Quest Runaways (Velvet)

[Verilian]

. . Runaways . . Timestamp: 15th of Winter, 512 AV Location: Somewhere in the Docks District Life was not easy for a runaway slave, especially in the city of Ravok where there wasn't really anywhere to run to considering the city was in the middle of a massive lake. While not everybody in Ravok was against helping a slave hard on their luck, most were, and there were none who would employ them without a master to back them. Cassidy was forced to beg or steal for her food and live on the streets, hiding in back alleys or behind crates. With the crack down on slavery in the city, it made things even more dangerous for the young runaway. As if all that wasn't enough, her troubles were doubly so due to the little girl she found herself stuck caring for. After the attack by the Rising Dawn, of whom she had not encountered any members since that day, Velvet found herself stuck with the little girl she had tried to help escape, whose name was Auriel. That meant two mouths to feed, and hiding places needed to be large enough to accommodate them both. Luckily it was not all bad, and the girl seemed capable of begging or stealing enough food to feed herself and sometimes even had extra. As hard as life was, having the girl with her meant Cassidy didn't have to face life alone, and sometimes it even proved beneficial. People were much more likely to take pity on a crying little girl than they were an older one. As hard as it was, hope was not lost. Velvet found herself in one of the many hiding places she and the girl, a small partially covered place hidden behind some old crates outside one of the lesser used buildings in the warehouse district of the docks. She wasn't the first to use such a hiding place, nor would she be the last. When Velvet awoke she found herself alone, Auriel was missing, but that was not unusual. The girl often rose early, and it wasn't long before the runaway heard the sound of light footsteps and the girl appeared around the corner, holding a loaf of bread. Velvet could smell it from where she was, it was fresh, which meant that the girl had probably stolen it. "I brought breakfast," the girl squealed happily as she ran over to Velvet and gave her a big good-morning hug.

[Cassidy Finch]

Velvet smiled as she wrapped her arms around Auriel in a tight embrace; the girl hadn't been nearly as much of a burden as Velvet had first assumed she'd be. Most times, it was the opposite. She pulled her own weight without too much difficulty, and Velvet felt that it brightened her days a little to have the little girl hanging around. "That's great!" She exclaimed, complimenting the girl on her successful theft, "It's fresh, too!" The praise wasn't empty; it really was impressive for a girl who couldn't be older than eight. The thought of reprimanding Auriel for stealing never even crossed Velvet's mind. If they didn't steal, they'd starve. That was more than enough justification for Velvet. The woman retrieved the bread from Auriel and tore it in half, though she made sure to give the child a slightly larger piece. She was the one who got it for them, after all. Besides, as hungry as she was, Velvet knew she could deal with the pangs of hunger better than Auriel could. It wouldn't do for the child to get sick. As hesitant as Velvet had been to take the girl in, she'd grown fond of her over the time they'd been together. Though they were often hungry and frightened, it really wasn't as bad as it could have been had they been alone. Velvet was certain that she would have lost her motivation during one of their many periods of hunger, had she not needed to take care of Auriel. The former slave had noticed another unusual thing about Ravok; in all the time that they'd been in the city, Velvet had not felt it grow cold. Surely, it should have been a brisk winter morning, but Velvet felt comfortable with little more on than her white dress; the same one that she had worn on the day of her escape. It was no longer white, having been worn for so long. It was now a soiled gray with spots of dirt and long-dried blood on it. The slave looked down at herself, and imagined her face and hair weren't much better. She now looked more like a slave than she had when she actually had been a slave in Ravok. The irony caused a thin smile to curve Velvet's lips; she may look like a slave, but she was still free. As free as she could get in this cursed city, anyway. Velvet began eating her chunk of the loaf, being sure to keep a slow pace. Though she felt like she was starving with hunger, the woman knew that eating it too fast would force her to vomit the food back up and waste it. She had to eat it slowly, enjoy it. It wasn't every day that they got fresh bread. Or fresh anything, for that matter. Usually, Velvet only managed to scavenge crusts from the trash before it was thrown into the canals. While they could both beg a bit for food, most people weren't amenable to runaway slaves. Most assumed that they would be captured soon, anyway. Even Velvet couldn't believe their luck to have gone so long without being captured. The whole city was still in an uproar after the attack on the Temple. It was an extraordinary stroke of luck that they'd managed to avoid all the patrols, sweeps, and investigations into potential members of the Rising Dawn. Normally, the former slave would try to engage Auriel in some kind of cheerful conversation to keep both their spirits up. Today however, she ate her meal in silence; she was feeling the effects of extended periods of stress. All the worrying she'd done about their future, on top of the regular concerns in the life of an escaped slave in Ravok, had been catching up with her recently. Every day, Velvet had to try a little harder to keep up her hope. Every day, she felt that hope slipping further away. It wasn't to the point where Velvet would give up; things would have to become truly unbearable for her to even consider that. No, she was worried about their lives. No one could live like this forever. If they didn't get caught, they would starve, or they would be killed, or some other horrible fate that this petching city could concoct for them. Velvet hated depending on good fortune; the woman had felt so little of it in her life that she mistrusted any stroke of luck out of instinct. If it was too good to be true, then it probably was.

[Verilian]

Despite her misgivings, luck had been on their side. Velvet and the girl managed to avoid every patrol, and they had managed to find enough food to survive. Even when Velvet was feeling downcast, she still could not lose hope, thanks to Auriel who was ever the optimist. Perhaps it was just due to her being young and naive, or maybe she truly believed it, but whenever things were down Auriel never gave up, and always encouraged Velvet not to give up either. The little one seemed so certain that Velvet would keep them both safe, and that they would be alright. It was hard not to keep her hopes up in the face of such unfaltering optimism. Though the pair ate in silence, there was plenty of noise around them. They were in the warehouse district, and though their particular area was relatively unused, there were still people working nearby loading and unloading crates, and doing whatever else it was warehouse workers did. They were sounds that both the women were familiar with, but after a while they noticed something different. Footsteps not far away. Voices. Whispered voices. Velvet could just pick up the words of some of the men. "You're sure?" "Yes. Two of them. Runaways, I'm guessing. I seen the little one go down this way just a little while ago." They had been found. Velvet heard them before Auriel, but Auriel quickly saw the look of concern on Velvet's face and became aware as well. The girl's eyes widened and her remaining bread was dropped as she quickly moved to Velvet's side, keeping low as she hid next to the woman. "They found us," she whispered, her voice shaky. "What do we do, Velvet?"