003. Ambiguous - Prompt Table for Old Fashioned Word
She followed with failing hope, but tried not to show it.
“Darric, c’mon, it’ll be fun!”
“No, it won’t and no, I’m still not interested.” The tall male strode on, annoyance clear on his face as he didn’t bother to show it. He was 25 now and had been living with the Cuff for going on five years, their unofficial leader for his quick temper, loud voice and strong fists. “I’m not in the mood, Amy. Go with the girls instead.”
“They’re getting ready for work.” Amy retorted, casting a quick glance at the other girls she had grown up with who were stripping off their daily clothes for a night’s cold work. “And I can’t find Meryn, so don’t suggest her next.”
“She and Cocelth are busy.” Darric replied without thinking, and then pulled a face as Amy latched onto his arm.
“Without me?”
“Obviously. I’m busy, Amy.”
Cocelth had cut her hair and buried her once-fine clothes. They had camped out in the forest for the night after Amy had taken the painting to the family who had hired her to get it for them, and brought back the blankets and food. They couldn’t return straight to the home of the Cuff with the Queen when it was so obvious, even to them, who she was. They needed a little time to teach Cocelth how not to walk tall and proud, talk with soft articulation and strip her of her ladylikeness. If she was to fit in, she needed to know how to slouch, slang her speech and swear with the best. At first they had argued with her for an hour once they were free from the castle, refusing to accept her idea of joining them - they couldn’t imagine such a thing ever working.
“You won’t survive.” Darric had finally snapped, all reserve for the one with royal birth worn away. “You’ll die of the cold and hunger and brutality of it all. You wouldn’t be able to cope.”
“I have nowhere else to go.” The girl now homeless had responded. “If you have any other ideas…?”
“We could get you by the border.” Meryn had suggested weakly. “…Get you to another town...?”
Her suggestion had been met with insults. Even the Queen knew it was impossible for simple civilians to leave the city for no reason at all. It would only bring attention to her and before she knew it she would be back at the castle and entirely too close to Randall’s clutches and this time they all knew, she would be killed without hesitation.
“I’m joining you.” Cocelth ordered. “You will tell your friends that I am your cousin.” She looked directly at Darric who had the same fine features. Under a layer of dirt, you could imagine somehow they were related.
“He’s not in our clan though.” Meryn had interjected, only to be met with shrugs.
“So I’ll join you.” Darric had suggested in a sudden decision. “If Cocelth is so intent on ruining her life more than it already had been… Then I should be there to lengthen her lifespan as much as possible. You wouldn’t be able to protect her.”
“And you could?”
“Together, we all could.”
From then on their clan had grown by two. They hadn’t caused as much as a whisper for there were always new people coming and going, and with Cocelth hovering behind the girls with Darric close to her back, no one got a good look at her face. Soon she was thinned and bony from the lack of food, and in her first month she caught the pox, which added marks and scars over her skin. She would never be recognised again for whom she once was, and from then on, she really was one of them. Now it was five years gone and she too had almost forgotten the life she had once known, too busy with planning where they’d get their next meal from.
She adapted to it better than they had guessed she would. Her weeks in captivity must have helped, giving her the knowledge that there were worse places than this, and as long as she got one visit a week to the waterfalls, she could cope. The others in the clan couldn’t understand why they still treated her delicately at times or why they gave her special preference but they let it slide, as long as it was Darric, Amy or Meryn missing out for her benefit instead of them.
She proved to be quite adapt at keeping watch and immediately understood how best to warn them if someone was coming, and also how to distract someone if someone suddenly nearly walked in on them, giving them all time to get away. She could also sew, crochet and knit, and wool and thread was easier to steal than clothes were. Rips in their clothes were soon fixed and within the first month they all had enough blankets for comfort. The clan accepted her well, she was more useful than she and the others had ever expected she could be.
She was never seen without one of the others though; favouring Meryn and Darric over Amy who had always shown her a little hostility for reasons which were obvious to them all, even the unfortunate Darric who tried to ignore it. Unfortunately, Amy wasn’t aware how obvious her affections were.
“What do you want, Amy?” Darric asked, sounding tired as he shifted boxes around to make more room at the back of their current home, located in a warehouse that had been vacant for months now. “As I said, I’m busy…”
“Do you ever think of the future, Darric?” Amy asked carefully, her words just a little too forced.
