A Night at the Market

You wake in your above ground hive, feeling rather groggy. After literally dragging yourself from your coon, you shower and dress, braiding your hair back rather elegantly and slipping into a pair of black skinny jeans. Of course, that is after you jump around your respiteblock trying to squeeze into them. You stick on a pair of boots and pull a light pink top over your head, and grab your cloak before going downstairs for a spot of breakfast. Phobee climbs onto the kitchen table in protest of not being fed yet. You heat up lasts nights rice, which is mixed with vegetables and ham, and roll it into little balls. It takes a few minutes to find a clean bowl and chopsticks, and then you sit down beside the little dragon, offering her a few of the balls as you eat the rest. At first, she is confused by the chopsticks, but she learns quickly. You put on your cloak, which neatly conceals your gills and fins when the hood is pulled up, and head out the door with Phobee on your shoulders.

You arrive at your friend Aryane's hive after a quick jetski ride and a bit of a walk. You knock twice at the door, wondering if you should have messaged her to say you were on your way. You are five minutes early, but oh well. Perhaps you should have made and brought rice cakes with you... Its too late now. Today the pair of you were headed into the city to shop at the market, and you could not be more excited.

You wake up as soon as the sun sets, you were too excited and you had problems to sleep last day, even so you don't care and get up quickly. You take a hot shower and then you dress yourself with a pair of black jeans and a sky blue blouse, you put up your favorite boots and then you comb your hair, it is still a little wet, but that makes it easier for you. You take your cape and go down the stairs, followed by Shield, who woke up just a moment ago, you walk through some halls until you get to your kitchen, you eat something light and you also feed the pets that live in your house, most of your pets live in the forest and they can feed themselves, so it's not a big problem, you also remember to feed Shield, since he's going to accompany both of you, since you met the limeblood, he has not left your side, and you feel happy about that.

After your done you take off your sylladex all of your books, notebooks, pens, colors... all the things you won't need, and you equip with the tablet, it is easier using that. When you are done you put on your cape and hide your hair inside the hood. Some minutes later you can hear someone knocking on the door, you smile as you sense Eisire's presence and you go to let her in.

You open the door, finding Eisire's face, she looks as excited as you -Hi Eisire!- you greet here, is been more or less a week since the last time you saw her -Come in- you step back so she can enter your big hive.

You were a little worried she might get lost, since your hive is practically covered by trees, but it doesn't looks like it.

You didn't get much sleep today. Muntjacmom had been barking at you almost the whole time, about how you needed to pick up this and that from the market, and how her antlers felt heavier than they did a few weeks, and how long had it been since you talked to another troll? You needed to get out of your hive, if only to escape her nigh-constant nagging. You decide that you'll go to the market, so she can stop bothering you about at least two of those things. You lazily roll from your coon, and just sort of lay on the floor for a moment. You aren't quite ready to face the night.

When you do finally get up, it's to trudge yourself to your bathtub and hose yourself down. Once you've washed, you grab a shapeless pair of pants and a chunky sweater embellished with your sigil to hide your physique. Your place on the hemospectrum can get you places, but most trolls see your muscles and think fight or flight. You're too tired to strife, so you elect to leave your chakrams at home to resist the urge.

You grab a grubloaf on the way out the door at your mother's insistence and head down toward the city.

The two of you chat for a while before you reveal your big surprise. "I have something for you!" You retrieve a dragon egg from your bag. The shell looks like it is covered in scales, it looks black but when it catches the light it shines in a colour very similar to your friends blood. "She will hatch in about a month, just keep the egg warm. Its best if you leave it over a simmering fire, but putting it on a hot water bottle and changing the water three times a day will also do the trick." You grin at her and pass it to her. "Lets hurry to the market! I want to get the most out of our night together!" You giggle in excitement. Phobee settles herself across your shoulders, her long tail wrapping around the top of your arm.

You chat a little while in your hive, you're happy to see her again, it seems she brought Phobee just like both of you agreed. Seems like she has something for you, you wonder what it is -Something for me? What might it...- you interrupt yourself when you see the dragon egg, you are surprised and really, really happy -I can't believe it! You made it- you smile at her -Thank you a lot Eisire! I'm so happy... I'll take good care of her, I'll go search a little container to carry her for now, I don't want to leaver her here. I'll be fast.- you take the egg carefully and you go for a little tank you have, the egg fits perfectly, you fill it with hot water and you return.

