Colette sat up abruptly, her knees stinging as she flailed her hand in the water, searching for her ring.
For all she knew, Manon could be dead and lost in the orchard. She would fail her mission and lose a friend she just began to regain. Her lack of composure that had usually been restrained within was now seeping out through cracks, her wild red hair sticking up in all directions, Manon's bloody shawl tucked under her legs.
But this was no time for that behavior. Antoni dragged her up by the arm, Remy quick behind snatching up the shawl.
"No time, Miss Colette, please pardon me-" The prince was apologetic in tone but firm in his intent. The zombified lost souls seemed to stop at the root bridges before crossing the river, as if they couldn't cross. Another safe zone at least from them.
But the water splashed furiously against the oversized roots of the pink lady tree- creating a loud environment akin to an unruly beach at high tide. Arrows were still flying their way, piercing the grass by their feet and stabbing into the exit tree. Everything was overstimulating Colette immensely.
"I need to go to Manon!" Colette urged, struggling to break out of Antoni's hold and not get hit by any arrows simultaneously. Every time she seemed to loosen his grip, he tightened his hold around her forearm and pulled her closer to him, narrowly avoiding getting hit.
Antoni's voice was more impatient the next time he spoke, and it was with a sickening feeling that she witnessed his AP drop 2 points.
[Antoni is furious at Colette's lack of priority. He intends to remind her of her place.]
"Miss Manon is fine….she has the key and the three undead are the only assailants the orchard has the energy to create with its artificial night. Until the real night comes. Therefore, we must leave NOW. She can escape on her own." Antoni looked into Colette's eyes, gold clashing with sky blue in a fierce battle.
"I saw what she's capable of. She'll be fine."
Remy was already exiting through the tree, not one to stick around for the dramatics in this case.
But all Colette could think about was what Antoni's words implied as they both hid from the undead behind the thick trunk of the tree.
"Are you saying you saw Manon? Did you help her?" Colette inquired quietly, trying not to seem disrespectful but her blood was boiling when Antoni did not hold her gaze.
He was still a child. He was still not perfectly confident yet. But to his credit, the boy did meet her eyes again with pure pride and honesty.
"I saw her. I saw her maneuver around and escape two of the undead even with an injury. If she has a goal, she can do it herself. She did not need my help."
With that, Antoni picked up Colette without warning, the ginger girl stiffly accepting being thrown over his shoulder even though she wanted to kick and scream that Antoni was making a mistake.
She couldn't.
She couldn't risk his real anger. So she allowed Prince Antoni to whisk her away, the darkness of the exit causing the moonlight of the orchard to fade slowly until everything was black once more.
….
…
..
When Colette could see light again, she was back in the apple field.
The sun was just starting to set, the light around them a warm yellow- not orange just yet.
As her eyes adjusted, Antoni finally stopped in his tracks, making her pause as she could only see what was behind him in her current position. The Prince scoffed out a laugh, a jolly little chuckle uncharacteristic of his demeanor.
"Colette. I think you owe me an apology." He said, shifting his weight to finally put the girl down. Colette's feet rested on the grass, the soft ground cushioning her aching feet. In the same motion, she turned around to see what Antoni had seen.
She first noticed Remy, who was smiling widely next to her on her right, his dimples visible as he shook his head disbelievingly.
Colette turned more, following his stormy grey gaze to the one both boys were staring at.
Standing there, in a bloodied, ripped dress, gash in her shoulder, filthy stockings and her braided hair in absolute disarray, was Manon without her eyepatch.
Her cerulean left eye winked at the ginger girl as she patted the medium sized red and gold chest in her thin arms.
"It's about time- I was waiting for several minutes." Manon grinned through pain that Colette knew was beginning to catch up to her. The ginger rushed to her, engulfing her friend in a tight hug but avoiding her wounded shoulder. She nuzzled her face into her good shoulder, laughing hard.
"I cannot believe you!" She sighed multiple times in relief, checking Manon's face to make sure she was okay. They were taking too long, so Remy swooped in and took the chest from the brunette's arms, triggering the system notification.
