DP II: When Two Worlds Collide - Chapter III

Tuesday, 18 July 2017.

"Ahhhhh..." Mint sighed lazily, enjoying the hot water of the shower running down her naked body in rivulets. She had only been in the black shorts and running hoodie that she picked out to wear for her early morning jog before she ended up tossing the clothes into the laundry basket after returning home, and spent the last six minutes getting clean.

That jog sure was fun, but nothing beats just relaxing like this. she thought as she rinsed off the soft pink bubbles of her body wash.

Mint was ten weeks pregnant now and she had learned not to fight the hormone changes that were happening to her trim and toned figure. Her slender build still looked the same. Her womb had grown bigger too, filling up the large part of her pelvic space. Despite feeling drained of her energy on some days, she knew this can be cured with an early night to bed or a nap.

Rue helped out by marking down all prenatal appointments, bills, birthdays and other important dates on their calendar ---so neither of them forgot anything. He accompanied Mint to every one of her pre-booked visits to Dr Markus's officer. After their last appointment, Rue made a special trip to the general supply center, much to Mint's annoyance. He picked up some power outlet coverings, a supply of rubber corner protectors and a number of drawer latches.

Mint turned the taps and shut off the water. Sliding open the frameless glass door, she stepped out of the shower enclosure onto the slip-resistant bath mat. She pulled her large bath towel from a heated rail and dried herself quickly. She then put on her bra and a fresh set of panties, slipped her silver  ruby wedding ring on her left hand, and exited the bathroom.  

She returned to the bedroom and opened the armoire, leaving the doors wide open as she thumbed through the garments within. On one side, Rue's suits, shirts, trousers and sweaters neatly hung from wooden hangers. On the other side were women's clothes--preferably Mint's.  

Her side was big and luxurious, with red carpeting, marble floors, and a rolling ladder crafted out of cherry wood. Lighting was provided by a chandelier on the ceiling and a handful of dimmer lights along the walls, illuminating the array of tops, skirts, pants and dresses. A number of shoes and boots were lined up on the floor and on the upper shelves were bags and purses.

"No. No. What's my satin nightie doing in there? Oh well... I'll save that one for Rue maybe later. N-- A-ha!" she grabbed a purple belly shirt, some white cut-off denim shorts, and a set of white sandals decorated with 'flying' purple butterflies. Mint brushed out her hair and put it up into her pigtails, adding a pair of matching purple butterfly hairclips.    

She applied some lip balm and dabbed perfume behind her ears before marching down the stairs, a positive grin on her face as usual.

"Good morning!"

"Good morning." Rue was busy preparing breakfast in the kitchen, still in his bedclothes (a loose T-shirt and light-green shorts) and wearing an apron tied around his waist. "How was your jog?"

"It was so-so. What's on the menu?"

"Pancakes with lemon juice. I found the recipe in a magazine. It said you can use healthier versions of the original ingredients. I thought about giving it a try. They should be almost done."  

"Can't wait." Mint crossed the threshold and opened the pantry cupboard to fix herself some cereal. No sooner did she open the double doors, she saw her great big box of sugar-coated puffs was not on the bottom shelf. The space had been thoroughly cleaned out and restocked with healthy stuff in the time she was out of the house.      

“What did you do with all the snacks I had in the pantry?” she demanded to know.

“I put them in a special place where you can't get to them. Honestly, Mint, I'm surprised at you... And to think you promised our doctor that you wouldn't gorge on those foods." Rue responded in a calm but serious tone, regardless of Mint's noisy entrance.  

Mint felt her jaw drop open. She stared at Rue. Neither of them spoke for a very long time.

"You what!?" The redhead exclaimed loudly. "So you're saying I'm still not allowed to eat any junk food? That is not cool!"  

He ignored the seething look on his wife's face. Rue was more then used to Mint’s temper; she'd become more irritable due to her escalating mood swings. But on the other hand, Mint did understand that a child’s health depended on the health of its mother, too, and was remembering to keep up the exercise while expecting, because she wanted their little beansprout to get her brains and brawn.  

