"Thank you again for escorting me home." Melty curtsied.

"We're happy to be of assistance," said Aris.

"Papa," said Filo, "can I help Ness walk Mel home?"

Aris nodded. "Of course."

Filo tagged along with Melty and Ness as they strolled toward Melromarc Castle.

Melty turned over her shoulder and waved. "Farewell! Until we meet again!"

"See you!" Loretta waved back.

"Take care of yourself!" Sora added.

"Now," said Aris, glancing at Raphtalia, "about that holy water..."

BGM: Sealed Temple - The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Aris, Raphtalia, Loretta, and Sora entered the extravagant church not far from Melromarc Castle.

Aris looked to his right and found a pair of nuns whispering to each other. Aris opened his mouth, about to speak when the women of the cloth suddenly dropped to their knees. "His Holiness," they said in unison.

Aris turned his head to see an old man in ornate religious garb enter the main room of the church with two priests on either side of him. He had heard of this man before. He was the Pope - the highest-ranking religious figure in Melromarc.

Though Aris did not practice Melromarc's religion, he elected to try his best to embrace the land's culture.

"Ah, you must be the swordsman Shield Hero," said the Pope. "Welcome to our humble church, my child."

"With all due respect, sir," said Aris, "I don't quite have time for pleasantries. My friend is afflicted by a strong curse, and I need the most powerful holy water you have in order to cure her."

"Holy water, you say?" The Pope raised an eyebrow. "Is that all you require?"

Aris nodded.

"Of course," said one of the priests following the Pope. "Have you brought an offering?"

"What offering would I need to make?" asked Aris.

"For the most powerful holy water we have," said the priest, "you must offer one gold coin."

"Done." Aris reached into his money bag and took out a single gold coin - one of many he had acquired from his brief stint as a traveling merchant.

"Aris, you can't!" Raphtalia grabbed his hand. "That's...That's too much!"

Aris firmly grasped both of Raphtalia's hands. "It doesn't matter. Not to me. I'm willing to give up all the money in my bag and more if it means healing you."

Raphtalia's cheeks flushed bright red.

Aris relinquished the gold coin to the Pope and his priests.

"Much appreciated." The Pope turned to one of the two nuns in the room. "Would you please fetch some holy water for the swordsman Shield Hero?"

The woman of the cloth left and returned a minute later with an ornate bottle.

Aris felt that something was amiss. He used an appraisal skill he had attained to analyze the bottle. "Ma'am - or, Sister...whichever it is...with all due respect, this doesn't quite seem like the best holy water a church such as yours would have."

The Pope looked a little surprised. He turned to the nun. "For what reason have you brought the low-quality holy water, Sister?"

The Sister blushed, embarrassed. "Well, uh...I..."

"The Lord is compassionate to all, without exception," the Pope chastised her. "If you did this in favor of your personal beliefs or views, you must repent. I hope I have made myself clear."

"I..." The nun bowed her head, "...I'm terribly sorry. I will fetch the proper holy water."

She left in a hurry.

The Pope turned back to Aris. "I apologize for Sister Vidal's behavior. She is not very...experienced as a woman of the cloth. Only recently, not long after the Heroes were summoned, did she join the Sisterhood."

"It doesn't bother me," said Aris, "as long as my friend can be cured."

Sister Vidal returned with a more ornate bottle. Aris used his appraisal, finding that it was of very high quality. He nodded to the Sister. "Thank you."

The party left in a hurry.

End BGM

"I wish the guy hadn't been so harsh on Sister Vidal," Sora sighed. "The girl's just doing her best. And he said it himself: she's new to her job."

"All that matters is that we have what we came for," said Aris.

"Hey!" a voice beckoned. "Shield Hero!"

Aris whipped his head in the voice's direction.

There was a knight - a young knight, no older than Sora - running toward him.

Aris gritted his teeth. "It was only a matter of time. We have to run!"

The party took off, fleeing the knight.

"Why are we..." Raphtalia panted, "Why are we running?"

"Right," Sora agreed. "We can take 'em! It's just one guy!"

"True," said Aris, "but I have an inkling it's me he wants. Sora, Raphtalia, Loretta - scatter and hide. I don't want all of us to be caught in one fell swoop if this is an arrest. Raphtalia, see if you can't get Filo. We might need to flee the city, and we can't take the wagon without her."

Sora nodded. "We'll meet back up at the wagon!"

Loretta leaped onto a roof with her jet boots. Raphtalia ducked into an alleyway and started toward the castle. Sora used Flowmotion to bounce off of a wall and launch himself to the roof of the church.

