Amy

In all the excitement at The Guild, and the crazy whirlwind that was Ginny, I’d more or less forgotten my initial purpose in going - to actually practice my abilities upon non-living targets. Something I’d need to do before I took on a proper quest and tried to use my power on monsters.

Not that I entirely knew what I wanted to test - the distance my tentacles could reach, perhaps? The limit to the weight they could lift? How much force I could apply with them if I whipped them around with a lead core at the end? 

None of that actually required a dedicated training room, though… It also sounded rather boring to go through, in all honesty, so it might have perhaps been for the best that we’d skipped it. Honestly, I wasn’t sure there was even a point, thinking on it - I’d proven adroit enough with my tentacles that I wasn’t worried about my ability to control them, and while there was arguably a point in knowing my precise limits I wasn’t sure there was much point in knowing the exact weight at which my tentacles would feel a strain.

Then again, Bridgette would probably yell at me if I went into the field without doing at least a little testing… and so it was that I found myself in the back yard of the estate, using a watering can with one tentacle and pruning flowers with two others.

“So multi-tasking is a go,” I murmured to myself, putting the watering can down and plucking up one of the logs we kept around for the fireplace. “I’d say this is roughly ten pounds? Maybe a bit more… and there is a bit of a strain holding it, so I don’t think I’ll be able to take much more… That probably means I won’t be swinging any beasts about, or seizing their legs to make them stop. Strange that I can lift myself with so little struggle, though… It makes me think I should perhaps devote the last subspell to strength? Though I’m still torn between that and stickiness.”

“Stickiness without strength?” Bridgette asked, causing me to jump a little from surprise. “That sounds like a recipe for disaster if you clamp onto something stronger than you.”

“Yeah, but I could use it to climb buildings and stuff!” I pointed out. “Or swing around, even! Like a web slinger!”

“I’m not so sure what that means,” Bridgette said, “but it sounds like a bad idea considering the tentacles come out from under your skirt.”

“Right,” I murmured. “I guess that might make climbing a bit difficult…”

“My Lady,” Clara said, making me jump all over again as she appeared behind me, speaking in a chilly voice. “I must ask that you not flash the entire populace with Lady Amelia’s form?”

“First off - did you seriously just teleport behind me to say that?” I demanded, putting hands on my hips.

“Actually, I’ve been here for a while,” Clara replied. “You were simply too invested in your training to notice.”

“Well… okay, then! But second, even if tentacle-slinging travel is off the menu-”

“And it is,” Clara stated.

“Even if! Keeping in mind the fact that I can totally make tentacles appear all over to hide my underwear!”

“Not helping,” Bridgette muttered.

“I’m still not so sure I wanna just choose strength like that. I think it’s better to keep the fourth slot open - just in case I run into an emergency issue that a fourth slot can hold.”

Bridgette had nothing to say to that. Clara was the same. In fact, their silence eventually grew awkward to the point where I felt like I had no choice but to break it.

“Is there something the matter?”

“No, it’s just really weird to hear you thinking ahead like this,” Bridgette admitted.

Clara nodded.

“You…” I grit my teeth for a moment, before crossing my arms and turning away from them. “I’m not even going to dignify that with a response.”

“Because you know we’re right?” Bridgette suggested.

“Do not!” I protested, fully aware of the fact that I was pouting. “I’ll have you know I lived as a mostly functional adult back in my old world, without help from you or anyone else. I’m quite capable of thinking for myself.”

“I don’t believe either of us meant to imply otherwise, my Lady,” Clara said. “It’s just that you have a tendency not to think things through before acting on them.”

“So what? I have a brain, but I don’t use it?”

Clara didn’t say anything to that. Nor did Bridgette. Which, I suppose, was all the answer I needed.

“Well… screw you,” I declared, turning away from them and stomping back into the house.

“Breakfast is on the table,” Clara called out.

“I’m not hungry,” I lied. Of course, my stomach chose just that moment to growl. “And even if I was I’d rather eat at this school cafeteria I keep hearing of over some meal made by a maid who doesn’t even believe in me.”

“You’re sulking,” Clara said, frowning.

“So what if I am?” I replied, not quite able to meet her eyes. “It’s been a rather stressful time for me, in case you’ve missed it. Tossed into a new world I thought I knew, but apparently still barely understand. Forced to stand trial at risk of having my head cut off. Not to mention the fact that I nearly died before even getting that far! And now it seems that the only allies I have are astonished to find me thinking even the slightest bit about my future.”

Neither woman had anything to say to that. Not that I bothered to stick around and listen, stomping towards the door.

“What’s the racket about?” called Firanna, stumbling out of the hallway in a nightgown.

“Ask your knight,” I replied, stiffly, before heading out the door.

Of course, it wasn’t until a few minutes later that I realized I had no idea where in the world the academy’s cafeteria actually was.

***

Bridgette

***

“Do you think we should go after her?” I asked, standing in the doorway, staring at Amy’s retreating back. “I’m pretty sure she’s going to get lost if we don’t.”

“I don’t think that would be wise,” Clara replied. “She seems to need some alone time… Not to mention the fact that you can’t be trusted not to say you’re real reasoning for wanting to follow her.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, feeling suddenly defensive.

“That you don’t trust in her to find her own way, of course,” Clara replied. “What? Did you think I was referring to something else? Perhaps in regards to your feelings about my Lady?”

“Feelings?” Firanna broke in. “What feelings? Who has feelings? For who?”

“No one has feelings,” I said, firmly. Thankfully Amy wasn’t there to call me on it, or I might have had some trouble. “Come on, let’s eat breakfast, and… trust Amy to sort things out on her own, I guess…”

“I’m sure even my Lady can’t get into too much trouble on school grounds,” Clara remarked, before grimacing. “Though I suppose it’s comments like that which have had her running away…”

“I’m sort of surprised you care,” I admitted. “Don’t tell me you’re catching feelings for her, or something?”