Rue's ponytail swayed behind him as he turned back towards the stove, pouring the batter into the pan and prepared to flip it. “I didn't say you couldn't eat it, Mint." He finished flipping and turned off the gas, placing the cakes in a short stack on a plate and dribbled lemon on them. "I mean, the occasional salty chip, a slice of cake or a greasy burger won't hurt the baby." Fetching a knife and fork from the cutlery drawer, he laid them side-by-side next to the plate. "All I'm asking is for you to take better care of yourself; if you can't resist your bad cravings, the baby will favor unhealthy foods later in life. And it's up to us to nip that problem in the bud."    

Mint snorted, her anger fading. "Okay, I get it, Rue. You don't want to see me jeopardize our baby's health. Seriously though, why did you take away my stash?” she plopped into her chair to receive her breakfast.

Rue carried the plate to the table and set it in front of Mint, next to the jam jar and milk jug. "I did that to help you show some restraint." He held up a forkful in a peace offering and she accepted it, munching crossly. "I'll be in the shower if you need me."

With those words he took off his apron and vacated the room, and his wife swallowed her food.    

"Who died and made you boss?" Mint grumbled as the doorbell rang. "I wonder who that could be..." Walking up to the front door, the redhead asked in a singsong voice, “Who is it~?”

“A very special visitor~!” came the reply, a woman's voice but with an undercurrent of mischief behind it.

Mint opened up the door to reveal the voice's owner. In such a peaceful environment, the woman’s outfit certainly stood out; a pink and white dress accompanied by frilly shoes of the same colors, all topped off with an enormous green bow in her curled sandy-blonde hair and a white hat with a massive pair of bunny ears on top of it all.

"Fancy Mel! What brings you here?"

"Just thought I'd stop by to say hello."

The woman’s outfit was enough to draw stares from anyone who hadn’t seen her before, but Mint was used to Mel’s fashion sense; her eyes were firmly glued to the parcel in the basket the blonde woman was holding. “Would that be a present for me, by any chance?”

“It certainly is, Mint,” Fancy Mel nodded, gesturing to the box. "But let me tell you, it wasn’t exactly the easiest task ever. Figuring out how to make a spell that can travel from my place to others was difficult just by itself! You’re lucky I managed this!”

“Must have been quite the trip. You want some coffee?” At Mel’s nod, Mint showed the woman indoors and led her into the living room. Once her guest was seated on the couch, she proceeded to the kitchen to prepare the coffee. Mint filled the kettle in the corner with fresh water from the sink then turned the appliance on at the switch.  

Mel observed the bright, colorful furnishings of the living room. She looked out the six panel bay window facing the front yard. The curtains had been pulled back, allowing the morning light to stream in through the panes of glass.

A framed photo on the wooden mantel of the stone fireplace attracted her attention. Mint, looking less pregnant then she did now, was laughing with delight in a blue-and-white swimsuit as Rue held her petite form in his arms.

“What a darling photo... Was this from your honeymoon?"

“Oh, that was my idea!" Mint said as she opened a door under the bench top and brought out a paw-patterned mug and saucer, grinning happily. "I figured since this house is officially mine, there should at least have some photos here and there." The red-haired young woman walked up to the pantry and grabbed the jar of instant coffee sitting on a shelf, unscrewing the lid and put a teaspoon of the brown grains into the cup. When she heard the kettle come to a boil and switch itself off, she filled a quarter of the cup with the very hot water, subconsciously thinking of her ever-popular husband....

“Where is that faithful hubby of yours?” Fancy Mel asked, startling Mint and bringing her back to reality, considering what was in her hands.  

"He's probably upstairs getting changed. Oh wow! I found some cookies in the fridge! Want to try some?”    

"Yes please." The magician looked over at the romantic novels sitting on the coffee table. The titles read 'First Touch', 'Female in the Flame', 'Silent Storms'.

Wow. She never imagined Rue to own any saucy books... or maybe Mint liked to experiment in the bedroom. A few more sounds of tinkling cutlery could be heard from in the kitchen, and then Mint breezed into the living room with a tea tray.

"Sorry for the wait." she sat at the lacquer table and placed the cup of milk coffee and small but tasty-looking cookies in front of Fancy Mel. "Help yourself."  

"Thank you." Mel sampled a cookie. "Oh my! This is absolutely delicious. Where did you buy them?"  

