Thick & Thin [𝓣𝔀𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓦𝓸𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓻𝓵𝓪𝓷𝓭]

Chapter 13

October 27th-
There's a lot of preparation going on at NRC. And we're seldom allowed to rest. But there's a good point in doing this to us if you ask me. We wanna make sure the school looks perfect for Halloween in like, 4 days. And the others are in Fleur City for three days, which makes things a lot easier. But it's a hard toll for Skylar and Vil, only because they're the only ones in charge of making the costumes. I mean, if only Kaimana and I could help out. But we're stuck with Jade and Floyd while Azul's gone.

~~~

Rook looked at the group. Ruggie was snooping around as Silver stood, almost asleep. Annie gently shook him awake as she eyed a plate of food nearby. "Let us take a look at the products the Antique Alley has in store, shall we?" he asked.

Everyone nodded as they walked through the city and to the Antique Alley, seeing a vendor selling different crafts. "Bonjour, monsieur. Such lovely weather we have. I feel like we are to be met with such lovely crafts today," Rook said, striding to the vendor.

The shopkeeper looked at the young man, amazed by his use of French. "Bonjour! This is the perfect day to come looking for treasures! Please browse all you like," he said.

Annie peeked at the different creations, a light in her eyes. They all looked amazing! Once a craft had been chosen, Rook paid the shopkeeper the right amount. "Enjoy yourselves, s'il vous plait!" he called out.

"Merci!"

"Oui!"

He came back with a craft in his hand, almost failing to notice some surprised faces amongst the Star Team. Annie, on the other hand, was twirling slowly, muttering something in another language. "U-um... Excuse me... A-are you also from the Shaftlands, Rook...?" Idia whispered.

Rook shook his head. "Non, my hometown is in the Sunset Savanna," he said.

Annie's eyes widened. He was from where Leona and the Savanaclaw residents were from?! That was something she didn't know. Masking her surprise, she coughed into her closed hand. "You sounded so local though!?" Idia exclaimed.

"It sounded like you were born and raised in Fleur City," Ruggie commented.

Rook chuckled. "My, I am honored to hear that. The people of this town are bright, lovely, and beautiful people, you see? I did a bit of research on the town beforehand, and it seems like this is a city where the arts are pretty much alive. One of the plays I adore is set in Fleur City, too. I feel excited just thinking of the discoveries we might encounter!" he said grandly.

Idia's eyes widened as he sighed, looking at where his heart was. "He's getting too excited! I can't keep up!" he muttered to himself.

Annie had heard it, for she nodded, patting him on the shoulder. "Oh, I've found something beautiful already. Look, they have wooden figures for sale. My, how adorable," Rook mused, looking at some figurines.

Upon hearing it, Annie ran and looked at the wooden dolls, another spark of excitement in her eyes. "Heh. That's a pretty antique choice," Ruggie said, examining the dolls.

"Hm? The shops next door are selling something similar, too," Silver added.

"Ah, those wooden dolls are quite popular here. Its origin is unknown, but it's been around for a very long time. We found some old wooden dolls back at the bell tower, too. They're often sold as a set with miniature wooden houses," Rollo explained.

"Oh, you're right. There are also building models on sale. They're pretty big," Silver mentioned.

And they were hella expensive. "This is a model of Noble Bell College. Do you recognize the bell tower?" Rollo asked, pointing to the model bell tower.