Popularity War

Chapter 3

Eva crept alongside the house careful to stay within the shadows. Several villagers walked briskly passed her paying no attention to the young woman. Her disguise served her well in the dim light, but she was concerned about the busy square that sat in the open sunlight. Clutching her bonnet tighter to her face, she waited until the stand Eragon was running became vacant. Eva's father assigned her with the shopping and he was the only farmer that she could trust at the moment.

Her nervousness intensified the longer she had to wait; every time she thought she had an opportunity to approach, another person would make their way to the stand. Each time she had to quickly change course making her way back to the dark alley. No one seemed to notice her pattern, much to her relief, but as the afternoon wore on she became desperate. When a middle aged man finished picking out the blueberries, strawberries, and zucchini that he wanted, Eva finally decided to make her way to the pavilion. Eragon was about to close the stand, but her plan was to intercept him before he had the chance.

As she approached, she heard him sigh heavily, yet his tone was polite when he said, "I'm really sorry miss, but I'm closing." He was too busy closing the shop to recognize the young woman.

"Not before I get what I need." Desperate or not, she still had to have an air of command. Her lifestyle might be crumbling but the villagers did not know that yet and she wanted to keep them ignorant for as long as possible.

Hearing Eva's voice startled him causing him to drop the small basket of cherries that he was holding. Ignoring the fallen fruit he shifted his eyes until they landed upon her pale face hidden under a white ruffled bonnet, a bonnet only common women wore. Scanning the rest of her apparel, Eragon noticed that she wore a simple gray dress with white cuffs and an apron. The sight was so ridiculous that it held his attention until Eva cleared her throat, feeling awkward.

"Sorry to stare, but what are you doing here and dressed like that?" Eragon asked as he knelt down to pick up the cherries.

She waited until he was finished before responding. "I need to purchase some food. Rich folk need to eat too."

Eragon leaned against the counter and crossed his arms to keep from packing up the rest of the fruits and vegetables. "Right, I get that, but you have servants who buy the food for you. Where are they?"

"That's not really your concern, is it?" She waved her hand nonchalantly to make herself look more natural. She expected him to question her but she was growing tired of his stubbornness. Recollecting herself, she leaned in and whispered, "Look, you helped me a while back and I only want to return the favor. There are many farms I could buy from, but I chose to come here. If you help me get what I need, I will help you close up shop." The last sentence was quickly added and it took her a moment to realize what she had just offered the young man. Unable to change her mind, she pretended as if it were her plan initially hoping that the young man would not catch on.

Eragon raised his eyebrows, "You are going to help me?" Eva nodded in approval. Uncrossing his arms and leaning in towards the woman, Eragon asked, "All right, but what's the catch? There has to be one."

Offended, Eva scoffed and denied his accusation. "Why can't you just accept that I just want to help?"

"Probably because I know you better than you think. Someone like you does not simply buy food and help people like me close up shop. There is something you are not telling me." He began to place the untainted cherries on a cart as he waited for Eva to leave. That's all he wanted.

Feeling defeated, Eva took a few steps back from the pavilion and watched the man pack up. She did not know what to say to change his mind and she felt like such a failure; her father entrusted her with the shopping and she could not even do that. Unwilling to leave in silence, she mucked up enough courage to say, "My father made me come here to get the food. I came to you because I thought you would be kind enough to help me again, but I was mistaken. I'll leave you now." She turned on her heel before he could say anything, forcing her tears from falling down her cheeks. In the back of her mind, she began to form the words she would say to her father; the words admitting that she was a failure.

A tug on her arm forced her to stop. Deep in her thoughts, she did not hear Eragon call out to her and now he was panting after chasing her down. Too ashamed to say anything, she remained quiet, avoiding his eyes. She had enough embarrassment for one day. Feeling like an absolute jerk, Eragon rambled off his apology. "It's hard to tell when you are being serious, but I had no reason to be so mean. Please, let me help you."

Eva stared at him for several seconds before accepting his offer. "Fine, but only because I need the food, and you can forget about me helping you; I'll just help you and your family with my money instead." She made her way back to the pavilion and listed off the fruits and vegetables she needed. Eragon followed after and quietly gathered the goods she requested, placing them in a separate basket, until she was satisfied. She then asked him how much the food cost as she took out her coin purse.

Before handing her the basket, Eragon cleared his throat to say, "I know you don't believe me, but I am sorry. Somehow, I will make it up to you."

Eva took the basket and said, "Then I guess you can start by keeping this encounter a secret; I don't want you to tell anyone that I was here and dressed as a commoner." She paused for a moment, staring off into space as her thoughts wandered to her plans for the next day. She sighed and looked down at the basket hanging off her right arm. "Though, I doubt Sloan will promise to keep quiet. I need to see him tomorrow." She said that mainly to herself, but she knew Eragon had heard her.

Carefully he approached her and said, "Give him enough money and he'll keep quiet." He was hoping to cheer her up a bit, but his feeble attempt did not even make her crack a smile. Taking his leave he entered the pavilion again to continue closing the shop. When Eva did not leave he decided to ask her one last question. "Why is your father making you do the shopping, Eva? He's never made you do chores, so why now?"

Eva shook her head and prepared a lie. "I don't know, but I was in no condition to question him. He always has his reasons. Anyways, I should be going. Thanks for…" she forced herself to stop. Lifting up her chin she looked Eragon in the eyes and said, "Never mind that last bit. Make sure you keep my secret, else, I will be very cross with you, and you don't want that. Farewell." Without looking back, she turned and left the pavilion.

Her departure left Eragon baffled. She was about to be polite until her snobbery kicked in again. He had witnessed a side of Eva that he had never seen and it was quite nice, though, he wished that she would show her decency more often. Unable to distract himself enough, his thoughts continued to linger upon Eva. Something was wrong and he knew it, but he could not come up with any reasonable explanation for her behavior. When he had finished closing the shop, he left to look for his Uncle Garrow and his cousin Roran.

Shutting the back door, Eva finally relaxed. She was in the privacy of her own home and that thought comforted her, especially since she came home with food. As much as she wanted to change her clothes, she made sure to put away the provisions first. In a little while, her father would exit his study to prepare dinner, a moment she actually wanted to see; she had never seen him cook, so she wanted to know if he really could. If not, she would be there to teach him. She smiled at the thought of teaching her father something important.

At the staircase she called for Clara, who came into view in less than a minute. "Come, I need you to help me out of these dreary clothes." Her maid curtsied and followed her mistress up the stairs. When they were in her room, Eva told her everything that happened while she was at the market. At the end of her tale, she realized that she should have been nicer to Eragon even though he was rude to her. Clara said nothing about the matter as she prepared the bath water. Before stepping into the tub, wrapped in only her bathrobe, Eva addressed her servant.

"Father says that he might have to let you go soon. I wish there were some way to change what is happening; you're the only true friend that I have and I am scared to see you go. You know me, I am so helpless without you." Eva averted her eyes, looking down into the glassy water. She saw her reflection and said, "Look at me, I can't do anything on my own."

"Don't say that miss. You did something wonderful today, bringing back food from the market and all." Clara said with a small smile.

Eva was unconvinced. "I brought back food all right, but barely. Eragon was a lot more stubborn than I thought, and not as nice. I am sure he only helped me to satisfy his pride." She gingerly took off her robe and handed it to Clara. "Oh, this feels nice," she said once she submerged her body. The scent of jasmine filled her nostrils forcing her to relax even more.

"Whether or not it was for his pride, he still helped you. Remember that." She turned to hang up the robe before departing, leaving Eva to ponder her words.