"Oh. Those cookies weren't store-bought; Rue baked them." Mint clarified. "What daddy doesn't know won't hurt him."    

After spending a relaxing moment of catching up over confections, they heard Rue come down the stairs and enter the living room. He looked completely, utterly and incredibly kissable in his work attire—brown pants, a lavender colored shirt, a long brown business-like coat and really dark navy dress shoes. On the collar of his plain, long-sleeved shirt was an emerald green tie.

"Um, Mint? Why are you looking at me like that?”

That did it. Mint came back to her senses and gave a little cough.

"I was not staring!" she denied quickly.

”Hello Rue." Mel greeted him. "Mint here was telling me about how well-known you work has become." She drained her entire cup and set it down. "I’m still a little worried what those maidens might do if catch on that their pure-hearted savior is already taken by the high-powered princess.”

“They won’t. I work under a fictitious name-- 'Angel'. It was my supervisor's idea. Not many people know I'm the person responding to their messages." He replied.

“Just as well; you wouldn't want any bad attention from your fangirls." Rue shook his head in a no. Moving on to more important matters, Mel produced the gift-wrapped present from her basket. "This is to share between you two."

Mint opened the box. Inside was a pair of plush dolls. One was adorned with a handmade outfit that resembled Rue's brown and green adventuring clothes. The doll had shoulder-length white hair and a very cute angelic face. In his right hand, the doll held a little plastic weapon painted to look like the Arc Edge. Holding its left hand was the other plush doll. It wore a handmade outfit that resembled the blue, brown and white relic-hunting attire Mint had worn during her search for the Dewprism. She had sunset red hair put up in Mint’s hairstyle, and attached behind her leather belt was a little replica of the Dual Halos.

" I made those dolls so your little one can keep a piece of you in their life." Fancy Mel explained. "Even if you're not always together in this world."

A tear trickled down Mint’s cheek. It was deflected from its course by the widening grin on her face.

“Oh my god...” Mint gushed, her voice choked with emotion. "They're perfect! Thanks so much, Mel."

Rue looked at the dolls sincerely and said nothing. He was moved by the magician’s kind gesture nonetheless.

The woman cocked her head to the side and smiled at Rue and Mint knowingly. “You're welcome. I'm sure your baby will love them too.” she stood up to leave. "Well, it looks like I'd better be off. Thank you for the coffee, Mint. It tasted wonderful."

They walked her to the entrance. "You're welcome to drop by anytime." Mint said. "Our door's always open!"

"Unless Mint sticks a 'Go Away' mat in front of it." Rue muttered, and she brought her heel down on his foot. "Ow."  

Mel chuckled. "I'll be sure to call on you in the future." she disappeared, then reappeared. “Oh. And please do go easy on the sugar, Mint.”

Mint's face reddened. “What's that supposed to mean?”

“I mean you should listen to Rue more.”

She waved goodbye to the happy-looking duo, closing the door behind her.

“She got you there," Rue added lightly. Mint shot him a poisonous glare before moving to glance at the calendar hanging on the fridge. One of the dates was circled in bright neon red. It announced that she had morning choreography at 8:55am before work.

The round white clock on the kitchen wall showed 8:15.  

“Oh no! I forgot I had dance practice today!” she took a deep breath and devoured her breakfast, picking the platter clean in under a minute. "Thanks for the chow!" she leapt from the table and took her dishes to the sink.

“You shouldn't move that fast right after eating, Mint. You'll make yourself sick." reproved Rue.  

"The only thing I'm sick of is you telling me off." His wife snapped. "Now where's my...?"

"Here you go.” He held out her lunch pack. Still moving as fast as she could, Mint grabbed it and rushed for the door to shove the food in her duffel bag.

"There'd better not be any pumpkin in it.”

"I think you're going to like it. Are you all set?”

“Yup!” Mint planted a quick, affectionate kiss on his lips. It was over in an instant, but it felt like it had lasted much longer. She broke away and dashed down the tree-lined street at full sprint, waving madly. “Love you!”

“Take care! Have a good practice!” He returned the wave, blushing more than he had in years, as he watched those flying sunset pigtails disappear from sight and she rounded the corner. Rue pursed his lips thoughtfully, savoring the taste of Mint’s strawberry flavored lip balm...

