AUTHOR'S NOTES: This chapter is 37 pages long. If you feel that this is simply overwhelming to read as one part, please comment down below and I will split it into two parts like I did with chapter 3. From here on, quite a bit of the chapters are going to be around this length, so it would really help me to know if you guys think I should split them into two or not. Thanks in advanced and hope you enjoy, despite my insanely long hiatus!
"Raw seafood grows on the earthly one." Spritelile read as Alile and the others, including Silver and his pegasus, entered the gate to townsquare. In contrast to the small town of Woteon, Descowton was quite a large, lively city. Tall, vividly colored buildings made it hard for anyone (except the apathetic Alile), to keep smiles off their faces as they looked around in awe and excitement. Alsen wanted to take pictures of every single sight, but her phone was no good, so Casele let her use hers.
"Shame must be laughed at."
Between the billboards advertising everything from the newest movies to the Descowton-style hot dog, and the grand clock tower that stood in the center of townsquare, the wizards were finding themselves looking up every other minute. Alile subconsciously licked her lips as the wondrous scent of freshly baked bread wafted into her nose from a nearby local vendor.
Just as they got further into the city, Spritelile began to read at a rapid pace. "Surrendering to pressure is a decision to be regretted. Shock leads to sorrow for many. Sweet melodies fall on deaf ears. Road rage is never the key." the sprite went on and on, speaking at a near unintelligibly fast pace to keep up with everyone within Alile's radius. So many predictions right after the other left Alile with a migraine.
Hardly audible under the discord of packed traffic and hustling and bustling men and women, a young man played his violin as he walked down the well maintained sidewalk.
"Self indulgence leads to a heart to heart."
Whenever the wizards and Silver passed by someone who wasn't in too big of a hurry to pay them any mind, they would bow before their prince, surprised to see him strolling through town on this early morning.
Spritelile eventually went a good few seconds without making any predictions, then read, "There is empty space."
Alile glanced at the sprite on her shoulder. "What are you talking about?" she was used to it speaking in riddles, but it had never said something like that. She expected it to just go right back to its predictions, but it just wafted above her shoulder, silent.
Echoing in the distance, a fountain stood in the center of a verdant park right by the ocean, adding even more color to the alluring city. Seagulls perched onto the fountain and park benches, while others flew freely over the ocean. Even with all the noise from the city, boats could be heard going 'boot boot!' from the sea.
As to be expected with any ocean-side city, there was a middle aged man with a grumpy face who reeked with the scent of the sea, sitting behind a stand, trying to sell fish.
The group came to a stop at an electronics store with rows of flat screen TV's displaying the news behind the glass windows. "In other news, the mysterious, alleged wizard, continues to spread his message of creating an 'utopia'." said one of the reporters.
"I don't understand how anyone can take a word out of that man's mouth seriously! If he's really a wizard, allowing his people into our country would be a one way ticket to disaster!" said the other reporter.
"There is empty space." Spritelile broke its silence. It normally wore a poker face just like Alile, but was now adjusting its glasses and its script shook in its hands.
"Empty space?" Alile whispered to herself. Normally she'd be able to dissect Spritelile's riddles without even trying, but with the way that emotionless sprite looked shook, she assumed that this wasn't just any cryptic prediction.
Spritelile remained in its state of shock, so while the rest of the group watched the news, Alile watched a heavily annoyed father drag his whiny son.
"I don't like the Descowton special!" the boy complained, waving around his hot dog in a tantrum.
"Then why did you ask for it?!" the father asked.
"I don't want it!" the boy threw his hot dog, which flew threw the air, and oh so conveniently, hit Zento right in the face.
"What in the seven hells...?" Zento turned around briskly, furiously wiping chili and condiments off his face.
Casele covered her mouth and tried her hardest to keep a straight face, but broke into a fit of laughter.
"That aint funny! Clean this crap off of me!"
Casele pointed her finger at his face, washing it clean with a small stream of water, but not before Alsen could take a picture of Zento's messy face.
"Say cheese, hot dogified Zento!" Alsen giggled as she snapped the picture.
"That's not even a word..."
"This is your karma, Zento." Alile said cooly.
"What did I ever do to deserve this?!"
