The chef just sighed, shaking his head as he pulled out a chair for me at the closest table. “You girls really make me worried sometimes…” He muttered, already lumping me in with the rest of the guild.

“I really don’t see what the problem is.” Posy growled, crossed her arms.

I looked down at the meal before finally digging in. A part of me still wanted to cry, knowing how expensive it was, but as much money as I felt like I was throwing away by eating it, the flavor was almost worth it.

“So, what do you think?” Posy asked.

“I think it’s expensive…” She growled again and I caved. “This is… By far the best thing I have ever eaten. I could eat it for the rest of my life, and even in the afterlife… But I still think it’s still expensive…”

“Ok, but saying it’s good isn’t describing it at all! You can do better than that…” She rolled her eyes. “And since you can’t sell it, and we're giving it to you for free, that means that there is no price to the meal, which means it isn’t expensive at all.”

I looked back down to find it completely empty, having already eaten everything that was served. “If that’s the case… Then…” I lifted it out in front back to Roger. “More please, it’s really good.”

He turned bright red again as he took the bowl from my hands, but that only made me embarrassed in turn, and my smile quickly faded as I hunched over and rested my head on the table, trying to hide. ‘I wish I could just turn my face off… Especially with how hot the meal was, I feel like my head is on fire…’

I slowly raised my eyes to see Posy and the old man chatting away casually. ‘But… I’m not as uncomfortable as when I was with Finn. Am I finally getting over it? Or maybe it’s because another girl is here?’

“I still don’t see what the problem is. Words are just words, how can certain topics be inappropriate? Like I get that they are, but I don’t get why.”

He pointed at me. “Has your face ever looked like that?”

“No.”

“People don’t like looking like that. And certain topics make normal people look like that, so they don’t like them. Or at least, that’s the basic logic behind it. Is that what you were missing?”

‘I don’t appreciate being the example here…’

She tilted her head, looking up and to the side. “So, it’s not the topic, but people's reaction to it… So in other words it’s not a problem with the topic, but the person listening… So… It’s not a problem with me, but with them? Is that it? But if that’s true then why should I be the one worrying about it.”

He sighed, lowering his face into his hands again for a moment. “This is like trying to explain how men and women are different to a kobold…”

She growled again. “No, because that makes sense, you just point at the specific parts and explain that in most species people are born with one or the other... Your skin doesn’t turn to stone like mine if you don’t keep it clean, but that doesn’t stop you from understanding how and why it happens.” She suddenly pointed at me. “I have no idea what it would feel like if I was a guy staring at her face. But I know it’s super cute because of the structure and I can at least understand what about it a guy would like.”

‘Please stop pointing at me…’ “Can we just talk about something normal please…” I whined, lowering my head back onto the table.

The chef chuckled. “Sorry about that… You’re right… So… Do you have any family in Rothet? I know we brought you here suddenly, but we could send word to them if you want to let them know you’re ok.”

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“They’re all dead.”

They both froze as Roger finally brought another serving of food and snuck away before I could even thank him.

He cleared his throat. “Ok, well… You said you liked the food, what about it do you like? Adventurers usually end up trying a lot of strange dishes, so if you could compare it to some other ones, what would you say it’s most similar to?”

‘When I said something normal I didn’t mean about me…’ I sighed. “Before this, I went a few months without food altogether and pretty much forgot what it tasted like… After that, I’ve only really eaten warg meat, stewed vegetables, and things like that… I mean, compared to Warg it’s much softer. I don’t have to chew it till my jaw gets sore, so that’s nice. The sauce is really sweet and tangy, but it isn’t thick and doesn’t stay in my mouth after I swallow. So I like that…” I shrugged, ‘not sure what he was expecting, and once again… Dead silence’ After a while longer I finished and decided it would be best to just go to bed… I thanked the chefs one more time and we headed out.

Posy showed me back to my room and only then did I really start to feel at ease again, despite the magic surrounding me helping me to stay calm. Talking to strangers felt as awkward as ever. The floor was polished and smooth, the walls perfect in their soft pink color, and the furniture beautifully crafted. The bed was soft and the sheets were clean, carrying a pleasant smell. The blankets were thick and fuzzy, and the pillows fluffed. I actually had to pinch myself for a moment to make sure I hadn’t already fallen asleep. “You guys really are just a bunch of spoiled rich kids aren't you…” I grumbled. Don’t get me wrong, I was more than happy I got to live in luxury for a day, I just couldn’t hide how much I was disappointed in my own life. ‘I guess I’ll have to work even harder from now on. One day, I’ll deserve things like this too.’

