Sara was pleased to be of use to Xanthippe and Melina, determined to prove her worth to both of the women. Xanthippe was away on this particular occasion, a sunny autumn day that beckoned to any who would listen to its whispered promises. Sara sort of wished that she had had the day off instead. She would have liked to find Alastor, to hold his hand and walk the agora with him -- let him stumble over pleasantries while she giggled at him. But now was not the time to be thinking of him, not when her new lady was in need of her. Sara had kept close, just a step or two behind and kept quiet mostly out of nerves.

She could not recall having spent much time with Melina, so she was unsure of what the older woman would find displeasing. She did not think that her lady was unkind, but there was always something of a song and dance to be played whilst two strangers got to know one another. How much could they share? Could they trust one another? Was there something more to this arrangement that Emilios and Fotios had come to? Were they being watched? Followed? It all seemed paranoid, but Sara knew from a lifetime of being an illegitimate child that there was always something to be gained even from the smallest of things. And there was always someone looking for the small things.

She smiled as Melina took to perusing the books of a stall, carefully accepting the books she was handed. The lady’s eyes were hardly content to linger on one for too long, her fingers seeking out the binding of another before the last had barely left her hand. ”It’s no trouble at all, my lady.” Sara said, blue gaze glancing around the agora whenever the chance arose. ”I am happy to be of any assistance to you at all, and grateful that you would accept me as one of your maids.” That was all very true. Sara was...an odd problem for her family. She did not present the same problems as a male bastard might, but she garnered no true affection either.

”I do like books, but somehow I doubt as much as you do.” She teased lightly, the stack of books in her hands already growing quite heavy. ”I still have much to learn about being your maid, but perhaps one day if Xanthippe says that it would be alright.” A little frown tugged the corner of her mouth down as she thought of the blonde. They already seemed to be off on a bad foot, and the young girl was not sure why. She was trying her best, intending only to help Xan where she needed it -- but she was starting to think that she was viewed as a bother. A nuisance. ”I would never deny you anything, my lady. I’d like to bring you comfort if I can. I’d like...well I’d like for us to be friends.”

That was true too. Sara would very much like to be friends.

”What sorts of books do you enjoy?” Sara asked, adjusting the ever growing stack of books in her hands. There did not seem to be a rhyme or reason to the choices being made in her eyes. ”I mostly read things about plants. I had a garden, and I like to...well I liked to grow things. I even could make my own remedies and salves.” It was an innocent enough piece of information. Her work had always been minor, without a proper teacher to show her how to advance.

The stack of books was growing at a rather alarming rate, her arms straining to keep them all balanced so that they would not go spilling into the floor. Her fingertips were turning white, and she found that she was holding her breath every so often to try to limit the movement. The stack was already pressed against her cheek, and she wondered for a moment what in the world she was going to do if the Lady went over her head.

Still, Sara would bear the burden without complaint. She was happy to have a purpose again, to have some way to stay close to the life she used to have. Certainly, it was different being a lady’s maid than it had been as a glorified bastard -- but Sara had never minded getting her hands dirty. Too often she had earned her mother’s ire for ruining a chiton or having dirt smeared across her face from where she’d wiped sweat from her brow.

The young woman shifted her weight, planting her feet a little further apart to give herself more stability. The stack shifted and she tensed, swaying to try to convince the heavy books not to go down. She already had a horrible feeling that she had embarrassed herself in front of Xanthippe enough, and she begged silently that she would not do the same in front of Melina. She was listening, catching every other word that Melina said, in her panic to lose all of her dignity. Her dark hair fell forward, and she grunted under her breath as she adjusted her grip and got control once more.

”Hm?” She mused intelligently as it seemed that a question had been pointed in her direction. A healer? ”Oh no, milady.” She said, hoping that her voice did not betray the strain. ”I don’t think that I’m smart enough for that. I can barely keep up with Alas-” She bit her own tongue, slipping on the name of the boy that she cared quite deeply for. She’d been about to say that she could hardly keep up with Alastor, the boy’s wits and booksmarts far out pacing her own. He’d never made her feel less than, but she would need a mind like his to be a true healer. Especially if there were lives on the line. One wrong move and she’d kill someone by accident.

