Beauty is a curse on her

Chapter 1: Fell prey

"Hey! Come back here! Don't go so far! Otherwise, you know her well.."

Firuze shouted with a little laugh, running in a garden barefooted behind a baby lamb while her thick jet black hair was waving in the air in its full splendour ۔

She was happy that day because her father agreed on sending her to school.

"She'll make me cook you in din.."(dinner)

With a light scream, she fell holding her right foot.

She folded her lips inward, pressing her eyes. Tears run down her face in pain.

.

.

" See! Fairy on earth is actually on earth"

A wicked guy standing with his other atrocious friends pointed towards her and giggle loudly.

One of them tried to mock her by imitating the way she fell to the ground and weep.

" Let me take you in my arms! YOU ARROGANT BEAUTY!"

One of them said pretentiously while giving a high-five to his others companions.

Firuze was seemed to be in pain and feeling embarrassed as well.

A sizeable throne had pricked under her foot. She started thinking that what should she do now to tackle this situation because she couldn't even ask for help from any of the boys standing near as she could easily understand their lustful glares towards her.

" Firuze! You hurt yourself again"

It was the voice of an old woodcutter filled with worry running after her while holding his axe.

All the boys started pretending to be busy after seeing her father coming for help.

" Father!"

She moaned showing her helplessness to him.

" Ahh..! Don't give me that"

He sat placing his old broken axe aside and looked into her tears filled eyes.

Firuze's father was a lionhearted and fearless man who wanted to see their children alike.

He gave her a strong glare on which she lowered her eyes. He ordered her to take out the throne from the wounded area herself.

"Father! How will I do this? It's bleeding!"

She pleaded but make herself prepared internally because she knew her father well.

Her father smiled, appreciating her.

"Come on! You can do it just like you did when you were young, remember! I bought your favourite candy then"

She tried to give her father a consenting smile.

She took a deep breath, seemed to be encouraging herself under her breath.

'Firuze! You can do this! You can't make these jerks laugh at you again'

By holding the corner of her long skirt for some reason, she pressed close her eyes and bring it out with a jerk.

"That's like my lioness"

He said caressing her back while her blue eyes were shining with a shine of hope.

He helped her to stand on her feet and they both started walking towards their cottage.

" Firuze! My beautiful daughter.

Today I taught you a life lesson….

No matter how the situation is, No matter how much pain you are in, No matter there is any hope or not that it will lesson one day. Just keep it in your mind that you are YOUR strength. It is your battle and you will never become weak, you have to fight for YOURSELF. ALL ALONE! A day will come that would be the fruit of your efforts and sufferings. Never forget this."

He exclaimed.

" I won't "

Her turquoise coloured eyes filled with gratitude and love towards him.

After reaching home, she got busy preparing dinner for her family after loosely bandaging her wound.

" Hey, you! Don't you go to feed the animals yet? And what is that? "

Olivia, her stepmother, entered the kitchen. The roof of the kitchen was leaking continuously and half tore. She inquired in a harsh tone pointing her finger to her bandaged foot.

" Mother…! I-I don't know how it slipped from my mind. I just.."

Firuze answered with terror-filled eyes.

"Stupid girl! Leave this and get the hell out !! Get losttt… I don't want to see your inauspicious face for another minute."

Her mother said furiously after listening to her response.

Firuze took a quick response to her order and was about to exit the place that she halted her by holding her arm so firmly that pain could be easily seen in Firuz's facial expression but she didn't utter a word and kept looking down.

"Your father is here otherwise I'll let you know that what is the punishment of things to be forgotten"

Olivia was looking fierce and was in utmost wrath because of something that she wanted to spill on the poor soul.

Firuze hurriedly took a cane behind the door of the kitchen after she got free from her grip and left slightly crippling, taking his younger brother charlie with him.

" Sister! Why mom was saying this to you? Have you done something bad? And why are you walking like 'moo' because she used to walk like the way you are when she fought with a wild dog for her babies."

Charlie asked her sister with a neutral expression while holding her sister's hand.

She smiled and said.

" We are getting late Charlie! We get to go now and have to come back before sunset.

You got it?"

He nodded looking up at her face. Despite having a face Firuze owned a pure heart. She was a girl who only aimed to lessen her poor father's duties always no matter how much she bore or how hard it used to be.

She started walking behind a small herd that she was taking to the meadow near the village.

Charlie who was just ten was busy taking the animals to stay in the herd and didn't get far.

Firuze was walking briskly thinking about all the taunts and tortures her mother would give to her in dinner.

Her name, Firuze, matches her persona perfectly and was tagged to her by his old poor father. Like a turquoise, her eyes sparkled blue and she twinkled like her name, magnificently beautiful girl, FIRUZE .

One who once saw her can't help but admire her. Her blue bright eyes, sharp nose, sleek and shiny jet-black hair and a perfect smile.

I have a view that a woman is always attracted to men but it is considered to be a real beauty if another woman admires her beauty, openly.

Firuze was one of those luckiest. Blessed with a perfect face and appearance that nearly everyone in her small village who has once met her praised her for her beauty, humbleness and pure heart.

Every man wanted to make her his beloved wife whose gossips of being ' a fairy on earth ' has circulated to nearby villages.

But what Firuze thinks about herself?

Firuze owned a pure heart.

In the contrast to the villagers, her family and the young girls of the same age who got jealous when she is around or attracted to boys every time. Firuze is a very young girl of just seventeen, innocent and poor.

She barely got anything to eat since a greedy woman married his father.

Firuze worked the whole day from washing dishes to taking their domestic animals to graze in the evening every day.

The only good thing in her life was her younger stepbrother with whom she was going to nearby pastures to graze her animals, just a few goats and lambs.

