Window Shopping (Raenfae)

[Cassidy Finch]

24th of Fall, 512 A.V. Velvet walked through the Plaza of Dark Delights with a sense of unease. Though the city as a whole still disturbed her, the slave found the Plaza to be the most unsettling. She had finally gotten a better grasp on the various locations in the city, and had been able to find the Plaza without much work. Unfortunately she had needed to ask where the nearest alchemist's shop might be. To her dismay, the cringing slave she had asked had directed her to the Plaza before scurrying off with fear in his eyes. Did I really act like that? Velvet wondered. The young woman had been forced to act like an animal, like that poor slave had been trained to do. Though she still did loathed her position as a slave, Velvet had grown more grateful of her luck. Her master seemed to want her more as a servant than a slave, and she was inclined to prefer the life she now lived over the one she had left behind in Sunberth. As she approached the Black Tar Alchemical Services building, the woman found herself trying to calm herself down. The shop was apparently known for its more harmful compounds moreso than it was for the kinds of things she was looking to procure. Her master needed more candles for his home, and she was hoping to find them for a cheap price. She still lacked any real funds, aside from the precious few mizas she had kept hidden on her person for much of her life, but she knew that a couple candles would not cost too much of her money. Walking through the doorway into the small building, Velvet had to cough a couple times as her nose was assaulted with dozens of odors, some of which Velvet was certain were poisonous. Once she had grown able to bear the smell, she found herself examining the shop as a whole. It was dim and filled with innumerable glass vials and cases, though the most interesting things were strange orbs that emitted a flickering green light. Velvet fought the urge to touch them as she looked about for the shopkeeper. Hopefully, he would not be busy; some merchants turned slaves away if they were too busy dealing with free people.

[Raenfae]

Raenfae stood behind the counter, looking around. He had been hired but just a third of a season ago or so. He had come in and requested to be taken on as an apprentice. The disembodied voice that ever speaks and greets people had spoken to him, locked him inside and accepted him into employment. Apprentice? Not quite. But this was a better start than it could have been. Raenfae was now in charge of working the front of the store and greeting customers and handling the transactions. No longer would the voice greet them as many of them were used to, or surprised by. The job proved to be busier than he thought it would be. A lot of traffic filed through the door, though it somehow always seemed if people did not come in together, it would only be that person while they were here, the next patron entering shortly after the first. It was an odd happening to his eyes, but it also made him think of how often he had come and never seen anyone else here. Raenfae had seen people come in of higher standing, usually evident by more adorned clothing and jewelry, as well as the lowest slaves coming to do their master's bidding, though he sometimes wondered if they were here trying to find a way to...free themselves from their masters. That would be entertaining to hear about, he mused. But alas, most of the day was easily spent looking over the store and addressing normal patrons coming and going. Lost in his musings behind a shelf, Raenfae was brought back at the sound of coughing. He made his way around to the counter to see who was there. It was a female, slave by the looks of her, and she had just entered thankfully and not been neglected. Slave or not, money was money. Raenfae watched her, figuring she was coughing from the smell of the shop more than anything else. That was a normal reaction for a few people, though Raenfae loved the smell of Black Tar's Alchemical. Raenfae spoke out a similar greeting, though not exactly the same as the disembodied voice had done, "Welcome to our dark corner of pleasure. Items are all labeled. Ask if you have questions, drop your money in this bronze dish near me if you wish to buy. Look around at your leisure, but mind where your hand falls and what your nose inhales as there are worse fates in this shop than death." He was still trying to refine his greeting, but it was good enough for now. He watched the woman as he watched all patrons. He was not sure if his employer was as active in his mindfulness or not, so he did not want to let anything get out of hand. Resting his hand on the counter, he stayed silent. She would either talk to him, or she would make her purchase and leave without a word.

[Cassidy Finch]

"Welcome to our dark corner of pleasure. Items are all labeled. Ask if you have questions, drop your money in this bronze dish near me if you wish to buy. Look around at your leisure, but mind where your hand falls and what your nose inhales as there are worse fates in this shop than death." Well, that was comforting... The more she looked around, the more the slave wished that she had been directed to a less shady alchemist. All she wanted was a few candles, for goodness' sake! When she turned to the man, she kept her eyes averted from his own in her customary imitation of meekness, "Thank you very much for the warning, sir," She told him in a soft, humble tone that communicated a submission she certainly did not feel. The slave turned and began looking about for a few candles, but soon found her gaze trained once again on the orbs that illuminated the small shop. A thought occurred to her then; what if they were magic? She had assumed they were just the product of a clever alchemical trick, but now she was all but certain that they contained some foul enchantment. As soon as the though crossed her mind, she shuddered and looked around for something to pay attention to that was not arcane in nature. As a Sunberthan by birth, she had been raised to despise and fear magic; that fear had not dimmed in the least during her time in Ravok. The first thing that caught her eye was the selection of books that were in their shelves. Velvet hastily picked one up and read the title. With some difficulty, she tried to pronounce the words. The slave had been taught to read only the most basic things so she could function in the city of Sunberth. She had never encountered the words on the book and could not understand them even by sounding them out quietly. With a bit of frustration--and the awareness that the shopkeeper was probably watching her make a fool of herself--she turned and approached the man with the book still in hand, "Sir, could you tell me where the candles are?" She asked him in the same disgustingly humble tone she had used previously. Truthfully, she could probably find them on her own, but she did not want to touch anything that might be the death of her. Slaves were assumed stupid by many people, and she hoped that the man would simply show her where they were and not reprimand her for being lazy. "I can't seem to find them."

