#writewhatescapesyou

Day 8: Shopping

   Adela, Keegan, and the rest of the party marched far ahead of Xen, leaving him to think and observe on his own. He was far from being ignored, though. As Cadence's doppelganger, that made him prime suspect for any and all suspicious activity. So, when they all went to bargain in the town square around Adela's home for supplies, Xen thought he would try and display his loyalty.

    Though he had only spent a few days with the crew, he'd been fixated on Adela. He couldn't pinpoint it, but a light radiated from the fairy princess that showed she had multiple strengths despite her innocent and weak appearance. Her brain stored intelligence and wisdom, her arms carried strength, and her tongue possessed wit and sound advice.

    And Xen, determined to prove his dedication, would be sure to prove to her that he refused to harm her or anyone in the group.

          "What's that, sir?" He asked a man taking care of an orange booth.

          "This here is a charm bracelet. I've crafted many wooden charms to go with it." He picked up the bracelet and showed it to him, before eyeing him speculatively. "Is it for a special lady in your life?"

     Xen started and chuckled nervously.

          "It's not like that, sir, no. I--" He was cut off.

          "Ah, so it's for a fine woman in your life." He smiled, before pulling out a charm. "This is the charm for you, then. You see? It's two hands holding each other. I made it to represent an impenetrable bond, one no one can severe. Why, I doubt even the greatest magic in all the realms could make it so that the charm itself ever broke."

     The group was eyeing around for Xen, so he had to be quick. Without worrying about the charm, he nodded, handed the man his currency and fled to meet up with the group.

          "There you are!" Keegan huffed, her eyes narrow. "What were you doing?"

    Xen caught his breath, moved to the front of the princess, and knelt down to offer his gift.

          "My princess, I do humbly offer you a gift to show my loyal--" Embry, the older brother of the group, pushed him back and sent his bracelet hurtling into the dust.

    Within seconds, Xen's body was pinned to the ground.

          "Loyalty, my foot." Embry huffed, his temper getting the better of him. "You'll have to do more than give the princess a charm bracelet to prove your worth, doppelganger." He let him go, walking with the others.

    But when Xen got up, there Adela stood, watching him.

Day 9: Hanging Out with Friends

   Xen had never met Cally, Adela's best friend from Earth. He heard a great deal of talk about her, about how she was enthralled with books and could sometimes be found ditching her friends from Earth just to hang out with a book.

           "You'll love her! And I'm sure the two of you will get along well." Adela assured him, giggling with excitement. "I don't know how much you like to read, Xen, but regardless, this is sure to be an interesting trip for you."

    Adela hadn't been wrong, either.

    As they found Cally, they found her screaming out the contents from a book at the ocean, just outside the beach house where her aunt and uncle lived. Her chest puffed out, hair blowing in the wind, and feet firmly planted in the sand, she appeared to be ready to gear up for war.

          "Cally, what are you doing?" Adela laughed, running up to her friend and squeezing her tightly. "Are you reading to the ocean again?"

          "Come on, even the ocean needs friends." Cally chuckled, before releasing Adela and looking up to find Xen. "Wait, who's this?"

          "Cally, meet my best friend, Xen." Adela smiled, her head held high. "He's contributed a lot to our cause in the last few months."

    Cally gave him a broad grin.

           "That's great!" She turned to look at him with a wicked gleam in her eyes. "So, Xen, as your first adventure with Adela and I, how would you like to steal a mermaid's comb?"

    Xen blinked, his mouth agape as he looked at Adela, who wore a smirk. After a moment of silence, a great deal of thought, and some courage, he swallowed his fear and laughed.