Floating Petals

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

            Hanami was still running. She had past the flag hours ago and was so upset she had decided to run forever; she was not the brightest bulb of the bunch. Her legs were giving out on her and step by step she slowed down. There was a tree stump precariously on the path so Hanami took her chance and sat on it.

            “What am I going to do now?” Hanami spoke aloud to herself. The brittle edges of the stump were poking her legs. Her black lace dress would simply not do. It was already torn and stained in many places. Hanami grimaced as she got up, swiping splinters stuck in the back off her claves. She was still breathing hard and she didn’t stop as she kept walking in no direction in particular.

            A small cottage came into her field of view, and Hanami rushed to it. The door was opened slightly so she grabbed the handle and yanked. Her eyes were closed tightly as she expected a slap for entering without permission but it never came. Instead, her eyes flickered throughout the home. The fireplace was still lit and the cabinets were filled to the brim with food. Hanami felt her mouth watering like a wave and she leapt at the food. The cabinets were filled with dried meat, fresh berries and exotic spices and herbs. The first thing she grabbed was the fruits and the meat. She was looking for protein fast and exotic spices were the complete opposite of what she needed. She piled things into her arms, not being able to contain her excitement. The food emanated sweet scents of rosemary and chives. The fruit was ripe enough to burst. Hanami shook with excitement as she scampered to the corner of the room close to the fire. It roared with energy and she dug her teeth into a candy red apple. It snapped as she pulled it away from her. The sticky juices ran down her hand and onto her dress. Her mood exploded sky-high. A smile grew onto her face and she licked her hands clean. She scrambled at the meat next. It was like the old fashioned beef jerky her sister had made. When she was alive. Her sister’s special power was to be able to change anything of her choosing. If she didn’t like dinner she would change it into her favorite dish, watermelon slices with sugar on top. But she was gone and Hanami couldn’t change anything about that. She bit back into her venison and held back her tears. The fire was inviting so she crawled closer. The ratty couch placed in front of the brick was a comforting back rest so Hanami pulled it against the corner wall. She laid her head on top of it while her back stood firmly against the side. Soon enough the fire tickling her senses cradled her into a deep sleep. The fruit and meat were still beside her and she dragged a grapefruit into her arm. She cradled it in the crook of her elbow as she let all of her tension float away on her magic petals.

            Hanami woke up groggy. The meat beside her was gone and there was a broken mug on the floor. There was obviously a clear liquid in it, or was in it, so now it was sprayed across the floor. Two feet came into her field of view and Hanami bolted up, hitting her head on a wooden board making her groan.

            A female voice penetrated the silence. “Careful young one. I found you with all of my food, except my spices which is reasonable. Just get up off the floor and sit down.” Hanami shook her head to get the birds away and stood up, shakily. There was a young woman on the couch now and she had brown hair in a ponytail with strands hanging out all over the place. Her outfit was black with red accents and she had a quiver full of bolts on her back. Hanami stared in amazement, she looked like a real hunter but she did not wear the uniform. And what hunter would live this far out in Wykina? Hanamisat down on the couch next to the woman, hunching her shoulders down trying to avoid her piercing eyes. “You shouldn’t be scared of me.” She nudged Hanami in the shoulder. “Would you like to go get some supplies with me? We can pick up some fresh meat on the way.” Hanami glanced at the woman and she smiled softly at her.  “My name is Chiyo, Chiyo Lenora.” She took Hanami’s hand and led her to the door, making sure to close it on the way out.

            “Where are we going?” Whispered Hanami in a quiet voice. Her hand was shaking like she didn’t quite trust Chiyo yet. Chiyo chuckled.

            “We are going to a farmers market close to here. It’s run by a couple of my friends.” Chiyo smiled again. Hanami’s hand finally stopped shaking and lost its tension. Chiyo’s mind was racing. What am I supposed to do with a fugitive? I saw her poster yesterday nailed to a tree while I was coming home dragging that venison. I guess I can just distract her while I walk her to ‘The Wall.’ ‘The Wall’ iswhere Wykina meets the city capital, Midnight City. It towers above everything else, even the skyscrapers in the city. It’s like a gigantic box with little test mice inside. The “Higher Power” watch their slaves from above on the floating island of Tazu. Tazu floats above the city and every once in a while a chunk of dirt will come falling down onto an un-expecting citizen below. But Chiyo’s mind snapped back to reality when Hanami started talking again.

            “So what supplies are we getting?” Chiyo’s eyes widened and she hoped to god that Hanami didn’t see it.

            “Oh, we are just going to get more spices!” Nailed it. Hanami sighed.

            “Do you really need more spices? I mean from what I saw you had a collection to cover Tazu and none of them were used!” She chuckled at her own joke and Chiyo smiled softly.

            “Yeah but my mother used to collect spices and now she’s…”

            “Gone?”

            “Yeah.” The mood had changed drastically.

            “Nothing new.” Chiyo looked at her, horrified. How could this girl grow up without a parent? She is so… helpless and small! She looks like she was raised by royalty! “My parents were taken here to perform. They hated performing like animals so they took their own lives.” Chiyo sighed as she hugged Hanami close to her and kept walking.

            They reached the perimeter of Wykina in no time. Chiyo turned Hanami away from the wall and told her to close her eyes.

            “Why?”

            “So my friends will be surprised!  They love surprises!” Chiyo sighed in relief as Hanami obeyed and covered her eyes with her hands. Chiyo pressed her shoulders down. “Stay here for just a sec.”

            Chiyo smirked deviously as she slowly walked away from her and bolted towards the wall. Hunters stood atop it, their rifles at the ready and when they saw Chiyo they immediately aimed.

            “Hold your fire! I have a fugitive!” She shrieked at the men and women. They glanced at each other and then lowered their weapons. One of them called out to someone behind him.

            “Sergent, domnule am un pensionar hunter spunandu-ne ca ea are un fugar. Ar trebui să ne lăsaţi-o în?” (Sergeant, sir we have a retired hunter telling us she has a fugitive. Should we let her in?)  A man in an advanced hunter uniform stepped up to the edge of the wall and looked down upon Chiyo. His helmet eye holes glowed scarlet and his kneepads displayed the hunter emblem.  She smiled a fake smile as she recognized him. It was the Sergeant who had her family house burnt down when she went rogue. He had murdered every one of her family members personally. Dusk. No way in hell was he going to get that girl.

            “Este adevărat, Lenora?” (Is that true, Lenora?) He nodded to her in a formal fashion and she snapped.

            “Nici un fel Crepuscul. Am fost doar încercaţi să defecheze ai oprit.” (No way Dusk. I was just trying to piss you off.) She smirked at him sarcastically and cocked a bolt in her crossbow. He limped to the edge of the wall, still having trouble with an injury on his leg. Dusk’s face flushed and he pulled out his 50 caliber sniper. They stared at each other for about a minute but then they both backed off and went their separate ways.

            Chiyo came back to Hanami swearing under her breath. She touched her shoulder softly and she uncovered her eyes.

            “When am I gonna meet your friends?” Hanami remarked. Chiyo sighed again and grasped her arm firmly.

            “We are not going to meet them.” She grumbled. I can’t believe I’m doing this. But no way am I giving this girl to Dusk; that bastard will get nothing else from me.

            “Does that mean no spices?”