Once they were in the Wye District, the houses and property became less opulent and more normal, a bit more familiar with what Edna knew. They came to a stop, however, beside an impossibly large building. “This is the place,” Jason said, helping them out of the carriage. “Wow, it’s so big!” Edna said, awed by the size of the building. It was immense, about the size of a palace, even. “It’s big enough for sharks and dolphins,” George told her with a grin.

  They walked inside. “Welcome to the Aquarium! Entrance fee is 5 silver, please!” Her gaze drifted down, regarding the two kids. “And of course, children ten and under can come in for free!” Jason handed her the required funds to get himself in. “Would you like a guided tour?” The clerk asked them. Jason looked towards Edna, who shook her head. “Alright then, have fun!”

  With those words, Edna and George made their way through the main doors, and into the first exhibit. Edna’s eyes widened, taking in the gorgeous sight before her. They were in a large semispherical hallway, but the sides and roof were solid glass. Behind that glass was an endless amount of water, and swimming in that water was a myriad of aquatic life she had never seen before.

“Oooo, what’s that?” she asked, pointing to a funny looking fish that was broad and flat. It swam by flapping it’s wings, much in the same way as a bird. “Oh those are manta rays,” George remarked. “They look pretty neat, huh?”

  “Wooooow! They’re so cool!”

  “Wait till you see the monster exhibit,” George said with a smirk. The Aquarium not only hosted typical marine life, but also had a special exhibit of various aquatic monsters. Edna had a blast wandering throughout the Aquarium, learning about various fish and aquatic life. As they exited, she hopped up and down, absolutely giddy. “Thank you so much for taking me there, George!” she said. George laughed easily. “It’s no problem…”

  “I hate to pour rain on you both, but it is getting rather late. I recommend we make our way to Vittorio’s and get Miss Edna here some clothes, and then get her home. Wouldn’t do to make Master Cartwright upset, now would it, Master George?”

  “Hm, yes, you’re right,” George agreed. “Aw, it’s already almost over? Time sure flies…” Edna said, dejectedly. “Hey, if I can play my cards right, I’m sure we could do this a few more times,” George told her. That cheered her up. They boarded the carriage, and made their way to Vittorio’s, a well-known shop that catered to average people. It was well liked by even the peasants, due to their affordable prices and solid quality of their clothing.

  Edna walked into the store, and was amazed to find it was quite homely. Compared to the previous stores she had seen in the Noble’s District, this one was small by comparison. However, that brought her comfort. It made her feel more like she was in her depth. “Hey, George, do you think I could ask you to get my mother some clothes as well?” she asked.

  “Um, I don’t see why not. We still have plenty of funds. Man, what was Father thinking, giving us this much?” George asked Jason after sifting through their coin purse.

  “Master George, I am certain Master Cartwright intended you to take Miss Edna on a far more opulent playdate than what was anticipated,” Jason told him. “Oh, you’re right…we didn’t really go anywhere extravagant, did we?” he mused quietly. “Is that bad?” Edna asked.

  “On the contrary, I believe it is good to find happiness without compromising one’s finances. There are plenty of things to do for fun that do not require money, after all,” Jason replied succinctly. “That is one thing that you have that nobles do not, Miss Edna.”

  “Ehh? What do you mean?” Edna asked, tilting her head. “You will understand when you are older, I am sure.” Edna was lucky because she was able to find joy in the little things in life. However, Nobles, who want for nothing and live in the lap of luxury, suitably find it harder to have fun without resorting to increasingly extravagant methods. Who would want to sit on a hill near town after hiking in the mountains of a foreign country?

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Edna wouldn’t realize the truth behind Jason’s words until much later in her life, however.

  “Jason is quite the poet, isn’t he? I wish I was as verbose as he was,” George admitted.

  “It is merely a matter of perspective, Master George. Now, allow us to achieve our goal…”

  Jason called for an attendant, who regarded Edna with a curious gaze. “Oh my, she’s so cute! I’ve never seen eyes or hair of that color, either!” The attendant was utterly thrilled to see Edna, crouching down and beaming at Edna. Edna reflexively smiled back in response, charmed by the attendant’s friendliness. “Please follow me, dearie…” The attendant took Edna’s hand and guided her towards the changing room. “What are we doing?” Edna asked, curiously. “I need to take your sizes, both to help you find an ideal fit and in case you wish to have something hand tailored….”

  Clothes tailored to one’s size were more expensive than regular clothes, but they went a long way to improving one’s appearance and their comfort was unmatched. “Please stretch out arms…” Edna did so, looking on with curiosity as the attendant took her sizes. “Oh my, you’re so warm. Do you have a fever or something?” The attendant asked curiously. “Um…this Is normal, I think,” Edna responded solemnly. “Is it? Alright then,” the attendant took her words at face value, continuing. “Hee hee…that tickles!” Edna reflexively squirmed as the attendant wrapped the measuring tape around her chest. “Now now, stop moving! I can’t get an accurate measurement if you don’t stay still!” Upon the attendant’s gentle chiding, Edna obediently stood still, although it was quite hard.

  After she was done, the attendant stood straight and wiped sweat off her brow. She frowned in response, suddenly realizing that peculiarity- the shop was cool, so why was she sweating? She looked down at Edna, who was looking up at her with her crimson gaze. Was it because I was so close to her? She is awfully warm, after all...

  “Are you sure you’re fine?” she asked once more. “Yes!” The affirmation made her realize she was probably overthinking things. They returned back. “Well, her sizes are normal for a child of her age. Other than being slightly taller than average, the clothing in section A-2 should fit her just fine,” The attendant said warmly. “We also offer tailored clothing as well, for an additional cost, if you want?”

  “No thanks,” Jason told her, thanking her. “Very well then, please take your time!” With those words, she allowed Jason and the two children to go off on their own. When they made their way to section A-2, Edna began instantly looking through the varied shirts and pants. “Wow, there’s so much variety! Oh, these feel so nice! Synthetic fiber? What is synthetic fiber?”

  Such questions easily flowed from her mouth as she moved left and right, investigating every rack and article of clothing. Jason and George tried their best to answer her questions. After they were done picking clothes for both her and her mother, with the attendant helping Edna with the rather picky subject of underwear, they were once more outside of the store, laden with bags.

  “Well, let’s get you back home,” George said. They both climbed into the carriage, and began to move forward. With the sunset before them, Edna realized she was quite tired. After walking all day, she was pretty exhausted. She was a kid, after all. She leaned on George, resting her head on his shoulder, ignoring his rapidly reddening face. “Thank you, for everything, George…” she mumbled sleepily. “Mother…told me nobles were unkind and selfish, but…I think she was wrong…”

  “….now that I’ve spent time with you and your friends, I’m, uh, not sure she was wrong,” George admitted. “We’re a pretty elitist society, after all….”

  “Well…thank you anyway, for treating me like I was normal. Today was the first day…I got to see so many things…” She was so warm, and he was increasingly growing uncomfortable with the constant contact, yet his pride as a man refused to give in to his selfish urge to push her off of him.

  “Thank you, Edna, for showing me how the other half lives,” he replied earnestly. “I think I’m more self-aware of the world now, thanks to you…”

  “Heh…I guess we’ve both changed each other’s lives, huh?” Edna asked, closing her eyes. “…I wonder what you saw in me that made you change your mind…” she whispered softly. “Eh? Did you say something?” George asked her, but her soft breathing indicated she was fast asleep. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead after a little while, but at this point, he didn’t care. He was just glad to have a friend like Edna.