A troubling adventure
Dust swirled around the room as Aiko swung the broom in her hands wildly. Her gaze was focused on the floor, obviously not for the right reason. A quizzical, yet down expression was painted on her face.
"Aiko, please, you are supposed to clean the dining area, not dust it."
"Mmm, sorry." Aiko responded in a low voice. 'I wonder if she's okay, she seems so sick…' Never has Aiko seen Fei ill ever since they met, when both were younger they constantly visited the tavern; nearly on a daily basis, only has she seen Lucian ill. Just yesterday, she regained consciousness but she couldn't move as if her body had shut down.
The entire day, Aiko checked on her. It never seemed like she was recovering, struggling to breathe, she couldn't keep anything down. Her illness weighed on Aiko's heart, will she recover from this…? Or… Aiko erased that thought from her head with a massive shake.
"Aiko, yet again, please it looks like a dust storm flew throughout this place!"
Aiko apologized once again, although she immediately went back to what she was doing; coating the entire interior with dust. A sudden lapse in time later, the broom in her hands was taken away.
"Aiko, you need to pay attention! You got dust in my coffee!!!" The middle aged lady screamed as she shoved her mug in Aiko's vision. A regular black coffee, aside from a heaping layer of flavorful dust floating atop.
"S-Sorry ma'am…"
"Hmph… Go and make me a new one, this time don't leave DUST in there, got it?!"
"Y-Y-Yes ma'am."
Aiko trudged into the kitchen with her head down.
"What am I going to do with her?" The middle aged woman mumbled, at the same time she facepalmed.
"Set it down, and you, why don't you go and check on those two?" She said after Aiko appeared in front of her with a mug of fresh coffee in it. "Also, why do you worry so much? If something happened, Lucian would come to you."
"I can't… Help it. She looked so sick yesterday, and that's the only time I-"
A bell and a whistle interrupted their conversation.
"Wow~ I thought this was a tavern, not a desert." A man's voice followed behind.
Slightly long flowy golden hair went down his neck, he wore slightly casual clothing, aside from his button up shirt. His eyes, which were an emerald green, landed on the two. They both looked back in confusion. It was an oddity for an elf to come into the tavern.
"Hello, how are you two doing today?" He greeted them with a smile.
"Hello, sir, welcome to our tavern. Please have a seat, we'll get your order in a moment." The middle aged lady greeted him with a welcoming type of smile.
"Mhm, no need. I only came here to look for a couple of people. I was curious if you have seen them." He said. Although he said no need, he still took a seat nearby.
She and Aiko looked at each other for a second and looked at him. Who could he be looking for, in this shoddy tavern?
"Do you have a description of them? We don't know if we can help you, but we'll try our best."
"Yes, have you seen a young man, around 19, slightly taller than me; brown messy hair and matching eye color? With him, a white demi-haired-"
"Wait! Are you talking about Lucian and Fei?! Did they do something? Why are you looking for them?" Aiko interjected.
"Calm down, I was just curious as to where they were. They weren't home when I came to check; nor did they come into the adventurer's guild in the past two days." He explained, as he went on Aiko slammed on the table in front of him.
"Did something happen?!"
"Whatever do you mean?" He asked, slightly startled by Aiko's actions. She looked at him intensely, her eyes bore a hole through his heart.
"Lucian came in here just the other day, with Fei in his arms. She was completely knocked out… When I checked on her, she had bruises… Bruises on her arms and shoulder. Lemme, ask you again. Did. Something. Happen?" Aiko asked, slowly pronouncing her final question.
"I-I partied them up with a different group, things happened! I have no knowledge as to why she passed out, she came into the adventurer's guild not long ago, fully aware!" He quickly elaborated. "I'm a receptionist for the guild, my name is Thran and I am the representative for them; please believe what I am saying."
Glaring at him for a few moments longer, she decided on believing his story.
