Could she properly trust it though?
It had been like this and she continued just to stand in one spot on the school ground away from others. How unlike her to want to be alone. Inside of her mind was the numbing presence of darkness looming over her which caused her to twitch a few times. Under the shade of a nearby forked tree she jealously watched a couple move across, holding hands and laughing.
Clearly they didn't come with us. She thought as she huddled her arms around herself. They provided little to no comfort as she continued to stare blankly into the distance. Alamea felt broken, shattered even, and all of her parts had been cast to the wayside.
Could she cry? Her eyes didn't feel any more willing to shed tears as she didn't feel any more willing to move from her sheltered spot. Several sighs escaped her throat and she felt another choke itself once entering up. Alamea gagged at it and coughed, rubbing her nose with a hand and kicking her feet idly at the ground, mulling over a small pebble which she was standing near. "What a way to start your first day at school." She murmured to herself.
With a shiver of her frame her mind continued its gymnastics until her ears twitched once or twice at a rather odd sound...
Who do you think you are?
Her head whipped one way and the other and her ears had been lifted in an attempt to find the source of the voice. To no avail.
Look at your shadow.
Reluctantly she obeyed the voice and half expected something terrible. She covered her eyes and peeked out through small holes before moving them. It was not HERS, of this she was certain, though it was a shadow of her body there was something the matter with it, were shadows supposed to be this bright?
A warmth swelled through her as the shadow contorted into an armored figure holding a sword. Mea's eyes drifted over the sword and something internally clicked. She trusted this - she COULD trust this, which was saying a lot in the uncertainty following the events of late. It's words continued and she picked up the word greatness and shuddered as the figure seemed to stare vacantly towards her as it spoke.
She nodded and closed her eyes and felt the shadow move over her and wash over her with a warmth encompassing all over her body. Once it had vanished she opened her eyes again and looked down at her body. Something was off. Clear as day and glowing a muted blue her eyes were drawn to it. Moving her skirt out of the way she glanced down towards it. The lock was tight around her thigh and from far away would seem more like a garter belt than an actual lock with chains. Wrapping her fingers around the lock she gave it a few gentle tugs, feeling the metal and surprised by the fact it was not icy cold to the touch. Bolted by three sets of chains the lock itself was centered among the chains and wrapped tightly against her skin. Perplexed, she hopped once or twice to test it. It showed no signs of movement and she blinked.
It was a strange sensation but she continued her investigation, tracing her fingers over several symbols as if she could understand them. They were foreign and yet so familiar. It gave her some satisfaction to know that she would regain something she had lost. Perhaps it made her legs heavier and could have been somewhere better, but nothing could have relieved her better to know it had been worth it and actually fixable. "Thank you." She said softly at first. "THANK YOU!" She shouted to nothing and got a few awkward looks back as a reply. Her body was trembling in excitement.
Now!
The vibrant hues had returned to her eyes - now she could properly move on and she did so happily, skipping down and past the courtyard area. Alamea felt like the weight she held earlier had lifted. This was how it was supposed to be. Light as a feather she strode back into the dorm area, waving randomly to those she passed. It was how she was going to be able to salvage any first impressions.
"First day of classes here I come!"
(813 words)