The square had been lit up that night in gold and red for a very special occasion: the Hero's Ceremony. Ribbons and swatches hung from balustrades to give a fanciful feeling, and the willow trees had been draped in special flickering lights. The main fountain had been tinted with lights as well, so the water appeared golden as it flowed out from every spout. Tonight, all those who had help to rescue the people trapped in their homes were to be honored and thanked for their heroic deeds, with a medal and certificate that spoke of their great contribution to the society. Mayor Godwin stood at the mainstage, dressed in a black suit with a red tie. He waved and greeted those that came through the front gateway with a smile and a wave, and shook the hands of those that he deemed heroic.

Food
• Sushi & Rice
• Curry
• Cheese Fondue
• Pizza
  Drink
• Juice -- peach, pear, apple, orange, pineapple
• Wine -- 21+
• Milk
  Dessert
• Pie -- apple, cherry, chocolate, pumpkin
• Cake-- cheesecake, chocolate, marble, white, yellow
• Cookies

All are welcome to this event!

The letter had said that on Spring the 16th there would be a celebration in honor of those who had saved the lives of villagers during the storm. Zeke didn't care to be honor or recognized really, but he was curious what the mayor actually had planned. He'd seen the mayor only one other time, during the tomato festival and he again wondered if the strange little man only appeared for such events. In any case, Zeke didn't remember if the letter had said where exactly this celebration would be taking place so he just started to wander the village as it approached evening on Spring the 16th.

The celebration wasn't hard to miss. The main square of the town was lit up everywhere he looked. Even the large fountain was decked out in golden lights so that it seemed to be a fountain of gold. There were ribbons for color, tables full of food, and of course the people. Zeke had never seen so many people of the village gathered in one place. The tomato festival had been close, but those were mostly younger people and kids. This celebration included everyone, the old and the young. He couldn't help but smile when he saw the groups of people and the goodwill that was being shared.

The mayor immediately spotted him and waved. He waved back a little, but didn't really have the desire to walk up in front of the entire crowd. It wasn't that Zeke had anything against crowds. Being a musician it was quite the opposite in fact, he loved being up on a stage in front of group. But tonight he didn't want to be recognized as a hero of the village. Because he wasn't. Daisukay had been the first on the scene, he had been the one with the quick thinking. Zeke had only wanted to help. He'd wanted to rescue Delphina. And it was mostly that reason that he had come here tonight. He silent hoped he would meet her among the crowd.

'no, you need to go, delphina.'
delphina coliquet sat at her father's kitchen table, absently braiding her hair. she glanced up at him and shook her head, "oh no, i don't think so." she responded simply, but he simply wouldn't listen to her. instead, camus retreated to his bedroom and came back out with a slinky simple black dress and a pair of shoes for her to wear.
'here you are, put them on, do your hair and face nice and go.'

delphina aptly obliged. she always did, even if she didn't want to. tonight was the hero's ceremony, and she received an invitation but certainly thought it was misplaced in her inbox. she was not a hero at all, she hadn't done anything and it didn't occur to her than she should've been there to watch and thank those that rescued her. it would've made more sense for her to receive a 'victim' invitation, but she hadn't. she pulled her hair back and put a bit of eyeshadow on, slipped into her clothes and went on her way. she hated that her father always had something for her to wear -- it was like he was planning on it beforehand. why was it so important to be made up and dressy, anyhow? delphina much preffered her light dresses and being barefoot. perhaps she'd sneak off early and go to the meadows where she could not have to wear so much garb.

she made it to the square a bit earlier than she had planned, but none the less, it was still buzzing. the lights and colors always made her feel like she was part of something big during a festival, but delphina often got lost and terrified in crowds, as people could easily just be no-faces hiding in the mess. she quickly retreated to a table and sat watching those that were around her. men in crisp suits and ties, women in billowy dresses and large, flamboyant hats. delphina had a hat, but it was old and broken in and simple -- her mother's hat. she didn't like the hats that women wore, she thought it looked like their heads could be swallowed by the flowers and tulle and feathers on top of them.

Kevin walked into Willow Square, greeted by many civilians that were thanking him for his great deeds. He simply brushed them off and waltzed over to the food. He was very hungry, and could eat a cow -- horses were way too cliché. He reached for a plate and reached for some cheese fondue. He then reached for a glass of water, realizing there was none. He shrugged and decided to take no beverage. He scanned the rest of the table to find some sugary treats. Ew. Kevin detested anything with a high fat content. He brought himself over to a small table off to the side in the corner. Kevin liked to eat by himself, and desired no company. He glazed the square, looking for people he had met at other times. None.

Biting into the fondue, he noticed Mayor Godwin. The pompous little jackass who invited him to this banquet and celebration. He was debating whether he should go for around thirty minutes; Kevin was not a fan of any sort of celebration. He felt all they did was cut into precious time that could be spent into more "important" things. He kept devouring his cheese fondue, attempting to concentrate on that then anything else. Looking up again, he noticed a familiar face; Delphina Coliquet...Kevin had remembered that she had run the bathhouse. He often saw her around it, walking in and out, tending to duties. He didn't really formally know her though.

He didn't want to. The next face, the face of Zeke, wasn't familiar. In fact, Kevin had no knowledge that the man even existed. Then again, he didn't want to know he existed. He didn't want to. The child didn't even want to be here, but he decided to come for it might be a good chance to turn his attitude around. After focusing on people, he began to focus more on the decor and bright and colorful lights only caused him to stare at his half-eaten fondue. He was the odd one out. Just wearing some sweats due to the mildly cold spring weather. What a creep. Every one else was wearing dresses and gowns and suits with ties; Kevin didn't even own any of those fancy articles. He simply came in what he had thrown on in the morning. He didn't care about others' subjective opinions on him. Simple as that: he didn't care.

As Zeke looked around, he noticed that everyone in the crowd seemed to be dressed in their personal best. There was a multitude of ladies in fancy dresses or colorful skirts. There were men in tuxedos, suits, and just nice shirts. And there were even children, young girls in pretty dresses and boys in shirts and ties. Zeke felt somewhat silly, he was the only one he could see who didn't own those types of clothes. He merely worn the same clothes he'd had on earlier that day: jeans, a short-sleeved shirt, and his brown jacket. It was much the same as what he'd worn on the night of the storm anyway, so it was most certainly appropriate.

