“A reset?” Qube asked, concerned. From the way the Chosen One had said the word, there must be something wrong with resetting things. The Chosen One opened his mouth then closed it. He rubbed at his forehead, looking frustrated.

“Yeah, I don’t know how to explain it in a way that’ll make sense, though. But it sounds like there’s a potential that removing the curse will revert her back to how she was when we first met her. Only not a spider.”

The Dryad Queen silently contemplated the Chosen One, as Definitely Bad Guy looked thoughtful.

“If she is indeed absorbing the spell, then there is a possibility she could lose memories,” the Mage admitted, “albeit a rather remote one. It would not be something I would consider a risk.”

“Yeah, well, consider it,” the Chosen One said, surprisingly seriously. “Look, I can go and check at a Save Point once one finally shows up, but if you’re talking about it being intertwined with her, and reverting her back to her old self, I’ve got a feeling she’s going to lose all her spider-memories.”

“That is ridiculous,” Definitely Bad Guy said emphatically. “While I will allow that there may be some memory damage —”

“How much is some?” Sexy Screamy Spider Lady interrupted. Definitely Bad Guy bristled.

“I could not tell you. It depends entirely on too many variables.”

“Look,” the Chosen One said, silencing them all. “I remember there being a Save Point outside this grove. Everyone stay here, nobody move, and I’ll be right back.” He started to walk away then hesitated, and spun around to point at the Dryad Queen. “Also, if you try and hurt anyone in my party, I’ll kill you.”

Having casually threatened to murder one of the most powerful creatures in the kingdom, the Chosen One scurried off down the path. There were a few moments of silence, as everyone tried to figure out exactly how literally they were supposed to take the “don’t move” commandment. He’d repeated it two different ways, so he clearly meant it.

Before anyone could figure out whether or not they were allowed to even talk to each other, the Chosen One stomped back up the path. He looked even more tired than when he’d left, unlike every other time he’d interacted with a Save Point. He also looked extremely angry.

“I checked,” he said shortly. “There’s a ‘very good chance’ that if you try to undo the spider thing, you’ll revert back to how you were when we first met you. Too much was supposed to happen then, too many flags; they’ve got no way of knowing if any of them will wipe your memories.”

“But that’s not fair!” Qube gasped. “Surely the Devs can do something about it?”

The Chosen One snorted.

“Trust me, you don’t want them trying to ‘fix’ this,” he said. He looked over at Sexy Screamy Spider Lady, and visibly tried to soften his expression. “It’s your call whether you want to risk it or not,” he said.

Sexy Screamy Spider Lady slowly nodded.

“We could try it and then I’ll reload —” the Chosen One abruptly cut himself off, looking at Qube. “But I don’t know if that would even work,” he muttered. “If things carry over sometimes, maybe that would? Or does only she? But the others are becoming the same. So would they also?” The Chosen One was almost inaudible as he mumbled half sentences to himself, trying to puzzle something out. “Argh, why didn’t I test this?!” he shouted, making his party jump.

“Does the Golden Prophecy not help you?” Qube asked, almost timidly. She hadn’t yet spoken to anyone about her theory that the Golden Prophecy was giving the Chosen One visions of the future, but surely this would be a big enough change to warn him? But the Chosen One just stared at her blankly.

“No,” he replied bluntly. He looked over at Sexy Screamy Spider Lady, who had yet to move. “Listen, if you want my advice —”

“If you love me, do not tell me which I should do,” Sexy Screamy Spider Lady cut him off. The Chosen One stepped back like he’d been hit.

“What?” he managed.

“My darling,” Sexy Screamy Spider Lady said with a blend of affection and exasperation, “whichever one you suggest I do will naturally be the one I will pick. So, if you truly want this to be my choice, then do not speak.”

The anger melted out of the Chosen One, leaving behind only a deep, tired sadness.

“Oh,” he said quietly. “Okay.”

