by L L Vickery
“I’m going to head home.” Rein said yawning. It really had been a very long day.
“Come have your fortune read with me first?” Lillian pointed to a small tent.
Just outside the open flaps, a woman stood, she wore a green flowing dress with gold spangles that glistened in the light from the lanterns. Her hair was black and curly hanging down to her waist, unkempt and wild. Even from this distance Rein could see the deep green of her eyes and felt compelled to go to her.
“Maybe another time.” Rein shook his head.
He stood there a moment longer and watched as Jon and Avanna went into the tent. His eyes surveyed the crowd. He thought he saw Alya but put the notion away quickly. She was with Kraw in the bar and he needed to come to grips that he might never see her again.
“I’ll see you for brunch?” Lillian asked and laughed at a small boy chasing a baby goat trying to catch it so he might ride on it.
Rein turned and walked away toward the palace through the cobblestone streets. The houses were empty and dark. It was eerily quiet. The closer Rein came to the palace, the houses morphed into shops, just as dark and empty as the houses. Save for one, the bakery was brightly lit and the smell of sweet bread plumed through the windows.
The baker’s daughter stood just outside the door shaking flour out of a towel, not paying any attention to Rein. He thought about walking up to her and asking why she wasn’t at the festival but thought better of it and continued to the palace.
The end
