‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙
"Your name?" I glared down at the man who was filing away at papers, his spotty hands were trembling, probably riddled with arthritis. I pinched my lips together, obliging him with silence as he continued to work away. I was pretty sure he was filing just to keep himself busy. I had seen him shuffle some folders around three times now.
"Ma'am?" he asked, finally looking up at me. Recognition flickered in his eyes yet he still asked. "Name?"
"Don't you know it by now, Martin?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. I'd been here nearly every day for the past five months. A breeze flew through the little crack in the window and I shuddered, pulling my scarf tighter around my neck. I curled my toes in my boots, trying to keep them as far away from the holes as possible.
"Protocol," he grumbled, tapping at the sign on the little support beam above him, where a chain-link wall was working as a border between us. At first I had found the border annoying, but now I found it wise, considering there was little restraint in me anymore that was holding me back from lunging at him.
"Okay fine," I said, giving him the finger behind my back. "Eira Arethusa Gellert."
"Age?" I sighed sharply through my nose. He asked these questions every single time. We should have been very close friends at that point, honestly. In fact, I started wondering if I should start bringing tea, we could gossip about the latest scandal, spread rumors on that new family that moved in down the road. I mean, it wouldn't have been the worst idea. I was rather short on friendly faces nowadays.
"Eighteen," I said, and then continued on when I saw his mouth open to reply. "I live in Gellert House, two blocks down from here. My sister is a commander in the war and I live alone. No parents, no family whatsoever. And no...no job."
"And have you had any work the last two weeks?" he asked this question every time too, but the repetitiveness of it didn't make me want to punch him in the jaw any less.
"Of course not, Martin," I said, leaning forward, my hip pressing into the counter. I winced, my bone was jutting through the skin, more than what it felt like it had before. This didn't come as a surprise. "If I had, I wouldn't be here."
"Well, the Department of Employment apologies for the inconvenience, and we will alert you when a job opens up," he said, already moving to put up the sign that said 'Off to Lunch', he did that after I saw him most days, as if after interacting with me he couldn't handle anyone else.
"Are you sure there are no jobs coming in?" I asked. "I don't care if they don't meet my requirements, I just...I need one." I heard the man behind me cough loudly and I shot him a glare. I was here first.
"No. As I said before, we will tell you when a job opens up." He tapped his sausage fingers on the desk and the sound went straight to my head, where a headache was already blooming along my temples.
"Martin I don't have long to wait for you to tell me when a job opens up. I'm almost nineteen." He looked up at me with a bored expression. "Please, I don't have long before I'm forced to start paying taxes and then I won't have any option but to join the army." I shuddered at the thought. I could not join the army, I wasn't strong, had no survival skills outside of this measly village. I'd be the first to die out on a battlefield. Sure, Tellie had taught me some basic skills, but not enough to kill, not enough to become a soldier.
"There are always other options, Miss Gellert," Martin said slowly. He inclined his head to the side and I felt my stomach twist. I knew what he was looking at, yet my gaze still drifted to the window. The Department of Employments building, where one looked for a job, was right outside of a dark alleyway. An infamous alleway. I saw a man enter the alley, and stop right before a woman, trembling in nothing but her underthings. She looked dirty...tired....desperate.
"Don't," I said, turning back to look at him. "I won't give up my dignity like that." I knew that the women, prostitutes, had no choice. Most of them were more desperate than I was, a lot more, if they felt the need to give up their bodies for money. But they were the scum of the earth in this town. If one was a prostitute, they could pretty much give up every ounce of respect as a human being they had.
"I'm just saying." Martin gave me a slow, toothy grin and I swallowed down the urge to vomit. I probably would have spewed all over him if I had anything in my stomach to vomit up. My hands clenched at my sides, nails biting into my skin. Cold flared under my skin and I had the urge to slam my hands against the border between us and tug and tug until I ripped it from the wall.
"Miss Gellert, if you have no other requests, then I must ask you to leave." He rested his chin on the back of his hands and the gesture made a low growl form in the back of my throat. How dare he.