"You said hot dogs aren't sandwiches, and that they can't fly. This is exactly what you deserve, nonbeliever."
"Not. Going. To. Bother. With. You." Zento dried his now clean face with his shirt. "And you!" he pointed his finger at Alsen, "Delete that crap right now!"
"Nope!" Alsen said with a bright smile, giggling at the picture.
Silver, Naito and Cosena laughed along with Alsen and Casele. Zento glared at them, but when Alsen showed him the picture his frown turned upside down.
"I guess it is a little funny..."
"My my, prince Silver, what brings you to town this morning?" spoke a new male voice, coming from an elderly, dark skinned man approaching them. His head was bald and he had a neatly shaved, white beard and mustache. He wore a pair of spectacles, and a fancy black and white suit that gave him an immediate aura of importance.
"King in rags falls for fascination in fictitious fantasies." Spritelile read, back to normal.
"Couldn't you have just kept your mouth shut for once?" Alile whispered.
"Ah, mayor Roosevelt!" Silver hugged the mayor as if they were good friends.
"I see Quickfire's looking healthy as ever!" the mayor pet the horse's side, and it let out a soft, satisfied neigh.
"Indeed! I swear, his metabolism get's bigger every day!"
"Dark, damp places are the source of cliches."
"Not an easy responsibility owning a horse of that size." mayor Roosevelt chuckled.
"What one doesn't have is the source of misery.
"Not by a longshot, nor sir! But I'm not here to talk about my horse."
"I would figure not. It's not every morning that you're not out practicing your swordsmanship!"
"Oh how I would love to swing my sword around for a good few hours right now." Silver patted his sheathed sword, "But alas, I am on a very special quest."
"I'm all ears, m'boy."
"I am out to catch a criminal. Would you happen to know of any?"
"Karma always follows arrogance."
"This is a big city, there's all sorts of crimes committed here every day. You'll have to be more specific than that."
"Sadly I haven't any further information."
"How do you plan to find a specific criminal in a city this big without any information?" the mayor asked.
"With the help of my new friends here," Silver gestured to the wizards, "I am going to ask around for clues. Today, I shall trade in my armor for a magnifying glass!"
"Ah, playing detective I see?" mayor Roosevelt chuckled. "Always a pleasure to meet friends of Silver's!" he shook the wizards' hands and they introduced themselves one by one. "I wish I could help you more. Maybe you could start your investigation at the docks? It's the spot where most crimes happen." he suggested.
"Superb suggestion! Let us be off with haste! Thank you, mayor Roosevelt!"
"Good luck!" mayor Roosevelt waved goodbye.
The group changed their route, and after nearly half an hour, they came across a group of multi-colored buildings made of roughly carved stone. In the windowsill of the center building there was a life-sized model of a falcon with its wings spread out to take flight. Above the falcon model, the building read 'Uncle Falcon's Tavern'.
"Loose laces. Stories only from the bottom of the bottle. Lasagna awaits. Weird reference to a bad song. Tardiness is the bane of the worker. Gold grains guy gains. Average Joe is a favorite among many". Spritelile returned to rapid fire mode without warning.
"I'll bet crooks love to hang out here." Zento said, hands in his pockets.
"Just looking at it gives me the creeps..." Casele wrapped her arms around herself.
"Think we should give it a thorough investigation?" Silver asked, once again stroking that manly chin of his.
"Nah, you guys go on ahead to the docks, I'll ask around here myself."
"Not a bad idea. We'll collect more clues by splitting up. For safe measures, just be sure to stay near town center. Let us meet up at the park in...four hours?" Silver suggested.
"Yeah, sure." Zento began to walk towards the tavern.
"Wait, I'll go with you." Cosena said. She caught up to Zento without waiting for anyone's approval.
Zento just shrugged as if he could care less.
"A family call results in self reflection."
"Think they'll be okay by themselves?" Alsen asked as she watched Zento and Cosena enter the tavern.
"We both know how tough Cosena is, she can take care of herself." Naito said nonchalantly.
Quickfire breathed over Alsen's neck. Alsen slowly turned her head to see that the winged horse was right behind her. Her lips quivered for a moment. "Eek!" she whimpered and hid behind Naito, arms wrapped around his torso and her face pressed into his back.
