Eclipse

Part 1

"Come back here, you sniveling excuse for a human being!!" 

Asha ran through the village, chasing after the hooligan who had stolen her crossbow. 

"When I get my hands on you you'll regret ever setting foot on the training grounds!" 

The thief lept over two barrels. So did Asha. The thief rounded the corner at a fruit stand. Asha did the same right after them.

Asha grinned, her ash blonde ponytail blowing behind her. She was gaining on them. 

The two raced out of the village gates into the rocky outskirts of their home in the valley. 

It was a lot of effort dodging all the rocks and not tripping over small plants, but eventually...

"Gotcha!" 

Asha lept on the thief's back, causing them to fall to the ground. 

Asha hanked her crossbow out of the person's hands. Standing up, she loaded her recovered weapon and aimed it at her adversary. 

"Stand up!" she shouted, "Let me see who you are." 

The thief quickly sat up and pulled off their mask, revealing...

"GRIFFEN?!" 

A boy with black hair and brown skin smiled up at her. 

"Hey." 

"What the heck, Griffen!" Asha roared, "Why did you steal my crossbow?! What was the POINT of that Griffen?!" 

"The point was," Griffen replied, standing up, "to get you to spend some time with me. I am your friend, you know." 

Asha said nothing but smiled a little. He did have a point. 

Asha and Griffen had been close friends for years. The two were always together. They trained together, hunted together, they did everything together. 

Griffen noticed her smile. He gasped, his face lighting up, "You DO smile! I knew it! Come gimme a hug!" 

Asha walked away as Griffen attempted to wrap his arms around her. 

"I don't need this right now, Griffen," she said blithely, "As leader I have very important responsibilities that I can't postpone because of a particularly annoying subject."

Asha walked through the village gates into the hustle and bustle of the marketplace. Her smile disappeared, and she put on her familiar mask of decisiveness, one that she used to give off the illusion of being a tough, serious leader. 

"Asha, wait a minute!" 

Asha looked behind her to see Griffen following her like a puppy. 

She sighed. 

Though her heart ached for time with him, she knew she couldn't. At least, not right now. There were things she needed to discuss with the council. Things involving their way out of this god-forsaken valley and into their former territory. 

"Stable duty." She said stone-faced as Griffen finally caught up. 

"What?" 

"You heard me. Stable duty. For a week. That's what you get for stealing my crossbow." 

Griffen's face fell. Asha leaned in close and whispered into his ear. 

"And I'll see you there." 

She walked away, leaving Griffen smiling. 

Asha trudged out of the marketplace. Past the villager's tents, past the armory and the training grounds, past the soldier's tents, and up a hill to her own dwelling. 

She stormed inside, throwing her sword, crossbow, and pouches onto a chair. 

She stopped in front of a mirror. 

As she stared at her reflection, she was reminded of how different she was. 

While the rest of the people had darker skin, Asha had fair skin. While the rest of the people had brown or black hair, Asha's hair was blonde. While the rest of the people had brown eyes, Asha's eyes were green. The one thing she naturally had in common with some of them was the scar across her left eye. 

The scar that she had gotten when- 

Asha turned away from the mirror and sat on her bed, placing her head in her hands. She had done so much to try and become one of them, to make them like her. 

She had dyed a black streak in her hair. She had become accustomed to their culture. These people meant more to her than anything in the entire world.

But it wouldn't be enough. She just wanted to make them proud. 

Since she failed to do the same for her own family.