A bump grew from Taccilas' head, his eyes seeing imaginary stars.. "...Hope that'll teach you." Scolded Hezcann.
"Don't be too hard on him." Requested the blonde lady.
The bar man carried a series of bags and placed them before Suisse. "Whatever, here's your order.."
"Thanks, as always! When does his shift end, by the way?" Questioned Suisse, the bags now grasped by her two fair hands.
Taccilas, for his part, had regained his senses at last. He still saw at least three different versions of both Suisse and Hezcann, though. Hezcann's chops were no joke.
"Why exactly?" Asked Hezcann, his hands seemingly always occupied by a towel.
"I'm taking him to the Fortress, he'll stay with us."
"Oh, you can take him now, he and the other girl have been at it since the morning, and it's pretty calm today. Just give me a moment to get their payment." As he spoke, Hezcann left the kitchen and bolted upstairs.
Taccilas supported himself on the counter, his words slurred when he tried to communicate."M-Miss, do you have space for two more?"
"There's enough space for an entire platoon! Do you have someone in mind?"
The slurring had stopped, but he was still struggling to focus on the lady before him. At least, his mind was in the right place, for he was positive she didn't have five eyes. "Yep, that girl over there." And he gestured towards Izuchi.
Her steps had become weary and she carried herself like a waning fire, instead of the mighty sun-like flame Taccilas had witnessed before.
A princess only in name, perhaps.
"The waitress?"
"Yep, and I've got another friend, she's at the workshop right now."
"Ah, so there's three new faces around."
"Yep!"
"We can take you and your friends in, don't worry." Bubbled the lady of the shooting star, a gentle smile decorating her.
Taccilas eyes sparkled like stars. "Thank you!" He rejoiced. "Izuchi! Izuchi, come!"
"What?!" The girl with fiery hair delivered her order and soon returned to the counter. Every step she took, she lost another string of balance- but she made it over to the counter before falling over. "What do you want, imbecile? I'm busy right now." Demanded the princess, her tone had crumbled, none of the fanfare remaining,
"This girl is letting us stay in her house!" He exclaimed, gesturing to Suisse- who herself greeted Izuchi with a "Hi!" and a wave of the hand.
But Izuchi observed her, unimpressed. She raised an eyebrow and brought a hand to her hip. "For how much?" She probed.
"...How much what?" The only answer Taccilas could present was another question.
"What do you mean how much what? Y-" Izuchi choked back her own words, instead clenching her fists. "Money! How much money!"
"Oh, I didn't ask. Miss Suisse, how much will it be?"
The lady of the blue uniform chuckled and then spoke with the serenity of a swan. "Don't worry, it's free."
"Free?!" She's so nice!
"Free…?" What is she plotting to do with us…?
Such was the extent of the divergence between their understandings, that one could've thought Suisse uttered different words to each one.
Hezcann came back, two small bags in his hands. "Here, 10 nails for each one." And he handed them over to them, a tiny mountain of green, metal spikes now in their hands.
The sum was negligible, perhaps enough to buy a singular meal.
Yet it had been cash Taccilas had earned-
-As a free man.
Not bound by chains or under obligation because some lord had seen it fit he should earn him money.
Perhaps the circumstances had been abnormal, but he worked with dignity, and Hezcann had treated him like a person, rather than some animal waiting to die.
He couldn't think back to the last time someone giving him work had looked him in the eyes.
"W-Woah! Thanks, I've never had so much cash in my entire life!"
"...That's all?"
"Be here tomorrow before 7 if you want more!" Hezcann laughed, waving at them. "Now, good night, boy, missy!" He spoke thereafter, disappearing behind the curtains-
But he voiced one last thing before letting them go. "…Oh by the way, the boy tried to steal from me, be careful, Suisse. Good night for real this time!"
The blonde lady narrowed her eyes and turned them towards Taccilas, who had a grin- perhaps an attempt to be adorable- plastered on his face. "...Oh, that won't fly in the fortress."
Izuchi slapped her face- shoulders slumped in defeat.
Taccilas clasped his hands together and bowed. "I'm sorry, I won't try it!" Attempting to convey his apology as profoundly as his body and voice would let him.
