Now, I didn't have a lot of friends, but I had a few. The friends and I did have... well we helped each other. Francis was a friend who usually sought out my help. There were a few times (mostly when Catherina made my old life hell) when I went to him.
Today, is one of those times. Francis is an unlikely friend of mine because he's quite dangerous. He's the head of the Venzor guild, a guild that holds many secrets. Up front, he does what any other information guild would do- find people, look into things or whatnot. If you paid more money; he could do many things like find magical relics or make a person disappear- or whatever you wanted.
I won't get into the details of how we met, I will just say the last memory I have of him. I was the wrong one, the bad person. Catherina had just stolen my husband and I was alone. Francis, a dear friend, tried to help me run away. The day before I was to leave, Catherina knew of my plans and confronted me. I was forced to stay and watch her live my life, or if I left she would kill him in aiding a traitor.
The next day, he came to pick me up on a carriage- pretending to take me to a newly found excavation site. I had to stop our plan, but he couldn't know because Catherina was there, watching. I made a mess of things, throwing things at him and cursing him out. He was confused and sad when he finally left me and then I was all alone in castle of my enemy. He was the last bridge I burned.
I shake my head, no. That was a different time. That will not happen again. I hold my fan and look down at my dress. I won't be walked upon. Francis is still my friend and we care for one another. He will help me find Milo.
The carriage stops, an hour has passed from the Magic Tower to the Capital. I wait, knowing the spy of a guard will open my door and escort me to 'a late lunch'. I don't want that.
I've made a plan to abandon him. He cannot see me go into Francis' guild, the Prince will ask too many questions. No, he will leave me and I will run. From there, I will claim he has abandoned me. That should be a good enough reason to get rid of him.
My door opens and the guard smiles. "Maddox, go to the restaurant and order me a table. I want to wait here." I command. He hesitates, but nods and closes the door.
I watch him from the window. I wait until I see him cross the street and enter the restaurant I frequented. At that moment, I opened the door and jumped off. I closed the door and quickly ran, blending in with the sea of people.
Francis' guild wasn't far off. Two blocks down and a block to the right later, I stood in front of the doors. I cover my head with my hood before stepping in. There are some guild workers lounging about, laughing loudly and talking even louder. The crest on their chests were evidence to show their ranking and where they belong. Luckily, they pay me no attention.
I walk to the bar, Christa greets me as she pours me a beer. I don't take it, but lift my hood just the slightest so she can see my face. Her eyes widen and then smiles.
"Hello, Master." She greets me by my profession, the name I worked hard for. Many people greet me as Lady Solon, a name that reminds me of my family. But, my friends respect me and use my preferred title.
"Hello, Lady Christa." I greet kindly, using an honorific name, even though she's anything but. She laughs.
"Sir Francis is free. You do know where to go, right?" She leans over.
"I do. Have a good one." I slide two gold coins, pure and true. I stand and watch as she takes them before I make my way up the stairs.
When I make it to Francis' door, I knock. I hear arguing from behind the door pause before a 'come in' instructs me.
I open the door and see two men standing in the middle of the room. Francis looks at me and then his face breaks out into a smile. I came help but smile back, so different than our last encounter.
The man next to him looks away from me, the forearm that was revealed before I entered is quickly covered by the long sleeve and gloves- even in the end of summer where the cool breeze has not yet struck.
"I'm sorry, I was told you were free." I step into the room, Francis walks forward and hugs me. He's very unprofessional and very touchy. He knows I don't like hugs but says I will learn to love them. I allow him to touch me sometimes. I smile nonetheless, feeling different and hug him back. I close my eyes, trying to force tears that want to come out. My throat tightens and I tighten my hold. I can't help but remember our last meeting, a terrible time in a horrible time line.
"I will excuse myself." The man says, prompting us to separate. I look away, wanting the privacy.
"No, she's the one I was telling you about." Francis pats the top of my head. I frown and look at the man.
He's tall, but a lot of men around me are. He has dark hair and red eyes. He's handsome, desirably so, but I can tell he's seen terrible things from the bags under his eyes. I look at his outfit. He is a soldier I deduce by judging the crest on his robe, somehow unfazed by the summer heat. I notice the bear on the crest, he is a Northern Knight. Another enemy in my brother's eyes. It's best to avoid him to get on Elric's good side.
