Aligeri - Chapter 4

Chapter Four: Showdown

Clarice looked at the floor as she tried to calm herself down. A new tunic and a new cloak. Right. She took a deep breath and bent over to pick up the tape again.

"W-Well..." she started, still trying to completely compose herself. "I'm going to have to ask you to not say such things, I don't want to startle my brother in the other room..."

She kept her voice soft, both out of rising nervousness and not wanting her brother to hear the conversation if he was awake.

"Sorry," Accipiter grumbled. "I didn't know."

He shifted his shoulders again.

"Do I... need to take off my cloak?"

Clarice nodded, slightly calmer now.

"I can't get an accurate measurement if you don't, I'm afraid," she told him. He seemed practically more nervous than she was, although she didn't know why he would have that much of an excuse. He was more frightening than she was. Or... at least she didn't think that she was all that frightening.

"You'll... scream," he said. "I'm hideous..."

Clarice smiled lightly.

"It's alright, I'm sure that I can handle it."

She tried to sound encouraging, if it was a little issue of self esteem or something, she would do her best to try and help him. She didn't really know what he looked like or anything, but it's not like she was going to just judge him by his appearance, although he was a little frightening. But that was a given, with the whole cloak and large stature and everything. Accipiter continued to frown as he slowly unclasped his cloak. He took it carefully off of his shoulders, and lastly, with a pause, pulled the hood from over his head.

If Clarice wasn't startled, Chay was. He squeaked and hid behind her dress. Accipiter had a flat, ridged nose and strange, almost cat-like ears. He wouldn't look directly at her, but she could see that his irises were unnaturally large. Clarice took a deep breath.

"Now, that wasn't too bad," she said simply, putting on another smile. "It shouldn't take me too long to measure you, but I'll try not to make you feel uncomfortable. I know some people can feel that way during the process."

Actually, she did a good job at keeping herself professional. She had to admit that his appearance had startled her, but... she didn't find him hideous.

"Ok..."

Despite his appearance, Accipiter seemed a lot less intimidating now that his face had been revealed. It was probably because he seemed more afraid of Clarice than she was of him. Clarice tried to make herself seem as harmless as possible. Not like she did mean any harm, but she didn't want Accipiter to be so nervous around her.

"Please put your arms out like this..." she directed as she went in to measure around his waist. She was very gentle and careful with her movements, but not slow, so that it would make him nervous. She did the same thing for his shoulders and arms and chest. It was rather simple, and when she was done, she beamed.

"And that's all."

When she had measured his chest and shoulders, he had flinched, as if the tape was causing him pain. As soon as she was done, he quickly put his cloak on again and pulled up the hood.

"When do I pay?" he asked.

"Um, when you come to pick up the clothes..." she started, but her brow furrowed in worry at what she had seen a few seconds before. "I'm sorry, you had flinched when I was measuring your chest and shoulders... did I hurt you?"

"Just some wounds that haven't healed yet," Accipiter explained. "I should go now. I'll come back tomorrow for them."

He slowly started to skulk out of the shop.

"Oh... alright... be careful out there!" Clarice called after him, still a little worried. She shook her head when he was gone.

"Oh dear..." she muttered, not exactly sure what she was feeling. Relief or worry. So she looked down at Chay.

"I guess I should get to work on those orders then," she started, then paused. "Oh... where did Ellen go? After that man came in..."

"She's under your bed," Chay said, still shaking. "And I think I know how he knew that you're... well, you know."

"Really? How?!"

Clarice looked kind of scared again, but she still wanted to know. She kind of felt like she needed to, considering it was about her. The sprite looked up at her, absolutely terrified.

"Last night... at the feast... remember what happened?"

Clarice gasped.

"That... t-that was..."

It all made sense. The large cloak, the injuries, having ruined his last tunic, his appearance... Clarice put her head in her hands. She had been so rude to him at first! If she had known, she would've been afraid, but at least she would've understood.

"At least he's less hostile at the moment," Chay said, then rubbed the back of his neck. "Um... we should probably go tell Ellen it's safe to come out now."

Clarice smiled, then gave a little laugh.

"Yeah, we probably should. I doubt it's very comfortable under my bed."

So Clarice went into her room, went on her knees, and peeked under the bed. Sure enough, the sprite was under there with her head facing the ground, her eyes shut tight, and her hands clamped protectively over her head.

"Ellen?" she called softly. "You can come out now."

Ellen gave a little squeak of fright, but opened one of her large eyes, and then the other and peered out hesitantly. Even for a sprite, it was kind of amazing she had gotten under there without reverting to animal form. It was a really tight fit. Chay popped his head under the bed.

"The scary guy went away," he told her, smiling. "Hey, I bet Alyx has finished that fruit bread by now."

At the sight of Chay, Ellen visibly relaxed, and smiled lightly. Since it was safe, she started to make her way out from under the bed, but stopped. Puzzled, she tried again. After a moment, she found the cause of the problem.

"C-Chay! My dress is caught on a loose nail and I can't roll on my side to reach it!" Though she could crawl under and out of there easy enough, there just wasn't enough space for her to roll over or put her hand under herself to find and untangle it. Also, if she moved too fast, she'd most likely rip her dress. Panic was slowly settling in, but it was also from the fact that it was finally sinking in how small the space she was under was, and that she was partially claustrophobic.

"Calm down, silly!" Chay said, trying not to laugh. "Just turn into your animal form."

Ellen's face went blank, showing that usual dense self of hers. Instantly she calmed down. It was really good that Chay was there, because she was the kind of person who wouldn't be able to think of something like that. Once what he said completely processed, her face went red with embarrassment and she changed into her animal form, scurried out from under the bed, and then changed back. She was still obviously really embarrassed.

"T-Thank you, Chay."

"Don't mention it," he chirped with a wide grin. "Hey Clarice, can we go see if Alyx finished with that bread yet? It's getting close to supper."

Clarice laughed and nodded.

"Yes, of course! Let's go take a break and see Alyx."

And so, now in somewhat better spirits, the trio set off towards the bakery once more. Of course, Clarice made sure to put that the shop was closed for the time being.

