《Because This World is Loved》


 Get Up, Get Out There

    Noel grumbled and stretched as the smell of bacon wafted into her room, her tail twitching as she woke up. She heard her mother calling from downstairs about breakfast being ready soon, and so she pulled herself out of bed, threw on some casual clothes, and commenced morning grooming. Having a Caprimet''s tail and the accompanying tuft at the end set her apart from pure humans, as did the goat-like ears and the small horns; it also set her morning grooming apart from others. Sometimes, she would hide the special brush for her furry aspects when people came over (assuming it was company that did not also have fur) so that she wouldn''t have to explain it. Her human hair and her Caprimet fur were similar reddish-brown shades, with her hair being a darker color. Her hair, her fur, and her deep blue eyes were all traits from her Caprimet mother; her tanned skin was from a human father who had long been left behind.


    When she made her way down the stairs, she was immediately ambushed by her younger sister Drea. Unlike Noel, Drea was a full-blooded Caprimet, something like a bipedal goat person. Her fur was primarily a grey color, though she had reddish-brown parts along the bottom of her muzzle and going down her neck. The ruffles on her sundress seemed to bounce with her when she moved. Her head-hair was black, something from her father, but her eyes matched Noel''s. "Morning, Ellie!" she chirped in her childish voice. "Mom made breakfast."


    "I see that," Noel said, patting Drea on the head before adding, "Let''s go say good morning to everyone."


    Noel and Drea went into the kitchen, where Noel''s stepfather Kelves and younger brother Alves were sitting at the table. "Morning, Noel," Kelves rumbled in his deep baritone. He was a large, heavyset Caprimet, grey and white and black, with horns that curved behind his head. He always dressed comfortably; clearly, he had no intention of going anywhere special today, since he was still wearing a tank top and pajama pants.


    "Morning," Alves said, waving. He was a shy young boy, primarily red like his mother, but with white parts along his throat and body from Kelves. He was still wearing his pajamas as well; Noel found herself wondering why neither of the menfolk had gotten dressed while all the ladies had.


    "Morning, Kel and Al," Noel said, waving back to them.


    "No ''Kelvie'' today?" Kelves said with a soft chuckle.


    "Maybe later," Noel replied.


    The click of the stove being turned off drew Noel''s attention to Alea, her mother. She was a red-furred Caprimet, with patches of lighter and darker red here and there. She dressed simply, a dark blue dress with short, light blue sleeves; somehow it managed to flatter her full figure without clinging anywhere in particular. "Good morning, sleepyhead," Alea cooed as she brought plates to the table: pancakes, eggs, bacon. "How do you feel today?"


    "Still sleepy." Noel sat next to Alves at the table, and Drea sat next to her. "I think I need coffee."


    "I''ll set it up for you while I''m up. These little coffee machines with the cups are such wonderful inventions," Alea mused aloud as she set about readying Noel''s coffee.


    "We didn''t have those in the Sealed World, or even in Lemanta," Kelves said, already digging into his eggs. "We''ve really come a long way. We started in Lemanta, got sent to the Sealed World, and now we''re here in Medlia."


    "Not many people can say they''ve lived in three worlds," Alea said, pouring cream into Noel''s coffee and then setting it it by her. "You can mix it yourself, right?"


    "Mom!" Noel made her indignation clear. "Yes, Mom, I can mix my own coffee, cut my own pancakes, and even eat my own bacon." Nonetheless, her indignation had a teasing edge to it, and Alea simply laughed her off.


    "Well, that''s a pity. I''d be happy to eat your bacon for you," Kelves said.


    "Yeah, sure is a pity," Noel said with a giggle.


    "Someday I''ll cut my own pancakes," Alves mumbled, pushing pancake slices into a pile with his fork.


    "Yes, someday you will." Alea beamed and tousled Alves''s already-messy hair.


    "Daddy, can you pass the syrup?" Drea leaned in slightly to get a better vantage point as Kelves slid the bottle of maple syrup over. Alves was occupied with a forkful of pancakes, and so Noel was the one to make sure the syrup made it to Drea. "Thanks, Ellie."


