From Marley, with Love.

Chapter 3: Integration

Chapter 3

"Integration"

"My dear Rosie,

This evening, after your first training in the warrior programme. You played merrily through the fallen autumn leaves, you collected them for me. And I took them and dried them. I will put them in this diary, so I can remember your first autumn outside of your "Captivity". It has been over 3 months now since the Marleyan's freed you, do you remember anything about your time in that house? Or have you forgotten completely? Pushed it from your young spirit and supressed it from your lane of thought? I think we will never know.

By Mr Bauer, written in November 832

From his earliest diary, "Hidden in plain sight"

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It was a November-market day in Rebellio, the home of the Marleyan people and the place of the army headquarters. Men and women gathered around the stalls, they looked beautiful in their fine clothes made from expensive fabrics and shining leather shoes. They were as polished and clean like their way of speaking. The whole market place smelled of the produce the farmers were selling that day. They were the rich scents of spices and herbs, like nutmeg and fresh coffee.

Just outside the gate that separated Rebellio from the interment zone of Liberio, the warrior program children stood. Wolfing down their lunches their mothers had made for them. Rosanna stood the closest to the border fence, taking in every detail of the people on the other side of the fence. Behind her two young boys were roughhousing, while another girl watched them with a look of disagreement on her face. "Can you guys stop?!" the little girl said in a sassy tone of voice, smacking one of the boys on his arm. "Why don't you go away if you think we're annoying?!" the boy said angerly to the girl, rubbing his hurt arm. "There is enough space around here. Now get lost, I want to stand here." She ordered, putting her hands in her sides and glaring at the boys. "You bully..." the two boys spat at the girl before walking away from the gate. The girl huffed at them and walked to Rosanna, looking at the people in the distance with her.

Rosanna looked over her shoulder, watching the boys argue with two other kids. "You're going to get trouble..." she said to the girl. "Mh?" the girl hummed, looking at the smaller girl beside her. "Those two boys, they're going to sell you out." Rosanna repeated. The girl huffed, "Don't worry, kid. They know they better not mess with me." She said nonchalantly as she grinned, her large grey-blue eyes twinkled. Rosanna hummed, before turning around and walking away, seemingly unimpressed by the girl's attitude. The red-haired girl watched Rosanna walk away, she stood at the fence, blinking for a few seconds before running after her.

"H-hey, wait!" the redhead caught up to the little black-haired girl.

"You're not going to tell on me, right?" the girl asked, she sounded a little anxious.

"No." Rosanna said in slightly cold tone

"Then why did you walk away?"

"I don't know, you seem scary, perhaps." Rosanna looked up at the girl with a serious look on her face.

"Scary!?" the girl responded, sounding slightly distraught.

"Yeah. You act like you are free to do what you want, while maybe one day those boys can sell you out and you will be removed from the warrior program." Rosanna said serious, fixing a glare on the girl's face.

The two girls looked at each other, the older girl glared at the small black-haired girl. "But you won't sell me out?" she asked again. Rosanna shook her head, "No." the blue haired girl smiled relieved. They were silent again; the blue-eyed girl broke the silence, she reached out her hand "I am Saskia." The girl said. "Saskia Weber."