The bakery was twice as messy as usual after baking bread. It had been quite an adventure talking Guy through making bread step by step, with much blundering along the way. They were finally taking two finished loaves out of the oven: one Guy had made, and the one Alyx had prepared as a sample. He just hoped that the prince had listened when he said not to add any more sugar. Guy was happy. Very, very pleased with himself. He couldn't believe that he had actually made a loaf of bread! And with a BAKER, no less. Sure, he had successfully gotten flower all over himself, but it was worth it. Even if he couldn't put as much sugar in the bread as he thought there should be.

"We did it!" The prince exclaimed gleefully as there came a knock at the door and Clarice's voice called through the door.

"Hello, Alyx?"

Guy looked over at Alyx with a kind of amused little grin. It was almost creepy. But he didn't say anything, just kind of giggled – er – chuckled to himself and got himself amused with staring at the bread again. Alyx carefully moved away from him to answer the door.

"You're just in time," he said with a half-smile. "We just pulled the loaves out."

Clarice smiled at Alyx.

"Ah! I see. It smells great in here."

At the new arrivals, Guy looked up and smiled.

"Hello there!" he said cheerfully in a near sing-song voice. Clarice greeted him as well, and Ellen just kind of moved closer to Chay. Chay waved enthusiastically back at the prince while Alyx cut slices of bread from his loaf for all of them.

"You can take that loaf with you, sire, if you would like."

Guy pouted slightly when Alyx addressed him.

"Aww, come on! You don't have to be all formal with me, just call me Guy."

"Oh! So you're Prince Guy Alymer? It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Clarice."

The two smiled and shook hands pleasantly, and then Guy looked back at his loaf that Alyx told him he could take with him. After staring at it for a while... he found that he actually was kind of scared to see how it had turned out, considering he'd never baked a thing in his entire life. As they all sat around the table to eat the bread, Chay seemed to be utterly fascinated with Guy's presence.

"Wow... a human prince, spending time with commoners..." the sprite muttered as he chewed on his bread. After Guy heard this, he looked over at the sprite and laughed.

"Who else would I spend time with? Besides, I can see nobility all the time, and whenever I do, none of them are interesting at all. I've met some of the nicest and most interesting people here! And only a few were nobility, although they weren't human."

The prince grinned.

"And baking bread sure is fun!"

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," Alyx laughed. "It's just work for me."

"Liar," Chay teased. "You wouldn't do it if you didn't like it."

The baker just rolled his eyes.

"How do you like the bread, Clarice?"

Clarice beamed.

"It's delicious!"

She had taken a few bites of it already (she was taking her sweet time with eating it), and she really did enjoy it.

"Thank you for letting me have some, Alyx."

He smiled back at her and they all continued to eat their bread. It didn't take very long for the loaf to vanish, and Alyx was the first one up and cleaning.

"Well, I need to get back to work. I have a few more orders to fill out before the end of the day."

"We should head back to the forest," Chay said to Ellen. "Midsummer preparations begin at dusk, and we need to be there for it."

"And I should go back and check up on my brother, then start working on that order I got before we left," Clarice added.

Ellen nodded to Chay, she had almost forgotten about the midsummer festival with all those preparations.

"Hey, Alyx? Can I help you clean up?" Guy asked cheerfully. "I don't have anywhere I need to be or anything."

"Um... sure, if you want to," Alyx answered, perplexed that anyone would want to clean. "There's a broom over in that closet. You can start sweeping."

So as the others left, Guy hummed pleasantly to himself and grabbed the broom. Luckily, he didn't sweep in a way that it would damage anything. He was actually doing a pretty good job.

The rest of the day went by uneventfully. Alyx sold more bread, and Guy swept to his heart's content. Customers came and went from the tailor's, and everything quieted down once the sun set. It looked like it would be a peaceful evening.

"So, are you staying at the palace, Guy?" Alyx asked once everything was completely cleaned up. "Or are you staying at the inn?"

"I'm staying at the inn." Guy replied. "It's nice there, and I feel like I can actually... you know, fit in. It's really depressing back home. I couldn't go anywhere without being stared at just because I lived in a castle. I'm glad for a change."

"Well, I hope you have a good evening," Alyx said. "Thanks for helping around the shop today. Feel free to drop by any time."

Guy nodded as he started on the way out.

"Thanks for having me, Alyx. I had a lot of fun."

As he opened the door and was about to leave, he stopped and asked, "Hey Alyx, does this mean we're friends?"

A bit taken aback, Alyx paused before he smiled softly and nodded.

"Yeah, I guess it does."

He wouldn't have expected anyone to ask that, especially not a prince. Guy smiled.

"Thanks, I'm glad. I finally have a friend!" he cheered happily. "Well, g'night, I'll visit soon!"

And humming to himself again, he went off on his way back to the inn to get ready to sleep. It was a good thing the prince had already made sleeping arrangements there, because when he entered the inn, the innkeeper seemed to be in a heated debate with a late night arrival.

"I'm sorry sir," he told the man. "But there are no more rooms available."

"I need a room," the stranger said back in a deep voice. "I need a room to sleep."

"Yes, yes you said that, but I'm sorry, there are none available."

"Huh?"

Guy blinked as he came in and just-so-happened to catch the conversation that was going on between two individuals. He was in a good mood, just having baked a loaf of bread, had it with him, and had just made a friend as well, so when he heard what was going on, he piped up behind the man, "Excuse me sir, would you like to use my room?"

He had that simple little smile on his face, completely innocent. This man could be a maniac, but was he going to stop and think about that? Well... no.

"Are you sure, Prince Aylmer?" the innkeeper asked. "That's very generous of you."

The man who'd been seeking a room turned towards Guy. Though his face was mostly concealed, he seemed startled to see him and moved back slightly.

"No, thank you," he said to Guy, his lips barely moving. "I'll find somewhere else."

Before the prince could respond, the man made to leave. He was just passing Guy when he abruptly stopped. He turned towards him again and sniffed loudly.

"You smell strange... Where were you last?"

Guy almost jumped, but then had to stifle a giggle. He was being smelled.

"Oh! I was at a bakery, and I got some bread, too! Would you like some?" he asked cheerfully, holding out the loaf he had in his hands.

