Rianna loved being around nature.She loved the feeling it gave her. Like a deep calling in the center of her chest telling her she belonged. Her hands brushed the ground and a sense of calm rushed over her. The gentle breeze tugged at her hair as she stared out at the grassy hills, watching the blades dance with the wind. It also was the only place she had the freedom to be herself without the prying eyes of her parents, their bodyguards, or the media.
She loved her parents, but having a governor as a father and a senator as a mother left her on a short leash in terms of expressing herself. Everything was scripted. Every dinner party, every charity event, every trip out of the house. As a child, she wasn't even allowed to be friends with other children unless their parents were on one of her parents campaigns.
In her 19 years on earth, the only time she truly felt herself was after she found this sparsely travelled path on the edge of Mount Rainier. Even though it took 2 hours to get to it from her hometown of Seattle, she still managed to sneak away from her house once a month to just sit and enjoy the peace that came with not having to act prim and proper. No doubt her parents had caught on by now to her secret but they allowed her this time since she otherwise lived up to their expectations. She was even going into her second year at princeton getting her political science, something she wasn't thrilled about being involved with.
She leaned against the tree behind her and sighed. She watched as the sun drifted towards the horizon, telling her it was time to go. She decided to take the long path to exit the park and savor the scenery. She listened the sounds of the animals all in balance with each other as she walked down the winding path. Her favorite things were the trees. How they seemed to whisper to each other, sharing secrets and ancient wisdom one could only hope to attain.
The sound of a child distracted her. She looked past the trees onto another open field and saw a young girl walking towards the mountain. She looked around trying to see if there were others, hoping to see a parent or guardian, anyone might be with her. Not seeing anyone else, she sped up her pace and caught up to the girl. When she was 5 feet from her she called out to her
"Excuse me miss? Where are your parents?" The girl ignored her. Frowning, she walked in front of the girl and tried again "Are you lost? Do you need help finding a rangers station?" Once again, her questions went unanswered as the girl simply walked around her. Riana was becoming worried.The girl stared ahead, as if she was in some kind of trance.
She looked ahead, where the girl seemed to be heading. There was a cave she had never seen before with an odd faint blue light coming from within. The girl was already at the opening of the cave and she got an uneasy feeling. She caught up to the girl once again, stepping into the cave and found a glowing hole in the ground where the light was coming from. The girl was on top of the hole and Riana shot forward without a second thought and pulled her away. Unfortunately, she lost her footing and fell in. A scream passed her lips and the last thing she saw was that little girl looking at her with fearful eyes.