Nobody invites him, though Dogs Guy waves on his way out (not with a group).

Aww. He waves back and smiles and skips on the way out.

Probably he can find time to see that bridge today.

It's a nice bridge. It used to be for trucks but now it's only rated for pedestrian traffic - the structure is fine but the load was putting some stress on some underground things - so now it's a semipermanent open air market with produce and knitwear and honey and jewelry and knife-sharpening services and ice cream and stuff.

Oh.

That’s incredible. He shouldn't spend much right now but that's - what life is for, what cities are for. He examines all of the jewelry and knitwear and mentally calculates prices in hours worked and people decontaminated. Might as well get some produce, he does need to eat.

If he'll take bruised fruit he can get it at a discount.

He'll take it if he observes other people taking it before him and then being treated well by other nearby people.

Some people are taking it. They're mostly purple, and they're mostly not taking very much, but they'll take one bonked peach and cut the bruise out with a pocketknife and eat it right away, or chitchat with the stall owner about making jam.

Hm. People are mostly purple, but still. He'll wait and maybe do it next time if he has more data then.

He does pay attention to the way other people interact with the stall owners. That seems important.

Some of them just pick out things and buy them, or brush off questions with a "just looking" and then leave, but a minority will chat up the stall owners about where the goods are from or whether they'd recommend this one over that one.

Good to get a sense of how that works. He doesn't try talking to anyone this time. Maybe next time.