Remember Me

Chapter 1

The city bus. It wasn't Barley's first choice for transportation, but with Guinevere II breaking down and her new part delayed in the mail, he didn't have much of a choice. Normally he'd ask his mom to borrow her car, but he already knew the answer was no since she had to work today too.
The bus was crowded, nearly every seat taken. Not too surprising for a Saturday morning. The elf girl sitting next to him was quietly humming along to whatever song was playing in her headphones. Barley couldn't help wondering what her singing voice was like. Her humming was gentle, almost soothing as Barley slowly blinked. Before he realized it, he had leaned against the window and was quietly sleeping as the bus continued on its way. He hadn't been sleeping long, just long enough to start an incoherent dream, when he felt a slight nudge in his side.
He jumped slightly looking around as the elf girl spoke to him.
"Can you pull the string Barley?" She asked, "We're going to be late for work if we miss our stop."
"Huh?" He gave her a confused look.
We? Our? How'd this girl know his name? He stared at her for a moment, blinking as he tried to focus. Barley had no clue who she was. He watched her glance to the front of the bus and back to him before she repeated herself.
"We're gonna be late if we miss our stop."
It was like someone flipped a switch. Barley quickly realized what she was talking about as he pulled the thin yellow string above the window.
"New Mushroomton Mall!" The driver announced with the ding of the stop request.
Barley sank back in his seat with a sigh of relief, earning a laugh from the girl.
"Lemme guess," she said, "You stayed up late playing Quest of Yore or something, right?"
Nevermind the fact that she was right. Barley was more concerned about how she knew him so well.
"D-do I know you?" He asked sheepishly.
This earned another laugh from the girl as the bus came to a stop.
"You really don't recognize me, do you?" She asked as he followed her off the bus.
"I'm sorry," He admitted, "I don't."
"Good!" She chuckled, "The less people from high school that remember me, the better!"
"We went to high school together?" He asked, following her into the mall.
"What time do you get off work?" The girl asked.
"Um three, why?"
"Dang, I get off at five." She said, "Oh well, come by The Nook when you get off. We can catch up then!"
"A-alright." Barley replied as she waved, walking towards the other side of the mall.
He was more confused than anything, but at least now he knew how she knew where he worked. The Nook was a little book store directly across from the store where he worked. Barley worked at a small gaming shop called Saving Throw that bought and sold various games and collectibles.
"Morning Bar!" A short satyr boy greeted him.
"Hey Marco," Barley said as he clocked in at the register, "You remember most everyone from high school, don't you?"
Marco, who had been one of the popular boys back in their high school days, arched an eyebrow, "Maybe? Why, what's up?"
Barley told Marco about everything that had happened that morning. He tried to describe the girl as best as he could, "She's kinda on the short side. She had pink hair pulled up in a bun with one of those chop stick looking things. Umm green eyes, glasses, and freckles."
"Hmmm is she skinny?" Marco asked.
"Not really." Barley said, "She's not really heavy set, but she's not skinny either."
"Doesn't ring a bell man." Macro replied, scratching his chin as he tried to think, "Sounds like someone we'd remember if we knew her though. Don't ya think?"
"That's what I thought!" Barley replied, slumping over the counter, "This is gonna drive me crazy!"
"Does she know your brother?" Marco offered.
"Oh! Maybe that's it!" Barley said, quickly texting Ian.
Unfortunately, Ian had no clue who the girl was either. Barley sighed in frustration as he glanced at the clock. This was going to drive him crazy.

Three o'clock finally came and Barely didn't waste any time making his way to The Nook. He nodded at the cashier that greeted him before he started searching the isles. After a few minutes he found the girl stocking some books on a shelf.
"H-hey." Barley greeted, suddenly unsure of what to say.
"Oh hey!" The girl smiled, "Figure out who I am yet?"
"I'm sorry, but it's driving me nuts." Barley admitted, "Who are you?"
The girl laughed, brushing her hands off as she faced him, "Well, you'd know me as Rosa Lynn. I go by Liv now."
Rosa Lynn? Barley thought for a moment before a face from his memories finally matched the name. Rosa Lynn has been a quiet girl with short dark blue hair and thick glasses. She usually kept to herself, rarely interacting with anyone unless she had to. They had worked on a couple assignments together, but aside from that, they hadn't interacted much.
"Oooooh!" Barley exclaimed, "I never would have guessed that! You look so different now!"
"That's what happens when you lose like fifty pounds and give yourself a makeover." Liv said.
"How've you been Rosa-"
"Liv!" She corrected him, "It's short for Olivia."
"Oh! Sorry." Barley said, "Why'd you change your name?"
"This is gonna sound cliche," She said sheepishly, "But I was just tired of being Rosa Lynn."
"What do you mean?" Barley asked.
Liv sighed, thinking of how to explain as she added another book to the shelf, "Everyone always saw Rosa Lynn one way. Even me. I just... I didn't want to be the way I was anymore. I wanted to speak up for myself, but every time I tried it just... it was like I was just compliant. I just wished I could be someone else, ya know? Then I thought, why not? So I changed my name, legally I mean. Once I saw Olivia Ravendale on official documents, it was like this weight had been lifted off me."
"Wow, that's crazy!" Barley said, "You even changed your last name?"
"Yup! To my grandmas maiden name." Liv replied. "Enough about me though, what've you been up to? I haven't actually talked to you since high school."
"Oh! Well..." Barley thought for a moment before catching her up.
He told her about the hum drum days before he started searching for work, the epic battles in Quest of Yore with his friends, and of course the adventure with his brother to see their dad.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Liv said as she set the last book on the shelf, "You had a literal adventure, a real life quest, and you didn't lead with that?!"
"Everything else sounds boring after that." Barley laughed.
"Well, yeah, but still!" Liv replied, "And your brother can use magic?"
"Yeah!" Barley grinned, "He's getting really good at it too!"
"This is going to sound like a weird request, but could I meet him some time?" Liv asked.
"Um, sure." Barley gave her a curious look, "But why?"
Liv smiled, pulling the chopstick from her hair and showing it to Barley. He gasped, quickly realizing it wasn't a chopstick that had been in her hair. It was a wand! A thin, intricately designed, wand.
"You can use magic?!" Barley exclaimed.