Alright I'll keep the blabbing to a minimum. Haha. This chapter continues at the end of the school day from the previous chapter with Hunter going out front to meet Darius to 'start his lesson'? What 'lesson' you may ask? Read on to find out! :D Fair warning, this chapter will focus mainly on Hunter and Darius's dynamic and there won't be any 'Huntlow' interactions until the next chapter where we finally get into the day we've all been waiting for… Grom! Anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter! :)

(Hunter's POV)

Oh thank Titan this day is over...

Well, at least just having the school day over was enough for me since I still got NOWHERE close to asking Willow to Grom like I wanted.

Again… not surprised about that anymore when it comes to me at this point.

And while I usually would be bummed out about not having Flyer Derby practice under 'normal circumstances', I was almost relieved not to have practice today or tomorrow with Grom happening just to keep my 'head on straight'.

But, now I have to go to the gates to find Darius and… huh?

I just walked out of the school and saw Darius smiling and laughing as he shook hands with Principal Bump.

What the?...

I tilted my head and quirked up an eyebrow at the 'interaction' until Principal Bump started to walk back inside the school.

Well, at least until he saw me and said, "Ah, well if it isn't our Alternate Flyer Derby Captain. Nice work last week on your team win against Glandus! Hopefully you and Willow have something up your sleeves for St. Epiderm next week and win the first conference Flyer Derby Cup. I already have a spot cleared out for it in the trophy cases for when you win. Because I'm counting on it!"

Then he just patted me on the back with an expectant smile and thumbs up before waking off.

Yeah, like we hadn't already noticed.

Seriously, whenever he sees all or any of us from the Flyer Derby team, he won't let us forget about the fact that he 'has a spot in the trophy case for us' for 'when we win'.

I mean, we're all pretty confident, but… why not put extra pressure on us to succeed and then guilt trip us afterward if we don't.

So, yeah… no pressure, right?!

But, that wasn't what I was trying to pay attention to right now as I went right up to Darius and questioned, "What was that all about? I thought you said to meet you by the front gate of the school?"

Darius just pulled his cloak back over his shoulders and straightened it out before saying with a shrug, "Bump saw me and asked for a 'favor'. Apparently Eda and Raine were supposed to chaperone Grom this year, but Raine sent in earlier today to say both of them caught the common mold and couldn't be there. Which to me definitely sounds like Raine since they're more 'sensible' to keep their germs to themselves. Anyhow, due to this situation, Bump asked me if I wouldn't mind stepping in at the last minute to supervise the event with another volunteer he got on this short notice."

My eyes went wide in shock before my entire expression twisted in confusion as I tilted my head and questioned even further, "Chaperone? You mean, you actually agreed to come to Grom? Why?"

He just smirked and shrugged again before passing off, "Why not? You go here now. So I think as a guardian to a current student here and myself being an Alumnus, I'd say I'm more than eligible for this sort of role. Besides, this way I can be in either eye or ear shot in case you need anything."

I was about to open my mouth to protest until he assured me, putting his hand up, "Don't worry, I'm not going to involve myself in your little 'crush' or whatever it is. I'll be there more as just glorified 'moral support' while I attempt to do the 'adult thing' of socializing with the other random chaperone who volunteered. However; that being said, all the more reason for us to go off to our 'destination' to continue our lesson."

After that he just started walking off as I continued to look at him in absolute confusion.

All the more reason? 'All the more reason' for WHAT?!'

He keeps talking about me 'learning a lesson' and how he's apparently taking me 'somewhere' to help do that apparently? But, against every instinct I had and after how long I've personally known Darius, I knew he wasn't going to elaborate now or any time soon.

After pursing my lips and weighing my options (and also seeing Amity, Luz, Gus, and Willow walking out of the school together), I eventually bit my tongue and followed Darius to 'wherever we were going'?

And we walked… and walked… and walked… and kept walking until we were deep inside the marketplace of Bonesborough.

I kept getting more and more confused until I felt Darius stop me by putting a hand on my shoulder as I heard, "Ah, here we are!"

