It was a short walk, thankfully for Peter’s stomach, to the baker that Traya had wao talk him to.It was awo-story building, small, with the luck of being on the er of the main street and side street.“Quaint. I like it.” Peter smiled as he followed Traya in, delighting in the sts of fresh baked goods; mostly breads but some sweets.“Oh. Shi—oot… I don’t have any money.” Peter frowraya smiled, pulling her pouch from her belt and the pocket hidden within, “Don’t worry about that. This is the least I do.”“I… couldn’t…” Peter’s mouth turned down, not into a full frown, but in unfortable displeasure, as he started to object.“You have literally just arrived to our world, and I’m fairly sure no one asked you permission.” Traya gave a sad, thoughtful look to the floor, “We should treat you better…”

  Peter had to wonder if Traya actually meant him or Ennalyssa, though it could very well have been bardless, the two were shaken from their thoughts by a woman calling out to them as Traya opehe door to the shop.Looking up Peter took her in, smiling. Something about her made him feel wele.Her smile seemed genuine, happy to see them — more than as potential ers — as her smile reached her eyes, making them kle at the edges. She was ‘soft’; that was the best eter could describe her. Curvy, but not fat, shapely but not thick.‘Housewife’ and ‘mother’; these were the, while perhaps ‘stereotypical’, words that came to his mind.“Good Morn, Sharra.” Traya smiled, giving a short wave, “I have someoo introduce to you.”Sharra smiled, waving back, “Oh do you?” She asked, looking to Traya’s panion, “Oh, my. Good Morn to you, young sir.” She smiled, aer was not sure if she was blushing or he was just notig her slightly red cheeks from exertion in her kit, either way, he did not think much beyond that.Peter blushed, mimig Traya’s wave, “Ma’am.”“He’s new?” She asked, already moving to get something, even though her had asked for anything.Traya nodded, “Just about fifteen minutes ago.”“… Pardon?” Peter blinked.Are summoning souls from other worlds that on she just… blithely say it like that?

  ?on enough, actually. Don’t fet; I told you Aetyros is a high-magic world. So while it’s not an everyday thing, of course: as you imagihe time, energy, and several resources go into each ‘summoning’ it is fairly on knowledge it happens, yes.?

  “Here you are, d.” Sharra broke Peter from his internal versation by putting something in his view, and his nose.His stomach growled again.“Couldn’t ask for a better pliment.” Sharra grinned, motioning for Peter to take the thickly cut slice of fresh bread, just warm enough to start melting the butter she had sthered over it, “And doher of you worry about payment.”“Mgh…” Peter said from around a mouthful of the wonderfully soft, slightly tangy bread, the butter smooth and very lightly salted, “… I haven’t had bread so fresh in ages.” He whispered, “This reminds me of something my Oma would make.”“Your…” Sharra blinked.“Ah, sorry. My grandmother. On my mom’s side, I called her Oma. My father’s mother was ‘grandma’.” Peter muttered softly, almost lost in enjoying the bread, taking another hearty bite.“High praise, then.” Sharra was already cutting another slice for him, having handed one off to Traya.Peter silently nodded in agreement, “Oma started teag me how to cook before we had to move away. We moved back a couple years ter and she taught me more…”“Oh, you cook?” Sharra smiled teasingly, giving a quice to Traya, “Any young ss would be lucky to have a catch like that.”“S-Sharra…” Traya hissed, holding her slice up to hide the bottom half of her face as she nibbled at it.Peter cleared his throat, “But yes. As Miss Traya said. I’ve been here all of … fifteen minutes.” He blushed a little, lig some of the fresh-made butter off his thumb as he accepted the sed slice, “So I very much appreciate the free bread and butter, “I don’t even have the clothes on my back…” He muttered.“Oh!” Sharra let loose a gale of hefty ughter, “I bet that was quite the first impression!!”Traya looked away, suddenly rather ied in a spot of dust on the simple tile floor.“You… could say that.” Peter coughed, “ht. My apologies. I’m Peter Karl.”“Peytr… Kharl” Sharra blinked, cog her head to one side.“I… suddenly have the dawning dread that one of, if not both, means something not ni some nguage here…” Peter wiraya shook her head, “Oh, no. It’s that you have a surhey aren’t… very on, you see.” She expined.Peter winced again, “Awarded, or ied atus?”“He’s pretty smart.” Sharra nodded.“Ah, Surnames are on where I’m from. There’s enough people in my world you need suro distinguish people apart… and evehere’s sometimes dozens, or more, people with the exact same names, spelt the same even.” Peter fihe first slice of buttered bread.“That is… a lot of people.” Traya whispered, surprise clear on her face.Peter nodded in agreement, “It is.”“So, you’re a Champion then… or are you…” Sharra asked, leaning over the ter curiously, eyes wide, “… a God Child?”Biting into the sed slice of buttered bread he looked between the older and younger dies, “That is… the sed time… I’ve heard ‘Champion’ but ‘God Child’ is o me.”