"Still scared of Quickfire? I know he caused..." Silver cleared his throat, "Quite a bit of problems, but he is very friendly, so long as he isn't startled."
"A shade of gray encounters the violet flames."
"He's still big..." she said, face still in her brother's back.
"I think she's still scarred from our experience with a Cerberus." Naito explained.
Both Alsen and Casele shuddered at the mention of Sartur's pet Cerberus.
"The verbal infant is the parent's pride."
"A Cerberus?!" Silver was taken aback. He cleared his throat again. "Those are quite the aggressive beasts...polar opposites in nature from a magnificent Pegasus. Why don't you try and pet him?"
"Pet him...?" Alsen timidly peeked her head out from behind Naito.
"Officer savours round pastries."
"Like this." Silver pet his steed's side and rubbed it's fur. It neighed in satisfaction, but Alsen still seemed unsure.
"Can I try?" Casele asked.
Silver nodded, so she pet the horse just as he had shown them.
"Your positive he won't try to stomp me out again if I try, right?" Naito asked half sarcastically.
"I swear on my honor he won't." Silver assured him.
Naito pat the steed and rubbed its fur with Casele. "Good boy..." he said, smirking.
"Education is not to be treated as trivial."
"If he won't hurt Naitey again, I guess he's not so bad..." Alsen said, cautiously stepping towards Quickfire and gently patting his side.
"You've got to be a bit stronger than that. He's three tons of pure muscle, he won't feel it if you're too soft."
"Be aggressive like when you try to wake me up." Naito said, grimacing at the memories.
"Oh...like this?" she pat the horse with much more force this time, and it neighed in satisfaction like when Silver pet it. Alsen smiled.
"I'll bet your feet are getting tired from so much walking. Why not ride on Quickfire the rest of the way?" Silver suggested.
"The main body component is mastered."
"Ride on him? I dunno...that's pretty high up." Alsen looked up at Quickfire's back worriedly.
"You won't fall, I promise!" Silver chuckled and scooped Alsen up.
"Eh?" her face flushed slightly in surprise.
"Up you go!" he carefully sat her down on his steed's saddled back.
"W-What do I do?"
"Secret love hidden in public."
"Never let go of the reins." Silver put the reins in her hands. "If you want him to turn, just pull the reins that way. You'll have to pull them hard enough for him to feel, but don't get aggressive or mad at him, he'll feed off your energy. And to get him to move, just kick his sides."
Alsen kicked the Pegasus's sides as Silver said.
"Whoa..." she rocked back and forth slightly as the horse began to walk slowly.
"See? Not too hard, is it?"
"Mechanical object can't operate without its core."
"I think I'd be more comfortable if Naitey rode with me..." Alsen looked down at Naito, but he shook his head.
"I think I'll stick to walking. You'll be fine, I'm right besides you." he said.
"Hey, Silver..." Alile said, twirling her fingers and looking down, pretending as if she were shy.
"A rogue ambush on the innocent passerby."
"Hmm? Would you like to pet him too?" Silver asked her.
Alile disregarded his question. "I've...well, I've been looking at your chin." she twirled her hair like a typical cliche high school cheerleader.
"Looking at my what now...?" Silver was lost.
"Your chin. And I was wondering if, well, I could have it."
"U-what...?"
"Come on, just give me your chin." Alile approached him without waiting for his consent, standing on her tiptoes so she could reach his chin, massaging it with her thumb and index finger. "Ah...this is nice."
"Uh...okay...?" Casele was nonplussed.
Alile continued to massage the chin of the uncomfortable Silver as the group continued their walk to the docks.
"Hey, look at that." Naito pointed up at a grand building made of smooth, gray stone. In an arch across the top of the building, bulky marble white letters read 'Descowton Public Library'.
"A new illusionary waste of time for an adolescent."
"Fifth largest library in the country." Silver explained.
"Imagine how many books must be in there...enough to read for hours and hours and still not finish!" Naito gushed in fascination. "Maybe I should take a peek inside..."
"Silly Naitey, now isn't a time to be thinking about books." Alsen said.
