Being shaken awake wasn't exactly high up on the list of ways that Lucas would prefer to be woken up, but he'd make an exception for Fay. As he blearily opened his eyes, the first thing that the dark-haired teen saw was his girlfriend's eager, excited face hovering mere inches above him.

  Still half asleep, Lucas didn't even think about it when he leaned up and pressed a quick kiss to his surprised girlfriend's lips. The sight of her pink dusted cheeks was a much nicer way to wake up, in his opinion. Though, once he realized what he'd done, Lucas felt his own cheeks gaining a bit of color as well.

  “What time is it?” He asked.

  As Fay pulled back, Lucas slowly pushed himself up onto his elbows. Dusk, who was sleeping curled up in his chest, growled in protest as her comfortable bed moved beneath her and she slid down into his lap. Both teens chuckled at the sleepy familiar and Lucas was quick to scratch behind Dusk's ears to silence the quiet growls.

  “Just a bit after eight,” Fay replied.

  She watched as Lucas gently moved his familiar onto the bed beside him, still scratching behind Dusk's ears to keep the fox content. Slipping out of bed after that was much easier, though they both knew that the little fox would be awake by the time breakfast was served.

  “Looking forward to today?” Even as he asked the question, Lucas knew the answer. Fay's excitement was written all over her face.

  “Yeah, I am. Also, a little bit nervous and worried,” She replied.

  “You'll do fine,” Lucas consoled as he reached out and took her hand. “You've been practicing for this for years. You'll beat the test with ease and be a member of the Hunter's Guild by the end of the day.”

  “I know. Mom told me the same thing already, but it doesn’t stop me from still being terrified that I’ll mess up,” Fay complained.

  “Are you only allowed to take the test one time?”

  Fay shook her head as she made her way to the door. “No. As long as the Guild Master doesn’t block you from joining entirely, there’s no limit to how many times I can take the test.”

  “Nothing to worry about, then. Besides, it can’t be any harder than parallel parking,” Lucas joked.

  The blank look he got from Fay left him sighing. “Ordinary culture thing,” He mumbled.

  Fay rolled her eyes and laughed quietly as the two teens walked to the kitchen. Lissa was already awake, as usual, but unlike the usual morning routine, there wasn’t any breakfast being prepared.

  “Given what you’re doing today, it’s probably best to eat light. The last thing you want to do is throw up during the test,” The older woman pointed out.

  “Cereal, then?” Fay asked.

  “And fruit,” Lissa agreed.

  Whatever Lucas had been expecting, he was unprepared for Fay to grab a totally normal box of corn flakes out of the pantry. It had the same brand name as the kind he would buy back in his hometown of Shay. It was even the same exact box and everything. It was pretty surprising, though Lucas was left wondering how much better the basic cereal was on the magical side of things.

  Fay poured herself a bowl and passed the box to Lucas. As he was pouring himself some, Lissa tossed her daughter a ripe blood apple that Fay then began to slice and dice up into small cubes that she tossed in with her cereal. Lucas should’ve done the same, but instead he just took a spoonful of the plain cereal.

  He took a single bite and paused, staring down at his bowl and the second scoop of cereal he’d just been about to eat. It tasted like the stuff he’d bought back home, exactly like it.

  “What the fuck?”

  At his outburst, both mother and daughter turned to Lucas. Lissa in particular cocked an eyebrow as she gave him a look. Lucas had the decency to mumble a quick apology for his language, which seemed to appease her.

  “What?” Fay asked in between bites of her own breakfast.

  “It’s just normal cereal. The exact same stuff I have back home,” Lucas explained.

  “Yeah, and?” Fay replied with a shrug.

  “I just thought it’d be something different,” He admitted. “I mean, everything else tastes so much better here, but the cereal is exactly the same.”

  “That’s because it is the same thing, Lucas,” Lissa pointed out. When she saw he was confused, she continued. “We can’t exactly industrialize to the same level that Ordinaries can, so we make do. Stuff like cereal is just easier to buy than to make ourselves.”

  Without electricity, that logic did make a bit of sense. While Lucas figured that runes and enchantments could potentially replicate a lot of modern industrialization, it was also likely that there was a limit he just didn’t know of. That, or it was excessively complicated.

  “So, it’s just normal cereal?” He asked.

  Fay nodded and took another bite. “Yup.”

  Lissa laughed and handed another blood apple to Lucas. “This’ll help. It makes the cereal taste far better when you mix some in.”

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  The rest of his breakfast was much more enjoyable after he took Lissa’s suggestion and added some fresh fruit.

  “Where’s dad?” Fay asked as she began cleaning up from breakfast.

  “Your father is still asleep,” Lissa explained. “He was up late, so I’m letting him sleep in a bit. He’ll be up by the time you two get back, don’t worry.”

  While breakfast did help, Fay still looked a little nervous.

  “Oh, come here, you.”

  Fay could do nothing as her mother pulled her in for a tight hug, and Lucas smiled as he watched his girlfriend visibly relax.

  “Whether you pass the test or not doesn’t matter. Your father and I will be proud of you no matter what. We’ll both be waiting here for when you get back.”

  The two hugged for a few more moments before Lissa let Fay go. “Feel a bit more ready now?” She asked.

  “I would be, if somebody was dressed and ready to go,” Fay teased as she shot Lucas a look.

  While Lucas was happy to see that Fay was in a better mood, he couldn’t just let her get away with throwing him under the bus like that.

  “I distinctly remember you being the one who came and woke me up,” He pointed out. “What, did you want me to change right in front of you?”

  He was rewarded for his efforts when Fay’s cheeks went red at the idea. And she only got more flustered when Lissa started to laugh.

