"Hey there hot – OOF!"

November 14th began in annoyance. Shouri was enjoying sleeping in his own bed until a certain moth came fluttering into the room and decided to make the Maestro her roost.

"How did you even get in here?" grumbled the groggy boy.

Zephyr let out a squeak, motioning to his hand which was currently crushing her. With a roll of his eyes, he tossed her into the air, rhythm under her wings kept her aloft. The little fairy took in some deep gasps before recomposing herself. She ignored the three wrathful glares being directed her way in favor of the Maestro's inquiry.

"Air vents. Shit was like One Step from Hell! Except I can fly, so I didn't almost fall to my death," the fairy boasted.

Rebecca wanted to geek out about the 80's Lyberteran action film but kept her cool (or anger in this case). "Bossman, I think we need more death traps in the vents," the vixen advised.

"No, we're not putting deathtraps in the ventilation system. We don't have the money for that and we definitely don't have the money to hire someone to disassemble it after she gets herself stuck in there," Shouri complained. It was too early for this shit.

"Look Zephyr-" Shouri began. "You said my name!" she squealed. The Maestro ignored that and continued. "I don't know what it's like where you came from, but chasing after someone who turned you down is typically poor manners, and breaking into their room is a crime," he laid out.

Zephyr huffed and turned her head. "I know that," she grumbled. "Just thought you'd think it was cute."

Shouri sat up, and Zephyr floated back, gulping hard.

"Let me put it in no uncertain terms. I am not interested in you. I will find someone else for you because that's my job, but if you keep pressing your luck, I'll let them deal with you – understand?" he warned, his three very annoyed Resonators glaring the fluttering fairy down.

A quick, fearful nod cemented the agreement.

With a telekinetic suggestion, the door swung open. "Onda Mentale, Allegro."

"WOAH!" Zephyr cried out, thrown out of the room by a wall of telekinetic force. She bounced into something and landed on warmth – a pair of hands.

"Are you okay?" asked the concerned voice from above.

Shaking off her indignation from the harsh rejection, she craned her neck skyward to find out who was her landing pad this morning.

"Not bad," she mumbled. "Huh?" asked the innocent Vince. "I'm fine." She stood up and dusted herself off. The boy's Resonator was a fire cat, a pretty strong one from Zephyr's own admission. "What's a hot commodity like you doing up so early?" questioned the fairy.

Mila raised a brow but kept her mouth shut for the moment.

"Oh, Mils and I jog around the property every morning. Hunting is hard work and we gotta stay in shape. You can join us if you want," he offered.

Zephyr motioned to herself, exemplifying how tiny she was, then to Vince and Mila's much grander stature.

"Oh right," Vince chuckled. "You can fly after us?" he proposed. "I suppose that'll work."

"I'm Vince by the way," the boy introduced himself. "Mila, his babysitter," the cat added.

Vince didn't deny that claim, he just chuckled and elbowed the girl with his free arm, earning himself a rough tousling. What strange… warm people.

"Zephyr," she returned the introduction in kind.

And so the trio were off. It became quickly apparent to the fairy that she had made a massive mistake. She loved the asymmetrical hem of her dress (showing off some leg was important after all), but leggings were not enough to stem off the bitter chill of a cruel autumn day.

She wasn't slow in the air by any stretch of the imagination; even so, she found herself lagging behind. Why were her eyelids suddenly so heavy? She just woke up and that bed was so comfy. Man, she really wanted to go back to bed right now.

"Gotcha!"

The fairy snapped awake. She once more found herself sitting in someone's hands. It was that Maestro boy again.

"You almost fell, what's wrong?" he asked.

Zephyr blinked a couple of times, still not all there.

"She's cold, beansprout," said the cat. "It's cold?" Vince asked. He exhaled through his open mouth and noticed the visibility of his breath. "Doesn't feel cold," he noted.

Mila smacked him upside the head. "Idiot! You're linked to me, remember? Besides, look how she's dressed."

"I guess that's fair. We should take her back then so she doesn't freeze," Vince said. "No! I'm on my rebound! I can't go back there!" Zephyr declared dramatically. She jumped from his hands into his jacket. "Hey!" Vince yelped. Zephyr poked her head out. "Don't worry, it's warm in here," she said before ducking back into the safety of the jacket. "And there's a pocket in here, score!"

Vince and Mila exchanged a glance and both shrugged at one another as Zephyr made herself comfortable.

She reclined in the spacious inner pocket of Vince's jacket. She didn't mind the tight squeeze or the constant rocking from the boy jogging – it beat fighting the elements. "Much better," cooed the fairy to herself. The girl yawned. It was so nice and warm. There was something else there, but she didn't know what the mystery sensation was.

Oh well.

"Hey… hey, wake up."

Zephyr stirred. "Bwuh..?"

