Courier Quest Chapters 38 & 39

38 - Lingering Responsibilities

The next morning, Trevor barely left his room. When he had left the first time, he found a note from Adabelle saying she would be back around noon and that she was looking forward to their date. That left him with a smile and butterflies in his stomach, and he spent his time waiting for her to get back.

That wasn’t to say he was staying idle, however. The young man had tried on his minotauran outfit a few times, having received instructions on the various styles he heard about from Klar before heading out on his quest. It would take some getting used to, as it definitely wasn’t something he’d wear on earth, but he would adapt.

Festive minotauran garb was essentially a pair of yellow pants and a series of cloth strips that Trevor hesitated to call scarves. It had been explained to him that everything was loose so as to keep from pulling and tugging at the wearer’s hair, and that’s exactly what he got. The whole outfit was very colorful, as well, with bright greens, blues, and reds that was meant to contrast nicely with a minotaur’s brown and black fur.

It took him the better part of an hour to figure out how to wear the outfit, but in the end he was successful.

As was proper, he was loosely covered. His left shoulder had three strips of different colored cloth over it, and they draped down before cutting across his stomach to the right side. A single scarf adorned his right shoulder, heading straight downwards both in front and in back. There was one black piece in the whole ensemble, which he wore around his waist like a belt.

Trevor stared at the mirror, looking at his chest and once again doubting Lailah’s words. There were other ways to wear the outfit that wouldn’t show himself off, but when he thought about those options he stood up a little straighter.

“No,” he told his reflection. “You look just fine this way. Trust in Klar. He may have been wrong about what you should say about kobolds, but other than that, when has he ever steered you wrong?”

Taking a breath, he gave himself an affirming nod. Catching a glimpse of his tattooed arm, he lifted it up to better observe it in the mirror. The tattoo around his bicep had gotten significantly smaller, and he frowned at it. At this point, the fact that he could go back was an albatross around his neck.

While he could have wrapped his arms to hide the magic mark from Adabelle, he chose not to. He wasn’t sure if she’d know what it meant, but he knew he didn’t want to keep it from her. After all, now that he had asked her out, going back would be a real mean thing to do.

Trevor tightened his hand into a fist as he thought it over. Whenever he had talked about returning to that other world it was always from a distance, and he did that by design. He would say he “could go back,” or “it was a choice to go back,” or that he “was leaning towards staying.” Nothing was substantial, and the young man had put off thinking about it for a while.

He had been stuck with two minds. Back in his old world, he had responsibilities. Not only to his job, but the people who were working to save him and everyone that relied on him. However, the mere thought of returning crushed his soul.

Staying here would have its own set of challenges, but despite all his talk he was not a fool. Trevor knew that this place was better for him. No matter what the rest of the world looked like, the country of Lucent and both Eskretet and Tosa in particular had been built on foundations he had only dreamed of before.

Even now, he had immediately started taking on more responsibilities here just because he couldn’t stand not having something to do. Between helping out the shopkeepers in town like Thimbleden and Dory, to helping out the workers like Laric, Trevor’s Power made him capable of helping in ways no one else could. Klar gushing about his Inventory was just another reason to stay.

The only thing that didn’t factor into his thought process was Adabelle.

She had been the reason why he decided to make the decision, but aside from their conversations she played a very small role in it. As someone who had relationships fail in the past, the young man had wanted to make sure that a potential romantic partner wasn’t the sole reason for staying. While he was hoping, almost praying, for a successful relationship with Adabelle, he wouldn’t delude himself that it would work out like some kind of fairy tale. There was still a lot to learn about each other, after all.

When that was put aside, the answer was still clear as day.

Clenching his fist, Trevor nodded to himself and firmly decided to let his tattoo show. “I’m staying here,” he declared to himself.

Trevor took another breath in and let his arm fall. He nodded to himself again, and then one more time as he tried to dispel his nervous energy. Now that he made his decision without Adabelle in mind, he found that he could easily imagine what it would be like with her in mind.

Luckily for him, as he continued to nod to himself mindlessly in the mirror, salvation came.