[Congratulations on completing your side mission.]
…..
"Thank you for convincing Remy, your highness." Colette said as she smoothed down her dress which was now pristine and clean and adjusted her satchel bag. All the children were thankful for an item in the gift box. It was a tool called the loom, a magic device that looked like a pink stone- it repaired and cleaned any kind of garments. Luckily, Manon had brought her brush in her pocket just in case, and they were able to fix their hair as well. Remy was less than pleased as the loom only had 100 uses and now it had something like 80 left.
She had no idea how many items were inside the box because usually in the game, depending on whose route you were taking, you would just be given one or two things from it. Remy was especially stubborn and frequently only let the player take one thing. She wondered if Remy allowed Manon to do so.
The boy in question sulked, kicking a rock that was too hard and making Manon throw her head back in laughter when he cursed himself.
Right, Manon. Her eyepatch was gone, though- Remy admitting to ripping it off and dropping it somewhere near the gazebo. They'd have to request a new one. She did not know how the Prince felt about Manon's eye- especially because his true intent never mentioned it despite her checking. It was as if he did not care…which was…odd for this world. Everyone seemed to feel a type of way about the original Manon's eye. But perhaps Antoni seeing Manon earlier in turmoil held a stronger impression than she realized? She needed to check again.
"No need. I should thank you, Miss Colette. I would have been in…trouble if not for you and your friend." Antoni patted the small pouch on his belt- a subspace that held the golden sapling. His gaze shifted from her to Manon, then at the sun setting. "You should run along now before nightfall. Please look out for my letter." Antoni gracefully swooped up Colette's hand and kissed her knuckles. The action would have been comical from any other child- but it was more..cute from Antoni. Childlike.
The prince turned to bid Remy and Manon farewell in a more casual fashion, a smile reaching his eyes. Colette decided to check his AP before he departed, and with a faint smirk she realized Manon had shared her windows with her without having to be asked.
Colette's AP with the prince was currently at 29- likely due to her earlier hiccup. But what shocked her was that Manon's was 20. Just what kind of strong impression had she made? How? Remy's AP capped at 30 for Colette and 20 for Manon as well. Colette would need to ask her what exactly happened while they were separated. But she had to admit, if she had affection points for Manon, she would have gained 10 just from seeing her when they exited the orchard alone, battle scars and all.
The only worry Colette had was Manon's wound. She could technically use the golden apple, but she couldn't reveal that she still had it around Antoni, and it would…not be an easy thing to try and process the fruit in the orphanage. Manon's shoulder was bandaged for now but they would need to come up with an excuse. The girl seemed fine, her repaired fur shawl over her shoulders- but Colette could tell she was struggling with the pain.
Similarly, Remy had not escaped unscathed which was unprecedented. He had a thin but noticeable cut running from his eyelid to the skin right under his right eye. Colette was…well she had conflicted feelings about this.
As happy as she was that Manon made it out safely and that they completed their mission- things did not go as planned. Due to Manon not staying outside of the orchard like in the original, the orchard itself bared its fangs and attempted to kill them, Tatyana revealed herself to them, and two people were injured. Good things happened too, like meeting Tatyana and being able to have her soul rest in peace- but at what cost?
The persistent anxiety that some huge change was going to throw Colette completely off her feet never went away, it just got pushed back until all the circumstances rushed in after her initial relief waned.
As she watched Antoni depart, her eyes fixated on Manon's hurt shoulder. They needed a healer, quickly.
The trio jogged their way back over the bridge just outside of the town- rushing while knowing they only had 5 minutes to run through the city and make it to the orphanage.
Whether it was luck or something else, they did not know. But standing on the other side of the bridge next to a modest looking carriage was none other than Maria, a stern look upon her elegant features, clad in a pure white long trench coat that gave her the impression of an icy queen.
Her habit headdress was only white today instead of dual tones, contrasting against her deep skin. She stared at the trio with an unreadable expression before opening the carriage door and waiting.
Once again- this was not how things were supposed to go.
Not at all.
…
…