Briar ran. And just when she thought that her legs would give out, she ran some more. The forest was nothing more than a green blur as she sprinted through, the trees forming a crude labyrinth until she was so disoriented that she had absolutely no idea where she was headed. All Briar knew was that she was free, and she was determined to keep it that way.
Just when her body had reached its limit, the young woman caught sight of a single, ancient cottage. The thatched roof was caving in, and the bricks that formed the walls looked so worn that Briar was sure that one touch would send the entire structure crumbling into dust. Wild ivy climbed the fragile walls, and a thick layer of brush surrounded the place, only adding to its forebodingness. But amidst all the decay, an old woman was humming a pleasant tune to herself as she took down her sun-dried laundry from a line.
Briar watched her warily for a moment, before her legs gave a shudder as if to warn her that she didn't have much time. Slowly, she almost drunkenly staggered over to the woman, gasping for air.
The elderly woman looked alarmed for a moment before throwing own her laundry and rushing to Briar's side. "Are you all right, dearie?" Asked the old woman, her face wrinkling with concern. Briar couldn't answer, all the air her lungs managed to choke down was needed to keep her body functioning. Worried, the woman--surprisingly strong for her age--wrapped her arm around the younger woman, helping her into the cottage. "Come inside, come inside. Rest a bit." The woman soothed, shutting the door behind her.
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