Excerpt:
It was ordinarily noisy in her favorite shopping district. Buzzing of voices, both loud and quiet. Haggling. Goods being moved around. Doors opening and closing. There was even an open marketplace, which was refreshing and fun.
Holding onto a basket, Proserpyn went to a stall selling tea boxes. Of course, she bought a box of something there. She went to a little bakery to get a package of cookies and tiny cakes. Right next door was a candy shop. Trying not to lick her lips, Proserpyn turned into that place, and she hungrily scanned the products on display. They were all so colorful!
Eventually, she settled on a tin box full of honey drops. They were candies with a hard but thin shell and a liquid center full of honey flavor.
Prina went on, browsing store after store. As she walked on the busy streets towards a dressmaker's shop, she thought she saw something–a blur of dark black and blue, mostly blue, in the bright summer light.
She blinked and tried to look around for the figure. So distracted she was by her puzzled hunt that she ended up in a thin alley, staring towards the end of it, where a brick wall faced her. It was likely part of another building.
Behind her, Prina heard the city's denizens moving about and conversing. In front, there were a few barrels, a random cat on top of one, staring down at a rat on the stone pathway.
Proserpyn shrugged and assumed she might've been seeing things. It might be too hot out. Then again, she was wearing a light summer gown, and her hat shielded her face from the sun. She wasn't dehydrated and blasting it all; she was accustomed to tropical summer weather.
"May I have a honey drop?"
That now familiar voice was behind her!
Proserpyn spun around.
There he was!
Still shrouded in black with blue reflections, his form was right in the center of her view, maybe a few feet away. His face was obscured by the veil he'd worn near the lake. If anyone passing by had noticed him, they must've been determined to ignore him. It was almost as if Proserpyn was the only one that could see him.
This time, she smelled a heady mixture of smoke and musk, but with a hint of leaves drying out in chilled air.
Holding her basket's handle close to her belly, Proserpyn pursed her lips and angrily stared at the man.
Half a minute awkwardly passed, but the man seemed incredibly patient. He didn't show any sign of discomfort–only repeated:
"May I have a honey drop?"
"Once more, you spy on me," Prina accused through clenched teeth.
The veiled head nodded. "This time, you were in public. I have no more guilt than any other gentleman that would notice a beauty."
Her hands squeezed the basket's handle quite firmly. "You're not a gentleman."
The covered shoulders shrugged–one of the arms reached out, the hand still hidden by an abundance of fabric. At first, Proserpyn had assumed he wanted her to place candy in his palm.
Instead, she saw something in the center of that palm, something that gleamed.
It was big, pink, orange, and every color between the two.
"I have a rare type of sapphire here," the man said in his burning voice. "I'll place it next to that focused little cat. If you'd like the sapphire, replace it with a honey drop."
She rolled her eyes. "I have gemstones. I don't have a king's treasury, but I do have gemstones. You, Sir, have nothing that I want."
The hand shape silently gulped up the gem. Then the arm lowered.
"Quite unfortunate. I crave the sweet."
"Buy a tin for yourself," Proserpyn told him. She wanted to walk by him to leave the alley, but she didn't like the idea of going anywhere near the strange man.
Unmoving, still sounding gentle and calm, the man said, "I could buy honey drops and many other delicious things to taste." The head moved back and forth, a negative gesture. "Sadly, that's no longer an option. I want your honey."
"Now you want honey?" Prina took a steadying breath. She didn't want to lose her temper. It wasn't safe to do so. "I don't want to know what you mean by that." She turned to her left and backed up against a building. "Please step aside. I must return home."
"My apologies," the man said as he moved backward. Without preamble, he turned around and seemed to disappear into the market crowd. She hadn't expected him to leave that way, but she was at least glad to be rid of him.
She counted to ten.
Well, that was enough time to make sure he was gone, right?
It certainly was time to go. Abigail would come for tea. She'd love to hear about all this nonsense with the shrouded man.
Maybe he was a wizard or something.
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