Lapis had never been a fan of crowds. Too many people in too little space, all pushing and shoving indiscriminately as more bodies tried to cram their way in. Just the thought of it made her tense.

Miraculously, however, the crowd that had gathered around the raised stage in Emerald Cove's central square wasn't as nightmarish as she'd assumed it would be. The square was large enough that the 20 or so people who stood near the stage barely impeded traffic. Around the edge of the square, a few dozen more villagers meandered, flyers in hand, watching curiously and waiting for the show to start.

The stage was a platform positioned at the center of the square and raised about 6 feet above the walking path, with shimmering curtains of blue fabric surrounding the base. A large banner pinned to the front displayed the same gaudy text as the flyer- ZEPHYR MELODIAN, WAYWARD PRINCE OF THE WANDERING BREEZE.

"What do you think that title means?"

Lapis jumped, not expecting Dave's voice. She looked down and could see him through the top of her shoulder bag, his empty eye sockets peering at the stage through the small rectangular slit she had sewn into the side.

"Not sure," she said, scanning the square for a good place to stand. Her eyes caught on a spot under a tree at the edge of the square, far enough away from the stage that she wouldn't be surrounded by people. It looked like as good a place as any.

"Do you reckon he's really a prince?" Dave asked. "Don't know how someone would be the prince of wind. Is his dad the wind king? Is there a wind king?"

"Keep your voice down," Lapis whispered, taking up her position under the tree. She had a decent view of the stage, and wouldn't be in anyone else's way.

She glanced around and saw a few familiar faces among those littering the square and curiously eyeing the scene—shopkeepers and tavern patrons and the like. But looking at the densest part of the crowd—a handful people all talking excitedly, gathered right at the front of the stage—she didn't recognize any of them. Did they all come from out of town just to see this Zephyr person? she wondered.

Inside the bag, Dave kept chittering. "Listen, all I'm saying is... if there's such a thing as a Wind King... I bet he's really full of... hot air! Ha!"

Lapis sighed. Here he goes.

"And I bet he's probably a good entertainer, too—Any party he throws is sure to be... a gas!"

"Dave," Lapis groaned, glaring at him through the top of the shoulder bag.

"Hey, come on, that one was funny!" Dave protested. "I know Agatha doesn't want me scaring the customers, but I've got good jokes! Next time you perform, I could be your opening act! I tell a few funnies, get the audience warmed up, then-"

"Shh! I think it's starting."

With a faint whooshing noise, a few wisps of glittering smoke whirled to life on top of the platform. The audience in front of the stage began cheering as the cloud condensed, spinning faster and faster, forming a whirlwind of gale and glitter until—

With fanfare from some unseen instrument, the cloud erupted, spraying sparkles across the stage and into the audience. Where the cloud had been moments before now stood a man—the same one from the flyer—and Lapis gasped.

She hadn’t been struck by his sudden appearance—there was any number of stage tricks he could have used to make his grand entrance. Nor had she been alarmed by the man himself—he looked just as he did in the flyer, though seeing him in color was even more striking. His skin was a vibrant cobalt blue, with gold makeup framing his strange, white eyes. He sported a loose, flowing white shirt with a low neckline that showed his chest, along with the tightest pants Lapis had ever seen, tucked into fine leather boots that laced up to his thighs. Jewelry glittered on his neck and wrists, gold rings accented the curved horns that framed his face, and the shimmering designs on his velvety purple cape seemed to shift like clouds across the night sky.

The audience applauded as the glittering man took a bow—but Lapis was focused on only one thing.

He was glowing.

“Well, good evening, ladies and gentlemen!” the man called to the audience. He spoke like every word was the note of a song. “So kind of you all to come out this evening! I’m sure most of you have heard of me, but for those who haven’t—Zephyr Melodian, wayward prince of the wandering breeze, humbly at your service! Let’s not waste any time, shall we?”

He reached behind his back and produced a violin made of transparent, blue-tinted glass, and held it to his neck, beginning to play as the audience cheered.

Lapis stared in open-mouthed silence. The glow around the violinist—this Zephyr person—looked exactly the same as the glow she had seen around the mystery man from the night before. Wavering blue light surrounded him, like someone had traced a shimmering outline around his body. As he pulled the bow over the violin’s strings, drawing out a fast-paced, rhythmic jaunt, he danced across the stage, gliding and twirling majestically, the blue fire-like glow following him with every step he took. The audience cheered and clapped in time to the music, and as they did, more people stepped forward, enticed by the energetic performance.

