the princess & the beasts

reunion?

With that word alone, the entire grove burst into life - Dryads gracefully revealed themselves carved into the bark of trees, camouflaged drakes and wyverns rising from mossbeds and the tree canopies, wisps lighting up the area. The fox spirit that Vie oh so calmly lounged on raised his head, all four eyes opening to focus on the newcomer.

Vie blinked awake lazily, before squinting at the tall man for a moment.

"...oh! Faris!" She bolted upright, eyes wide with surprise. "...why are you here?"

Faris blinked. "What a way to greet an old friend."

"Well, it's not everyday the cavalry captain just...shows up in my home."

"Your home?" the captain inquired, blinking in surprise.

"Yeah!" she chirped back, before laying back on the fox spirit. "It looks cool, right? It's so comfy -"

The captain waved his hand, interrupting her, "yes, yes, very interesting - how are you not dead?"

"Why would I be dead?" She tilted her head in confusion. Faris stared for a moment, before vaguely gesturing to the dozens of creatures surrounding them. Vie stared back, before it clicked.

"Oh! I...get it now," she muttered. "But these guys are only aggressive because mother was destroying parts of their home. They're actually super chill! I mean, Tennu here -" she hugged the giant fox spirit, who silently leaned into the embrace, "- could have snapped me up with one bite when he found me. But, as you can probably tell..."

"He spared you?"

"More than that! He's my best friend," chirped the princess happily, lightly squishing the fox's face. Faris stared, deadpan, at the duo. He then inhaled.

"Princess -"

"Vie! Just call me Vie. I'm not the princess anymore," the girl hummed.

"...Vie. Can we...talk?"

"We can talk right here.'

"In private, I meant," he muttered. The lost princess blinked, slightly cocking her head. Tennu silently stared back, all four eyes narrowed in skepticism. Vie then perked up.

"Alright then!"

The princess hopped up, lightly giving Tennu a brief little head-pat, before bounding up to the cavalry captain, lightly grabbing his armored hand. "I know a good place not too far from here, let's go!" she chirped excitedly, promptly dragging him into the wall of foliage.

Faris made a small startled sound, stumbling after the young woman. Before he completely disappeared among the trees; however, he spared a glance to the fallen fox god back in the clearing. Tennu stared right back, those haunting bone-white eyes locking with pale bluish.

The spirit knew something was wrong. The moment that captain stared back at him, he could sense a selfish intent in the depths of those icy eyes. Slowly, oh so slowly, Tennu began to rise from his spot in the middle of the clearing, head lowered, his dozen-or-so tails swishing cautiously. In the blink of an eye, the fox disintegrated into a pale gray-blue mist, traveling up into an elderly oak tree, zipping throughout the forest canopy - all the while tracking down his princess and the cavalry captain.

The duo only stopped walking once they reached a rather large pond, decorated and surrounded by crystal rocks and moss and blossoming flowers - the water almost glowed in the natural light.

Vie hopped up onto one of the smaller rocks, scrambling a bit, before sitting down, smiling faintly. "So," she chirped, "what did you wanna talk about? Is there something going on with the kingdom?"

Faris stood a few feet in front of her, arms crossed against his chest. "The Queen is searching for you," he mumbled, "she is offering a money reward for any who bring you back alive."

Vie stiffened. "Did she say why she wanted me back?"

"No. Just that any able-bodied citizen would be granted a sum of $200 if they found and brought you 'home'."

The brunette tilted her head, brow furrowing. "...she put a price on me? Like I'm a wanted criminal?"

Faris nodded in response.

"...hold on, then."

A beat of silence.

"...you're here to bring me back. Aren't you?" she whispered.

Both were still for a moment. They stared at each other quietly, both individuals tensed. Then Faris sighed softly.

"I apologize," mumbled the captain.