“That’s the last of it,” says Jubilee, dusting their hands as more water splashes out of Fresh’s open inventory. The four of them stand in the cleared out basement. “With all of these materials and our money, we’ll be up and running in a couple of days, when we get there.”

“It’s certainly nice to have some advance warning,” says Basil, nodding as she looks around the room. “But what are we going to do with the building now?” she asks. “With Veli gone, should we just… sell it back to the magistrate?”

“More money is always good,” agrees Jubilee.

Fresh shakes her head, closing her window. “But what about the fairies? What about the fairy-item-shop?”

“It’s all fucked without Veli,” says Jubilee. “Don’t know what to tell you.”

Fresh frowns. “What if we sign over the house to some other fairy? That one with the green-hair,” she suggests. “She seems like she knows what she’s doing.”

“You want to give our house to a stranger?” asks Jubilee.

Fresh lifts her finger. “I want to donate our house to the needy. Just like before.” She leans against the workbench. “Besides, she’s been watching you teach Veli. I think she picked a lot of stuff up.”

“She didn’t seem too happy to see us before,” sighs Basil.

“I don’t have any other ideas, guys,” relents Fresh.

Jubilee shakes their head. “It’s not our problem to begin with. We already did a lot for the fairies. We can’t save everybody.”

“But we haven’t saved anybody, Jubilee,” argues Fresh.

Jubilee rolls their eyes. “Fine. Fuck me. She wanted one of those rings in the morning. We’ll ask her then,” concedes Jubilee. “But if she wants a ring, she probably wants to leave the mountain too.” They cross their arms. “Hell. They might all want to leave the mountain.”

Fresh nods, having considered this a possibility as well. The four of them head upstairs. Fresh sleeps unwell that night, dreaming of the fairy Veli, being chased across an endless branch of a tree by a slug that is twice his size. It wants to eat his eyes for some unexplained reason.

The morning comes. She is well rested despite that odd dream. Breakfast is warm and delicious and the conversations over the table are surprisingly light and energizing. Her coughee is on the edge of warm, but not hot-hot and the cool morning breeze, wafting in through the window, carries with it many energetic voices from the outside-world.

Today is a good day. She can tell, even before it has really begun.

An hour passes. They are downstairs, the store has already opened. “You want me to what?” asks the green-haired fairy, who they have dragged to the side, to speak with her in private.

“We wanted Veli, but you’re the next best option,” explains Jubilee. “We’re giving you the building and the store, if you want it.”

“Why?” she asks suspiciously, the tiny heart-stone necklace already strapped around her neck.

“So that you squeaky fucks have a place to live,” explains Jubilee.

“We like the fairy-houses,” says the fairy, her green hair bouncing as she hovers in the air. Fresh stares at it, always jealous of how bouncy fairy-hair is.

“Yeah, guess who made those? For free?” asks Jubilee, placing their hands on their hips.

“No,” says the green-haired fairy, looking over her shoulder at her party. “We’re flying to the north. We want to become adventurers there!” she explains. Fresh blinks. “We heard the northern-dungeon is easier,” says the fairy excitedly, her eyes shining with an energy that Fresh hasn’t seen since the fairy’s first night of life. “I’m going to become a priestess!”

Basil looks over from the side.

“I don’t know if they take fairies,” says Jubilee.

“They will!” explains the fairy. “I heard that since some super-evil, super-ugly, super-mean witch showed up, they’ve been recruiting everyone they can!” She hovers away, heading back to her group. “Bye!”

“You’re welcome,” calls Jubilee snarkily after them. Fresh sighs. They hadn’t been thanked for the necklaces or for the fairy-houses, let alone for this newest offer of theirs. Obviously, she would have done all of it anyway, but still. “Fuck’s sake,” sighs Jubilee. “You can’t even give a fucking house away these days.” They look up at her. “There. Can we sell it now?”

“What about Tarja?” asks Fresh, looking around the room for the fairy from the tailor’s shop.

“What about me?” asks a sharp voice, flying upside in front of her face. The heart-stone necklace hangs upside from her neck. It seems like literally every fairy has come to get one. Are they really all going to leave?

