Chelsea Fine - Anew: The Archers of Avalon

Two years later

The third weekend in June was, to most people, a three-day stretch of summer. To the townspeople of Avalon, Georgia, however, it was known as the Kissing Festival. For three weekend nights residents would gather in the town center for fun, foodand kissing.

Lots and lots of kissing.

It was tradition to greet your neighboror any other random stranger you came acrosswith a kiss. Sometimes these kisses were an innocent peck on the cheek and other times a passionate mouth-to-mouth embrace. Either way, it was difficult to spend an evening at the Kissing Festival without getting smooched.

Which was why Scarlet wanted to go home.

She stood amidst the kissing chaos in the town square waiting for Heather, her best friendand self-declared fashion consultantto show up.

Scarlet glanced around at the evenings festivities. Kissing booths, kissing workshops, kissing competitionsall across town the celebration was in full swing.

It was similar to a New Years Eve party, but instead of mistletoe, the townsfolk hung paper stars above their doorways. And instead of a single evening with champagne and confetti, there was an entire weekend with parades and, wellconfetti.

Scarlet sighed as the sun began to set. Heather was late, which was no surprise, but Scarlet didnt like standing by herself in a crowd of tongue-happy citizens. Her fear of being kissed by some well-meaning neighbor was growing by the second.

She kicked at the sidewalk with a scuffed-up sneaker, trying to look uninterested. As music began playing in the distance, her blue eyes traced the familiar drawings shed inked on the toes and sides of her shoes.

Scarlet had a tendency to doodle. She drew on her arms, her legs, and any napkin she could get her hands on.

But, mostly, she drew on her shoes.

And she drew one thing in particular: A circular symbol with an arrowhead in the center.

It was the only memoryor rather, image her broken mind had managed to retrieve since her great awakening in the woods two years ago. And it flashed within her brain and floated in and out of her dreams relentlessly.

Scarlet looked down at her feet where shed drawn the mysterious symbol dozens of times.

Surely, it meant something.

Surely, if Scarlet was able to salvage the image from the wreckage of her amnesia it must be significant.

But what did it mean? Scarlet couldnt remember.

Which was the story of her life.

Her chest tightened as she thought back over the last twenty-seven months. The day she awoke in the outer forest of Avalon was the scariest day of her life. No fear could compare to the fear of the unknown. Especially when the unknown was her .

The days following her awakening were still a blur. Scarlet remembered hospitals, social workers and police reports, but not clearly. The first clear memory she had was the day she met her guardian-to-be, Laura Walker.

Laura was an attractive young businesswoman who managed to get custody of Scarlet despite the many court hurdles associated with abandoned minors. She took Scarlet in, gave her a home, and tried to make her life as normal as possible.

But normal was easier said than done.

Not knowing what existed in the past was like running through a maze blindfolded.

And thats how Scarlet had felt.

Blind and lost. Running through a dark labyrinth without direction, without purpose.

For months, Scarlet was plagued by nightmares and racing thoughts. She was a missing person whom no one missed; a fact that ate mercilessly at her newfound life. Unanswered questions had tormented her while fear crept into every pore of her being and taunted her soul.

But Laura had been compassionate, sympathetic, and hopeful.

Shed encouraged Scarlet not to give up on her past, believing Scarlet would one day recover her memories. Laura managed to give her support and understanding without treating her like a broken doll in need of repair.

Without Laura and Heather, Scarlet probably would have gone crazy.

Laura had been her rock.