Pain. Twisting his insides, pure fire, heat across his skin, in his guts, his insides. It all burned.

Lumen shot up from his slumber, immediately inhaling a gasp and releasing it with a loud sigh. 

Again, that same gnawing pain he felt. Lumen knew he was sick. For months now he'd been experiencing severe and sudden painful episodes, as if his insides were being rearranged. His skin became hot and he would constantly be unable to focus; usually it resulted in blacking out. Lumen had managed to make it to his bed when his episode began last night. He remembers he had been out gathering wood when it happened; he couldn't breathe, everything hurt. He fumbled, dropping his wood and the few apples he'd found in the brush. Gasping for air through the grinding pain, he collapsed barely on his bed, his skin soaked and his eyes tightly shut, trying to bear it. Before he knew it, he'd woken up. Slightly sore, a twinge of nausea swirled unpleasantly in his throat

Lumen stood from his bed, making his way to his dimly lit kitchen. It must be early morning, before the sun was up. He could see the darkness of the sky fade into a gradient of deep blue, before the sun broke the horizon. He sighed, and ran his hand over his abdomen, as if reassuring himself he would be fine. He reached into his sparse cupboard, pulling out a small wooden dish. He went to a large barrel in the corner of his kitchen, and removed the thick wooden lid, dipping his small dish inside. He brought it to his lips, coating his dry mouth with cool liquid. He drank several cups full before sliding the lid back on, thoughtlessly placing his dish to the side.

Lumen sighed, his body aching and his head full of fog. He began to mumble to himself.

"I should go to the market once it opens.."

He glanced towards his window. A thin line of bright orange broke the darkness of the sky; the market would be open within a few hours. Lumen figured he should continue where he left off, gathering wood from the night before in the meantime.

Lumen dragged his sluggish body through the squeaky wooden door of his modest home. A cabin surrounded mostly by forest, paths sprawling through the trees and bushes going various directions. The city had more advanced housing. Concrete ones, shops too. Places where groups could gather and talk. Lumen preferred his humble cabin, it was far enough away that he rarely saw people. Lumen inhaled the cool, dewy air as he began to head deeper into the woods. He could make out the boarders around the city from here, he considered heading in to town for a moment, but decided that it could wait. Lumen just needed enough wood for a few nights, and something he could have for dinners.

About an hour passed, Lumen had taken a small bundle of wood to his home, finding himself distracted, staring out more than once at the cityscape. Signs of life stirring, he could hear voices, and the rhythmic sound of horses trotting. Lumen swallowed, his throat, feeling dry at the realization he needs to start heading into town before the market opens or there will be a line for sure. But his feet disobeyed him. He stared at the brightening town, unable to move.

He hated the city, the people, the staring, the comments, their looks. He was different from the regular humans here. His father born of Elven kind, and his mother Human. He was a half-breed. Elves were considered a higher race than Humans many moons ago, but still today Humans hold it against the whole of the Elven People. The city knows who he is, their faces say it everyday he goes in to town, their whispers. All of it. This town was rotten, but it was his only home left. His quiet empty cabin that once housed him and his mother, the warm sunny days that they once had where he felt comfort was gone. Lumen's heart sunk into his stomach; He blinked hard and shuffled a bit realizing he was lost in his thoughts.

"Seriously.. it's fine just go in. They can't do anything they haven't already done"

Lumen avoided confrontation at all costs; he didn't want to be seen, noticed, any of it. Inside his cabin he quickly braided his two-toned hair. A few strands of his bangs fell beside his face, framing his features. His eyes were sharp, not unlike an Elves. But they had a certain bright, curiosity to them. His cheeks were soft and rounded, unlike his fathers defined features. He didn't look childish, but he inherited the soft expressions of his mother. Bright moss-colored eyes that resembled his fathers scanned the house. Lumen, finding his cloak that he had been searching for, swung it around his shoulders, throwing the hood up, hoping he could slip by unnoticed for as long as possible. His skin was fairer than the Humans of the village. No matter what he would stick out, he knew that. He swept his multi-colored hair back, tucking the ocean-hued braided strands behind his neck within his hood. His roots had an opposing bright blonde color. His hair had always grown in this way. It started as pale blonde and slowly faded to blue closer to his ends. This trait was most likely due to the nature of Elven hair having an array of pigments.

Lumen hurried through the paths towards town, keeping his head down, focusing on the crunching of various leaves and twigs beneath his shoes; the vibrant rusting of the trees ahead welcomed him into their shade. Lively singing of birds over his head accompanied him as he walked.

Eventually the rugged dirt path turned to cobblestone as he closed in on the city. Lumen's eyes glanced upward at the morning sun, casting bright orange light upon the many buildings and houses. Crowds of humans chattering and talking among themselves, merchants boisterously offering their wares. Lumen quietly hurried through the bustling streets, trying to avoid eye contact. Despite his best efforts, he could still see glances towards himself, even so he avoided them. He felt discomfort in the pit of his stomach, like being hit with cold water; suddenly a loud voice broke through his anxious haze.

"HEY! It's the halfing! Whaddaya you doing in the city kid, huh? looking for your mama?"

An older man crumpled off to the side, shaded by a building. He was barely visible among his empty bottles. He was clearly drunk, spitting out a few more obscene words that weren't entirely audible. Lumen swallowed before continuing on. He hadn't even realized he had stopped walking. The mention of his mother echoed in his head, and he gritted his teeth in anger, wishing she could be here right now. Lumen would give anything for his life to have meaning again, feel his heart full of love. Anything, he thought to himself, his shoes clicking against the worn stone road. 

