When the sun rose the next morning, Allen packed up everything used to set up the camp and kicked some dirt to extinguish the fire. Once everything was good to go, he examined his map and informed everyone that it would be another long day of walking. Nobody was happy to hear this. The lack of sleep had left everyone exhausted.
“Y’know,” Lynn said as she inched toward Cupcake. “The trip would go a lot faster if we all flew on the griffin.”
“Cupcake!” Zack called. “Her name is Cupcake.”
Allen raised an eyebrow. “Unfortunately, I don’t think she could support all four of us.”
Lynn sighed. “Well then just let me ride her!” She whined. “A king shouldn’t be doing this much walking! My feet are killing me!”
Narrowing his eyes, Allen nodded slowly with a sigh. “Fine. I’m sure Charlotte could ride with you as well.”
“M-Me?” Charlie flinched, glancing over at Cupcake. She still wasn’t so sure about that creature. She seemed nice and all, but she still terrified her.
Zack crossed his arms. “Heyyyy, why can’t I ride on Cupcake? I’m the one who befriended her!”
“You can fly.” Allen said as he stared at Zack, who huffed and muttered ‘fair enough’ under his breath. Allen tilted his head, pointing at Zack’s wings. “... Although, I must ask, how were you previously able to fly while your wings were under your clothes?”
Zack shrugged. “Oh, well, I kinda have levitation powers on top of having wings. Funny how that works, eh?”
“That sounds redundant.”
“I think you mean convenient!”
“Ummm-!” Charlie blurted as Lynn helped her climb onto Cupcake’s back. “What about you, Allen?”
“I’ll be fine just following you all on foot,” Allen replied. “If I fall behind, King Lynn knows the way, she’ll continue guiding you. Don’t worry about me. I’ve been on worse journeys, with less sleep.”
Charlie nodded slowly, then gasped as Cupcake suddenly burst into a sprint and spread her wings in preparation to take flight. Zack gave Allen a parting wave, before quickly floating after them. With a sigh, Allen stretched out his legs for a moment, then began to sprint.
When Cupcake lifted into the air, Charlie couldn’t help but scream in terror. She grasped Lynn tightly, squeezing her eyes shut. “Hey!” Lynn called. “Ease up, would you?! You’re gonna crush me to death!”
“S-Sorry!” Charlie apologized, but she still couldn’t bring herself to relax. She never liked flying, and being on the back of a terrifying mythical beast didn’t help. At least airplanes had seatbelts. She felt like if she let go of Lynn, she’d get flung off and hit the ground with a horrible splat.
“You’re not gonna fall!” Lynn said. “Trust me, I’ve ridden tons of flying beasts. Hippogriffs, pegasi, even a baby dragon once! … Don’t tell Allen I said that. Anyway, griffins have some of the best air control out of any of them. I haven’t fallen off a single time!” When Charlie didn’t budge, she added, “Besides, we’ve got Zack right behind us, I’m sure he wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”
After hesitating a moment, Charlie slowly loosened her grip on Lynn, still not fully letting go. She cautiously opened one eye, glancing at the world around them. Surprised at what she saw, she fully opened both eyes, gasping as she pulled away from Lynn to get a better look. The land looked so beautiful from so high up. The vibrant green rolling hills, the distant forests, the rivers in between…
Lynn looked back at her with a grin. “Pretty cool, eh? The sights of Sarinia are even better from up high! I like to sneak out and go on flights in my free time… Again, don’t tell Allen. Sometimes it’s just nice to feel the wind in your hair while looking at a pretty view, y’know what I mean?”
Charlie giggled lightly, continuing to stare in wonder at the land below. “Wow… This whole place, it’s,” She paused, trying to find the right words to describe it. “Well, it’s terrifying. But it’s also… Kind of amazing. It’s nothing like my home, that’s for sure.”
“What’s your home like?” Lynn asked curiously.
“Uhh, it’s loud, first of all. And there are a lot of big buildings, not a whole lot of trees or grass. And the people can be mean, sometimes… And there’s no magic either, or dangerous creatures,” Charlie paused with a frown. “Unless pigeons count as dangerous.”
“No magic, eh? Sounds boring. The only way I stay sane with all my kingly duties is by teaching myself magic. It’s a lot of studying, but it’s worth it!” Lynn presented her scepter, its gem glistening in the sunlight as she waved it.
Charlie watched in awe. As she stared at the scepter, a question crossed her mind. “Can… Anyone use magic?”
Lynn lowered her scepter. “As long as you have the means, I don’t see why not. Sadly, I don’t have any natural magical abilities, so I’ve had to harness them through this thing. It’s like I’m teaching the scepter more than I’m teaching myself, heh!”
“So… All the magic is in the scepter?”
“Pretty much, yeah. See this gem at the end? It’s got a similar structure to demon horns. That’s how they do their magic!” A grin slowly spread across Lynn’s face. “... You wanna try a spell?”
