Rime wandered through the town, awed by everything she saw. How could people stand to live in these towns? Didn’t the smell or the sheer number of people deter them? She had no idea that Cerenis, while prosperous, was not the biggest city in Le’raana. She would have loved to leave; being among so many real people made her uneasy. Still, the ghost didn't like crowds any better than she did, and she wanted to have some peace.
She paused, hearing snatches of conversation. Someone was dehydrated and starved. Really, people were so fragile. Sometimes she was glad that she was just a homunculus, an object animated by magic. She didn’t have half as much to worry about.
She looked curiously at the boy the people referred to. He did look sick, she decided. "He's my brother." she lied for him, choosing spontaneously to help him. She had nothing else to do, anyways. "He's been sick from childhood and we all have to take care of him." She smiled disarmingly. Lying was fun; she decided that she would do it more often.
It wasn't that preposterous of a lie. She was every bit as skinny as he was, the result of having a master who wanted to save on building supplies. She dragged him into the shade and propped him against the wall.
The people had said that he was starving and dehydrated, which meant that he needed food and water. She wondered where she could get some without any money.