#animerps

He was indeed a rather small one —- a body so tiny, it could have been a toddler’s own. taking note of the girl’s response, he had to be careful since even a delicate response could be dangerous when speaking to humans, with many trying to take Chopper’s own life out of paranoia.

Blushing heavily from her words, Chopper lowered his head in hopes of hiding his blushing smile. “I’m Tony Tony Chopper. Does this mean..” He reached his small hoof forward, as if to offer the girl a handshake. “You want to be my friend?”

“Of course I want to be your friend Tony Chopper!” Hazel told him happily. “I’ve always really wanted a friend. I don’t actually have any friends. So I’m glad you came to talk to me.” She noticed how surprised he seemed that she wanted to be his friend.

She wondered if he didn’t have a lot of friends just like she didn’t. She wondered if maybe people were mean to him because he looked different. She wondered how he looked kind of human and reindeer but she didn’t feel the need to ask. It didn’t matter. He wanted to be her friend and that mattered. She reached and took his hoof in her hand.

Hazel smiled at him. He looked like both a human and a reindeer. She’d never seen anyone like him but she was so glad he was talking to her.  She’d been so lonely. “You’re so cute! I’d love to pet your fur!” She reached out and very gently ran her hand through his fur. “Nice to meet you! I’m Hazel! What’s your name?”

Good. Now I won’t even know how to get back home even if I want too. Hazel thought to herself as she looked around. Nothing was familiar to her. She had spent most of the day walking and walking and taking twists and turns and getting as lost as possible. She had let herself daydream as she walked and tried as best as she could not to think about what she’d done.

She felt good she had managed to do it. But she felt good for only a few moments before the panic began to set in. What had she done? She had no idea where she was and no idea how to get back home. How could she have run away from home? She was just a kid. How could she live without a mommy and daddy, even a mommy and daddy who didn’t love her? They were all she had! And she had left them.

No. No. You had to leave. They hit you all the time and they don’t love you - that wish you made to be loved on your last birthday? It didn’t come true and it never will! There’s no reason to stay…

But…

I love them. Even if they don’t love me.

But…

You ran away and got yourself lost because you knew you’d want to go back home… This is for your own good. Why go back to be hurt?

But…

They’re my mommy and daddy and they’re all I have.

Hazel started to cry. Once she started crying it was like a little waterfall was flowing out of her eyes. She couldn’t stop crying. She fell onto her knees and sobbed and sobbed. She was all alone. She found herself wishing she could be back home even if that meant being hit and not loved because at least she would have not been alone…

Hazel was sitting on the ground under a tree, her knees pulled up to her and her bruised arms wrapped around them. She was feeling so sad and hopeless. She didn’t have anyone. She didn’t have a mommy or a daddy who loved her. She didn’t even have a friend. She just had herself but that wasn’t enough. She wanted someone to love her. She wanted to not be alone and not be sad all the time. But if her own mommy and daddy couldn’t love her, what was the point of trying? What was the point of even living? Tears began to pool in her eyes. Maybe she should just stay sitting here and not go back home and just stay here and not eat and just stay here until… she didn’t want to think it but she didn’t see what else she could do. The tears were now sliding down her cheeks. She bet they didn’t even miss her. She bet they hoped she just never came back home. So I won’t go home… She thought sadly, letting out a little sob.

Hazel had once not known that human beings could be sold. She hadn’t known there were people out there who would pay money for another human being. But she knew now people would buy humans. People could do lots of cruel horrible things. She didn’t have to understand why they did it. She just knew they did.

She hadn’t expected to see them again, the ones who had killed her family and the entire Kurta Clan. They had come to where she was living now with her Master, the man who owned her, who had paid money to own her. Why were they coming back when they’d sold her to him? She sat quietly in a chair and watched them talk to her Master. She saw them give her Master money. Were they taking her back? Why? They told her to come with them and she could do nothing but follow the people - her clan’s murderers - into their car. They didn’t tell her why they were taking her back and she didn’t ask. She knew better then to ask. She just knew something worse was going to happen to her now and she didn’t know what. Maybe they were going to kill her and take her eyes. She didn’t feel anything at the thought. She just felt numb. If she died she could be with her family again wherever they were now. So maybe she did hope that was what they were going to do to her. She wanted to be with them again. She was tired of being beaten by her Master and she was tired of always being in pain. She wanted to be loved again.