This isn’t the same man I saw last night, is it? Lapis wondered. The idea seemed silly to even consider. While she hadn’t gotten close enough to see any clear details, the two men looked nothing alike. Yet the glow was exactly the same; same sapphire blue color, same slightly shifting, fire-like texture, same tight feeling in her chest when she looked at it.

“Hey, he’s not half bad!” Dave said, barely audible over the music and cheering. “Princey boy’s got some moves, huh?”

“Sure-“ Lapis stuttered, her eyes locked onto the bard.

“Lapis? You okay?”

“I- Dave, are you seeing this?”

“The show? Sorta. Bit hard to see from down here, but-“

Wordlessly, Lapis reached into the bag and grabbed the back of Dave’s skill, lifting him out just enough that his eye sockets poked out of the top.

“Uh! Lapis, Agatha said-“

“Look!” Lapis said insistently. Her pulse quickened, thumping against her ribs. “He’s glowing! You see it too, right?”

Dave was quiet for a moment. ”…I mean… the jewelry he’s got on is shiny? But-“

“No! I mean- like an actual ring of blue light around him! It’s just like the man I saw last night! It’s… Exactly the same.”

Lapis paused for a moment, her eyes transfixed on the wavering firelight around the Cynderan man as he pranced across the stage with his violin, whipping the audience into a frenzy. The blue glow surrounding him stood out brightly against the golden evening sunlight. How could Dave not see it?

“Um… I’m sorry, Lapis, but I really don’t see anything. I mean- his skin is blue, is that what you mean?” Dave said, concern in his voice.

“No, I- that’s not… No. I don’t know,” Lapis said, stammering. No one seemed to notice the glow on the man last night, either… What in the world is going on?

Lapis’s mind raced as she put Dave back in her shoulder bag, still staring at the strange glowing bard. As his performance continued, the tempo of the song increased, and the rhythmic clapping grew louder as more and more villagers joined the audience. Zephyr twirled and spun across the stage with catlike grace, his cape billowing majestically behind him. With each step, colorful illusory flowers bloomed to life around the stage, glittering for a moment before bursting into sparkling balls of light in time with the music. The lights spiraled around him like fireflies, growing brighter as the audience cheered, and making the man at the center of it all shine like a beacon of wonderment.

As the song’s climax approached, the music swelled, grandiose and outstanding, and despite the violinist being alone on the stage, Lapis could swear she heard other instruments joining in; invisible, yet harmonizing perfectly and adding to the growing symphony. Flowers bloomed around the stage, orbs of dazzling light floated above them like stars, and slightly transparent birds and fish spun around Zephyr before darting into the audience and sending colorful trails of glitter through the audience. The once sparse crowd had quickly grown, over a hundred sets of eyes locked onto the musician at its center, and even at the edge of the square, Lapis started to feel claustrophobic as more and more people pushed in. Yet despite her instincts telling her to leave and find somewhere less crowded, she stood transfixed, staring at the man on stage.

Questions prickled at her mind like static, an itch she couldn’t scratch. Who was this man? Was he related to the man from the night before? Why was he glowing? And why did it seem like no one else could see it?

As the first song finished with a triumphant crescendo, the audience erupted into magnanimous applause, and nausea gripped at Lapis’s insides. As much as she didn’t like it, she knew there was only one way to get the answers she wanted.

She needed to talk to him.

The performance continued for several more songs, each one somehow more dazzling than the last, though Lapis found it hard to focus on the music with anticipation slowly burning a hole in her stomach. How much longer would the show go on for? Would she get a chance to talk to Zephyr afterwards? And if she was able to ask him about the glow, would he even know what she was talking about? Would he think she was strange, asking something like that? The thought of his blank eyes staring at her with disapproval made her stomach turn, but which was worse? Asking and being laughed at, or leaving the mystery unsolved forever?

To Lapis, the answer was obvious.

The mysterious bard’s latest song finished, again to the sound of cheers and applause from the villagers he had drawn in to watch him play. Smiling at the sea of onlookers, he waved his hands, and the audience quieted.

“Thank you all! Your attention has been most appreciated this fine evening!” he said, his voice smooth and melodic. “It has been an absolute pleasure performing for you all tonight, Emerald Cove! Unfortunately, the show must end for now—“

A chorus of melancholy cries rang out over the square.

