Ninety-Nine Days

Heart to Heart

[Thanks to WritingInHerDreams for their help catching all errors! Much appreciated :3]

Ninety-Nine Days

Chapter Four

||Heart to Heart ||

.

She was like a monkey.

That was the only way Rina could describe the woman as the red-head swung down from thick branches. Rina was amazed yet nervous when the red-head let herself drop without a care to the ground, making not one sound of discomfort as her dirt stained bare feet settled upon rough rocks and annoying spike-like grass.

"Well, let's get this over with, shall we?" The woman said while shaking thick vines and growing stems from her arms. But, on closer inspection, Rina noted that the vines were actually apart of her pale skin, hued with an unusual brownish-green color. What mind boggled her even more was that the red-head had what looked like stems of flower buds sprouting from the mud-like puddle located on the right side of the woman’s face.

Rina felt the itch to get a better inspection, to see if what she was looking at was indeed real, because she really couldn’t wrap her mind around anything!

“It’s not a costume.”

Startled, Rina met the woman’s white gaze and felt herself blush from being caught gawking. Feeling awkward, Rina looked over the woman’s shoulder, ignoring the impertinent stare she was receiving from the bizarre lady.

“At least she isn’t screaming her head off like my last client,” the woman stated, turning her gaze on Rina’s silent companion. “But, I’m still put off with the way you handled everything.”

“I had no other way.”

Rina glanced oddly at the two, her brows furrowing with confusion. However, as she watched the two converse with each other, an idea formed inside of her head.

The two were busy. This was the perfect opportunity to escape. With her anxious kept in check, Rina cautiously, without taking her gaze off the couple, took a step back. Then another, and another, and another, and--

“She’s trying to escape.”

Rina froze when two sets of eyes fixed on her rigid form.

“Wh-what?” Rina feigned innocence, trying to form a smile on her lips but failing terribly.

There was a tiny smirk on the woman’s face; she found Rina amusing. However, the blonde male seemed anything but entertained. He was totally blank in the face. It was hard to tell what the guy was thinking.

“Sorry, miss. I’m afraid you can’t leave yet. I’m not done with you, yet,” the woman chided, resting a hand against her hip.

Rina let out a shaky smile. “Actually, I have to be going,” she said then jerked a thumb over her shoulder. “My step-brother--”

“You really don’t need to worry about all that,” the woman smiled, beckoning Rina over with a finger. “So, why don’t you come closer, huh? I want to make sure you hear everything perfectly.”

Rina’s feet remained planted on the ground. She had no plans to get closer to the two.

The woman smiled. “Alright. You can stay there. That is fine with us."

Rina looked over at the male but his gaze was aimed somewhere else.

“My name is Lana,” The woman introduced, folding her arms under her breasts. “And I, a Gatherer, am here to bind the two of you. So, why don’t you willingly hand over your heart and we can finish this quickly without any problems.”