I looked over to see what he was talking about and felt like my mind was twisting in on itself when I saw where we were. It looked like a tailoring shop of some kind as I read out loud in absolute confusion, "Meddle's Mending and Tailoring? And we're 'here' why? How is THIS place going to help me at all with anything?!"

At first I thought he was going to take some sort of jab at me about my 'sewing skills' (which HAVE gotten better) until he just looked at me and started, "Hunter, remember what I told you? I am your ally and not your enemy. And as much as it stretches belief or not… you live under my roof now and; therefore, I do care about you and making sure you succeed with what you want to do. And this is a good place to start. Since I've been meaning to get some of my formal attire altered regardless before I knew I was chaperoning Grom anyway, I thought you could benefit from this experience as well. My father always told me growing up that 'a successful witch always dresses for the goals they wish to achieve'. And correct me if I'm wrong, but do you even own a suit to wear to Grom?"

Almost on reflex I grimaced and was about to say something until I shut my mouth, unsure how to respond.

Well, yeah, I don't have any formal clothes since everything I owned was destroyed when the castle was leveled to the ground and turned into a historical landmarker after the collector was 'dealt with' and the newly sworn in governmental body took over.

But that doesn't mean he has to remind me!

I mean, I was going to get a suit after I asked Willow to Grom, but considering Grom was tomorrow and I still was nowhere close to asking her to go with me… what's the point?

Besides, I hardly have a lot of money right now anyway.

But, maybe getting a new suit couldn't hurt anyway for future use, I guess?

After a few seconds of reaching into my pocket to see if I had enough snails (which I doubted), Darius put a hand on my shoulder and said, "Don't. This will be my treat, that I insist on. Then you can't say I never did anything for you in all this. Now, let's get to it. Cuneus is expecting us and I prefer not to be late to my 'engagements'."

If I didn't feel like my feet were stuck to the ground after I processed all that (and continue to still feel simultaneously complimented and mildly put off in the way only Darius seems to manage toward me), I did now.

But, intrigue kind of took over my confusion for the time being as I followed Darius into the shop, making a chime above the door go off that also sent these discs of light in several directions to various connecting rooms.

We stood in silence as I looked around the store. The walls were lined with shelves that had bolts of cloth of various patterns and colors that were all meticulously organized while the floor had rows of clothing racks filled with a variety of clothes that were equally as grouped and organized.

Well, no surprise why Darius seems to like coming here for his clothes.

Considering his closet is just as organized from that one time I saw it after I needed to barrow a cloak from him.

I was so focused on surveying my surroundings that I winced when I heard a loud, frustrated, and crotchety tone yell from the next room, "WHO'S THERE?!"

Well… that was loud.

Right then Darius put his hand to the side of his mouth to amplify his voice as he yelled back, "CUNEUS, IT'S ME, DARIUS! I BROUGHT MYSELF AND MY WARD FOR A CLOAK FITTING LIKE I TOLD YOU!"

"DARIUS?! OH! DARIUS! ONE SECOND!" The voice shouted back from the next room over, still wondering why they were talking so loud when he sounded like he was only several feet away in the next room.

But, right before I was about to ask, Darius leaned over and explained, "Cuneus is one of the best tailors in all the Boiling Isles. I trust no one else to handle my clothes except for him. But, just try to speak up. He's very old and in denial about the fact that he's hard of hearing so if he asks you something, either write down your response or speak with feeling. Cuneus gets easily frustrated if he can't hear you so try to be mindful of that."

Almost immediately from the next room over as if on cue, my eyes went wide as I saw this old, old witch walk out.

His back was hunched over with a measuring tape around his neck that was almost dragging on the floor by his feet, making me wonder if he's ever tripped over it at some point. Then his face looked as if he sucked on the sublimes of the orchards in Palm Stings, definitely looking like the kind of old witch who would get easily frustrated with anything that even looked at them 'wrong'.

Almost instinctively, I reached into my pocket for my notepad that I usually use for making glyphs, deciding to opt for just writing out my responses than get chewed out by a crotchety old tailor for not shouting at him loud enough.

I already hurt two of my friends' feelings for trying to help me today, almost blew my cover with Willow again, and am still nowhere close to where I want to be with asking her to Grom.

