Before Prism knew it, she found herself back in the Blue Rose Base, as usual she had been there for her lessons. Though it had been a bit of dosy for her. Not only did she have to revisit a few lessons here and there but the new lessons she had were a bit much. The first one, she had to learn that day, wasn't as bad though it was more than she could say for what she and Feodora had to do right now.
"Um Miss Charlotte--" Prism said as she looked to be tied to a chair with a scarf that a member of the Blue Rose--Akiko had finished tying up; she had been seated at a large table with a bowl on top of a plate, and an assortment of forks and knives had been infront of her, "--Maybe I'm new to this whole royal thing, but is it accustomed for guests to be imprisoned when they're trying to eat?"
Charlotte had replied as she had been seated at the end of the table, "Now, now your highness, it's necessary in order for you to show that you're a princess with etiquette and class when attending a public event."
"I didn't realize that even the way you eat had rules." Prism said as she couldn't help but weep, "Being a Royal is super complicated."
"Don't think of it as a method of imprisoning your highness!" Akiko said with a smile, "Think of it as a training tool! Eventually you'll learn to sit without it!"
"It looks more like another method of torture." Feodora said as she had been seated just next to Prism. She had her feet on the table as she had been leaning back, while she had been munching on an apple, "Be careful they don't tickle you to death Pri."
"Do-Don't joke like that Feo!" Prism said, "You know, I'm very weak to tickles!"
Akiko said with a puff of her cheeks. "Seriously, how do you know this brute?"
"Be nice, please!" Prism pleaded, "I know how Feo can be, but she's a really good friend!"
"I still don't see why I have to be here." Feodora said as she had taken a large bite from the apple, "I get Prism because no offense she's got no manners when it comes to this stuff, but not me."
"Like I've been telling you these past weeks it's a necessity." Charlotte replied, "Besides, eventually you will need to learn to respect those that are like you. I understand your parents left that behind in the Diamond Kingdom but it is still your blood."
"In my blood huh…?" Feodora said as she rolled her eyes, "That's a bit corny."
"And speaking of manners, you're not exactly Miss fancy pants yourself." Akiko had pointed out.
"Okay look---" Feodora said before she burped in Akiko's face, making her gag, "--I HAD the royal life, and given my CIRCUMSTANCE I chose to leave that behind. It wasn't really my style anyway, as I keep telling your Captain here."
Akiko had said with a growl, "Oh! You!"
Feodora suddenly let out a shriek as the chair was pulled out from under her before she knew what happened. Dropping the apple she landed on her behind hard causing Prism and Akiko to cringe at this. Turns out it had been none other then Yami himself as he had taken a puff.
"What the hell was that for?!" Feodora exclaimed as she glared, "I gotta use that to sit you know?!"
Yami told her, "You were sitting? It was more like you hanging like a hammock."
Akikio let out a stifle laugh as Feodora gave her a look. "I never thought I'd say this but I'd trade you for the Stuck Up any day of the week!" Feodora said as she stood.
"Well too bad you're stuck with me." Yami told her.
"HEY DON'T TALK BAD ABOUT MY PLUCKY-KINS!" Akiko exclaimed,
"QUIT CALLING HIM A CUTE NICKNAME YOU WEIRDO!" Feodora yelled.
Akiko turned with a smug look as she said "oh you...for someone who says she is fine living a single life, you're worked up over a single name."
"OH ARE YOU ASKING TO DI--OW!" Feodora started to yell before she was smacked on the head by Yami.
"Hey, remember. Manners." Yami told her.
Sol, who had just been nearby, went next to Prism before she whispered, "Why is this man even here again? He's worse than Pluck you know."
"Since I've been staying in the safehouse, Yami, Jack or William have been escorting me to my other lessons." Prism told Sol, "I didn't think Yami would accompany me today though!"
Sol couldn't help but say as she cracked her fists, "Men! Why did it have to be men escorting the princess? Aren't there any other women in that run-down squad?"
Charlotte soon cleared her throat, "Captain Yami, if you don't mind? May we resume the lesson?"
"Yeah sure whatever." Yami said
Charlotte's face turned red before she regained her composure inside she was thinking "OH! WHY DOES HE MAKE ME ACT LIKE THIS?! Out of all the days he had to show up, why did it have to be today?! I would rather be a Barbados boy than him!" She mentally started to take deep breaths, "Calm down Charlotte! Don't let your heart flutter. Can't lose yourself in front of Sol."
CLANG--Went a sound. They each looked over and noticed that Prism had knocked over a jar of salt, as well as some tea that had spilled on her lap and stained her pants.
"So-Sorry." Prism said nervously.
"OH NO!" Akiko exclaimed. "Prism! Are you okay?!"
"Huh?" Prism said confused as Akiko had been freaking out, "I'm fine I accidentally spilled the tea."
"OH NO! YOUR CLOTHES GOT DIRTY! OHH! PLUCKY-KINS IS GONNA BE MAD AT ME!" Akiko exclaimed.
"Akiko, calm down." Charlotte told her, though she didn't seem to be listening.
"I'll be right back!" Akiko shouted as she made a mad dash away before anyone could stop her. "But--" Prism said awkwardly, "--It's just a stain."
"Seriously, I don't even think she's his fiance." Feodora said as she fixed up the chair, "Maybe a lost sibling or something. I'll be outside if you need me--"
Yami told Feodora before he shoved her back in the seat, "Nope. you're staying"
Feodora let out a series of angry grumbles, "I knew I should've said I was sick today."
"Alright now that's settled, shall we continue?" Charlotte said, "Now your highness, as I've told you before when you're served, it's important to use the right utensils for every course of a meal."
"They're even rules about forks and knives?" Prism said shocked.
"Trust me, I asked about that too." Yami said. "Like seriously a special plate for steak?"
Charlotte flinched before she told him, "Yami...not another word."
Yami had said with a shrug, "hey just saying. I get Lizard Girl has to learn this kind of stuff, but it's just a plate of steak. You don't gotta be fancy about that kind of stuff you know."
Charlotte's eyes twitched before he turned to Prism, "Moving on. I want you to choose the correct fork for the salad that's in front of you."
"But how am I supposed to know which one it is?" She asked.
Charlotte replied, "Just choose the one you feel like is the right one."
Prism looked to the dozens of forks to select from as she looked to the bowl of salad. Her hand hovered over the many assortment before she picked up a small fork. "This one!" She said with pride.
"Wrong." Charlotte said
"Huh?" She said, shocked.
"That one, is used for salads, but it's for fruit salads."
"HUH!?" Prism exclaimed, before she sniffled, "Aw man, I thought for sure it was that one."
"Nope." Charlotte told her gently, "Now try again."
Prism soon picked up a larger fork, "This one?"
"Carving." She said
She picked up another fork that had been smaller, "This one?"
"Oyster."
She soon picked up the last fork on the end before showing it to her. "That one would be for desert."
Prism couldn't help but whimper as she slumped in her chair, "This is harder than I thought…."
Yami had said with a sigh, "maybe we should have taken a break today after all the crazy that happened."
Feodora soon sighed before she dragged her hands down her face before she groaned. "I can't take it anymore--" She said to herself before she took the fork from Prism, surprising her.
"Feo?" She said, shocked.
"Okay I'm gonna level with ya here Pri--" Feodora told her after setting the fork back in its place, "--There's actually a real easy trick to remember the kind of forks and knives your supposed to use for every meal.."
Prism had been taken back as she tilted her head, while the spirits around her turned yellow, "There is?"
Feodora soon took from her own set as she held a knife in front of her. "This right here I'm holding--" Feodora said, "--Is a butterknife."
"Okay--" Prism said, still confused, "--What about the butterknife?"
"This is the tool among any meal you're better off remembering." She told her, as the Spirits around her seemed just as intrigued as Prism was. Feodora soon set the knife down before she motioned inward towards the plate, "The rest after that, is simple. You start from the outside and work your way in through each course." She leaned back again, "And don't let anyone describe you as an H.K.L.Q."
"What does that mean?" Prism asked.
Feodora hit the table as it allowed one of the knives to come flying up, before catching it as she soon showed her. "Hold a knife like a quill." Feodora clarified before she showed her the way to hold it, "Let's just say it presented the opposite reaction to the guys who have sticks shoved up their asses."
