She hit the ground running, trying desperately to put as much distance as possible between the Guards and herself.  Dodging a rock and leaping over a fallen log, she marveled at how swift she'd become.

But the Guards were fast too, faster than her. And they had weapons. How had they found her? She'd done everything to keep herself incognito for the last three months, going as far as to cut her precious hair and dye it a strange auburn color.

What were they going to do if they caught her? Her heart thudded with fear as she thought of the Queen,cruel and merciless and cold, and allowed herself to think of  a very real possibility in store for her.

What if she was executed?

Bile rose in her throat as she willed her legs to move faster, glancing over her shoulder  at the Guards-

That split second distraction cost her dearly. She tripped over a stone, landing hard on her stomach; pain exploded in her right hip, and the metallic stench of blood filled the air around her. She bit down on her lip to keep from screaming.

This was it. She couldn't move, couldn't run. The Queen had got her in the end, just like she'd caught every other bandit in the Enchanted Forest, just like she'd caught her parents.

Her eyes burned with tears, and she wasn't sure if it was from the pain or  the rising terror in her chest. Moving her hand to her side, she tried to drag out the sliver sword she always kept in her waist-belt. It was better than just giving up and waiting for them to drag her away. If she was going down, she was going to take as many Guards as she could with her.

" Are you really planning to fight us all alone with a broken hip?"

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a Guard approaching her; his hair was escaping the loose band he'd used to tie it back, and his brown eyes were wide with surprise. If it had been any other situation, say, when she wasn't about to die, she would have found him devastatingly attractive.

But right now, he was the enemy. And he worked for the Queen.

" Are you really planning to kill a 16 year old girl?" She spat.

Before he could reply,  she released the sword from her hand with the last burst of energy she had left. He barely seemed fazed by it; darting out of the way easily, he picked up the weapon after it clattered to the ground.

" Stop attacking me. I'm not your enemy," He leaned over her, his expression unreadable. She opened her mouth to scream, her blood boiling with rage, when four other Guards burst out from the trees, welding all kinds of deadly weapons she'd never seen before.

The Guard in front of her raised his hand, and the ones behind him immediately grew still. She was surprised; he looked to be young, barely 20, but he'd already been put in charge of one of the Queen's hunting parties.

" You know, there are tastier things to hunt around here. Deer, birds, the occasional rabbit," She said, trying to ignore the all-consuming pain in her hip," So how about you let me go?"

" How old are you?" Asked the leader, ignoring her previous comment.

"Sixteen."

His expression didn't change, but he turned around to face the others. Something in his gaze made them shrink backwards.

" The Queen asked us to hunt down a 16 year old girl?" He asked, his voice hard. He had a light accent, but she couldn't decipher which part of the Forest he was from.

" She's the Kingdom's most wanted Bandit," Replied another Guard," She's stolen from plenty of homes, and she blew up a statue of the Queen right next to the palace."

Her lips curled into a smile a she recalled the chaos that had caused; it had been her final act  of rebellion against the Queen, against everything she stood for, before she disappeared into hiding. The Queen, who ripped out hearts and terrorized her citizens, who's magic was so twisted and sick it could only come from the darkest of souls, had been after her ever since.

The leader turned back to her, but he didn't look angry in the slightest. She thought he seemed rather impressed. Of course, saying something like that out loud would only get him killed.

" I steal only from those who have too much and don't deserve it," She said softly.

His brown eyes warmed and seemed to smile at her ;with that simple gesture, she knew he was on her side. Relief replaced some of the fear in her heart.

" Your hip is broken," His voice was gentle, the stoic Guard gone for a second. He sounded concerned," Let's fix that first."

" The Queen is going to kill me," She whispered.

He shook his head and handed her the sword, earning astonished looks from the surrounding Guards, but she understood why he'd done it. He was telling her to keep fighting, because people like her, like her parents, did not go down easily. Her fingers closed around the hilt.If anyone could survive this, it was her.

A half-smile appeared on his striking face.

" My name is Evan Gold, and I'm here to take you back to the Kingdom, Bandit."

The bus jerked forward suddenly, throwing the book out of my hands before I could read any more. Cursing under my breath, I leaned forward to pick it up. Someone got there faster than me, though, someone with short frizzy hair and enormous glasses. She was the only other person in the bus, apart from me.

I grinned at her. " Thanks. It sucks to be the last drop off, doesn't it?"

She picked it up, her wide eyes magnified by the lenses, and asked in a quivering voice," Where'd you find this?"

" Uh, my sister lent it to me." 

I had no idea why she was staring at the book like it was going to sprout wings and fly off into the sunset, but her expression was unnerving.

She handed it back, still looking troubled," I don't think you should read the rest."

Who was she to tell me what to do? I swallowed those words, remembering my mother's lectures on how to filter my thoughts before speaking, and said instead," Why not?"

" There are some things that are better left alone," She nodded towards the book in my hands,"This is one of those things."

I swept my eyes over her, noticing the way she was fidgeting nervously with the hem of skirt. Her eyes darted back and forth, as if she was afraid someone might spot her communicating with me. This girl, whoever she was, and I was almost certain I'd never seen her before, was hiding something.

" What's your name, again?" I asked, thinking about reasonable ways to ask her what I really wanted to know without sounding completely insane.

She smiled sadly," Even here, I'm a nobody. Of course, I didn't really expect you to know me in the first place. Popular people, they always seem to live in a bubble of their own. No room for us commoners. I'm Krishna, by the way."

" That was, by far, the weirdest introduction I've heard in a while," I joked, and it was true. Everything she said was true as well, but was it really that obvious? That I didn't seem to care about anyone apart from the elite? A pang of shame hit me. My mom had raised me to mingle among the upper-class society, not shun anyone who wasn't them, and I'd probably let her down.

I eyed Krishna speculatively, so sure I'd never met her in my life. And yet...

There it was again. That odd feeling of a memory trying to resurface.

Just before she got off the bus at her house, I grabbed her hand, forcing her to meet my gaze. I had to know the answer to my question and, if I ended up sounding insane, so be it. It wasn't like I was trying to impress her anyway.

" Why can't I get him out of my head?" I asked, my voice low and unsteady. My heart was a tangle of emotions as I stared up at her, and the hands gripping her arm trembled ever so slightly.

The second her eyes lit up my suspicions were confirmed. She knew exactly who I was referring to.

"I don't know," She whispered back,"But if you still remember him, there is hope. There is always hope."

With those cryptic words, she hopped off the bus, leaving me alone with my thoughts. The stupid vehicle  jerked again and I gasped, pain flaring across my hip. I was going to get a painkiller as soon as I got home; maybe it'd help shut off the annoying voices in my head as well, the voices that were telling me that I'd forgotten so,so much.

By the time I reached home, I was completely exhausted. I'd barely made it up to my room when someone clambered in through the large french window beside my bed.

Shrieking was my first instinct but, before I could get down to doing that, a hand clamped down over my mouth. Slowly, I lifted my gaze and met a pair of laughing grey eyes.