[Raenfae]

Raenfae watched the woman walking around. As he leaned on the counter after a moment, he noticed her eyes kept going to the lighted orbs, her attention held deeply by them for a moment, until a shudder ran through her body and she pulled her gaze away, looking around the shop. She was an odd one. Most were fascinated by the lights and did not shudder at the sight of them like that. He would have to find out why. She proceeded to move around, her hands taking up one of the books lying neatly on the shelf next to her. He could hear her reading, or trying to read, the title. Clearly she had not been taught to read much, as more slaves were not taught to. It was dangerous, some thought, for a slave to read too much. It would be another tool for them to use to organize or try to free themselves, at least for the ones who did not feel their masters were their saving grace. After trying for a minute or two, she stopped and walked over to him, asking him where the candles where. His eyes went to the book in her hand, reading the title before bringing his eyes back to hers. He responded softly, a tilt of his head indicating where he spoke. "They are on the next shelf over from where you picked up that book." His eyes would follow her as she went to get what she wanted, his voice speaking out to her, "Tell me, do you wish to learn about something specific, or are you fetching a book for someone else?" His eyes flicked to the book in her hands, not revealing anything about it, feeling the waters on what she really knew of it, if she could read or was she trying to keep up a pretense.

[Cassidy Finch]

"They are on the next shelf over from where you picked up that book." The man told her, nodding his head in the right direction. With a nod and a quiet, "Thank you," Velvet walked over to the shelf and examined the various candles. The shopkeeper's voice drifted over to her as the selected a pair of small candles that looked like they would go well together, "Tell me, do you wish to learn about something specific, or are you fetching a book for someone else?" His words made Velvet go stiff despite her best efforts to appear unoffended. She always hated being reminded that she could not read. It made her feel inferior to those who could, which was what most free people wanted, she supposed. The slave turned to the shopkeeper and replied, "I was only curious, sir..." Her tone was as humble as ever, but her eyes betrayed a slight glimmer of anger. She was not angry so much at the shopkeeper as she was at people in general. Velvet's grip on the book and candles tightened visibly and she could not help meeting his eyes once or twice, not shying away from his gaze like most slaves would.

[Raenfae]

Raenfae watched her in curiosity. She had the timid attitude of a slave at times, but there was the meeting of his gaze a couple of times that made him question her station. Was she a spy fishing for some information and ducked into here? Or was she just a new slave? He was curious to learn more and set about, and even causing a little chaos for the fun of it. He raised his hand and beckoned her towards him, waiting for her to get to the counter. Reaching forward he took the book from her, he turned it to look at the title. Ivak's Rage and More Potent Poisons Ah...if only he could craft these lovely poisons. Nevermind that. Raenfae turned the book around and placed it on the counter and pointed to the first word. "I am going to teach you a few words, just because I can. I could care less if you are a slave or not. I doubt you will take a few words and start a revolution...and if you did, Rhysol would reward you anyway for it most likely. He waited for her reaction before tapping the first word again, covering up the possessive markings at the end so it was just Ivak. "Ivak. This word, with the other parts, is just Ivak." Raenfae could not explain why he was doing it, it was not a fully calculated move, it was born of chaos and he found himself going with it. It could be dangerous, what he was doing, but it might just be rewarding as well...

[Cassidy Finch]

The man regarded Velvet in silence for a tick or two, considering her with curiosity. She kept her head down and her eyes averted like a good little slave, trying all the while not to just walk out. She wouldn't let herself be intimidated by him. Despite her gaze being locked on the floor, the woman caught the man's hand making a come-hither gesture towards her. The slave half-turned as if to walk out of the shop; she wasn't sure whether she should just leave or not. Velvet let out a small sigh and approached the counter, deciding that the fumes from the vials and things around the shop were probably affecting her judgement as she placed the candles on the counter and surrendered the book to him. He turned the book over in his hands, looking at it almost wistfully for a moment before placing it down on the counter beside the candles. The man covered most of the indecipherable title and pointed to the first word. "I am going to teach you a few words, just because I can. I could care less if you are a slave or not. I doubt you will take a few words and start a revolution...and if you did, Rhysol would reward you anyway for it most likely." She smirked a bit at that, meeting his eyes for only an instant before she lowered them again. There was little chance of that; no one would follow her. If they did, they'd be the most foolish people the slave had ever met. The shopkeeper's last words sent a shiver coursing down the slave's spine. Reward me? All the bastard's done is get my hand branded, Velvet thought with disgust, her lip curling into a sneer. Hastily, she smoothed her expression once more. There was no telling what would happen if even the slightest heresy against the city's 'benevolent' deity left her mouth. She even guarded her expressions when the monster was being discussed. Still, it was nice of the man to teach her. As embarrassing as it was for her, the slave knew that she'd likely not get much more instruction in reading unless it came from this man. She forced a smile onto her face and replied meekly, "Thank you, sir." The words, though controlled, contained genuine gratefulness. The woman cared little for freemen in general, but those few she met who had some small shred of kindness in them were the closest thing to friends that she'd had for most of her life. "Ivak. This word, with the other parts, is just Ivak," The man explained, and Velvet frowned down at the letters, trying to understand how a few symbols could make a sound like that. All Velvet knew was that a word shaped in one way meant 'shop' and another meant 'inn'. Only the most basic words were within her realm of comprehension. She'd even needed someone to point out this alchemist's shop to her! "Ivak.." She repeated, trying to memorize the whole shape in case she saw it again sometime. She'd only the vaguest idea who Ivak was, and the thought made her uncomfortable. "Why is his name there?" She asked before she could stop herself. Immediately, the slave added, "If I may ask, sir." The words were bitter on her tongue, but she didn't want to lose this man's teaching.