"No, thank you," he said again, and then he seemed to growl slightly as he swiftly exited the inn. The innkeeper scratched his chin.

"That was very strange... did he just growl at you?"

Guy looked a little disappointed as he looked back at the innkeeper.

"Hmm... I'm not sure. I wonder if I upset him somehow... I was just trying to help him out."

"I wish I could have sold him a room, but we're completely full. Frankly, the man scared me."

He brushed off the counter in front of him.

"Well, sire, you're room is all ready for you whenever you are ready to retire."

Guy nodded and smiled at the innkeeper.

"I see, thank you very much!"

And with that, Guy started towards his room. He was a little sleepy. It had been a very exciting day.


It was a peaceful night until around one o'clock in the morning. The clock tower had just hit the hour when an all too familiar screeching sound echoed down the town streets.

Guy woke up with a jerk and a start, jumping abruptly out of bed. It couldn't be... the aligeri was back. The prince felt his knees go weak as he grabbed his sword and ran to the window to look out. He wasn't wearing a tunic right now, but he didn't really care... all he knew right now was that he didn't want to have to hurt him again.

But it looked like he might have to. Thankfully, it was a clear night, and the moon provided enough light to illuminate the streets. Sure enough, the bestial aligeri was there, and it looked like it was fighting someone. At this distance, it was impossible to tell who, but other townspeople were lined along the sides, some trying to help, some watching in horror. Even though several men were trying to fight the aligeri, it seemed absolutely focused on its first target and threw them off without much effort.

Guy cursed under his breath, and without wasting anymore time, threw on a shirt and ran outside with his sword. There were definitely a lot of people watching, and he tried to get a better view of the battle. He didn't want to fight, but he didn't want anyone to get hurt, either. It was also stupid to just run in there. He'd have to wait and see how the battle progressed.

Once he was close enough to the battle, he could finally see who it was the aligeri was fighting:

Alyx.

Guy's eyes went wide. Alyx! He wanted to go in and help, but he couldn't be reckless! He might end up just making things worse.

Meanwhile, Clarice had run out into the crowds after hearing the sound, and had been utterly shocked to see the sight before her. It was even worse after realizing who the bestial aligeri most likely was. What she didn't understand was why he was fighting Alyx; even more was that she was feeling very, very worried about how the situation might turn out.

As for the baker, he was holding up surprisingly well against the bestial aligeri. There were too many people watching for Alyx to risk just flying off, and that probably wouldn't help anyway. Still, he was doing a remarkable job of just avoiding blows, though he had sustained a few injuries already. He'd never been in any sort of fight before, and was completely unprepared.

And the fight raged on. It was mostly one-sided, and it was obvious that Alyx had no idea what to do. Clarice couldn't watch – she didn't want to see this violence. She tried to avert her eyes, but couldn't, she was too worried about what might happen.

Guy realized how focused the aligeri seemed to be on Alyx, and also that Alyx didn't seem to really know what to do. If only he could get in closer to Alyx, he'd be able to toss him his sword or something!

Just then, the aligeri kicked Alyx square in the chest, sending him into the cobblestone pavement. There was a nasty cracking sound, and before he could stand, the beast had his foot on his sternum, trying to crush it. Alyx grabbed onto its ankle and pushed upward, but it was down to who would run out of strength first.

Clarice gasped, a hand going over her mouth.

"Alyx! No..."

Guy couldn't stand around and risk Alyx dying, even if he got hurt, he had to do SOMETHING! He had a sword for god's sake! Not wasting anymore time, the prince sprinted forward, towards the fight. It was trying to crush Alyx with its foot, and Alyx was unsuccessfully trying to pry its foot off of his chest, so, unsheathing his sword quickly, he aimed for just above the aligeri's ankle, hoping he could hit it enough to at least get it to move off of Alyx.

The aligeri shrieked and jumped back, moving enough for Alyx to roll out from under him. The creature reeled on Guy, but upon seeing him face-to-face again, backed up and flew off, just like it had the night before. Alyx was gasping for breath, clutching the spot on his chest that had taken the brunt of the weight. As soon as the aligeri flew off, Guy rushed over to Alyx.

"I-I'm so sorry! I should've done something earlier!" he apologized, in a panic over Alyx's injuries. He had absolutely no idea what to do... he wasn't a doctor. Not even close.

"Feles..." Alyx said hoarsely. "I need to see Feles... She'll have salves..."

Guy nodded.

"You just wait here, I'll go get Feles!" he said quickly, getting up to go and find her. She'd probably be at her shop, and if she wasn't, he had absolutely no idea. When he got to the shop, there was candlelight coming from the window. Feles was inside, sitting in a nightgown in her armchair, looking rather tired. For once, she didn't greet him with her usual reminder that the door was open.

"Feles! Alyx is badly injured, he needs salves and..." Guy started once he got into the shop and caught sight of Feles, but was able to calm down enough to let his brow furrow and ask, "Are you alright?"

The wise woman turned her head slowly to face him. Her eyes were a deep, sapphire blue as she stood up and walked over to the door. She closed it carefully and fully, not locking it, then reached for the handle and turned it. It wouldn't budge. She walked back to her armchair and sat back down.

"You'll be able to open it, so don't start panicking," Feles said. "I know what happened, and you'll need to bring Alyx here. It would be too difficult for me to get all the supplies I need out there with that barricade spell on the door."

Guy nodded, telling himself not to panic. It also wasn't a good time to start questioning anything, so he just said, "Okay, I'm going to go get Alyx," and then went to the door and left. He wasn't thinking like his usual self, but that was just because everything had happened so fast. He made his way back as fast as he could.

After Guy had left, Clarice had come over and tried to sooth Alyx while they waited for his return.

"Oh, Alyx, how did you get caught up in all of that?" she asked, her voice laced with worry.

"He... said he needed a place to stay for the night," Alyx said, wincing slightly. "There was no room at the inn, and it was getting late, so I offered to let him stay at the bakery. I had some extra pillows..."

He had to pause to wait out a sharp pain.

"... Then, in the middle of the night, he just went berserk. I don't know why..."