So, the last thing I need is to be yelled at by this elderly witch with very little patience.

"DARIUS! WELL MET, MY BOY! WHAT BRINGS MY FAVORITE PATRON IN?!" Cuneus shouted with some semblance of a smile as he grabbed his hand in a firm grip. Darius just smiled back and shook his hand as he replied in an equally loud tone, "THANK YOU! I'M HERE FOR AN ALTERATION AND HE'S HERE FOR A FITTING!"

Right then, I saw Darius reach into his cloak and pull out a sheet of paper and hand it off to Cuneus. Cuneus carefully looked at the paper and then looked at me as he looked at me and I braced myself as he finally yelled in my direction, seeming like he lost his 'mental filter' halfway through as well, "AH! SO, YOU'RE THE WARD DARIUS TOLD ME ABOUT! HUNTER… MIDAS? MIDAS?! HEH! THAT'S AN ODD SECOND NAME! NEVER HEARD THAT ONE BEFORE. ANYWAY, WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?! MY TIME IS IMPORTANT, SO BE QUICK ABOUT IT!"

Midas… still trying to get used to that even now.

And I was the one who changed my surname to that!

Back in the human realm, Luz and her mom would take all of us to the library to pick out books sometimes.

And one time Luz dragged me into the fiction section even though I wanted to look at Non-fiction so I could try to learn more about the new world I was living in… among other things I was trying to figure out. But, since I was already there, I started looking around until I found a book filled with Human Mythology, Folktales, and Legends.

Particularly I got fascinated (and borderline obsessed) with one story specifically: "The Myth of King Midas".

A story and cautionary tale of a wealthy king who had an obsession with gold. His obsession was so great to the point that when a god granted him a wish, Midas wanted the power to turn everything he touched into pure gold. And despite the god's warning and reluctance to grant Midas the wish, he granted Midas the power he wanted.

At first Midas loved his power as he turned everything he owned to gold and craved to have even more… until he slowly started to realize he should've listened to the god on 'being careful what he wished for' since his gifted power soon became a curse that made him unable to touch the flowers in his garden without them turning to gold, unable to eat or drink without his food turning to gold, and eventually got him the point of bitter regret when he accidentally hugged his daughter without thinking and turned her into a gold statue.

Stricken with grief and now hating his power, he went to a river to wash away and relinquish himself of the 'golden touch' and turn everything he had turned to gold back to normal.

The story ended with him giving his daughter his kingdom and riches as he set out to live a humble existence for the rest of his days.

I know, it's a ridiculous made up human story to most likely teach a lesson through metaphor, but… I had never related so much to a story before that moment.

Mainly since, in many ways, I was 'King Midas' when I was the Golden Guard and first met my friends.

And just like King Midas, I prioritized my position and greed to gain more respect for myself that it ended up with me almost hurting and ruining my friends' lives.

My Golden Guard title was my 'Golden Touch'.

And again, just like King Midas, I also slowly realized my errors until I did the right thing by leaving it all behind me. Sure, there was the other 'reason', I ran away…

But whatever, point is, I was doing wrong and had been doing wrong almost blindly for the entire time I've existed… and I didn't fully realize it until I ran away.

However; at the same time, it was like that story was almost an added 'source of reassurance' for me. Because if King Midas could change his life for the better… I don't know? Maybe there was hope for me to keep becoming a better person and friend too to the people who really care about me?

So, when I came back to the Demon Realm and was given the opportunity to change my surname, I took the opportunity fast and took 'Midas' as my last name.

Mainly because I couldn't really think of anything else at the time to change my last name to since I just wanted to legally separate myself from 'Belos' as fast as possible.

And two… I don't know? I guess it also just felt 'right' at the time.

"WELL?! SPEAK UP, BOY! I DON'T HAVE ALL DAY FOR A STARING CONTEST!" Right then I felt something in me twinge after he yelled at me as I gave him a determined expression and I quickly jotted down what I wanted and ripped it off the notepad before handing it to him with a beyond serious look.

Look, I've been looking like an idiot this entire week in front of Willow and everyone else at school… and I'm getting really tired of feeling like one.

