Vaela sprinted after Adyr down the hallway. The curtain still oscillated where Adyr had pressed through, giving peeks of the room beyond. Vaela whipped it to the side with her stick–the room was empty. She tore across the room and jerked the door open. Adyr rushed down the alley, quickening her pace.
“Adyr!”
Adyr paused, mid-step. Vaela stepped through the door and slammed it closed behind her. The sound echoed off the walls and Adyr jolted into a jog. Vaela chased after her, trying to close the distance. If they could just talk. If she could only explain…
They twined through the streets, Adyr making turns seemingly at random. Vaela kept her in sight, though couldn’t gain any ground. It was all she could do to not lose Adyr with every twist and turn. Adyr disappeared, yet again, around a corner and Vaela pressed harder. She cut around the corner and skidded to a stop.
A small market was set-up in a plaza of the city. Merchants had erected awnings, covering their stalls and wares. People milled through the area–some drifting, others rushing between the booths. Adyr stood at the outskirts of the market and glanced back. Her face was pinched with the exertion of their run, but her nostrils flared and she pressed into the crowd.
Vaela’s chest burned as she sucked in air. She pushed forward, one hand braced against her hip, the other clenching her stick. Adyr’s progress slowed as she waded through the people and Vaela shoved her way to her side. “What are you doing?” She grabbed Adyr’s shoulder and stepped face-to-face with her.
Warmth bled into Vaela’s fingers as Adyr’s shoulders rose and fell with her heavy breathing. Adyr drew back and hugged her arms around herself. “I… needed air.” She looked around and waved a hand at a stall. “I wanted to come to this market.”
Vaela’s lips thinned. So that’s how she wanted to cover, huh? Nothing was wrong. Just a leisurely sprint through the city. Fine. She grabbed Adyr’s hand and pulled her over to the closest stall. “Well, here we are. Let’s get what you wanted.”
The stall housed several knit blankets, displayed over wooden racks. A woman stood behind a small table lined with shawls. Adyr shook free of Vaela. “I don’t need company. I’m perfectly capable of shopping on my own.”
Vaela waved her stick at the wares. “Now, now, don’t be silly. I’m happy to help carry back all the things you buy.”
The merchant woman perked up and hurried around the table. She gestured Adyr to the rack of blankets and hovered near her shoulder.
Adyr huffed and turned away from Vaela, training her eyes on the rack. “Fine. Suit yourself.” She rubbed a blanket between her thumb and two fingers and politely ducked her head at the woman. “Uh, they’re nice.”
The woman snatched the blanket from the stand and stuffed it into Adyr’s arms. “You’ve a good eye, darling. Soft, but plenty warm. Keep ya and the mister warm, eh?”
Vaela suppressed a snort and covered her mouth. Adyr flushed and toyed with the blanket as the woman pulled her over to the table. The woman clapped her hands. “Now. That’ll be six pence. Unless you’re wanting two, are ya?” She nodded before Adyr could answer. “Well, then, tell ya what. I’ll make it ten for the both of ‘em, save ya a penny or two. Ya tell the mister ya haggled me down, see?”
Adyr dropped the blanket to the table, her face red. “I, uh, I’m sorry. I don’t have any money on me.”
The woman snatched the blanket with a glare. Vaela’s hand flew to her pocket and she pulled out a purse of coins. Adyr spun away from the woman and Vaela swung the purse like a pendulum with a grin. Adyr blinked and stared at the purse. “Where’d you…?”
Ha! That’d made her think. Vaela slid around her and slapped six pence on the table. The woman brightened and swiped the coins up. Vaela plucked the blanket from the table and tossed it to Adyr. “Catch.” She strode back out of the stall and leaned on her stick.
Adyr hugged the blanket to her chest and stepped up beside Vaela. “I thought you didn’t have money.”
“Oh, this?” Vaela dangled the purse in front of Adyr. She shrugged, biting back a grin. “Jace gave them to us last night. You’d gone to your room and didn’t come out til training.”
