Of Good & Evil

Prologue IV - A Passion for the Stars

Nashira sighed and closed her eyes. She sat on the grass in the arms of her boyfriend. It was a beautifully sunny day as they sat outside their guild hall, positioned comfortably on the lawn as the few clouds in the sky passed lazily overhead. It was the perfect day for relaxing on the lawn.

She was so in love. She was always in love. Last month, she was in love with the man from the Emerald Eyes guild, but that didn't work out. Before that, she was in the Sunlight Heart guild, in love with one of the vice-lieutenants. But every time she would settle into a guild and a relationship, something would come up and she would need to pack up and move to another place.

But this time was different, she just knew it. This time, it was going to work. This time, she wouldn't let something as trivial as not knowing the man she was with get in the way of her goals. This time, she would do whatever it took. This time, it was forever.

Nashira had always been one to dive into anything she did head first. Caution was not her strong suit. Because of this, she lived her life freely and without restriction, but it also meant that she was sort of adrift for most of her young life, moving wherever the winds of fate took her.

Normally it didn't bother her, picking up and starting over, but over the past year or so, it had begun to wear on her. She wanted a place to call home. She wanted to really plant roots and stay where she was, and she was willing to do whatever was necessary to make that happen. She craved happiness, even if it came at a price.

She would take happiness no matter where she could get it, and would try to claim it for herself. That may have been seen as greedy, but she thought that she had one life to live. She was going to make the most of it no matter what anyone thought of her.

She had been attempting to portray herself a little more within the confines of what was "normal," in this, her most recent relationship. She had forced her personality to the background and was trying to act in such a way that would make her more likeable to not only the guild, but the man she was with. She locked her true self in a cell deep within her own mind and threw away the key. She wouldn't let herself do something that would jeopardize the happiness she had—

"Beautiful day, isn't it, babe?" her boyfriend said somewhat lazily.

Being shaken from her thoughts, she agreed, "Oh yes, very beautiful."

He sleepily opened his eyes and asked, "What do you want to do today?"

Trying to remain passive and submissive, she replied, "Oh, whatever you want to do is fine,"

"Why don't we go hang out with my friends?" he suggested.

She hated his friends.

Trying to sound as sweet as possible, she replied, "Sure, if that's what you want to do!"

"You know, that's why I like you," he said, "You don't argue or anything. You just do whatever I want to do. It's great." Her eye twitched slightly, as she pushed back a few choice words for this demanding man-child.

Nashira did love him, but frequently, he would say something that made her want to do something drastic. He liked things a very particular way, and if something was not in line with that particular way, he was not happy. For now, she just clenched her fists and forced back her objections to the way he spoke to her. But this had been going on for a while, and she was almost at her limit.

Beginning to shift beneath her, he said, "Alright, let's go,"

"Okay then!" she said with a fake smile.

The two picked themselves up off the grass and headed toward the entrance of the guild hall. Her flowing, black dress trailing along behind her with shimmering, rainbow colored sparkles woven into the fabric. As they were passing, many of the girls would notice them walking, then turn to their little groups and whisper. She knew they were talking about her, but let it slide. It was always like this when she went to a new place.