THE APPRENTICE II

34

"Hold still!" Stephen grumbled as he reached for her head. She flailed her arms violently to fight him off. "I just need one strand, Hazel!,"

"I'll get it! You always pluck hairs from people." She snapped and ran a hand through her black hair, retrieving a piece that fell of and stuck to her hand. He took the strand and kept it in case he needed to track her; he's learned his lesson when Havoc happened.

She slung her cloak over her arm and turned her decoy staff back into an amulet. In a blink of an eye, she was in baggy, red leather pants and a thin, red turtle neck. Strange looked her up and down.

"What are you all dressed up for?" He called out and gestured to her clothes. "That's awfully stylish for business,"

"You dress in Armani." She rolled her eyes and made a portal to the monastery so he wouldn't see where she was going. "I'll be back with your food,"

"By 10:30!" He reminded as he watched her walk away with a lazy wave. He debated on having Wong spy on her, but decided that it was best not to.

When she entered the club, there was already a ruckus going on. Out of curiosity, she checked on the what the crowd was going wild for and found Xialing battling with a man she swears she's seen before. It dawned upon her: he was the one she saw in that bus fight video. She was completely taken by this— he seemed to be wanting to converse with her. Maybe they're old friends? Nonetheless, the two were phenomenal fighters— why wasn't he wearing a shirt?

"My money's on Xialing." Wong crept from behind her.

"Me too." She chuckled and crossed her arms.

"How are we going to bet if we're rooting for the same person?" He thought out loud and was about to make a suggestion when she interrupted him.

"I'm not here to watch, I'm here for business. Which reminds me: gotta go." She pat his shoulder and briefly turned. "Hey, you mind getting Stephen some Pad Thai? I promised him some food but I don't know how long this'll take. I have a curfew,"

"It'll be on my desk, in the library." He gave her a nod and waved her goodbye. "Now go, I've also got some business to attend to."

She gave him one final wave and decided on where to search for him first. On one hand, he could be mingling, but on the other, he could be in the VIP. She decided that this fight was too good to miss and arrived at the VIP room just as the fight ended. As predicted, Xialing had won. She found the prince sighing in defeat while Makky celebrated his victory. He handed him a pouch of wooden coins. They turned when they heard the door shut.

"Prince Heskit, Makky." She greeted and gave him a genuflect. The two did the same for her and she waited for them to get back up; it was probably best not to stop them and stick to the protocol.

"Master Wolfe! Why so formal?" He gave her a wide smile, his eyes turning into half-moons. "Are you ready for a tie-breaker?"

"That's actually what I came here for." She divulged and the man's face once again turned into a boyish grin. He got in a fighting stance and bounced playfully. She waved her palm with her head. "No no, I came here...for an apology."

She sped through that second half and the man stopped bouncing. The two men looked at one another, bewildered. He had tilted his head. Has he done something wrong to make her act so distant?

"Have I offended you-,"

"-No, no, that's not it." She quickly denied and inhaled. "I'm a sorcerer, you're a prince. It's my job to take the diplomatic route and handle relations like these in a...professional way."

He squinted his eyes suspiciously at her. He looked to Makky and the man widened his eyes knowingly. He gazed back at her again with the same skeptical look and hummed.

"Your master made you do this, didn't he?" He concluded, and she perked up at his cleverness. He caught on to her reaction and exclaimed. "Aha! So he did!"

He put his arms behind his back in contemplation. He crossed his arms for a moment and his eyes flashed with concern. He inhaled and hesitated before asking:

"Did he reprimand you for it?" He asked, and she narrowed his eyes at this. Was he reading her mind, or something? He once again took note of this reaction and pursed his lips. "I'm sorry. I should speak to him to apologize, to let him know that I was the one who challenged you,"

"No, please." She rejected and cringed at the thought of this happening. "I'm still responsible for participating; you never forced me to."

He let out a loud exhale at this and went quiet for a while. Soon enough, however, a mischievous grin spread on his lips. "Does this mean that I win by default, since you have refused the tie-breaker?,"

"It wasn't a tie. Actually, you were quite literally saved by the bell. Or the Wong, in this case. So you should be thanking him instead of apologizing to Stephen." She briefly mocked but kept her tone steady and formal. The two Pentadilunians shared a chuckle and she smiled. An uncomfortable silence once again resurfaced. "Anyways, that's all I came here for. I've done my job, so...goodbye."

She gave him another bow and they did the same reflexively. She rose and gave both of them a nod. He fumbled with his fingers while his hands were locked behind him.
"Wait!" He stopped her and brought a hand out. She stopped in her tracks. He contemplated on what to say. "Will this be the last time we will see each other?"

Hazel was about to answer when an explosion sent the ground vibrating northwest to them. Makky immediately got in front of the man and brought out his sword that seemed to be portable in some way. The two men exchanged worried looks. Hazel got in a fighting stance and scanned through the glass window to check for any attackers.

"He came here? Coward!" Heskit exclaimed, and his face was more tinted with rage rather than fear. He stepped away from the guard's protection and shook his head. "I want to speak to them,"

"They did not come here to speak to you!" He argued and brought out a clear, glass bottle that had a sparkling blue liquid inside it. He poured the contents that smelled of mushrooms onto the floor and grabbed another bottle with yellow liquid and poured it on the same spot. He put his hand around his forearm firmly. "We must leave!,"

"What's going on?" She directed her puzzled expression to the guard.

"This must be an attack on the prince. Master Wolfe, can you get us home now? This portal is taking too long." He disclosed and requested. She gave a nod. She made a portal to Pentadilune and opened the door.

"I'm going to see who it is. Do you want them caught and detained?" She offered and slung her cloak over her body. Before they could even process it, she was in her usual, traditional attire. Heskit breathed in amazement while Makky nodded in confirmation. "Alright, I'll see you there."