"What?" I ask. "Why are you speaking of me?" I turn to Francis for answers.
Francis leaves my side to close their door, locking the three of us in. I look at the man who looks at me. We size each other up. Francis usually asks for me help for the sake of his clients. I study Ancient Magic, magic that exists in this life time as curses.
"Are you cursed?" I speak aloud.
"Who are you?" The man asks, avoiding my question and confirming my suspicion.
"I'm Master Solon, Master of Ancient magic at the Magic Tower." I greet as I take off my hood. "Who are you?"
The man tosses a discrete look to Francis, clearly not pleased with who I am. I narrow my eyes, wondering if I've seen him before. But alas, I can't remember him. I would've remembered those eyes of his, eyes that already don't like me.
"Sir..." He looks out the window and coughs before looking to me. "...Sir Pine."
I look out the window to see a pine tree. I raise my brows, wondering if he's stupid. Francis laughs but quickly masks it with a cough.
"...Sir Pine?" I ask, doubt dripping heavily from my lips as I look him up and down, wondering if he thinks I'm stupid. "Are you joking?"
"That is what I wish to go by, Sir Pine." He coughs then nods. I look to Francis, who gives me a big smile and nods, walking to the liar.
He embraces him with one hand and shoots me a thumbs up. "I vouch for him, he's a long time friend." I look Sir Pine up and down, scrutinizing him. He stared me down, brave in his answer and stance. I could press on his true identity, but what do I care?
"Fine," I sigh. "Tell me everything about the curse." I make my way to Francis' sitting area and sit down. The boys follow me, all of us equal distance apart.
"Four days ago-"
"Four days ago?" I cut him off, frowning. I have returned from the past four days ago and now this man somehow came across a curse that same day? This sounds like a bad joke.
"Yes," the man clears his throat. "Anyways, I was with my troop-"
"The Northern Knights." I cut him off again. He pauses with a frown. "Your crest, it's that of the Northern Knights, correct?"
"Yeah," he sighs. "As I was saying, I- we were already out beyond the wall and set to return when... my Captain suddenly called us further beyond. We traveled a few hours and came across this cave. I felt a very strong presence so I entered. Inside we found an old sword. There were words on it and well..."
Sir Pine rolled up his long sleeve, showing me a gloved hand with black veins that manage to creep higher than the glove. I keep a composed face as he takes off his glove. I force a straight face, watching the way the black veins turned into dark fingertips. I step forward, getting close to a complete male stranger, but I need to see it.
I look up, hands raised from my side, silently asking if I can touch him. He nods and I touch his hand. He doesn't wince, no sign of pain which is a good thing. I recognize the black tint, but usually it's a gray or yellowish color. This must be old, deep magic, a curse that will be hard to reverse.
I reach for his other hand and he takes off his glove. His left hand doesn't have any black on it, so far free from the curse. I notice a enchanted bracelet, one normally used to disguise their looks.
I look up at him, staring into his red eyes and I can't help but wonder who he is and I also pity him. The name Sir Pine is obviously now a cover, but who is he?
I step away, taking a shaky breath. "Why did your Captain force you to touch the sword? He's a terrible man to do that. How cowardly of him."
I turn to Francis who has one arm crossed over his chest and the other hand covering his mouth. I can't tell what half of his expression is, but his eyes shine with amusement. I look back at Sir Pine who looks shocked at my words. I narrow my eyes. Soldiers tend to be loyal, loyal like dogs. He probably doesn't like the words I just said.
"What did it say? The words, do you remember?" I change the subject, voice urgent, hoping to snap him out of his daze.
"No, but I can ask someone to return and write it down." The man states.
I frown. "No, that would take too long. I'm sure your Captain could possibly at times be a nice guy, but as a regular soldier..." I take a deep sigh and bravely take his hand, pointing at the black fingertips.
"You have a powerful curse. Most curses come in the shade yellow or gray with some black. You are clearly black," I let go of his hand. "I'm sorry, but unless your Captain is feeling generous, you have a few months left."
