Go away

Walking in the Lower Ring was entirely something else compared to strolling around the Upper Ring. Hazel knew better than to wear the clothes she had from the Upper Ring. She had bought herself some sloppy dressed that were common in the Lower Ring, showing that she was just like them. She couldn’t really change anything about her face and the fact that others found her pretty; she was a rare sight to see with her black hair and slightly tanned skin, showing that she was not from around here. It was clear that she was from the Upper Ring, but she hoped with the clothes she wore and with keeping a low profile that nobody would bother her too much. Of course there were still men who would whistle at her or yell vulgar things to her, but as long as she wouldn’t pay them any mind, they would go away. Hopefully.

It felt like a long walk from the inn where she worked to the small, withered house she had bought with the money she had stolen from her parents. There was not much money left, but it was still enough to be able to buy food and keeping a low profile over all. Hazel often felt saddened if she thought about the life she had left behind, but she knew she couldn’t stay in the Upper Ring. Not after the rumors that had spread about her. That she was a druid and could transform into a fox. They were true, of course they were true, but that was all the more reason for her to not wander around the Upper Ring anymore. To leave her father, who had already lost her mother a long time ago, behind in the Upper Ring.

Hazel fumbled nervously with her keys as she entered the nasty back alley that would lead to her house. As she approached a man who was also in the alley, she stumbled back a bit when the morning light landed on his face, revealing that he had some scars scattered on one side of his face. She knew she shouldn’t judge based on appearance, but he looked quite scary and Hazel quickly averted her eyes.

Hopefully she would be home soon, because she felt tired from her shift at the inn and she just wanted to rest.

@Malcolm Morris

PEACE IS OVERRATED, IT'S THE FIGHTERS WHO SURVIVE @Hazel Woods Malcolm walked through the streets of the lower ring. He was on his way to a bar. He wanted to get nice and drunk. Again. It was maybe kind of his problem. Whenever he did a good job or a good trade he wasted all his money on alcohol. Which was great in the heat of the moment. But the days after were not so great. Trying to get food with a massive hungover was eh, well, difficult. So this time he made two separate piles. One for fun. One for life. You could probably guess which one was the biggest one. On his way to the pub he had to walk through a small darkened alley. The polluted air only made it appear darker than it already was. Malcolm didn't mind. He wandered through more dangerous places than a silly alley.
As he walked through path he saw a young woman trying to enter her house. She was clearly anxious. He could see how she eyes him a couple of times and how she quickly fumbled with the keys in her hand. "For fucks sake, calm down. I'm not gonna do anything." he muttered while approaching her. He understood her fear. But he hated the fact that people feared him simply because of his apperance. He knew the scar on his face looked terrifying. It healed pretty badly. It was maybe a couple months old now and still not completely healed. He knew why. But that was his own little secret.

MONTY

Although the man muttered his words, Hazel was still able to hear what he was saying. She felt a bit stupid for acting so scared, but you couldn’t entirely blame her. She was from the Upper Ring where situations like these didn’t occur and she still had to get used to her new environment, although she could probably never explain that to the people around her. Her ex-fiancée had spread rumors about her, rumors that made it impossible for Hazel to return to the Upper Ring. Partly because they were true, but mostly because the people in the Upper Ring would make life impossible for her there. They would probably call upon the church and they would keep a close eye on Hazel. So far she had avoided them and she wondered if dying her hair and taking on a new identity was the reason. She had even changed her fancy name, which only she knew, to something more plain to fit in with the people from the Lower Ring.

The man approached her and Hazel stiffened. She wanted to call out to him that he should stay where he was, but she knew he probably wouldn’t listen to her. ”W-What do you want from me?” she asked nervously. Even in the Upper Ring she had never really had a sharp tongue, but it was never as bad as when she moved into the Lower Ring. Although she didn’t like that part about her, she also thought that it had avoided many battles she shouldn’t have fought anyway. ”I don’t have any money on me,” she tried to speak more bravely, but her voice shook a little.

She hoped he would go away soon so she could return to her house. She didn’t feel safe out on the streets and people like him didn’t make it any better.

“Who we are and who we need to be to survive are two very different things.” @Hazel Woods By approaching her it seemed like Malcolm scared her even more. A deep sigh left his lips and he gazed shortly at the gray sky above him. Why did these kind of things always happen to him? He didn't care about her. He wasn't planning on stealing shit from her. But now it seemed like a good idea, just in a try to make her shut up. Altough he hated to prove her right that his appearance alone indicated that he was up to no good. Which wasn't untrue obviously. It just frustrated him. He looked her in the eyes for a split second. Lowering his eyebrows. "Do I look like I give a shit if you have money or not?" he spat at her. "I'm just trying to pass the same alley as you." he said with narrowed eyes. He slowly started to wonder why she was panicking as much as she did. It was normal to come across shady types in the lower ring. It was no place for scared little girls who screamed bloody murder the moment they saw someone walking around. Which meant she wasn't used to this. Dark alleys, shady types like him... She didn't quite seem familair with it. A small grin appeared on his lips. "You're not from here, are you?" he asked her taunting. There was something about her. Something different which he couldnt quite wrap his finger around.

MONTY

The tone in his voice aggravated her even more when he spoke his words to her. She wished she had a big mouth like some other girls that she had seen in the Lower Ring, but unfortunately she did not have that. She couldn’t stand up for herself even when she desperately wanted to. The type of guys like this one standing in front of her made her nervous and she wanted to get away from him as soon as possible. So in stead of answering, she started fidgeting with her keys again. She gave a quick nod and turned around, but of course he wasn’t done talking to her and her shoulders stiffened for a moment when he spoke his words. How was that so obvious? It would probably be her behavior, but she felt like every girl would be scared walking through an alley like this. Or maybe she was wrong. Maybe the women in the Lower and Agrarian Ring were a lot tougher than those in the Middle and Upper Ring.

”I am from here,” she said over her shoulder, but she didn’t dare to look over her shoulder at him when she spoke those words. He would obviously call her out on a lie if she did so. ”It’s just the evening shifts at my work that make me nervous. I’ll probably never get used to walking around here, even though I have lived in the Lower Ring for my entire life.” She couldn’t tell the truth. She felt like it would be impossible for him to have ties with someone in the Upper Ring who might know her, but she didn’t want to risk it. She possessed druid magic, which was forbidden in Ashmoor. If someone ever found out, she could be either banished from Ashmoor or worse.

They could give her a death sentence. And that was something she wanted to avoid at all costs.