Awakening One's True Self

The rest of the day went by swiftly. Her other classes were as interesting as the classes she attended in the morning. When all the lessons were over, the fairy and her sat by one of the benches near the academy's gate, waiting for their chauffeurs to arrive.

"Man, I'm beat," the fairy said, rummaging through her bag for her textbook.

She found it and, placing the thick textbook on the table, used it as a pillow. Astoria agreed as she was even more exhausted because of all the new knowledge she had acquired.

"I can't believe we will be going to East Corrilt for our Riddle Language Studies class. I was excited when the teacher announced it. That was until I heard her say it was part of our assignment. That place is so beautiful, and it also happens to be her hometown. It is one of the beautiful city districts of Ashen, full of hyacinth flowers and fun recreational activities. What a waste of a trip, don't you think?"

The fairy rambled on and on, talking about how excited she was for the trip despite it being for their assignment. At the end of their Riddle Language Studies class, the teacher, Miss Yalvina, an anthousai, informed the class that they would go to East Corrilt, one of the city districts of this kingdom.

This was to develop their riddle skills as it was meant to be a fun way of enhancing their knowledge. Astoria was thrilled and afraid to go there. She was thrilled to travel but frightened of the dangers that may occur to her. She was troubled that the Smoke Monster would attack her since she would no longer be in the comfort and safety of the palace.

"What's wrong, Nexi?" the fairy asked, sensing the worried expression on her face.

"Oh, it's nothing. I guess I'm a tad bit excited at the thought of traveling but worried about getting a good grade for this assignment," she told the fairy.

The fairy lifted her head, a grin on her face.

"Don't worry about that. We will ace the assignment since we have Davitt in our group. Luckily it's just the three of us, and we're all smart, so it's..."

The fairy paused, tucking her red strands of hair behind her ears.

"Well, Davitt and I are smart, so you are lucky in that aspect. We will definitely ace the assignment."

Astoria raised an eyebrow, her arms crossed.

"Am I not smart enough?" she asked the fairy, who softly giggled.

"Not exactly. You're kinda below average-"

"Below average!" she shouted, abruptly standing up and interrupting the fairy whose eyes widened in surprise at her friend's sudden movement.

She stared open-eyed at the fairy, unable to believe her ears. She had no idea that Nexi's grades were that bad.

'So, not only does the princess have poor stamina and a weak body, but her grades are also below-average?'

She sighed and told herself that she would have to improve Nexi's marks and stamina during her stay in this world.

"Yeah. Why are you acting so shocked?"

The fairy had asked her, watching her in bewilderment. Astoria sat back down, a shy smile evident on her face as she stared back at the fairy.

"Oh, nothing. I was just reminded of how I need to pull up my socks," she replied, playing with her ponytail.

The fairy put away her textbook in her bag and stared intently at Astoria's face, her red locks being gently blown by the passing wind.

"What? Why are you staring at me like that? Is there something on my face?"

Astoria began touching her face, but the fairy just continued to watch her, completely fascinated. After a minute of silence, the fairy spoke.

"There's something different about you, bestie," the fairy said, squinting her eyes to examine her.

"Different? Me? Nah, you're just imagining things," she told the fairy, brushing off her remark.

"No," the fairy continued, "there's definitely something different."

She was deep in thought for a few minutes. Of course, there was something different about her since she was not the princess the fairy knew. Instead, she was a policewoman whose soul was stuck in the body of a princess. She still had no clue on how to get her soul back into her own body.

"Anyway," the fairy concluded, breaking the silence that had hung in the air, "I like this version of you. You're bolder and don't keep your feelings bottled up. I feel like you are expressing yourself more, Nexi."

Astoria grinned, glad that the fairy did not suspect anything strange about her.

"Also, sorry to say this," the fairy quickly added, "but you being sick seemed to awaken your true self. Therefore, I'm partially glad you got sick, bestie."

Astoria smirked at the fairy's statement. Outside the academy, it was buzzing with the laughter and voices of students waiting to go home. Other students were wearing tracksuits as they had extracurricular activities. She wondered where Nexi's siblings were since they were nowhere to be found outside.

'Do they have extracurricular activities?'

"Who are you looking for, bestie?" the fairy questioned.

"Just my siblings."

"Naida and Morvin have extracurricular activities today. Don't you remember?"

"Oh, I forgot. Do you partake in any extracurricular activities?"

"Unfortunately, I'm way too occupied with the matters of the Summer Court to be involved in any," the fairy replied, an expression of melancholy on her face.

"Remember how you and I really wanted to be part of the Student Council? I'm a busy princess, and your father said you can't be involved in any activities due to your weak body. Only your siblings can be involved, and they even got to be part of the Student Council. I'm so jealous," she said, sadly disappointed.

"I see," was all Astoria could mutter.

She kind of expected that answer from the fairy since she had learned that Nexi had a weak body ever since she was born. That was one of the reasons why the bullies targeted her. It was also why Naida hated her guts because why would the Goddess bestow such great power on a princess who was weak and not a full-fledged Water Folk?

"Don't look so sad about it, though. Extracurricular activities aren't everything," the fairy said, smiling at her reassuringly.

"Oh, I'm not. It can't be helped, I guess," she said, smiling back at the red-haired fairy.

The fairy agreed. They waited for about ten minutes, and her ride arrived. Laurelai stood up as she saw a figure emerge from the car. A full smile appeared on her face when she saw that it was her father who had come to fetch her, not her chauffeur.

"Daddy!"

She grabbed her bag and ran into his arms, laughing in pure bliss.

"Why are you here?" she asked, bewildered.

Her father smiled, stroking her hair.

"You said you were only coming back tomorrow," she added.

"The quest finished earlier than expected thanks to your strong old man here," he told her, pointing at himself, a fatherly smile on his face.

"You're not old, dad," she assured him, playfully hitting his arm.

He chuckled and peered over her and saw Astoria smiling at their cute interaction. It made her happy to see the fairy smiling and laughing like a little child.

"Nexi," he said, "glad to see you're all better. Take it easy, and don't push yourself too hard. Send my regards to your father."

She nodded.

"Bye, bestie!" the fairy called out.

The fairy waved goodbye and hopped into the car. Her father said goodbye to Astoria and drove off, leaving her alone on the bench.

'It was sweet to see such an interaction. Makes me miss my dad.'