21. Falling

Nancy and Jones were horrified to hear of Ventuswill's collapse. Arganan was more than sure that the news spread fast through the whole town, in regards to that. Frey was determined to find a way, as far as he knew.

On the brighter side, however, Dolce recovered easily from her wounds. She didn't remember anything from battling Frey and the others at Obsidian Mansion, nor much about her old life prior to being in Selphia. Arganan wasn't sure whether he should tell her that Ventuswill erased her memory, so he gave Pico the responsibility of doing so.

In the meantime, he wrote a letter. He wasn't sure what else he could do about his issue, so maybe his niece could help? He didn't know. But it was worth a shot.

Dear Calista,

Lady Ventuswill has collapsed. If Sir Therius is available, I think it would be good for you to send him to Selphia as soon as you can. Frey wants to find a way to help Ventuswill, and she's more knowledgeable on Ventuswill's condition than I am, so you'll need to ask her for more information. Ask about the Guardians, too. Apparently they're connected to Ventuswill and the whole of Selphia and Norad as is. I don't fully understand it myself, but that's how it is.

In other news somewhat connected to it, there's a new person. A marionette monster turned human, named Dolce. There's also a ghost girl named Pico that constantly sticks by her side. Both of them are living with me, Jones, and Nancy at the Clinic. Pico is…energetic. Clingy to Dolce, too, and I suspect they probably have been together like that for a long time. They're both fine people, but the Clinic is lot louder now with the two of them…mainly because of Pico.

I hope things have been well with you in Lazulis. I hope the celebration of the new peace treaty with the Gurak Continent went well. I just also hope things have been more peaceful for you, now that you have the peace treaty in place as is.

Also, have you heard anything about whether you found those missing, original research copies? I hope you've found them. I certainly have not. Please let me know when you can.

Sincerely, Your Uncle

Arganan found it hard to go to work and focus on his job, for the next few days. Not because of the couple of injuries he sustained from Obisidian Mansion that he was still sore from (at least his metal limbs didn't break like last time), but because of Ventuswill's collapse. Frey seemed so sad from the whole event, and Arganan didn't blame her. Though he didn't know the dragon well, he figured that Frey must've talked to Ventuswill a lot. Perhaps even bonded with her to the point of friendship.

The former Count was not usually a man that comforted others, but as Frey's friend, he felt like he should do something about this. It wouldn't be productive for the Princess of Selphia to socialize less with others. The townspeople were certainly sympathetic to her being concerned about Ventuswill's collapse, but there was no way Frey couldn't do a thing if she didn't even know where to really begin. Sure, she was asked to save Leon, but then Ventuswill would die.

He knew, from talking to Frey the day after Ventuswill's collapse, that she wanted to find a way to save Leon and Ventuswill. He wasn't sure if it was possible (and apparently he wasn't the only one that doubted it, because apparently Doug told Frey that she might as well just give up), but he wanted to support her any way she could. It was about four days after Ventuswill's collapse when he finally decided he should honestly do something to cheer her up.

But how?

He thought back to the time when Frey offered him pancakes and they sat down together, chatting the night away. Maybe he could make something for her. That evening, after he came back from work, and after things were cleaned up post-dinner, he got to work.

Problem was, he knew he was dismal at cooking on his own. It wasn't like his food was inedible, but it wasn't great. It wasn't, say, Nancy's-cooking-worthy. Asking Vishnal to help was also a bad idea, because Vishnal couldn't cook too well. But then…who? Porcoline?

Arganan shuddered. He doubted he'd get any baked goods or consumables to Frey around that man. Porcoline was a bit too gluttonous to trust with any food item, unless you were giving it to him as a gift. After rooting around in the kitchen upstairs, as well as asking Nancy about what types of desserts were the best to make during dinner, he settled on baking some cookies. How hard could it be to mix flour, sugar, butter and so on together to bake into cookies?

"Why so glum, chum?"

Arganan looked up to see Pico, staring right at him, and he nearly jumped at her sudden appearance. "D-don't do that!"

"Do what?" Pico tilted her head to the side, still staring at him.

"Randomly appear in front of me, that is!" He retorted, shaking his head. "And, where's Dolce?"

"Right here." A hand reached out behind Pico, grabbing her by the collar and pulling her back.