As he drifted among these well-dressed people, he wondered if he should leave. There wasn't anyone there after all and he felt very out of place. He'd hoped to see Daisukay or the blond girl or maybe even Delphina there, but there was no luck to this notion. Then again he realized it had probably only been ten minutes since he arrived. As silly as he felt it wasn't enough reason to leave yet. Maybe he could sit somewhere and think about it for a while. Maybe he'd see someone walk by and snag them. As he walked through the crowd, Zeke noticed someone else who wasn't particularly dressed up. It was another young man, probably a few years younger than him wearing sweats. He at first considered joining him at his table, but he didn't seem to be too happy right now so Zeke left him alone.

He walked away from the tables and towards the fountain. A few people were sitting around it, but he didn't mind them. He mostly wanted a good vantage point to watch out for those he knew and a chance to think. He hadn't had many of those lately and he had a lot of things to think about, like for instance what to do for the symphony he wanted to create. But, as he often did, he found himself thinking about her. She'd been on his mind often enough since the picnic and he still wondered about it. He remembered thinking something as the storm hit, but he couldn't remember what it was. He had been filled with worry when he realized she was trapped inside. Zeke had never felt like that before, but he'd never had a friend as close as her before either. He continued to think on these things as he bathed in the golden light from the fountain.

The letter indicated that he should be here, and arriving here at this very space was indeed what he did. He was rather unaware as to what exactly this was all about, but considering the personal invitation extended to him to make his presence known, he found it would be very rude to not show up in attendance. If even for a short while, he still had much to do in town and he still had things to gather, such as more groceries for the house as it was going to require more than he had purchased originally to feed four people instead of one. Well, possibly five, depending on how odd pendulum would be acting.

Though his attire still seemed to consist of the dark royal blue overcoat and white formal pants. It had taken a while to get the overcoat clean as well, what with water damage and daily wear, but it still came out rather marvelous. The detail design in the fabric still was visually appealing, and with the fancy dress shirt underneath the overcoat, the overall appearance tied together as the flowing white hair draped across his back and spilled onto his shoulders.

Though the change in scenery was welcomed, and it did seem to suit his personality more with the formal wear and elegant theme. He still couldn't help but feel out of place, probably due to the fact he truly didn't know too many people around. He was also wondering where Sedaytion was, wasn't she just here a moment ago? or was he thinking about a different time? Was he even in the same village as her, still? Perhaps the wine was a tad bit too potent? Or was it all like that after the eighth glass in that short amount of time? Oh how he did love wine, it had such an elegant taste to it. But perhaps it was a better idea not to have any more of the alcoholic substance? Or would it be better to pad the ground with pillows in case walking became an issue?

He opted on the former, as he refused any more offerings of alcohol. Still highly capable of walking and interacting just fine, it was just an issue of mental stability now, as his mind wandered freely as it pleased. More so then usual, and even worse he probably wouldn't care if he got lost tonight. Well, no, that was a lie. Sedaytion would probably be highly upset with him if he happened to get lost and travel around the night like a blind bat. The boys wouldn't be all that happy either. Speaking of, were they around too? He couldn't quite remember.

This ceremony of whatever did have a fairly nice selection of snacks as well as tasty alcohol. From the sushi and rice meals to the pizza snack food all the way to the sugary goodness of the cookies. The food was simply a thing of beauty as he watched people go to and fro, enjoying their time out for the evening. Alright, yeah. He wasn't all that sociable or excited to jump into the mix to interact with anyone. This is where the wine had come into play to begin with.

There was no time for rest now, but Ariel could not evade the large crowd gathered in the distance.His curiosity drove him further along the village road and then he remembered that this was actually a ceremony for the saviors of the village.He could not must such an event, so there was possibility of him leaving.After all he was invited too, or at least that was how the poster said.Ariel's steps.Fortunately for Ariel he was dressed in a more formal way today, which was required by the law.He greeted all the known and unknown villagers with a smile and then retreated to the darker corners, from where he could get a clear view of everything.

Ariel recognized Zeke and Miss Delphina, but he didn't want to disturb them right now.He was sure that both had something on their minds and Ariel was trying not to be annoying.He always thought that he talked too much about unimportant things.Still he could see a small mirror not far away from his current location ,so he decided to look at his reflection.Upon his arrival at the destined location, he examined himself

He was dressed in a silk cloak ,which pretty much hid all of his other clothes.His hands were covered by large gloves and he had a blood red scarf around his neck.The only ornament which he had was a really large medallion that seemed to be some kind of an amulet.

Ariel's hand went up and he combed his hair.He didn't want to look like a crazy professor or someone like that.He smiled at his reflection when he finally had a good result and turned his attention once again to the crowd.

So far he had missed nothing, but Ariel sincerely hoped for the ceremony to start soon.He was a little impatient, he wanted to see who the heroes were.Certainly he was not among them

delphina watched the throng of people stampede through the square, taking seats, standing and chatting, moving about. she liked to forget they were people sometimes and chose to focus on their movement, the way their clothing swished about, and the color of it all. the men's suits, for the most part simply black, made an interesting background to the women who wore wild teals and greens and blues. delphina realized she may have been underdressed color-wise, but the only colors delphina liked to wear were green and brown, the colors of her bathhouse attendant uniform. she certainly looked odd against the swathy and foamy fabrics of the other girls here!

of course, there was more to her watching than just watching, she had simply forgotten. everyone who came to a festival secretly hoped to run into a friend or meet someone new. delphina didn't trust crowds as they could've just been no-faces hiding amongst the humans and elves, so she chose to find a friend and cling to them as soon as she could. for the most part she had not recognized anyone -- just ariel in a wild black cloak, she smiled at him and gave him a friendly wave, but she was still unsure about him. he was friendly enough, but delphina had an even harder time communicating with him than she did with anyone normally. a slightly wobbling man whom had definitely too much to drink, but he was dressed very nicely, and then a boy, much younger than herself, who came extremely out-of-place and sat about scowling. delphina knew his type, and decided he looked like he needed a good scrubbing but his disposition lead her to believe he'd never get one in her bathhouse.

"ho hum," she mumbled to herself before her eyes settled upon a very familiar sight. blonde hair, reddish eyes, open posture -- zeke! her best friend, oh how she was thrilled to seem him but disappointed to see the light he was in. the golden glow from the fountain played upon him as the light in her grove would've, she was a bit disappointed to see that man could create what she thought to be a bit of magic, but that was besides the point. at least now she had someone.

quietly she slipped out of her seat, feeling oddly sneaky. she wanted to surprise him, knowing that zeke had never really seen her in any other time other than the bathhouse and their picnic. he probably didn't know delphina owned any other dresses besides the one she wore while working! she sidled up beside him as if she had been there all along.

