Lavender Snow

Friendship Dissolving

Wilbur crouched in the shadows of an alleyway, waiting silently next to a stack of empty crates.

"Hello?" Wilbur jumped, whirling around. A tiny Enderian child was standing by his crate, grabbing his coat. "Where's mommy?"

Wilbur blinked. "Uh. . . Kinda busy, kid. You should leave."

A squeaking noise came from somewhere outside the alley. Wilbur cursed. "Shit. Uh, I mean, uh, oh no. Kid, you need to go now."

"I can't find my mommy!" The kid yanked on his coat. "Where is she?"

This is why I hate kids, Wilbur thought. He reached down, scooping up the kid, and tossed her into an open crate against the wall of the alley. A second later, two Elytrians appeared at the mouth of the alley, dragging a limp Enderian between them.

"Hurry, now, we have to get them out before they wake up," one of them said.

"Hello, gentlemen!" Wilbur stood, hopping off the crate and shoving his hands in his pockets. "Now where could you possibly be going with that fine lady, hm?"

The Elytrians froze. "Uh. . ."

The first Elytrian scowled at him. "This is our friend. She's drunk so we're bringing her home. Mind your own business."

Wilbur hummed. "Weird that you're bringing her home in an alleyway. What, does she live in a crate?"

"It's a shortcut." The Elytrian adjusted the woman's arm across his shoulder. "We're just passing through."

"This alleyway leads to a dead end." Wilbur walked up to them and smiled. "How about you just hand her over, hm? You're not welcome here."

"Look, man, we don't want any trouble." The Elytrian handed the woman off to his partner, drawing a knife from his side. "Let us pass, and we won't hurt you."

"I was just about to say something similar." Wilbur withdrew his hand from his pocket, revealing a small boxy object.

The Elytrian squinted at it. "What is that?"

"For you, a problem." Wilbur tossed the box from hand to hand, smirking. "For me, a friend. Let's say hello, hm?"

Wilbur hurled the box at the ground. It split open, and Wilbur squeezed his eyes shut. Purple flashed through his eyelids. When he opened them again, Pix and Gem were wrestling the Elytrians to the ground.

"Need any help?" He asked, picking the empty box back up.

"I think we got it," Gem said, extending her wings out. "Thanks, Soot."

He saluted sloppily and walked over to the crate, where the kid was busy repeating shit over and over again.

"None of that," Wilbur said, lifting the child up. "Let's go find your mom, yeah?"

✿❀✿❀✿❀✿

Eret raised an eyebrow as Wilbur walked in. His hair was messy, he had dust smeared over his face, and his glasses were slightly crooked on his nose. "Busy day?"

Wilbur snorted. "You could say that. I intercepted another kidnapping in the lower districts."

"Good, good," Eret said. "Did the teleporter work?"

"Like a charm." Wilbur reached into his pouch and took out the empty box, tossing it over. "It feels a little wrong using the Elytrian's technology."

"I'm paying the donator handsomely," Eret assured him. "And if he ever decided not to give his powers, I would let him walk away with more wealth than the nobles."