“What do you mean?”
The girl shrugged. “I don’t know. Like, in a year… are you still going to be here?”
“Who knows what’s going to happen next week, Amy.” Darric retorted and shot her a measured look. “What’s all this about?”
Amy shrugged. “Just wondering.” She paused. “What do you think of Larish?”
He looked up in confusion at the woman-for-hire, currently naked as she changed her clothes.
“Uhh, not much, really.” He replied truthfully and turned as she nodded thoughtfully.
“So if you had to pick anyone here-”
“For what?”
“Nothing. Anything?”
“Don’t be so ambiguous.” Darric finally sighed. “What do you want, Amy?”
“Am-big- ..?”
“Ambiguous. You’re being obscure with your words. Unclear. Quit it.” He paused, and then sighed in annoyance as she didn’t make any attempt to rephrase her questions. “Just say it, Amy. Just spit it out!”
“I don’t know what you mean, I’m only just-”
“Amy!”
“Fine! I want you to look at me the way you look at her.” she finally snapped, keeping her voice dangerously low, pointing at Meryn who had just returned home with Cocelth. They were throwing a blanket to the middle of the others and sharing a bread roll, laughing together over something. Darric barely flicked his gaze over to them.
“I don’t know what you mean.” He replied too quickly, in a tone too cold, “Don’t be ridiculous Amy.”
“I’ve seen it.” She protested. “You like-” her next words were covered by his rough gloved hand over her mouth.
“I do not, and I could never like a girl like you either.” He snapped harshly. “Go make yourself useful for once Amy, and forget all about this conversation.”
Amy didn’t bother to follow him as he stormed out of the room through a back broken window, and jumped as Meryn touched her shoulder.
“Everything okay?” she checked, her voice annoyingly carefree, and Amy shook her hand away.
“Don’t bother.” She snapped, and left through a different exit, leaving Cocelth and Meryn exchanging a tired look.
“That girl…” Meryn sighed to Cocelth who smiled briefly.
“Must take a lot’a energy to be that angry all the time.” Cocelth murmured; her once refined voice now anything but. “Should we follow her?”
“She can look after herself.” Meryn replied, without really answering the question. “We did well today.”
“We did, but aren’t we going out again?” they had only returned when they’d collected too much for them to carry easily, always having to plan as if they would have to run and then hide with whatever they were holding. “We could make it there and back again once more before they start packing away…”
“If you’re up to it.” Meryn agreed, and looked up at Darric clattered back in through where he had left, dragging three half full sacks with him. “… Darric? What are you doing?”
“Found these.” He hefted the up, and one spilled out sand freely. “I figured we could always use them for something.”
“Like what?” Meryn and Cocelth exchanged a look and then grinned. “You’re getting sand all over the place, Darric.”
“Pillows?” he suggested. “You seem to need a new one, if you were using my back as a pillow last night, Meryn.” He pointed out casually and Meryn ducked her head and turned away, pulling Cocelth with her.
“Whatever then. We’re going out again - they haven’t fixed up that fallen shade cloth so they’re still leaving half their stock unwatched. Are you coming? We can only fit in one more trip and who knows when we’ll find another market stall owner this stupid?” Meryn offered, and taking Cocelth by the arm they headed towards the door, Cocelth giggling over something quietly.
Darric left the sandbags in the corner and caught up to them easily, Amy watching from the dark corner she had snuck back to with a scowl and narrowed eyes. When had she become the outsider of them small group? How long had it been going on for, and she just hadn’t realised?
Without a second thought she followed them, an easy feat in such a crowd, and was disgusted to see that they were only taking blankets and pieces of cloth. What a grand adventure. With sudden determination she decided she’d find something bigger and better so she could prove that she could do better than that naive little Meryn ever could, with the precious little princess who had, for some reason, taken her as a best friend. That had once been Amy’s place. Not that she had cared at the time. She left the three at the stall and began to slip through the crowd in the opposite direction, towards the more expensive stalls. On second though she ducked into an alcove and turned her cloak inside out - the outside was quite dirty and could make it obvious she wasn’t meant to be there - and then she joined the crowds again, keeping close behind woman who looked like they could be her mother.
