And The Wish...

And the Wish Is Lost On Paper

The Sandgoose, eh? Cool name I guess, I don't know why they would call it that however. I bet it's larger than the one in Bowerstone Market too. It definitely seems that way. They've even got an upstairs bar and their beds are in a wing all to themselves so that it's quiet. So far it's the best inn.

But I'm not here to drink. I've never had a beer or ale or wine anyways. I usually just buy some water. I knew someone who drank so much that if it weren't for my sister, he would've died. The state he was in scared me never to drink, he and his friend even made me swear an oath never to drink. I never wanted to anyways. It was a huge wast of money and water was free. Plus I didn't want to have a higher chance of dying early.

I also have a mission to find a mission.

Yep. I was sent here by Abbott of the Temple of Light himself. Aren't I so special? Okay, I need to focus at the task at hand. Which is to find a task. How boring. And why would he send me to the inn? Why not the sheriff's office where people report their problems? This might take forever.

"Oh, won't someone help this poor, old man?"

Or maybe not.

I look up at the balcony where the voice came from. I lock eyes with a somewhat old man wearing old brown clothes and a hat to cover the balding parts. He squeals in delight as he sees me. That's just weird.

"Oh my goodness, it's you, Sparrow! Oh how long it has been!" He looks up and down at me as I determine whether or not to run away. "You've become so grown up! I remember that time that you found your way to my basement as if it were yesterday!" He sighs to himself. "I miss those days when I would teach you how to fix things." He looks up at me and smiles. "Even when you couldn't see, you excelled at a great many things."

"Barnum?" I ask in disbelief. Could it really be him? I wouldn't have been able to tell, I need seen him before. But that voice, it sounded as silly but educated as before. He's just how I imagined him! Lanky and weird. Yep, I was so detailed when I was younger.

"Glad you remember this old ding-dong," he says, bringing me into a hug.

"You moved to Oakfield? What about your wife and your daughter?"

He lets go of me, and by the look in his eyes, I knew I shouldn't have asked.

"I'm sorry, Barnum."

"It's not your fault."

"But what about the picture? Sure it took a while to 'developify', but was it a hit? I heard a couple of people mention it."

"Well the bam-dazzled pic-ic-ma-fic thingy was adoriented enough to get me here." His shoulders droop. "Now I work as a mechanic for the mill and whatnot."

I pat his shoulder. "You'll bounce back on those clown feet of yours, Barnum. You always have."

"Thanks, Sparrow, but for now, I need you to help fix my problem."

"Bandits destroyed a bridge and you can't visit little Alice?"

"Not a bridge, my bridge."

"Oh."

This might be hard.

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Man, does this bandit leader ever shut up? I mean before he was rambling on and on about his speed, then how I couldn't defeat him, and now, well now I'm not paying attention to him.

How did he get on that pillar anyways?

"...you can't even get me though I'm right in front of you."

I take out my crossbow, yawning to myself.

He was such a bore.

Luckily the world won't be hearing him anymore.

"You know what I love the most about engineers?" I ask him, pointing the arrow at him, holding it with one hand. I turn to him, a glint in my eyes.

"They're smart enough to fix these types of situations."

As I say that, I release the arrow, sending it into his forehead.

This was too easy.

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"Barnum, I baaaack!" I yell out as I dramatically walk up the stairs. It was a thug me and Barnum used to do ten years ago. I actually had said, 'Rose, I'm back,' with a sigh on the last word when I was walking to his house. Then he did what he always did, repeat it but with more 'flambazzle'.

I'm so glad he's back. And the sheriff too, I guess, but I always feel guilty because he had to pay with his own money when I gave him the warrants.

"That only took an hour!" Barnum exclaims, highfiving me as if I were a child again.

And I really appreciate that.

"Oh yeah, Sparrow, you know that I picture I took of you and your sister?" Barnum asks after a minute of silence.

I look up at Barnum and smile. "Yeah, I looked like an angel, didn't I?" I chuckle at my words but Barnum just shakes his head.

"Same sense of humor, I see."

"Yeah, well some people never change."

"But anyways, do you want it?"

"What?"

"The picture..." he says again, trying jog my memory.

"Yes, I so do, I mean, I'll finally get to see my sister, who wouldn't like that?"

"Ah, the blindnessinfer you had, I've been using my noggincog and I still don't know how-"

"I can see?" I finish for him. "Because my blood 'awakened' apparently."

"Fasinatastical!" Barnum exclaims clapping his hands together.

"You have no clue what I'm saying, do you?" I ask with a half smile.

He slowly nods his head in agreement. "Not a single think-a-bunk."

I swear, Barnum's just making up crap now. It's really weirding me out too. But he's as sweet as ever, especially now that he's giving me my sister's portrait, oh and me too, I can finally know what I looked like.

"Oh, and Sparrow?" he says, grabbing my attention.

"Yes, Barnum?"

"I can't remember where I put the picture."

WHAT THE HELL?!?!?!