"Go to fucking hell, Martin." I did slam my fist against the metal. It made the border rattle loudly, and the other Employment Officers in their little cubicles glance over at me. I gave them all the finger before turning away sharply. I let my shoulder shove into the man who had coughed at me before and he stumbled slightly. Take that, asshole.
I bounded out of the depressing building and into the chill air outside. Once I was outside, the adrenaline faded out of my body and I wheezed, bracing my hands on my knees. I couldn't remember the last time I had eaten. I was always so, so hungry nowadays. But I couldn't buy anything. Tellie had promised me that she'd send back money every month, but I had only received three payments in the five months she'd been away. I had been rationing that money but I had only a few coins left. My body had felt the toll. I had lost any softness to me, now I was all bony elbows and sharp edges. My cheeks were hollow, my wrists so thin they looked like they could snap in a strong wind. I had written to Tellie about it but she hadn't gotten back to me. I tried not to let my worry eat away at me, the hunger was a stronger worry though, it kept the anxiety away.
People milling around the Employment building eyed me, some gave me sympathetic looks, others gave me a disgusted look, eyeing me wheeze. I would have given them the finger too if I had the energy. I slowly uncurled from my position and braced my hands on my hips. I could do this. I just had to walk home.
I shuffled onward, bracing myself against the cold wind. It was supposed to be spring here, the temperatures were supposed to be warming up. But instead...it was getting colder. There had been about a ten degree drop since winter, and while everyone was groaning about it, no one had an explanation. Some of the town officials sent word to the people in the central cities but they hadn't responded.
I walked by a group of kids playing some sort of game and my heart reached out to them. What I wouldn't give to live like that again. To be young and carefree. To have a mother and father to take care of me. It would have been bliss.
"Hey, sweet thing. Why don't you try a smile?"someone called. I felt my cheeks heat and my breath stop in my throat. I was in a somewhat deserted part of the town, in a place where it was mostly empty buildings, rotting and caving in on themselves. There was a warehouse near here, tall and looming and unused for years. Maybe I could run there and-
"Hey! Did you hear me, girl?" The voice came closer now and I turned to see a man leaning against the wall of a crumbling building. He had a bottle in his hand, half covered by a brown bag. A lousy job of concealing alcohol. He looked scruffy, dirty, his beard was long and untrimmed, and his clothes were riddled with holes and lazy patches to cover those holes.
I ignored the man and continued walking. I was taking the shortcut home, considering I didn't have the strength to go the long way. I hopped over what looked like a shoe and saw a rats tail scurry inside. Looks like the rats had found a home, it was probably in better shape than mine was.
"I said, did you hear me?" a voice said. Suddenly a hand was gripping my arm and spinning me around. I gasped as my arm felt like it was being wrenched out of its socket. I looked up to see I was inches away from the drunken mans face. And yes, he somehow managed to smell a lot worse than he looked. And he looked like death. He pinned my body to his, one hand on my wrist, the other on my hip. I felt nausea bubbled in my throat as his fingers massaged my hip, travelling downward to feel me up.
"Get off of me, you pig!" I said, trying to pull out of his grip. But the damn drunk was strong. He only snickered as he held me closer, his rank breath skittered across my face and I gagged, pinching my lips together to keep myself from vomiting.
"I'm going to make you pay for ignoring me, girl," he said, leaning closer. I felt his rough beard brush my cheek and I swallowed hard. "Didn't your parents tell you to respect your elders?" He chuckled, revealing a wholesome set of four very yellow teeth. And that was when I decided I had had enough.
"Yes, they did," I said. And then I slammed my foot down onto his boot, making sure my heel connected at the spot where the bones of his toes linked. Tellie's words of self-defence rung through my head as I twisted my arm out of his grip in a stealth motion. I would have left him there had he not reached for me again. But alas, I wasn't going to let him hurt someone else. I sighed sharply and whipped out the knife from my boot. With a cry, I reached up and sliced at his cheek, making him hiss. I then flipped over the weapon and slammed the hilt into his throat. He choked and spluttered and I sent my foot careening into his stomach. With a final war cry, I sent the wooden hilt into his jaw. I heard a sickening crunch and then he fell to the side, crumpling to the ground.