There were tall elm trees all around the neighborhood, bursting to the crown with leafy green foliage. The sight was enchanting but Mint didn’t have time to focus on that now---she was going to miss the bus!

~0~

"Okay, girls, let's start with stretches and move on to poise!" The choreographer was announcing when Mint opened up the door. Moving briskly, she attempted to sneak unnoticeably into the dance hall...  

But Tonio, who was aware of the redhead's every move, made that impossible. "Good morning, Mint. You just made it on time."

Mint froze in her tracks and looked at him. "What are you doing here, Tonio?"

"Martha asked me to draw some sketches. She said it will help me think of new costume designs. I'm thinking of a ruby-studded leotard, rhinestone stilettos and a small crown for you. Do you think it will work on you?"

"Sure it will!" Mint placed a hand over her chest and lifted her chin proudly. "With these perfect measurements even a simple towel can look good on me!"

"To the lass with the unusual hairstyle, would you kindly stop your meaningless chatter and direct your attention to me?" The choreographer informed Mint, who glowered in anger at the rudeness of that pompous, cherub-faced son of a--  

Shoving the thought aside, Mint went through some last-minute warm-ups and strode over to join the front of the group.

"Humph! I'll show him how good I am..." Mint murmured to herself, as she waited for the lively music to start and began to dance in time with the beat. She was the best... she was in top shape... she was well into her groove for the next eleven seconds... Then it began to grow harder when she put all her energy into following the steps. Her eyes watered from the exhaustion. Fire was racing through her with each movement, but she had promised herself to keep going. Her feet started to get sore, although she continued dancing just the same.  

In front of her, the choreographer's reflection stared out of the mirror at the tall, lean-muscled beauty with bright red hair. Her aura was burning with life, projecting an illusion of a phoenix made by the young woman's red locks. He continued to stare into the pretty face of the redhead, while he observed her fellow dancers with a critical eye, pointing out the steps that needed work, then waited for their sequence to finish and pressed the 'stop' button.

"That's it for today, ladies. Good work."

Dazed, Mint sank to the ground. Her energy was gone.

~0~  

Pressing her forehead against the cool glass of the bathroom mirror, Mint felt like screaming. No! She couldn't hold it in! Maybe there was something else in her bag that would help take her mind off her nausea...

But she had thought of that already. To keep herself from bringing up her breakfast she had packed her bag with only the bare necessities. She doubted her bottle of flat lemonade would keep her upset stomach calm through the entire day. No! She can do this, she can do this!

All she had to do was pretend like it nothing was wrong.

Mint recomposed herself and headed for the showers to freshen up and change into her waitress uniform. The uniform's design consisted of a lavender skirt with a frilly petticoat, a white blouse with pink checked ribbon tie, a cat-eared headband, white knee-socks and black shoes with silver buckles, and lastly a short apron with the store's embroidery on it.

After checking her appearance, she proceeded to where the kitchen was. She smiled and waved to her co-workers, greeting everyone she knew. The girl must have said "good morning" nearly a ten times already before reaching the diner's kitchen area. When she did, her nose was tickled by the aromatic fragrances of coffee beans and sponge cake.      

"Mr. Andou?" She addressed the broad back of her manager, George, who was grinding coffee with a hand mill. The sturdy middle-aged addressee turned around with a tender smile. "I know I'm supposed to be waiting the tables today, but can I switch to kitchen duties?"  

"What's wrong?"

"I'm not feeling well."  

"Is that why you want to change your post?" He saw her nod her head in yes. "Alright... Let's find a simple task that you can do. How about we start with--"

"George!" Martha was calling for his attention in the hall. George excused himself and hurried to hear what she had to say. From where she was standing, Mint was able to hear snatches of their conversation, and judging by the looks on their faces it wasn’t good news at all.

"We have to... corner... ask...”  

“Let’s not... unreasonable... You... how... loves... dance…”

“... I know...”  

What’s going on? Mint’s eyes furrowed as the pair approached her.

“Mint, George and I would like to have a little word with you.” Martha spoke with forced calm. "Can you come with us for a sec?"

