What a horrible world.... (open)

[Mihek]

Levi woke with a slow start. He didn't have much energy, even though it was late morning and he was just getting out of bed. He hadn't slept well the night before, and it was obvious from the black circles under his grey eyes. He scratched at his head for a second, adjusting his eyes. His head hurt slightly from lack of sleep, and he was starting off the day in a slightly sour mood.

Levi swung his feet to the floor, and picked up his clothes that were sitting nearby. His jeans were torn and dirty across the bottoms. They were clearly over worn; stained with grass, mud, dirt, and coal. Levi didn't care though. It wasn't that important, and especially not with the pounding headache he felt coming on. The sunlight flooding the room seemed to amplify the pain.

Lightly shaking his head, Levi pulled a blue shirt over his head and walked out the front door into the bright daylight. Outside was far worse then inside, and Levi had to close his eyes for a moment to adjust. The sun reflected off of his dark brown hair, and his face quickly became slightly wet from perspiration.

If the sun wasn't enough to drive Levi insane, there was the noise to top it off. The birds chirped loudly, the children running through the Seam were full of excitement, and mothers chatted happily doing laundry and what not. Let's just say, for those who've never had a real migraine, everything was nearly ten times as loud as it should be. Levi took a deep breath in, and let it out, thinking he needed to get some food.

Without much of a further thought
, Levi walked through the houses, making his way towards the town. He'd see if he could find someone to get some food off of, but his age was making it harder. He was no longer cute and adorable. He had to be more seductive and charismatic to get his food now. It wasn't easy, and Levi would soon have to find a source of food besides begging and tessarae. It was either that or head to the coal mines. "And that is not happening," Levi said aloud.

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Rosetta]

Alexa Dissimulo:

Alexa didn't notice him at first. She was sitting out in the streets, waiting for someone from the mines to wander past with a cut, or scrape. Perhaps a broken bone. That she could fix. She could stitch up clean wounds, and sometimes construct a sling. Anything worse, blood poisoning, a torn muscle, she couldn't fix.

She had been out here since the early morning. The best time would be later, when the miners headed home, but she couldn't underestimate the wounds of illegal hunters. And what else did she have to do? She turned her face up to the sun, squinting, and bit her lip. Nothing. She leaned against the nearest building, wearily.

That's when she saw him. She knew him around town as Levi, a boy she had always seen on his own, no parents accompanying him. He was about her age, and was quite good-looking. Alexa was thankful she had thought to put a scarf around her neck, and wore long sleeves and pants. Her uneven skin tone would not help her at all, and wasn't good for business. If only she didn't have that stupid skin disease...

Quietly, she watched him. Levi was looking disgruntled, and didn't appear to have any wounds she could fix. No money today. She sighed. And she had really wanted that new dress...

Alexa brushed her chocolate-colored hair out of her face, and put on her best smile, her white teeth glinting in the sun. Maybe she could do something to help him, if he had money anyway.

"Hey you!" She called to him, straightening her clothes. "Where are you headed?"

((Not my best post, but good enough, I suppose.)

[Mihek]

((It's not bad! It seemed good to me!))

Levi heard someone call out "Hey you!" and it made his head throb again. Seriously, what was with all the yelling today? It was never really this loud was it? He turned to where the voice came from, ready to snap at them and tell them to not yell at him and that it was none of their business where he was going when he saw Alexa.

She was a very pretty girl, who always seemed to wear a scarf all of the time. Levi had questioned before what she was hiding, but he didn't feel like he should ask her. Whatever it was, she didn't want people to know. He took a deep breath, and let the anger that was on his face melt away. Not only did Levi think she was pretty, but she could also fix up minor wounds. He'd seen her doing it before. That was something he might need, and he probably shouldn't cut that tie off.

"Sorry. I have a really bad headache." Levi took a few step closer so he wasn't yelling across the way. "I am heading into town to see if I can get some food. I am hoping that will help out."Levi rubbed his head as a particularly loud boy ran by him, closing his eyes and wincing in pain for a second.