What could she take though? She ran her eyes over useless items, wondering why anyone who had money would ever waste it on them. Finally she decided on a set of bowls - they were hard to nick and could always be used. The fewer members of Cuff who had to use their hands for food the healthier, and it would prove just how useful she could be. Damn Darric and his snap of being useful for once, she’d show him.
It took an aggravating long time to find any number of bowls which were still tied together, it seemed like every stall wanted to spread them out to display them, which made it next to impossible to steal more than one at a time. The piece of cloth she usually wore as a scarf was almost in tatters from her nails before she finally came across a set, boring white and heavy looking, but they would have to do and were still better than another blanket. She waited until the stall was crowded and the sellers busy down the other end before she slipped the heavy set off the table and under it, where she then wrapped her scarf around it tightly while pretending to look interested in a set of tea cups. She was just about to melt back in the crowd when a couple shifted beside and knocked her by accident, the young lady tripping over the hem of her dress. There was an almighty crash as the bundle came lose in her hands and the bowls spindled out, the feeble cloth unable to hold them. Everyone froze, Amy for a few moments too long, and there was the cry for a guard before she’d even taken one step.
She turned and ducked away, trying to skid to the floor, but the gentleman beside her wasn’t the type to stand by and watch. He grabbed her firmly by the shoulders and hoisted her up as if she was a child - she was light enough after all - and within minutes she was in custody of palace guards.
“Stealing is a crime, child, and this isn’t the first time you’ve been caught for such.” She was told as they marched her along the busiest streets possible to the castle, so all could see and be warned not to try the same trick. She didn’t bother to protest that she wasn’t a child, too busy waiting for the slightest chance she could use to get away.
Near the opening of the markets she passed the stall of blankets again and still there was Meryn, Cocelth and Darric. They didn’t even see her for several long minutes, still slipping what they could in their pockets and up the backs of each other’s shirts. Finally, it was Cocelth who noticed what the raised noise levels meant and by the time Amy passed them they were all watching her, trying to look like they weren’t affected, but Darric was already talking to them both rapidly under his breath.
“Help me.” She mouthed to Meryn desperately, and looked away without confirmation, not wanting to see the reaction if it was negative. She let herself be taken to the palace and tuned out the voices and banter of the guards escorting her, hoping somehow she wouldn’t lose a hand over this. Or her life.
“Darric, c’mon, it’ll be fun!”
“No, it won’t and no, I’m still not interested.” The tall male strode on, annoyance clear on his face as he didn’t bother to show it. He was 25 now and had been living with the Cuff for going on five years, their unofficial leader for his quick temper, loud voice and strong fists. “I’m not in the mood, Amy. Go with the girls instead.”
“They’re getting ready for work.” Amy retorted, casting a quick glance at the other girls she had grown up with who were stripping off their daily clothes for a night’s cold work. “And I can’t find Meryn, so don’t suggest her next.”
“She and Cocelth are busy.” Darric replied without thinking, and then pulled a face as Amy latched onto his arm.
“Without me?”
“Obviously. I’m busy, Amy.”
Cocelth had cut her hair and buried her once-fine clothes. They had camped out in the forest for the night after Amy had taken the painting to the family who had hired her to get it for them, and brought back the blankets and food. They couldn’t return straight to the home of the Cuff with the Queen when it was so obvious, even to them, who she was. They needed a little time to teach Cocelth how not to walk tall and proud, talk with soft articulation and strip her of her ladylikeness. If she was to fit in, she needed to know how to slouch, slang her speech and swear with the best. At first they had argued with her for an hour once they were free from the castle, refusing to accept her idea of joining them - they couldn’t imagine such a thing ever working.
“You won’t survive.” Darric had finally snapped, all reserve for the one with royal birth worn away. “You’ll die of the cold and hunger and brutality of it all. You wouldn’t be able to cope.”
“I have nowhere else to go.” The girl now homeless had responded. “If you have any other ideas…?”
“We could get you by the border.” Meryn had suggested weakly. “…Get you to another town...?”
Her suggestion had been met with insults. Even the Queen knew it was impossible for simple civilians to leave the city for no reason at all. It would only bring attention to her and before she knew it she would be back at the castle and entirely too close to Randall’s clutches and this time they all knew, she would be killed without hesitation.
“I’m joining you.” Cocelth ordered. “You will tell your friends that I am your cousin.” She looked directly at Darric who had the same fine features. Under a layer of dirt, you could imagine somehow they were related.