“O... kay....” The redhead was uneasy about why they wanted to talk to her. She followed Martha with George to the main office in the club. As soon as the door to her office was shut and the blinds were pulled down halfway, Martha did not hesitate to answer Mint’s unspoken question.

“We recently received a phone call from a certain... individual not too long ago." she addressed the younger female. "He told me you were experiencing symptoms of a stomach flu--"

“--From a major cold! I think I caught a bug or something.” Mint lied quickly.

Martha raised her eyebrows in a look of surprise. "Oh? So you've been carrying this "bug" with you for nearly two months, without even telling us?" she clarified.

Uh oh.

Mint gulped and mumbled something that sounded like "unplanned" as she shifted from one foot to the other.

Her employer placed a hand to her forehead and let out a deep sigh, glossy jet-black hair falling down one side of Martha's face. Martha focused her eyes on Mint again, who was still fidgeting.

"Sweetie, why didn't you tell us you were pregnant?"

"I-I thought I could wing it!" she burst out. "Rue's the father, if you really want to know. And it's not like he's gonna up and leave. What do you care, anyway?"

"Well now I'll have to plan a whole new show! And we need to find a substitute who can dance in your place until after you have your kid.”

Mint could not believe what she was hearing. Her heart rate quickened. They were going to replace her ---the star?

"You're taking away my [expletive] spotlight?!” she cried in disbelief. "Why?!"

"For your safety. And no, I'm not letting you back on that stage. All those lights and the noise....  There's a catastrophe waiting to happen!” Martha yelled louder then Mint.  

George cleared his throat, a gesture meant to attract their attention.

“Minty," He said, trying to smooth things over. "I know this sounds like a big shock, but your own baby's safety is more important than your dancing career. Having said that... the only thing Martha and I can give you is some lighter work in the restaurant kitchens. You're my most popular server; you should be fortunate to still be working for me. I'll ask Tonio to help adjust your uniform next week.”

Martha was not going to let her potty mouth off the hook that easily, however.

"If you can't listen to George, then you can go clean up your dressing room."  

"Why should I [expletive] listen to him?" Mint suddenly spat. "I have practiced too damn hard to drop it all now! I'm not giving away my top spot to anyone. You think you can make me budge by your hand. It's not gonna work. Maybe that's why George is so good at sucking up to you, Martha. Besides, after this meeting's swept under the rug, I'll never stop performing again."    

"That's it. I don't care if you are our burning flower. You're banned."

The pigtailed girl clenched and unclenched her hands to stop them from shaking, her employers and her surroundings blurring. She turned around and stormed out of Martha's office, angrily slamming the door behind her.  

"I'm sorry." Martha apologized to her shield. "She's usually not that snippy."  

"You did all right." George assured his sword.  

~0~

The full moon shone on the little girl's hair, which shimmered like a vibrant inferno as a soft breeze blew the silken tresses around her face. Her eyes, as brown as earth, looked to the horizon as a new day was about to dawn. Rue slowly reached out to touch the child's shoulder. She turned toward him...      

"Rue... Rue... Wake up..."

Wake up? But he was already awake. Unless...

He blinked his eyes drowsily, his vision coming into focus. The first thing he saw was his taskmaster's smiling face.  

"Ms. Kyoni?" With a startled gasp, he roused completely and realized where he was. All the other workers in the training room began to giggle softly, and he blushed a deep crimson before rocketing out of his chair. "I-I'm sorry!"

He hung his head in shame, but his supervisor didn't seem angry.

"Since you missed everything in today's meeting, you are to write a letter explaining your behavior and hand it in to my office." The black watch on her wrist chimed, saving Rue from further humiliation. "Everyone can go off to break. Come back in fifteen minutes at 10:45."  
   
Her employees stood and followed one another to escape the room. Rue did not leave right away, his mind still on that odd dream. That small girl with the red hair... Who was she? What was she?  

"Come on. Let's get moving." Neil penetrated his thoughts.

He turned to follow. "Yeah."

The duo collected their morning snacks from their offices and took them downstairs to the cafeteria. The sky outside was cloudy with a gentle but persistent downpour--- a relief from the warm weather. Rue, however, seemed to have no appetite for his blueberry muffin. Neil watched him stare at his lunchbox, head down.

"Aren't you going to eat?"

"Not hungry..."

