This is actually my first fanfic, and as it has nothing to do with the plot of the Graceling series but rather the concept itself, you can think this story to take place before or after the events of Graceling, but I think of it as before more. I'll upload this as much as I can!
The first time I had ever said Corpus Bones was when I was of my thirteenth year in a Middlon market. It was a shameful word to shout out in such a crowded place, granted, but it was a reaction mainly of shock. So I sat with a basket on my head and the bandage around my eye torn off, I knew it was obvious now. With the bandage off of my eye, it was apparent it was red but not of blood. Bandages were used to cover or fix faults, lazy eyes, injuries or blind eyes. To most, it would be a lie to dress a nonexistent injury. However, in my views, my red eye was indeed a fault. People were afraid of me when they saw my bandage, they thought I must have gotten it from a gruesome fight, or someone was after me for some reason. Either way, people avoided me more without it. At the time, it was yet another reason to leave the Middlons, however Alwyn felt differently.
I eyed my young brother suddenly, steadying him as he nearly tumbled with the basket of fish we were carrying. I suppose that despite what my brother said, I felt I had more power over him at the time due to my age over him. I regretted starting over every time someone found out about my grace.
"Hey, sis, how much do you think these salmon will sell for?" Alwyn mumbled, not looking up at me. I froze and looked at his thin self. I would have to keep about half of these fish for him, just for Alwyn to return to normal weight for his height. I sighed softly, in the knowledge that at this time of year, salmon tasted horribly, so the whole bunch wouldn't sell for hardly a shilling.
"The demand is high currently…" I murmured, "We'll get enough, so how about we save some for dinner tonight?"
Alwyn nodded, dazed and wandered into the market. I glanced at the bundle he carried, the one with the better tasting and healthier looking fish.
"I hear smaller fish are considered a delicacy to the royals, they'll sell for the most! Let me carry the larger ones to our house."
House was an overstatement. It was a small shack, barely standing where we lived. If I had made it, the shack would have been larger, but considering we had just recently fled to the smaller village after a recent person discovering about my grace, we had to move to a makeshift shack. I set down the basket outside our camp, eyeing it in curiosity and wondering which cooking method would best preserve it. As a loud hawk cawed, I nodded in remembrance that we shared these woods with other animals. I tied up the basket sturdily and turned around to see Alwyn. As I spun on my heels, I was face to stomach with Alwyn. He had to look up to see me, and he gazed at me with those blue eyes, which were flecked with green.
Those eyes were that of my mother's and Alwyn and I had inherited them. I inherited one of them, anyways, as my red eye had shown up weeks after my father died. I guess the stress of a graceling child made my mother fall ill, and it wasn't too long before we turned from widower's children to orphans. People who knew about it feared me, feared the grace that they didn't know. Even more so, I feared my grace, one I wondered whether or not I would want to discover.
"Piper!"
The sound of my name struck me back into awareness, and I glanced down at Alwyn, who had an utmost nervous expression.
"It's going to get dark soon, so we need to sell the fish fast."
I nodded and hauled the second basket onto my back and rushed onwards. I wasn't too worried about such, as there was, as Alwyn didn't know, a gypsy bazaar that I could sell these to. I couldn't possibly tell him this, or he'd want to see it for himself, and I had a feeling that the seven year old wouldn't last long around so many brutes.
Without him watching, I collected my shilling from selling the fish and trotted to Alwyn. He looked exhausted, and it was obvious that he was trying to not look as such. I managed to lay him down to bed without too much of a fight and taking my dagger, rushed out. My attempt at hunting at such a dark time proved to be a failure, as I only could snag a few hares. I followed a spaced trail of lanterns, although I knew my way to the market by heart.
The second I entered I knew I was in the right place. The crowed market, lit by a few candles here and there, overloaded each of my senses. I could smell alcohol, foreign spices and cooking meat. I could hear the low murmur of gossip and laughter in the air. I could taste smoke from the fires in the air and I could feel a hand on my shoulder. I spun about quickly, hand drifting towards my tunic, where my dagger rested. In the dimly lit room, I glared at a group of burley knights behind me, who laughed. One with a square jaw chuckled,
"Hello little piglet, how are you today?"
