Let's get right back into it...
Chapter 13
Yet another sleepless night. It was beginning to become a problem- or was it, really? Set stared up into the ceiling. At least this night was spent in a bed instead of on the ground. He'd begun to hate dirt when he came here.
Plus, sleeping in jeans had never been comfortable. The moon had set moments ago, and the stars speckled the sky with brilliance, enough so that Set had positioned himself to where he could best see out of the window. Of course, because he was left alone to ponder, he had a particularly twisted train of thoughts. Rose was his age, and while most Guardian families married young, Howell was far too close to her age to be her son.
They had to be siblings. Ah, but where are their parents...? Dead, probably. That's how it usually is for Guardians. Train, fight, make a family with heirs, fight, die.
Supposedly, even when you die, you fight. Did I mention fighting yet? He chuckled lowly to himself. For all he knew, this was their bedroom. No, they wouldn't have a spare room that had belonged to their dead parents.
Rose probably slept in that room. This was likely Rose's old room. Puzzle pieces, always clicking together in his head.
A peck at the window. His bird creature.
It had two large circlets in its beak. Set arose from the bed and opened the window. Taking the relics from it, he whispered, "Go, now."
With a weak crow, it flew away into the night. Over on a chair that sat in the corner of the room was his blazer. He walked to it and stared for a moment. It had been his father's. A small pouch rested inside of the inner chest pocket, next to the pouch of grey ash.
The bag opened up wide, then wider still. He dropped the circlets inside and fastened it shut again. Set sure did love his bottomless satchel. It was useful for hiding the relics from prying eyes. No sense in going back to bed now.
Set sighed softly and left the room. There was a bathroom down the short hall from him, across from Howell's room. Thankfully, they had a mirror. Set spent the better half of five minutes meticulously fixing and messing with his hair. Turns out that spending a whole night trying to sleep and failing doesn't do one's hair any kindness.
Next stop was to the den, which was cozy and well furnished with two chairs, one wooden and one lined with leather, and a small, plush couch. The fire in the fireplace was ash and nearly out, so Set picked some branch stock up from beside the stored logs and laid them over the embers. They ignited with some effort on Set's part and the fire was once again strong and healthy. Finally, Set sat back on the couch and stared into the flames.
Unsure of how much time had passed, he started when there was a stir in the kitchen behind him. "You're up remarkably early," he said.
A clatter heralded that they had been caught unawares. A small pause. "I could say the same of you," said Rose, curtly.
Set rose from the couch and went into the kitchen. "I've always had trouble sleeping," he said.
A small hum in response. A familiar, unpleasant smell wafted into his nose. She was making coffee. Set hated the stuff, but years of very little sleep made the drink a necessary evil. "Make enough for two?" Set asked.
Rose didn't speak. She answered by pulling two mugs from the cabinet. Surprisingly, she took her coffee black, while Set loaded his with sugar and cream. Anything to dull the horrid, bitter taste. Yet, still he cringed when he took a sip.
"You take your coffee like your men?" Set smirked when she scowled, "That's not a 'no.'"
Rose ignored him, and went to sit on one of the chairs in the living room. He shrugged and followed. He sat in his place on the couch. "Talk," she said, "I want to know why you're here."
"Right, the whole 'unexpected Guardian undercover' thing. Well," Set leaned forward, his hands a bridge for his chin, "I'm on a mission from the Divine, Himself. A mission to gather the Relics, release the power of Atum, and reset the world. And I need help. I've been doing this alone, but a deranged, heretic Guardian stands in my way.
"My entire village, my people, they were all heretics. They tried to kill me when I told them that He spoke to me! I had no choice but to defend myself and run from this Guardian who calls himself Amun. I took up the name Set to hide from him, but it didn't last for long. He's on my tail."
Rose had an odd look about her. She was more stunned than anything, but there was intensity behind her gaze. "Please, I implore you, help me," he said.
"... We were taught never to gather all of the relics. Never to unleash Atum's power. I-I don't-"
"Please," Set looked her deep in the eyes, "This is a message straight from the Divine, I know it."
"We must verify this and discuss it with the village Elder."
Set nodded and downed the remaining coffee. He shook his head of the bitter taste, then straighten his hair back. "The Elder is a fair journey from here. We should leave soon if we want to make it back before I have patrol," Rose said.
"I'll go get my coat then," Set replied as he stood and went down the hall.
Rose, too, went down the hall, but in the opposite direction. She went into Howell's room quietly. "Howell," she ran a hand gently through his hair, "Howell, wake up for a moment."
The young man whined and swiped at her in a "go away" motion. "Sleep," he mumbled.
Rose rolled her eyes and continued, "Howell, Set and I must speak to the village Elder about his stay here. We'll be gone for most of the morning. Don't forget about your training."
A tired, muffle noise was all she got, but it was all she needed. She yanked his ear a little, earning an annoyed groan. "And drink water!" she nagged.