"I'm so sorry..." Clarice whispered as Guy came into view.

"Feles said we'd have to get you over to her shop. Can you make it, Alyx?"

He looked over at Clarice, and she nodded. She'd help support his weight as Guy was planning on doing. It would probably be easier if both of them helped out. Alyx nodded too, and slowly worked on getting to his feet. Something was definitely broken, and he was sore all over, not to mention the dozens of claw marks that were caked with blood and dirt. Clarice supported his right side and Guy his left, and slowly and carefully they made their way to Feles' shop, trying not to do anymore damage to Alyx.

"Lay him there," Feles said, pointing to a cot she'd arranged for him. "Help him get his tunic off so I can treat those wounds properly. You're shoulder is probably broken, Alyx. You fell on it pretty hard."

The baker groaned, more from pain than the news that his shoulder was so severely damaged. Guy and Clarice worked well together, but when it was time to take his tunic off, Guy really couldn't concentrate and wasn't making things any easier, so Clarice took care of that part. She'd help him get it off since he couldn't move too well, reminding him to take it easy as she did so.

But Alyx resisted having his tunic removed, and he looked at Clarice with worry when she tried. Feles looked over at them as she closed the blinds on the window and locked the door, realizing why he was upset.

"You have to, Alyx, or I won't be able to heal you. I don't have my magic, so I can only use these salves."

Then, she turned to Guy.

"You must not repeat a single word of anything you see here," she told him. Clarice nodded in agreement.

"It'll be alright, Alyx. What's most important is your condition right now!"

Guy nodded too.

"I understand."

But, of course, he didn't yet. Not until after the tunic was removed. He was in for a big surprise, but his reaction would probably startle Alyx. Well, his reaction if the situation was a better one.

So, Alyx allowed Clarice to remove the enchanted clothing. He was sitting up, and as soon as the tunic was off, his speckled wings stretched out, remarkably unscathed from the fight. Alyx wouldn't make eye contact with Guy as Feles began tending to his injuries.

Clarice didn't look at Guy either, but that was because she was too preoccupied with how Alyx would be taking the situation. Guy, however, didn't really seem all that... upset about it. Sure, he looked like he hadn't been expecting Alyx to be an aligeri, but that expression quickly faded back into the one of worry that he had been feeling not long before. Of course, there was no way Alyx could've known that Guy could really care less, or even care more about him since he was an aligeri. Only Feles knew how he felt about them.

After about a minute or so, when Feles was tending to Alyx's wounds, he asked, "He's going to be okay, right?"

"Fortunately, Alyx is very resilient," Feles said as she finished wrapping the bandages around his wounds. "It's a natural trait of the aligeri."

She looked up at the baker.

"I can put your arm in a sling for now, but I won't be able to do anything for it until my powers come back tomorrow afternoon. Will you be alright until then?"

Alyx nodded, tucking his wings behind him. Even when Guy had shown concern, he was still worried that their friendship had been made and destroyed in less than a day. Guy sighed with relief.

"That's good..."

He really didn't know what else to say... the mood was so grim. This was something that the prince was not used to. I mean, he knew when to act polite and professional, but nothing had really ever been so... so hectic and frightening.

"Is it alright if I stay here until then?" Alyx asked. "I... I don't want anyone to see..."

"I know," Feles said. "And that's fine. Guy? Clarice? Would the two of you please make sure no one tries to inquire too much until this is resolved? Either way, we should all be getting some sleep."

The two of them nodded.

"Right."

As they headed towards the door, they looked back.

"I'll see you soon, Alyx," the prince said as cheerily as he could muster.

"Yes, I'll visit you tomorrow, please get some rest..." Clarice piped in before the two left to go back to the inn and the tailor shop to get some sleep.

The rest of the night passed peacefully.


In the morning, all of Celest was discussing the latest attack. They were all trying to find someone to blame: the royal family for not protecting the city, Alyx for letting the aligeri stay in his shop, even Feles for not showing up to help with her magic. The town was so startled, few remembered (or even cared) that it was the first day of the four consecutive days Princess Ruby would be spending with suitors.

Guy had slept pretty well once he had forced himself to get up, and after getting dressed and ready for the day, making sure to have his sword on his belt, he started outside, ready to do something to occupy his time until all the events of the next day.

Clarice, meanwhile, hadn't slept well. She was too troubled by the events of the previous night, and having pulled an all-nighter the night before last, she was starting to really feel it. She was currently rubbing her slightly sore eyes while she folded the order from late the day before and putting it neatly on the counter.

"Maybe I should check on my brother... or visit Alyx..."

"Did you say something, Clarice?"

Her brother walked out of his bedroom, looking a lot better than she did. His cheeks were a little flush, but otherwise he seemed fine.

"I thought I heard something going on in the middle of the night, but I was too tired to check and see what it was. It looks like you woke up. You alright?"

Hearing her brother, Clarice smiled and said, "Oh! Good morning. I didn't hear you get up. You look like you're feeling a lot better now!"

Pausing when she heard his question, she sighed.

"There was an attack by an aligeri last night, and the baker, Alyx, was injured. But it all ended peacefully, so it's not too much to worry about right now. And I'm alright, I just didn't get too much sleep after that."

"Ah, well, if you want to sleep a little longer, I think I'm feeling well enough to run the shop today. Why don't you go back to bed? I promise to wake you up before lunch, if you sleep too long."

Clarice smiled, "Ah, alright. Thank you very much!"

Usually, Clarice would've laughed her silly little laugh and said that she could take it, but as she was still feeling kind of worried, that was making her even more tired, and she really felt like she needed to rest a little longer. So she retired to her room for a little longer, hoping to get just a little more sleep.

Guy, meanwhile, felt like he should wait a little longer before visiting Alyx, and was trying to avoid all the people who had questions and comments about what had happened last night, so he had quickly gone out of Celest to see some of the sights around the town that wasn't in the forest. He had walked for a while, and had soon come across the cliffs.

"Wow!" He cheered as he skipped over to the ledge and peered down. "It's huge!"

