Chapter 11: Ciri

I heard birds chirping as I started to regain consciousness and I sighed to myself. I opened my eyes slowly and the first thing I saw was Elite guy’s sleeping face. His face did not look too bad when he was asleep or the rest of him. His face looked peaceful while he was asleep and his hair was getting longer and it actually made him more attractive. Wait, what had I just said? I sat upright and looked over at him again. I never denied he was good looking, but I shouldn’t be thinking of him like that. He was my equal we’d established that last night, but the last thing I needed was to have feelings for him.

 

No, I had to focus on the mission and getting revenge on Umber’s murder. I heard something rustle close by and I stood up carefully and tried to be quiet as I went off to search for the source of the noise. I saw a group of birds searching around for food and I sighed in relief because I was worried about Elites. We’d barely won our last fight and I didn’t think Jasper could go into another fight this soon afterwards. I kept hearing my stomach rumbling from the lack of meat and hardy food over the last few weeks. I looked at the birds they seemed rather fat I think they were city birds who were migrating. No one knew where they immigrated to, but I liked to think it was a place of eternal sun.

I watched them fly around for awhile and then one flew back to my camp and I followed it. It climbed around the area and checked out Jasper’s shape in the blanket and then started searching around the rest of it. I pulled out my knife when it started pecking at our cans to stop it from eating our food. I snuck up behind it carefully and it looked back at me and screeched before I stabbed it and it started to bleed. I felt bad about killing the bird, but it was the circle of life and I needed the substance to keep me going. I started cutting it up carefully and I took sips of water every once in awhile because I was super thirsty this morning. I found a rusted piece of metal inside the pass and I made myself a rotisserie and started cooking the bird over a medium sized fire.

 

I opened up a can of peaches and started nibbling on some while it cooked. It still had a ways to go so I started working on my lion again. I was making its eyes when I heard a loud noise like rocks falling. I heard a yelp and I looked around to see a small figure running off in the direction of the city. I ran after them and I overtook them in minutes because I was faster. “No,” the person said squirming around as I held onto her.

“What are you doing here?” I asked holding her still.

“What are you doing here, foreigner?” she squirmed.

“Foreigner, you are the one sneaking around and being suspicious,” I said pulling her back towards the camp.

“This isn’t your land. Go back to your precious city, you’ve got it good there,” she said trying to bite me, but I held her head back to keep her from biting too deep.

 

“As far as I am aware, it is free country out here. Now hold still,” I said picking her up and took her back to camp.

“Let me go; you’ll pay if you do not,” she threatened.

“You were running off to tattle on us, weren’t you shrimp?” I snapped.

“You don’t know my life, girl,” she said struggling.

“I said hold still, brat,” I said dropping her down by the fire.

“I will tell all of the others about you and your boyfriend,” she said eyes narrowed.

“Oh quiet, shrimp,” I said sitting down, “you are going to make me burn my bird.”

“I do not trust you. Why would I do anything you say?” she said pissed off.

 

“Look, shorty, just be glad I did not gut you for trying to tattle,” I said eyes narrowed.

“Ciri, what’s going on?” Jasper said sitting up.

“I caught shorty here trying to run off and tattle,” I said pointing at her with my forkful of peaches.

“Tattle about what killing a bird,” she said and I chewed on my peaches.

“Please like you do not know who we are,” I laughed.

 

“Hold on, little girl,” Jasper said politely, “Are you from the city?”

“No, I am not,” the girl said looking at him.

“Liar,” I said annoyed.

“Oh, bite me, foreigner. I do not lie like you,” she ordered.

“Oh now, I am a liar you were spying on us and we are the sneaky little liars. Yeah, that makes sense,” I said rolling my eyes.

 

“This is free land; you city people cannot come and claim it as your own,” she said seriously.

“Why would I claim ruins, short brat?” I said pissed off.

“Hold on, so you are a drifter,” Jasper said and I huffed.

“That is what I said, isn’t it,” she said looking at him.

“Oh and what you were just walking along and decided to start running because I killed a bird,” I asked in disbelief.

“Right, I’ve been out in the middle of nowhere my whole life so I could catch an Elite and a foreign girl running off together,” she said with a short laugh.

“We weren’t running off together,” we both said.

 

“Yeah right, why else would you be out here?” she snorted.

“Well we are off to…” Jasper started to say.

“It is none of her business what we are doing; she’s just some sneaky little creature trying to get a reward or something,” I said glaring over at her.

“Sorry, I thought it would just be easier to explain things to her,” he shrugged.

“Yeah right, telling her the truth would make her story more convincing when she gets back to town,” I said.

“Sorry,” he muttered.

“You two think you are worth a reward,” she laughed.

 

“You do not know about me or him, so why do not you just tell us the truth about why you are out here?” I said looking at her.

“Please I’m not afraid of you; you can talk as big as you want, but you are probably just a mouthy servant,” she said sarcastically.

“Do not act like you know everything, bratty,” I said.

“Whoa both of you need to calm down,” Jasper said and we both glared at him, “Alright please just try and talk this out calmly and carefully and then we’ll let you go, little girl.”

“I am not little; I am twelve,” the girl complained.

“Oh you are so big,” I said smarmily, “I bet you can even count to ten now.”

“I guess someone like you can’t,” she replied in the same tone.

 

“What do you know about me?” I countered.

“Why don’t you ask your boyfriend?” she said.

“He’s not my boyfriend,” I repeated, “Besides you haven’t answered any questions with any honesty, so scurry off.”

“Should we really let her go?” Jasper asked unsure.

“If she was going to tattle she’d have tried to run off by now,” I said pulling off the bird, “Now off you go.”

“Now hold on, we should at least give her something to eat; she’s skinnier than you,” Jasper said concerned. I looked at the girl she had long dark brown hair and she was skin and bones. I hated to admit it, but I knew she’d probably starve to death if I did not give her a can.

“Fine, but she has to leave us alone from now on,” I said starting to eat the bird, “Oh man, that is good.”

“Ciri,” he said and I glared at him then tossed the girl some meat then started packing everything up and put out the fire.

 

“Happy, miser,” I said making our blanket sac then turned to Jasper, “Let’s go; bye shrimp.”

“Bye,” Jasper said shaking her hand then we left and headed off towards Eddison’s again.

“Well that is over with,” I said as we walked.

“Are you sure we should let her off?” he said concerned.

“She seems like a survivor to me,” I said honestly.

“You like her,” he said looking over at me.

“No I don’t she’s a brat, but I can understand her type,” I said giving him a look.

“You know she kind of reminded me of you,” he said as we walked.

“I am nothing like that brat,” I said automatically.

 

“If she was here, she’d say she was nothing like a foreigner,” he laughed.

“Ha, ha very funny, but seriously the little miser bit me and she was very annoying,” I said soberly.

“Her eyes looked like yours,” he said and I looked over at him, “Kind of.”

“Can we end this conversation?” I said then I heard footsteps, “For the love of all that is holy.”

“What?” he said looking over at me. I turned around and went over to the pile of rocks and saw a small shadow and I pulled the girl out from behind the pile.

“Still following us,” I said setting her down.

 

“I want to come with you guys,” she said looking at me.

“Why?” I asked suspiciously, “Let me guess you want more food.”

“We could use more help; she probably knows the land,” Jasper said.

“Fine, but she has to watch herself,” I said and the girl nodded.

“Then they were three,” he said as we started walking again, “What is your name?”

 

“Andromeda,” she said politely and he said it was a nice name.

“Whatever,” we both said then glared at each other.