“He’s not in our clan though.” Meryn had interjected, only to be met with shrugs.
“So I’ll join you.” Darric had suggested in a sudden decision. “If Cocelth is so intent on ruining her life more than it already had been… Then I should be there to lengthen her lifespan as much as possible. You wouldn’t be able to protect her.”
“And you could?”
“Together, we all could.”
From then on their clan had grown by two. They hadn’t caused as much as a whisper for there were always new people coming and going, and with Cocelth hovering behind the girls with Darric close to her back, no one got a good look at her face. Soon she was thinned and bony from the lack of food, and in her first month she caught the pox, which added marks and scars over her skin. She would never be recognised again for whom she once was, and from then on, she really was one of them. Now it was five years gone and she too had almost forgotten the life she had once known, too busy with planning where they’d get their next meal from.
She adapted to it better than they had guessed she would. Her weeks in captivity must have helped, giving her the knowledge that there were worse places than this, and as long as she got one visit a week to the waterfalls, she could cope. The others in the clan couldn’t understand why they still treated her delicately at times or why they gave her special preference but they let it slide, as long as it was Darric, Amy or Meryn missing out for her benefit instead of them.
She proved to be quite adapt at keeping watch and immediately understood how best to warn them if someone was coming, and also how to distract someone if someone suddenly nearly walked in on them, giving them all time to get away. She could also sew, crochet and knit, and wool and thread was easier to steal than clothes were. Rips in their clothes were soon fixed and within the first month they all had enough blankets for comfort. The clan accepted her well, she was more useful than she and the others had ever expected she could be.
She was never seen without one of the others though; favouring Meryn and Darric over Amy who had always shown her a little hostility for reasons which were obvious to them all, even the unfortunate Darric who tried to ignore it. Unfortunately, Amy wasn’t aware how obvious her affections were.
“What do you want, Amy?” Darric asked, sounding tired as he shifted boxes around to make more room at the back of their current home, located in a warehouse that had been vacant for months now. “As I said, I’m busy…”
“Do you ever think of the future, Darric?” Amy asked carefully, her words just a little too forced.
“What do you mean?”
The girl shrugged. “I don’t know. Like, in a year… are you still going to be here?”
“Who knows what’s going to happen next week, Amy.” Darric retorted and shot her a measured look. “What’s all this about?”
Amy shrugged. “Just wondering.” She paused. “What do you think of Larish?”
He looked up in confusion at the woman-for-hire, currently naked as she changed her clothes.
“Uhh, not much, really.” He replied truthfully and turned as she nodded thoughtfully.
“So if you had to pick anyone here-”
“For what?”
“Nothing. Anything?”
“Don’t be so ambiguous.” Darric finally sighed. “What do you want, Amy?”
“Am-big- ..?”
“Ambiguous. You’re being obscure with your words. Unclear. Quit it.” He paused, and then sighed in annoyance as she didn’t make any attempt to rephrase her questions. “Just say it, Amy. Just spit it out!”
“I don’t know what you mean, I’m only just-”
“Amy!”
“Fine! I want you to look at me the way you look at her.” she finally snapped, keeping her voice dangerously low, pointing at Meryn who had just returned home with Cocelth. They were throwing a blanket to the middle of the others and sharing a bread roll, laughing together over something. Darric barely flicked his gaze over to them.
“I don’t know what you mean.” He replied too quickly, in a tone too cold, “Don’t be ridiculous Amy.”
“I’ve seen it.” She protested. “You like-” her next words were covered by his rough gloved hand over her mouth.
“I do not, and I could never like a girl like you either.” He snapped harshly. “Go make yourself useful for once Amy, and forget all about this conversation.”
Amy didn’t bother to follow him as he stormed out of the room through a back broken window, and jumped as Meryn touched her shoulder.
“Everything okay?” she checked, her voice annoyingly carefree, and Amy shook her hand away.
“Don’t bother.” She snapped, and left through a different exit, leaving Cocelth and Meryn exchanging a tired look.
“That girl…” Meryn sighed to Cocelth who smiled briefly.
“Must take a lot’a energy to be that angry all the time.” Cocelth murmured; her once refined voice now anything but. “Should we follow her?”
“She can look after herself.” Meryn replied, without really answering the question. “We did well today.”
