Lucky - January 07, 2012

[note: this was written during a writing exercise: we had 20 minutes to write something inspired by the word "lucky". This is the result, unedited, exactly as it appeared when time ran out]

Lucky - Squiddy Geiger - January 07, 2012

Marion walked slowly towards the lights in the town, shuffling a bit. It had been a long day, and a long trip. She hadn't thought she'd make it. The lights taunted her, so tantalizingly close, yet still too far away.

She'd left at dawn, a week before, eager for a new beginning in town, and optimistically certain she'd be there by late afternoon. The palm reader the week before had assured her she was full of luck, and she assumed this meant, for her trip today.

He'd been right, but not as she'd hoped.

Barely past 10 in the morning, she thought she had discovered what Lucky meant. She'd found a bag, and picked it up from the middle fo the road. It was heavy, and when she opened it, she'd found it was full of gold coins. An auspicious start to her new life, she thought.

At noon, the riders bore down on her from the north, and she barely had time to jump aside. The leader saw the bag, and commanded them to stop. It was a noble's money, she was arrested before she could even explain and offer it to the men. She was lucky, they could have just killed her.

In jail, she'd been questioned and beaten, and questioned again, and beaten again. They wanted to know who she worked for, why she'd stolen the money. She'd tried to explain she had found it, and would have returned it if they'd asked. They threw her in a cold, dark, damp cell overnight.

The next night, the guards came for her and took her to another room. she got lucky again. Repeatedly, mercilessly, and for hours. Afterwards, she was returned to her dark cell. This pattern repeated itself for the next five days.

When she'd finally spoken with the Captain of the Guards, pleading for mercy, he had listened. She was lucky, he ordered her release.

When she left, she had only her torn clothes and her shoes, but none of her possessions or money, but she was lucky. She was alive.

She shuffled on toward the lights.

Posted by Squiddy at January 7, 2012 08:30 PM | TrackBack