Anilyia (13 page)

Liselle spoke to distract her attention.
“How far is it to Alluu? And how far to the other side of the
mountains?” she asked Tiala. “I hear they’re vast. Some people say
they never end.” That was an exaggeration, but the woman seemed to
be responding to such things.

“Alluu is two or three weeks under the
mountains, depending on how fast you travel. There are smaller
caves with inns to stay at along the way. The Rojuun don’t approve
of anybody sleeping on the road or in neighboring caverns, so be
certain you can afford the journey.”

“Is it expensive then?” Liselle asked.

“It costs about a gold uun per night at the
inns. That’s more than traveling costs in most places throughout
the world, but gold is easier to come by in Rojuun territory and
the accommodations are better quality.” Talia smiled as she talked,
enjoying the company and the conversation.

“Where are the Rainbow Caverns?” Vevin
interjected, still hopping about.

“About halfway from here to Alluu,” Talia
answered, looking at him again. Her smile became a puzzled frown as
she subconsciously tried to pierce his illusion. “To get all the
way underneath the mountains from the Iynath Empire took me eight
weeks, but I traveled slowly and spent some time in the
cities.”

“Eight weeks!” Liselle exclaimed loudly.
Talia turned back to her just as she had hoped. “That’s a long
time, dearest. However, I believe we’ll make the journey anyway. It
truly does sound fascinating.” Liselle turned back to the
jewelsmith and leaned in, whispering, “Have you heard about the
kidnapped princess who’s said to be in the caverns?”

Talia scanned the area for listeners.
Finding none, she nodded and replied, “I have heard, Milady. It’s
all over the city and I think there might be some truth to it.”

“Really? Why would the Rojuun kidnap a
princess? They seem so nice,” Liselle said, portraying shock.

“I don’t think they kidnapped her. That
doesn’t make sense, but the caverns would be a good place to hide
her,” Talia responded.

“Oh, you mean they left her all alone in the
caverns?” Liselle said, feigning naiveté. “That seems cruel if you
ask me.”

Talia shook her head. “No, no. Not in the
caverns. They probably have her in one of the cities. Possibly even
Alluu.”

“Wouldn’t she be seen if Alluu is as busy as
you say?” Liselle wrinkled her nose in thought, leading the
jewelsmith’s conversation in a direction that might bring answers.
It was difficult to play dense, but fun at the same time.

“Well they wouldn’t keep her in the streets
of the city,” Talia answered with a frown. “There’s a secure,
guarded stronghold there where the elder council of Alluu lives and
works. Perhaps they’d keep her there,” she finished with a low
whisper, once again looking around to make certain she wasn’t
overheard.

That was very useful new information. “Oh,
that would make sense wouldn’t it? You must think me a silly fool
for not figuring that out.” Liselle acted embarrassed.

“Not at all, Milady,” Talia replied with a
genuine smile. “You couldn’t know there was a stronghold there and
the ways of the Rojuun are strange after all.”

Liselle liked this woman a lot. Not only had
she provided them with information, but more importantly, she had
been pleasant and eager to please. It was refreshing after dealing
with the Druids who had been stand-offish. Looking back at the
items on the table, she said, “I was looking to buy a piece of
jewelry, but I just don’t know what to get.”

“You know, I think I have just the thing for
you,” Tiala replied with a finger on chin and a thoughtful look on
her face. “Not long ago, I was passing by a garden and found
inspiration in some flowers.” Talia pointed at the blossom in
Liselle’s hair. “You seem to like flowers, so let me show this to
you.” She moved to her workbench and opened a drawer, pulling a
simple wooden box from it.

Talia brought it to them and opened it.
Inside were a necklace and earrings made of exquisite gold, set
with amethyst gemstones arranged in the shape of flowers. Each
inset was a brilliant round amethyst in the center with five more
shaped as petals around it. The necklace had one flower in the
center with two smaller ones on either side. Looking closer,
Liselle noticed the intricate work that had been done to make the
rest of the necklace appear to be leaves and branches intertwined.
The earrings were smaller flowers with golden leaves hanging
down.

“Ohh . . .” Liselle reached out to touch
them gently. “Oh, oh, oh those are so nice. I love them.”

“Oh yes! They are beautiful, dearest,” Vevin
agreed, looking over her shoulder. “The gems are fine and the gold
work is extraordinary. They would look amazing on you.”

