Fantasy Forest 3: Ressurection

7. Clothes

That next morning I sat at the kitchen table with a bowl of cereal. My dad was at my left reading a newspaper while already dressed in his business suit while at my right sat Seally on the floor in the form of a small dog. I bit on my spoon nervously as my dad folded the paper and grabbed his things.

"I probably wont be back till late." He said as he checked his watch to make sure he was on time. My father was very adamant about always arriving at work on time however when he got home was always a mystery. Sometimes he would tell me he would be home early and wouldn't be back till past ten while other times he would say he would be late and not show up at all, calling somewhere around midnight to tell me he was sleeping at the office. My dad was a workaholic.

"Do you want me to save you dinner?" I asked as I unclenched my jaw and released the spoon from my teeth.

"No need. I'll leave you my card so just get whatever you want. No reason to cook for just one."

I nodded as he placed his credit card on the kitchen table, pulled on his collared coat, and sped walked to the door, stopping once to wave at me before it closed behind him. The second he was gone I put down the spoon and glared down at Seally who winced and stared up at me, his slivered green eyes buried behind tuff of black hair.

"How much longer are you going to stay like that?" I asked. He didn't answer as there was a puff of smoke and the human Seally stood up from the floor.

"Are you ready to go yet?" He asked, he seemed shifty and somewhat nervous but it was well hidden behind his deadpan expression.

"Go where?"

"My castle."

"We are still doing that?"

"You said you would go!" He argued and there was a moment of silence that followed as we both just stared at each other without moving or backing down.

"I actually have somewhere I need to be." I told him and I could see his expression slightly drop.

"...where?"

"I need to drop some things off with Talia." I told him. "It wont take long."

"...fine."

Time skip:

Seally barely said a word the rest of the morning. He didn't eat even though I offered him food and he sat in silence in the living room while I got dressed. As I came out of my room I eyed him sitting on the couch and a thought struck me.

"You should probably change." I told him.

"What?"

"Your clothes stand out too much." I told him and he looked down at his robes with a perplexed expression.

"I have always worn this." He argued.

"One day of change wouldn't hurt." I said as I ducked back into my room where I grabbed a baggy shirt and pair of jeans that Earnest had left here the previous week. I threw them at Seally who caught them and stared down at the clothes with a strange expression. I pulled him off the couch with the clothes in his hand and pushed him into my room.

"Change. Now." I said as I shut the door behind him. A few minutes later and Seally emerged wearing Earnest's clothes, a pair of blue jeans that just barely fit him and a baggy blue t-shirt with a band logo on it from one of Earnest's favorite death metal bands. I walked up to Seally and parted his hair and placed a pair of sunglasses on him to shade and obscure his unnatural green eyes. Stepping back I was surprised by how much older he looked with just a simple change of clothes. I was also surprised by how natural he looked. He looked like any other teen I would pass on any other day.

"This feels weird." Seally muttered as he tugged at the loose shirt, it was a little big.

"Really? I think you look cool." I told him and that seemed to make him happy as he immediately stopped complaining about the clothes. I grabbed a bag of books from the living room and headed out the door with Seally where we walked on Talia's apartment door where we were quickly greeted by Talia's mother, a short and plain looking woman with long black curled hair and a drowsy expression that gave her a permanent uninterested look.

"Talia's not here." She stated bluntly, barely opening the door wide enough to look at us.

"Where is she?" I asked.

"She is helping at my brothers shop with Earnest." She said and I nodded in understanding and quickly thanked her before she closed the door on me.

"I guess we are going downtown." I told Seally.

Talia had too uncles, one was Earnest's dad and the other was a single, childless man who owned a general goods store that sold all sorts od oddities from home decor to dish soap to snack food. The store was generally popular because of its cheap prices but because the prices were so cheap her uncle couldn't afford to hire full time help and relied on family to help out when it got busy.

We rounded a street corner and I pointed out the shop to Seally who simply huffed and nodded as I led him over and entered. A small bell above the door rang announcing our presence and Talia, who was working the cash register less than ten feet from the door looked up and beamed at me but her smile slowly faded as she noticed that I wasn't alone.

"I brought those books you needed." I told her as I placed the bag on the counter, ignoring the awkward stares she was giving me and Seally.

"...thanks." She said as she picked up the bag and placed it on the floor behind her. "Um, who is your friend?" She asked with heavy emphasis on the word 'friend'. For a second I debated with myself how I should tell her about him. I quickly decided not to say anything.

"This is Seally." I said, introducing the two.

"Nice to meet you." Said Talia with a small wave and a small. Seally only nodded and then turned to ignore her, a gesture that caught the female off-guard as she glowered at me.

"What are you two doing together?" She asked.

"I'm showing Y/n my castle." Seally stated. Talia blushed and leaned over the counter to whisper to me.

"Is that a sexual thing?" She asked and I smacked her on the forehead.

"No." I stated plainly and she whimpered and stood back up.