"Hurry up, godchild, there is much for us to do today," the fairy yelled from the other room.
Kai gurgled up water after brushing his teeth, then spat into the sink.
"I have spent the night learning about this world," she said, "and have come up with a plan."
"You have?" Kai wiped his mouth and stepped out of the bathroom to find the fairy in her human-form, sitting on his table, as she had the day before.
Vira nodded. "Just do exactly as I say, and you'll become your better self in no time."
"Okay…" Kai sat down on his mattress, facing his fairy godmother expectantly.
Vira took flight, floating above him, a satisfied smile on her face. "The first step of my ingenious plan," she began, her light growing. "Is but a small task, which will mark the start of your journey to greatness." She pointed her finger at him, her magic flaring, conjuring a soft wind to blow through his room.
"What do I have to do?" he asked, excited to see more of the fairy's magic. With her by his side, maybe he really did stand a chance.
"Today, my godchild…" she said fondly. "You will clean your room!"
Kai frowned. "Ah… what?"
"It is difficult to change one's life," she said, letting the effects of her magic recede. "Most of your actions will not show immediate results and will require a great amount of dedication and discipline—two things that you clearly don't have."
"Ouch."
"So, we are going to have to start with something small—a change that will be instantly noticeable and teach you discipline."
"Cleaning my room?"
She nodded. "You live alone and have only yourself to blame for the horrid state of this place." She spared a glance at the discarded stacks of dirty clothes, the piles of pizza boxes, and the sticky mountain of empty energy drinks. Her skin crawled at the thought of the insects that must be hiding underneath all that mess.
"Can't you just… use your magic to clean it all up?"
"I can, but that's not the point. I am here to help you, Kai, not to do things for you."
"Ah…" His shoulders slumped as he looked around the room. "This will take forever."
"Then, I suppose you'd better start sooner rather than later."
"Aren't you supposed to help me?"
"I am, by giving you instructions."
"Pfft… Instructions."
"You will start by cleaning out all the garbage. You will need plastic bags in at least two colors—green for recyclable trash and black for the rest."
"You gotta be joking."
"I am most certainly not! You do have some garbage bags around here, don't you?"
"Maybe," he shrugged.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Go look for—" A scratching noise came from under the pizza boxes, and she shuddered, a chill running down her spine.
Kai heard it too, and his body tensed with a sudden, combat-ready intensity.
"Did you—"
"Shh…" He brought his hand sharply to silence her.
The scratching noise came again, and he rose into a crouch, his feet ready to pounce.
For a moment, Vira glimpsed what Kai could become: a true warrior, courageous and strong, brimming with unerring, sharp confidence—a paladin of legend. Then he lunged at the pizza boxes, body-slamming into the pile, causing the cardboard boxes to bend and break, and the image of the warrior shattered.
A squeak came from the debris, and Vira spotted the furry little figure dart off from underneath the smashed stacks. "Kai—"
"I saw it!" He fought to get up, then dove into the mountain of energy drinks right after the animal. Vira lost sight of both of them, and as they warred within the heap of aluminum cans, she held her breath.
The mountain erupted in an explosion, empty energy drinks flung about to every corner of the room as Kai rose with a shout.
At first, Vira couldn't tell whether it was a cry of triumph or one of pain, but as the shout rolled into maniacal laughter, she realized the Oathless stood victorious, and she floated around him to see.
"You have stolen your last pizza slice, little rat." Kai held the white-furred rat up by the tail, watching it flail helplessly.
It squeaked, fearful and desperate, and Vira began to feel sorry for the little thing. Then an idea occurred to her.
"Now, let's see if you can survive a fall from the third floor." Kai turned toward the window and found Vira blocking his path, channeling her magic. "What are you—"
"Let go of the rat."
"What?! No way! Do you have any idea how many pizza slices I lost to that thing?" He tightened his grip around the tail, squeezing more squeaks out of the animal. "No one gets between a man and his pizza."
Vira clicked her tongue. "Just let it go, Kai."
"No!"
"You promised to do as I say."
"Yes, but not about this. What do you care about this rat, anyway?"
The fairy sighed. Her spell was ready, so there was no point in arguing. He would have to see for himself.
Trails of magical light sprang from the fairy's amulet and began to revolve around the white rat in a twister, carrying wind and causing the furry creature to flare with bright red light. Kai lifted his arm to shield his eyes from the blinding light and felt the tail in his hand grow uncomfortably warm, though he stubbornly refused to let go—not after the months he had spent chasing it.
After a few long moments, he felt the wind calm and lowered his arm, slowly opening his eyes in time to see the light dim and fade.
The rat's tail was still gripped in hand; only it had grown bigger and was connected to the back of a… girl?
Her black maid's skirt was held up by the tail, revealing her underwear—pearly white with pink bows at the sides.
"Haeh?" The girl turned her head slowly, her pink eyes meeting Kai's befuddled gaze, her face growing red, realizing her behind was exposed. "G-g-get your hands off me!" Her back-kick hit him right in the groin.
Kai let go of her tail and doubled over, his hands capping the point of impact as waves of pain passed through him.
"Oh no," Vira covered her face in embarrassment. "Wait, little helper, you shouldn't—"
The rat-girl straightened her skirt, then turned and placed a triumphant foot on her fallen foe. "Think you are so tough, haeh?" Her fuzzy white rat-ears twitched, her slender arms crossed over her small chest, and her round face, framed by bobbed white hair, puffed with anger. "Picking on someone tens of times smaller than you…"
"Hold on, little helper, don't do anything you might—"
"But now the tables have turned," the rat-girl smirked and bent to drag the paralyzed Kai by his shirt. "Let's see how well you survive a fall from the third floor." She began to pull, her small arms straining to move him even an inch.
