[I]He's on the move again.[/I] Raine thought as she jogged outside of the armory behind the man. She then listened to his instructions, making a mental note of the land-marks he mentioned, before heading off in that direction. She would've said thank you but he was already on the move again, talking about finding a roof monkey or something along those lines. Pulling her hood upon her head, Raine took in the scenery around her with a slight smile on her lips. Everything was rather peaceful: the vendor was still trying to sell his loafs of bread, which still held their original smell but the warmth they once held had dimmed slightly. Laughter rang in the air to her right and, as she glanced over, Raine noticed a group of children passing a ball back and forth. Seeing the happy smiles on their faces reminded Raine of her own childhood and she unknowingly slipped into one of memories she usually kept buried deep within her mind.

[I]"Hey, pass the ball Raine!" A boy called as he waved his hands in front of her face, starling the girl from her thoughts. "Sorry Oruin, I was looking at those flowers over there." Raine said with a smile as she tossed the little round ball to her friend. Oruin was a thin yet tall boy, even at the age of 10. His face was covered in freckles and his light brown hair occasionally fell into his face whenever he tilted his head a certain way. His green eyes seemed to glitter with happiness as he caught the ball. "You're always staring at flowers Raine. If you want one, why not go and get it?" He inquired curiously and Raine only shrugged in response, though her cheeks flushed slightly at his question.

 The girl was only eight at the time and had a fear of heights, which was something that her father was working on helping her get over. Those patch of flowers that she had been staring at just so happened to be at the top of a hill that seemed very big to Raine at the time. "I don't like climbing that hill." Was all Raine said and she watched as Oruin turned to look at it. He seemed to think about something before finally turning to her once more. "Well, how about I climb it for you?" Raine gaped at him. Why would he want to risk his life and climb that hill for her? "You don't have to--" It was too late. Oruin was already making his way up the hill and Raine could only watch in awe.

Oruin seemed to be void of fear as he scaled up the hill that was like a mountain in Raine's eyes. Once he made it to the top, the boy reached down and plucked a handful of flowers before turning to look down at Raine. "I got them!" He announced with a wide, toothy grin on his face as he waved his hand back and forth. His smile was so contagious that Raine found herself smiling back, even though she was scared out of her mind. "Okay! Now come back Oruin!" She called back hurriedly; Raine figured that he’d been up there long enough and simply wanted him back where they were before. Though, as soon as he stepped forward, Oruin lost his footing and tumbled down the hill at an alarmingly fast pace. "Oruin! Oruin!" Raine ran towards him, thinking that she could at least slow him down but only ended up getting trip up by his rolling body. The girl landed with a soft thud, her forehead knocking against the ground as she did so, and Raine blacked out for a moment.

"Raine? Are you alright?” A voice called to her a little later and, as Raine opened her eyes, she saw Oruin’s green eyes staring at her worriedly. “I’m fine…” She mumbled and had to work hard to keep the tears that formed in her eyes from falling. Oruin, sensing her pain, reached beside him and pulled out the flowers…which were now crushed and missing a few petals. Glancing down, Raine could only stare at the crumpled flowers before bursting into a fit of giggles. Oruin only looked at her in surprise before eventually laughing himself, tossing the flowers to the side as he did so. Their combined laughed filled the air and seemed to last long after the two had gone home….[/I]

Oddly enough, Raine could still hear that same laughter almost a decade later. However, as she finally tuned in to the world around her, the girl realized that it was actually the murmur of a nearby couple and the occasional laughter of entertained guests instead of the hearty laugh of children. Somehow, the assassin managed to get herself to the Greener Club while she was in the depths of her own memories. It was something that she used to do a lot after she had first escaped from the assassin’s guild but had stopped doing after a few months. Or so she thought. [I]I can’t let that happen again…[/I] Raine thought as she pushed the memory back into the depths of her conscious. 

With a now cleared mind, the assassin tugged her hood further over her head before silently gliding through the doors of the Greener Club. It was actually much more fancy than she’d originally thought, as if the exterior wasn’t enough proof. To her left was a podium in which a man dressed up in a nice robe stood. Upon seeing Raine, he smiled and spoke to her in a friendly yet rehearsed manner. “Good afternoon. Are you dining alone?” He inquired and the assassin nodded silently. “And would you like entertainment as well?” When Raine shook her head, he nodded and gestured for her to follow. It was then that Raine noticed that the first floor was actually the entertainment area. 

In the front was a wooden stage that took up nearly one third of the room. At that moment, there was a man dressed in a nice shirt standing on stage and, judging by the occasional giggle that erupted from the crowd, he was telling jokes. Raine couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed at a joke and was almost tempted to stay behind and listen but her waiter had already made his way to the staircase that would lead her up to the second floor.

The second floor was just as nice as the first, though there was no stage included. Instead, it was a collection of tables and chairs for people to sit and dine in, along with the kitchen area as well. “Here you are ma’am.” Raine thanked the waiter as she took a seat at a table made for two, though she was dinning alone. It was something that she’d gotten used to after escaping the guild. Shaking the thought away, the girl focused on skimming through the menu. The Greener Club offered many delicious sounding dishes but most were way more than Raine was willing to pay for, so she eventually decided on a cheaper dish that the waiter recommended. “It’s just as good as the expensive ones.” He said and the girl had no other choice but to go along with it. 

