Sunday, Jan. 31, early afternoon on Silk Road

[starlee-marrin.livejournal.com]

Bag over my shoulder, I walk into the town, looking around. There's so much to see, at least compared to the places I've been lately. The town seems to be doing pretty well for itself, so I guess this is a good place to try settling down. Dusting my hands off on my travel-worn pants, I take a deep breath and stretch my neck, then continue to walk down the street. Lots of shops, that's good. The people I see don't look weird, and I wonder for a moment if I'd been expecting them to have two heads or something. Polite nods, given and received; that's a relief, then. The places that aren't prosperous would just as soon run you through as look at you. They don't like competition for food.

I stay relaxed, strolling down the street, pausing to look into a shop window, hitch the slightly frayed strap of my bag higher on my shoulder, and pull my thin coat a little tighter around me before I continue to make my way toward the cross-street. Nice place. For a fleeting moment, I wish my parents had traded in places like this, but they'd be the first to point out that the smaller places mean less competition. But that's an old argument, with people who are miles from here by now, and this is /my/ path to walk, not theirs. Now to see exactly what's on this path. The possibilities are exciting, and I feel the grin on my face as I raise my face to the weak sunlight.

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