Adyr looked down at the blanket, then pushed it towards Vaela. “Well, you keep this. I don’t want your money.”
She was still angry. And Vaela didn’t blame her. It was time to talk. She caught Adyr’s hand. “I-I want you to have it.” She ran a thumb over the soft yarn. “To keep you warm.” Her gaze dropped and a lump formed in her throat. “Even if I can’t.” Vaela’s hand dropped away and she rolled her stick between her fingers. Why’d she say that? That wasn’t what she’d meant to come out.
Adyr’s hands tightened around the blanket as she pulled it back towards herself. Vaela felt her eyes on her, but she kept her head down. Every time she tried to make it better, she said something stupid and made it worse.
Frost Radiated from Adyr’s body and Ice crystals laced through the lattice of the blanket.
Vaela gasped and touched it. The Cold bled into her fingers. “What are you doing?”
Adyr tipped her head up, blue eyes filled with determination. “Freezing it.”
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“Why?”
“To break it in two. That way we can split it.”
Vaela’s eyes widened and her fingers jerked back. The blanket stiffened as Ice permeated the yarn. Adyr tilted her head at Vaela, a shy smile at the corner of her mouth. “Unless… you want to try sharing it?”
Vaela bit her lip hard. Sharing it. There was nothing she wanted more right now. She grinned and nodded. The Frost melted away from Adyr’s fingers as she gazed into Vaela’s eyes. So blue. And her lips–soft and inviting. Vaela leaned forward, her hand brushing past the blanket. It crunched and a shard of yarn broke off. It tumbled to the ground and shattered into several large chunks. A strangled squawk erupted from the merchant woman and Vaela winced.
Oops.
She burst out laughing and pulled Adyr further into the market, the woman’s curses soon drowning in the hum of the crowd. Adyr giggled and leaned against her. Vaela tossed the coin purse in the air and caught it. She spun in front of Adyr and jangled the coins. “Tell you what. We’ll split this. Let’s have fun–on me.”
Adyr eyed the purse and fiddled with the thawing blanket. “I don’t know. I don’t want to take your money.” Her stomach growled and she flushed.
Vaela waved her hand. “You’re not taking it. I’ll pay for the food this time. And next time we go out”–Vaela wrapped an arm around Adyr’s waist, her stick resting along her back–“you pay for everything.” The blanket leaked cold between their bodies, but Vaela didn’t mind. Being this close to Adyr, bodies pressed together, she didn’t mind anything.
Adyr smiled and nodded. Vaela’s lips buzzed. Taking a bath would have been good–so good–but this… this was good, too. She handed the purse to Adyr. “And you should know…” Vaela took a deep breath and drew her body up. “I want you…”
Adyr’s eyes widened, her pupils dilating, her lips parting slightly.
I want you here. Vaela’s heart pounded against her chest. The last word had got caught in her throat. Or maybe not caught. Filtered out. An untruth, burned away.
Adyr stared at her, waiting for the unresolved note to come, for the last word to be hastily added.
Vaela held her stick in her hand, still pressed firm to Adyr’s back. Both of them felt right in her arms. So she swallowed and pulled Adyr closer. “Timura and I, we’ve gone through a lot. And we’ve been friends a long time. But only friends.”
Adyr chewed her cheek, eyes averted for a moment. People swirled around them, pressing in close and splitting past them. Like they were a rock in a river, water rushing all around. Adyr glanced back at Vaela. “If-if you’re so close and have so much together… why aren’t you with her?”
Why indeed? They got along great, shared interests, had a history together, maybe even had some undeniable physical attraction. And yet. “She doesn’t make me feel that way.” Heart pounding, spine tingling, chills coursing through her body. Blood pulsed through her body–and Adyr’s. She could feel it. Adyr’s very life hammering through her veins.
A man jostled past them, knocking Vaela off-balance. She caught herself, partially with a foot, partially by bracing against Adyr. “Watch it, would you?” She glared at the man as he disappeared into the crowd.