Fresh blinks, surprised that she’s here. “You want a house?” asks Fresh. “Everyone can stay here.”

“I have a house,” says Tarja, shaking her head. “Besides, I’m leaving.”

“Huh?”

She nods. “Yeah, me and some of the others are heading to the east. We heard it’s super warm there,” explains Tarja. “We’re going to open a tailoring shop and I’ll be able to make a lot of nice clothes for people!” she says excitedly.

“Ah…” says Fresh, not sure if this is going to be a problem. Jubilee seems indifferent to the statement though, judging by their body language. So Fresh decides that it isn’t a threat if anyone from the west sees them in the east. She looks down towards Jubilee, who stares back her way, apparently already knowing what her next question is going to be. They shake their head, signaling ‘no’. The fairies aren’t allowed to travel together with them.

“Anyways, I gotta go!” says Tarja, seeing that the rest of her group is carrying a bottle of sweet-tea together to the counter. “Bye!”

“Bye!” calls Fresh after her.

“Satisfied?” asks Jubilee.

Fresh frowns, lowering her head sideways on top of Jubilee’s. “Nooo~” she moans. “They’re all leaving, it’s so dangerous out there, Jubilee.”

“It’s dangerous everywhere, goo-brain.”

Shamrock wiggles a toy-slime back and forth. “Let them walk on two feet.”

“But they can fly, Shamrock,” says Fresh, blinking as she stares at the sideways man. He looks at her, his finger stuck in the slime. He doesn't respond.

“Can you let go?” asks Jubilee, sounding annoyed.

“No,” says Fresh, turning her face and planting her nose on top of Jubilee’s head, pressing it into the fabric of their hood, feeling the soft give of a layer of hair beneath it.

“Can you just not?”

Fresh can not ‘not’. Instead, she stands there, her face buried on top of Jubilee’s head as she thinks, breathing in the air that smells like her friend. It helps her think. Also, Jubilee smells nice. Like summer flowers with a soft hint of soap. She realizes that there is also a familiar smell to them, buried in the fabric. That of Basil’s cream. It makes her smile, knowing that Jubilee is taking care of themself.

“You’re being creepy in public,” says Jubilee, their arms crossed.

“Sorry,” apologizes Fresh, but she still stays there, not moving. “I’m thinking.”

“Can you think in a way that doesn’t involve me?” asks Jubilee. “Usually people like you get their ideas by finger-painting or eating glue.”

“You’re being mean again, Jubilee~.”

“Sorry. Dumb-ass,” sighs Jubilee, standing there much the same.

“I guess we’re out of options now,” concedes Fresh.

Jubilee shakes their head, Fresh feels it moving beneath her face. “In regards to the fairies, yeah. We’re fucked.”

Fresh sighs. “So…”

“So we’re selling it.”

She frowns, but sees no other way out. Money is always good, but it isn’t what she was hoping for in her heart of hearts. But, if nobody needs the house, then it’s the only sensible thing to do.

Basil chimes in. “I have an idea.” Fresh lifts her head, looking at the priestess. “There are others,” explains Basil. “People who need a home, but can’t afford the adventurers’ guild.”

Jubilee shifts. “Fuck off.”

Basil crosses her arms. “How is it any different than the fairies?”

Jubilee locks their hands to their hips. “Because I have good will towards them. Those fucking orphans can fuck right off and die.”

“Jubilee~!” scolds Fresh.

Jubilee grumbles under their breath, but then seems to relent. Leaning over sideways, they look at Shamrock. “Hey, meat-head,” Shamrock looks over their way. “Go outside and find that little shit we met when we arrived here.” Shamrock nods, setting down his toy slime. “Throw those orphans into the river if you need to humble them,” instructs Jubilee, pointing at him.

“Please don’t throw the children into the river, Shamrock,” asks Basil.

Shamrock looks to Fresh for guidance on this newest dilemma. She shakes her head ‘no’. Flashing her a thumbs-up, Shamrock leaves, heading out on his personal quest.

Jubilee lets out a disappointed sigh.