Levi opened his eyes again, and looked back to Alexa. "I'm Levi by the way. I've seen you around, but never said much to you."

[Rosetta]

((Aw thanks! Your posts are great too!))

Alexa cursed, inwardly. A headache. Well, she couldn't fix that. She was hopeless with herbs. But, she remembered one rainy afternoon, lying on her bed, nose running, feeling as though rams were banging out against her skull. Her mother, always good with medicines, had whipped up some herbal tea, and the headache had cleared up in a second. Perfect.

"Here, I'll come with you." She offered, swiftly packing up her bag, stuffing rolls of bandages, and her needle and thread into it. She slung it over her back. "Business is slow, anyway." She felt obliged to tell him, and then smiled. "I know a couple of herbs that you can use for your headache. At the market." She took a step closer, away from a gaggle of gossiping ladies. "The black market, I mean."

Alexa did her best to sound mysterious, and a bit daring, although everyone went to the black market. Sometimes even the Peacekeepers. But, she had never seen Levi there, when she was patching up wounds. She smiled, wider, and whispered. "But, only if you're up to it."

[Mihek]

Levi gave a small half-smirk at the thought of going to the black market. He'd never really gone there before. He wasn't scared of it in the slightest. He just never figured it to be a good place to get food. The people at there wanted to sell there goods. You couldn't even wrestle stale bread out of them. But if this was the place to make his headache dissapear, he was game.

What was he going to pay this girl in though? He didn't have any sort of talent. He didn't produce anything. He avoided work like the plague. How was he going to make it up to her for the cure he was going to get. "I better come up with something quick!" Levi thought to himself.

After a few seconds, he realized he hadn't said anything, and hoped it wasn't to noticeable. Then again, if it was, maybe it would be cute and charming that he was lost for words. Maybe he could just slide on to Alexa's good side, and all would be fine in the terms of repayment. Still, Levi kept thinking what he could offer if he needed something in the end.

"I am not scared of your little black market. At least, not if you're going with me." Levi smiled wide at Alexa, turning on the charm as much as he could, and motioned ahead of him. "Go ahead and lead the way. Not really sure where I should be going."

[Rosetta]

Alexa blushed, and quickly turned away, motioning for him to follow. So, he was trying to win her over, wasn't he? With that snarky smile, and the gestures. Well, two could play at that game.

"Follow me." She said, swinging her hips from side to side as she went. She made her sure her scarf was intact, before motioning for him to follow her into an alley. She took a usual route, down an alley, and behind a building, before walking into the warehouse from the side door, hoping Levi was following her.

The warehouse was alive with people, rushing back in forth, calling out from their stalls, and haggling. The place had a bit of a damp smell to it, but it felt comfortable, and Alexa knew most of the people.

"That's where my stall usually is." She said, pointing towards an empty space. Out of respect, people didn't take that spot, knowing she'd set up shop. "That's where I patch up wounds sometimes." But, not today, she thought. "So, where do you want to start?"

[Mihek]

Levi followed the girl down the alley way. He'd never taken this route before. At least not that he remembered. He'd wandered around at night, far past curfew, many times. Things always looked different at night though. And as far as he could recall, this was nowhere he had ever visited. Then they came around the corner behind a large building.

Levi could hear the noise before even opening the door. The hustle and bustle of business. He was actually a little excited to see inside. Maybe this is where he could start up his own work. He'd of course need some sort of talent.

Levi walked in behind Alexa, and took in his surroundings. He watched people run from this place to that one, swapping their goods. He looked at the large room filled with stalls. Some offered food, which had quite an aroma, even for Levi who had little appetite at the current moment. Others were offering medicines, clothes, and household items you might want like blankets and dishes. It was so fascinating that Levi almost forgot his migraine. Almost.

Levi raised his hand up to his right temple and massaged it, looking over to the blank space that Alexa was pointing at. Levi turned back towards her to respond to her question. "I'd like to start anywhere that will offer me some relief from this horrible pain in my head.

