"I sincerely apologize," Xavius said as he knelt down to retrieve a new, slightly bruised, shiny red apple. He handed the simple girl the fruit, flashing her a sly smile. She covered her mouth with her hand and giggled, her cheeks turning as red as the apple. Xavius turned and quickly disappeared into the crowd, putting as much distance between himself and the girl before she realized he had stolen from her. Of course, he didn't actually expect her to discover the missing apples until she was home and unpacking. But that's how Xavius had gotten this far- by expecting the unexpected.
He knew the type he could steal from. Pretty girls in nice dresses, their hair washed and done up, only caring for trivial things like attractive boys who smile at them. Arrogant men who thought they were too tough or smart or important to possibly be stolen from were easy to rob too. He'd slip in, use their weaknesses against them, and then take whatever he needed with out them even batting an eye. He patted the lid of his creaking wicker basket, smiling to himself as he thought about all the contents inside. A few slices of meat, a block of cheese, a bottle of cheap wine, a couple bundles of grapes, and now, three apples. All he needed now was a loaf of bread and he'd be done for the day.
Luckily, it wasn't long until he found the perfect opportunity. Xavius had walked a couple streets over before he saw her, looking at a stand with expensive necklaces on it. He walked to the other side of the display, pretending to look at the jewelry but watching the girl through his peripheral vision. She was eyeing the young lord next to her, no doubt attracted to him. She herself wasn't beautiful, and Xavius almost felt bad for her, knowing she had no chance with the boy. But only almost. That was another rule of his- never to have empathy for a stranger.
He crossed the stand so he was standing next to her, the loaf of bread that was sticking out from her basket almost touching him. He leaned in, planning to just bump into her and slip away, but someone shoved him from behind at the last second causing him to completely bowl over the unsuspecting girl, landing on top of her.
"You thieving little rat!" A voice screamed from behind him. He looked over his shoulder and saw the girl who he had stolen the apples from, flanked by three armed guards. "What, were you going to steal from her too?"
Xavius looked back at the girl beneath him, her thick, curly, mousy brown hair pooling out around her head. He quickly snatched the bread and waved it next to his head. "Thanks for his." He lunged to his feet, shoved the bread under his arm, and he was off before the guards could even take a step toward him.
He darted in and around crowds of shoppers, trying in vain to lose the guards hot on his trail. But when he pushed one person out of his way, two more seemed to come before him, while the guards simply plowed through whoever was in their way. At one point, Xavius was sure they would catch him. He was in a one-lane road surrounded by merchant's stalls, with no other roads he could escape down. Guards were coming toward him from ahead while the one's behind were quickly catching up. He whipped around frantically, looking for somewhere he could run off to. At the last possible second, he decided to dive over the counter of a butcher's stall, landing in a heap on the bloodied dirt. To his dismay, he felt the bread squash beneath him, knowing it was now soiled. He lurched to his feet, slammed closed the lid of his basket, and started to shove his way through the slabs of hanging meat. Behind him, he could hear the butcher yelling at the guards for ruining his goods as they used their swords to hack at the hanging animals. Finally, he made it to the back of the stall, his clothes now covered with streaks of blood.
Xavius found his he was in a narrow alley with boxes piled up on either side. He quickly chose what he hoped was the right direction toward the entrance to the market and set off, knocking down boxes to slow the guards down.
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Beauty, Rebellion, and Magic
الخيال (فانتازيا)A girl awakens to find she is a princess of a mighty kingdom. Another boy awakens too, at precisely the same moment, but in the middle of a fleshy jungle. And yet another is on a quest to save someone from the dungeons, where they are being kept unt...
