Chapter 3: The Fountain
"Alfred, Alfred! Wake up! Blooming heck, can you even hear me?"
Alfred opened his eyes, only to find pesky rays of light seep into his sight. He shut them immediately.
"Alfred! Go on and get out of bed!" Arthur's voice, thick with an English accent, commanded. "It's bright an' sunny outside today, and we'll be going outside to check the markets! Come on and shake a leg!"
Alfred groaned a bit, rubbing his eyes. "But I don't wanna go… can't I sleep instead?"
Arthur rolled his eyes. "Alfred, did you sleep enough last night?"
"Uh…" Alfred rolled his head away.
"Alfred."
"Uh… well, I was up running around, looking for you, and… I met the Forest Guardian." He looked up at Arthur.
Arthur stared at him, wide-eyed. Then he erupted into laughter. "So you've said you seen this young man, eh, Alfred? Boy, what a sight it musta been! Hahaahaha! Haha… hoo…" Arthur caught his breath.
"Yes, sir! Yes, I have!" Alfred said ardently. "I promise I did!"
"You clearly didn't have enough sleep… Well then, my young un', tell me how he must've looked like and how he was like and WHERE he came from! You must remember that, right?" Arthur asked, helping Alfred out of bed, and then proceeding to put Alfred's buckled-up shoes on Alfred's feet.
Alfred had a blank, surprised look on his face as a reply. "Uh… yeah, I think. He was about this tall, a bit taller than me…" he put his hands to about the size of himself. "And he hopped a lot, like you said. He wore lots of stuff, like a hat, holey shoes and socks, and was really brown." Arthur laughed in reply.
"Oh, and… he was sorta like you. I liked him a lot. He was really friendly."
Arthur looked at Alfred, a bit dumbfounded. Really? Arthur thought. Even though Alfred seemed to be nice to him, Arthur caught the sense that Alfred didn't really like him as he seemed to have been… Then to say something so sweet to him, it was so surprising. A bit scary, somewhat. But Arthur felt loved, more than he ever did before. This little boy, a sweet child, being that truthful to a pirate-like barbarian as Arthur was… It had almost moved Arthur to tears.
"Uh… Mr. Arthur, sir? Are you alright? It must be real early for you to get up if you're dazed… Mr. Arthur?"
Arthur shook his thoughts away from what had just happened. "Uh, yes, Alfred, I'm quite alright. How about you and I go? I wouldn't want it to get TOO late to go outside, being the ball of energy as you are. Come on now, get up. It will take a bit for you to get ready, so being up early is for the best. Come on, get up now." He held out his hand to help Alfred get up.
Alfred sleepily, but happily, accepted his hand.
.. .
"Come on now, Alfred, keep up with me and stay focused now! The streets of London are quite formidable if you put your guard down." Arthur called down the cobblestone road, replied by Alfred zooming down the street, his tattered leathery boots slapping against the stones. "Alfred, Alfred!" Arthur called. Alfred ran up to him. "Now now, Alfred, you know how I told you not to run? If you'd trip into a puddle, you'd be as dirty as those common folk! Now come over here so I can fix your hat."
Alfred, now walking silently, let Arthur adjust the angle of his hat.
"My, you've grown quite a bit, haven't you, m'boy? This hat seems a bit smaller." He jerked the hat to the center of Alfred's head.
"There we go. You look a might proper now. Come, come." He turned around. "The market's just around the corner, as it always has been." He tipped down his top hat and held out his hand for Alfred to take.
Alfred took Arthur's palm and down the road they went, him in his gradually-tightening clothes and Arthur in his bellowing black cloak and hat.
.. .
Arthur and Alfred meandered down the complex roads and ways through London, going through the many staircases and street pubs.
Soon after, the musty smells and the moldy plywood splinters were cast away with the colorful rays of fruit and exotic goods, some imported from the faraway waters of the enigmatic Asian country, China. The scents woven from the threads of the numerous elements sold knitted itself into an intricate yet enjoyable perfume, wafting gracefully through the air.
The rows of food and supplies had always taken Alfred's soul for a spin of exotic wonder, and it didn't fail at this that day. Alfred felt woozy, swaying a bit, still getting used to the explosion of colour, confusion, and series of noises. He grasped onto the closest thing that could balance him.
Unfortunately, it wasn't Arthur's hand, but someone else's.
He could tell right away.
The figure above him glared down, anger already igniting in his eyes. "Oi, ye l'il bloke! Go wander off some'ere else, ye 'ear me? *hic* an' take that mangy l'il girl with ye!" He pointed behind Alfred.
Alfred turned around.
A young girl cocked her head to the side, her hay-like, stringy hair dancing about from the sudden movement. She smiled widely. "Hey, Alfie, missed me, yeah?"