"My parents did tell me to respect my elders, right after they told me to beat the shit out of anyone who threatened me," I gasped, breathing heavily in short wheezes.
Once I was sure that he was unconscious and hadn't moved for at least two minutes, I let myself breathe. Well...I let myself panic. I braced my hands on my knees and breathed deeply, raking my hands over my thighs as I tried to get control of myself. I could've been hurt. Worse, I could've been raped or killed. I hunched over and heaved, puking up nothing but air. My temples throbbed and I felt tears dribble down my cheeks. I reached up in surprise, wiping one away, I hadn't realized I started crying.
"I'd suggest you don't cry any tears over that man. He's hurt a lot of people, you're the first one to do anything," a woman's voice said. I turned around, baring my knife once again to see nothing more than a hag leaning against the wall in the corner. She was hunched in on herself, wrapped up in a dark cloak. "In fact, I think you should be celebrating."
"Yeah, you bet. I'll celebrate with a tall glass of red wine, which I definitely keep in my wine cellar," I said, shooting her a look. The woman let out a loud laugh, more of a cackle really. She wrapped her cloak tighter around herself, taking a step towards me. Although she looked about ready to keel over in a strong wind, her eyes were inquisitive. Dark. Like she held a million answers in their depths. Most old people that I saw didn't have eyes like that, they were always wethered and foggy.
"Make sure to invite me, I'll bring some roasted vegetables and brandy." She winked at me and I chuckled. My stomach groaned though, no doubt whining at the image of fine food the woman popped into my head. When was the last time I ate again? I couldn't remember. "When was the last time you ate, girl?" Her white brows furrowed in concern but I only shook my head, breathing heavy at how suddenly lightheaded I had gotten.
"A while," I said, wiping at my brow. "I've got to get home. Are you going to be okay with-" I gestured to the man with my dagger. The woman only chuckled, clasping her hands together.
"Oh yeah, he knows not to mess with me," she said. I felt my brows raise in surprise. Wasn't a little old lady supposed to be the prime target for someone like him? Someone who prayed on the weak, people easy to doubt, like women. Like me. I hated being underestimated. Simply being a female made others doubt me, certainly being as skinny as a stringbean was no help. Hopefully I showed that man that some women may look weak, but not all of us cower away, some of us fight.
"Well then, have a goodnight," I said. I didn't turn my back on her, only angled myself so that she was in my peripheral vision as I tried to get out of the alley. I was shockingly cold now, despite my body thrumming with the warmth of adrenaline before. Not to mention I was feeling drained, the little episode had taken a lot out of me. And my wrist ached too. Damn, it was probably going to bruise.
"Wait," the woman called. I hesitated, but stopped walking. My fingers tightened around my knife hilt, which I had deftly tucked into the sleeve of my cloak. In closer reach than it was in my boot, but still hidden. I turned towards her to see she was much closer than she had been before. This close to her I almost gasped. She looked...really old. Her skin was extremely wrinkled and sagged and she was riddled with spots and moles. Hairy moles. I tried not to let my shudder or the disgust on my face show.
"Are you alright?" I asked. My fingers tightened on the dagger again, the thick wood biting into my skin. I knew I probably shouldn't have felt threatened by such an old woman, but something about her...something about her made me feel like I should have been weary, should stay on my toes. Something about her felt dangerous.
"I'm working with a sort of...homeless shelter," she said. Her lips slipped up to reveal only two teeth. Two less than that man. Well, hers looked less yellow at least.
