Ariana held her head high as she walked down the long, marble halls over her ancestors. Many of her Clan were watching her; most of them had their heads hung in shame, others were bolder, sneering out names and once in a while throwing pebbles or some other sort of odd things at her.
“Traitor!”
“Scoundrel!”
“Disgrace!”

She held onto Trey’s hand like a lifeline, and he squeezed back. People jeered at them; the hall seemed to last for an eternity. At last, they passed under the archway. As they walked into the forest, the Guardian Statue of Ariana’s Clan shot a beam of light at her.

It caught her on the upper arm, causing a nasty burn. She didn’t even flinch.
“Ariana?” Trey turned around and saw her scorched sleeve.
She looked stonily at her reflection in the blade she was carrying.

“I have been branded as a traitor.”

Trey pulled her into a hug, and she laid her head against his broad shoulders. A tear or two slipped down her pale cheeks.