For the rest of the day, I spend at least a good portion of it just rehearsing and rephrasing the perfect words to say to Ash. For some reason, I had it in me that everything - every word, syllable, the way it was enunciated - they all had to be just right.

Because if they weren't, who's to say that she won't misunderstand me, right? And the last thing we want is some last-minute bullshit melodrama misunderstanding to tear a rift between us two.

Already felt that rift once that one time.. and how awkward it was to patch it up again. Definitely not a fan.

So if that one particular someone looking in from out my window has some questions as to why there's this one funny-looking guy in a jester's outfit is pacing back and forth in his room muttering incessantly to absolutely nothing.. well, here's your answer, you creepy stalker, I'm multitasking.

No one said you can't practice a speech while breaking in new outfits. I'm sure politicians do it all time, with the clown outfit too. This was normal.

Also, it might just be bias, or maybe denial, or maybe just both, but I think I'm rocking this jester look quite well.. it's no aristocrat, colors a bit too flashy and cartoony for my liking - hey, fabric's pretty smooth on the skin though so that's a major plus right there.

I sent Amanda a picture, hoping she'd give me a thumbs up of approval. Uh, she didn't. Admittedly she expressively.. articulately.. begged to differ, but who cares what she thinks, right?

She's only like, what - a professional who has been doing this for years now? And whose opinion is also highly respected and revered among her peers? It's just an opinion.. one person's opinion.. I know I'm handsome.. the hat brings out the color in my eyes, and it's nice. I like it.. I think.

Speaking of revered individuals, Tyler uploaded a new video a couple of hours ago.. and already it's sitting at over a million views. Stranger #2 was a guy in his late teens, and clearly, he never listened to his parents about making weird faces for too long - cause his was permanently stuck starstruck throughout the whole twenty minutes.

Unlike my time in the spotlight, this guy's video had far more things going on. He showed Tyler around, gave him a proper tour of the city, went to all sorts of places.. overall, a pretty good time. The highlight was probably midway through the video when they went to ride some bumper cars.. for some strange unknown reason, their vehicle's brakes kept getting stuck.. got to the point where they were on reverse the entire time.

I wonder why.

Come the end of the video, Tyler did his usual farewell shtick together with Stranger #2.. and hinted at a surprise thing that he has planned that he's also apparently not allowed to tell us. Something about a collaboration thing with other influencers.

Whatever it was, I clearly wasn't the demographic here.. so I tuned out, got up from my bed, undressed and packed my outfit for tomorrow, and got ready for lunch.

My cooking this time, hurray. Never thought I'd miss my own cooking.. even if it wasn't as good.

When evening finally fell, when the moon and stars painted over the night sky, I made sure that I was ready. The moment I heard the front door swing open from the couch, I heaved in a breath.

Adalia across from me couldn't at all make sense of it. From her perspective, I just came down the stairs half an hour ago to give her her daily dose looking all apprehensive with no cause for it anywhere in sight.

She'll soon find out.. they both will, any moment now.

Ash emerged from the hallway. We made eye contact. I opened my mouth.

"Master!" She bolted straight towards me, her stare wide and tense. "There's.. there's an issue I have to address with you. I'm afraid it's rather.. problematic, you see."

I shut my mouth, blinking back my surprise - all those words I had my teetering at the tip of my tongue all falling back down the dark chasm of my throat.. and new ones came to hastily take their place.

"Problematic," I repeated, infinite fleeting scenarios playing in my head all at once. "What.. what about?"historical

"It's in regards to the convention tomorrow."

Uh oh.

"Okay..." I urged her to continue.

"As you are aware, I took the liberty of informing Sera myself that I will be unable to visit her come tomorrow afternoon."

She could have stopped right there, and I'm pretty sure I'd still have the whole picture. I didn't even have to assume, the evidence was plain before me - I knew what Sera was like, and if we go by Ash's distress look on her face - the little headache of the dead has yet to break character.

"She inquired with me about the reason why, and I couldn't very well just lie to her," Ash continued, blowing a sigh. "I told her about the convention, about tomorrow, I told her that I was to accompany you to it.."

I too blew a breath, placing my hands on my hips. "Mmm, guessing she didn't like that now, did she?"

"She had her grievances over it, yes.."

"That fact that I'm taking her time away with you?"

"That's one of them, indeed," Ash affirmed again. "Mostly, she just disapproves knowing that that time would be spent mostly on you."

What the hell.. she's like a kid that refuses to share her toy with anyone else. Except Ash isn't a toy, and she doesn't belong to anyone else. It's high time she gets around to understanding that.

"She's flattering," I shook my head. "So what? Don't tell me she told you she won't allow you to come."

I was about ready to put my foot down had she said 'yes'. I can take a lot before push comes to shove.. and Sera was already mid-process of crossing the threshold between the two.

If that was the case.. if she really told Ash that..

But she didn't.

Ash looked up and promptly shook her head.

"No, nothing of the sort, Master," She said quietly. "She.. before I departed, she proclaimed.. that she would also come along with us."

I'm sorry, did my eardrums make a mistake somewhere there? Did it somehow misinterpret the sound waves vibrating in the air? It must have, cause I think I must have heard the literal impossible right then and there.

But just to be safe, though..

"She.." I strained my ears sharp. "What?"

To both our surprise, it was Adalia sitting quietly and out of sight, that broke the brief silence in the air.

"The.. Fey.. that was summoned..." In the darkness, a pair of white misty eyes slowly turned to face Ash's. "She wants.. to follow..?"

A little hesitation, some reluctance, then Ash rigidly nodded her head.

Okay, wow, holy shit - I guess my sense of hearing hasn't broken yet. Lucky me, huh? Kinda wish that was what happened instead, though. Honestly... going deaf would have been a whole lot easier to take in than.. whatever the hell this was.

"Why..?" Adalia asked again, speaking out the question I was too baffled to say.

The Elf's lips went narrow and her gaze refused to meet her own, something that very well did not go unnoticed. Clearly, Ash still had some reservations about communicating with Adalia, but that's slowly phasing out.

Eventually, she did raise her gaze. "She claimed she wanted to keep an eye on us.."

"Like hell she is," I snapped, eyes wide in disbelief.

"But I believe it was mostly curiosity that drove her to make such a decision," Ash said, turning back to me. "You haven't seen, Master.. but her eyes would always be filled with awe and wonder whenever we speak about the wonders of your world. I know it must frustrate her to never see more of it beyond what she has already seen."

I looked at her, eyebrows raised so high it almost became a part of my bangs. "You're sympathizing?"

"Merely stating what I've observed of her so far," Ash responded, bowing her head. "Upon hearing her declaration, I firmly told her it is not her place to decide nor as well is it mine."

"I.. Oh god.."

"Ultimately, whether she likes it or not.. as always, that decision lies with you, Master."

"It's not even a decision, is it?" I said, scoffing at the absurdity of it all. "She's not stupid, I'm sure she already knows what I'm going to say to that."

Ash nodded. "Yes. Though be that as it may, I assured her that I'd try asking anyway."

Like, give me a break here! I already have enough on my plate! I don't need to be worrying about some hot-headed necromancer turning a building full of cosplayers into some fantasy rendition of the dawn of the dead movies.

Okay, fine, credit to her.. I know she knows when to control herself, it's been almost two weeks since she got here and so far.. nothing's on the news about any wandering teens found dead in a public park.

Plenty of chances to kill me too, plenty of opportunities to act on it.. and yet here I am still standing and breathing.

What is she even curious about - God! Why does she have to know? Why does she have to discover? Why does she have to be so fascinated about things?! Why the hell does she have to be so damn.. human?!