The Hunter

Farmer's Market

Finn spent all of ten minutes showing Gloria how to move the house, and most of that was trying to remember how she did it when she was learning how. In the end Gloria was certain she would be relying on whatever was in the instruction manual. A walk outside of the house seemed like the best method of getting to the preacher, and she found herself slowing down and enjoying the fresh air more than she could ever remember doing before. The air was crisp, something she had been certain only existed in the minds of fantasy writers, and the edges of the leaves were just showing signs of changing for the season.

She was almost sad when she got to the preachers church, a simple structure with impressive gardens - loving tended to by the local Catholic Women's League according to a small sign - and heavy wooden doors. Stepping inside she smiled at the familiarity of the many ornate crosses and symbols that adorned the walls of the church, the secondary doors that led into the nave with the alter visible along the farthest part of the building, and the brown carpet that is somehow in every church and seems at once to be older than the building and younger than the most recent addition.

A gentle cough brought Gloria's attention to an elder priest in his black suit. He smiled at her and she was startled by the warmth in his eyes.

"Good afternoon Father, I hope I'm not bothering you?" Gloria asked quietly.

"Of course not my child." He smiled a warm smile. "What can we offer you today?"

"I'm sorry?" 

"Refreshments. We have water or tea. I'm afraid we are out of snacks though."

"Oh, I'm not here for umm." Gloria paused, she had never been offered anything like this at Church before. "Refreshments? I was here to talk to Father David." She had been completely embarrassed that she didn't know the priests name that had come to visit her before. Finn had found his name for her before she left.

"Father David is not here at the moment. Is there some assistance I may offer?"

Gloria froze. She hadn't considered that the priest she had talked to so briefly wouldn't be at the church, but of course they had other duties. She knew that, had helped her priest more times than she could remember with carrying or fetching things when he went to hospitals or the homes of parishioners that couldn't come to him.

Seeing her discomfort the elder priest took pity on her. "I can't tell you for sure when he will be back, but if you would like to leave him a message...?" He trailed off and waited.

Gloria tried to smile, but she knew it would be more like a grimace. "To be honest Father, I'm not sure I gave him my name the last time we spoke."

"A phone number?"

Gloria felt her face grow hot. "Perhaps I could join you for a cup of tea? Or I could come back in a while if you could give me a time frame?"

The elder priest smiled gently. "He is usually back around three, that's quite the long visit over tea for most young people I have met. Why don't you come back in an hour or so? We can sit and have tea then while we wait for him."

Gloria looked over her shoulder and frowned in confusion. "That sounds lovely." She looked back at the elder priest and smiled. "I'm new to the area, so an hour to explore sounds like a really great idea."

The elder priest smiled broadly and seemed to pull himself straighter where he stood. "Oh, someone new to the area? Now I find myself eager for that tea! I would turn left if I were you when I left the church. There is a market a few blocks that direction, you never know who is going to be there or what they are going to sell." He clapped his hands. "I'll be sure to get my work done quickly so that I am not distracted for our tea." The elder priest bustled back into a small office Gloria hadn't noticed before.

Gloria found herself in the market much faster than she would have thought and it was amazing. The stalls had been erected right up against the backs of other buildings, making for a maze of possible passageways beneath the awnings. Vendors chatted with customers and other vendors and there was live music in the form of a trio of buskers. Fruit stands, used book vendors, and a few clothing stands were set up and looked like they were the 'usual' crowd with shelves full of stock and very little unused space. Other vendors seemed like they were the equivalent of a yard sale with backs of trucks and vans packed full of boxes that were overflowing with random odds and ends and the people selling the items seemed to be less chatty.

Gloria found her wallet seemed to magically have the right amount of money every time she opened it, something she would have to ask Finn about later, and she purchased a few books and bags of fruit. Several of the vendors seemed confused by her presence, which in turn confused her, but they were no less willing to chat with her. Finally she bought herself a drink from the fruit vendor and she sat down in a shady space to listen to the music. The trio had changed out for a non-vocal group with different types of drums and percussion instruments.

Gloria checked her phone and startled. She had been at the market for nearly three hours and it was almost four now. She gathered up her bags and hurried back towards the church, hoping the priests wouldn't get upset at her for being late. The shadows were longer and she gasped when she saw the church. It had been designed so the setting sun would light up the windows from the inside, showing off the brilliant designs of crosses and doves somehow imprinted into the glass.

Gloria knocked on the doors and waited.