“Trevor!” Adabelle called from the suite’s shared area. “I’m back!”

Excitement quickly replaced nervousness as he walked to the door. He reached for the handle when he paused, looking down at his arm as he suddenly had second thoughts.

“I’ve already changed into festival clothes,” he said through the door. “Do you want to see me before you change? Or do we want to surprise each other? I’m not sure if there’s, like, protocol for this or something.”

“There’s not, but I can get changed if you like,” she replied.

Before he could think on it for too long, Trevor opened the door and took a step outside. Adabelle was standing not far from where he emerged, and was wearing the same kind of bulky robes she did when working in Tosa. There was a tired look in her eye, though it quickly disappeared as she looked him over. He noted with a mix of both satisfaction and confidence-shattering horror that she was staring at his chest.

The silence stretched until Trevor couldn’t take it anymore, which admittedly wasn’t very long, and he chuckled nervously. “Well? What do you think?”

“Did Lailah put you up to this?” she asked. “I suppose I owe her a gold piece now. She said she could get you to wear something revealing like that, and I told her that you would never believe her.”

Trevor’s smile became a little tighter. “Should… should I change?”

“No!” she almost yelled quickly, taking a step forward as her hand shot out to reach for him. Adabelle and Trevor stared at each other before she politely coughed into her hand. “I mean, no, there’s no need for that. It’s a very handsome outfit, so it suits you. Though, I’d like to know what she said to get you into that.”

Despite his embarrassment, he couldn’t help but grin at her compliment. “I don’t really think it’s important,” he said quietly.

“I can hear it from you, or I can hear it from her,” she said, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow. “And don’t even think for a second that she would hesitate.”

Unable to stop grinning, he mumbled something out.

“Okay, my hearing is good but it’s not that good. Please, speak up.”

“She said you like it when a man shows off a bit of chest,” he repeated, his face burning. “Said it drives you crazy, so, I thought, well…”

When it became clear that Trevor wasn’t going to finish his sentence, Adabelle shook her head. “That woman is nothing but trouble,” she sighed. “But she also wasn’t wrong. This is also my first time seeing your tattoo.”

Trevor blinked at her words. “She wasn’t?”

“Don’t change the subject,” Adabelle chided as she walked up to him. Her eyes did linger on his chest, which was something he happily noted, before fixing themselves on his arm. “May I?”

“Yeah, go ahead.”

“Thank you,” she replied. Taking his arm gently in her hands, Adabelle brought it up so that she wouldn’t need to lean down to get a better look. Her fingers traced along the magical markings, and Trevor relished the feeling. “I don’t recognize this ritual. So not only did he summon you here without me, but he also did so with means I have no idea about.”

“Maybe he wanted you to figure it out for yourself?” Trevor offered. “I don’t mind letting you study it, if it’ll help.”

“It well may,” Adabelle mumbled. She shifted so that she was standing almost against his chest to better get a look at the inside of his arm. “Did he say anything about the ritual when you first arrived?”

Trevor tilted his head. “Honestly, I was kind of frazzled when I first arrived and the whole conversation is a bit murky,” he admitted. “I think he said something about how I needed a break, and how the ritual sought out someone who was in dire need of a life change and needed one the most. I doubt my circumstances meant I was the one who needed to come here the most, but I thought I just won the cosmic lottery or something.”

“Needed it the most, hmm?” she asked, glancing at his face for a moment before moving her attention to his bicep. “Could be the old man wasn’t telling you the whole truth. It’s not always advisable to do so with new Summoned, on account of the volatile change in environment. What about up here?”

Hesitating, Trevor sighed; this was the part he wasn’t sure she would take well, and both Wayne and Rashie’s reactions were telling on their own. Still, he didn’t want to keep it a secret from her.

“When that tattoo disappears, I’ll be given the chance to go back,” he said slowly.

Adabelle immediately released his bicep and placed her hands on his shoulders, turning to be eye to eye with him. “Trevor, you’re not thinking of going back, are you?” she asked, her voice having an underlying tone of urgency that he hadn’t heard from her before.

