She had not been in the public eye for many years. If not one thing, then the other, had kept her pursuing a more private life. It had only been in the last few weeks, that she had begun traversing the muddy rows of some market or village square. Cloaked, always, her dark hair and face hidden by cowl or wrap, yet she would move among the throngs with a confidence. Often she would stop and buy a small bauble or garment, or have food of some sort wrapped to stow away in her cloak. She was not remarkable in a crowd for any reason, in fact blended well among the many during the busiest times of the day.
In the evenings, her shadow long, she would leave such places, often northward, though not always, and wind her way up into nearby hills or cloak of trees. Any that might follow, would soon lose the trail, for any sign of her passing ended in shadow.
Often these days, thoughts ran through her head of the past, but they did not hold the power they once did. They were but amusements and passingly fitting to keep her mind occupied.
Such markets as she might visit were in the smaller towns, the ones outside the main throngs and away from the many conflicts that still ravaged the land. At times, she would find a village she seemed to like, and thus visit it more frequently than any others.
It was so this day, as she stepped nimbly across sluicing holes in the ground, and listened to the hawkers and children and people as they filled the rows. A rain the night before had left the streets muddy and somewhat treacherous, and passing carts and horses were apt to splash those too close, resulting most often in a string of curses and sometimes a throw of rotten fruit.
Still, with the laughter of street bairns and the distant bark of a dog, the minstrels gay music seemed to make it a lively enough place, and with all the scowls there was a lighter aire of a prosperous village on the outskirts of larger towns. She liked it here. She would continue to make her outing here daily for awhile..confident in her anonymity here.
It happened on one of the better mornings in the town. Farmers rose the earliest so not to toil in the heat of day. Shop owners stirred slightly later. Older kids helped their parents with work while the youngest minded the smallest and quickest of chores before convening in their faux mobs of glee around town. If they were lucky they got the metal to get some candy, which really sent them wild. One of the girls was named Lucy and she had been born and raised in the town. It was all she ever knew and hadn't gotten old enough to want to leave home. What she knew of the world came in boxes via the merchants which came about one every other week, usually in little groups. She was the oldest girl which naturally made her the leader of the group. It was easy to see by her bone structure, her smile, that she would be a beautiful woman. The boys were too young to know what to do with their affections— they waged war with the girls and sometimes took the spoils of war, the candy. Lucy by now had learned that a properly applied pouty face dissolved their nerve and they would give the candy back. This worked especially well on the boy named Jamie. When Jamie got older, he would have said that Lucy was the first girl he ever loved, at least enough to give her back her candy. On this particular morning a single merchant on horseback came into town. He wore a hat and had messy blond hair and his glasses perched on his nose. He didn't seem to take much to people though he needed something from them. His outfit was very proper and had a better quality than all the clothes that the locals wore. Some of it was even raw silk. When he got down from his horse he asked the first shopkeeper where a room was that he could rent and she indicated the inn. He was....captivating for the children, the same way any stranger in town was. They wanted to ask questions and play games, perhaps barter for candy. His arrival had ended the war games between Jamie and Lucy's armies. The man tied his horse up outside and went in to sign the ledger and pay. It was then that Lucy, the oldest of the children at 10 years, walked up to the man's horse. The saddlebag was absolutely bulging and off to it's side was a buckle she dug her hands into. "Luce, I dunno if you should be doing that," Jamie said, biting into his apple and watching her. They were at the age where the boys were towered by the girls so he had to look up at her, though she was just a year or more older than him. "Shush, don't get me caught." Jamie finished off his apple and threw the core off to the side, "He's gonna think you're stealing something and get at you." Lucy didn't care. Her small hands had to work hard but she got the buckle undone. The saddlebag practically gaped open it had been buckled with so much pressure. The inner contents were so varied and intriguing that she couldn't have imagined a better reward for her curiosity. Some bits were of beautiful, shiny metal, like tiny rewards for her to collect. Jamie, by now, was taken in and stared in astonishment. "Jackpot." She wanted to say it loud enough for the other kids to hear her and be jealous. Without another moment of hesitation she reached into the bag for one of the shiny and promising objects. She did not expect it to grab her back. The metal was cold but it felt somehow like a snake. It moved against her, wrapped around her arm. Suddenly it became brighter and brighter, like a beacon. Lucy thought the object had gone from something marvelous to something horrifying and screamed. Jamie stumbled back and shielded his eyes. The light stopped and when Jamie looked again Lucy was on the ground, her dark blond hair in swirls along the dirt, and the man with the raw silk tie was standing over her with a cold and surprised expression. "Lucy!" Jamie ran over to her. "Sto—" The man tried to reach out to stop the boy, but Jamie had already reached Lucy. Once he touched her, he too, appeared lifeless on the ground. The man pulled his hand down and reached, fastening his saddlebag, climbing atop his horse and digging in the spurs so that it ran. The brown mare kicked up dust and left the remaining children in shock. Their parents were opening shops and beginning to wander, but they never felt so at a loss as then. As children they knew only a couple of things. First, that the man was an outsider. Second, not to touch Lucy or Jamie. Third....that this was beyond their parent's helping, but they knew a stranger that came in everyday who looked like she knew something about otherworldly matters. The mob of children, now lead by Lily, sought out the outside stranger. They knew she came by everyday and Lilly, small as she might be with her fair, bleach blond hair, was just as hard to say no to as her sister, Lucy. One could have thought Lily had the makings of a young general with the assertion in her voice. When she saw Cricket she said, with the utmost certainty it would be so, "You're going to help us save Lucy." (( Rp exchange between Rogue Cricket and Lyall British))
In the evenings, her shadow long, she would leave such places, often northward, though not always, and wind her way up into nearby hills or cloak of trees. Any that might follow, would soon lose the trail, for any sign of her passing ended in shadow.
