Music Recommendation: The Crossroads- Anne Dudley

Eve and Rosetta travelled to Hollow Valley in the young vampiress's carriage. The carriage shook lightly while the wheels rolled against the muddy ground and were pulled by the four horses.

On their way, Rosetta continuously talked to Eve while the latter listened to her. She said, "My father sent a letter to Aunt Camille that he will be coming here soon. In a week or two. I worry that this time when he's returning home, he will take me home along with him."

"Your place sounds wonderful. Why don't you want to go back?" Eve asked and saw Rosetta's eyebrows furrow. "You cannot hide here forever, Rosetta."

Rosetta replied, "I am happier here. The people there treat me as if I am stupid. They don't see anything in me except for my father's name. It's lonely there. Why don't you come with me?" She suddenly asked Eve, who was taken aback by the vampiress's request.

"My Aunt and Eugene live here. And I have a governess job," on Eve's reply, Rosetta turned sad. Eve then placed her hand on Rosetta's hand, which was on her lap to comfort her. She said, "If I am given holidays again, I will try to come and visit you."

Rosetta knew it was far, but she was still glad to hear from Eve that she would meet her. She said, "Write to me when you can, I will write back to you. It's not like I have much to do. It is why I decided not to wait but come and visit you. We should make the most time together," she nodded with excitement.

Reaching Hollow Valley, Eve noticed the town was decorated. The streets were crowded more than it usually was, where the feet of the rich moved up and down while maintaining a good distance from each other.

"It seems like there's some celebration going on in here," murmured Rosetta, while she brought her hand in front of her forehead even though she held an umbrella over her head.

On both sides of the streets, the merchants had set up stalls, inviting men and women to take a look at them. Apart from the rich scent of the perfumes carried by the wealthy, one could also smell the warm food drift in the air.

"It is the Carnival of Winter," replied Eve.

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"There are Carnivals for every season?" Rosetta looked more than impressed.

"Just this one, where the people celebrate the arrival of Winter. The celebration in Hollow Valley starts before other towns. A week earlier, like a reminder to others that the people follow," explained Eve as they continued walking in the town.

"Look there, Eve! It is a duck inside the glass!" Rosetta caught hold of Eve's hand and dragged her in front of the stall.

"Miss Rosetta, wait!" To Eve, Rosetta was nothing less than an excited child who wanted to look at everything on display.

"Careful there!" A man shouted when they were about to crash into him.

"We are sorry," Eve offered a slight bow and then turned to look at the excited vampiress. "You need to slow down, the stall is not going to disappear."

"But we are already late and we would end up with the ones people don't want to buy," reasoned Rosetta and they finally arrived at the stall. But the merchant wasn't just selling crystal glasses. There were a lot more items, and like them, a few customers were being served by the merchant. "Are those diamonds?" Rosetta questioned the man.

"It's an Astral stone, milady," the merchant answered before adding, "It reveals a person's moods and nature. Please bring your hand forward, and palm open."

Eve had never seen or heard of anything about such stone until now.

Rosetta was quick to do as the merchant asked her, and when the merchant placed the brilliant stone in her hand, it turned brown with flecks of red. "What does it mean?"

"It-uh. Each colour means different things depending on the situation. A feeling of sadness, loneliness or that you are proud," the merchant cleared his throat, and Rosetta glared at the man.

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"My father is a Marquee and he will teach you how to read the stones!" The young vampiress scolded the merchant while doing exactly what the stone had shown. She then asked, "How much is one of this?"

"Only eighteen gold coins, milady," the merchant offered a charming smile as he wanted to make a profit today. "Please be reminded that these Astral stones change depending on how a person feels," the merchant explained before attending to other customers.

Eve's eyebrows shot up on hearing the amount it cost. At the same time, she remembered she had lost eighty gold coins from the councilmen. She hadn't heard anything from Vincent since she had left Darthmore, and for a moment, she wanted to write him a letter to ask if everything had gone well. But then again this was Vincent Moriarty. She would see him tomorrow at the Moriarty mansion.

While Rosetta was looking at other things, Eve picked up the stone in her hand, leaving it in the palm of her hands. Soon the crystal stone turned blue before turning darker as if a drop of black ink had dissolved.

Not knowing what it meant, Eve quickly dropped the stone so no one would notice it.

"What a wonderful necklace! Is this by the oysters or mermaid's pearls?" the woman questioned the merchant. The woman's blonde hair was tied at the back, and a little hat sat with a black net covering half of her face. She appeared to be in her early twenties.

"Fresh pearls, milady. The mermaid I am growing," the merchant whispered to the woman, but the people at the front of his counter heard him.

The blonde woman picked up the necklace and said, "It doesn't appear to be of good quality. I doubt you are selling the meat if you are trying to sell the pearls?"

On hearing about the mermaid, Rosetta turned to Eve and said, "Did you know that they had a mermaid in Moriarty's mansion during the ball? I cannot believe that I missed such a good opportunity!" The vamipress looked disappointed about it.

"IYes. Lady Marceline had arranged a mermaid as Lady Annalise's gift," replied Eve, remembering the deceased mermaid's body that had ended up in half.

"I love mermaid's blood. It tastes like little drops of heaven. Father brings it for me at least once a month and I finish it in less than three days," Rosetta laughed at the thought, while Eve felt her palms turn sweaty. "Aunt Camille has been trying to buy a mermaid, but she said they have become scarce here."

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"Is that so? I wasn't aware of it," Eve's friendship with people of high society was turning tricky. She would have been crossed with Rosetta, but the young vampiress had no clue she had befriended her favourite drink.

"You didn't know?" questioned Rosetta and Eve turned slightly nervous.

"How would I know," Eve answered the vampiress, who nodded.

"That's true, how would you know? I sometimes forget you aren't a vampire," said Rosetta before turning to the merchant and demanding, "Are you selling mermaid's blood?"

The merchant hesitated slightly before shaking his head, "No, milady. Just the pearls," he politely smiled at the vampiress.

Rosetta, who wasn't used to being denied, leaned forward towards him. She raised three fingers and said, "I will give you thirty gold coins. Or maybe forty."

The merchant said, "I cannot draw blood from her as I need her to create pearls for me. But, if you can arrange a few more coins from what you said, maybe I can let you take a sip from her later in the evening?"

The vampiress stared at the merchant before nodding, "I will come back here when you are closing this."

"I will see you later then, milady," the merchant bowed.

And while Rosetta was delighted and looking forward to drinking the mermaid's blood, it left an uneasiness in Eve's mind. A helpless mermaid was caught and possibly tortured by this merchant to shed more pearls.

She wished to save the mermaid, but even she knew it wasn't an easy task. She didn't forget that the last help she had offered had landed her straight in the dungeon cell.

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