[Rosetta]

Alexa grinned, jerked her head for him to follow, and strolled over to the nearest stall. "Hey." She smiled, sweetly at the woman, Mona, who worked selling herbs and remedies at her stall. "Got anything to cure a headache?"

"You sick, dear?" Mona asked. Mona was a big, ruby-cheeked woman, who cared a lot for anyone and everyone, no matter who they were.

"Nah, it's for my friend." She gestured towards Levi, and Mona winked at her.

"Good choice." She whispered, and Alexa blushed. Mona handed her over some powder in a bag. "Should clear it right up. But, it's pricey. Do you have enough?"

Alexa rummaged through her pockets. Nothing. How could she have forgotten her money? It was probably still at home, under her mattress. She held up a finger to Mona, to indicate she needed a moment, and turned and looked pleadingly at Levi.

[Mihek]

Levi watched as the medicine he needed was handed over to Alexa. For a tiny second Levi contemplated just grabbing the powder and booking it out the door. It wouldn't be the first time he had stolen something. He had no problem with that. He didn't care if it affected the other person, as long as he took care of himself.

That option was gone just as quick as it came up though. He couldn't take it. It would hurt his chance of ever being able to sell stuff here. He couldn't do that, or he'd spend his next few years starving to death. No, he needed to come up with a better plan.

Levi eyed the medicine, and looked back up to Alexa who was staring at him. Levi went with what he knew how to do best. He reached out and took the medicine. He didn't run though; he turned to Mona. Then he lied through his teeth.

Levi put on his most innocent and kind voice and started talking, "Ma'am, I don't have anything on me at the moment. I didn't realize I'd be coming here or trading today. My mother taught me how to bake before she passed on though." If he weren't standing in front of Rosa, Levi would have the largest smirk on his face. But he suppressed it. He never knew his mother. She'd died long ago and left him to fend for himself. He couldn't even walk when she died. He knew nothing of baking and knew nothing of her.

With only a brief pause, Levi continued, "I can get you two apple pies by this afternoon. Fresh out of the oven. I just really need the medicine now. My head is going to explode soon." Levi waited for the answer, putting on as pitiful as a look he could to signify his head hurt. Levi looked quickly over to Alexa, hoping she hadn't noticed he was lying. He didn't share much with people around him, but it wasn't necessarily a secret his mom died when he was so young. Levi just hoped she wouldn't realize that, or wouldn't say anything if she did.

Getting the pies would be simple really, and Levi could easily avoid upsetting the woman. He'd just go into town, and steal two pies from the baker. He'd done that before, and it wouldn't hurt him to do it again. He'd just have to shake Alexa, who might not be up for stealing.

[Rosetta]

Alexa glanced at him. Her eyebrows raised, slightly, in surprise. She didn't know about his mother, before she died. And that's something quite knew to her. She was often the one who knew everyone's family affairs. She didn't even know he had family. She figured he was just another street rat, just scraping by, like the majority of the population. She had been lucky enough to been born in a nice household, with two present parents, and a place to call home. Sure, she wasn't merchant class, but she was a higher level Seam resident than most.

She looked back at Mona and shrugged. "I'll make sure your son doesn't bleed to death." She promised, in a quiet voice. Her son was a miner, and also hunted. Everyone knew him to be accident prone, and she often had patched up his wounds, and more than twice had sent him off with a more serious wound to a better doctor.

Mona gave her a weak smile, gave a hard look at Levi, and nodded. Alexa thanked her, then grabbed Levi's arm, and pulled him away from the stall, so Mona wouldn't hear.

"What was that all about?" She asked, confused. "I didn't know your mother knew how to bake." There, make him think that she actually did know his family, although she didn't have a clue. She held up the medicine in her hand. "Are you actually going to pay her back? Because, I'd suggest you do, because Mona never forgets." She laughed, softly, recalling a time she had helped Mona's son, with a particularly nasty wound, and over a year later, Mona had finally scraped up enough money to pay her back, although she had never said anything.

"So, gonna go see your mom now?" She asked, cocking her head at him.

((Sorry, if I power-played a little!!)