Truly Me

|| Cassidy Miller ||

Her footsteps rang in her ears. She was so conscious of every sound she made, that she was quite sure she'd almost lost her sanity. Her cloak flew behind her while she walked through the streets at a quick pace. Her pockets were full of stolen money, clinging to each other with each of her light steps. 

The moment she was away from the dangerous zone of the mansion and back to the safety of the village, she threw off her hood and stared into a window of a shop. Her reflection looked back at her and a small grin played on her lips. How she loved changing her face. This time she chose a round face, with a small nose and thin, chapped lips. She had changed her hair into deep brown, messy curls. Nothing like Cassidy truly looked, but not that anyone would know. She never showed her true face, to anyone. What's the point of trusting someone that much? When there was such a big chance for them to betray her. 

No, Cassidy Miller would never trust someone again like that, not what happened last time. She closed her eyes against the memory. It may seem like she didn't care, about anyone or anything, but deep inside her, she did have feelings. She did have a heart. Hidden beneath all those layers of other creatures and faces she turned into, Cassidy had feelings she didn't like to express. Wouldn't get her any farther anyway. 

Chatter sounded from her right and Cassidy's head snapped towards the sound. But before she could take a good guess of how many people were coming her way, the sounds of clattering hooves came from her other side, it was coming from the mansion. Cassidy cursed under her breath. So the owner of the mansion had seen her when she sneaked away. Soon her made-up face would be all over the village, hanging on wanted posters. "That's what you get when you steal from the richest person in the village." She murmured, scolding herself for not being more careful.

Both sounds came closer. Cassidy lowered her head a little, not taking risk of getting caught again. Soon she felt her face shift and change. After a few seconds, she looked back at her reflection. This time, a blonde girl stared back, a friendly smile plastered on her face. She adjusted her cloak and walked away. The sound of the horses came closer and two people on horses stopped in front of her. 

Cassidy looked up. "Hello Miss, have you seen this girl by any chance?" One asked, leaning forward to show her a poster. As she predicted, the brown-haired girl with the chapped lips was on it. Ten thousand dollars rewarding if someone found her, dear Lord. She studied the poster as if she was truly thinking about whether Cassidy had seen this girl or not. "No, I'm afraid not, officer. I hope you find her." She shook her head and smiled. "Thank you, Miss, have a good day." The officer nodded and they stormed off again, leaving Cassidy with a grin on one of her many faces.

~~~

I blinked my eyes against the bright morning light. I groaned and sat upright. "Waking up this early can't be good for anyone," I murmured under my breath while rising from my bed. I walked out of my little bedroom to my small house's living room. It wasn't much, but it was cosy. And between my house and humanity was a good distance, what's probably best for everyone. I took my teapot from its shelf and filled it with water. While humming a little song, I placed it on the stove and let the water boil. I leaned against my counter, staring outside the window to only find trees and trees and even more trees. People would kill for a house like this, in a place like this. No literally, they would. They already tried. Not that they stand a chance, or so my ego likes to tell me. 

The wheezing sound of my teapot snapped me out of my thoughts. I turned off the stove and fill a cup with some hot water. After I added some rosemary petals, I walked to the bathroom while my tea cools down a little. No need to burn my mouth. My hands leaned against the sink and a small smile played on my lips. The only thing that ever saw my true face was my mirror. And my parents, of course, I started hiding my face after they got murdered. 

My long, straight black hair was in a bun on my head. I always loved my high cheekbones and my friendly round face. My blue eyes sprung out of my slightly tanned face. Freckles were settled all over my nose, so if I blush I look like a damn strawberry. I quickly brushed my hair and walked back to my tea. I grabbed the cup and walked out of the front door to sit on my porch swing. I sighed, staring into the forest my house was surrounded by. Besides that I'm alone all the time, my life isn't that bad. I'm enjoying myself ultimately.

I walked through the streets of the village, my cloak shielding my new face from the people around me. My eyes scanned the streets around me. In one corner were people fighting, as usual. On my other side, I saw men staring at women passing by. I rolled my eyes, men and their motives are so predictable. I stared forward again, my feet automatically leading me to the crowded square. The weekly market is the perfect day for me to steal. All the people are so focused on what to buy, that they don't pay attention to their pockets. Before I mingled myself into the crowd, I checked my gear. A knife was hidden in my high boots, a dagger sheathed against my thigh. I had left my sword at home, it would attract too much attention. 

After I gave myself a little motivational talk, I pushed myself through the people, skillfully grabbing some money with me. Like always, no one noticed me. I was like a shadow in the bright daylight. After my pockets were full, I nodded satisfied and grabbed an apple from a stand. The man yelled at me but quickly shut his mouth when I flipped a coin towards him. My day couldn't get any better.

It was slowly getting dark, the light of the low sun glimmered on my freshly changed face. Not taking any risks today, I'm not in the mood to get chased like a bunny if someone does miss their money. I looked at the open fields on the other side of the village. I loved that field. My shapeshifting powers didn't stop at just faces, I could transform into anything if I wanted to. But changing faces was the easiest thing to do, it didn't cost energy and only the slightest concentration. Changing into animals was harder, but even that depended on what animal. Not entirely on the size, but also what kind of connection I felt towards it. Running through that field as a wolf was definitely a core memory. I looked back towards the sun, closing my eyes to enjoy the warmth of it. Suddenly I bumped into someone. I almost fell backwards, but quickly recovered. My eyes snapped open. A young male looked back at me, his brow slightly raised. His dark brown hair curled onto his forehead. His skin was slightly tanned like mine. He was tall, as in really really tall. And don't get me started on his jawline, I'm sure that thing is boosting his ego.
He was beautiful, and it annoyed me.