12 years ago...

The warmth of the baked Earth wafted through the gap between spaces as the sun tortured the inhabitants of the town with its scorching heat.

Summer had descended in a flash. The laughter of children echoed around the lake as they wallowed the cool, clear waters. Far in the left, under the shadow of the great rocks that stood with watchful gaze, a small girl hid as her soulful eyes looked at the scene in front with great hope as well as hopelessness. She didn't envy their fun-filled laughter but, the friends that they had. How amazing would it have been if she too could laugh with them, forgetting her worries for a whole day. She sighed as she turned back. How she wished Beau was here today but that idiot had to go and knock out his aunt and end up with a house arrest.

She sighed again as she kicked the stone in her path with all the fury that she had and froze in dread as she heard a yelp of pain. Slowly she lifted her head to see Clarissa with a nice shiny welt on her forehead and her minons, bursting a gut to hide their laughter.

"You! Stop! Stopp!" Clarissa shouted in rage as she tried to run after Martha who had taken off at the first sign of trouble. She knew that if she stuck around, next day you wouldn't be able to differentiate her from minced meat.

Something hard struck her arm as she ran and realised that they were pelting stones. Those idiots that were once laughing at their brainless boss now throw stones with mirth at her. Where did their loyalty even lie? Forget it! She didn't want friends like them.

Martha changed her course and headed to the forest that laid outskirts of the town. It was a beautiful place and the she devils behind her wouldn't dare to follow her there. She slowed down after a while when the banshee like shrieks stopped.

Safe.

She touched her cheeks when she felt wetness and her hands came away with blood. Damn it, they had caught her. Martha quickly wiped away the blood and started to explore woods. The would would dry on its own.

The woods were fascinating, beautiful, deadly, all at the same time. At her yound age she understood that quiet well. Afterall her brother had fallen prey to the dangers that lurked there. Still the forest didn't intimidate her. It was one of the few respites that she found from life.

A faint sound caught her attention as she roamed about admiring the play of sunlight through the leaves. She headed towards the sound and soon it morped into meows of a cat. She squinted her eyes against the sun and saw a kitten far up in the tree, crouching precariously on a branch. After an hour or so of trying to persuade the kitten down and failing, Martha decided to go up herself. The heights were nothing new to her and even if she did call, no one cared enough back home to mourn for her except Beau. Time passed and soon she was behind the cat sitting uncomfortably on the pricky bark of the branch. Crawling in front, she stretched out her hands to reach the kitten.

Next what happened remained blurred in her memories. The kitten looked at her and smirked (cats don't smirk!) and jumped from the branch straight down. Martha leaned down to the ground in worry and suddenly the entire world tilted as she lost balance.

She let out a swear in frustration as she scrambled to get purchase untill she heard a crack and the world became a blur.

Something relatively soft broke her fall as she landed on it. A soft groan sounded below as it collapsed. She whimpered in pain as she tried to get back her senses surprised at the fact that she was alive. Another groan made her realise that the thing that broke her fall wasn't 'it' but a person. She quickly stood up only to crumple back down as her leg gave away under her.

Agony. There was no other word for it. Hot tears of pain rolled down her cheeks as she clutched her leg. It hurt to move even an inch and sobs broke out of her at the incredible pain.

"Shh.. shhh..." The soft crooning broke through the haze of pain that surrounded her and she opened her eyes to see the blurred shape of a man above her.

"It's gonna be okay. Just a small fracture. You are a big girl aren't you? There."

The pain slowly ebdded away and the tears cleared. Martha looked up to see a boy no more than eighteen years old cradling her in his arms. But to the still young girl, her saviour looked as large a giant.

"It's not paining." She looked at her leg in suprise and looked up at him. Who was he?

"Uh huh." The young man gave her a soft smile.

"How?" The curiosity of the little girl melted away the inherent shyness.

"Magic." He said as he flicked her nose.

"Meanie!" She scolded wrinkling her nose as she shrank away from him.

The young man laughed at that and then said: "Look."

He gave a small flick of his hand and suddenly a sparkling butterfly came to life, fluttering above his outstretched hand. The little girl looked in awe at the sparkling blue insect, fluttering, leaving a trail of blue dust at its wake before it came and sat on her thigh.

"Aaahhhh!"

She shouted as she squirmed in fear struggling to get up out of the man's grasp. He looked at her, bewildermed at her strange behaviour.

"What is wrong?" He asked her, trying to calm her down.

"Bu... Butterfly!!" She shouted in horror trying to shoo the stubborn thing off her lap.

The young man chucked at the humourous scene in front of him and got up, propping her up as he stood.

"So, you hate butterflies?" He asked the young lady.

"When they land on me, yes." She replied, a bit embarrassed at her behavior and winced as she shifted in place.

"Does it pain anymore?" He asked her in worry

"Nope." She replied with a shaky smile.

"Good." He reached out to a pocket on his bag and brought out a simple necklace. On the thread dangled the same butterfly that she had seen a few moments ago, just smaller in size.

"For you."

She looked at it suspiciously. Strangers weren't to be trusted and those with gifts were more suspicious. And that was a butterfly after all. But...

"Take it." The young man pulled her hand and placed the necklace in it. Turning away he started walking a fast pace.

"Wait!" she shouted after him as she ran behind, but her shorter legs were no match to him.

"Wait!... What is your name?" She looked down at the necklace as she whispered the last part. Fear and common sense told her to throw it away but...

But how could she? He was the first elder who had shown her kindness without expecting anything in return. Minutes passed and then she decided. It would stay where it belonged now.

With her.