"There's never a wrong time to think about books! Books give you knowledge, and knowledge is power. Come on Alsen, I've always wanted to go to a library!" Naito clasped his hands together and bounced on his heels like a begging child.
"They learn to cook something new.."
Alsen sighed. "Books are boring...maybe Cosena can take you inside another time?"
"I'm not a kid anymore Alsen, I don't need you or Cosena with me every single place I go. Besides, I can ask around for clues while I'm in there."
"Perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad idea to split up some more." Silver said.
"Then I'll meet up with you guys at the park in four hours!" Naito exclaimed with a boyish grin before darting off into the library.
"Fresh dual wheels are the way to live life on the edge."
"But Naitey!" Alsen reached out, but she was on top of Quickfire, so she couldn't chase after him.
"Uhm, I could go with him." Casele suggested in a hesitant tone.
"You, all alone with him? Oh my, what would Zento think about that?" Alile asked, finally removing her hand from the prince's chin.
"...On second thought, I'm sure he'll be fine on his own for just a few hours. Libraries are very safe places."
"If you're really sure..." Alsen cast a glance over her shoulder as they continued on their way to the docks.
"Not much further from here." Silver said.
"Stone crushes that which is inferior."
Alile noticed the bright glimmer of the ocean and felt a gentle breeze carrying the salty scent of the ocean. A vast amount of sailboats were afloat in the ocean, lined up against the wooden bridges. Far too many glum-faced, bearded men sat with their fishing poles in the ocean, but nothing seemed to be biting this morning. The entire place smelled like that man with the fish stand from earlier, only multiplied by a hundred.
"Yucky." Alsen pinched her nose.
"Salutations!" Silver waved his arm in the air for attention.
The fishermen turned their heads to the prince, but their expressions didn't brighten up, and they turned right back to their fishing poles.
"What's their problem?" Casele asked.
"Let us ask and find out, shall we?" Silver walked across the bridge to a group of the fisherman. "Why the glum faces, my friends?" he asked.
"Hmph, I dunno, could be the fact that there ain't no fish biting, and when there is, either that little punk thief just shows up and steals everything, or that bastard captain Crowler comes showing off his big ass fancy vessel!" one of the fisherman spat at Silver angrily.
"That's one attitude to take towards your prince..." Casele whispered.
"Punk thief?" Silver asked, but his attention was pulled away from the fisherman by a thunderous BOOT!.
A golden fishing vessel sailed through the ocean towards them, with the words 'King Krustacean' emblazoned onto it. Two arm-like extensions stretched out on both sides, holding up two large nets filled with thousands of fish.
"Speak of the devil..." the fisherman grumbled.
"Too much empty space...." Spritelile said after yet another brief pause.
"This again...?" Alile whispered to herself, observing the sprite.
"Ahoy there!" bellowed a male voice from the vessel as it come to a stop, taking up thrice the space of the sailboats. A middle aged man with a big belly, scraggly beard and mustache, dressed in a white and blue sailor suit, descended the vessel's steps. "Caught any fish this morning?" he asked the other fisherman in a haughty, sarcastic voice. They glared at him in obvious disdain.
"You must be captain Crowler!" Silver exclaimed.
The captain bounced on his heels in excitement when he noticed the prince's presence. "Oy! Salutations, my prince!" he took off his sailor hat and bowed, revealing his balding head. "You must be here to see the legendary King Krustacean in person?"
It seemed that Spritelile would be silent for a while again, so Alile ignored it. If only it could stay like that longer, she could finally have her mind to herself.
While Silver chatted away with Crowler, Alile felt a presence slip by. She looked up at Crowler's vessel and noticed a hooded figure garbed in gray climbing up it.
"Too much empty space...too much empty space...too much empty space..."
"Are you having a malfunction?" Alile asked the sprite, which per usual gave her no response. It kept echoing those words in Alile's head, much to her annoyance.
"I would love to take the grand tour of the King Krustacean, however, I am searching for a criminal. Mayor Roosevelt says this is the most common crime spot in the city. Since you're the captain, you must know of every crime that happens here, correct?"
"Crime you say?" Crowler guffawed, "There is that one little low life that's been committing theft here over the past few weeks. Of course, he wouldn't dare try to rob the King Krustacean!"
