Toddler Quest: Shopping with Armel
Part 2 of 3: Day 2
Part 2 of 3: Day 2
Armel held Kaveri in his arms not seeming to feel her weight on him. The ram-horned boy’s features wore an odd expression, something that was seemingly mixed with bewilderment and just incredulity of something that seemed to keep happening everywhere he turned. It was sparse on the way to the open-air shopping centre but now that they were there wandering through the bazaar he kept hearing older folks mutter things, disturbing things, things that insinuated that Kaveri was his daughter and while he would not mind such things normally but the fact remained that he was too young to have a child and secondly she looked nothing like him.
Granted odder things have happened in Gaia and that could have been very plausible indeed but still it was almost insulting the way the people looked at him with a mix of pity or disapproval in their eyes. Kaveri, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to it all just simply enjoying being held by her older brother while one hand gripped onto one of his fiery orange braids and her head twisting this way and that to catch every color and happenings around her.
It didn’t take long before Armel began to repeat the phrase, “She’s m’sister not m’daughter.” Almost like some sort of odd mantra. Every time someone looked upon him his head would turn in their direction and he’d say the phrase louder for their hearing. Sadly, this only caused people to look at him as if he were insane, an escaped lunatic who had kidnapped a poor unfortunate child and yet no one seemed to stop them from going about their business, it might have been because of the large hammer-like weapon strapped to his back in a specially made sheath.
Young or not no one seemed to want Armel’s brand of trouble.
Soon the strange mantra stopped as soon as the rumor and whispers faded along with the odd looks. Armel gradually relaxed and wore a slightly friendlier expression upon his face. He continued to walk occasionally stopping to look at the wares available at various stalls or laid out on blankets to see if they had anything he needed or perhaps a gift for his sister or even one of his friends.
It didn’t take long until they stopped before a small shabby stall with very few items in fact it only had four items. The items looked suspiciously familiar to Armel, he had remembered seeing similar items in other stalls not too long ago, but Kaveri didn’t know any better and thus let out a small “Oooh...” sound and immediately making grabby-hands at the items that seemed to be nothing more than fancy vials of water.
Near the stall stood an odd weasel-y looking man with beady eyes full of cunning and mischief, no doubt a part-time thief looking to score some easy cash off of stolen goods.
“Hey kid, find anything you like?” the weasel-man with a toothy grin, “looks like your little friend has. Wouldn’t want to let her down, would ya?”
Armel’s eyebrow twitched at this but seemed to ignore the man for the moment watching his sister as she now began to gravitate toward an odd shaped flute lying near the vials of water and then toward a strange cup with the occasional images flickering across the watery surface. The ram-horned boy sighed and looked over at the man, “How much f’all this then?”
The toothy grin of the man widened at this resignation, “one thousand,” he announced and then nervously glanced about for the authorities, just in case.
The boy’s eyes darkened at this. “Really, don’t look like all this would cost that much considering ye likely stole it all from the merchants in the area.”
The weasel-man gave a small twitch as the truth flowed out of the boy and struck hard, “Look, kid, don’t get all uppity. We all need to make a living, ya hear? You gonna pay or not? I’ll just find someone else that wants this stuff before you can get anyone here.”
Armel grinned slowly at this and stepped forward and unto the ratty blankets the stolen goods laid upon, “If ye want to try go ahead.”
Kaveri was now watching her brother and the weird little man have a duel of words it seemed. “’Mel?” she called softly in confusion. The atmosphere had changed subtly it was almost as if the air was electrified.
The boy and man both ignored the Nagi, as they both entered a strange sort of staring contest.
“Eight hundred,” the man grumbled.
“Three-hundred-and-fifty,” Armel retorted.
“Seven hundred,” the man replied intensifying his glare.
“Ye know what? Give it all to us f’free and I won’t ‘ave to report you or break yer knees.” The boy said smugly with a smile, “Don’t think I won’t do it jus’ cos I’m holdin’ m’sister.”
The weasel-man seemed shaken by the threat. He wasn’t a fighter, obviously, and the boy had a huge freakin’ hammer and seemed very capable of using it. “F-Fine, Just take the s**t and go,” he had given up. He had lost to a child no less; the folks at the guild won’t let him live this down for a while.
Armel beamed a smile, “Aye, well stay put then. We don’t want ya near us, I’ll be mighty pissed if’n I find my wallet gone.”
The thief glowered but stayed put and watched as the boy picked up the items and pocketed them all except for the odd cup of water with the changing images, which was handed to that little snake-girl in the boy’s arms.
Kaveri gave a small squee of delight as her hands grasped cup in her hands and peered into it with a curious look in her eyes. After a moment she began to move the cup toward her lips, but it was stopped by her brother, “Ye don’t want t’drink that water, little one. Dunno what it is doin’ but we don’t wanna try drinkin’ it just to find out what that does.”
Kaveri pouted a bit, “Thirs’ee, ‘Mel,” she said in a soft whining tone. Armel sighed a bit and nodded.
“Alright, we’ll get you somethin’ to drink at one of the food stalls.” He said as they walked away under the heavy glare of the beaten thief.