"But you're always coming in with yummy leftovers." His friend pointed out.

"I'm alright. I'll eat the muffin in a bit."

"You say that but your face says otherwise."

Rue sighed and explained everything; his uneasiness, Mint's rebellions, all of it.

"Is that why you're quiet?" Neil inquired.

"It is. And to top of it all off she's getting more difficult." He glanced out at the rain with a resigned air, missing the worried look in Neil's eyes.      

~0~

ANGEL IS AN...

Mint finished scrawling the offensive message across the wall, deliberately marking the surface of the grey bricks as she did so. She tossed the spray can back to its owner, passing a couple of gold coins in his direction to thank him for letting her use it.

The delinquent paid her his respects and went on his way.

She observed the alleyway, looking for some other way to vent. Finally, Mint left the back street, hair slipping out of their pigtails.  

"Damnit, still mad... Ugh..." Not quite sure what she had in mind, she made for a nearby bar, then noticed a sign by the wrought iron entry door. "What does that say?" Curious, she moved closer to examine the lettering. "'Score one-thousand points at Pinball and get a free drink refill', huh?"

A warning bell went off in her head. She averted her gaze.

"Nuh-uh. Gotta get back to work... Resist temptation..." Then she reconsidered it. "Argh! Screw them! I can do whatever I want!"

Going for it, she flung open the door to reveal the pub's interior. Glancing around at the rustic furniture, she soon saw rows of cream soda faucets along the back wall, each of them a different type.  

"What to choose..." she paid for a drink at the counter and read the labels. "It has chocolate liquor?!" Enthusiastically  she filled her cup under the drink dispenser, and downed a big mouthful. It was chocolate liquor, but there was some other flavor in it as well, one she couldn't quite identify. That didn't stop it from tasting delicious!  

She made her way across the gleaming floor, mind buzzing, to where the arcade game was waiting...  

~0~  

Rue looked miserably at his reflection in the fountain of the atrium. He did despise disagreements; it usually took away his normal stability.    

"I know that Mint can stand on her own two feet, but she doesn't need to act so high and mighty..."  

"I'm sure she'll understand if you told her." Neil offered.  

"Yeah. But she won't listen no matter what I say. Our baby probably doesn't care either..."

His comrade had to suppress a chuckle at the sight of Rue's tepid expression. "I wouldn't be so sure on that. The two of you complement one another, and I'm positive you'll be harmonious again in no time."

~0~

"That was great..." Mint let the last few drops of liquid land on her tongue, savored the taste and swallowed. She couldn't really remember when she'd ordered her third glass, but she felt incredibly full, and maybe a little queasy too. The interior of the bar suddenly felt stifling. She need to go out... Get some fresh air... Yeah. That would help clear her head.

On the other side of the block, Rue walked down the hall at work, still troubled. He knew -as everyone in the office building was aware- that he was going to be a father in seven months, and although Mint's behavior wasn't making things easy for him, he concluded that he'd have to set aside some time to have a rational talk with her tonight. She was his All-Play and her foreign beauty contrasted charmingly with his fairness, and they shared a bed... Some kind of understanding was going to have to be reached.

He swiped the keycard in his office door and entered, found a fresh sheet of stationary paper from his file sorter and headed toward his ink pen holder to get started on his letter to Asuna. He wrote as much as "Dear Ms. Kyoni..." when he heard the purr of his phone signal an incoming call.

"What part of 'I'm not here' don't they understand..." He grumbled, assuming it was the clerk downstairs informing him about another reporter asking for 'Angel'. Rue picked up the receiver and pressed the 'accept' button. "Hello?"    

"Is that Rue Artema?" said a masculine voice on the other line.

"Yes. This is him." he said automatically. "May I ask who's calling?"  

"Oh --sorry. This is George from 'Mandola'. Mint's manager. I'm calling about the message you left this morning about her condition..."

"Did something happen?"

"Not... exactly. We told Mint that you called out of concern for her health. She didn't take it too graciously. She swore at Martha and caused a ruckus."

"Oh no..." Rue moaned, and rubbed the blue jewel burning uncomfortably on his forehead. "I'm sorry you had to see that. She can be very..." He paused, choosing his words wisely. "Troublesome. I'll smooth things over with her, if you know what I mean."