    With all the plates set, Alea finally took a seat at the table next to Kelves. "So, what does everyone have planned for today?"


    "I wanna play with Daddy in the garden," Drea said.


    "Well, I do need to do a little weeding and watering. If you want to help, you can come with me," Kelves said.


    "Yeah! I''m good with the watering can." Drea was already gesturing as though she were holding an invisible watering can.


    "What about you, Alves?" Alea asked.


    Alves set his fork down. "Don''t I have a piano lesson today?"


    "Yes, that''s right!" Alea''s smile remained. "But what else do you want to do?"


    "I''m gonna look for more music," Alves said.


    Alea finally looked to her first child. "Last but not least... what are you going to be up to today, Noel?"


    Noel swallowed a bite of egg before she spoke. "I think I''ll go visit Melia and take her around town a bit. It''s always more fun to visit people with her."


    "That sounds like a good plan," Alea said. "Geralt tells me that Melia always has a good time with you."


    "It''s better than leaving her to roam the Internet and find all kinds of weird stuff," Noel said, unable to hide a smile as she remembered a rather risque game Melia had discovered and told her about. The girl loved playing with things that were supposedly off-limits for her age.


    "She does that?" Kelves said, taking a bite of bacon.


    "Yeah, she does. I get to hear about all kinds of things." Noel''s fork clicked against the plate as she speared a pancake piece.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    "Is that so? Perhaps I should have a word with her parents about parental controls," Alea said, arching an eyebrow.


    Noel groaned. "Come on, Mom, don''t do that to her... you know she doesn''t work by normal kid rules. She''s four and thirteen like I''m nine and nineteen."


    Alea sighed. "I am well aware of the oddities of half-Magicant aging," she said. "When I was pregnant with you, all the way back in Lemanta, a foo-fire Magicant told me about what to expect. And in the Sealed World, you were ten years old physically at two years old."


    At the mention of the Sealed World, Noel''s face fell solemn. "Not counting the two years in stasis."


    "No," Alea said softly.


    "What''s stasis?" Alves asked.


    "It''s when time doesn''t move for you, and you don''t grow up, but you''re asleep and you can''t do anything," Noel explained.


    "Sounds scary." Alves took another bite of pancake.


    "Not really. You don''t know it''s happening," Noel said with a shrug.


    "Mommy, are you okay?" Drea asked, seeing her mother become just as crestfallen.


    "Hmm? Yes, I''m fine, sweetheart," Alea said.


    "Maybe we shouldn''t talk about these things right now," Kelves said, setting his fork down. His plate was clean.


    "Sorry," Noel mumbled.


    The rest of breakfast was quiet, though the tension released as the meal came to a close. Kelves and Drea set out for the house''s garden and Alves went to his computer in his room, leaving Noel and Alea to clean up in the kitchen. As Alea put the final dish away, she said to Noel, "When you go to pick up Melia, give my regards to Geralt and Faith, alright?"


    "I always do," Noel said as she grabbed her purse. "And don''t worry, I''ll be home by dinner time."


    "That''s my girl," Alea said. "Have fun out there."


    Melia''s house was just down the block from Noel''s, a fortunate side effect of Alea and Geralt entering Medlia in the same group. Noel knocked on the door, and a red-furred Caprimet man with blue eyes answered. "Hi, Uncle Geralt," Noel said with a friendly wave.


    "Good to see you, Noel," Geralt said with a grin. "Melia''s inside playing her computer games. Should I get her for you, or would you like to come in?"


    "Sure, I''ll stop in for a bit," Noel said. She entered the house; seated at the living room table was a human woman was light brown hair, pale skin, and green eyes. She was dressed nicely, if not formally; a simple blouse and skirt was good enough for her. "Hi, Faith," she said.


    Faith waved at Noel. "Hello, Noel. How''s your day been so far?"


    "Fine, thanks. And you?" Noel asked.


    Faith sighed. "Busy. I''m still sorting through some paperwork from the last wave of immigrants to Medlia. There weren''t many of them, thankfully, but processing always takes a while, just like it did for your family and Gerry."


