The Runaway {Hunter} (WATTYS 2022)

The Peace

"Ah." Cora gasped as the stings tightened around her torso. She gripped the chair tighter as the air was sucked from her ribs. "I broke my ribs a few weeks ago, I don't want them broken again." She half chuckled.

"Sorry, your majesty." The small girl mumbled.

Her name was Felicita. She was a maid here under her fathers control. Cora hated the idea of having people serve her, but she was thankful in the moment for the blonde girls help. Felicita was young then Cora, only by a year or two, but her fast fingers and tight grip on the stings on Cora's dress was a blessing. She could never get this dress on without Felicita's help.

"You don't have to call me that." Cora looked over her shoulder. "You can just call me Cora."

Felicita's eyes quickly glanced up to Cora as she finished fighting the strings. She said nothing as Cora sat down in the chair, Felicita collecting pins to do her hair.

"Can I ask you something?" Felicita asked quickly as she moved behind Cora, brushing her hair.

"Anything."

Felicita hesitated. "That little girl you were with, is she yours?"

Cora smiled, looking in the mirror in front of her she could see Felicita working her black hair. "No." She chuckled. "Omega is a clone like her brothers."

"The group your with are clones?" Felicita locked eyes with Cora in the mirror as she chuckled.

"Yes, they are."

"They don't look or act like the way I thought."

Cora took a deep breath. "No, they aren't like the regular clones. They're defective." Cora knew the stories that were told about clones on Qwern, how they were evil and monsters to the people of Qwern. "They helped me through a lot. Omega is like a daughter to me."

Felicita nodded, she picked up a few pins and started pinning back Cora's new raven hair. "They all seem to admire you. Expect for that one with glasses."

Cora smirked. "Tech?" She nodded. "He's always like that, but he cares he just shows it in a weird way."

"He looks like he knows a lot." Felicita chuckled.

"Oh he sure does. He could talk the ear off you, but in a good way." Cora laughed. "You should talk to him sometime." She smirked.

"The leader." Felicita looked to her again. "He seems to admire you the most."

Cora couldn't help but blush. "Yeah." She sighed.

Cora frowned for a moment. She thought of Hunter, Omega and the rest of the squad. She thought of her sudden predicament. She was the last heir to the throne, her people needed a strong leader after the long painful reign of her father.

"Felicita," Cora looked up, Kara looked to her, her head nodded. "If you were in my position, and you knew someone loved you but they wanted to leave your home, would you stay or leave with them?"

Felicita stopped pinning Cora's hair. She pulled a small stool closer and sat in front of Cora. "It's Hunter isn't it?"

Cora shook her head. "Yeah I guess. But it's all of them." Her eyes fell. "I love them all dearly but, they won't want to stay here. I have too. My people need me."

Felicita looked down as well, thinking of her situation. "These few years have been hard." She admitted. "You're father has been less then kind to the rebels in town, and now that he's gone, another civil war might break out." Felicita looked up. "The king still has some followers, and they might act up soon."