The wagons creaked and moaned with every bump and rut the wheels would hit within the road. A dozen hard walled and covered wagons, all with various decorations from loud colors and tapestries hung on them, to charms and chimes jingling and pinging with every bump and sway. The sun was bright and the sky clear. It was fast approaching midday as the caravan crested the last hill on their annual migration from town to town. This was a nomadic group of people, never staying long in one place for a time. The road was well worn and swung down into a valley, then climbing back up the far side valley, finally ending at the walled town of Aldmeadow.
"Father...?" quipped a soft feminine voice. It belonged to a young woman, barely into adulthood by a few years. Deep brown eyes staring longingly from behind her dark black mane of hair, curly and wild, up at the large figure of man. "Jen... I know you are eager to be off the wagon, but there's the town. We'll be there in a few hours. Can't you wait?" asked the father in a tone you could tell was partly annoyed, but partly playful. "Daaaaaad. Pleeeeeeease?" begged Jen. "Fine, go..." sighed Greggor, "..but do not enter the city until we are all there. Understood?" A quick flash of disappointment crossed her face, but Jen quickly nodded "Ok." and jumped off the bench. Instead of staying on the caravan, Jen cut straight down the lightly forested valley. She approached the commonly used area for crossing the creek, because it was shallow and she could cross with just her boots getting wet instead of having to actually wade through waist high or deeper water elsewhere.
She was wearing her "adventuring" gear today. Not that she goes on adventures mind you, but she so desperately wants to leave the caravan of her family "business". Almost knee high deep brown leather boots, with dark gray pants. A gray bodice top of leather that resembled a corset, edged with white lace. She had a belt with a few pouches hanging loosely and at an angle to one side. Wasn't really practical for adventuring, but alas, she had never been away from the caravan to know any better.
The wind was blowing gently from the top of the high hills, the scent of blooming citrus trees carried on it. Jen reached the creek and was halfway across when a large splash got her wet up to her chest. "Oh my. I'm quite sorry my dear Genevieve.." came a comment from the shadows, tinted with sarcasm. Jen just sighed quickly, "Oh if only that you truly were Maddy.." she replied. "My name is Madelynne. You are not permitted to call me 'Maddy' whore." came the obviously heated response. Madelynne Aldwin, daughter to the city's founder, and generally a pompous spoiled brat, had taken an instant dislike to Jen when they were just children. "Well Maddy, you can try to stop me from calling you that... But we both know what happened the last time you tried that." Jen taunted. Madelynne was now standing out in the open on the far side of the creek, rock in hand and obviously she was contemplating on throwing it at Jen. Predictably, her arm cranked back to throw, but just as she started to swing it forward, a hand caught her wrist, forcing her to drop the rock.
"Now Maddy.." came a male voice, "The last thing I need to explain to father is you coming home with bumps and bruises.". A tall slender man was now behind Madelynne, and he released her wrist after the rock in her had was dropped. "You've always had a thing for the whore, brother. You really need to stop slumming. She is so beneath you. Oh wait, I forgot. That's where you prefer her!". Madelynne, obviously angry, glared at her brother for a moment and then stomped off towards the town. Jen finally finished crossing the creek and approached the man. "Terryn, I didn't need your help. I can handle myself quite well." said Jen in a matter-of-fact way. Terryn just put his hands up in surrender and smiled, "I have no doubt of that my dear Jen. I just have to look after my sister. She's dumb enough to pick a fight with a dragon because she's that stubborn." Before Jen could react, Terryn quickly reached forward with his upraised hands, stepped forward, grabbed Jen face gently and proceeded to kiss her deeply.
For a moment, Jen accepted the embrace. But then she reached up to Terryn's chest and pushed him away, breaking the kiss. "I can't Terryn, not anymore." Confusion crossed his face, "Why? What, did I do something?" he asked. Jen looked down, her brow scrunched. "I can't see you anymore. After this visit I won't be returning to Aldmeadow. I don't want to hurt you anymore than this, here, and now. I'm sorry." it pained her to speak. "Why won't you be coming back?" he cried. "It's a lot of things. Your father would never allow us." She said, pain marking those words as she spoke them. Stepping away from Terryn, Jen reaches down and grabs a few rocks and starts tossing and skipping them into the creek. "I grow tired of my family business, as it burns my soul to do what we do. I know there has to be more to life than what I've been shown....".