"Well, best of luck to you, Rue. Let me say that we understand how kind you are to her."

"Thank you, George. Bye." He ended the call, putting the phone down. "Geez... That girl..."

Mint was such an awfully prideful person to have caused so much chaos. A flicker of worry went through him as he spotted a lightened area where a poster promoting Cinnamon's coming show should be.

It was gone.

~0~
 
"I finished the letter, Ms Kyoni." He stepped into the executive suite, with neatly-folded note in hand, and smiled at his superior. "And I made a complimentary drink to go with it."    

"Thanks Rue. You're a good boy." she accepted the brief letter and the cup of lavender tea he handed to her.

For the first time Asuna noticed his unhealthy state.

"You look a little green around the gills." Rue tensed slightly at the concerned sound of his boss's tone. "Is everything all right?"

"Yes."

"Honest?"

"Cross my heart."

He couldn't bring himself to lie to Asuna, but how can he tell her the truth? Finally, he forced himself to look natural and moved to the door.

"I'm going to start another column. Once again I do apologize for falling asleep earlier."

"Don't stress yourself over it. You can call me when you're done with the drafts, ok?"

"At once."

His mood did not improve when he reached the bank of elevators and noticed a photo pinned to the notice board of a graffiti illustration of a pretty cat with a little royal crown on its head, her eyes and tail indicating she was pissed off. Scrawled at the bottom were the words: ANGEL IS AN A...HOLE!          

"She didn't have to say it like that..." With a sigh, he rested his back against the wall and looked out the window. It had been several minutes, and Mint still had not called him. "What is she doing out there?"

~0~

Meanwhile, Mint took shelter under a tree, staring up at the sky. It had been getting progressively darker as she walked, the clouds increasing, their tempers boiling...  

The woman dipped her head slightly at the tiny, tiny flutter she felt within her. Mint frowned. Had that been her imagination?

Her phone sounded an incoming message tone with a quick and light rhythm. She grabbed the flame-red phone by the pumpkin decoration on it and pulled it out of her skirt pocket before flipping it open.

“A message…” The active screen was glowing with brightly animated symbols. In the middle was a notification that the text was from Rue. Mint automatically pressed the large ‘select’ button at the top of the number pad so she could read the message.

"I called 'Mandola' and told them that you're sick. Call me if you feel too unwell to work. I will come and pick you up ASAP." The text showed up on her liquid display.

Her eyes narrowed. So Rue was the one who made that phone call. He must have explained to Martha about her nausea just so he could expose her. Well, Mint was having none of it! Right now, she'll contact him and demand some answers!

Her response was a question. 'Why the hell did you tell Martha I was sick and loaded?'

She waited, but no reply came. She tried calling his personal phone, except all she got was an instruction to leave a voice recording on his voicemail.  

Mint sighed.

Oh, what's the use? she thought despondently. The text was the least of her worries. The problem was that she was depressed. Very, very depressed and bored. There just wasn't anything for her to do. No more grazing on her favorite snack foods, no more dancing in spectacular clothes...

Life just wasn't fair. Sometimes she thought the universe had it in on her.    

“... I'm telling you Angel is a godsend." she heard a voice as she was putting her phone away, and turned at the sound of the conversation on the opposite of the road. "If he hadn't been there, I'd be done for."    

“You would throw yourself off a high-rise building cause' your girl dumped you for another dude. Now Princess Cinnamon... there's a girl who is worth every piece of gold!”

“Get your head out of the gutter, you fool. Sure, she has a nice ass and all... Put her hair up in pigtails and really look into those eyes, she resembles Mint Artema."

"You know the Mint Artema!?"

"Almost everyone in Carona knows of Mint. She is considered by many to be the most beautiful girl in town."

"But who is she?"

"She's that red-haired vixen who works at Mandola."

"You mean she's a common waitress?"

"There's nothing common about her. Aside from her unequalled beauty, there is an air of nobility behind her ruby eyes. No one knows where she came from. There is talk that she is the older sister of East Heaven's currant ruler, Maya Artemecia."

"What would the queen's elder sibling be doing in a small town out in the Yodaya Archipelago?"

