Keila brought Abad to the merchant''s guildhall, which was situated on a quiet street just off a large plaza in the western market. She told him she''d be a short while and to make time before strolling off across the street and into the hall. Abad shook his head as the woman disappeared. The competence and confidence, enhanced tenfold by her new station in life, radiated off of her. She really was something.


    Walking back to the market, Abad looked around at the various shops and stands and tried to decide what he wanted to do. After leaving his old gear on Draekenspire, he needed to gather traveling supplies again before leaving town, but he also wanted to enjoy himself. He decided he''d prioritize leisure first. He strolled up the road and scanned for the most interesting shop he could find, and a short while later, he spotted a clothing shop. Weighing the bags of crystals in his hand, he decided it couldn''t hurt to take a little peek. Just a little one. He didn''t have to buy anything. He could just browse. There was no harm in taking a peek. He could trust himself.


    As he walked through the front door of the spacious shop, he saw an older halfling couple working on clothes at cluttered workstations. A pleasant bell jingled, and both people looked up as he entered and gave him warm, honest smiles. Even the bastard he used to be loved honest people like these. He always made it a point to make them his. Through the carrot if they were receptive. The stick if not.


    "Hello and welcome!" The man said, standing from his little stool and hobbling toward Abad. When he reached him, he took Abad''s hand in his. The man was older and stooped, with the crooked back and tough hands of a laborer past his prime and the honest smile of a genuine soul. "We''re happy to have you on this fine day."


    "Hello, good sir. I''m looking for some clothes and heard your shop was the place to go," he lied, but flattery never hurt anyone.


    "I thank you for your kind words. We have the oldest shop in all of Farnfoss!" He stood straighter and puffed out his chest, the pride evident on his wizened face, before deflating again. "Allow me to show you our selection!" He led Abad over to a series of racks of clothing. The fabric was decent, and the stitching was well done. "Just tell me what you''d like, and I''ll get it for you."


    Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the man looking at him for a while. He was doing that peculiar thing the elderly did when they looked for any opening to talk. Not seeing one, he turned and looked out the window. "It has been a lovely Soulclaim so far. It''ll be the last good week I think."


    Abad decided he''d take the bait. "I suppose so." This would be Abad''s first Darkfall. He didn''t know what to expect, and the man seemed harmless enough.


    "You have plans, my good man?" Abad looked down at him. The man''s brown eyes sparkled as he continued before Abad could answer. "All our kids are coming in, even the ones from Risselton. The missus and I are looking forward to it. It''s been a few years since we''ve had the whole family come, and with the sorry business with the beastkin, we didn''t know if they''d come. Luckily, the Hero graced us with her presence. Who knows what would have happened if she hadn''t come when she did? The Legion don''t take kindly to uprisings, especially out here in the Verge."


    "It is a shame what the beast folk endure. What all endure." While the beast folk made up the majority of the enslaved and indentured, the other races were not exempt, though their servitude seemed more like debt peonage.


    The man looked him up and down. "Your kind don''t often have much compassion for them. Your words are welcome to these old ears." The man shuffled up to him. "When our kind were enslaved by the humans ages ago, you fought to free us. I am happy to see members of your noble race extend that same kindness to others."


    Abad hadn''t known about that part of the halfling''s past. He only knew they began to arrive on Reial when the humans did in the third age. The halflings had an oral tradition that spanned back centuries, but few knew it. "I''m glad to be an exemplar of my race, then." He smiled at the man.


    They talked more as he browsed, and soon he found something he liked. Then another thing. And another.


    Abad told himself he''d be good...


    ... And an hour later, he left the shop with several new outfits. The couple stood in the doorway and waved to him as he shoved the clothes he purchased into the new pack that he''d also bought. It was nicer than his old one. Completely worth it. He needed something to carry his things in, after all. He vowed to himself that he wouldn''t lose this one too. Looking at the bill, he cringed when he saw how much he''d spent. He just couldn''t say no. It was his one true curse.


