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Amarantha tried not to beg to go with Mother. She did, but it was hard sometimes. She was happy with the way things were, but she couldn't help but feel, sometimes, that she was trapped.

She didn't think that was fair, though, to Mother. She was keeping Amarantha home so she wouldn't have to deal with the kinds of people that existed in the world - the nasty, awful people, who would like to hurt Amarantha. That was who Mother was protecting her from. So did she have any right to feel like an animal trapped in a cage?

No, she didn't. Not one bit.

But knowing she had no right didn't stop the feeling. That wouldn't go away so easily. Amarantha had tried - tried to make her feelings go away, because as long as they were there, she felt awful. She didn't have peace, and that was what she really wanted. Though Amarantha did a very good job pretending to be at peace. She was good at that, she supposed.

Sometimes she did feel like begging, though. It just happened that way. But she didn't. She never did, except for that one time when she was much younger and had felt like she was getting cabin fever from staying in the cabin for too long. Mother had refused on that occasion, of course.

-/-/-/

The first time Amarantha went to town with Mother, Mother was the one to suggest Amarantha it. It came as a shock to the girl, but she wasted no time in agreeing to the trip and running to her room for her boots. Mother always bought her boots, because they were much better for wandering around the woods. And they would be walking down the mountain to the bus stop several miles away, and the bus would take them to town.

Amarantha skipped most of the way down the mountain - she was only thirteen, after all, and she was excited - and bounced in her seat on the bus. It was the first time she had left the small area around the cabin, that she could remember, anyway. It only made sense that she was that excited. Mother tried to tell her that it was nothing special, that she wouldn't be so pleased with it once they actually got there, but Amarantha refused to listen to that. She would decide for herself, thank you very much.

And Amarantha loved it.

The town was very small, or at least, it was very small according to Amarantha's books. But it was enough to give Amarantha the taste of the outside world she wanted. As Mother did her shopping, keeping a close eye on Amarantha, the girl looked around at, well, everything, wide-eyed. Every now and then, she would turn to Mother and ask her about whatever it was that had caught her eye, and Mother would answer her with a smile - that Amarantha knew later was the type of smile people smile when they're a little annoyed - and tell her whatever she wanted to know in as few words as possible.

It wasn't hard to figure out, after that, that Mother didn't like going to the town. Mother would much rather stay up in the cabin, tending to the garden and teaching Amarantha. Amarantha couldn't understand why - the town was so pretty and busy and nice. Didn't Mother get bored, staying up in the cabin all the time?

But Amarantha wasn't thinking about that then.

-/-/-/

As Amarantha grew, Mother would take her to the town more, though never very often. Amarantha came to cherish those trips. They were special to her, no matter how much Mother disliked them.

She was sixteen now. Her sixteenth birthday, actually. Mother had said yesterday that she was going down the mountain. And Amarantha wanted to go with her.

She hovered in the kitchen as Mother made breakfast, not sure how to bring up her request. Mother would likely not like it. She didn't tend to like it when Amarantha wanted things for herself. She said Amarantha was being selfish and knew better than to behave this way. So Amarantha never asked for anything.

Mother finally seemed to catch on to the fact that Amarantha was trying to find words to speak, however, and looked up from where she stood slicing fruit. "What is it, Amarantha?" she asked, though it was more of a sigh.

Amarantha bit her lower lip, shifting her weight for about the thirtieth time that morning. "I'd... I'd like to go to town with you." she said in a bit of a rush, only just managing to stop herself from squeezing her eyes closed, as if doing so would make the situation disappear.

She waited in awkward silence for Mother to say something, anything. After a pause that felt like forever, Mother said, "Fine, you might as well." She turned back to her fruit slicing as Amarantha, a grin on her face, moved to the cupboard to find a pair of plates, but stopped before she'd even cut one slice. Mother turned back to Amarantha, a knowing look on her face. "It's your birthday." Mother stated. "That's why you want to come, is it not?"

Amarantha closed the cupboard, the plates stacked in her other hand, looking down at her bare feet. "Yes." she admitted. "That's why."

Mother laughed, shaking her head as she returned once more to the fruit. "I'm not surprised. You're sixteen. You deserve a celebration."

Amarantha put the yellow plates out on the small kitchen table. "Really?"

"Oh, yes." Mother nodded, finishing with the fruit and placing the knife in the sink as she swept the fruit into a bowl. "Sixteen is a very important year. I remember when I turned sixteen." She put the bowl on the table, a dreamy expression on her face as she pulled out her chair.

Amarantha, back by the cupboards to get glasses, waited for Mother to say something else, though something else didn't come. She set the glasses on the table and sat down, saying. "So what shall we do for a celebration?"

Mother folded her hands and propped her chin on them. "How about lunch? At a nice restaurant? You'd like that, wouldn't you?" she asked, a small smile on her lips.

Amarantha nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! That would be wonderful."

"It's decided, then." Mother said, leaning back in her chair and nudging the fruit bowl towards Amarantha. "Eat up so we can get going."

Amarantha did as she was told - as she always did. This was bound to be the best day of her life.