Nick was on his way to math class, holding his textbook in one hand. He had a light glare on his face, the kind he wore when he’d have to return home soon. He’d have to work on a nicer demeanor, because the CCNC session at his house was coming up.
That did not help ease his glare at all. If it was Tyler and Evelyn, it would’ve been fine. Even Derek being there wouldn’t be too bad. But Rafael and Alejandra were going to be there, too. He had no idea how this would go, both with the session at his house, or the actual heist. He couldn’t believe they were stealing a sword off Akshi’s body. That wasn’t a heist. That would undoubtably start a battle. And worst of all, Grizzizzik was still at level three and going out of his way to avoid Nick.
“Hey! Nick!”
He broke out of his thoughts to see Derek. His friend sounded way too chipper, and he noticed him talking to Rafael. Rafael glanced at his shoes once Nick’s gaze fell on him.
“What’s going on?” Nick asked.
“I need a little advice, that’s all,” Derek said.
Rafael shook his head, sighing. “He’s considering getting back with Emma so she hates him, making it more difficult for Pippa to control her.”
Nick froze. He stared at Rafael, eyes widening, then shot his gaze toward Derek. “You’re thinking about what?”
Derek shrugged. “It’s an oversimplification.”
“You haven’t actually done it, have you?” Nick asked.
“Well, no.”
“Good. Don’t.”
Derek nodded, raising a hand. “And… I understand why you might think that.”
Nick rubbed his forehead. “What the hell are you thinking?”
“Will you listen to my side of the story?” Derek asked.
Nick took a deep breath, then let it out. “Fine. Explain it.”
Derek cleared his throat. “Right. Well…” He started gesturing with his hands. “It’s… true. If I can get Emma to hate me, then Pippa will have to be around her more often, and it’ll give the distraction Milo needs to cure our gray marks.”
Nick gave it a nanosecond of thought before his face settled into a deeper glare. “You are a goddamned idiot.”
“Insults don’t solve anything.” Rafael moved his textbook to the other hand before patting Derek on the shoulder. “As… noble of an idea as it is, you’ve got to think of the danger it puts you in. Puts us all in. Emma, therefore Pippa, would be in your life. We can’t have Pippa hanging around you with Milo in the state he’s in.”
Derek let out a breath. “Yeah, you’re right. We want to be far away from Pippa right now.”
“Especially with the sesh in two days.” Nick ran a hand through his hair. “And the full moon next week. God, Derek, you seriously think making Emma angry will make her decide to leave you alone? That she won’t try something else like get revenge. There are too many things happening, and a fae succubus sneaking into our ranks is not what we want.”
Derek sighed. “You’re right.” He closed his eyes, backing away. “God, you’re totally right. I knew talking with you two would help. Okay.” He gave two thumbs up. “No one worry about me. I’m fine. I won’t do it.”
Rafael and Nick watched him meld in with the river of students, leaving the two of them alone. Tension trickled back in. Rafael was distracted, running a finger over his textbook. “Right, well, thanks for knocking some sense into Derek,” Rafael said.
“Yeah. You too.”
They were both silent for a second. Perhaps Nick should have said something else, but he still couldn’t apologize for hitting him. The guy deserved it.
For that reason alone, Nick headed toward math without another word.
***
Rafael folded his arms as he watched the five characters settle into the minivan. Derek and Rafael sat in the front. Alejandra was in the middle, with Hraktar to the left of her, and Grizzizzik on the other side. She didn’t look pleased being by Grizzizzik, but Hraktar kept shooting the rogue looks to make sure he didn’t do anything. The rogue kept his arms folded, staring out the window.
Milo, Clarissa, and Ezekiel chatted up a storm in the back. Ezekiel had his arm around Clarissa, and she cuddled up, holding his other hand. Milo was explaining to Ezekiel and Clarissa about creating black mana. The two lovebirds were far more interested in holding hands and cuddling, but they were being gracious.
Derek buckled up, glancing behind him. “We ready?”
“Ready,” Rafael said.
The drive was quiet except for Milo’s chatter. There were too many nerves to deal with. Tomorrow night, they were going to Nick’s house to play CCNC. Like the old days, except so much had changed. Rafael would have to be around Nick. Around Evelyn. And Walt would breathe down everyone’s neck while they attempted to steal one of Akshi’s long swords off his back.
