-=Plush POV=-

We come to a small lake, and much like the one I was at a few days ago there was a single tree with a red spot and a single flower on a small mound of dirt in the middle of it.

“Shiona, do you see that tree?”

“Yeah?”

“Watch.”

I then make a large orange spoon and use it to throw a nearby rock at the red part of the tree.

“Lacrosse?” Says Shiona with a confused voice before looking towards where the rock flew.

“!” But when she does look that way she is amazed by what she sees.

“The tree… It's like a flower…”

Just like the first treant I defeated, this one started having its bark peeled off like a blooming flower bud, each new layer becoming more and more red, and within was a single blue glowing leaf on top of a red pedestal, a heart leaf as the guild called them.

“That was a treant, a kind of monster, if we can get that blue leaf we can trade it in for money.”

I then start walking towards the small island, solidifying the water I walk on and freezing it in place. Shiona dips her talon in the water to see whether she can follow, but quickly yanks it back out while complaining about the temperature.

When I get to the center of the lake I put the flower in my pouch before taking the heart leaf, I remember what happened to the previous treant and I don't want to have that weird red goopy liquid all over me.

After I take the heart leaf I and the treant disappears I look towards Shiona and see her looking at where the treant was in horror, and as I'm about to walk back I'm interrupted by Lizz.

‘Yeah I was planning to practice with Shiona when i get to the other side actually.’ I say as I start making my way over the water.

‘Who?’

‘I didn't realize you had any friends, with you being stuck with the book and all.’

Lizz stops speaking and I reach Shiona.

“How are we even going to start practicing?”

“...”

Both of us were somewhat awkward people when it came to messing up in front of others, so we both share an intense dislike of trying something new while someone is watching.

Shiona looks to be thinking, and after a while she raises one of her wings and with a *flap* she creates enough force for the wind to blow me a good ten meters away.

“You stay over there and I'll stay here, neither of us looks at the other and if we feel like we're about to crash we aim for the lake!”

“Alright!” I say as loudly as I can with the bangle, not knowing how long the bangles range is, and seeing her turn around I assume she heard me.

‘Hey Lizz, how do I even borrow your powers?’

“I see… Become smaller and grow wings was it? Since that's just you in general wouldn't it be easier to have you as the image? Or would that not work?”

So I do just that, I close my light-eyes and try to move the energy around my body, almost like when I'm using Phasing or Hunting Claws and try to think and concentrate on Lizz.

I can feel my feet dragging across the ground, most likely due to becoming smaller, and then suddenly the feeling changes completely and I open my eyes in surprise.

When i look around I see myself standing in the hall of the apartment I lived in back on earth.

‘Or more realistically I suppose this is inside the book…’

I walk further into the apartment and inspect the different rooms.

‘This place really is exactly like my apartment.’

While inspecting each room I try all of the appliances I have, like the stove and toilet, to see whether they still worked, and they did.

I then get to the living room and try turning on the TV, the screen lights up and I can see the place where I was before from a bird's eye view, and every so often I could see something white and yellow appear for a fraction of a second in edges of the screen.

Whatever camera it is that's recording this then suddenly swoops down to the lake, and in the waters reflection I see…

Myself.

Except rather than purple and red I see that my body has turned the same off white color and looks to have the same texture as Lizz’s dress, while the red fur on the hood has grown longer and turned yellow, it also looks much more lustrous, smooth, and shiny, and I could see bug wings coming out from my back, but I couldn’t see how many due to them moving.

My head looked mostly the same, however the eye-lights had turned from yellow to brown.

‘Lizz?’

‘What's going on?’

‘Well let's try to fix it before we start thinking about the details.’

‘Well I'm not sure if it's going to work, but how about this, I came here when I focused energy in my body and thought about you right? Try that but think about me instead.’

‘Wait!’

‘Please land first’

Lizz then flies my body over to where I was standing before, she closes her eyes and sits down, I then slowly see the wings becoming shorter and the colors turning back to normal, and before I know it I see through my own eyes rather than through the TV screen.

‘I think you can open you eyes now’

‘...’

*sigh* ‘Well what now? Should I try again?’

I keep sitting down and try again, this time keeping my eyes open.

‘...’

And yet I find myself on the couch yet again after few seconds.

‘I didn’t! I thought about what I looked like with wings!’

I go back outside again, and try to think of myself with wings rather than the white and yellow me that Lizz turned into.

But it still doesn’t work.

‘I don’t think I can.’

‘Actually... I think that’s exactly it.’

‘Yeah, yeah, but I’m pretty sure there’s nothing we can do about it, so what now? Mind just taking over whenever I need to fly?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Live here? How the hell do they live here!? Isn’t this inside the book!?’

Realizing that Lizz won’t be answering my questions I sigh and follow her directions.

*knock* *knock* *knock*

I knock at the door, however no one answers.

‘Lizz, are you sure it’s room 307?’

Feeling incredibly doubtful I enter the door while internally preparing an excuse and a way to blame Lizz in case it’s the wrong room.

‘Hello?’ I try to say with the bangle, however it doesn’t make any sound, and when I touch my neck I can feel that the bangle doesn’t seem to have followed me in here.

[... Hello…] Comes a text-to-speech sounding voice from within.

‘Can you hear me?’

[Yes.]

‘Well that makes this easier, do you happen to know a person called Li- err, Elizabeth was it? Yeah, do you know a Elizabeth?’

[Yes.]

‘... Did she tell you I was going to be coming?’

[Yes.]

‘...’

[...]

‘... I’m… I’m Plush, nice to meet you?’

[We’ve already met?]

‘We have?’

[...]

‘... Err… I’m sorry? I must have forgotten?’

[...]

‘Could you… remind me who you are?’

Out from one of the many shadows comes a small flattened black orb, and on its sides are eight spider legs, it looks kind of like a spider that’s missing its abdomen, and it’s carrying a small metallic looking object on its back.

[My name is Cy, Cy T. Adel.]

I tense up and become confused, however when the small spider creature suddenly starts skittering towards me I turn tail and run towards the door, however when I get to the hall there’s a large ominous metal creature standing in my way, taking up the entire hallway.

I don’t know whether I would’ve been able been able to phase through the creature, however the spider freaked me out way too much for me to even consider it, so instead I stop in place and start trying to thinking.

‘!’

Only to feel something grabbing onto my arm, and when I look down I see the spider hanging onto my wrist with four of its legs.

As I feel myself about to faint I can hear the computer like voice talking again.

[I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m so-]

‘Wait wait, calm down, you’re sorry? For what, trying to strangle me!?’

[Yes.]

‘... ’

Not really sure how to react to her frankness I just sort of stay still for a moment, and then I suddenly find myself back outside, leaning on a tree.