I glanced back at Endymion, brushing leaves from my hair and gown, “You are his advisor, yes? Shouldn’t you be going with him?” 

Endymion steadied me closely, his sharp, stormy eyes softening as he spoke. 

“Not this time; It’s still technically my vacation.” 

“I see...” I thought for a moment, keeping my eyes on the blades of grass around my toes, “Would you mind showing me the city then? I’ve never been in Paritsol before.” 

His face lit up for a moment, his teeth flashing behind a small smile, “U-uhm yeah, if you’d like me to.” A shadow passed over his features again as he looked away and bit the side of his cheek, “But I thought you wanted Gavril to show you around.” 

A bubbling laugh spilled from me, nearly bringing me to my knee as I clutched my sides. 

“You’re jealous!” I managed to choke out between gasping breaths, wiping tears from my eyes. 

Endymion stared at me with a scolding look on his face, “I-I’m not jealous... Gavril is just known for flirting wherever he goes. I wouldn’t want you misinterpreting his attention.” 

His statement made me laugh harder and I stumbled into Endymion’s chest, holding onto his arm for support. 

“Gods save me,” He whispered under his breath as I wheezed and coughed as the result of my violent amusement.  

“Ok, ok,” I inhaled deeply, smoothing my hair back from my face, “I’m sorry. I promise, I have no intention of accepting his flirtatious advances.” 

The lord didn’t look convinced as I gathered the fabric of my dress in my hands and started marching down the path.  

“You need shoes for the city, lady Asajj,” He jogged to catch up with me, “And you might want to change into a dress that’s not as...expensive.” 

He led the way through the wide palace halls, nodding to every passing creature and person. I watched as he politely greeted a Fay woman, his eyes cast to the floor.  

“I already knew the king was fine with Fay in the palace,” the woman stared at me with a strange look as we continued toward my chambers, “...But why are there so many?” 

Endymion stiffened slightly before forcing his shoulders to relax, “Gavril’s grandfather signed an agreement with the last of the Fay tribes. It basically stated that Fay could live in human cities as long as they didn’t worship their strange gods anywhere near the cities.” 

I nodded and furrowed my brows, “What about other species? Why are there so many?” 

The lord cleared his throat and glanced down at me from the corner of his eye, “All creatures are welcome within the capitol city if they work to earn their keep and obey the laws that are in place. All except Orcs, Griphs, and...” 

Witches.  

“What about warlocks? They worship dark magic, and they are allowed in the city.” 

Endymion bristled at this, his fingers curling into fists, “I could not tell you why those monsters are still allowed to live here.” 

Clearly, someone had beef with warlocks. 

He stopped at my door, gesturing for me to hurry and change while he stood outside, his back against the wall next to the door. I rushed in and ran to the closet, riffling through layers of frills and lace and ribbon until I spotted what I needed, hidden within the depths of the multitude of dresses that the king had ordered for me. Slipping out of the beautiful dress, I carefully hung it back up and started to pull the loose undershirt over my head. I pulled on dull brown leggings and slipped into the only pair of comfortable boots that sat on the shoe shelf, before striding to the mirror to fix my hair into a long ponytail.  

“So why aren’t Witches allowed in Paristol?” I asked Endymion as I closed my chamber doors, locking them with the key that I slipped into a small pocket, “We don’t worship any gods, nor do we use dark magic.” 

He led us through more grand hallways towards the doors to exit the inner palace, “Asajj, I think it is better if you don’t ask these questions...especially so close to the palace.” 

Glancing around, I caught the glare of a massive guard, his eyes glowing steely and unhuman behind his uniform helmet. I swallowed but smiled politely, rushing to Endymion’s side as we exited the glamorous palace. Before we had even stepped foot past the last golden gate of and into the capitol, I could smell the liveliness of the grand city. Bouncing on the balls of my feet, I gripped Endymion’s arm and looked up at him with an excited grin. He returned my smile with mirrored enthusiasm and gestured for us to continue down a wide cobbled path. My breath lingered warm in my lungs, marinating with the sweet scents of baked goods and street vendors. Even in Nuatimere, where the spicy smell of gin and the salty air of the sea mingled, I had never experienced as many different scents, all coiling around in my stomach with my excitement.  

“Oh! There!” I pointed as I practically tore poor Endymion's arm off, moving through a thin crowd of people to catch a better glimpse of the meat that was being roasted by a towering Elf with orange dreadlocks down to their knees.  

Endymion reached into his decorated pocket and presented a small glass coin to the vendor.  