“When I passed the flowers, I had an urge to
create these,” Talia said with a smile. “I haven’t put the set out
as I didn’t want to sell them to the wrong person. I believe it was
a good decision. You are who these pieces are meant for,
Milady.”

Liselle frowned in thought. “My ears aren’t
pierced, so I wouldn’t be able to wear the earrings.” The thought
of poking holes in her ears made her uncomfortable, though she had
noticed many men and women with piercings in the city and among the
Druids. Tathan had his ears pierced as well. It seemed to be a
popular thing to do. Even the Rojuun liked piercings.

“I can pierce your ears for you, Milady.
Don’t worry, it’s a quick procedure and there’s only a small pain,
which goes away immediately,” Talia assured her with a gentle
smile, gesturing to a chair near the workbench.

Liselle looked at Vevin to get his opinion.
He eagerly nodded. “They would look pretty on you and it’s very
clever to keep one’s treasure on the ears.”

She smiled and blushed before turning to
Talia. “Alright, let’s do it.” She began to follow the jewelsmith
to the chair then stopped suddenly. “Wait . . . I haven’t purchased
them, and I promised Tathan I’d bargain . . .” Liselle realized she
had just given away the fact that she was supposed to bargain to
the very person she would haggle with. Her hand moved to her mouth
in embarrassment.

Talia giggled. “I would expect nothing less,
Milady. In all honesty, I forgot that I needed to sell them to
you,” she said with a blush upon her dark cheeks. The jewelsmith
crossed her arms, still holding the box in one hand and thought
briefly. “This jewelry was made for you, though I didn’t know it at
the time, therefore I can’t sell it to anyone else. I also really
like you, which isn’t something I should admit to when trying to
make a bargain,” she informed with a wink and smile. That put them
both on a level playing field.

“Well, if I have enough money I’m going to
buy it anyway, regardless of whether or not it’s a good deal,”
Liselle said, sabotaging her own position further. “My cousin will
just have to be cranky with me.” She really did hope she had enough
to buy the set. The flowers were just so beautiful. If only the
gold leaves could be green, it would be perfect.

Vevin giggled at their game and joined in.
“I would buy it for you, and if I don’t have enough, we’ll combine
our money,” he said with a big grin. Talia finally pierced Vevin’s
illusion enough to see how sharp his teeth were, causing her to
take a step back.

“It’s alright, he doesn’t bite,” Liselle
told her hurriedly. “Well . . . he does bite, but not you. I
promise,” she said, nodding reassuringly.

Talia did not look at all reassured and took
another step back. Liselle sighed, worried she might not get the
necklace after all. Then the jeweler took a deep breath to fortify
her resolve. She stepped forward once more, bowing to Vevin. “I
apologize, Milord. I did not mean to offend you,” she said with
amazing resilience.

“Oh no! You didn’t offend me. I don’t mind
at all,” Vevin said with another dance. “I try not to scare people,
but sometimes I just can’t help it.” Liselle noticed that Talia’s
guard wasn’t paying attention to them, which showed that Vevin’s
illusion was still strong. He had just let the jeweler see his real
self, which was somewhat of a compliment.

“Very good, Milord” Talia responded with
relief evident on her face. Liselle wondered why she kept calling
them ‘Milady’ and ‘Milord’. It was probably something all merchants
did. The vendor they had gotten the treats from did the same thing,
as had others in the past. “How much is the jewelry, Talia?”
Liselle asked.

“I purchased the amethyst from a vendor in
Alluu and it only cost me eight gold uun. There’s a great deal of
amethyst and other gems to be purchased there. The gold in the
necklace is pure and worth three gold uun in weight,” she told them
in a businesslike tone. “I won’t charge you for my labor as it was
a pleasure to make them and an inspiration as well. Therefore, the
cost is eleven gold uun,” she said, holding the box out to
Liselle.

Instead of haggling, Liselle immediately
grabbed her purse to pay. However, Vevin had fifteen gold already
in his hand and gave it to Talia. “I’ll purchase the jewels for my
mate,” he said quickly. “And they are worth five times the price
you ask.”