"A homeless shelter?" I asked, my brow scrunching. I wasn't even aware that we had one of those in this town. If we did, I'm sure a lot of people would've been flocking to it for resources. Since a lot of people weren't capable of going into the army or getting a job, they ended up homeless. The only way to stay out of the army was to have a job. If you were nineteen and didn't have a job, you were required to go into the army, which was what happened to Tellie. And soon to me. Anyone who lost their job after they turned nineteen also had to go, as long as they met the health requirements. And the requirements to join the army were so lengthy and specific that a lot of people didn't meet it, and since jobs were in such high demand to keep people out of the army, those who couldn't have either ended up without any money.
"Yes, a homeless shelter. We have a warm place to sleep and food and water. It's nothing close to luxury, I assure you, but after seeing you take a piece out of that asshole, I feel like I owe you some comfort." The offer was tempting, really, I was in desperate need of any type of warmth or food. But I didn't know this woman, she was a stranger, albeit a kind stranger, but a stranger nevertheless.
"Thank you, but-"
"Do you have somewhere else to go?" she asked. "Somewhere that can supply you with food? I'm not blind, girl, this whole town is starving, but you look a lot worse off than the rest of these measly villagers." I sucked in a sharp breath. She wasn't wrong. I had lot so much weight recently. And I was so...so freaking hungry.
"You're not going to kidnap or sell me to some rich man to become a sex slave?" I asked. Hunger made people do some reckless things. And this was reckless, and I was freaking hungry, so it made sense.
"'Course not, that would take too much effort," she said, turning and beckoning for me to follow. I trailed after her slow, shuffling pace. "And if you really feel uncomfortable, I'll let you untuck that knife from your sleeve." She chuckled and I felt my face heat. I thought I had been discrete when I hid it.
She led me deeper into the ruined buildings. I found myself getting more tired as I was forced to hop over trash and broken glass. I had lost count of how many rats had scurried across our path. One had even scampered over my boots. I was desperately trying not to think about that. We were getting into a part of the cluster of buildings that looked like it was a place where even the homeless would stay away from. I gave the woman a wary look but she only shuffled forward, the only noise was her feet scraping against the ground.
Eventually, she led me up to what was the infamous crumbling warehouse. It was on the outskirts of the town, and people would gape up at it as they walked by, others would groan about how it needed to be redone, but would do nothing about it. As kids, we used to dare others to go run up and get to the roof and wave down but no one ever was brave enough. Also because of the fact that the warehouse didn't have a roof, so it'd be an impossible task. The roof had long since rotted and collapsed.
"Come along, girl," the woman said. She walked straight into a back entrance of the warehouse, not even waiting for me. The door slammed shut behind her and I could only gape. No way. When I was younger I had nightmares about this place, I never thought I'd actually be going in here. Sucking in a sharp breath, I tugged open the door and walked inside. Cold air blasted right through my thin clothes the moment I stepped inside and I hissed, wrapping my arms tight around myself.
"I told you to come along, not dilly dally" the woman said, clucking with her tongue.
"Are you sure we're in the right place?" I asked. The warehouse was dark, full of nothing but empty space. Tall concrete structures keeping the ceiling from falling down were the only things filling up the space. Puddles were on the ground, along with some pieces of trash and papers, discarded things. I saw a few rats scurry across the ground and I grimaced. If I encountered another rat again I might just scream.
"Do...do you have a name?" I asked, hopping over what appeared to be some sort of doll. It's face was cracked open and one of the eyes was on the ground next to its head. It probably mattered quite a bit to some little child at one point, but I doubted that child remembered it now. Or if they'd even care about what state it was in now.
"I do," she said, sniffing loudly. The noise echoed across the warehouse with all of its empty space.
I felt instantly awkward. I scratched at the back of my neck. "And what is-"
"Esmerelda," she said. "But I prefer not to sound like a posh bitch, so people call me Elda." She hobbled off and I followed, shivering in the cold. "It gets a bit dark here so watch your step." She suddenly stepped downwards and I heard myself gasp. I hadn't realized there was a staircase there, it really was that dark. There was no staircase, so I just went by touch as I walked downwards. I felt my body grow tense as I was submerged by darkness. My hand went to my dagger and I slipped it out into my hand. This would be the perfect place to get mugged or killed.
