It took a while for Fresh to stop crying. At first she had to stop crying because her friends hadn’t abandoned her after all, which she realizes now should have been obvious. But at that moment, it seemed like a very real possibility to her. After she manages that, she then has to stop crying as she processes the death of Mr. Monkey.

“Will you settle down?” asks Jubilee. “We were gone for like.. forty-five minutes,” they say, rubbing the forehead of their mask.

Fresh rubs her eyes dry on her shoulder. Was it really that long? It had felt like the better part of a day for her.

Apparently, after she got snatched by the boss, the others had devised a plan. Basil and Shamrock went to get their anqa, to have a way to safely retrieve her from all the way up there. While they were out there, Basil had spent a considerable amount of money on a scroll that would allow her to learn a new priestess ability a little earlier than usual. Meanwhile, Jubilee had gone out of the boss’ field of view, in order to prepare their spell without triggering the fight.

She turns around, staring at the giant wall of glass that spans the entire floor of the dungeon. By all accounts, it should have crashed in on itself a long time ago, just from its own unbalanced weight. But the magical-glass seems to have its own unusual properties at play. She always knew that Jubilee was strong, but this is on a whole other level. “Jubilee,” says Fresh, looking out over the floor that is covered in the shadow of the glass tidal-wave. “You’re really, really strong.”

“Shut up,” sighs Jubilee, picking up a rock from the ground and handing it to Shamrock who is petting the anqa, which likely has a very sore back. It isn’t the kind that had been bred for having a rider, let alone one as big and as heavy as Shamrock. Thankfully, it isn’t shy of a fight, at least. He takes the rock, nodding. Apparently tired, Jubilee sits down rather ungracefully, landing on the sandy beach beneath themselves.

They look up towards Basil, who is staring their way with an almost wary expression before simply shaking their head ‘no’. Basil waits for a second, apparently thinking, but then nods in return in the affirmative. Fresh sighs, they’re doing the thing again. The thing where they come to an unspoken understanding that they don’t want her to be a part of, for whatever reason.

Holding out his other arm, Shamrock softly pushes the others back a step and then hurls the rock across the room at the glass. It cracks on the edge where the rock strikes. Then, the crack runs along the side and through the body of the structure. A second later, it all collapses. The air is filled with nothing but glass. It almost looks like it's raining as hundreds of thousands of glass splinters fall down towards the ground all at once in a cascade that rains down to the ground in the distance.

It’s beautiful, really, thinks Fresh, staring at the very odd sight. It’s almost like the downpour of a heavy thunderstorm, but the only sound in the air is that of a crystal tinkling. She hopes that anything left standing down beneath that has its eyes closed.

The four of them stand there, at a safe distance, and watch until the last of the glass hits the ground.

“Come on, let’s get out of here,” says Jubilee. “I’m starvi- Will you fuck off?!” they ask, turning around, somewhat lethargically. Fresh is knelt down behind them, picking bits of jungle out of Jubilee’s hood.

“Ooh!” protests Fresh, flicking off a small bramble.

Grabbing their boss-cores, the four of them decide to call it a day and to head back ‘home’. Fresh pets Mr. Monkey’s arm one last time before she goes and she wishes him a good night. Using a spell this large must have really drained Jubilee, as they seem to stumble most of the way out of the dungeon, until Fresh eventually asks Shamrock to carry them. Jubilee doesn’t have much time to threaten violence before they fall asleep right then and there.

Quality Effect: The core is 15% larger

Apparently, for people who use soul-points to cast, running low on them is a very exhausting, if not even dangerous, predicament. Generally, soul-points are restored by eating well and resting or through very expensive potions which can restore it directly, much like her own potions that she had made, back in the north. What this means is that if a caster runs out of soul-points in a fight, they might essentially collapse then and there in the middle of a battle.

When they head back, Fresh abruptly stops in front of a store front window. She isn’t sure why. She didn’t choose to stop. She wants to go home too. Something made her. Her head turns to look into the glass and before she knows what she’s doing, she steps inside of the store and places a few coins onto the counter.

“One broom, please,” says Fresh, pointing to the broom in the window. The shop-keeper, a little puzzled, shrugs and takes her money, handing her a broom from the shelf. Her body moves itself back out of the store, she only manages to turn her head at the last second. “Thank you, bye!”

(Fresh) bought: [Straw-Broom](High)

for

[{32} Obols] !

Quality Effect: Bristles fray 25% slower

Weight: 0.5 kg

Value: 32 Obols

Basil and Shamrock stare at her questioningly. The anqa, Thyme, just glares coldly as always. Fresh blinks, looking down at the thing in her hands. “Uh.. I really wanted a broom,” she explains. “You know, to clean our room with?” she says, coming up with the first excuse she can think of.

The two of them look at each other and shrug.

“Sure,” says Basil. “But come on, we really should get home. It’s not safe out here,” she explains. Fresh nods, apologizing. The four of them head home and she stares at the broom in her hand, not sure why she needs it. Her hands shoot out as they pass a stall and she slaps a few coins onto the counter, taking a large roll of dark-fabric all in one motion without ever stopping, not even turning back for her change.

Apparently, the fountain wants this too.

(Fresh) bought: [Roll of Fabric]{Dark}(Normal)

for

[{19} Obols] !

Weight: 1.2 kg

Value: 19 Obols

“Are you okay?” asks Basil. “That monkey thing must have really worried you, huh?”

“Sorry!” apologizes Fresh again. “I think I need to sleep too. I feel a little.. funny.” She does her best to keep walking, only staring down at the road before herself, so that the fountain can’t see anything else through her eyes that it wants. She carries the broom and fabric tucked into the bag. “Let’s go to bed early today g- One apple, please!” she says, inadvertently putting far too much money on the counter of a fruit-cart next to her that she didn’t even see. She takes a large, particularly shiny, red apple without thinking and again, not waiting for her change as she didn’t stop for even a single step.

(Fresh) bought: [Apple]{Large}(High)

for

[{9} Obols] !

Weight: 0.2 kg

Value: 9 Obols

“Can you please try to be serious?” asks Basil quietly in a very tense voice. “This isn’t funny,” she whispers into her ear. “We’re very vulnerable right now.” She grabs Fresh’s wrist very forcefully and drags her away like a scolding mother would a misbehaving child.

“I’m sorry, Basil!” says Fresh. She knows that the fountain is controlling her body and making her do things. Just like she has seen it do to her friends before. But.. she can’t tell them that. If she tells them that the fountain can control her movements, then the inevitable question will come if it can do so for theirs, which of course, it can. They’ll hate her for getting them involved in something like this. They’ll never forgive her, she’s sure of it. She’ll just have to ‘take the hit’ as it were and hope that the fountain doesn’t make her do anything else that will make them mad at her right now.

Thankfully, it doesn’t and the four of them get back home. Shamrock throws Jubilee down onto the bed as gracelessly as he had done to her so often, Jubilee doesn’t seem to notice though, they’re entirely out of it.

Basil sets her bag down, adjusting her hat. “I’ll go and get us some dinner,” she says. “You guys stay here.” She looks at Fresh. “And don’t go anywhere!” she warns, in an unusually sharp tone. Fresh quietly nods, heading over to the bed to lay Jubilee down properly, so that they won’t get a stiff neck while sleeping. As she looks back around, she sees that Basil has gone outside and Shamrock, rather than coming over too, stands by the door.

She can’t help but feel like he’s there to keep her from leaving.

A little bit later, Basil comes back, carrying a large platter. The three of them have an awkwardly silent dinner.

Razmatazz

Thank you kindly for reading!

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