Happily, he looked around, wondering how many other people had found interest in the cliffs as well. Soon, he was on his back on the ground and staring up at the sky, his hands behind his head and singing to himself without a care in the world.

"Whatcha' doin'?" someone asked, and suddenly Kit's head popped in front of Guy's view. He smiled broadly, showing his teeth.

"– hu?" Guy was a little startled that the sprite had appeared so suddenly, but with a blank stare, blinked it off without having to accidentally hurt himself.

"Oh! Hi!" he greeted, sitting up. "Nothing much, just enjoying the fresh air out here," the prince explained with a wide grin. Kit laughed and sat down beside him.

"Only one more day until Midsummer," the sprite prince said. "You're still coming to the festivities, right?"

Guy nodded.

"Yes! Oh! That reminds me! Feles told me that it was your idea to schedule my day with the princess on that day so we could both go! Thank you! It was such a good suggestion!"

"You're welcome!" Kit said happily. "My parents are eager to have you both as guests as well. They hope it will help improve sprite/human relations."

The sprite rocked his head from side to side, as if he were listening to his own little melody.

"So, what have you been up to lately? Done anything interesting?"

"Oh! Oh! I met the baker of Celest and, and I baked a loaf of bread! It was so much fun! I got a lot of flour on me, but... it was worth it..."

Kit sniggered.

"I know him. Alyx Legume, right? He's one of Chay's friends. You friends with him too?"

Guy nodded happily.

"Mm-hm! I hope we're friends. I asked him if we were before I left last night, and he said yes..."

The prince sighed.

"He was the first one who actually said he was my friend... it made me really happy, I hope he meant it...Oh! Is Chay the one with the orange hair? He came in with a girl who had brown hair and a tall lady named Clarice. We all had bread together and talked. It was really nice!"

"Yep, that's Chay," Kit confirmed. "And the other sprite was probably Ellen."

The carnivorous sprite was enjoying himself, but he suddenly asked, "Why are you out here all by yourself?"

"Out here?"

Guy looked around.

"Well, I thought it would be nice to see what it's like outside of town... it was kind of crowded, and I didn't have anything else to do..." he explained. "I'm not sure why I chose here, though. It's kind of far..."

"Yeah, but the view is beautiful," Kit said. "Sometimes, it makes me wish I could turn into a bird instead of a fox, just to soar over the valley."

"A bird, huh..." Guy started, but his voice faltered and then just stopped. The prince stood. It was Alyx. He had come out here, stupid and avoiding things that reminded him or Alyx, because his friend had seemed kind of upset the night before and he didn't want to bother him. He really WAS a horrible person... Alyx had a reason to be nervous and not want to look at him at the time.

"I think I should go and visit Alyx..." he said to Kit. "I was kind of avoiding the subject, but he was attacked last night by a bestial aligeri, and was injured rather badly..."

Kit frowned and his ears twitched.

"Is he alright? It wasn't the same one from the night of the banquet, was it?"

The sprite shivered slightly. Guy nodded sadly.

"I'm afraid it was, I was able to scare it off without hurting it much last night, but I should've done something earlier so Alyx wouldn't have gotten so hurt..."

Kit stood up too.

"Then let's go see him and wish him swift health!" the sprite said. "Good spirits go a long way to help healing."

Guy smiled.

"Yeah! I'm sure he'd like the company!"

And so with that, they started on their way to Feles' shop again. It was strange seeing the shop with its windows covered and closed, and the door was locked. Feles didn't seem to know they were there.

"Hmm? Oh! That's right!"

Guy knocked on the door, hoping that Feles would realize that it was him and open it. It was an awkwardly long wait, but eventually the door cracked, and then opened all the way once Feles recognized them. She ushered them in quickly without a word until the door was closed again.

"At least the blocking spell has faded," she commented. "Please, make yourselves comfortable."

Alyx was sitting in Feles' armchair with his one arm in a sling, a teacup in his other hand. When Guy walked in, he looked up briefly, but then wrapped his wings around himself and curled into them.

"Al – er..." Guy started, but at the completely negative response, his smile faded. "...Alyx?"

The prince really was confused. He didn't think that he had done anything wrong, and he was really scared that Alyx wasn't glad to see him at all.

"I... um... I came to visit you..."

Alyx peered shyly out from his wings, and slowly unwrapped them. He was quiet for a moment while Feles started pouring tea for the others.

"So now you know," he said softly. "I'm an aligeri too... like the one that's caused so much trouble lately..."

"Yeah, but you're not causing any trouble," Guy responded, a little happy that Alyx had unwrapped his wings so that the prince could see him. After a hesitation, he asked, "Do you think that we can't be friends anymore because of this? Because I WANT to be friends, Alyx! I really do!"

It took a moment for the baker to reply.

"Are you sure? You aren't just saying that to try and make me feel better, are you?"

"Alyx," Feles sighed. "You need to learn to trust people. Not every human is going to hate you on sight because you have wings."

He shrugged and ruffled his wings.

"I don't hold anything against aligeri, really I don't!" Guy agreed, then smiled lightly and said, "Really, I think that the wings are kind of neat. But, anyway, I don't hate you because you're an aligeri, and I still want to be your friend. I hope you can learn to trust me, Alyx..."

After this small bit of reassurance, Alyx allowed himself to give a small smile.

"I guess I'm used to Celest's opinion of aligeri," he said. "If anyone else in town knew..."

He took a sip of his tea. Feles handed Guy and Kit their own cups.

"You remember what I explained to you about the aligeri," she said. "Alyx worries about that most."

"Thank you," Guy said as he took the tea gratefully, and then nodded. "I remember..."

He was glad that Alyx was a little more willing to talk, but he still understood why he was worried.

"So, are you feeling a little better from last night, Alyx?"

"Much, but my shoulder is still sore."

"It's still broken," Feles corrected. "I'm sorry my powers won't be back until afternoon."

"It isn't your fault; you needed to make those potions, and there was no way you could have known what was going to happen last night."

"Unfortunately..."

Feles frowned, running her finger along the edge of her cup. As Guy listened to this, he couldn't help but notice that Feles seemed to be a little uneasy.

"Is something wrong?" he asked her. Feles sighed again, this time with evident frustration.