-I'm ready- both of you exit your hive and you start walking in the direction of the communal hive stems, where the market is -Also, this little guy here is Shield, I adopted him a while ago, he'll be accompanying us today, he is quite brave!- you look at your wolf.

As you walk through the market, a barrage of sights, sounds, and smells assaults your senses. One cart was draped with brightly colored scarves in noble hues, and another shrouded in dried spices that collectively smelled like something a barkbeast would roll in. You keep your gait measured, avoiding eye contact as much as possible while scoping the area for the things that you need.

You finish the last bite of your grubloaf just in time to bump into a lowblooded couple bickering adamantly. You lift your gaze only to glower at them and then continue on your way.

Troll interaction for the evening, check.

You smile at your friend once more, and once the two of you begin to walk for the city you can feel your excitement rise. You lead towards the city, following the map you drew up inside of your head. Phobee isn't sure what to make of the city, clinging to your shoulders as she looks around. You find the market with ease, and make a mental note to tell Theiwy that you didn't get lost this time! You inhale deeply, taking in the wonderful smells of baked good and dried spices. You pull out the piece of paper you copied your list down onto.

"Ok, first things first! We have to look around for a seamstress to create our outfits. And while we are at it, we can assemble a new wardrobe for our adventures! We can save our tailored outfits for special occasions." You giggle, imagining the pair of you sailing the seas.

You follow Eisire, and when you two arrive the city you start feeling a little nervous someone might notice you, but after a few moments you realize no one is paying you attention, your hood is really helping, though they glance to Phobee and Shield from time to time they don't say you a thing. When you get to the market you feel a little overwhelmed because of the sudden change of smells and colors, but when you get used to it you start enjoying it. It's really different from your life in the forest.

-Seems like a perfect idea to me!- you agree with her, you really can't use such special costumes always, that'll make them boring and common -How is the thing with the hideout going? Once we have it, and also we started with the ship, we should look for members...- you imagine once again all the adventures you'll have and you smile again, you give a happy look to Shield and he returns it to you, you also smile at the hidden egg, you can't wait for her to be born. Now that you think about it... maybe Ducita will like to join both of you?

-Well then, let's search for the seamstress! We have to find someone good, this outfits are really special after all- you giggle a little -Do you know of someone?- you ask her, since she is one of the highest in the Hemospectrum, you think she will have contacts everywhere... but maybe no, since she is quite similar at you when it comes to talk to other trolls.

You weave your way through the slowly thickening crowd. It's starting to get darker and the crowd becomes denser with trolls that came just to windowshop, or just for the joy of walking through the market. You suppose it could be considered beautiful to someone who wasn't sleep-deprived and full of hate. Which is unfortunate for you, because it's a very nice night and you can't look more than an inch in front of you without seeing the back of some errandtroll or another.

You've picked up a few things you needed and a few things you didn't. You wouldn't call yourself a shopaholic, but you can't deny the allure of things that would look nice on your wall. You feel that you're forgetting something, though.

When a loose nail on a cart you're passing snags on the side of your pants, you suddenly remember what you're missing. It had been the main top of your mother's rant so it really should have stuck in your mind. You are a growing troll, and almost all of the pants you own give you a terrible draft around your ankles.

You sigh and turn your heel toward the tailor, shoulders sagging a bit.
It's time to go clothes shopping.

You think for a moment. "I remember seeing this set off area of handmade clothes, I'm sure we will find a seamstress there!" You lead to where you thought the clothing bizarre was. "As for the hide out, I have found a good spot for it. There is a small coral bed forming two miles south of my hive, we can build underneath it and use materials that will allow the coral to grow. By the time we are ready to start using it, there will be a busting city of fish hiding our, well our hideout!" You grin, excited at the prospect. "Eventually, I could create a tunnel under the seabed from my hive to the hideout. When you come visit next, I will show the place to you!"

The pair of you walk for a few minutes before the bizarre comes into view. Excited, you grab Aryane's hand and run towards it. Soon you are both surrounded by beautiful clothes and fabrics. You squeal, loving clothing shopping more than you would ever care to admit.

