Crowned By Fire

Chapter 3 - Autumn

"You saw a WHAT?!" Marcus exclaimed, gripping the table and almost dropping his whiskey.

"A dragon. It was big, fluffy, and purple with brown horns and claws that would impale you like a kebab!" Otoño said, ignoring the clear shock and fear on Marcus's face.

I pinched the bridge or my nose, how was I stuck working with these lunatics. They both hate each other and they both try too hard to gain the attention of The Godfather.

"Look boys, I see those girls at one of the merchant stalls," I say, pointing out the window.

They both look out the window, Otoño spotting them right away, because he had seen them before.

"Which stall? Are they buying something?" Marcus said, his eyes darting between every stall.

"The stall with the yellow and red awning next to The Three Ravens Inn," I say as I point at the stall that the girls are sitting at.

"Oh, I see them. They dont look that harmful," Marcus remarks.

"Well they don't, but their dragon does," Otoño said in an annoyed tone. I agreed with him, it was kind of obvious.

"I am going to get a closer look. Marcus, go stand under that Blacksmiths sign, Otoño, go look at those flowers-"

"Flowers? Really? You know I am allergic to pollen!" My brother protested.

"Everyone is! Just suck it up and don't breath too deeply," Marcus said.

Otoño scowled and looked at me with a sour expression. I giggled, his rivalry with Marcus will be the death of me.

"We don't want them getting suspicious-"

"I dont think that they would be suspicious, they don't seem very perceptive,"

"Well they also don't SEEM like they have a dragon, do they?" I shot back, "May I finish my plan?"

Marcus and Otoño nodded.

"We don't want them getting suspicious, so Otoño you will leave first, then Marcus a little after. I will leave last. Does everyone know what they are doing?"

They nodded again. Otoño stood up and walked out the door. Marcus called the waitress over again and handed her a silver coin to pay for his whiskey.

I got up and walked over to the restroom in the back corner, giving Marcus plenty of time to leave. Approaching the mirror, I make sure there is not dirt on my face and that my hair looks ok. I adjusted my brown suspenders and tucked one of my braids behind my ear.

I took a deep breath and walked out, seeing Marcus had already left. Pushing open the door, the light blinded me as I stepped out onto the street.

Trying to gain my bearings, I look around and spot the girls booth. There is the town blacksmith at their booth. I pretended to look at some golden jewlery while they were finishing up.

I made eye contact with Otoño and he nods at me. Signaling that the blacksmith left the booth. I make my way over to the stall.

I could see the black-haired girl looking me up and down and the girl with chestnut hair and a purple skirt got up to talk to me.

"Hello, how much are you selling this for?" I asked pointing at a cut of meat. I could see the wheels in her head turning.

"How much do you think?" She said. I could tell what she was doing.

"2 silver and 3 bronze peices," I say confidently. The Godfather trained me to take in information while acting like a normal person, it was very useful.

The girl hummed, probably thinking of a way to up the price. She's smart, I'll give her that. My hand slipped into my skirt pocket to pull out the money.

"How about 3 silver peices? Just to round it to an even number," the girl was very smart. She probably does this with the rich folk to make it easier for them. I'm flattered.

I looked at her skeptically, she knew what she was doing, how long had she been selling her wares? I put back the 3 bronze peices and pulled out another silver to meet the amount she set.

I gave her the silver and she gave me the tenderloin. But she gave me much more than that. I quickly walked away and stuck my free hand in my pocket. My fingers connected with cold, sharp metal. It comforted my nerves, but didn't stop me from glancing over my shoulder.

From the short glances, I saw Otoño leave the flower stall and loosely follow me. I walked past Marcus and he stood up from where he was leaning on a wall to fall into step beside me.

"Did you find anything?"

"Yes,"

Otoño walked up beside me.

"We have company,"