Author's notes: Though I came up with the ideas for Tales Number Four and Five independently of each other, when I set down to write them I realized it made sense to have the one take place immediately after the other. So if you like, Tales Four and Five can be viewed as a two-parter.

- Tale Number Four: Jealousy -

"Alright!" Pad exclaimed, stretching his limbs as he stepped onto Kiev's airship dock. "Finally, some good R&R!"

"Which in your case usually stands for rudeness and randiness," Melody said drily. "It figures that you enjoy lazing around more than a cat."

"Yeah? Well, for you it stands for ranting and recklessness!" he shot back. "Why do ya have to pretend yer so tough, anyway, when ya need the rest more than any of us? Anyone can tell yer dainty limbs were about to collapse without a break!"

"Dainty?" She clenched both her fists. "Dainty!"

"He obviously meant it as a compliment, Melody," Fiona said, handing the luggage down to Eddie piece by piece. "Would you mind -"

"I can carry just as much weight as you, mister!" Melody spat, shaking her fist in his face. "So don't you dare call me dainty!"

"Take it easy," Pad said, looking down at her with worry. "If ya don't settle down, you're gonna pass out from pushin' yourself too hard."

"You... you... Ooo!" She turned and stormed off. "I'll meet you all at the inn!"

Pad shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "What'd I say? Is it so bad to be worried about someone? Anyone could see her face was all flushed."

"Just help us with the bags, Pad," Fiona sighed. Sometimes Pad could be every bit as clueless as Melody was testy. "And try not to worry about her so much. Remember, this is supposed to be a vacation."

"Yeah, maybe you're right..." He walked back to the luggage and snatched up four of the seven bags, unwittingly jerking one of them right out of Eddie's hand. He hefted them up without much effort and began walking towards the inn.

Eddie and Fiona followed, flanking Pad on each side, while Fiona giggled in his direction. "Melody's not around, so who are you showing off for?"

"Huh?" Pad looked around and noticed for the first time that he was carrying the lion's share of the baggage. "Oh. Nah, this isn't too heavy. I've carried way bigger loads than this. Anyway, this looks like a pretty good spot for a vacation, doesn't it? Nice and quiet."

"I don't know," Eddie said. "It's nice to take a break from adventuring and fighting the Ancient Father's Cabal, but I like to spend my vacations somewhere with a bit more color and excitement."

"Aw, I'm sure there's some of that around here, too. Ya just gotta know where to look!"

"Personally, peace and quiet sounds just wonderful to me," Fiona said. "It's nice to get away from all the fighting and danger for a while."

"Yeah!" Pad opened the front door to the inn with his knee.

After signing in to the inn and leaving their luggage, the party set out in search of a place to have lunch. Walking up the street, they came at length to a sign with a grinning boar on it that read "The Dancing Fire".

As they stepped inside, a collective breath seemed to go through the establishment. Over half the eyes in the room were staring at them with rapt interest.

Pad shrugged. "Guess they don't see a lot of tourists around here."

They picked a spacious round table and sat down at it, with Eddie to Fiona's right, then Pad, and then Melody on her left. The same set of eyes followed them as they took their seats.

"I don't think that's it," Fiona remarked. "Most of the ones watching us are women."

"Probably gawking at Melody's tacky clothes," Pad suggested. "Most women have sharper fashion sense than guys."

"Ha ha," Melody said. "Or maybe they're staring in disbelief at your -"

"W-welcome to The Dancing Fire!" a jittery blonde in a black-and-white dress with a cut that stopped just short of showing any cleavage interrupted. The party's attention turned on her, and she nervously fiddled with the tie at her waistline. "Can I, um, get you all something to drink?"

"I want whatever you have that can't be found anywhere else in the world!" Eddie enthused.

"Yeah, me too!" Melody chimed in.

"W-well, we have our local specialty, field cider. Will that do?"

"Yes, please!"

"Just a grape juice for me, please," Pad said.

"Oh," their waitress said, "I thought a, um, nice strong man like yourself would want something more adventurous."

"Huh?" Melody gaped at her.

"Nah, I get more than enough adventure when I'm not on vacation," Pad said in a bored tone.

"Oh!" the waitress said. "Oh, I should have guessed. You can see in your eyes, a, a fire that -"

"Geez, calm down. Is there something wrong with you?"

She blushed. "I- I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't be flirting while I'm at work, and I'm not this dopey most of the time, honest, and..." She trailed off, her face showing her realization that her babbling was not earning her any points with Pad. "...I'll just get your drinks, okay?"