Despite being tied to the chair, Prism managed to grab a hold of the butter knife, and mimicked what Feodora had shown her; neither of the girls seemed to have realized that Yami and Charlotte had a look of praise on their faces.
"And here's some food for thought--" Feodora said before she pointed to the cups, "--White wine, pudding wine--"
"Pudding wine?" Prism said confused, "That's a thing?"
"Don't eat that till your older--" She said before she continued, "--Water, and juice." She soon shrugged it off, "Or you can use whatever you like, doesn't really matter."
Prism's eyes seemed to have sparkled as even the little spirits looked as interested as she was, "Feo! You're amazing!"
"Eh--" Feodora said with a shrug, "--It's just a trick my mom taught me."
"Heh, taking her here was a good choice." Yami said.
"She seems to be improving on manners." Charlotte added. "Speaking of manners, we're gonna have to teach Barbados a lesson on two..especially how he treats one of his squadmates."
"You already know, Prickly Princess." Yami said as he gave a puff before he said to Feodora, "hey Ice girl, nice job. For someone who doesn't like the royal life you know your stuff."
Feodora seemed to have flinched before she seemed to have regained her usual composure. "Like I said, this whole thing isn't my scene anymore." She told him with a wave of her hand after crossing her arms over her chest, "I'm only telling Pri this because she gets confused easily."
"Sure you are." Yami said as she groaned.
"Look, if you want her to know this stuff, you gotta explain it better." Feodora said, "I'm just saying."
Charlotte sighed before she told her, "I'll be sure to take that into consideration. Though I appreciate you assisting her highness."
Feodora only clicked her tongue as she leaned back, and got an apple with only a thump of her foot on the table, "I only helped her because she's my friend--Nothing more than that."
"Feo--" Prism soon said as she had a smile on her face, "--Thank you, really."
"Think nothing of it." Feodora told her as she had a smirk of her own.
Just as Akiko came back into the room, Feodora let out a shriek as Yami swiped her chair from her again causing to hit the floor hard.
"Still need to work on the chair thing." Yami told her.
Akiko let out a stifled laugh as she said, "Serves you right."
Feodora groaned as she sat herself up and rubbed the back of her head, "At least this isn't as bad as the Stuck Up's Dares from that sleepover."
Akiko stopped laughing as she asked "I'm sorry, the--what?"
"He never told you? Some fiance he turned out to be." She said casually, "Then again it was last minute."
Akiko soon yelled as her face had been red, "A SLEEPOVER?!"
She stopped what she was doing as she soon made her way out of the base and started to run in a certain direction as she shouted, "I'M GONNA KILL HIM!!"
Charlotte only sighed, "... I'm sorry about her."
***
-Later that Evening-
Everyone in the household had been taking it easy as most of them had been doing their own thing with the exception of some of them having their own set of chores being done around the house. Prism had been relaxing in the bath that had been provided upstairs, though she wasn't the only one who had the same idea.
"I never realized learning about courtesy and equity would be this hard!" Prism said as she had been running her hair with shampoo while sitting on a wooden stool; some of the Spirits had been helping her as they had been rubbing some soap on her back and shoulders, "I know it's supposed to be important in all, but they even expect you to eat a certain way too!"
"Sounds like they're trying to put you on a damn leash." Liam said, as he had been in the large bathtub with Jubei and Vandy who were using it more as a swimming pool along with Addeline who sat in it as she had been filled with bliss, "Thank Mana I wasn't there to see it."
"It's better if you didn't." Brenin said as he had been sitting on a stool next to Prism, though a towel had been wrapped around his waist as to cover his lower half; he had shampoo in his hair and had been putting soap on his tail, "Charlotte even taught her how to walk the last time I was there."
"Oh NOW I feel bad for you Shortcake." Liam said scratching his ears, making it twitch before he adjusted the towel that had been around his head and antlers.
"Did they really have to tie you to a chair so they could get you to sit up straight?" Saorise asked as she had been cleaning her horns with a rag as she was in the tub as well.
"Pretty much--" Prism replied, before she turned to a certain someone that had been on her right side, "--Plu-Plu, I don't understand how you managed stuff like this when Uncle Cadfan was showing you."
Pluck had been sitting on a wooden stool as he had a towel wrapped around his waist; though none were surprised as he had a rag wrapped around his eyes. He told her as he turned in the direction of her voice, "Simple really, I learned the basics, made a few mistakes here and there and next thing, I was a natural."
"He is a genius after all." Vandy said.
"Though to be fair you didn't get it as bad as Pluck's got it, Prism!" Jubei said.
"Yeah, I mean he had to walk with several books and a single apple on his head. Even the basics are hard to get." Prism said, "I can't even walk the way Miss Charlotte does--" She soon shrunk a little as a couple of the spirits lost their color, "--Without imagining all those eyes staring at me."
Pluck told her, "all you have to do is not mind that and it should be easy."
"It sounds easy when you say it!" She retorted.
"Try not to think about it too much!" Vandy said, as he had emerged from under the water, "And if you ever do get nervous, just do what I do and think of the crowd as vegetables!"
"Or you could always imagine the men are wearing dresses and the ladies are wearing suits like I do!" Jubei added as she had been playing with a rubber ducky.
She quickly dodged as Pluck had tossed a sponge in her direction as he told her, "that's what YOU would do. We're talking about Prism here!"
"Hey, you just don't appreciate a creative mind when you see one bro!" Jubei said.
Pluck said as he did this time he managed to hit her in the face with a second sponge, "How's that for creative?"
"If you don't like to do this kind of thing, then why don't you just skip out?" Liam asked.
"Usually I would but they were preparing this kind of thing for five centuries--" Prism reasoned, "--And even if I did I'd never hear the end of it from Yami or Jack."
"Still scares me how much Yami reminds me of your dad." Brenin said, "Not just because he has dark magic."
Pluck had said with a shudder, "Don't remind me. I had to live with that for a year, you know?"
"Besides--" Prism soon said with a smile, "--It's not all that bad. I get to learn these things with Feo--" She soon had a thought come over her as some of the water spirits started to form an orb of water above her head while a fire spirit, in the form of a hummingbird had warmed it up a little, "--Though now that I think about she did learn these back when she was in the Diamond Kingdom, so this would be kind of a like a review?"
She soon let out a squeak of surprise when the orb of water collapsed on top of her. Though she was quick to recover as she had gotten the water out of her hair with a towel.
"It's still surprising to say the least." Brenin said after dumping a bucket of water on himself to get the suds out, "I thought she was of royal stature but she doesn't seem like one."
"Asta and Yuno told me she didn't like being a royal." Prism said, as she wrapped the towel around her head, "And Feo once told me being in Hage Village was the wake up call she needed."
"Wait, she actually said that?" Pluck asked.
"Yup--" She replied as she went to join the others in the tub, "--I don't know about you, but Feo seems relieved with what she has. I am happy for her though."
"Happy would be an understatement for her." Jubei said, "Though yeah she does like our way of living."
"I'm surprised. Usually when a royal lives a common life they complain--" Saorise said, "--Alot."
"Like Noelle?" Prism, Brenin, Vandy and Liam said.
"Exactly." She replied.
Pluck added, "Don't remind me of that prissy princess. Everytime she uses that excuse to get out of a chore! Honestly, she'll never know the value of hard work!"
"Plu-Plu, cut her some slack, she's still getting the hang of everything." Prism said before she had a smile, "She'll get around I'm sure!"
"Yeah, plus didn't you complain about the first week we spent at the Black Bulls base?" Vandy asked.
"Only to quickly get used to it after." Pluck added. "She's been complaining non-stop."
"Not that I remember bro!" Jubei said, "You complained for a week, then tried to con your way out of doing chores and some missions." She snickered, "Uncle Yami REALLY let you have that, even worse then Auntie Alma and Big Bro Nolan!"
Pluck simply said, "Get her Addi."
"QUACK!" Addeline shouted as she came out of the water and charged at Jubei. Though Jubei grabbed a bucket and dropped it on top of her, blinding her. "QUACK! QUA-QUACK QUACK!"
Pluck had shouted, "NOT THE BABY!"
Getting rid of the suds, Pluck immediately dived headfirst into the bath splashing Saorise, Liam, Vandy, Jubei and Prism making them let out a surprise screech. He got her out as he sighed, "thank mana.."
"Pluck--" Liam said, "--You got soap in my eyes."