"Oh relax, if I wanted to kill you I would've had some fun with it. Doing it in a dark corridor is so outdated," Elda called out. I felt my eyes go wide in the dark. Had she heard my thoughts? No that'd be impossible, she was probably just a realist like me. Saw an opportunity. Didn't act on it though...thank the Gods.
Suddenly, there was a crack of light and then more, more, more. A door was being opened at the bottom of the staircase. The light illuminated me enough that I could see I was a little more than halfway down. Elda was at the bottom, holding open the door. "Come on, I'm not your slave, don't expect me to hold open doors for you."
"Right," I muttered. I jogged down the rest of the way, even though it made my knees bark with the effort. I didn't do a lot of physical activity anymore. Marc was always the one who got me to go out for walks or swimming at the lake. After he left and my sister and Heather were sent away, I didn't have the energy to do anything. I spent most of my time doing calligraphy. Well...as much calligraphy as I could afford. I didn't have the money to spend on resources for it, but I did sometimes manage to snag the position of poster-maker for some of the town's business advertisements. Other times I got to make invitations to weddings, but those jobs were rare. I loved to write calligraphy, my steadyhand from painting was perfect for it. Also, it was just so calming, therapeutic even.
Elda didn't hold the door open for me and instead slid in first. I followed after her, dagger tucked behind my back. Once in the light I let out a gasp. This place was so warm. Heat encompassed me like a caress and I sighed. I hadn't felt warm in so long.
"Welcome to the Underground, Eira," Elda said. The Underground looked like a large hang out place, that was the best way to describe it. It was a large open area, sort of like a basement, all made up of wood and...tree trunks? Yes, those pillars to keep the ceiling up were tree trunks. There were doors on the left and right walls. I didn't know where the doors led, but they could've been rooms for other people, not that I saw anyone else here. The entire space was empty, although it felt like it shouldn't have been. The space appeared like it was meant to accommodate people.
There was a a large kitchen in one corner and a pool table in the middle. In one corner was a couch with a little bookshelf. A reading nook. This place was oddly homey, as if the person decorating it wanted to make it feel like a real comforting home. It was much of an upgrade from my little cabin, which was full of nothing but drafts, dust mites, and depression.
"There's food on the counter, and your room should be right over there." Elda pointed to a door next to the reading nook. It was nothing special, just a plain dark door. "Make yourself at home, breakfast is at six. I'll expect you awake before then." She headed off to what looked like another room, but I called out to her before she could slip away.
"I wanted to thank you," I said. "For everything." She looked back at me, a dangerous twinkle in her eye that had me hesitating.
"I'll see you in the morning. After I say what I have to say then you can thank me. Eat, rest, enjoy yourself." She slipped into the room and I tried to see what was beyond the door but it was too dark. I glanced around the room once more and let out a tiny squeal. This was real. All this because someone decided to take mercy on me. Maybe the gods were listening after all. Or maybe the universe had decided I had had enough suffering for a single person.
I went to the kitchen and practically devoured the food that was there. There was a plate waiting for me, one that had steaming chicken and potatoes and actual roasted vegetables. I practically wolfed down the whole thing and chugged down the tea that was next to it. I almost cried after I finished. I had never had a meal so good.
Once I was done I realized how exhausted I was. Now that I wasn't uptight from hunger or cold, my body was stretched thin. I yawned as I walked over to my room. I opened the door quietly, expecting something to jump out at me, but nothing did. I opened the door wider to see a reasonable sized room with a small white bed and a dresser. There was a bath and bathing stuff next to it. Everything I'd need and more.
I did a quick scan of the room, checking behind the dresser, under the bed, in the bathtub. Once I determined it was all good, I locked the door and practically pounced onto the bed. It wasn't large, but it was soft and warm and so much more comforting than my bed back home. It was perfect.
Despite the strange settings, my body didn't hesitate or stay awake out of fear. Once my head hit the pillow I was asleep. I was too far gone to care, but I had been on the cusp of sleep when I realized one very important thing.
Elda had said my name even though I hadn't told it to her yet.