“Thank you,” Sexy Screamy Spider Lady said, affectionately patting his cheek. She turned to the Dryad Queen, who was absent-mindedly stroking the wolf by her side. The Queen, suddenly realising what she was doing, straightened up, two pink roses blooming in her wooden cheeks. The wolf gave a short, disappointed bark as she stopped, making the pink roses redden.

“My Queen,” Sexy Screamy Spider Lady said at last. “I must thank you for your offer to remove my curse, but I’m afraid I cannot sacrifice the hard-won memories of our adventures. I have … grown, in my time, and I do not wish to give up what I have fought for.”

“Then you will remain in that cursed form,” the Dryad Queen said, frowning. “Even if only the most powerful can see your spider side, it will still affect you.” Her green eyes darted between the Chosen One and Sewer Bard. “And it will make love… difficult.”

“True love cares little for physical form,” Sewer Bard said quietly. Qube, knowing that he fell in love with beautiful souls, rather than looks, nodded emphatically. Squiggles wrapped several of her tentacles around the Hunter’s legs, lending her support to the statement. Only Definitely Bad Guy and the Chosen One said nothing, although the Chosen One was probably just trying to avoid influencing his lady-love.

Sexy Screamy Spider Lady struck a pose. “Any boy who cannot love me, spider and all, is not nearly man enough for me!” she declared. She dropped the pose, and continued in a more serious tone: “Perhaps one day, if I find I cannot bear it, I will return, and take the risk. But until then, I am… content.”

“As you will, then,” the Dryad Queen said, and the group once again lapsed into silence.

“So… the quest isn’t completed, but I’m okay to leave,” the Chosen One said, starting to sidle away. “Y’know, if you wanted to just go. Or we can stay! It’s up to you! I don’t know what’s going on.”

“Will we not need to go back to Ruler Wefton?” Qube asked, looking at Sexy Screamy Spider Lady. The Hunter shook her head.

“If I go back, they’ll only try to cage me,” she said. “They’ll know I have completed the Trial. If they want to know what happened, they’ll know where to find answers.”

The Dryad Queen inclined her head in a truly regal gesture.

“I shall inform them of your decision,” the wooden woman said. Sexy Screamy Spider Lady shifted, stretching out all her limbs. She looked down at her claws, and licked her fangs.

“Tell them… I’m happy,” she said, and left.

---

It was only once they’d left the grove and the Chosen One had (after some hesitation) touched the Save Point, that Qube suddenly remembered something important. A memory prompted by a very chewed, very wet, wooden ring being spat onto her feet.

They’d completely forgotten to pay the Circus Bard for his rings.

Once again, Qube had accidentally become a criminal.

---

Once they were fully clear of the grove, the Chosen One summoned Scaley-Waley. However, rather than immediately mounting the wyvern, he instead kept walking, the giant reptile scuttling alongside the group.

Qube was walking next to Sexy Screamy Spider Lady in silence. She knew she needed to say something to help reassure her friend; she just wasn’t sure what. What did you say to someone who had just given up their chance not only at having their curse removed, but had somehow rejected their duty as an almost-Royal?

And what did it mean that the curse had become so strongly intertwined with Sexy Screamy Spider Lady that removing it might also remove her memories? Did that mean there was a possibility that if Qube’s curse was removed, she might also lose her memories?

No. Her curse was targeted, directly laid upon her by the Evil Emperor, whilst Sexy Screamy Spider Lady’s was a by-product of unrelated magical events. They were two totally different situations, so there was no reason that Qube should be at risk of anything similar happening to her.

...Right?

Ignorant to his companion’s internal hyperventilating, the Chosen One was talking to his mount.

“So if you ever feel like you’re developing sentience, or can understand me, just start drumming your feet until I pay attention, okay?”

Scaly-Waley just ignored him, continuing to plod along.

“Cool, good talk,” the Chosen One said.

