Righting himself, he shot her a glare that was meant more for the male behind them than her. Then he exhaled roughly, swallowing down the threat he’d been about to spew, and beelined through the crowd, letting his hatred fuel his steps.

VERA

She still couldn’t believe she was here, on Bhasura. Her real home where she was free to walk around without hiding, without donning her alter-ego’s mask and pretending she was a boy named Varian when she wasn’t.

Maybe that was why she’d gotten so angry when Jaren had demanded she wear her hood. It wasn’t the playful way he’d done it that had upset her, it was stepping foot onto a land where she thought she’d be able to breathe, only to be asked to hold her breath again. It’d stung.

From Jaren’s ship, Ocridal hadn’t looked all that different than any city or town she’d seen on Aleron. It wasn’t until they’d docked, and she’d leaned over the side that she’d become speechless. Where Aleronians wore dull, neutral tones, the diverse Magyki bustling about were dressed in a multitude of colors that she’d only ever seen before on royalty.

The sight of their pointed ear tips, an array of brown, golden, and ivory hues, peeking out through their different hairstyles, had caused her heart to leap. Top that with the sheer number of voices speaking a language she was still trying to grasp, and it’d been unreal. Like a tale straight out of a children’s story.

She’d immediately wanted to wander the streets and see more. To take in every sight and see how the Magyki interacted and how it might differ from what she’d seen in the markets of Matherin and Midpath. Even with all the stories Jaren had told her on their journey, she still knew so little about their world and had so many questions.

She’d never realized just how little she knew about her own heritage until now, and she couldn’t help but feel ashamed. She didn’t even know what foods were popular or whether they drank ale, let alone whether they prayed or what festivals they celebrated. But now that she was here, she wanted to know it all.

However, it was becoming increasingly difficult to take in any amount of detail when she was being dragged at high speed through the city like a misbehaving child.

Jaren was a force to be reckoned with. He darted through the streets, pulling her along and launching curses at any vendors who dared to call out to them. She was honestly surprised when he finally came to a halt at one merchant long enough to purchase them clean clothes. Not that she was complaining.

And even that didn’t go smoothly. He’d haggled with the elderly merchant, acting every bit the asshole his reputation claimed him to be. She’d eyed him warily, unsure how long they had before Jaren exploded.

She didn’t blame him for his anger, but it also made it really hard to understand how she actually felt about everything that had just happened. All she could feel was Jaren. The turmoil of his emotions had flooded into her until she felt like a minnow within her own body, lost in the sea of his rage.