"there are a lot of people here, i'm a bit worried. could be a few no-faces in hiding." she told him.

Kevin stood, brought his plate off the table, and pushed in his chair. He continued over to a trash bin, and threw out his plate along with the scraps of fondue. Attentively he turned around and glazed the square. He rubbed his hair back in discomfort. It was dark and the moon shone bright; Kevin was getting rather cold. Then he imagined how others must feel, how jealous he was of them; all warmed up in their nice suits. He squirmed through the massive crowd and noticed a female and a male chumming up with each other. Kevin was interested to know what their conversation was about. He didn't directly listen in, instead he stood outside of them and paid attention to the podium at the end of the square, listening to them with his ear.

Ariel noticed the smile and the wink from Miss Delphina, but that all was from her.Apparently something was on her mind and that was not Ariel.That was disappointing, but still there were a lot of other people, who Ariel could talk to.However now was not the time for that.He wanted the ceremony to end first and then talk to someone.After all if he started talking now, most people would probably feel freaked out and escape the party.This was a place for 'normal' villagers and he himself wondered what was he doing here.Still he wanted to see how celebrations were carried out here, Ariel had never been to a festival before.From what it looked like, the pause was not coming to an end soon, so Ariel seated himself patiently on a nearby bench, which was not too far from the fountain and the tables and the stage.

Ariel observed quietly the surrounding area.Where he was, there was no one but him.That was good, since he wanted to watch everything without someone disturbing him.Of course that didn't meant that he didn't want company.In fact he preferred is someone came to him, but right now everyone was still gathering.Maybe in a few minutes or hours he would find someone to talk to.Ariel had so much to ask and tell that he sometimes forgot the exact order of his questions.But now was not the time to think about that.He focused his attention and just listened..

Of course Zeke was completely lost in his own thoughts. The lights, the colors, everything was very nice, but there wasn't anyone he knew. He had seen Ariel for a moment, but he didn't do much more than smile at the man as he walked on by. It wasn't time yet for him to speak with Ariel again, he knew that, and besides he wanted to be sure to do everything that had been asked of him first. He also noticed a rather tipsy looking gentleman who kept glancing around as if he were looking for someone. He wondered if this man had someone he was meeting here. Zeke wondered what that would be like, to wait for someone and have them show up. It was at that time that he heard a familiar voice.

"there are a lot of people here, i'm a bit worried. could be a few no-faces in hiding."

It was not a voice he had expected to hear here. Slowly Zeke turned to confirm if he was imagining things or not. He had been thinking so much about this that it would be unreal for her to actually be there. The Delphina Coliquet that he knew was there sitting on the fountain as if she had been there the whole time. Yet it was not the Delphina he knew in many ways. This young woman was dressed in a pretty black dress and had her hair pulled back. She was also wearing makeup. None of these things were anything like the Delphina he knew. Could this be the same person? He would have doubted it more except for the comment about no-faces.

"Are they really the kind of spirits that would come to such a public place?" he said as if she had just asked him a casual question, "but don't worry miss Delphina, no-faces will not bother you while you're with me."

It seemed rather bold to him to say something like that and again he didn't know why he said it. He'd wanted to say so many other things: make a joke about how she was dressed up, make a joke about how she had never left the bathhouse before, pretend like he didn't recognize her. But no, instead he said something that even he felt was out of character for him. He smiled, showing his teeth.

"It's good to see you here. I was getting bored."

"they aren't shy," she told him, with a little giggle. of course no-faces would be here. they went anywhere people would be, hoping to snatch up a body, or snatch up a new one. delphina knew you always had to be on guard in these sorts of situations, even your closest friend could actually be a no-face in a crowd. but she was certain that zeke was indeed zeke, he responded to her too naturally to be anyone else in ths world. but don't worry miss delphina, no-faces will not bother you while you're with me.

the sentence caught her off guard, but not for any sort of reason someone would expect. of course, yes, it was rather bold and awfully sweet of him to say something like that to her. but she always felt protected around zeke, she was smart enough to notice he was fond of her friend-wise and friends always made sure they were safe and happy. that is why she was so concerned for zeke's wellbeing, right? but he called her miss delphina, which seemed out of place for him. she wondered if it was because of how she was dressed, or if it was this strange setting neither of them seemed used to. he had never added the miss to her name before, at least, she thought so -- she had never caught it. how odd was that!

"miss delphina? you know me well enough to drop the formality, i thought." she said simply, glancing at him. well, it's good to see you here. i was getting bored. she laughed, glad that she had come now, too. "me too... i don't really like gatherings and festivals. but my father always makes me go. i don't really understand what this one is even about." delphina wanted to focus on zeke, but she was having a hard time doing so, what with the movement and all. she felt like her eyes were going crazy, flitting about and trying to watch and analyze the colors, the shapes and the faces of those around. the first sign of a white mask and she was going to run, she didn't like festivals for this reason -- the square was too small and there were simply too many people around. all the commotion simply overtook her and made her nervous, so she fiddled around with her own hands and the hemline of her dress to try and distract herself. things like this were far too difficult.

<sup>Erin almost didn’t come… almost. But at the last moment she found herself putting together an outfit, throwing on some makeup and rushing out of the door. She felt strangely out of place. After all, she never rescued anyone, so why should she be here? And yet there she stood, her grey eyes steadily scanning the crowd for familiar faces. The girl was too curious to stay home and not find out who put in a helping hand. There were quite a bit of people roaming the square—she had no idea so many people had been affected. But then again, it had been a while since she last wandered out of the main part of the town.

Along with the fact that she hadn’t helped anyone out at all after the storm, her outfit was making her feel particularly out of place. She hardly ever dressed up anymore—she had no reason to. Erin had considered wearing something casual, close to what she wore on a daily basis… but she figured that it would be a more dressy sort of event. She was thankful for what she chose, though… as she looked around, she noticed how dressed up everyone seemed to be. Suits and ties, even! She wore a simple strapless dress that came to her mid-thigh. It was blue—her preference when it came to dressy things—and it emphasized the small tint of blue in her icy-grey eyes. Her shoes were white and had a bit of a heel to them—making it rather awkward for her to hurry here, since she decided to come at the last minute.

It seemed she had rushed for no reason, though; people were still socializing (including the mayor, Erin noticed). Every now and then she spotted someone she was familiar with, but she said nothing to them, since they already seemed preoccupied. There was a black-haired boy that had gone very still; he seemed to be listening intently to something suddenly. She stared absently at him for a moment before she looked around more. It wasn’t long before she spotted Ariel sitting on a bench not too far away. Thankful for the familiarity, and smiling to herself, she made her way over to where he sat.

