Chapter 2: Familiar Sidequests
Damn it, she really should've been more specific. Now she was just awkwardly standing around the sweets shop, looking around and waiting for someone who she had no idea where he was. She hated waiting like this, even for Bard. It made her feel self-conscious, and like she was being judged by people who saw her.
Why wasn't he here yet? Didn't he want to come and meet with her? Why didn't she just do something else about it instead? Or just get started without him?
Because… that's what he said he wanted to do, and… Bard's ways usually ended up working on in the end. Usually. She had to save his butt when they didn't. Which was more than once. But she didn't mind so much.
Miriam kept standing outside the shop, where she could still hear the same little melody that had been playing ever since he first showed up in Delphi. It was lovely, of course, but it was starting to get a little grating after playing for so long. As she looked through the glass pane, examining the frankly unappetising offerings, she caught a reflection of herself. It was staring back at her, with the usual scowl she wore whenever there were people around.
She stood immobile for a few seconds, eyeing herself back. She had that defensive posture, arms crossed, back straightened, and an unwelcoming expression. It was effective at least… it made people keep their distance, not talk to her. Just as well. She didn't really have much she wanted to say to them. She said what was on her mind, and what she needed to say, no more. All business, no pleasantries.
Effective at not making friends.
She shook the thought of her head. She didn't want to deal with this. Those thoughts didn't help get things done. This is why she hated waiting like this. Because she started thinking… and some of those thoughts she didn't know how to deal with. She been dealing with too much of that lately.
It was only when the shopkeeper knocked on the glass that she was snapped her out of her thoughts, left staring blankly at the confused man in front of her. He mouthed a "Want some sweets?" to her and gesture to come in, but she just quietly scoffed and turned around, stepping away from the shop.
As luck would have it, that was exactly when she saw Bard approaching down the path nestled between bright red trees. She found herself sighing in relief, and her scowl softening as he came closer. And as usual, he was singing all the way, and small animals were looking at him and following him closely, enthralled by his voice.
How the hell he manages to do that, she'll never understand.
And when the bard saw Miriam waiting for him, that unmistakable goofy grin showed up in his face as his pace quickened to meet up with her. "Hi Miriam!" He greeted with enthusiasm as he stopped right in front of her. The small critters scurried back into the reddish trees as his singing ceased.
"About time you showed up…" She commented, still scowling, but not really angry.
"Sorry if I was late. I should've been more specific about when I'd come… but I'm here now! So we can do things!" He replying, quickly brushing off the worry. "Um, what are we doing today?" They hadn't really talked about that, either… but he didn't mind. Any time spent with Miriam was bound to be time well spent.
"We have to take care of a few things. Follow me, and try to not get too distracted with other things…" She started explaining, but her voice trailed off as Bard caught the store owner waving at him, and the former waving back, and entering the store, already chatting it up.
Miriam stood there, puzzled for a second, before bringing her fingers to her temples and rubbing them. "Oh Eya this is going to be a long day…" She muttered under her breath, already predicting running errands until sundown if this was the pace at which things would get done.
She thanked Eya that the bard only spend a few minutes inside the shop, and then came out, still with the same smile and attitude, as if nothing had happened. Miriam wondered if things ever got to him. He had told her that they did, but… it was really hard to tell with him. If it was true, he was quite adept at masking it. She did notice, however, while the shop door was slowly closing itself, that the melody playing from inside was new, different. It was… catchy. Fun. Interesting. Slower tempo. Huh.
"Sorry about that, Miriam. But at least I got some candy, he said I could have it as a thank you for being a hero! Want some?" He reached into his pockets and took out some little chocolate pieces in various shapes wrapped in colorful paper. Where did he get those, those actually looked good compared to the stuff she saw…
She pushed all that aside. "No. Now come on, I have a feeling that this will take a while." She wanted to scold him for that, but… eh, it was alright. Didn't matter. She started walking uphill into town, Bard dutifully following her as he munched into a few pieces of candy, and singing a few notes in between bites.
The image of the grumpy witch guiding the bardas he sang around town, waving at people and having all of them return the cheer, was starting to get burnt into her brain, even when she tried to not think about it as she checked her list. She was used to it, in a way, but… before, they were heroes on an adventure to save the world, brought together by impending doom and a race against time.
Now that the adventure was over… what were they?
