Sophie hadn't sold any flowers that day. She clutched the now-wilting mountain flowers as she curled up around her empty stomach. The colder the weather became, the less people ventured outside. Those few that did walked hurriedly, wanting to get back home as quickly as possible. No one took notice or stopped by the small girl selling flowers. She couldn't blame them, she too would rather be inside.
Looking at the flowers, she wished they could fill her stomach. They were pretty though, and pretty things made her happy. She smiled, even though the flowers were drooping sadly now, some of the petals falling off. Then she spread out the flowers on the ground in front of her, admiring how vibrant the colours seemed in contrast to the white snow and grey stone they lay on.
Then the wind picked up a couple of the flowers, scattering them like butterflies. If she squinted it seemed like it was a brilliant summer's day, the snow making the evening almost as bright as day. She tossed the rest of the flowers to the wind, enjoying the illusion a moment longer.
But the flowers soon vanished from her sight, carried away by the wind or fallen to the ground. The cold was also making itself known, getting worse by the minute as the sun started to set behind Windhelm's walls. It reflected on windows and icicles, and in the last minutes between night and day it seemed like the stars had come down to the ground. Like curious birds or insects, the last sparks of the dying sun twinkled gently from the roofs, seeming as if they had come down to study this strange town of stone where mortals dwelled.
Sophie gazed in wonder at this sight. Like always, she treasured the beauty the world held, she only wished she could share it with someone. Soon, though, the lights disappeared and the stars did not appear again in the sky, for it was cloudy.
Sophie huddled closer to the wall, curling up as much as she could and trying to keep the cold away. It didn't work very well, she had been sitting for too long and was already cold.
She got up then, walking around on the spot and stamping her feet, hoping she could find another place to sleep or there would be no sleeping this night.
Finally, light bloomed in the darkness. Sophie turned around to see the city guards lighting the fires and torches near the inn and the main gate. After they had moved on, Sophie went eagerly toward the bright fire burning outside the inn. There weren't any people around now, this night was unusually cold, so Sophie had the fire to herself.
Just as she was getting comfortable, however, Rolf and his gang came bursting out of the inn, shouting and cursing. Sophie hoped they'd just move on, but they seemed determined to stay where they were, perhaps hoping the innkeeper would hear their insults and threats. She was considering slipping away, but hesitated because they were so close and were bound to see her if she moved.
Then someone noticed her and before she had time to even think about running a rough hand grabbed the back of her dress and lifted her up.
"Hey look wha' I found! A li'l rat hidin' rite here, jus' waitin' ter rob us blind, eh?" A drunken voice yelled triumphantly in her ear. The others jeered and shouted things like "throw it off the walls!" and "better tell Ekda to put some poison out!".
While none of them had ever really hurt her, she had stayed away from them in the past when they had been drunk. So before any of them could do anything, she twisted around and bit the man who was holding her.
She was already running, leaving them confused and shouting ever louder - probably drawing the attention of the city guards.
Her second favourite spot was by the blacksmith's fire. While it was more sheltered, there was less chance of anyone passing by – which meant she could sleep mostly undisturbed, however, people who passed in and out of the inn could sometimes drop her a coin or some food. Her stomach growled, she had not eaten today and a few scraps of bread would have seemed like a feast right now. There was no chance of getting any food now, however – not without stealing and she would not do that.
When Sophie finally arrived to the Blacksmith's, having taken a roundabout way to lose any pursuers, she noticed someone was already there. It was Silda, who was usually benign, but was very reserved and did not like to share. Sophie decided to let her have the fire to herself, since she had after all been there first.
There weren't any other fires close by and if she wanted to go back to her usual place near the East Gate she would have to pass the inn again, or take the long way behind it. Suddenly her legs felt as if they would not bear her a moment longer, the run had taken all the energy she'd had left. Leaning against the wall, she slid down and huddled into a ball.
She was sleeping next to a warm fire, the warmth spread through her limbs. Through a window, dawn was starting to compete with the fire's light. It was time to wake up. She rose, turning away from the fire and walking toward the door. Then she thought she heard someone call her name. Looking around, she saw no one but the fire, crackling merrily. She turned back to the door and opened it.
Bright daylight flooded through, so intense she had to close her eyes. Suddenly she heard the voice from the hissing flames again. This time it told her to wake up.
"But I am awake!" She told the fire. It didn't listen, but continued to whisper and hiss. Sophie was about to turn away again, when she saw the fire was starting to grow. Absurdly, the light seemed to dim and the room darkened and grew colder. The sound from the fire grew louder and louder, until the room seemed to shake and the walls reverberated.
Then she noticed it wasn't the walls that were moving, it was her. In fact there were no walls, just fire, consuming everything in her sight and she felt its burn. Her whole body was burning and she screamed, turning desperately for the door. But she couldn't move, she could just watch as the fire consumed her.
After a long time the fire started to recede. It shrank to a golden glow around two black coals, surrounded by red flames. Sophie opened her eyes.
Eyes like black coals stared at her from a golden face. Red hair fell around the face, not like flames but dark, almost like her own. She knew this person.
Alantar was a high elf, it was about all she knew about him, but he had always been kind to her and polite to everyone else, despite how they treated him. Every time he saw her, he would buy all of her flowers, telling her he needed it for Alchemy, though she didn't know what that meant.
It was usually difficult to discern his expressions, he knew how to hide his feelings when he thought no one was looking. This time, however, the concern on his face was clear. He asked her if she could feel when he held her hands in his. She shook her head.
Alantar seemed to make a decision then.
"I'm taking you home. When you are better you can choose if you want to stay or not, but I will care for you until you are better."
"I can stay with you?"
"…If you want. But we can talk about that later…" Alantar answered somewhat guardedly.
He started badly when Sophie threw her arms around his neck, then relaxed slightly and gathered her up.
"Here, I'll carry you."
Thank you for reading! I will be writing more of Sophie and Alantar soon (perhaps ^^')