Erin took a round-about direction—she came up to the back of the bench, instead of the front, perhaps like most people would. And instead of sitting down next to him, or simply saying hello (as most people would), she came up behind him and rested her chin on the top of his head. She didn’t say anything for a moment, then she murmured, “Having fun, Ariel?” Erin found herself absently wondering if he recognized her by her voice alone. Probably not. And so she walked around to the front of the bench and sat down next to him.</sup>

She seemed to not mind the oddness of his statement at first, even explaining to him that no-faces weren't shy. This was something he presumed to mean that they wouldn't have any reason to stay away from the festival. He was pleased to know it. He thought that maybe if he was going to learn from Ariel about spirits, he should also learn from Delphina. She seemed to be an expert on no-faces at least. Then he noticed that her expression changed, she did seem more puzzled, perhaps even a little upset. Obviously what he had said had been out of line. He knew it. There really hadn't been a reason to say it, after all he didn't know how to fight a no-face so he wouldn't be able to protect her if it really attacked. He'd lied.

"miss delphina? you know me well enough to drop the formality, i thought."

Her tone conveyed the hint of being upset that he'd noticed before. Was that all it was? He'd just jokingly said that. Of course he had to remedy that.

"I didn't mean it like that. It was just to make what I said sound more comic...I'm sorry."

He hadn't apologized to anyone in longer than he could remember and that also made no sense to him. He'd been saying and doing things for a while around Delphina that made no sense to him at all. He hoped he'd never feel the need to apologize again, ever. He shouldn't need to. Delphina seemed very nervous tonight. She was glancing around all over the place and it also made Zeke feel uncomfortable. He imagined she must have been looking for no-faces in the crowd still. Obviously, she didn't believe he could protect her either. That is why he needed to understand Ariel's words as soon as he could.

When she'd mentioned her father, Zeke frowned. From what she'd said, he didn't appreciate the way he treated Delphina and he wished he had the opportunity to do something about it. But he was after all her father and she should at least respect him. Zeke wanted to say something, tell her that she shouldn't let him force her to come here if she didn't want to be, but he also thought that it wouldn't be fair to her to do so. Instead he focused on the other words she'd said.

"I don't understand this either," Zeke said, trying to catch her eyes so she would realize he was speaking to her, "I got a letter saying it was to honor my rescue deeds, but I don't really think it's necessary. I..."

He wasn't sure what to say next. Whenever he'd thought about it he knew what was next, but he couldn't say it to her...could he? He hadn't thought about it. The whole place was making him uncomfortable too. Maybe he should leave before the mayor starting calling him up on stage or something.

"Would you like to leave?" he asked Delphina suddenly.

"Hmmmn. Somehow I don't feel I belong here..." Shin said walking around the square. He was out of his usual attire and instead in a black button down shirt and black khaki's. He didn't really like the color black, nor did it seem celebratory, but it was the most flashy and formal wear he had, not counting his uniforms, but those were special and although looked formal on anyone else, Shin just made it look like daily wear somehow. Curious, but he didn't care. On this occasion, Shin also had his ponytail braided up neatly and tied at the end of his hair. He had to admit, he was starting to look more like a tomboy woman than a male, but then again, he was always a touch feminine. Everyone should be, to many insensitive brutes in the world.

"Still, all I did was pass out baked goods to some victims...Nothing really out of the ordinary...But geeze, the bar..." Oh boy. He was regretting the decision of his bar now. It was more busy than ever now, after all, after what happened to some of the houses, there were people who really could use a drink. "Come to think of it, I could really use some decent sleep." Shin muttered to himself. He sat down at a dry spot on the edge of the fountain, kicking aimlessly at the air, then propped his head onto his two hands.

"...Just 10 or 20 minutes should be alright." Shin said, nodding off.

Ariel felt something.After a few seconds he realized that it was in fact a someone.He could not mistake the warm touch and the sweet perfume of Miss Erin, but before he could say anything, she made a move and seated herself next to her.Ariel warmly smiled and turned to her.He was genuinely happy to see her and even words cannot express that feeling.

"Erin!"- surprisingly he didn't said "MIss Erin", but just her first name.Well Ariel thought that she would not be insulted by that way.He just wanted to show that he considered her as his friend and not just some person, he knew from the villager.And after all Erin was now his employer, he had another reason to be closer to her.Talking about that job, Ariel was a little nervous, he knew very well that after this ceremony there would be a lot of people, who wanted to go on a shopping spree.And that meant Erin's shop, too.

Of course Ariel would be there, but what would people think of him.He didn't know the majority of villagers and what would happen if they didn't like Ariel.It would all fall upon Erin's reputation.Ariel could not allow that, after all he had made a promise to her.

But now was the time for celebration and he didn't want to bother her with his concerns.Erin was here to have fun and so was Ariel.His eyes looked at her and he said with a soft voice

"Erin, can you hand me a key to the shop later on?I would like to start working after this ceremony."-he sincerely hoped that she would understand his excitement.

Ariel then started to think about something nicer.He wanted to relax for the few hours he was going to stay here.And of course, Ariel didn't want Erin to die of boredom, too.

"Can I ask something?Do you know who will get awarded?I have missed the events"

Well Erin probably knew, since she was a more social person

i didn't mean it like that, it was just to make what i said sound more comic... i'm sorry. delphina was learning that there were a lot of kinds of jokes this week, from autumn's careless slinging of words, to her fathers lame punch lines, and now this style. she wasn't sure what to call it, but delphina wished she could tell a joke sometime. she didn't think she was actually able to, but often people laughed at what she said. delphina wasn't sure if everything she had spoken was a joke, but it was nice to have people giggle every once and a while, even if it was at you. delphina understood that much, at least. she glanced at zeke and smiled. "oh no, i'm not angry. just surprised, was all. don't apologize." she told him, waving the exchange off as if it were nothing. she had never liked the title 'miss' anyway, as she wasn't very good at telling the difference between the words. miss as in he had missed her, or miss as in something he could say before her name? it got too confusing, delphina hated homophones, if she could've known that those were indeed homophones.

a man with a very pale face passed by and delphina became distracted, trying to tell if that was skin, or a mask. either way, she became very unnerved by him and her eyes did not leave him. oh! what a tragedy it would be if he was indeed a no-face and began to engulf people whole. delphina was glad she had long legs that were strong enough to move quickly if she needed them to. she didn't want to get caught by it's blackish branchy arms and swallowed up!

i don't understand this either, zeke said, grabbing her attention. she turned her entire body to face him, realizing she probably seemed rather insensitive to him. i got a letter saying it was to honor my rescue deeds, but i don't really think it's necessary, i... "-- you rescued me, though. i'm sure it's for that," delphina told him, patting the top of his hand with a simple smile. perhaps he had forgotten, it was understandable. delphina forgot things nearly all the time, usually too often. he seemed really quiet, and delphina tilted her head like a curious animal, trying to understand why. normally zeke was full of words that dripped out of him like water. she liked that he could talk to her.

would you like to leave? he asked her, very suddenly. she wouldn't get to hear the rest of his thought, after all, she noticed, but she didn't really mind. the prospect of leaving this square was so appealing she was nearly jumping out of her skin. "yes!" she said, and let zeke lead her away.

