Never Enough Time

Chapter One: Rika

Chapter One: Rika

“I have an excellent father,

His strength is making me stronger…”

  -- The Best Day, Taylor Swift

 The forest was eerily silent as a small brown deer picked its way delicately through the thorny brush. Its ears were flat against its head. Perfect, I thought. Its guard was down. That would make it even easier to hunt. I carefully took an arrow from my back and silently strung my bow. Biting my lip in concentration, I leaned forward slightly as I prepared to shoot.

A twig snapped beneath my feet, and the deer darted away.

I swore.

Behind me, someone tsked. “Now, a young lady like you shouldn’t be using that kind of language,” a male voice said, sounding amused.

I turned around to see a heavy-set man with dark hair and kind eyes.

I smiled at my favourite person in the world. “I’m sorry, Father. But you really shouldn’t have taught me those words in the first place,” I pointed out.

Father chuckled, shaking his head. “I suppose you’re right about that,” he agreed. “I just came by to see how you were doing,” he added, changing the subject.

I sighed. “Obviously, not as well as I’d hoped,” I said, gesturing to the empty space where the deer had been. I unstrung my bow and put the unused arrow back in my case, looking down to glare at the offending twig.

My father came to stand beside me and put a comforting hand on my shoulder.

“It’s alright,” he said. “After all, you’ve caught plenty of things before. I’d say you’re almost as good as me now.”

My eyes widened slightly at this last comment. My father was kind and a good man, but he was also incredibly stern and disciplined. A compliment from him was extremely rare. I felt tears welling up in my eyes, but refused to let them escape. Rule Number One of survival in this place – never show weakness.

I shook my head. “Thank you, Father, but with all due respect, I’ll never be as good as you. You’re the best hunter in the whole realm,” I reminded him.

He merely shrugged and started heading back the way he had come, calling, “Good luck!” over his shoulder.

I smiled after him, a little rueful.

It was true. My father was the only person in the kingdom who could hunt down and catch a wild boar in less than fifteen minutes. He had a great reputation throughout the country, and often got called on for hunting parties and such. As for me, I prided myself on being the only daughter of a great huntsman. I hoped to follow in his footsteps one day. After all, how else was a girl without a Happy Ending supposed to make a living here?

Happy Endings were distributed by the kingdom (and therefore, the royal family) to whatever young lady they pleased. I was sixteen, the age that most girls received their Happy Ending, but I had not been chosen for one, nor did I want one. Happy Endings, in my opinion, only took away your strength and independence. Just look at Ivory, for instance. We used to be close friends. For years, we used to wander in the forest, practicing our archery and pulling silly pranks on innocent passer-by and on each other. But then she pulled the ultimate stunt: she got herself a Happy Ending and lived happily ever after with her prince. At first, I didn’t understand. She hadn’t wanted a Happy Ending. She, too, had thought them useless and demeaning. I was completely nonplussed until I discovered the truth.

Rumour has it, a prince fell in love with Ivory from afar and asked his mother, a powerful sorceress, to put a spell on her to make her appear dead. So, the Queen gave Ivory an apple laced with magic to mimic death. Then, after she had eaten the “poisonous” apple, the prince kissed her and in doing so, bestowed upon her a Happy Ending. She’s been living with him ever since, because she is still under the impression that he saved her life. I visited her once, up at the castle on the hill. Ivory was so dependent on her servants and husband I didn’t think she even knew how to make her own decisions anymore. It also didn’t help much that her new husband was completely besotted with her, and was therefore constantly doing everything for her. She was never the same. That visit to the castle was my first and last.

A small movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention, interrupting my thoughts. There was a flash of white, and I turned my head to see the leaves of a bush still quivering from whatever had been there a moment ago. I smiled; maybe I would catch something today, after all. I prepared my bow and disappeared into the dark forest where my prey would have gone.

NATHAN

I watched her. I looked at her wherever she went, my gaze constant and alert. My eyes followed her every move as she failed to catch the deer that she had hunted so carefully for the past hour and a half. From my hiding place behind a tree, I noticed the exchange between the girl and her father and how tight their bond was. I saw the glimmering tears in her eyes that she was holding back when her father gave her praise. Every little detail about her fascinated me. I wanted to know everything about her: her likes, her dislikes, what she thought of her life, why she was so frustrated because she couldn’t catch a deer. I didn’t understand this irrational desire to get to know this ordinary, insignificant girl. She wasn’t even of royalty; I shouldn’t be interested in her at all. And yet, I was. I was completely and utterly captivated by this one girl who I hadn’t even met.

            Right now, she was lost in thought. I longed to know what she was thinking, what the inner workings of her mind were doing. I shifted my position slightly, to see her better. The girl’s head turned sharply, and I knew she had seen the movement. I cringed. I should have known better, of course; with her being a hunter, she was bound to notice every slight movement. It was in her training. I turned to go before she caught anything else. I think she may have seen part of my white-blond hair as I left. I didn’t stay long enough to find out.