Cuneus gave me a wide eyed look before taking the paper from my hand and reading it. At first, I felt my stomach twist a little, thinking I was about to get chewed out by this witch who looked about as agitated as an aggravated colony of Fire Bees.

Well, until I was surprised and even more confused when he started laughing and clapped me harder than I expected on my shoulder before yelling in the same friendly way he did with Darius before, "AH! VERY GOOD! ALWAYS APPRECIATE A YOUNG WITCH WHO DOESN'T GIVE ME A NONSENSICAL ESSAY! YOU WANT A SUIT? STEP OVER THERE AND I'LL HELP YOU AFTER I HELP YOUR GUARDIAN OVER HERE!"

Almost immediately afterward, Darius and Cuneus walked off to this mirror and work station as Darius looked over his shoulder at me and gave me a slight but approving smirk and nod.

I stood there in perplexed confusion, still trying to process what just happened. But… at least one thing seemed to go my way this week?

For once…

2 hours later

Okay, I know this seems kind of ridiculous since as soon as I got home, I put the suit back on that Cuneus fitted me for and I kept looking at myself in it in the mirror in my room.

But, hey, I'll give credit where it's due and honestly… I look good.

I haven't felt like this wearing something since my old uniform as the Golden Guard. Except just feeling more like… myself.

My real self.

Honestly, I hardly did anything the whole time or even gave any input since Cuneus told me to just 'let him work' or more accurately and I quote, "STAY PUT AND LET ME WORK!"

Darius told me after he walked out that Cuneus never asks his clients for specifics since he almost has this sense of knowing what looks best on everyone that clients just trust anything he fits them with.

So, I just kept my mouth shut and just let him do whatever he wanted as he kept measuring my arms, legs, and torso. But, I could tell he wasn't annoyed with me anymore at least since he even told me I had 'good posture'.

Which would have been 'nice' if he didn't scream it into my left ear and spit on my a little in the process.

Anyway, after measuring me more and then walking around me and looking me up and down a few times, I just watched him walk away and go through the clothes on his display racks until he looked like he got a whole outfit together and then shoved the clothes into my chest before pretty much abruptly ordering me to 'try it on'.

And then proceeded to shove me into a changing area with the clothes he picked out before shutting the curtain on me.

After I 'recovered', I put on the suit he got together for me and at first I didn't know what to think… until I looked at myself in the full length mirror in the shop.

My suit he picked out and made 'modifications on' ended up consisting of black dress pants, black dress shirt, and a white suit jacket. A combination I would have never thought of to go together until he made his 'modifications' of fitting the jacket and pants to my measurements and then added these gold accent stripes on the cuffs of the jacket sleeves and putting a gold necktie around my shirt collar and folding a gold handkerchief before siding it into the outside chest pocket on my jacket.

After, getting over processing how he knew 'gold' was something that meant a lot to me, I went into shock as I kept looking at how everything 'came together' with my suit.

He even gave me a set of dress shoes that he wanted me to try on with it.

And again… it felt good.

For a while I've been feeling unsure, discouraged, and confused to some extent ever since I ran away after finding out I was a Grimwalker in a long line of Grimwalkers that Belos created to help him destroy the Demon Realm.

But wearing this suit and even though it was a small feeling by comparison… I felt confident.

I felt like… me.

Even Darius liked my suit, saying the stripes on the cuffs of my jacket were very in right now with formal clothing.

I mean, I don't know about that, but… I did like the way it made me feel.

Even now, I still think that as I straightened out my suit jacket and couldn't hold back from smiling a little to myself in the mirror. I kept looking at myself until I heard, "Glad to see you're enjoying yourself."

I whipped my head over and felt my face go red a little in embarrassment when I saw Darius smirking knowingly in my doorway since I was an idiot and forgot to close the door to my room.

Crap…

I straightened up and got a defensive look about me on reflex.

After a few seconds of silence, Darius sighed before smiling slightly and saying, "Don't worry, I'm not trying to get into your head. I meant what I said. I'm glad you're enjoying your suit. Consider that your late 'welcome back' gift from me."