Lumen sighed, not in contempt, but out of relief when he was on a street lined with stalls. They bloomed across the dull stone, brightly colored and eye-catching. A sea of people of various clans, color and species stood before Lumen, some laughing, chatting and haggling prices. The market was well known in the area as being one of the best, locals and people from villages further away would come to it in the summer months when it was operating. During the cold season the market would close down, most people stocking up before hand. He could see a woman holding up a shimmering golden scarf, the sheer fabric catching the sunlight; as it caught his eye. He didn't really need something so frivolous, but the honey-colored fabric looked soft to the touch, and reminded him of a sunny morning from his youth.

Without really thinking, Lumen found himself in front of the stall. A short older woman greeted him with a warm smile as she held up the thin fabric to his face, her smile so wide it thinned her eyes.

"Hello Dear! why.." She paused as she scurried close to Lumen

Lumen pulled his head away just a bit in surprise, not intending anything rude; it just simply caught him off guard. She began to speak again in a delighted voice

"Just look at you! this color is soft against your skin, and it really brings out your eyes. This color suits my daughter too you know"

Lumen felt his lips turn upwards just a bit. He hadn't really thought about how it would look, but being compared to a girl was a little embarrassing. Still, the woman seemed so happy as she compared the shimmering amber material against his cheek. Lumen tried to find words for her.

"Ah.. well, thank you Ma'am.."
He trailed off for a moment before speaking again

"It's very beautiful.. did you make this?" Lumen asked genuinely. He was always impressed when people could make something from nothing. The old woman beamed at him in response

"With love! Would you like to purchase this one? I truly think it would be perfect for you"

she spoke eagerly, not as if she wanted a sale, but as if she had wanted to gift him something precious, but.. He didn't bring enough silver for anything extra, only what he needed. Lumen felt a little guilty, rejecting her

"Oh.. Thank you, truly, you're so kind.. But I haven't brought enough silver with me today.. I didn't intend to buy something extra. I'm very sorry to have wasted your time, The scarf is beautiful, truly!"

Lumen smiled but only a bit, his eyebrows knit together as he felt a pang of disappointment, he didn't often look at material items, but this scarf had been so beautifully made, this woman's small wrinkled hands spending hours carefully creating it. It was still in the warm months anyways; he didn't need something like this now.. Maybe once the evenings began to cool. His thoughts were cut off suddenly

"Foolish! Don't be ridiculous"

Lumen's eyes fixed on her in surprise as she folded the delicate garb and placed it within a paper bag, handing it to him eagerly.

"Please take it! It would make me happy knowing something I created was well cared for"

Lumen stared at the bag in mild shock. Something.. like a gift? For him? He felt his cheeks strain from the smile he hadn't realized he'd been wearing. He hasn't been given a gift in a very long time. But still he felt guilt for taking something she spent so much time on. Was it really okay to accept something like this?

"Are.. Are you sure? I'd feel bad just taking something you worked on.."

"Nonsense!" The woman spoke confidently, putting Lumens mind at ease

"I saw it caught your interest, sometimes we all deserve a gift don't you think? And anyway, it suits you! Please make sure to come back again, young man!"

Lumen sighed, realizing it would be disrespectful to her wishes if he were to turn her down. He did like the scarf, though, and felt a twinge of warmth as she smiled at him.

"Ah, thank you.. I will make sure to come back soon! Definitely."

Lumen smiled at her and nodded in earnest; a small girl and her mother appeared beside him at the stall; the child pointed at various floral colors in pinks and purples, asking her mother and tugging on her hand. Lumen looked at the paper bag in his hand and felt a slight tug at his lips again. He waved his hand at the older woman before he started to step away. She waved back before he turned and continued into the vast array of people. he had spent a bit longer than intended chatting with the woman; it's not like it was a bad thing, but the vegetables he wanted to pick up typically sold faster than others.
The market was somewhere Lumen was never heckled, and despite the crowd of people he felt as though he blended in. The market was always so full of different clans and species that nobody thought anything of him, unlike the rest of the city. But he was used to it by now, mostly anyways. He was hoping to leave anyways.. Hoping to fix himself and his sickness.
Lumen approached the bustling stall; various shapes and colors filled his sight, an earthy smell lingering in the air. The tables were lined with various strangely shaped root vegetables, and Lumen outstretched his hand, picking up the white, bulbous vegetable; he turned it in his hand a few times, looking for blemishes, even though he knew there would likely be none. There never was, not from this family's crop. In all the times he'd come here, everything was always perfect and harvested the day before their sale. Whatever didn't sell on the first day, they marked it down to a lower price or bundled it with other items to avoid waste.
Lumen picked up another of the same kind and handed them off to the younger girl behind the stall; her small feline-like ears perked up on her head and her brows raised as she saw Lumen.

"Hey! Lumen how are you? I feel like we haven't seen you in awhile!"

That was true.. Lumen hadn't been coming out much since his sickness had gotten worse, scared an episode could happen at any time he began to fear, leaving the safety of his home in the deep verdant stretch of forest. He felt safe there, as if the forest held him tight, protecting him from the harshness of the city and people. Really, sometimes.. He just wanted to disappear.