  ?It’s what you are, actually~? Na’at popped into his mind’s ‘ear’.

  “A God Child is someone who is from another world who was brought to Aetyros by one of the te-nine gods and goddesses. Or summoned, and oio the summoning by the deity that the summoner is invoking for the summoning.” Traya expined.

  Na’at grumbled ier’s mind at that but said nothing further.

  Traya tinued, “Usually a God Child is blessed above and beyond a Champion. Sometimes even pletely remade, which leads to, well, the ‘child’ part… you know… because…”Peter nodded, listening to her expnation, “Because they’re teically reborn by that goddess’ power.”“And then there are the Heroes.” Sharra piped in, “Those are those who have been reborn from their world into Aetyros. So they belong to this world as much as anyone else, but they have that spark of something else to them.”“Mh.” He nodded, listening, and nibbling on his sed slice of buttered bread, now about halfway dohree different ways a person could be reborn into this world.”“Right.” Traya nodded, “Though that’s not to say that people born of this world ’t be heroes either.”“Oh, of course. That’s as, nins.” Peter agreed.The older woman in charge of the bakery smiled, “You look hungry, Peytr.” She pushed off the tertop and stood back up, “Please. Is there anything you’d like? I have different breads, and some sweeter things if you’d like.” She held up her hand to Traya, “No charge this time. It’s the least I do for him.”

  “Oh dear.” Peter chuckled, finishing the bread and wiping the butter from his lip, swallowing, “I, ah…”

  “Yeah, I get that way too.” Came a ugh from the door to the bakery, the door quietly creaking open.The new voice beloo a dy as well and, turning, she nearly made Peter choke.

  ?Oh? You have a type, do you?? Na’at teased, seeing the newer from Peter’s eyes: She was tall, standing half-a-head above Peter himself and she was ‘thick’ as Peter might call her. Her arms were clearly muscled and he wondered what she did to get them that way — though the fairly heavy-lookiher apron and dark-lensed goggles hanging around her neck gave her son a clue.

  As Peter looked on, he realized it was not just her arms that were built, her tall frame exuded a strength and fidence, a power, that he wished he had. Her dark green eyes were sharp and smart, and they met gnces just briefly and she smirked at him. Her skin was a soft red-brown, and tanned on top of that; from a fire or just being in the sun he was not sure.Her legs were long, shaped, and sculpted with muscles that told him he did not want to deal with her kig or stomping on him.He was sure that anyone foolish enough to steal from her would be in dear need of a healer or healing magic.“Hey, Sharra~” Her voice was a low timbre, with a rough edge to it but otherwise smooth to listen to, and she stretched her arms over her head, cog a hip to one side as she strode towards the ter from the door.She did not have an hss figure but her hips did swell out a little, with her core being solid aer could just see the sides of her abs as she passed by, her chest ed in a couple yers of cloth but otherwise bare.

  She’s got to be a bcksmith… it just makes sense…

  ?Oh she is showing off~? Na’at snickered, ?But not to you, I think.?

