The feeling settled uneasily in her chest, though it was strangely different from what she remembered, because these faces carried no calculation, no hidden expectations, no carefully disguised contempt.
Most of them simply looked happy, and she could not immediately understand why.
Before she could puzzle it through, another voice called out. "Your Highness."
An elderly woman slowly emerged from a flower stall overflowing with blossoms of every color imaginable.
Time had bent her back and silvered her hair, yet her smile remained warm as she approached with careful steps, and without saying another word she selected a single white lily from the display, neither the largest nor the most expensive flower but simply the freshest.
She tucked the stem beneath the ribbon securing the parcel of honey rolls resting on Liora's lap. "For the little princess," she said softly.
Liora looked at the flower in surprise. "I can't accept this without paying."
