'So, tell me. What happened?'
The café the Boss and Cinderella were in was crowded and loud. Not too loud, but just enough that no one could overhear their conversation. Once again, an excellent choice of the Boss. All the events happened last night, and Cinderella hadn't been able to get any sleep. The Boss looked tired as well but was fine. She felt a bit bruised but didn't limp or hurt in any other way.
The Boss started talking. 'Alright. Do you remember I said someone was chasing us?'
Cinderella nodded. She thought it was the prince, but it wasn't him. Cinderella was anxious to know who it was.
'Turns out, I was right. I thought it was someone I knew, and it was.'
'Who was it?' She asked hastily.
'Nathaniel.' Her face turned sour for a second, but it was already gone before Cinderella could even process the feeling it held. 'We used to train together, so it was a surprise when he paid me a visit that night.'
'That night being...?'
'The night in the shed. I guess he saw how I wanted to sell the crown.'
Cinderella felt bad. The way the Boss was speaking: it looked like she was talking about a dear friend. She felt bad for The Boss because she had no idea she used to know someone like that.
'He came that night out of nowhere. You know I'm a light sleeper, but I think they dosed me with something.'
'Why didn't they only take the crown? Why take you as well?'
The Boss started laughing. 'I guess you don't know.' She took the glass right before her. 'When we are sleeping, I always make it disappear.' And with a little wave of her hand, the cup started to fade.
Cinderella couldn't believe her eyes and looked around to see if anyone noticed it. No one looked around, and all continued with what they were doing. Cinderella turned her attention back to the table and wanted to grab the glass. Weirdly enough, she could. When she grabbed the glass, some water spilled over the now invisible edge. Her hand got wet, but the glass was still gone.
'How... How is that possible? Is it really magic?'
The Boss let go of her magic, and the glass reappeared again. Cinderella only could look on in disbelief. The invisible mass she could grab was visible again.
'It's just magic. You've seen me do greater things than a simple disappearance trick. Why do you look so surprised?'
'I don't know. You use your magic differently.' She let go of the glass and wiped her hand dry.
The Boss looked proudly at her. 'That's true. But magic is magic, and it's mine. I can make it do whatever I want.'
Cinderella smiled brightly. 'That's so cool.'
'Shush. You are making me uncomfortable. Why don't I tell you what else happened?'
Cinderella laughed at the Boss' awkwardness. 'Please do.'
'Like I was saying. The crown was invisible so, Nathaniel probably wanted me to tell them what I had done with it. They brought me to that house, and when I woke up, I felt heavy for a while. I think it had to do something with the fact they dosed me. My magic helped a lot by getting rid of it. It was fighting against it. There is this thing it can do: it's called "storaging". I gather all the magic I have and then release it as a bomb.'
Cinderella nodded. She remembered the blast of energy she felt. In a flash, she also remembered someone warm. Someone who protected her in an instinct. 'So that was what happened. I had no idea you could do that.' She quickly answered to cover up her thoughts. The Boss didn't notice anything.
'It's not something I can use every day, since it costs a lot of energy. But when I was younger, I learned it from someone. Anyways, Nathaniel started to talk to me, and honestly: he sounded like a crazy person.'
The Boss looked down at her hands. 'When we trained together in the past, we slowly became friends. But what I saw last night: I didn't know that person.'
'I'm sorry.'
The Boss looked up. 'Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong. If anything, I should be the one who is sorry. I voiced my concerns only once, and that was a big mistake. I should've trusted you more. Besides, Nathaniel should be dealt with effectively. Don't pity me for having a shitty friend like him.'
Cinderella laughed. 'Alright. I'll trust you.'
No matter what happened, it looks like The Boss had it still under control. Although Cinderella was still a bit concerned, she decided to trust the Boss. The same was for her so-called tattoos. Whatever it meant to her or whatever had happened, she would wait for The Boss to be ready to tell her.
'So, what happens now?' She had this question for a while. What was going to happen now? She and the Boss teamed up to get the crown and sell it. With that money, The Boss could pay off her debts, but what happens when that plan no longer exists?
'Well, I think we need to pay Nathaniel a little visit first. He is the one closest to the people I still own money.'
'Although I think it's a stupid plan: how are we going to do it?'
The Boss leaned in and took a sip from her water. 'You are not going to do anything. You will come with me, but you will be out of his sight and will not talk or do anything conspicuous.' The Boss saw Cinderella's face had a look of disgust on it, and quickly interrupted before she could say anything. 'Trust me on this. Don't interfere with the conversation.'
For a moment, Cinderella doubted the Boss. But when she saw the honest face of her, she reminded herself of her non-outspoken vow. She said that she would trust the Boss from now on. Her story or background was a conversation for another day.
'Fine. But I will be around. You won't go alone there.'
The Boss chuckled. 'Of course. I wouldn't have it any other way.'
----
So, how did it all end?
"It didn't end just yet, but we're getting there. First of all, we had to find Nathaniel. Although I thought he was smart, he really wasn't. He was not that hard to find and even less hard to contact him. But it was funny though..."
What was?
"The Boss was nervous."
She was?
"Yep, she for sure was. She rubbed her hands together and couldn't even look me in the eye. I had never seen The Boss like that. When I tried to console her and relax her, she wasn't having it. She was all over the place."
The Boss doesn't strike me as a nervous person.
"Me neither. But, that night was different than other nights."
How so?
"She had to have a difficult talk with someone who used to be her friend."