"Pomegranate juice for me, please!" Fiona called after her.

Melody snorted. "Well, that was weird."

"Not really," Pad shrugged. "I've had girls take a tumble at me more than once. I mean, I don't think I've ever seen someone go ga-ga quite like that before, but people can get pretty weird when they're attracted to someone. I'm almost starting ta get used to it."

"Hmmph." She folded her arms. "This better not slow down our service. I'm so hungry I could eat a cow."

"How do you eat so much and stay so skinny, anyway?"

"Hey!" She glared at him. "Are you calling me a pig!"

Pad rolled his eyes. "Forget it."

"So, Melody," Fiona said. "What do you think of Kiev so far?"

"Well..." she mused. "I like how all the buildings are funny-shaped. The streets have too many loose stones, but there's lots of good fresh air. And I haven't tried the food yet, but this place really smells good."

"We'll have to see some of the sights," Eddie offered. "We can ask around today, then go see a few places tomorrow."

"Yeah! I heard someone saying there's this archway on the south side of town, where every couple that walks under it ends up getting married."

Pad snorted. "If you go anywhere near that thing, every guy in sight is gonna run for his life."

"You just say that because all you care about is looks," Melody said, turning her nose up at him. "I'd be a darn good wife, for your information. I can cook, and fix things, and protect the kids from strangers."

"Maybe, but can ya stop acting so nuts that yer husband goes to an early grave?"

Melody was searching for a retort when their waitress reappeared. "Here are your drinks!" she said, taking them off the tray and passing them around. To Pad she said, "Look, I'm sorry about before. It's just that we don't get adventurers around here very often, you know?"

"Oh," Fiona nodded. "That explains it."

"Anyway, that girl over there at the bar," - she pointed to a blonde seated at a stool, who flashed a pair of dazzling green eyes at Pad - "...said to tell you she'd like to, you know, have a drink with you. Let me know if she doesn't look like your type, because there's a whole waiting list for you."

"A waiting list?" Melody echoed, her eyes widening.

"Yeah, there are two other girls who asked me the same thing. And if, by some incredible chance, you aren't interested in any of them..." The waitress slid a small piece of paper across the table to him, her hand trembling. "...th-that's my address. So you can s-stop by when I'm off-duty, if you want."

"What is this, a looney asylum!" Melody exploded, hopping out of her seat so abruptly that her chair crashed to the floor behind her. "If the girls around here like adventurers so much, how come none of 'em are paying any attention to Eddie?"

Eddie scratched the top of his head shyly. "I'm sorry she put it so rudely, but Melody has a point. What about me?"

"You?" The girl looked surprised. "Well, it's just that you don't have that rugged adventurer's looks like he does. But you are pretty cute... I have a friend who might be interested, if you're looking for a date."

"No, that's not what I meant! I just thought it was strange, that's all."

"Suit yourself. Do you all know what you want to eat?"

While the other three ordered, Pad studied the blonde girl at the bar, then turned to look contemplatively at Melody.

She scowled at him. "What are you staring at? And what's the deal with guys getting attention for being adventurers, anyway? Fiona an' I are adventurers too, you know, and I don't see any slices of beefcake trying to pick us up!"

"That's 'cause glamorous stuff like that is what women want," Pad explained. "Us guys, on the other hand, look for personality."

"That is so NOT true! You -"

"Ya know..." he said to their waitress. "I think I will go have a drink with that girl. They say ya can't find the right person if ya don't look, right?" He looked back to the rest of the party. "Is that okay with you guys?"

"Um," Eddie hesitated.

"That's fine with me," Fiona smiled.

"That's extra fine with me!" Melody snapped. "Get out of here! We'll have more fun without you around!"

"Good ta hear it," Pad grinned, and made his way over to the bar.

As soon as the waitress had left to deliver their orders to the kitchen, Eddie said, "I really don't like acting like a parent, but that was incredibly rude, Melody. You had no reason to attack Pad like that, especially not in public."

"I had plenty of reason!" Melody folded her arms. "He's a pig! He thinks he's God's gift to women and that we all should be eating out of his hand! And the bird-brained, skanky-dressed girls in this stupid town are going along with it! I can't believe they're even giving the time of day to that slimeball!" She stood up. "Well, I'll show him he's not the only one who can get a date! There are two other guys sitting at that bar, one for me and one for Fiona. Let's get them to show us a good time!"