  Why would she show off to me? She doesn’t know me…Peter was not sure but he could swear he heard Na’at try to stifle a grumble as he turo follow this new person, fag back to Sharra.Ahh…

  Sharra, the baker, was bright red in the face as the taller muscur proached her, a smile curling her lips, “H-Hello… Khasha… Good M-Morn.”“Good Morn, Sharra.” Khasha chuckled, “I’m just taking my m break and was hoping to grab a loaf of your dark plowman’s bread. And maybe one of your little sweetcakes.”“S-Sure!” Sharra agreed quickly, “I..I’ll be right back, Traya, Peytr…” She stepped back, and quickly scampered off into the back.

  Khasha giggled, turning around and half-leaning against the ter, crossing her arms over her apron and looking at the two, “Sorry if I cut in line.” She gave a genuine apology.“Oh, it’s alright.” Peter coughed, “I was, ah, I was just trying to process her generosity. I’ve just arrived here and—““Arrived?” She asked, cog her head in i, and her pointed ears wiggled, making her four piergs k against each other, “From where, if you don’t mind me asking?”Peter looked to Traya, who nodded, and he looked back to her, “I… am from another world. I’ve just been summoned and have only been around here for fifteen or so minutes. Probably twenty by now.”“Mh, een at most.” Traya corrected, which fused Peter as to why she was being so exact.“Well!” Khasha pushed off the ter and smacked Peter’s back heartily, “Well-e to Freiholm, then. Largest city in the try.”“So I was told.” Peter chuckled, pitg forward a bit from it.Khasha looked to Traya, “Ah. You’re pying guide are you?”“I-I was assigned by Shepherd d’Zaier as Peytr’s aide but yes, I am guiding him around the city, at least a little.”“Ah.” At the mention of Santis’ name, Khasha frowned, “Well, hopefully it’s not too hard for you.”“I’m trying to behave” Peter tried joking, smiling awkwardly, “Though it seems I might’ve not impressed two people already… maybe two and a half.”“Half?” Khasha blinked fused.Traya held her hand about waist-high, causing Khasha to burst out a ugh.

  Reentering with a cloth-ed package in her hands Sharra smiled, handing it over to the bcksmith, “Here you go. One loaf of dark plowman’s bread, and a sweetcake.”“Thanks, hun.” Khasha smiled at Sharra’s cheeks brightening, “How much do I owe you?”“The usual; just six dausch.”“Mh. Sorry, to make you make ge…”, Handing over three s — two being a dull gray that was likely iron, the other one being a dull silverish color — Khasha took her package, as well as some iron s as ge, and waved, “Later, then. And Well-e, agair was it?”“Yes ma’am.” Peter nodded.“If you need a on e by my shop, I’ll set you up right. Both Traya and Sharra direct you!” She gave a short two-fingered salute before exiting, already uning her purchase and, before the door closed, the three could hear a girlish giggle as she bit into the sweetcake.

  ?So…? Na’at started, ?You see it tht? Khasha’s hand lingered just a bit when she gave Sharra the s…?

  What I think I see is none-of-my-business, Na’at.

  ?Party-pooper…?

  You’re the Goddess of Chaos… isn’t pying matchmaker a little out of your sphere of influence?

  ?… I’m…? Na’at stumbled over her words a little, ?Oh, hun… I think Momma is gonna have to sit you down for a talk…?

  With my ay, please… please be mindful of using that phrase? ‘We o talk’ or simir will just… spike me.

  ?ht right… Sorry about that kiddo.? And, for a moment, there was a warmth surrounding him, he was uain but Peter had a feeling she somehow hugged him.

  “Everything alright?” Sharra asked as Peter had gone ‘silent’ again, w slightly.Traya looked like she was trying not to say ‘Oh, he does that, it’s fine… probably.’