    "Don''t forget to take a break every once in a while, dear," Geralt chimed in.


    "I won''t," Faith called over to Geralt, who was heading upstairs. "So, where are you thinking about taking Melia today?"


    "I''ve got a few places in mind," Noel said. "I know I want to go to Esci''s lab first."


    "Oh boy. You know Melia has a love-hate relationship with that place," Faith said.


    "Yeah, but she always has fun with Delfine when she''s there, so those two can gab about weird nerd things while I catch up on some things with Esci." Noel heard the rapid thumping of footsteps coming down the stairs, and when she looked over, there was a young teenage half-Caprimet girl with similar features to her: red hair, a tail with a tuft on the end, small horns. Her eyes were green like her mother''s, however.


    "Hi, Noel!" Melia chirped, straightening her pink striped dress. "Where are we going today?"


    "Anywhere and everywhere," Noel said.


    Melia scrunched her face up. "No, really, where are we going?"


    "We''ll start at Esci''s lab, and then we''ll go look for our usual suspects."


    "Okay, fine. Just don''t get too science-y with Esci, okay? I''ve already been researched a bunch this month. She''s not getting anything new out of me." Melia remained pouting as she went down the stairs to Noel''s side.


    "Take care out there, all right?" Geralt said.


    "Don''t worry, we''ll be fine," Noel said. "By the way, Mom says hi."


    Geralt chuckled. "I''m sure she does."


    "Maybe on the way back, I can say hi to Auntie Alea?" Melia asked. "Drea and Alves, too."


    "Yeah, we''ll see about that. Shall we get going?" Noel took a few steps towards the door, looking over her shoulder to see if Melia was coming.


    "Yeah! I need to talk to Delfine about some things, anyway." Melia bounced over to Noel. "Bye Mom, bye Dad! We''ll be back in time for dinner!"


    The two hybrids left Melia''s house, heading downtown for a rather conspicuous laboratory (one labeled "LAB" in big letters, at that). As they walked, Noel found herself marveling at the diversity of Magicants she saw. Caprimets were but one type of Magicant, and what Noel saw made that clear. She saw a schoolgirl made of green fire, a floating six-sided die with an eye on every face, and a blobby creature that casually reshaped himself as he carried on a conversation with a long-legged bird Magicant. Truly, the "monsters" of Lemanta were a motley crew.


    Eventually, the girls arrived at Esci''s lab. As they approached, the doors opened for them, and they entered what appeared to be a waiting room, complete with chairs and magazines.


    "Why can''t Esci just have a doorbell like everyone else does?" Melia groused. "Why does she have doors that open, and then this place where she has to come get you? You''d think that, with all her security gadgets, she''d be able to see who''s coming and either let them in or not."


    Noel shrugged. "I don''t know. She told me this was based off her lab in the Sealed World. I guess it was like this there, too."


    "Still really weird," Melia said. Noel simply nodded and took a seat in one of the chairs.


    After a few minutes, the door on the other side of the room made a grinding noise. It opened slightly, and then got stuck. Some mumbling could be heard, along with a nasally female voice shouting, "Del, the door''s stuck again!" Soon, a yellow, scaly hand curled around the door, and with a deep grunt, someone on the other side pulled the door back into position. It then slid away as if it had never gotten stuck in the first place, revealing two Magicants: a green, lizard-like woman, and a yellow-and-black striped woman with a glowing orb danging from an antenna on her forehead. The striped woman grinned to reveal an array of very sharp teeth. "Heya, Noel and Mel! Nice to see you two. Esci''s been flipping her notes around all day."


    "Yes, welcome!" Esci said. "And yes, Delfine, thank you for fixing the door for me."


    "Aw, anything for my sweet scaleface," Delfine said as she pulled Esci in for a noogie, making the shorter woman squeal and flail. "But you know how I am about my name! Del, Fi, Delfi, Delly-elly-oxen-free, just not Delfine! Or late for dinner."


    "Del, no! There''s people around!" Esci wriggled out of Delfine''s hold. "You know I was just getting your goat."