"Hey! Won't you listen to Charlie? GET BACK! "

Charlie shouted which interrupted her thoughts and alarmed her that the sun is about to set and she had to reach her destination in time and get back home before the darkness prevails otherwise her mother wouldn't leave her this time and it was also not safe for her to stay out of the village that late.

" We have to take them to the forest. Come this way! "

They were not going there they have to take the risk of taking the animals to the woods if they wanted to reach back home in time.

It was dark in the forest as compared to the outside.

Firuze asked Charlie to stay by her side and let the animals feed.

It was not her first time taking this way so she knew many routes of the forest.

The voice of the animals altogether filled the place once and firuze sat on a large stone with his brother.

" Sister! Don't worry. I'm with you. I'm brave like a lion"

Charlie said lifting his arm to show his strength in a childlike cute manner which created a toothy smile on Firuze's face automatically and she patted once on her cheeks, nodding.

" Ahh!"

A lamb was running towards the thick dark bushes that seemed to be panicking on something not right.

Firuze hurriedly stood up seeing the view to catch it before it got stray in the woods but unfortunately, her skirt tucked in the edgy corner of the stone on which she was sitting. She turned back to recover it and ran saying,

" Stay there with them, I go to get it back"

After running for a minute, she stopped but the lamb was still out of her sight. But she didn't stop her quest.

The thing she didn't know about was there were some other men in the woods that evening.

Nearly in the centre of the forest, a yellow light could be seen. Some men were staying in the forest for camping and hunting wild animals. They all were busy installing their camps and igniting the fire.

" Uncle! You know that it's not of my interest. I'm going to get what I want"

A gentleman who was carrying his gun said.

" Ok! But don't go so far NEPHEW"

His uncle said lifting his hand seemed to wave at him.

There was barely any sunlight reaching the ground because the trees there were dense and tall-stalked.

He held his gun in the aiming position upwards towards the trees and started walking slowly and more carefully. The only sound was the crushing sound of dried leaves under his boots.

He was professional in hunting and had come here multiple times with his uncle.

The way he carried his gun indicated his keenness as well as his skills.

" You must not aim right, but draw the bow with all your might"

He murmured under his breath not losing focus, wrinkles appeared on his forehead might be due to focusing.

He just saw a white coloured goat in his view. A succeeding smirk appeared on his face but the animal wanted to make him hard for him.

It stopped for while and disappeared the next moment.

.

.

On the other side Firuze neither lost hope nor courage. Though she was looking worried as he had also left his brother alone with the animals. Sweat popped out of her forehead that she wiped with her sleeve.

She called the lamb by imitating its voice loudly many times but to no avail.

" I should not lose hope but when will I get out of it."

She said under her breath looking upwards towards the sky which was getting darker and darker. Mustering up her courage she decided to take the opposite route to which she was wandering for the last half an hour.

May it would work.

" Father must be worried for us. But what would I answer her"

On the way, she said in despair looking here and there.

Tears filled in her eyes and were about to fell that she felt something on the back of her neck and heard a bang of a gunshot simultaneously.

WHAT WAS THAT?

Next moment

She hurriedly swiped her hand on the neck and what she saw in the dim light of the moon was a black beetle crippling on the ground away from her. She took few steps back in fear and hit a thick trunk of a tree.

" Sister Firuze…..!!!! Are you alright?"

It was Charlie's voice

In this, she turned to see from where it came from. She did not listen to her brother's voice again but saw the goat's glimpse once in the bushes just a few steps far from her. THANK GOD!

She ran close to the bushes and jumped in them to catch them. She was looking relieved now that after a long she finally succeed.

To her bad luck, the goat escape from the sight again might be due to the mess she created or because of less light the animal considered it a danger and ran away.

This time she couldn't let her fate win again. So she calmed her down and took a breath and started taking careful steps.

Fortunately, she saw the goat again. It was finally halted near a small bush and was eating leaves of it.

Firuze didn't want to miss the chance this time. Suddenly she was alerted because she just heard the voice of footsteps that were increasing gradually.

There was actually someone that Firuze felt but neglected and was busy with what she trying to accomplish.

It was him who has just aimed prey at the same lamb that Firuze was trying to catch.

He was about to press the trigger and Firuze was about to pounce on her lamb to get it back home.

Now which one would fall prey and who would be the predator?

Unfortunately or you can say that fortunately, Firuze stepped on a big dried leaf creating a crushing sound that didn't affect her prey but it made his focus on her. For a moment he didn't blink and slowly and gradually lowered his rifle.

' Such a Beauty!"

He wondered in surprise.

" Hey, you! Stop right there"

He said pretentiously and went close to her. Till now Firuze had the goat in her arms.

" Don't try to move. Otherwise, I'll shoot you"

He aimed at her considering her a thief or something.

" Tell me who are you? And why were you trying to get that animal?"

He bombarded her with questions. Firuze finally broke the silence and said.

" I'm a resident of a nearby village but this question is mine that WHO ARE YOU?"

" Aris…! Aris Walton! I'm here for camping "

He answered after looking at her eyes for a few seconds.

" Can I know your good name miss?"

He asked more respectfully this time.

" Of course NOT.."

She said with a serious expression because she never liked mixing with strangers.

" Okay….! But.. You can accept my apology. Won't you?"

Aris said with hope-filled eyes.

Firuze parted her lips might be she was going to say something but she didn't.

She vanished from his sight running towards the darkness of the forest. He wanted to say 'Wait GIRL!' but she didn't let him the respite.

Aris smiled sighing. He was about to go back that he felt a reflection of something. It was a ring with a blue turquoise in the middle fallen on the ground.

IT'S HER?

He stepped forward to go behind her but stopped. He looked at the ring in his palm and closed his fist smiling.