A smile, a gentle one- or maybe it was sinister- spread across Suisse's expression. "You won't!" She laughed and promptly moved on. "Now then, let's go!" And so departed the three from the Sea Bee, clamor and bustle letting them go as they passed under the door.
The white-haired girl sat under the shadow of the white workshop, accompanied only by the street gem lanterns, the moon, and perhaps a cricket or two. Under the watch of the stars, she received an abundance of time-
-Time to think.
But she didn't like thinking.
It had always been captains and admirals ordering her and her people what to do. Never had she found the necessity or the time to let her own thoughts be forefront of her mind.
But here she was.
The wind played with her hair as it would with snow.
Strange had the last few days been. She did what she had always done- fight someone else's enemy, but something had changed. The girl recognized the tune her body played.
Gears were fiddling.
Pumps were drumming.
Engines began their singing.
The symphony that heralded her awakening.
And for years, the sound had been the same.
Simple.
A monotonous melody.
And she knew that the symphony hadn't left her, yet the tone and keys had changed. The instruments and the players remained, but their sound was unlike anything she had heard before.
She wasn't sure if it was better, or worse- The only affirmative she possessed was that it wasn't the same.
"Mitali!" Excitedly exclaimed Taccilas, running off towards the white-haired girl and yanking her out of the embrace of her own mind. Izuchi and Suisse observing them from behind.
"Evening, Taccilas." Mitali's voice gently enveloped them.
Izuchi chipped into the conversation. "How do you feel? You don't exactly look better…"
It was then that Taccilas' attention was stolen by Mitali's body. "... You look like a roll of toilet paper." He babbled matter-of-factly.
The princess hit Taccilas on the back of the head. "You absolute dunce, don't say that to a girl!" Fumes leaked from her ears, though Taccilas wasn't quite sure why he had been chastised, seeing as he wasn't even talking to Izuchi.
Bandages covered every inch of Mitali's body, her face notwithstanding. Yet unlike before, they were white and clean. "But 'tis true, what he says. 'Twas better when I had nothing covering me, but the Miss Alerezzin disagreed with me. Foolish, I say."
"Is this your other friend?" Asked Suisse.
"Yep!" Replied Taccilas. "Miss Suisse, this is Mitali. Mitali, this is Miss Suisse, she's letting us stay at her house!"
"'Tis a pleasure, Miss Suisse." Mitali stood up and performed the new record for the clumsiest curtsy ever performed.
"The pleasure is mine, Mitali. And just Suisse is fine." The lady replicated the gesture, she might've lacked a skirt, but her form was far more elegant than that of the warship.
Even whilst still carrying the bags.
"Say, 'tis a service uniform you wear, correct?"
"Yes, it is. I'm with the First Laeffe Garrison." Gleefully confirmed Suisse.
"I see, I see… Never had I seen one such as your own."
"Ever since the armistice was signed, we haven't really had a military presence outside of the country. But we can chat about it on the way to the fortress, come on."
Taccilas turned towards Mitali. "Do you need help?" He expressed. "I can give you a piggyback ride again!"
"'Tis no problem, I am capable of walking on my own." Mitali walked besides Suisse, her steps crooked, but consistent. It was evident she was going to have no problem getting to their destination. Taccilas shrugged, confident in her capabilities.
A crescent moon rode through the night, pulled by the stars and cheered by the clouds. Few and far inbetween were they, perhaps a consequence of the storm that had whalloped the area the day prior.
Meanwhile on the ground, sparkling lights surrounded them all over. Every window lit, as if the town had stolen the sunset from the world.
Chitter and chatter everywhere around- the night was young and Laeffa knew it. In the distance, Taccilas could make out a clapping that rang to the rhythm of a song, then laughter on the other side.
Kids held hands as if they were brothers, tripping and falling onto each other, Taccilas unsure if they were making an attempt to play or if they were trying to dance. But it mattered not, for the grins that decorated their visages were bare for the world to see.
Taccilas basked in the town that surrounded him, a lilt in his every step.
He wanted to meet the people around him- meet the town. There were so many things he wanted to ask them, so many things we wanted to talk about!
And as he walked behind his new friends, he rejoiced in the freedom he had attained.