Stacy was taken away by madame butch. A victory smile played on my lips as I watched her walk away dejected.
The burning gaze at the back of my head made me consciously aware I wasn't the only one in the room.
I slowly turned to face an outraged Daphne. "This is going to sound ridiculous but I think that went well," I said, a brittle laugh, hoping to lighten her face a bit. She wasn't impressed. Her face remained stoic. Not a fan of jokes huh?
"I thought I mentioned, not to open your mouth. Why were you trying to start a fight" she asked. I knew she would catch up quickly.
My hand was placed on my chest as I feigned hurt. I said in a dramatic voice. "A fight? How could someone as weak as I get into a fight? I am just a 'runt'. I emphasized the word runt. She rubbed her face with a frustrated sigh.
" cut the victim act I'm not buying it" she snapped,
"It did work a while ago" I stated.
"First day I am already tired of you" she shook her head muttering to herself.
"I wouldn't want to be in your shoes if I was you," I said, she gave me a pointed glare and I let out a sheepish laugh.
"Hello," a meek voice broke our argument. The girl with whom Stacy had been in an argument in the first place stood before us. I had forgotten she was still in the room.
Daphne gave me a look saying, 'We'll talk about this later' I ignored her, turning to the girl.
"Are you ok?" I asked in a worried tone to the girl. Looking at her closely, she looked pale and skinny, her face was white as a sheet.
"Oh I am fine, just some scratches here and there. Nothing I couldn't heal from." She waved dismissively. Then her eyes brightened all of a sudden.
"Thank you for helping me. You must be strong to go against a beta female." She said with enthusiasm.
"I guarantee you I don't have much except for a loud mouth." I joked, and she laughed softly.
"Still thanks. It takes very few of us to take them on" she said with a sad smile. Just how badly were runts treated? A flashing thought of how I was treated when I first got here. Yeah… it wasn't all that good either.
"Someone has got to step up sometimes." Patting her on the head I gave her a small squeeze on her shoulder to reassure her.
"You're right" she muttered,
"Okay, that's enough. You need to get settled. I will leave-
" Really" I beamed, making her frown at my delight.
"-For now," she said, I slumped my shoulders disappointed.
Some minutes later,
Daphne had gone and I was left with- I forgot to ask for her.
"What's your name?" I asked, I noticed her body stiffen at my question. However, she turned to me with a smile.
"Runts are normally called upon with their names so no one has ever asked for my name." Silence, "it's Esmeray, Esme for short," she said with a small voice filled with joy.
My heart broke at how she was being treated for being a runt. "That's a beautiful name." I went to her side pulling her into a hug. "I'll make sure to call it so much you get tired of it." She laughed at my words. But I meant it.
We talked about other things while I took over Stacy's side of the room. The distant thought at the back of my head reminded me I was here for something else and I shouldn't get so invested in the activities of this world. For now, I needed to blend in.
A bell rang and the sound of rushed footsteps outside the room alerted me.
Esme was also in a rush to put on her clothes.
"What's wrong," I asked,
"It's lunchtime. We have to hurry before we only get leftovers." She said in a panic.
"How bad could it be? '' We ended up getting there late and I stood baffled by the disaster that lay before me.
Flies perched on what seemed to be the leftovers. Pieces of food splattered everywhere and even blood smeared all over some of the bits. The pot rolled over on the ground as the table had been smashed into broken rubble.
" This is horrific, they took food wars to another whole level." I blurted, astonished by the mess.
Esme watched the catastrophic event with a defeated look.
"Maybe next time we will be lucky." She sighed, walking away. I caught a group of people lining up with trays in their hands.
"What's that over there," I asked curiously, walking to where I had seen the line.
"Wait, that isn't our part of the food section." Esme panicked, gripping my wrist as she pulled me away from there.
I was confused by her terrified reaction. "What do you mean, 'isn't our part' of the line?" I quoted in the air.
She dragged me making sure we were out of earshot. Then whispered to me.
"They are for higher class workers"
The words didn't settle in, "there is food where they are lining up, isn't there?" I shifted my weight on one knee, pursuing my lips. She nodded. That's all I wanted to know. I turned, heading that way. She held me back again.
"We aren't allowed to eat there," she said, hoping to change my mind.
I took her hand, ushering her to an empty seat," just take a seat while I get food for us, okay." I said with a smile.
Her eyes bulged out in fear, "this is dangerous." She said,
"The food war is over then" I stated, turning away.
I marched my way to the battleground welding with me, nothing but my stroke of good luck and a stubborn ass.
I patiently lined up behind a huge muscle guy. He noticed my presence and turned. He wore an eyepatch and most of his face was horribly scarred. That looked like it must have hurt.
Flashing him an innocent smile, he growled. "What do you think you are doing here, runt." He grunted irritated by my presence. His stance towered over me by far. And the room had grown silent as everyone watched us in awe.