Frantic breathing, harsh and uneven, pushed past delicate faded pink lips as small, boot clad feet pounded upon the cold cobblestones beneath the small, fragile body, still somewhat damp from the day's earlier rain, a few puddles of stagnant water decorating the stone ground here and there, often disturbed by the occasional passer by that failed to notice the young girl that darted past them quickly, nothing more than a fleeting blur of dark green and brown, ringlets of her once elegantly done hair streaming behind her, loose from the waterfall of delicate curls at the top of her head, a few strands clinging to her pale, frightened face as she ran.
Her body was encased within the confines of a deep emerald that reached her mid shin, the sleeves baggy around her lithe arms as her slender hands clenched into fists, short fingernails digging into the soft flesh of her palms as she darted around yet another faceless man, the cuff of her slightly damp coat brushing against him in the faintest of touches, and it went unnoticed as she sped past him.
Underneath the heavy coat, she was dressed in a lavish dress of pale blue, decorated at the collar and bottom by a mix of dark blue and black lace that rubbed against the pale skin of her collarbone, turning the soft flesh a faint, irritated red, though she ignored it as she dashed in a wide circle around a corner, nearly slipping on a pool of dirty water, water droplets splashing upwards and creating damp spots upon the dark fabric of her coat.
Quickly, her fear filled dark green orbs flickered back, unsure if her pursuer was still after her, haunting every step she took. Flitting back to face the front, her eyes slammed shut as she willed her already aching body to go faster, pushing her past her limits and beyond as she sped up, ignoring her legs that screamed at her to stop, and the heavy beating of her frantic heart that echoed in her ears that were pierced with earings of shimmering pearl, the ornaments hidden from sight by her dark hair as she slowed to a stop, chest heaving up and down as her head whipped from the left to the right quickly, eyes searching for an suitable hiding place. Finding nothing, she jerked forward, starting up her quick pace once more, arms swinging wildly at her sides as though that would help her run faster.
She had to get away, to get away from them. If she were caught by him, she would be, without a doubt, taken back to them and locked away in that place, no longer allowed to be outside of there for even the briefest of moments, and barred away, hidden and never allowed to see the pale shine of the sun anymore, not until the day she died. The very thought of what would happen to her if she were caught brought tears to her eyes, and they blurred her vision as she blinked rapidly, trying to clear the saltly liquid from her usually acute vision, and it failed as her eyes misted over rapidly once more, and she slowed as she raised an arm to rub at her eyes.
As if tripped by an invisible, unseen force, she stumbled, boot clad feet faltering clumsily and she landed in a graceless, exhausted heap infront of someone, who took a step back in surprise before letting out a soft, 'oh!'.
Gasping for air as her lungs burned, the young girl looked up, deep emerald eyes staring a pair of daintily white boot clad feet, and her gaze traveled up farther to meet with worry filled blue, and startling red hair that was partially hidden by a white hat with a blue cross on it.
'A terran....' thought the girl, though she threw caution to the wind as she threw her arms around one of the woman's legs, clinging to her as her eyes closed. "Help me..." she whimpered, her soft, exhaustion tainted voice reaching the young woman's ears, and the young woman's deep azure gaze softened as she bent down, placing a gentle hand on the young girl's faintly damp brown curls, making the girl look up.
The woman bit back a startled gasp as the younger girl's shimmering forest green irises locked with hers, and she took in the unnaturally pale skin, and seemingly flawless features before coming to a mental conclusion. 'This child....she's a methusela!' she thought, though she disregared the nagging voice in the back of her head as she pulled the girl to her feet, helping support her as the girl nearly toppled over, her eyes half-lidded with fatigue and the redhaired woman gently guided her down the street as she glanced down at her.
"Don't worry. I'll see if I can help you, okay? But first, we need to get you changed out of these wet clothes!" she chimed, smiling brightly as the brown haired girl looked up with uncertain green eyes before a small smile flickered onto her lips. "What's your name?" inquired the blue eyed woman, and the brown haired girl looked to the ground.
"My name is Azmarie." she answered in her soft, childlike voice that reminded the woman so much of a blonde haired, crimson eyed methusela, and she smiled to herself as they reached a rather large privet inn, and the woman led Azmarie in to the establishment, just as the said green eyed female looked up. "What is your name?" she asked, and the woman looked down with a smile.
"I'm Esther." she introduced herself, and Azmarie smiled gently, closing her eyes for a moment as she turned away. She was safe, for now. She knewthat they wouldn't attack her if she were with a terran, and her scent would have been long washed away by the light drizzle that had started up outside. "Come on, Azmarie." Ester gently chided, and Azmarie looked up to see Ester heading up the stairs, and she stumbled after her clumsily, followed Ester to a tall oak door at the end of the hallway, and Ester motioned for Azmarie to hang back for a moment as she knocked on the door twice. "Father Nightroad?" she asked, hearing a small scuffle of feet on the floor from within the room before it opened, revealing a man with silver hair that was pulled into a low ponytail, and smiling dark blue eyes that were hidden behind the glasses he wore.
"Ah,Sister Esther, welcome back. I trust you were safe on the way back?" he asked gently, an undercurrent of worry hidden within his soft, comforting voice and Esther nodded before peeking into the room.
"Where's Sir Ion?" she inquired, and Abel rubbed the back of his head as he smiled.
"He's getting a shower, he'll be out soon..." Abel trailed off as he caught a flash of dark brown ringlets and irredescent green eyes, and he blinked as a young girl, no older than Ion, stepped out from behind Esther, looking up at him with nervous green orbs, and he looked up as Esther placed a hand on either of the girl's shoulders, and smiled at the silver haired man.
"Father Nightroad, this is Azmarie. I found her outside..." trailed off Esther, and Abel nodded, knowing she would give him the full explanation later. Glancing back down at the silent Azmarie, he grinned.
"Hello miss Azmarie, my name is Abel Nightroad." he introduced himself, and Azmarie bowed slightly, brown curls falling infront of her green clad shoulders as she gave a shaky, wavering smile, the corners of her delicate lips twitching upwards.
"Ah!" said Esther, as though she was just remembering something, and she turned towards Azmarie. "We still need to get you out of those wet clothes, or you'll catch cold." she chided in a motherly voice, and Azmarie nodded, fumbling with the buttons of her coat and sliding it off her shoulders, leaving her clad in her elegant dress of pale blue and lace. Turning towards Esther, she gave the blue eyed woman a confused look as if to say 'now what?'. Esther blinked, opening her mouth as she prepared to say something, when a door within the room swung open, and a pale skinned boy with blonde hair and deep crimson eyes walked out, wearing nothing but a pair of long black pants, leaving his chest bare of a shirt and he blinked as he turned, smiling at Esther.
"Welcome back, Esther!" he greeted, and Azmarie shifted, catching Ion's attention as he turned towards her, dark green orbs clashing with suprised crimson before Azmarie's gaze flickered away, uncomfortable with his stare as she moved towards Esther, who smiled at her before turning back to Ion.
"Sir Ion, this is Azmarie." she said, and Azmarie took a few steps forward, bowing slightly before straitening up.
"It's nice to meet you, Sir Ion Fortuna."