She suddenly bolted into the air. "Huh! I'm awake?" A couple of blinks cleared her vision. She was back in her room at the PTRS guildhall. Her room that was not equipped for someone of her diminutive stature at all.

"If she could fall asleep in your pocket methinks I'm not running you hard enough, beansprout," Mila said with a malicious grin. "Be gentle Mils?" Vince asked returning her malintent with a nervous chuckle.

Zephyr huffed and floated back down to the bed. She watched Vince and Mila go back and forth for a bit. She wasn't following along in the slightest and let out a groggy yawn. Before she knew it, they went to the door with their conversation.

The fairy was going to let them leave, but before she realized it, she had put wind under her wings and caught Vince's shoulder right as they stepped out onto the balcony.

Mila and Vince stared at the tagalong.

"I… uhh. I'm hungry! And also, I can't open the door myself and don't feel like being in my room today! That's all," Zephyr said, trying and failing to hide any ulterior motives that slipped out of her tone.

"And that's our problem, why?" asked Mila. "You both work for the guild, and you should be taking care of your guests, right?" Zephyr countered.

The fire cat opened her mouth to retort but closed it. "She's got us there, beansprout," Mila admitted.

"Alright, fair enough. We should be able to make breakfast before heading out," said Vince. The now trio made their way back downstairs and into Vince's room. It was decorated slightly differently from the room Zephyr was staying in.

"Kinda plain," the guest mumbled to herself. She jumped from the Maestro's shoulder and fluttered about the room, taking in everything it had to offer. A huge bed was the centerpiece, with nightstands flanking either side of the bed. A television was propped atop the dresser.

"TV after some intense cuddles, how lovely," Zephyr giggled to herself.

Moving on, there was a fully stocked kitchen where the alleycat of a Resonator was making breakfast. Not something Zephyr expected, given the feline's disposition, but she seemed happy enough. There was a door to a small private bathroom. Surprisingly, it had a full bathtub and standing shower. Though the facilities needed a makeover – this part of the abode showed its age.

Thinking about it further, her room was far more up-to-date than this one was. Why was that? She did vaguely recall one of the other guild people running around the day she showed up doing something. He had a strange Resonator with him, one that radiated a primal sort of feeling.

"Zephyr, breakfast is ready!" Vince called, snapping the tiny girl from her thoughts. She fluttered over to the counter and found a plate with far too much food for her. "Uhhhh…"

Vince blinked, comparing the fairy to the food that dwarfed her body weight. "Oh… right, just eat what you'd like. We're going grocery shopping today anyway."

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A grocery store? She couldn't claim she had ever seen one herself. "Can I go?" she asked without thinking.

"Sure!" replied Vince. "Doubt it," Mila countered. "Huh, why?" the Maestro looked to his partner. "She's a fairy. A stray fairy," said the cat. "Yeah, so? Zino is a dinosaur and Soot is a golem. They wander around just fine," Vince pointed out.

"Golems and dinos are rare, but both are man-made. They're like status symbols and people that have them are usually real wealthy. You don't mess with people who got money. Good way to end up 'disappearing under mysterious circumstances' if you catch my drift," Mila explained.

"Okay, but fairies are mirages just like them, right?" Vince asked. "Yeah." "So why is she different?" "Fairies are real reclusive. They basically live in another world. Same with the uhh, plant and mushroom people, forgot their names." "And mermaids?" "Yeah, them too. Anyway, my point is those four got more wiggle room to pick the people they want to associate with. Which leads to them getting snatched up."

Zephyr shook, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Don't think about it. A few breathing exercises dismissed the dreadful thoughts.

"I can just hide in his jacket again," she spoke up.

The two looked to the small girl. "I can be quiet. I just want to see what it's like out there. That's why I left the grove in the first place."

"Shouri's not gonna like it," Mila addressed her Maestro. "What he doesn't know won't hurt him!" Zephyr declared. "Yeah! As long as we're safe about it, we'll be fine!" Vince beamed.

"Uhhhg, alright. But only if I come with too. I'm not about to let you face his wrath alone. At least if we get busted, I can try to butter him up. I know that boy like the back of my hand." Mila pointed a spatula at the fairy. "Eat up."

"Both of you want to come with?" Shouri questioned.

"Yeah, beansprout doesn't know how to pick the right brands," Mila offered. "And I have to go with! How will I know where everything is that she's looking for?" Vince chimed in.

They were up to something. The excuse was flimsy at best. Shouri eyed the suspicious pair. His gaze remained on Vince who began to sweat under the scrutinizing gaze.

When the boy didn't crumble into a pile of mud, the guildmaster let it slide. "Fine," he gave in. "I'll tell Kaira she doesn't have to come with today."

"Yes!" Vince and Mila exchanged a high-five, which earned a warm smile from Shouri.