Often these days, thoughts ran through her head of the past, but they did not hold the power they once did. They were but amusements and passingly fitting to keep her mind occupied.
Such markets as she might visit were in the smaller towns, the ones outside the main throngs and away from the many conflicts that still ravaged the land. At times, she would find a village she seemed to like, and thus visit it more frequently than any others.
It was so this day, as she stepped nimbly across sluicing holes in the ground, and listened to the hawkers and children and people as they filled the rows. A rain the night before had left the streets muddy and somewhat treacherous, and passing carts and horses were apt to splash those too close, resulting most often in a string of curses and sometimes a throw of rotten fruit.
Still, with the laughter of street bairns and the distant bark of a dog, the minstrels gay music seemed to make it a lively enough place, and with all the scowls there was a lighter aire of a prosperous village on the outskirts of larger towns. She liked it here. She would continue to make her outing here daily for awhile..confident in her anonymity here.
It happened on one of the better mornings in the town. Farmers rose the earliest so not to toil in the heat of day. Shop owners stirred slightly later. Older kids helped their parents with work while the youngest minded the smallest and quickest of chores before convening in their faux mobs of glee around town. If they were lucky they got the metal to get some candy, which really sent them wild. One of the girls was named Lucy and she had been born and raised in the town. It was all she ever knew and hadn't gotten old enough to want to leave home. What she knew of the world came in boxes via the merchants which came about one every other week, usually in little groups. She was the oldest girl which naturally made her the leader of the group. It was easy to see by her bone structure, her smile, that she would be a beautiful woman. The boys were too young to know what to do with their affections— they waged war with the girls and sometimes took the spoils of war, the candy. Lucy by now had learned that a properly applied pouty face dissolved their nerve and they would give the candy back. This worked especially well on the boy named Jamie. When Jamie got older, he would have said that Lucy was the first girl he ever loved, at least enough to give her back her candy. On this particular morning a single merchant on horseback came into town. He wore a hat and had messy blond hair and his glasses perched on his nose. He didn't seem to take much to people though he needed something from them. His outfit was very proper and had a better quality than all the clothes that the locals wore. Some of it was even raw silk. When he got down from his horse he asked the first shopkeeper where a room was that he could rent and she indicated the inn. He was....captivating for the children, the same way any stranger in town was. They wanted to ask questions and play games, perhaps barter for candy. His arrival had ended the war games between Jamie and Lucy's armies. The man tied his horse up outside and went in to sign the ledger and pay. It was then that Lucy, the oldest of the children at 10 years, walked up to the man's horse. The saddlebag was absolutely bulging and off to it's side was a buckle she dug her hands into. "Luce, I dunno if you should be doing that," Jamie said, biting into his apple and watching her. They were at the age where the boys were towered by the girls so he had to look up at her, though she was just a year or more older than him. "Shush, don't get me caught." Jamie finished off his apple and threw the core off to the side, "He's gonna think you're stealing something and get at you." Lucy didn't care. Her small hands had to work hard but she got the buckle undone. The saddlebag practically gaped open it had been buckled with so much pressure. The inner contents were so varied and intriguing that she couldn't have imagined a better reward for her curiosity. Some bits were of beautiful, shiny metal, like tiny rewards for her to collect. Jamie, by now, was taken in and stared in astonishment. "Jackpot." She wanted to say it loud enough for the other kids to hear her and be jealous. Without another moment of hesitation she reached into the bag for one of the shiny and promising objects. She did not expect it to grab her back. The metal was cold but it felt somehow like a snake. It moved against her, wrapped around her arm. Suddenly it became brighter and brighter, like a beacon. Lucy thought the object had gone from something marvelous to something horrifying and screamed. Jamie stumbled back and shielded his eyes. The light stopped and when Jamie looked again Lucy was on the ground, her dark blond hair in swirls along the dirt, and the man with the raw silk tie was standing over her with a cold and surprised expression. "Lucy!" Jamie ran over to her. "Sto—" The man tried to reach out to stop the boy, but Jamie had already reached Lucy. Once he touched her, he too, appeared lifeless on the ground. The man pulled his hand down and reached, fastening his saddlebag, climbing atop his horse and digging in the spurs so that it ran. The brown mare kicked up dust and left the remaining children in shock. Their parents were opening shops and beginning to wander, but they never felt so at a loss as then. As children they knew only a couple of things. First, that the man was an outsider. Second, not to touch Lucy or Jamie. Third....that this was beyond their parent's helping, but they knew a stranger that came in everyday who looked like she knew something about otherworldly matters. The mob of children, now lead by Lily, sought out the outside stranger. They knew she came by everyday and Lilly, small as she might be with her fair, bleach blond hair, was just as hard to say no to as her sister, Lucy. One could have thought Lily had the makings of a young general with the assertion in her voice. When she saw Cricket she said, with the utmost certainty it would be so, "You're going to help us save Lucy." (( Rp exchange between Rogue Cricket and Lyall British))