The man in the passenger seat was taking out a cell phone and calling somebody. She didn’t pay attention to the words he was saying until she heard the word Kurta leave his lips.  

“…. Kurta child. If you’re interested in getting back one of your people alive, come to the location prepared to exchange yourself for her life. If you don’t arrive there by midnight you’ll have a new pair of eyes to find.” He hung up the phone and Hazel snapped out of her numbed haze. Who had he been talking too? Did he mean they were going to kill her and take her eyes too if that person didn’t show up? Did he mean another Kurta? But that was impossible. I saw them die. I saw them kill my mommy and daddy and everyone! There’s no one left but me! They had spared her life because as they told her, her being a young girl and the last surviving Kurta would mean she would sell for a much higher price. Had they been lying about her being the last one?

Hazel loves to sing. She liked singing for her family and friends in the Kuruta village.  But when she went to live with her Master she lost the desire to sing. She had no one to sing to anymore and the memories of singing to her family and friends who were now dead and gone forever were to painful for her. But eventually after months of living with her Master she began to sing again, in the beginning just for herself at night to help calm down and fall asleep.

During the times she has gotten to listen to the radio she has learned of outside world songs and she likes to sing along to her favorite singers when her Master isn’t around or paying attention to her. At first she had trouble singing again because she’d start crying as she sang thinking about her old home and how everyone she loved was gone. But slowly she began to be able to sing without crying, though she still sometimes does when she sings. She daydreams about being free and being a singer someday. She wants to make a song about the Kuruta’s to sing and sing it to the world so everyone knows about the family she’s lost and what happened to her.

She keeps her love of singing hidden from her Master as best she can (the few times he’s caught her he’s gotten very angry at her) and feels it is the one thing that can’t be stolen from her like everything else has been.

Hazel could still remember it, like it was yesterday. Even though it had been a really long time ago. She could remember them coming to their village and attacking everyone, even other children like her. She could remember the screams and the cries and the begging and pleading and how it had been silenced. The worst memory of all was crying and begging her parents to wake up but they wouldn’t and seeing them take her mommy and daddy’s scarlet eyes.

She had thought they’d do the same to her. All the others were dead. They’d killed all of them and stolen all their eyes. Blood was where everyone’s eyes should have been. She had been crying and sobbing and waiting for them to do it to her but they hadn’t done it to her. She could remember the man’s cold voice as he said they would let her live. “We’ll keep this one alive. She’s a girl, she’s young and her scarlet eyes will mean she’ll sell at a much higher price than if we just sold her eyes.” She hadn’t understood then. She hadn’t understood anything. She hadn’t understood why they had killed everyone or taken their eyes or why they wanted to sell her. Humans couldn’t be sold. That’s what she had once thought. She knew better now. She couldn’t remember how much money her Master had bought her for… but she remembered it had been so high a number she hadn’t even realized numbers could go that high.

She was a slave now, just nine years old. Her family was dead, her friends were dead… the entire Kurta Clan was gone. She was the only one left. She missed them so much. She wished she had died with all of them so she could be with them wherever they were now. She was always sad and lonely and she spent everyday doing everything her Master wanted. He’d get mad at her a lot and hit and beat her. She was always in pain. Her little body was covered in bruises, even her face. Her right eye was purplish black. Her Master liked seeing her scarlet eyes, so he’d often hurt her just so she’d get upset and scared and her eyes would go scarlet. Her eyes became scarlet a lot with how much she got upset. Her Master always hurt her and did horrible things and she could never do anything. He owned her. There was nothing she could do. This was her life now. It was always going to be her life until she died or he decided to kill her for her eyes. Sometimes he said he thought about just doing that and taking her eyes because she was too much trouble. That possibility always loomed over her and sometimes she hoped it would happen just so the pain and sadness would finally end.

Hazel had been so lost in her sad and hopeless thoughts she tripped and fell, dropping the expensive alcohol her Master had just bought and was having her carry. The bottle shattered into pieces next to her, the drink going all over the ground with the broken glass. Her hands stung badly from the fall but she didn’t care. She just cared about the horrible thing she had just done. Her master started screaming at her, calling her horrible names. He kicked her and she cried out in pain, tears streaming down her face as she started sobbing apologies.