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Syldor is dead. And that is for the better. At least that's what Vex tells herself as she folds the freshly ironed black blouse and leather trousers into the small suitcase next to the sleek black heels with the wine soles. Zips pulled tight and the bag is left on the ground, she feels ready for the journey. With the key in her apartment door, it dawns on Vex how she would have to mourn or pretend to mourn her father in front of not only his new family but quite possibly the entirety of the town she lived in (but was never from). Turning back inside for the last time before leaving she walks back in and straight to the bedroom.
Looking into the wardrobe at the several jackets and overcoats she’d amassed over the years since leaving her own home and then her father’s house, her hand reaches for the mid-length navy overcoat with the large silver buttons almost instinctively and as she pulled it from the hanger and threw the heavy suede over finely muscled shoulders, she felt safer, silly as it was. Trying to rationalise her new addition to the outfit Vex reminded herself of how funeral attire was always quite dull, too dull even, black on black with possibly even more black on top? Definitely more her brother’s style, the sprinkling of blue would let her make it her own.
Out the door once more, and for good this time. Vex locked the door and sent a quick text to Taryon to thank him once more for taking Trinket on such short notice as her taxi pulled up to take her to the airport.
Stepping out of the humid air through rotating doors and into the tiled floors and airconditioning of Lyrengorn airport, the small departures wing was empty bar the few staff for various airlines making idle chit-chat amongst themselves behind the check-in desks. After lifting her bag to be weighed at one of the desks Vex began to tune out the short woman behind the counter as she babbled on to herself until she asked “Can I see your passport? And do you have anything sharp or dangerous in your luggage?” as her head tilted to one side.
“No, nothing of the sort.”
“Okie dokie! Well, that means you're all set and you'll see your bags over in Syngorn! Enjoy your flight!” the bubbly tone not failing once, Vex begins to suspect that the woman is just that enthusiastic and it doesn’t do anything to help her already sour enough mood.
Vex continued through security, without a hitch but not without wounding at least four members of staff with glares to kill as she was subjected to secondary and tertiary checks, reaching the lounge with its deceptively comfortable seats and free Wi-Fi was as good as any reward, even if the bar wasn’t open yet and the overpriced coffee was watered down mud. Thankful to not have any human interaction for at least half an hour, Vex slid down into one of the empty benches next to the lone gate pulling out her phone, rereading the list Vax had sent of preparations that needed to be done between them. It wasn’t a short list.
Boarding the plane, having put her carry-on in the bin above her head, Vex’s phone buzzed in her hand.
‘stubby forget what i said before. need you to lift flowers from the florist on bakar street next to the blown out temple?? think that's all ill text you if theres anything else’
She sighed at the complete lack of consistent English on her brother’s part but took a mental note of his request and settled in for her early morning flight.
The cold vastness of the mountains and tundra pelted the passenger plane with thick white chunks of snow and tumbling wind. Large lone trees jutt out of the sheets of white, a train pushing along a track shoves its way through the hardened slush that's formed on the metal of the tracks from a previous journey, Vex watches as the little metal worm grows littler and littler before it’s completely engulfed by frost and snow. Everything becomes smaller until the plane is above the clouds where it continues to fly as the sun paints the tops of the cloud shelf with rosy pinks and soft twilight purples. Landing comes sooner than expected as Syngorn grows in the distance, the fielded and forested surroundings giving way to large roads and homes, and as the plane lands Vex wakes up. She discovers that she had slept the whole flight.
Stepping into the terminal and collecting her bags, Vex’s phone buzzes in her pocket as a message came through from Vax, ‘sorry freddie isnt there to pick u up had to send him to pick some stuff up theres a bus into town and ill pick u up on my way home’. Sending back a quick ‘No problem, see you soon,’ with huff and a puff, Vex gathers herself and makes her way out the front of Syngorn’s arrivals gate, suitcase wheels clattering behind her and a bus pulling out of the station just as she gets there, Vex subjects herself to more people watching. One couple, a blonde woman with a designer handbag being followed by a short woman with dark blonde hair built like an ox carting a suitcase in one hand and a duffel over the opposite shoulder, Vex watches as they head into departures. A lone woman, with short dark hair and deep olive skin, leaves the doors of arrivals and heads towards a tall woman and small child, she catches the child as he runs and jumps all the while the tall one smiles, laughing lightly. Vex watches, taking it all in while absorbing nothing. The next bus arrives.