    "Yeah, of course, because we''re half goat person," Melia grumbled.


    "Oh, come on, Melia, don''t read into it so much," Noel said, giving Melia a playful shove.


    "I-it was just a figure of speech. I''m sorry, Melia." Esci looked down, contrite.


    Melia blew a decently long raspberry at Esci. "And I was just getting your goat! Silly Esci."


    Esci laughed nervously. "Well! Now that we''ve all trolled each other, how about we go inside? I promise you two won''t have to go through any analyses today."


    "Of course," Noel said. "This is for pleasure, not for business."


    "All righty then! Onward ho, to the guts of the lab!" Delfine darted forward and scooped Melia up, making her giggle as she was carried inside.


    "The guts?" Esci said. "Well, let''s go inside."


    Noel followed Esci in, and the doors shut behind her.

 Going Around and Around

    The four ladies all chatted among themselves as they proceeded through Esci''s lab, their footsteps echoing from the tiled floor. The decor of the rooms changed as they proceeded; while the rooms closer to the entrance had cute posters and furniture, the appearances of the rooms further in became increasingly sterile until the lab finally looked like a lab. Blank walls met pale blue tile, and a long hallway was lined with doors. "How about I show you what I''ve been working on for the Starseed Festival?" Esci said, her gaze going to a certain door on the left.


    "Starseed Festival?" Melia asked.


    "You know, that great big culture festival we Magicants hold every year. We did it in Lemanta, we did it in the Sealed World, and we''ll do it again here," Delfine said with a cocky grin.


    "You know they haven''t been around that long," Esci said.


    "What do you mean by that?" Melia grumbled. She knew where this was going.


    "I know how you feel about this, Melia, but you''re still only four years old, and Noel is nine." Esci adjusted her glasses as she spoke.


    "I''m thirteen!" Melia gave her foot an emphatic stomp.


    Noel sighed. "I''m used to it, don''t worry about me. Besides, my mom babies everyone, no matter how old they are."


    "Right, well..." Esci picked under one of her claws. "Shall we go see?"


    Esci lead everyone to the third room down on the left. She entered ahead of the others; when they entered, she was setting out large spoons with red blobs on them. "What''re those for?" Melia asked.


    "Molecular gastronomy." Esci seemed to savor every syllable of the complex words. "These are strawberry spheres! They''re made by-"


    "She puts things inside a thing and it makes the things into flavor globs," Delfine said in an attempt to spare everyone the scientific details.


    "It''s not just a thing in a thing! You put the food in a special bath, and that special bath makes the flavor globs!" Esci huffed at being cut off. "I''ll give the full explanation at the festival, so I hope you can make it there."


    "Of course I''ll be there, Pookie," Delfine said, cackling as she approached and chose a spoon.


    "D-Del! You know how I am about the pet names!" Esci sputtered.


    "It''s only fair, since you called me Delfine earlier," Delfine said. "But that''s okay. I love you anyway."


    Esci made a noise that crossed a sigh and a giggle. "A-anyway! As I was saying, these are strawberry spheres. There''s a special name for the process that makes them- spherification. It turns things into flavor bubbles that pop in your mouth. Give them a try!"


    Melia picked up a spoon and sniffed it. "Smells like strawberries."


    Delfine gave a short sharp cackle and clapped Melia on the shoulder. "What were you expecting, kiddo?"


    Noel picked up a spoon as well. "She''s used to being here for research. She probably thinks Esci put medicine in here or something."


    "I do not! I just... um..." Melia huffed. "Forget it! I mean, you don''t normally see flavor globs as food, so."


    "She''s got a point." Delfine picked up a spoon as well. "These sharp Angelerfish teeth of mine aren''t really made for fruity stuff, but I bet these are a good time for your mouth anyway."


    "I''ll see about making something meatier for you later," Esci said.


    "Thank you, sweetie," Delfine said. "Now, down the hatch!"


    Noel put her spoon in her mouth, and she made a satisfied noise once the sphere burst, flooding her mouth with cool strawberry goodness. "Wow, that''s really something."


