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ƆĦΔƤƬЄЯ ҒѲƲЯ
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Arietta gave Gabriel a somewhat puzzled look, as if she didn't quite understand what he was saying. She opened her mouth to respond, but this plan was deterred when she tripped over an extended piece of cloth. Luckily Gabriel was able to catch her before she landed flat on her face. Although she was a bit embarrassed by her inability to control her feet, she didn't have time to dwell on this. For soon after he had righted her, the guard was off again and pulling her arm right along with him. As Arietta glanced around the alley they just so happened to be running down, a toothless man met her eyes. He showed no expression other than dismay and quietly returned to looking at his empty, wrinkled hands that lay limp in his lap. She couldn't help but wonder what had happened to the sepia city, and to it's people, to throw it into such a state of contempt and disorder. Surely the city had not always been the way she'd been seeing it. But looking into the solemn face of the old man, she knew that it had remained in this state far to long. After one more glance at the man, Arietta was forced to turn her head as Gabriel tugged her around yet another corner. But the image of the man's sunken eyes and distraught face would be staying with her for days to come.
"Who's we?" she asked, turning her grey gaze back on the dark haired guard. Gabriel looked down at her, seeming to be unsure on how to answer her question. So he merely shook his head and turned another corner. Arietta let an agitated frown cross her face as they continued on their run. It seemed that the farther they ran, the less rubbage they came across. Arietta also noticed that the rundown, about-to-fall-over, faded out buildings were beginning to change. Brick was beginning to replace rotting wood, paint was taking the place of exposed boards, and the size of houses were starting to grow, if only slightly. It seemed that they were moving into a nicer part of the city, something Arietta was sure never existed. "Where are we?"
"We're moving towards the center of the city." he said, looking down at her with his intense onyx stare. "We're going to have to be more careful about being seen."
"Alright..." Arietta responded as they ducked down another alley. Only now, their pace had slowed to what seemed to be a snail's pace compared to the rate at which they were moving earlier. Every house or so they would have to stop and hide themselves in the shadows so as not to be seen. Arietta was beginning to think that Lalita's shawl was making her seem more an outcast now than ever. But she was thankful for the extra layer as a mixture of snow, and what seemed to be ash, began to lightly rain down from the sky. But even with the bright whiteness of snow the city continued to look as though it were painted sepia. Arietta was truly beginning to wonder why exactly this oddity seemed to occur.
"Get down!" Gabriel's voice seemed to drill down into her mind, although it was spoken in urgent, hush tones. She didn't quite know how to react, so Gabriel reacted for her. He shoved her down behind the shaded back stairs of a building, a few bits of debris flying up around her as he did so. At first, she didn't realize why he had done this, much less why he was diving down next to her. But when she heard the marching of boot-covered feet, her breathing almost came to a complete halt. At that moment, the only thought that her mind could process was staying alive. Her entire being seemed to crumple as she inched her way behind Gabriel. The guard in question reached behind him to push her even farther into the depths of the shadows. All she could see was his outline, a bit of snow-dusted street, and nothing else. Puffs of condensation floated into the air around them as the temperature dropped. It seemed to take all of Gabriel's effort to stay still as Arietta breathed down the back of his neck. She tried to reposition herself so that she was breathing out into the air and not on his bare skin, but she could hardly move without giving them away.
But this issue didn't seemed to draw on further as boots walked into her line of sight. Both the guard and the girl stopped breathing, not making a sound. For a while the boots moved around, voices grumbling and chuckling as they walked. But they never did stumble across the pair hiding under the steps. At one point a pair of boots strayed to close to the stairs for comfort, and Gabriel leaned back into Arietta. She placed her hands on his back and tried with much effort not to dig her nails into his skin. The apprehension in the surrounding air was so thick it almost seemed to choke her as the arms of trepidation wound their way around her.
Finally, the boots moved away, as did the voices. But Gabriel and Arietta seemed to be frozen in place. The only movement that came from their small bubble under the stairs, was the light bits of snow that were falling down to lightly dust the ground. After a few minutes, Gabriel shifted his muscles, slowly making his way out into the open.
"We should really keep moving." he said, reaching a hand down into the shadows of the steps. Hesitantly, Arietta took the hand offering itself to her, and was pulled out into the sepia light. Reality began to sink down on her as she and Gabriel ducked through dark shadows. There was a great, if not enormous, possibility that she was going to die. But her thoughts were interrupted as Gabriel came to a complete and utter stop. "We're here." he said quietly. Arietta looked away from the uniformed guard and up at the house. It was small, perhaps a bit bigger than Lalita's. But compared to the old woman's, it seemed like a mansion. Brick foundation, cream colored wood, and curtains fluttering around the windows. She couldn't imagine why the people who lived there would allow her to enter into their home.