Finally, the mayor felt it was time to commence the ceremony. Leaving a group of men and women he was speaking with, he took to the stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for attending tonight's Hero's Ceremony." He began. "Please, take a seat." Godwin scanned the crowd for those whom he asked to attend -- those who were to be honored tonight. Zeke had just ran off with Miss Coliquet, and Triton had attended, as well as Kevin O'Keagan. Otherwise, the turnout was quite bleak. In his mind, he sighed to himself. That meant letters he'd have to write, and he didn't like to write letters. "As you may know, we were hit by an awful storm just a few days ago. Many people were trapped in their homes and the outlook of Feather Village seemed rather bleak. But because of the kind and open hearts of our villagers, the town is being rebuilt, and those who seemed trapped and hopeless were rescued. We're here today to thank and honor those who made the effort to find those who were in danger, and risked their lives for the life of someone else. Will Triton DeBloom and Kevin O'Keagan please come to the stage."

Once the two had came up the steps -- Triton a bit wobbly -- Mayor Godwin continued. "During the storm, one of our own, Sedaytion Red's, home was flooded nearly to roof. Because of these two fine men, she and her children were rescued and safe. I would like to thank both of you with the sincerity of my heart, and award you with these medals and certificates reflecting your deeds that night."

The mayor then handed each men a special medal, a sturdy case which held their certificates. The two men left the stage, which left the mayor with very little to say, as the only person who came from the rescue of Delphina had just left with her. He would find something else to say.

"Unfortunately, the heroes who attended to Delphina Coliquet and the bathhouse could not make it tonight, but their deeds are just as well-received and thanked. This ends the Hero's Ceremony. Please feel free to stay, chat, and eat!"

• Kevin O'Keagan and Triton DeBloom received Hero's Certificate.
• Triton DeBloom received Hero's Medal.
• Kevin O'Keagan received Hero's Medal.

Again, as it had before since Zeke had been in the village, time seemed to blur by. The events of the past few minutes seemed almost unreal to him. Yet all of it was happening. Delphina had told him she wasn't angry and not to apologize. He hadn't thought she was angry, he hadn't really seen Delphina get angry. The one time he'd visited she was frustrated by the men in her bath, but not angry. Her mood was always calm and quite cheerful, sometimes a little confused but friendly. And he liked that. She was nervous tonight though and Zeke thought that it must be because of where they were. Mostly likely she had spotted a no-face in the crowd. When he had started to talk about his heroism, or lack thereof she had taken the broken sentence and added.

"-- you rescued me, though. i'm sure it's for that,"

It made him feel guilty. Guilty that he didn't know what to say. She patted his hand reassuringly and it just seemed so strange to Zeke. His color rose a little and he trembled a little. He didn't want to frighten Delphina, but he wasn't sure how to face her. She was tilting her head in a questioning way, as if expecting him to finish the thought. He had to do it, but not there. So he asked her to leave. And of course, she seemed overjoyed to be getting away from there as well. She no longer said yes, than Zeke grabbed her hand and they started working their way through the crowd. Zeke could hear the mayor beginning a speech in the background and realized that his timing had been oddly appropriate.

Once they had gotten far enough away from the main gathering, Zeke realized that he was still holding onto Delphina's hand. He released it, his color rising again, and turned back to her. By now, he imagined, she was probably quite curious as to what was wrong with him, he never acted this way before. Not even he could really explain what it was. But finding courage from somewhere, he decided to finish the thought that he had started.

"This is what I was going to say earlier," he started to say, shaking for some reason, "I...I didn't rescue you because I wanted to be a hero. I...I did it because you...you're im...port...tant to me."

as they left, the mayor began his speech. delphina glanced over her shoulder and nearly stopped for a moment, wanting half-heartedly to hear what he had to say. if zeke was going to be honored for his deeds, delphina wanted him there for it. she knew it wasn't in him to be on a stage in such a case though; he'd be more at home while playing something, but she didn't have the chance to make him, anyhow. zeke was acting strange, he seemed sick, but delphina couldn't tell if it was sick with illness or if it was simply sick. lately she had felt oddly ill when she was around him, she really noticed it on the night of the storm. but she chalked it up to odd weather. she didn't really know what else could cause it. he was trembling just as she was that night, but there was no freezing rain to acredit it to.

and his cheeks were red. vonte undino had taught her that it was called 'blushing', it happened when you were embarrassed. he didn't really react to her willingness to leave, just pulled her away with an urgency she wasn't used to. she stumbled in the modest heels her father had put her in and had to clutch onto zeke's hand for better support as he pulled her through the walkway. they made it away from earshot of the square and delphina could barely hear the mayor's baritone. zeke was still holding her hand, delphina noticed it, and she liked it; but he dropped it quickly and his face became even more red. what was going on? oh, she was so terribly confused! no one had ever acted this way towards her, except for her father -- his face turned about that color when he was bound to shout at her for doing something wrong. had she upset him? perhaps it was the way she had just snuck up on him at the fountain, ah, she knew she shouldn't have done that.

finally, zeke turned back to her, and she was already wincing and trying to hide her face. she had never heard zeke raise his voice, it didn't seem like something she wanted to hear.

this is what i was going to say earlier, on the contrary, his voice was quite soft, and he didn't say anything cruel to her in the least. she lifted her head, now curious if he was sick, or something. "are you alright, zeke?" she asked, pressing her hand to his forehead, then his cheek. he was warm, "are you sick?" he shook his head 'no', or he could've just been shaking. i didn't rescue you because i wanted to be a hero. i did it because... you. you're... im-port-...tant to me.

delphina was slightly caught off guard, not by what he was saying but rather because of the heaviness of how he said it. delphina didn't understand the gravity of what he was attempting to tell her, and it would take a lot for her to understand so much. any other girl would've caught on automatically, but delphina hadn't quite grasped the concept of 'loving' something, or 'liking' someone. she only loved the bathhouse, and that was as much as she understood of the subject, and although there was no doubt that she had feelings for zeke, she wasn't quite sure how to handle them.