You follow her to the clothing bizarre as she tells you about the hide out, seems things are going perfect and as planned, but you can't let your guard down, you never know when something might go wrong and cause everything to ruin, that would be really bad, you don't even want to consider the possibility. You take a glance at Shield, he looks kind of nervous and uncomfortable because of all the people that is in the market. You hop he doesn't attacks someone or something.

-Sounds like the perfect place! I can't wait to visit, though maybe the idea of linking it to your hive is not the best option, it might be dangerous... Someone can discover it, and we don't really want that- you say to her, you imagine the hideout the best you can, but it isn't enough for you, you can't wait to go and see it. There a lot of things you can't wait for.

When she grabs your hand you can't help but feel surprised, it's not often when you touch other trolls, you're definitely not used to it. When you arrive the clothing bizarre your eyes wide in excitement, there are a lot of clothes of different designs, colors and styles, though you don't go shopping a lot (you don't go shopping at all), you really like seeing the different products this kind of places have to offer. You can feel the curiosity rising up and soon you are dragging Eisire to different places as you watch the clothes and the fabrics.

This place is even more unnecessarily extravagant than you remembered it being. All of the walls are lined with fabrics and garments in every color on the spectrum. It almost hurts your eyes to look at them, but you do note a few that catch your fancy. A shimmery teal fabric, and a translucent white fabric. They remind you of a flower that you'd seen while you were lost in the woods.

While you stood there fondly regarding flora, you notice a couple both shrouded in cloaks in the bazaar from the corner of your eye. One of them has a wolf trotting a few inches behind her, which you find quite odd. Many trolls leave their lusii at home out of fear or necessity. You spend only a moment pondering the two, as you are interrupted by a breeze.

Right. You're here for pants, not troll watching.

You head toward a sign marked "bottoms" with haste. It's not far away, but once you see it you have to stop for a moment There are racks upon racks of garments, organized by color. You don't even know where to start. You hadn't been shopping in so long you essentially forgot how. The task ahead of you was daunting to say the least.

A large-bodied creature trotting past you provides a welcome distraction from the factions of clothes before you. It settles itself a few feet away from its charge and watches her intently, which leads to you watching her intently, which leads to the two cloaked trolls turning around, and-

Oh no

They're c o m i n g c l o s e r.

You pull Aryane towards the bottoms section, jabbering about how desperately you were in need of skirts. Your eyes catch sight of another troll, watching Aryane. Panic surges through you for an instant, but you are careful not to alarm your friend. Did the landdweller realize Aryane was much much higher on the hemospectrum than the occupants of the city? What was the best way to handle this... Hm...

You smile brightly at the other troll and wave. Phobee stands on your shoulder and chirps at the new troll, cocking her head. You keep a hand on her tail, which rests on your shoulder, just in case she decides to jump off. You make a note to yourself- no hand shaking. Your cold skin was a dead giveaway to your place on the hemospectrum. "Good night," you say warmly.

You let her hide you to the bottoms section as you hear her talking about skirts, since you live in the forest you don't usually wear them, but you guess you could buy a pair of them and also a pair of new jeans. You sense that someone is watching you but you can't see who it is, so you remain calm in order not to alarm Eisire. When you see her waving at someone you catch the troll that was staring at you, you smile at the landweller as Eisire does.

-Do you know them?- you whisper to Eisire as you approach the other troll, Shield looks at you with curiosity but you just shrug. You aren't sure what's happening here.

When you reach to the other troll you notice she's a female, even though she's taller you can tell she's younger than both of you, she doesn't seems dangerous, and maybe she still doesn't know both of you are seadwellers, better to keep it like a mystery so you won't shake hands with her, but you will still be polite -Good night- you smile at her a little shyly, you can't bring yourself to talk to other trolls just like that, it feels really strange for you, but if Eisire can, you too.

Well shit.
You realise that staring directly at a troll across a bazaar was a bit suspicious. And rude. Its a wonder you've been able to avoid conversation until now, troll-watching as you've been.

You probably look like a deer in the headlights, not sure what to really do. You release your grip on the bag you were
clutching and manage to bark out a hoarse
ah, g◎◎d evening,,
Gog, you have deplorable social skills. You make a mental note to never leave your hive ever again. You are a danger to society.

