Disguised In Stardust ✔

Chapter Seven

Just when I was going to make the smartest move of my life and ask for the key, something caught my eye behind the guard by the door. It flickered, then the ring of keys began to float off of the guard's belt buckle. It dangled in the air for a moment before a hand appeared to be holding it carefully.

A pale arm was floating in midair, unattached from a body. Then a whole person came with it, as if they were phasing into reality. Faelin looked at me in shock, the golden keys kept safely in his hand. Then the guard walked away, noticing nothing out of the ordinary.

“Um. I got the key. Or keys. I wasn’t following you.” He glared at me coldly, threw me the key and then… he faded away in a blink.

Great. He can go invisible too.

If I looked close enough, I could still see his vague outline. Other than that, he was completely masked.

“It's a cloaking technique. Perks of being an alchemist. Mix brews to dip your wings in. Side effects include dizziness and… uh, increasingly painful sense augmentation.” He groaned at the last part, and then he materialized back into my view.

He was leaning against the wall with a hand to his forehead, eyes squinted in pain. As I rushed forward to help, he tried shoving me back but he was too weak to do so.

“S-Stop it this instant, or I’ll.. I…” he muttered, “please, just get my things. I’ll wait outside.” He stumbled out of the doors, where he could finally get lungfuls of fresh air. His wings fluttered when they hit the gentle wind. As the large doors closed, he looked back at me, gaze hardening.

"Filthy human."

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It took a while, but I managed to open the glass case and retrieve his ingredients. A few citizens passed me by without a glance.  I sneaked the ingredients in my pocket, looking around with a rapidly thumping heart.

When I walked out of there, I saw Faelin leaning against the tree beside my car. His wings were peeking out from under my shirt, splaying against the ground like a pool of crystalline webbing.

His eyes were closed peacefully, head tilted up to rest against the tree trunk. Sunlight filtered down and dappled his cheeks while helicopter seeds fluttered down around him. He was truly beautiful when he wasn't bossing me around.

At first I felt odd thinking of him like that, but I learned to tolerate what my heart wanted. I strode over and sat beside him in silence. A few minutes passed with the wind's thoughtful whispers, then I looked over to Faelin.

His slumber seemed so blissful, as if he were finally resting properly. I reached over and brushed a thick curl from his lash. His gentle breath mixed with the breeze, warm meeting cold.

I couldn’t bring myself to wake him.

I brought my knees up and waited, taking in the scene around us. There wasn’t much to see, but it was enough for me to get lost in it until he woke up. Half an hour passed before he stirred against the tree, groaning under his breath.

His eyes fluttered open, glossed over with the haze of tranquility. Those metallic eyes found mine. His sluggish muscles shifted and soon he stood fully, brushing himself off.

"Ugh.. Apologies. Do you have my things? If so, let's get moving." His wings straightened out, only the glassy tips visible to me. He turned on his heel, peering at me down his nose. "These looked handy, so I took them with me." he added.

My car keys came flying into my chest and they clattered to the ground. I stumbled sideways and bumped into the driver's side door. Wow, that was... such a lucky coincidence.

"Then hop in." I urged excitedly, retrieving the keys and proceeding to get into my long missed vehicle. He looked at me incredulously, then tried getting in through the same door.

I was ecstatic when the same tacky engine roared back to life. Faelin recoiled from the handle as if it were burning his fingers, then stepped away quickly. "Stop that thing! It's- it's going to eat you," he gasped, "what have you done to it?! Make it stop..!" His eyes were wider than his wingspan, flicking about in panic.

"Relax, it's not alive and it won't eat me." I held back a chuckle. "Get in through the other side. I promise it won't hurt a thing."

He eyed me for a moment, before reluctantly padding to the other side of the car and yanking on the handle. It opened with a squeak, which made him flinch. Don't tell me he's... scared.

"Are you okay?" I asked. He stepped inside and sat down, shutting the door behind him. He raised his knees up to his chest and almost cowered, looking around the inside as if it were a trap.

"No. Are you planning to kill me? Is that it? I was gullible enough to follow you in, gah- I should've known!" He was about to get out when I started to drive back home.

He let out a very manly yelp and clung onto the door handle tightly. This time, I allowed myself to laugh a little.

The whole drive home, he was shaking. The poor thing was as wary as a mouse even when we parked. I exited the car and had to go over to his side to let him out. As soon as his door opened, he bolted out quickly, stumbling on the way.

"That was dreadful! I was sure you were going to unleash a clawed mechanism on me, or worse, run the thing off into the ocean or... or- or something fatal!" he screeched furiously.

"Sorry, but it's faster than walking."

"That prishing gas is polluting the air, you eyesore!"

Okay, he's got a point.

I said nothing in response though, despite the urge. Now that we were in the house, he immediately stripped off his shirt, wings fluttering out to stretch. He hated the weight of clothing, that was for sure.

"I am to be crowned prince in less than a month. I need to get back home before my coronation." he sighed at the mere thought, it seemed. "Though I don't want to partake in that nonsense, I have to. As the next heir..." His speech faltered, as if he were going to divulge something important but stopped himself.

"So, next thing is to get the alchemy lab. We already have a few tubes and funnels. Plus your fancy ingredients. What else do you need?" I cleaned off the dining room table, which didn't have much on it, then laid out the things we had for the potion.

"The mixtures, of course." he replied bluntly. "Ground lentil, flowered guava, white stag fur. We need to travel far for the fur unless a nearby shop has it nearby. Guavas are found in tropical climates; lentil is a common spice." he listed.

"It should be easy."

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