Prideland

Chapter 4- Spencer

Out of the entire plot of the on-growing kingdom, the familiarly of Leaf's basement would always be Spencer's favorite thing. Leaf made their way carefully down the cobblestone steps, holding a flickering candle as they stumbled to find the lever. Careful not to trip over their feet, they recognized the feeling of the handle as it wrapped around their fingers and pushed it up with force, letting out a soft grunt as the room buzzed alive. Spencer blinked at the brightness as fluorescent tubes hung up by copper wires spinning overhead. Looking at his surroundings, he grinned at the nostalgia of the sights. A wooden table that held white scratches and paint splatters stood in the middle on top of a greasy green carpet, its original color unrecognizable. Forgotten board games with roughed edges and card stacks were shoved awkwardly amongst a black bookshelf that slanted by the weight. Neglected Bean bag chairs coated with dust flopped on top of each other in a separate corner as picture books strewn across the floor with bent pages and broken spines. The only thing untouched by the havoc of wreckful children was a glass case that stood as tall as a locker in the wall's middle, antique design tracing over the glass as dusty books with yellowing pages and holed leather covers sat inside.

"Welcome home," Leaf said, pulling a brass key out of their pocket as they made their way to the cabinet. Spencer pulled out a chair and sat down, rapping his fingers on the table. "Feels like yesterday, huh Leaf?" He asked quietly, tracing his nimble fingers over the white scratches. "We would always sit at this table with Theo and Thanious, arguing over character sheets and actions. We lost so many dice during our campaigns." Spencer sat back in his chair with a grin, his feet pushing out on the edge of the table.

"Yeah, and whenever I told you to make a throw to slay the elf, you chucked the dice at my face." Leaf grinned, turning their head behind them to show two small scars that ran down their cheek. Spencer let out a replying laugh that ended in a coughing fit as he clutched his ribs. "Yep," he responded in a gravelly voice. "We were dumb asses."

"Maybe you were, I- however, like to think of myself as the only one that had functioning brain cells," Leaf said, rusting through old pages with gloved leather hands. "I swear you and Theo were the stupidest runts of the litter."

"Hey now- that's hardly fair," Spencer grinned, pushing himself farther back in his chair. "Last time I checked, life isn't fair your Royal highness, it's messy and cold. There's no fairness in war." Leaf's expression suddenly grew serious as he slammed an old book on the table, making Spencer fall out of his chair and hit the ground backward, his legs flopping over his head. "Deep." He groaned with a pained expression as he sat back up, rubbing his back. "What's that?" He asked, nodding his chin forward to the purple satire novel in front of them, yellow glue frozen to the bindings as gold intrigue designs popped out of the holed velvet surface, evidence of a mouse nibbling the corners.

"This," Leaf replied, tapping their finger on one of the holes. "Is everything about the barrier and more specifically- how to break it." Their smile was mischievous and cunning, the type of smile that Spencer recognized as trouble. The good kind of trouble, the kind that started as an adventure and ended in a dead body being discovered or a house being lit on fire. Spencer's eyes grew wide. "How do you have something like this"? He asked, curiosity fizzling in his brain like sparks of fire.

"Oh, I just bought it the same place you forgot to buy a brain."

Spencer snorted, rolling his eyes at the sarcastic deploy. "Isn't it a little early for snide remarks"?

"Isn't it a little late for you to shut up?" Leaf shot back.

Spencer put his hands up in protest. "Alright, alright, so what does it say?" He brought his hands together as he leaned forward and sat up, craning his neck to the yellowing pages. Leaf swatted Spencer's face, pulling the book farther away. "I don't want your bisexual breath contaminating this book." Leaf grinned, scanning the literature before them and ignoring the daggers Spencer was shooting out of his corneas.