Violetta

Prologue

A young man walked along the edge of the once lively town with his little daughter. His steps felt heavy across the rough earth. If he closed his eyes, he could imagine his wife whispering goodnight to him as they lay in bed; his eyes stung imagining her lovely voice and beautiful visage. If he focused, he could hear his little son saying his first word-

"Viooo"

A small smile came onto his face when he remembered how his daughter's name- or well, sort of name, was the first thing his son had ever said. How small were his fingers, how little of a life he had lived.

And how young was his daughter, his poor little Violetta.

'Too young, she must be terrified, oh, my sweet baby.'

Or so her father thought.

Violetta's eyes were entranced by the fire, watching its flames soar through the town. It danced to a tune she couldn't hear but only feel under her skin; it crawled within her, shook her to her bones. She felt pride. Joy, even. She felt a new high, one she didn't know she had even craved for before. Her head spun- she couldn't tell if it was from watching the hypnotic fire for so long or because she was going insane.

'Ah, so this is what living feels like... Ironic.'

She felt like a bit of a maniac, finding the joy of living while watching death take over the town she had grown up in. If one saw her expression right now, they would think that she was the cause of this devastating fire. But she hadn't set the fire- although, she wished she was there to watch who  did. She was just leaving Agamemnon Forests when she saw the smoke rise above the tree line.

Today, she had caught a beautiful deer.

She had memorized its nimble steps, learned its patterns, and studied its life for months. She had nothing if not patience. She learned to hide amongst the foliage and dampen the sounds of her footsteps. She knew that even the slightest vibrations would make the deer fear for its life and run. She knew better than to rush her plan. The fruit of success would be even sweeter after the long wait.

When she woke up that morning, she only had one thought in her mind, to finally have the lovely, innocent deer within her grasp. Oh, how she yearned to watch the light go from its beautiful doe eyes. To know that she would finally reap the benefits of her hunt. She left her house with her father before the first rays of light crept over the horizon. Along with her, she carried her trusty crossbow, the knife her father had carved for her, a flask filled with water, a small pouch with nuts that her mother packed for them, and a large cloth she planned to use to bring the deer back in. The crossbow weighed almost 50 pounds across her 11-year-old body. She was used to it, though. Ever since she could walk her father had taken her hunting with him, it was all she knew.

Today was going to be cloudy. She could smell the rain approaching- but nothing would get in her way today.

***

A few hours later she found herself only a few metres away from her target. Raindrops fell around her in rhythmic patterns. She steadied her heart and crept as close as she could without alerting her prey. Luckily for her, the rain softened the twigs and leaves below her feet, giving her the perfect stalking conditions.

The sweet deer took shelter under the large oak tree- something she had already anticipated since she knew that this solitary whitetail held a keen preference for oak trees. It was a young male- maybe only a year old-probably as old as her baby brother, She wondered if it had a herd or a mother it was separated from. She wondered if by taking his life she was disturbing nature's balance. After all, she wasn't hunting it for survival- only as a means to fulfill her curiosity. But it was too late now, she could feel her senses tingling, her fingers itching to pull the trigger. She had waited long enough.

She poised her arrow at the 'kill zone'.

"Aim for the kill zone," her father had said to her, "it's 4 to 6 inches behind the left elbow of its front leg. That is where you'll find the deer's heart and lungs, little Svenia."

He always called her Svenia. She suspected that it was because she had always been interested in 'boyish' activities, after all, the name 'Svenia' meant 'boy'. She didn't mind it. She neither liked nor disliked it- much like anything else her parents did. She often wondered if she even loved her parents. She could feel their warmth and kindness towards her- they truly adored her. She did acknowledge their kindness in raising her, but nothing further than that.

She steadied her heartbeat and focused her aim. With a deep breath in, she pulled the trigger.

Swoosh

Before she could even blink, the arrow had lodged itself in the deer's flesh. She saw it fall- rather gracefully- into the overgrown grass at the base of the large oak tree. It didn't make a sound. Violetta wondered at the novelty of the deer- even during death it refused to give its killer the pleasure of hearing it struggle. She knew that the reason for this would probably be something more logical than this- like, not attracting predators- but she didn't care for logic at the moment.

Her months of hard work had finally paid off and she felt her heart squeeze in pleasure. A beautiful smile graced her face. The rain came to a lull, and the clouds covering the sun parted, giving her a warm glow and making her beautiful honey eyes shine. It was as though the Gods themselves had parted the clouds, so they could watch her at this moment of glory. She felt like a young wild animal that had just made its first kill- it may not have been her first but it certainly felt great.

A different kind of great than how she felt at the moment, watching her town burn.

With a parting glimpse at the town and no parting thoughts, she turned around and pulled her father along. She didn't know where she was going, but thankfully her father scooped her up in his arms and continued walking. It had been a long day for him, and she wondered how he had the strength to walk until they could reach some sort of shelter- all while carrying her and dragging the deer with him.

Her father watched her as she slept in his arms. He had known of a cave nearby that housed no animals and had unknowingly led himself there. His mind was spinning. He had not yet come to terms with the fact that his wife, son, and home were all gone, just like that. He felt like melting into the ground. He wanted to lie in his wife's lap and tell her about his day and his daughter's long-awaited catch, but she wasn't there to hear him. He felt a tear escape his eye, but he knew he couldn't break down. He had to hold himself for the sake of his daughter. He had to be strong for both of them. He didn't have any plan or money to go forward, but for the night he was worried about neither, he just wanted to rest with his daughter.

In his exhaustion, he didn't realize when he closed his eyes, and, with his daughter in his arms, he immediately drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep.

But when he woke up in the morning, he had yet another shock waiting for him.

His daughter was gone.

And not only was she gone- so were all the items they had carried with them when they had gone hunting, along with the deer.

He looked for her everywhere, he searched through the nearby land, wondering if she had gone to hunt. Maybe she had gone home, maybe she had gone to look for other survivors, maybe she was back at the cave, maybe she was going to return by nightfall. He searched everywhere. But to no avail. She was gone. And he had no clue how long it would be before he saw her again.