“I wonder how the dice situation will work,” Derek said.
Rafael frowned before glancing at Derek. “What?”
“Tomorrow. When we roll dice. Will we roll like we have done? Where the dice won’t appear until we need it? Or can we roll with other dice? Because I have some charging at home. I bet they’re ready to roll nicely for a heist.”
Rafael tried to hide a smile. “Yeah, uh… I’m not sure.”
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“I’ll bring my other dice, just in case,” Derek said.
“It would be weird if you didn’t.”
Derek chuckled as they pulled off the side of the road near Calawit’s tent. Everyone got out before walking toward the tent. Rafael fell in step next to Alejandra.
“This is insane, right? A long sword off Akshi’s back? That all but guarantees a fight,” Alejandra said.
“Not necessarily. If the rolls are high enough, one of them could ease it off his back,” Rafael said, glancing at Ezekiel. The cleric wore a cloak with the hood up, holding it tight against him. His front teeth were poking out of his mouth. He looked haggard, and the heist wasn’t until tomorrow.
“If the rolls are high enough?” Alejandra asked. “The rolls never listen.”
They walked into the tent. Two petals fluttered down and attached themselves to the back of Grizzizzik’s hands. “I’m here to get stuff.” He raised his hands. “Shouldn’t you take these off for the time being?”
“No.” Calawit appeared on top of a bookshelf. She glanced around, folding her arms. “Where’s your creator?”
Grizzizzik’s bump of a nose twitched. “He’s not my creator.”
“Fine. Where’s the boy in charge of your fate?” Calawit asked.
The rogue gave Calawit a glare Nick would be proud of. Or, rather, would probably make him uncomfortable with how similar it was to his own.
“Nick’s grounded. We’re trying to reverse that so he can come to sessions again,” Derek said.
Calawit frowned. “Grounded?”
Derek glanced at Rafael before returning his gaze to the sorcerer. “It’s when a parent doesn’t like what their kid is doing, so they take away things they enjoy for a while to get them back in line.”
Calawit blinked as she straightened her spectacles. “Does it work?”
“On Nick? Not in the slightest,” Derek said.
“I’m sure it’s the same principal as these.” Grizzizzik held up his hands again.
Calawit snorted. “Nice try.” She leapt off the bookshelf and landed on the ground. “I’d like to stress that the reason I’m lending these items to you is because Ezekiel is a kind soul and doesn’t deserve what happened to him. Not only that, but if he turns into a wererat forever, your little team won’t recover.”
Grizzizzik snorted, but said nothing more. Calawit gave him a look, but didn’t press it. They followed the shopkeeper to her desk. It was littered with trinkets and clothing. “If you break it while out there, you buy it. And some of these are four hundred gold.” She climbed on her desk, grabbing a velvet bag. “I’ve got a list of everything I’m giving you. If you break it, and you can’t afford it, I will give you a specific curse that will be lifted once you pay me back.”
“I guess Ezekiel’s goodness only gets you so far in means of charity,” Milo said, leaning over to examine the potions.
“This is the most my charity can give. I’m still a business, after all.” Calawit opened the bag and pulled out five bracelets with a smooth gem in the middle, each with a different gem.
Clarissa picked up the sapphire one. “This is gorgeous!”
“I’m not wearing that,” Grizzizzik said.
“They’re modified speaker stones, all connected to each other. You can talk to each other if you get separated.” Calawit grabbed the biggest bracelet with a diamond in the center and handed it to Hraktar. “That’ll be for you, big guy.”
Hraktar took it, examining it before trying to get it on his wrist. Alejandra walked over to help buckle it on.
Calawit held up one with a ruby toward Grizzizzik, but he grabbed the one with the opal instead. Or at least tried to. The petals on his hand kept him from doing anything.
“You can only take the one I give willingly.” Calawit still held the ruby bracelet out to him.
Grizzizzik glared at the bracelet. “I don’t wear red.”
The sorcerer snorted before picking up the opal. “Don’t want to look like your father?”
Grizzizzik swiped it out of her hands, saying nothing as he buckled the opal on his wrist.
“So, these work as speaking stones?” Milo tapped on his newly placed emerald bracelet as Ezekiel took the discarded ruby.