"you're important to me, too." she told him simply, with a little grin on her face. "i thought you would've known that." delphina hoped she had helped him calm down a bit, he was acting so very silly!

Time was frozen. It had been they left the main square. Zeke could hear his own heartbeat. It was an odd thing the rhythmic pounding that seemed to come in intervals, skipping a beat every so often. He wasn't sure if his heart had ever beat this fast. It seemed to Zeke that he was far away from this place, watching it and not actually taking part in it. He silently wished that could be the case. He felt sick, maybe he was he'd never felt like this before. Maybe he was coming down with something. He hadn't been sick since he'd arrived in the village, maybe a small cold that first winter, but he'd stayed indoors and had done nothing.

She was nervous. Perhaps she was going to run. She looked that way, as if she was preparing herself for something terrible. She was hiding her face and this didn't make him feel any more comfortable. She put a hand to his head and cheek to feel if he had a fever, much in the way his own mother would have done when he was a boy. He was burning up, he knew that. He blurted out his words, nervously, telling her that. It was all he'd thought about since that night, or at least it seemed that way. That was why he'd ran through the freezing rain, the strong winds, that was why he'd struggled against himself to do whatever he could to rescue her. He didn't know what else to do, he didn't want to cause trouble for her.

"you're important to me, too. i thought you would've known that."

She smiled and said it so plainly. Zeke thought that maybe he should have said something to her sooner. He cursed himself for not doing so. But her saying that didn't make him feel any better, in fact he felt worse. He felt like he should say something. But he felt weak, he felt unable to stand. It had to be that he liked her. Zeke had no understanding of what that meant and he felt like a silly teenager with a high school crush. There had never been anyone he'd met like her, it didn't help that he'd been running away from home since he was fourteen. But her smiling there, with the lights from the festival in the distance in her dress and makeup, this was more than he'd ever imagined.

"I...I'm glad," he said softly as he felt no longer able to stand. Zeke fell to the stone street and fainted from the tension and relief.

<sup>Erin grinned at his surprise. ”Erin!” She noted the unusual lack of an all-too formal “Miss” before her name, but she said nothing. Perhaps now he was catching onto the fact that formalities weren’t her thing. She replied simply, “Hey.” As if she had been sitting next to him casually the entire time, and had not just sneaked up behind him.

She crossed her legs then, in the way that is considered “proper” for girls to do when they’re wearing dresses. Erin sat at a slight slant, though, so that she could face Ariel a little when they spoke later on. Even though she’d found someone familiar to be with, her eyes continued to scan the crowd for familiar faces. There weren’t many. Erin then realized she didn’t know very many people… for such a small town, you’d think that would be a simple feat to accomplish, but alas…

”Erin,” Ariel began. She slowly redirected his gaze to him. “Mhm?” ”Can you hand me a key to the shop later on? I would like to start working after this ceremony.” She watched as a couple of people flitted past them, excited for reasons unknown to her. Her eyes still on them, she replied. “That won’t be necessary… not now, anyway. For now you don’t need to open or close; I’ll be inside already when you arrive.” Once more she turned and trained her wolf-grey eyes on him. “I can show you what needs to be done… training, I guess you could call it… but you’ll have to wait until the repairs are done. My store… the roof fell in. I should have everything finished in a few more days.”

”Can I ask you something? Do you know who will get awarded? I have missed the events.” She shook her head in response. “Not me, I know that.” She let out a little chuckle at her statement. “But I don’t kn—” and at that moment, the mayor hobbled up onto the stage and began speaking. “I guess we’re about to find out,” Erin whispered to Ariel.</sup>

Soon the ceremony ended and Ariel just clapped his hands in happiness.When he heard what Erin said, Ariel felt a little dissapointed.After all he wanted to be a good servant and he wanted to show his dedication by being in the shop before her.Unfortunately Erin probably already knew that and decided not to give him that opportunity.So was she playing some sort of game?Ariel considered that option and decided to play along.He was going to come up with another plan.
He wanted to boost Erin's reputation by any means necessary and Ariel was absolutely certain that he would find a good situation for that.

But for now he focused on her.Ariel for an unknown reason felt relaxed and in comfort, while he was in her presence.No dobut he called her a snow fairy.Erin certainly had something magical in her and Ariel wanted to be around her as long as he can.Fortunately now that she was his mistress, he was going to have that opportunity.

"Erin, I sincerely can't wait to be in your service.I hope that I will become a good servant and follow your will accordingly'- Ariel proclaimed and smiled warmly ,before resting his head against the bench.

The weather was perfect and there was no reason to leave.If Erin allowed, he would probably stay with her to the very end of thsi event.

"Tell me..." - he started speaking and turned his eyes to her

"Do you see a change in me?"

<sup>Erin gave him a smile in return. “Well, thank-you, Ariel. I’m sure you’ll do a fine job.” She was glad that at least he was willing to take this opportunity seriously. And she meant what she said; she was sure he’d do a fine job. Erin couldn’t picture Ariel to be the kind of worker who would slack off. Not many people had applied and so she mostly worked by herself… and while after some time she’d trained herself to where that was manageable, it still was very time consuming, and at times, difficult. It was always nice to have extra hands.

Ariel leaned his head against the bench, and Erin looked up to the sky to see if there was anything specific he was looking at. The stars hadn’t shown themselves yet, so she lowered her gaze back to the crowd, who were now mingling just as much as before. Many people were congratulating and patting the backs of the heroes. She found herself absently wondering what it was, exactly, that they did. It was enough for them to be considered a hero, she knew that. She also knew she would feel extremely overwhelmed if she instead were in their place. Erin of course was a social person… but that said, she still liked her space. She didn’t like to be all cramped up. It wasn’t claustrophobia, nothing of that sort—but sometimes lack of space was just overwhelming.

