"Because I can use her help. Where would she be?"

"At the barracks, most likely. I don't see how she is going to help you."

"You don't see a lot, Charming." I turned to Ashe and Goldie. "Come on, we have a solid day's trip ahead."

Then I walked off. Ashe started after me almost immediately, while Goldie smiled and waved to Charming before following along.

"Happily ever after, ladies."

None of us bothered to say anything back. That Tsar always had to have the last word.

It didn't take long before we were back on the pixie path, even if we would have to make a detour soon. Night had already fallen, which made it perfect for avoiding the majority of faeries that would be concerned with former G.o.dmothers and fugitives.

It took most of the night and into the eve to even get to the barracks. And most of that time was filled with Goldie complaining, the fox being pa.s.sed around, and many amusing tales from Ashe like how many times she's had to shoo away the friendly and annoying dwarves that live near our home.

It was strangely the most enjoyable travel experience I'd ever had. Was this what I had been missing all this time by not having Ashe along with me? I guess I hadn't ever really known companions.h.i.+p.

I was chasing her down the road when the ma.s.sive steel and stone barracks came into sight. Ashe stopped first then I halted right beside her. The building wasn't tall, but the length was unimaginable. It couldn't be easy to find someone in that.

Goldie was wheezing as she dropped her hands onto her knees and leaned over next to us. She spoke between heavy breaths. "Please say this is it."

I nodded and tossed a smile to Ashe before we both dashed down the hill to the soldiers out front of the barracks. Goldie was calling after us to wait up.

Normally, I would have been just as tired as her by this point. But it had been years since I could feel the magic coursing through me. Plus all the energy Ashe seemed to just radiate pushed me to keep going.

As we got close enough, the guards turned on us and held weapons out and ready. I let out a breathy laugh. "Seriously? You really think we would be attacking in a frontal charge with two people and wheezy over there?"

I turned to point at Goldie, but two guards were already around her as she sat on the hill. When I faced forward a spear was pointed almost in to my nose.

Okay, so I could have maybe gone about this more intelligently than just running in.

"Look, we are supposed to be here." I tried to explain while putting my hands up so the guy with the spear would stop jabbing at me.

"For what purpose?" A guard about Ashe's height asked. I doubted *to visit a military captain' would count as a truly legitimate reason. I needed to think.

Then, out of nowhere, Ashe started talking. "We are Captain Bonny's consort appointments. She is here by now, right? I heard she doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Consorts?! How did I ever come to think Ashe was innocent and child-like?

The semi-short guard laughed and he pulled his spear away from us. "I always knew she was like that. Maybe when she's finished she'll pa.s.s you down to us."

I wanted to kick that guard in the groin, but that would have blown our new cover. Not to mention hurt me on his armor.

"I'll take them to the captain." The same guard said before nodding to the soldiers leading Goldie up. He better not had been thinking he'd get something out of us.

I put my hands down as he turned around and called back to us, "Walk this way."

One step and I was overcome with nostalgia. I stepped up faster to keep pace with the guard in his full body armor. "Roberts?"

He put a hand up to his faceplate and shushed me as we stepped inside the barracks. I gave him an annoyed look before stepping back to Ashe and the still wheezing Goldie.

I chose to lean to Ashe and whisper, "Consorts? Really?"

She giggled softly, "Kurt allows consorts, wives and husbands to visit with a soldier so long as they are not on a post or duty."

"Seriously?" I said a little too loudly.

She giggled again and nodded. "He's actually pretty progressive and understanding for a Tsar. You two are a lot alike. You'd like him if you got to know him."

"I am not like Charming." I shook my head in disgust.

She turned her head to me and smiled. "You both don't do that well with your personal lives, but you're both great leaders and inspirational to others."

"Yeah, but he tried to kill me."

Ashe's eyes grew wide and worried, and I realized then that I hadn't told her about that since it was technically a part of the future. She opened her mouth to say something, but Roberts' voice came instead.

"Here we are. Captain Bonny is inside, likely waiting for you. Enjoy ladies." Roberts nodded and stepped aside. Why was he helping us get in anyway? Did he think I had more information to share on Gabbi's a.s.sault?

