Kingdoms (kaimaki fantasy AU)

Chapter 16: A Helpful Gift?

Wow! Two chapters in one day again! You guys are lucky 😁

By time the caravan reached the town, the sun had set completely. The streets were still fairly busy, the local market still open. The smell of meat and other foods filled the air as people were negotiating the prices of the items that they were buying or selling. Maki glanced around cautiously. She tried to see if there were any wanted posters of her and Kaito since the guards saw their faces before Miu and Keebo saved them. She was a little surprised when she noticed that there weren't any put up. Did the guards not have a good of a look at their faces? Or did they best them to this town? Something didn't quite fit right.

Himiko climbed out after Angie and Maki, Kaito kept safely and securely in her hands. She walked up to a quiet spot where not many people were walking around. Maki followed her, making sure that nothing happened to Kaito. A Himko glanced around as Tenko and Angie made sure that the area was clear for what she needed to do.

"Just as a warning, transformation spells can drain people's physical strength. You'll have to hold him back to help with his recovery." She explained to Maki before placing the mouse gently on the ground. Just like she did before, she gave Kaito a light tap, causing smoke to cloud around him. The tiny body suddenly grew bigger and formed a human shape. Kaito stood in front of the Mage, satchel still on his shoulder and his sword still attached to his waist. Kaito opened his mouth to try to say something. However, the only thing that he did was crumple sideways and crash to the ground. Maki immediately bent down to him. He was pale, and strained himself to sit up. He seemed a little disoriented, unable to focus on anything.

"I warned you." Himiko sighed, shaking her head a little at Kaito. Neither Kaito or Maki paid attention as Maki slowly helped Kaito to sit up. She used as arm to support his shoulders, to keep him from swaying. Kaito tried not to rely on her to keep him steady, but with how dizzy he was feeling and how unstable the ground felt under him it was proving to be an impossible task.

"There's an inn over there. Atua says that you should rest there for the night." Angie smiled, pointing at the inn in question. It had at least three floors, showing that it might have a spare room that both of Kaito and Maki could share.

"Thanks...despite the curse you put on me." Kaito groaned as he rubbed his head tenderly. He felt like someone had pounded at it like it was a war drum. Not to mention that his body was so heavy that it was a wonder how he had found the strength to sit up in the first place, aside from Maki assisting him. Himiko suddenly reached into the pocket of her blouse. She pulled out a small, clear bottle that was teardrop shaped. It has a clear liquid inside, but it didn't seem to be water. A potion maybe?

"Here." Himiko said as she passed the bottle to Maki, along with a small piece of paper. "It's bottled starlight. It'll help you out in the dark if you don't have a lantern. I've got a feeling that you might need it. This is the incantation to activate it. And don't worry about the bottle, it's unbreakable."

"Thank you. And, despite what you did to Kaito, thanks for getting us here." Maki said, slipping the bottle into her bag as delicately as she could. Kaito muttered something, but it went unheard. The girls seemed satisfied with how things have turned and turned to get what they needed from their caravan. Kaito tried to stand up on his own, but his legs shook terribly which only caused him to fall to his knees.

"Are you alright?" Maki asked, slinging one of his arms over her shoulders.

"Ask me that when my head's stopped pounding." Kaito moaned, rubbing his head again.

"Can you stand?" Maki asked again. She could tell that he might not be able to, but they need to get off of the streets just in case something goes wrong.

"I think so. You might need to help me walk though." Kaito said, trying to put on a brave face.

"Of course." Maki agreed, slowly helping Kaito to his feet. He was right about being able to stand, but it was very shaky. It was like Kaito didn't have any strength at all in his legs on his own. He didn't want to, but he had to put his full weight onto Maki. He knew that she could hold him up alright, he just didn't want to feel like he was taking advantage of her while he was in this state. It felt worse when they started walking. Kaito stumbled slowly much that it was like he was drunk. With every step he took, he felt like he might crumble to pieces. The noises around him didn't help his head much either. If anything it made his headache much worse. Hopefully it'll clear up once he gets indoors.

"Hey! Degenerate male!" Tenko suddenly shouted at Kaito.

"What?" Kaito asked, glaring a little at her.

"Don't hurt that girl, you hear me?!" Tenko warned, glaring hard at Kaito.

"Wh-" Kaito tried to come up with a remark, but Tenko cut him off.

"Cause all you males think about is se-" she shouted, almost drawing attention to everyone on the streets. She stopped short when Himiko and Angie once again started to pull her away. She protested, trying to get out more to shout at Kaito but Himiko quickly made her voice vanish in an attempt to stop her.

"Okay, we are going! Stay safe you two." Himiko said, waving at the former passengers.

"Bye-onara! Atua will watch over you." Angie smiled cheerily. Kaito and Maki watched them a little bemused as they disappeared in the crowd. When they vanished from view, the two continued to make their way back towards the inn. Kaito's strength slowly got back to him, but he was still a little wobbly. He really hated being this dependent on anybody, it made him feel pathetic. He can't wait to get his strength back so then Maki wouldn't have to carry him around like this.

"Maki Roll?" Kaito suddenly asked, trying his best not to be too dependent on Maki as a crutch.

"Yes?" Maki asked, focused on making sure that Kaito was walking in a straight line.

"Next time we see a caravan on the road, remind me to NOT flag it down." Kaito said, stumbling a little unintentionally. He couldn't help but shudder a little at the thought of being transformed again. Especially when the form was something that tiny. It felt really intimidating to him.

"Agreed." Maki sighed, nodding eagerly. She didn't want to admit it out loud, but she didn't want Kaito to go through anything like that again. And, even if she thought of it as unimportant, she felt like she didn't want to go through anything like that again.