The group gathered at the car – Shouri driving, Miro in the front passenger seat, Vince and Mila in the back, and Emily the final occupant.

"We got everything?" asked the guildmaster of his guild members. "Yeah!"

And they were off.

Zephyr remained quiet and just listened to the conversations. It was average, mundane even. Peaceful. They just talked about what they were going to get. Emily complained about having to get Colette's food. Shouri offered to swap Elijah with her which silenced the vice-master instantly.

Miro excitedly pointed out signs that dotted the side of the road as the trip continued.

It was… nice.

The grocery store on the other hand was an exercise in navigating the chaos of modern society. So much noise, so much rhythm. It was almost too much for the poor little fairy.

But Zephyr was no pushover! She had survived much worse! This would be a cakewalk. Especially because she had her disguise – Vince. She brushed her antenna back and poked up from her hiding spot. Produce was where she first periscoped out. Fresh fruit and vegetables as far as the eye could see graced her vision.

It took every bit of self-control in her tiny body not to rush out and grab the strawberries she saw.

"You want them?" whispered Vince. She nodded vigorously and the prize was added to their basket.

Mila and Vince talked about what they had and what they needed as they stalked through the aisles. All of the products and packaging neatly displayed all vied for the young fairy's attention and she had to hide away from it. "Too much," she decided, taking her glasses off and rubbing her eyes. She thought her home wood was bad in the overuse of colors department. This place put her entire grove to shame!

She poked her head out a couple more times, but each time was assaulted by the insane menagerie of color and product placement.

Instead, she just chose to listen to Mila and Vince's continued shopping trip.

That was until trouble found them. Vince ended up on the ground, startling the fairy.

"Hey! Fucking punk!" an older man barked at the fallen Maestro. "Watch where you're going!" "You bumped into me, dude…" Vince groaned, getting back up to his feet. "What was that?! You think just because you got some pussy cat here you're hot shit?"

Zephyr could hear Mila growling, but she didn't move. Resonators couldn't stand up for their Maestros? What a backward society this was… The longer this went on, the harder her heart beat. She could even feel it from Vince. This was stressful. Too stressful. Why wasn't anyone doing anything about this? Was it because it could be traced back to Vince as the Maestro?

Wait… She wasn't anyone's Resonator. Even if they did find out it was her, they couldn't prove she was involved with Vince or Shouri.

While Vince tried to placate the increasingly belligerent man, Zephyr got to work. From her limited vantage point, she could only see a few things. But, what stood out most was a large hanging sign that the screaming man was standing right under. Flicking her glasses back on, she studied how it was secured. Her quick eyes and brain came to one conclusion: it wasn't secured at all.

"It sure would be a shame if something knocked that large sign loose." Zephyr grinned as she prepared her rhythm. "Just a little fairy prank," tittered the solar element, directing the wind not under her wings, but at the single hook holding the sign up.

"WOAH!"

CRASH

"Deserved," Zephyr chuckled proudly to herself. She lay low, unable to see the outcome of her handiwork, but the lack of awful noise spoke volumes to the results.

"All three of you are god damn lucky she's not registered in any system. There would have been hell to pay if this got linked back to us." Shouri scolded the trio that sat before him in his office.

"Yes, Shouri…" Vince, Mila, and Zephyr refused the angry guildmaster's gaze.

"I was fine letting her come with; I figured you were responsible enough to keep her hidden," he directed at Vince.

"Sorry, Shouri." "You have to be more careful with Resonators in our care-"

"W-wait!" Zephyr spoke up. "He didn't cast a spell. That was my ad-Lib. I did it of my own accord. That jerkwad was being loud and I already had a splitting headache, so I shut him up," Zephyr explained.

Now the irritated guildmaster turned his ire on the fairy. "So it was all you then?" he asked.

Without hesitation, the fairy nodded. "All of it," she challenged.

"Fine. Mila, take her back to her room. I'll decide how we're going to deal with this later. Vince, go back to your room, I'll talk to you later about this."

The cat kept her head down but did as she was instructed, scooping up the fairy and placing her on her shoulder.

The walk back was silent. She had messed up badly, hadn't she? She got Vince in trouble. It could have been worse. The jackass was just surprised, not hurt. He did take it up with the store's management, so it wasn't the end of having to listen to him, but still.

"Hey," said Mila, snapping Zephyr from her thoughts. "Thanks."

"Huh? Oh, uh… no problem." The fairy was taken aback, unsure of what else to say. "I was about two seconds away from decking that guy, but that would've made things a hell of a lot worse," admitted the cat.

"It was just a little fairy prank, nothing more," Zephyr cracked a smile. "Sure. I'll bring you the strawberries later. Now go think about what you did or whatever crap Shouri was droning on about." Mila opened the door and allowed Zephyr to flutter in.

Alone in her room, the fairy felt a pang in her chest.

This room was too big. Too… empty.

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