Pluck told him, "Oh, you've dealt with worse."
Liam's eyebrow twitched, "You know what I have the power to do right now?"
The next thing anyone knew, Liam had Pluck under the water as all they could see was splashing as he had been struggling to get free. "LET GO! LET GO!" Pluck gargled.
"No." Liam replied.
"QUACK!" Addeline shouted as she got her stick to whack Liam. Though all it took was one growl for her to freeze before she went back and let out a squeak. "Quack."
"Though--" Prism soon said, "--Lately, Feo looks a bit more troubled."
"Troubled?" Brenin said as he stepped in the tub and sat on the side, "How so?"
"I can't really describe it." She said, "She just seems a bit sad. Maybe it's because her birthday is coming up."
Most had been taken back by this as Pluck emerged from the waters. "Her birthday is coming soon?" Vandy said as his expression brightened, "That's awesome!"
"When? How soon?!" Jubei asked.
"July 7th." Prism replied.
"HER BIRTHDAY IS IN TWO DAYS!?" Jubei and Vandy exclaimed.
"That's way too soon!" Brenin pointed out.
"Did you think about what to get her?!" Saorise asked.
"Well that's the thing--" Prism said as some of the water spirits emerged from the water before they started to swim or float, "--I wanted to throw her a party, not a big party but you know a small one. Like what we used to throw for my dad and Arwen. I talked about it with Asta and Yuno, and they both agreed a surprise party would be good for her."
"Aww that's so sweet!" She said.
"Though you make it sound like it's gonna be a problem." Liam said.
Prism hissed her through her teeth, while some of the spirits turned a yellowish green kind of a color, "It kind of is."
Brenin, Saorise and Liam had sensed it as they each seemed to know why she looked so troubled. "Ah--" Brenin said, "--I see."
"Yup, that makes sense." Liam added.
"Poor girl." Saorise said.
"Hey--Not all of us are Familiars here! We can't read her mind like you guys can." Jubei said, "Tell us what you're thinking!"
"It seems like Feodora doesn't like her own birthday." Brenin said as it had shocked them again. Most of their jaws had dropped as they couldn't believe it.
"But who would hate their own birthday?" Vandy asked, "They're a lot of fun!"
"Not according to Feodora, it seems." Pluck said.
"Well she told me about it once, but she never went into detail." Prism replied, "She said bad things happened with every birthday she's had. I think that's mostly because of her grandfather. Considering she never talks about him."
"And she almost killed Pluck when he talked smack about her parents." Jubei said.
"Don't remind me." Pluck groaned. "It's bad enough she still hates me."
"Which is why we could use this as a chance to let her know we love her, and that we're her family." Prism said, "That and Plu-Plu you can help reconcile with her, and NOT tease her?"
Pluck flinched at this as he said, "E-Easier said than done.."
"I'm serious--" She said, "--You need to take steps into being friends with her. Noelle too!" She soon had the brightest smile on her face, "I know you'll like her after you actually talk to her! I should know--I talked to Nozel and now he's my friend!"
Despite being blinded he suddenly choked on his spit as he nearly fell over into the bath.
"Even though I'm blindfolded I can tell you're doing that smile again." Pluck said. "That usually leads to something, also--YOU DID WHAT?!"
"What?" Prism said, "He's actually a really nice guy when you get to know him. I can see why Aunt Yuki and Uncle Cad like him."
"Prism I woke up a year before you." Pluck said. "That guy is anything but nice!"
"That's because YOU haven't actually talked to him." She said, "And like I said, once you get to know Noelle you'll see you have a lot more in common then you think."
"Who knows maybe you'll like-like her?" Jubei said before Pluck tossed another sponge at her as it hit her; though she only retaliated by throwing a large sponge on his face, nearly knocking his blind fold off.
"GAH!" Pluck exclaimed as he caught it in the nick of time while tying it back. "Jubei!"
"You started it bro!" Jubei said as she splashed him.
"I demand nieces and nephews!" Vandy shouted as he pumped his fist in the air.
"Don't make me drown you two." Pluck told them before he got splashed by the both of them.
"So what did you have in mind exactly?" Brenin asked Prism, "For this little surprise party I mean?"
"Like I said, it's nothing big--" Prism replied, as she allowed a familiar water salamander to crawl up on her shoulders when it swam to her; his head rested on top of her own, "--Though I kind of had an idea on baking a cake for her, with Karasu's help. And I was going to meet Yuno with Asta tomorrow to help pick out a gift. Though we can't let Feo know about it since it's a surprise!"
"Alright, we get it." Liam said, "So basically you want us to help out in putting everything together and distract her?"
Prism nodded, "If it's not too much trouble?"
"It's no trouble at all!" Saorise said, "Since Feodora is a friend of yours then that means she's our friend too!"
"I'll only do it, since it's you shortcake." Liam added.
"It wouldn't hurt to throw a small little party." Brenin said, "And afterall it'll be just us."
"I'll help out too!" Vandy said, "I'm the best at setting up surprise parties!"
"Same here! You can count on us, girl!" Jubei said.
Pluck groaned before he said, "Well I guess I can chip in to help out...the least I can do.."
"Aww, thanks Plu-Plu!" Prism said, "All of you, you guys are the best!"
All of a sudden they were taken back by the sound of a familiar voice, followed by an odd crashing sound. "PLUCK BAXTER BARBADOS!!!"
"Strange...the only person that only uses my full name when mad are Ma, Dad, Uncler Acer, Uncle Nolan and--"
CRASH--Went the door suddenly as it made the group shriek, especially Pluck as they nearly jumped from the waters. They saw it had been Akiko as she had fire in her eyes.
"Akiko?!" Prism said shocked as she had been covering herself out of instinct.
"GOOD MANA!" Pluck shouted. "AKIKO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?! HOW DID YOU FIND THIS PLACE EVEN?!"
Akiko yelled as she stomped over to him, "DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT, PLUCKYKINS! HOW CAN YOU GO TO A SLEEPOVER AND NOT INVITE ME?! YOUR FIANCE?
"Fiance?" Saorise and Liam said before they looked at Brenin.
"Oh yeah--Did I mention Pluck was engaged?" Brenin said nonchalantly as he looked to be hiding in the water as his face had been red.
"Se-Seriously!?" Saorise said as her face turned red as her ears flapped slightly, "Pluck how BUSY have you been!?"
"IT'S NOT WHAT YOUR THINKING, WOMAN!" Pluck exclaimed.
"PLUCK ANSWER ME!" Akiko shouted, "HOW CAN YOU KEEP SOMETHING LIKE THIS FROM ME?!"
"Huh, and here I thought you'd be a bachelor forever." Liam said. "Times changed, it seems."
Pluck shouted, as he peeked his eye out to look at Liam, "Not helping!"
"Wait--" Prism said shocked, "--Have you been trying to find the safehouse the whole time?"
Akiko yelled as she was still filled with rage, "YEAH! AND IT TOOK ME THE WHOLE DAY TO FIND IT!"
Pluck yelled to Akiko as he sank in the water till he was shoulder deep, "AKIKO GET OUT! I'M NAKED HERE!"
"SO?!" Akiko exclaimed. "THAT WON'T STOP ME FROM --"
"Hey lady!" Jubei said, "We're in the middle of a bath in case you couldn't tell!"
"Does anyone know the meaning of privacy at all!?" Vandy yelled.
Akiko looked at all of them, noticing that Prism had been in the bath along with the Familiars. Her face turned red as she had a nose bleed, though her glare had intensified on Pluck. "PLUCKYKINS! IS THIS WHAT YOU WERE PLANNING TO DO?! I THOUGHT YOU DON'T LIKE PRISM IN THAT WAY?! AND ARE YOU SEEING OTHER PEOPLE BESIDE ME!?"
"HUH!?" Pluck, Prism, Brenin, Saorise and Liam exclaimed as this time their own cheeks turned red. The spirits around Prism turned pink as they possessed the same look she did.
"ARE YOU INSANE! DATING PRISM IS LIKE DATING MY LIL SISTER! IT'S WEIRD!" Pluck exclaimed. "NOT TO MENTION EVEN THOUGH I DON'T MIND IT, I DON'T LIKE LIAM AND ESPECIALLY BRENIN IN THAT WAY! I WOULDN'T EVEN DATE SAORISE! PLUS THOSE TWO ARE MY LIL SIBLINGS!"
