The streets of Silverhaven bustled with life as merchants cried out their wares, children dashed between carts, and scents of roasted meats, freshly baked bread, and herbal tonics filled the air. For Selena, every sight and sound was overwhelming, painfully beautiful, terrifyingly free.
She followed close behind Red, still gripping the edges of the cloak he'd wrapped around her. Her bare feet slapped softly against the cobblestone roads, gathering glances from passersby, but she kept her head down.
Red: "Stay close."
His voice was calm, low. Not cold, not unkind, just… measured.
Selena nodded quickly, eyes flicking toward the market stalls. Her stomach growled again. The last real meal she had… she couldn't remember. Days? A week? They never fed the slaves properly.
Red paused by a food stall. Smoke curled up from skewers of meat sizzling over a flame, fat dripping down and hissing when it met the coals. The vendor, a rotund man with a booming laugh — turned.
Vendor: "Ah! Looking for a quick bite, friend?"
Red didn't speak. He simply reached into his pouch, pulled out a silver coin, and tossed it onto the stall's counter.
Red: "Three. Extra spice."
The vendor grinned and got to work.
Selena blinked in surprise. Her fingers twitched slightly. She didn't realize her mouth was open until she smelled the peppery seasoning and let out a tiny gasp.
When Red handed her one of the skewers, she hesitated. Then—
Selena: "Is… is this for me?"
He raised an eyebrow.
Red: "I didn't buy it to juggle them."
She laughed, an awkward, breathy sound that surprised even her. Then she took the skewer.
Her first bite burned her tongue. The second nearly brought tears to her eyes. By the third, she couldn't stop. Meat, charred and seasoned, broke apart in her mouth. The warmth filled more than her stomach. It reached her chest, her limbs.
Selena: "Thank you…"
Red: "Don't thank me for food. Everyone deserves to eat."
Selena stared at him. He didn't look back. He simply bit into his own skewer, chewing slowly, eyes watching the crowd.
They continued through the market. Red purchased a bar of soap from a woman selling handmade goods, then a cloth-wrapped packet of herbal shampoo from a traveling alchemist. Selena watched his every movement, noting how vendors didn't try to haggle. They didn't dare. Something about him made people cautious — like he carried something dangerous beneath the skin.
At a clothing stall, he paused again.
Red: "You need clothes."
Selena blushed deeply. She looked down at herself, the ragged, stained tunic she still wore from the slave pens clung to her, more like a warning sign than protection.
The shopkeeper, a thin old man with spectacles, looked her over once, then whistled softly.
Shopkeeper: "Needs something soft but durable. She's a small one, too."
Red nodded.
Red: "Tunic. White. Leather pants, black. Boots. Soap she can keep. Throw in undergarments."
Selena's face flamed again.
Selena: "I— I don't have any money…"
Red: "I'm not asking you to pay."
Selena: "But I—"
Red: "You're not a slave anymore, Selena. Start thinking like someone who owns their life."
He didn't say it cruelly. Just a reminder. A quiet truth. One that rooted itself into her.
Selena nodded, murmured a quiet "Yes…", and allowed the shopkeeper to guide her toward the fitting space behind a curtain. The soft tunic draped comfortably over her form, the black leather pants fit snugly, and the boots — gods, she'd never owned shoes before. Not like these.
When she emerged, Red gave a single nod.
Red: "Better."
They left the market with the sun already beginning its descent. Shadows stretched longer, the sky stained in orange and purple hues. Selena clutched a small cloth bag with her old rags tucked inside — Red had told her to throw them away, but she couldn't just yet. Maybe as a reminder.
He led her toward a quiet street lined with trees and lanterns, stopping before a two-story wooden building with a swinging sign that read The Hollow Hearth Inn.
Inside, the smell of stew and hearthfire greeted them. A round woman behind the counter smiled at Red warmly.
Innkeeper: "Back again, are we? You want your usual?"
Red: "Room for two. She needs a bath."
The innkeeper's gaze flicked to Selena, who shrank slightly under the scrutiny. But the woman's smile didn't falter.
Innkeeper: "Of course. Upstairs, third door on the left. There's warm water in the copper tub already. Towels and basin, too."
Selena followed Red up the stairs. Inside the room, it was simple — two beds, a table, and a washbasin near the tub.
Red didn't speak. He set her cloth bag down by the bed, turned, and walked toward the door.
Red: "Clean up. Rest. I'll be outside."
Then he left.
Selena stared after him for a long time, heart pounding in her chest. She was alone. In a room. Not a cage. Not a cell. Not a hovel with rats and screams.
She approached the copper tub, touched the surface of the water. It was warm. Steam curled around her fingers.
She cried.
She didn't mean to. The tears just came, not from sadness, or pain, but from something deeper. Grief for the years lost. Relief that it was over, or at least, this part.
She scrubbed every inch of herself. She used the shampoo until her brown hair smelled of mint and lavender. She rinsed, soaked, scrubbed again. She stared at her reflection in the water and barely recognized the girl looking back.
When she emerged, she wore the new clothes Red had bought for her. She touched the fabric with reverence. Clean. Hers. No slave collar around her neck. No chains.
She dried her hair with a towel and stepped out of the room barefoot, peeking down the stairwell. Red sat at a table in the corner of the inn's common room, sipping from a steaming mug. Not ale. Not mead.
Coffee.
She stepped lightly down the stairs and paused by the edge of his table. Red looked up.
Red: "Feel better?"
She nodded.
Selena: "Yes. Thank you. For everything."
Red: "It's just a bath."
Selena: "No. It's not."
He didn't reply. But something in his eyes softened.
Red: "Sit. You hungry again?"
Selena's stomach growled in answer. He gestured to the innkeeper, who brought over a bowl of stew with thick slices of bread. Selena ate slowly this time, savoring each bite.
When they finished, Red paid for the food and room, then led her back upstairs. The lanterns flickered as they entered the room.
Red unstrapped the chest piece of his armor, then the gauntlets and boots. Beneath it, his shirt was simple, travel-worn. He sat on one bed.
Selena sat on the other. For a moment, silence.
Selena: "Why did you buy me?"
Red didn't look at her.
Red: "You were the only one who didn't beg."
Selena blinked.
Selena: "I… was too tired to beg."
Red: "Exactly."
She looked down at her hands, fingers curling slightly.
Selena: "What now?"
Red: "Tomorrow we get gear. Then you go to the Adventurer's Guild."
Selena: "Me? An adventurer?"
Red: "Why not?"
Selena: "I've never held a sword. I've never even hunted a rabbit."
Red: "You'll learn. Everyone starts somewhere."
Selena: "Why help me?"
Finally, Red looked at her.
Red: "Because someone once helped me. I owe that forward."
Selena nodded slowly. Then, after a moment, she lay down on her bed. The sheets were soft. Clean. The pillow cradled her head like a dream.
Selena: "Goodnight, Red."
He didn't answer immediately.
Red: "Goodnight."
As sleep began to claim her, Selena whispered to herself, voice barely audible:
Selena: "Thank you…"
And for the first time in four years, she slept without fear.