Page 54 of Shade of Ruin

Darian sighs. “Well, what are we supposed to do for the next few hours?”

“Shopping,” Lee responds instantly.

That’s a confusing response since we’re supposed to be keeping our heads down. “Shouldn’t we find an inn and just sit in a room?”

Darian shakes his head. “We could do that, but who wants to just sit around when we could go shopping instead? Come on, Maeve, we’ve been out of the city for so long. I’m thinking we hit the slums where no one knows Cole and we don’t need to worry about any run-ins with the House of Steel. Maybe the Sickle District?”

Shopping in the slums of Draenyth. What could go wrong? “Do you really think that’s a good idea? Or are you just wanting to shop?”

Lee chuckles. “It’ll be fine. We’re with you, and there’s no way that the Immortals in the Sickle District could do anything to me and Darian. Just don’t stray because it’s still dangerous.”

That does not make me feel any better, but what else am I supposed to do? “Fine. Please do not leave me to be eaten by a thousand Fae.”

Darian grins. “On that note… maybe you should stop saying Fae. That’s a human thing. We call ourselves Immortals to distinguish us from humans. You should probably do the same thing.”

I take a deep breath. I’m not in my old world anymore. Everything is different now. Even the names of things. “Okay, take me shopping. Help me embrace my newImmortalworld.”

Lee grins at me, and then we’re off. To explore a city I never really expected to see.

The Sickle District market is nothing like what I’d expected. I’d thought it would be like Blackgrove’s spring markets when traders would come and sell a few bolts of cloth or during the harvests when the farmers would sell their specialty plants. Herbs and fruits and jams. This is… very different.

Hundreds of Immortals walk multiple streets worth of small tents. The sun shines down harshly on the paved ground. The sound of hundreds of merchants hawking their wares blendswith the scent of sweaty bodies as I experience a true market for the first time. Fruits and sweets and nuts. Nearly any kind of food I could ever want, and many that I’m terrified of touching. Toys and clothes and tools. There’s someone selling swords. AnotherImmortalwith horns and a tail and glasses that’s selling books.

And everywhere, they’re yelling to get our attention. I’d thought walking down the street was hard.

“Come on, Maeve,” Darian says. “They have chocolates.” Chocolates?

Lee’s excitement is in full force, and she looks like she’s about to vibrate out of her body when she sees what Darian’s looking at. “Oh, these are the good ones. Spiced with orange pieces.”

I’m struggling to care about any kinds of food until Lee hands me three small, dark brown balls. “Spiced orange truffles,” she says as she shoves one of hers into her mouth with a grin.

I shrug, not knowing what any of that is. I put one into my mouth, and… I don’t know how to explain it. Smooth, crunchy, citrusy. And chocolate. Chocolate is amazing. No merchants brought these to Blackgrove. No one in my entire life had ever mentioned what chocolate was.

Now I know, and now I will eat this as often as it’s available. I have a mouth full of chocolate truffle when Darian comes back, a big grin on his face. I should probably tell them thank you. Or smile at them. Or something. I know I should do something.

But I’m enjoying my truffle, and they can wait. The first one, I hadn’t known to be excited, so I’d just eaten the whole thing. When I take a bite of the second one, I really experience it. The thick and luxurious outer chocolate and the smooth silky liquid center that’s full of the citrus flavor. It all melts in my mouth in the most exquisite way.

When I’m chewing the third and final one, I finally realize that Darian and Lee are both staring at me. I try to say thank you, butmy mouth’s too full, and it comes out garbled. They both laugh at me, and I don’t blame them.

I’d been overwhelmed by all the noise and movement before this. The market and city had just been too much for a girl from the middle of nowhere, but these three little brown balls have somehow, miraculously made things just a little better.

When I finish chewing, I say, “Are these magic?”

Darian laughs outright, and Lee chuckles before saying, “No, they’re just chocolates. Tasty treats.”

“Well… they’re good. Really good. Superb. We should get some for Cole. Maybe if he had more chocolate, he wouldn’t snarl so often.”

That makes both of them laugh even harder. “Come on,” Lee says. “There’s a lot more to the Sickle District market than just truffles.”

“Yeah, they have bitterberry wine. And…”

“There’s more to the Sickle District than food, Darian! Have you ever considered that some people want to look at clothes and bags, too?”

“Please, do not force me to look at clothes with you.”

The twins bicker back and forth, and I walk behind them, glancing around me. Now that the chocolate has magically taken away a little of my overstimulation, I’m starting to enjoy myself. There really is a little bit of everything. I stop at a stall where someone is selling knives while Darian and Lee try on different hats three stalls down.

“Nightforged steel. The very best from the House of Flame,” a short and sturdy older Fae says from his seat. Thick, long gray hair that he’s tied back into a braid and a beard that’s even thicker has me wondering what kind of Immortal he is. I assume that’s not something you ask when you’re just making conversation.

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