"Well you don't have to be rude!" Saorise said with a puff of her cheeks.
"WOMAN, I DON'T LIKE THIS GUY IN THAT WAY!" Liam yelled as he pointed to Pluck.
Brenin added, despite him blushing "Even though I don't mind it either, I wouldn't date Pluck even if he was the last person on this earth."
"WHO DO YA TAKE US FOR!?" Jubei exclaimed.
"WE'RE NOT SAVAGES LADY!" Vandy yelled.
"DON'T YOU DARE LIE TO ME PLUCKYIKINS!" Akiko yelled, "WE'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO TELL EACH OTHER LIES!"
"IT'S TRUE!" Pluck exclaimed. "ASK MA AND PA!"
"What is going on?!"
The group turned to Noelle who came in and saw what was happening much to her dismay; she began to turn red, especially towards Pluck before she covered her face and screeched before she turned away as she quickly ran out.
"HEY! STUPID SLIVA YOU BETTER NOT TELL YAMI!" Pluck exclaimed as he got out and began to chase but suddenly slipped, taking Akiko with him as the two fell in the water; the water ended up splashing on everyone else as it made them shriek.
"Again?!" Liam exclaimed
"COME ON!" Jubei shouted.
"We should..." Saorise said as she was still red. "Leave them be...Right?"
"Seems like they need some time together" Brenin added embarrassingly, "Given that they're engaged.."
Liam only scoffed as he said "What's next? Another walking bookworm like him?"
All of a sudden they heard a familiar set of stomps before the wall seemed to have blasted open making them shriek again, and Pluck and Akiko emerged from the waters from the sounds.
"WHATEVER HAPPENED TO PRIVACY!?" Prism exclaimed as she covered herself again.
"HEY SHIELD GIRL!"
The group flinched at a familiar voice as the smoke cleared revealing it to be Yami himself as he didn't look happy.
"I don't care if you're having a talk with the sword boy here! It gives you no right to trespass!" Yami said.
"Huh?" Akiko sasked before she found her head grabbed by Yami as he clenched it as he lifted her out of the water with ease, "OWOWOWOWOWOWOW!"
"You realize why they call this a SAFE HOUSE right?!" He said with a glare, "You trying to compromise the Lizard Girl's location?"
"I'm sorry..." Akiko cried.
"KEKE--Sorry's not gonna cut it!"
They turned to see Jack behind him as he got his blades; Prism and Saorise shrieked as out of instinct they hid behind Liam and Brenin.
"You're lucky you're not in my squad or else you would have been sliced to pieces right now!" He told her.
Akiko said with a shiver, "w-what's gonna happen to me?"
"What else? We're taking you to the Prickly Princess so she can deal with you." Yami said
Akiko flinched before she turned to Prism, "Sorry Prism...I didn't mean to compromise your location.." she turned to Pluck as she added "sorry for yelling at you Pluckykins... I didn't know."
"Just for invasion of privacy, no outings with you for a week when this is over." Pluck said, making her flinch.
"P-Pluckykins!" Akiko cried.
Yami soon grabbed Pluck's head before lifting him out of the water, shocking him. Yami had told him "hey, that's no way to talk to your fiance."
"WAIT WHY AM I BEING PUNISHED?!" Pluck exclaimed. "She broke in!"
Just then they heard the sound of a plop hit the floor before Akiko had been steaming with red. "Plu-Plu?" Prism said as she had her own eyes covered.
"Yeah?" Pluck said not even bothering to remove his blindfold.
"Your towel fell off." She said.
Pluck soon turned red as a tomato before screeching "OH NO! NOT AGAIN!"
Yami's eye twitched before he said, "you know what, stay in there." he dropped Pluck in the water as he turned with Akiko steaming up as she began to babble things that were incoherent.
Jack had said as he shook his own head, "KEKE--kids these days."
"Good, you're done. If you all don't mind--" Liam said, before he yelled as he started to emit his blue flames as it made most of them jump, "--GET THE (Spam) OUT!"
"LIAM!" Saorise exclaimed as she gave a light slap on the back of his head. "There are kids here!"
"What? It's not like they'll learn to later." He told her
"He's not wrong." Jubei said. "Pluck has said worse words, especially to Noelle."
Yami soon yelled to Liam as he didn't seem phased by his glare, "HEY WOLF! WATCH YOUR MOUTH!"
"I WILL TILL AFTER YOU TWO GET OUT OF HERE!" He yelled.
Pluck added, removing his blindfold slightly, "Please... We're begging you."
Yami retorted, "why?"
"DO YOU NOT REALIZE THEY'RE WOMEN HERE?!" Pluck shouted, "IT'S ALL ABOUT THE PRINCIPAL AND PRIVACY!"
"KEKE--You say that and you're in there!" Jack said.
"THAT'S BECAUSE I'M BLINDFOLDED!" Pluck exclaimed, "I CAN BATHE MYSELF WITHOUT LOOKING AT THEM!"
"What about those two?" Yami said, pointing to Brenin and Liam.
"WE'RE EXCEPTIONS!!" Liam yelled.
Brenin added as he had been stuttering a little, "A-And we have towels."
Pluck yelled at the Captains, "SERIOUSLY PLEASE LEAVE! WE JUST WANT TO HAVE A NICE EVENING!"
"Only after you get out of there you pervert." Yami said.
Pluck's jaw dropped before he yelled, "I AM NOT FINRAL!!"
Prism only laughed sheepishly as she sunk in shoulders deep; some of the spirits gathered around her. "So much for a relaxing bath."
***
It had taken two days as planned to set everything up without Feodora's knowledge. Finding a gift had proved to be a challenge though after all. As for hiding it, they had to admit it was a challenge. Feodora had proved to be more perspective then they had realized and despite them telling a lie they felt like she knew something had been up. Prism figured it had been one of two things.
Either it had been paranoia, or from her training as an assassin.
Though sure enough the day had come for when Feodora officially turned sixteen, and they had to set everything in motion.
Feodora had awoken from the bed as she had been feeling a bit groggy like usual and really, really, REALLY didn't want to get up from the bed. Especially when she had realized what day it had been.
"Oh great…" She said in annoyance as she found herself staring up at the ceiling, "... This day is back. And I'm sixteen. Big deal." She looked out the window and noticed the sun had still been rising.
"I guess five more minutes of sleep wouldn't hurt." She said as she turned on her side before she went back to sleep, "Don't got anything to do in the morning anway…"
BAM--Went the door causing her to fall out of bed with a shriek. Of course Yami had been the one to kick down the door as he looked to be more wide awake than usual.
"RISE AND SHINE, ICE GIRL!"
Feodora groaned before she said "Ten more minutes! Can't I get ten more minutes?!"
"Hell no." Yami said as he suddenly grabbed her head, "You're not staying in bed all day, you lazy bum. You got stuff to do."
She only groaned as she rubbed her face, "Okay, I'll bite, what do you have this time?"
***
-One Dress Up Later-
"YOU WANT ME TO DO WHAT?!"
Feodora, now fully dressed, couldn't believe what she had been asked for by Yami. She thought she needed to clean out her ears after what she had just heard from him.
"Did I stutter?" Yami asked, "I need you to go find me some Sake, the best kind of Sake from Pluck's Aunt down in Kikka. Just meet up with the Beanpole at the entrance."
"DO YOU REALIZE HOW MUCH TIME THAT'S GONNA TAKE ME?!" She yelled, "FOR THAT MATTER, WHY ARE YOU ASKING ME TO DO IT!? ASK THE STUCK-UP! IT'S HIS AUNT!"
"No one else is available right now, they have their own chores and errands to do." Yami said. "You're the only one that's available this morning."
"That's a load of BS your pulling out of your ass right now." Feodora said as her eyebrow twitched.
Yami had a glare as he asked. "I'm sorry, you asking to die?"
Feodora only growled before her look changed, "Whatever, as long as this day gets done and over with then consider me happy."
She only grunted as she felt Yami give her a hard pat on the back. He told her with a smirk, "well the day's still young. Get to it!"
"Back--Though faint, still hurts." She groaned softly, remembering the set of wounds she had.
"Get going!" He told her as he kicked her out the door.
She ended up landing face first, though had been quick to recover as she groaned. "Happy place--" She said to herself as she went out of the yard, "--Find your happy place."
