â€œAlright lets go! Place your bets!â€ Imari says to the crowd as she took the acorn and held it up to the group to see. â€œAlright gents. This is a normal acorn nothing special about it I assure you. Same goes for these three cups...â€ she says placing the acorn down on the wooden box she was using as a table and began turning each cup up and showing the group how they were simple clay cups. â€œNow. To win all you have to do is find the acorn...â€ she picked it up and placed it under the middle cup, she moved it the cups around slowly stopping then lifting up the left cup that had the acorn. â€œEasy enough right?â€ there were nods and grins of agreement as they thought that they would actually win some easy money from this poor girl.<br/><br/>With the group up to speed on the game Imari moved the acorn back to the middle cup, then began to move the cups slow at first gradually picking up some speed so that it became harder to follow her actions. After about a minute her hands came to stop along with the cups, â€œNow....â€ she says looking up at the crowd, â€œWhere is the acorn?â€<br/><br/>The man in front, cocky smirk on his lips, pointed to cup on the right pats of congratulations from his buddies for they also thought that was where the acorn was hidden. Imari smirks and lifts the cup, revealing a bare space.<br/><br/>â€œAww....sorry. Looks like you loseâ€ she grins and begins scooping up her winnings into her pouch. Yet as luck, or the lack there of, would have it the acorn rolled out from her sleeve. There was a pause and it was like the sound of that tiny seed rolling across the wooden box was the loudest thing in the world. When it at last rolled off the end of the box Imari's eyes looked up to the men whose eyes also left the acorn to look at her. Flashing them her best smile she tried to think of an excuse or something to tell people, â€œUm....well....you see...â€ she began but was cut short as her wrist was grabbed and the other men turned over the remaining cups, all of which were empty as well.<br/><br/>â€œYou dirty little cheat!â€ the one who held the cocky smirk before, his face was now a very angry scowl and it goes without saying that he was not too pleased.<br/><br/>Imari knew she was in trouble, with no way really out of it and had basically given up too when,<br/><br/>â€œMONSTERS! DEMONS!â€<br/><br/>The cry went out and drew the attention of the men around her, the one holding her his grip loosening just enough so that she could slip free and run for her life. Screams were going up all over the village, though she ignored them. What happened to the village was of no concern to her, all that she cared about was finding a place to hide where she could count her newly acquired gold. Even if it was only a third of what was on the table. It was still better then what she had to start with and would ensure she ate for a bit.<br/><br/>Rounding a corner she slid to a stop as she nearly ran into some kind of a creature, its skin black as pitch and a jaw full of teeth that only instilled terror in her soul. â€œBy the Gods!â€ she gasped as she stared in shock at the creature. It stared at her for the span of a heart beat before it screeched and lunged for her. Instinct kicked in overriding the shock as she dove forward and tumbled under the beast as it went over her. Not even bothering to look back she just ran, she had to get away....had to hide.....