Fiona shook her head. "I don't think I should be dating until I get my memories back. Otherwise, the conversation is bound to be awkward. 'So, where are you from?' 'I don't remember.' 'What's your profession?' 'I don't remember.' 'Say, you look familiar. Have we met?' 'I don't remember.' 'Did you learn to be this charming, or were you just born that way?' 'I don't remember.'" She shrugged. "And so on."

"Well, fine. Fine! I'll go on my own!"

Fiona smiled patiently. "You know, Melody, if you want Pad to date you instead of that girl, you might try being nice to him. While you're trying to make him jealous, he's going to be having a good time with that girl at the bar."

"What? Why in the world would I want Pad to date me?"

"Well, then why are you doing this?"

"To show Pad there's one girl in this town who isn't going to be fawning over him!"

"Melody... Calm down and think a moment. Why are you so angry at Pad?"

"What do you mean?" Eddie put in. "She's always angry at Pad."

"No, she's not. They argue a lot, but there's hardly ever any anger behind it. If anything, their arguments just show that they're comfortable enough with each other to say something when they disagree." She looked back to Melody. "So why are you angry at him?"

Melody huffed. "Like I just said -"

"It's not Pad's fault that girls like him," Fiona said. "And you know it. So -"

"You know what? Skip it. I'll meet you guys back at the inn." She turned and stormed off to the bar.

Fiona and Eddie sipped their drinks in silence for a minute.

"Should I go and talk to her?" Eddie offered, in a tone revealing that he was less afraid to face a half dozen Cabal troops by himself.

She shook her head. "I don't think it will do any good. Besides, this may well be for the best. At least now she won't take Pad for granted."

"Huh?"

"Never mind. You know, Eddie, you really should take our waitress's offer. Pad and Melody are both finding romance tonight; there's no reason why you shouldn't, too."

He gave her one of his best loyal puppy dog looks. "But then I'd be leaving you all alone. And with the Ancient Father's Cabal still out there, too."

"I'll be fine. I can look after myself, you know."

"Yes, but..." He shook his head. "I don't want to start dating right now, anyway. I mean, Pad and Melody aren't making it look like much fun."

"Oh, I don't know." She peered over at the bar. "Pad seems to be having an okay time with that girl, anyway."

"Hey," Pad smiled at the girl.

She smiled up at him. "Hi."

"So," he said as he took the stool next to her, "...did ya invite me, or was I pranked?"

"Funny, I can't imagine anyone pranking you."

"Yeah, I ain't half as smart as I look." He took a gulp of his grape juice. "So, ya gonna give me yer name, or I gotta guess?"

"Alyona." She gave him another winning smile. She really was pretty, he realized. Attired in a snug dress with what Pad guessed to be a silk top, her figure was quite a bit more obvious than Melody's was in those dumpy dresses she always wore. A very nice figure it was, too.

"I'm Pad." He wondered if his smile made anywhere near as big an impression as hers did.

"So, you're an adventurer?"

"Yep. And what do you do?"

"Me?" She giggled. "Oh, I like to paint. Nothing half so exciting as what you do. I'll bet you've already seen half the world!"

"Well... Maybe a quarter." He shrugged his arms. "...Naw, not even that. I only started a few months ago."

"Well, you sure look like you must be good at it." She took a drink of whatever it was she was having, and for a moment Pad couldn't help but stare at the way she tipped it back, the tilt of her nose, the casual bend of her arm, the fluid running past her already moist lips. He managed to shake himself out of it right before she finished, though, a slight blush forming on his face.

"Um... Yeah, I guess ya hafta be good if you're gonna stay alive, right?" He settled into a relaxed smirk; talk about danger never made Pad uncomfortable. This time, it was Alyona who blushed.

"Hey there," Melody said, putting both hands on a stool and hopping onto it like a toad. The young man she was speaking to started at this approach.

"Um, hi," he said, eying her uncertainly.

Melody looked intently at him, only occasionally blinking. The guy fidgeted and continued to eye her uncertainly.

At last she scowled. "Are you going to buy me a drink, or what?" she demanded.

"Man, these are good!" Pad gushed, taking another bun and chomping into it, savoring the meat and mushroom filling. "What are they called?"

"Pirozhki," Alyona reminded him, nibbling on her own. "Mmm. We have these all the time around here, but they're just as delicious every time."

"Man," he said between bites. "I'm really gonna haveta come back here!"

It was now clear to Melody that, for whatever reason, guys don't like it when you demand they buy you a drink. What she needed, she realized, was a good icebreaker line.

She approached the next guy seated at the bar, planted her elbows next to his, and gave him her best approximation of a seductive smile. "You know, I know how to make a potion that will turn anyone who drinks it into a slug."

