Chapter 1: Intro
"Hey, get back here, you little shit." Yelled the irritable man from atop his mount, at the front of the wagon.
"Not on your life, you fat bastard." Retorted the little thief.
The reason for the man's anger became quite apparent when you looked at the face and then the arms of the figure. Covering the figure's face were dirty spots and smudges, and breadcrumbs. In the thief's arms was a canvas sack almost bursting with varying foods. If the man wasn't so focused on capturing the thief, he would've taken the time to wonder how someone with such an unimposing figure could carry such a bag. As it was though, he didn't have that luxury. By the time the man had unmounted, the thief had already put a relatively impressive amount of distance between the two. That didn't stop the man from trying to make chase, at least until he realized he had lost the chase before it had even begun, as evidenced by the fact that the figure was nowhere to be seen. Heaving a sigh, the man decided it best to leave it be and go back to his travels, so that's exactly what he did.
Little did he know, the thief was still nearby, yet out of sight and out of sound. In reality, they were just hiding behind an inconspicuous tree that was like all the others on the forested path the wagon was on. The figure plopped down with their back against the tree. Tiny, yet strong and calloused hands raised to grab a red hood and pull it off of a head of black, shoulder length, but unkempt and dirty hair with red streaks running through it. With the hood completely down, an almost doll-like face was revealed. Yet out from behind the curtain of hair that served as the bangs, came a glare from a set of sharp, piercing, and calculating silver eyes. From within those eyes, you could see a level of experience with adversity that belied the girl's apparent youth. Extending from the previously shed hood, was a same colored cloak, with obvious wear and tear from years without maintenance. The cloak was tied and kept around the girl's neck by a silver rose emblem. Under the girl's cloak, you could see a red, cotton t-shirt with minor tears, and for pants, the girl wore plain black cargo pants, that were tucked in black combat boots.
The girl started going through her haul like a starving animal, mainly because she was one. If you were to look under her cloak, you would see obvious signs of malnutrition. She had a strikingly gaunt face with pale cheeks, and the skin on her body was only held up by her bruised, malnourished bones.
In the bag, she found vegetables such as potatoes and carrots. She found herself lucky that the road was near a clean stream. She reached to another, smaller sack that had been set down behind the tree earlier on. She opened this other sack and started digging through it, only to stop and pull out a small, wooden pocket knife inlaid with an emblem of a burning rose. This pocket knife was the last, and most cherished gift she received from her mother.
Her reason for pulling out this specific tool was the piece of wood that was also in her bag. The wood was cylindrical shaped, and wide enough to be carved into a rough, yet functional cup. The girl was never taught how to whittle or carve, but like a lot of things in her life, she had no choice and took it upon herself to learn the practice. She went to work and thirty minutes later, she had created an indentation deep enough to hold water. After going to the stream to fill her self-made cup, she set it on the side of the dirt and gravel road in a patch of sun, to hopefully heat the water up a little. Next, she started to cut some of the previously acquired vegetables into bite-size pieces that could be put into her self-improvised soup. Since the vegetables had already been in a heavy bag and said bag had been exposed to sunlight for hours, it did not need to be warmed like the water. The girl then went to the stream to wash off the vegetables, and when she was finished, she set the vegetables on the bag so they didn't get dirty again, and brought them back to her original spot. After bringing the cup back to her original spot, she filled it with the vegetables and watched the water rise in the cup.
Before she began to eat, the girl noticed that the sun was setting, and since she had previously deduced that it was summer, based on the warm air and unrelenting heat, she concluded that it was around nine in the evening. With that information, she decided to eat quickly. Once she was done, it was almost pitch black. It would've been, if it wasn't for the stars scattered in the black sky. That's the one thing the girl loved about her way of living. She was almost always surrounded by a completely natural aesthetic, except for those rare occasions she would find a town and pass through.
Snapping out of her reverie, the girl decided to tie the bag of food that was leftover up in a tree somewhere nearby her own, but not close enough to attract any curious woodland creatures. Those creatures, though, were the least of her worries, for, there were much more monstrous creatures lurking in the shadows of the forest. The Grimm.
After all her tasks were completed for the night, Ruby went back to her tree to try to get some much needed sleep. Even in sleep, she would not be granted peace of mind, though, for her dreamscape would haunt her. Most would think her nightmares would be occupied by grimm. But not for her. For her, it was something far worse.
"I'm so sorry, Ruby."
AN: I accept, even welcome criticisms, so please, if you have advice that you think would help this story, I would love to hear it. Do not expect consistent updates or chapter lengths. I'll write this story when I want, how I want, because, ultimately, I have final say in how it's written. Anyway, hope you enjoy this fic. Remember, I welcome criticisms, but please don't be nit picky. Thank you.
