Flashback Violet Robbins - The Magpie Archer

[Wolf Rawrrr]

Shalebridge Orphanage, Alicante, year 3282


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It was just another cold, damp, rainy day, and third in the row at that. Who knew it could rain that much at once? The common room of Shalebridge Orphanage was crowded, in the sense that nearly everyone was here, not that they were filling up all the space. This was the largest room in the orphanage. Half of the space was taken up by a dozen wooden tables lined with old chairs, and the other half held a few pieces of furniture as well as what little toys to play there were; mostly thrown around on the only carpet in the room, even though there were crates for storage. The last piece was the large fireplace that was burning, or trying to. Somebody should have put another log on the fire from the small pile beside.


It was afternoon, and since it was raining, whoever wasn't lying in bed was in the common room. Some of the older kids were at one side of the tables, separating themselves from the younger ones who were at the other end of the room by another table. Some youngsters were playing in the carpeted corner. None of the caretakers were present.


It looked like today would be as boring as yesterday. And the day before that.

 

[Articus]

Violet hated rain.


Rain meant that she had to be indoors, which meant she couldn't sneak out and explore someplace that didn't make her unhappy. She hated it here at the orphanage, and the only thing that made her feel better was the toy that she was had been told was given to her by her mother. So, on this rainy day, she played with that toy in a corner by herself. It was a little stuffed anthropomorphic rabbit, made of black fabric with small black button eyes. The stitching was white and depicted the rabbit's nose and mouth. She petted the thing, the feel of it one of the few things that made her smile anymore.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

The weather and atmosphere being what it was, it wasn't long before someone's boredom spilled out of the glass.


"This is sooo dumb. Let's go do something." said one of the older boys sitting at the table. He stood up, and immediately four other boys followed, looking eager to finally see something happening.


Of course, those kids who noticed the group take off from the table knew that the boy who led them was Joshua, and that meant trouble. Some slipped out of the common room before there was a chance to get picked on by him and his bullies, others remained where they were, afraid to draw attention to themselves by moving. The boys made their way across the room towards the playground, pushing two kids out of the way and laughing like they just heard a great joke. Joshua couldn't miss Violet - the only shadow elf kid in the orphanage stood out like a blackened blade of grass in the middle of a perfectly green lawn. Guessing his thoughts, the four other boys giggled and followed like foxes.


"Hey there, pointy-ears." said Joshua, coming onto Violet. The girl was ten years old and sitting on the floor, while Joshua was nearly fourteen and taller than her even in normal conditions - right now he was looming over her. Being a boy he was also much stronger, and had a squad of other boys worshipping him around like he was the Lord of Shalebridge. He had every possible advantage on his side, and he misused each and every one of them. "What's happening, blue-skin?" he asked Violet, who was his favorite victim given her racial distinctions that he so loved to point out.


The four other boys were all slightly shorter and younger than Joshua. That was one of the reasons why they idolized him. Now they formed a semicircle around Violet's corner so that she couldn't escape.

 

[Articus]

Clutching her toy close, she looked at Joshua and spat out the defiantly, "Leave me alone Joshua."


She always wished she could do more than just yell at the boy, but with his combination of strength and a gang of friends prevented her from any other form of retaliation. Most times she did her best not to react too much and wait for him to get bored. Sadly, she was afraid that today that might be harder than usual. The rain had made everyone restless, so Joshua would be all the more eager to pick on the young dark elf. Still, she hoped that this would go by with relative speed.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

Violet's fears were coming true, but it was unlikely that Joshua would get bored of her anytime soon. After all, there was nothing better to do. He could go pick on someone else, and probably would later, but the poor girl was his main fixation.


"Why? I'm bored." said the boy, as if this was the first time they talked. His eyes sparkled. "What do you have there? I wanna play too." He quickly lashed out, knocking Violet on her back just strong enough to roll her over, but not strong enough to cause any real pain or damage. He was holding back. Why would he take her seriously? On the other hand, he was serious about wanting to play, because he snatched her toy rabbit away and was now studying it in his hands.


"Well I'll be... Pointy-ears!" he shouted, waving around with the rabbit for the other boys to see. "This thing's actually darker than you are!" He laughed, followed by the rest of the boys. They all laughed at Violet, throwing in their own comments in attempts to match Joshua's.


And the girl was still on the floor, probably feeling alone as never before, even though she was in a room full of people. Some of the other kids have started staring, some from far off, some drawing nearer for a better view.

 

[Articus]

"Hey, give her back!" Violet cried as she rose to her feet again. Out of all the things Joshua could have done, this was the worst. She could deal with the names, and the shoving, and the public humiliation. That stuff was easy enough to just push past. No, this was the one thing that could actually get a real reaction out of her. With a determined look on her face, she ran up to the bully and grappled for her most prized possession. Unfortunately, he had the advantage in every way, but she didn't care. She just wanted the rabbit back.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

"Oh, touchy aren't we, darkskin?" said Joshua, but then realized it wasn't that easy to shake off determined Violet. Ultimately he pushed her hard enough to cause her to fall back down on the carpet. The rest of the boys laughed like it was the joke of the day, continuing to call her names while the main bully glowed, looking as pleased with himself as if he fought off a band of thieves.


"Maybe you're right. Maybe I should give it back. It's almost too ugly to hold anyway, and Maker knows what you've been doing with it." More laughter. But then he said: "And what if I don't? You're gonna keep falling down until I do? Poor pointy-ears."

