"Where Fools Walk Freely: chapter one" by Meg J Milano

1

The streets of Port Barnaby are crowded. Merchant booths on either side of the street form an aisle in the center. A young girl, no more than sixteen weaved her way through the crowd. She wasn"t a particularly pretty girl, her glossy red hair and dull green eyes gave her an unkempt look, and her pale skin ostracized her from the rest of the port"s inhabitants. But the girl was not paying attention to the furtive glances of the natives, she was lost in her own thoughts, and ignorant of all that was around her. She continued to walk down the street, sometimes stopping at an interesting booth, or staring at a certain person in the street. Finally she found someone, a young man about six feet tall with dark skin and hair. He was muscular and good looking, a superb example of a Port Barnaby native.

The girl stared intently at the man, never blinking. Then the she darted behind an empty booth, the owner of which was in the tavern, drinking and joking with his friends. The girl thought about the young man, she forced herself to remember every detail she noticed. Finally, when she had remembered all she could, the girl became very still. She willed herself to look like him, to be him. She then felt as if her body was melting, and taking a new shape, she felt a sharp pain behind her eyes and new the transformation was complete. No one noticed a red haired girl change into a dark skinned boy. She was safe.

The girl, wearing the shape of a boy, continued to make her way down the street. Toward the end, she became unsure where to go. She move toward the line of booths on her left, and said to a large woman running one, "Where can I find work?" The girl was surprised at first at how deep her voice sounded, until she remembered that she was wearing the shape of a man.

The large woman stared at her, her eyes were like knives working their way into her brain, trying to investigate the dark depths of the girls mind. The Girl wasn"t surprised, after all she was not behaving like a typical Port. Barnaby native. The young men here were mostly working for their families, or at school, usually the former.

The woman stared a few moments longer, and The Girl took the time notice her attire. The woman was wearing a bright yellow dress, a pleasant contrast against her dark skin. Her lips were painted a deep red, and her hair was arranged in a long plait down her back. The booth she was running was covered in long purple silks, and on display were a variety of beautiful stones, all sizes and colors. In a small vase, almost completely hidden by the other things were two white flowers, with black stigmas. Changeling"s Tear the girl thought to herself, she wondered how the woman had come across such a rare and delicate flower. The Girl was somewhat comforted, some one like me has passed through here she thought to herself. The thought made her confident, even though, whoever had passed through had shed not only one tear, but two. The Girl chose to ignore the bad omen. She returned her attention back to the woman, who had apparently was finished scrutinizing.

Abruptly she spoke, "you weel beh finding wok aht the harrbor, ohn won of de sheeps." The woman"s voice was heavily marred by her accent.

''Thank you.'' The Girl said, and moved away quickly. She didn"t like how the woman"s gaze had turned from aggressive curiosity, to dark suspision.

She turned left at the end of the street, and moved as fast as her legs would carry her. Fortunately, the boy whose shape she had taken was very lean and his shape allowed her to maneuver quickly through the crowd. Finally, about twenty meters from the street with the booths, The Girl stopped, and allowed herself to think. There"s no reason to be so flighty. She told herself

The Girl wanted to slap herself for being so stupid, in her haste to get away she had run off before the woman had told her which way to go. The girl had just chosen left, but she had no clue where the harbor was, or where SHE was for that matter. But, the girl reasoned, being lost was better than being found out.

She lifted her nose into the salty air. The whole city smelled like fish, but the stench was stronger to her left. The Girl was on the right street. She continued to weave her way through the crowd, occasionally using her nose to confirm that she was on the right path.

Finally, after walking about one hundred meters, she began to doubt herself. The girl was positive that in her true form, she could have sniffed out the harbor without a doubt, but in this boy"s form she was not sure. Maybe the boy had lived in the port for so long everything smelled especially fishy. The girl quickly pondered changing into a dog, or something with an acute sense of smell, but there were no suitable places to hide whilst the change was occurring. The Girl had long ago stopped laughing at the prospect of the startled faces of all the bystanders. She knew better now. The Girl decided to ask another person, but she took every precaution this time.

She began to inquire from the people in the street. The road was packed with people, but nearly all of them ignored her. Some tried to help, but couldn"t speak her language, Agrulian. Eventually, an old man was able to help. When she asked him where the harbor was, he pointed straight ahead down the street. Ha! The Girl thought, I am on the right street. She turned to thank the man, but he was gone. She restarted her journey, but the crowd greatly hindered her progress. Finally, she made it to the harbor.