  “Yes, yes, sorry.” Peter sighed, “Just… a lot to learn in a short amount of time.” He spun quickly, ahe best lie was the truth — o mention he was talking to the Goddess who was seemingly persona non grata in the local religion after all, “I was already w about not having money, but it just hit me that I’ll have to learn a totally new currency system… math too.” He held up both hands, fingers extended, “Where I’m from is what’s called a ‘base ten’. So, zerh nine. Or, I guess, ohrough ten.” He wiggled his fingers.“So, each finger is a ‘unit’?” Traya asked.Peter hen we’d have… what’d you call it, ‘base’?” Sharra started, and wheer nodded again, tinued, “Base ten, too. Each finger joint, thumb not included.” She tapped the tip of her thumb across each joint of her four fingers quickly as an example; ting out, to Peter, to twelve. So, to Sharra, it was base-10 but to Peter he was realizing he was fag a base-12.“Iiieeee…” Peter sighed.Sharra, chug, gave Peter a small round bun, “Here, hun.” She said, “A frycake.”“A wha—“ He looked down, reizing the sheen of semi-melted sugar, the light golden brown color with a slightly paler middle line, “Is this…” He bit into it.Yes. Yes, it is. This is a doughnut… a simple, blessed, delicious sugar-coated, hole-less doughnut.

  Sharra and Traya started to ugh, with the older woman asking, “Did you just squeak, hun?” She giggled.Peter blushed, “I really like doughnuts… er… frycakes.”“Doughnuts?” Sharra blinked.He shrugged, “I know, they don’t look like ‘nuts’, but they are made out of dough.” He paused, “Actually, the name es from… olykoek… which means ‘oily cake’, because of the oily feeling fr…” He paused, “Ah, sorry…”“So you don’t just like to cook, you know a lot of food history, too.” Sharra grinned.Peter, blushing, held up a hand with his thumb and fiip a very small distance apart, “Ye. You could say that.” He stuffed the rest of the frycake into his mouth to muffle himself.“You’ll have to e by more often. I love it when a person is so passionate about their is. Right, Traya?”Traya gave a soft ‘eep’ and blushed as well, but nodded in agreement, “Y-Yes. It shows you have passion.”Sharra grinned, “I think I know what to give you if you haven’t e up with anything on your own. How does two loaves of that bread you nibbled on sound, and a dozen frycakes?”“That is extremely generous… Miss Sharra…” Peter flustered softly.The older woman — though Peter realized probably not that much older than he was until retly — waved it off, “Just promise to e back, I’d love to chat with a fellow food-lover.”“If time permits, I don’t know how busy I’ll be with whatever duties I’m to be given.”“Of course, of course.” Sharra smiled.The three’s versation was interrupted by the opening of the door and the entering of two more people. Catg sight of Peter and Traya the ohrough the door first’s lip curled like he did not like them being there.“Mrh.” Came from behind him as the doorway was taken up by someone as tall as, and nearly as wide as, the door.Both were wearing long coats to cover their forms and hide their outfits, colrs up-turned, and wearing ft-styled caps.

  Sharra’s cheerful demeanor dropped as she eyed the two, “You two again?”“Nice way to treat ers…” The front-man fired ba a rough tohat made Traya shiver and put Peter on edge.He did not need Na’at in his mind’s ear to tell him the guy was bad news.Sharra, however, didn’t quail, “The st ten times you’ve been in here you two haven’t bought anything.”“Fihen, potential ers.” He corrected with an overly dramatic bow, spreading his arms.Shifting his arms, and crag his knuckles the ‘door’-man behind the first one grunted, “We’re here to talk.”“And I’ll tell you this time what I told you st time and the time before that. And what my husband told you before he left with the militia. No.”“Aw, don’t be like that Sharra.” ‘Front’-man grinned. disingenuously, “Hear us out this time, at least.”“Fine.” She crossed her arms, waiting.With a nod, he stepped up closer to the trio, ‘door’-man behind him shovier out of the way so he could stand at the ter.Peter gave an ‘oof’ but only took a step back, meeting the man’s eyes with a searg look of his own, trying to read his i.He had a feeling, though, that he knew what was about to happen.