"I'm sorry about that…" Aiko apologized with her head and ears down. "It's nice to meet you, Thran, I'm Aiko and I've known those two for a long time…"
"Do not worry, you clearly care about those two. It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Aiko. You mentioned Fei collapsing? How is she now?" Thran inquired with a wry smile. He chose his wording carefully, for an odd reason the air around Aiko scared the living daylights out of him.
"She doesn't seem to be doing well. I haven't checked on her today, as Lucian's been taking care of her, but yesterday she couldn't get up and she was struggling to breathe." Aiko revealed, her voice was low and Thran had to lean in to hear.
"She'll be okay, Lucian's watching her."
"Mm… Yeah." Aiko mumbled. In the next moment her ears perked up. "How have they been doing as adventurers? Are they doing okay there? And what happened to those who hurt Fei?"
"They are doing decently well, they haven't caused any issues." Thran responded. His body relaxed before answering more. "As for those people, they have been taken care of."
A short period of time flew by, filled with questions from Aiko. Thran did his best to entertain her, answering them carefully and methodically. In his mind he was starting to question if she was their mother– not blood related of course, that much was obvious to Thran. She acted like a mother pestering her kids' teachers how they are doing at school. They were interrupted by Lucian entering the dining area, holding onto Fei's hand. It was pretty evident to everyone that Fei looked exhausted. As her eyelids were barely open, she was nearly nodding off whilst standing.
"Ah! Just who we were talking about!" Thran exclaimed when they closed in on the table. "How are you feeling, Miss Fei?"
"I'm… Good." Fei muttered. Thran felt a jolt after hearing her respond without any hesitation. Even if she was tired, it was odd for him to hear her.
"Should she be walking…? Lucian, did you force her to get up?!" Aiko grabbed Lucian's shirt while yelling.
"S-She seems to be doing fine, just a little sluggish! And she wanted to get up!"
"Go put her to bed, she's still not feeling-"
"I'm.. okay, Aiko… Just tired." Fei said. Everyone glanced at her. Aiko rubbed her eyes for a moment just to be sure she wasn't dreaming. "I feel… Fine to walk, don't… Don't worry."
"You can barely keep your eyes open, Miss Fei. I agree with Miss Aiko, you should go back to bed." Thran interjected.
"Mm… I don't like staying in bed for a long time."
"A-Are you sure you're okay enough to walk?"
"Yes… Lucian's helping me." Fei responded. She raised her hand that Lucian was holding slightly. A delirious smile crept onto her lips. "I'll be okay." Unbeknownst to her, her tail was wagging slowly.
'Cute.' This collective thought entered everyone's mind.
"Keep an eye on her, Sir Lucian. If you do, good things will happen." Thran claimed. He gave him a thumbs up and an approving smile.
"O-Okay?"
Lucian looked at him with an eyebrow raised. He didn't quite understand what Thran meant, but he felt it was best to not ask him any questions.
"If she's okay, then I guess she can walk around; but if she gets too exhausted, put her to bed, alright?"
After seeing he understood, Aiko gave them a hug then had them take a seat at the same table Thran sat at. She tried to head into the kitchen, but she was commanded to clean the place properly before she could.
"So, uh, why did you come here?" Lucian questioned in an awkward tone. 'How did he even find us? Or is it just a coincidence he came here?'
"I came here to check on you two, that's all."
"We're doing fine, thank you for checking on us. I feel like you're not telling us the entire reason. Which is a very Thran thing to do." Lucian continued, even for the short time they've known each other and the sparse interactions they've had he knew Thran had other motives for everything.
"The situation right now isn't best to inform you."
He looked towards Fei after saying that, and instantly Lucian understood what he meant.
"Once she feels better, or is more awake, come to the guild and there I will talk with you. Thank you for your time, Sir Lucian, Miss Fei." Thran thanked them before standing up from his seat. Just before leaving the tavern, he turned around and called out, "Thank you as well for your time, Miss Aiko, I had fun." He thanked Aiko, he turned tail then left the premises.
"Have a good day!" Aiko yelled back, giving him a short wave even though he didn't have eyes on the back of his head.
