Side Box

It had been a long time since she had been to a carnival of any sort. They used to go often, she remembers. Used to have a lot of fun, too. But all that had stopped after she ran away. Once - or twice, Miren wouldn't have been able to tell you - Brom had tried to convince her to go with them. But he was only faced with the bull-headed stubbornness they had all grown to love and expect. Miren lived on her own terms, and no one else's. And public places ran the risk of being found and bringing the horror to her new family sooner than she planned.

But that was no longer a risk, now.

So it was with a notable spring in her step, and a hop in her skip, the young woman moved over to one of the many concessions stands scattered throughout the area to procure more cotton candy. And maybe even that illustrious funnel cake she had intended on getting while enjoying the festivities of the carnival. - It might not be true of other packs, but hers most certainly had a sweet tooth. - Either way, Miren was in a highly good mood while she swayed patiently in line. And it was just her luck that she didn't have to wait long.

He had seemed nice at first, friendly as he asked the usual questions about her family: Is that yours? How old is the boy and girl? Where's the lucky guy. And she had answered accordingly as she filled the cup with more free water in the cooler that was provided. Until...

"So... Don't you ever worry what would happen if the government found out about you people and tracked you down?"

Stopping in the middle of her task, she turned her head to look up at the stranger. And watched his face shift from friendly to sinister as realization dawned on her. Dropping the cup and food, the young woman straightened up and slowly took a step back in retreat. And as the world sped up once more, she felt his hand reach down and grip hard on her forearm. All the while, her body twisted and jerked around towards her family -

" - Run!"

The next thing she knew, there was a sharp sting in the back of her neck.