"Eek!" Dolly wriggled around in her grasp, and Dolce could only sigh as she looked at Pico, then towards Arganan. Having fully recovered from her injuries at this point, she had a healthy glow to her skin, a contrast to when he, Frey, Vishnal and Arthur first saw her.

"Sorry about Pico." Dolce managed, shrugging softly. "She's…spontaneous."

The former Count couldn't help but sigh. "I noticed."

"I thought so." Dolce, in contrast to Amber, had a more refined, elegant demeanor. In a way, she reminded him of Calista with her aesthetic. No, Calista didn't wear top hats, nor dresses as frilly as Dolce did, but the way she held herself had such a confidence and elegance to it that was unlike anything else. "What are you up to?"

"I was making cookies. For Frey. I don't know she's doing with the whole situation regarding Ventuswill. Probably upset, so I thought some food would cheer her up."

"Hm." Dolce inspected the cookies-in-making, before speaking. "Do you have a rolling pin?"

Arganan looked around, then shook his head. "I was trying to find it earlier. I figured I could ask Nancy when the time came to roll out the dough."

"You need more butter." Dolce noted. "A lot more."

"Really?"

"Yes."

Cue Arganan running to the fridge to check for more butter. He did find another whole stick.

"And now you put all of it in!" Pico sing-songed, just before Dolce grabbed Pico by the ear and pinched it. "Oww!"

"Do not put the whole stick in there." Dolce immediately cut in, glaring at Pico. "Just half will be fine."

Arganan found himself at Dolce's command for the next thirty minutes, instructed on how to make the right cookie dough, how to roll it out, etc. It was a little bit intimidating, and potentially a little insulting to him due to his past background as a former Count, but she had such a commanding air that he couldn't just outright reject her help/commands. Also, he was pretty sure he'd be lost without her instructions when it came to these cookies, and he didn't want them becoming a catastrophe, so he just let her command him as needed.

As soon as the cookies were in the oven, the former Count heaved a breath, looking towards Dolce. "Thank you." He managed. "For helping me."

Dolce shrugged softly. "It's no problem."

The cookes turned out excellent. Arganan decided it would be good to give to Frey while they were still fresh.

The good news was that Frey was present at the castle.

The bad news was that she was lying in her bed facedown, crying her eyes out. Clearly she was dressed for the day, but her hair didn't look as neat as it usually was, and he was more than sure that he could hear her sniffles every few seconds.

"Frey?" He averted his gaze from her, out of politeness.

"A-Arganan?" Her voice was a little raspy, and he looked towards her again to see that she'd sat up in bed, trying to brush her hair with her hands. "Good evening. Sorry about all that…"

"No." He managed, shaking his head. "It's fine." He took a few hesitant steps towards her, then sat down on the bed beside her, offering her the box of cookies. "I was thinking of you and I made these. I thought it would help lift your spirits."

"You baked cookies?" She stared down at the box, then up at him. "For me?"

"I hope they're okay. Dolce helped, too." He decided to omit the fact that he was virtually commanded by Dolce the whole time.

"Thanks." She smiled, opened up the box to see the cookies inside, and she looked down at them, inhaling deeply. "These smell really good. Chocolate?"

"Some are vanilla, too."

"Great!"

The two dug into eating cookies for a few moments, and Arganan was glad that the cookies turned out well. Frey seemed to be enjoying them, and he was glad to lift her spirits. Eventually the two got into conversation about recent events, especially concerning Ventuswill.

"Have you talked to anyone about this? Granny Blossom, maybe? Doug?" Arganan vaguely still remembered when the dwarf let him know about Frey's late-night trip to Yokmir Forest. Arganan hadn't talked much with Doug, but he had a feeling that Doug was a pretty easygoing, nice guy.

"Uh…not really. Not with Doug."

Arganan blinked. "Why not?"

"Remember when Venti collapsed. I saw Doug the same day." Frey swallowed, looking down. "He…had some choice words to say…"

"Hey."

Frey looked up from leaving the castle, seeing Doug nearby. He was wet from the rain, and it was likely he was outside the whole time.

"Did you hear our conversation?" Frey asked.

Doug frowned, not saying a word.

Frey sighed, pushed a few wet bangs out of her face as the rain continued to dampen her own hair. "I want to help Venti. If I don't hurry, she'll…"

"You're wasting your time. If it's impossible, then it's impossible. Just go help that Leon guy like she asked."

No. She shook her head. Just because I was told it's impossible, doesn't mean it reallyl is!