Ashe thanked him and glanced back at me worriedly before pus.h.i.+ng on the door and heading inside. Goldie followed suit and then I stepped up. As I pa.s.sed, Roberts grabbed my arm and whispered, "Was it the wolf that did it?"

I shook my head. "Someone else with a lot of magic power; a faerie most likely."

He gulped hard and nodded before letting me go.

So that was what he wanted.

Roberts followed me in and closed the door behind him. He saluted the captain before announcing, "Ma'am, your consorts are here."

Bonny, in her purple silk uniform, stood up from her desk and gave Roberts a raised eyebrow. Then her attention fell to me as I slipped in next to Ashe. "Do you moonlight as a companion for women as well, Gnidori? Or is this a special occasion just for me?"

I shrugged and gave her a look of feigned innocence. "This is my subtle way of saying I want you, Captain."

She tried to conceal her amus.e.m.e.nt but it boiled over on to her face. She was enjoying this way too much. Last time I let Ashe pick the cover story.

"Well then, we might as well get started. Roberts you are dismissed." She nodded to him again and he popped the door open, leaving with a resounding bang behind him.

I shot forward and slammed my hands on Bonny's desk. "I don't have time to be tactful."

"When are you ever-" Goldie interrupted, but I lifted my hand and turned it back toward her. Two of my fingers smashed against my thumb and a spark of variant colors erupted, silencing Goldie's voice.

My eyes fell back to Bonny and her brilliant silver eye patch. "I know you are the Pirate King. And I know you have a s.h.i.+p. I need you to take us to the Sleeping Kingdom. And we need to leave immediately."

The amus.e.m.e.nt in Bonny's face dropped away and she glared me over with her one visible eye. "How?"

I sighed, "You ran off after Hue threw an axe at you. Hue's notorious for rooting out pirates. He hates them enough to openly attack them anywhere, even around me. All it took was some asking of the right people then."

She let out a hearty laugh, but not like her usual ones. "Good. But I can't just leave. It will take at least a day to get to the docks and longer to sail to the Sleeping Kingdom. I don't have a scheduled return to my s.h.i.+p for another week at least."

"If we don't leave now, I will huff and puff and blow your carefully crafted world down, Bonny."

Her eye locked with mine and I could practically taste the energy ignited between us. And it actually tasted funny, like incredibly old cheese but not. It wasn't magic either though, which dismissed my theory that Bonny had been the culprit responsible for my magic time trip.

"Fine. The s.h.i.+ft change is in an hour. We'll leave then. For now I suggest some sleep, because I am not stopping for any of you if you feel tired on the journey." She set her jaw then settled back into her chair, scooping up a piece of paper and ignoring us.

"I guess we really are sleeping with the captain then?" Ashe glimmered with a smile.

I lifted up from the desk and s.h.i.+fted to look at the brunette with her new shoulder-length hair. I shook my head. "I can't believe I used to think you were so innocent."

She blushed and squeaked in defiance, "I am innocent!"

"Says the girl who came up with the consort cover story?"

Ashe's blush grew more vibrant and I just grinned and laughed.

She pouted her lips and reaffirmed with a much quieter voice. "I am innocent..."

Twenty-One.

Dread Shadows "I don't care if you want me to be quiet. If you use that spell on me one more time, I'll do worse than take your shoes while you sleep!" Goldie threatened as we reached the docks.

I turned around to walk backwards since I wasn't the one wearing my cloak at the moment. This way I could face Goldie and keep track of the stalker we had acquired about an hour ago. "I only did it the two times. You are over-reacting, you just pick the absolute wrong times to talk and I always give your voice back."

"You are drunk with magic power, Gnidori! You don't ask or anything. You could at least respect me." Goldie cried.

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Just like you were respecting me by interrupting me to make jokes? Or calling me by a name I didn't like?"

"T-that's... different..." She lowered her head and I didn't even need to say it for her to know it was definitely not different.

My attention s.h.i.+fted to the shadow that had been stalking us for at least the past hour. I was almost sure it was one of the more delicate stealthy faeries that could be devastating in a single moment.