"Well, now I can't wait to hear what he wanted to talk to us about." Lucian said as he clenched his fists. Muddled down excitement coursed to his heart.
"It's.. Probably another request." Fei mumbled, she rested her head on her arms whilst leaning forward. "Give me a little bit… And we can head over there." She continued before she closed her eyes.
Lucian smiled softly, the anxiety and fear he felt over the past two days washed away. She seemed to be recovering quickly, quicker than everyone had anticipated. Her breathing softened, and the air around her stagnated in temperature.
Tapping the table for a few minutes, he stood up and took a broom from the kitchen. Aiko and the middle aged lady tried to stop him, but with his insistence they gave in.
Gripping the handle, he began to sweep up the place at a speedy pace. Dust flew in the direction he swung at, they met their end; just outside the front door. Before long, the floors were pretty much spotless.
Next up, he and Aiko grabbed a bucket, filled it up with water. With new looking rags in their hands, they washed the table tops.
"Mm… " Fei let out as she stirred. She pushed out her arms, giving them a good stretch as she yawned. She looked around, with unfocused eyes. "How… Did I get here?" Her confusion intensified as her only memory was laying down in bed. Just as she began to feel nervous, Lucian entered her view, followed by Aiko. Lucian had 2 plates, on each was a small pile of eggs, rice and sausages.
"Good morning sleepyhead. How was your nap?" Aiko teased. She had an amused smirk on her face. "You slept for quite a bit, I hope the table was comfy."
"Wh- Wh- What are you t-talking about?"
"Oh, you don't remember? I guess you slept pretty good!" Aiko continued, she chuckled. Her tail wagged back and forth, she never had the chance to tease Fei like she's doing.
"Aiko… Please, give her a chance to wake up." Lucian said to her, he glanced at her with "Furrowed" eyebrows. He held his laughter in. "Here, we made this together." He set a plate down in front of Fei.
The aroma of the sausages entered her nostrils; her stomach rumbled in approval. Its approval was loud enough for everyone– Aiko, Lucian and the middle aged lady to hear. Her stomach felt immensely empty, as if she had not eaten for a few days.
"Go ahead, eat! Don't worry about paying for it, it's already been taken care of!" Aiko exclaimed, she puffed her chest out. That didn't last long as she felt ice run down her back. 'This week will be a lot tighter…' Aiko thought, but she regretted nothing.
Fei immediately began to dig in, not even waiting for Lucian to start. In the midst of her carnivorous gorge, she began to cough while patting her chest.
"Don't eat so quickly! Quick, quick, take a drink!"
"S-S-Sorry…" Fei apologized, her voice was a little hoarse after the choking feeling went away.
"You're still recovering, please be careful."
"I-I'm sorry…"
After they finished their food, Aiko took the plates and returned empty handed. They talked for a bit of time-mainly Aiko making sure Fei was feeling well enough to leave the tavern.
"Are you feeling okay enough to go to the adventurer's guild?" Lucian asked Fei when they entered their temporary room.
"Y-Yes, I feel f-fine to." Fei responded, she looked around the room. 'How long… Was I sick..? I can't remember what happened.' The past few days were a blur, only lapses of memories entered her mind. Her cheeks grew a bit red as most of them Lucian watched over her with care, taking care of her needs.
"Oh, right. I found your staff, some mud got stuck to it."
"T-Thank you…"
"Are you feeling okay enough to walk around?" Lucian asked, his voice had a hint of worry in it. Fei simply nodded, although her body felt a bit heavier; she was sure she'd be fine for the day unless it was a physical taxing day. "Are you really sure?"
"Y-Yes, I, I'm sure."
Asking her once more, he decided to take her word for it. Gathering their equipment they set off to the adventurer's guild. At a snail's pace, they eventually made it in almost double the amount of time.
"What do you mean we're getting a fine?! WHAT DID WE EVEN DO WRONG?!" A familiar voice roared as soon as they opened the doors.
