From The Ashes

Part 6

“What the hell?!” I heard someone shout, startling me awake. Mira, Gwen, and I rushed out to the hall to find Oliver standing outside his door in a rage. He was holding up a pair of boots. “Who put fucking honey in my shoes?!” Cass and I burst into laughter. Oliver went red in the face. It was a simple prank. Simple, but very effective. Mira giggled a little and Gwen smiled faintly. Eian was on the floor laughing so hard I was worried he’d hurt himself.
  “That’s hilarious!” Eian said, pointing at Oliver’s sticky feet from the floor.
  “So sorry man, everyone needed some cheering up and man do I feel cheered up!” Cass said in between howls.
  “Well I don’t! These are my only pair! They’re ruined!!” He complained.
  “Good thing we’re going shopping!” Mira squealed. “I’ll help you find a new pair! I’m sure Cass won’t mind buying since he’s the reason you need new ones.”
  “Yeah!” Oliver said. 
  “Hold on, I’ll chip in. I was in on it.” I said, still chuckling a little.
  “Nah I got it.” Cass said. “It was my idea. Come on man I have an old pair of boots you can wear til then.”
  “You’re not gonna say sorry?!” Oliver said, following Cass.
  “Okay you’re right. Sorry you’re such a heavy sleeper. It was really easy to sneak in.” Cass teased.
  “Alright, alright. Let’s all get ready for the day. We can shop for a bit and then figure out what to do about our friend from last night.” I announced.
  “Rei? There’s a bakery next door, can we go for breakfast?” Eian asked.
  “Sure. Let’s all meet there in twenty minutes?” I said to the group.

  After Mira changed my bandages again I dressed in my usual tunic and leather pants combo and pulled on my boots, happy to find they were honey free. I ran a comb through my thick hair and managed to get out at least some of the tangles. Gwen was already dressed, sitting on the bed and waiting for Mira to pick out a dress to wear.
  “You go on if you’re ready. She might take a while.” She said.
  “If you want me to look pretty you’ll have to wait!” Mira said, holding up a lilac dress in the mirror.
  “You always look pretty, hon.” Gwen replied. I decided to leave before the sweetness became too much to handle. As cute as they were, it just reminded me how painfully single I was.

  I entered the bakery to find the boys already waiting on me with various different pastries. They all looked delicious and of course Eian was already stuffing his mouth with the biggest cinnamon bun I had ever seen.
  “Slow down, buddy. It’s not going anywhere.” I said, taking a seat. I reached for a yummy looking pastry with fruit preserves on top and took a bite. “Wow, this is good.” I said midbite.
  “Yeah, apparently this bakery has been open for like thirty years. It's like a family thing.” Oliver said.
  “Good to see you’re not having one of your morning moods today.” I teased Cass.
  “Oh yeah, well I had a pretty entertaining start to my day so it perked me up.” He said, winking at Oliver who shot him a glare. It was hard to take seriously though because his cheeks were full, making him look like an angry chipmunk. I held back a snicker and changed the subject.
  “So I’m gonna go shopping with Gwen, she wants my help with something. Cass, you mind taking Eian to find a bookstore?” I asked.
  “Sure.” He said, wiping crumbs from his face.
  “Yay!” Eian exclaimed. I leaned over to Oliver.
  “I need you to keep Mira occupied. Gwen wants to get something for Mira’s birthday.” I whispered. He nodded and just as he did the girls joined us. Mira had finally decided on a mint green dress with white lace details.
  “You look very nice, Mira.” I said. She twirled with a smile.
  “You think?! I’ve always loved this one.” She said. Oliver stood and cleared his throat.
  “Miss Mira Leon, will you do the honor of accompanying me, a humble knight of the Gian army, on a shopping spree?” He said, bowing and kissing her hand.
  “Oh well of course Sir Dean.” She said, happy to play along. She grabbed a pastry and took his arm. “Farewell my friends, I will reunite with you all in the evening!” They left the bakery and I gave Gwen a wink.
  “What just happened?” Cass asked.
  “Don’t worry about it.” I said shortly. I wanted as few people to know to lessen the chance of spoiling the surprise. “Go on! Eian is dying to get a new book.” Eian practically launched out of his seat, pulling Cass by his hand out the door. Everything was going according to plan.
  “Very smooth.” Gwen said.
  “Thank you, I knew Mira couldn’t resist taking someone shopping if they had offered. Ready to go?” I said. She nodded and we headed out into the crowded street.
The first few shops were nice but it wasn’t quite what we were looking for. We had tried a candle store but it seemed low effort. We also tried a couple clothing stores, on the lookout for Mira, but between Gwen and I's lack of fashion sense we decided against that too. The last place we visited we had found the perfect present that was now wrapped in white paper with a purple satin bow.