With that said, she went out of the yard and ventured to the city; though little did she know Prism, Asta with Nero sitting on his head, the Triple A's, Sachiko, Vandy and Jubei had been hiding in the corner of the house as they saw her leave.
"Alright--She's gone." Yami said, turning to them.
"Yes!" They cheered before they high-fived each other.
"I can't believe that worked!" Prism said.
"Me neither!" Asta said, "But we're in the clear!"
"Are you sure she'll be able to distract her?" Sachiko asked.
"Of course! Thanks to Auntie Go, she's gonna make sure she's gone for just enough time to set everything up!" Vandy said.
"So what are we waiting for--" Jubei said before she took out a life sized makeshift cannon making them jump, even Yami, "--LET'S GET TO DECORATING!!"
"JUBEI!" The Triple A's shouted as they pulled her away before Aisling kicked away the cannon.
"What did we say?!" Aidan said, "No cannons!"
"But it's not a knife this time!" Jubei argued.
"Are you trying to bring the house down?!" Aine said.
"Where did she even get that!?" Asta exclaimed.
"I--I think she made that herself." Prism said awkwardly.
"Jubei---That is wrong on so many levels." Sachiko said.
Yami had told her, "We really need to have a talk about this when we get the chance."
"I don't have a problem!" She said, "You do!"
Yami only gave her a light smack on the head before telling her, "says the one who made a cannon."
"Anyway aside from that--" Prism said, "--Let's get to decorating guys!" She soon turned to the staircase, "Brenin! Saorise! Adrien! Bring em down!"
"Coming dow--TRUFFLES!!"
Asta, Prism, Vandy, Jubei and the Triple A's found themselves knocked over by a set of boxes, and Yami had found himself nearly decorated in streamers since the box had exploded. By the time they recovered their line of vision, they saw Saorise had been on the floor, groaning in pain while Nero had been hovering over them.
"I---Think I cracked my horn--" Saorise groaned, "--Also I cracked most of my ribs."
"....I already have regrets.." Yami said.
"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" Brenin said as he stepped down the stairs before helping Saorise up, "We'll be more careful!"
Adrien lifted the boxes off of Prism, Asta, and the Triple A's while Jubei and Vandy managed to get themselves out. "Okay, take 2--" Asta said before he quickly gathered all the materials off of the floor even after Nero landed back on his head, "--LET'S DO THIS FOR FEO!"
"YAY!" The Triple A's, Vandy and Jubei cheered.
Prism soon got the streamers off of Yami with some of the spirits help, "I'm gonna go bake that cake! Would you mind helping me, since Karasu on lookout duty with the others?"
"Yeah sure." Yami said as he took a puff, "How good are you with baking anyway?"
"Well last time I baked--" She soon said as she thought, "--I only set fire to one part of the kitchen, and nearly burned two of my fingers."
Yami only had an awkward look as he took a moment to process. He soon said to her, "How about--You leave the cooking part to me? You can be my assistant, and get and mix the ingredients."
"Wait but I thought I was gonna--" She started to say before she had been cut off by Yami when he took hold of her head, as she felt a death threatening aura come over him.
He told her, "I said-LEAVE THE COOKING TO ME UNLESS YOU WANNA DIE?"
"O-Okay!" Prism said fearfully as even some of the spirits looked terrified, "Please don't kill me!"
Yami said, satisfied as he dropped her, "good."
Asta had sighed as he had gotten the decorations up with the siblings' help, "I just hope Pluck doesn't try to kill Noelle again."
"Or worse--" Aisling said, "--He gives away the surprise before we're even ready."
Pluck, Karasu, and Noelled emerged from the bushes as they had on their usual outfits, except they had been wearing hats and mustaches. Liam hadn't been in the bushes, instead he had been in his beast form as he had been getting some looks from some people that passed him by; with only one look and a growl they seemed to have picked up the pace.
"Get in here!" Pluck whispered as he grabbed him by the neck causing him to let out a yipe before he dragged him into the bushes.
The moment Pluck let go, Liam went to nip at his arm; though luckily he had been quick to pull back.
Pluck told him, "Look, you're not supposed to attack people while in that form! Are you trying to get us in trouble?"
Liam let out a growl before Pluck said "Don't give that tone with me!"
"Quack, quack!" Addeline chimed.
"I know, it's so rude!" Pluck said.
"It's still scary, even after you change back you can still understand what she's saying." Karasu said.
"I know right?" Pluck said, "It's freaky."
"I guess it was one of the side effects from that cursed item." Noelle said, "Hopefully it's not permanent."
Addeline soon smacked Noelle's hand with her stick causing her to yelp as Addeline shouted "QUACK! QUACK QUACK!"
"Whoa Addi!" Pluck told her, "I know she can't understand that, but you can't just say that word in general!!"
"What did she call her?" Karasu asked.
"You don't want to know." Pluck reassured him.
Noelle sighed as she peeked from the bush, seeing that Feodora and Jack seemed to have gotten into an argument of sorts. "I still don't see why we have to keep an eye on her. Captain Jack is perfectly capable of keeping her busy it seems like."
"Why else? the last thing we want for her is to find us out." Pluck told her. "Plus we don't want them killing each other."
"Like you two normally do?" Karasu asked.
"That's because She's a stupid Silva. This is different." Pluck told him to earn another growl from Liam. Pluck told him, "Hey, why are you growling at me?! You know how she acts."
Liam went to snap at him which Pluck was quick to jump back at as he shrieked. "You weren't kidding when you said he's a bit more aggressive in beast form." Noelle said.
"You think that was a joke?" Pluck asked.
"QUACK!" Addeline shouted as she whacked Liam's nose causing him to whimper. Though he had been quick to recover as he grabbed her stick, before he snapped it in half with ease shocking her.
"QUACK!" Addeline cried.
Pluck simply said as he took another from his pouch. "Relax, I got a spare." Addeline looked as she quickly hugged it "Quack!"
"And you're sure it's better for him to be like this, rather than the other form?" Karasu said.
"Well he didn't want to wear his cloaking items." Pluck told him, "So he went with this."
"They're coming this way!" Noelle said.
Immediately they hid themselves as they could hear their voices clearer now. "--And we settled that argument!" Feodora said, "You can't gamble a man while playing the knife game! How is this relevant to finding sake?!"
"KEKE--Survival to get the goods cat girl!" Jack said
"Not with the way you're looking at it, you damn Beanstalk!" She said as they could see she stopped right in front of the bush, "Where did you learn that!? How to Survive for Dummies?!"
They heard Jack telling her "KEKE--Wait till you get older then you'll understand!"
"You mean growing up to be like you?" She said, "If I did that, I'd slit my own throat."
"KEKE--Try it!" He told her.
"Well they get along like two peas in a pod." Karasu whispered jokingly.
Pluck, Noelle and even Addeline and Liam all just gave a look. "What, you were thinking about it." He told them with a shrug.
They could hear Feodora grunt, "Let's just get this over with and find this Gooden Prism tells me about!"
Jack told her, "KEKE--couldn't have said it better than myself!"
They went down the road in a certain direction; at least that's what they thought until Feodora stopped in her tracks again which made them flinch. "Oh crap!" Karasu whispered.
"Did she spot us?!" Noelle whispered.
Pluck had told them, "no no, she couldn't have."
They froze up as Feodora had been practically hovering over them. She reached towards where Pluck had been as he couldn't help but sweat. Addeline seemed to have gotten her stick ready before--
"Whoa!" Feodora exclaimed as she jumped back when they noticed something move. They managed to get a peek as they saw it had been a black cat. It meowed towards her as it had sat in front of her. She seemed to have sighed with relief.
"You scared me little guy." Feodora said as she kneeled down and scratched his head, "I thought you were someone else."
They gave a sigh of relief after Feodora had scratched the little cat's head.
"Close call." Pluck whispered.
"Thank God." Karasu said with a sigh of relief.
Soon enough they were taken back to the sound of a familiar voice, followed by the sound of stomping. Karasu seemed to know as he felt his body shudder, "Oh you gotta be kidding me!"
"What's wro--" Pluck started to say before he was cut off.
"PLUCKYKINS!"
Pluck flinched before he said "oh damn it, not again."
The moment Feodora had her back turned, Pluck was suddenly tackled out of the bushes as it had been done by Akiko. His disguise had been nearly knocked off as he had been quick to recover. "What are you doing?" Pluck whispered.