But sure enough, Gabriel was already holding the black, polished back door open. Before she could hesitate Gabriel ushered her inside and closed the door. The sound of giggling could be heard off in a separate room, followed by a different, deeper chuckling. This only confused her further, did the people living here even know that they would be housing a fugitive? The patter of feet sounded down the hallway, and a little girl came rushing into the the room. She had long, slightly curled, dark blonde hair, and eyes the same onyx color as Gabriel's. She seemed to be three, perhaps four. And jogging down the hall after her, seemed to be a boy of Arietta's own age. Another dark blonde, but this one with blue eyes. She raised an eyebrow.
"Gabriel!!!" the little girl squealed, launching herself at the guard and wrapping her arms around his legs. The other boy just seemed to look at Gabriel and stare, as if he couldn't believe the man was standing before him. His eyes then flickered to Arietta, and his brow furrowed, obviously confused. Gabriel eyed the other boy before picking up the little girl.
"What are you doing here, and who's the girl?" the boy didn't seem to waste any time getting to the point.
"She needs to stay here Jason."
"So you just waltz in here, after two years, and expect me to jut do whatever you say?" the boy, Jason, seemed to be fuming. The giggling mess of the little girl quieted and looked worriedly at Gabriel. "Did you even know about Mom?"
"Yes I knew about..." and on it went. Arietta silently excused herself from the space and backed into the sitting room. The little girl wriggled out of Gabriel's arm and followed after her, hiding behind a chair and peeking her head out to smile at Arietta. She tried to smile back, but she was a bit worried and preoccupied, so she supposed her smile wasn't really that great. This thought was proven true when the girl came out from behind the chair and walked over to her.
"What's your name?" she asked, clutching the end of her dress in her tiny little hands.
"Arietta, what about you?"
"I'm Molly.... how do you know my brother?" so that was how Gabriel knew them, they were his family. And now she was worried. What had he gotten her into? She looked at Molly, with her large onyx doe eyes, unable to answer her. Jason and Gabriel walked in to find her looking at the little girl with her mouth open, unable to formulate a sentence.
"I must leave now, but, I'll be back in a day or two." Gabriel said before rushing out the door. Molly tried to catch up with him, but was only met with a closed door. She sniffled and walked back to hug her other brother. Arietta looked at the girl with a slight frown, before looking towards the door. What was going to happen now?
"Molly, why don't you go show Arietta where the bathroom is, so she can wash up before bed?"
"Okay!" the girl smiled, instantly perking up as she dragged Arietta towards the stairs, Jason looking after her with a frown, slightly shaking his head. Once she had finally gotten the girl to bounce back down the stairs, she turned on the tub. As the hot water slowly began to trickle down out of the faucet, Arietta looked at herself in the mirror. She was a complete and utter mess. Her clothes were rumpled, her hair stringy and dull. Her face and skin was laced with dirt and grime, and her cheeks were beginning to look a bit hollow. She sighed and ran a shaking hand through the knots in her hair before turning off the faucet. As she climbed into the tub and let the warm water take effect, she couldn't help but feel a sense of peace come over her. That was until reality set back in, and the sirens called out into the night.
"Who's we?" she asked, turning her grey gaze back on the dark haired guard. Gabriel looked down at her, seeming to be unsure on how to answer her question. So he merely shook his head and turned another corner. Arietta let an agitated frown cross her face as they continued on their run. It seemed that the farther they ran, the less rubbage they came across. Arietta also noticed that the rundown, about-to-fall-over, faded out buildings were beginning to change. Brick was beginning to replace rotting wood, paint was taking the place of exposed boards, and the size of houses were starting to grow, if only slightly. It seemed that they were moving into a nicer part of the city, something Arietta was sure never existed. "Where are we?"
"We're moving towards the center of the city." he said, looking down at her with his intense onyx stare. "We're going to have to be more careful about being seen."
"Alright..." Arietta responded as they ducked down another alley. Only now, their pace had slowed to what seemed to be a snail's pace compared to the rate at which they were moving earlier. Every house or so they would have to stop and hide themselves in the shadows so as not to be seen. Arietta was beginning to think that Lalita's shawl was making her seem more an outcast now than ever. But she was thankful for the extra layer as a mixture of snow, and what seemed to be ash, began to lightly rain down from the sky. But even with the bright whiteness of snow the city continued to look as though it were painted sepia. Arietta was truly beginning to wonder why exactly this oddity seemed to occur.
"Get down!" Gabriel's voice seemed to drill down into her mind, although it was spoken in urgent, hush tones. She didn't quite know how to react, so Gabriel reacted for her. He shoved her down behind the shaded back stairs of a building, a few bits of debris flying up around her as he did so. At first, she didn't realize why he had done this, much less why he was diving down next to her. But when she heard the marching of boot-covered feet, her breathing almost came to a complete halt. At that moment, the only thought that her mind could process was staying alive. Her entire being seemed to crumple as she inched her way behind Gabriel. The guard in question reached behind him to push her even farther into the depths of the shadows. All she could see was his outline, a bit of snow-dusted street, and nothing else. Puffs of condensation floated into the air around them as the temperature dropped. It seemed to take all of Gabriel's effort to stay still as Arietta breathed down the back of his neck. She tried to reposition herself so that she was breathing out into the air and not on his bare skin, but she could hardly move without giving them away.
