"R-Ruby... I... I can't walk anymore..."

"It's just a little farther, Leah. I promise."

Ruby and Leah continued their treck through the woods to find shelter. Leah was struggling to move. Her body just wasn't able to cooperate.

"Ruby... I'm gonna pass out if I don't stop..."

Ruby paused, "Climb on my back. I'll try and carry you there."

Leah numbly nodded and clumsily climbed on. Ruby readjusted her and then continued walking. It was hard, but they couldn't stop. They needed to be hidden. Staying in the open while recognizable was the worst possible thing to do.

"I'm sorry, Ruby... if I hadn't been such an idiot this would've been so much easier..." Leah mumbled.

"It's okay, Leah. We'll make it through this no matter what. I promise." Ruby replied.

Ruby wished she could believe those words she spoke. She had a lot of doubts herself. She had always been so sheltered. Trying to live on her own was not something she ever prepared for. And unfortunately, Leah was the same.

All they could do was hope they'd figure things out as they went. Maybe Sarah could give them advice whenever she showed up? That was the best they had right now.

"I see it. It's just a bit farther." Ruby stated.

"The sun is rising..." Leah whispered.

That made fear sink into the two of them. Their disappearance would now be noticed. Soon enough, they'd be wanted. People would be looking for them. Especially given how high the price for their return could get.

"We'll be safe. I promise." Ruby reassured her, "No one will find us."

Ruby hoped that was true. Hopefully they were far enough out of sight that no one would be near. Unfortunately, Ruby really couldn't say if that was true. It was very likely the search would reach them at some point. They can't stay in one place for too long.

"Ruby? Where should we go? We will have to find a place to live eventually." Leah questioned.

She had tried to think of places to go, but nothing came to mind that would work. They would have to go quite far away to where no one would recognize them. Far enough away that news of their disappearance wouldn't reach.

"I don't know, Leah. We'll figure it out. We should focus on you getting your strength back, first." Ruby replied.

Leah hated that. She cursed herself for putting them in this situation to begin with. She felt horrible about all the trouble she had caused.

"Here we are. This looks like a good place to rest." Ruby stated.

They were outside a run-down house. It was in very bad disrepair. However, it was intact enough that they could hide in it for a few days. So, Ruby entered the house. She looked around. There was a lot of debris around.

She found a clear spot and helped Leah take a seat. At least they had succeeded in that much. They were away from the castle. Unfortunately they were only a town away from them. The news would reach this town before long. They didn't have the luxury of rest right now. They always had to be on their feet.

"Get some rest." Ruby said to Leah, "I'm going to try and clean this place just a bit."

"Okay..." Leah agreed. She knew it was futile to argue. And she needed the rest as it was.

Ruby waited until Leah had settled down. Once she was satisfied that she was resting, she began cleaning up. She just wanted it to be good enough that they didn't accidentally hurt themselves walking around.

If they left it too clean, it could give them away a bit. They didn't want anyone to know where they had been at any point. They needed to completely cover their tracks.

Once Ruby was satisfied, she sat down beside Leah. The sun was now up. They would be reported as missing by now. Speaking of that... they really needed to find a way to hide their identities. Ruby had an idea.

She had brought a knife for protection. She took it out and got to work. She cut her hair very short. Hopefully it would help conceal her identity even for just a few extra seconds. Those few seconds could be the difference between life and death.

Ruby hid her hair, hopefully somewhere no one would find it. That too could give away their location at one point. Who knew how good they were at predicting things?

Once Ruby was satisfied with everything, she laid down next to Leah. She pulled her into a hug. Leah curled up against her. Ruby frowned internally at how fragile Leah seemed. She would have to protect her a lot right now.

DIVIDER--

It was becoming the afternoon when Leah woke up. She winced as her stomach growled. She was hungry. And there was no food for them. Leah sighed and sat up.

"Ah, you're awake."

Leah froze as she saw Ruby, "Y-your hair."

Ruby nodded, "Yep. We need to hide ourselves. You should do the same."

Leah didn't know what to say to that. Cut her hair? She really liked her hair this way. But... Ruby had a point. They did need a way to hide who they were. It was a sacrifice she had to make as much as she didn't want to.

"F-fine... you can cut it..." Leah resigned to it.

"You don't want it to get cut, do you?"

"No. Why would I? I like my hair this way... but... it'll give me away..." Leah frowned.

"We could try and dye it, if you want? I think I know what to do." Ruby offered as a compromise. She didn't want Leah to be upset over it if she didn't have to be.

"Dye it? What color?" Leah asked.