Akiko had said with rage in her eyes, "Oh no! I should be asking you that! How can you keep the fact you're throwing a surprise party for F--"
Pluck immediately covered her mouth as he shushed her; he could see Feodora had turned the corner with Jack as he looked to be practically dragging her. "Shh! Not so loud!"
Akiko managed to get his hand away from her mouth before shouting with her grimoire glowing as she manifested a shield, "OH I'LL GIVE YOU LOUD! GIVE ME ONE GOOD REASON WHY I SHOULD SHIELD BASH YOU RIGHT NOW!"
"HEY! HEY! WHOA!" Karasu shouted as he emerged from the bushes, "AKIKO WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
"Stay out of this!" Akiko said. "This is a couple's meeting!"
"Your the one that decided to tackle him out of nowhere!" Noelle said.
"She's not wrong!" Pluck said, "You tackled me!"
Akiko yelled as she readied to charge him again, "WELL ONLY BECAUSE YOU KEEP THAT SECRET FROM ME! I ALREADY MISSED OUT ON YOUR SLEEPOVER!"
Pluck told her as he bonked her on the head, "AGAIN--we were in a safehouse. Protecting my best friend."
"EVEN SO, YOU COULD'VE TOLD ME!!" Akiko shouted
Liam went to nip at Akiko as she jumped back with a shriek. He growled at her as he glared at her. "WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA?!" Akiko yelled as she glared at the wolf.
"Oh for God's sake--Calm down your fiance would ya?" Karasu said, "We're incognito here!"
"Wait..." Noelle said "THAT'S YOUR FIANCE?!"
"Huh?" Akiko asked before she noticed Noelle. Immediately she let out a shriek as it made them jump by the sheer sound of her voice.
"HUH?! PLUCKYKINS! WHO IS THIS SHREW?!" Akiko exclaimed.
"That...sadly is my teammate...Noelle Silva.." Pluck said with disdain
"Sadly he says." Karasu thought.
"WHAT!?" Akiko shouted as she looked Noelle over. She soon had a glare, "HOW DARE YOU HAVE A BEAUTIFUL APPEARANCE TO WOO MY FIANCE!!"
"THAT'S YOUR MAIN CONCERN!?" Pluck, Karasu and even Noelle exclaimed.
Akiko yelled as she shook Noelle, "LISTEN YOU! YOU STAY AWAY FROM MY FIANCE! I SAW HIM FIRST! COMPARED TO YOU I'M MORE ATTRACTIVE! TELL ME! DO YOU DO THIS WITH ALL MEN?! KEEP AWAY! THI ONE'S OFF THE MARKET!"
"STOP SHAKING ME!" Noelle shouted as she had been getting dizzy, "MY HEAD IS GONNA FALL OFF!"
"Seriously do something about this." Karasu told Pluck, who had just been stunned by what was happening, "We have more important things to worry about."
Pluck sighed before he rolled up his sleeves and had gotten out his grimoire. He said in a monotone voice "Sword Creation Magic--Gum-Gum Stickler."
Akiko found herself being pulled off by Pluck's sword while Noelle was finally able to breathe; Karasu was quick to catch her before she fell to the floor.
"Akiko--" Karasu said, "--We literally don't have time for this."
Pluck told her, "We have more important things to take care of."
"MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOUR FIANCE?!" Akiko shouted as they could see tears forming in her eyes.
"Okay this is a YOU matter." Karasu told Pluck, "I'm gonna go with Noelle to make sure Feo is distracted."
Pluck groaned as he said "you go do that, i'll catch her up to speed."
"Yeah no proo--" Karasu said before his sentence began to trail off when he looked in a certain direction.
Among the crowd of people he noticed a familiar platinum blonde hair girl wearing a familiar red bandana around her head. She had flashed him a taunting smile before going in the crowd again; Strangely enough she had been heading in Feodora's direction. "Uh---" He said as he cleared his throat. Much to Pluck's shock he handed Noelle over to him.
"On second thought--I'm gonna go on ahead--You got babysitting duty with Liam and Noelle." He told Pluck, "Me-Meet you back at the house."
"Huh?" Pluck asked "but wha-" before he could ask, he could see something was off, he gave a nod as he replied "okay, got it."
"EHH?!" Akiko exclaimed before turning to Noelle, "ARE YOU LEAVING ME FOR HER?!"
Pluck yelled, "WOMAN! GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF THR GUTTER!"
".... Why are there two of everything?" Noelle said in a daze.
Before Pluck could even notice, Liam had left his side as he had gone in the direction Karasu had gone as he didn't mind the looks he had been getting from people. "HEY! LIAM!" Pluck yelled, "BAD WOLF, GET BACK HERE! DON'T LEAVE ME HERE!!"
He soon felt Akiko grab a hold of the neck of his shirt. She told him with a glare, "hey! Don't you leave me again! We're not finished talking!"
Pluck let out a groan as he dragged his hand down his face, "Okay---I guess we're doing this now." He soon took hold of Akiko by the neck of his shirt, before he dragged her off, "Let me tell you about it on the way."
***
-One Explanation Later-
Before Pluck, Akiko and Noelle knew it, they had found themselves hiding behind a set of crates as Jack and Feodora looked to be talking to a young African woman who looked like she was in early 30s with glasses. She donned a light green blouse with a pink long dress. She looked to have a set of strange little items on the stand as they looked a bit pricey.
"So, let me get this straight--" Akiko said, as she had been seen in a fedora and a mustache, "--The Princess is throwing a surprise party for her? And you're okay with that?!"
Pluck told her, "well yeah."
"But..This is Feodora we're talking about here!" Akiko whispered.
"I know she can be....well her." Pluck said, "But Prism worked really hard on planning all of this."
"And so did Dorksta, don't forget." Noelle said.
"Yeah, him too--" He said, "--And...me too. Point is This is important, Feodora's been through alot believe it or not, and they thought it would be a good idea to surprise her with a party."
Akiko had sighed before she said, "Seriously for a brute like her? I mean I get you took it too far but is it really necessary?"
Pluck let out a sigh, "I know I said way too much, and the thing is I really do want her to see I'm not all that bad. Despite my honest personality. I'm a good person " He soon said with a cringe look on his face, "And I may have judged her because of her family name."
"Like you do with mine?" Noelle asked with a raised eyebrow before Pluck shut her mouth with her Gum-Gum Stickler causing her to scream as she tried to remove the gum
Akiko told him, "Are you sure? Because she's a brute you know."
He soon replied, "That maybe, but Prism never mistakes good people. The way I see it--Asta and that cool guy Yuno could see that too. And yeah, they're right. She could've left Luck in the Dungeon to fight that guy from the Diamond Kingdom, but she ended up nearly dying telling us that he was in trouble. And those guys did end up saving Prism from when she was trapped in the tree." Pluck had let out a solemn sigh when he had a thought, "And I can't exactly blame her for being the way she is. I don't really get it, but she really hates certain members of her family. So much in fact she never really talks about them."
The look on Akiko's face changed at this. As Pluck went on, "maybe...somehow i can relate with her...because i hate royals too...I mean you heard me talk about how cruel they are to the common folk...i thought Feodora under all of that was like the same people i hated...but turns out… I had her wrong from the start. When she's around common folks she's just--Well normal. No offense, but from what I heard from Asta she actually hated that life despite her being one of them."
"Pluck.." Akiko said.
"I really want to make a fresh start with her and maybe--" He soon had a cringe look on his face again, "--Not be TOO honest!"
Noelle removed the gum from her face as she gave a gasp. "You? Not being too honest? That sounds impossible."
Akiko turned to Noelle with a leer, "Hey! If anyone can do it, it's my Pluckykins!"
Noelle sighed as her own look softened, "I hope so… Because if I know one thing she doesn't need… It's to be teased."
Pluck could only sigh as he said, "I hope this works." He soon had a smile, "Then again, I've never doubted Prism before and that Asta guy--They seem to know what they're doing!"
"That's the spirit. Pluckykins!" Akiko said with a smile, before she realized something, "Oh wait a minute--Did you guys think of a gift to get for her?"
At that point Noelle and Pluck's faces paled as they each couldn't help but look nervous. "Crap." Was the only thing they could say.