"I'm sorry sir, we already told you why. We won't listen to the compl-"
"THAT'S BULLSHIT! DO YOU EVEN SEE HOW MUCH THIS IS?! EVEN IF WE TOOK ON 20 HUNTING OR RANDOM REQUESTS WE WON'T BE ABLE TO PAY OFF HALF OF THIS!" The familiar voice continued, his voice grew even louder over time. The receptionist taking care of it looked at him with pity and annoyance.
"I'm sorry s-"
"TAKE THIS WE'RE DONE!" Alex screamed while throwing the sheet at her, and slammed his identification on the table.
Their attention was averted by Thran waving them over to a random table. A scarce amount of adventurers stood around or sat at nearby tables.
"That was rather quick, how are you feeling Miss Fei? You look wide awake compared to just a couple of hours ago."
"I'm, I'm feeling o-okay.." Fei muttered. Thran only chuckled seeing her back to her old self.
"That is good to hear. Ah, don't mind those fools over there, they are only digging themselves a grave." Thran explained as the scene at the desk intensified. The flame grew wilder as Alex put his hand on the hilt of his sword. "Hey, someone stop him before things get nasty." Thran called to the adventurers around him.
"On it, Thran." Two of them quickly ran over and forced Alex to the ground.
Both Lucian and Fei looked at him in awe. Just by his attitude they would assume no adventurer would like him, but it was on the contrary, they immediately listened when he needed it.
"Anyways, back to what I had you come here for; the guild has gotten an immense amount of monster requests." Thran tapped the paper he had on the table. He continued when they looked at it. "And no, you can't accept these, they're silver and above in rankings." Lucian lowered his body upon hearing that. Thran shook his head, spotting the disappointment growing on his face. "We're in a tough situation with medicine, if you are willing I can set you up in another party. In it, you will be gathering a few herbs on a list given to you all."
"Before you deny it, I can assure you that you will be compensated generously for it."
'How does he know we need the money?!' They both thought after hearing Thran's statement. Even after they earned eighty copper from the goblins, it was quickly spent by meals and Lucian's crippling debt.
He gave them a mysterious smirk, he knew he hit a sore spot for them.
"We'll do it…"
"Perfect! Come back here in around 3 hours, that is when you will start."
Thran scurried off before they could get another word in. Even when Lucian called out to him to wait, Thran didn't turn his body or acknowledge his shouts.
"Looks like it'll be another…" Lucian grumbled, he tightened his fists and gritted his teeth. "Damn gathering request." He grumbled even further.
Fei's mouth opened to help calm him down, but nothing came to her; she could only look at him with a saddened look.
"At least.. It'll be something easy, right?" Lucian's posture and energy changed when he noticed Fei looking at him. A wry smile replaced his clenched mouth. "I mean, you're still recovering so thankfully it is." Although he hoped for another hunting, or subjugation request she came first for him. "Let's go back to the tavern, Aiko will definitely be happy to have company."
"O-Okay…"
'Maybe… if I didn't push myself too much, maybe… Thran would've given us a different request.' Fei thought as they headed towards the tavern. 'He's- Always… Excited for one. I'm really, really holding him back.' She looked at the ground, the voice of each passerby lashed out at her. 'I'll have to do better… I have to. I have to.' She repeated intensively to herself.
As if she were a dog who hasn't seen their owner for a few months, Aiko lunged at them and pulled them in for another, Aiko sized embrace. She sat them down and interrogated them for the next half hour, and for the rest of the time she forced them to play a few board games- Aside from her duty as a waitress she focused all of her attention on them.
"Aiko, I think we have to go." Lucian said as he noticed the sun reaching a certain point through the windows. "Thran's probably waiting on us."
"Aww… Alright, please have a safe rest of your day!"
"We will."
Thran stood at the counter with a man and woman standing just ahead of him. The man wore some heavy armor, he had a shield on his back and a mace hanging around his hip. As for the woman, she wore leather armor, showcasing her midriff and a bow strung around her torso.
