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Raven tucks me into his side, as if to protect me. Normally I’d wiggle away if someone tried to put his arm around me like this, but Raven’s touch isn’t too tight or confining. And I can’t afford to reject protection, not until I get a new concealment charm on me.
Besides, I suppose there are worse things in this world than being next to a handsome guy like Raven. As the four of us move through the stalls, it’s clear that the men are recognized. People smile and nod at them as they pass, or move out of the way to give them room.
All around us there’s so much happening, I can hardly take it all in. My job is stealing unusual and expensive things for people, and this place is full of insane, creative magical items. Everywhere I look, there’s something new.
There are women selling colorful scarves, potions, elixirs, and magical spices for food. There are jewelry stands everywhere, and piles of uncut gems for use in magical spells—or for eating, depending on what kind of supernatural creature you are. People of all genders are hawking their wares, while a man stands in the middle of a sort of square with a pile of maps in his hand, giving directions about which stall is where. It’s like a farmer’s market, a county fair, and a bazaar all rolled into one.
I walk up to a stall that has amulets hanging from the top of it and large crystal balls resting on the table. Some of them are smoky, some seem to have an eye in the middle, and still others are brightly colored. Along with the traditional clear ones, of course.
The next stall after that is selling chocolates, and I would normally just walk right up and buy some, but I doubt these are normal chocolates. Sure enough, when I read the little cards at the front of each row of chocolates that say what they are, I find out that one chocolate is supposed to induce a craze of lust inside you, and another is supposed to get you in a state of mind to be more receptive to learning about your past lives. There are even some chocolates that say they’re specifically for only one type of supernatural creatures or other, like goblins or shifters.
Children run past me, chasing each other, and I grin. One of them is covered in scales and another appears to be a full fae, with delicate wings sprouting out of their back. They’re yelling about another stall, and when I follow them, I see that this stall has a bunch of glowing butterflies the size of my face.
There aren’t just butterflies, I see upon a closer look. There are dragonflies and moths and bumblebees. All of them are glowing slightly, and flap their wings slowly. They’re obviously not actually real creatures, but constructs of some kind, but they look so lifelike, I have to reach out and touch one to make sure. It’s delightful.
I turn back to make sure the men are still with me, and find that all three of them are looking at me with soft looks on their faces. Cain’s straight-out smiling while North and Raven’s faces just look like they’ve softened a bit, a warm light in their eyes.
“What?” I ask. I walk over to them, smiling a bit, feeling on the spot. “What is it?”
“Nothing,” Cain says. “You’re just adorable.”
I can feel my face heating up. I’m a tall girl, nobody ever calls me adorable. And even if I was short, I don’t think most people would call me that. I don’t exactly give off warm and fuzzy feelings.
But none of the men are looking at me like they think I’m some cute creature that can’t take care of herself. Instead they actually look delighted with me. Like I’m a field of summer flowers when they’ve been in the dark and snowy woods for months.
My heart warms at that, and I’m not sure what to do with it. “Um. Thank you?”
North barks out a laugh. Raven ducks his head down, trying and failing to smother a smile.
“You’re welcome,” Cain says. He sounds incredibly amused.
I can’t help but bristle a little. I feel like I’m a bit behind. Like this is something that they all know, and I don’t. Like I’m a child compared to them. They all know about this market and have probably been here a hundred times and yet this is my first time.
“You know that I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself, right?” I ask. “I’m not a child you have to babysit and do the whole—I can show you the world thing fromAladdin.”
“We just think it’s nice, that’s all,” Cain says, putting a hand up like he’s stopping me from moving forward. “It’s all old hat to us. With you it’s all new again and we get to see the… the fun in it once more.”
North nods in agreement. “It’s getting a new perspective.”
Hmm. I hadn’t thought of it that way. I wonder how much these men have seen in their lives and all that they’ve gone through. I know I have my own scars, and I can’t help but want to know what theirs are.
Raven puts his arm around me again, looking around. “We need to get moving.”
I want to just take my time and explore without a purpose, see what all there is, sampling things, buying whatever I want—but that’ll have to wait for another day, when I’m not on a time crunch.
“We’ll have to bring you back here,” Cain observes, chuckling.
Raven nods at North, who nods back and turns to lead us again. Now that he’s snapped back into focus, everything else seems to fade away. I watch as he picks up the scent again or whatever it is that he’s focusing on, his nostrils flaring and eyes narrowing. He’s like a dog that’s picked up a scent, a man on a mission, and he unerringly leads us through the various ‘streets’.
Cain seems to know a lot of people. He’s waving and smiling at people as he walks by, calling out to them by name, and people call out to him in return and wave. Raven and North ignore them, but nobody seems offended. It’s probably par for the course.
“It’s good to get everyone on your side,” Cain murmurs, leaning in so that he can speak almost right into my ear. “That way when the shit hits the fan, you can count on people to help you out or at least cheer you on instead of the other guy.”
“Smart tactic.” I’ve always been a loner myself, but I suppose that there’s a plus side to being open and friendly. Sure not my tactic, though.
We go down the twisting, winding ‘streets’, following North. They’re not streets, exactly, but I don’t know what else to call them. As we go, we’re heading away from the main center of the market and toward the outskirts. I can’t see the walls or ceiling of this underground place so I’m only going based on what is around us, and the noise and the bright colors are dying away to leave room for more serious stalls.
The people here aren’t yelling out at us about their wares or showcasing fun trinkets. Instead, stalls seem to be about more serious matters. There’s one stall that has a sign for wing operations. Another stall has a table that’s just covered in different types of bones, all neatly laid out on display, and even several jars that are full of bone dust.
