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T hey were going to… shop. Here . In Orc Mountain ?

But once Daisy had put on her shabby clothes and accompanied Filak out into the mountain’s corridors, she soon discovered that Orc Mountain indeed had a genuine, real-life shop. It was a large, bright room in the Grisk clan’s wing, with a long counter across the front of it, and multiple shelves and aisles extending out behind, seemingly stocked full of clothes and goods.

“Uh, Filak ,” Daisy said, with an uncertain glance toward him. “ I don’t have any coin. Nei coin. Nei shop.”

She tried to gesture along as she spoke, but in return Filak’s brow furrowed, his head shaking. “ Tú ert sálufélagi minn ,” he said firmly, with a purposeful pat of his hand over Daisy’s belly — over his new vow. “ ég mun fljótt vinna mér inn traust titt aftur.”

Oh. It was a line from that vow again, the one still whispering too powerfully from beneath the fabric of Daisy’s dress. Which meant… Filak was again saying that he would handle it. That he would clothe her, and care for her, and prove himself as her mate.

It quivered in Daisy’s belly, strong enough that it took her far too long to notice the new woman, striding up one of the shop’s aisles. She was small and pretty and dark-haired, dressed in a striking ensemble that flaunted not only her bare legs and soft exposed midriff, but an impressive quantity of beautiful jewelry, too.

“Welcome to the Great Grisk Showroom - Shop !” the woman said, with a dazzling grin toward Daisy — but upon catching sight of Filak , her steps faltered, and a distinct wariness crossed her face. “ Uh … Filak ?”

Filak’s lip curled with distaste, but he jerked a nod, and said something toward the woman in Aelakesh . Speaking very slowly, enough that Daisy could pick out a few words she now knew — mate , coin , gift — along with her own name.

“Oh, yes, of course!” the woman replied, flashing her smile back toward Daisy , though it still looked surprised, and a little strained, too. “ Welcome to our mountain, Daisy . I’m Kitty , our shopkeeper, and Filak says he’d like to purchase you some new clothes? Because he’s just sworn vows to you as his mate ?”

Her voice was incredulous, her eyes rapidly searching Daisy’s face, as if desperately needing independent verification of Filak’s claim. And though maybe Daisy should have explained all the various caveats around this — two weeks, he was proving himself, until the sun — it felt far easier to just nod back toward this Kitty’s staring face.

“Er, yes,” she replied. “ Though I’m not entirely sure” — she glanced uneasily toward Filak — “what he had in mind? Something serviceable, and affordable, I’m sure?”

That two-week timeline was again ringing through her thoughts, but before her, Kitty loudly scoffed, and gave a dismissive flap of her hand. “ He’ll be glad to buy you whatever you please, of course,” she said firmly. “ Orcs take their responsibilities in such matters very seriously. Now ” — her eyes sparkled with eagerness — “come in, come in, and let’s get started! Do you have a particular style or type of clothing you prefer to wear?”

Daisy fought to consider the question as she followed Kitty around the counter, with Filak striding close and silent behind her. She’d always appreciated interesting ensembles on other people, but clothes had never been a high priority in her own life — mostly because she hadn’t had the extra coin to waste, but also because of her work, too. Wearing pretty dresses while tromping around in fields and caves was an appealing image, but an absolute nuisance in real life, and working with paints or charcoals or printing plates was even worse.

“I’m… not sure,” Daisy finally replied, with a helpless-feeling glance toward Filak beside her. As if expecting him to come to her rescue, and that was ridiculous, and…

“Daisy artist,” he cut in unexpectedly, with a decisive nod, and a firm pat to her back. “ Ach , sólin mín ?”

He looked decidedly proud of that fact, while before them, Kitty’s brows snapped up, her eyes widening. “ Oh , how wonderful!” she exclaimed. “ Now , a working artist is an exciting clothing challenge, isn’t it? Can you tell me how you spend your days, Daisy ? What kinds of work do you do, and where?”

It was a start, at least, and Daisy did her best to explain, while Kitty peppered her with follow-up questions, and waved them down one of the shop’s long aisles. It was bursting with an astonishing quantity of clothes, not only stacked neatly on shelves, but hanging on tall racks, and piled into open chests and trunks. And Daisy was so busy blinking around at it all that she barely noticed the person standing up ahead in the aisle — who now looked distinctly familiar. Kesst , from the sickroom.