Posy didn’t bother denying it, changing the focus entirely to checking my wounds before I went to sleep. Eventually, she decided that my ribs were fine, but still wrapped my hip again before leaving it alone.

When that was done we sat next to each other on the bed, calmly staring out the window. “I’m sorry…” She finally muttered. “There are some things I just don’t get… And…” She paused. Her eyes started to rapidly move, no doubt counting some obscure thing again.

“And?”

“I’m not making excuses I promise. I’m just providing an explanation ok?”

“Ok…”

“I tend to overanalyze things. I count things… I notice things others don’t and assume everyone notices them… I don’t get things… Like embarrassment, or love. Certain things just don’t make sense to me. And that makes a lot of people unhappy when I’m around… This doesn’t help because when people around me get angry I get angry, when people around me are sad I feel sad… I don’t even understand that…”

‘In other words, you're a handful… And a little bit like a kid.’ I sighed. “It’s fine.” I fell backward on the bed and closed my eyes, relishing in how soft it was. “So you pay attention to detail, and you're super empathetic, those aren’t so bad. Now, assuming everyone else is the same could certainly lead to some interesting situations… I paused. Hey, by any chance, when you made that comment about… What I was wearing… Was that one of those times where only you noticed?” I sat up again.

She looked back over to me, analyzing me again. “Your muscles are big, so your shirt is tight on you… But your chest is small, so it’s not very bouncy. I wouldn’t worry about it, it probably wasn’t noticeable.”

“Oh… Thanks…”

“Well, that was all I wanted to say, so I’m going to bed now. Goodnight.” She stood up, and promptly left the room, leaving me with a strange feeling as though we had fought… And I had somehow lost.”

After finally having the room to myself I took another look at it, deciding to just enjoy the moment. It was so exciting that I immediately changed and climbed into the bed, pulling the covers tightly over my soft skin that smelled just as nice after washing it with the soap they had. It was warm, and felt like I was getting a big hug from a fluffy bear. It almost felt too good… As for the first time I could remember, I had decided even before falling asleep that I wasn’t getting up in the morning…

After a while I calmed down, but despite all of it, I couldn’t seem to fall asleep. I could still remember the tightness in my chest, even then it felt sore. The guards I fought while I ran for my life. Even covered in warm blankets the thought still gave me chills. And that was just the half of it.

‘What am I supposed to do now? Just wait here until the trial? No, Alden will already be doing his best to frame me, and coming up with half-truths ‘Although, it’s not as if I’m taking him on alone… Even if I was I’m not sure I’d have to be that concerned about it.’

I heard a light tap on my door. At first, it made me nervous, getting Deja Vu, but I knew it wouldn’t be the guards, still, it was the middle of the night… I slowly got up and tiptoed to the door. Hearing another light tap as I approached, even quieter than the last.

“Chika? Are you still awake?” Pieta’s voice echoed through the door, giving me relief once I recognized the voice.

I unlocked it and opened it up. “Yeah… I’m still trying to figure out what I’m supposed to do next.”

“I could be wrong, but I think next is sleep isn’t it?”

I couldn’t help but let out a soft snort at how serious she was. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

She smiled softly. “You don’t have to worry about any of that other stuff. Even the guild master is getting involved now, so You’ll be fine.”

‘If anything that almost makes me more worried…’

Resting my head against the open door I let out a soft groan. “I still don’t even get why you people are helping me so much… Or why you just took me with you without even questioning me.”

“Hm… Well, I’m still learning about all this stuff, but you know what my master always says. It’s a priest's job to help those that need it… Can I come in?”

I stepped out of the way gesturing towards the room, “Yeah, I’ve heard that too, but one could argue the guards I was running from needed help to catch me…”

“That’s different though.” She bent over and picked up a large rolled-up futon before walking in.

“O-oh you meant you're sleeping in here now…”

“I figured you might not want to be alone.”

‘I’m starting to think you’re the lonely one…’ I sighed. “Yeah, maybe…”

“Why do I feel like there is a but?”

I walked over and knelt on the ground to help her set it up. “I haven't shared a room with anyone since my parents died around 8 years ago… I guess it makes me a bit nervous somehow.”

She giggled. “I understand what you mean. It’s easy to get used to being alone.”