“What, would you miss me too much?” he joked, suddenly nervous from this turn of events.

“First, yes, I very likely would miss you more than I realize,” she admitted quickly. “But the more important reason is because you would be absolutely miserable back there. Do you remember our conversation? About how you barely wanted to talk about your old world and how you were simply going on and on about Tosa?”

Trevor blinked. “I do remember.”

“You need to stay here, even if it’s not with me- us. Even if it’s not with us in Tosa,” she stated. “After everything you’ve been through here, going back would absolutely crush you. Especially now that you’ve started making a life for yourself here. You could barely tell me any good memories you had of that place, Trevor.”

“Lady…”

“And that’s not even speaking of all the people you’ve met here that would miss you,” Adabelle continued. “During our talk at the Danger Zone, that was one of your biggest praises of Tosa. You felt as though you were more than just a random person, that you actually belonged here. You felt taken care of, which is hard for people like us because we’re always pushing to do what we can for others.”

“Adabelle.”

“I’m just saying it for the record,” she said, taking a fist and gently thumping it against his chest. “That I think going back is the worst thing you can do. Not for any reason other than it would devastate you, and certainly not for the selfish reason that I would miss you.”

“But you would miss me, right?”

“Most certainly, but this is about more than just me, Trevor,” she said. “I just want to help you, to take care of you.”

Taking both of her hands into his, Trevor smiled. “Lady, I’m not going back,” he said gently. “Everything you said is true and, while I still have some lingering responsibilities there, there’s nothing back in that world that needs me specifically.”

Adabelle exhaled deeply, squeezing his hands. “Good, Son of Ander,” she said with a nod. “So long as you know that, then I suppose we can go on with our date as planned.”

“I’m really, really excited about it,” Trevor said as she pulled away. “The atmosphere, the food, the company. All of it.”

“I’ll go get changed, then,” Adabelle said with a smile. “Just like Lailah pushed you in one direction, she gave me advice as well.”

“Oh no?” he asked, smile fading.

“She said that, as an American, there’s a good chance that you’ll like this outfit,” she stated, backing up towards her room.

“Oh, no,” he repeated in a completely different tone.

“Well, I don’t think it warrants that kind of reaction, but I’ll go and change now.” Adabelle said, giving him a curious look before moving to her room.

While Trevor wracked his brain on what a Scottish woman would think an American man would like, he realized that he had no frame of reference. Still, if she thought that he wouldn’t wear something as revealing as minotauran festive garb, then it likely wouldn’t be anything outlandish. She certainly didn’t strike him as the type to wear a dunbar.

When she returned, Trevor’s eyes went wide.

Adabelle was wearing a robe with intricate black and orange patterns. Her hands emerged from long sleeves that nearly fell to the floor and swung at even the slightest movement. Around her stomach was a wide ribbon that was tied off into a large bow in the back, and the young man could make out that the swirling pattern made flowers all over.

“How is it?” she asked, sounding as though she wasn’t fully confident.

“Well, I’m not sure what she meant by me liking this because I’m an American, but I do think you look beautiful,” Trevor said honestly.

Smiling, Adabelle’s face softened. “She said there was a good chance that you were something they called a weeb, which she said just meant you love all things Japanese,” the woman said as she raised her hands to show off the sleeves. “These have been popular since the first King Eskretet, due to him bringing his heritage to the country, so I thought it was worth a chance.”

Trevor couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, I’m not a weeb, but I can certainly appreciate this.”

“Good. I find it funny that, after matching yesterday morning, we chose to go in completely opposite directions today,” she stated.

“It is kind of funny, isn’t it?” Trevor agreed before offering his arm. “Are you ready to go, then?”

“I am,” Adabelle said as she slipped her arm in his. “Let’s go on our date.”

39 - A Transcendent Experience

While Adabelle had wanted to take the tunnels to get out of the castle, Trevor was immediately against it. After last night, the only thing he wanted was to spend time amongst the people. While his date hesitated, she was also quick to give in, happy to see the look on his face.