“Sexy Screamy Spider Lady,” Qube said, taking the plunge. The Hunter looked at the Healer.

“Yes, my dear?” she asked.

Qube locked up. The Hunter had refused a crown. A crown which was her birthright. She had gone against the natural order of things. There was no way Qube could even pretend to support such a decision, not even to make her friend feel better. It went against everything she had ever known about the world. Everything she had ever been taught about what made things Good.

But Sexy Screamy Spider Lady was her friend. She was doing what made her happy. Forcing people to do things that made them very unhappy was Evil.

Which meant that, even though Royalty was Good, and children inheriting power from their parents was Good, Sexy Screamy Spider Lady refusing to be Royal or inherit power from her parents was… also Good?

Somewhere deep inside Qube’s mind, a crack grew.

Curses were Evil. So removing the curse would have been Good. But remaining in her spider form rather than potentially setting back their main quest to save the world was a Good thing. A noble sacrifice.

Maybe this meant that Sexy Screamy Spider Lady had sacrificed her Royal birthright for the sake of another Good thing: her happiness.

If pressed, Qube would have been forced to admit that she was still on shaky ground with her reasoning, as the whole ‘sacrificing one Good for another Good’ was something she needed to work on fully grasping, but it gave her enough mental space to focus on what was really important: making sure her friend felt supported before they reached the next Temple and once again got involved in another life-or-death situation.

Suddenly, Qube remembered something she’d been meaning to talk to the Hunter about. A topic that would bolster Sexy Screamy Spider Lady by appealing to her interests, and also help out the rest of the party.

“I was wondering if I could talk to you, privately,” Qube said, lowering her voice and slowing down. All too quickly, the rest of the group walked on ahead, giving the two women some privacy. Squiggles, however, dropped back as well, slorping up Sexy Screamy Spider Lady and disappearing into her abdomen.

“Squiggles, don’t be rude! Get out of Sexy Screamy Spider Lady!” Qube scolded.

“Don’t worry,” the Hunter replied, reaching back and scratching the tip of Squiggles’s blunt nose that was peeking out of her back. “She’s quite all right, aren’t you my precious pet?”

Squiggles drooled in happiness.

“What was it you wanted to talk to me about?” the Hunter asked Qube, slightly warily. With a flash of insight, Qube realised that her friend was worried about being criticised for her decision.

“It’s about love,” Qube said quickly, hurrying to soothe her companion’s anxiety. “I was wondering if you could help me get two people to fall out of love with two other people and in love with each other.”

“Matchmaking? I wouldn’t have thought it of you, my little schemer!” Sexy Screamy Spider Lady sounded genuinely delighted at the idea. “Of course! Tell me everything!” Qube took a deep breath. This was the moment of truth!

“I was hoping we could make Sewer Bard and Definitely Bad Guy fall in love,” she said.

The Hunter looked at Qube. From inside her abdomen, there was the sound of Squiggles hissing. Sexy Screamy Spider Lady put a claw over her mouth, but nothing could hide the expression on the various children’s faces, which were now forming very confused screaming faces.

“I think,” Sexy Screamy Spider Lady said from behind her claw, with only a slight quiver in her voice, “there may be one or two problems with that plan.”

Qube frowned.

“You mean getting them to fall out of love with —” she cut herself off, trying not to reveal that Sewer Bard was probably in love with Sexy Screamy Spider Lady, “— with whomever they might happen to be in love with?” she finished cunningly.

“I think, my dear,” Sexy Screamy Spider Lady said with almost patronising kindness, “I need to explain one or two more things to you.”

---

A little while later Qube hurried to the front of the group, taking her normal place beside the Chosen One, who was still trying to talk to Scaley-Waley. The pointy tips of her ears were very red, and she refused to look at the other party members as she determinedly opened her guide book, and pretended to read about the next Temple.

Romance, she firmly decided, was weird.

So died the brief career of Qube the Matchmaker.