"You know how rumours are. No doubt any stories told about Mint are made up by other girls who are envious of her. I'm sure there's no truth in them. She probably nothing more than an angry, conceited, selfish, egotistical little rich girl slumming it in Carona. If she had a handsome young husband to keep her in line, I’d give my own heart out to the poor guy.”  

Tch. At least he treats me better than some other perverted jerk. Mint thought bitterly.

“… It's no wonder everyone likes Rue. He has the makings of an Aeon with his miracle work.”

Whoa, whoa, whoa! You have got to be [expletive] kidding me! Now she was getting mad. Not only were the men referring to her other half as an Aeon, they were saying he was more successful than her! She muttered under her breath, “Sure, he could lose the serious act like it was yesterday’s news—because, oh yeah, it is—and he made me do all that hard work myself on our Dewprism quest. But now, they’re all calling him a god and don’t give a damn about me! Those fools should grovel at my feet, not his!”  

She stomped her foot and hit a tree with one of her rings.

Damn this! Mint gave up being angry and settled herself on the discarded couch nearby. She was so tired, so dizzy. She couldn't remember being so tired.

All she could think of was rest.

She was still asleep, snoring, later that night. Long after the moon had crawled up into the sky, a lone dog came wandering up to the couch, sniffing. It smelled musty but he didn't care. He liked being outside with his master. His ears perked up when he heard his name being called, and he turned away with tongue dangling from his mouth.

Wait a sec...

Suddenly a sweet and floral odor filled his nose. He sniffed the air around him, but the smell was not coming from there. Someone was wearing it, and it was close.

His curiosity became too hard to ignore and he went back to the sight of red hair he'd seen under the ragged cushion on the old sofa.

Johnny Wolf pulled on it with his teeth, revealing the form of Mint who was sound asleep.

~0~

"Ow, my head..." Mint sat up, blinking, and rubbed her head. Her body hurt and she had a headache. She looked around, unsure of where she was.

Her memories of what she did today were a little hazy, but this was clearly not her bedroom. She took in her surroundings. A rustic oak floor with a shag rug on it. Concrete walls. A dresser, a wardrobe and there was a guitar leaning against the wall. For some reason, she was lying on a bed wearing a strange white T-shirt.

The door opened and Rod came in. He grinned when he saw she was awake.

"You're finally up, kiddo." He handed her a glass of some fluid. "Here's some juice. I thought you might need it."

As Mint sipped the drink, she realized how thirsty she was. The orange juice felt nice and cool washing down her throat.

"Um, thanks. What am I doing here?"
 
"Johnny Wolf found you outside."

"How did I get outside?"

"You seriously don't remember? Not a thing?"

She shook her head. Rod sat across from her with a troubled look on his face.

"I was surprised when that dog came running to me all in a panic. He wouldn't stop barking till I followed him." He told her. "Who'd have thought you were right there passed out on that couch. So I carried you inside, got you out of your dirty uniform, and here you are."  

"Wait..." Things were starting to come back to her now. "I went to choreography this morning... My managers took me aside... Told me I can't perform anymore because of the baby... And Rue was the one who ruined my stardom. It's all his damn fault!" she yelled, and she started to cry.

Rod had a good guess what she was thinking, and took her in his muscled arms.

"You can cry as much as you want, Mint. Get it all out."

Mint was no crybaby but her whole body shook with the force of her tears, clinging to him like a child as she buried her face in his shoulder. He held her gently, his hug getting more protective when she didn't push him away.

After a few long seconds, the tears finally subsided, Mint pulling away to look Rod in the face. She couldn't stop a small smile through her tear-stained cheeks as she saw his understanding eyes. "Can I stay here tonight?" she sniffled, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Of course." He assured her, running his fingers through a clean steak of hair. "I think a bath is on the cards for you."      

She nodded in agreement, smiling again. "Lead the way." The suggestion sounded appealing, obviously, and before long he was taking her to the bathroom and turning on the water. Once the tub was full, Rod slipped out of the room to give Mint some privacy.

Taking off the shirt and her underwear, Mint slowly climbed in, the water reaching up to her neck. She lifted her hands out of the water, blinking as she watched them shake slightly. Frowning, she thrust them back into the water.

She had to get a grip; she was stronger than this.