• Maruru ran through the grassy field and climbed up the steep hill. Her aqua eyes glistened under the burning sun. The sky was blinding blue, not a single cloud floating. The wind blew her long lavender hair around. She laughed, shielding her eyes, as she stared up.
    Two guys rode on Aiers. An Aier is an air board that looks like a snowboard, it’s an inch thick. Inside it are Becko’s, they’re special alchemy gems that creates wind. The tail curves more upward so that the air could come out from the back for acceleration. At the base are four holes, two in the front and two in the back. Air comes out of them to help the board stay up. There was a strap-in binding for every board. The way you make Aiers to work is not by pushing any buttons or flipping a switch, it’s by will.
    One of the guys, Rey, cursed for being behind. He wore a sleeveless white shirt that was all the way unbuttoned, revealing his impressive abs. Four earrings pierced his left ear, a ghastly skull to his lobe and three silver rings to his helix.
    The other guy, Non, whooped, flashing a victory smile over his shoulders. He was the same age as Rey. His mangy brown hair looked golden under the sun. He had on dark auburn pants that stopped halfway to his shin. A long, thin, red cloth tied around his waist to keep his baggy pants up. He was shirtless, showing off his muscles. Both of them have strong bodies that girls would die to touch and guys would kill to get.
    Maruru beamed with excitement as they flew over her, high in the sky. She waved to them crazily. “Hey, down here!” she shouts, hopping.
    They stopped, turned to her and sneered. “Hey, up here!” Rey and Non says at the same time.
    Maruru stops waving. “Shut up and get down here!” she hated it when they said that. Her father never allowed her to go on an Aier because it was dangerous. Or maybe it’s cause of who she is.
    “Sorry, princess” Rey gave her a mocking salute while Non flapped his arms like a bird, rising a bit higher every flap. “But we got to take off”
    “No, wait!” she took a step forward. “I need to talk with you guys. Can you come down here for a sec?”
    “Ha! Never ever, ever again shall we listen to you!” Non bellows.
    “Why not?” Maruru was losing her patients.
    “The first time you asked us to come down...” Non says.
    “You shoved us and stole my Aier” Rey finishes.
    “The second time we chased four goons that you said stole your gold necklace…”
    “They jumped us and you stole Non’s Aier”
    “The third time—”
    “Okay, okay, I got it” Maruru interrupts, her evil plan foiled.
    “Yeah, so have fun on ground, girly” Rey turns and leaves. Non does them same.
    “Wait” she managed to stop Non.
    “Can’t” he half turns and points to a red star tattoo on his right cheek. “Shooting stars have to go. They never stay for long”
    Maruru walks up closer and stops at the edge of the cliff. The drop was a hundred feet down. At the bottom are big boulders atop of flat green plains.
    “See ya, princess” Non says, looking over to Rey, already a speck in the distance.
    “Okay, just let me—” she couldn’t finish the rest. Her foot slipped and she was plummeting down the cliff. Her eyes watered as she stared down to her soon-to-be grave. Screams filled the air with terrified vibrations.
    Non reacted in an instant. He swung his leg back a dived down to her. His Aier shot out air in gusts. Maruru was halfway down. She slightly turned and saw Non coming to her rescue. Her screaming stopped and she was smiling now. Non swooped under her, threw his leg back beneath him so that he was upright, and caught her in his arms. Now they were moving back up the cliff. Not a word was said until they reached the top.
    “You wanna die?” Non shouts.
    “It wasn’t my fault…” Maruru says innocently. “I lost my balance…I’m sorry” her arms hugged him over his shoulders.
    “…okay, well I guess I can’t blame you” he lets out a breath. “Well, I guess I’ll take you back home—”
    “No!” she shouts instantly. She bit her tongue regretfully then softens her voice. “It’s just that…I want to stay with you” she nuzzles her cheek against his neck. “I always wanted to ride on an Aier”
    Non halts the Aier in midair. “What?” he loosens his arms that were around her shoulder blades.
    “Oh, wait, I mean I had a fight with my father and I can’t go back home now” she bit her tongue again for saying it too fast. Now he won’t believe her excuse. “Don’t take me home please” she begs. If her father found out that she snuck out and tried to ride an Aier, she’d be dead meat.
    “Why should I listen to you now?” he made a sound that was close to a laugh and a sharp exhale. “All your schemes risked your life, but this one risks it literally!” the Aier starts up again, faster. “I got new respect for you, though” he increases the speed.
    Maruru hung on for dear life. She shut her eyes as the scenery blurred around her. She’s going to die, she thought. The psycho, Non, is going to murder her.
    “Full speed…full speed” he mutters to himself. “Yahoo!” he howls at the sky. “I love this feeling!”
    Maruru gulped, her grip tightening. She nearly choked him. Visions of past mistakes and evil doings flashed through her mind. She sees her father opening a door but little does he know that there was a bucket of water waiting for him at the top. It was a childish prank, she knew that then, but she did it anyway. Once the pail fell on his head, he shouted her name right away.
    Another flash. Her attempt to persuade her father for the fifth time to get an Aier failed so she ran away and tried to steal one for her own. Of course, like always, she failed. But that was how she met Non and Rey, because it was their boards she tried to take off with. Once her father found her, he did what he always did. Shout her name.
    She could almost hear his voice now, calling her, scowling her. Saying he’ll never let her out of home, saying that this isn’t how she’s suppose to act…and then shouting out her name…
    “Maruru!”
    Just like that. Maruru opens her eyes and turns to greet her father. “Hi, daddy” she says in a fake cheerful voice.
    Non lowered the Aier so that it was floating a foot off ground. She hopped off and walked inside her house.
    “Thank you for bringing her home” her father says calmly, hiding the frustration in his tone. “I don’t know how—”
    “Can a princess act that way?” Non finishes. “Yeah, well, I don’t know. She’s living it large, I can tell you that” he gestures to the enormous, ivory palace they call ‘home’. The windows were gold brimmed, so was the door. Its walls were smooth and glimmering, like crystals or glass. The flowers in the garden gave off an alluring smell. “Nice window. Bet you can see the whole kingdom from there”
    Her dad—the king—follows Non’s glance. “Uh, yes, sorry about that. It’s just that with Maruru always sneaking out, I needed the windows barred so she wouldn’t climb through it”
    “Yeah” Non gave a respectful bow. “I have to go, bye” then, without waiting for a reply, he took off into the sky and headed for Rey.
    Rey was already gone, out of sight. But Non already knew where he was. Both of them always knew where either of them was at because they plan everything out together.
    As he reached the cliff again, he turned and went up higher to get a good glimpse of the palace. His eyes trailed every detail but fixed on the barred windows.
    Poor Maruru, he thought. She’s the princess of Eleron. The kingdom is a place of old times and a place where everyone wishing for a new start to live. To make it short, it’s a sanctuary. All plants and animal life are respected and treated carefully. The land is green and crops flourish. The people are all giving, carefree, and kind. That’s why there are barely any guards around. And that’s why Maruru is able to slip in and out of her home so many times. Her father says he doesn’t want her to ride on Aiers because they’re dangerous, but the truth is that he doesn’t want her to leave him, because she’s the only person in the kingdom to be resentful and stubborn, to want more and not take no for an answer.
    Non stares at the barred windows for a bit longer then turns to leave.
    Poor Maruru, he thinks again. She wants to fly but her father clipped her wing.

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