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December in World’s Edge was far colder than what Jari was used to, and he woke up one morning with Aurelius against his side.
He couldn’t wait any longer, and he had little to do at the shop that day besides painting resin on the bowls. He nudged the Prince.
“Wake up. We should get ready.”
Aurelius rolled over and yanked most of the covers over himself. “Fetch me some hot tea.”
Jari snorted. “Of course, Your Majesty.”
It wasn’t like he minded. Aurelius didn’t treat him like a dog now. He’d even learned how to cook, and the meals he made were…mostly passable. Jari was better at it, but Aurelius was improving pretty fast despite never cooking before.
The water was nearly ready, and he was cutting bread at the counter when he heard footsteps, and the kitchen floor groaned. Aurelius hugged him from behind.
“Sit. I’ll make breakfast.”
“I thought I was supposed to bring you your tea in bed.”
Aurelius snorted. “It’s better in here with the fire. You can sit since you made dinner last night.”
The eggs came out good, and the sausages were only a little burned on one side. Aurelius was certainly improving.
Once they were ready to leave, Jari gathered up the wooden bowls they’d sanded the night before for extra money. They’d be resined later so they’d be safe to eat from. Bowls and other small household items were always in demand, and Jari had good news to share, although he couldn’t say it yet.
They dropped off the bowls, and Jari asked the boss in private if they could go for a bit. He said yes, and Jari hurried to find Aurelius in the back of the workshop.
“Put your cloak back on. I want to show you the latest project we did. It’s almost finished.”
“You’re allowed to?”
“Yeah. The merchant hasn’t moved in yet, so he won’t care. We can resin the bowls later.”
Galahad didn’t look like something an apprentice carpenter would ride, but Aurelius couldn’t bear to part with his royal horse. Galadad pranced down the street and clearly knew he was better than a good deal of other horses. Jari still had Mercury, and he hadn’t returned to that farm in case the people wanted him back. Instead, Aurelius had withdrawn money from the bank in Morning Glory before they’d gone to the Palace, and they'd used a messenger to deliver a hefty sum to the owner of that farm as a sorry for stealing the horse.
That would have to do. As they made their way down the crowded street, Jari suddenly remembered something and pictured a certain orange-haired woman fizzing with anger back at the Palace while she cursed his name.
“Shit.”
Aurelius, bundled up in his cloak, side-eyed him. “What?”
“When you made that withdrawal, I meant to ask you to set aside some to give to the librarian. I lost a few of her books. She was so pissed the last time she saw me.”
“Oops. Ehh, it’s not the end of the realm.”
“It probably is to her.”
“I’m sure she can find replacements. Tomson can take care of that.” Aurelius started chuckling. “I can’t believe you managed to piss off that old woman. She was a gossip, but nice.”
“Yeah, until you lose a book. Or several.”
Jari led Aurelius out of the city and down a road that went up the coast. The house Jari had helped to build was only about twenty minutes away. A merchant had finalized what he wanted, masons had built the main house, and Jari’s boss had been contracted to panel the walls, put the floors in, add a porch, and shingle the roof.
On the second day of work, the merchant had canceled because he’d found a better place down the coast and wanted to live there instead. Jari’s boss didn’t return deposits since therewas no issue with the quality of his work, and he’d already spent money on supplies.
The merchant had refused to pay for the rest and bitched at them like it was their fault that he’d found a new place.
Jari explained that to Aurelius and finished as they walked the horses into the yard. They were on a hill, and below them, the beach spread out and met the ocean.
Aurelius looked at the nearly finished house and squinted. “You finished it, so who’s going to buy it?”
