A Tale Of Two Tieflings

Chapter 7 - A New Home

(... In which we learn of how a young teen aged Valakas became connected with his allies and began his shady career...)

I had been waiting for this day for some time now. My bag was packed with what little I had; having outgrown the small burlap sack, my mother had eventually given me a blanket which I had stowed in there along with a bottle of wine (I had acquired a taste for the stuff myself), a small knife, and a few small pieces of food which I figured she wouldn't notice missing.

Everything was dark, though my vision allowed me to see fairly well in the dim light of the moon's glow, which trickled in through the window and the cracks around the door a little. I checked once again that I had everything, and as I clutched a piece of parchment in my hand, I made my way towards the door.

I stopped, looking back at the room, towards the bedroom I knew she was sleeping in and sighed, fixing the paper on the doorframe with a small nail, it didn't take much strength to push it into the already slightly soft wood, before taking my leave.

The stars twinkled above me, the moon big and round tonight, bathing the grass and shrubbery around me in a gentle glow, as I began to make my way down the path towards the city. Given a choice, I would have gone straight to the stables to be with Kathi and Torsten, but since their folks passed away a few months ago in the fire things have been difficult... I didn't want to be an imposition to them, and understood that taking me in would be a difficult thing to ask of them.

Walking until I reached the city I gave a nod to the guards posted at the outer gate and passed through, not sure exactly where I was going but anywhere would be better than going back. I eventually found a quiet alley with enough room to set myself up, and tried to get some rest. It was no more uncomfortable than the house I had just come from, and at least here I hopefully wouldn't wake to my mother's insults.

Would she miss me? Would she come looking? Would she even realise I was gone? I decided yes to the last question, as now she would have to source her own wine supply instead of relying on my ability to slip bottles away from unsuspecting traders.

For the next few weeks, I survived off of whatever scraps I could steal, using the same techniques I had learned through acquiring the bottles of wine to slip various items of food away from traders, stalls and the like. It wasn't the most comfortable living conditions, but it was so much more free than I'd ever felt. Those who saw me on the streets gave me disdainful looks, particularly anyone in nicer clothing or merchants and shopkeepers, but I learned to ignore this and I focused instead on getting by each day. Though eventually I began to struggle, as the guards started haunting my usual spots, and the thieving became more difficult. On one particular afternoon, a guard even tried to grab me after catching me red-handed with a small piece of stolen fruit, but despite him almost getting a hold of the end of my tail I managed to give him the slip, and ran faster than I thought I ever could, feeling starved of oxygen when I finally stopped on the other side of the city. I found a street with little footfall to sit and eat, though it was nothing more than a few bites I had managed to successfully acquire today, and my stomach was not satisfied with this.

It was going to take me ages to find my way back to my blanket in the alley, and the evening was already drawing to a close as winter sucked the sun from the sky so much quicker than usual. I rubbed my hands together, crossing my arms in front of me as I walked slowly back in the direction of my makeshift home, as if to trap the heat I had inside of my chest.

As I continued through the cobbled streets, passing a dingy looking tavern with an old man smoking a pipe outside, the warm glow of the tavern lights and the sounds of laughter from within made me feel somehow colder and more alone than usual.