”I..I mean, I was absolutely useless on the beaches when that ship came back with the hurt soldiers.” She said, quickly changing direction. ”I couldn’t...stomach it at all, brave as I thought I was.” Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment, remembering how she’d hidden her face in Emilio’s clothes and how grateful she had felt when he’d told her to return to the palati. The redness traveled from her cheeks up to the tops of her ears, making them burn. And then, there had been that time she’d fainted in Artemis’ temple. Gods, that was a whole other mess to think about.

She did not have long to linger on it though, bracing herself as Melina seemed to notice the precarious tower of books that she had stacked in Sara’s hands -- forcing the girl to have to brace herself. She made a low noise of surprise, a curse just barely held back between her teeth. Just a moment later, her load was lightened as the lady took half of the books.

”No, no...please I can handle it.” Sara lied, not wanting to look weak or incapable. ”Please, I am supposed to be helping you, not the other way around.”

The brunette moved towards the counter, her steps quick and sure as she hurried to put down her pile near the front to return for the ones that Melina had in her hands. She practically ran through the store, determined that the lady not carry them further than she had to.”You shouldn’t carry them. Please let me.” She said, gently trying to pry them away from the noblewoman’s hands.

”I should have gone to the front sooner.” She said, taking the blame on herself. ”I...I just wanted to hear what you had to say, milady.” She gave a careful dip in deference. ”I still know so little about you and all.” Her face was flushed scarlet as she took the books and turned back towards the front. ”If you’re not finished, please...continue. I can take these up front and return?”

Sara quickly took the books that Melina had taken from her hands and carried them to the front. She had no idea how she would carry them all home, perhaps she would make a deal with the bookseller to escort Lady Melina home with several and then come back for the others at a later time. Or perhaps they had a way for them to be delivered, which would leave her hands free to assist her lady with anything else. Her cheeks were still flushed with embarrassment when she had returned to Melina’s side, trailing her wherever she wanted to go.

She was surprised when Melina said that she wanted to know about Sara instead. ”Of course, my lady. I would be happy to answer anything you’d like to know about me.” She said with a small nod and a smile. She was sure that Melina had to know some of her story, know that she was a bastard born from the late Irakles and his mistress. She had to know of the scandal that her mother had caused for the now royal Mikaelidas sons and their mother. She had to know some of that, even just from idle court gossip.

”You’re too kind, my lady.” She said, when Melina told her that she should not worry about her reaction that day on the beach. She simply should not have tried to be something that she was not. Her efforts that day had been better put to use by helping move supplies around, and organizing prayer at the temples. She still had not heard any word on what was happening with her brother, and that caused her quite a lot of concern. Theodora had promised to tell her any news, but what if the Queen had forgotten that promise? Maybe she would need to visit her soon, just to check in. Besides, she missed Portokali -- her cat.

”I would love that.” She admitted. ”But, I don’t know of any healers that are willing to take on a girl...let alone someone so young as I am. I think the best that I could do would be a midwife, but...I’d like to learn more than just how to birth a baby.” She gave a slight shrug of her shoulders.

Her gaze snapped to the other woman, her eyebrows raising in surprise as she asked about Alastor. Embarrassment colored her cheeks, and the girl became visibly shy. Alastor was still a sort of new thing. She loved that common boy more than it made sense to. ”A-a-ah…” She croaked nervously. ”Y-yes, he’s ahm...a very good friend of mine.” Her face was flaming red now, and she looked away -- looking for something to distract them both. ”D-d-did you want to try moving to the seller next door, my lady? I’m sure this one would not begrudge us leaving your books here for a little while. I am sure he knows that you are a good customer.”

