Mush-VNFirstDraft

	It is a terrible night to be out. The moon's shine is overpowered by
the dense layer of storm clouds above. The ground is cold and damp from the
rain before. The air is frigid and flowing, full of water and empty of warmth.

	But of course, here I am, walking back from the convience store. Being
the lazy student that I am, I waited until the last minute for shopping and
was stuck without food and a full night of studying for the next exam. So with
my bag of various instant foods and snacks, I try to hurry home to the long
night ahead.

	Other than the light from the streetlights, the darkness is empty. Not
a car roaming or person wandering. The buildings around are vacant. There is,
however, that slight, mysterious buzzing that comes with this city setting.
Realizing how eerie it is out here and vulnerable I am, I quicken my pace.

	I turn down a pitch-dark alley, between the tall vacant buildings.
Walking stiffly into the abyss, the clouds loosen overhead and the moon peaks
through. And I see her.

	A short girl, about 5'5" leaning against the building to my right. Her
hair, a warm dark red, clashes with the cold around her. Her bright green eyes
stare into me with a look of something between displeasure and anger. She's in
a dark hoodie. And she's pretty. So much so, I stopped walking without being
aware I did.

"You're Ein, right?" Her soft voice shattering the slience.

Half shocked and half flattered, I answer, "Yeah, but how --"

	Fwish! The air by my left shoulder rushes around. Something flew by
me. Around the girl. Gleams float in the air. Like a peacock's tail, in an
arc around and over her head. I step back. They're floating. She begins
walking toward me. The light from the moon disappears, throwing me into
blind panic.

	Fwoosh! The air over my head flees and knocks my senses back together.
I have to get out of here. I drop my bag and take off to the closest exit of the
alley. Which way I was going, and which way I came make no difference anymore and
I couldn't tell if I tried.

	Shink! I scream in pain as my arm is pierced from behind by an icy
numbness, flinging it foward sharply, shooting me stumbling ahead with it. I
reach out for arm with my other hand and feel a shard lodge in my tricep from
behind and my slippery blood dripping out of it. A shard of ice.

	With no mind to think about what the hell is going on, I keep running.
Time blurs around me, as more shards fly past me as I run. Almost as though,
I've been running for hours and have heard thousands of shards of ice
miss me. But eventually, that comes to an end.

	Close to the exit of the alley I fall to the ground before I feel the
pain in my leg. A shard of ice was launched into the back of my thigh. I can
only scream in reaction to this pain. My screams, my crying, and her running
footsteps ring together in my blank head.

"Why! Wh --" Before I can finish all the air leaves my body.

	She finished her run toward me with a solid kick to my back and all I
can do is gasp for air.

"That's for running!" She screams between her pants and gasps. "I hate
running!"

	She walks around me, trying to catch her breath and holding her heart.
After a short while, she crouches near me. Because of how close she is, and
the nearby streetlight I can see her clearly. Her hood now down, you can see
she has her hair two pigtails fixed on opposite sides of her head. She's still
panting and looks uncomfortable.

Breathing heavily, she speaks. "Ein, you're going to die today."

	Her face looks emotionless as she utters these deafening words.

"You're dying for making such a beautiful girl run and get sweaty and
uncomfortable."

	Her icy hand touches my face. My mouth dries out and the saliva
disappears from it. My throat feels itchy and tight. My skin feels as though
it's too small for me. The air feels as sharp as a knife against my body.

	Under her other hand which is hanging over my body, a horizontal spear
of ice forms slowly. Taking her hand off my cheek, she makes motions toward
the spear, crafting edges and designs as it grows. Abstract designs that can
only be described as "awe-inspiring" and "elegant" are begin taking shape all
along the spear. Finally, when she seems done, she flicks her small hand
moving the spear in front of me.

"What do you think? Pretty good, huh?"

	Before I can answer, she stands up, and kicks me over so that I'm
laying flat. She quickly moves the spear vertically, over my heart all the
while with a flawless, angry look on her face. And she looks down at me.

"I really do hate running."