Aris drew the Master Sword, standing his ground as the knight closed in on him.

The knight ran up to him, stopping just short of the Master Sword's outstretched point.

"Sir!" he panted. "I...I don't want to fight you! I'm not with the soldiers!"

Aris kept the Master Sword raised, but his face softened with utter confusion. "You...what?"

"I am not here to arrest you, sir, nor am I here to fight," said the armored youth.

"What reason do I have to trust you're not lying to me?" Aris cautioned.

"Please...sir, trust me."

The youth looked desperate.

Aris pitied him. He lowered the Master Sword. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Ake," replied the youth.

"Well, Ake, my name is-"

"Aris!"

Aris turned around to see Motoyasu leaping at him with his spear raised. He backed away from the impact, which left a spiderweb of cracks in the road.

Passersby gasped and murmured among themselves in shock.

"Why here!?" Aris shouted at the Spear Hero. "Someone might get hurt!"

"Shut your ass!" Motoyasu swung his spear at Aris.

Aris activated his Chimera Viper Shield to parry the blow.

"Where's that slave girl!?" Motoyasu demanded.

"Slave!?" Aris exclaimed. "I have no slaves!"

"What about that Demi-Human!?"

"I rescued her from slavery! Is she the one you're after!?"

"No, not her!" Motoyasu backed off a few paces, keeping his spear in a tight grip. "The blonde girl!"

"Loretta!? She's my twin sister!"

"No, the other blonde girl! The one with the wings! I saw her with you, so don't try lying to me!"

"Filo!?"

"So that's her name!" Motoyasu's anger suddenly gave way to shock. "How can you make her your slave!?"

"She isn't a slave, you cretin!"

Motoyasu ignored his response. "I-I've never seen a girl so perfect! She's...She's absolutely incredible! And she looks just like a little angel!" Motoyasu chuckled. "And...admittedly, I'm kinda into that."

Aris gritted his teeth. "You're sick. Lusting after a child!? You're the lowest scum I've ever set eyes upon! Were we not in the middle of a public place, I would ensure your bloodline ends with you!"

"Oh, yeah, that reminds me," Motoyasu seethed, "that fat bird is yours, too, right? In that case, I'll send both you and your overweight chicken to hell! Air Strike Javelin!"

Motoyasu reared his spear as if to throw it. A beam of red energy shot at Aris.

Aris blocked with his shield. The beam ricocheted into a market stand, spilling produce all over the road.

"Chaos Spear!"

Motoyasu let off a flurry of thrusts. Yellow energy seared the air as it flew at Aris, who dodged every single projectile.

Motoyasu growled. He charged with his spear ready to turn Aris into a Hylian kebab. "I'll skewer you like a fish!"

"Wait! Spear Hero, you can't!"

Ake held out both his arms as he sidestepped in front of Aris. Motoyasu angled his spear just past Ake's head, barely missing the tip of Aris's left ear.

"Y-You're in the middle of a street!" Ake exclaimed. "If you want to fight, please take it somewhere where no one will get hurt! This is no place for a duel!"

"Then let's just fix that, shall we?" crooned a familiar voice.

Aris looked over Motoyasu's shoulder. The hatred in his heart flared up at the sight of Myne flanked by multiple soldiers.

Myne addressed her guards. "Surround them."

The soldiers drew their swords and encircled Motoyasu, Aris, and Ake.

Myne lifted a scroll. "Ladies and gentlemen," she declared, "by the power vested in me by the crown, I hereby deem this place the site of an official duel between the Spear Hero and the Shield Hero."

"The only power you'll be vested with is the power of my sword cleaving you in half!" Aris shouted at her.

Another familiar voice - this one much more pleasing to Aris's ears - joined the debacle. "Put your weapons away at once!"

The knights turned in the direction opposite Myne. They gasped as they sheathed their swords and dropped to one knee.

Arriving on the scene was Melty, accompanied by some guards of her own.

"I cannot allow the Cardinal Heroes to fight amongst themselves," she announced. "Especially not where people could be hurt."

Myne gritted her teeth. "Wh-Wha...What are you doing here!?"

Melty stepped forward with confidence. "Ah, there you are, sister. It's been quite a long time, hasn't it?"

Sister... Aris thought. Hold on. If...If Myne is actually Malty S. Melromarc, a princess...then...then Melty is...Melty is a princess, too!?

"You really should know that no amount of privilege can cover a mess like this," Melty chided. She addressed Motoyasu. "Spear Hero," she said, "look around. Surely no hero would call himself as such when he puts innocent lives at risk because of his anger towards another."

Motoyasu lowered his spear. He knew she was right.