"I was hoping that my intuition was wrong for a change, but after last night, I know for certain that there is, in fact, a malevolent mage somewhere in the city. I'm still not sure of his motives, but he knows that I'm opposing him and seems to be taking great pains to make sure I don't get in his way."

"What makes you think that?" Kit (who'd been silent this whole time because of the earlier tension) asked.

"During the attack last night, I was unable to leave my shop. A blockade spell had been cast on the door and windows (I did try to break them). Since I'd been handling magesbane, I wasn't able to dispel it. Thankfully, it faded this morning."

Guy grimaced. Which was odd. He had never looked so...irritated before. At least not through his stay here. A malevolent mage, just like they had talked about last time. He still thought... no, he was still sure that this all had to do with Mr. Creepy prince. Speaking of which...

Trying not to be bitter, the prince commented, "And today the princess is meeting with Prince Kyne, right?"

"Unfortunately," Feles admitted.

"Which one is that?" Alyx asked.

"Remember how you told me about that prince nearly ran you and Clarice down in the streets on your birthday? That one."

"Oh God..."

"Sounds like a creep to me," Kit commented, almost falling of his seat as he finished of his cup of tea.

"He IS creepy!" Guy agreed. "I don't want to be rude, but he is really REALLY creepy! I was seriously scared to sit next to him at the banquet the other day..."

The prince sighed, he hoped that Kyne didn't creep out the princess too much, but at the same time he hoped that the prince DID creep her out a little... not just because he wanted to win her favor, but because Guy was sure that nothing would be good if Kyne was able to marry the princess.

"Yes, you were stuck next to him, weren't you?" Feles asked, though she seemed to be talking to herself. "Oh, I have another favor to ask of you Guy. I'm sorry I keep coming up with errands for you to run, but this was rather unexpected."

"Huh?"

Guy laughed.

"Oh, no! It's alright, I kind of like running errands for you. What would you like me to do this time?"

"Well, two things, actually," she explained. "First, I would appreciate it if you could pick up some lunch for us. Normally, I would get it myself, but I don't want someone to come into my shop while I'm away and... well..."

She glanced over at Alyx.

"Also, remember that package I had you deliver yesterday?"

Guy nodded.

"So, lunch and you want me to bring over that package, right?"

He grinned. Remembering what he had seen the night before, there was probably a special spell on those clothes. It made a lot of sense.

"Yes, exactly that."

"I didn't unpack the package completely," Alyx added. "It's on my dresser in my bedroom in the back. Here..."

He put his cup down to reach into his pocket and pull out a key.

"Feles locked it for me earlier."

Guy took the key and nodded.

"Okie dokie then! It shouldn't take me too long. Any preferences on lunches?"

Both of them shook their heads.

"Anything is fine," Feles said. "Just don't spend too much."

"I'll help," Kit offered. "It'll be fun!"

"Okay! That sounds great!"

Truthfully, Guy needed some help. Alyx probably knew already that the prince could be rather indecisive when it came to picking out some food. He'd be satisfied at first... but then get fascinated with something else soon after. After the two left, Guy said, "So... what should we get? I don't want to do something wrong like last time... err... someTHINGS wrong..."

Kit looked up at him with curiosity.

"Hm? What do you mean? I can definitely help pick out a decent lunch, but how can you mess that up?"

"Well, last time Alyx asked me to get food, I was getting some fruit for the bread we were going to make, and um... I was supposed to get a pound of ONE type of fruit, but I got a pound of VARIOUS fruit... and then I used a LOT of money because I kept giving a lot away for a while... and THEN I almost got three watermelons because they looked good, although that wasn't really a mistake, just a thought that I thinked. Errrr... had. Ehehehheeehee..."

Well, Guy was just being a silly moron again, like the time in the forest when he started talking to the boar even though he DIDN'T know it was a sprite...but you can't really blame him. Sometimes when he thinks over some of his thoughts, he's not really thinking. Thus, resulting in... rather comical/idiotic situations. The sprite stared at him for a moment before he gave the prince a smirk.

"Could have been worse," he said. "At least you got the fruit, right? Besides, lunch will be a lot easier. There's this one vendor out who makes these great little lunch packs that are really tasty!"

"Ohh! Really?" Guy exclaimed, interested. He liked tasty things. They made him smile. Yet, a lot of things could do that. Sometimes, they even made him giggle. But... a lot of things did THAT too. Well, they made him happy, at least. Not like he wasn't happy. Anyway, he liked things that were tasty.

"I'm glad I have help though! This way I probably won't do anything wrong, even if it would be a small thing, anyway. I'm not used to getting lunch. Or... food. Or... going into a marketplace. Or baking bread. But I did that yesterday! It was so much fun... I got flour all over me... OOPS. I'm rambling... ehehe... sorry. Sometimes I just get lost in thought and then... oh. Wait. I'm doing it again. I think I'll just stop talking. Yeah, that should work."

Kit shook his head, laughing.

"I'll order the food then; the stand's right over there."

The sprite pointed to a small stand where and elderly woman was sitting. There were several small baskets on her stand. Guy nodded and walked over to the stand. He looked a little confused though. How exactly did you order? He needed to observe. When he had gotten the fruit, he hadn't exactly been professional. Kit knew what to do.

"Good afternoon, ma'am," he said politely to the old woman. "May we have four baskets, please?"

"Four?" she repeated in a high, wheezy voice. "Why so many, little prince?"

"We're buying for friends."

"Oh!"

She looked over a Guy and gave him a toothless smile.

"Why, this is quite an occasion! Hello, friend of the little prince. How are you?"

Guy smiled back.

"Good afternoon, ma'am, I'm just fine, it's a beautiful day out. How are you?" he replied cheerfully and politely.

"Good, good," she answered while she picked out the baskets for them. "That'll be eight silver."

"Ah! Okay, eight silver..." Guy fished through his pocket and pulled out a pouch which had his money in it. All he had was gold coins though. His parents had wanted to make sure that he was "well prepared" when he left the palace and out into the "unknown." So, the prince pulled a gold piece and handed it to the old woman. She inspected it as if she'd never seen on before, then put the piece in her mouth and gummed on it a moment before putting it into her pocket.

