Tag? Yeah, No. (Job, Solo)

Job Info:

It was just another day in the life of Samira, one that a lot of people would likely have the opinion of it being quite boring. Instead of going out on some job, looking for action, or maybe even doing a bit of shopping, the young woman was sitting on a bench in front of the East Forest with her eyes on the text of a book she held within her hands. The category for the day was monsters. The guild she had joined was known for a lot of things, one of them being monster hunting and she lacked any true knowledge on the subject. While she was more interested in exploring for relics and artifacts it would not hurt to take on some tasks that dealt with monsters. Who knows, maybe some would appear naturally during her quests.

She could hear the sounds of a group of children playing near her as she flipped through the pages of her book, but she paid them no mind. It added to the bright and sunny atmosphere and their happy laughter acted as a soothing white noise that she found to be relaxing. Plus, who was she to tell them to be quiet in a public space? If she wanted quiet there was always the library. Her hand gently performed another page flip and as she begun to read the first paragraph she felt a light tap on her shoulder coming from behind. “You’re it!” The giggles of a little girl trailed away as her small body ran from the bench and Samira, who had now found herself forcibly volunteered to participate in their game. Her hands lowered to bring the book down from her face and she turned her head to glance at the group of children running away to get their distance from her. In truth she had no real desire to play. Running was not her forte and she disliked athletics of any kind. They were adorable though and it almost made her want to join in just so she would not have to disappoint them. Almost. Back to her reading she went. An idea had formed into her head and she knew exactly how to pass the ownership of “it” without having to move from her comfy spot on the bench. All it required was patience for herself and a lack of the trait among at least one of the children.

A few minutes passed by as she quietly continued to read and the children hiding in random spots in the field behind her. At first all was quiet but the sounds of the children whispering to each other in confusion and frustration eventually reached her ears. Their patience was wearing thin and it did not take much more time for a small boy to make his way over. He stopped in front of the bench, arms crossed over his chest as he stared at the green haired woman. “Hey, lady!” The child sounded annoyed, especially when she gave no indication she had heard him. “Hey! You’re supposed to come and chase us! That’s what happens when you are it.” Finally Samira brought her book down from her face, closed it, and placed it beside her on the wooden bench. “Oh, is that what I am supposed to do?“ She replied with a smile, feigning ignorance to the game’s rules. The small boy had fallen for her trap and was now about to be caught. Slowly and gently, she reached out and touched him on the shoulder. “You’re it.”

The boy had mentioned it was not fair since the game was on pause, but such an announcement was not made beforehand and there were no pauses in a game that was similar to a predator chasing its prey. The only major difference between the game and the real life hunt were the outcomes. How fortunate.

Word Count: 648