“—But worry not, for we shall be meeting again! Tomorrow, and once more the night after, I’ll be back on this stage—and, with any luck, I shall be gracing your presence again at the year’s end, on the grand stages of Trinity City!”

Lapis wasn’t sure what that meant, but a wave of cheers rose from the crowd, interspersed with cries of “Good luck!” and “You can do it!”

Zephyr held his hand to his chest, bowing for the sea of onlookers. “But with that, my loves, I must depart. Remember the feelings you felt here tonight, hold the memories we made close to your heart, and remember to always be who you need to be! The wayward prince of the wandering breeze bids you… farewell!”

With his final word, shimmering trails of white smoke began to spiral around him, whirling faster and faster until he was barely visible within the cloud. However, despite the swirling fog obscuring his entire body, Lapis could still see his glowing blue outline shining through it. After a few moments, the blue light quickly sank, disappearing under the stage before the cloud erupted into a shower of sparkles, the bard nowhere to be seen. The audience cheered and applauded the grand exit, but as the crowds turned to leave, Lapis's thoughts raced.

There must be a trapdoor on the stage, she thought to herself. Zephyr was probably hiding under the raised stage now, waiting for the audience to disperse. Would he come out and talk to people after the show? Maybe if she stuck around she could ask him some questions.

Dave's small, nasally voice called out from inside Lapis’s bag. "What a show! Do you think Agatha would let us watch the one tomorrow too?"

"Sorry, Dave—Quiet down, okay?" she whispered to her companion. "I'm gonna see if I can talk to him."

“Huh? Oh, okay! Go get 'em!"

With that, Lapis steeled herself and pushed her way into the crowd. She felt ripples of anxiety rush over her as she worked her way against the flow of people, bumping shoulders with some and stumbling as she got knocked aside by others. After a bit of pushing and weaving, she made it to the front of the stage—but as she stepped forward, a hand firmly pressed into her shoulder, stopping her in her tracks.

“Ah-“ Lapis stammered, turning to see a girl she didn’t recognize—young, human, with light brown hair in two braids—shaking her head as she gently pushed Lapis back.

“Hey, you from the village? I’ll go ahead and warn you now—Zephyr doesn’t come out after shows. If you try and wait around for him, you’ll be waiting all night.” The girl smiled sympathetically, and Lapis’s heart sank.

“O-oh?”

“Yeah, me and my friends—“ she gestured to a few other girls standing nearby “—we’ve gone to all the shows he’s done in the area, and he never shows his face unless he’s on stage. We tried waiting around to catch him a couple times and never saw him. He's like a ghost.”

Lapis tilted her head. “Really?"

“Unfortunately,” the girl sighed, shrugging. ”He probably has some way of sneaking back to whichever inn he's staying at without anyone seeing him. Either way, it’s probably not worth waiting around. Just wanted to save you the trouble. Anyway, have a good night!”

With that, the girl left to rejoin her friends, and they made their way out of the square.

Lapis stood silently in front of the stage, looking out over the slowly thinning crowd, unsure of what to do. Apparently Zephyr was so elusive no one ever saw him off-stage, even die-hard fans who waited around after performances. But Lapis had seen his strange glow disappear under the stage, so surely he was still there, wasn't he?

"Lapis?"

She looked toward the curtains attached to the platform. Surely if she just pushed them aside—but no. As much as she wanted answers, the anxiety of going into a backstage area without permission rattled her.

"Hey, Lapis!"

Then again, if he really was so elusive, how would she be able to talk to him about that glow she saw? Did he even know what it was? Was it something he was doing intentionally, or would he have no idea what she was talking about? That gloomy, heavy feeling settled over her again. Would it even be worth trying to go to the other shows he had scheduled? If she was only doomed to disappointment, then—

“Lapis! Lapis!”

Lapis snapped out of her daydream as her shoulder bag began to shake violently. Inside, Dave thrashed around, whining.

“Dave, what?!” Lapis hissed.

“There’s a guy!”

“What?”

“That guy in the coat just came out from under the stage! Maybe he knows that Zephyr person!”

Lapis’s heart jumped, and she whirled around, looking for the man Dave mentioned. The crowd around the stage was still thick, but through the wall of bodies she saw it—

A sapphire blue glow.