"Stop right there!" Vira yelled, floating to block the girl's path. "I gave you this power, and I can take it from you just as easily."
The rat-girl looked at the fairy, then back at her enemy, and reluctantly let go of his shirt. "But isn't this what you empowered me for? So I could fight back? Get rid of this fugly once and for all!"
"No! That's not at all what I had in mind."
"Then…"
"I Personified you, so you could… help him."
"Haeh?!" The rat-girl leaned forward, invading the fairy's personal space with a scowl.
"Uh…" Vira lifted two open, pacifying hands, a bead of sweat descending down her forehead. "Why don't we start over? I'm Vira, Sister of Chivalry, and fairy godmother to…" She looked over the rat-girl's shoulder at the squirming Kai. "This poor child."
"Really?" She glanced at the Oathless with disgust. "You're his godmother? Of all people?"
"That's right... and as you can see, I need all the help I can get... So, if you'd be so kind—"
"He is not worth it," the rat-girl placed her hand on the fairy's shoulder, her face darkening. "Let me take care of him."
"Oh?"
The little helper nodded to the open window, its yellow curtains blowing in the wind. "He has a little accident, and life becomes easier for both of us."
"No, no, no! I absolutely cannot let that happen."
"Are you sure?"
"Absolutely. Positively. Yes, I am sure."
The little helper sent another disgusted glance at the slowly recovering Kai. "But… he is so—"
"I know," Vira sighed. "I will reward you for your help, of course. Other than being able to take human-form during the day, you will no longer have to scavenge for food, and—"
"You mean…" the rat-girl said excitedly, licking her lips, her eyes beaming. "I could have more pizza?"
"It… wasn't part of the diet I planned for him—"
The D word made a new wave of pain flow through Kai's body.
"But I suppose, if that's the price of your cooperation… I think we can find a way to make that work."
The rat-girl gasped, then clasped Vira's hand and knelt down before her. "Thank you, Godmother. I will not disappoint you."
The fairy smiled. "You are welcome, little helper," she patted the girl's pure white hair. "Now tell me, do you have a name, or shall I grant you one?"
The rat-girl looked up, her pink irises glowing with joy. "Whatever name you grant me, Godmother, I will gladly accept."
"Then, from now on, you shall be known as… Vermallelia."
Vermallelia nodded in appreciation. "It is a fine name. I will cherish it forever."
The godmother let out a satisfied sigh. "Then, now that that's sorted out, we can—"
"This isn't over, not until I've had my say," Kai strained to rise despite the pain and pushed his glasses up his nose. "Listen up, vermin-loli—"
"It's Vermallelia," the rat-girl stomped her foot.
"You've lived in my room rent-free for long enough—"
"Like you are one to talk," Aqwyn chimed in, appearing on his computer monitor.
"Aqwyn?" Vira turned her attention to the screen.
"Can I please just finish?" he protested.
"You should know, Vira, Kai isn't paying for rent; he is unemployed."
"What?" She glowered at the Oathless. "Don't tell me you are squatting here illegally."
"Ah, no, obviously not. I'm—ah…"
"Wait, then…" Vira looked around the room, at the crushed cans and broken boxes. "How did you afford all this?"
Kai let out a deep sigh. "My dad… gives me an allowance."
"But… you are twenty-six… aren't you too old for that?"
Vermallelia burst into laughter. "Over two decades old, and you are still relying on your parents?" She shook her head. "I left mine after three months. What a loser."
"What are you laughing about?" he scowled. "Like either of you know what it is like to work your ass off at a dead-end, low-wage job, or study for all these stupid exams, with all that pressure breathing down your neck—"
"You think you've got it rough?" She took a hostile step toward him, her hands balled into fists. "Try climbing up and down stinky sewer drains while eating nothing but cockroaches for weeks on end. Not to mention the risk of getting smashed, eaten, or poisoned being an ever-present threat!"
"Who cares?" He matched her, taking a hostile step forward of his own. "You are a rat! The only thing you are good for is spreading diseases and feeding cats."
"Still better than being a good-for-nothing like you," she closed in. "Throwing you out the window would have been a mercy. In fact, why don't you save us all the trouble and throw yourself out the—"
Vira got between them and channeled her magic. "Enough!" She let it loose, pushing both of them back with a gust of wind and blinding them with her bright light.
Kai felt the spell's warmth go into him, like a long tendril reaching through his mouth and taking something with it on the way out. When he opened his eyes, he saw Vermallelia in front of him and Vira hovering above them both.
The rat-girl pouted and opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Kai scoffed—or tried to, but his voice was gone too. They both looked to the fairy godmother.
She tore the window curtains off and let her magic weave them anew, turning them into two rolls of garbage bags, one black and one green, then dropped them before her.
"I never want to hear either of you talk that way to each other, nor to anyone else, ever again. Is that clear?"
Vermallelia nodded. Kai opened his mouth to protest but realized it was futile and lowered his head.
"You will spend the day working in silence. At the witching hour, my magic will fade," she turned to Kai. "You will regain your voice," she said, then turned to Vermallelia, "and you will return to your rat-form." She crossed her arms. "Whether or not you get to keep your voices tomorrow depends entirely on you." They both kept their heads down, like scolded children, not daring to look up at her.
"Now," she said coldly, "start cleaning."