I closed my eyes and breathed in the smell of the city of Bryndon.

A Pigeon landed on my shoulder and cooed, rubbing its head up against my face, and I felt a smile creep over my lips as Remy crawled out to talk to him. Maybe my rat was trying to catch up on all the goings-on in the city in her absence.

It’d be so nice to be able to talk to animals. Not that they weren’t cute enough to make up for it on their own.

This was the best part of leaving the dead city. Well, the not-so-dead-anymore city now I supposed. Despite the valiant deaths of many of my ratty friends the last time I had been here, the wildlife of Bryndon seemed vibrant as ever.

As I stroked the pigeon’s neck gently, I realized just how much I had missed the animals. From the Bee that was currently buzzing in a lazy circle around me to the pigeon, and even the little adorable family of rats that had come and talked to us right off of the boat.

"Eeek!"

Or even the little lizard that had decided to crawl up Augusta to try to get on my arm.

"Get it off, get it off, get it off!" Augusta shouted as I just rolled my eyes and smiled, reaching down with the hand she wasn't squeezing to pick the little guy up and put him on her lap. He licked my finger affectionately.

"Calm down, see? He's friendly."

Augusta looked at me like I had grown another head. "The bugs and rats were bad enough, but Lizards and birds too?" She looked frankly horrified. "How do you stand them all crawling on you like that?"

"It's cause I know they won't hurt me," I answered easily enough. "My nature magic teacher, that's Mr. Theen, though I don't think you ever met him, he said that the reason they're attracted to me is that I have a lot of nature magic affinity, and it makes them feel good to be near me."

Augusta seemed to pause at that, before nodding. "That makes sense then." She then frowned, at me, and for some reason, it felt like I was being judged. "You shouldn't just let them crawl all over you though. People will think you're weird."

I looked at her, my gaze meeting hers, then I giggled.

"W-what so funny?"

I was laughing now, and the Pidgeon had fluttered down to my lap as my shoulder shook.

"I-it's just… you think I'm not weird?"

She blushed in embarrassment, and maybe a little indignation. "No, you're not supposed to just- you're supposed to be my cool bodyguard!"

I paused at that,

"Well I might be super cool, but I'm definitely weird. Normal fifteen-year-olds are a bit taller." I gave her a grin, and she rolled her eyes.

"No that's not weird, that's just magic." She said shaking her head. "There's a perfectly reasonable explanation for you aging slowly, but that doesn't mean you have to let lizards crawl all over you. That's the weird part!"

I gave her the flattest look I could muster, which in all honesty probably wasn't very flat at all. I was definitely talking through giggles.

"Augusta we're sitting in the courtyard of the Royal Palace of Bryndon, adopted by the Prophetess for all intents and purposes, and there are at least seven people staring at us. I think there's no way we can avoid being weird."

That caused the girl to come up short.

When we had come or returned in my case to Bryndon, the- Aunty had immediately decided that she wanted to go tour around and talk to all the important people. Seeing the city with her was interesting, as she literally couldn't avoid being conspicuous, and you had beggars and blind people literally throwing themselves at her to be healed.

It was a bit overwhelming. People that the Cathedral wasn’t able to handle, or couldn't handle for some time because of the material costs, there were a lot of them, and Aunty got to all of them. After having so many of my expectations of her proven wrong, it was heartening to see that she really was as good as everyone said. I hope someday I can have people turn to me for aid the same way they did for her. It also only hammered in how much better with light magic she truly was. I was considered a master in healing from what dad taught me, but she could grow an arm back or cure leprosy with barely any effort, and every person she spoke to along the way seemed to leave a little happier.

I had seen it before in the Old Capital, but this was a reminder.

Still, we weren't here just to watch her heal the sick and glow. We were also here to watch her do politics, which is why we were accompanying her to the cathedral-like a pair of snot-nosed brats on a take-your-kid-to-work day.

On the plus side, that meant I got to see Sister Henrietta again. It was so wonderful to see her face brighten up as I ran into the healer’s wing to go hug her! She looked a lot more cheerful than the last time I’d visited.

“Ah, Brother Abbott.” She said, blinking as she seemed to forget whatever she had been doing, if for only a moment. “What’s brought you back to Bryndon?” She paused for a moment, then smiled as Remy pulled herself up onto my shoulder. “Oh, and you too little rat, I remember you.”

“He’s my bodyguard!” Augusta said, hurriedly pushing herself in between us, and clamping her hand back onto my arm, which saw Henrietta raise an eyebrow as she was suddenly looking into the face of the silver princess. “I am Augusta, but you may refer to me as Her Highness or Princess. Who are you?” She said with a streak of arrogance I didn’t think she had. Maybe it was just because she was relying on me she didn’t show it.

“Augusta-” I started to say, but I was interrupted by An armored figure now towering over both of us, eyes glowing as usual.

“What she means to say is that both of them are my Wards now, She also, I’m sure, meant to be much more polite about it.” I felt Augusta’s hand tighten around my arm even as a metal gauntlet came down to firmly hold her shoulder. “You are one of Ethan’s healers I take it?”

Sister Henrietta, who had otherwise seemed rather nonplussed, raised her eyes up to meet the glowing gaze of the prophetess.

Then she promptly fainted.

“Oh, bother.” our uh… aunty said, grabbing hold of Henrietta’s arm to keep her from slumping to the ground. “That’s the second time today. Honestly, I was by here only… sixty years ago I think.”

