Crystal removed her monstrosity of a hat and fanned herself with the floppy straw, lifting her hair off of her neck momentarily to ventilate the area where most of her hair liked to sit. Aaahhh...Much better. The sun was especially blazing on this spring afternoon, it almost made her wish she had taken a carriage instead of walking. She was almost there though, after forty minutes walking she only had ten more before the vendors and shops came into view, and five before she could smell the tempting aroma of food from the restaurants in the district. Feeling a bit cooler, she placed the sun hat back onto her head and kicked a stray pebble with her feet. It was a quite entertaining past time, and helped the last five minutes fly by in no time...also gave her the time she needed to think clearly without any interruptions. There was the issue of her having slept in her Royal Attendant's bed last night, and possibly doing immodest things that the Queen would scold her for...if she were alive. There was also what happened last night...Well, she didn't really know what happened, but Irina had blood on her cheek and it definitely had something to do with the Lord of Narsil. Speaking of Irina, Crystal hadn't thought of the woman since she left for the shopping district. It was no shocker that the Lady Knight would be livid and red faced when she found out Crystal left without her. She sighed and hung her head, pondering how she would react when she next faced Irina... She had been given specific orders not to run off again and even said she would try to behave for Irina. Ohh! What if she yells at me?!
Mmmm! I'll make sure to get her something nice so that doesn't happen. Crystal perked up at her idea and rubbed her hands together, the lace gloves she wore making it a bit difficult. "I wonder what Irina likes." She said to herself, holding her hat against her head as she looked up at the sky. It occurred to her that she didn't know very much about the Lady Knight, and hadn't made an effort to get to know her...at all. Of course, she didn't particularly care that Irina's job would be difficult babysitting her, but... she did want to at least try to know some basic things about Irina. It was only right to know the favorite color of the person you shared beds with, right? Crystal nodded and marched onto the cobblestone path leading to the market square, lowering her gaze to somewhat conceal her face from the bystanders. If the nobles reacted so wildly to her presence, she couldn't imagine the reaction from the commoners if they discovered her. Not to mention the very real possibility that she was being hunted by something far worse than overzealous admirers...
Anyone with the right funds could shop to their heart's content without entering the luxury shops, because everything one needed was right there in the market square on top of the modest looking shopping carts run by mostly honest workers. Plus, the nobles liked to think they were above buying handmade items, which only attracted Crystal to the unique items sold by the vendors even more. The items weren't any more cheap than going into the shops, or any better...It just made her feel more original to shop at the cute little shops. Really, she liked to dabble in both...As The Princess of Alegasia, she felt a strong duty to contribute to all good businesses.
Crystal looked over a stand with snow globes, blinking curiously as one in particular caught her eyes. She picked it up off of the stand, finding it was surprisingly heavier than she expected even with it's small size. It was a perfect replica of the palace of Alegasia, down to every little detail, including the courtyard and the fountain in the center of the large green lawn. She shook it around gently to stir up the snow that settled at the base of the globe, and...her eyes lit up. It was winter all over again! Crystal could almost feel the snow on her skin again, being a kid and playing outside with her parents. It wasn't for her though... This was a gift. Smiling, Crystal held it out to the shop keeper with a cheerful look. "I'll take it! Gift wrapped please." She said sweetly as she handed it over to the shop keeper, being careful not to drop it. Crystal fished out fifty gold pieces, stunning the shop keeper and those around with how easily she paid for the snow globe. No wonder it hadn't sold until then - it was so expensive. It's worth it though.
"Here you are, young lady. I hope your friend likes it, they'll always have a piece of the palace with them from now on. I made it with that idea in mind..." The shopkeeper said, a distant and dreamy tone to his voice as he seemed to reminisce. "Thank you!" Crystal accepted the heart shaped gift box from the man and nodded before leaving him to his business. She preferred not to mingle too long...then people start to get curious and want to take a peek under the hat and ask questions. As if it wasn't obvious enough by her snow white hair.