"Let me find you change for that..."

"Oh! No, no it's alright, you can keep the change, ma'am!" Guy replied quickly before she could find any. Really, he didn't need change, he had plenty of money. I mean, it would be kind of greedy for a prince to want money back from commoners. Not like he was putting them down or anything. The old woman gave him another toothless grin.

"Oh, thank you sir! You have a wonderful day!"

"Hey Guy?" Kit asked. "Can you take some of these?"

The sprite was trying to hold all four lunch baskets, and it looked like he was going to fall over if he didn't put some of them down.

"No problem, have a nice day, too!" Guy called as they started to leave, and when Kit spoke, he started. "Oh! Oh!! I'm sorry!"

Quickly, he took three of them from Kit.

"I wasn't paying attention... ehehe..." he explained, feeling bad about not taking them earlier. Kit chuckled as his burden was lightened.

"I usually only grab one for myself. I forgot how big they were."

As they were making their way towards Alyx's shop to pick up his clothes, the sprite abruptly stopped and started to (of all things) growl. Before Guy could ask, he saw what it was he was growling at.

"Dan, it's that sprite that bit me!"

The Idems had crossed their path, and David was hiding behind his twin, pointing at Kit.

"Oh no..." Guy thought aloud, looking from Kit to the other princes. He wasn't exactly sure of what to do in this kind of situation... I mean, he knew that at heart the twins weren't that bad, just kind of foolish at times. And on the other hand, Kit had rights to be mad at them.

"Errrr... hey guys, I think that before we do or say anything else, we should make sure that we're all calm... ehehehe."

"Calm?" David repeated. "That thing bit me!"

"I'm not a thing!" Kit protested, and both twins seemed surprised.

"It talks!"

"I'm not an it either! Of course I talk!"

Daniel looked absolutely confused, and David seemed set on keeping away from the sprite.

"Guys, guys, GUYS! Please!" Guy exclaimed. "It's kind of rude to call him a thing. David, Daniel, his name is Kit, and he's a sprite, not a thing. Sprites can talk, yes."

He hoped to quickly sort this argument out.

"And yes, he did bite you, so you have a right to be angry and scared of him, but you didn't exactly treat him with respect the other day, and he had the right to bite you then. You both have a right to be angry, but please just calm down! It's kind of like a misunderstanding... sort of..."

This time Kit echoed him.

"Misunderstanding? He picked me up by my hair! That really hurt!"

He glared over at the princes.

"We're sorry," Daniel said before his brother could snap back. "We've never actually met a sprite before. We didn't know."

"Well maybe you should have asked first!"

Guy was about to whine, but he held it in.

"Kit! They're sorry! Could we PLEASE move on? He made a mistake and he got what he deserved. He learned his lesson and I doubt that he'll do it again!"

"He," Kit said angrily, pointing at Daniel. "Wasn't the one who picked me up by my hair! He's not the one who needs to apologize!"

Daniel looked over at David, as if begging him to stop hiding behind him and say something. When he didn't, his twin sighed.

"Dave, come on. Just say you're sorry."

"What if he bites me again?"

"Oh, for the love of the celestials!" the sprite cried. "I only bit you because you hurt me! How do you think it feels to be picked up by your hair?"

David didn't answer, but his cheeks turned red with embarrassment.

"Dave," his brother said again. "Really, is it so hard to apologize?"

After another minute of silence, he finally gave in.

"I'm sorry I picked you up by your hair."

Kit rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Sheesh, was it really that hard?"

"I'm still trying to grasp the fact that you can talk!"

Guy sighed with relief, but then had to hold back laughter at David's last comment. Was it really that hard to believe that sprites could talk? They LOOKED human enough...

That's when Guy was suddenly aware of the lunch.

"Oh, Kit! We should probably finish that errand and return to Feles' shop..."

"Oh! Right!"

Kit had forgotten too.

"Well, sorry about that whole mess earlier," Daniel said again, seeing that they had to leave. "And here's to hoping Kyne doesn't woo the princess."

"I second that," David added. "Good luck to you tomorrow, Guy, and sorry about yesterday... er... Kit?"

Guy smiled, "Thanks, you too. Maybe I'll see you both soon!" He would've waved, but his arms were full, so with a goodbye attached to the end of his thanks, he started towards Alyx's shop with Kit again.

"I think that has to be the first time I've ever met anyone who didn't know that sprites could talk," Kit said as they walked. "I never thought anyone could be so ignorant."

They got to the shop quickly, and it was strange seeing it closed.

"Yeah, you were the first sprite that I met, but I wasn't surprised at all when you started talking..." Guy agreed. Really, what Kit had said was saying a lot, considering he was standing next to someone who had never met a baker before yesterday and still thought that meeting a baker was the most exciting thing that he had ever done in his entire life.

"Well, anyway, let's just get what we came for and head back to Feles and Alyx. I'm getting really hungry..."

Kit's stomach rumbled.

"Make that really really hungry."

Guy laughed, and shifted the food to one arm, fished out that key, unlocked the door and opened it. Finding the box, he arranged the items so that it would be easier to carry, and then went outside again, locking the door to the shop.

"There we go! Almost done, now we just need to head back to Feles' shop!"

"Then back we go!"

And back they went, making good time. Kit knocked on the door and the wise woman let them in. She was smiling when she saw them, and her eyes had shifted back to violet. Alyx was sitting in one of the other chairs now, but his arm wasn't in a sling anymore.

When they were inside and the box and the food had been put in a more convenient location than his arms, Guy beamed when he saw Alyx's arm out of its sling. Putting that fact together with the fact that Feles had been smiling, the prince asked, "Hey! Does that mean that your magic is back again and Alyx is healed?"

"Yes, on both accounts," Feles said, picking up one of the baskets and handing it to the aligeri. "I'm glad that I have my powers again. With the way things seem to be going lately..."

"I'm glad to have the use of my arm again," Alyx added. "I can't work without it."

"But you won't be working today; you should still rest until at least tomorrow."

Alyx frowned a bit, but didn't argue.

