THE MEETING
Grass was still disoriented and shaky from his surprise collision with the woman. He managed to get himself back on his feet, still breathless and his heart pounding in his chest.
As Grass glanced around, he saw that the hallway was empty, and the shouting of the guards was growing faint in the distance. Orange was now alone, with only the woman in front of him.
The woman stood up, her long, black hair flowing like water behind her...
The woman stared at Grass for a moment longer, her purple eyes unmoving in their gaze. After a few long seconds, she spoke.
"Why were you running?" Her voice was soft and quiet, and her tone was sincere and genuine.
Grass was thrown off by the woman's unexpected question, and suddenly became self conscious about his own escape attempt.
"I was trying to escape..." Grass replied nervously, his heart pounding loudly in his chest.
The woman stared at Grass for another moment, before speaking again…
"Escape from who?" The woman replied, her gentle voice still soft and quiet. Grass paused for a moment, searching for words to answer her question. The woman's gaze was still on him, and her purple eyes felt like they were looking into his very soul.
Finally, Grass found the words he wanted to say, and answered her question "Escape from the guards here, the ones who imprisoned me and hurt me."
The woman's eyes softened even more, and she spoke again, her voice more empathetic now...
"You were imprisoned and hurt?" The woman asked, her voice still gentle but now with a note of sympathy in her tone. Orange saw something in her expression, something like she could understand or had been through something similar.
Grass nodded briefly, his voice suddenly tight and hoarse, but not wanting to say anything else just yet...
The woman suddenly walked forward towards Grass, and Orange took a step back nervously. He didn't know what to expect, and felt suddenly wary and on guard. But the woman stopped in front of Orange and slowly reached out her hand towards his face.
As Grass glanced at her outstretched hand, something in the woman's eyes made him pause, her face softening yet even more as she looked at him. Orange took a deep breath and slowly, hesitantly, took the woman's hand...
At the touch of the woman's hand, Grass felt a calming warmth spread through him, and felt a sense of peace and comfort wash over him.
The woman then spoke again, with a slight smile on her face. "Grass... your real name is Muruta Shugawa, and you have Strength 5, Agility 4, and Intelligence 7."
A stats box pop up flashed in Grass field of vision..