The World of Rhune

Robin felt out of place on the streets of Xirra. Everything was different from the life that she had known. She had, of course, seen most countries when she traveled with the gypsies, but Xirra was not a place they usually went. And when they did, most of the woman stayed with the wagons while the men did the business. Yet here she was, eleven years since her parents were killed and she was back to where her mother started. That was the reason she had come here, though. If her mother grew up here, it must not be so bad. That was Robin’s reasoning.

Here she was though, having left her family of gypsies only a week ago. Robin was exactly sure what the rules were for women here in Xirra. She knew they were a little sexist here in Xirra but she wasn’t sure to what extent. If they were allowed jobs, she could probably get one. Her mother was making sure Robin was well educated before she was killed. Robin had learned to read and write and a little math before she was seven, and after her parents died she made sure to keep it up. This wasn’t always easy since they weren’t exactly skills the gypsies deemed necessary. But she kept in practice of them, even while she picked up some of the skills gypsies did think were necessary. Such as pick pocketing, street fighting, and she learned a lot about how to manipulate people.

Robin was walking down a street a little more crowded than to her liking so she ducked into an alley. She stepped in further from the street and sat down against the side wall of one of the buildings. She took inventory of herself and her belongings. She felt a little strange in her clothing compared to everyone else but it was what she was used to. She wore a pair of shorts made of a tough material, with a wide, brown belt. A thin black turtleneck, and a white, sleeveless overcoat was belted and buckled over that. Her necklace, one of the few meaningful possessions she still had of her parents, was safely tucked away inside the turtleneck. A thin, black polyester material stretched from both her wrists to halfway up her upper arm. They were useful to keep her warm but it wasn’t exactly cold in Xirra, but she imagined the temperature would plummet in the night. She had a pair of fingerless, black gloves with pieces metal painted gold just behind her knuckles. They would leave some one bloody and bruised after Robin hit them. She had a leather pouch strapped around her leg, it contained a handful of various daggers and knives. You brown, leather boots reached her upper calf and were buckled securely.

Robin satisfied that that was all in order pulled her rucksack off her back and set it in her lap. She rummaged through, taking inventory of everything. Her red cape was in there, good for colder nights. As was her canteen of water and different kinds of ropes and string. Her flint and tinder box were there but she was out of food, and she didn’t see a good place to start setting snares. Robin zipped the rucksack back up and stood up. She brushed herself off and swung her rucksack onto her shoulder. Unfortunately, she would need to steal some food since she was all out. It was unfortunate for the merchant, not really unfortunate for Robin. Living with the gypsies made you pretty accepting of some unlawful things.

Robin stepped out of alley, getting the full heat of the sun on her. The heat didn’t bother her but she had never been a fan of the dry air. Cancri was very moist and even Septyni’s air wasn’t quite this dry. She’d get used to it though, well, probably. The street was pretty crowded and lined with merchant stalls. It would be easy picking.

She only needed enough to keep her fed for the day and one of the stalls was lined with loaves of bread. She stepped closer to it, noting that the merchant was trying to sell his rolls to a pair of men. She joined into a particularly thick wave of people who were passing by the stall. Her fingers were light as the ran across the stalls side. Hers flickered toward the merchant, sure he was still occupied and she slipped a loaf of bread into her open rucksack. She flipped the cover closed and continued strolling along, never having completely stopped. She grabbed an apple and orange as she continued down the street before ducking back into an alley. There was a stack of crates against one of the building and Robin climbed up them to the grey roof. An eave provided a bit of shade and so she sat underneath it. She pulled out the loaf of bread and sliced a couple of pieces off. She placed it back in her pack and pulled out the orange, the apple would be for dinner. She took a sip of water of her canteen and settled down to eat.