He takes a deep breath. "I can get it for you, in a matter of days. Will you be able to save me, a lot of people depend on me." I narrow my eyes at the end of his sentence. I assumed he was a regular knight by his outfit, but now he claims to be important. I, however, do not care about Northern politics.
"I'll need to study the texts, look at my books and scrolls. I'll have to figure out who cursed the item, then try to see if there's a cure. If not, then I'll have to make one myself. But yes, I haven't failed yet and I won't in the future." I offer him a smile.
"How can I contact you?" He asks.
"Through the Magic Tower. You will meet one of my students. I will send them all-"
"No." He cuts me off. "No one can know. The only ones who know will not speak word of this outside this room. I meet with you directly, or we meet here."
I narrow my eyes, not liking this. I've always used my students, not wanting to interact with people in the past. I've only ever worked for serious clients or done research which is something I'm comfortable with. I look to Francis who nods his head. I look back at Sir Pine. I suck in my teeth. "Fine, my office is at my house. You can meet me there." I concede.
"Why not here?" Francis asks. I look to him, a pointed glare.
"We both know I'm still a lady and can't be seen frequenting here." I look back at Sir Pine. "Would that work?"
He takes a deep breath. "Yes. I'll visit you when I have the writings you want." He puts on his glove and lowers his sleeve. I watch as he bids us both farewell and then he leaves Francis and I alone. The door closes and I turn to him.
"Sir Pine?" I laugh and shake my head. My laughter stops when I think about him. "He's a doomed man. I hope I can save him in time." My voice ends in a serious tone.
"Master Giselle, have a seat." Francis walks over to his big seat and gestures to the chair in front of him. I sit down, smoothing out my robes. "Now, how can I help you?"
"Someone I care for is missing." I say, checking the time. It's an hour ride to get to my place from the Capitol. I have almost two hours until I leave to make it for dinner. I believe I have time.
"Who?"
"Grand Sorcerer Milo Lavigne. He's disappeared a week ago."
Francis frowns, "Disappeared?"
"He's told another Master he had to find 'her'. He didn't know who she was or where he had to go, but he left. He's erased his mana so we can't track him through our means, so I come to you. We need him back." I put urgency in my voice.
"Well, you came to the right place." Francis smiles. He leans back and opens a drawer. He rummages around and then takes out some papers. "These are my people who I would send out. As a good friend of mine, you will be my priority."
I smile, reminded of how sweet he is to me. He pretty much ignores me, whispering a plan that I can barely make up. I look at him, not knowing how I would be saying my next words. I can't tell him the prophecy, but what to tell him?
"Francis," I clear my throat. "I need a... more personal favor."
"Anything- that includes murder." He chuckles at his lame joke.
"I need a safety plan that will allow me to disappear."
He pauses and looks up from his papers. "Disappear?"
"As you know," I look down. "Well my life isn't the best. My family is very critical, my work life binds me to that house and I have no friends in the social world. My fiancé is insane and only wants me for my brother."
"Your brother?"
I chuckle, understanding the confusion. "No, well he want's my brother's loyalty. Marrying me, he get my brother's army. He'll have his Imperial Knights, his cousin's army and my brother's. I worry of his plan. Besides, living my current life and being Queen... no that isn't me. I need to go away, but it can't be suspicious."
Francis nods, taking it all in. "How do you know?"
"He told me. He knows that I can't say no for he's the Prince. I can't break off the marriage, but if I leave and no one can find me..." I fail to finish my sentence.
"I will arrange it all. It's security. If you want to see it through, let me know." Francis reaches forward and holds my hand.
I smile up at him. "I'm really happy you're my friend."
"What're you doing today?" He asks me as I let go of him. I stand, flattening out my dress.
"I think I'll go on a walk before dinner tonight. We're having a big family dinner." I frown, still not wanting to sit in a room with my father. I don't know why he wants to eat together. I can't read that man, never did and still can't.
"Yikes," he rubs his neck. "Well, be careful walking. There's a serial killer running around."
I give him a pointed look. "There's still daylight."
"Still, be careful."
I nod. I wave goodbye to him and head for the exit, stress going off my shoulders since I know I can count on him.