Crocus was enough. She had been here too long, she have had her jobs and it was interesting but it was enough now. She didn't like the big city, the capital or whatever it's nicknames were. She wanted to leave and go home. Not entirely sure where the ark was, she would have to go and travel. Was Black already at the ark? Rune? Lucifer? The three guys she met here, oh and Grudge. She should have know it was him but faces.. it made everything so difficult. It was a big adventure and it had been fun, she wondered how Lucifer his fight had been, she had at least known how to get the Knights away and it was sure as hell time to work on spells that would make it easier in the future. She should work on a couple ideas while she was walking. It would take her nine days before she arrived in Oak and that was time enough to think of things.

Dressed with the traveller's cloak and her long purple hair covered together with parts of her face, she was ready to leave. Walking was her only way because saving money was an issue, at least she didn't buy an expensive dress. With only a big shoulder bag and a satchel she left the capital. One foot in front of the other, mind not focussing on anything and just go on. It would be a boring trip but she was slowly getting used on travelling on her own since she had lost her friends and companions. There was nothing she could do about it and thus she would have to work on it.

Three days later there was something that confused her. She had set up camp for the night. There was a small fire in the middle that she had build and covered with some stones to avoid making too much light and be noticed. She didn't feel like fighting, the trip up till now already had made her exhausted, bored and thus grumpy. She was eating strips of dry meat, because she wasn't in the mood to catch something when she saw a shadow. Now Nasty was used to shadows for it was her magic but this wasn't something she created. She shook her head and focused on her meal, it was probably something she did without noticing. Being bored, it might cast her magic as she did as a child. It was probably her own shadow since it looked human, trying to entertain her. The only problem was that she could see her own shadow.

With quick eating and drinking, she entered the small sleeping bag that she had brought along and went to sleep, or try to. She needed her rest. Tomorrow, she might not stop at all. When she woke up the Shadow was still there but not on the same tree that she had seen it. She acted like she couldn't care less and packed her stuff, threw sand over the fire and moved again. Six more days and she would arrive. The shadow was still following her and she noticed and it was working on her nerves. When she was a child, up until the age of nineteen she was able to see ghosts thanks to her left eye. This was the reason why she was wearing an eye patch. Now it was not necessary but she was so used to it that she kept wearing the thing. But that wasthe whole point she was wearing it and still could see the shadow but there was no one around that could cast the shadow.. it made no sense.

She started to walk quicker and tried not to look back but at night the shadow was back. Which gave her a reason to continue to walk instead of to go to sleep. It was a long walk, she was reaching the North and it was getting cold and there was some snow. Which gave her only more the idea that it was not corporeal. She dropped the hood of her cloak and just looked around but there was really no one, no other footprints when she walked in a circle and so on. That night, when she finally found a dry spot, she started to talk to the shadow and though it couldn't talk back she had a feeling that she should know the shadow and when she finally realized whom it might be, she jumped up, packed her stuff and ran off. Only a few more kilometers until she would reach Oak and a hotel without shadows. She was going to leave all lights out! Or something like that. But it was still quite a walk and with two nights without sleep, it was getting worse, still two days to walk and so on.

Finally after walking all the kilometers and almost falling asleep she could see the edge of town down the hill and she was sure the Ark was there waiting for her. She looked in her bag to make sure that her mask was on top and she could easily grab it. But now was not the time. Now she was Nastasya Crowe, girl hunted by a shadow that she would make sure to disappear soon. She didn't like the idea that it made her scared but she knew the person whom the shadow belonged too, three years she hadn't seen it and here he was. It didn't matter. The Dead wouldn't rise. She was sure.. almost a 100%.

With the last few steps, she arrived in Oak and went to a hotel, where she booked a room for a couple of days in advance and just went to bed to sleep. Without putting any light on or taking any clothing or boots off. The only thing that happened was she dropped her bag and fell asleep.

Arrival in Oak.
Wordcount: 996.