    "It''s a berry bomb in your mouth!" Melia licked her lips. "Will you be making these at the festival, too?"


    "These and more," Esci said. "These are just teasers."


    "Del, are you doing anything for the festival?" Noel asked.


    "I''m running security," Delfine said. "Since the Royal Guard got suspended when we ended up in Medlia, this is as close as I can come to ordering the soldiers around. Still, it''s a lot of fun!"


    "Why did it get suspended?" Melia asked.


    "King Nashir didn''t think he needed such close protection here. I disagreed, but he can still call us into action if something comes up, so it''s not too bad." Delfine scratched near her antenna, making the lighted part on the end bob up and down. For a moment, her expression faded into a frown, but then her toothy grin re-emerged. "Hey, have you noticed anything different about us since coming in?"


    "Did you get your head scales trimmed?" Noel asked.


    "Nope! I can do that myself." Delfine went behind the counter where Esci was standing. Esci eyed her warily, then gasped as her right hand was yanked up. At the same time, Delfine held her own right hand up. "Look at this bling! We''re engaged!"


    "Whoa, what?" Melia made a contained squealing noise. "Congratulations!"


    "Glad to hear you finally proposed," Noel said. "Congratulations from me too! Better get started on planning."


    "Oh, we are!" Delfine said through a giggle.


    "D-Del, did you have to announce it like that? I don''t think they heard you on the other side of town," Esci murmured, trying to hide a smile.


    "Oh, they didn''t? Well then..." Delfine sucked in a breath, then boomed, "Look! At this bling! Because! We! Are! Engaged! I, Delfine Finley, do take Esci Physli to be my lawfully wedded wife!"


    "Oh my god!" Esci tried to match Delfine''s volume and just broke down laughing instead.


    Melia had caught the giggles as well, while Noel grinned ear to ear. "That''s one way to announce things," Noel said.


    "Everyone was going to find out eventually, so why not now?" Delfine''s cackling kept up as the laughter trailed off. "All right, well, now that everyone knows the good news, what now?"


    "Oh, wait!" Melia hopped in place. "Del, did you see the latest episode of Magical Prism Pudding?"


    "That''s not even a question. Of course I did! Esci and I never miss a single episode. But..." Delfine tried to frown, though the twitching of her lips hid mischief. "That means you''ve been staying up past your bedtime! The episodes come out at 2 AM our time!"


    "What? No! The Internet is a thing, Del! I can just look them up!" Melia folded her arms and pouted.


    "Well, then... sub or dub?" Delfine''s mock disappointed expression gave way to her usual cocky grin.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    "Oh no you don''t," Noel said. "Even I know that this debate could go on forever-"


    Melia interrupted. "Subs, duh!"


    "I have trained you well in the ways of anime," Delfine said, nodding sagely.


    Noel sighed and rolled her eyes. "We''ve got a few more stops to hit, unless you want to spend the whole day nerding out. Then again, I guess I could leave you here and go about my business."


    Melia gave a disgruntled whine. "All right, fine. We can discuss the plot later, Del."


    "You don''t mess around, Noel," Delfine said. "I like that! But yeah, if you''ve got places to go, we can shelve the discussion for later."


    "Time to go?" Esci said as she collected the spoons from everyone. "Well, I''m glad you two stopped by. It''s always nice to have visitors." She paused, then added, "Ah, Melia, I''m sure your parents know about this, but don''t forget about your appointment next month, okay?"


    Melia responded with a prolonged raspberry. "You''re not gonna find anything new. I''m aging like a human now, anyway. Isn''t that what you said last time?"


    "Yes, but it''s very important to examine the physical and magical makeup of each half-Magicant, and..." Esci sighed. "I''m sorry. I know you don''t like all the poking and prodding and tests, but it''s all very important."


    "Yeah, yeah, I gotcha," Melia said. "You know I''m not mad at you, right, Esci?"


    "You aren''t?" Esci''s golden eyes seemed to shine with joy. "I''m so glad to hear that! You always seem so grouchy about the tests, and I feel bad about it."