The guy stared back at her in revulsion.

Melody's smile grew more uncertain. "Um... I can also unhinge all the fingers on my left hand! Watch!"

"I can't believe you just want to talk about me and my silly paintings," Alyona giggled. "What about you? Have you ever been to Africa?"

"Oh, yeah. Pretty much just Cairo, though. The pyramids are really cool. Except for all the death traps, I mean."

"No big deal for you, right?"

"You kiddin'?" he snorted. "I was scared half to death. Wouldn't do that twice."

She propped her head on her hand. "So, what's so cool about the pyramids?"

"Well, they're just so huge and ordered, like the best mountains in the world, but all made by people. It's awesome." He had another gulp of his drink. "Hey... ya wanna get out of here?"

"Petruso, huh?" Melody said, immensely pleased to have finally gotten as far as a guy's name. "You know anything about airship mechanics?"

"Um..."

"No, huh? Well then, I can teach you! I just love tinkering with machines! When you first figure out how to do the wiring for a converter, it's the most amazing thing in the world! And then..."

To his credit, Petruso listened to her go on in this manner for a good five minutes before making an excuse and leaving.

"Hey!" she called after him. "Is there something wrong with a girl having an interest in her hobby? Honestly..."

In the meantime, Pad and Alyona had moved on to a place with music and dancing. Specifically, a native dance whose name Pad was sure he would never be able to remember, or even pronounce.

"I'm really terrible at this," he said to his partner, half in apology and half in complaint.

"Oh, come on!" Alyona replied. "You're a natural! You just need a little more practice! See, you're already getting it!"

"Yeah, right," he muttered. But in truth, he was enjoying himself. It was kind of a cool dance, and he enjoyed watching Alyona do it. Nobody was snickering at him for being a klutz, either.

"You know, if I wanted to, I could burn this whole place down with just one spell," Melody tried on her next potential date. He leapt and bounded away, leaving not just the chair beside Melody, but The Dancing Fire entirely. "I said "could"! Could! Do you not understand English, or what?"

This was getting increasingly frustrating. She was down to just a couple prospects - unless she started going for the ones who were a decade or more older than her, which she had no intention of doing.

Nothing for it, though. She took a seat at the bar beside her next target, and decided to try keeping things simple. "Hey there," she said, with a forced smile. "Looking for a date?"

The guy took one look at her and snorted a laugh. "Not with you, I'm not."

She arched an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Look, honey -"

"'Honey'?"

"- my number one rule is, I don't date anyone whose boobs are smaller than her knees. So get lost, capish?"

Flames were practically shooting out of Melody's ears now. "You... you..." She drew her wand, and -

A heavy hand fell upon her shoulder. "Excuse me, miss," said a voice that obviously didn't care whether she excused him or not, and she looked behind her to see a hulking bald-headed figure looming over her. "But you seem to be frightening away this establishment's male clientele. Now, seeing as the owner pays my wages, this is a bit of a problem for me. So are you going to leave, or am I going to throw you out?"

Melody said nothing for a moment. Then: "Well, since I'm getting thrown out anyway, I guess there's no point in holding back." She lifted her wand, swirling it in the air. "Eat thi-"

Three seconds later she was being hauled towards the door, one hand holding her up by the back of her dress, the other wrapped firmly about her wand-wielding arm.

"Hey! Leggo! Did you hear what that pig said to me? You gotta let me -"

"By the way," the aforementioned pig called after her, "...your fanny ain't much to look at either, honey - not even from this perspective."

"Errrrraaaaaaghhhhh!" she bellowed. "Just let me kick him in the nads! Just one good kick in -"

The bouncer gave no reply; he simply hurled her out the doors of the establishment, launching her face first in the dirt. The fact that it was still broad daylight made this all the more humiliating.

She got up with a huff, and dusted herself off. Eddie and Fiona came out the door as she was doing so. "Melody! Are you okay?" Eddie cried.

"Fine." She sniffed. "I see Pad was too occupied with other girls to even -"

"Pad left."

"Huh?"

"He and that girl went out to have fun somewhere. He said he'll be back at the inn sometime this evening. Anyway, why don't we all -"

"You and Fiona can make your own plans," Melody interrupted. "I still have a date to find."

"Um..." Eddie scratched the back of his head. "Don't you think maybe you should take a break from the dating scene for today? I mean, I haven't been watching you the whole time, but it looks like it's been rather a pain for you so far. I'm sure you'll have much more fun with -"

"Okay, okay! I get it!" she bellowed, face flushed beet red with embarrassment. "Pad is a red-hot stud who all the girls swoon for, and I'm a ratty weirdo who can count herself lucky if a guy hangs around her for more than two minutes!"