"Are you so sure about that?" Alile pointed to the hooded figure, whom had just sliced the nets open with a switchblade, sending the fish free falling back into the ocean, while the culprit collected as many of them as he could into his knapsack.
"Too much empty space...too much empty space...too much empty space..."
Captain Crowler jumped in place in a panic. "Oy! What'dya think you're doing?! G-Get back here!" he ran to his vessel as fast as his little legs would take him, but the stealthy thief fled from the scene of the crime too fast.
The fisherman snickered, satisfied that Crowler was the one to get robbed for once.
"That was the punk thief, was it?" Silver tapped his foot.
"How...how dare he!" Crowler seethed, his face boiling over.. "My prince, you must catch him! After him, after him!"
"Worry not, no one can run from Quickfire!" Silver picked Alsen up off of his steed and placed her down, then hopped onto the winged horse's back himself. "Girls, go report this to the mayor. I have a hunch this might be my target. Quickfire and I will try our best to catch him."
Silver pulled back on Quickfire's reigns, causing the horse to reel back and neigh, then flap its massive wings in a tumultuous wingbeat. The Pegasus then ascended into the sky and zoomed off at a blistering speed.
"I'm glad Quickfire didn't fly while I was on him..." Alsen watched the beast fly off, now just a dark silhouette zooming through the clouds.
Alile picked up a card that she noticed was left on the bridge by Crowler's vessel, with the logo of a gray wolf on it. "Look at this." she showed it to Casele and Alsen.
"We'd better show this to the mayor." Casele said.
"Silver didn't tell us where to find him though." Alsen said.
Alile shut her eyes and focused on finding the Mayor.
"Head east." Spritelile said. Alile was capable of controlling her psychic power to an extent if she focused on something. It seemed that she could still do so even after its malfunction.
"Follow me." Alile took off. She walked briskly through the streets faster than the Aquamancer's could keep with even if they jogged. They weren't able to catch up until Alile had to wait for the traffic signal to change.
"Slow down, will you?" Casele panted.
"Oops. I forgot, I'm a cheetah in wizard's clothing."
"Hey, the news is on again." Alsen looked through the glass of the same building they had seen the news on earlier.
"Breaking news! The infamous, stealthy thief, known as Gray Wolf, has struck on his crime spree once again! Prince Silver and his noble steed, Quickfire, were reported to have been sighted in the sky just moments later. We can only assume that our prince is pursuing the thief."
"Signals changed, let's go." Alile said, continuing her walk through the streets without waiting for Alsen and Casele.
"Overheated liquid is harsh on the skin. Large plant starts off tiny. A new furry friend. Picked strawberries. Banana peel causes a slip and fall." Spritelile read.
"You're working again?" Alile asked the sprite, which had returned to its normal calm self.
"Wait, we were watching that!" Alsen complained as she and Casele followed after Alile.
Alile didn't slow down until her legs started to get tired. Aeromancers were certainly very quick and stealthy, but they had the least energy of all the Elemental Signs.
"Head west for haste, but enemies await." Spritelile guided Alile to a shortcut as she kept her focus on finding the mayor.
Alile turned west into an alley, but Casele didn't seem so sure about that.
"Do you really know where you're going?"
"Are you scared?" Alile asked. Though her voice was emotionless as ever, she could tell Casele felt her taunt.
"I-isn't this the type of place where bad guys usually show up?" Alsen asked timidly.
"Yes." Alile nodded.
Just like she predicted, two hooded men appeared from the other side, their faces covered with bandanas and sunglasses.
"Well well well, what have we here boys?" said the big one.
"Three cute faces...looks like we scored big time! This'll be fun!" said the skinny one.
"I knew bad guys would be here!" Alsen exclaimed, backing up as she hesitantly reached for her wand.
The big hoodlum pulled a knife out of his pocket and pointed it at them. "Just drop everything you've got and m-"
Alile shut him up in an instant by simply twirling her wrist and chanting Maswirldn in her mind, planting both men against the wall. "Niwufdry." she pulled out her wand, transforming it into a pair of shining, violet twinblades. "Drop everything you've got and maybe I'll go easy on you." she mocked them, pointing her blades at their throats.
