Page 118 of A Soul to Embrace

By the end, she held two specific plants to her nose hole: bergamot and sandalwood. He raised a brow when her snout repeatedly moved in his direction, like she was shyly glancing at him, but she quickly turned away when her orbs shifted to a reddish pink.

Before he could linger on it, his gaze lifted towards the canopy of leaves when he heard the lightest shaa.It’s raining.He was rather fond of the way the rain hit the leaves above the village, and he almost closed his eyes in contentment.

It sounded gentle, like the droplets were light. The music of them was calming as they reverberated off the lush green foliage.

The canopy would only allow singular drops through here and there, and it wasn’t a reason to close up shop and run. Most of the water would follow along the twisting branches and head towards the tree trunks. The multiple levels of branches helped direct that flow, and only the luckiest of drops would reach the lowest set of leaves and trickle against the ground.

It may grow muddy beneath their feet, but it would take a long while, or a much heavier downpour.

Once she was done trying to inhale the pieces of bergamot and sandalwood into her snout, sniffing wildly as she did, they moved on.

He almost chuckled when she halted at the first jewellery store.I guess females are the same, no matter their species.Then again, he thought what may have caught her gaze was the way the silver, gold, and gems glittered in the strategically placed firelight.

He considered these pieces of low quality. If she wanted nicer accessories, there were permanent stalls within the village that had jewellery that’d been crafted by those who were more skilled.

She eventually moved on until a better jewellery store caught her attention.Human jewellery.Obviously those pieces were stolen from corpses that had been eaten, or maybe they were hunted and their parts brought back to the Veil for meat – which was a feat all on its own.

Getting fresh, sellable meat of any creature to the inner ring of the Veil was difficult. Due to the low availability and the challenge of getting it here safely, anything pertaining to meat was expensive.

The shopkeeper, a male who was scarred but mostly humanoid, tried his hardest to snag a sale from her. His tanned hands picked up different pieces to show her, letting each one sparkle against his fingertips before he reached for something else. He complimented the colour of her fake void-like fur and told her which ones would best suit her features.

Jabez leaned against the corner post of the rickety store and raised both his brows at them interacting.He’s good, I’ll give him that.Zylah had been quieter and less confident at the beginning of their exchange, and only grew flustered under the weight of being told a certain necklace would look pretty on her.

Jabez knew that was a lie, considering it instantly sunk into the thick collar of her fur around her neck and almost disappeared. But he had no intention of ruining her fun.

At least none of it seems to be cursed.He would have been displeased had any of the pieces spooked her due to being an anchor for a human Ghost. Not all Demons could see them, but he had a feeling all Mavka were able to.

They are a part of life and death.This he knew, and not only had Merikh told Jabez of his ability to see them, but Zylah had pointed one or two out this night.

Jabez’s brows narrowed.The Witch Owl has been here recently.There would be far many more had she not been.

Despite how much the Witch Owl pestered and annoyed him, stopping her from this task would have brought on more problems than it was worth. Allowing her here promoted synergy within the village, and peace for those wandering it.

Jabez did wonder what would happen to the souls attached to the anchors if they were to be swallowed by a Mavka. This thought wasn’t a new one, especially when he’d always wondered what happened to the clothing, armour, and accessories worn by humans they’d eaten. If they didn’t produce waste, then where did it all go?

Perhaps it deteriorates in their non-existent but existent stomachs.He hummed in thought, knowing vividly how the inside of one of her kind worked. It was honestly a mess, nothing truly solid except for their hearts, lungs, and muscles. He’d found no liver, no kidneys, no digestive tract – it was like it all just turned into goop.

Zylah picked up different pieces of jewellery in interest, lifting them to the lantern light nearby to better see how they gleamed. She seemed fascinated by gems the most. Her tail wiggled in delight at certain ones, especially if they were large.

Goldie did wonderfully.Zylah looked comfortable in her new outfit, and it was far more flattering than what he’d made. The moderate navy was a nice, subtle contrast to her natural fur tones, and he did like the way the skirt swayed around her thighs.

It also covered that round, kneadable backside of hers, and that’s what he considered most important. More for his sanitythan really from preventing others from leering at her – his cloak had been a good shield for that.

Though, he actually found it more titillating to watch the back of her skirtbouncelike it might gift him a naughty peek. Did any male not feel hope that they just might get one? It was like a game to his eyes, seeing if he could catch a rare moment.

The outfit also accentuated her sensual hourglass curves, such as her small chest, her tucked-in waist, wide hips, and those kneadable, glorious thighs of hers.I do like her thighs a lot.They helped to support her thick backside, which also looked fun to play with and was currently what his hungry eyes hoped for a peak of.

He slid his gaze up when she attempted to slip on a ring, only for it to stop right before the second knuckle. She lifted her head and hand in his direction and wiggled her forefinger.

“I don’t think any of these will fit me,” she stated with a small laugh, unbothered by such a notion.

Jabez opened his mouth to respond, but was silenced quickly.

“Well, your hands are rather large,” the shopkeeper said with a chuckle. “Perhaps a bracelet?”

The shopkeeper waved his hand towards the bracelets available, and Jabez knew anything that was feminine wouldn’t fit her. Human females tended to have dainty, breakable wrists. If anything, only the thick, braided silver chain obviously once belonging to a male would fit.

Figuring what Jabez had, she shook her head and lost interest in the stall. She waited for him to push off from his leaning post once more.

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