A Breath of Fresh Air - e.w.

3

Ethan was pleased when he came into Amelia's room and saw the period blood on the bed. Truthfully, as Amelia got older, she began to look more and more like Adeline, and it hurt too much to look at his own daughter. So, he was happy she'd be gone. It was one less reminder.

Amelia watched as some of the older breeders, who outlived their duties and now worked within the community, came in and started to clean the sheets. A few brought in the paint that she'd have to start wearing.

The Haros has a colour coding system for women who had their period within the camp: green for unclaimed, black for claimed and red for women who were once claimed, but are now retired. They work within the 'school' and teach the younger girls what's expected of them for the future.

They allowed the children to keep their face bare, but once they received their period, they would be marked for life with face paint.

At first, when the Haros first began, they used to tattoo the claimed black. However, when some of the breeders lived to experience menopause, they needed new colours to distinguish them. So, one of the original founders decided to use face paint instead. He was originally a painter before the outbreak, so he knew how to make it. He made a recipe and it became a duty for some of the women in camp to make it each day.

"This should be a good start," One of the retired breeders whispered. Her voice hoarse from the lack of use over the years, "When you are getting low, go to station 10."

Amelia's lips parted in shock when she heard the woman's voice. She's heard others before, the retired breeders are allowed to speak when teaching, but she was surprised at this woman's lack of voice.

She looked at the paint and frowned. Amelia stood still as the breeder walked over to her and put the green paint over her eyes. The first paint of her life, however long it may be.

When the breeder left, Amelia looked at her appearance in the mirror. She didn't mind how she looked, never thought of it much, but seeing herself now. Amelia hated the way she looked.

Amelia knew that she had to leave her room. She knew that she had to show her painted face to the community. She knew this, but nothing in her wanted to move. Amelia didn't want anyone to see the way she looked now. She didn't want to show the community that she was a woman now.

Because she wasn't. Amelia wasn't a woman, she was just a girl.

Amelia also knew that she and Andy will be matching today. They will both see each other in ways that the other never wanted. Both the girls were walking into the fate that they both dreaded.

When Amelia walked down the stairs, her eyes went towards Leo who stared at her with a sad look. He hated seeing her like this. He didn't know what to do, how to protect her.

"Come on," Ethan muttered as he walked out of the kitchen, "We're presenting you to Henry."

Amelia nodded, following her father silently as she, Leo and Ethan made their way to Henry's cabin.

As they were walking, Amelia heard numerous whispers. All were the men talking about her. She felt disgusted when some complained that they had already claimed someone. She felt disgusted when they heard them say they were going to try and claim her.

The one thing a woman could hope for in this camp is that a younger guy was going to try and claim them. They were the ones who needed to figure that stuff out with you. Sometimes.

It was rare, though. The boys had a choice when they would start to participate in the claiming ceremonies. Here, they wanted the boys to go out and get the supplies. Because they were younger and faster than the older soldiers in this camp.