I stepped forward to cast a spell to wake her, but the millennia-old woman was already on it, placing a glowing hand on Sister Henrietta’s forehead.

"There now." The prophetess murdered as she set Henrietta down in her own two feet, the woman suddenly blushing all the way up from her neck. "It's not that strange for me to visit a cathedral of the church you know."

"O-of course your Holiness, only I didn't expect you to, didn't expect you to tour this wing unannounced." Sister Henrietta said, hurriedly bowing. "I will have the others come out and present themselves at once, er, if that's what you're here for."

"Perhaps later, for now, I'm just keeping an eye on these two." I felt an armored hand come down and ruffle my hair uncomfortably. "Are you a friend of the little cherub here?"

"Brother Abbott helped us with a great deal of healing work on his last visit, and there was an incident with a werewolf as well." Henrietta looked towards me as if asking whether she was supposed to say she was my friend or not.

That wouldn't do at all. She should know better. "Of course she's my friend, Sister Henrietta is really nice and she does a good job."

"That's good then." The Prophetess nodded. "And Augusta, don't be impolite to people just because you don't know them."

"---Hmmph," Augusta grumbled.

Sister Henrietta looked like she might faint again, but she relaxed a bit when I went over to take her hand, making a daisy chain with Augusta gripping me on the other side.

“Oh, you dear child, don’t worry about me.” She said after a moment to realize what I was doing. “It’s just a bit of a shock is all, I knew you were Saint Eugene’s son, but I hardly expected you to be adopted by the Prophetess of all people.” She brushed my hair out of my face with a gentle smile, one which I happily returned. “Though I had feared your talents wouldn’t be best developed on the road as you were, I suppose that’s no worry now.”

“hmmph” Augusta grunted louder this time, and I turned to give her a look.

The girl was pouting at me openly, and with a look of offense as she squeezed my forearm.

“Ah, sorry, it appears the princess wants more attention,” Henrietta said softly, brushing me away slightly. “I won’t keep you, you are here to see the Archbishop yes?”

“Indeed, it’s been a while since I’ve checked in with Ethan in person, though the city seems to be doing well under his care.”

“We are all blessed by his efforts, as we are by your own, your holiness.”

“We’re but Humble tools of God.” I could almost feel the tall woman’s smile through her helmet. “Well then, let’s go see what he’s up to. It’s been lovely to meet you, Sister Henrietta, I hope to see you again when next I’m in Bryndon.”

I, of course, went in for another hug, and a “Take care” before being pulled along my way by Augusta.

“Honestly, you’re so clingy.” The girl said without a shred of irony as we started up the long climb towards the Cathedral spire and the archbishop’s office. “You shouldn’t just go around hugging everyone like that. It’s weird.”

“Aren’t you constantly on my arm,” I asked, Augusta was definitely being annoying today.

“That’s different, you can hug me.” She stated as if that made sense. “But don’t hug other people while I’m holding onto you… it’s uncomfortable for me.” She finished with a bit of a blush, as she quickly looked away from me. “Your aura feels nice, but if I’m in direct contact with more than one person at once it’s kind of overwhelming.”

“My… aura?” I asked, I hadn’t heard anything about this. “Is that why you’re holding onto me all the time?”

“Hmm. You feel nice, it’s… I’m really sensitive to it, that’s why Grandpa picked me to be his host. It’s also um… it’s why I don’t like your animals as much.” The girl rubbed her arm nervously. “I pick up on people’s natural magic, yours feels really nice, but when you go and touch someone else while I’m holding you I end up getting both of them that closely, and it can be overwhelming.” She sighed, “And it’s even worse when I’m outside without touching anyone. I start picking up everyone around me through the air, I can handle it for a few minutes, but it… it just becomes too much at some point.”

That… hadn’t been what I was expecting, I had thought she was clinging to me for protection in a less literal sense. I put my palm over her hand, where she held my arm. “I’m not going anywhere, I’d like to still hug people, but if I’m going to I’ll let you know before I do in the future, is that ok?”

“Mhm,” She nodded slowly.

“You’re going to have to train yourself past that you know.” Our adoptive aunt said from in front of us, where she had stopped to wait for us on the stair. “It’s not acceptable to just stick to Abbott like Glue. It’ll hold both of you back.”

Augusta glared at her, “I wouldn’t need to if you had gotten to Mirno in time to save Grandpa!”

I could almost feel the warmth drain out of the hallway, and the prophetess blinked, the light from her eyes flickering for just a moment.

“Augusta!”

“No-no she’s right.”

My protests were silenced by the Prophetess’s hand coming down on my shoulder, and the other on Augusta’s, which made the girl flinch, ‘ah, she must not like touching the prophetess’.

“I didn’t arrive fast enough to save your grandfather, and for that I’m sorry.” the armored woman said in the most serious tone I had heard her talk since she had adopted us. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you shut yourself up with Abbott in a tower somewhere, you have a responsibility to grow beyond that and learn to handle your sensitivity. You are a princess, you have great power already, and far more enormous potential. You can lock yourself away from the world when you’re old and grey.”

Her gaze seemed to intensify on Augusta, and I could feel her shaking under it, but eventually, the girl, quivering, nodded.

With little more fanfare, the Prophetess released us both and laughed a clear and bright laugh. “In that case, as long as you get past it by the time you leave school, I wouldn’t worry about it for now. Though if you always hang off his arm that way won’t people spread rumors?”

She laughed clearly again as she started back up the stairs. “Come on, let’s go talk to Ethan.”