He’d been intently digging through a stack of trousers, but upon catching sight of Daisy and Filak , he snapped up straight, and fixed Filak with a sudden, furious glower. “ You again?!” he snarled. “ I can’t escape you here, either? Even when I’m desperately trying to soothe my frazzled wits after the mess you made of my treasured home ?!”

Daisy winced — gods, she’d completely forgotten about that hole Filak had dug in the sickroom — while Filak only glared back toward Kesst , and made an obscene-looking gesture with his clawed hand. Earning a vicious snarl from Kesst in return, and an eloquent-sounding string of curses in Aelakesh .

Daisy had already taken an uneasy step backwards, but beside her, Kitty loudly harrumphed, and lurched herself in between Filak and Kesst . “ Enough , both of you,” she snapped. “ We’re here for Daisy , and she needs some comfortable, durable clothes to support her art, and help her feel at home here. So Kesst ” — she fixed her glare on his face — “you’re our resident expert on leather trousers, so why don’t you help me find Daisy some good options? And Filak can help her try them on, and see how they fit?”

She repeated the instructions toward Filak in Aelakesh , and to Daisy’s surprise, he looked almost mollified as he nodded. And then he turned back toward Daisy and reached for her shabby dress, tugging it off over her head. Leaving her standing there in only her torn shift, in the middle of a public shop — but no one seemed to take any notice, and already Kitty was passing several pairs of trousers into Filak’s arms.

It was unlike any shopping Daisy had ever done before, and she’d never properly worn trousers before, either. And though they did feel strange at first, she could easily see how they would be far easier to explore and romp around in, and much better for dealing with dust and paint and dirt, too.

“These ones are perfect on you,” Kitty said decisively, in regards to a pair of slim brown trousers that felt buttery soft against Daisy’s skin. “ And these ones” — she thrust two more pairs toward Filak — “were good too. You’ll take them all, won’t you?”

Daisy hesitated, glancing doubtfully toward Filak — he surely hadn’t meant to buy her three pairs of trousers? But he didn’t appear even slightly perturbed by this, and instead seemed preoccupied with appreciatively eyeing Daisy’s arse through her new trousers’ tight-fitting leather.

“Yes, he’ll take them all,” Kesst cut in, with a chilly, poisonous smile toward Filak . “ After everything he’s done, it’s the least he can do. In fact, I think you should take these, too.”

He irritably shoved two more pairs of trousers toward Filak , but to Daisy’s ever-rising surprise, Filak accepted them without a hint of protest, and tucked them into the growing stash under his arm. And then he plucked at Daisy’s torn shift, which was currently bunched around her waist, and said something else in Aelakesh toward Kitty — something that she returned with a nod, and an approving smile.

“Yes, tops next,” she said firmly. “ Something easy to clean, I think, and close-fitting, so it doesn’t get in the way. Do you have any preferences in terms of type, Daisy ? Blouses , tunics, jackets?”

She waved Daisy further up the aisle, to where there again seemed to be an impossible variety of options — so many that choosing one felt like an utterly overwhelming task. And after blinking around for a moment, Daisy glanced back at Kitty , whose top half appeared to be covered by little more than a large silk triangle, tied over her breasts. But the silk was woven in a lovely pattern of bright colours, and had caught Daisy’s eye from the first instant she’d seen it.

“What about something like that?” she tentatively asked. “ If you don’t think it’s — inappropriate?”

She blushed even as she said it — had she just called Kitty’s outfit inappropriate? But Kitty only beamed back in return, and beckoned Daisy over toward a pile of similar colourful fabrics. And again, Filak didn’t argue this plan whatsoever, and once Kesst and Kitty had plucked out a few options, he even pulled off Daisy’s torn shift entirely, and helped them tie multiple different kinds of fabric around her. A process that regularly left Daisy’s upper body fully bared to the air, but no one except Filak seemed to notice. And if Daisy wasn’t mistaken, he almost seemed to be enjoying this, studying various options with a critical eye, and looking her up and down with obvious admiration.

“ Tetta er gott ,” he finally announced, about a wrap that was a beautiful red and yellow, and brazenly showed off both the sun over Daisy’s heart, and that new vow he’d written on her belly. “ Ach , sólin mín ?”

Daisy had never publicly worn anything so revealing in her life, but she had to admit she liked the look of it with the trousers, liked the colours against her skin. “ Ach , Filak ,” she murmured, without quite meaning to. “ Tetta er gott .”

