Change

Chapter 8

They were going to the forest...

But why?

...Colette and Edgar have decided last night, that they were going to meet the mysterious brawler. They wanted to change back; they wanted to be themselves again. Edgar asked Colette, "how far are we supposed to go?"

"Byron only said they live deep in the woods. Hopefully, we don't go too far and get lost." 

"Well, even if we did get lost, I'd me fine. You're with me after all," Edgar gushed.

"Edgar..." Colette stopped to pinch Edgar's cheek. "You silly goose. You keep talking to me like I'm a dream!"

"But you are," Edgar smiled. "To me, anyways. I still find it so difficult to believe that you're dating me."

"Aw," Colette ruffled Edgar's hair.

Edgar smiled sheepishly, and Colette smirked. They were both goofing around, ignoring the fact that time was passing by. They decided to take a break in the middle of nowhere. Colette took the water bottles and snacks out, handing half of them to Edgar. "Did you bring anything, by any chance?" Colette asked as she munched.

"I brought a map, more clothing, a tent kit, and a few sleeping bags. I also brought my scarf," Edgar took his scarf out.

Colette asked, "what's the clothing for?"

"Just in case it gets cold."

"What's the tent kit and sleeping bags for?" Colette continued asking.

"Well, in case it gets really late... we can camp out somewhere and then go home the next day."

"You really are predictable," Colette joked.

"You can never get too prepared," Edgar chuckled.

After some time of relaxing, they decided to go again. Packing up, Colette and Edgar went on their way. 

Hours past.

They were now far from home, and that was for sure. 

They passed a few cities, but didn't stop, because it was almost evening. Finally, they stopped at a particular city, tired from all the walking. A sign read: "Welcome to RainNest City, Where All your Dreams Come True!"

"I doubt that," Colette said while reading the sign.

"I wonder why it's called 'Rain Nest,'" Edgar wondered.

Just when he said it, rain started pouring down on the couple. Colette yelled, "it's raining cats and dogs! You really jinxed it, Edgar. Let's go for some shelter!" 

"Good idea!" Edgar agreed, and they both ran into the city.

They sprinted into an inn, and a worker there greeted them. "You two are visitors, right? I've never seen your faces before," the worker said.

"Actually, we were just passing by- it started raining so we had to take shelter." Colette explained.

"I see. Well, you are welcome to stay here for a little! The rain should stop in about a hour. In RainNest city, it rains at the most unpredictable times. Let me know if you need anything."

The worker walked away, probably off to do their work. Colette and Edgar sat down on the sofa in the lobby. "At least the employee was nice," Edgar let out a sigh of relief.

"Yeah. I guess we wait for an hour now," Colette pouted.

"Don't be disappointed- we can do stuff to pass the time." 

"What 'stuff'?" Colette asked.

"You know, like playing video games, drawing, talking, anything!"

"Okay then, but you choose." Colette offered.

"...Should I ask them if they have 'Brawlers and Hearts'?" 

"What's that?" 

"It's a card game. If they have it, I'll teach you how to play!" Edgar smiled as he stood up. 

Edgar went to the worker, and he asked if they had any card games. When they said yes, he asked if they had "Brawlers and Hearts."

"We do, actually. You want to play it?" The worker verified.

"Yep. I'm gonna teach my girlfriend how to play," Edgar summarized.

The worker's face turned pale, and they dropped the papers they were holding. Then they gasped, and fell onto the floor. Edgar panicked and helped the worker get up. He asked, "oh no- are you alright?! Should I call an ambulance?" 

The worker pulled Edgar onto the floor, then whispered into his ear. "I thought you and that girl were friends! You two are dating?" 

When Edgar nodded, the worker turned even more pale.

"Y-you're not supposed to date in this city." The worker said, gulping as they did.

"What do you mean? Isn't dating supposed to be part of life?" Edgar felt confused.

"You see, there's this man... his name is Owen. He kills any couple that are suspected of dating, and he doesn't care if they were dating or not. He does it so the couple doesn't reproduce, and there are more people to take care of. Owen kind of... owns this city. He wants everything in this place to go his way... he even sends guards into inn sometimes, just to check that we're 'behaving.'"

"...so no one is dating in this city? Not even one? How about your Mom and Dad?" Edgar questioned.

"...They were murdered." The worker said softly.

"Oh no, this town... What am I going to tell Colette?!" Edgar freaked out. 

From above them, a voice called, "Edgar? What are you doing down there with the worker?"

"Colette!" Edgar immediately sprang up.

"Edgar, you okay? Is the card game unavailable or something?" Colette asked, worry masking her face.

"Colette," Edgar hesitated before continuing. "We can't stay in this city, it's too dangerous. We need to get out of here."

"Why?" Colette asked.

"It's because-."

"Well, well. Why didn't anyone tell me there were new comers?" 

Colette and Edgar turned around, and a man stood in the entrance.

"Nice to meet you, tourists. I'm Owen, the owner of RainNest.