“Your question.” He glanced at the guard before looking back at me. “Just a curiosity?”
“Not now.” My voice lowered.
He held my gaze for a moment longer before he stepped back toward the table. “This looks extremely similar to our markets. You could have just gone to the one in the Heart. It would have saved you a lot of travel time.”
“Entirely the same, really?” I ran my hands over the golden apples that towered in the corner. “I haven’t had one this color in years… I think I was a little girl.”
“We will take one.” He gestured to the merchant. “And that… what is that?” He pointed to a metal bowl filled with liquid. Wrinkled green skin poked out the top.
“Those are pickles.” I couldn’t help but laugh.
“What is a pickle?” His accent made the word sound even more humorous.
“Please, a pickle too. The Lord Chancellor must experience one,” I said.
He reached for his coin pouch, but before he could pay for it the guard slid a coin across the table.
“Anything else, Your Highness?” Josef asked.
“Just the apple and a pickle.” I tried to force my lips to relax when I was smiling far too much.
“Thank you.” I grabbed the apple from the table and watched as the merchant handed Fyn the pickle.
His nose scrunched as he tasted it. “What did they do to this? It looks like a cucumber.”
The apple’s juice ran past my lips as I took the first bite. I wiped it with my sleeve. “It once was.”
“So they take a cucumber and make it… sour? Why would anyone want that?” He inspected the pickle as he rolled it between his fingers until it nearly slipped from his grip.
“They last longer this way.” I took another bite of the apple.
“Humans have strange taste… in pretty much everything.” He wrapped it back in its parchment and slid it into his pocket.
“You’re going to smell horrible,” I said.
“I’m sure someone will just fan me off later.” He watched me carefully. “What do I do with it?”
“I don’t know. You could eat it.”
“No. Absolutely not. Your apple maybe, but not that thing.”
“This is my apple and I will not share it with you.” I let my teeth sink into it.
“As long as you’re enjoying yourself, Princess.”
My title didn’t have the same ring when he said it. “You’ve given up on coming up with other names for me?”
“We’ve crossed realms.” His smile slipped. “Now it’s best I remember my place when I stand near you.”
I wanted to argue it, but I turned from him before I said something I shouldn’t.
Fabrics lined the walls of a far-off alcove, each bolder than the next. I reached for the silks, but pulled my hand back quickly.
“Is that where Princess Novena went?” I asked the guard.
He responded with a silent nod, gesturing me to followhim. I didn’t need to make my presence known to get by the crowd. The ladies who wandered around parted as I walked forward.
When I reached the alcove, everything grew quieter. Only Novena stood at the back, looking at the fabrics that draped over wooden frames.
