By the time the two were back, they had opened the door to find Alloy and Tasue fast asleep, with bowls and plates that used to house food, set neatly next to the door. They chuckled as they went to sleep. Damion lay on the blanket he was on while he was unconscious, and Ritta went to another room, taking the utensils and leaving the three to sleep.
It wasn't long before the massive ball in the sky rose… clinging to the droplets of dew on the few plants Ritta had next to her inn's window, Damion woke up first after the sun hit his face. He held his hand above it to block the immediate rush of light to his eyes. Admittedly, he felt like that light was where belonged… giving a bit of credit to the events of the previous night with Ritta. He looked around to see Alloy still in her position on the ground from the night before, sprawled recklessly on the ground and comfortable as she could get. He got up, walked toward the next room and on the door, he saw pieces of fabric scattered around, as he looked up, he found Tasue on the old rocking chair that Ritta usually slept on. He knew Ritta had covered her up because it was the same way she'd cover him when he was spent from his training and he'd pass out during dinner.
He then decided to go elsewhere, but as he stepped out of the inn, he heard the overexcited sound of his friend's voice from the room they were in.
"Damion!! Where are you going??" Alloy waved as he watched her.
"I'm going for a few groceries." He replied.
"I'm coming with you!!" She said as she jumped out the window to the ground right next to him. "You seem a bit different…" She noticed something in him. Then immediately ignored it. "Let's go!!"
He sighed at her consistency of doing things with all her energy and they were off to the middle street that was full of vendors selling all sorts of vegetables, fruits, and more ingredients used for, well, anything really. The pair stopped at a shop and got ingredients.
"That'll be 60 Lunars." The trader said.
"Oh…" Damion began looking for money in his pockets. "Crap… I didn't carry any money. Alloy?? Could you check if you have something??"
"I know I have nothing, Ritta-san helped me out last night when I was hungry…"
"Just check…"
"Okay." She ruffled through the tiny pockets she had to find a hundred Lunar note tucked in her back pocket. "Huh?? How did that get there??!! Did I steal it??"
"No…" Damion took the note from her hand.
"Old man," She said to the trader. "I'm not a thief!! I promise!!" She insisted.
"That's enough, thank you, old man." Damion said as he got his balance back and walked away. Alloy quickly followed after.
"Ritta put it there." He said.
"What??!! When??"
"She used to do it when we were kids. When we wanted something and our father denied us the money for it, she used to hide it in our pockets at night. This time, she just knew we had no money."
"That was nice of her… but how could you forget we needed money to by these things??" She wondered.
"I've been in a swamp for the past three years. I didn't buy anything there, I just fished and stole from the people Spire sent to get me."
"Oh that's right!!"
"What about you??" Damion asked.
"What about me??"
"How don't you have any money?? You said Ritta helped you out last night. Did you also come from an isolated place like a swamp?? Or were you royalty??" He joked, but his demeanor didn't feel like it.
Alloy's heart skipped a beat and she stopped due to the shock. Damion chuckled his guesses off when he noticed she was behind. He stopped and looked at the blank expression on Alloy's face.
"What is it??" He asked.
Immediately, she began scratching her head and chuckling nervously.
"Hey, what's got you…"
"They are mine!! I'll sell one and keep the other!!" A low toned voice boomed from a street next to them. Catching both their attention.
"We said we would split it together!!" Another boomed.
The two walked to check what was going on. They found two men arguing over something and as they walked closer, they were both stunned.
"Those are our horses!!" Alloy shouted, clearly getting their attention.
"What??" One said.
"Those horses are ours. We arrived with them last night." Damion began.
"We found them on the other side of town eating grass. They didn't seem to belong to anyone. So we took them." The other answered.
"Well, give them back." Alloy demanded.
"I don't think so. We decided to spl…"
Three minutes, a few shouts, a few sounds of plain beatings and two neighing horses later, the pair, along with the groceries they bought, were atop their horses and smiled as they headed back to Ritta's inn. They tied the horses right outside to keep from any mistake such as what they just went through from happening again. They walked upstairs.