"That's good, then!" Guy said as the baskets were being handed around. He was obviously in much lighter spirits with the knowledge that Alyx wasn't in pain anymore. After they started eating, Guy was pleasantly surprised with how good it was! Why wouldn't his parents have food like this at the palace more often? It was scrumptious.

Back at the tailor's...

"Clarice... Clarice, it's time to get up. You don't want to sleep the day away."

He brother rocked her shoulder lightly to ease her awake.

"I made us some lunch."

Clarice opened her eyes slowly when she felt something moving her shoulder slightly and a voice. It took her a second to process it in her drowsy state, but once she recognized it, she slowly sat up.

"Oh, dear... I guess I slept longer than I had planned, heehee," Clarice laughed, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Looking up at him, she smiled.

"Oh, you made lunch?"

"It's nothing much," he said. "Just some porridge, but it'll do. It's been a busy day. Oh, someone came asking for you not long ago. I told him you were sleeping."

Clarice smiled and was going to tell him that she was sure it would be delicious, but then once she heard the next thing he said, she looked confused.

"Oh? Who was it?"

She didn't know too many people in the city yet, after all.

"I don't know; he didn't give a name. He came to pick up something you sewed him last night...?"

He seemed just as curious and confused about it as she was.

"Oh! Oh dear... I forgot to take them out of my room... Yes, he ordered a few things last night."

Clarice looked a little worried.

"Did he say that he'd come back? They're ready for him... Oh, I wish he had come when I wasn't asleep."

"Don't worry," her brother said, trying to calm her down. "I went and found them for him. He's already paid and left. He didn't say anything about coming back. Clarice, what happened? Does he frighten you?"

"Oh... good..."

When he explained, Clarice looked visibly relieved. It wasn't that she wasn't going to see him again, just that she didn't have to worry about any of that at all right now.

"N-no... he doesn't frighten me... not terribly much..."

She shook her head.

"Nothing happened, I just took his measurements last night, he left, and I sewed what he ordered."

She couldn't tell him why he really frightened her, although she wished that she really could confide that in him. Yes, she trusted her brother... but she just didn't know how he'd take things of that matter yet. She couldn't take the risk. He smiled at her.

"Okay, as long as you're alright. Let's go eat that porridge before it gets cold, hm?"

Clarice smiled lightly.

"Alright," she replied, and when they had started eating, after a silence, she asked, "Charles? Did you... do ever miss home?"

Charles shrugged, stirring his food.

"Sometimes, a little," he admitted. "But this place has really grown on me. It's so peaceful here... and the sprites in the neighboring woods can be really helpful, when they aren't playing pranks."

Clarice smiled.

"Mother and father missed you a lot."

The way she had said that, however, it sounded more like she was trying to say 'They would've rather had you there than me.' She looked down at her bowl full of porridge with her mismatched eyes, going uneasily quiet again. Thanks to Accipiter, she was now thinking about how long she'd have to keep her race a secret from her brother. She wanted to tell him, more than anything! But... what if he was like the others, at home? And if he knew, he wouldn't want her around anymore? She was scared, and trying not to think about it... but she couldn't help it.

"Yeah, I miss them too... But home was just too small. I wouldn't have gotten business there like I do here."

He finished of his meal and took his bowl over to the kitchen.

"Didn't you say that Alyx got injured last night?"

"Yes, and I helped bring him over to Miss Feles' shop, so hopefully she was able to fix him up. He had hurt his shoulder..."

Clarice stood up after the last few bites over her food and said, "Would you mind if I go over and visit him to see how he's doing?"

"Of course not. Go right ahead. I know how to handle my shop. Let me know how he's doing, okay?"

Clarice smiled.

"Thank you! I'll be back soon!"

She seemed a little more excited now that she was going out to see him, and when she left a few minutes later (after helping clean up), she walked down to Feles' shop in a little bit of a better mood. I wonder if he slept at all last night... I hope he's alright... she thought as she walked. Soon, she had arrived. It wasn't a terribly long walk, after all. Softly, she knocked on the door.

"Hello, Clarice," Feles greeted with a smile as she opened the door. "I was wondering when you would come by and visit. Alyx just went upstairs, but he'll be down in a moment."

Clarice smiled and greeted Feles as well, stepping inside. When she stopped the others, she smiled a little more.

"Oh, my! There's quite a crowd here today. Hello Kit, hello Guy," she greeted. Guy beamed and waved.

"Hello!"

Kit waved too, just as he finished off his lunch. Then with a wide yawn, he took on his fox form, trotted over to the fireplace, and curled up near the hearth. Feles laughed.

"Well, he has been working on preparations for Midsummer. I can understand why he's tired. Would anyone like some tea?"

"I would," Alyx said as he came down the stairs, wearing another one of the enchanted tunics. "I like your tea."

He saw Clarice just as he reached the bottom of the stairs and smiled.

"Good afternoon."

"Can I have some tea, too?" Guy called with a smile before looking over at Kit curiously. He'd never seen a fox before, either.

"Tea would be nice, thank you..." Clarice started, but looking over and seeing Alyx as he spoke, she returned the smile. "Good afternoon! You look like you're doing a lot better, I'm glad."

Feles began making the tea while Alyx came down to join them.

"I feel a lot better too," he told Clarice. "For one, I can move my arm again."

"But he won't be working for at least another day," Feles reminded him. "My healing only goes so far."

Alyx gave a rueful smile, but nodded.

"So the shop will have to be closed tomorrow too."

Clarice gave a sympathetic smile.

"Well at least you don't have to wait the normal amount of time that it would've taken your shoulder to heal, right?"

"True, but it's still hard to cope with. I haven't closed the shop before, and I'm not sure how things will turn out."

"You'll be fine," Feles assured him, passing around the tea. "I'll make sure of it. So, now that things are at least partially back to normal, what are all of you planning on doing today?"

Guy shrugged as he took the tea.

"Nothing today, same as yesterday."

He smiled. Clarice thanked her for the tea and responded with, "Oh, I don't know... my brother is feeling a lot better, and is able to look after the shop today."

"That's good," Feles said. "Since it seems all of you are free today, then perhaps I have something you can do. Would you mind running an errand for me?"