I spun back around and glanced ahead to Bonny with her silvery traveling cloak on and Ashe covered up in my red cloak, with all my tools, the fox and currently her body reworked to look like mine.

It felt awkward walking around with Ashe's form ever since we hit Hue's territory and had to switch, due to my magical barring from his lands as Red Riding Hood. I had silenced Goldie when she attempted to make a remark about Ashe and I being inside each other.

My precious psyche just couldn't take hearing that, especially when I had already thought about it. I only chose Ashe because she was the only one I trusted enough with all my things, especially my cloak. It wasn't like I wanted to feel what it was like to be her; although, it was nice to have extra height.

The shadow behind us s.h.i.+fted in the crowds and I finally felt like I needed to do something about it. Ashe and Goldie stopped in front of the s.h.i.+p, while Bonny went to fetch her s.h.i.+pmates, whom were all likely in a tavern somewhere nearby.

This was the best opportunity I'd have. The last thing I wanted was the individual to attack while we were on the s.h.i.+p. That hadn't gone well last time.

The problem was the crowd still around us. I needed a more secure and hidden spot that the individual would follow me to.

I turned to Goldie and Ashe and whispered to them while placing my hand to their backs. "Get on the boat. We have a shadow and I need to make sure they follow me and not stay with you two."

Ashe looked over her back at me, twisting up the hood. "Do you need your weapons?"

"If I do, you'll know pretty quickly."

Ever since I mentioned the soon-to-be a.s.sa.s.sination attempt by Fioravante, Ashe had been nothing but worried every time I got out of her visual range.

When I turned around, she grabbed at my arm. "Are you sure you don't want help?"

"I'll be fine. If you plan to be any help, you'll have to start practicing with some weapons at least. Goldie will work with you." I said as my hand fell upon her gloved one. I pulled her hand from my arm and smiled to her. "Don't worry."

She seemed somewhere in between melancholy and joy before her whole body slumped when I let go of her hand. She nodded to me though and started up the ramp to the s.h.i.+p. If I knew her, she would be showing me new methods of attacking with my axes soon.

My attention fell back to the mysterious person as I pushed through the crowd to find the quietest and darkest alleyway. Night was still held back by the blazing horizon, but enough people were heading to their homes that I managed to find at least a few pathways that were mostly empty.

And just as I thought, the shadow was picking up the edges of my trail.

I turned the corner into one of the empty alleys and spun around before flinging my body back out into the alleyway.

A burst of energy gushed down my hand and flew toward the shadow. It caught them and I yanked their entire body straight toward me by pulling my hand back.

As they came close enough into my view, I had prepared to wrap my arm around their neck to restrain them. But then I realized who it was. I shook my head and laughed as I cut the spell with a flick of my wrist and the shadow went flying to his hands and knees.

"Roberts? What are you doing here?" I asked as he picked himself up slowly and dusted his clothes off.

"I had to follow you guys. I knew if the Captain saw me she'd just send me away." He glanced down at the floor.

"I doubt it. You would have been a risk to her ident.i.ty. She probably would have killed you." I explained and his face shot up to look at me with huge blue eyes.

I laughed. "I'm just winding you up."

He sighed with relief and then asked warily, "So you are Gnidori then?"

I nodded and smiled, wondering how my smile looked with Ashe's dimples and cheeks. It probably seemed all wrong.

"What is the captain doing for you?"

"That..." I strolled up to Roberts and slapped my hand on his shoulder before dragging him down the street with me, back toward the s.h.i.+p. "... you will have to ask your captain about."

He gave me a funny look and all I would give him in return was an innocent smile. "How do you feel about pirates, Roberts?"

His eyebrows pinched and a very natural, "Why?" came out.

"Because I-we are going to be taking a pirate s.h.i.+p and I have this strange feeling you are looking for something more fulfilling with your life than staying in the military when the only reason you were there is gone." I finished as we reached the edge of the plank, leading up to the s.h.i.+p.

"How did you know?" He asked, still rather bewildered.

I grinned and raised an eyebrow. "You left your post on the drop of a coin and followed us for a day without saying anything. The only people who ever follow me, Roberts, are trying to kill me or be like me."