"Hey!" Doug gritted his teeth, shook his head. Frey thought his eyes flashed with a particular anger, something she'd never seen before. "That dragon, she…"

There was a pause. He faltered, then shook his head one more time. "Just…do whatever you want."

With that, he walked away.

"That's odd." Arganan frowned. He never thought of anyone here having ill will towards Ventuswill, especially given how a lot of people had respect for her, given her status as the Divine Wind. Then again, I guess status can really only do so much, after all.

"Yeah. He's usually never that down." Frey frowned, shook her head. She did open up the box Arganan gave her, eating a cookie before speaking again. "But regardless of what he thinks, I still want to find a way to save her."

A little 'cheep' caught Arganan's attention, and he turned to see a little, pink squirrel-like monster walk in.

"A Chipsqueek?" He raised a brow. He remembered seeing them, when going through Yokmir Forest with Forte to find Frey. It must've wandered in from the woods outside town. But why?

"Chipsqueek?" Frey turned to see the Chipsqueek, smiling softly. "Hey, little guy. Want a cookie?"

The Chipsqueek paused…before launching itself at Frey. Frey didn't get the chance to dodge, tripping and falling off the bed from the odd and sudden momentum, hitting the ground as the Chipsqueek leaped off her.

"Frey!" Arganan put the cookies aside, doing his best to help her up. 'are you okay?"

"Uh, yeah, just a bit disoriented but…" Frey put a hand to her collar, before gasping. "My charm! The one Venti got me!"

Another 'cheep' caught Arganan's attention, and he turned to see that the Chipsqueek now had Frey's charm. It took her charm! "Give that back! Now!"

The Chipsqueek chirped again, before running out of Frey's room with the charm in its paws.

"No!" Arganan tried to run after the Chipsqueek, but he tripped, hitting the ground. Frey gasped, helping him up before handing him his cane.

"You okay?"

"Yes. I'm fine." The former Count shook his head, a hiss leaving him at the pain reverberating through his body from the fall. "I'll be fine. That Chipsqueek…"

"We can use the airship." Frey decided, looking towards him. "I bet it went back to Yokmir Forest."

"The airship?" Arganan stared at her. "You can…drive that thing?"

"Yeah! I got a license a while ago with my Princess Points. We can totally use it!"

"You can drive an airship." He repeated, still staring at her.

She stared right back at him. "What? You couldn't drive one?"

"I…don't have the proper qualifications, no."

"Well," She beamed at him, "Enjoy the ride from me, then!"

Frey's driving of the airship was…less than safe, in Arganan's opinion. He was almost sure he might vomit at the end of the drive, but he thankfully didn't. (This may be one of the few things Frey just wasn't super-great at, so it was probably a good thing they were only going to Yokmir Forest tonight.)

Frey's guess was right, however; the Chipsqueek that they chased from earlier was there at the entrance, running into the forest just as they landed.

"Hey!" Frey finished parking the airship, just before she started dashing straight into the forest. "Get back here!"

"Frey!" Arganan did his best to run after her. However, there was only so much he could do with a cane and a limp, so he lagged a few paces behind her. "Wait!"

He lost sight of her, much to his ire, but he pressed on his pursuit, hoping to hear her or catch some sight of her at some point. Pushing past branches, trees, bushes, and various foliage, he soon found that Frey cornered the Chipsqueek at the edge of a cliff.

"Come on," Frey coaxed, knees bent to try to properly face the Chipsqueek and stare it down, "Hand it over."

The Chipsqueek protested with another chirp, and Frey decided to just leap at the Chipsqueek and hopefully tackle it down long enough to grab the charm back. Arganan knew she could probably make it…

And that was when the Chipsqueek dodged.

Frey tripped over her own feet, going over the edge of the cliff.

"Frey!" He held out his hand, hoping to use his power to somehow stop her fall. A blue glow surrounded her, and she floated in the air. A gasp escaped Frey, her gaze snapping towards Arganan, but before he could do anything to make her float to safety, that was when the blue glow faded.

No. Arganan tried to make his power work again, but nothing seemed to be happening. This can't be not working! Not now!

Frey started falling, and she tried to grab the cliff edge for her life. The rocky edge slipped out of her hands as a scream left her lips.

Arganan could only watch in horror as Frey fell deep into the depths below, falling out of his sight and into darkness.