Laughter tinkled from Adyr and she clutched the coins to her chest. Vaela snorted and tapped her stick on the ground, laughing with her. Adyr held up the blanket, still partially frozen, a chunk near the top edge missing, and laughed all the harder. Vaela grinned and shook her head. “Why’d you let her push you into buying that anyway?”
Adyr giggled and hugged the blanket to herself. “Oh, I was flustered.” They walked side-by-side towards a row of stalls selling food.
The rich aroma of grilled meat made Vaela’s mouth fill with saliva. She nudged Adyr in the direction of the smell. “How can you be so calm in battle, but get flustered by a pushy merchant?”
They got in a short line and Adyr lifted the coin purse. “Fighting isn’t scary to me. I grew up fighting. Training every day.” She touched her arm with the scars, then gestured around the market. “But this… I’m not used to going to the market.” She smiled, dropping her chin, and peeked at Vaela. “I-I’ve never really done it.”
The woman in front of them exchanged some coins for meat and cleared out of the way. The merchant, stringy with thinning hair, waved them forward. Vaela grabbed the coin purse and winked at Adyr. “I’ll show you how it’s done.” She put a palm on the table, leaning on it sideways, and nodded her head to a large spit of rotating meat. “That smells edible, I suppose.”
Sweat stained the man’s shirt, making it cling to his body in patches. He mopped his forehead and forced a smile. “Ah, yes, our specialty. A cut for ten pence.” He gestured to the other side of the stall. “We sell cheese and bread as well.”
Vaela fought against following his motion and flipped a hand. “Mmhm, I’m sure you do. Look, I’ll give you fifteen for two cuts, two rolls, and some cheese.”
His mouth dropped open and he closed it a second later. His fingers drummed against each other. “Fifteen is, uh, too low, yes? I don’t think you appreciate the quality of my food. Twenty-five and you’ll be enjoying the best meal of your life, I guarantee.”
Vaela lifted her stick, examining a speck on the head. She brushed it off and blew on it. “Eh, seems a bit steep, friend. A woman back there offered two cuts of meat for fourteen. It smelled pretty good, too.” She shrugged and turned away. Adyr’s brow furrowed and she glanced back and forth between Vaela and the man. Vaela nodded her towards the crowd. “Let’s go back.”
The man clapped his hands. “Twenty! Twenty pence and you’ll be singing my name, I promise.”
Vaela glanced over her shoulder, sucking in between her teeth. “I’m more of a chanter, to be honest.” She rapped her stick on his table. “Okay, tell you what. Eighteen–two cuts of meat, two rolls, no cheese.” He drew himself up and she dropped her chin. She looked up through her lashes and shrugged one shoulder. “Please?”
The man inhaled deeply then a smile spread across his face. “Oh, fine! But don’t go telling anyone about this, eh?” Vaela walked away with the food and handed half of it to Adyr with a wicked grin. Adyr accepted the food with her mouth hanging open. “How did you get it so cheap?” She shook her head. “I thought he’d kick us out.”
Vaela laughed and nudged her. “I am the Charmer, after all. How do you think I got that name?”
Adyr constructed a sandwich from the roll and meat and took a bite. She perked up and took another enthusiastic bite. “This is amazing.” She tilted her head and looked at Vaela. “Have you been called the Charmer long? I thought it was just a term you made up.”
Vaela swallowed a heavenly bite. “Oh, no. My dad called me that before my Power ever manifested!” She led them out of the market proper, leaving the crowd. Adyr’s body relaxed as they left the oppressive current of people behind. Vaela smothered a grin and faced Adyr, stepping between her and the market. She tore a small piece of bread off and bit into it. Her teeth sank through until she nibbled her own bottom lip and she batted her eyelashes. Adyr swallowed hard and Vaela stepped up close.
No crowd, no interruptions.
Heat flushed through Vaela’s stomach and leaned in. Adyr’s eyelids fluttered closed and her lips parted.
Adyr jolted backward, her eyes wide and looking past Vaela, back into the crowd. Vaela spun around and dropped her sandwich.
A man and woman–in rust-colored robes–pushed through the crowd.