Idelle’s lungs burned as she sprinted through a maze of narrow streets, hazy lights and the occasional shocked face flying past her as she ran. Wyrlet’s roads twisted back on each other in a confusing mess, but she used glimpses of the still nearby wall to keep herself moving in roughly the same direction. A few of the surprised passerbys shouted out to her, asking her what was wrong or shouting to slow down, but she ignored them as she desperately tried to think.

Where could she go? She knew almost nothing of the city’s layout other than what she’d seen in her brief glimpse from the wall, but hiding in an occupied house was a recipe for disaster. Think. Think. A shop, maybe? One that would certainly be closed by now? But where? All around her were still houses… Away from the lights, that would be her best bet!

A wider street opened in front of her, and she glimpsed a scattering of people strolling and a wagon before backpedaling the way she came and turning into another small alley. Damn it. The roofs, maybe? She looked up. Even if she could get on top of them, the houses were sometimes tightly packed and at others spread across wider streets. She might trap herself.

She glanced back. If the soldiers were following, she’d lost them for now, but with all the commotion she’d made… She made a decision and turned towards where she’d last seen the walls. The streets were mostly dimmer and more deserted there. She wished Cecilia was still there to guide her, but then again, it seemed like the men had known her. Maybe even been looking for her. What had she gotten herself into?

Another street. A signpost was ahead. “Tonsor Way”. A barbershop, that should be closed by now! She turned down it and slowed to a brisk walk. It was empty of visible people. Thank the dragons. Her breathing was fast and stilted, and she desperately tried to slow it despite her lungs burning, trying to appear even a little casual to anyone who might see her.

There. A storefront, with no light visible behind the door. She tried it, but an iron lock barred her way in. She looked behind her and slipped between the store and its neighbor. Was there a window? There was. Wooden shutters blocked her way, but she grabbed at them and shoved with all her strength and there was a loud crack as the latch broke and she stumbled forward into the sill. A moment later she was inside, pressing the shutters closed again.

She stopped, chest still heaving, and listened intently. The seconds ticked by, a few at a time, then a few more. No shouts sounded. No footsteps, coming to investigate the noise. Her eyes darted around; as if trying to anticipate someone leaping out at her.. Several beds with adjacent tables were barely visible in the darkness in front of her, some kind of tools scattered on one of them. She still heard nothing except her own slowing breaths.

Finally, she let herself sink to the floor, back against the wall. Her head sank into her knees as the adrenaline subsided, leaving an empty mess of emotions in its place. She knew she should do something, anything, think of a plan now that she was in the city, but she felt exhausted. How had she thought this would go?

She hadn’t really thought about it, she supposed. Where was she going to sleep? Find work? She didn’t understand how the city worked, in truth. She’d thought it would just be like a bigger town, with a few simple shops and houses for those who grew or hunted food. Not like this. This maze of streets and buildings, like an anthill filled with people. What did you do in a place like this?

She tried not to think about it. She just needed a moment, that was all. Maybe she should have just stuck with Mirabel and Aldo and told them the truth. Maybe they would have helped her anyway. She felt more alone hiding in the dark room right now than she had even in the forest. At least there she’d had a real plan. Now? She was just alone, and afraid again.

Distant footsteps.

She tried not to panic. Had she jinxed herself? Being alone was fine, actually. No, being alone was great. She liked being alone. She’d always been a lone wolf, really. Just ask anyone who knew her.

She choked back the beginnings of a hysterical laugh at her nonsensical thoughts. Stay calm. People walk by for all kinds of reasons in cities. Probably.

The footsteps were growing closer. Multiple people, walking together.

She pressed herself up against the wall, scooting her body over to be under the window. Even if someone peered through the shutters, they couldn’t see her. It was nearly pitch black in here. No normal person could see a thing. The scattered tools on the table next to the bed caught her eye again. The glint of metal. They looked like a series of strangely shaped blades.

The footsteps stopped. Right outside the barbershop. She heard a voice.

“Is this the place, Your Highness?”

A moment later, the footsteps came again. Moving in different directions now. Someone walked past the window she was under, and she heard heavy breathing and the rustle of thick leather.

She was definitely panicking now.

A noise came from the front of the building, and suddenly a light illuminated the other side of a doorway to her left, casting long shadows. She shrank back even further, petrified. Whoever was outside the window had stopped, and she had no doubt the building was surrounded. A strange heavy feeling was building in her chest.

The shadows danced and flattened as whoever had the light came closer. She stared at them, and slowly, silently, stood up next to the window. Her left hand unconsciously reached for her waist, but there was no tooth waiting there to grab. Her back was rigid, eyes fixed unblinkingly on the doorway.

A familiar figure came into view. Taller than her, with blond hair pulled back into a slightly messy braid. The strange, unflickering light in Cecilia’s hand was too bright to make out her face, but the girl’s slightly teasing voice was unmistakable.

“Hey, Idy. Has anyone ever mentioned that you run really fast?”.

Idelle stared at her for a long moment as if frozen, then slid back down the wall in a slump and started to cry. A few little sniffles that led almost immediately into a series of choking sobs as she hid her eyes from the intensity of the light shining through the doorway.

“W-wait, hold on, what’s wrong?” Cecilia sounded legitimately shocked, the first time since they’d met that Idelle had seen her in any way lose her composure. The light dimmed and the other girl quickly strode over. “What happened? Are you hurt?”

Idelle pulled away from her and tried to wipe her face with her sleeve, but her tears wouldn’t stop coming and her words came bursting out in between ragged breaths.

“You happened! W-what’s WRONG with you? Is this some kind of game you play? To sneak people into the city and then hunt them down to throw them out again? Is this fun for you?”

