Food

"Let's find out." Cassia replies with a smile and works the knots in the string that holds the mouth of the bag shut. Your fingers blackened with soot brush hers as you try to help and she playfully slaps your hands away. "Be patient!" After a minute or two she smiles triumphantly and holds open the bag. Your heads bump softly together as you lean in to look at the contents, but neither of you care as she starts pulling out packages wrapped in oiled cloths. She puts two in your lap and watches as you unwrap the first. It is a loaf of bread, only a day or two old and as the fabric unfolds the smell of the bread fills your nose. Breaking the loaf in two pieces you hand half to Cassia and take a big mouthful out of your piece.

"It's a miracle!" you exclaim with your mouth full of bread. "Thanks be to the gods."

"I hate to be cynical" replies Cassia, "but your miracle is undoubtably the stash of a food hoarder. He or she will try to sell these for their weight in gold in a week or two."

You don't care how it got in the sac. This is the best food you’ve had for more than two weeks, the bread is chewy and sweet and you can’t decide if you’d rather savor the flavor or devour the bread as quickly as possible. With your mouth still full of bread you start unwrapping the next package – even better – this one holds a smoked sausage, your hands tremble as you start to break it but Cassia stops you.

“You eat it, you look like you are much hungrier than me.” You pause to look at her and start to laugh. Her face is nearly black, completely covered with soot. You have just escaped from a gang who were going to kill you and you are sitting on the top of a chimney with a more food than you’ve eaten in a month.

“What is it?” She asks, but instead of answering her, you take one of the oiled cloths and gently wipe the soot off the tip of her nose. Showing her the dark smudge on the cloth you say:

“You had a smudge on your face. Actually your whole face looks like a giant smudge.” Cassia laughs and uses the other cloth to wipe your cheek.

“There.” She says “now I have a spot to thank you.” She leans forward and presses her soft lips to your cheek. Your whole body stiffens with desire and you turn your lips to find hers. For just a second her lips cling to yours, but then she pulls away slowly. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that, but I did want to thank you.”

"You're welcome" you reply stiffly, but the easy mood has been broken. Pushing the last peice of sausage into your mouth and swallowing quickly you say "Let's get cleaned up" and slide off the chimney. "Toss me the sac." As you are catching the bag she slides down the chimney, your hands itch to steady her waist, or catch her in your arms, but she is standing next to you before you can move.

Carefully moving into the building and down the stairway you find the smashed in door to the apartment where you rescued Cassia and slip inside. It doesn't take long to find water and some rags and soon you are much more presentable as you get the worst of the dirt off yourselves. Sitting on the bed more relaxed than you have felt in weeks you smile at Cassia as she sits down next to you and asks:

"Will you help me get out of this city? There is nothing here for me anymore." Then for the first time you see tears well in her eyes. Awkwardly you pull her shaking frame to yours and hold her tightly.