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That was a point. "Well, seen as we do have the whole day off might as well stick around right until the end then," Conomor said with a grin. "Might find all sorts of nice things besides a necklace that suddenly become affordable. A new belt would be nice, maybe a rug or something too. Couldn't have it in the dormitory at the minute of course but I could have my mother look after it for me until the hatching's over, one way or another."

If he Impressed, it would be nice to have something to begin furnishing his sleeping area with; he gathered things were a bit more lax once you were a weyrling rather than a candidate. If he failed... Well if he failed, it would be nice to make himself feel better by upgrading his little alcove in his mother's quarters.

Conomor looked thoughtfully up at the sky as he pondered that and nodded. "A while to go yet, but I suppose if some merchants aren't doing as well as they expected there'll be good deals already." Some of the cries reaching out to them did have a slightly desperate ring to them. A big gather like this was much better for the buyer than the seller. That in itself was a danger though of course; so many irresistible good deals... But some really were too good to pass over, he considered as he shifted the pot under his arm slightly. He'd have to put this in the hearth as soon as he got back and make sure he remembered to turn the egg every so often.

"That one there looks promising," Conomor commented, indicating a stall displaying jewelry just ahead of them. Much as he might get a good deal later on, if he could buy something at a reasonable price right now he'd prefer it; that way he could start browsing for himself again, not that he really needed to find any more wonderful deals to make this a thoroughly good day.

As soon as he approached, his decision was made. A fine but tough looking coppery chain with a bright blue stone of some kind set into the same metal. The workmanship was excellent, and the contrast between the ruddy metal and the blue stone was perfect. He ignored the merchant's attempts to draw his attention to the more expensive end of his range, and shot the man a glare when he waved a silver pendant under his nose. Apparently his look was fierce enough to deter further interruption, for the trader drew back a little with an embarrassed cough before returning to his patter.

The necklace was pinned down to the board it was displayed on by its chain in several places, but Conomor was able to lift the pendant up and look at the reverse side. Plain and smooth save for tiny scratched initials; good.

"This one," he said decisively, meeting the trader's eyes again, "what's your price?"

The figure was inflated, of course, and Conomor gave a ridiculous offer in the opposite direction out of hand. Then he and the trader exchanged a grin and the bartering began in earnest. In the end, they met more or less dead in between their initial demands and the merchant quickly demonstrated the catch mechanism before placing the necklace in a small cloth bag and passing it over. After handing over marks in return, Conomor turned back to Riordan and grinned.

"What can I say," he shrugged, "there was only one like it."

Conomor tucked the necklace safely away inside his purse and stretched. "A break," he said with a nod, "I need something to eat and drink and somewhere to sit for a while before I'm up to any more shopping. It's exhausting work." He wasn't quite sure what it was about wandering around stalls that was so draining; his daily chores tended to be centered around heavy labor thanks to his bulk but this was a lot more tiring than hefting around buckets of water or whatever else.

Conomor gave a lopsided grin as his stomach growled its displeasure at being neglected thus far. One small meat roll was not enough fuel to shop on, and breakfast had been a long time ago now and didn't count anymore at all. "Shall we head over and see what the main food stalls have to offer then?" he asked, simultaneously trying to work out where said stalls were. "I could go for some roasted heardbeast right now, and a cold mug of beer too, or possibly some fruit juice." Either would be good right now, but mere water wouldn't be enough to revive his parched throat.

Looking to Elae, Annelie once more turned red at the whole mention of the spilling of the soup incident with Cil. Yeah... this story was going to go on for a while for sure...

"Ah.. um, I do what task is asked of me," she answered quietly, blinking at Elae. "So yes... that includes food preparation, serving, cleaning and all that." As she finished further explaining herself, she looked towards the other woman -- who's name had escaped her -- and made a quick, studious glance.

"You said you used to work in the Lower Caverns?" she asked, continuing to speak quietly. "I don't think I ever met you -- sorry."

edit: (( Lawl..I can spell ))

"I would definitely introduce you if you'd like." She was surprised at his enthusiasm, finally getting control over her surprised flood of emotion. "He's sleeping right now, lazy log. But I'm sure he'd be very flattered by your enthusiasm." His interpretation was also interesting. "I've never thought of it that way. I know that the watchwhers can go without impressing, but I wonder if that were true. If maybe some candidates were waiting for them also. That would be nice for them I think. If it were ever proved."