She felt a little bad for not being the best company to Ariel. Erin was in a fine mood; she just didn’t have much to say. There were so many things going on around them that it was difficult to focus. “Tell me… do you see a change in me?” Frankly, she was somewhat startled by the question in itself. During their last meeting, he told her that he was changed. Other than physical appearances, she’d yet to notice it. Erin didn’t know Ariel extremely well, it wasn’t as if she knew him her entire life… so she simply wasn’t sure. “You… look different,” she replied honestly, surveying his response, hoping not to disappoint him. “Perhaps a little more open to people, too.”</sup>

Ariel was satisfied.Erin had a honest opnion and that was what mattered.He didn't want to be praised like a saint.What Erin had was pure honesty and an innocent spirit, that to Ariel was more sacred than anything else.And that was the reason why he ha had so much respect for Erin.She was just so pure and perfect in his eyes.But he didn't want to burden his mind too much , reality was calling him and Erin was waiting for a response.Ariel smiled at the reply and took a few moments to take a breath, before he answered
"Thank you, Erin.I am starting my new life with a job and I hope that you will not reward me with money."- he said.

Hopefully that didn't bother Erin.He wanted to explain what he meant
"I don't have a use for money, I only want the moral reward that I am helping you.I hope that you understand what I mean"- he said and then blinked a few times.

Hopefully time will show his determination.Ariel now simply enjoyed this fine day and Erin of course.His body moved a little closer to her and he leaned his head next to her's. His hands were still in his gloves, but his eyes were entirely set on her.His red lips opened and he asked
"Do you what is life,Erin?" - he said ,but then quickly raised his left hand and wsaid

"Life sometimes seems like a fight"- he made a pause and then quickly added

"A battle in between the left and right, the dark and bright ,As life is not always light, I don’t need to fight "

<sup>Erin nodded at his words about his new life (he had mentioned it when they last met), but was stunned into stopping her head’s motion at the last bit of his words. How could he honestly ask her not to pay him for a job, a position at the store? Her thoughts must have been showing quite clearly on her face, because Ariel opened his mouth and began to explain. But his explanation didn’t help… at all. No use for money? How could anyone truly have no use for money that you worked for, earned? Her eyes steadily watched the commotion before them as she came up with—tried to come up with—a response to his request.

When she turned her head to face him, he was directly beside her, with his head next to her own. He was so strange sometimes, she noted, her expression becoming one which held slight chagrin. “I can’t not pay you, Ariel,” Erin protested, her brow furrowing slightly. “Even if I wanted to, I don’t think I can legally consider you my employee, letting you work for me, and not give you payment.”

She couldn’t comprehend this boy’s thought process—oh, not at all. It seemed to her as though this was all for moral uprightness’ sake. Couldn’t he be upright and still accept the money? Surely he could put some use to it. He was telling her just the other day about how he didn’t have much money for things.

“Do you know what life is, Erin? Life sometimes seems like a fight… a battle in between the left and right, the dark and bright, as life is not always light, I don’t need to fight.” Erin leaned her head forward, away from his, and almost lowered her face into her palms. Almost—but she remembered she wore more makeup today than normal days permitted, and stopped herself so that it wouldn’t get smudged. Instead she lightly massaged her own forehead with her hand, before letting it fall to the side again. Erin released a sigh. She was effete; incapable of handling people in her weary moods. All of the repairs had kept her rather busy. “Just let me pay you, Ariel… alright?” The snow-haired girl tried giving him an apologetic smile, but it was simply half-hearted.</sup>

Erin was so moral!Ariel could sometimes not understand how she abided by the general law and not of her own.That was truly fascinating, he himself found it hard to embrace what people thought as normal behaviour.To him his personal ideas were the ideal of life and no one really shared his sympathy.However he could not fight Erin now.She had power over him, Ariel felt that she was some kind of a superior being and and now when he was fully in her servitude, he could not object anything.He bowed his head like a pet would do to his master and obediently answered
"As you say, Erin"

He himself continued to watch her.How could such a fascinating creature like Erin appear in front of him/Areil sometimes found it hard to appreciate reality and now when he had such an emotional contact with her, he had to actually use this to his advantage.Now was the time to let loose his questions upon her.He had so much to ask Erin ,but it would be impossible to get answers for all of his questions even in one lifetime.So he tried to sort all of this mess into his head and at the same time look relaxed.It was pretty hard, but after a few seconds his eyes sparkled with a glow, that showed how concentrated he was.

"Can I ask a question,Erin?" - he began again with his usual line before proceeding

"What do you expect me to do?I have never been in your service before...And I rarely go into shops."-he explained himself

Ariel sincerely hoped that Erin would not laught at him.He was telling the truth! It would probably not be a surprise to her to see how poor his experience was.But he had the strength to ask quesitons, so severe like this one.

"Please order me whatever you wish and I shall follow your command"

what a strange moment! it seemed to carry on forever... well, not exactly carry on, but delphina felt stuck in it. it wasn't a bad thing, she just felt as if she could've stepped away from herself and watched everything happen from the side. lightheaded but still grounded, her eyes focused on zeke. he seemed to be having a hard time with words still, since he muttered the fact that she was important to him. why was this such a big deal? delphina thought it was common knowledge that he was important to her, she had no issue with telling him this because it was apparent in all her actions. she could even feel it. she wasn't embarrassed about feeling this way, but here was zeke, nearly crawling out of his own skin about it. her smile never left her face, but her eyebrows began to slant in concern.

his face was red, and he was shaking like her favorite leaf that hung limply outside the tree by her bedroom window. he had a clammy act and air about him, it was definitely, definitely unhealthy. he seemed to be struggling even more with his words, as if his tongue wasn't working, and delphina began to glance around. perhaps he should sit down? rest a spell? she had just caught glimpse of a bench and turned to speak -- i... i'm glad.

then his eyes rolled back and he hit the ground. so he was already ten steps ahead of her! delphina sighed in relief, but really this wasn't going to do. crouching down, delphina sat cross legged beside him and gently stroked the top of his head as her mother would've done to wake her up. it was no use to sleep on the cobblestone streets. it would most likely get cold, if delphina could tell what cold was, exactly. "zeke, you have to get up. if you want to nap, that's all fine and well, but you can't here." she told him, but zeke did not respond. she shook him lightly then, as her father would've done to wake her up. "zeke? really, i don't think it's a good idea." still no response. delphina chose to shake him harshly, as her father would've done when she had accidentally slept in. "zeke!" no response.

perhaps he was a heavy sleeper. "alright, zeke. don't move please, i'll be right back." she said, before standing up and nearly running back to the square. zeke clearly wanted to nap and if that was the case, he needed a bed to be in, not a street. of course, she couldn't move him on her own, but she had seen erin frost at the festival and perhaps erin would know what to do. entering the square, she was very glad to see the pale elf was still about. without hesitation or delay, delphina marched right up there.

