Gift Of Justice #NaNoWriMo2k18

Chapter 1

The air was musty, tinged with the fragrance of the blooming lavender as he stepped out of the room. He immediately noticed the brightness of the sky with the lack of a speck of white, and groaned internally - clear days meant sunlight, sunlight meant heat, heat and summer was not a good combination. With a hint of annoyance he trudged down the pebble paved road cautiously, leather sandals creating a quiet crunch whenever he stepped down. A loud woot caused someone to hit him across the back, forcing him to grab whoever it was to stop slipping. A tumble of messy brown hair flashed before him, with wild but apologetic eyes.

"Sorry Niel!" A random boy shouted over his shoulder as he skid down the slope, jumped over the signpost and dashed off to heaven knows where.

"Hey!" He tried yelling after them, running a little riskily as a few people look up from their routine activities to survey what was going on. "How the hell do you even know my name?"

If he heard, the boy didn't answer. He disappeared around the bend and he slowed down, giving up on the chase. With a sigh, he turned around and headed in the opposite direction with a frown. The frown stayed on his face when he approached the local merchant and slipped into view at the table. He ignored their slightly predatory gaze as he surveyed the wares.

"Do you have any more of the silver bracelets from last year? The chain ones with the multi coloured gemstones?"

"Ah, no, not at this time. We do have silver bangles, anklets and bangles -"

"Yeah, no. Thanks though."

He turned away from the merchant's miffed face and continued walking, spinning the red pouch of coins on his finger as he eyed up the other shops around the area. He was tempted to try the marketplace, but the usually rowdiness and fights, as well as the shady shopkeepers with the too wide grins who stole more than they sold made it less than ideal.

After wandering around for some time longer, he gave up and decided to simply head home instead. He brushed past the shops lining the streets on either side like cold, unmovable walls, lifeless save for their colour and the inhabitants. On the street below, shops crammed side by side as people frantically shouted and screamed for attention, causing a raucous that frequently gave him tinnitus from prolonged exposure. Above, families were often stacked in three as a time like rows of a cake, one on top of the other. The denser parts of the city were worse, with up to five families in every block and nearly no space to breathe on the streets due to the houses practically touching each other. A dog ran past him to its owner, its barking barely heard above everything else. Someone threw a pot from upstairs and he leapt out of the way as it shattered on the ground, followed by a roar from whoever dropped it. He hastened his pace, eager to leave this place as soon as possible. The air was stiffing hot, and the packed bodies made it feel like he was being blasted in a furnace.

Eventually though, after navigating the crowd for several minutes, the houses began to shrink, along with the masses. Able to breathe freely again, he wiped the sweat off his face and continued walking under the blistering sun. It was only another minute before he sighted his home - a small, humble wood and stone home on the outskirts of Ershire. The curtains were pulled back, indicated his mother was home today. He stood outside the door, wringing out his clothes before entering inside.

"Oh, hello - Niel! You look like to took a swim in the Vassus! Take a shower this instant!"

He rolled his eyes but ducked into the bathroom anyways to wash off the sweat and dirt from the day. When he came back out, drying his hair on a towel, his mother was sitting at the table tinkering with a small watch. Her tools were strewn around her in a fan as she slowly took apart the tiny wheels and cogs holding the machine together, forehead wrinkled in concentration. Not wishing to disturb her, he tiptoes past and retrieved his bag, and was about to head to his room when she looked up.