As she waited for her food to be cooked and returned, Raine’s eyes wondered from the crisp wallpaper to the couple sitting at the table beside it. They seemed happy enough, though it was a happiness that Raine wasn’t sure that she would be able to experience in her life time. No, she was throw out from the life she knew and was comfortable with before she could ever have what many people call ‘love’. Now, after all she’d been through, the girl doubted that her mind could wrap around the concept of love, especially since all she knew of now was loneliness. Sighing, Raine turned her attention to something else as the two leaned in for a kiss. Thankfully, a rumbling in her stomach was just the distraction she needed and she began to count how many times her stomach would growl before the waiter returned.

“Seven times…” Raine mumbled to herself as the man finally approached her table with a plate in his hand sometime later. “Enjoy your meal.” He said politely before hurrying off to server other customers. In front of the assassin was a bowl of creamy stew placed neatly on top of a little plate to keep the waiter from having to touch the hot bowl. The sight nearly made the girl’s mouth water. Picking up a spoon, Raine scooped some up and took the time to blow it before placing it into her mouth. “Mmmm…” The burst of flavor that suddenly invaded her mouth nearly made her head spin. [i]This is actually a lot better than expected.[/i]

It didn’t take the girl long to devour the rest of the stew and, after paying for her meal, Raine headed back down stairs towards the exit. Much to her disappointment, the previous act on stage had been replaced by group of singers. That wasn’t a bad thing, but she’d been hoping to catch at least the ending part of the man’s jokes. Shrugging her disappointment away, Raine exited the building, slightly surprised to see that the sun had dipped low into the sky, signaling that it was almost night time. [i]I was in there for a long time…[/i] She thought silently to herself but looked up when she heard the sound of a trumpet, along with the rumble of heavily armored feet marching against the ground. Curiously, she followed the noise until she was near the town square where a large group of people had already gathered. Although she couldn’t see, Raine could hear every word loud and clear.

“A census has been declared by our king.” A voice rang out clearly and concerned murmurs began to erupt from the crowd. “I would like to ask that everyone please return to your home towns so that you can be accounted for. We want to make this process run as smoothly as possible. That is all.” With that being said, the crowd quickly dispersed and Raine made sure that she blended in with them. [i]This is bad…really bad.[/i] She thought to herself as she quickly made her way through the alleyways. Since they were taking an account of all the citizens in the town, then it would make it easier for her to be singled out and recognized as the murderer that got away. Raine figured that she might be able to avoid getting caught if she hid somewhere but soon realize that it wouldn’t work. 

The imperial guards would be checking every building, corner and street of this place to make sure that each citizen is accounted for. The most she could do was run but, even then, she had a little chance of staying hidden for long. “Hey! Why are you not at your home? Did you not hear the news?” A deep voice called from somewhere behind Raine and she took a moment glance back. At the entrance of the alleyway stood three men. In the dimming sunlight, she could make out their gruff facial features and bulky body build and, judging by the armor that they wore, she assumed that they were a part of the imperial guard. At this point, Raine had a few options: she could either engage the three men in combat, run, or play along. The first two options weren’t the best, since the girl did not want to raise their suspensions about who she was. So Raine decided to go with the last option.

“I’m lost.” She mumbled loud enough for them to hear. “That’s no problem kid. Just tell us where you live and we’ll help you.” Apparently, they thought she was a child, which slightly offended Raine. She wasn’t that short and small, was she? Shaking the thought away, she turned to face the men, folding her arms across her chest as she did so. “I’m not a kid. I’m a woman.” The man fell silent for a moment, not knowing how to respond, but Raine wasn’t about to wait around for an answer. “Now, if you will excuse me, I need to go find my home.” She said icily as she walked tried to walk past but, as she did so, one reach out and firmly placed a hand on her shoulder. “Ma’am, we’re sorry we thought you were a kid. Just let us help you.” The assassin tried to shake off his hand but ended up knocking off her hood in the process, exposing her silver hair.

There was a moment of silence before one of the guards decided to speak. “You’re…you’re the girl that killed her own father in the Assassin’s Guild.” He mumbled more to himself than to Raine and she took that moment to slide out of the man’s grip and make her way over to the nearest trash can. She then used it as a staircase to help her reach the window sill of a nearby building and climb up onto the roof so she could make her escape. Only a few seconds had passed but the guards were already telling others that the infamous assassin was back.
~~~~~~

[i]A shadow could be seen running across the rooftops of the town. Her steps were light and not even her breathing could be heard. A slight smile seemed to play across her lips, as if she had no concern for the events that were about to unfold before her. Her silver hair was illuminated in the growing moonlight, making it seem as though was some kind of dark angel, here to wreak havoc on the town’s inhabitants. Green eyes scanned the area ahead, searching for a way out, but this dark angel soon realized that she had been caged in against her will. There was no use fighting, though. She was hopelessly out numbered and the girl had no other choice but to give in, no matter how much her instincts told her to keep running. With one last look towards the sky, the assassin closed her eyes and dropped down to the earth, mentally and physically ready to be captured for the second time in her life. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself surrounded by men dressed in heavy armor. They reached out to grab her but suddenly, the girl had an extra burst of resistance and dodged as quickly as she could. Eventually too many hands began to grab her all at once and sliding past was no longer an option. In fact, resisting was no longer an option either since someone had wrapped her in their arms tightly while another tied her hands together with a rope that dug painfully at her skin. The same was also done with her feet and finally, she was forced to face the reality of the situation:

At last, the infamous assassin had been captured.[/i]