I started to run. I ran and ran and never looked back once. I'd never see home again. Myra, Gabby, my parents... it was as if they'd all died. I'd given up hope of ever getting home again. I'd never get home. Never. And why? Because that stupid fairy couldn't help me. Ella thought she could. Ella said she could, didn't she? Ella got my hopes soaring. Ella. It was Ella's fault. She was the reason I was never going to see anyone I knew or loved again. I could have been the world's most successful website designer ever... but there was no chance of that happening now.
Because of Ella.
Ella!
It was her fault!
And there was that guy in biology that I had had a crush on forever. Oh- what was his name? Sh- uh.. Sean. Yeah. I'd never date him now!
The gnome that predicted my going home must have been wrong.
I got deep into the forest. I didn't care. I could run into a whole slew of ogres. I didn't care where I ended up. Just as long as it was as far away as possible from this horrible place.
Ella!
It was Ella's fault I'd never date Sean!
It was Ella's fault I'd never see Myra!
It was Ella's fault none of my dreams would come true!
It was Ella's fault I wouldn't be rich and famous!
This was such a nightmare!
And it was all because of Ella!!!
I felt like screaming.
I wanted to tear at something, to break it, to crush it, to throw it, to destroy it.
A scream rose from the back of my throat.
I tripped and stumbled over a fallen log. I landed on my face.
I barely even noticed.
I sobbed.
My body shook with more.
I must've laid there and cried for hours before I'd finally fallen asleep.
By now it was the dawn of a new day.
I stood up and stretched.
I looked around.
I didn't recognize any of my surroundings.
I could feel grit and dry tear tracks on my face.
I had no idea where in this world I was.
My hair pulled at me... it was tangled into knots.
I must have gone quite a ways in no specific direction.
My stupid girly finishing school dress was ripped.
I was hopelessly lost with no way home.
My gut throbbed, and I clenched my abdomen. I was hungry. I hadn't eaten in a long time.
But really, I knew there was more to it.
I felt guilty.
It wasn't Ella's fault for anything.
It was just so much easier to blame someone than to just face the fact that no one was responsible for my not going home, except whoever or whatever had brought me here in the first place.
I sighed.
Where was Ella anyway?
Who knew?
Who cared?
She'd be fine.
I should be more concerned with what I'm going to do next. If I'm going to be stuck here, I might as well make the best of it. I'd get a job somewhere. If nothing else, as a maid. Yech... servantry. Maybe I'd be a seamstress or something. I could probably convince a talor to give me a job.
But first, I had to find my way out of this thick forest.
Where to go?
Everything looked the same.
I got up and started to walk forward in as straight a line as I could manage what with the trees in my way.
I'd went on that way for quite a while; stopping only to eat or go to the bathroom. It must've been about two weeks now. I'd collected food from plants and was hungry for meat. I am hungry for meat. Bacon, sausage, ham, pork, beef, hamburgers... images flashed through my mind. I could almost taste the savory juices. The only water I could get was at springs or little creeks I found.
I was hungry.
I was thristy.
I was dirty.
I wanted home!
I had no idea where I was going, but I figured that eventually I'd have to end up somewhere, right?
So far, no such luck. I was beginning to get discouraged.
Just then, I heard a shout ahead of me.
I instantly became alert and looked into the dark canopy of trees ahead of me. I couldn't see anything that would have made a sound like that. It had been sort of a strangled cry. It had sounded like it had come from a man but...
"yessss, we'll eat gooood toonight, nO?" A hissing voice said. Noises of approval followed. I remembered hissy of voices just like that. Ogres. And the sounded close. Whould I never be able to avoid them? The kept crossing my path.
"W-what are you saying?" stammered the voice of a man. I very well might have been mistaken, but the voice sounded almost familiar.
I knew I should go. I should run. The ogres weren't hunting me, right? They probably didn't know I was over here. I should go. Now! Run! Yet... I couldn't leave whoever it was the ogres had... but I wouldn't be able to do anything even if I stayed.
I heard ogres' laughter.
"i love it twhen they ssound so sscared, don't tyoU?" an ogre asked. More mutters of approval.
"ssay, you don't smell more humans do you? It sseems I dO..." one said. Me! They smelt me! The ogres laughed.
"you're smelling isn't right theN. there's no one elsse abouT." an gruff male ogre said.
"i-i think the old fool might be right..." an ogre said.
"You! Honey, you're all right. No one's going to hurt you. We just want to know who you're here with! Tell us, now..." said a sweet voice.
My head started to spin. I opened my mouth.
Wait - NO! Not this time! I shook my head to clear it.
"No one," the man said, "I'm alone."
"Alone, are you? Why? Why are you in the middle of this wood alone? Even ogres aren't that stupid."
The voice never lost it's sweetness, thus even the mild insult sounded like the world's best compliment. I shook myself again.
"I'm looking for someone." The man said simply.
I knew I knew that voice. Who was it?
"Who, dearie?"
"A girl."
"A girl? Is she around here? What's the name?"
I gasped. I knew who it was!
"Sasha."
Author's Note: Sorry about the Nathaniel/Rupert thing, I forgot, but he's Nathaniel. Also, please review!