“Yes. As long as you’re within three thousand feet of each other. So don’t wander off too far,” Calawit said, keeping her eye on Grizzizzik as he turned his back on the desk and walked into the shop.
“That should give us plenty of room,” Ezekiel said.
“How much is that, exactly?” Derek asked.
Rafael pulled out his phone and converted it. “Little over half a mile.”
Calawit stood over a pile of random items. “Most of this will give you a small boost in things needed for your mission.” She held up a pair of boots. “These help you sneak around.” She held up a small magnifying glass. “This’ll help you find things better.” She gestured toward the pile. “If you have questions, ask me.” She then gestured toward the potions. “These are different. Take as many as you want, but if you bring them back empty, I expect you to pay for them.”
Milo smiled. “Calawit?”
“Yes, I will tell you what they are.”
Rafael felt like he was observing something he should have a bigger part in, but this was their characters acting it out. It was they who needed this. Derek helped Calawit identify most of the items. From what Rafael could understand, a lot of it was a simple +1 to stealth, sleight of hand, or deception rolls. There was a cloak of weaving, which they handed to Hraktar for blending in with surroundings if needed. It wouldn’t be a perfect replica, but it was something. Considering Hraktar didn’t have magic, and the cloak didn’t need attunement, Hraktar would get a nice boost to his stealth. Calawit and Milo were discussing potions. Milo had his elbows on the desk as he examined a bottle of oil. Calawit explained how quickly oil spreads across the path to make it difficult to walk.
Ezekiel was examining the items, listening to Derek as he explained what they did. Rafael approached his character, folding his arms.
“What do you think?” Rafael asked. Ezekiel jumped, spinning around. “Sorry, man, didn’t mean to startle you.”
“No, it’s… fine.” Ezekiel blinked at the orbs of light placed throughout the store. “It’s insanely bright, don’t you think?”
Rafael frowned, then glanced at the lights. It was about as bright as any other time they’ve come. “Turn from the light, if that helps.”
Ezekiel turned his back to the bright orbs. “I don’t like to.” He scratched his head, and a few more strands of hair tumbled from his scalp.
“We’ll make it,” Clarissa said, slipping her hand into Ezekiel’s.
Derek handed Ezekiel a wooden coin. “Take this.”
Ezekiel took it, turning it around with his long, gray fingernails. It had some sort of paw print on both sides. “What’s this?”
“Wildlife coin. Squeeze it and it’ll give you a d4 bonus roll on nature checks for an hour.” Derek turned his gaze toward Rafael. “That’s the check required when he drops to single digit health points, right?”
Rafael nodded. “Yeah.”
Derek gave a reserved sigh. “A d4 isn’t a lot, but then again, we need anything we can get at this point to keep you from turning. It’s close to the full moon, and we need you focused.”
Ezekiel studied the coin. “And to keep the others safe.” He slipped the coin into his inventory. “Thank you, Derek.”
Milo had his void bag out, showing Calawit the potions before placing them in the bag. He was taking all of them, and Calawit, with a flick of her wrist, had a scroll and animated quill marking it all down.
Milo gently placed the potions in the void bag, glancing around the store. “Hey, what about dark goggles?”
Calawit raised an eyebrow. “You want dark goggles?”
“Yeah. I haven’t figured out how to make my own, and it’d be great if Ezekiel and I didn’t have to light a torch while on this heist,” Milo said.
Calawit glanced around her store before focusing back on Milo. “I have a fair collection of them. But if they’re broken, they’re three hundred gold a piece.”
Milo winced, but nodded. “We need them. Light will give us away.”
Calawit shrugged, then climbed up on the bookshelf and hopped over a few before collecting them. Rafael watched as Derek kept offering trinkets to the characters, describing what they did. Alejandra helped Hraktar organize them, since Hraktar was afraid of breaking them.
Rafael started wandering the store. He was surprised the pile on the desk didn’t put a dent in the disorganization in the rest of the tent. He had no idea how Calawit kept track of this stuff.
He turned a corner and noticed Grizzizzik leaning against a bookshelf, his stiff shoulder against the board and his arms folded. Rafael pulled to a stop. Grizzizzik stared at something on the shelf, but his eyes snapped to Rafael.
“Uh. Hi,” Rafael said.