  “Just shut up and go change!” She shot back, rushing and taking Lucas’ empty bowl and pushing him towards the bedroom.

  Lucas was still chuckling by the time he got to his room.

  He nearly stumbled over his own feet as he realized what he’d been thinking. When had he started to consider the room as ‘his’? The more that he thought about it, Lucas realized that the house that Fay and her family had opened up to him was starting to feel like just as much of a home as his real home did. He couldn’t recall when it happened, but he couldn’t deny it.

  If he’d been struggling with the idea of leaving before, the latest revelation just made it so much harder. He ran through the motions of getting dressed, but his mind was elsewhere as he grappled with his own feelings and desires. He knew he had to go back home to his family, but leaving suddenly became far more difficult.

  “Lucas?” Fay’s voice rang out from the other side of his bedroom door. “Come on, we’ve gotta go!”

  With more effort than he was willing to admit, Lucas pushed the thoughts of leaving out of his mind for the time being. Dusk, who’d properly woken up at that point, eagerly hopped onto Lucas’ shoulder and made herself at home. Despite having just woken up, the black-furred familiar wasted no time closing her eyes once again once she got comfy.

  “Lazy little fox,” Lucas mumbled. He still reached up to scratch under her chin, though.

  Throwing the door open once he was fully dressed, Lucas held back a chuckle as he saw Fay’s fist raised to knock on the door.

  “Come on, what are you waiting for?” Lucas joked as he walked past Fay. Hearing her huff behind him just made the raven-haired teen grin.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Despite all of Fay’s worries, they still got to the guild more than half an hour before ten. The first ring was bustling with activity already, and the Hunter’s Guild in particular seemed fairly busy.

  Slipping into the building wasn’t hard, and once they were inside the noise level shot up as Fay and Lucas looked around. The saloon-like building was packed full of people of all kinds. Some were dressed more casually in jeans and shirts while others wore gear, armor, and weapons of all kinds. He even saw a particular man walk past the two and head out the door with a giant greatsword on his back that was as big as the man himself.

  Fay was leading the charge as the two pushed deeper into the building towards the same reception counter they’d gone to the first time Lucas had come to the guild. But as they got closer, Fay slowed her pace and he could see her tensing up. Glancing ahead, he could see why.

  Sat behind the counter, like she had been before, was Clara.

  Luck seemed to be on Fay’s side, though. Before the two teens could get any closer to the counter, a loud voice rang out that cut through the rest of the noise.

  “Kiddo! I had a feeling that you’d be early.”

  Both teens turned to see Leonidas approaching, the man’s black eyes shining with amusement as multiple heads turned to watch the Guild Master.

  “So eager to pass my test that you couldn’t wait? I’m flattered.” He joked. “I know you’ve been waiting a long time for this, but you also know how dangerous being a hunter can be.”

  While he’d been playful at first, the more Leonidas talked, the more serious the silver-haired man’s tone became. And once he finished, Lucas could see a few hunters nearby nodding their heads in agreement. Most of the noise in the guild had quieted down, and many were paying attention to Fay and Leonidas. Lucas couldn’t help but feel a little out of place as he stood at Fay’s side.

  “I know how dangerous it can be,” Fay replied. “But I want to be a hunter, and a little danger won’t scare me away.”

  That seemed to be the right answer, as the Guild Master grinned and Lucas overheard some positive sounding comments mumbled by the guild members in the crowd.

  “You’ve still got that fire in you. Good,” Leonidas nodded. “Let’s get your test started, then. Follow me and we’ll find out if you’re fit to join as a member of the Hunter’s Guild.”

  The Guild Master turned and gestured for Fay to follow him as he moved towards the hall leading to his office.

  Lucas went to follow the two. He was eager to watch Fay beat whatever test Leonidas threw at her, but he was stopped when the man turned and shook his head. “Sorry, Lucas, you’ll have to wait out here.”

  Lucas’ good mood immediately shifted, and he frowned at the man. “What do you mean? Why can’t I come and support Fay?”

  “It’s the rules, kid,” A large, portly, dark-skinned man said as he stepped up and stood beside the teen. “Nobody is allowed to watch the Guild Master testing a new member. The tests are to remain a secret and even those of us who pass or fail never say a word about what we had to do. Nobody is allowed the advantage of knowing what’s coming.”

  Lucas wanted to protest, to say that he wasn’t even going to join the Hunter’s Guild, but he couldn’t. A part of him did want to join the guild with Fay.

  “Hey,” Fay smiled as she turned to Lucas and pulled him into a tight hug. “I’ll be fine. I’ll be back before you know it.”

  She pulled back and kissed Lucas on the cheek, her cheeks going a bit red as some members of the guild laughed and cheered for the ‘cute couple’. Then she turned and followed after Leonidas as the man vanished into the back rooms of the guild.

  Lucas was left alone, tense, worried, and with nothing else to do but wait. Even Dusk’s attempts to nuzzle at his cheek didn’t do much to make him feel less antsy.

  “Don’t worry so much,” The same large man spoke up. “We can’t spoil anything about the test, but I can promise you that the Guild Master ain’t gonna hurt your girlfriend.”

  The man pat Lucas on the back, sending the raven-haired teen stumbling forward from the shockingly strong impact. The reassurance was what he’d needed to hear, though, and he sighed and nodded. The best thing he could do was wait for Fay to come back.

  Though, as he looked towards the door that led to Leonidas’ office, his gaze wandered towards Clara sitting behind the desk. He thought about the way his girlfriend had reacted to the older girl and made a decision. He couldn’t support Fay, but he could try and figure out a way to repair some broken bridges.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~