold. I had no food to give her and the knowledge that she was using up what little energy she had left on this walk was almost unbearable. My goal was slipping further and further away. I slowed my pace even more, in an effort to conserve as much energy as possible. Thankfully, the sun's glare was dimming, causing the temperature to drop to a more agreeable 12 degrees as the sun dipped slightly in the sky.
As we trudged along an originally distant stream formed at the side of the road, brimming with fresh, clean water. A welcomed sight in a such a fragile state; water would allow us to gain some energy from our lack of food and would keep us walking a little longer. The stream was clear, with no visible surface animals, meaning it was safe for us to drink. "ACQUA!" Rosa squealed, bounding towards it with a sudden burst of energy. Bending over at the side of the stream, she scooped up the water with her hands and quickly held it to her mouth. She frowned slightly and looked down at her small hands, now devoid of water. I chuckled quietly and scooped water into my own hands before holding them to Rosabella's mouth. She drank loudly, kneeling down to get more water, slurping in a very unladylike manner. I chastised her jokily, causing her to flick stream water at me which I attempted to catch in my mouth. The childish game made me feel happy and young as I leant forward, a little too eagerly, which caused me to lose my footing and fall into the water. Rosabella gasped in fear and I let out a loud laugh, holding up my arm to reassure her.
Hearing a small splash, I looked as Rosabella jumped into the shallow stream beside me, causing the water to hit my cheeks. She knelt down beside me and grinned mischeivously before pushing water in my face. Her hands were small, so there wasn't much water but the shock caused me to cough and splutter, making her laugh even more. "Bella!" I warned her sternly, coughing lightly. She giggled and climbed clumsily up the bank of the stream.
I propped myself on the side of the bank, my elbows digging into the soft mud and grinned goofily at Rosabella. She poked her tongue at me and giggled, lifting her dress slightly so she could run, her sudden energy a mystery to me. I watched her as she ran, her blonde curls bouncing behind her. She was a beautiful sight, the sun shining from her hair and making it glisten as she twirled. Her skirt spiralling out like a parachute, a simple and slightly scruffy parachute but beautiful nonetheless. Her laughter rang like soprano bells, a sound that couldn't fail to make you smile. Her eyes sparkled, the happiness formed from innocence showing brightly as her face creased with laughter. "Catch me, Tia!" She yelled, running off. Shaking my head, I rose to my feet and hitched up my skirt slightly before chasing after her.
My feet dug into the hard ground and I winced slightly at the pain that shot up my legs with each stride. The paths were rough and painful on my feet, full of stones and formed almost entirely of mud and hard clay, which played hell with my uncovered feet. Rosabella bounded along in front of me, laughing at my attempts of catching her, her small body able to manoeuvre more quickly than my tall, uncoordinated one. She was like a small ballerina, delicately turning, twirling and dodging, avoiding my grasp any time I got relatively close to her. We danced like this for a whole until I felt myself fall, pushed to the ground by my laughing younger sister. I landed heavily, causing slight pain in my back and chuckled softly. "Mascalzone!" I yelled after her. Scoundrel.
She laughed and ran forward down the road. I watched after her, still occupying the floorspace, not bothering to move; Rosabella probably wouldn't be done playing any time soon.
I looked down at my feet, checking for any sores. If I got wounded, I wouldn't be able to keep it clean and it could get infected. "Look out!" I heard a male voice shout and I glanced up just in time to see Rosabella crash into a tall male figure.
