Vitruvius, uttering incomprehensible words, pointed both index fingers at the duo. Sparks flared on and the prince was turned into a banana. But not Puzu.
"What?" Never before the wizard's spell had failed him. He was the best at the magic course, after all, he had always won his golden star every Friday, for being diligent and, generally, a good boy.
He stepped in and suddenly Puzu's intense flavor struck him.
"By all that is evil and mean! What is this smell?"
"Yes," said Puzu. "That'd be me, magic sir."
Vitruvius fell on his knees. His nose was way too big and large; the stench hit him like a hammer or like a falling brick. A brick falling from where you may ask. From a brick tree, of course. Brick trees are common in this land.
"That's why my magic doesn't work on you! Your filth wards you off, it shields you from magic! I can't bear it! Leave my lair, you... dirty creature!"
"Free the princess and turn my friend back to himself! Or I come to sit next to you!" Puzu had the upper hand on the situation.
The magus was now on the floor, one hand on his nose, the other one around his throat. He was gasping and sweating. "I cannot. I need her!" He said with a creepy whisper.
"What for? What purpose you have with her, do you want to sacrifice her to the evil forces of darkness?" Puzu stepped closer to the wizard sending him to a frenzy.
"What are you talking about? It's homework. It's the final exam to obtain the EWC, the Evil Wizard Certificate. All students are required to kidnap a princess."
"Why?" Asked Puzu terrified.
"Why, that's what evil wizard do; put a princess in a tower."
"Why?" Asked again Puzu like an annoying child.
"The basic is to put the princess in a tower. What we do with her is up to us. I, for once, thought to transfer my soul into her young body so that I don't have to keep dragging on this carcass of mine."
"Fair enough. But what about all those innocent folks you turned into statues?"
Vitruvius retreated to a corner of the room. "Those? Come on, mate. They got more intelligent things to say now than before."
"But they're of stone, they cannot talk!" Pointed out the hero.
"Yeah, that's right!"
Puzu walked up to the wizard who looked back at him in terror. "Not a step closer! Listen, mate. I need her for two more days, 'till exam's day. I'll return her home after that! I promise, boy-scout's word!" The wizard raised three fingers up and locked his pinky under the thumb,
"You were in the boy-scouts?"
"Honestly, I was boy-battlemages, another division but all the same."
"Two days, you say?" Puzu turned towards the princess. "We could help a friend in need. Is it ok with you?"
Farfalla answered without looking away from the screen of the smart-tome. "Meh, at least here is quite and he got a strong wi-fi. But I need a recharger, old man, or no deal."
Neither Puzu nor Vitruvius felt so old to be alright with being called 'old man'.
The evil wizard was at his limit. "Please, be gone. I'll turn everyone back to normal!"
"No!" Screamed Puzu in sudden panic. "Not yet. Only Taddus for I'm afraid the banana would turn all brown in two days. The rest, you'll leave them be until you return the princess."
So it was agreed and so it was done.
Taddus came back to have limbs and they never spoke again of the fact he had been a banana, although Puzu had to take notice that his skin maintained a somewhat yellowish hue.
Farfalla was released from the bubble. As soon as she got out, she began to scream hysterically. "What is this smell?" She almost cried again.
"That'd be me, lady sir."
Allowed to move freely around the apartment, princess Farfalla found a corner near a plug and sat down there.
With that, wizard and princess kicked Taddus out of the house but not Puzu, nobody dared to touch him; he was asked to leave from a safe distance.
On the way back home, Taddus spoke his first words since he had been a fruit. "Sorry, what's your name again?"
"Puzu," said Puzu.
"Well, Puzu, I've been a banana and you saved the princess. What that does make of me?"
"It makes nothing of you." Replied Puzu, honest as the stench he carried around. "But you got two days now."
"Two days for what?"
"Well, to train! To learn to keep the sword in your hand. You could prove yourself at the tournament, you know? Show everyone that you're not a poser."
Prince Taddus nodded, he knew Puzu was right. "What about you, then?"
"I got plans of my own." Confessed Puzu with a grin on his face.
The best would have been to disappear right after saying that, leaving the prince to wonder. A great cliff-hanger. It would have been cool but there was only one way to get back home and they had to walk together. Taddus, curious and full of potassium, kept asking over and over what his companion meant until Puzu gave up and told him everything.
The prince laughed, oh he laughed! Really, really hard. So hard he almost peeled himself.
A/N: Hi there, if you liked this chapter and if I made you laugh, giggle or just chuckle a bit, please consider giving it a vote.Thank you!See you in the Epilogue.
