Magic and Gold

4: Scrap

I left the throne room, magic glowing in my hands up to my elbows. I would need it tonight.

That night, I changed into dark clothes. Black long sleeved top with black gloves to cover my glowing forearms and perfect nails. Tight black pants and tall lace up boots of broken in dark brown leather and buckles. All so I could walk through the city after dark. After I was ready, I pried back the panel in my wall, hidden behind the curtain, that opened into a servants' passage. It was mostly unused because everyone knew I hated maids going into my room from anywhere other than the hallway. I appreciated them knocking on my door because I was so easily scared when they just appeared in my room.

I walked down the gloomy stairs into the damp, dusty air. Night was my least favorite time, but I endured for the sake of freedom. I pulled my black cloak over my head, letting it trail down past my feet and pulling it around my arms. It covered my blonde hair which was pulled back into a tight bun at the nape of my neck. I secured a mask over my face. Black as the rest of my ensemble, it covered the area around my eyes, nose, and down my entire right cheek. It had subtle silver swirls over it, forming into points near my temples and on my cheek.

Around here, no one cared what you wanted to wear. People with higher magic allotments could change their face into anything they wanted it to look like. Nearly everyone believed I had altered my normal face with my unlimited magic, but the truth was that my heritage consisted of generations of marriages based on one thing: beauty. I was a prized show horse born into the box of conventional beauty. Not that I minded. Plenty of people used magic to make themselves perfect, sometimes even basing their face off of mine, which was seriously creepy.

With perfect people walking around the streets, no one really wanted to look like themselves. Soon, people's true faces became a secret. They donned cloaks and masks so that everyone could look exactly how they wanted, magic or no. Often they were more colorful, but I went with black. The acceptance of masks was extremely beneficial for my own plans. I could have used a lot of magic to disguise myself each night, but that would be a waste. Now, when I wore the outfit, I became a different person. Even a princess could blend into the crowds and shadows of the city.

A wolf in sheep's clothing. Or perhaps a sheep in a world of wolves.

I picked up a small crate of apples and slipped out of the servants' door without raising any suspicions. I did this often, so I had my own routines. I had spent a lot of time figuring out what worked and what did not. Figuring how to get out was much easier than getting in.

I took my usual way through the city. Lots of small backroads used for transportation of food. I stopped here and there, trying to draw minimal attention to myself while improving a few lives in such a small way. I gave out a few apples to the starving along the streets. Once I saw an ailing dragon sitting on the lap of a bereft owner, pleading with people on the street. The dragon was such a small thing, with lime green scales and wings that would be unable to take flight. I crouched down next to them, placing my thumb on the dragon's head and sharing a drop of magic. The tiny thing perked up, walking around as the owner thanked me. Sometimes people just ran out of magic. Dragons and on occasion a magical wolf, suffered dearly because of the city's poverty.

I eventually made it to my destination. A small, deserted restaurant at the end of a dead end street. Most people could not afford to eat out, so this diner had gone out of business and no one had come back to claim the land. I went in and headed straight for the kitchen. Where the pantry used to be was a dark hole with stairs leading down into it. I walked down the stairs carefully, glad I traded heels for boots. I set down my crate and walked in darkness down the hallway until I found what I was looking for along the right wall: a door handle. I opened the door and blinked at the soft light before walking in.