★ Part One ★

~ Chapter Two ~

As she had predicted, the walk back to the city boundary took Hana the better part of three hours, give or take ten or so minutes. By the end of her trek, she was sweaty, exhausted and just about ready to collapse. Her feet where rubbed raw against her thin leather shoes and blisters were forming on the balls of her feet. But she only allowed herself five minutes rest after every hour she walked, and she made quick progress.

Her mouth was dry as she passed the city outskirts, and she cleared her throat weakly as she saw someone drinking, but turned away and kept walking. She could see the two towers of the Silver Palace looming in the distance and she took a moment to take a reassuring breath. All she had to do was make it to the palace. She kept walking. 

As Hana continued through the bustling main streets, she was suddenly aware of hushed whispers running through the crowd. They all stopped to stare at her, before turning and muttering to their acquaintances. Her step faltered as she began to feel self-conscious. What were they whispering about?

"She's an evil witch. Keep your children away from her" her straining ears caught a snippet of conversation, and her step stopped altogether. She stood in the middle of the street as people whispered and shuffled away from her. No one came within an arm's reach of her, and they were all huddled together, as though more people could successfully repel her evil magic. 

Turning slowly, Hana scrambled for something to say. "I'm- I'm not a witch!" She cried for all to hear. "And neither is my mother!" She turned sharply, searching for a friendly face in the crowd. The people closest to her gasped and jumped back. A woman has her children close to her skirts and stepped away from Hana as if she could infect her kids with a deadly disease. 

"I'm not..." She tried to persuade the woman. "I'm not a witch" she pleaded, not even knowing who she was talking to anymore. As she tried to find a gap in the tight circle of people, a tall man with a red beard stepped forward and towered above her. He crossed his arms and waited a few seconds to build suspense. Hana almost shook in fear, but she kept steady and stared directly at him. 

"We gave you a chance, witch" the man began. "We gave you a ticket out of here, and you should have done with it and never come back" he took a step forward, and Hana took an involuntary step away from him. He leant forward until his face was centimetres from hers and he growled out: "You'd best leave while you still can, witch" 

Hana frantically looked to either side of her, eyes pleading for sympathy that wasn't there. Seeing a gap in the crowd, she ran for it and burst through the people, who cried out as she touched them. 

Tears bit at the back of her eyes as she ran, like salt on a wound. Arms pumping, Hana wove through the shocked throngs of people, who scattered away from her as she approached.

"I'm not a witch" she repeated to herself, chanting the mantra as she fled the scene. "I'm not a witch" she whispered, tears spilling over from the brims of her doe-brown eyes.

Turning sharply around a corner, Hana scrambled to avoid a stack of clay pots outside a potter's shop. The store owner cried out in anger after her and raised a fist at her retreating back, but Hana didn't stop, simply yelling a rushed "sorry!" over her shoulder.

After a few minutes running, the fleeing girl's pace slowed to a jog, and then eventually a walk as she determined no one was following her. Heart pounding somewhere in her throat, she tried to calm down her breathing. She tilted her head back for a moment, thanking her little brother Kal for his insistence upon playing running games. Who knew his obsession would one day assist her in a speedy getaway...

Deciding not to slow to a complete stop, Hana took a moment to figure out where she had ended up. To her surprise and luck, she realised she had just exited one of the many spider web streets that lead to the main road that connected the biggest city entrance to the palace gate. Stepping out of the side street, she hurried out of the way of oncoming foot traffic, keeping her head bent. If she was recognised her, she might not be able to see her mother ever again.

Hana pulled her hair out of its rushed ponytail and let it fall across her face, concealing her identity better. She kept to the shadows that the late afternoon sun cast across the busy road as she made her way towards the palace, a plan beginning to formulate in her mind as she advanced.

Word Count: 837

Total Word Count: 2181