He steps over to Jen, and puts a hand on her shoulder. "Genevieve. I love you though. We can be happy together here." Terryn begs, cracks of fear in his voice. She pauses mid swing of throwing a rock into the water, "You love me? You see me twice a year for two weeks. I think you are confusing our nightly time for love. We're young, and you have a city to inherit from your father. I don't see my future here. I'm sorry." Jen says, shoulders slumping. Terryn begins "I will..." but Jen puts her hand to cover his mouth. "Terryn..." she says in a stern voice that he's never heard from her before, "We... are done. I'm sure you have plenty girls in town that you've been with while I'm gone." Terryn looks away, almost shamefully. "See, I can tell. You have. I didn't expect you to save yourself for me. Your family has made it quite clear I'm not welcome to join it. And to be honest, as mean as they are to me and my family, I don't think I could last as part of yours." Jen drops the remaining stones from her hand into the creek. Silent this whole time, Terryn looks ultimately defeated and his shoulders slumped down. Tears running down his cheeks give away his heartbreak. "I always enjoyed your company Terryn. You always made me feel welcome here when nobody else would. For that I thank you. I'm going to go meet my father now. Good bye Terryn." and she turns and heads toward town. Terryn watches Jen walk away, tears running down his face. Once she she gets out of sight, he falls to his knees and sobs.
For what seems like an eternity to Jen, the caravan finally pulls into a well worn clearing just outside the town walls. Greggor is shouting out locations to the other wagon drivers when he spots Genevieve approaching, sadness etched into her face. "What's wrong my daughter?". Jen looks up to face Greggor, dirt caked tear lines running down her face. "Just doing something I had to do. You know how that is father." she says, hints of anger lining her words. "You know, doing things I hate to do.". Greggor shook his head, "I'm sorry dear, we've been over this before. The family needs to look after the family. Nobody else will. We do what we must to survive." He sets a pair of logs in front and back of one of the wheels, and begins to offload the wares and items they carry on the wagon. "Hurry and get cleaned up Genevieve, we have to go meet Uldrin."
Jen rolls her eyes to this news. "Always the role to play, eh father?" she sighs. Jen hates the things that her family does, stealing, conning, and duping people into giving them their valuables or money. Twice a year they come here to Aldmeadow, and every time it reminds Jen that she doesn't belong here. The people who she wanted to be friends with, now simply remind her that this place would no longer be comforting to her memories. Putting on an dress for Uldrin seemed pointless, but her father always placed customs high in the family order of business. After a few minutes, Jen appeared from the wagon in red and white frilled dress, exposing her bosom generously, and corset keeping a lady to the curves of men's desires.
Stepping out from the wagon, Greggor smiles at his daughter and walks to her. "You look beautiful Jen." A look of fake happiness she gives him, only to quickly to be replaced by a small scowl. "This is going to be the last time father." she says. "I want out after this. You and the rest of our family can continue this, but I'm out." "Genevieve... we've talked about this before. We need you here. Where would you go? The world is dangerous alone, and young woman alone would be taken advantage of, or worse." Greggor sternly says. As a father figure he's not very imposing standing at 5 and half feet, but a portly figure and round waist. But his voice can carry weight to it for Jen. She backs down to challenging him, again.
