Bruised, bleeding, and still breathing–my kind of day.
I let out a huff of relief, even though my nose is bleeding and there are bruises pretty much all over my body.
Getting beat up was part of my daily routine—and for once I fought back and it felt heavenly. Some Imperial knight dude messed with me and I couldn't just stand it. I knocked him unconscious, and suddenly, Islya's grime felt glorious.
I walk on the busy streets of Islya, closing my eyes for just a split second. And guess what happens? Some random ass kid, who I assume is an amateur thief (unlike me, a veteran thief) hit my head with a slingshot.
Damnit, he really needs to improve his aim.
A cheerful teal-haired girl with eyes to match nudges me. "Hey! Your Dawning Ceremony is in 4 days!" She giggled, "I wonder what you'll be!"
Her eyes darted all across my body, and her expression flattens. "You got into a fight again?"
"What do you think?" I ask her with a smirk before saying, "Hahaha, I'm going to be one of the Banished for killing you~" I shoot my arms in the sky and curl my fingers like claws and crouch slightly to match her height, teasing her.
People are divided into 3 estates by their Aura, where they are bestowed with a unique last name through a magical ceremony the Dawning. But I honestly think that doesn't affect my life much. I'm just a thief, not some high noble.
The 3 estates are:
The Preeminent—the elite and superior
The Common Folk—the ordinary people
And the worst and rarest of them all—
The banished.
The Aura of a person is shaped from their deeds before the ceremony. And me? I'm Severine. I'm 17. And I hope I won't be one of the Banished for stealing. Well, technically, they're just helping me. And I'm just helping myself.
She groaned and shrieked. "Oh no. Help me, Duke Solenne, the love of my life!" She blushed while speaking his name. Ah, the national crush.
"There we go again, Skyler." I sighed.
"But you really should get your wounds and bruises healed." She said with utmost authority as she jostled down the street. I stopped in my tracks and asked snarkily, "Where are you going to find so many quontes?"
"You. You probably stole enough."
I frown at the thought of spending all my hard earned money on something as trivial as that while it can heal on its own. "That's such a waste!" I exclaim louder than I intend, making people around us jolt in surprise. I stole about 30 Quontes a day, and wasting 20 of them just like that is so not worth it. I drag her to the slums where we live, my hand aching from the beating I received for 'disrespecting a knight'
I groan every time I brush past somebody. "You know, we can always just ask Ivor to give us some herbs." I tell her as I continue dragging her.
"Oh, you know how fed up he is." She rolls her eyes.
"He's obviously going to give in like everytime after looking at my condition," I laugh hard, dimples emerging on my snow pale skin which is currently covered in dirt. "And I wonder if Blanca brought enough food today."
Stole enough food today. In the slums, everybody is assigned with some duty. Duty of stealing specific things. Skyler, I, Blanca, and some 3 others that I do not know the names of steal food everyday. The stealth are group of people who help us stay hidden and not give away our actual identities. Sometimes, I'm a boy. Sometimes, I'm an old lady. A grumpy one. The spell doesn't change our personalities, though.
She laughed. It means yes. We came back home. "Peoplee I hit a lottery today!" I got up onto a wooden box. "I got 50 Quontes!" They did not applaud, of course. It's the same as ever. I was forced down by Ivor. "Do you wanna be punished that bad?" He says and pauses. His eye wander all over my body, noticing my bruises and wounds. "Control that temper of yours for once."
"And, before you beg and bug me, here. Take these herbs. I knew you'd come back hurt. Again."
****
Skyler helped me with the treatment. I make my way to my shack. I lay flat, the gravel cold against my skin. I drift into sleep. I hadn't slept this well in ages.
****
I wake up in cold sweat even though I slept well. I rub my eyes, my vision still blurry. I sit up, putting hands on either of my sides. Huh? I don't feel cold ground. This is rather... Soft.
I look around only to be found in an extremely extravagant room. Not the slums. Not my home. Not the usually conjusted and smelly slums. I get up, extremely alarmed. My breath hitched. I walked around. I saw a mirror and looked at my own reflection. It has been ages since I last looked at my reflection. But I know one thing for sure. I wasn'tblack haired for sure. I'm blonde.
WAKE UP! WAKE UP SEVERINE! WAKE UP FROM THIS LUCID NIGHTMARE!
A knock interrupts me. "My lady, You need to get ready for your Dawning ceremony. May I get in to assist you?" I heard a polite and formal voice.