Evangelina was an old soul and yet there was so much she’d not seen of life. That was being remedied though. Things were changing. She was changing. Weeks ago, she’d been petrified of leaving her home. Of leaving those that she loved most in the world and stepping forward on her own. It wasn’t so much that she lacked confidence in herself. For Evangelina it was about control. At home in Acharist, she knew what to expect and could exercise a bit of control on how it affected her. Here. In the capital. Evangelina was having to make her own way.

The tighter she tried to hold onto control, the harder it seemed to rein it in. It was like trying to hold water in your fist. The more you tightened your fist the more water seemed to leak out between the folds of your fingers. It slipped away, like sand in an hourglass. One tiny particle at a time. What was left then? That was enough to shake her. To make her feel like she was unraveling at the seems.

But for as much as it scared it, it also thrilled her. It shook her. Exhilarated her. Being away from Acharist forced her to open her eyes at the possibilities that lay ahead for her. She’d have been lying if she had said there wasn’t a crack in the stubborn veneer she tried to uphold. It was all a bold adventure and she wanted to explore it all before she ran out of time.

Perhaps that was what had brought her to the Agora that morning. It was hardly the first time she’d ever been there, but it was the first time she’d been there alone, not even Byrony had accompanied her on this excursion. The Leventi household had many irons in the fire and sadly it hadn’t taken much skill to disappear.

Taengea was well known for its mild temperatures but this morning had provided a bit of relief as a cooler spell had settled in overnight causing the slight chill in the air here in those still early hours. The sun would undoubtedly rise higher into the sky, and by midday, any evidence of the chill would be gone. Evangelina was dressed plainly, the russet-colored silk chiton and the gold colored silk ribbon girdle being the only indication she might not have belonged to the early morning merchant crowd. Most of the nobility wouldn’t be up and about for a few more hours, and Evangelina wouldn’t have either except she’d still not gotten quite used to her new bed in Georgios mansion in the quarter. Her hair might have been considered plain, except for the hints of coppery red, dark brown, and dark blonde that entwined creating an almost a rich, dark caramel color to it. It was braided in a simple fishtail braid and draped over her right shoulder. She was devoid of any jewelry or fancy trappings that might further indicate her family’s wealth. Most jewelry pieces she found cumbersome and almost always caused her to become ensnared upon something when she wore them. Thanks, but no thanks.

She was one of the shorter ladies of the Leventi family, but her lithe frame had that athletic, loose-jointed gait to it that was more often familiar to those who had spent long hours in the saddle. Her shoulders back and her elegant neck up, maybe her mother and Aunt Evelli’s instructions had sunk in. She drifted from stall to stall, not really looking for anything particular but enjoying the looking none the less.

Looking at a small figurine of a rearing horse painted perfectly, she contemplated purchasing it as a gift. She sat it down having talked herself out of it and then almost immediately picked it back up again to stare at it some more. Tino would adore it. For a moment, her mind drifted to Acharist and missing those who were there and not here. That was when she heard it.

Sweet Butterfly, with wings now dry 'tis time to break away
and light upon the leaves of dawn while weeping willows sway,
not reminisce 'bout chrysalis discarded yesterday,
but treasure life, with colors rife in nature's cabaret.

Sweet Butterfly, you sometimes sigh "terrene so strange and new”,
but take a chance, with winged expanse of fairy-like bijou,
to taste delight in random flight, to drift beyond the blue
and then collect her naked nectar, sipped in morning dew.

The voice was captivating. While instrumentally challenged, Evangelina loved to sing. Her voice wasn’t quite as… bewitching as what she heard but it was pretty enough she wasn’t going to embarrass herself should she decide to stand up and perform like a monkey at one of her uncle’s functions. Yet, when you enjoyed something you were drawn to people who held similar interest. The figurine of the horse was sat down without a second glance, as her head turned and she scanned the vicinity for the soul of a siren who was singing.

Those dark, doe eyes of her’s fell upon the young woman seated on the stool by her stall. She looked the part of a siren too. Evie’s feet were in motion before she realized it as she drew closer, curiosity overtaking her as she wondered more about the girl who sang with her eyes closed and letting the music slip out of her like some sort of a spell being woven through the crowd and drawing them into the stall.

She didn’t want to break the spell by saying anything, instead, she stood there watching hardly able to fight the look of appreciation on her sharp-featured face. The song was perfect. The voice was perfect. It was perfect. Perhaps she could purchase the lyrics? Maybe a songbook with similar songs? What was a girl who could sing like that doing in a place like this? She could be the toast of Taengea with that voice. Determined now to find out, she waited until the song had ended before she made her presence known by clearing her throat softly. “Excuse me, that was truly lovely. I don’t think I’ve ever heard that one before.”

Have you ever watched someone with a natural talent and wished you could do what they’d just done? That was how Evangelina felt watching this wisp of a young woman sing, her fingers gently plucking out a bewitching melody. It mattered not that Evangelina had absolutely no interest in putting in the time to learn to play the harp like that. Listening to the song, she was carried away into the words and it was an escape.

Obviously, it was an escape for the songbird too. The way she closed her eyes and gave herself so fully to the music… it was only possible when you let your mind escape and you no longer simply played the song but became the song. Maybe that was what Evangelina envied. It had days since she’d saddled Altair and had found her escape from this world, the same way that this girl had escaped with her song and music.

Those rich, brown eyes of Evie’s swept over the young woman. She was by no means tall, in fact, in her own family she was one of the shorter of the Leventi girls, but this woman was even shorter than herself. Evie was softly curved muscled, but this woman looked like she could blow away on one of the strong ocean breezes. Her face was pretty in that sweetness sort of way, exactly like a caged songbird.

‘Thank you kindly, madam. It was a song that is usually played overseas, I learned it a couple of years ago and it has always soothed me.’ The girl blushed a pretty pinky to her cheeks at Evangelina’s compliment.

Her interest peaked at the mention of overseas. Tilting her head she regarded the young woman again. It was then that the girl stood up, tucking her stool and harp away.

‘Is there anything I can help you find today, madam? I have several eclectic selections that you may like.’

It was Evie’s turn to pinken a little as she realized, she’d been studying the girl a bit too intently. But to be fair, she wanted to know more about the rest of the world but wasn’t sure how to ask about it. Her eyes dropped immediately to the various things in front of her.

“I…. um… Do you have anything similar to what you just sang?” Evie managed to ask, some fabric caught her eye too and she stepped towards it. “I am sure I couldn’t do it much justice as you just did, but I did quite enjoy it.” Pausing in front of the fabric, her fingers reached up to feel it. “Overseas you said? Have you… um… have you traveled quite a lot then?” She slid a curious glance to the wispy blonde as she asked the question.

Eeeeeeeeee-EEEEEEEEE!

The squeal sent Evie backward and glancing around when all of a sudden a head popped up from underneath the table of a fuzzy-faced monkey with a sparkly collar. Blinking, she glanced at the woman. Was this creature hers?! Taking another step backward, just as two men rushed forward. "Grab it!" One lurched forward causing the monkey to scramble up the table and running across the young woman's goods. Continuing its angry shrieks as it scurred first one direction then leaping in another to avoid another attempt at being caught. Two more men came running down the aisle, "Where's my monkey?!" It was barked at a couple of slaves in a heavy accent. The monkey hopped off the table and made a dive straight for the other woman.

"Watch out!" Evie lurched forward towards the smaller blonde but was too far away to reach her in time.