***
-Later that Evening-
The sun began to set over the horizon as it seemed as though Feodora had finally been done with the task Yami had given. Though she thought she was only bringing home only one jug--Instead she had found she was carrying five, while Jack carried an additional three.
"Why the hell did we get so many beanstalk?" She said, "No one needs this much alcohol!"
"KEKE--don't ask the questions." Jack told her, "And don't even think about dropping any of them!"
Feodora could only groan at this as she rolled her eyes. "At least I didn't have to deal with today--" She said to herself, "--Despite how painful it got." She soon couldn't help but have a thought, "If he's this bad with me, then I pray for his own squad members. Not to mention how the short stack deals with him when he's showing her how to use her scythe." She sighed, "Still don't believe that he sometimes tells her things. It's really hard to read the guy."
Feodora looked at Jack before she groaned in annoyance, "There has to be some trick Pri uses to actually talk to a guy like him."
They had soon gotten to the house as Feodora had merely kicked down the door as she had a monotone expression on her face.
"This is the last time I will do anything for Yami." She mumbled to herself, "Really want to sle--" It was then she noticed something in the house. Everything had been pitch black. "What the hell? What happened to the lights?" She turned to Jack, "Why is everything dark in here?"
"KEKE--No clue!"
Feodora groaned before she called out, "hey Dum-Dum? Shortstack!? You guys aren't trying to prank me like you did back in Hage right?"
The suddenly lit up startling her before--
"SURPRISE!!"
BOOM!
Feodora nearly let out a scream as she was startled by a blast; She calmed down a little seeing that it had been a group of familiar faces, though Jubei looked to be on a--
"IS THAT A GODDAMN CANNON!?" Feodora exclaimed out of confusion.
"I told you not to fire that!" Aine said.
Pluck turned to his little sister as he motioned her to give the cannon back.
"Oh come on!" Jubei exclaimed. "She liked the Cannon! It's not like I added cannonballs!"
"Today, Jubei." Pluck said.
Jubei gave a pout as she hopped off the cannon before she pushed it towards Pluck.
"Plus the knives, we need it for cake." Pluck added.
"I don't have any." Jubei said.
Addeline searched her pockets as she told Pluck "Quack!"
"Huh, so she's clean." Pluck said.
"What the hell is all of--" Feodora started to say before she soon noticed the banner and balloons. The banner had red in bright colors reading, "Happy Birthday Feodora!" It had flowers painted at the end as well as a couple of cats.
"What is this?" She asked.
"It's a party Feo!" Asta said with a smile.
"We made this all for you!" Prism added as she had her own smile.
Feodora looked behind them noticing the buffet of food and the strong aroma; she even noticed the two layer cake that had green and yellow frosting. "For me?" She said shocked
"Of course!" Pluck added
"I-I helped out too." Noelle added as Feodora noticed bandages on her fingers, "After I got back to the house."
"And the cake?" Feodora said.
"Yami and I made the cake!" Prism said before she gave a nervous laugh, "I uh--Might've accidentally burnt a part of it in the oven."
Yami gave Prism a light smack on the head as he said, "yeah, even after i told you to set the temperature at the specific one."
"So-Sorry." She said.
Feodora stepped over to the table as her gaze had softened a little as she noticed the cake had been decorated with roses; Particularly it had been one that had been all too familiar to her.
"A blue rose…" She said, "... You even got a blue rose."
"Do you like it?" Aisling asked, before she said lowly, "Please say yes because this took up most of our day!"
Pluck proceeded to pinch her ear as he scolded, "Don't pressure her."
Feodora only gave a sigh, "... I… Don't understand…"
Asta and Prism both exchanged in a nod before they both stepped forward, noticing that Feodora looked to be holding back tears. "Asta… Was this your idea?" She asked.
"Actually… He, Yuno and I thought about it since before we came to the capital." Prism said.
"Look Feo--" Asta said, "--I know you don't like celebrating your birthday a lot because of your grandfather, but you can't just not celebrate it. I mean everyone only turns sixteen once you know!"
Feodora only looked to the group as she had only been processing all of this. She soon felt Prism's hand on her shoulder as some of the spirits looked to be changing into a color of yellow mixed with purple. "It's not really much and I heard how fancy a sweet sixteen can be from dad but you wouldn't like a big party anyway." She soon gave Feodora a hug as she looked as though she had been ready to burst, "Just know we put our effort into making this for you."
Asta soon joined in on the hug as it nearly made Feodora stumble, "Even though we don't say it out loud, we all love you. Nothing in this world is going to change that."
Feodora looked at them before tears ran down her eyes as she said "You dorks." She soon returned the hug in full which had Asta and Prism turning to the group. "So you got everyone in on this?" She asked after she wiped her tears away.
"Pretty much." Asta said.
"Even Plu-Plu helped out." Prism said.
"W-well, it was nothing." Pluck said, "I was cutting up the meat for cooking after all."
Feodora noticed that he also got a bandage on his hand, "I can see that."
"So--" Aine said, "--Do you like it?"
"Like it?" Feodora said as she looked around again; her expression soon brightened as she still had tears, "I love it."
"EHH?!" Everyone excluding Yami, Jack, Prism and Asta had exclaimed.
"She loves it?!" Pluck asked.
"Wow." Aine said. "Just...wow..."
"She's smiling.." Noelle added
Yami said with a satisfied smile, "and that's how you got a birthday party done right."
"That does explain why you got me to get Sake." Feodora said, "By the way--I'm gonna get back at you for sticking me with the beanstalk."
"In your dreams." Yami replied with a puff. "Try it when you're strong enough to beat me."
Feodora only let out a soft chuckle before she noticed they had been one person short. "Where's that Captain William?"
"Oh--He'll be back after an errand." Saorise said, with a smile of her own, "But in the meantime--" She soon busted out a fork and a knife, "LET'S FEAST!"
"WOMAN PUT THOSE DOWN, YOU'LL POKE SOMEONE'S EYE OUT!" Liam exclaimed.
Pluck added as he swiped them from her hands, "Seriously! You're worse than Jubei!"
"Yeah!" Jubei said "i'll have to take that knife for safe keep--"
"Yeah not gonna happen." Aisling said as she dragged her away
"DON'T TAKE THIS FROM ME, WOMAN! I DID THE WORK!" Jubei exclaimed.
"Not all of it--" Vandy said before he hopped to the table, "--NOW LET US FEAST LIKE KINGS AND QUEENS!!"
"VANDANME!" Pluck exclaimed as he ran after him, "It's bad I had to deal with Jubei, not you too!"
As everyone chuckled, the party began; they all sat at the table as they had helped themselves to whatever they wanted. The night had been lively than most as they happily enjoyed themselves to their own hearts content. Everyone had their own plates of food as they had been practically scarfing it all down.
"WOW! Pluck-sensei! This steak is amazing!" Sachiko said, "Did you season this with oregano?"
Pluck replied sheepishly, "That plus spices.."
"You made a couple of calculations to get this medium rare bro--" Aisling said, "--And you even measured the salts."
"I've never seen anyone do that when cooking," Noelle said.
"You could say Pluck makes the perfect husband~" Jubei said.
"JUBEI!" Pluck and Noelle yelled as they both turned red.
"What? You guys were thinking about it!" Jubei argued, "Look at you, you have red on your faces!"
Pluck stammered before he slapped his face. "Now, now, this is Feodora's birthday. We're celebrating her!"
"No, no, continue this--" Feodora said with a giggle, "--I get dinner and a show here."
"EHHH?!" Pluck and Noelle screeched.
"You should have seen Noelle, She was so accidental in the kitchen!" Aine said.
"But that's okay, Pluck-Sensei got her bandages and taught her a few things!" Sachiko added.
"Wait, you actually taught her."
"Uhhhh" Pluck said before he almost gagged before he corrected "yes."
"See? Perfect Husband." Jubei said.
"But wait, doesn't he already have a fiance?" Aishling asked.
"EVEN BETTER!" Jubei said.
"He can be one of those guys that has two lovers!" Vandy said.
Karasu nearly choked on his drink while Pluck could only shriek at this. "VANDY!"
Feodora let out a laugh as she said "Best Birthday ever! I totally deserved this after the crap I had to go through today!"
"DON'T LAUGH!" Pluck said as he was red with embarrassment, "AND VANDY, NOT THAT I HAVE A PROBLEM BUT HAVING TWO RELATIONSHIPS AT THE SAME TIME JUST DOESN'T HAPPEN YOU KNOW!"