Crossing over the two bridges was slow going as they moved amongst the traffic, but the sights were marvelous. The vast majority of the people were dressed up in fancy outfits ranging from kimonos to suits and dresses to loose robes not unlike what Trevor had worn. To his relief, he saw both men and women of all races wearing minotauran garb, and Adabelle explained that it became popular during King Eskretet V’s reign.

Feeling a lot more confident with his life choices and his physique, Trevor stood up a little straighter as he walked arm in arm with Adabelle. He found that every little thing grabbed his attention. It didn’t matter whether it was someone’s outfit or a floating light or something mundane decorated for the festival, mentally he was getting pulled everywhere.

“Everyone’s first time is hectic,” Adabelle said, patting him on the arm.

“There’s so much to see,” Trevor replied happily. “Everything is so bright, and the people are so happy. Everything seems perfect.”

“The Festival of Golden Lights is a national holiday that everyone agrees on,” she explained. “It does so much for the city. The cleanup is terrible, but everyone who’s able pitches in. It’s Eskretet’s favorite way to bring its people together.”

“Mine, too,” he admitted. “I wouldn’t mind coming here every year, so long as I’m not working or something.”

“Then it’s a good thing you’re staying.”

“Yeah, it’s a really good thing,” he said, grinning.

Thankfully, Matteo’s wasn’t too far away from the second bridge they had to traverse, and Trevor’s attention span had a chance to rest as they stepped inside.

The restaurant was a tall building with high windows allowing natural light to come in. The entrance was a wide hallway leading to a counter with a gnome standing behind it and two doorways beyond. The gnome had slicked back hair and wore a fancy suit, and his eyes twinkled as the two approached.

“Ah, you are exactly as the merchant prince described, Mister Trevor Anderson,” he said, bowing deeply. “I have been expecting you and Lady Adabelle. Shall I escort you to your room?”

“Room?” Adabelle asked, glancing from the gnome to Trevor.

When Trevor gestured to their server, they bowed again. “Klarkartar has given Mr. Anderson leave to use his private dining room overlooking the park,” the gnome explained. “For lunch, of course, as the merchant prince will be here for dinner.”

“And that’s that,” Trevor said, grinning at his date. He could tell that she was trying to act like a noble, but the way she squeezed his arm conveyed her true feelings. “Please, lead the way.”

“Of course, sir,” the gnome said before jumping down from his step ladder and leading them towards the door on the right side of the hallway. He opened it and led them upstairs.

Their dining room was on the third floor and came with a stunning view of the park and river. The water was clean with several colorful fish swimming around it, which had surprised Trevor as he had thought it was a moat at first. After traveling through the city on Klar’s quest, he had come to learn that they were proper rivers though they had been directed to flow where the officials wanted, leaving the impression of two moats around the castle.

A table for two was set near the window, which took up the entire wall. Tall candelabras sat across from it, unlit as the light from outside was more than enough to illuminate the room. Pulling out Adabelle’s chair, he gestured for her to sit. She did, her tail slipping between the slats on the back, before Trevor sat across from her.

The only objects on the table were two small, blue pillows with what appeared to be a red breath mint strip. Adabelle had mentioned something similar, and Trevor eyed it before looking over at the gnome.

With a gracious nod, the gnome spoke. “This is one of the merchant princes’ favorite places in the entire city. The window is one way, so do not be concerned with the people watching you as you have total privacy here. We will knock thrice before entering, and will bonly do so when instructed. I will be leaving you now to return to my post, but all you need to do is place these strips on your tongue and Chef Matteo will whip you up something marvelous.”

“Thank you,” Trevor said before looking at Adabelle. “Anything we should be asking?”

“No. Thank you for your service,” she said, bowing slightly towards the gnome.

“It is my pleasure, sir, my lady,” the gnome replied before bowing deeply and exiting the room, closing the door behind him.

“Klar really wants to get on your good side,” Adabelle remarked as she looked at the strip on the table to the window. “I thought you might have been embellishing, but you don’t really do that, do you?”

“I have been known to embellish, but not about things that matter,” Trevor said. “Shall we?”

“Oh, yes, let’s,” she said as they both picked up their strips and did as instructed.