"I don't know. I have to see what I can find first." Ruby replied, "But... most likely brown or black. Maybe red if we're lucky."

"Okay... I'd rather that than cutting it." Leah said.

"Okay! I'll search for that stuff as soon as I can then. I'm also going to dye mine as well. I'd suggest changing your hair style. It'll help hide you too." Ruby said.

"What type of style should I do?" Leah asked.

Ruby thought about it. What styles could she do? Which ones looked nothing like her normal style?

"Do you wear it any other way in public?" Ruby asked. That was probably a good thing to know.

"If it's a formal event I wear it down." Leah replied.

"Okay... so... how about a bun?" Ruby suggested.

"A bun..." Leah repeated, "Can you put it like that? I want to see what it feels like first."

"Sure." Ruby agreed.

She carefully untied Leah's hair and then put it up into a bun. Leah shook her head around, seeing if it would stay. It did. It didn't feel bad. She could work with this change. But, she didn't know how to tie it that way herself. She would have to ask Ruby to teach her at some point then.

"Ruby? I... I um... I'm hungry..." Leah mumbled, "So, what are we going to do for food?"

"I was asking myself that too. I'm hungry as well. I guess the only thing we can do is steal it from the town for now." Ruby said.

Both of their morals hated that statement a lot. They were going to have to steal. That was wrong. But, if they didn't they would die. They had no choice. It hurt. They didn't want to do that. What if it really hurt whoever they stole it from? Who knew how good their business was going? Or if that food was all they had to feed their family for the week?

They couldn't steal from nobles. They had too many servants and guards. They would immediately get caught if they tried. So, unfortunately they had to do that to peasants.

"Hey... do I look recongizable?" Leah asked.

"Somewhat." Ruby replied, "Why?"

"I have an idea." Leah said, "Maybe I can get them to pity me and give me food without having to steal it? I just need to look worse. Maybe some more dirt on me would do the trick?"

"That's a good idea. But... are you sure you should do it?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah. I'm weak. I'm not faking it. It'll be more believable." Leah stated.

"Alright. Let's make you look filthy then."

Leah nodded and allowed Ruby to basically bathe her in mud and dirt. It really helped mask her appearance. No one would ever be witness to royalty so disgusting. She was pretty hidden now.

"Okay. I'm gonna go. If for some reason I don't come back in a reasonable time, just be careful looking for me. I know I can't tell you to just go, so please don't get yourself possibly killed trying to find me if I go missing." Leah said.

"I'm sure Sarah will tell me if that happens. Hopefully she's here with us still." Ruby replied.

Leah nodded, "Yeah... hopefully."

Sarah was with them, but unable to show herself. She was in a panic. Leah was being so naive right now. She didn't think those people could do her harm. The kingdom always made it look that way, as Sarah didn't exactly blame her. But, they could hurt her since she was weakened already. This could be a disaster.

She really needed to get her energy to show herself fast. Before Leah possibly put herself in a lot of danger.

Leah exited the house and stumbled her way to the town. Sarah followed her in worry. She was praying that nothing bad happened. That someone would be nice to her. But... she was at a desirable age for some people. That could be disastrous for Leah. Sarah blamed herself for never teaching Leah the dangers regular people posed to others. This was her fault. She should have been a better teacher to Leah.

"Mama? Who's that girl over there?"

"Don't look at her."

Leah was confused. Why were people avoiding her. She was obviously in pain. Why was no one reaching a hand to help? Didn't they feel pity for her? They had to know what this felt like. Why wasn't anyone helping her?

"An outsider, huh?" A man approached her.

Sarah went on high alert. She felt he bad news all around. She hoped Leah would sense it and run.

"I... I'm lost... I have nothing..." Leah said.

Sarah gulped. She didn't see how bad this situation was. This was bad. She really needed to appear now.

"I'll help you, for a price."

"I have nothing." Leah repeated.

"I don't want money. You're body will do nicely instead."

Leah froze up. She had made a mistake. She backed away.

"N-no thank you. I... I'll find someone else." Leah tried to run, but her caught her arm and yanked her back.

"Not so fast. You're not something I'm passing up. I'm sure everyone will enjoy some fresh meat in our brothel."

Leah tried to scream, but he covered her mouth. Sarah growled and tried to get him away, but she was not strong enough. Curse her having to show herself to the others. Now she couldn't save Leah. This was really bad. Leah was in terrible danger now.

So, Sarah retreated back to Ruby. She needed to tell her now. But... how? She couldn't appear. She had to find a way. Leah needed her now. Who knew how long he would wait to use her? It probably wouldn't be long.

All of this was a disaster.