Marlowe
New Member
mentions: none.
Even though the golden sun had recently disappeared behind the Windless Range and the sunset had painted the city an array of deep violets and blues, Kyou still found it frustratingly hot.
Moisture gathered beneath Kyou’s furs as she wandered down the cobblestone pavement in the very heart of Sunfall. She swiped the back of her forearm across her greasy forehead as she trudged past ornate food stalls that produced wonderful aromas of cooked and seared meats. Her eyes exhaustedly scanned the storefronts, taking in the smiling faces that handed out sweets along with spiced skewers of beef and pork. Children, each of them wearing smiling, brightly hued masks or waving around shimmering ribbons, bounded around and around the circular city center as they giggled and chased one another. She raised a brow at them in curiosity.
”Everyone’s so festive,” Kyou mumbled to herself as she continued across the hub and past another set of jovially-decorated stalls. ”Must be something going on…”
”Ah, yes!” an old man at a stall to her left shouted at her. ”That would be the Winter Solstice Festival, my dear. It’s a celebrated tradition in Sunfall.”
Kyou raised a wary brow at the man, but was ultimately beckoned over to his storefront. A variety of jeweled the table in front of him– blood-gemmed necklaces, earrings that hung heavy with blue stones, rings that glistened with rocks as clear as water– and Kyou couldn’t help but be drawn to their sheer beauty.
The man twirled his mustache at her quizzically and his small blue eyes glistened as he acknowledged her curiosity. ”My wares come from all over Zefir, love. Rubies from Cael, sapphires from the mountains of Reine, onyx from the depths of Yelm– I even have rare gems from across the Ganais Strait. You name it, I have it.”
Flustered, Kyou raised a hand to stop him. ”I’m not yet interested in buying jewelry,” she told him. ”What’s this Winter Solstice Festival..?”
”Oh dear, you’re not from around here, are you?”” The old man’s face was lined with even more wrinkles than before and the ridge of his nose bunched together. ”Your clothing not only gives it away, but everyone as far as Yelm knows of Solans’ tradition of celebrating the longest night of the year.”
It was Kyou’s turn to pull a face. The vendor chuckled again.
”Many travelers are confused when they hear that Sunfall celebrates the darkest day… but to us, it means that spring is on its way, and our hope shouldn’t waver just yet. Many people mark the occasion by buying pretty knick-knacks like jewelry or other such wares. It brings good luck. And for you, my friend, I will give a most valuable discount. What do you say?”
Half an hour later, Kyou left the vendor’s stall with her coinpurse lighter than before. As she walked, she lifted a delicate-looking silver necklace up to the dying sunlight. Twilight’s hues melted together with the pale metal and glinted on the icy blue gem that hung from it. She sighed as she mentally kicked herself in the rear end.
”I don’t even know why I even bought this…”