“Just do it.”

Little Water set aside her confusion at the strange request she’d been asked to perform and pressed her lips to Khan’s, bending over his seated form, tail outstretched to aide her balance. He didn’t move, not so much as a twitch. As expected.

That didn’t stop the snickers of the one who organized the farce. She straightened and turned to Lou, who was smiling broadly. “Was that good enough?”

“Clearly not if he’s still asleep.” The agent snickered again while waving a hand. “Ignore me, I’m being a bit ridiculous. There’s a popular premise in stories where a beautiful woman is put to sleep by a curse and the only way to break it is the kiss of her true love. Who always happens to be either incredibly rich, incredibly strong, incredibly handsome, or some combination of the three. Ah, it was doomed from the beginning.”

“Will you wake him now?” Little Water asked, doing her best to leave the demand out of her tone but she feared some of her anxiousness slipped in.

“We will, we will. Just waiting for—ah.” Footsteps drew the room’s attention to the two newcomers; Alana, her clothes soaked with sweat, and Bell, who walked at her heels. “She wanted to be here for this.”

“I figure there will be less trouble if there’s a familiar face around,” Alana said while wiping her forehead with the towel draped over her shoulders. Her eyes found Lancecain and her brows furrowed. “You…”

The northern knight smiled. “Don’t tell me you forgot about me.”

“Honestly, I thought you’d gone home. You’re the kind that thrives in a crisis.” She winced. “That didn’t come out right.”

“Don’t worry. We’re Victorians. I’m pretty sure we get crisis in our milk as babies.” His friendly smile waned. “A single pair of hands won’t be missed much, I think. There are far more important things happening here. I don’t know how much use I’ll be but…I want to stick around.” A bit of his smile returned. “If you and your wife will permit it.”

Alana looked toward Lou who raised her brows. “He’s your childhood buddy. No offense, Lance.”

“None taken. I only hope that we can grow closer in the future.”

“Saints, no need to turn on the charm. You’re a decent guest and we can feed one more mouth. Alana?”

“It’s fine, but where will he stay? The guest wing is…you know.”

“Ah. Good point. Er, how do you feel about camping?”

Lancecain didn’t balk at the suggestion of being put outside. “I’ve camped in a northern winter. I imagine it’ll be a lot more comfortable in this warm weather.”

“We’ll keep you comfortable enough. For a little while. We don’t plan on staying in this estate, or this city, for much longer. Once my pet finishes sniffing out the guilds’ treasures, we’re gone. Hopefully, before anyone annoying shows up…and I just jinxed myself, didn’t I?”

Kierra chuckled. “As I said on the eve of our union, trouble is the fate of the talented.”

The grunt she received in response was hard to decipher. “Who’s waking him up?”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Little Water side-stepped as the tiny red creature scampered across the ground and fought the urge to intervene as it climbed over her human, resting in his lap. Kierra sat down beside him. “We’ll be working together. I am in charge of waking his body while the pet will watch over his mind.”

“Is there any reason to worry?” Little Water asked. It would be the height of irony if the ones who were determined to “fix” his mind shattered it.

“I cannot claim to have complete knowledge of how the body affects the mind under such circumstances, but I have no reason to believe there will be trouble. There is no sense is not preparing when we have those capable close. He is family. That means extra care.”

“Thanks,” Alana mumbled barely loud enough for those with average hearing to make it out.

“Of course, star.” Kierra raised a hand and placed it on Khan’s cheek, her eyes glowing with channeled mana. “Bell.”

“Coo!”

Little Water watched their actions intensely, though there was little to see. The process was slower than she expected, dragging on for minutes, but she appreciated the extra care. Each gesture he made stoked her rising excitement: a flick of his finger, a twitch of his lips, the jerk of his leg.

As they worked, the small human dashed into the room, carrying a small bowl with a rag hanging over the edge. She climbed onto the couch and wiped Khan’s face with care before disappearing as quick as she came, leaving two confused balls of golden fur in her wake.

Eventually, Khan’s brows furrowed and his eyes fluttered open. His bleary gaze slowly focused, moving from one person to another. There was confusion when he stopped on the fair-haired man. Worry when his eyes found his sister.

When he looked at Little Water…

Frustration.

Annoyance made her tail lash. It was a far cry from her human’s usual reaction to her presence. It would be a trial if she had to rebuild their relationship from the beginning. Perhaps impossible. Theirs were special circumstances. Fated, some might say. Nothing that could be orchestrated.

Kierra’s eyes stopped glowing as she removed her hand, smiling smugly. “He is perfectly fine.”

“Coo!” the imp added. Given it wasn’t desperately working a spell, Little Water took the sound to be agreement.

“Let’s see then.” Lou stepped in front of Khan, bending over to look him in the eye. She snapped a few times to catch his attention. “There we go. Welcome back, brother-in-law.”

“You—" He coughed weakly, his hand rising to her throat. With impeccable timing, the small human returned, this time carrying a try with a thin pitcher of water and an already filled cup. She stopped by the couch and the imp took the tray, setting in on an empty cushion before helping her human to drink. Job complete, the small human dashed off again, the fluffs she left behind hopping after her with relieved squeaks.

“Where are we?” Khan asked after he sipped a glass and a half of water.

“We’re in Quest.”

“The March…”

“Looks like your memory is intact. He’s also not foaming at the mouth, so I think we’re good here.”

“Wh—"

“I’m getting to it. Here’s the important bits. You are still in our custody. We still don’t trust you, or that you’re even you, so you don’t get a say in much. You shouldn’t even be awake right now, but someone has been very insistent on speaking with you.” Lou straightened up and stepped aside. Once more, her human’s eyes found her and the frustration returned.

“I…you’re so familiar but…”

Little Water’s eyes shut as her tail wrapped around her ankle, a self-soothing gesture. She suspected they’d wiped his memory. Unfortunately, they hadn’t made it a condition for him to remember her once he served his purpose. Inwardly, she cursed her callous family. She hated knowing that her life was an insignificant piece in someone else’s game.

“Ah, saints. They really did a number on you.”

“Khan.” Alana laid a hand on her brother’s shoulder. “If you are too tired or don’t want to do this now—"

“No!” The forceful shout was too much for his throat and sent him into another coughing fit. Kierra laid a glowing hand on his cheek and it eased. Her human drew in a long, steadying breath before meeting his sister’s eyes. “I’m fine. I want to talk to…her.”

Alana’s eyes flicked over him before she nodded and stepped away.

“We better give them some space.” At Lou’s prodding, the room began to empty. The agent was the last one to leave but she stopped beside Little Water first, a hand tightly gripping her shoulder. “As long as you know that it’s not really private. I don’t trust you either. You try anything, it’ll be the last thing you do.”

“I understand.”