The Woods Between 7 and 10 (Open)

It was going to be a lazy Saturday today. There was no work to be done, and it was a crisp Autumn day.
Birch awoke with the sun, and went out into the kitchen to see her father sitting at the table.
"Good morning." She said to him as she sat down.
"Good morning, sweetheart." her father said. "What are you going to be doing today?"
"I was thinking about spending the day outside. Maybe go into town."
"Okay...be careful." He said. He looked at his daughter with a concerned smile, to which she replied:
"Of course, Daddy." She hoped he couldn't tell she was lying through her teeth. Birch was usually an honest person, but felt that the truth was the wrong way to go in this situation.
Birch went back into her room to get dressed. She pulled on black leggings, forest green cargo shorts, a black t-shirt and her dark brown leather vest. She slipped into her short, flat leather boots and pulled her hair up into a pony tail.
'Who cares about fashion?' She thought to herself as she surveyed her reflection in the mirror. 'This is good enough for going out in the woods.'
Birch grabbed her impeccably-crafted bow and her quiver of arrows before heading out. She would throw off her father as usual by heading towards the creek near their house, but diverting towards the woods as soon as she was out of sight of the house. She took a sharp right and took off, letting her legs carry her over the terrain. She certainly wasn't a fast runner, but it cleared her mind. The crisp, cold air stung in her lungs, but she loved the sensation.
About an hour went by, and Birch knew she had left District 7. She decided to make herself as invisible as possible by climbing a tree and waiting for some game; in her hurry to get out of the house, she didn't eat breakfast. Birch picked a sturdy-looking pine tree and made her way up. She was not as quiet as she hoped, however. Halfway up, she stepped on a half-broken branch, which broke under her weight. With a small gasp, she watched it break off the tree and fall to the ground with a "thud!"

Fresh off his encounter with Sienna and Duncan in District 10, Ren decided to hunt between the Districts, where he figured there would be minimal noise due to lack of civilization. He weaved his way through the trees, his growling stomach punctuating a lot of his steps.
He passed his farm, and thought about going home. He saw his mother and father cleaning up the chicken coop, and decided to avoid a run-in with them. His mother's yelling he could handle, but his father's was a different story.
Ren picked up his pace and steadily jogged to the border woods. He cleared his mind as he trod over the soil, his feet making light thuds as he went. His attention was broken, however, when he saw a small doe standing in the woods, looking for some food. Ren surveyed his surroundings: he was definitely in the border woods, that's for sure. Deer never came anywhere near the farm.
Ren grabbed an arrow out of his quiver, and strung it onto the bow. He lifted it up and pulled the string back, aiming his shot. Ren could hear some rustling in a tree close by, but the deer didn't.
"One...two..." Ren mumbled to himself as he steadied his shot. He was about to let go of the string when he heard the sound of a branch break off of a tree and hit the ground. The deer looked towards the site of the sound, and ran off in the opposite direction.
Ren could've sworn he heard a gasp come from the tree.
"Who's there?" He called out sternly.

"Who's there?" a voice called out. A male's voice...he sounded young to Birch.
'He could be a Peacekeeper.' Birch thought to herself. She was terrified of that notion. She peeked through some branches, looking for the boy. She looked to her right, and saw a boy that looked slightly taller than her. He had dirty blonde hair, beautifully blue eyes, and a very muscular build. Birch thought he was rather attractive.
She then looked at his clothing: hunting boots, dark brown pants, a red jacket; not the uniform of a Peacekeeper.
Birch couldn't pass up the opportunity to introduce herself to such a specimen. She slowly climbed down the tree and stood before Ren, cautiously keeping her distance in case he was dangerous.
"Hi...I'm Birch." She said. She noticed a bow and arrow in his hand. "I'm sorry if I scared something away...I didn't notice the broken branch before I stepped on it..."
She had never been this flustered before. Embarrassment and being around this stranger was a dangerous combination. She'd have to watch her words from now on.

Ren watched the tree cautiously as he saw someone climbing down out of it. He expected a small child, but the person who stood in front of him took him by surprise.
She looked to be about his age; slender, and beautiful. Her long, dark hair was pulled into a messy ponytail, and she was wearing typical hiking wear. She had a bow and a quiver of arrows strung over one of her shoulders. She looked up at Ren, and he took in her appearance. She had striking chocolate brown eyes, and she was rather beautiful.
"Hi...I'm Birch. I'm sorry if I scared something away...I didn't notice the broken branch before I stepped on it..." She said nervously.
'Time to turn on the charm, Ren Lockwood.' He thought to himself. He smiled a charming smile at Birch, and nodded towards her.
"I'm Ren. What's a pretty girl like you doing out here all by yourself?"

Whatever reservations were holding back Birch were immediately squelched upon Ren's first sentence to her. She had experienced attitudes like that before, and she wouldn't have it.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, cowboy." Birch said, looking into his beautiful blue eyes. "I don't recognize you, so you must be from District 10."

"Don't get ahead of yourself, cowboy." She said, before looking Ren dead in the eye. "I don't recognize you, so you must be from District 10."
"Yeah, I am. So you're a District 7 girl." Ren said before sitting down and leaning his back on a tree. "Imagine what our parents would say about this...us..."

Birch guffawed and sat down next to Ren.
"And what are we? Last I checked, we were just acquaintances. Besides, my parents don't know I'm out here. I suspect yours don't, either." Birch said, slightly leaning into Ren, like a school-kid does when sharing secrets.

"Yeah, but I got kicked out of the house." Ren said, looking at Birch. She raised her eyebrows as if to say "go on, then".
"I left the chicken coop open the other night, and the coyotes got the chickens. So, I got thrown out for a couple of days. No big deal." Ren shrugged, and looked at Birch. "I'll have to be back before school. Can't miss that, of course."

"Oh, of course not." Birch said, with a giggle. Even if he was a bit forward, she couldn't resist his charm.
"I'm just out exploring for the day. Sat up in a tree so I could avoid a Peacekeeper, if one should happen to pass by. For a second, I thought you were one. I've never been so scared before."

((Two things, it's impossible for ya'll to travel that far in less than a day or two. Second, you're posts are too small, they have to be at least 150 words. You guys have both shown that you are capable of doing that So please, abide by the rules!

Alright, no offense to ya'll, anyone could have made this mistake, but I'm going to have to lock this thread. This forum is mainly for wanderers and members of the underground railway.))