Someone who is feared by men.
Women tremble at the presence.
Chapter 5: Hope
Age: 13
These tall buildings never seemed so cold, Maria thought solemnly as she leaned back against a brick wall. The city smelt of smog from burning coal. Many buildings only a couple stories high loomed around her, built from brick and mortar. Maria sat on the street with a tin plate, begging for change. She could give life back to a small creature but she couldn't skin or cook one properly so she was stuck here, in this strange city on the streets, begging for money to buy food or actual food to nourish herself so she could live to beg another day. It was such a tedious endless cycle but she had no choice.
She should have watched her mother more as she cooked and joined her when she went to market, but it was too late now. After her teacher was done with their lessons he had taken her back home but soon the rest of the preserved food ran out and as it started getting colder she couldn't find any more edible plants. That's how she got here, heading to town to find a job. She hated these cities, she wished she had never had to enter one, freezing and starving. She wanted to die in the forest surrounded by the plants and animals she knew she loved. Not on these cold artificial streets that brought her nothing but despair.
She wondered how her teacher would feel if he could see her now. Tears ran down her cheeks onto the cobblestone road but the sounds of her sadness was muffled by the sounds of horses trotting, carts clacking along the road, and people walking. In such a loud and fast paced city a young parentless teenager such as herself was lost and forgotten. She had tried getting a job but failed, every place in this city turned her down preferring someone with more experience or a younger child that worked for much less, so she was reduced to begging. Still though no one would give her a coin, no matter how small, so she sat here day after day, literally wasting away. She didn't want to die but it was becoming inevitable now, the only person she couldn't resurrect was herself.
Maria carefully lay down on the sidewalk. She was so tired, so cold, so hungry and she knew today would be the day she died. She could no longer fight it, she had grown too weak so with one last glimpse at the people who were passing her by she closed her eyes and felt her breathing slow. Before her breathing came to a complete stop she felt it catch for a moment as uneasiness crept through her body. She paused all conscious body functions for a moment to examine it. Then she realized what was causing it, she could sense a body's life force but that body was focusing on her.
She slowly opened her eyes and glanced up to see a man staring down at her. She just stared up at him, confused but too weak to show it. The man was tall and wore spectacles that from this angle hid his eyes. His brown hair rested lightly against his head. Maria allowed her breathing to start back up while she examined him. He wore white stockings under his heeled black boots with knee length black silken pants; he had a thick shirt made of fabric that looked like it could be a tapestry with elegant silver designs. It was button up and hung low like a coat but he still wore a silky looking coat over it that had white lace ruffles along the cuffs. He also wore a pure white double layered cravat that had lace on the edges. He also stood straight with his head held high and exuded an air of authority. Everything about his appearance pointed to him belonging to some line of nobility or at least associated with some kind of power even if it wasn't his directly.
"Come with me, let's get you some food. I can also provide you with a place to sleep," he said quickly then started to walk away.
"Wh-what?" she stuttered out, doing her best to sit up. He seemed a little annoyed but turned back around, the corners of his mouth pulled down.
"I said to come with me. I am going to take you home to give you some food and a place to lay your head," he repeated with a little extra information.
"But, why?" she asked, trying to get to her feet.
"I think I have some use for you. I could use someone to help me with my hobby," he said before walking back over to her. "You seem weak, do you need some help?" Maria looked down but nodded solemnly. The man quickly stooped down and looped an arm around her waist, helping her stand in one fluid motion. "Off we go," he muttered before walking, Maria moving her legs a little faster to stay in step with him. "My name is Duke Alfred Drevis by the way."
"Maria," she said weakly. "Just Maria," she muttered pitifully not sure how to address someone of such a high class.
"Well then Maria, I hope one day you will stay with us long enough to adopt the name Drevis." Maria's heart swelled at those words. A new family, a new life, as long as she acted properly and did her best to learn what he expected of her she could live contently and continue her dark art in secret. In Alfred's mind though, he knew that would never happen. She would be of use with his hobby but he doubted he could keep her around for longer than a month. This little reassurance to join his family was just what he had to say though to make her happily and blindly follow him.
*Yes, I know this sort of fucks up the time line a sort of cross with Renaissance and Industrial Revolution but hey it is a fictional story.