“Of course not,” Clara scoffed. “She is my Lady - nothing more or less. If I care, it’s only because ensuring her mental well-being is part of my job as her servant.”

“Uh… I’m pretty sure that isn’t part of a normal maid’s duties,” I said, before turning towards Firanna. “It isn’t, right?”

“W-well yes. I mean no! I mean yes, you’re right that it’s no, it’s not. Though I’ve heard some women have deeper relationships with their personal attendants, I’ve never thought it proper myself. I mean, forcing someone who’s just there for coin to listen to you babble about everything and anything, and then trusting them to keep silent about whatever you’ve let slip is just… I mean, not that I have any secrets to let slip in the first place! But um, speaking of secrets… I do believe there was some talk about feelings before?”

“It’s not important,” I said, shaking my head. “Clara’s just getting ahead of herself.”

“Oh, so you don’t have feelings for anyone, then? Anyone at all?”

“I mean, even if I did, I wouldn’t act on them,” I said, firmly. “I mean, you and Amy are engaged for goodness sakes!”

“It’s a political arrangement, nothing more,” Firanna reminded me. “I’m sure if you had feelings for - for one of us, well, it wouldn’t be a problem would it?”

“”I don’t have feelings for Amy!” I protested - a little louder than I meant to.

“A-Amy?” Firanna whispered. “You have feelings for… for…”

“I just said I don’t! She’s your fiancee, and I’d never get in the way of my friend’s love life.”

“It’s - I mean, I’m not - I mean, you’re…”

“Clearly in love with Amy?” Clara suggested.

“Am not!” I protested. “I mean, it’s a crush if anything - and a really annoyingly irrational one, too, seeing as how she’s pretty much done nothing but gotten on my nerves since she got here. Always complaining, constantly fighting me even when I try to give her a compliment, making adorable faces at the drop of a hat - did you notice she’s been doing less of that blank face recently? It feels like she’s really opening up lately. I wouldn’t wanna ruin that with some stupid crush.”

“You…” Firanna whispered. “You have a crush on Amy…”

“It’s not like I’m going to act on it,” I promised. “Like I said, she’s your fiancee! It wouldn’t be right.”

“You… I mean, I… But… what about me?” Firanna said, her voice lowering until it was barely audible at the end.

“About… you?”

“Yes!” she replied, stomping her foot. “What about me? I - I never asked to marry that… that tramp! That homewrecker! I only even agreed to this stupid engagement so that I could spend time with you and now you’re in love with her?”

“You… wanted to spend more time with me?” I asked. “You know you could just ask for that, right? I mean we’re friends, aren’t we?”

“You idiot!” Firanna screamed, before running out the door. I could have sworn I saw tears in her eyes, too.

“Did I say something wrong?” I asked, glancing at Clara.

She shook her head. “I’m not getting involved in this.”

“Involved in what?” I pressed. “I keep telling you two that nothing’s going to happen between me and Amy!”

“Are you really this oblivious?” Clara asked. “Or do you just have a blindspot when it comes to Firanna?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I insisted. “Do you know why she got mad?”

“Perhaps it has something to do with the density of a certain knight’s head?” Clara suggested, sounding amused.

“What do you mean? Don’t tell me Firanna’s upset that I like Amy? I mean, I know they’re engaged, but-”

“You’re approaching it from the wrong angle,” Clara said, shaking her head. “It’s not about Amy - it’s about you.”

“Me?” I asked, blinking. “I don't get it?”

“For goodness sake,” Clara muttered, pressing a hand against her forehead. “She likes you.”

“Likes… me?” I parroted back, pointing at my chest. “Me? I’m not even a proper knight, though - not even a proper noble, really, if you ask most people…”

“And Amy is, by all standards, a commoner. I hardly see what rank has to do with matters of emotion.”

“But… I mean, we’ve known each other since childhood. Wouldn’t she have said something by now if she was interested?”

“Have you tried expressing your interest in Amy?” Clara countered.

“Well, no. But only because I know it can’t go anywhere!”

“Just like Firanna knows nothing can happen between her and her crush, perhaps?”

“That’s… I mean, there’s no way… I mean, yeah, she’s a bit weird around me, but she’s always been! You’re suggesting she’s… what? Been hiding a crush from me since childhood?”

“I’m not suggesting anything,” Clara replied. “I wouldn’t want to get involved in royal affairs. But if you want to sort out who’s feeling what for whom, I suggest you have a proper conversation - all three of you.”

I grimaced. She was right and I knew it, but something told me it wasn’t going to be a fun conversation…

“Ugh… Hey, Clara - any chance I could convince you to dine alone tonight? Something tells me tonight’s dinner conversation is going to be awkward.”

“Awkward is likely to prove an understatement. But who knows? Maybe it’ll actually lead to an improvement.”

“Yeah… maybe…” Personally, I thought this whole thing was more likely to blow up in all our faces… but hey, a girl can dream, can’t she?

~~~

Author's Notes

This chapter sorta got away from me... not that i really had a set path I expected it to take in the first place? This series as a whole is basically operating without rails, tbh. The characters have been doing their own thing from the start, and while there's some basic plot points I wanna hit, I have no idea how long it'll take to actually hit them.

This chapter in particular started with me realizing they'd Forgotten To Train at the guild, and then continued with, "Okay, I need to fill space, so let's just let the characters talk and see what happens."

Apparently the answer to that question is Communication, so... hope you enjoy? (To be honest I'm up with insomnia so I fear my writing might be just a touch loopier than the norm...)