Author's Note: Here's the next chapter. I hope you like it. Review!
Chapter 3 - Home Sweet Home
The boat lurched and I struggled to keep what little breakfast I had down. Usually, I do pretty well on boats, but I have a bout of sea sickness every now and then. We hit land at last, and I jump out as soon as possible. The sailors behind me snicker, and I give them a dirty look, before searching for my parents on the chaotic docks. It doesn't take me long before I spot them. I walk as fast as I can to them. I want to run into my Mama's grasps, but it would be shameful to run to them here in the Islands. When I reach them, I follow Yamani custom and bow respectfully to each of them. "Kel, you've grown, and not by a little, by inches," Ilane notes.
She is tall, elegant, with hair that turned white early in life, and a musical voice. "How was your trip?" my father, Piers, inquired.
"Sickening," I mumble, still feeling slightly ill. A slight wrinkle forms at the corners of his eyes. After years in the Yamani Islands, he has acquired their custom to not laugh in public.
We walked back to the palace, and it seemed like forever until we were in the suite I have lived in since I was fours years old. I sighed. We were finally alone. I wrap my arms around my mother and cling to her as if I would lose her forever if I let her go. She felt my pain and held me firmly. A few tears trickled down my cheeks, and I wiped them away, putting on my Yamani mask. Taking a deep breath, I released her after a final squeeze. The tension in my neck and shoulders eases. I'm back with my parents, who love me for who I am. They don't try to change me, though lately, I have been feeling the need for a change. That can wait for another time, because I'm home.
The next day I am pleasantly surprised when I find Lady Yukimi noh Daiomoru waiting for me. She is one of the few people who befriended me when I first came to the Islands, and the sight of her round face, ebony hair, and twinkling, brown, almond-shaped eyes gives me some much needed comfort. Her eyes crinkle in the corner, which is considered the closest thing to laughing in the Islands, at the way I am adjusting to wearing a kimono, after a year with the freedom of breeches. She speaks first, saying, "I have come to invite you to come with Cricket, if we can find her, and me to visit the marketplace. It is always a treat to go there, and what better time to celebrate than your return?"
I agree quickly, thankful for the distraction, and we set off to find Cricket. She was another of the rare few that befriended me when I first came to this country. We were walking through the garden that leads to her rooms, when Yuki spotted her. She was feeding the fish in a small pond. My spirits lift at sight of another good friend. As we approach, the jewel-colored fish dart between lily pads, and Cricket turns and smiles. "I thought it was you," she shared with us.
The sun was high overhead before we departed form the palace, with our guards in tow. Shops are tucked into every available spot at the market, a skill they obtain from years of living in an overpopulated, miniscule inland. The smells, sights, and sound are overwhelming. I am tempted by almost everything that I see, and shocked by others. After a few minutes, I realize the new trend among the people is to treat themselves to lollipops with scorpions in the center. We stop at every stall, and examine everything available to us. Shuffling in to the next stall, I am baffled by what I see. There were shelves of circular bottles containing some kind of potion, and I can not remember a healer with anything like this. The stall's owner approaches us and bows appropriately. In a formal and practiced voice, he says, "Hello, my ladies. I would like you to see my very new product. This is a potion that can dye your hair. I can use my gift, while touching the bottle and the temple next to your right eye to find the color you desire your hair to be the most. If it pleases my ladies, there is a starting potion that lasts for seven days, to initially dye your hair. If you desire your hair to remain that color, then you may take one of my prolonging potions. Depending on which potion you select, they will last one month, six months, one year, and five years. I also have a potion to make the change permanent, although it can be altered if you take another starting potion. Would you like to see my selection?"
Cricket nods her head and he presents each of us with a starting potion. The bottle contains a pool of a mesmerizing, shimmering liquid. The vendor sees my interest and asks, "Would you like to purchase a bottle, my lady?"
I consider for a moment, and then I realize that this is the change I have been needing. "Yes, I would like one bottle of your starting potion," I inform him.
Yuki and Cricket give me a shocked look, or as close to a shocked look as a Yamani could make. Obviously they thought this was a ridiculous idea, but watched with amusement. The vendor placed one finger on the bottle and one finger at my temple. A cool rush streamed over me instantly, but left as quickly as it had come. He instructed me further, that I was too drink the entire bottle of potion before I went to bed that night. If I liked the color I was to return to him with one drop of the potion left for him to create a prolonging potion of the same shade.
We finally returned to the palace, and say our farewells. It is nice to be back with old friends. I make my way to my room, exhausted form the days events. I am about to crawl into bed when I remember my hair dye. I gingerly pull it from its case and drink swirling liquid quickly, afraid of a horrible taste. Setting it down, I lick my lips and sleep sweeps over me. Tomorrow, I get to find out what color my hair will be, because I had somehow forgotten to ask the salesman what it was.
Yepper, that's it. I know it's a little weird and probably a little repetitive, but I was having problems trying to present it. I wanted the color to be a surprise to her, and trust me, it all has a meaning and ties together.
Starlit Emerald-Eyed Empress