Le Soleil Marché - The Sun Market.

"Yes, of course."
Ashani did not take any time to get ready. This morning she was back into her regular clothes, now all freshly laundered, and walked out with the servant and her hat in her hand. Once outside in the bright morning sun, she put her hat on and followed them into town. It was good she had an escort, as the marketplace she was led to would have made finding the Duke--or anybody--very difficult.

"Hello sir."

"Hello, Duke Valois. Yes, of course."

It was in writing, by quill on a rolled parchment: every little item she would need for learning magic, many of which were for her own comfort, as she already possessed many of what would be thought of as necessities. She wanted  numerous potion bottles, a bag of holding, a small cauldron, and a mortar and pestle. The only one of those objects she hadn't left at her cottage was the bag of holding, and a second would be immensely useful. She also had library access, but if she had been given any instructions to gather books during this winter break, their titles would also be on the list.

"Yes sir.. yes of course."
She nodded, knowing to follow everything the duke said as though a step by step list on paper. Now she had clothing to shop for, and she figured wearing the same thing from the wedding two nights later for the dinner had many better alternatives. She was unfamiliar with Gauldish style, however, and while she had a good eye for what looked nice, she was unaware of any cultural subtleties to watch out for.
She'd then begin shopping, with Edmund at her side. While she approached her first shop, which happened to be a lavish clothier, she asked him, "sir, is there any style of dress that I want to avoid? I'm not sure what would be appropriate to wear to dinner tonight... I could hazard a guess but I'm not sure if there's anything specific to this culture I should watch out for."

"Oh yes.. of course."

Ashani didn't look too excited about having to dress up. She was so used to her adventuring gear and at home clothes that everything else seemed awkward. While her previous dress to the wedding was beautiful, she had also learned that this would take some getting used to. She looked at the piece the man had shown her as an example. It seemed it could fit her quite well, but the bright white was a little off-putting to her. She preferred richer or more subdued presentations, and while she thought she had a decent eye out for her own style, it would take some shopping around to find something best suiting. An upscale clothier selling finery and gorgeous dresses was her next destination.

Eventually, she decided to try some outfits on in the fancy clothier's fitting room. She'd disappear behind a locked door, and there was a flash of fushcia light from within the room. Within seconds she reemerged, much too quickly to have been feasibly possible, and took a couple steps down the short pristine hall back to the clerk and the Duke's servant. She looked into a large rounded mirror with skepticism, clearly at some discomfort with the style and cut of the lavish dress.



"So... like this? I don't know.. maybe the white dress would have been better.."
She was looking anything but confident as she pondered changing again.

"I suppose that would do. If there's anything else I need I can get it later. As long as everything on the list is brought to me," she said.
"Where should I go now? The palace? The Duke said I should eat there this evening."

He had never bothered to go to the market in Travere before, and he really regretted that decision now. The market made the small one in Arcoux seem like a backwood Inn's menu. The building was gorgeous, he would have to see the architect about redoing the church in Arcoux. It was starting to fall apart, and figuring out how to pay for that was the first thing he was taking care of when he got back. Work could wait though, he was now here with Eleniel in a beautiful market on what was turning out to be a beautiful day. He reached out and grabbed a piece of chocolate, popping into his mouth. He wasn't big on candy, but this particular candy was delicious. He would have to see about ordering some for his brothers, they loved candy.

"You won't find any disagreement from me Eleniel! This chocolate is delicious!"

He was enjoying her company, especially her hand and arm on his arm, in spite of his advisors' recommendation to keep it "discrete", that particularly advisor was an asshole anyway. He caught her ogling him occasionally, but didn't react, save for the smile on his face getting ever wider until she eventually sort of...vomited out that phrase, at which point he chuckled slightly, suppressing the laughter that he wanted to let out over behavior, even though he found it incredibly endearing.

"I can imagine that it would look truly beautiful, just like in a fairy tale." His gaze did not stray from her eyes as he said it, hinting that his statement applied twice, once to what she said and once to her.

He was barely suppressing the laughter at this point, semi-grateful that she turned away so he could laugh quietly into his own hand. The flowers were quite pretty, and he handed the man enough coins to let her choose whichever one she wanted, as a peace offering for the teasing she was about to receive.

"Guess you are literally falling for me huh?" The grin on his face was about as wide as it got, and he burst out laughing at his own, terrible joke.

The look he shot back said that he didn't have to do anything, he had wanted to do it. Her expression made him pause momentarily, worried that he had unintentionally offered insult to her, which had not been his intention by any means.

"You're most welcome Eleniel, and I apologize for my previous comment, I had not intended to insult you, merely make light of a semi-humorous situation. I hope you will forgive me for that comment."

His voice was low, his words apologetic. It was not something he did often, apologize verbally. He preferred actions to words but felt it was necessary in this case, especially seeing as she was being a most gracious host to him and he had insulted her.