'What, you didn't think our disguised journey was over now that we have gotten past the gates, did you?' Briar smirked at the man sitting in the carriage with her.
'There's going to be eyes in every town on the lookout for men of even slightly higher than average appearance. Trust me, we need to act natural and head to a proper salon, like we had stated.'
'But what if they look into whether we actually had business there?' Christian asked.
'Of course, I actually have business with one of the people at the salon here. I'll make sure Robin stays there just long enough to receive a treatment before we continue on our way.' Briar reassured. 'Robin will come out with nary a freckle on her face, trust me.'
'I can trust that, considering it was you who put them on Robin. But, what sort of business do you claim you have in this kingdom?' Christian asked suspiciously.
'You are trying to speak with the Demon King, are you not?' Briar replied. 'Then, you will need to visit the Batkin territory soon to speak with Stella. One of the people who owns a treatment shop is close friends with Stella, and should be able to let us know where she is.'
'Wait, how did you know-' Christian tensed up, surprised.
'Because I told her so. The sooner we finish this part of the journey, the better.' Robin indicated with a scowl. She was feeling uncomfortable under the sympathetic gazes of her party. Briar's mouth widened in a teasing smile, looking at Robin.
'As you wish.' Was all that Briar added before she turned to look out the window. She wouldn't make things difficult for her newest younger sister, after all.
Christian fell silent as well. He seemed to have spaced out upon looking at Robin in a daze. It wasn't until Keith elbowed him that he realized he had been acting rudely.
"Ah…sorry." Christian turned to head outside, pretending he wasn't ashamed at his own behavior. It would have worked too, if Robin hadn't seen his ears flushed red.
Robin sighed, feeling Briar's teasing gaze upon her once again. She pulled her hood up again as they got down out of the carriage to head into the inn.
"Come along, Robin. You're staying in my room tonight." Briar said.
"Wait, what?" Christian objected. "No, no, Robin should stay with-"
"I do hope you aren't suggesting that my dear little sister should stay in a room with a man?" Briar raised an eyebrow. "How scandalous."
"I-I was about to do no such thing!" Christian blustered. "I am merely asking why Robin isn't getting her own room is all."
"Well, firstly, because Robin is a 'vulnerable' young lady." Briar pointed out. "If some scoundrel managed to get into her rooms at night, despite your expert guarding, then there would be no more need for your presence here."
Christian found he could not refute that.
"Secondly, my little Robin is quite timid." Briar playfully hugged Robin around the shoulders. "And she is sleeping in an unfamiliar environment. What if she has nightmares and needs someone to comfort her? You wouldn't want her beautiful eyes to be dimmed through lack of sleep?"
Christian narrowed his eyes at Briar. Robin nodded her head, agreeing with Briar.
But Christian could see that Robin's face was flushed red underneath the hooded cloak. 'It must be quite a trial to put up with a cheeky elf like this.' Christian thought to himself.
"Trust me. No harm shall come to either her reputation or her beauty sleep with me by her side." Briar smiled. "Of course, if you feel uncertain, you can feel free to guard outside the door tonight."
"Mmmph." Christian wasn't happy about it, but he also couldn't refute. This elf was becoming more and more brazen in front of him. Robin must be an angel for only considering her a sister- Christian paused.
He suddenly recalled what he had heard back underground the tower at Nine Tails City, and outside Robin's bedroom at Peg Leg City. Perhaps it wasn't that Robin hadn't noticed. But it was a conscious decision on Robin's part to consider them family that was untouchable. Perhaps…that was the way Robin used to quietly reject all advances. Perhaps Robin had a heart wound that was especially difficult to heal.
"..." Christian didn't know what to make of it. But the words of prophecy flitted unbidden to the front of his mind.
'And maiden's heart, though hidden, true,
Shall be cleared of all errs of view,
Though heavy trials, love br wrung.
In leaving, one more lesson learned,
Companion gained, and worldview spurned…'
Who was the maiden? Was it Briar? Was it Jasmine? Or had it already happened with Chelsea? Or was Briar instead the companion gained during the course of Robin's attempts to leave?
Christian didn't know. He shook his head, trying to rid himself of his thoughts. But it was no use. This one train of thought seemed stuck running around and around in circles about him, to the point where he was quite distracted for the rest of the day.
~~~~~
The room that Briar booked was a normal double room with two beds, much to Christian's relief. At the very least, the two wouldn't be sharing a bed. Perhaps due to the new attire, Robin very quickly retired to her room, alongside Briar.
Robin awoke to the sunlight streaming in through the windows. Birds were chirping, and the sound of people bustling about brought her awake. Well, as awake as she could be. She got up and saw she was wearing her hero's attire. She must have forgotten to take it off the night before.
As Robin walked through the familiar marbled halls, she had a dull feeling that something was odd. The maids that she passed by in the corridor all stopped and bowed at her passing. Even the soldiers saluted her on her way through.
Finally, she got to the throne room, where Christian stood decked out in King Zephron's clothes, a crown upon his head.
"... Christian?" Robin asked.
Christian looked up from the presentation he was listening to and smiled happily. He stood up and walked over to Robin. It was around this time that Robin began to notice small details. Had Christian's hair always been that long? When did he change his clothing style? And why was he looking at her so warmly?
"Robin, did you have a dream of what happened back then? It's all right, Robin, it's over now. You don't have to be the hero anymore."
Robin stared at Christian in a daze, blinking. A breeze blew by and a dark strand of hair blew in from of her face. Robin was distracted. This…was this her hair? But it was too long, almost as long as before she had started to cut it.
Robin did not notice when Christian had drawn so close, but she was suddenly wrapped up in a hug. His voice murmured into her ear.
"You only need to be my w-"
Robin sat straight up in bed, shocked awake. It took a few moments before she realized she was at the inn, in the shared room with Briar. A small magic light on the desk dimly lit the surroundings. Since elves do not need to sleep as much as humans, Briar was already awake reading a book, even though it was the middle of the night.
"Oh? You're awake? Did you have a bad dream?" Briar asked, hearing Robin's sudden movement. Her eyes seemed to sparkle with moonlight as she turned to see what was wrong.
Dream…Robin thought back to the dream she had just awoken from, and felt her cheeks burning as she blushed a bright red.
"You.. could say that…" Robin replied. Such a dream was bad for her heart. Even if she hadn't done anything wrong, she felt like she had been harboring wicked thoughts.
'Should I go find a waterfall somewhere?' Robin wondered to herself.
Briar placed a bookmark in her book, and placed it aside. Then she turned to Robin.
"Do you want to talk about it? Sometimes talking about what frightened you can help you calm down. Humans need a lot of sleep, after all."
"Eh? Ah! N-no need, no need! I'm headingrightbacktosleep, goodnight!" Robin said quickly before turning over in bed and pulling the covers up to her head. Briar noticed Robin's red ears, and suddenly realized.
"All right. Good night, Robin." Briar turned back to her book, a bemused smile tugging at her lips. She wouldn't embarrass her younger sister too much.
Under the covers, Robin tried to calm herself down. It was far too embarrassing to talk about her dream to anyone. But….what if she went back to sleep and then dreamed about it again?