Charlie gasped. “Um–!” Her heart fluttered. There was nothing she wanted to do more. “S-Sure! If that’s okay…!” She held her breath as Lynn placed the scepter in her hand. Charlie grasped it tightly, not sure what she was supposed to do with it. She glanced up at Lynn, looking for guidance.
“Just think about the spell you want, then give it a good wave. Point to where you wanna shoot,” Lynn made a swinging gesture with her hands. “... And it should fire on its own! Pun intended, heh.”
Charlie nodded. She closed her eyes and thought of the fire spell. When she was ready, she waved the scepter, pointing it up into the sky. The whole thing heated up slightly, the end glowing for a brief moment before shooting out a small burst of flames.
Lynn laughed and clapped her hands. “That was perfect! Again, shoot it again!”
Charlie smiled widely and began firing firebolts in all directions. Suddenly, Zack’s voice called out from behind them. “HEY! Watch where you’re aiming that thing, I feel like I’m doing an obstacle course back here!”
“S-Sorry!” Charlie giggled nervously, returning the scepter to Lynn, who gave her a look of amusement.
The fast pace mixed with the lack of enemies along the way made the trip to the third village much smoother. Lynn and Charlie were the first to arrive on Cupcake's back, shortly followed by Zack. They brought Cupcake to the village's stables, where the owner was hesitant to let her stay, but Lynn paid him a hefty amount of gold if he agreed. Once that was taken care of, they decided to have a meal at the tavern while they waited for Allen to arrive.
As they sat at a table and ate, Charlie’s mind seemed to be elsewhere as she nervously picked at the food on her plate. Eventually, she voiced her concerns. “Do you think he’s okay? It’s a long walk…”
Lynn tilted her head. “Allen? Pshh, he’ll be fine, nothing slows him down! He didn’t get the title of ‘#1 Knight’ for nothing.” She chuckled lightly.
Charlie nodded slowly. While they were on the topic of Allen, she decided to ask something else. “Um, I’ve been meaning to ask…” She paused, trying to think of how to phrase her question. “Why does he… Have wings? And feathers, and all that?”
“Ah, he’s an angel!” Lynn paused, before adding, “... Well, that’s what most people call them, anyway. They’re actually called harpies.”
Zack laughed a bit. “Angel, eh? No wonder he hates demons so much.” He tilted his head with a curious expression, now wanting to ask his own question about Allen. “Say, how’d he end up working for you, anyway? And how come we haven’t seen any other harpies in Sarinia?”
“I’ve known Allen since I was little,” Lynn began explaining with a smile on her face as she recalled the fond memories. “He always wanted to be a knight, so I made him one when I became king! I dunno how he came to Sarinia, though… Harpies have their own kingdom up on these floating islands in the sky, you see. It’s pretty rare to see them down here.”
“Ah,” Zack said in response, frowning slightly. He couldn’t help but wonder if Allen’s partially missing wing had anything to do with that…
It took him a few hours longer, but they eventually spotted Allen stumbling into the village. He was on the verge of collapsing and insisted they should start questioning the residents, but Lynn dragged him to the inn to get some rest. Feeling tired as well, Zack and Charlie followed.
When they got to their room, Zack and Charlie wordlessly fell into their beds. Despite how exhausted she felt, Charlie couldn't bring herself to close her eyes for more than a few seconds. The events of last night still lingered in her mind. Seeing Zack like that… It wasn't the wings she was concerned about. She had long since come to terms with the fact that he might've been a demon. It was the way he reacted to everyone seeing him… He was so… Afraid.
She glanced over at the other bed. He was still. Charlie hesitated a moment, before quietly whispering, "Hey, Zack…?" For a moment, there was no reply. Thinking that he had already fallen asleep, she sighed and turned onto her side. But to her surprise, he whispered back.
"Yeah…?"
Charlie was silent for a moment. She hadn't quite thought about what she'd say if he was still awake. She was tempted to just say 'nevermind, let's get some sleep', but she didn't. Instead, she took a deep breath.
"About last night…"
There came a quiet shuffling sound from Zack's bed. Charlie continued speaking. "I just wanted you to know that… No matter what, you're still my friend." She paused. "... And that… It doesn't matter what you are… Because I know you're a good person despite it all."
Zack was quiet. Charlie wished she could see his expression, but the room was too dark. She held her breath, hoping she didn't say something stupid, or something that just made him feel worse. Finally, he spoke.
"You wouldn't… Ever leave me for this… Would you?"
"Of course not!" Charlie replied immediately. "Why would I ever?"
"You…" Zack seemed to struggle to get the words out. "You weren't my first… Human friend."
Charlie's heart sank. She moved closer to the end of her bed and reached out to place a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "I wouldn't ever leave you. You're still the same Zack I know. This doesn't change anything, I promise."
Zack went quiet again, but this time, Charlie could hear him breathe shakily. "Cool," he said quietly, his voice almost breaking. "Cool…" He paused for a moment, before adding, "... Thank you."
Charlie gave him a few comforting pats before pulling back, making herself comfortable in her bed. She closed her eyes, letting her exhaustion take over and pull her into a peaceful sleep.
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