The merchant immediately fell in love with the intricate designs of the sisters' old dresses, 'ooh'ing, 'aah'ing, and unabashedly admiring them. When he at last named his sum, Rella had to bite back a gasp of surprise; it was more money than she could ever remember seeing in her life. She agreed at once, surprising the merchant in turn; as she dumped into her pack two gold coins and a handful of silver, she couldn't help but feel satisifed, despite knowing the merchant had gotten far cheaper a deal than he had expected.
The rapidly spreading purple bruise on her left cheek gained her silent attention from several of the passers-by in the Faire; she did her best to ignore them, although it wasn't easy. Lianne had indeed fallen off, twisting her ankle; she had told her mother that Rella had tacked up her horse, and purposely left the girth loose. Rella had protested, but it had been a matter of Lianne's word against hers; naturally, Rella had been beaten.
Shaking her head to banish the less-than-cheerful thoughts, she remembered the large amount of coin that now lay within her purse and smiled. Wonder what I can find to use it on? I wish I could use it to hire someone to help me escape from Rhianna, but no one wants to face down a sorceress--
Reaching for her purse absent-mindedly, she encountered nothing but a pair of cut strings. Looking up, she spotted a single, small boy dressed in little but rags, running away as fast as his small, underfed legs could take him.
First I get beaten, now I get robbed! I do not deserve this! Hiking up her skirts with no regard for dignity, she began to chase after the thief boy, ignoring the stares she got. I know he's probably starving and just trying to get something to eat, but that's my money and it is not going to get stolen!
The boy, looking over his shoulder, realized she was on his trail and began to run faster. Rella, however, was a fast enough runner when she chose--the distance between them was growing less with every step of her bare feet upon the cobblestone street. The thief, sweating, glanced behind himself again, swore fluently, and darted into an alleyway.
Following, she rounded the corner, only to see him drop down into a pipe, heading down into the sewers. Halting to catch her breath, she took a moment to think. Do I really want to follow him down there? I don't even want to think about what's in that water, and I'll definitely ruin my dress. Still...
Mouth set, she pulled her skirt up just above her knees, tying it there with no regard for the stares she was getting at this indecent display of flesh. That's the most money I've ever seen in my life, and I'm not going to lose what might be my one chance to get out of Rhianna's to some scrawny thief boy. At least, not just because he goes into the sewers. Taking a deep breath, she lowered herself into the sewers and into knee-deep water a mucky shade of green.
She stretched her hands out to either side, wincing as she encountered something slimy on the wall. It's pitch dark down here, though, so I have to touch the walls to keep my balance. Doing her best not to think about what the water contained or what she was touching on the wall, she began to wade.
She was surprised when her left hand suddenly encountered a gaping hole in the wall, and she barely avoided falling face-first into sewer water, which was a fate she would definitely like to avoid. Turning, she blinked.
The hole led directly to a small cave within the sewers, a tiny crevice that had been made into something of a home. A small, flat pallet that looked about as comfortable as Rella's own bed lay on the floor, and a tiny lamp flickered in the corner, barely giving enough light to see by. A rat skull lay in one corner, and a giant spider was perched on one wall. The thief boy was sitting on the pallet, eagerly emptying her purse out onto his bed and counting the coins.
Looking up and noticing her, his eyes got even bigger than they already were. Swearing fluently and with emotion, he clutched her purse against his chest as his eyes narrowed into a somewhat feeble glare.
Grimacing, she stepped inside the thief's home, the floor of which was at least free of slimy, dirty water. Looking at him, she returned the glare, doing her best to imitate the governess her father had hired when she was six to teach her to read, write, and do arithmetic. "Give me my money," she demanded of him, deciding not to elaborate.
"Finders, keepers, losers, weepers," the boy spouted off, sticking out his tongue at her.
"Look, I don't think cutting the strings and stealing someone's purse counts as finding. And you might want to give it back to me. After all, I know where you live, now; I could call one of the city guards and report you as a thief, and tell them where to find you."
His eyes widened. "Ye wouldn'."
"Oh yes I would, believe me."
Sighing, he looked down at the money he still clutched in his small, dirty hands. "Bu'....this is more gold than I ever seen in me lif' entire! I jus' wanna eat!" Looking up at her, his lower lip wobbled, and his eyes filled with tears.
She sighed; on second look, the thief boy couldn't have been much older than eight. He's trying to make you pity him, she reminded herself grumpily. Tears began to run down his small face. Yeah, and it's working.