"erin, could you help me a moment? zeke and i were talking and he looked a little ill, but before i could get him to sit down he chose to take a nap right on the ground outside the square. it's really not a fit place to sleep, perhaps you could help me move him to a bed? or the inn? i am not sure where to go." she said quietly. "i guess even a bench would do, there's one nearby him."

<sup>And then Ariel agreed… just like that. No more protests, no more pleads—he just nodded and said he’d do whatever she wished for him to do. His lack of fight did surprise her, especially after his request… and her shock showed on her face, but only for a moment. “Good,” Erin said rather stupidly. She was still surprised by his sudden turn-around. Erin did her best to shrug it off—as she did most things—and turned her head forward again to watch the villagers across the square before them.

She supposed it was only fair that Ariel had questions for her, and it would be even fairer for Erin to answer them for him. “Nothing too difficult, Ariel. Don’t feel nervous… you’ll do fine. We’ll start easy… you can help set up shop… and I need a good pair of hands to help with carrying shipments in. But we’ll talk about it later, sound good?” Her reply was prompt and to the point, but mostly because she didn’t feel like dealing with it right now. She’d come here to get away from the store and its slow-going repairs, and to just let her mind be free of weighty thoughts or obligations.

After tonight she was simply tired. She was thinking of a way to politely dismiss herself from Ariel, without offending him in any way, for she was simply exhausted—but before she thought of anything, Delphina marched right up to Erin; it was obvious she was not simply here to say hello. The half-elf tilted her head very slightly in her inquisition, and the fiery-headed girl before her piped up. “Erin, could you help me for a moment?” Lightly, she unfolded her legs and placed both her feet on the ground, leaning off of the bench’s back now. “Certainly. With what?” Erin cast a glance over to Ariel; it was a slightly apologetic one, but in a second’s time she redirected her stone-colored eyes back to Delphina.

“Zeke and I were talking and he looked a little ill, but before I could get him to sit down he chose to take a nap right on the ground outside the square.” Erin’s brow crinkled slightly in her confusion… she couldn’t help it. That wasn’t the most practical, nor comfortable, place to nap, and it seemed a bit unlike Zeke—well, unlike anyone, really—to do such a thing. Before her actual request exited her mouth, Erin was already standing, smoothing out her blue-hued dress. “Perhaps you could help me move him to a bed? Or the Inn? I’m not sure where to go.” Erin nodded before she turned to Ariel. “I’m sorry, but I need to help. I’ll mail you once the store’s finished with repairs, okay?” And with that the two girls turned and returned to Zeke’s side.

Sure enough, it seemed as though he had just simply decided to take a nap on the cold, hard floor. Erin assumed he passed out, for whatever reason… automatically her eyes scanned him for any bruises or welts. She found none, however. “We should probably get him to his room at the Inn…” Erin muttered, kneeling down next to his head. “Can you help me carry him?” It would be difficult to say the least, to carry a grown man all the way to the Lavandula Inn, but Erin was sure it was do-able. Especially if Delphina could help, even if just a little. She figured that the ‘you grab the legs, I grab his arms’ method would be most practical, so she was already ready to lift him once Delphina agreed.

As Erin crouched next to Zeke, she could not even faintly smell the all-too familiar scent of alcohol on his breath, but Erin questioned anyhow: “Did he have a bit much to drink?” all simply for curiosity’s sake… although it wasn’t exactly any of her business.

((maps; i know the inn is in the middle of being rebuilt, but shall we just pretend it is okay for now, for the sake of conventionality?))</sup>

Ariel listened carefully to Miss Erin.She described to him what he had to do and Ariel did not find it too hard.But even if it was hard, he would still accept it ,because he had made a promise to her.Breaking a vow was just like a curse and he didn’t want to be cursed for all life.He noticed how Miss Erin seemed a little tired, maybe she didn’t like crowded places.Ariel didn’t want to look much into her personal reasons, so he remained quiet and just relaxed next to her.He realized that he probably burdened Miss Erin and that brought great sorrow into his little heart.From what it seemed he had probably tired her with his questions, so Ariel decided to remain silent.She was here to watch the festival, not to talk to him.He was probably just a small foolish kid in her eyes.But at least he had some morals and whispered an almost silent
“Sorry,Miss Erin”

He knew that she was able to pick up that.After all Miss Erin was magical in his eyes and there was not a thing that she could not to do.Ariel moved his eyes to the crowd in front of him, it was probably really rude to stare at Miss Erin all the time.He remained like that for a few minutes, before Miss Delphina rushed to Miss Erin.Ariel’s eyes catched her.

Miss Delphina really did looked grand.He could almost not recognize her, but then she saw a certain thing in her eyes that uncovered her real self.Ariel smiled warmly at her, but then she took Miss Erin away from him.That terribly saddened him.However Miss Erin was quick to apologize quickly, so that helped the situation a little.

Now that Miss Erin was gone, there was nothing else to do.He had no one to stay with ,so Ariel stood up and turned around.The sun was still up, but he had so much work to do.With a fastened pace he made his way to the intersection and started walking towards Starshell Cove.He certainly had something in his mind about that location…

delphina seemed most dancey and impatient in front of erin, but she had to be. something had become very imparent to her -- that all of these just seemed wrong. she knew that people didn't just fall asleep without reason in the middle of the square, that was silly. there was something wrong, she just didn't know what it was. perhaps zeke had an illness that made him terribly terribly sleepy -- ah! but he should've told her then. delphina was not angry, but she felt she deserved some answers as to why this all happened. she would stay with zeke until he woke up.

erin answered her in nearly a split-second, but it felt like ages to delphina. she was eager to get back to her friend and figure out if indeed, he had some sort of illness or perhaps even an enchantment! oh, wouldn't that be an adventure! she had only nodded her hand, but it was enough for delphina to grab erin's wrist and nearly sprint her along to the site. once they reached it, delphina tilted her head to the side and put a hand on her hip. "see what i mean? just fell asleep! no reason. i wonder if he made a witch angry or something. or an imp, i think they have this kind of magic to--" did he have a bit much to drink? delphina honestly didn't know. she knew what too much alcohol could do, her father was a victim of slobbish drunken behavior all too often. "...oh, no, i don't think so. but we didn't come to the festival together," she said this a bit disappointed. "but i don't think he drank at all." she told erin. she took the information and gave delphina a simple option: take him to the inn. "...oh, alright." delphina thought they'd carry him each under one arm, but erin gave a cue to grab his feet. delphina took her position and together, the two of them hoisted the man and carried him off.


(bahaha. this scene would look ridiculous. i'll post at the inn.)