They got a couple of cups of tea and cold chocolate milk; the cups were made of ceramic and thus considered collectable. Armel got one that was patterned with a moon and some stars that he had planned to clean up and then give to someone else as a gift. Kaveri sipped chocolate milk from a blue cup with a wave of water on the front. The scrying cup was safely kept in a small box-container with a shoulder strap, which Armel wore so that Kaveri could hold her own drink with both hands and not spill.
So, today wasn’t all bad. Got some gifts out of the way and outwitted a thief.
Granted odder things have happened in Gaia and that could have been very plausible indeed but still it was almost insulting the way the people looked at him with a mix of pity or disapproval in their eyes. Kaveri, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to it all just simply enjoying being held by her older brother while one hand gripped onto one of his fiery orange braids and her head twisting this way and that to catch every color and happenings around her.
It didn’t take long before Armel began to repeat the phrase, “She’s m’sister not m’daughter.” Almost like some sort of odd mantra. Every time someone looked upon him his head would turn in their direction and he’d say the phrase louder for their hearing. Sadly, this only caused people to look at him as if he were insane, an escaped lunatic who had kidnapped a poor unfortunate child and yet no one seemed to stop them from going about their business, it might have been because of the large hammer-like weapon strapped to his back in a specially made sheath.
Young or not no one seemed to want Armel’s brand of trouble.
Soon the strange mantra stopped as soon as the rumor and whispers faded along with the odd looks. Armel gradually relaxed and wore a slightly friendlier expression upon his face. He continued to walk occasionally stopping to look at the wares available at various stalls or laid out on blankets to see if they had anything he needed or perhaps a gift for his sister or even one of his friends.
It didn’t take long until they stopped before a small shabby stall with very few items in fact it only had four items. The items looked suspiciously familiar to Armel, he had remembered seeing similar items in other stalls not too long ago, but Kaveri didn’t know any better and thus let out a small “Oooh...” sound and immediately making grabby-hands at the items that seemed to be nothing more than fancy vials of water.
Near the stall stood an odd weasel-y looking man with beady eyes full of cunning and mischief, no doubt a part-time thief looking to score some easy cash off of stolen goods.
“Hey kid, find anything you like?” the weasel-man with a toothy grin, “looks like your little friend has. Wouldn’t want to let her down, would ya?”
Armel’s eyebrow twitched at this but seemed to ignore the man for the moment watching his sister as she now began to gravitate toward an odd shaped flute lying near the vials of water and then toward a strange cup with the occasional images flickering across the watery surface. The ram-horned boy sighed and looked over at the man, “How much f’all this then?”
The toothy grin of the man widened at this resignation, “one thousand,” he announced and then nervously glanced about for the authorities, just in case.
The boy’s eyes darkened at this. “Really, don’t look like all this would cost that much considering ye likely stole it all from the merchants in the area.”
The weasel-man gave a small twitch as the truth flowed out of the boy and struck hard, “Look, kid, don’t get all uppity. We all need to make a living, ya hear? You gonna pay or not? I’ll just find someone else that wants this stuff before you can get anyone here.”
Armel grinned slowly at this and stepped forward and unto the ratty blankets the stolen goods laid upon, “If ye want to try go ahead.”
Kaveri was now watching her brother and the weird little man have a duel of words it seemed. “’Mel?” she called softly in confusion. The atmosphere had changed subtly it was almost as if the air was electrified.
The boy and man both ignored the Nagi, as they both entered a strange sort of staring contest.
“Eight hundred,” the man grumbled.
“Three-hundred-and-fifty,” Armel retorted.
“Seven hundred,” the man replied intensifying his glare.
“Ye know what? Give it all to us f’free and I won’t ‘ave to report you or break yer knees.” The boy said smugly with a smile, “Don’t think I won’t do it jus’ cos I’m holdin’ m’sister.”
The weasel-man seemed shaken by the threat. He wasn’t a fighter, obviously, and the boy had a huge freakin’ hammer and seemed very capable of using it. “F-Fine, Just take the s**t and go,” he had given up. He had lost to a child no less; the folks at the guild won’t let him live this down for a while.
Armel beamed a smile, “Aye, well stay put then. We don’t want ya near us, I’ll be mighty pissed if’n I find my wallet gone.”
The thief glowered but stayed put and watched as the boy picked up the items and pocketed them all except for the odd cup of water with the changing images, which was handed to that little snake-girl in the boy’s arms.
Kaveri gave a small squee of delight as her hands grasped cup in her hands and peered into it with a curious look in her eyes. After a moment she began to move the cup toward her lips, but it was stopped by her brother, “Ye don’t want t’drink that water, little one. Dunno what it is doin’ but we don’t wanna try drinkin’ it just to find out what that does.”
Kaveri pouted a bit, “Thirs’ee, ‘Mel,” she said in a soft whining tone. Armel sighed a bit and nodded.
“Alright, we’ll get you somethin’ to drink at one of the food stalls.” He said as they walked away under the heavy glare of the beaten thief.
They got a couple of cups of tea and cold chocolate milk; the cups were made of ceramic and thus considered collectable. Armel got one that was patterned with a moon and some stars that he had planned to clean up and then give to someone else as a gift. Kaveri sipped chocolate milk from a blue cup with a wave of water on the front. The scrying cup was safely kept in a small box-container with a shoulder strap, which Armel wore so that Kaveri could hold her own drink with both hands and not spill.
So, today wasn’t all bad. Got some gifts out of the way and outwitted a thief.