She held out her hand expectantly. The boy, sniffling, handed her purse to her reluctantly, and wiped the back of his hand across his face, only succeeding in smearing more dirt across it. Rolling her eyes, she plucked out two small silver coins from her pile; she still had more than plenty left. Solemnly, she handed those two coins to the small boy.
His eyes bugged out; obviously, he had expected her just to take her money and leave. If I was sane, I probably would have. Then, surprisingly, he leapt at her and wrapped his small arms around her, sniffling. "Thankee ma'am! I twon't ne'er forget ye was kind to me, miss." Letting go of her, he wiped the back of his hand across his face again. "And if ye ever need me, jes' ask fer Shark."
She didn't think it was very likely she'd ever need the help of a small, underfed thief, but didn't say as much. Instead, she sighed indulgently and left, bracing herself for the wretched trip back through the sewers.
By some miracle, Rhianna was in town when Rella returned, and she managed to sneak up to her room without anyone noticing she was drenched in muck and carrying a large sum of gold and silver. Once safely inside her small room, she stripped hastily, dumping the entire wash pitcher of freezing water over her head without regard for the mess it made on the floor. Taking her wash rag, she scrubbed with it until she was pink, but still regretted the absence of a bar of soap to get herself properly clean.
Taking her purse, she opened the closet door, picking up a small box within, one that was concealed to the eye of a casual observer by her small collection of clothes. Placing both purse and box atop her bed, she removed a small necklace from about her neck, a single piece of small cord from which hung a tiny gold key. The key she inserted into the lock of the box, opening it with a click. Depositing the purse inside the box, she grinned as she locked it shut, placed it back inside the closet, and hung the key around her neck. Nobody would be getting to her money anytime soon.
It's just too bad Rhianna doesn't know about it, and hasn't spelled it to resist lock picks like all the other locks here. A really determined thief could probably still get into it.
It was well past sunset when Rella was at last able to retire to her room for the night. Feeling entirely exhausted--not that that was unusual at the end of a day's work--she barely managed to change into the long shirt she wore for a nightgown before toppling over into her bed.
At least the bed wasn't quite as barren and uncomfortable as it had been when she first came here. After Rella grew out of her first set of clothes, Rhianna had to supply another, but Rella had managed to keep some of her old dresses. She had taken her hard pillow out of her pillowcase and stuffed the case instead with one or two of the dresses; it still wasn't exactly comfortable, but it was much better than the old pillow. She had also taken her sewing kit and several of her heaviest winter dresses and cut them into rags, then sewed them back together into a rough blanket. It was still thin and cold sometimes in winter, but at least she had more to cover her than merely a sheet.
That night, Rella found herself drifting in that state between dreams and awakening, overhearing a conversation. She wasn't entirely sure if the conversation was a dream or something she was actually hearing; so, she decided not to wake up all the way, but instead to keep still and listen.
"Poor little girl," a voice said fondly, somewhere over her head. The voice was definitely female, and certainly kind and motherly. The speaker sounded somehow familar to Rella; the thought entered her head that if she had ever known her mother, that was what she would have sounded like.
"I don't think she's so poor," said a second voice. This voice was also female, but quite different from the first. It was younger, for one thing, and not anywhere near as kind. Rella got the impression that the speaker wasn't really stuck-up or arrogant, she just took a long time to warm up to people.
"She has clothes, she has food, she has a roof over her head," the second voice continued. "She's better off than plenty of people out on the streets. She could have escaped from the sorceress a long time ago if she wanted to, but she hasn't."
"Don't be silly, Emerald," the first voice chided. "Rhianna could have hunted her down easily, and might even have killed her in a fit of temper. At least she has enough good sense to see that. Some wouldn't."
The second speaker sighed. "Ruby, you're too patient with people. I really don't see what the big deal is about this girl."
"And you're too impatient with people, Emerald. And whether you see it or not, we have to do what Diamond and Opal command--and I think they were right about her."
"I'm not impatient, I just have a low tolerance for fools. And like I said, I don't see what the big deal is, even if she does have fairy blood."
"It is not only fairy blood, but possibly royal blood as well, which counts for something. Now shush. She will wake soon. We must go; it isn't time quite yet."
Rella woke all at once, sitting straight upright in the center of her hard mattress. The moon shone brightly in through the small window, illuminating the entire room as bright as if it were morning.
There was nobody in the room but Rella herself.
Just dreams, she told herself. I dreamed that whole conversation, that's all. You've had strange dreams before.
Lowering her head, she was asleep again at once.