“Thank you, Milord,” Talia replied, taking
the gold while handing the box to him. Then she grabbed Liselle’s
hand and pulled her over to the chair, smiling the whole time.
“Come, Milady, it’ll be a quick sting to pierce the ear.” She
tossed the money on the desk and opened a drawer, pulling out a
sharp object as Liselle sat down.

Vevin came over and opened the box for
Talia. The jewel smith grabbed one of the earrings and leaned next
to Liselle’s right ear with the sharp needle. Liselle watched the
needle suspiciously, pulling away when it came near.

“Shh, shh. It’s alright, Milady.” Talia took
Liselle’s chin and turned her toward Vevin, then moved the needle
to the earlobe. It was a sharp pain, over quickly. It reminded
Liselle of the time Vevin had nibbled a little too hard on that
lobe. Then the weight of the earring pulled at her ear.

“Here, hold this for a moment,” Talia told
her, pressing a small piece of cloth to the piercing and bringing
Liselle’s hand up to hold it. She moved around to the other
side.

“You could pierce my ears for me with your
teeth, darling,” Liselle said, grinning at Vevin. Talia paused and
looked at him once more with eyes wide. She opened her mouth, but
Liselle interrupted gently. “Don’t ask, Talia.”

The jewelsmith’s mouth closed and she
nodded, moving back to the left ear. She quickly pierced that lobe
as well before reaching out for the other earring that Vevin handed
to her. An instant later, she had a cloth at that ear too. “Hold
this one now, Milady,” Talia told her.

“Let’s see them, dearest,” Vevin said. He
danced from foot to foot in anticipation. Talia had gone to stand
next to him, but took a step to the side instead.

Liselle removed the cloths and stood,
turning her head each way for Vevin to see. The feel of dangly
earrings swinging from her lobes felt strange. He set the box on
the workbench and took the necklace out. Liselle turned and held
her hair up so he could clasp it. Talia fetched a mirror for her to
see.

They were beautiful. The flower in Liselle’s
hair moved forward to look in the mirror as well. It was pleased at
the effect. Talia’s eyes widened at the flower’s motion. It
occurred to the jewelsmith that this was not an ordinary couple by
any means.

“They look wonderful, dearest,” Vevin told
Liselle with his hands on her shoulders. She smiled back at him
through the mirror then turned around and put her arms around his
neck, kissing him deeply.

“I love you, Vevin,” Liselle said, looking
fondly into his eyes. They held each other for a moment as Talia
looked on in embarrassment, feeling like an intruder in their
special moment. “Thank you so much for this, Talia. The jewelry is
absolutely beautiful,” Liselle told her.

“You’re welcome, Milady,” Talia replied. “If
you could tell others where you purchased it, I would appreciate
the business.”

“I will most definitely do so,” Liselle
reassured her.

“Oh yes!” Vevin exclaimed. “We’ll tell
everyone where we purchased it and that the rest of your work is
high quality.” He was doing a happy dance, careful not to bump into
any of the tables. “Good business to you, Talia.”

“And good journeys to you, Milord, Milady,”
she said, lowering her head to each of them. They walked back into
the market, Vevin grabbing the box for the jewelry to put it
wherever he kept such things.

They strolled through the market plaza with
arms linked. “Vevin? Why does everyone keep calling me ‘Milady’?”
Liselle asked. It had been bothering her for a while.

“Because you
are
a lady, dearest.”
Vevin appeared puzzled by the question. “It’s easy for everyone to
see.”

“But I’m not a lady. I’m . . .” she trailed
off. Liselle still didn’t know what she was.

“You’re a flower child. A princess among
flowers,” Vevin responded. “If anything, people should be calling
you ‘Highness’.”

“No! I don’t want people calling me that.
‘Milady’ is bad enough,” she exclaimed in alarm, hitting him in the
shoulder with her free hand. He laughed out loud and gave her a
fake bow. She smacked his shoulder again as he tried to duck
away.

They continued walking, Vevin’s laughter
settling into a grin. “You are a lady among flowers then,” he told
her. “In truth, you look fine enough to be a lady. It’s in the way
you walk and hold yourself. You’re also extremely beautiful. The
world becomes brighter whenever you smile.”

Liselle was certain a blush covered her from
head to toe. She couldn’t help grinning like a fool and had a hard
time looking him in the eye. He said things that made her feel so
good. When he put his arm around her shoulder, she reached around
his waist and held him as they walked through the market.