"Sister," Melty narrowed her eyes, "your little 'games' have gone on long enough. Longer than enough."

Myne laughed. "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just doing my job as an aide to the Spear Hero."

"Oh, so I guess that means your job is to make him fight in a public place and risk hurting or killing innocent people," Melty countered. "That may just be grounds for arrest, you know."

Myne narrowed her eyes. "You dare defy your older sister?"

"I'm sorry, were you chosen to inherit the throne?"

That prompted Myne to pipe down.

"That's what I thought," said Melty. "And...if I have to, I will inform Mother about this."

"Aris! There you are!"

Raphtalia, Loretta, and Sora ran over. They had Filo with them.

"What happened?" asked Sora.

"Motoyasu exercising his lack of a brain," Aris quipped.

The Spear Hero in question stepped forward, lowering himself to Filo's eye level and grabbing one of her hands.

"Filo, right?" he said gently.

"Uh...yeah, that's me," said Filo.

Motoyasu shook his head and sighed. "Oh, you poor soul. That Aris is probably working you like some sort of pack animal, isn't he?"

"Oh, but I love pulling the wagon!" said Filo. "It's great exercise. I'd say you should try it sometime, but..."

Motoyasu clenched his left fist. He turned to Aris. "You swine!" he shouted. "You're making a child work like a pack animal!? If any one of your cronies should do that, it's your stupid fat bird!"

Filo tensed. "Oh...it's you," she muttered. "You're the guy who called me fat...and now you're doing it again."

A poof of dust and feathers, and Filo had attained her Filolial form. Her nostrils flared. "Now I know why my friends hate you so much, Spear Guy! And I hate you too!"

"Wh-Whoa!" Motoyasu backpedaled in fear. "Th-This...Yeah, this is awkward..."

Filo reared her leg. "Get him, Ness!"

A strong avian foot slammed into Motoyasu's family jewels, launching him into the air.

"PK Flash!"

A ball of warbling green energy hurtled towards Motoyasu in mid-air, exploding into a blast of light. Motoyasu went flying into the distance.

"Yeah! Spear Guy's blasting off again!" Filo cheered as she returned to her human form.

Ness ran over and high-fived Filo.

Myne gasped. "Find Sir Motoyasu and get him a healer, quick!" she barked at her guards.

"Savio-No, wait...you're the swordsman Shield Hero." Melty approached Aris. "I must speak with you urgently."

"Kid, would you explain just what the hell's going on here?" Erhard asked impatiently.

"Party business," Aris replied. "It's classified."

"Look, ya gotta let me in on this," said Erhard. "I run this place, after all. I kinda have at least some right to know."

"We...couldn't really think of any other place to discuss this away from prying eyes and ears," said Raphtalia.

Aris turned to Melty. "So...who are you...really?"

"I am first in line to the throne of Melromarc," she replied. "Melty Q. Melromarc is my full name."

Ness snapped his fingers. "And there's the big reveal."

"So you're going to become the next queen?" said Loretta.

Melty nodded.

"But isn't it the older sibling who usually gets to be king or queen?" Sora mentioned. "So why you instead of your sister? I mean, I'm not complaining, but I'm curious."

"Yeah, her sister wasn't exactly the most well-behaved kid," Ness replied. "Far from it."

"I see she retained that from her childhood," Aris remarked.

"Aris," said Melty, "at first, I wasn't sure if you were truly the swordsman Shield Hero. But now that I know you are..."

"What?" Aris raised an eyebrow.

"Melty," Queen Mirellia had said, "I would like you to do a favor for me."

"Of course, mother," Melty had replied.

"Return to the capital and reprimand the king for his outrageous and unjust treatment towards the swordsman Shield Hero," the queen had requested. "Ordinarily, I would do so myself, but..."

"I understand, mother," Melty had assured her. "Ness and I will set out as soon as we can."

Melty was about to continue, only to be interrupted by a knock at the door.

Ness got to his feet. "I'll get it!"

He opened the door, and in walked Ake, two other armored men, and two youths in mage's robes.

"Forgive us for the sudden intrusion," said Ake. "We...uh...We wish to accompany you, swordsman Shield Hero. E-Even if only during the Waves."

Ake continued, "I and several of my friends were in Lute Village during the previous Wave, during which we saw you fighting to defend it. You acted with such courage that inspired us to want to help you in any way we can."

"Wait...is that why you were chasing after me earlier?"

Ake nodded. "Yes! My friends and I collectively decided we should ask to help you during the next Wave, however we can."

"But why specifically alongside me?" asked Aris. "If you want to help fight the Waves, you can do so without a Hero."