The two exchanged no words, but did business with each other, and the vendor handed Endymion the meat without much ceremony.  

My mouth watered, despite having eaten only an hour or two ago and I looked up at the lord with a grin. 

“For someone who was nearly dead yesterday, you sure look well and happy,” He handed me the wrapped chunk of meat and it immediately warmed my hands, filling my nose with a spice that I recognized immediately as one used by the elves of the sands. 

“What can I say...” I spoke through a mouthful of the mouthwatering meat, nearly moaning as it melted between my teeth with a flavor that could have brought me to my knees, “I recover fast.” 

Endymion chuckled at this and leaned down catching my playful glare as he took a bite. 

“Besides, it’s been ages since I’ve been outside of the Cerulean Marsh.” My gaze was already passing over more colors than I had remembered to exist, catching on the silks that a stout gnome sold, their flat toothed grin widening as a Fay man with skin dark as midnight offered her six glass coins and a gold one of the bright green fabric.  

We meandered through the streets of the capitol stopping every now and then to scan the stalls that lined many of the streets or peek into the cozy little shops that offered wares that I could never have guessed one would need.  

“A beautiful ceremonial outfit for a beautiful creature like yourself!” A slim man with two sets of arms pranced up to me, moving around as if to inspect every inch of my body. 

“Will you be attending tonight’s festival of Bloom, oh fairest creature? Surely you must!” The man again twirled around me eying my figure, “I have something perfect in mind for you and your handsome lord.” 

I grinned back at Endymion as he flushed lightly before following the man back to his shop. He rushed around humming to himself as his arms flashed and grabbed silks and garments of every color and texture. Patterns whirled around me as he danced between his shelves scanning for the perfect garment, finally settling on one with a gasp and a low rumble of excitement.  

“Tell me, lovely creature, what are your origins? Your eyes, they shimmer with other worldly beauty...”  

I glanced to where Endymion stood, distracted by a group of children dancing to a melody played on a curved woodwind instrument.  

“I am of Fay decent,” I swallowed and glanced at the man, expecting his gaze to grow disgusted. 

But he only laughed in surprise, and held my face in his warm hands, “Well of course you aren't human! What was I expecting...with a face like that?! Oh, darling, you are truly an exotic one.” 

He purred and continued to gaze into my face, his other set of hands pulling the garment up to compare it to my figure. Between the warmth of his gentle hands and the purring that echoed from somewhere deep in his chest, I felt oddly at peace in the small shop.  

However, my peace was short lived as a low growl settled behind me and I turned to look up in surprise at Endymion’s hostility. 

“Oops! Sorry, big guy, I forgot you were with her! I was about to snatch her up for myself!” 

The man laughed and moved to package up my new garments as if nothing had happened, his tone still light and warm, even with the lord casting a cold glare his way.  

“Endymion?” 

At the sound of my voice, he seemed to relax a bit, but his glare remained cold and defensive, “Let’s hurry this up so we can head back before it gets late.”  

The shop owner rushed to me again and folded the carefully wrapped garments into my hands, winking as he slipped a secret piece of paper into my fingers. 

“Be sure to return if you feel like playing dress up,” The man laughed again as Endymion’s growl returned with more intensity than before.  

Whether or not the lord realized he was doing it, I was unsure, but it resonated until we were several paces away from the shop. 

“Wait!” my face suddenly colored as I remembered the expensive quality of the garments in my hands, “We didn’t pay him!” 

Endymion swallowed and clenched his jaw, his eyes darting back the way we had come, but I noticed the way he seemed to speed us up as we headed back to the palace.  

“Endymion, I can’t just take the clothes without paying for-” 

The lord interrupted me with another growl, and it finally sent me over the edge, my irritation warming my chest unpleasantly. 

“Stop growling! Big boy words will work just fine!” 

His growling stopped immediately and came to a complete stop in the middle of the cobbled street, causing several people to run into him and create a small traffic jam. I mumbled quick apologies and pulled Endymion back into motion, turning back to find his terrified stare on my back.  

“What’s wrong with you?” 

Endymion’s mouth gaped open then closed quickly again as he seemed to regain his senses. 

“You said I... growled.” 

He whispered the word ‘growled’ like it would jump off his tongue and bite him, and I raised an eyebrow, scoffing lightly, “Yeah, like, four times at that nice shop owner.” 

His already pale face lost more color as we entered the first gate of the palace.

A picture of our lovely Asajj: Please Like and Support!