A Year Away

== Notes ==
This story is written by Rose Honaku. 
I'll actually attempt to update this one.
I do have multiple ongoing fics elsewhere, so....yk. 
== Prologue ==
Amara stared in distress at the letter that she held in her hands, the letter that would determine her future. The sealed white envelope looked harmless. It really did. Plain black ink on the back, in which her name, address, and city were written. She needed to open it.
Amara stood up, and slowly made her way to the desk. A glint of sunlight shining off of her silver knife caught her eye, and she grabbed it, tightening her hand around the hilt. It was a nice blade, which she had received years ago. The hilt had inlaid aquamarine, and while it wasn’t quite meant for opening letters, it worked in a pinch.
She sat on the edge of her bed, holding the letter in one hand and the knife in the other, staring at them blankly. This should be simple. Open the letter, read it, and know her future. Yet, something was stopping her. Nerves? Maybe. She took three deep breaths, and turned the letter over, so the ink was facing down. She slid the edge of the blade under the corner of the flap, and dragged it across the letter. She flipped it open, and withdrew the paper from inside. 
Her trembling fingers unfolded the pale stationary. She took a deep breath, and read the paper. 
‘Ms. Amara Hart. 
You have been granted a scholarship. However, you must spend a year out of the USA to receive your education.’ 
There was more, but Amara couldn’t read it. She had been granted a scholarship. Her dream had come true. Yet, she needed to spend a year out of the country. Her nightmare. 
She realized that she had been taking shallow, anxious breaths, and sucked in a deep breath of air. She was okay. She was going to college. She just had to spend a year out of the country.
A year. Twelve months. Fifty-six weeks. Three hundred sixty five days. Five hundred twenty five thousand, six hundred minutes. No matter how you shaped it, it was a really long time to be out of America. 
Only one thing was good about this. The college would be paying for the travels. So, maybe she could just go to...anywhere? She could visit Paris! Or…. Japan! She grinned, actually excited. A year was a lot, yes. But she was Amara Hart. She had survived longer than that before.