"There they are. Hey, come here you two! This is Sir Janus, and this is Miss Catelyn. They'll be your temporary party members for this request, I hope you all will get along."
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Lucian wasn't it? Thran has told us about you, I hope we can get along splendidly." Janus said as he stuck his hand out for a handshake towards Lucian.
"Nice to meet you too." Lucian responded in kindly, he returned the handshake. 'His smile is creeping me out…' Just by his oddly cheerful smile, made a slight shiver go down Lucian's spine. After an eager moment from Janus their hands parted ways.
"Ah, Miss Fei was it? It's very nice to meet you as well, you already heard my name from Mr Thran." He introduced himself to Fei with the same smile, Fei's slight anxiety spiked from him sticking his hand out. She didn't return it, but her ears stuck far up as if she felt some danger. "Hm? Is there something on my face?" He asked while retracting his hand.
"She's nervous Janus, your niceness is overwhelming them. Don't bother with him you two, it's nice to meet you! My name is Catelyn, this doofus and I have been partying up for a few years, like he said I hope we can get along!" The woman exclaimed with a cheerful tone in her voice. "Oh right, Thran do you have that herb sheet- " she stopped mid sentence before scrounging around in her satchel that clung to her side. "Here's your copy of the herbal sheet we need."
She stuck her hand out with a slightly crumpled paper in her palm. Thanking her, Lucian took it and opened it between him in Fei.
There was a list with five items scribbled onto it. A number indicated how much they needed of each, and a short description of them was added just after.
"Let's go, I have the map on me; It's not too far, probably ten or twenty minutes max!" Catelyn said while immediately taking charge. She marched towards the entrance with her head up high. Janus was right behind her, followed by Lucian from a distance away with Fei next to him.
Thankfully, they were at a pace Fei could keep up with slight effort. Many eyes watched them as they passed by.
"Hey, Lucian, how long have you two known each other? You seem pretty close, especially for a demi-human and a human. Heck, even you are notorious around here, the rumored demi-human lover."
Seeing her air quote with the nickname he earned over the years, he rolled his eyes. He gained it just because of him defending Fei from verbal abusers or those talking behind her back. Reluctantly he opened his mouth to respond, "We've known each other for a while now… I think 14 years?" Lucian looked at Fei for confirmation. She nodded her head slightly, confirming his statement.
Catelyn looked at them in complete shock paired with her hand over her mouth in awe. She paused for a second before even continuing. "So the rumors were true! That's pretty cool isn't it Janus?!"
"Yes it is. It's amazing in fact."
"Mhm! This guy and me only knew each other for a year now. But I think we get along well."
'Didn't she say they've only partied up for a few years?'
Fei tilted her head slightly at her remark, as did Lucian.
"Ahem, I think you mean we've only known each other for a few years, yes?" Janus cleared his throat, he looked at her with furrowed eyebrows.
"Yeah, yeah whatever." Catelyn said while waving her hand in the air. She removed her face from the map in her hands before checking out the ground. "Looks like we're here, remember to keep your notes handy, we have to be careful with what we ground."
Janus tossed a leather satchel to both Lucian and Fei. They both knew what he meant when Lucian caught it.
'A flower with white petals… And a yellow stigma.' Fei noted when she looked at the first item. She crouched and scanned the area around her. A sea of multi-colored flowers surrounded her, wading through it, she found a flower that she thought was it. 'White petals… And a yellow stigma?'
Just before she could set the flower into the satchel, she was interrupted by a loud voice.
"That's not the flower we need, that clearly has an orange inside."
Fei turned her head to look at the source, Catelyn stood looming above her with a serious expression.
"What? Why are you looking at me like that? I'm just pointing at a mistake you just made, look at that center." Catelyn pointed at the flower in Fei's hands. "You've clearly picked the wrong one, go and keep looking."
Fei slowly nodded her head as her ears flopped downwards. Setting the flower down softly, but she was interrupted once again by another voice.