"Hello you two." Ritta began once they opened the door. "Where were you??" She asked.
"We went to get groceries, then we found our horses!!" Alloy answered.
"You found the money??" She implied.
"Thank you for that." Damion began. "Yeah!! Thanks Ritta-san!!" Alloy finished.
"Don't mind it. Tasue has been worried sick about you." She added.
"But we've been gone for only 20 minutes…" he wondered.
"She woke up 10 minutes ago."
"Wow…"
"DONE!!" They heard Tasue's shout from the room and afterward, she burst out with a pair of fingerless gloves in her hand, she paused as she saw Alloy in front of Damion.
"Hi Tasue!! We're ba…"
"Move!!" She shouted as she lunged toward her and touched her torso. A feint flicker of purple released from the contact and Alloy was immediately forced to the ground. Her chin hit the ground first. "Ow ow ow ow ow…" she muttered.
"ANIKI!!!!" She squealed as she hugged Damion, who's mouth was wide open due to what he just saw.
"What did you do to her??"
"Huh?? Oh… I made her heavier because she was in the way!!"
"You're can be a mean little girl, Tasue…" Alloy muttered once more.
"How can you do that??!!" He asked. Impressed and shocked at the same time.
"Gravity." Ritta said as she opened the door and was given a tray of food by one of her workers. She bowed, closed the door, and left.
"Gravity??" Alloy asked.
"Yes. Tasue here got a powerful drift."
"That's how she could make those thugs float last night!!" Damion realized.
"Float?? That's so… cool…" Alloy struggled.
"Tasue… let her up." Ritta asked. With a snap of her fingers, the pressure around Alloy got lighter and she just turned, trying to catch her breath. She looked straight at Tasue and smiled.
"That's… an awesome… power…" she said as she stood up.
"Alright. Alloy-chan, are you okay??" Ritta asked.
"I'm okay, I'm okay."
"Then let's all sit and have breakfast!! Alloy, I got you some dumplings… I knew you wouldn't mind."
"OH YES!! THANK YOU!!" Her expressions changed instantly.
"Tasue, I got you three different juices. I know you love them more than you like food."
"Yaaayyyyy!! Thank you Ritta-san!!" She squealed as she, too, sat down quickly.
"Damion… my pancakes haven't changed at all. Sit and eat."
"ITADKIMASU!!" They clasped their hands and plates began ending faster than they thought. Luckily, it was an inn, where Alloy's spherical food addiction was taken care of easily. Tasue put out at least a litre and a half of juice, and Damion was still eating. Given, he only ate scraps and fish for three years, they gave him a break on the matter. He then noticed the pair of gloves next to Tasue's full belly.
"Tasue, are those gloves mine??"
"Huh?? Yes… Ritta…san… asked me to… make them… for you." Clearly, if she moved any more, she would burst.
"Okay… we are leaving now!!" Ritta commanded. "Damion, those gloves will help with your archery, let's go!!"
"Just… a few more minutes… to digest…" Alloy struggled as well, her spherical shaped stomach, full of her spherical delicacies, hindering any movement.
In the next thirty minutes, everyone was okay and ready to leave. Tasue with her fixed whip and umbrella, Alloy with… well, her clothes, cleaned from their time in the swamp, seeing as her weapons were within reach. Damion had a short bow on his back, no quiver at all, but he did sport Tasue's new black and red gloves, ironically complementing Alloy's piece of jewelry. Outside Ritta's inn, a wagon, with a thatched straw roof and a storage space at the back that could easily accommodate supplies, luggage or trade goods if need be, already had Alloy's and Damion's horses at the front.
"We use this wagon to bring supplies to the inn, but we've always had to rent horses… luckily you brought us yours. Get on, everyone." Ritta spoke as she got on and handled the reins of the horses. As excited as the bunch were, they were definitely not headed for the picnic it seemed like they were going to.
"We're going to Gami town."