You are growing increasingly nervous but you refuse to let it show. Remember that you are a princess, and princesses are.... well you don't really know what princesses are. But they are supposed to be nice, you think. "How are you? My friend Aryane and I were doing a bit of shopping, care to join us?" Phobee moved to Eisire's other shoulder, momentarily disrupting her hood and revealing part of her fin. The small dragon studied the other troll before moving to Aryane's shoulders before settling down one more.

You scream silently when Eisire's fin is revealed for a moment because of Phobee's movement, you try to stay calm as the little dragon moves to your shoulder, you have to claim the landweller's attention, maybe it¿s not to late for you to cover up things -Nice to meet you, my name's Aryane, she's Eisire- you smile, though it takes you a little of effort -It would be great if you joined us- you agree with Eis, even if you don't know the troll, it's better when there is more people... maybe.

You glance at Phobee -You have to be careful with the hoods- you whisper quickly, making sure neither of the other trolls notices it.

Wow, that was a lot of information at once. You're still not entirely sure how to respond, but you try your best.
ah, yeah, its nice t◎ meet y◎u t◎◎..
You trail off a bit, wringing your hands. Something is fishy here.
Very fishy.
There was a movement under the first troll's- Eisire, as you've just learned, Eisire's cloak. It seemed to be a small serpent of some sort, but that's not what really concerned you. You thought you saw a brief flash of a fin under that cloak. You're not sure why a seadweller would hide their status here of all places, but it can't be anything good. You decide to comply with their request, mostly out of curiosity.
i, uhn, supp◎se i c◎uld acc◎mpany y◎u... i'm ◎nly really l◎◎king f◎r a new pair ◎f pants, th◎ugh.

You step a bit closer and extend your hand in greeting, giving the wolf a quick glance. Something tells you that wasn't the right thing to do, so you retract your hand quickly and put it back at your side.

i'm cerese, by the way.

"It's nice to meet you as well, Cerese. The pair of us are looking for all sorts of clothes as well as a tailor, so I suppose we can all keep each other company until you've found what you need." You smiled, proud of your diplomacy. What would the Empress do in this situation? Probably cull anyone who looked at her odd. Why on earth were you a mere shade lower? You would make a much better Empress. Of course, you would never dare to say any of this aloud.

You tug your hood, it felt a little out of place. Despite that both you and Aryane were seadwellers, you didn't want to draw any attention.

You smile at Cerese slightly -Nice to meet you- you manage to avoid stuttering, trying to look calm and somewhat imposing, Shield looked at the new troll with curiosity in his eyes, you guess it's normal for him to doubt the stranger, this places are pretty dangerous indeed with all the trolls that inhabit here, trolls are known to be specially violent if they are provoked, and even if they aren't. You are worried about Cerese seeing Eisire's fin, everything would become complicated if the rumor of two seadwellers being here together was spread.

-I agree with her, it's better when there is more of us, don't you think? And since we're searching for something kind of similar, I think we can help each other- you admired Eisire's natural tone, it was like she was used to this, and if you didn't know her enough already, you would think she is, just as expected from the next Empress.

You smile, showing off your sharp teeth. Or perhaps, shark teeth is more appropriate. Each tooth in your mouth is incredibly sharp, even your molars (which are serrated). You had three rows of teeth- the front row, then a row of mostly grown teeth behind that, and baby teeth behind that. Usually, the second row wasn't visible, but your front teeth were nearly ten sweeps old so the back ones were nearly fully grown and ready to replace them. But enough about your freaky teeth. You tug your hood down a little, making sure you aren't showing off your finned ears or your pink streaks. "Why don't we start from here and work our way around the shop? I haven't been in here before so I don't know where anything is." With that, you start leading down the isles, sorting through the racks of clothing.

You almost sigh, you're not sure about it but if Eisire is trying to scare the new troll, Cerese, she's probably going to accomplish it if she shows her shark teeth like it's nothing, not forgetting that usually only seadwellers have those... Well, it seems that she has dealed with other trolls before, more than yourself, so you'll just follow her around and try to not appear suspicious, thought they say you're the spirit that protects the forest, so that might be a little difficult... -It's my first time here as well, so I think exploring is the best option- without saying anything else you just start walking side by side with Eisire, paying attention at the clothes in search of something that might be like the drawings you two made.