Innocent

~5~Xki

After my little run-in with the letter and with Primrose, I have been looking non-stop for her. I rack my brain for a person whom I have spoken to multiple times. Every once in a while I see red hair and Primrose is the only one in town who is a redhead.

Each day I return and get a new letter with small hints, but all of them are practically useless to me other than the one about searching the bodies. All the bodies have a silver ring on their left pinkies, maybe they are in a gang of some sort, though Nyx never said why they deserved death.

Today I follow the redhead again hoping that Nyx told her to talk to me. I catch her in the very same corner as last time, "Hey Primrose, got any more messages for me?" I ask her.

She turns and smiles, "I do." she is so annoyingly vague. "Fine. She told me to tell you that if you wish to speak in person with her you must go to where you met the most intriguing person from this town at midnight," she turns to leave, "she also said you may bring back up, but she warns you, they are no use." she finishes.

"How does she know who the most intriguing person is to me?" I ask.

The only thing she does is turn, now walking backward, winks, and looks somewhere over my head as if looking at something. I look behind me to check for anything out of the ordinary, when I turn my head back, Primrose is gone. I walk to where she was and all that is left is a scrap of paper, Because we will be seeing each other more, you can call me Prim, the 10-year-old girl that is too good to be caught. I let out a chuckle at how true her words are.

It's half an hour before midnight, I search for movement around me as I head for the tree where I met Azalea. When I reach the tree there are no sounds other than the rustle of some leaves. While I'm waiting I wonder if Nyx maybe thought of the wrong person. At exactly midnight I stand to leave, "Going so soon?" I stop in my tracks.

"How long have you been there?" I ask the familiar voice.

"About half an hour." I recognize the voice, it has a small Arabic accent.

"Nice to meet again, Azalea," I say testing it out.

"Took you long enough," she pauses, "was it that hard to figure me out?" she lets out a huff.

"Why did you summon me?" I ask, searching for answers.

"Why so formal?" she jumps from the tree, it's too dark to see a clear figure plus she has a cloak which makes it hard to see her body. "I'm only here to ask you some questions and give some answers. Calm yourself I'm not going to kill you, yet." I can hear the smile in her voice.

"If I answer questions will you truly give answers?" 

"I will," she states simply.

"Ask away." I just want answers and to find weaknesses.

"Why are you looking for me?" obvious question.

"I was assigned a mission by the king to find you and bring you to the palace. The reason I was given the mission was because you are killing off many of our recruits." I don't bother hiding anything she'll find out without me somehow. 

Her dark figure starts to circle me silently, "Your turn, ask away." 

"Who trained you?" I ask "You are well trained for a woman."

"Shukran, my father trained me from the ages 7 to 10, my mother taught me from the ages 4 to 7. My mother taught me the art of the sword and my father, survival." she was trained at such a young age.

"My turn, who trained you?" she says it as if it were a game.

"I was trained by the king up until about a year ago, ages 10 to 18. He taught me much of what I know now." I respond quickly. I think of an important question, "Where were you raised? You have an accent, even though people here speak Arabic you're the only one who has an accent." I explain.

"Are you ready for a surprise?" I nod even though she can't possibly see it. "I was raised on castle grounds, I was trained in the horse stable and out in the forest." she pauses, "my father would drug me and take me out to the middle of the forest while I was asleep, he would leave me there and make me find my way back, that's only the basics of training from my father though." 

I can't think of a way she could be trained on castle grounds unless she was the daughter of a maid and a soldier, it doesn't add up how her father got the drugs though, soldiers are not allowed to have those types of mixtures. The training technique is very unique, I'm sure that counts as abuse if she was only 7 years old though.

I can't stop myself, "Why did you want to be found?" 

She makes a disapproving clicking sound with her tongue, "That was my turn, looks like we have a rule breaker. I don't like that." I shutter. "Most of the games I play end up with someone like you dead, but I have grown fond of you so I will let this go." her silent movements stop, "I'll see you tomorrow, I won't see you here, I will see you in my normal clothes, and I will not tell you it's me. Goodbye, Xki." and then she's gone.

I returned to my room in haste, I messed up my only chance at getting information. I can't possibly seek her out from all the people I speak to.  I think as I draw myself a bath, now I know both of the names she goes by which means it'll be easier to find her. Even if I do find her, how to I capture her?

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I don't have much to write as an after note but please do share this story with others as it's still growing.