Basket, Screaming, and Building:

     You clutched your basket tightly as you made your way through the tight streets of the city. You quickly hid your face under the hood of your cloak. Rapid footsteps can be heard ahead. It won't be good if they caught you in the middle of your market trip. You dodged many passerbys  and stayed in the shadows as you quietly bought what you needed. On the outside, you would've seem like an innocent girl simply buying groceries for her family, which is what you were exactly hoping for. You hoped no one would stop and question you. They would find out who you were - a runaway trying to survive in a village. Your eyes begin to sting as you recalled the horrid memories once again. No. You pushed those thoughts away with all your strength. Now is not the time to be crying. They won't find you. They won't. Not now. Not ever.

     You were too focused on remaining inconspicuous from the villagers to notice the distant screaming of a woman. You snapped into attention as a bright glow shone from behind the church. It was quite a large building and covered whatever ruckus was occurring on the opposite side. The light however, seemed too wild and vivacious to be some kind of bonfire or burning of another witch. Unconsciously, you dropped your shopping basket as well as its contents and sprinted around the building to witness the nightmare that had haunted your dreams. 

     Every building in sight was burning. People scampered past you in their nightclothes as you stood frozen at the scene. A man was attempting to put out a scrap of his clothes that had been caught afire. A woman was screeching words you were barely able to make out - then again, with the amount of screeching around you, there was no way you could distinguish one from the other. There were charred bodies desperately trying to claw their way out of the burning debris crushing on them. Your breath stopped as you took in the sight and realized the situation to its fullest - they were being burned alive.

     The air was thick with smoke as yells, cries and pleas filled your ears. Your eyes stung from the overwhelming amount of dust and ash in the air. You blinked rapidly, trying to clear your vision. You covered your ears from the piercing screams. No. No. It was happening again. They're going to burn this village and its innocent inhabitants down! They wanted you, didn't they? Why? Why couldn't they just leave you alone? A sudden determination washed over you. They aren't going to capture you. Not tonight. Not ever. Today is the day you finally showed your face.

     You yanked back your hood, revealing your slightly messed-up hair and wet eyes. Surprisingly, no one recognized you. No, they were just distracted by the fire and admiring their handiwork. They would look for you after the fire. 'Hmph, bunch of cowards,' you thought bitterly. You let out a sigh and faced the fate you've chosen.

     You stared at the flames. The fire continued spreading towards you in response. You continued staring. The flames began to approach you, causing nearby escapades to scramble away. They didn't call for you. They didn't even notice you - how could they when their homes have just been burnt to ashes before their eyes? They didn't stop you as you approached the fire. The fire, you realized, was simply so beautiful... so alluring. The crimson reds and golden yellows waved in the air, forming orange figures dancing around you. The colors engulfed you in a warm embrace. Sweat trickled down your face as you reached out a hand and began to walk towards the flames. You didn't hear the screams behind you. 

     Yes. They wouldn't find your body this way - alive or dead. There was no way you would survive this. You've been running away from danger so long, but now was the time you faced it. Now was the time to erase those horrid memories. Now was the time for your basket to be forgotten, your cloak to be burned to a crisp and your life to end. You would forget your memories of all your horrific sights - past and present. They won't find you. You repeated this in your head as you willingly stepped into the burning inferno. They won't find you. They won't find you. They won't find you.

...

...

They...

...

shall never...

find you....

in the flames...

...

of hell.

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Alright,

I think I've established a semi-regular schedule time. Expect updates about once every week.

Just a heads up, the end of the school year is coming where I live so my updates will slow since I gotta study for some exams and catch up with school and all.

The summer will be pretty busy for me as well - what with summer school and vacation and life and all.

I'll probably update more frequently after October this year.

For this chapter, I tried combining the techniques I used for the first and second. Please remember this is my first story, so I'm not a professional. I'm just experimenting some writing techniques most of the time. Unlike other first stories, I won't feel bad if you say I suck or something. I've reread some of my works and realized some did suck.

I've got a few responses on Wattpad, so that's a relief. If you guys want me to write something fitting to your style, please tell me! I'm always free for suggestions, but I might have to postpone some if there are too many, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Hope you have a nice day!

~Ruby

P.S. I DO NOT OWN THE IMAGE ABOVE!