She didn't know how to answer. Well. She suspected she knew what her answer was. They were friends. Simple as that. And this was just the way friends were, unfamiliar as they were to her, and it would just take some getting used to.
She turned around to look at him. Early on in their journey, the Bard would always follow slightly behind her. But now he was walking right beside her. Closely. It didn't feel invasive like when anyone other than Saphy tried it, not that she'd let them. It was nice to have company for once for these things. Saphy wasn't as mobile and couldn't walk all that much, so she'd send her to do tasks most of the time. And people would keep their distance. So this was… unfamiliar.
But not unwelcome. Not unappreciated.
Well, it wasn't quite sundown, but it wouldn't be long until the sun started to hide beneath the distant hills by the time they got down. Both Bard and Miriam were carrying a few bags with various goods and objects inside, an odd assortment, at least as far as Bard considered it. They weren't too heavy but definitely a bit too much for just one person to carry.
"Well, that's everything. I'm surprised we got it done as quickly as we did." Miriam commented, sounding a bit tired and exhausted, but ultimately glad that it was finished.
"See, Miriam? If you're nicer to people, they can be nice to you back and help you do things faster!" Bard piped up beside her, glad he took the day before this one off, otherwise he'd wouldn't have been able to keep going like this for almost half a day.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever, let's just get going. I wanna rest." Miriam dismissed his point as the path out of town and towards her home came into view. She was just ready to just bring it all home and be done with the day, though she had no doubt that Saphy would ask all sorts of questions about her day. Ever since the adventure started, every single hour she was at home, she'd ask her all sorts of questions, and she didn't exactly enjoy some of the hidden implications behind some of them. She had enough trouble answering them to herself as it was.
Her train of thought was swiftly brought to a halt by one loud cry. "Ace!"
Miriam stopped in her tracks and turned around to see, just a few houses down the street… a short yet large man with a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses, and a cheap suit. And to his sides, an elegant violinist and someone with an accordion that looked like they would be the textbook example of a wallflower. She remembered them. This was the band from Delphi, that played in Mohabumi that one time they danced together.
Not together. He joined for a bit, and it was two individual dances happening nearby. Anyway, she noticed the singer that they brought along in The Crater wasn't with them… did they replace them, just like Bard had to be replaced when he left with the pirates?
"Manny! Viola, Ash!" Bard exclaimed, sounding as joyful and excited as one could, and quickly put down what he was carrying to the floor gently, then ran up to his former bandmates.
"My goodness, we meet yet again!" Viola spoke with her usual cadence, carrying her violin case under her arm, wearing what seemed like a new dress.
"I thought we wouldn't see him again…" Ash said in a low voice, still looking the most glum of the three, and yet their expression somehow looked even so faintly brighter.
"Nonsense, I told ya Ace would come 'round and we'd catch him!" Manny butted in, his wide smile and expressive arms showing nothing but satisfaction at having Bard in front of him. "Man is it good to see you once again, and it not being so close to the world endin'!"
"I know, I missed you guys!" Bard exclaimed, all the tiredness of the day evaporating at seeing their dear three faces. "I'm sorry I didn't get to hang around, but it's been a bit hectic lately and I couldn't find the time to play with you again."
"Ah, don' worry 'bout it. We understand ya. You stay busy savin' us all, and we keep their spirits up until you do it." Manny always had this odd mixture of humility and brashness about him, and Bard wouldn't have it any other way.
"It's true. In fact, as the sky turned darker, more people would gather around us, and we'd play our hearts out to give them hope, as we waited for what would come next. Not the ideal circumstances for a concert, but our attendance numbers and the thunderous applause made up for it." Viola added, looking decidedly proud of herself.
"Yeah, the little bit of extra cash was nice, but… I'm glad I'm not so nervous on stage anymore…" Ash said, their voice still soft and one that has to be paid attention to, so it didn't get lost in the background noise.
"I'm so happy to know you guys had awesome and cool adventures!" By this point, Miriam was slowly approaching the little reunion from behind Bard, cursing quietly enough to be incomprehensible to the rest, as she uncomfortably carried everything closer to Bard. Just when she thought she'd finally get away from this place, here he was getting carried away again, more friends coming out of the walls and trees…
"Oh, what happened to Jamie?" The bard asked, looking around but not finding him anywhere in sight.
