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Now that was interesting. She was made to practice her dancing often? A curious phrasing for something he'd assumed was initially a passion that her parent's profited from, but now he wondered if he enjoyed her work at all.

"Is this the same brother that might have been my bride if it weren't for you?" He couldn't help the bit of teasing; after all, this wasn't the first he'd heard of him and likely wouldn't be last. "Viltre?" If he was out of town then that was likely the reason she'd stopped by a courier before coming here. It was something to keep in mind, though nothing he planned on investigating unless she gave him reason too.

"I assume the swords are for your dances and not for, say, preventing a marriage? I'd quite like to keep my head."

Instead of moving back toward his find of the day, Devereux instead walked toward the door to wait for Niiemh. Occasionally he could feel an eye on him, presumably trying to make sure he wasn't stealing, but the hybrid paid it little mind. That's the kind of attention he wanted after all; kept them from thinking he was someone who could actually afford things.

After she'd made her purchase he moved to open the door and wait for her to pass through before doing so himself. "Flattery will get you everywhere, my dear." Whether she meant it or not wasn't something he planned to dig into. She may be dragging his name through the mud behind his back, but so long as she kept it up publicly then that was good enough.

"Are there usually dances at weddings in Tale? I was thinking that if there were then maybe the two of us could do a performance together. I may not be as talented as you, but sword dancing has my interest."

Devereux followed at a casual pace, making sure not to walk too primly lest his posture not match the disguise. That is, until her arm looped with his and his spine stiffened. What's she playing at? For a moment he just looked at it, before turning his eyes up to her over the rim of his lens. Hiding his suspicions came easy though, and within seconds Devereux was letting out a breathy chuckle that came with crooked grin. If there was the hint of surprised warmth to it he wasn't about to acknowledge it. "That depends entirely on your questions."

Now that he was arm in arm with a lady Devereux did his best to stand a little straighter and hold himself with some ounce of respect. "The only wedding I've ever attended was in Yael as a child and I can't remember a moment of it that wasn't dry." Of course, anything that required a child to stay still for more than an hour was bound to be terrible. "As entertaining as it will be to see others dance for me I think I'd rather do it myself. After all, at that point we'll be connected to our families by name but not longer under their rule. So, why not make a stand of it?"

"Yael? It's beautiful." It was surprising, talking about his home so freely, especially considering Devereux hadn't thought his betrothed would be interested. "The air feels like Jauhar, but there's a mist that clings to the ground. You can lose your way if you aren't careful." Devereux raised his free hand as he spoke, wiggling his fingers as he did so to imitate the mist. "There are underground caverns that stretch the entire island, with whole rivers that run underfoot. My mother used to warn me against venturing too far into the woods else I'd fall through a crack and drown."

There were beaches, of course, and some areas that were practically bursting with natural fruit. Those weren't the places he remembered, though; it was always the more mystical areas that stuck with him.

Now that they were on the move Devereux nudged her to take first a left, then a right. After all, he had things to pick up as well. "Second question?"

"Somewhere I'd like to travel? If given the chance I would enjoy seeing Yael again. I always assumed my father would remarry when we moved to Tale or at the very least would take a mistress for a 'proper heir'." He grimaced. "Fortunately for me he never did so my position was secured and there is no need for me to 'flee in shame'."

Devereux led them down yet another street, mindfully navigating around passerby's as they cropped up. The only time he paused was at the mouth of their next street and only long enough to make sure they weren't being followed. When he was sure they were free, Devereux kept walking. While the street itself was unassuming and far from vacant it was the shop within that he worried for. It wouldn't do for him to be caught near it, but Devereux was a frequent customer all the same.

The storefront was bland without any sort of frill, or overt decorations, though the sign above the door held a symbol one may not see anywhere else in Tale. It was one he knew well, had seen many a time around Yael, but here it was a rarity.

It was a mark of Lurin and Dafiel, the yaeli gods.

"You can wait outside if you'd like or you're welcome to come inside. I won't be long."

"It's fine. I'll be spending time here once we're married so it's best you know where I'm at in case you need me." Devereux opened the door of the unassuming shop and waited until she'd entered first before following. Much like it's exterior, the shop itself was sparsely decorated, though far more lived in that one would expect. The walls were colored in a variety of hues, though the vibrancy of them left much to be desired. Drapes hung from the walls and their tops were sparsely lined with moss that tended to drape down the fabric like tendrils.

Once Devereux had crossed the threshold his hand went to the pendant that hung around his neck and he muttered a quick prayer. The action was not left unseen, at least by the shop keep who turned to them both with a soft smile.

"Welcome back, sweetfern. I see you've brought a guest as well." The woman was easily a foot shorter than Devereux with hips that dwarfed her upper half. There were streaks of grey in her hair, but it was impossible to hide it's violet hue. Unlike Devereux, she appeared to be fully Yaeli, though her true heritage was up for debate. "My name's Velora and all are welcome here. I deal in trade from Yael, though it's mostly textiles and little things. Hardly any place to bring a friend." She smiled.

"I come here to pray," He turned to Niiemh, watching her for any sort of reaction. "Mother and I used to visit the Sanctum often before we left Yael. Father won't allow any trace of the Gods at home so-" He motioned behind the counter, where a door led to a separate space, "-Velora allows us to use her shop when we need it."

Devereux watched over Niiemh carefully. Bringing her here was a test - a cruel thing, really, to see if she could be trusted - but when she turned to him with that smile he couldn't help giving one in kind. "She told me that if I didn't give her a name she would make one up."

"So, Sweetfern he became." Velora chuckled and started to move back toward her counter, leaving the two of them for a moment. He could see her measuring dried leaves - presumably for his order - and in the meantime Devereux made himself 'comfortable' among the yaeli relics.

"You..." Devereux's features pinched, "... don't have to do that. My faith won't effect our marriage and our children will likely worship....I'm not familiar with the Gods here, but I'm assuming those."

He opened his mouth and closed it, too lose for words to speak. The back of Devereux's neck warmed and if there was a little extra color to his skin he chose to ignore it. When the nickname had been given it was a silly little thing given by a kind old woman, but when spoken by his future wife...admittedly, it didn't sound terrible.

And now that she'd said they could worship as he did...Devereux's mind was a whirl. Did she mean it? Was it some kind of ploy to get closer? She seemed genuine, truly genuine, and he wanted to believe her, but...Why shouldn't I? Oh there were a thousand reasons why, and yet...Gods above they would have to have the children first and he was getting ahead of himself.

"Merle would stroke out," He quietly enunciated the words, just enough so that she could hear and that devilish smirk was back in full force. Devereux's natural response to being flustered and out of his element was to give in to his bratty nature, but thankfully Velora called out to them.

"Your orders ready, love! Two sachets of tea leaves, freshly dried and pressed from Pajore." His eyes lingered on Niiemh for a moment before Devereux inevitably walked up to the counter to pay for his goods. As per usual, he left extra to aid Velora's services and pocketed the tea leaves in a secret pocket that had been sewn into the folds of his wardrobe.

"So, onto swords then?"