A Court of Wings and Fate

23. A Deal is a Deal

    "Come on. It's this way!" Celeste gripped Estelle's hand tightly, pulling her down a street in Nimbus. Sienna followed close behind.

    They were on their way to a clothing shop that sold Peregryn leathers. Estelle was surprised to hear that they weren't being sold in the Peregryn camp itself. Sienna had explained that while most Peregryns chose to live in the camp, there were those that settled elsewhere as well. This shop was built outside of the camp for those Peregryns, and was one of her friends' favorites.

    "We should hurry," Sienna called. "We're meeting Mikael and Calden at the dance hall afterwards, remember?"

    "I remember," Celeste laughed. She skipped along faster, forcing Estelle to increase her own pace.

    Estelle smiled, watching Celeste's bouncing curls. The decision to go shopping was a last minute one. The day had been particularly hard. Seren reached out to Estelle through her daemati powers and following the conversation, Estelle had been struck by an unrelenting tide of homesickness.

    Celeste and Sienna pestered her until she finally told them how she was feeling, and they'd decided to distract her. On their way out of the camp, they ran into Mikael and Calden, who mentioned they were also going into Nimbus. They'd decided to meet at the dancing hall after handling their individual tasks.

    "Here it is!" Celeste pushed open the door to a modest shop nestled in between a shoe store and a restaurant. A bell rang overhead.

    A brown haired Peregryn poked her head out from behind a desk. "Celeste! Sienna! It's been a long time since you two were in my shop. How can I help you?" The female came into the open, resting her hand on her round stomach.

    "Hestia, I didn't know you were pregnant!" Celeste gushed, releasing Estelle's hand. "May I?" The female, Hestia, nodded and Celeste rested her hand against her stomach.

    "Hestia used to live with us even though she's much older than we are," Sienna explained, leaning towards Estelle. "She left the camp years ago with her husband. They still answer the summons to fight as needed."

    "This is our friend, Estelle," Celeste said, gesturing to her. "Estelle, meet Hestia Betan."

    "It's nice to meet you," Estelle replied.

    Hestia inclined her head. "You as well. So, you're interested in a pair of Peregryn training leathers? I thought nothing could top Illyrian leathers."

    Estelle grinned. "Nothing can. This is just part of a deal I made with Celeste and Sienna. I bought them each a set of Illyrian leathers, so they owe me a set of Peregryn ones."

    "Well, let's get you taken care of then." Hestia draped a measuring tape over her shoulders and motioned for Estelle to extend her arms.

    She did so, letting the Peregryn take her measurements. "I'm not doing any custom orders right now, since the baby will be here soon. You'll be fine with choosing something off the rack?" Hestia asked. Estelle nodded. "All right. These ones should fit you." Hestia led her over to one rack of leathers. "The dressing rooms are right back there. Let me know if you girls need any help. I'm going to sit down for a while."

    Estelle began to browse through the selection of brown and beige leathers. Some were solely brown. Some were solely beige. Others were a mixture, like Mikael's. What do you think? She asked the shadows.

    The combination, they answered.

    Are you saying that because you want to match Mikael or because you like how they look?