 

[Articus]

From her postion on the floor, Violet she felt a sudden shift in her. It was hard to say what the source of it was. I could have been the rain, the taking of her most prized possession, or just being sick of Joshua's crap. She decided that enough was enough. She just wasn't going to sit here and be treated this way.


Giving Joshua a stare that almost radiated her feelings,Violet stood and yelled, her voice rising like a crescendo, "Give. It. Back!"


With that exclamation she launched herself in a full tackle at the boy. He may have been stronger than her, but it'd hard to resist that kind of hit due to their relative closeness in size. She also had the advantage of her fury to aid her in her attack. She wanted her rabbit back, and she wanted it now!

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

Caught by surprise, Joshua was knocked back, then tripped and fell down on his back with Violet on top of him. He must have taken quite a hit. Moments passed and he still couldn't regain his composure, though he was conscious. The bunny fell out of his hands in the process.


The four other boys just stared from the sidelines. Other kids began crowding around to see.

 

[Articus]

Violet raised her arm high, about to slug Joshua, but stopped. She really to beat him up, make him feel sorry for all that he had done to her. She just couldn't do it though. She knew that if she beat him up, she'd be no better than him. So, she left his fist unclench and return to her side. She got up without a word, grabbed her bunny and went off toward where they all slept, ignoring all the stares she was getting on the way.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

Shalebridge Orphanage, Alicante, year 3287


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It was well past midnight when things finally seemed safe enough to move. A dark shape rose from a lying position. When moonlight reflected upon the skin, it came back nearly as dark as night. A small disturbance in the dark of the sleeping quarters. Nowhere near enough to wake up any of the other children. She would have to be quiet as she was about to move.


The fifteen year old shadow elf was about to make her escape.

 

[Articus]

Looking around the room, double checking that all was quiet, Violet grabbed the small drawstring bag that she had filled with her belongings. After a quick rummage through the bag to make sure she had everything packed, she pulled it closed and turned to leave. She tried to move across the room as quietly as she could; taking slow deliberate steps across the room. If this worked out, she'd never have to see this horrid place again.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

The only sounds in the room are children breathing and the occasional snore. Violet leaves them behind as she exits the room and takes the dark hallway into the common room. The place where they usually played during the day looked so much more frightening in the dark. Normal objects cast so scary-looking shadows. No monster jumps in the elf's way though, regardless of her childish fears. The stories of goblins and ghosts remain just stories.


Then Violet hears a sound that stops her in place. Footsteps. Just as she registers them, faint light comes from the opposite side of the room, from the hallway beyond which led not only towards the orphanage exit but also to the staff quarters. Someone was coming, likely one of the caretaker ladies.


She has seconds to react.

 

[Articus]

Violet shited her gaze about the room until she spotted the tables. Running as quietly as she could over to one closest to the corner, she particularly dived beneath, crawling into the safety of the shadows. Pulling herself into a tight crouch, she waited; holding her breath and avoiding any kind of movement or noise that might betray her location.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

Just as Violet crouches into position, a figure enters the common room. It's one of the caretaker women carrying a candle. She halts in the middle of the room and looks around, causing Violet's pulse to quicken, but the shadow elf's position and dark blue skin make her nearly invisible in the darkness. The woman then turns and leaves back the way she came from.


The candlelight soon disappears entirely. Moments pass in silence.

 

[Articus]

Violet sat, stock still, for a few precious moments after the light had gone from the room before moving. She stops again at the edge of the table, accidentally bumping her head with a noise that, to her, sound like she had just hit the thing with a sledgehammer. She froze, afraid that she had been heard, but when no response came, she continued her escape. She was almost at the door when she realized that she had left her bag under the table. Cursing haste silently, she rushed back and quickly grabbed the improvised satchel. She was losing valuable time as she made her second dash to the door.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

Violet gets to the door unhindered, reaches for the knob and finds it unlocked for some reason. The doors swing open into the night, letting in a chilling breeze. And then, just as the little elf stands there, feeling the importance of this decision, how it would change her life, she hears a voice from behind her.


"Hey, you!" It is a whispered shout. "Where do you think you're going?"


Startled though as she is, Violet still recognizes the voice before she turns around and sees the bulky Arnar first, and then Daniel beside him. She can't miss the fact that they are also carrying makeshift satchels of their own. The boys look at her with mischievous smiles.

 

[Articus]

The elf clutched hard at her makeshift napsack as she nearly jump at the sound of the boy's voice. Once the surprise wore off, she glared at the pair and spat, "What are you two doing here, aside from scaring me half to death?! As for where I'm going, I frankly don't think that's your business."





Her anger made her overlook the satchels at first, but as she awaited their answers; it dawned on her what the boys might be doing; that they might have the same plan as her. She took a double-take at the bag when she did realize, the look she gave the pair silently asking whether or not her suspicion was right.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

"You... you're running away, aren't you!" whispers Arnar.


"Quiet! Of course she is." says Daniel, moving past his friend to approach the little shadow elf. "And we're comin' with her." He looks at Violet with nothing but determination in his eyes. Violet knows the kind - she can read right through it. They've all been through the same things here at Shalebridge, more or less. While not exactly the worst place in the world, one couldn't blame the children wanting to leave, even if it meant substituting the relative safety of the orphanage for the uncertain world that lay beyond.

 

[Wolf Rawrrr]

Notice


As this character has been converted into an NPC following the player's departure from the game, this Link to the Past thread is suspended.