"W-What the hell, you little...!" the skinny one reached for his knife, but Alile kicked it aside.
"Come on now, you don't want me to get rough." Alile said.
"Alile...don't we have something we're supposed to be doing?" Casele asked.
"I never told you to just stand there."
"You're the one that supposedly knows the way, we're following you!"
"Oh, right." Alile pretended as if she forgot that and transformed her weapon back to it's wand form. "Gwavitrind." she twirled her wand in a figure eight motion.
The two hoodlums were hoisted up in the air and held upside down by an invisible rope of wind gripping their ankles.
"What type of crap is this?!" the hoodlums asked, squirming around like pathetic, helpless worms in the talons of a raptor.
"If I wasn't in a hurry, I'd show you the fury of elephant emperor Cuukinaki when he hasn't had his moon mirror for breakfast." Alile pointed her wand at them threateningly, then returned it to her pocket and skipped off, arms behind her back.
"...Is she always like this?" Alsen whispered to Casele.
"You'll get used to her. Eventually..." Casele whispered back doubtfully.
Alile simply pretended not to hear, not that she was offended anyway.
"Young one taints white slush yellow."
The temperature felt as if it were dropping by the second as they made their way through the city. Only minutes later, snow began to fall.
"Snow...?" Casele blinked in surprise.
"Oh no...Naitey must have fell asleep!" Alsen exclaimed.
A loud GONG echoed through the city. The three of them looked up at the clock tower to see that it was already noon.
"The king must have felt like taking a little nap." Alile said calmly.
"Which way is the library? I have to go wake him up!" Alsen said.
"Right over there." Alile said, pointing to the library that was now in eyesight.
Alsen dashed off in an instant.
"Think I should go with her?" Casele asked.
"No need, City Hall is right besides the library."
As they walked past the library, another large building of the same color scheme came into view. Like the library, this building had large white marble letters in an arch across the top which read 'City Hall'. It was right by a neatly trimmed lawn with flowerbeds. Each one had a beautiful variety of flowers growing in them. Mayor Roosevelt was in the lawn, humming to himself while catching snowflakes on his tongue.
"Old leader plasters imaginations to paper in leisure time."
"Excuse me...Mr. Mayor?" Casele said as they approached him.
"Hm?" the mayor turned around. "Oh, aren't you two of the young detectives that were helping prince Silver with his quest?"
"Yes sir...we believe we found a clue." she showed him the card the thief left behind.
Mayor Roosevelt pushed up his glasses. "Ah, this is the calling card of Gray Wolf."
"Calling card?" Casele asked.
"He leaves it behind whenever he commits a crime, as if to say 'I struck again!'. Quite an arrogant one he is. He earned the name of 'Gray Wolf' because he's always seen garbed in gray, and he leaves this card behind every time." Roosevelt explained. "He's arguably the most infamous criminal in town right now, I wouldn't be surprised if he were the one Silver's after.
"The prince took off after him on his pegasus earlier."
"Then that notorious wolf should be caught at last! Now if only someone could investigate this snow."
Alile slipped away unnoticed while Casele talked to the mayor. It didn't take two of them to report their findings. She didn't quite care about turning the thief in, but what else could she do? The only one left for her to annoy was Casele.
"Find the alpha predator in the woodlands to the south." Spritelile told her after she focused on finding the thief.
Alile made her way back to the alley again, where the two hoodlums were out cold on the ground, probably from dropping on their heads.
"'Scuse me boys~" she mocked them as she walked over them. As she did, she heard a loud thud As something fell into the dumpster.
Alile spin around. That was odd. Spritelile didn't mention anything like that. Unless she just simply misunderstood something, or managed to tune something out? Whatever it was that fell, it sounded heavy. Curiously, Alile approached the dumpster, but then froze in place. It could be heard moving in there. Alile realized it wasn't something, it was someone.
"Only empty space...only empty space...only empty space" yet again, Spritelile malfunctioned, only this time it repeated itself even faster.
A head popped out of the dumpster, shook off the filth, and looked around cautiously. His face was covered by a gray hood and scarf, just like the thief from the docks.