Passing through the suburbs and past the lovely little houses with their white picket fences and tree swings, memories flood back to Vex from the unpleasant to joyous (few and far between as they were), and Vex’ahlia loses herself in her memories as the wheels trundle on further into town. The little homes give way to terraced homes and blocks of apartments, shops, and boutiques, and eventually, the main square of Syngorn, and the clunky chunk of metal pulls up to a bus stop in the middle of town. Vex hops off. Suitcase clacking behind her on the old cobblestone that makes up the footpaths Vex looks at the address Vax had pinned for her in their texts.
‘Get Clover It - Florists and Bake Shop (14 Main Square, Emerald Citadel, Syngorn)’
Awful puns for names, she was really looking forward to this now. Sarcasm drips off the little voice in her head as she reads the message, but she picks up the pace as she heads further into the cobbled square. Vex passes a cobbler, that’s new. A bakery, that was there before. A coffee shop, that's new. A tailor’s, that’s new too. It may have changed a bit but she was still in Syngorn and even acknowledging that she is here, is enough to send shivers down her spine.
Her heeled boots halt their clacking outside a quaint little shop, soft pinks and light minty greens decorate the exterior of the building. The large front windows illuminate the inside as Vex steps into the interior pushing the glass door as the tinkling of a bell came from above her head. A perfume of many different flowers assaults Vex’s nose from one side of the shop, while the other side of the shop attacks with the aroma of fresh bread and buns. If the smell didn’t knock her off her feet, the six-foot-tall vase being hauled around the shop certainly did. Both Vex and the tall redhead who was carrying the vase tumble to the ground, the circular forest green rug breaks the fall slightly as Vex’s suitcase goes wheeling off on its own as does the large vase.
Rushing to her feet, the red-haired woman is muttering to herself and Vex is left struggling to hear what the other woman says as she is pulled to her feet.
“Oh, gods. I’m sorry, uh- are you hurt- Wait! Pike!”
Shouting from the back Vex hears, “YEAH? WHAT’S UP?”
“Help!”
“What’s wrong?” A short woman with stark white hair, ‘Pike’ Vex assumes, pops her head out from behind the door into the back, “Okay, okay, okay… Gimme a second!” And she disappears again.
The apologies then flow like a river rapid once more from the tall woman’s mouth as Vex gets her first good look at the woman. She’s tall, not freakishly but her thin lithe frame does nothing but help to exaggerate her height, her face is sharp but pleasant with high cheekbones, a long nose, and a smattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose and cheeks. Long, bright ginger hair falls down her back and is kept from her face with a cloth hair band with sunflowers on it. She’s gorgeous. Not hot or sexy, like all of the one-night stands and sneaky links Vex has had over the years but in a natural unassumingly, and delicately pretty way. Pike reappears bringing Vex's train of thought to a screeching halt as the bobbing of a head and a dustpan and broom dance around her. As the short woman sweeps the flour that comes off the robin egg blue apron is left floating in the air, tiny speckles that Vex tries to avoid as best as she can.
“Anyways, I am so so sorry. What can I help you with? I’m Keyleth by the way.”
“Vex’ahlia… Vessar? I’m here to pick up some arrangements for a funeral?”
Keyleth’s face instantly dropped. She begins checking through the book behind the counter, flicking through the thick log.
“I’m so sorry, was he something to you?”
“My Father.”
“I’m sorry for your loss-” She is cut off.
“It’s no loss, of that I can assure you, darling.”
“Oh! Well… There are a few lilies we’re still waiting to get in for the main grave arrangement, but I can get them delivered to you tomorrow or you could pick them up, I’ll be here from about six. And you can take the smaller arrangements today? The wreaths are all ready and I have them in a box up the back.”
“Wonderful.” Vex shouted to her as she headed into the back, trying to figure out what would be the best course of action for the following day, never even minding the chaos it could throw the plans for the funeral as a whole into. “Well, darling, I’ll see you tomorrow then?” With the flick of a braid and a twirl of a leather jacket she exited.
“Bright and early!” The flash of red from behind the curtain separating the front and back of the store called out before realising the pretty woman had left with the lazy tinkling of the bell over the door.
Keyleth turned back towards the short woman sat criss-crossed on the top of the counter tying a variety of ribbons in pastel colours to a dozen boxes with cute miniature sourdough loaves and pastries, about halfway through the first bundle.
“So,” Pike smiled a half smirk as she elongated the ‘o’ sound, teasing the blush even further up the long neck of her friend, “the tall drink of water got you flustered or something?"
“Yeah… something like that. Who’s on delivery duty tomorrow?”