Head in the Clouds

Chapter 15: The Market

"For you, Sir Ko, no charge," the vendor handed over the expensive, velvet scarf to the young man before him.

Though Ko was already adorned in shiny jewels and beautiful gold and white fabric, each vendor he stopped by didn't hesitate to hand him some free merchandise. He, of course, took each piece without so much as a smile- just a mumbled "thanks" then moved on.

At that particular vendor, he made sure to pocket an extra brooch he saw just sitting at the table. Asa, now particularly adept to notice up when he snatched something, simply rolled her eyes at the sight.

The market was almost always too busy to get room to breathe on a Jericho Sunday, but the path was usually made for those who seemed to have a high social standing. Suddenly, all the lines crowding certain booths would step aside, and most vendors come up with a steep discount as soon as they see someone like him.

The market was placed in a large circle a few miles from the palace, and there was enough variety in products to keep Ko interested.

"Do you have to steal from these people?" Asa whispered placing the velvet cloth into the shopping bag, "They've been so kind to you."

Ko shrugged carelessly, "Relax, they'll barely miss it."

Asa grumbled something under her breath, but Ko didn't hear it.

Asa was a girl particularly easy to ignore, especially at first glance. Her hooded eyes were dark and devoid of any 'sparkle' her back hair was thin and long, and her round face didn't have many features that'd be defined as anything beautiful.

Ko, on the other hand, was gorgeous in her eyes. His skin was so soft and smooth. His muscles were neither too pronounced nor too undefined. His eyes were the perfect mystical grey, and his lips were the most dashing shade of red. She could just stare at him all day.

"When are we going back to Callaco?" Asked Asa as they stopped at yet another vendor.

The vendor handed over some hand made cookies, and thankfully, Asa didn't see Ko pocket anything from there.

"I'm not sure," he confessed, "I still have some business here."

Asa nodded along quietly as they stopped at another vendor. She was fairly certain he stole from there too, but she wasn't sure. She bit her tongue as they kept moving, but Ko could tell something was wrong.

"Asa," he sighed softly.

She looked up at him so sweetly.

"Yes?"

He wanted to tell her to butt out, but the five-inch height difference made him feel like he was bullying a child if he was to say a mean word.

"One week," he said.

"Huh?"

"We'll go back to Callaco in one week," he claimed.

Of course, he had no real idea when they'd leave. He still had to convince Deidre to help him fix their problem, which seemed like an even harder task than he expected. Granted, he did steal her horse, but it's not like he hurt it. She even got her back, so what's the harm?

They began exiting the market when something new came to Asa's mind.

"Ko, can I ask you a question?" She requested. She spoke to him in a strange way. It was a bit too formal to sound like speaking with a friend, yet too informal to sound like a servant.

"No, I won't tell you why we're here," he replied a bit jovially, "What? You tired of spending time with me already? Here I was thinkin' we were pals."