As much as it looked like it was meant to freshen his breath, Trevor was surprised when it was tasteless and dissolved almost instantly. There was no other sensation, no leftover residue in his mouth, it was just gone. “Is that it?”

“That’s it,” Adabelle confirmed. “It’s the same experience I had when I first came here.”

“Huh, neat,” he said as something caught his eye outside. The young man leaned towards it. “Oh, man, is that a gondola? I didn’t see those when I was running around the city!”

Adabelle laughed and leaned forward, putting her elbow on the table and her chin in her palm. “Really? Impressed by a gondola?”

“What? I’m a simple man with simple tastes, I’m not going to rein in my excitement,” he said with a chuckle.

“They bring them out on special occasions,” Adabelle explained, looking down into the river. “It’s really just a tour around the castle, but we can go if you like.”

“You won’t mind?” he asked.

“I won’t. I also enjoy being out in the water, and it’ll be nice to be with someone who won’t want to jump off the boat immediately.”

Trevor laughed. “I can see how that might dampen the mood.”

Adabelle tried not to be amused by his pun, but ended up snorting a quick laugh.  “Dampen the mood, really?”

“Yes, really,” he said, grinning at her before looking back down towards the water. “I was pretty landlocked on Earth. There were lakes and rivers, but not a lot of people were boating on them, so there weren’t a lot of chances for me to go.”

A trio of knocks came from the door, grabbing their attention. “Come in,” Adabelle instructed.

The door opened, revealing a human waiter in dark clothes. He carried a tray with six glasses on it, and set three of them in front of Adabelle and three in front of Trevor before taking the small pillows the strips had been on. “Your food is now cooking, but please enjoy your refreshments until then.” With another bow, the man left.

“This is pretty exciting, I only received two glasses when I ate down below last five,” Adabelle said happily.

“I’m assuming they’re catering to our tastes specifically?” Trevor asked as he looked over the glasses.

“That is correct,” she said before leaning forward and whispering conspiratorially. “In the main dining room, there’s rules against sharing. Do you mind if we both test everything we want to try?”

“Lady Adabelle, that’s simply scandalous!” Trevor responded, bringing his hand to his mouth. When she looked ready to walk it back, he shook his head. “Of course I’m willing to try everything. And whatever we don’t eat, we’ll take. I cleared out my inventory for this, lady.”

Reaching across the table, Adabelle playfully hit him. “Don’t do that to me, Trevor!” she said, laughing. “Oh, this is going to be good. Are we testing drinks, too?”

“As long as you don’t mind drinking after me, then I don’t mind drinking after you.”

“Then let’s do it,” she said with a decisive nod.

Trevor didn’t think about it, but grabbed the first glass. It was warm to the touch, though not hot, and he sipped at the brown liquid inside. Chocolate mixed with chai and cinnamon delighted him in a way that he didn’t realize he would enjoy. As he swished it around his mouth, he found himself nodding at the taste.

Leaving that, he picked up the next one. It was a similarly dark drink, though darker than the chocolate. Bringing it up to his lips, he gave it a sniff before partaking. It bubbled and fizzed in his mouth with a sweet taste he couldn’t completely place, though it was without a doubt just as good as the chocolate.

The last glass was filled with a swirling mixture of pink and yellow liquid. A strawberry floated on the ice inside, and he was surprised to see that it was actually the color it was supposed to be on Earth. Setting it aside on a napkin, he took a drink and immediately started nodding.

“You really can’t go wrong with strawberry lemonade,” he sighed before looking up to see that Adabelle had already finished her tests, and was smiling at him. “What?”

“Just enjoying your reactions,” she said. “Would you like to swap?”

“Yeah, have at it, lady,” he said, lining up his drinks for her as she did the same.

He immediately went for what he assumed was her version of hot chocolate. Adabelle had apparently thought the same, because she grabbed his. They clinked their glasses together before taking a sip. Chocolate flavor did explode in his mouth, but it mingled with something similar to salted caramel and vanilla. It was good, though not as good as his.

