The Fallen Prince

Doctor Earl Purios

With a simple spell, Oji-san erased and replaced the memories of all the villagers where A201 appeared in. If they prattled about what they had seen to other people outside the village, it would undoubtedly bring unwanted attention. He packed a few clothes for himself, and some larger ones for A201, along with food and necessities. A201 was dressed in a large hood to cover his appearance, and his hair was neatly tied back.
"Ah, this will be a nice trip!" said Oji-san as he handed most of the bags to A201, who took them in a notable silence. They departed early in the morning to avoid meeting with the villagers again.
"Usually, when I go to town, I would bring my mule to carry my things, but she is very stubborn! Eating grass here and there when inconvenient, taking off suddenly, and halting for minutes at a time. Ah, no one is willing to buy her or trade anything for her with me!"
"So you think I am... a carrier of your belongings?"
"Hm! Do you have such a low opinion of me? If I could carry them all, I would!" The old man turned his head and averted his gaze in an obvious attempt to mask his intention.
The stone trail leading out of the village was well made. It wound through the mountains and over them to where it stopped a few feet from a wide, freshwater lake. From that point on in a clearing in the trees, the large, bustling town could be seen, and one could go there without the aid of the path.
"Why are we going to town?" inquired A201. Higher up the mountain, the old man grew tired and had to be carried, but A201 didn't mind. He was very strong and could manage.
"To fix you. A good surgeon I know lives there. He will remove most of your non-essential parts and get your speech back, and there's also a hair stylist and a tailor!"
"How am I supposed to pay for those? I have a premonition they will not be cheap! Unless you..."
"I am a poor old man, I couldn't possibly! I'm sure I'll think of something eventually."
"How can you not even think of the cost?!" fumed A201, baring his fangs. He didn't like being unprepared for anything.
"Careful, Kaibutsu-kun, I'll fall off!" Oji-san tapped A201's leg with a stick again.
"I am not your mule!"
"Hurry, hurry! I want to reach town by midday, so we can get a good place to eat at!"
A201 sighed in defeat and trudged on. He was not fatigued physically by the trip, but mentally, due to whims of his unpredictable companion.
•••••
They arrived at the lake a few hours later. Oji-san was walking by himself again, and filled a bottle with water from the lake. With a cleansing spell, the water was purified, and Oji-san offered some to his companion, who thanked him and finished the bottle in one go.
"What is the surgeon like?" A201 asked.
"His name is Earl Purios; he does all kinds of marvellous things. He is a very friendly surgeon so he will take good care of you, and you'll feel at ease with him. Let us go now! I've heard there's a new restaurant that serves nice dishes."
Fortunately, they were able to find seats in the crowded restaurant. The hooded figure of A201 attracted attention, but Oji-san said that A201 was a shadow clone. The town they were in was mostly populated by non-magic users, and so they believed him without question, having no methods to test whether the shadow clone was real or not.
After finishing their lunch, they headed to a quiet part of the town, away from the centre and more toward the residential area. It was accessible via a small alley between two tall, elegant houses, obviously owned by people with wealth. Behind these large buildings were smaller, simpler houses.
"Why is he hidden back here? Shouldn't he be out on the main road?" said A201. "All the best businesses are established there."
"He is sought by the Royal Court because of his marvellous surgical skills, but he doesn't like to work for them. He prefers this type of quiet lifestyle, and has been evading royal agents for a long time. Let's see if he's in."
They rang a bell on one of the houses and waited. A few moments later, a gentle-looking man with glasses opened the door, armed with a pistol. His beige, taupe-coloured hair was pulled back into a neat, short ponytail at the base of his head.
"Get outta here, you bastar--" he stopped in embarrassment and laid his gun down.  "Ahaha, hello, Oji-san, I thought you were a Royal Agent. I always have to be ready, don't you think? Oh, do forgive my indecency! How may I help you?"
"I have a desperate client here," the old man replied, introducing A201. "Kaibutsu-kun, introduce yourself."
"Kaibutsu-kun?" snorted Earl Purios. "A tall guy like you should be very handsome, I'm sure!" Earl proceeded to remove A201's hood, but A201 pulled it further down and evaded his hand.
"What's the matter?" said Earl, jumping up to remove it. "Are you really not handsome?"
A201 let out a deep snarl, meaning, "Go away!" and the surgeon leapt back behind the old man. "Whoa! Oji-san, what manner of a man is he?"
Oji-san waved his stick and chanted, "Ventus Lacero!" Wind whirled around A201 and shredded the hood to pieces, exposing his hideous face.
Earl walked to him with wide, sparkling eyes, as A201 glared at him, ready to pounce at any moment.
"Marvellous!" shouted Earl, much to everyone's surprise. "What a great work opportunity! But what on earth happened for you to look like this? I can sense you are human, but your speech is of a beast."
Oji-san cleared his throat to get Earl's attention. "May we please come in?"
"Oh, sure! Where are my manners? Let's all have some tea!"

Oji-san and Earl Purios had to clip and file A201's sharp claws before entering, and because of his long fangs, he had to tip his head back to drink properly.
"How did he come to look like this? A curse?" asked Earl.
Oji-san replied, "No curse has such effects. This was the work of Rasmus' secret group of scientists, upon his own orders. Kaibutsu-kun told me so himself. I listened to him by reading his thoughts."
"Horrid man! How dare he commit such heinous deeds? Our suspicions are confirmed, Oji-san, Avann is really not nice!"
"When can you start, Dr. Purios?" asked A201 after gobbling down a plate of delicious jam biscuits. His sensibilities prevented him from asking for more.
"As soon as I inspect your body and the damage done, I can start. It's a good thing I have a healer who works for me. With her healing your stitches and the cuts I make, I can start immediately on other parts of your body. You'll be out of here in less than a week!"
"I'll be back in seven days then," said Oji-san, heading out the door. "Bye!"
"Wait!" A201 and Earl shouted, forgetting something important. Earl ran outside to try and catch Oji-san, but he had already disappeared.
"You damn old man!" Earl yelled infuriatedly. "We haven't discussed any payment methods yet!"
He went back inside and sat across A201. "Yes, he always does this, I know! Don't look at me with that pitying gaze!"