"That guy? Ah, nothin' exciting." Manny explained as the dusking sun reflected off his sunglasses. "Shortly after the gig at The Crater, we all knew that the kid was talented, but none of us were really feelin' the magic, ya know what I mean? It just wasn't groovin'. We've had a few other guest singers around, since it really completes our little ensemble… but I gotta be honest, none of them were ever as good as you, Ace." Manny's face had this glow about it. It wasn't just the sun; it was the slowly rekindling hope that Bard would join them once again.
"Your sweet vocal tones are what helped bring the band together, after me, of course, and it's proven impossible to find a comparable replacement." Viola explained, and though her ego was still showing, it was clear that her comment was sincere.
"Yeah… when you sang for me and my mom, it felt like no one I'd ever heard before. Or since, really." Ash commented, as Bard listened and his heart felt touched by the comments.
"Ace, I ain't gonna mince words. I want ya back in the band. I mean, since the world is not ending and all anymore, I think you got the time to jam with us. Whadda say?"
At what at this point that Miriam finally caught up to the rest, wondering just how miffed she ought to be at the bard at the moment. She'd heard Manny's offer, and now just wanted to hear his reply.
"I'd love to!" Bard replied immediately. Now that he had the time to spare, and wanted to still go on exciting adventures, being part of Manny's band, knowing that they could travel around like that, was the perfect opportunity. He couldn't be happier to have this opportunity. "It'd be wonderful to sing along to your music again!"
"That's just what I wanted to hear, Ace. Welcome back to the band!" He exclaimed with open arms, as Viola and Ash smiled at him, glad to have his again. "Good news, you don't have to wait to get goin'; our next gig is tomorrow!"
Both Bard and Miriam were taken aback by this, the former looking a little shocked by this. "Tomorrow?"
"Yeah, tomorrow! Don't worry about it, though, it's right here in Delphi. We, uh, couldn't find anyplace else that'd take us so soon. But hey, it's the band back together right where they started. I'm sure the town would love ta hear you're there, too! Come on, whadda say? You, us, the Crazy Raven, just like old times!"
"Actually, it was just that one time…" Ash piped up from behind.
"It may be so, but it was a very important time for the band." Viola pointed out to them, and turned to look eagerly at the bard, still looking surprised. "I do hope you'll join us once again, and in a more permanent manner."
"But of course! I'd be happy to sing with you guys tomorrow!" Bard responding, barely containing his glee, and the way he felt like bouncing and bounding around. The four musicians cheered and exchanged pleased looks with each other.
And then Miriam butted in.
"Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeat. So you have a concert tomorrow. But for this evening, you and I have some things to get back to my place. So how about you-" She emphasised the word as she shoved a whole bunch of bags into his hands, forcing the Bard to take hold of it. "-grab your share of the stuff, and help me carry this before it gets dark." And she picked up her own things, and started walking back towards the path, leaving Bard a bit dazed on the spot.
"Ah, it's fine, Ace. Come back here early tomorrow and I'll tell you all the details. You just get some good sleep!" Manny give him a thumbs up as the other two nodded in agreement. "See ya tomorrow. But, Ace, buddy… you going back to her place? Eya, that must've been some adventure you two must've been through if I see this happening!"
Miriam was still within earshot. She stopped dead in her path, then sharply turned her head around to face Manny, with a terrifying, icy scowl, and sparks coming out of her eyes, with magical energy being summoned forth with fury. Manny wasn't sure if it was the electrical-like magic or the sheer look of violent disapproval in the witch's face that made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He took a step back at her, and Viola and Ash took several more.
"Whoa, calm down, I didn't mean it like that, jeez… you know what, Ace, it looks like you are gonna be occupied, and have things to deal with, so we're just gonna scram. See ya soon, kiddo!" Manny hurried through his words, shook the bard's hand without even waiting for him to extend it, and quickly bolted out of there, Viola and Ash struggling to keep the large man's surprising pace. Once they had turned the corner, Bard looked back at Miriam. The sparks were gone, but the scowl most definitely was not.
"Ummm, Miriam? Are you okay?" He asked, approaching her slowly.
"Let's. GO." Was all she uttered, then marched her way down the path, as Bard was still a bit confused, and did his best to stay beside her, even if she seemed adamant to not look at him at all for most of the trip back to her house.