Wait a second, he couldn't possibly be here, Spritelile said he'd be in the woods. Was this really the same person?
The fallen man looked around suspiciously, catching sight of Alile. He waved at her shyly, holding up a golden necklace that anyone would assume a wanted thief didn't own.
"Oops..." he muttered to himself, slapping his forehead with his other hand. He dropped the wallet that he had held and spilt out the contents, revealing an ID that was obviously not his.
"Oops again..."
"Gra-" Alile started, but he pressed a finger to his lips to silence her as he climbed out of the dumpster. Her suspicions of him being someone other than the thief faded away as she saw that he was garbed from head to toe in gray as well.
"Dear oh dear, has this master thief finally been caught gray handed?" he clasped his hands against his cheek and gasped dramatically.
"So you are Gray Wolf then." Alile stated.
He gasped again, even more dramatic this time. "Oh no! Did I just blow my own cover?!"
Alile stared at him in a transfixed state, but her face refused to give her confusion away. Leaving her puzzled was an accomplishment that many from the empire would've loved to achieve. Attempting to shake her confusion away, she asked, "Are you the alpha, a lowly omega, or perhaps a lone wolf?"
Gray Wolf placed the stolen necklace around Alile's necklace. "Woof." Though his face was covered, Alile could feel him wink at her.
"Good doggy." Alile she pet his head, playing along with it.
"Woof woof!" he turned and began to run off, but in the blink of an eye, Alile intercepted his path.
"Huh? How'd you get over here? You were just over there!" he exclaimed.
"No, we're not about to reference that movie." Alile said, "You know I can't just let a wild animal run loose in the streets, right?" she crossed her arms.
"Was my parting gift not enough? Don't tell me I need to do tricks too?" he groaned.
"Why are you not in the woods like you were supposed to be?"
"That's all you want to know? As you just saw, I fell off the roof! Lucky that dumpster was there, or e-...wait a sec" he pointed at her, "How do you know where I was going?" he questioned.
So they were meant to meet in the woodland like she predicted, but that somehow changed? She wasn't necessarily wrong, but still...that was a first. "I'm psychic." Alile answered him with a flip of her hair.
"Psychic? Ooh, how exciting! Show me?" he gushed.
What a weird man he is, Alile thought. He went from annoyed, to suspicious, to excited like a kid in a toy store just like that."Very well then, I'll entertain you." Alile figured she may as well. This was too bizarre to ignore.
"Good, good!" he exclaimed and skipped gaily over to the dumpster and retrieved three filthy paper cups. "I shall hide an object under each cup. You will guess which one contains my card. Fair enough?" he asked with a cocky smirk.
"Fair enough."
"R-right...right...the right lane is the path of the alpha....future empty space!" Spritelile stopped its malfunctioning as Alile focused, but spoke in a broken dialect, staring at it's shaking hands like a schizo.
"Goodie! Then cover your eyes~"
Alile covered her eyes until Gray chimed, 'Open up!'. She flicked the cup on the right over with her finger and knocked it over. "Is that good en-"
Gray laughed obnoxiously, causing Alile to look down at what she actually revealed under the cup. It was not the thief's calling card, it was a dead cockroach. "What's this? I thought you said you were psychic?"
"I am. I was just kidding there." Alile lied. She was wrong...blatant wrong there. How could that be? "I'll play seriously this time."
"Sure thing, dollface." he said tauntingly, staring at her observantly.
Alile shut her eyes. "Left...l-left...is the...empty space is on its way!"
After Gray told her she could open them again, she flicked the cup on the left. This time, it was a crumbled up ATM receipt.
Gray laughed at her yet again. "I had a feeling you would choose that one!" he lifted up the cup on the right, revealing his calling card.
Alile shifted in place. How could she have been wrong twice? She felt heat rising to her cheeks in a feeling she hadn't felt in god knows how long - embarrassment. Maybe her predictions weren't false, she just simply interpreted them wrong. When she predicted that the card would be under the cup to the right, that prediction was for the second time, not the first. She just jumped the gun.
"Again." she shut her eyes for the next round, and focused.
"Left...l-left...is the path. Empty space, empty space awaits!" Spritelile read just like last time, but when Alile opened her eyes this time, she knocked over the cup in the center.
