She Finds The Way Out

"There's nothing on this side, either." Robin said. Then she tried pushing down on knotholes on the table surface. After fiddling around with the table, she hadn't found anything. "I guess the trigger really isn't here, then."

"So, that means the trigger must be...." Christian looked at the bed. Robin felt a headache coming on. her ears drooped a bit.

Then she stood up, and approached the bed. She looked around it, tried jumping on it, prodding the headboard, and moving it. As it was also fused with the floor, she couldn't moved it. It was also impervious to her sword. Not even the blankets were cut.

"Ugh! I'm all out of ideas! What in the world could it possibly mean!?" Robin complained as she flopped down on the bed, tired. When she opened her eyes, she suddenly blinked.

"Hey, Christian?" She asked, startling him, who had once again just blindly stared at Robin this whole time.

"Y-yes, what is it?" He asked.

"Come here." She said.

"..." Christian could not believe his ears. Had Robin's brain gone out on a picnic?

"Here? As in, on the bed?" He asked, hesitantly, still not sure how to interpret Robin's words.

"Yes. On the bed." Robin patted the bed next to her. Christian conscientiously sat on the edge of the bed next to Robin, not quite sure what he intended.

"What now?" Christian asked.

"Lie down, and look up." Robin said.

Christian lay down, and looked up. Then he blinked. "There's a ....pattern on the ceiling?" He squinted.

"I think there are words hidden in that pattern." Robin said. "But I can't seem to read them. You're more familiar with the characters, So I need your help."

"What can I do?" Christian asked.

"Stay there, and don't move. Tell me when the pattern starts to look like words." Robin said.

"What do you mean-Robin!?" Christian stiffened when Robin rolled over on top of him. Robin wasn't touching him at all. Her weight was distributed along her arms and feet in a kind of planking crouch.But that made it all the more unreal like some sort of dream. Christian's eyes swam as he wasn't sure what to think.

"Eyes on the pattern." Robin scolded. "Tell me when you start seeing words."

Christian then realized that Robin was trying to make the words more visible for him. Robin's face began to incrementally get closer to his as he looked at the ceiling behind Robin's head.

"Stop!" He quickly said just when their noses were about to touch. Robin paused, relieved.

"What does it say?" Robin asked.

"It says don't move. Why would it say that?" Christian asked. Then the bed suddenly began to lower into the floor.

"It was the bed after all!" Robin exclaimed, with a beautiful smile. Christian didn't reply. He was enchanted by Robin's face. Robin glanced down at Christian, and accidentally locked eyes with him. She had never really observed his face up close, but now she realized that it wasn't just his muscles that were eye candy.

She suddenly felt extremely self conscious. "What?" She scowled at Christian.

"What about the tail?" Christian asked, distracting himself from his thoughts.

"What tail?" Robin didn't understand.

"You have cat ears, but no tail. Isn't that a bit suspicious?" Christian asked.

Robin's face turned red. In actuality, Quinn had suggested adding a tail, but she wasn't going to let him get that close in proximity to her butt, so she had refused.

"It's not suspicious. I was wearing a cloak earlier." She replied. "Also, it is considered quite rude to ask to see someone's tail here, so such a practice is frowned upon."

It would have been a perfect cover up, but her ears quickly let Christian know that Robin was blustering around the answer.

"Is that so?" Christian asked

"...It's too embarrassing." Robin admitted, looking away with a red face. "Ears I can dismiss as a hat, but a tail is...just too much for me."

Christian wanted to ask why wearing a dress wasn't embarassing when they arrived at the bottom. The bed had descended down into a passageway lit by magic runes.

"Whoah, and this is in the tower?" She asked, looking up, then she noticed Christian looking at her with a waiting expression.

"What?"

"Oh nothing. I was just wondering how long you are still going to stay on top of me." Christian smirked. He was beginning to think of convincing Quinn to leave the cat ears on Robin. It was easier to tell what he was thinking that way.