"That may be true," said Ake, "but this isn't just about fighting the Waves...it's about helping you."

One of the mages - a boy - stepped forward. "We all hail from Lute Village. You saved our home from destruction...and you saved me, too. I trust you've met my grandmother, right? She runs the magic shop."

"Oh, I remember!" Aris smiled. "Heh, it truly is a small world sometimes, isn't it?"

The mage boy chuckled. "It can be."

"You helped us greatly," said Ake, "so we want to return your kindness and courage."

Aris had an idea. He reached into his bag and pulled out a silver pendant. "Take this," he said. "It should be worth around 150 silver coins. You may sell it and use the money to purchase some better gear for yourselves."

"Oh, th-thank you!" said Ake.

Aris tossed him the pendant.

Ake pocketed it. "We'll be back shortly, once we've better equipped ourselves."

He and his comrades left hurriedly.

In the meantime, Raphtalia purchased herself a new chest plate while Aris turned over his armor for Erhard to repair and upgrade.

Raphtalia gasped and whimpered, hiding behind Aris.

"H-Huh?" Sora looked confused.

Aris pointed ahead.

There was the pompous old man in the top hat again - the slaver who had held Raphtalia captive so long ago.

"It's a long story," said Loretta. "Oh, brother..." She smirked, leaning toward Aris's ear, "do you want to see if we can't steal something else of his?"

Aris nodded.

The twins rushed off to pilfer the slaver's tent.

Not long later, they returned with what looked to be a set of six metal claws. They were hollow inside, so it seemed they were made for Filolials.

"Look what we found!" Loretta showed the group their find. "Filo, I think these might be something you could use."

Equipped Weapon (Filo): Wyvern Talons

Weapon Type: Filolial Claw Protectors/Sharpeners

Acquisition: Stolen from Beloukas's tent

ATK: 25

Equip Bonus: None

DESC: "A set of metal claw covers designed for trained Filolials to use in battle. They're razor sharp and tear through flesh as though it were thin paper."

"Motoyasu! There you are!"

Myne ran over to the fallen Spear Hero, who clutched his groin after Filo's powerful kick. "Uuuuuugh..."

"D-Don't worry, I can heal you!" Myne said desperately.

"Tryin' to heal him, are you?" sneered a strange voice.

Myne looked around. "Who said that? Who's there!?"

Someone stepped out of the shadows of the forest, approaching Myne. The figure wore a long black coat with a hood concealing his face. "So you're the one who sold her off."

"S-Sold who off?" Myne feigned confusion, but she didn't do a very good job.

And she certainly knew who this hooded figure was speaking of.

"Don't you play dumb," the figure seethed. "I know what you did to her. Luckily, I managed to get her out of slavery."

"S-Slavery?" Myne laughed awkwardly. "Who're you trying to fool?"

"No one," the figure replied. "You're trying to fool yourself. And me."

Myne growled. She drew her sword, a weapon she barely used. "That's enough out of you!"

Roxas hadn't expected Myne to be this aggressive, but somehow, he wasn't entirely surprised.

He sidestepped her reckless swing with ease, summoning Oblivion and Oathkeeper.

Roxas attacked. Myne barely dodged. Her sword clashed with Oathkeeper's blade. Oblivion punished her severely, leaving a bleeding gash in her hip.

Myne staggered back. "Wh-What...are you...!? S-Surely you can't...you can't beat a comrade of the great Spear Hero!"

Roxas laughed out loud. He'd never met someone more delusional. "Get real! I'm not the one bleeding out right now. Also, your precious Spear Hero's over there on the ground, holding his crotch."

"Shut up!" Myne shouted.

She held her hands out at her sides.

Pools of darkness flanked her on both sides. Neoshadow Heartless emerged from the pools.

Myne pointed at Roxas. "Attack!"

The Neoshadows charged. Roxas had no choice but to forget about Myne and fight off the Heartless.

Meanwhile, Myne poured some sort of potion on her bleeding hip and limped over to Motoyasu, carrying him away from the scene.

Hope y'all are enjoying the little snippets of the side story about Rino and Roxas at the beginning and/or end of the chapters. One of my Ao3 readers suggested fleshing out Rino's character more, and I wanted to do that but was worried about taking the focus away from the main story. So I'm going to have snippets of Rino and Roxas's story at the beginning and/or end of as many chapters as I can until their story ends (which might be with either Rino living peacefully in Twilight Town with Roxas, Lea, and Xion...or with her becoming a Keyblade Wielder and living in her own world. I might even just have her be a Keyblade Wielder but still live in Twilight Town.)