Chapter 13
Everything was separate. Unlike a grocery store back home, here each food group or item had small, individually run shops.
There were butchers, fruit shops with baskets hanging on the walls displaying colorful fruits, and clothiers.
While there were some fashion examples displayed, apparently most clothing was tailored and made to order.
The sheer size of the shopping level surprised me. It made sense, given that vorpyr were larger and had a significant wingspan, and that this was a city, but I was amazed nonetheless.
I tried to stay practical in my purchases, Arrazyl’s purchases really, but I was unfamiliar with everything and my curiosity propelled me to stop and ask questions more often than Arrazyl probably preferred.
Still, he didn’t rush me or shut me down.
He did give vague answers to certain questions, though, such as where they imported their selections of meat from.
I grew more comfortable in his presence as he calmly helped me, interacting with his vorpyrren in a mutually respectful manner.
Then he took the tall, barrel-like basket I had my arms wrapped around when it got full.
When he noticed I was getting pink from the heat, he directed me to the shade of an awning of a small shop that seemed to operate very much like an Earth food truck, with wide windows to place an order and pick up.
A vorpyr, much darker than him, came to the window. Her face was weathered and stern, but her eyes were sharp and bright.
Arrazyl greeted her, and they spoke vorikaan.
I wished he would give me the resources to learn it, but it was likely he considered it a security risk.
It was good I wasn’t prone to anxiety or I’d be a puddle right now, balancing on a blade between my dream of being able to learn about an alien culture up close while also being a captive that could be executed should anything go wrong.
The rapid flow of harsh sounding words brought me out of my thoughts. The shop owner seemed to be arguing with Arrazyl, gesturing at me with fangs bared. Older vorpyr or not, she was terrifying. Arrazyl called me over and I hesitantly joined him.
He spoke this time so I could understand him. “This human female is Jacqueline. I’ve allowed her to live and in exchange she is working for us. She has the highest education one can get from her planet.”
Before I could say hello, she hissed at me. Hissed at me. I took an involuntary step back.
“I will not serve a human.” she spat.
“It’s small minded to judge an entire species or race as though there are no individuals.
It would be like me saying all vorpyr act like vicious, thoughtless predators because you have fangs and claws.
” I said calmly, muscles tense, ready to leap behind Arrazyl should she launch through the large window at me.
Whether he would protect me was another matter.
“Your species isn’t evolved enough to be a part of the intergalactic community.”
“How would you know? I’m the first human you’ve met.”
She growled and stepped back, looking at Arrazyl. “I will get you whatever you desire, Vorazyr, but I will not serve her.”
“That’s your choice, Jyyl.” He took my arm and guided me away. The next place was larger and served him without a moment’s hesitation. He handed me a drink. “You’re not allowed to wind up in the infirmary again because you’re too delicate to handle this heat.”
“I am not delicate, I just need water.” Whatever he gave me wasn’t water, but it was a cool, soothing liquid, tasting like a mixture of pomegranate and something almost like banana, but with a bit of a bite like some kind of spice.
“Better?” he asked, tilting his face down toward me.
I nodded. “Thank you. Hey, do vorpyr get darker as they age?” I’d noticed that the ones that seemed older were always much darker.
He looked surprised at my observation. “Yes. We’re all born a range of shades of silver, but as we age a few decades, we start to darken.”
I had bought notebooks since we weren’t allowed to have tech in our possession, so no tablets, and I was excited to record the things I was learning.
Finally, we were done.
“Come.” He held out his arm, the other holding the big basket. I hesitated. Being close to him was still intimidating. “It will be faster to fly back.”
He wrapped his muscular arm around me and I gripped his shoulders.
I hated this. The feeling of no control.
Not that I had any control on the ground, but at least I felt better being able to run if I needed to.
His arms were powerful enough to crush me, but he held me carefully, pressing me against him just enough to hold me steady as he ascended up to his home away from the bustle of the rest of the cliff city.
He landed on the balcony of his home and carefully released me, making sure I had found my balance before taking his arm away fully. I reached out and took the basket.
“I wanted to thank you. Your wife has been kind to us, and you’ve been gracious in allowing this shopping trip.”
“My wife?” He frowned, saying the word as if it were unfamiliar.
“Thyra.”
“She is my sister. But what is this wife?”
His sister? “Do you not have marriage? Where one vorpyr binds themselves to another because they love them or even for political reasons?”
He grunted. “That is claiming a mate.”
“Ah. Are there any ceremonies?”
He tilted his horns to the side. “There can be specific celebrations, especially if it is someone of high standing, but it is usually just between the two individuals. We celebrate both taking mates and births together during our annual festivals.”
It seemed like everything integrated so well into their society, where they came together to celebrate and no government got involved in something like the connection between two individuals.
It made how we did things at home seem so cold and clinical, with all the societally “required” aspects of our lives.
“Do you have a mate that’s waiting for you at home?” He frowned as he said it and I wondered what he was thinking.
I paused, thinking of Lyle. While he was another researcher and we had a lot in common, he definitely wasn’t someone I’d marry, even though we'd dated on and off for years. “I don’t.”
“Why?”
The question surprised me. “Maybe for the same reason as you.” I shot back, surprisingly uncomfortable at the personal question.
A slow smile curled his lips. It was absolutely wicked and entirely too delicious.
My stomach flipped traitorously, as though I were a star-struck teenager.
“I doubt it’s the same reason.” He stepped back, effectively ending the conversation as Junyv and another steward came into view.
They brought floating orb lights and released a few around us as the long sunset came to an end.
Junyv escorted me back to the house we were confined in and apologetically latched the bar after I stepped inside.
Jaron was at the table with what looked like work spread out in front of him in paper form. Tatiana came to help me put away the items I’d gotten.
“They won’t allow you to use a tablet for all that?” I put away a net full of some type of thorny fruit.
“No tech for us.”
“Tonight went well, don’t you think?” Tatiana asked.
“Yes. For now, we’re ok.”
Jaron looked up from the work he was doing. “For now.”