He was about to walk away before I interjected, "Hey, wait…"

Darius paused before looking back at me, quirking up an eyebrow in intrigue.

At first I was trying to 'get the words together' until I straightened up and got my determined look about me again that I had earlier as I started, "Darius, look, not that I don't appreciate this, but… what was the point of this? Like, you kept saying you were trying to 'teach me something', but what exactly was that?"

We stood in silence again until Darius faced me and crossed his arms at me. Well, until I saw a slight smile come up on his face before he responded, "Hmph, I'm kind of surprised you didn't see that for yourself just now?"

What?

I think he could see the confused, frustration slowly growing on my face as he sighed before continuing, "Look, Hunter… way back when I sent you on that 'mission' to Hexside, I mostly wanted you to realize that you shouldn't always 'play by the rules' of always doing as you're told to a 'T'. You're almost 17 and you should be your own witch and find your own path. Make your own friends, find your own motivations, and most importantly not allow the opinions of others sway you for those reasons. Yes, easier said than done, and it was even a lesson I myself didn't fully learn until I was well into being an adult. And was definitely one I wish I would've learned earlier for myself and not let what others may think of me sway me. But, enough about me, this is about you here. Because you also shouldn't let what you think others prevent you from attempting to go after what you want, and that includes your 'friend'."

My eyes went wide and I felt Darius put a hand on my shoulder before continuing, "Just remember, no matter what she or anyone says or feels after you tell her, don't let it take you over and change how you see yourself. Because you need to look at yourself how you see yourself right there."

Right then I turned my head and saw him pointing to me in the mirror's reflection as he finished, "Because there, I see a confident, capable, and determined young witch who never failed to prove me wrong. And I mean that even now."

I kept looking at myself in the mirror as Darius's words swirled around my head until he patted me on the shoulder one last time before saying, "Well, on that sentimental note, I'll say goodnight."

Darius started to walk out until I said, catching him halfway out my door, "Hey, Darius?"

He looked back at me again like before, but this time… I smirked and nodded before saying, "Thanks…"

All he did was smirk and nod back before walking off, leaving me on my own. Eventually I looked at myself in the mirror one last time, really just looking at myself.

I kept looking at myself until I smirked, feeling that slight surge of confidence coming back that I felt earlier.

Yeah, maybe I didn't get to ask Willow to Grom like I wanted?

Maybe I am still scared to tell her how I feel because I'm scared of her rejecting me?

Like Darius said, it's 'easier said than done', but I'm not going to let it ruin me or my day tomorrow. Because tomorrow, I'm just going to be who I want to be and do what I want to do.

And tomorrow… I just want to be a regular student going to a stupid school social event with my friends and have a good time.

No matter what or what doesn't happen, I'll still have fun.

Or at least try, anyway…

Okay, and honestly, I do truly want to explain my reasoning for these chapters between Hunter and Darius. Because I feel like as we've seen since Hunter left the Emperor's Coven and found out about his 'true nature' and as Hunter himself even said in "Thanks To Them" that he misses 'knowing who/what he's supposed to be'... I just see Hunter having to cope with MAJOR self-confidence issues at this point in time and having a general sense of feeling 'lost' about who he is and what he wants. So, I thought it would be nice for Darius in his own way to kind of show Hunter even further that he has to stop doing 'exactly what he's told' and stop relying on the opinions of others if he really wishes to go after what he wants, even if it's hard. So, Darius being a bit of a vain, confident, and snazzy-dresser himself, decided to give Hunter a bit of a 'confidence boost' by getting him a new suit to help Hunter in some way feel more self-confident in who he is and shouldn't let whatever happens with Willow define him. And I think that's a lesson all of us can benefit from too, including myself as a 27 year old adult. Haha. :) Although apart from actually growing to like Hunter and wanting to look out for him, let's just say Darius has been alluding in the past couple chapters that he too had struggles with that lesson in a way at Hunter's age as well. As to the exact situation for Darius? Stay tuned! Haha. ;) Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and leave your predictions/constructive feedback in the reviews if you like! It's always VERY much appreciated for letting me know what you think. As always, thank you for reading and stay safe out there all!

Stay Classy!

Dexter1995