"That's not true, Melody."

"Coulda fooled me!"

"I think what Eddie means to say," Fiona cut in with a pacifying tone, "...is that Pad doesn't see it that way."

"Why the heck should I care what he thinks? Huh?"

"But you do care; you said so yourself," Eddie pointed out. "You said you were only looking for a date to show Pad that not every girl is going to fawn over him."

Melody snarled and waved her wand at Eddie, sending out a horizontal tornado that smacked him right off his feet, and sent him sailing through the air until he landed right on the back of his head. She promptly turned and stormed off, while Fiona bent down to tend to the growing lump on Eddie's noggin.

"Ouuufff," Eddie groaned. "Why did she have to do that?"

"I think you forgot that no one but Pad can contradict her and get away with it," Fiona said.

Melody had no idea where she was going; she just needed some time away from her friends. She'd rarely felt so angry and frustrated, and it was all the more infuriating because she couldn't figure out why.

It wasn't as though she really wanted a boyfriend or anything like that. She could take care of herself just fine, and besides, pretty much every boy she'd ever known was either a blithering idiot, an insufferable bore, or a king-sized jerk like her last prospect back at the restaurant. Who'd want to be saddled with one of them?

She turned a corner, and there she heard a grunt that was somehow familiar. Her eyes, which had been watching the cobblestones under her feet, lifted to take in the view in front of her. She froze in shock.

There, in a fairly secluded alley enclosed with shadows, were Pad and his date. And they were kissing.

Not with their mouths closed, either. Or with their hands to themselves, for that matter.

Not wanting to be spotted by them, Melody spun around and strode back the way she came. The farther she got, the more her pace picked up, until she was running.

Her heart was a whirl of emotion, but one thought came through very clear. I HATE boys! On top of everything else, they either go for the first pretty face they see, or the first girl who panders to their overblown egos! They deserve whatever they get when they give themselves to bimbos like that!

But even Melody had to admit to herself, as tears inexplicably began flowing from her eyes, that she hated Pad more than any other boy she'd ever met.

Alyona's lips were soft, and when she kissed him he put his arms around her waist, purely because it seemed rude to just stand there when being kissed by a girl. She was nice and supple in his arms, and for a moment he even kissed her back, but... it felt wrong.

Pad stopped returning Alyona's kiss, and after a moment he pushed her away. She stared into his eyes. "What's wrong? Was it not good?"

"Naw, it was good..." He stuffed his hands into his pockets and stared down at the cobblestones, scuffing at one of them with his shoe. "But I ain't the kinda guy who kisses someone on the first date, ya know? It just don't seem right, ya know? Ya shoulda asked before ya kissed me."

"Oh..."

"Maybe I'm just Puritanical or whatever ya call it, but..." He shrugged. "Anyway, I don't want ya ta think I'm angry or anything, but maybe we oughta call it a night." He could hear Melody snapping at him, "It's still early evening, peabrain!", so he added, "I know it's still early in the evening, but you know what I mean."

"Okay." Alyona ran a hand through her hair. "I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

The question shouldn't have caught Pad off-guard, but it did. And as soon as it was asked, he realized that, even though he'd had a great time, the idea of another date with this girl left him cold. There was just something about her kissing him like that on their first date that totally turned him off. It was too easy, like... like she'd been planning the date to end this way all along, and getting to know him was just a formality.

"Look, I... I don't think so," he managed. "Ya seem like a nice girl an' all, but I'm not sure you're my type, and I'm a world-travelin' adventurer, so I'll be leavin' soon and I don't know when I'll be comin' this way again."

"But I don't mind seeing you only now and then."

"Well, I do! I take things like this seriously!" There was an awkward silence. "So... goodbye, I guess."

As he walked away, he wondered if maybe he was being an idiot. After all, it was just a kiss. But he couldn't help but feel that the kind of girl who gave herself that easily just wasn't for him. Neither Melody or Fiona would ever lock lips with a guy they didn't know well, that was for sure. Heck, he and Melody had been traveling together for weeks and weeks before they kissed that one time.

What it came down to was, he didn't want love as easily as Alyona was giving it. He wanted a girl who wouldn't just say whatever she thought he wanted to hear. A girl who would bitch and complain whenever he said or did something she didn't like. A girl whose affections didn't come out like a gunshot, but unfolded slowly like the pedals of a flower in bloom.

He sighed as he thought of that girl, and headed back towards the inn.