The dead cockroach again.
"It wouldn't happen to be under the cup to the left, would it?" she asked.
"Nope!" Gray lifted up the left cup, revealing the receipt. That confirmed that her prediction wasn't for that round.
"One more time."
"Alrighty, but if you get it wrong, I win flawlessly." he snickered.
"Center, center, c-center. Empty space is coming!" the sprite said, but trusting the conclusion she came up with, Alile flicked the left cup.
Dead cockroach.
The heat in Alile's cheeks increased tenfold. She felt the shame of someone who was in public and then all of a sudden her clothes just fell off.
"Flawless win for me!" Gray exclaimed as he jumped up and ran in circles, fistbumping the air in an obnoxious victory celebration.
"N-No, one more time..." Alile couldn't believe herself. She was actually stammering. Was she wrong due to Spritelile going haywire? But there wasn't any problem when she focused on finding the mayor, so why was there now?
"Nope, you said one more time, and one more time you got! You wouldn't want me to embarrass you any further, would you, phoney psychic?"
"I'm not a ph-"
"Phoney! Hey, everyone, this girl's a a ph-" Gray shouted, but clasped his hands over his mouth before he could finish. "Uh oh, I wouldn't want to bring anyone here to me, would I?"
"...Just what type of thief are you?"
"The best kind, obviously." Gray slipped his hand into Alile's pocket and she felt his fingers patting and massaging her hip.
Alile's entire face was burning up now."W-w-what are y-"
"There it is!" he pulled his calling card out of her pocket, waving it in her face while wiggling his eyebrow at her.
"Y-you cheated, it was never under a cup to begin with!"
"I didn't put it in your pocket until the final round! If you were really psychic, shouldn't you have known I was going to do that?"
Alile didn't know it was possible, but her face grew even hotter. Never before had she been made to look like a total fool like this.
"You're not very used to being wrong, are you?" he asked.
Alile was too embarrassed to respond. She felt the urge to run away and hide her shame like a little girl. Gray pat her on the cheek then walked off, whistling and swaying his hips in a manner that could put Alile's own hip swing to shame. Alile stood there with her mouth agape as she watched him. That man was something else. But for some reason, she felt that she couldn't just watch as he walked away. Coming to her senses, she sucked on her dry bottom lip and caught up with him.
"Oh brother, what now? Can you not just leave this lone wolf a-lone?"
"Only on one condition — let me accompany you, wherever it is you're headed." Alile said.
"That's it? Sounds like a trap. This wolf knows better than to walk right into a pit of vipers."
"I just..." Alile twirled her finger in her hair, "want to spend a little time with you."
"Are you asking me out on a date?" although his face was masked by his scarf, Alile could feel Gray sneering at her. She averted her gaze, feeling the heat return to her cheeks at the way he put it. "And what if I were to turn you down?"
"I would bring you to the prince."
Gray chuckled. "Try me." he attempted to sidestep Alile, but she thrust her palm in his direction, sweeping him off his feet with a burst of wind. She then snapped her finger, lifting him up in the air and pulling him back to her.
"Good luck escaping the wind."
Rather than questioning what just happened, Gray simply laughed at his predicament. "I get it, I get it! You're no joke, I see."
"Do you yield?" Alile twirled her finger in a 360 degree motion, Gray's body following its motion.
"I yield, I yield!" Gray threw his hands up in defeat.
Alile pointed her finger down, and Gray was gently placed back on the ground. "If you wish to refer to it as a date," she said as she helped him back to his feet, "I'll expect you to treat me like a princess." she shifted her feet around and fought a smile that tried to spread across her face, amazed at the words that just came out of her mouth.
"What sane man would treat such a fine woman as anything less?" Gray pulled his hood off and removed his scarf, revealing his head of shaggy dark brown hair, pointed nose, and gray eyes with a strange silver glint in them. "Shall we find a field of flowers to skip off through to the sunset, giggling our heads off like a pair of buffoons with nothing to lose?" he smiled a wide sheepish smile at Alile as he took her hand and darted out of the alley with her.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Welp...weird just met weirder XD. This could be...interesting?