Ephrym had way too much free time on his hands whenever the ship was docked. Once the accounting books were taken care of and their products moved from his cargo hold and into the hands of the merchants who had ordered the trade he found himself with nothing to do. The carpenter would be taking care of the ship and then the crew would be handling cleaning the Misty Maiden so that she was ready for her next voyage. So far Ephrym had managed to go between the north and south ports to test out the durability of his ship and crew and both trips had good results. Soon enough he would be venturing with other merchants towards Kahikana to start up trade there before joining in the trade routes between Tendaji and Belrea. It all simply depended on how much profit he would make from either continent. Once Ephrym found the right trade route with the most adventure and profit he would surely stick with it for a while before moving on to something new once more. He was whimsical but not completely reckless after all when it came to his ship and providing for his crew. Years of hard work on the docks had taught him a thing or two about responsibility after all. His time spent with sailors and the like also had taught him a few things about the cooler season and the trickery that came along with it. I really do have too much free time. Ephrym thought with a grin of delight before venturing down towards a local tailor shop.

“I’ll take some black and white fabric please.” He tossed a coin on the counter and waited on the boy to run to the back of the store to fulfill his request. A chuckle from the other side of the counter got his attention while he waited and the hybrid found himself raising a brow at a lightning man who was studying him. “What is it?” Ephrym asked finally after a moment of studying the tailor who had been busy folding clothing and placing suits on a rack for customers.

“It’s obvious that you’re up to something.” The tailor replied with a wry grin towards Ephrym. “Black and white material during this season? What are you trying to do? Make a costume to spook someone?”

“Maybe.” Ephrym narrowed his gaze suspiciously towards the teen. Did he know someone from his crew? Was he a spy somehow? Did they know that Ephrym was too bored while they were docked and up to trouble? He settled on the best vague answer that he could think of. “I mean I suppose you’re accustomed to that during this season to be making such assumptions. Do people have certain styles they go for when spooking others?”

“Assumptions, eh?” The young man chuckled again before placing another suit on the rack and heading towards Ephrym. “If I were you I would be going towards the alley on the right. There’s a merchant there who specializes in selling strange wares, including masks that make people jump just at the sight of them.”

“Oh?” Ephrym studied the teen with interest. “What if that’s just another trick to scare someone who is trying to spook another? Not sayin’ that I am but if I was I would be careful of it.”

“Touche.” The guy grinned playfully before sticking out a hand. “Name’s Gildon.” He took Ephrym’s hand and gave it a firm shake. “You can always come back and rail on me if I’m messing with you but I do promise that he sells some really strange looking faces. You can wear the black material and the mask will make you look like a true ghoul.” He took the materials from the boy who had just returned and packaged them for Ephrym. “Come back if you need an actual design and I can sew it for you when I’m off this afternoon for a fee of course.”

“Fair enough.” Ephrym chuckled before grabbing his package and giving a wave. “I’ll see about this store and then if it’s any good I may just return for your help.” He had to find a mask first and if the guy wasn’t lying then it would be a lot more fun to have a full costume instead of simply running about in all white or black to spook his crewmates. Looks like tricking season is truly upon us~ And he was more than ready to have all the fun possible while it was around.

[758]