Runaway (1)

"You have ten seconds to explain to me what the fuck happened before I tear your head off." Jezabel's icy cold voice reverberates through my bones. We're both sitting alone in her office which makes her threat all the more terrifying. I start talking as fast as possible to try and de-escalate the situation.

"Tyrion and I fell into a hole during the expedition into the woods and healed a fairy and then I got kidnapped by the leader of the fairies and had lunch with them." My stomach grumbles as if to spite my attempts to assuage Jezabel's rage. "Well, they had lunch. I just watched."

She stares at me as if searching for any falsehoods. A feeling of resentful indignation rises up through me.

"Why are you getting so worked up about this anyway? Are the fairies evil or what? They seem mostly harmless unless they were just trying to trick me or something. Honestly, the only person there that I'd be worried about is Inari."

"Person, huh?"

"Well, maybe some of the other fairies are strong too, but if that's the case then they did a good job hiding it. For the most part, they seem like a group of tiny children."

Jezabel glares at me as if examining a doppelganger. Eventually, she sighs and spins her chair ninety degrees to the side.

"Humans and fairies have been at war on and off for several hundred years."

"Pfft." I quickly cover my mouth to hide my laughter.

"I need you to take this more seriously. If word gets out that you're working with the fairies you may be branded as a traitor."

"Working with them?! They kidnapped me!"

"Nick!" Jezabel's voice pounds the air and brings me back to my senses. I take a deep breath to calm myself down.

"I'm sorry. It's just upsetting to be accused of being a traitor when I haven't even done anything."

"But you have; you helped one of them."

"Oh come on, that's not the same thing."

"It's not up to me to decide that." She says as she leans back in her chair.

"Right. So, now what?"

"For now it's best to just let this news pass us by. You were instrumental in rescuing Nathan so that should help cover any accusations of you being a traitor. You also need to avoid them if at all possible. While most of the fairies are not particularly strong, the Fairy Queen, who you call Inari, has defeated our armies several times almost entirely by herself."

"Okay, that makes more sense. She seems really strong."

"She is." The air stills. I can feel the paradigm of my reality shift.

"So, all I have to do is keep my head down and this should blow over, yeah?"

"Hopefully."

I nod as I think through everything that happened today and stand to leave.

"Oh, Nick." Jezabel stops me. I glance back at her with a confused look on my face. "Thanks for helping to rescue Nathan."

"Of course." I smile.

[Wow! I can't believe that we got to meet the fairies and we even helped rescue that kid! That was awesome! I want to go back to the woods and meet the fairies again! They were so much fun and super adorable!]

The kid, who had been uncharacteristically quiet the last few days, rambles incessantly as we head home.

That's great, why don't you tell your mom all about it?

I pull back from the front of our consciousness and force him to take the reins.

"Woah!" He stumbles as he's suddenly thrust forward but quickly regains his balance. "Mom!"

He shouts out as he runs down the street.

"Wow! We're so fast!"

I smile to myself as I watch the houses zip by. The usual comfort I feel while walking through the town has been usurped by a sense of unease. Am I being watched? Will someone try to turn me in? Who can I trust and who is the enemy? These thoughts swirl around my head as we burst through the door to our home.

"Mom!"

"Ope." Carroll drops the pan she's holding in shock.

"Oh no! I'm sorry." The kid runs up and picks the pan up in an attempt to recover its contents.

"It's alright dear. How was your job at the Adventurer's Guild?"

"It was awesome!"

He begins explaining everything that happened over the course of the day as Carroll's face goes pale.

I turn my attention away and think through all the information I have available. This is a small town near a forest. The forest is filled with dangerous monsters and fairies that have fought humans before. The Adventurer's Guild is a system outside the bounds of the government but they may not be able to protect me should i be deemed a traitor.

If I'm able to meet with the fairies in secret then I may be able to use their help to navigate the forest. As delicate as they seem, they are living amongst monsters. I can also assume the Jezabel won't turn me in as long as i don't stir up any trouble as she likely would have already if it was necessary to protect herself. I can also assume that I can use the Guild as a shield against the government should I move up high enough in the ranks or become an essential asset for them.

Either way, I need to speak with Inari again. This connection is too valuable to pass up.

"I'm going to bed." I say as I assume control of our body.

"Well, that was abrupt." Carroll frowns. "Don't you want to stay for dinner?"

My stomach growls in response. I look out the window and see the suns just beginning to set.

"Right, lets eat. I didn't realize how early it was."

"Right..."

[Is everything okay?]

Yes, more than okay. I'm just excited for tomorrow.

[Me too!]