Her second glass was filled with a thick, green liquid that looked a lot like a vegetable smoothie. Never liking them but feeling adventurous, he pulled it to his mouth and took a quick sip. It was more bitter than he expected, but not entirely unpleasant. If Trevor had received this in his original lineup then he would have called this place a sham, but Adabelle seemed to really enjoy it so he didn’t have a leg to stand on.

The last drink was light red and fizzed, popped, and bubbled as he stared at it. Clearly seeing Adabelle’s lips printed on the edge of the glass, he figured it was at least safe to drink, and quickly took his sip. It tickled his nose, and he realized immediately that it had alcohol in it, something he didn’t normally care for.

“Yours are so much more varied than mine,” Trevor noted as he returned Adabelle’s glasses.

“And yours are all so sweet,” she said. “Not that it's a bad thing, of course. As for my drinks, as a noblewoman growing up I had to travel a lot and get used to many types of cuisines. My palate is very diverse because of my experiences.”

A question popped up in Trevor’s mind, and he knew it was a private one. “Do you mind if I ask you about something you might not like?” he asked slowly.

“Of course, Trevor,” she replied.

“When you came here and got changed into a demonkin, did you find that your tastes changed?”

Adabelle blinked before offering him a gentle smile. “You’re concerned about my feelings regarding this?”

“Well, yeah. It’s a big change.”

Reaching out, she took Trevor’s hand. “First, thank you for being concerned,” she said. “The fact that you are so sensitive about how other people feel is one of the things that initially drew me to you.”

“Oh, uh, thank you,” Trevor said, smiling at the unexpected praise.

“Second, I am at peace with my circumstances,” she said, squeezing his hand. “Are they ideal? No, but it’s far better than the alternative, and I lived for years thinking it wasn’t. I’ve gotten over it, and even come to love myself again. It also helps that, to answer your question, no, my tastes didn’t change with me. I still like and dislike everything I did before.”

“You’re inspiring, you know that?” Trevor said as he squeezed back. “Just, everything about you. Your drive, your empathy, your resilience. I know you’d be able to thrive anywhere.”

Adabelle smiled, and the young man could hear her tail swishing before she got it under control. “Thank you, Trevor,” she said. “It took me a long time to get to where I am today, but I also like who I’ve become, even if I can be a little full of pride and wrath at times.”

“Well, let the record show that I completely forgive you for being rude to me when we first met,” Trevor said lightly. “It’s water under the bridge, lady.”

“And yet you still call me lady, Son of Ander,” she playfully challenged with a raised eyebrow.

“That’s kind of our thing now, isn’t it? One of the founding pillars of our friendship?”

Adabelle opened her mouth to say something against it, but found that the words wouldn’t come. With a light laugh, she shook her head. “I want to say that’s wrong, but I’m afraid it’s completely accurate.”

“Aww, don’t be afraid. It all worked out, didn’t it?” he asked, waving his free hand to gesture at the room.

“Not actually afraid,” she laughed. “You’re just trying to push my buttons. Well, it’s not going to work. I’m in too good a mood.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m hoping for,” Trevor said. Three more knocks came from the door, and this time he called out. “Come in.”

The door opened to allow the same man from before into the room carrying a large tray of food. Behind him was a halfling woman who was doing the same. They set up small tables and put the platters down before she bowed and left. “Will there be anything else?” the man asked.

“No, we’re good,” Trevor said absently as he stared at the food.

“Very good, sir. If you need anything else, please don’t hesitate to reach out,” he said before bowing and leaving.

“This is glorious,” Trevor stated.

“I told you that it was a transcendent experience,” Adabelle reminded.

“Next time you say that, I’m going to believe you for sure.”

Sitting beside them was a veritable buffet of foods ranging from meats to vegetables to deserts. Steaks next to roast, soup next to salad, pie next to ice cream, Trevor saw everything he knew he liked and more. The scents mingled with each other as the room filled, and his stomach growled.

“There’s no way we can eat all of this,” he said as he started pulling food off of the platter and onto the table. “I’ve never been so happy to pick up a time locked inventory before. This is going to last us for days.”

Adabelle happily nodded as they began to dig in.