He flashed her a swift, sharp-toothed grin in return, bright and broad and approving — while beside them, Kitty betrayed a sudden shocked gasp. And when Daisy glanced over, both Kitty and Kesst were staring blankly toward Filak , with clear disbelief in their eyes.

“I didn’t know he could smile,” Kesst muttered to Kitty , under his breath. “ Is it possible that he might actually be attractive ? Oh , gods, absolutely not. I have most certainly exceeded my limit of Ka -esh for today.”

With that, he shuddered and rushed off, without even a wave goodbye — but then he paused at the end of the aisle, and frowned back toward them. “ Spend as much of his coin as you can, Daisy ,” he snapped. “ Someone needs to make him pay!”

Daisy chuckled despite herself, but it soon seemed as though Kitty was determined to carry out Kesst’s directives. First fetching a huge basket to pile their items in, before ushering them toward an overwhelming selection of fur coats and capes and shawls, and then boots and belts and bags. But Filak still followed along with surprising eagerness, and he insisted that Daisy take three fur shawls and capes, two pairs of sturdy leather boots, and a lovely waterproof shoulder satchel with pockets, perfectly suited for her sketchbook. He even insisted that they buy her a set of new pencils and brushes, and a tall oil lamp, with a convenient handle for carrying. And when Daisy finally asked if he was going to buy anything for himself, he initially resisted, but then plucked up a nearby coiled rope, hung it on his belt, and then kept urging her further down the aisle.

By the time they finished, their basket was overflowing with items — which Kitty promised to have delivered to their room — and Daisy was fully dressed in one of her brand-new ensembles. Featuring the leather trousers and boots, the revealing red and yellow silk wrap, and a brown fur cloak. And when Kitty steered them toward a large looking-glass at the rear of the room, Daisy willingly went, and then almost tripped over her feet at the sight.

She looked… different. So different. Unlike anyone she’d ever seen before. Not only with her new vivid black marks clearly displayed on her skin — the sun over her heart, the vow below her navel — but also with all the contrasts and colours, too. The dark browns and soft textures of the leather and fur, the patterned orange and yellow silk, the glinting gold of her ring and her kraga . All those browns and yellows and reds making her look like something she’d find growing in a field, something warm and bright and alive.

And when Filak eased up behind her in the looking-glass, and slid his long clawed fingers over that vow on her belly, Daisy could thoroughly appreciate the sight of that, too. His body so tall and stark and pale, all cold black and white, while hers was shorter and softer, rich with colour and warmth. And the longer she blinked between them, the more dangerous Filak looked, like a proud, vengeful, deathly fallen prince, ready to maim and crush and destroy. While she looked like…

An artist. A sun. A light to his darkness. Like the only one in the world who could bring that warmth to his eyes.

And maybe Filak saw it too, because he kissed the top of Daisy’s head, and drew her body a little closer against him. “ Sólin mín ,” he murmured, his eyes glimmering on hers in the glass. “ Artistinn mín. Sálufélagi minn .”

My sun. My artist. My mate .

And for a hushed, hovering moment, the promise of it — the possibility of it — stole away Daisy’s breath. His sun, his artist, his mate, here, standing in the glass before her very eyes, with her fierce orc’s hand stroking reverently against his powerful black vow. Showing her. Proving this to her. Fusing it all together, and offering it up like a new shining star, tempting her away…

“ Tú kemur mee mér ,” he said now, so soft, his eyes still shimmering on hers in the glass. “ Ach , sólin mín ?”

And those words were — familiar. They were the same words he’d said that fateful night at Lew’s apartment. And he’d even looked at her this same way, with such hope and hunger in his eyes. You will come with me, ach, my sun?

And maybe it was still foolish — two weeks, and that was all — but Daisy … nodded. Agreed . Relented to the hope, the light, the bright shining dream…

So when Filak took her hand, and drew her toward the back of the room, she went. Not thinking, not hesitating, not even when he walked straight up to the solid stone wall, and spread his hand against it. And after a loud, scraping crunch, the wall… slid open. Revealing …

A hole . A huge, yawning hole, dark and jagged and terrifying. The sight catching Daisy’s breath, streaking cold and alarming up her spine…

And with a jolt and a crash, Filak dragged Daisy forward, and plunged them both into darkness.