H
Heffy
Guest
Original poster
Huddled up uncomfortably in the darkest corner of a small, windowless metal room, surrounded and obscured (cramped, even) by barrels and crates, Mia gave a heavy sigh through her pout.
"Blimey, was I not thinkin' at all... Prob'ly on our way t' Timbuktu by now." The runaway ragamuffin's remark was wry, but she sure did feel like that. Nearly fifteen minutes had already passed, down here.
From out of a nearby, half-opened crate of dry, grainy foods scampered a small, snowy white squirrel, its cheeks packed full of who knows what. It made a beeline for Mia, scrambling up onto her sweater and resting upon her shoulder to eat its newfound meal properly.
Mia cast her friend a weary smile. "'Least you won't starve." It wasn't long, though, until she resumed her bored, frustrated state, leaning her head against the wall.
She really botched trying to nick something off of that fish vendor. And made the mistake of trying to escape through the harbor. And slipping onto this boat to who-knows-where in her panic. Didn't even get her tuna in the end...
Not only that, but all of her supplies were still back in her hideaway in the city. Wherever Mia was headed, she wouldn't be having an easy time of it. She had to get back. Maybe just laying low until the boat's route wound up back in town was her best bet... sitting here in this dingy cramped room. With nothing to do or look at. For hours and hours. Her right brow began to twitch a little.
With an impatient, whining grumble, her brows furrowed in newfound determination. She burst up onto her feet, startling poor Cadet who whisked himself down into Mia's sweater via her collar.
"Argh, I'm gonna go barmy down 'ere! Gotta at least see where we are."
And she was off, slipping with ease through barrels and hopping over crates. Upon reaching the heavy door out of the room, she swallowed, bracing herself. She tugged her cap farther down upon her head, obscuring her ears... just in case. This could easily go south, but... she couldn't just sit and do nothing about her situation. With trepidation, she clutched the iron handle and nudged the door open as quietly and inconspicuously as she could.
-----
Thankfully, even as a human, Mia was remarkably stealthy - and light on her feet, to boot. There were a couple of pretty close calls that scared her half to death, but to her relief - and astonishment - she'd managed to reach the door to the upper deck. After making one last cautionary glance behind her, seeing that the coast was clear, she ever so gently slipped the door open, peering out from the darkness.
There were people. Quite a few of them. All mingling and milling about. Had she wound up in some... fancy party? No. Not too many folks here looked that well off. Middle-class at best, mostly.
Peeking her head out just a bit further, she noticed the black smoke trailing off above the boat, and began to take note of their surroundings outside of the boat. Then, her eyes bulged. There were trees. And grass. The occasional livestock pasture or cluster of cottages. She was in the countryside?!
This was bad. It wasn't quite Timbuktu, but still much too far out for Mia's liking. She could only hope this thing would turn around, well, sometime today.
Mia suddenly twitched. Footsteps. From downstairs. Getting louder, fast. Mia's breath began to race as her eyes darted about in a panic. If she went back down, she'd be caught for sure. But... could she really just show up on deck? Pass as a passenger?
The footsteps grew nearer. In mere seconds, she would be seen. She had no choice.
In the blink of an eye, she scampered out on deck, making a beeline for the most isolated, least-occupied area. Everything just blurred past her until she'd reached relative safety, her back and arms against a wall. Panting wildly, she slowly began to deflate, slowly turning to look back. No one was after her. Then, to her right. The handful of patrons on this corner of the boat were all caught up in their own conversations, watching the scenery, having a smoke - not even noticing the crazed, filthy urchin careening on over from out of nowhere.
Mia simply stood there looking like the most awkward thing you'd ever see. That was that... she was stuck up here, now. Better off than the food cellar in some ways... but would it be safer? Would someone recognize her as the fish thief from the docks, minutes earlier? Mia was beginning to regret her impulses. Certainly wasn't the first time.
... She had to just blend in. Somehow. Mia lowered her cap over her eyes and her head into her collar, then stuffed her hands into her pockets. Cadet, thankfully, stayed in hiding under her sweater. Awkwardly, she shuffled on over towards the larger cluster of passengers, keeping close to the edge of the group. The golden-brown eyes beneath her cap's brim continued to dart about warily.