She looked up and was a little satisfied to see the dismayed expression on Cecilia’s face. The taller girl was the one to break eye contact this time, looking away before hesitatingly speaking.

“No, it’s not—”

Idelle cut her off, “Well, it’s not fun for me. You win. You’ve played your stupid game, you’ve proven you can trick me and find all the rats hiding in your stupid city. Good for you. Now hurry up and throw me out of here.”

She pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her face in them, almost defiantly. They’d have to either carry her out or try and force a crying girl to walk, she decided. That’d show them. Then she hiccuped loudly, and it made her start crying again.

A hand touched her shoulder, and she flinched, but it was a gentle touch despite being firm, and the voice that came along with it was gentle as well. “Hey. Hey, it’s all right. Calm down. You have the wrong idea.”

She shook her head numbly, suddenly too exhausted to shake the hand off. She didn’t have it in her to play more of Cecilia’s verbal games.

“No, I’m serious. It’s all right. No one is going to do anything to you if you don’t want it. You have my word.”

Something in the other girl’s voice made her look up despite herself. Cecilia was crouched in front of her, face gently lit by the strange glowing ball of light that was in—no, over—her other hand, and her face looked concerned, with no trace of her usual smirk. Their eyes met just as the next words left her mouth.

“On my name as Princess Cecilia Lerne, 23rd in line for the Throne, you are more than welcome to stay in the city of Wyrlet for as long as you might desire.”

Idy blinked at her, so shellshocked that she even forgot to cry for a moment.

“...What?”

Idelle had thought earlier that she had reached the point that Cecilia couldn’t throw her off anymore, but clearly something had gone terribly, horribly wrong. Princess? Was she being serious?

Oh. Right. Of course she wasn’t. She slapped Cecilia’s hand off her shoulder and spat the words out. “Don’t make fun of me. Do you think I’m stupid?”

The other girl shook her head and started to reach for her again before thinking better of it. “No. I mean. No. Like I said, that’s not it.” She stared at Idelle a moment and then raised her voice. “Adrian.”

Idelle stared at her, and a moment later stared as the red-headed man who had spoken to them when they’d been caught earlier walked in and stood by the doorway. “Yes, Your Highness?”

“Could you give us a little privacy?”

He did just that. She kept staring. What?

“I figured you might be more comfortable talking alone. Isn’t it a little nicer this way?” There was still no trace of Cecilia’s usual flippant tone in her voice. She sounded sincerely concerned, maybe even guilty.

“...No, not really, honestly.” Idelle didn’t know what else to say except the truth. She paused. Your Highness. She’d heard someone say that earlier, outside the building. Were they really that dedicated to making fun of her?

“I’m truly sorry. I don’t know what else to say. I was about to explain earlier, but, well, you ran away before I had a chance.” Cecilia was still looking at her intently, and Idelle found she couldn’t meet her gaze. Was this really just all her fault again?

“But, why? I don’t understand. If you’re a princess, then why all—” she gestured vaguely as if climbing a tree— “that?”

There was an awkward cough and Idelle looked up to find the alleged princess to be the one looking away now. “Would you be mad if I admitted that it really was for fun? It seemed like a cool adventure…”

She stared at her. “Yeah, I’d probably be a little mad.”

“Look, I’m really sorry, all right? I was just going to surprise you! Anyone else would be amazed to find out they’d been running around with a princess, you know! And then you’d be free to do whatever you liked in the city. Wouldn’t that be a more than fair trade?”

She couldn’t tell if Cecilia’s tone was pleading or annoyed, now. But with a sinking feeling in her chest, she had to admit to herself that it did sound like a great deal. Meeting a princess, free entry to the city, the ability to tell an alchemist that she had a referral from royalty. Yeah. All that for having what amounted to a dumb prank played on her. She might have really messed this one up.

The sinking feeling intensified and she cast around for words to say, but none came. Even if the other girl was telling the truth, she didn’t really feel like forgiving her right now. She wished again that she’d just gone on to another city. As it was, she felt mentally tattered on top of the physical exhaustion from her earlier escape. She was certain that she’d never run so fast before in her life. A thought struck her at that, and the words escaped her without thinking.

“How did you find me, anyway? It didn’t seem like any of you kept up with me.”

Cecilia’s face seemed to brighten a little at the question. “Oh, that was simple actually. I just used a tracking charm.”

Idelle paused. She thought for a moment. She’d been looking for an alchemist to learn magic, hadn’t she? Her plans had really fallen apart, huh. Her eyes fell to the little ball of light hovering over the princess’s hand.

“...Tracking charm? Then… You know magic?” Her voice came out quieter than she expected and she was suddenly aware of the way it echoed a little in the room.

Cecilia nodded and seemed to straighten slightly where she knelt. “Not to brag, but I’m one of the best in the whole royal family.”

Idelle hesitated, then spoke, a little haltingly, without meeting her eyes. “In that case… I guess I can forgive you. But, only if you do me a favor. I want to learn. Teach me.”

If she had been less tired, or less upset, or been looking at the taller girl, Idelle might have caught a hint of strangeness in Cecilia’s tone as she replied. “Teach you magic? That’s what you want?”

Idelle nodded, and then hastily added an addendum. “And, if you lie to me like that again, I’ll… I’ll…” she hesitated and then impulsively blurted “I’ll hate you.” She regretted the words almost immediately. Could she say anything more childish if she tried?

But the moment was swept aside as Cecilia clasped her hand firmly and flashed her a dazzling smile, dark eyes sparkling with the reflected radiance of her charm of light. “It’s a deal then. I’ll teach you magic. No taking it back! We can start tomorrow!”

And just like that, Idelle had finally arrived in the city of Wyrlet.