Robin froze for a moment, then jumped off the bed in one fluid motion.

"Hmmph. Hurry up or I'll ditch you!" Robin scolded, her face turning beet red as she faced away from Christian. That was almost dangerous! Christian shouldn't smile at her like that.

Now that the near-compromising situation had passed, both had loosened up enough to joke about it.

"Oho? This is the first time this prince has been ditched, before. You are quite brazen." Christian joked with a grin. "That would have been the perfect opportunity to lay claim to the throne had you been the opposite gender."

Robin raised an eyebrow. "Unfortunately for you, I am not gay." she said as she walked down the passage staircase.

Once she was out of sight, she covered her face in embarrassment.

'Dammit, Christian! You should say these things to your girl! That smile is way too destructive!'

She almost banged the wall next to her, but stopped herself. She would be leaving eventually. It would do no good to get overly attached to anyone.

---

When Robin disappeared around the bend, Christian sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

It was true. He really did like Robin. In fact, he could probably confirm that he loved Robin. Whether Robin was a male or female didn't really matter to him.

Every word, every motion Robin made, seemed inscribed into his brain like a permanent stain. He hadn't forgotten a single moment of his time with Robin. It wasn't that way for him with any other person.

That's why...he could never let Robin know.

Christian was dense, but not that dense. He hastened his steps to catch up to Robin.

---

The passage steps led down for a while until it came to a long, hallway.

"Ho? I wonder where this leads?" Robin muttered.

"You know, for someone who doesn't like wearing dresses, why are you still wearing this?" Christian tugged lightly on Robin's skirt. "Don't you have a change of clothes, or something in your storage bracer?"

Robin frowned. "I do. but since I'm not an exhibitionist, I'll wait until we get back."

Christian smirked. "And?" he prompted.

Robin glared at him. "And I can't take the dress or makeup off without help."

"I can help you." Christian offered.

"No thanks. Where could the prince have learned how to undo women's garments, I wonder?" Robin shrugged off his help.

Christian stopped walking. After walking a short distance, Robin realized he was behind and turned around.

"Christian?" She asked.

"Robin, tell me....are you....with Jasmine?" He asked in a low voice.

"What? I couldn't quite hear. Say that again?" Robin drew closer to Christian.

"What is your relationship with Jasmine?" He asked a bit louder.

"Relationship?" Robin thought about it. "Definitely friends. Good friends. Possibly even best friends. Why?"

"Could you possibly have fallen for her?" Christian asked.

"...What!?" The question finally got through to Robin. "No way, no way, no way! She's like the sister I never had! I cherish her, it's true. But she can never take that place in my heart."

Robin looked away. "There's probably no one that can take that place now."

"Then...you have someone you're seeing back in your world?" Christian pursued.

"Why are you asking me this? If you're trying to play matchmaker, then please stop. I have no need of such things right now." Robin sighed. "If your asking if I like someone..."

She glanced at Christian, and paused in consideration.

"Yes. But... it's impossible between us. The person I like already loves someone else. A shame, really. They were one of the few decent people I met aside from my brother." Robin continued down the passageway, with Christian following behind.

"Why not tell them?" Christian asked.

"And, what would that accomplish?" Robin shook her head. "Instead of making things awkward between us, I'd rather just stay as friends. At least that way, I won't be grasping at someone who wasn't mine to begin with."

She looked down at her hand. "You know. It's entirely possible that I might never marry anyone...and I'm okay with that." She close her hand into fist.

"But...why Robin? I think out of all of us, at least you should be happy." Christian said. Although, initially, Christian had felt relieved that Robin didn't have anyone, he didn't want Robin to grow miserable.

"Heh. For some people, being alone is better than being with someone you don't love." Robin said. "But you might not understand that." She said as she walked further ahead.

Christian watched Robin from behind.

'No, Robin...I think I might understand that more than you think...' He thought, before moving to catch up with Robin.