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The end of the year is coming soon, and in the next couple of days, it would Halloween. I came from a Catholic country, and when I was growing up, we don't celebrate Halloween through trick or treating, dressing up in costumes and stuffing ourselves with candy. As early as the last week of October, many of us would go back in our hometown, visit the graves of our loved ones and prepare to clean them and bring fresh flowers and candles. It was an opportunity for us to remember the dead and cherish the memories they left behind. Not many of us have the opportunity to do this on a regular basis, thus it is only during the official day (November 1st and 2nd) do we get to stay longer and spend most of our time in a mausoleum, pray, light candles, even do food offerings and greet visiting relatives. In time, we sort of, have a mini-reunion with long-lost family members. In Singapore (where I currently live), this is the equivalent of Ghost Month, where majority of the Chinese community remember their ancestors and light incense sticks and burn hell money as offerings for the dead.
I hope you like the little trivia. Also, a few months' back, I planned to post a new story for AnS to celebrate Halloween. But the story is still, sadly, unfinished. But I hope to revive it and maybe post it before Christmas. Wish me luck.
Title: The Closer I Get, the Hungrier I Feel
Inspired by: Chapter 41 of the manga Akagami no Shirayukihime
Characters: Izana Wistalia, Shirayuki
Word Count: 1272
Rating: General
Status: Beta-ed chapter by Kartara. Please check out her profile and support her works
"How much?"
"20 geld a yard, Miss."
I watched with interest as Shirayuki pondered over the deep blue cloth trimmed with silver thread as she made quick calculations.
"I'll take 4 yards of this, and 4 yards of that." She pointed at another roll of cloth, this time in pale green trimmed with white lace.
"Very good, Miss."
I continue to watch as she perused her list, ticking an item using a crude pencil. It surprised me very much that I am finding myself enjoying my time with her. I do not particularly like shopping; I never had an opportunity to explore a market. Whenever I had the chance to sneak out, I visit taverns and inns, seaside ports and any places which soldiers, guards, travelers, and even spies gather, exchanging bits of news and gossip, charm the bar ladies, or go incognito in provincial offices when I am out of town.
The crowd, the sight, the smells, never really appeal to me, but despite that, I am enjoying my rare free time with her. Plus, the amount of information and gossip is as much as the bars and taverns I used to frequent.
Shirayuki took the purchases she made and tucked the wrapped package back into the sack she is carrying. I strode up next to her and took the sack.
"Let me." I hooked it on my shoulders.
"But it might be too heavy," She protested, embarrassed, reaching for the sack, but I pulled it away from her reach.
I shook my head. "Not really. What am I training for everyday if I don't flex these muscles once in a while?"
She stared at me, eyes traveling to my upper arms. My heart skipped a beat, my imagination running wild on what other stuff I can use my muscles for.
"As you wish," she nodded a little skeptically before moving onto the next shop.
"What are these things for?" I asked absent-mindedly, fingering coral necklaces on sale from one of the stall. They looked well-made and expensive. I glanced about and noted that there seemed to be a lot more sellers than I remember. Aside from the normal winter necessities like furs and firewood, cured meats, vegetables and fruit, and winter clothings, there are booksellers, trinket sellers, semi-precious stone jewelry sellers that I can see among others.
"The Ærra Jeola season is coming soon, and I am preparing presents for everyone," She answered, before she took my arm and led the way to the bustling street.
I wondered whether the word everyone includes me.
Clarines' main market street is long, winding and full of all sorts of interesting wares. Food stalls compete with merchants selling clothes, hats, pots, pans, goats, dried herbs and spices. It was noisy, a little bit stifling, with people from all walks of life; each of them intent on making a living. Shirayuki paused at a fruit stall, bought a few oranges and began to hand over some to small kids waiting at the fringes. The street urchins accepted the fruit enthusiastically and ran to the side streets to enjoy their unexpected luck.
"I wish I bought some of the apples back from the dormitory," She mused out loud as I fell in step beside her.