"Uh… Isn't that the right one? The center is yellow." Lucian's voice rang out. He kept an eye on their movements in between gathering the flowers, so he witnessed what just occurred.
"It's clearly orange, I don't know what there is to argue about."
"Fei, please put it in the bag and don't listen to her." Lucian requested, he side eyed Catelyn for a moment. "Don't listen to her, okay? You've found the right one." He whispered just quiet enough for her to hear.
Catelyn huffed and went back to searching, slightly stomping between steps.
After finding a few more, Fei went onto the next item. A purple petaled flower, with a soft green inside. When she found the right one, she was of course stopped by Catelyn and Lucian diffused the situation with a bit more attitude.
'Why is she even doing this?' Lucian wondered, as he felt another complaint incoming.
"Are you stupid? How many times are you going to make the same mistake over and over? You keep picking the wrong flowers! I thought demi-humans or whatever were supposed to be smart after all that's the only thing they're useful for." Catelyn snarkily quipped. She had her hands on her hips and everything.
"Catelyn, please keep the comments down, she's trying her best."
"No! Either she's making these same mistakes on purpose or she's just plain dumb! I mean come on, what's so hard about it?"
"She's been doing it right this entire time. You, you are the only one making comments about it." Lucian refuted her statement. His eyebrows twitched when he turned to look at her.
"What do you even know?"
"L-L-Lucian, please, please i-ignore her…"
"Oh wow, so she does speak instead of just shivering the entire time? C'monnn are you going to defend yourself or let this guy do all the talking?"
Fei backed up when Catelyn took a step forward.
"Catelyn, please stop it. Dealing with them isn't worth your time."
"Oh shut it, I don't want to fail this damn request because of these morons."
"Let's just do our part then, we're all contributing anyway, so we can just collect their amounts worth and let them fail on their part."
"You know, that's going to reflect poorly on us, Janus."
"It's the simplest solution, and by far the most reflective."
Lucian rolled his eyes at their comments. Listening to them just for a moment, left a sour taste in his mouth. When he turned his back towards them, he heard a statement that made his heart pound.
"Hey, do you think he'd leave her? I mean who wouldn't with a failure of a half ear just like her."
"Excuse me, what did you just say?"
Lucian turned to look at them. His pupils dilated into a thin needle.
"I said who wouldn't abandon her, look at her half ear, even her own kind sees her as a failure. And no… I won't take that back, - Wait, Wait Janus Janus Janus."
Lucian marched towards them with his fists clenched, Catelyn immediately hid behind her partner when she realized his intentions.
"Lucian, calm down she doesn't-"
Lucian reeled his fist and collided with his jaw. The force sent him tumbling backwards, knocking Catelyn down as a result.
"You fu-"
Janus coughed as the taste of iron filled his mouth.
"So… That's how you got your reputation… Huh?" Janus said while rubbing his jaw. With his other hand he grabbed his mace.
Lucian popped his knuckles signaling his readiness to fight.
Janus dashed towards him, with the momentum he shot his arm forward with his mace on the path to Lucian's temple.
Lucian nimbly ducked under his swing and swerved out of his way, with an "oh sh-!" Janus fell face first onto the ground.
Just as he turned around to gain composure, Lucian jumped on top of him.
Each punch sent Janus's face flailing to every which way. In the midst of his beating, he clutched Lucian's collar and threw one of his own.
Nothing stopped him, his fists kept connecting with his target.
"Stop! Stop! Please stop! I'm sorry for what I said! Just don't hurt him even further!"
These words brought him back to his senses, he barely glanced at Janus who's face turned into a purple balloon. Both Catelyn and Fei looked at him with terrified expressions- Mainly Fei who stood a good distance away from the altercation. Her ears fluttering uncontrollably and her tail subconsciously hid between her legs.
No other words were said, Lucian gathered the lent satchel and attempted to calm Fei down with a small smile. However, it failed as it made her even more frightened, in the end he sat with her and waited for her to calm down.
Once she calmed down to a degree, they left Catelyn and the still unconscious Janus to themselves.