    "Well, don''t." Melia looked back to Noel. "I guess we should get going, huh?"


    "I''m ready if you are," Noel said. "Del, Esci, it''s been nice seeing you two."


    The scaly duo bid farewell to Noel and Melia, and with that, they set out for a certain street a bit further from the center of town than the lab. There was a small cluster of food trucks along this street, but one in particular stood out. More accurately, it was so sparsely decorated that its lack of pizzazz made it stand out. A simple white food truck with the words "It''s a Wrap" spray painted in blue on the side was positioned between two others; this was the one Noel and Melia headed for. "Heya, Serge!" Melia called out.


    A grey mummy-like Magicant with glowing golden eyes appeared at the window. He appeared to be wearing a very simple navy blue robe and not much else. "Hey," Serge said, waving lazily. "Nice to see you two."


    "We were in the area, so we thought we''d stop by," Noel said. "How''s business?"


    Serge shrugged. "Same as it always is, though sometimes Alrai stops by with a big order. Then again, he stops by everywhere with big orders."


    Noel nodded. Prince Alrai was another one of the town''s personalities and someone she intended to look for later; he was notorious for having a large appetite and trying to sample various cuisines from around town. "Have you done anything to the menu? You said you''d be making some changes last time I saw you."


    "I have," Serge said. "I''ve added breakfast burritos to the menu. Eggs, bacon, cheese, a few dabs of salsa, maybe some hot sauce if you''re feeling brave. Sausage is optional."


    Melia made a prolonged interested noise. "That sounds yummy! I''d love to taste one."


    "Melia, you just had a strawberry sphere," Noel said, sighing as she rifled through her purse for her debit card. "I''ll get you one, but then you need to get an allowance."


    "Strawberry sphere?" Serge scratched at his face, tugging at the mask-like lower half. "Sounds like an Esci thing."


    "It is," Noel replied as she handed over her card. "Here. One breakfast burrito, please."


    "Much obliged," Serge said, looking to Melia. "Bacon or sausage?"


    "Bacon!" Melia chirped.


    Serge swiped Noel''s card and handed her a receipt. "I''ll get to wrapping then," he said before handing Noel her card back and heading off to cook.


    Melia''s grin took a mischievous twist. "I''ll let you have a bite if you''d like."


    "I might try one later," Noel said. "I had breakfast this morning."


    "Well, so did I, but that doesn''t stop me," Melia said.


    It wasn''t long before Serge returned to the window with a bag and handed it to Melia. "One B-B, breakfast burrito, bacon-egg-cheese-salsa-rooski. I skipped the hot sauce, because I know how Mel is with spicy things."


    "Thank you, Serge!" Melia opened the bag, pulled out the foil-wrapped burrito, and unwrapped it. "How did you do that so quickly?"


    "Just a little cooking with magic," Serge said. "Do either of you know how to use magic yet?"


    "No, but now I wish I did," Melia said. "Dad doesn''t use his magic very often, but I wonder if he''ll teach me."


    "My mom''s pretty good at some big magics, but I''ve never really seen her use smaller ones," Noel said. "I rarely see Kelves use his at all. But Esci says we should have some ability to use magic, so maybe it''s not a lost cause."


    "That''s a pity." Serge set about wiping some utensils off. "I''m sure Kas and Nash can teach you two. They''re good with those kinds of things. Alrai too."


    "It''s so weird. Kastra and Nashir are the queen and king of Magicants, but they''re so... chill." Melia took a bite of her burrito, and her eyes lit up. "Mmm! This is awesome, Serge! I gotta get your recipe."


    "Cooking magic, Mel. Cooking magic." Serge leaned over the edge of the food truck window. "It''s true, Nash and Kas are pretty laid back. It''s why Alrai gets to go around so much. But I bet they''re going to have to step it up with him soon. He is going to have to take the throne someday."


    Noel found herself frowning. "That''s kind of a scary thought. Not Alrai becoming the next king of Magicants, I mean, but... having a free life and then suddenly having to shut it down and work hard."