"Blimey, was I not thinkin' at all... Prob'ly on our way t' Timbuktu by now." The runaway ragamuffin's remark was wry, but she sure did feel like that. Nearly fifteen minutes had already passed, down here.
From out of a nearby, half-opened crate of dry, grainy foods scampered a small, snowy white squirrel, its cheeks packed full of who knows what. It made a beeline for Mia, scrambling up onto her sweater and resting upon her shoulder to eat its newfound meal properly.
Mia cast her friend a weary smile. "'Least you won't starve." It wasn't long, though, until she resumed her bored, frustrated state, leaning her head against the wall.
She really botched trying to nick something off of that fish vendor. And made the mistake of trying to escape through the harbor. And slipping onto this boat to who-knows-where in her panic. Didn't even get her tuna in the end...
Not only that, but all of her supplies were still back in her hideaway in the city. Wherever Mia was headed, she wouldn't be having an easy time of it. She had to get back. Maybe just laying low until the boat's route wound up back in town was her best bet... sitting here in this dingy cramped room. With nothing to do or look at. For hours and hours. Her right brow began to twitch a little.
With an impatient, whining grumble, her brows furrowed in newfound determination. She burst up onto her feet, startling poor Cadet who whisked himself down into Mia's sweater via her collar.
"Argh, I'm gonna go barmy down 'ere! Gotta at least see where we are."
And she was off, slipping with ease through barrels and hopping over crates. Upon reaching the heavy door out of the room, she swallowed, bracing herself. She tugged her cap farther down upon her head, obscuring her ears... just in case. This could easily go south, but... she couldn't just sit and do nothing about her situation. With trepidation, she clutched the iron handle and nudged the door open as quietly and inconspicuously as she could.
-----
Thankfully, even as a human, Mia was remarkably stealthy - and light on her feet, to boot. There were a couple of pretty close calls that scared her half to death, but to her relief - and astonishment - she'd managed to reach the door to the upper deck. After making one last cautionary glance behind her, seeing that the coast was clear, she ever so gently slipped the door open, peering out from the darkness.
There were people. Quite a few of them. All mingling and milling about. Had she wound up in some... fancy party? No. Not too many folks here looked that well off. Middle-class at best, mostly.
Peeking her head out just a bit further, she noticed the black smoke trailing off above the boat, and began to take note of their surroundings outside of the boat. Then, her eyes bulged. There were trees. And grass. The occasional livestock pasture or cluster of cottages. She was in the countryside?!
This was bad. It wasn't quite Timbuktu, but still much too far out for Mia's liking. She could only hope this thing would turn around, well, sometime today.
Mia suddenly twitched. Footsteps. From downstairs. Getting louder, fast. Mia's breath began to race as her eyes darted about in a panic. If she went back down, she'd be caught for sure. But... could she really just show up on deck? Pass as a passenger?
The footsteps grew nearer. In mere seconds, she would be seen. She had no choice.
In the blink of an eye, she scampered out on deck, making a beeline for the most isolated, least-occupied area. Everything just blurred past her until she'd reached relative safety, her back and arms against a wall. Panting wildly, she slowly began to deflate, slowly turning to look back. No one was after her. Then, to her right. The handful of patrons on this corner of the boat were all caught up in their own conversations, watching the scenery, having a smoke - not even noticing the crazed, filthy urchin careening on over from out of nowhere.
Mia simply stood there looking like the most awkward thing you'd ever see. That was that... she was stuck up here, now. Better off than the food cellar in some ways... but would it be safer? Would someone recognize her as the fish thief from the docks, minutes earlier? Mia was beginning to regret her impulses. Certainly wasn't the first time.
... She had to just blend in. Somehow. Mia lowered her cap over her eyes and her head into her collar, then stuffed her hands into her pockets. Cadet, thankfully, stayed in hiding under her sweater. Awkwardly, she shuffled on over towards the larger cluster of passengers, keeping close to the edge of the group. The golden-brown eyes beneath her cap's brim continued to dart about warily.