"Do not worry about them." I glanced down at her wistful expression, my heartstrings tugging, and I brushed a stray hair behind her ear, fingers lingering a second too long "I will instruct the servants to gather the remaining apples from the courtyard and dispense them."
She nodded. "I still find it amazing that despite the excellent support system organized by your Kingdom, some of these children are still living in the streets."
Why indeed? "We've been getting a few reports that some of these children are exploited by black market traders. They are being trained to pick pockets and steal." I frowned at this, remembering. Indeed, I have been getting more than my share of reports about this whole thing. Perhaps I may ask Zen to investigate on this once he comes back.
She sighed a little in frustration. "I hope the culprits get caught. These children deserve better."
I nodded in agreement. "Does it bring back painful memories?" I asked, curious. I know so very little about her past except for scant information gathered by my aides.
She shook her head ruefully, "I was lucky that I was old enough to look after myself when my grandparents died. The bar that they used to managed when I was growing up went to a distant relative of my grandfather. I did not agree with him and his family. And they do not care about my interest in herbal medicine. So, I had to move out and rent a place of my own. A local pharmacist took me in as an assistant seeing that I had a talent for herbs. Most of the advance knowledge I have was all thanks to her teachings." She gestured at the young girls begging for some alms. "These children could be trained as healthcare providers or even wheat mill guards, if only someone cared enough."
I took note of Shirayuki's astute observations and filed the information at the back of my mind. I would see the minister of internal affairs and see if these ideas can be turned into actions.
The smell of meatpies wafted underneath our noses, and my stomach gave a loud rumble.
Shirayuki gave a low giggle, dug into her satchel bag and took out a brown paper-wrapped square. My nose immediately detected herbs, tomatoes and cheese.
It was a freshly baked bread with ripe tomatoes and sharp cheese. I eyed it a little suspiciously. "Where did you get that?"
"Oh, I almost forgot. You are not allowed to take just any kind of food. I baked them myself. The palace cooks sometimes let me use one of the smaller brick ovens." She frowned a little at this and started to withdraw the food she offered, but in a split second, I took it from her, our hands touching briefly. I felt a tingle run up my arm.
"I will reconsider just for today." I smiled faintly back at her. "Besides, if anything happens to my stomach, your pharmacy skills will come in handy."
"I solemnly swear there are no love potions on it." She replied with a serious look on her face.
I found myself wishing she did put some, then I can blame the love potion for causing me to fall for her.
Holding her wrist, I pulled her hand closer, opening my mouth to take in the savoury dough with a bite. Her fingers grazed the bottom of my lip, sending bolts of electricity running from my head down to the toes of my feet. When I finished the bread, she began to withdraw her hand, but I continued to hold it still.
A small bit of tomato sauce and cheese clung on her forefinger. I can feel Shirayuki's eyes slowly widening as I placed her finger inside my mouth, tongue licking tip clean. I have never tasted anything so good, and yet left me feeling unsatisfied.
"Delicious." I lowered her hand, wiping the crumbs from my shirt as I continued to watch her.
Shirayuki looked transfixed, a hint of blush slowly creeping on her cheeks.
"Shall we move on?" I asked her, my mouth itching to taste more of her. I want more.
She blinked, breaking the spell weaving between us. "Yes, we should." And she moved away from my person.
Notes:
Writing this chapter made me think about currencies. The manga never mentioned anything about money matters and I previously used the word crown in the earlier chapters. I wanted to use normal terms like gold, silver and bronze. But I decided to elaborate a little and came up with these:
Sovereign or Crown - 1 gold coin (equivalent to 50 pieces of silver)
Ducat – 1 silver coin (equivalent to 150 pieces of bronze)
Sorrel – 1 bronze coin (equivalent to 200 pieces of nickel)
Geld – 1 nickel
Ærra Jeola – is one of the etymology of Yuletide season, a festival observed by the historical Germanic people, later undergoing Christianize reformulation, which now results in the popular term Christmastide. The Ærra Jeola means before Yule, and Æftera Jeola means after Yule. Scholars have connected the celebration to the Wild Hunt, the god Odin and the pagan Anglo-Saxon Modraniht.