    "Good timing!" He heard Keila call out. She crossed the street and took his arm. "I can''t say I''m surprised." She pointed to a pant leg that was sticking out of his new pack. He shoved it in and strapped the bag shut. "Your eyes always did sparkle when I gave you new clothes."


    "I can''t help myself," he murmured.


    "That''s alright. Good clothes make already handsome men like you even better." She winked at him. "Let''s get you some supplies. I doubt you''ll be back anytime soon, and I can''t have you starving on the road, now can I?" She pulled him towards the market. They wandered the shops and stalls for a time, grabbing one thing here, another there, and soon he had just about all the things he would need. Looking at his bag of crystals, he was surprised to find that he''d managed to stay within budget too, mostly through the help of Keila''s excellent bartering skills and her willingness to buy him "gifts," which mostly amounted to her simply buying him things. He and Zethari should have enough rations and supplies to last them a month as long as they traveled with a wagon or caravan.


    Once he paid for the last of the supplies, she turned to him, her blue eyes sparkling in the afternoon light. "Now that that''s done, care to join me for a little date, my mighty dark lord?"


    "She told you about that, huh?"This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    "She told me enough."


    Abad nodded to the blonde and held his arm out. With a broad smile, she took it, and they wandered around the market with no clear goals.


    While aimlessly browsing the shops and stands, holding up little odds and ends to one another as they did, he smelled something cooking nearby and couldn''t stop himself from walking toward its source. Whatever it was, it smelled great, like spices and red meat, and was coming from a nearby food cart. As they approached, he saw that the source of the smell was some sort of meat on sticks that a man was grilling over coals. He was basting them with some thick brown sauce, which caramelized as the drippings caused flames to spark up and lick up their sides.


    "Oh, zintra! That''s one of my favorite foods from Malrith." She turned to Abad, her face perfectly shaped to convince him of whatever it was that she wanted, and he knew he''d obey. "It''s reallllly good. We should try some!"


    Both of their stomachs grumbled, and they chuckled to one another. He went to pull out his crystal pouch, but she waved him away and bought three.


    When she approached, she handed him two and smiled. "Seriously, it''s the best."


    "You really don''t have to buy everything you know."


    "I want to." Her eyes begged him to challenge her. He didn''t. "You just wait. It''s going to be the best thing you''ve eaten this week."


    While she guided him to a nearby bench, he took a bite.


    She wasn''t wrong.


    The meat was delicious. It was some sort of ground meat mixed with aromatics and spices and covered in a sweet and savory sauce that had just enough heat to make him sweat. He''d definitely be looking for zintra again as he traveled.


    He and the beautiful woman sat and ate and watched the crowds go by, enjoying the scenery and each other. Unlike most other parts of Farnfoss, the buildings here were well-maintained, and the roads were cleaner than anywhere else. The smell of the river lingered here too, and gulls occasionally called out from the small docks in the distance. The bells he heard tolling from time to time when he rested in the manor were here as well, and they rang out just as he considered them, calling out for all the children of the Goddess to listen.


    He felt a frown fall upon his lips. Would he ever be able to hear that sound and feel welcome? He wasn''t sure. He felt closer to Her now than he ever had, but she still felt so far away. Maybe one day he''d be able to ask her directly.


    Another thought came to him. What would his teacher think of his actions of late? Surely she would see them for what they were: Weakness. Folly. He had been more frivolous in the past month since he woke up than the near-century he''d lived before it. Aughra likely would have scolded him for his stupidity. In all their years together, she demanded he focus on his goals and visualize the world he wanted to create. Today, he hardly had any idea of what that looked like. Wander the seven nations? That hardly was concrete or actionable. He was just wasting time.


    "Hey." Keila reached up and turned his head to face hers. While beautiful, her face was unreadable. "Don''t get lost in there." She pointed at his head. "You have a habit of doing that. It''s not good for you. Just be in the moment." She lowered her hand and wrapped her fingers around his.