  “So, yes. I won’t dance around the issue.” ‘Front’-man said, “We’re here on behalf of the Nine Pirading pany to… give a business proposition.”‘Door’-man pipped up in a gruff, uneven voice, “And it’s a rather lucrative ooo. You should really hear it out in its ey.”“Wow, using the big words…” Peter snarked.Sharra smirked as ‘Door’-man turned and gripped Peter’s leather tunid tried to loom over him; which didn’t work terribly well since he was only a couple ialler than the one he was trying to intimidate — Peter, doing his best to put some practi on his cadreface remained impassive, staring straight ahead at the man.“Ignore him, he ain’t worth it.” ‘Front’-man sneered, but paused, looking at Peter, “I sider myself a ‘man about town’ and… I ain’t seen you around before.”“I just got here.” Peter smiled casually, “Could say I was summoned by Shepherd d’Zaier himself…”“Summoned, eh?” ‘Front’-man echoed.Peter just shrugged, brushing ‘Door’-man’s hands off and away from his leather jerkin.“If you two goons could get on with the pyact, I have actual ers to serve.” Sharra pointed out.“Right. Fine.” ‘Front’-man pulled off his ft cap and ran a hand through a short-cut crop of hair before tugging it back down over his head, “My boss at the Nine Pirading pany wants to, once agaiend a purchasing offer to you for this building—““My home.” Sharra interrupted.“For which you would be duly given repense and time to find new residence before any sort of transfer of power, or profit, would occur.”“Your boss just wants my er building for another Sun-and-Stag public house.” Sharra said, “Not like there’s not two dozen or more already iy.”“I’m just the messenger, Sharra, don’t take your ire out on me.” ‘Front’-man held up his hands in surrender, “Just bringing this by at his request.”“Heard-tell…” ‘Door’-man spoke up, givier a gre as if daring him to say something again as he tio talk, “… There’s been some unsavory types going around making life difficult for small shop owners like you, Miss Sharra.”Peter, for his part, said nothing, holding up his hands pgly.“Unsavory types?” Sharra echoed, “I just imagine.” She inhaled and looked at the two, “My husband and I have owhis building, our home for twenty years…”“And for the st five, it’s been just you, yeah?” ‘Front’-man asked, his tone sickly-sweet.“And my kids. And Khasha.” Sharra gave her best gre to ‘Front’-man.At the name-drop of the tall, muscled bcksmith, ‘Front’-man backed up, “Is that right?”“It is.” Sharra affirmed with a nod.Even ‘Door’-man stiffened.“So. Again. The ao yenerous offer is a polite and firm ‘no’, Jorjio.” Sharra name-dropped him in the same tone he had been using on her.Jorjio snorted, “Right.” He o his partner, “e on, then. We’ve taken up enough of these nice people's time.He turned and quickly made his exit, with ‘Door’-man shoulderier as he followed.

  When the door shut Sharra nearly colpsed, having to lean against the ter; looking up with pinprick tears in the er of her eyes she said, with a shaky voice, “Please, I just need a moment and I get your things.”“You take your time.” Peter said, gently putting his hand on her shoulder, “And, for what it’s worth? If they give you even the slightest bit of trouble… let me know?”“I… I couldn’t…” Sharra shook her head, “Peytr that’s kind of you but—““They were trying to shake you down.” Peter said, “Right?”“… Their boss has beera persistent since my husband’s passing to purchase this building. I don’t trust, for a breath, that I’d actually get a fair deal. I imagihe paymeing lost somewhere along the way, or disappearing… but I’d still have to move out.”“If they try anything you let me know.” Peter repeated, firmly, nodding.Sharra gave a shuddering breath, standing back up, “Alright. Fine…” Inhaling she gave a tired, shaky, smile, “Two of those Hiker’s Loaves, and a dozen and a half frycakes.”Before Peter could say anything she went into the back to fill the order. Traya, standing there, shaking, fingers gripping at her dress looked on at Peter with unsure curiosity.

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