She wandered around the streets, her cane in hand, bumping into people occasionally bumping into people in order to keep up her act. Some people were nice, others not so much. but despite this she continued on her way. Plucking pockets here and there, walking away before anyone noticed and acting like she was a lost, blind, teenage girl.
Her act had become outstanding over the years. People had held weapons to her, groped her, beat her and all the while she had learned to act like she couldn't see it coming, because that was her greatest weapon. Her eyes. Her pale, ghostly eyes. They were her key to success.
"Watch it bitch!" A man yelled as she bumped into him and carefully picked the small pouch of coins from his pocket.
She ignored him, stumbling away and acting like she had been thrown off her course. When the man saw this, he shut up quickly, like all of them did. Feeling bad for yelling at the poor blind girl. She had to suppress an eye roll.
Then once she was far enough away, she slunk down a small ally and carefully pulled the bag of coins from her sleeve where she had hidden it. Tipping the contents out into her hand, she began counting while adding each coin into her own coin pouch and discarded the other one. It wasn't as much as she would've like, but at least now she could afford to eat.
With a sigh she picked up her cane and spread a little more dust over her green and white robes. Hoping that it would make her seem even more pathetic than she already did. In all honesty she hated her life. Living a lie just to get by and survive, all because her parents thought a white eyes baby was a curse. She hated acting weak. She hated being looked down on. Yet that was the situation she created for herself. That was the only way she knew how to live. She didn't know how to be herself, to show her true colours. It wouldn't change anything anyway. No one cared about kids like her.
Again, she hobbled along. Getting further into the town before picking out her next target. Distantly she noticed a man waving a pouch in front of a vender's nose and could practically hear the clinking of coins from where she stood on the other end of the street. From the roundness of the pouch, it looked like a lot. But the man didn't wear rich people's clothes, actually he looked quite disgusting, but money was money. A-Qing didn't care if he had sold his eldest child for it because she knew if she got her hands on it, it would change her whole month.
She stumbled forward, edging closer and closer to the man until a flash of red and black caught her attention. Subtly she changed her gaze to get a better view of whatever it was that had distracted her and almost yelped with excitement when she saw the two cultivators chatting happily as they walked out of a bar. Screw child selling money! Cultivator money would change her whole life!
Trying to hide the greedy grin, A-Qing changed her direction and headed towards the two men. Watching them closely while trying to locate where they would keep their money. The older of the two, with long hair cascading down his back seemed to be talking to the younger one about something serious. Or that was what the girl guessed by the expression on the teenage boy's face. Then the older man said something else and suddenly they both burst into laughter, making everyone around stare at them strangely.
A-Qing paused at the sudden attention on them and feigned tripping to excuse her sudden stopping of motion. No one speared her a glance though. They all turned back to what they were doing, while the two cultivators continued giggling together. After a moment or two of putting on a show stopping act of feeling for her cane, A-Qing got to her feet with uncertainty and again scanned the two men for their pouches. Spotting a rather large black one wrapped around the older man's wrist. Easy...
Again, hiding her smirk, A-Qing made her way over to them. Then once she was close enough, she tripped herself forward, straight into the older cultivator's arms.
"I-I'm so sorry!" She yelped again putting on a show of trying to get her feet under her while the man held her up. "This stupid ground is so difficult to manoeuvre!"
"It's alright, take your time." The man said gently, still holding her even as she continued her little act. "Are you up now?" He asked once she was standing.
"Y-Yes thank you... Ugh, do you see my cane anywhere?" She again acted like she was going to kneel down to search for it, but the man stopped her by putting his hand on her shoulder.
"My disciple has it. Xue Yang, please give this young lady her cane." He said.
A-Qing looked straight ahead, even as the young man held out her cane, and hovered her hand back and forth as if feeling for it.
"It's just here." The young man said, grabbing her hand and wrapping her fingers around the stick.
"Oh, thank you." She smiled gratefully; her gaze still fixed on one spot. "I shall be off then."
With that she began stumbling away, mixing into the crowd skilfully so that the men couldn't track her.
---<~>---
"Shall we be off then, Shifu?" Xue Yang asked Wei Ying once the girl had disappeared from sight.
Wei Ying, however, didn't answer. He was too preoccupied patting his body down evidently in search of something.
"Shifu?"
Wei Ying chuckled softly rubbing his head in disbelief, before turning to Xue Yang with an apologetic expression.
"What did you do?" Xue Yang groaned, knowing that look and dreading whatever it was. Wei Ying laughed again.
"It seems that, that young girl may have stolen our money." Wei Ying said a smile still tugging his lips but panic evident in his eyes. Xue Yang knew why, if Wen Qing or Xuanyu found out they were dead.
"For fucks sake!" Xue Yang yelled and again everyone looked at them with annoyed expressions. "Oh, fuck off!"