Vandy had argued, "Hey! You never know until it happens! Right Sachiko?!"
"I mean I guess." Sachiko said with a shrug as she looked a bit off.
"Vandy, I know people are into things like that, but it's something that rarely happens!" Pluck said, "Right Karasu?!"
"Ye-Yeah, right." Karasu said, sounding oddly nervous as he took a sip from his drink.
"This is so great!" Feodora said, before she looked at Asta and Prism, "You guys really know how to throw a party."
"Hey, you're welcome Feo!" Asta said with a smile, "I know you'd do the same if it was me or the other kids in Hage."
"I'm just glad you like it so much." Prism said, "I was honestly nervous since you said you didn't like your own birthday."
"Well--" Feodora said, giving her a pat on the head, "--Consider me happy Short Stack. You both did good."
They soon looked over to the end of the table as they noticed that Yami and Jack had been slumped over on the table; their faces had been red as they looked to have several shot glasses littered around them.
"Who would've thought thirty shot glasses would send them both to blissville." Feodora said with a shrug.
"Are they gonna be okay?" Prism asked a bit worryingly.
"Oh don't worry Prism." Vandy said, "It's not the first time Uncle Yami and Jack had a drinking competition to settle their rivalry."
"Though it's a bit shocking to see them pass out after 30 shots." Aidan said, "Usually they last till 40."
"Do they always tie with everything?" Asta asked curiously.
"You'd be surprised." Aisling said.
"Sometimes if not most of these kinds of things end up in a deathmatch." Aine added.
"Should we get them both upstairs and put them to bed?" Sachiko asked.
"Or--" Jubei said with a devious smile as she held up a quill.
"Oh no!" Karasu said, "We're NOT opening the door again!"
"I'll be taking this!" Pluck added as he swiped it from Jubei.
"Aw man--" Liam said, "--I kind of wanted to see what she would draw."
"Guess we can't have everything." Saorise said.
"Seriously though, should we do something about this?" Brenin asked.
Feodora poked at Yami's cheek as they heard him say in a daze, "... I got twice as much as my last pay…"
"I'm sure they'll be fine--" Feodora said, "--After all they are Captains."
"That they are." Prism said before she giggled as did the others. It hadn't been long before they heard the door open before they could hear a set of footsteps. "Mr Vangance!" Prism said with relief as he stepped into view, "You made it!"
"Hey Uncle Will!" Vandy said with a wave.
"Sorry for being so late." William said, "The errand took a bit longer than we thought so we had to improvise."
"We?" Feodora said, a bit confused.
Soon enough a familiar face had stepped into the room which had Feodora nearly fall out of her seat as she let out a surprise shriek. "Yuno!" Asta and Prism said.
"Hey there Asta, Prism." Yuno said with a rare smile.
"You actually made it!" Prism said as she couldn't help but run over to him and give him a hug, "I'm so happy you came!"
"Come on--" Yuno said, "--You thought I wouldn't show up to a party I helped plan."
"Well, at least it's better late than never!" Asta said as he gave him a pat on the shoulder.
The Triple A's, Vandy and Jubei's eyes couldn't help but sparkle with awe. "No way--" Vandy said, "--That guy's, THE Yuno we've been hearing so much about?! The guy who has a four leafed grimoire like Licht and uncle Lemiel!?"
"Bime i elena, I think my heart skipped a beat." Aisling said as she fanned herself.
"He looks so handsome!" Aine added.
"And not to mention cool looking!" Aidan said.
"Can he be my big brother?" Jubei asked before she earned a smack on the head by Pluck, "Ow!"
Pluck had told her in a soldering maner, "Don't be rude, I cooked for you."
"Prism was not kidding about him being the popular one." Saorise said with a giggle.
"To be fair, he is pretty cool." Brenin said.
"He looks so dreamy, eh Feodora?" Aisling said as she nudged her.
Feodora quickly sat up straight on her chair as she maintained her composure despite the blush on her face, "H-Hi Know It All. So you did end up coming here after all?"
"I know you missed me too." Yuno told her which made her flinch.
"Too bad, I didn't." She told him as it only earned a smile from Yuno.
"I see everyones enjoying themselves--" William said before he noticed Yami and Jack, "--Perhaps a little too much."
"Ye-Yeah--" Prism said as her own face turned red, "--They might've had one too much to drink tonight."
"It can't be helped. That's how they always have been." William had commented, "How about you Miss Helmet? Are you enjoying yourself?"
"Well, it wasn't what I was expecting--" Feodora said, "--But otherwise--" She soon had a smile on her face, "--I'm really enjoying myself. You all did alright."
"I'm glad to hear it." He said.
"You guys are just in time--!" Saorise said as she appeared to be helping herself to a salad, "--After dinner we're going to help ourselves to some of the cake!"
"And maybe start a cake fight!" Jubei earned a pinch from Pluck and Noelle.
"We're not having a cake fight." Noelle said.
Pluck added, "We'd rather not have a food fight."
"Boo!" She said, "You guys are no fun!"
"Sounds like we did come in the nick of time." William said.
"Let's help ourselves to some cake right now!" Saorise said, "Who's with me?!"
"YAY!" The Triple A's, Vandy, Jubei and even Prism, and Asta had cheered.
Pluck sighed as he said with a shrug, "Fine I guess we CAN skip dinner."
"I suppose." Noelle said.
Feodora soon stood up as she tried her best to keep up her composure, "Ye-Yeah, cake sounds like it's a good idea!"
"Feo wait." Yuno said as he gently took her hand, "I--Actually got you something."
She looked a bit shocked while Asta and Prism looked rather excited. Yuno had soon gotten out a small blue box with a purple ribbon. "What is this?" Feodora asked.
"You'll find out after you open it." He told her.
Feodora still looked a bit puzzled before she looked at the small box. She took it from his hand before she undid the ribbon and removed the lid; it hadn't been a moment later before her eyes nearly lit up. In the contents of the box had been a hairpin; it was coated with gold as it had been that of a sparrow as its eyes looked to be that of bronze and have blue linings along its wings.
"It's a hairpin!" Aisling said as her eyes sparkled.
"Wow, it's so shiny!" Aine commented.
"Aw, how lucky!" Saorise said, "I wanna take it home."
"NO." Brenin and Liam said almost immediately.
"Yuno--How did--" Feodora said.
"I followed Prism's advice." Yuno replied, "After I got my recent pay, I used it to get you this. You told me once you liked sparrows, remember?"
"Wha-What are you saying?" Feodora said as she had been embarrassed, "Yo-You know I'm not into stuff like this! I'm more boyish, a brute, not to mention have my own way of expressing myself to royals! You and Asta told me that before, right?"
Yuno only tilted his head slightly at this, before he only laughed softly, "What are you talking about Feo? I think you're girlish enough already."
Feodora had been taken back as she blushed, "Re-Really?"
"He's right!" Asta soon added, "It's not like none of us minded the way you acted!"
Prism nodded, "You can have your moments, but that doesn't mean you can't be cute either!" She soon had her own smile, "That's one of things I like about you!"
Aisling's eyes sparkled as she let out a squee, "It's like one of my novels came to life!"
"You're totally right!" Aine said.
"This is the most adorable thing I've ever seen!" Aidan said.
Yuno soon took the hairpin from the box before he brushed some of her hair back as he set it in place; Feodora only had a shy look, though she couldn't help but look at it with awe. "It really does suit you." Yuno said, as he had a smile of his own, "You better take care of it, otherwise I won't forgive you."
Feodora brushed her fingers along it as she still had a look of awe, "Yeah… I'll take good care of it."
The group couldn't help but have a satisfied smile on their faces, as it warmed their hearts. "I gotta admit--" Karasu said as he went over to Asta and Prism, "--You and Yuno did alright with this."
"Well, we couldn't have done it all without you guys." Asta said.
"Come on, you're exaggerating." Karasu said.
"Don't be modest--" Prism said as she gave him a pat on the shoulder, "--If it wasn't for you and the others I think we would've had more than a lot on our plate, so thanks a lot Karasu!"
Karasu had his own satisfied smile on his face, though he hid his bandaged arm behind his back as it had been shaking and something looked to be moving underneath his bandages again. "It's not a problem--" He said, "--I know you would've done the same for me or Sachiko."