Another spoke.
"She's far too cute to be a piglet isn't she?"
The first one replied with a grin,
"I would agree. She's very much so. I'm sure our lords would be ashamed to see us fiddling with her."
The second knight looked back and raised an eyebrow, cupping my chin with his massive hand. I felt my grip tighten on the dagger.
"How about this? We'll just keep this little meeting a secret."
As soon as his disgusting hand reached for my chest I recoiled back, unsheathing my knife and glared at the man, already in the fighting stance my father had taught me.
"Hmm…" Grunted the first angrily, taking a hesitant step back,
"I guess this little pig is too hasty for my liking."
To my joy the group dispersed after his remark, and selling the hares were easy, as pay was high here. Chills rushed up my spine, my muscles tensing. I was sensing eyes following me. In the expectation that knights would be behind me, I gripped my dagger and even then unsheathed it, turning. A gypsy boy not much older than me was glancing at me. He had nearly feminine features, all chiseled, which made him quite beautiful but also appeared to be the type of person who would break your nose if you said such, and a sense of masculinity was still there. My grip loosened, and I put up the knife, embarrassed.
He grinned, eyeing me as if I was an old friend, causing my face to feel hot, and I to cringe back immediately.
"Enchantée de faire votre connaissance!"
I froze suddenly, thoughts rushing through my mind. Isn't that French? He must be a foreigner then… Of course he is! He's a gypsy after all, and traveling is what they do. Still, it would be strange to be here and not know English. I did my best to repeat what he said,
"E-enchente?"
As the boy laughed, I jumped a near foot, and in instinct, pulled out my dagger and swung at him, before realizing what I was doing. He easily dodged, simply leaping back.
"Ah," He chuckled, "I can see you aren't graced with fighting."
As soon as those words were spoken, my hand lunged up towards my left eye. It was still bandaged. I hoped he was simply joking, or that it was a saying from wherever he was from.
The boy gazed at me for a while, and then murmured, "Ah, so that's what you're graced with."
He was so serious I found it to be obvious that he couldn't be joking. I grasped the boy by his sleeve and nearly yanked him into a forest, hissing,
"How do you know I'm graced?"
My knife was close at hand, ready and able to be used for killing a human for the first time.
"Simple and easy. I'm graced as well, with detecting and identifying graces."
I stared into his eyes. They were both nearly completely black, gray around the rims, and I found it harder and harder not to run away.
"You're lying… Your eyes-"
"What about them!"
The boy snapped back, showing more emotion than before.
I was stunned momentarily, then replied,
"They are the same color."
It was obvious that he became uncomfortable and turned away before muttering,
"I know. They were born different. My right eye used to be blue… Just like how graceling's eyes can turn different colors later in life, one day mine turned the same." He paused briefly, and then brightened, "My name's Luca. What's yours?"
I turned, feeling hot once more. I wasn't a huge fan of my name.
"Piper.",
I murmured as softly as I could.
I froze, for some reason believing him. After all, he figured out I was a graceling. "Wait- if you can identify graces," I paused, taking a step towards him, "What's mine?"
Luca turned, beginning to walk back to the market. "I've told you enough. It was half-witted as it is for me to tell you my name, much less my grace."
Fire built up in me. All I wanted was to know if my graceling was a gift or a curse, if I could be around Alwyn without harming him. Without any thought to it, I dashed after the gypsy boy and grasped his tunic. He paused, in obvious annoyance.
"Fine. I'll tell you if you can help me in return."
I paused, considering it for a moment.
"All you need to do," He began, "Is find out your own graceling on your own."
I bitterly turned to him,
"If I know what it is then why do I need you to tell me?"
He closed an eye and glanced at me,
"I won't tell you, I'll confirm your grace."
I took a step back. I had heard of gracelings who constantly thought that they had different graces. Such would be helpful. A lone thought pierced my mind.
"Why do you want to do this?"
Luca scoffed, and mumbled,
"I'm to help you aren't I? Besides, I need to test my own grace now that my eyes are the same."
He turned away, and without further thought, I held out my hand.
"…Deal."
Luca turned and readily shook it,
"Deal indeed! Let's get started."