But this issue didn't seemed to draw on further as boots walked into her line of sight. Both the guard and the girl stopped breathing, not making a sound. For a while the boots moved around, voices grumbling and chuckling as they walked. But they never did stumble across the pair hiding under the steps. At one point a pair of boots strayed to close to the stairs for comfort, and Gabriel leaned back into Arietta. She placed her hands on his back and tried with much effort not to dig her nails into his skin. The apprehension in the surrounding air was so thick it almost seemed to choke her as the arms of trepidation wound their way around her.
Finally, the boots moved away, as did the voices. But Gabriel and Arietta seemed to be frozen in place. The only movement that came from their small bubble under the stairs, was the light bits of snow that were falling down to lightly dust the ground. After a few minutes, Gabriel shifted his muscles, slowly making his way out into the open.
"We should really keep moving." he said, reaching a hand down into the shadows of the steps. Hesitantly, Arietta took the hand offering itself to her, and was pulled out into the sepia light. Reality began to sink down on her as she and Gabriel ducked through dark shadows. There was a great, if not enormous, possibility that she was going to die. But her thoughts were interrupted as Gabriel came to a complete and utter stop. "We're here." he said quietly. Arietta looked away from the uniformed guard and up at the house. It was small, perhaps a bit bigger than Lalita's. But compared to the old woman's, it seemed like a mansion. Brick foundation, cream colored wood, and curtains fluttering around the windows. She couldn't imagine why the people who lived there would allow her to enter into their home.
But sure enough, Gabriel was already holding the black, polished back door open. Before she could hesitate Gabriel ushered her inside and closed the door. The sound of giggling could be heard off in a separate room, followed by a different, deeper chuckling. This only confused her further, did the people living here even know that they would be housing a fugitive? The patter of feet sounded down the hallway, and a little girl came rushing into the the room. She had long, slightly curled, dark blonde hair, and eyes the same onyx color as Gabriel's. She seemed to be three, perhaps four. And jogging down the hall after her, seemed to be a boy of Arietta's own age. Another dark blonde, but this one with blue eyes. She raised an eyebrow.
"Gabriel!!!" the little girl squealed, launching herself at the guard and wrapping her arms around his legs. The other boy just seemed to look at Gabriel and stare, as if he couldn't believe the man was standing before him. His eyes then flickered to Arietta, and his brow furrowed, obviously confused. Gabriel eyed the other boy before picking up the little girl.
"What are you doing here, and who's the girl?" the boy didn't seem to waste any time getting to the point.
"She needs to stay here Jason."
"So you just waltz in here, after two years, and expect me to jut do whatever you say?" the boy, Jason, seemed to be fuming. The giggling mess of the little girl quieted and looked worriedly at Gabriel. "Did you even know about Mom?"
"Yes I knew about..." and on it went. Arietta silently excused herself from the space and backed into the sitting room. The little girl wriggled out of Gabriel's arm and followed after her, hiding behind a chair and peeking her head out to smile at Arietta. She tried to smile back, but she was a bit worried and preoccupied, so she supposed her smile wasn't really that great. This thought was proven true when the girl came out from behind the chair and walked over to her.
"What's your name?" she asked, clutching the end of her dress in her tiny little hands.
"Arietta, what about you?"
"I'm Molly.... how do you know my brother?" so that was how Gabriel knew them, they were his family. And now she was worried. What had he gotten her into? She looked at Molly, with her large onyx doe eyes, unable to answer her. Jason and Gabriel walked in to find her looking at the little girl with her mouth open, unable to formulate a sentence.
"I must leave now, but, I'll be back in a day or two." Gabriel said before rushing out the door. Molly tried to catch up with him, but was only met with a closed door. She sniffled and walked back to hug her other brother. Arietta looked at the girl with a slight frown, before looking towards the door. What was going to happen now?
"Molly, why don't you go show Arietta where the bathroom is, so she can wash up before bed?"
"Okay!" the girl smiled, instantly perking up as she dragged Arietta towards the stairs, Jason looking after her with a frown, slightly shaking his head. Once she had finally gotten the girl to bounce back down the stairs, she turned on the tub. As the hot water slowly began to trickle down out of the faucet, Arietta looked at herself in the mirror. She was a complete and utter mess. Her clothes were rumpled, her hair stringy and dull. Her face and skin was laced with dirt and grime, and her cheeks were beginning to look a bit hollow. She sighed and ran a shaking hand through the knots in her hair before turning off the faucet. As she climbed into the tub and let the warm water take effect, she couldn't help but feel a sense of peace come over her. That was until reality set back in, and the sirens called out into the night.
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