“We did, but aren’t we going out again?” they had only returned when they’d collected too much for them to carry easily, always having to plan as if they would have to run and then hide with whatever they were holding. “We could make it there and back again once more before they start packing away…”
“If you’re up to it.” Meryn agreed, and looked up at Darric clattered back in through where he had left, dragging three half full sacks with him. “… Darric? What are you doing?”
“Found these.” He hefted the up, and one spilled out sand freely. “I figured we could always use them for something.”
“Like what?” Meryn and Cocelth exchanged a look and then grinned. “You’re getting sand all over the place, Darric.”
“Pillows?” he suggested. “You seem to need a new one, if you were using my back as a pillow last night, Meryn.” He pointed out casually and Meryn ducked her head and turned away, pulling Cocelth with her.
“Whatever then. We’re going out again - they haven’t fixed up that fallen shade cloth so they’re still leaving half their stock unwatched. Are you coming? We can only fit in one more trip and who knows when we’ll find another market stall owner this stupid?” Meryn offered, and taking Cocelth by the arm they headed towards the door, Cocelth giggling over something quietly.
Darric left the sandbags in the corner and caught up to them easily, Amy watching from the dark corner she had snuck back to with a scowl and narrowed eyes. When had she become the outsider of them small group? How long had it been going on for, and she just hadn’t realised?
Without a second thought she followed them, an easy feat in such a crowd, and was disgusted to see that they were only taking blankets and pieces of cloth. What a grand adventure. With sudden determination she decided she’d find something bigger and better so she could prove that she could do better than that naive little Meryn ever could, with the precious little princess who had, for some reason, taken her as a best friend. That had once been Amy’s place. Not that she had cared at the time. She left the three at the stall and began to slip through the crowd in the opposite direction, towards the more expensive stalls. On second though she ducked into an alcove and turned her cloak inside out - the outside was quite dirty and could make it obvious she wasn’t meant to be there - and then she joined the crowds again, keeping close behind woman who looked like they could be her mother.
What could she take though? She ran her eyes over useless items, wondering why anyone who had money would ever waste it on them. Finally she decided on a set of bowls - they were hard to nick and could always be used. The fewer members of Cuff who had to use their hands for food the healthier, and it would prove just how useful she could be. Damn Darric and his snap of being useful for once, she’d show him.
It took an aggravating long time to find any number of bowls which were still tied together, it seemed like every stall wanted to spread them out to display them, which made it next to impossible to steal more than one at a time. The piece of cloth she usually wore as a scarf was almost in tatters from her nails before she finally came across a set, boring white and heavy looking, but they would have to do and were still better than another blanket. She waited until the stall was crowded and the sellers busy down the other end before she slipped the heavy set off the table and under it, where she then wrapped her scarf around it tightly while pretending to look interested in a set of tea cups. She was just about to melt back in the crowd when a couple shifted beside and knocked her by accident, the young lady tripping over the hem of her dress. There was an almighty crash as the bundle came lose in her hands and the bowls spindled out, the feeble cloth unable to hold them. Everyone froze, Amy for a few moments too long, and there was the cry for a guard before she’d even taken one step.
She turned and ducked away, trying to skid to the floor, but the gentleman beside her wasn’t the type to stand by and watch. He grabbed her firmly by the shoulders and hoisted her up as if she was a child - she was light enough after all - and within minutes she was in custody of palace guards.
“Stealing is a crime, child, and this isn’t the first time you’ve been caught for such.” She was told as they marched her along the busiest streets possible to the castle, so all could see and be warned not to try the same trick. She didn’t bother to protest that she wasn’t a child, too busy waiting for the slightest chance she could use to get away.
Near the opening of the markets she passed the stall of blankets again and still there was Meryn, Cocelth and Darric. They didn’t even see her for several long minutes, still slipping what they could in their pockets and up the backs of each other’s shirts. Finally, it was Cocelth who noticed what the raised noise levels meant and by the time Amy passed them they were all watching her, trying to look like they weren’t affected, but Darric was already talking to them both rapidly under his breath.
“Help me.” She mouthed to Meryn desperately, and looked away without confirmation, not wanting to see the reaction if it was negative. She let herself be taken to the palace and tuned out the voices and banter of the guards escorting her, hoping somehow she wouldn’t lose a hand over this. Or her life.