He watched as she pulled the coin purse out, and counted out several of the coins before pushing them over to him. For a moment he stared at the gleaming gold before chuckling and shaking his head, pushing a pair back over to her. “Unless the herbal shops in this city charge outrageous fees, this should be enough for me to get what we will need. Now. While I would love your company on this trip, if you have other things you need to accomplish today, I would be a terrible friend to keep you from doing so.” He stood up, slowly unfolding himself from the bench and stretching out his arms and shoulders.
“Though, if I go alone, I'll need to know where to meet you later. Else I'll be quite lost in this city.” This was said with a quiet chuckle as he raised an eyebrow at her.
“I only ‘have’ to go and see the Offices, which is something I was planning to do, but it does not particularly have a time in my weekly schedule. It is entirely up to you. If you think I would get in the way and are better at negotiating by yourself, then that is fine. My presence could be either a benefit or a hindrance, depending on if the apothecaries you go to actually like SIr Elssmith or not.” She paused. “He is a good employer, so those with family in his businesses like him. Others who are employed by his rivals do not. There are other issues, such as internal politics, but then that is business for you,” she rolled her eyes. And grunted, looking around at the half uneaten meal.
“Ansaldo’s cupcakes, I will come with you,” she eagerly stood, grabbing two sandwiches and stuffing them in her beak. After that was down she took a moment to shake down her feathers and preen some on her arm that she thought looked unsightly. With a briefly angled head and a tug of her beak on the offending plumage she ordered herself. Finally, she looked back up to Nevin and nodded. “Back to being proper.”
Nevin watched her small ritual with a glimmer of amusement dancing in his eyes. When she had finished her tidying up, it took him a great deal of willpower to resist the urge to reach out and tweak her feathers. He settled for biting his lip to stifle his laugh and picked up his coat and pack, slinging them on and adjusting them so they sat properly on his shoulders and back. That done, he popped one of the sandwiches into his own mouth and shot her a grin before settling his face into a blankly polite expression. Now ready, he opened the door and held it for her.
“As for who is beholden to who in this city, I shall rely upon your judgment my friend. I'm like a newborn child in this place - though thankfully I did not come here in my birthday suit. I think most would have an issue with that.” He coughed to hide his smile as they walked out to the streets, bowing to the ladies of the tea house as they left. It was probably not the first time those women had seen Stare making a business lunch here, and he doubted it would be the last. He cleared his throat and turned to look at her.
