TRYST // Philza X Reader

4

You didn't get much sleep that night either - too worried about how you would be setting off for Jeb knows how long the next morning with only what you could carry. You only had a vague idea of where you were going too, and there was no telling whether you would find the Angel before night fell or not...

You let the thoughts run through your mind until you saw the sun rise again, and you set off for the palace for the second day in a row, scarfing down a little breakfast before you left.

You made sure to lock the door securely behind you when you stepped out of the house - you weren't sure when you were coming back after all. It almost felt like a normal day, stepping off your porch with your messenger bag slung over your shoulder - but both the bag and your heart were much too heavy to pretend for long.

You tried to take your time as you meandered through the city, enjoying watching the morning routines of your neighbors one last time before you set off. You watched as the forges were lit and smoke started to puff in a steady rhythm out of the chimneys, and the farmers wheel their carts into the town market. You would miss this while you were away.

Even though you had been trying to take it slow, it wasn't too long before you found yourself approaching the gates of the palace again. The nerves in your gut grew and your hand tightened around the strap of your bag - this was it. After this, you would be on your own until you found the Angel, and if you didn't bring him back with you... it could be on your hands that the kingdom lost the war.

As you got closer to the gates, you noticed a shadowy figure standing a few paces away from the usual guards - one of the king's prized set of twins. A quick glance at their stomach revealed unmarred skin - this was the brother then. He caught sight of you just as your eyes were flicking back up to his face, and he stepped forward, nodding respectfully.

"Y/N." He said. "Right on time. My name is Tarquin."

"Hello." You said, trying your best not to let your voice waver too much. It would seem bad if he caught onto how nervous you were - you were supposed to be an experienced messenger after all.

Tarquin smiled slightly - just a twitch in the corner of his mouth - looking down at you with curious purple eyes. His hand slipped into the pocket of his pants and he pulled out a small metal compass, a blue glow reflecting over the glass.

"What is that?" You asked.

"It's enchanted to follow the migration pattern of crows." Tarquin explained. "No one's seen the Angel in a century so there's no telling where he is but... it's as much of a lead as the king can offer."

He slipped the compass into your hand, and you curled your fingers around the metal. Underneath the glass surface, the needle was pointed northwest. You looked back to Tarquin, pocketing the device.

"I suppose I should get going." You said. "Thank you."

Tarquin nodded, and you turned, starting off towards the western exit of the town. Hopefully, you could take one of the more traveled paths for at least a while before you had to rough it through the wilderness-

"Actually, wait, Y/N?"

You turned back to see Tarquin looking a little nervous. "Ah." He said. "If you wanted, I could teleport you outside of the city, so you don't have to walk..."

"Oh." You said. It was a bit of a strange offer, but at least it would save you some time. It certainly couldn't hurt. "That would be very kind of you, if you're sure you don't mind."

Tarquin shook his head, holding out a hand to you. You hesistated a second before slipping your hand into his, the other coming to clutch at the strap of your messenger bag again. There was a moment where you were just standing in the street, but then you felt the air distort around you, compressing against your body until you couldn't feel anything but the weight of Tarquins hand. For a moment, it felt like you were suffocating, but then the world was expanding again, and your feet landed on soft ground.

When you opened your eyes, you were outside the walls of the city, on the edge of a well traveled path.

Tarquin let go of your hand, drawing back to himself respectfully. "Hopefully this isn't too far off from where you need to be."

"Thank you." You said, smiling at him. "You just saved me a good amount of time."

Tarquin smiled softly again, nodding. "The least I could do." He said. "Good luck on finding the Angel."

"Thank you." You said. "I'll need it."

If it was any other situation, you would have expected him to say something along the lines of 'oh, no you won't, you'll do fine'. But Tarquin just hummed, smiling sympathetically one last time before the air shivered around him again and he was gone, only a few wisps of purple magic floating in the air left behind - the only sign he had ever even been there at all.

You reached into your pocket, pulling out the compass again as you turned to face the trail as it lead away from the capitol. The needle pointed dead ahead - which was good for now, as you would get to stay on the path. You took a deep breath, tucking the compass away again as you started off, one hand still on the strap of your bag.

You tried not to think about it too much, but the fact that Tarquin didn't disagree when you had said that you would need the luck was bouncing around your head like an omen. And it wasn't a comforting one.