Nat hadn't brought much along with her, just her sword and a coat. She knows she should have brought more supplies or should just stop somewhere to get more, but it's too late for that, Lucas has probably already realised her absence. She just keeps running, as quickly as she can. She's out of breath, hungry, and cold, but she won't stop, not until she's at least further out of town. It feels like hours have passed when he reaches the next town.
She stops running and begins searching for a place where she can rest and stock up on food and water. She needs to make it to the castle and request a meeting with the queen and her court, until then, she has to lay low. The towns are all covered in workers for Lucas, waiting to do her bidding in hopes to be rewarded or spared. She finds herself in a cosy place called "High Noon Tavern." She walks inside and is greeted by a tired looking man behind a counter. The man's curly brown hair covering one of his eyes, and his glasses drawing attention to the dark bags under the revealed one, he adores an waist apron.
The place is relatively empty, with only the noise of quiet chatter and clunking from the kitchen. The place appears to be Monster friendly, which you don't see very often, even when the dragon hybrid Lucas was on the throne. She takes a seat and the tired man from the counter comes to her table. "What do you buy?" asks the tired man, who according to the name tag, is called Warren. Nat gives him a puzzled look, she didn't receive a menu-. "Oh-. Sorry, most of our customers are regulars. I'll get you a menu." Just as the man begins to walk off, from the little swinging door leading to the kitchen, out comes a little child- what Nat assumes to be a child. The kid, who is presumably a cow hybrid, runs out holding money in his hands, a tall monster following behind. The monster is quite intimidating, at least 6'7, her body completely white, including her elbow length hair, tail, and horns upon her head. She's adorning a cooking apron and a ring on her left horn. The most disturbing thing of all to Nat is the monster's eyes, One completely white, the other black, neither have pupils.
"Oh my, not again..." Said the tired waiter, sighing. "This is a usual thing-?" Nat questions without an answer from Warren. The child runs up to one of the other customers, a short goat man whose hair covers his eyes. "Dad! Dad! Look what I found!" exclaims the child with glee. Dad? How could the Goat man be the child's dad? "Oh- Somber, how nice dear, but return it to your mother, she has to work." The monster waits expectantly behind the child. "Sorry Mama" The child says, dragging the word sorry, as he hands the money back to the monster. Mama? Dad? The monster is the child's parent too?
Nat is in a world of confusion when Warren turns to her and explains that the Goat man, Terien, and Monster, Rin, are in a relationship and found the child, deciding to raise him as their own. The goat man picks the child up and places him on his lap. Nat is having a sense of deja vu, all of these people remind him of people he knew when in school. The monster walks over to Nat and warren. "Hello there bud! You must be new to town, Im Rin, the tavern owner, and cooker of babies." Nat's face drops, was this lady serious? "Yeah, just love to, you know, fork-knife-medium rare babies." Nat remains silent. "I'm joking-" says Rin. "Oh." Is all Nat can respond. "Wow- you're dense." Chimes in Warren. "No it's just- well I am new in town, that's true. My name is Nat Aaron." "Well, welcome to town bud-!" Said the monster before heading back to the kitchen. She's quite friendly despite being intimidating.
"Nat Aaron? Hm. I remember you, we went to high school together. I'm Warren Cliffs." Nat thinks for a moment. Yeah, they did go to school together. Nat recalls herself, Lucas, and their other friend being not the kindest to Warren, whose father was also their history teacher. They got in trouble with him quite a bit. "Oh- right- heh- sorry about that." "It's fine...the only thing you have to be sorry about is ever being friends with that maniac." They both go silent. Warren had made this very awkward, and it would only get more awkward when Nat found out what had become of her other friend, so Warren decided to just go get the menu. (802 words)
YOU ARE READING
A Hero's Bedtime Story.
FantasyA tale of a villains lackey setting off to save the world. What happens when your best friend is your rival? Do you give up your goal for them, or do you rid of the one who stands in your way? A young Nat Arron sets out to stop her biggest threat...
