Chapter 27: The Market's Madness

With a maniacal laugh, Crow hops off of the roof, landing on a store awning. I follow his movements, ignoring the nervous feeling in my throat. He bounces off the striped canopy and falls into the wooden stand right in front of the group. My heart beat picks up when I realize Luke is at the front. I swallow a panicked scream and shove Crow away from the table. Hershel pulls the young boy back as the Black Raven crashes into the stand. Fruits and vegetables fly into the air and I try to ignore the look Hershel's giving me. Emmy grunts as she tries to kick Crow, but he flips directly over her to my left. Before we start running, I swiftly elbow the Raven in the ribs. He slightly cringes, but shakes it off by giving another laugh. We race away side by side with Emmy growling behind us. "Oh no, you don't!" she retorts angrily. I hear her feet pounding as she runs after us, and Hershel yells, "Emmy, no!" He says something to Luke before joining in the chase.

"I though you said you wouldn't hurt them." I grunt. "Did it look like I hurt anyone? I always keep my word Guardian, always keep that in mind." He pants lightly. Crow gains the lead and jumps over a short staircase. He jumps rhythmically from wall to wall, and I follow closely behind him. Emmy is also closing in on us. We land onto a roof and I notice Hershel, along with Luke, following on the ground. I run a little faster to Crow's side, Emmy still nearby. "What exactly are you planning, kid? It better be something worth while." Crow laughs once again; he must've had a bad childhood with that kind of laugh. "You'll see Miss Guardian. When we get off the rooftops, don't follow me. Stay with the other Black Ravens." Before I can respond, we reach the end of the building causing us to jump to the next one. I take a quick look behind us, and sure enough Emmy is only a few feet back from us.

After being chased for a couple minutes, Crow leaps off the building only to land near the entrance of the Black Market. "Go to that blue door over there!" He quickly orders. I flip onto the railing while Crow runs into one of the stores. Hershel and Luke arrive soon after to follow Crow's path. Luke gives me a confused expression before focusing on their chase. They reach the doorway and abruptly stop with shocked looks. The door behind me opens, making me turn around in curiosity. A Black Raven runs to the left and I confusingly follow him. "Nice to see you again, Guardian. I'm guessing Crow escorted you here." A familiar voice speaks out. I recognize the messy haired boy named Badger and smile in greeting. "Yeah, he told me the plan. You might want to watch out though; we have an admirer on our tails." I reply. He jerks his head behind him and turns back around. "I see what you mean. We better get a move on then, missy."

We jump onto another roof with Badger leading the way. Just when I think we lost Emmy, I hear something land on the wooden roof and without looking behind me, I hear her shout, "Get back here, you wankers!" I hide a giggle as she throws insults around. "Didn't think she was that mad. I guess you and Crow gave them quite a scare." The Black Raven mutters in surprise. I shake my head as we continue to jump from building to building. A few times I catch a glimpse of the other two following on the ground. Will Hershel understand why you're doing this? Is he ever going to know you are the Guardian of Time? My head is bustling with doubts and confused thoughts, but I do my best to repress them. I need to focus on the present, not the past or the future. Badger looks at me as he signals me we're going down. I nod curtly in response.

We again land on a raised platform next to another bright blue door. I jump off the wooden stand and slide off part off a roof before reaching the solid earth. "This is where I came before seeing Badger." I murmur to myself. I hear the boy enter the door and close it abruptly. Something falls from the roof and I see Emmy in front of the wooden door. She starts to run towards it, but stops as another door near me opens with a third Black Raven coming out. It laughs manically as it closes the door and I race to catch up to them. Hershel and Luke reach the brunette woman, in which they running behind us. "The name's Wren, Guardian. Crow is very fond of your work." She introduces. I don't respond to the masked girl as we continue running from the threesome.

We end up back at the start, with the food thrown around the wooden stand. The girl called Wren runs in the other direction and I jump onto the cloth awning. The group reaches fruit stand and watch as a new Black Raven runs from one end of the alley to another. Then more Ravens race across the marketplace, leaving Hershel and the group looking around in confusion. "What is this madness?" the man with the top hat asks. He notices me perched on the stand's canopy and looks at me thoughtfully. Before he can say anything, I tell him, "You'll understand, Professor Layton. In all due time, it will become clear. You just need to see beyond the clues." He stares down with his hand on his chin. He always did that whenever there was a puzzle to be solved.