The two are not surprised that not long after their caravan has made camp, two familiar figures approach Greggor and Jen. Music from one of the other wagons starts up, and Jen starts her hips swaying to the rhythm. Slow starting to dance while walking with her father to meet the newcomers. "Ah, Uldrin my friend. How good it is to see you as always!" says Greggor as he walks forward and his arms outstretched to embrace Uldrin in a hug. Uldrin was not a very imposing figure, but that's how he likes it. Slightly shorter than Greggor, but very lean and diminutive. It was always about appearances to Uldrin. To look at him and say he was the leader of the thieves guild, one would have to laugh. But it would be the last laugh they would ever have. Known for being very efficient in running his "house" he has earned from many, the respect of not being one to doublecross. "Good day, Rowan." Nodded Greggor to Uldrin's companion. Rowan was a good 6 feet tall, somewhat lean, but strong. He is Uldrin's guard, not that one was needed. Uldrin didn't like to gamble unless the odds were always in his favor.
Rowan nodded to Greggor, and started looking around the camped caravan intensely. This was his job to be observant of details that Uldrin might otherwise miss while doing business. "I see you've brought your always beautiful Genevieve with you." Uldrin comments while watching Jen start to gyrate more to the music and step his way. Jen smiles and bows as part of her dance moves and starts twirling, bringing the edge of her dress, which was barely below her knee before, now up higher, exposing her bare leg. Greggor pulls from his waist a large pouch, obviously filled, and by the sounds of it, filed with coin. "Here's our 'admittance fee', as per our arrangement." states Greggor and tosses it over to Uldrin. Jen is just a little shorter than Uldrin, but she twirls up to him and flashed him a seductive smile. Gyrating and spinning, Uldrin feels her dress rub on him and pull at she spins, always looking at him and showcasing her chest at him when opportunity allows. She dances all around him and makes her circle around him back to end up in front of him. The music stops for a moment, and Jen leans forward slowly to show her chest some more to Uldrin, then gives him a small kiss on the cheek, and bounces away to stand my her father.
"Always the impressive dancer my dear." Says Uldrin as he obviously catches his breath in excitement. "Thank you for the show milady..." Uldrin says and Jen politely curties in response, "..but it's very unwise to pick the pocket of the guildmaster here." his tone turning deadly, "I suggest you hand it back now, before I have to make an example of you.". Gregor's eyes grow in disbelief as he turns to his daughter, "What did you take?! Hand it back NOW!" he yells at her. "Fine." Jen hands back a small pouch with intricate designs etched into the leather. Uldrin grabs her wrist as she returns the pouch to his hand, and as she was pulling away, "You are lucky I have a soft spot for you dear Genevieve. If anyone else had tried this, I'd have killed them on the spot." Gently he rolls her hand over and kisses the back of her hand. She smiles and pulls her hand away, and moves to stand by her father, who is glaring at her at this point. "Please accept my apologies for my daughters transgression." he says to Uldrin. "Oh worry not Greggor, for if I was truly upset you'd both be dead now. Truth be told, I rather like her bold behavior. She'll make a good thief one day...." he says as he begins to turn and walk back to the city. "If she survives the life of one..."
As Uldrin and Rowan walk back to town, over his shoulder he yells back, "And welcome back to our humble Aldmeadow!" as they make their way back up the hill to town. "Of all the incredibly stupid decisions to make, why in the worlds would you pick the pocket of that one!?" yelled Greggor. Jen just stood there, not meeting his eyes, tears starting to run down her cheeks. "Oh no. You aren't getting out of it with tears! I know you're not really crying! You've done the fake crying too many times for me to believe it!" he keeps yelling. Jen looks up from the ground and stares directly into his eyes. "You made me this. YOU!" She screams back, anger now the only expression on her face. "I wanted nothing of this life yet I had nowhere to go! Years of you pushing me and prodding me into the woman you see before you now! Don't you dare yell at me for what you made me into!" she growls at her father. "I wish he had killed me for this, at least I wouldn't be in such pain anymore!" and Jen turns away and stomps off towards the wagon. Greggor was about to return arguing when her last statement chokes him up, and forces him to sit down.
"I'm sorry Jen. I wish I knew how to fix this..." Greggor sighs to himself with a tear running down his face. He looks around the camp, looking at her cousins, aunts, and uncles. Family is everything for them, but she is so unhappy she is willing to leave them all to escape this life. The winds pick up some and blow across his face. He lets out with a small breath, "I will fix this for you... somehow."