    He squeezed her hand. She was right. Ruminating wasn''t productive. "Yes ma''am."


    "About time you showed me the respect I deserve." She thrust her chin upward in mock nobility and side-eyed him. "I demand this level of respect when you return to Farnfoss, peasant."


    "I would never dare to insult you, milady." He bowed his head. "Excuse my lack of decorum. I know not the ways of this time."


    She giggled, then leaned over and kissed his cheek. "At least you''re learning."


    Her kiss caused something in him to move. He couldn''t stop from asking. "What are we... What is..." He couldn''t shape the words, but her eyes showed she understood him.


    Her fingers unraveled from his, and she looked at the ground and smiled a sad smile. "I was shocked when I learned what you were. It''s not easy..." She looked at him, then back at the ground, "The stories about your kind aren''t for the fainthearted, and you''re one of the real ones, not one of the sad castaways I''ve met."


    "I understand." That was all he could say.


    "That''s not all though. I was also ashamed of myself. I''ve lied to so many people, and I''ve hurt so many. I always used the excuse that I didn''t have a choice, and I still believe that, but it doesn''t change the fact that I did what I did. These hands have hurt a lot of people. I''ve been struggling with that." She gazed at something invisible in her palms. From the look on her face, she didn''t like what she saw. "I didn''t know how to process it all. Still don''t."


    "It can''t have been easy." His life had never been uncomplicated, and he knew hers had been much the same.


    She turned back to him. "But being all guilty and distant isn''t fair to you or me. We have a chance to do better. And now that you''re leaving, I won''t really have the chance to show you who I can be. Who I want to be. I may never see you again, so I feel like I owe it to myself to have one nice day with you before you''re gone. To show you a little bit of who I am, without all the baggage." She reached out and squeezed his hand again. "Despite everything, I enjoyed being around you. I enjoy being around you. And I still think you''re beautiful, and maybe a little less sad than I''d originally thought. You''re a big mope, but you''re sweet, and you''re thoughtful, and you make me feel seen. Plus, you saved me, and I''ll never forget that." She looked into his eyes. "I hate to admit it, because it''s going to be way harder when I do, but I''m going to miss you." She leaned into him, rested her head on his chest, and sighed.


    "Me too." He admitted as he wrapped his arm around her. A slight breeze rolled off the water nearby, and it rustled her hair. He brushed a stray strand that had flown loose from her ponytail back behind her ear, and she looked up at him, her eyes filled with more than friendship. He pulled her close and held her tight.


    They stayed like that for a while, just holding one another and being together. Then, he began to hear a soft noise coming from nearby. It sounded like music. He stood up and pulled her up to him.


    "Do you hear that?"


    "Hear what?"


    "Come on."


    He listened intently as they weaved through the streets. As they got closer, he realized that it was indeed music. Turning down an alleyway, in a courtyard wedged between two buildings, three musicians played soft music to a large crowd of onlookers. They didn''t seem in appearance or dress to be performers, but they sounded excellent. They looked more like locals with some talent who enjoyed their craft. The song was unfamiliar, but it pulled something out of the depths of his memory. It reminded him of home. His first home, long ago. There was always music in elven cities. Music was life for his people.


    The woman wrapped her arm around his waist. "Care to sit with me?" She pointed to a nearby bench with a large smile. Not waiting for him to answer, she pulled him toward it, sat him down, and sat next to him, throwing her legs across his lap as she did. As they listened, the woman weaved her fingers into his. As the musicians played, she slowly swayed to the music, her head resting on his shoulder. As he listened, Abad thought back to his home, his childhood spent enjoying music beneath the trees. In that moment, he realized he felt the most peace he''d felt in centuries.


    They listened for a long time, until the afternoon faded into early evening, and soon enough the two were rising with the rest of the audience members as the musicians finished their final song. They clapped, and Abad stood and placed a few crystals in the little hat they''d set out for tips. As he did, Keila caught up to him and hooked her arm in his, and they wordlessly made their way to the inn with smiles on their faces.