    "That''s how it is for some people," Serge said. "He doesn''t like when you bring it up. He''ll have to face it eventually, I guess."


    A masculine voice drifted over from elsewhere, loud and brassy. "Serge!" Soon, another mummy-like Magicant ran up to the food truck. This one''s eyes glowed blue; there were no wrappings on the lower half of his face, so his broad grin was in full view. The skin around his mouth was smooth and grey, almost featureless. He seemed to be wearing robes designed for combat, a contrast to Serge''s bathrobe.


    "Peter, there you are. Good to see you, little brother." Serge tapped his wrapped fingers on the counter. "Did you need something? Are you hungry? I packed lunch for you this morning."


    The way Peter''s eye-lights shone seemed to indicate he was rolling his eyes. "Yes, thank you, and I remembered to bring the lunch this time, too." His focus then shifted to Noel and Melia. "Heya, Mel and El! How are you two doing today?"


    "I''m doing fine, thanks," Noel said. "I''m just taking Melia around town."


    "I''m doing great! I''m sure you knew this already, but Serge is an awesome cook." Melia took another bite of her breakfast burrito, making satisfied noises as she chewed.


    "That he is," Peter said, nodding. "I''m learning how to cook now too. Delfi gave me some special recipes that I''ve been trying out."


    "Yeah, you''ve definitely been practicing. Maybe by the end of the year you''ll have something edible." Serge shoved his hands in the pockets of his robe and didn''t flinch at all when Peter reacted.


    "It''s not that bad! Delfine''s recipes are just really weird!" Peter''s reaction was a good deal louder than it needed to be, making Noel jump.


    "Both her cuisine and ours use fish, Pete. It shouldn''t be so hard to make the connections." Serge sighed heavily. "Still, keep at it. I''ve got a strong stomach."


    "Gee, thanks," Peter grumbled. "Anyway, I take it that you''re not patrolling today? Or ever again? Because you need to run the food truck, right?"


    Serge sighed again, this time with an exasperated growl. "Peter, this is just as good as patrolling. All types of people come through here with all kinds of gossip. If anything, I''m getting you leads."


    "I still think you should do some footwork." Peter folded his arms. "With the Starseed Festival coming up, it''s important that we make sure everything is in order."


    "Everything will be fine." A series of clanks came out of the food truck as Serge rearranged some utensils. "Besides, you''re working security with Del. I''m sure you''ll see to it yourself that no one makes any trouble."


    "Yes, but... you know what, never mind." It was Peter''s turn to sigh in exasperation. "At least you''re going to be part of the festival as a vendor."


    Melia swallowed a bite of burrito before piping up again. "Really? What are you going to make for it, Serge?"


    "Just some Ninma specialties. You''ll see." Serge began to rifle around in his pockets. "I think I could use a smoke break."


    "What, did I drive you to smoke or something?" Peter scoffed, then grinned. "I''m kidding."


    "I know you are. It''s just time for a smokey treat. And you know I like to be alone with my smokey treats."


    "Right, gotcha. Guess I''ll see you at dinner then, bro." Peter turned on his heels, but didn''t leave right away. "It was nice seeing you two, Mel and El! Have a good day, alright?"


    "Thanks, we will," Noel said. "Guess we should leave Serge to his business then."


    "Perfect timing! I just finished," Melia said, throwing her wrappers into a nearby trashcan. "I could sing the praises of that burrito forever, but I''ll spare you."


    With that, Noel and Melia made their way across the streets till they hit a fairly long stretch of sidewalk. At one point, Melia stopped. "Say, Noel, do you think we can see the shrine to the Entity today? I haven''t been there in a while."


    "Sure, though it''ll be a bit of a walk," Noel said. "Who knows, we might find Alrai and Caleb slacking off in the field around there again."


    "They''re there a lot, aren''t they? I guess I can''t blame Alrai for wanting some free time, especially after what Serge said about him," Melia said. "And Fenne is always at the shrine, so I''d like to see her too."


    "Sounds like a plan." Noel lead Melia up a different sidewalk, and they headed for the field on the outskirts of town.