The girl wore a loose, overly-sized hood, but had it down to show poofy, hay-like hair. She had a couple of leaves in that wild mane of hers, and had a huge smile on. Her shoes were worn and seemed thin, barely appropriate for the sudden cold that morning.
And she had a mysterious orb latched to her hip.
Alfred blinked a bit. He whapped his palm to the side of his head. Well, Duh! He thought to himself. The Guardian said himself that the sparkly ball thing was a boring old light to other people. That's why she… um, he… they… it... she…?... wasn't asked by the police about it yet…
The girl beamed. She got (a little too) close to Alfred, and muttered, "M' boy, don't you worry, it's just me. Since that buttering butterfly had to interrupt our meet, I came here. And coz Mr. Arthur is out getting goosey green goodies for ya, I think I should talk to you for a sec. Okay?"
Alfred nodded.
"Alright then. Follow me!" The Guardian ran off as fast as a grasshopper could hop, weaving through the people, the caravans, and the vast amounts of left-to-rot food. Alfred kept the pace, and wasn't far behind.
After 10 minutes of running about the market, Alfred and the Guardian stopped in front of some clock shop, with numerous devices ticking the day away behind the glass. "Okay, m' boy, we need to confirm some things between us. Don't worry, Arthur can find you here quite easily. So, let's see… would you mind keeping this with you?"
The Guardian held out a maple leaf. "This leaf is, of course, belonging to the maple tree. Luckily, it won't rot or change colour. This is your pass to call for me. Okay? Just swirl it in the air and I'll come running."
Alfred nodded.
"Good. Also, one other thing—as I already stated, this leaf is special. It cannot change with the seasons or rot, so it will stay a prominent red. If you were to lose it, you could only see me on days when I come to visit, which, in due time, will decrease. Of course, you can ask for another, but it'll be awhile before you can. In fact, you could gradually lose the belief that I exist…" The Guardian looked at Alfred with eyes that were slowly, but surely, starting to tear up.
Alfred gasped. "But, I promise that won't happen! I'll believe in you for a long, long, long time! I promise!"
The Guardian smiled sadly. "You will mature in time regardless. Everyone has to grow up, even I. I'm considered an adult in my culture. Please understand. You must! It's just the way of life. Children that have—yes, there have been ones before you—that I took to the Woods are all adults now. They surely believe my visiting was a hoax. I've cried a bit over each of them, such good children. Of course, both the child and I move on. You must, like them." The Guardian placed the leaf in Alfred's hand. "That is all, my boy." He looked at the dirt. "Now stay here. I'll be with you until Arthur finds you."
.. .
Arthur continued to argue with the clerk again. "Come on, man, this pheasant's got to be at least a month old! Be reasonable, bud. Slash it down 20%, just for your pal?" Arthur dropped the shillings onto the counter, which clattered across the wood.
"No, I can't! I don't give a rat's hide for ye! A customer's a customer, eh? Besides which, I guarantee this fat bird's worth 20% MORE, I'll assure ye, 'pal'." The man said in a mocking voice, snickering.
"Look, here, you blooming git," Arthur stated, slamming his hands over the shillings before the clerk could get them. "I know your boss, so it's best for you not to mess with me. He always gives me a discount or two, I'll have you know. I could even get you fired." The worker's eyes widened. "Oh, look, your boss. Hey, Bryan! Your clerk here—"
The cashier was automatically swayed. "Uh, sir," he said quite quickly, "I-I'll give ye the pheasant, along wiv the discount of 50%, just please, please sir, I need a job. I've been kicked out of me home, I can barely scrape by. Please, sir, I'll even give it to ya for free if I need to! Please, just—"
Arthur laughed, quite malevolently. "No, no, you don't need to. 40%'s enough." He threw the coins onto the counter and swiped the dead bird away. "Have a nice day, sir," He said in a sarcastic tone, grabbing his coat and heading out the door.
Arthur slipped through the heavy wooden door, going down the few stair steps. He evaded a tainting puddle and headed for the fountain.
His boots crunched on the stony road down to the mountain of water, the crowds clearing up in front of him.
And only to find out that Alfred… was gone.
. . .
"Alright, Alfred," Arthur played their earlier conversation in his head. "Stay here at the fountain. After I'm done, I'll head back as soon as I can. Alright?" He paused. "I'll promise you."
"Yeah, okay, sir..." Alfred had said in a daze.
"Good. I'll be going now…" And Arthur left.
.. .
Arthur was sure that Alfred heard what he said.
Unless… oh, cripes.
Arthur had to recall that just now? I am such a pathetic dolt!Arthur thought. He already knew, but he still shoved that fact aside—Alfred always was lost in thought when they were at market. There would be no possible way Alfred heard him, being so enraptured by the sights and smells.. He could be anywhere…
Oh God, I have to go searching now… this is bad. Arthur threw on his cloak and ran. Alfred, can't you just listen for once?
…Goodness.