Alone

14

Vanessa walked out to the fields, emotions clotting her mind. She didn't understand who this girl was, or why she stood up for Austin the way she did. Vanessa felt inadequate. Why couldn't she protect him like that? He had always done nothing but watch out for her, and everyone really. He had such a kind heart. It was what attracted her to him in the first place.

~Flashback~

A young girl, ten years old was shaking in fear as she stepped off the bus that had just dropped her at her new home. Her parents were dead and she had been forced into slavery because she couldn't survive otherwise. She looked down at the small bag her unsteady hands were holding. This was all that she had. Once she had been shown her bed the tears finally fell. She was terrified at all the possibilities, she wasn't in control of her life anymore. Food was served soon after and she simply sat moving the food around on the plate, until a boy approached her.

"Hey kid."

She sniffed and looked up at him.

"I like that locket you got on."

She smiled at him.

"Gimme it."

"What? No!"

He grabbed at the last lifeline she had to her past. She tried to fight him but wasn't strong enough. Tears were covering her cheeks when another boy finally came and pulled the bully off of her saying,

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size Sailor."

"You want me to? Okay, I can do that."

He grabbed the boy and the two went to the floor in a fury of fists and teeth. Soon after the overseer came over cracking his whip to split it up. Some of Sailors friends grabbed his arms and pulled him away with him shouting back,

"This isn't over!"

The other boy wiped the blood from his nose and picked up her locket from the ground.

"I think this is yours,-"

He paused not knowing her name.

"Vanessa," she said with a small smile, he was rather cute after all. "And who shall I thank for being my knight in shining armor?"

"I'm Austin."

~~~~~~~