After more Ravens run around confusingly, Hershel finally speaks up. "This is ridiculous..." he mutters. Emmy has trouble deciding which Raven to follow, with a shocked expression plastered on her face. One of the black hooded figures jumps in front of them and I stand at their side. "I am the Black Raven. Welcome to my market." The voice belongs to Crow. Who else would take the role? He asks them why they're here, trying to learn about the Black Market. "We are interested in a particular item." Hershel answers politely. It must be the Specter's Flute Arianna has! The Raven laughs, "Everyone is searching for something. Very well then, but first you must prove what you have what it takes to barter. I'll give you a hint," he pauses momentarily, "you'll have to figure out the rest, on your own!" With that he laughs a final time before we run from the group.

When we're away, I shout above the blowing wind, "I've completed your favor. Now I have other business to tend to; good luck with the party!" I wave goodbye and go my own way out of the marketplace. I take a shortcut over the buildings to avoid pedestrians and travel to the mansion on the hill. Well...that was rather fun. You got to admit that. I bet Hershel will find the Black Market either way; he has much experience with puzzles. Crow doesn't know who he's fooling. I notice I'm already reaching the town's dam, so I continue the run in the silence of my own thoughts. A few people stare as I run past them towards the mansion, but I do my best to avoid them. I'm not in the mood to start talking with the townspeople. I just want to get Tony his candy and go home to relax with Descole, if he's there. Or at least attempt to relax.

The lake and house come into view; I decide to throw the cloak and mask off me. Arianna looks up from playing with Loosha and runs over to me. "Are you alright, you look exhausted?" she asks with a panicked look. I pull out the bagged candy, putting it in her hand. "Tell Tony next time he can get it on his own." I pant. She giggles lightly as she puts it in her coat pocket. "You can count on me to tell him that." I rub my eyes as Loosha squeaks in greeting. "I need to go home; you don't want to know what happened at the market." I mutter. Before I walk away, a short memory clicks in my brain. "We are interested in a particular item." I turn back to Arianna, who is taking a piece of candy from the plastic baggie. "Wait! There's something you should know." The ginger girl blinks curiously in waiting. "There might be people coming here, they won't hurt you or Tony. They'll ask you questions but whatever you do, be careful and do what you think is best." She nods seriously and I say goodbye as I leave her standing with the bagged candy.

Three hours later

I shut the door quietly as I enter the cabin. I don't even know if he's here or not. I better find out then. I walk carefully around the room, grasping my purse with the Guardian's outfit. "Teresa, is that you?" I jump as Descole asks from in a different room. Rubbing my chest I reply, "Yeah, I'm here. I just wanted to take a tour on the gondola." I lie in a calm tone. The door to the bedroom opens as he walks towards me with a smile. "I missed you, dear. Next time tell me where you're going." He stops to caress my cheek. "I just want to know you're safe." I kiss him quickly and grin. "I can take care of myself, love. After all, I was trained by you." He smiles as he takes my hand.

We walk into the bedroom, and sit on the bed. "Did you do anything interesting today?" I inquire. He thinks before shaking his head. "We haven't gotten anything yet. I don't know ho long it'll take." He sighs hopelessly. I lightly push him onto the pillows and press my lips against his. "I'm sure you'll get something soon. Besides, you always have me here." I whisper sweetly. Descole pulls me closer to him and smiles. "You're right Teresa. You're always right." He murmurs as he kisses my neck. I giggle and lie down beside him. We kiss for a while and he strokes my hair while I lay my head on his chest. "I love you so much." He whispers in my ear. I cringe slightly and reply, "I love you too, Descole."

OK...I know I said I would have more time to write during Spring Break, but my parents had a lot of plans for the week. But at least I got this one down. Thank you to arglefumph, which I used his videos to write this chapter. It took me hours to watch the Black Raven cutscene and "study" its contents. Trying to write Teresa in was a little tricky but it's now out of the way. Thank you for reading and keep those eyes on the screen!