Howell nodded into his pillow. Rose waited for a moment. As soon as he was asleep again, she laid a small kiss on his temple and left the room.
Set came from the guest room at the same time, his coat donned. It was time to see how this would play out.
Another very long day for Phoebe. Almost a week since Finn's stay in the castle and not a day had past that he didn't call her. Not for a lot, but for small talk. But, tonight was different. There was no call, and it worried her.
Finn had called her yesterday saying that it was eerily quiet all across the Grasslands. Even the Candy Kingdom was lacking its usual flow of rescue-needing. Only a week of consistent contact with Finn and she was reduced to this after he doesn't call once. It was ridiculous! He probably just got an adventure or found a dungeon today, that's all.
Phoebe noticed that her leg was bouncing up and down in a nervous tic. She forced it to stop and looked at the grand clock hung on the wall across the hall. Court was almost done with night upon the land. Phoebe was about to stand and make her exit when none other than Flambo walked in, carrying some manor of container. "Greetin's, y'Majesty," he said.
A smile came over Phoebe's face. She rose from the throne to meet him, "Good evening, Flambo. What brings you here so late?"
"Gotcha a package from Finn here," Flambo said as he handed the container off to her, "Said it might help youse when the mornin's are rough."
"I'll be sure to thank him, then. Thank you very much, Flambo," Phoebe was about to walk away, but stopped, "Do you want some charcoal? I have some if you want."
"Thank ya y'Majesty, but Finn already set me up with a nice stash," he said.
The monarch smiled again, "How nice of him. Very well. Have nice night, Flambo."
"G'night, y'Majesty!" he called as he waved.
As soon as he was gone, Phoebe set to her package. The container opened with a bit of a hiss. Cold air brushed and stung against her face, much like opening a hot oven would anyone else. On top, a piece of paper. Phoebe giggled at the way tin foil was crudely wrapped around the edges like a frame.
The paper read thusly: "Sorry I didn't call today, Pheebs. I guess I ate my words when I said it was quiet. Had a really busy day, so I thought I'd send you something to make up for it."
What followed were detailed instructions on how to prepare a drink called coffee. Phoebe found that all of the materials she needed were inside and wrapped haphazardly in tin foil. Again, it made her giggle, as it reminded her of how very like Finn it was to lack any sort of pinache in wrapping or anything that didn't involve a sword. Scrawled at the very bottom, she saw a post script, which read, "Oh, and you can thank Princess Bubblegum for the nifty can.
"I dunno how I woulda gotten this there otherwise."
Bubblegum was a name that wasn't quite so sweet on her pallet after her last visit. There hadn't been a visit since and Phoebe was sure that she could go a good bit longer without another. But, that was of no concern, for her curiousity was piqued. Phoebe went into the small kitchen where she and Finn had made tea before and set about making this coffee. Surely it couldn't hurt to try some before bed.
At long last, Finn stumbled back up into his room. With a tired huff, he collapsed into bed. He winced in pain at a prick in his side. Finn reached down and pulled a shard of green glass from his body. In the moonlight, it glimmered in both the brilliant green of the glass and the sticky red of his blood.
Finn chucked it out of the window and turned over on his stomach, stuffing his face into the pillow. Fully ready for sleep to take him, Finn closed his eyes. It would seem the world really had it in for him though, because almost immediately, his phone rang its shrilly ring. Nothing appealed to him more than just ignoring the call, but that wouldn't have been very becoming of him. As he answered, he thought, Besides, what if it was important?
"Finn!" came a familiar voice.
"Phoebe?" he asked, "You're still awake?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, she was replying, "Yeah, yeah, totally! Finn, that coffee stuff you send me was amazing! Really yummy."
My Glob. "Pheebs... you didn't drink it before bed, did you?"
"Well, I couldn't wait till morning, now could I?" Phoebe rambled, "It just tasted so good! I didn't realize cream and sugar was so good before coffee. Then, it gave me this really weird boost of energy and now I can't stop! I wanna do something."
Phoebe gasped dramatically, "Let's go dungeon crawling, Finn! You have any good places mapped out?"
Finn briefly covered the microphone and whimpered pathetically to himself before getting back on, "Uh, that energy is pretty fleeting, Pheebs. You'll probably come down and crash by the time you got here, even if you left right now."
"Oh, don't worry, I'm already here."
Knock-knock!
Was it so wrong to wish that I could've spent time with Phoebe today that the universe just had to hit me with hummus...? Or- what was it- hubris? Finn hung up and sighed, heading down the hall and ladder to the door. Any frustration melted when he saw that Phoebe stood there with a big smile on her face, bouncing on her heels. It made him smile, even if he was tired.
Obviously oblivious to Finn fatigue, Phoebe asked, "So! Where to?"
Well, now we know. Never give caffeine to Phoebe. Hopefully, Finn'll be able to get away with a nice, smooth dungeon crawl... Pffffft, who am I kidding, he's gonna get put through the ringer. So, stay tuned, dear readers, because I've got a side quest to write! Ja ne~!
