After the first couple of hours of festivities, which was basically just a bunch of men asking for Sydney's hand in marriage, were over, a fire was made to roast a large boar while many snacks were put out to tide the many people over as the few minstrels hired began to play some music and the party-goers danced.
Theo stood on the outskirts of the party, watching the party-goers dance merrily and have fun as he sipped his ale. 'Ah, now, this, you see, is what I wanted from my second life. Alcohol, medieval tunes, and good times.' Theo thought to himself as he leaned against one of the houses.
"You taking in the sights?" A young girl with brown hair and green eyes, around Theo's age, asked as she walked up to Theo.
"I guess you could say that." Theo responded as the girl got closer to Theo, seemingly analyzing his face. 'Why's she so close?' Theo wondered to himself.
"Hmm, I don't really recognize you. You new around here?" She asked. "Actually, don't answer that, red hair, pretty face, you're Sydney's brother, right?" She asked another question without letting Theo answer. Theo nodded. "Not very talkative, are you?" She asked yet another question.
"Five years alone tends to do that." Theo responded rather blandly, then took another sip of his ale.
"Ah, sorry if I stepped on a sensitive topic there..." She said as she put her back on the wall, leaning next to Theo, awkwardly taking a sip of her drink.
"Nah, it was a bad joke is all, I wasn't much of a talker before either. Or rather, I do all my talking in my head." Theo said.
"Oh, I see." She responded.
"That aside, you didn't introduce yourself." Theo said.
"Ah, right, sorry, I got a bit carried away with my questions." She said then paused awkwardly. "My name's Leah." She said.
"Nice to meet you." Theo said. A lull in conversation hit as silence fell upon the two as they drank some more of their drinks and watched the others dance. "You approach me because I wasn't someone you recognized or was it because you already knew who I was?" Theo asked.
"Neither. You seemed interesting, I guess. Everyone else is drowning themselves in activities, yet here you are, alone and away from the activity." Leah said. "Also, I guess you're kinda cute too." She added hesitantly.
"If I didn't know any better, it'd sound like you wanted to try and flirt with me." Theo said jokingly.
"And if I did?" She asked as she looked at him. Theo thought for a moment.
"Well, it would seem I accidentally foiled your attempts with my poorly timed joke." He said. She chuckled.
"It would seem so." She said.
'So, is that a yes or no to the flirting thing? Or was that flirting? God, my social skills are in the gutter.' Theo thought to himself as he took a sip of his ale.
"You any good at dancing?" She asked. Theo shook his head.
"About as well as I can swing a sword." He said.
"Oh? Are you any good at that?" She asked.
"Not particularly, though Sydney is." Theo said.
"I know that much, but I don't know much about you." She said.
'Ah, I think I understand now. Somebody they don't know comes into town, someone that's now a mystery. That's why she approached me, makes sense...' Theo thought to himself. "The only thing I can say I'm skilled in is magic. Other than that, imagine a chicken without its head trying to peck at your feet." He said. She chuckled.
"That so?" She asked. Theo nodded with a slight smile.
"Yep." He said then took a sip of his ale. 'Hm, that was the last of this cup...' He thought to himself.
"You out?" She asked. Theo nodded. "Try some of this, it's a home brew." She said as she offered him her cup.
"You sure?" Theo asked. She nodded. 'I mean, why not, right?' Theo thought as he took her up on the offer and took the cup, then took a sip. 'Hm, does it have honey in it?' Theo wondered as he handed her the cup back.
"What do you think?" She asked. he swished it around a bit, then swallowed it. He nodded a bit.
"Pretty good. Does it have honey in it?" He asked.
"you could tell that easily?" She asked, as an idea suddenly hit her. "Alright, what else do you think is in it?" She asked.
"Oh, I'm suddenly being tested, um, probably some of the berries in the nearby forest, no clue what they're named, and, I think there's a hint of apple, but I could be wrong." Theo said.
"Close, we used raspberries in this one, they do grow nearby but not in the woods, and we added a bit of apple juice." She said. "Though, I will say it was impressive to see you could identify those so easily." She added with a sly smile.
"Perhaps. It certainly was fun." He said. "And better tasting than straight ale." He added. She laughed a bit.
"That's the truth." She said. "Well, all that fun aside, I've heard around that you'll be leaving again, though not kidnapped this time." She said after a moment as she relaxed her expression.
"Seems likely. I'm not sure if it's secret or not, so I won't be disclosing where to, but I will be leaving for a while, in all likelihood." He said.
"I see." She said.
"Hey! Theo! Stop being boring and come dance with us!" Sydney yelled from a group where many people were dancing.
"Well, it would seem my sister wants to embarrass me." Theo said as he glanced at Leah. "Wanna help?" He asked.
"Oh? Are you, the self-proclaimed awful dancer, asking me to dance?" Leah asked jokingly.
"Maybe." Theo said.
"Well, I'd be honored, and maybe I can give you some pointers while we're at it." She said with a wide smile as she offered her hand. Theo took it and they walked over to the group to dance, Theo quickly proving that he is, in fact, an awful dancer.
The night carried on without worry and eventually came to a close, with everybody going home to get some well-deserved rest.
'I can't sleep...' Theo thought to himself as he stared at the roof. 'Definitely not because I'm thinking about the girl from earlier, because I don't find myself attracted to those significantly younger than myself, though, in this world, I am her age... No... No, no, that's bad. It's just hormones.' He thought to himself as he sat up.
'I'm sure some water will fix this right up.' He thought to himself as he stood up and exited his room to get a cup, only to be met with the sight of Sydney returning to her room. He awkwardly waved at her.
"Can't sleep either?" She asked. Theo nodded. A sly smile appeared on her face.
'Fuck, what did I walk into this time?' Theo wondered.
"I take it you like the girl from earlier, then?" She asked with a mischievous tone.
"Eh." Theo said with a shrug.
"Oh, don't play coy, it's so obvious. I mean, really." She said as she walked over to him. "You even invited her to dance even though you just met her." She said as she put her hands on his shoulders. "Little brother o' mine, you should go for it, even if you'll be leaving soon." She said as she looked him dead in the eyes and gave him a thumbs up.
'This conversation has gotten really awkward really quickly...' Theo thought to himself as he took a bit of a step back. "You know, now that I think about it, I don't really need a cup for water, I have magic for that." He said quietly as he reached behind himself and grabbed the doorknob.
"Oh, come on, I'm just messing with you!" She said with a giggle as she took her hands off of his shoulders. "That aside, if you do like her, I recommend at least trying to talk to her. I mean, at the very least do that. After all, if I was her and I walked up to a guy I liked and he just stopped talking to me after a dance, I'd be pretty upset." She said, then went to her room.
Theo turned the doorknob and went back into his room as he created some water and made it flow into his mouth. He crawled back into his bed and closed his eyes. A few moments later, he opened them again. 'And now I can't stop thinking about it. Great.' He thought to himself as he stared at the ceiling again.