It was like a breath of fresh air when Melina agreed to visit the seller next door, sparing Sara the tightening feeling of anxiety that had tried to curl up in her chest whenever the topic of Alastor came up. It was not that she was ashamed of the relationship with her childhood friend, but rather that she was not sure how to explain it nor was she prepared to deal with any potential disapproval that came up. Like with Emilios. That had gone particularly sideways, and she did not want to go through anything like that again.

The girl drew herself up, setting her shoulders again from the sigh of relief that had escaped her. They did not linger much longer in the book seller’s stall after spending far more money than Sara would have thought. She wondered if Melina ever questioned the price of her books, and if she should have tried to haggle a better price for her. She was still very much learning what was and was not appropriate for her station, how much or how little she was expected to do.

She walked casually, keeping just a pace or two behind Melina as they went to the next stall over which seemed to belong to a jeweler. They did not linger long, just enough for Melina to recognize its keeper before she hurried them along to a different one. Sara cast a glance back over her shoulder at Lady Melina’s words, curious about the gossip that she had spent most of her life trying to avoid.

“A woman’s table?” She asked, trying to clarify. That seemed an odd place to leave a needle. Her eyebrows raised, but the gossip was forgotten fairly quickly once they reached another table of glimmering jewels. They winked and dazzled, even in the shade which was admittedly quite an accomplishment. She imagined that they must be very expensive, or fake. One of the two. Sara had no experience with jewels, and she wore none of her own just because she preferred not to be weighed down by them.

Still, they were lovely to look at. She gestured to one in particular that she thought might catch her lady’s eye. It was amethyst in color, which Sara had noted seemed to be favored by Melina when looking at her chambers.

“That one would look pretty with your hair, I think.” She said softly, nodding as she looked between the gem and Melina’s dark hair. “The cut of it is nice too.”

There was a relief when Melina seemed to agree with her assessment of the gem, the soft amethyst color of it appealing. She worried and often second-guessed herself when it came to the older woman, especially after a few less than savory encounters. The goat sausage incident had been particularly embarrassing, even though she specifically remembered Xanthippe telling her that Melina liked it. The blonde had denied it of course.

It was a surprise when the Leventi directed the shopkeeper to put it on Sara rather than have it bagged and put away or even put on the noble lady herself. Her blue gaze flashed towards Melina, eyebrows creeping up in surprise. ”I couldn’t, it’s too pretty for the likes of me.” She said quickly, her tone quiet with embarrassment. She’d once had pretty things like this before her father had died, but then those things had either been taken or sold. She had very few things, trinkets or jewelry left, and kept them hidden amongst her most precious things.

She kept mostly sentimental things there. Letters from Alastor, his drawing of the school he’d been a student of that he’d given her the day that they’d confessed their feelings for each other, the dagger that Achilleas’ had given her the day he’d taught her to use it, a few pressed flowers from Emilios, a note from Tasia, a lock of her favorite mare’s mane, the book from her father’s library that a baby goat had eaten a page out of. Silly, sentimental things that she valued more than jewels.

When it was insisted that she take it, she did so shyly. She lifted her hair, a flush of color on her cheeks as the chain was clasped around her slender neck. A small smile spread across her features as she reached up to touch the precious stone. ”Thank you, my lady. I will treasure it always.” She said, glancing nervously away before reaching to take the older woman’s hand and squeeze it firmly. ”Of course we can be friends. That’s all I have wanted since I came here…” She paused, taking a deep breath as she tried to settle her nerves. ”Even though...things haven’t exactly always gone right.” She laughed, raising a hand behind her head and running her fingers through her dark hair.

Melina seemed now to be intent on buying every single piece of jewelry that matched her new necklace. ”It’s fine, I-I don’t wear much jewelry to be honest.” She said with a small shake of her head. ”Just the necklace is perfect.” She got an annoyed glance from the jeweler as Sara was presumably cutting into a sale that they very much wanted to make.

”Are you hungry, my lady? We could see if there are any food stalls open now? I know of a lovely one that sells sweets, but I’m sure we could find something savory if you’re in the mood?”