November, 2011

  Collin frowned as he sat in English css, he had on his school uniform and Nike sneakers. Their teacher Ms. Wrangler was reading The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux out loud. He stared at his book and thought about his pet problem.

  After taking Idris home his family took a liking to the kitten, but he never told them it's a mythical creature. Collin wasn't a big fan of lying because it makes things complicated. But he was able to talk about his knight training with his siblings and yesterday he skipped sword-py. While his parents are more focused on his schooling and sports. Collin understands this because his mom and dad has a love-hate retionship with Casper.

  When school ended he changed into his gym clothes and went to football practice. They did box jumps, sprints, push-ups, tackles, sit ups, jumping jacks, side lunges, zig-zagged through cones, and discussed strategies in their pybook. Coach Graham wanted to test their reaction time as Wyatt ran and caught the football.

  For some reason his friend Hero was out of it as he fumbled the ball, there was a goofy grin on his face. Dude was still on cloud 9 after making out with Helena. Collin felt something simir when he first met the Emo-girl 3 months ago, it was like a magnetic pull.

  After doing research on the supernatural community he learned many things, especially, what a succubus and incubus can do. Seduction & Dream Manipution was a big deal. But ever since Helena told him the truth and he became the Maverick their bond has gotten stronger. Also, Collin's memories were finally back and he was very happy about it. He remembered Helena could py the flute and she knows ballet. When they were little she loved going to the aquarium and she took him flying one time.

  Her favorite color was pink and her birthday is in February, the Swan Princess is Helena's favorite childhood movie, her favorite holiday is Yuletide, Dr. Seuss books was a favorite to read, and Helena is an ambivert. They did a lot of fun things together and now he feels a little guilty for not being there when Helena's parents died. Collin never asked how and he's too afraid to know, but he'll do his best to protect his friend from harm. He really does care about Helena.

  "Collin!" Coach Graham shouted. "Your next!"

  1 hour ter, Collin and Sparky were fighting in their kingdom uniforms. He swung his sword and the elf blocked it as their weapons cnked. So far, his sword and combat skills have improved. Everybody was starting to warm up to Collin and the reason was because of that bruise on Sparky's face.

  Their malee wasn't intense as he dodged and sshed at his opponent's thigh. Sparky gritted his fangs and stabbed with his sword, this made Collin counterattack and disarm the elf. The weapon fell to the ground and everybody was shocked.

  "Victory goes to Collin!" Captain Irving announced.

  Collin took a deep breath and bumped knuckles with Sparky to show respect. This was the first time he actually won a match as the spectators cpped and cheered. He grinned and pulled up his stats.

  [ Name: Collin Saint Rex

  Race: Human

  Sex: Male

  Blood type: AB +

  Title: Maverick

  Css: Knight

  Level: C

  Training Points: 75 ]

  "Alright, you're dismissed!" the Captain finally said.

  "That was amazing," a British voice spoke. It was a teenage girl with light purple skin, bck hair with highlights, gold studs, a neckce, dark eyes, fangs, and pointy ears. She wore an intricate dress with knee-high boots. There were two friends with her and a bodyguard.

  Collin was sweaty and covered in grime as he bowed. From the way this girl was dressed she had to be an aristocrat. "Hello, miss."

  "I'm Una Finnick," she introduced herself. "This is my second time seeing you spar and I'm impressed, Sir Collin.

  "Thank you...dy Una," Collin replied.

  Una smiled at him. "You must be exhausted, please accept this drink as a token of amity & goodwill."

  The guard appeared infront of Collin with a miniature barrel and handed it to him.

  "I hope you enjoy," Una expined. "It's kiwano lemonade."

  "Sir Collin!" Bethany ran over to him. "I'm here to escort you."

  Una bite her lip and sighed. "I guess we'll have to chat another time, farewell."

  After the group left Bethany pointed at Collin and asked. "What is that?"

  "Lemonade," he answered.

  Bethany frowned and snatched the drink from him. "Sorry, I have to inspect it."

  "For what?" Collin frowned.

  "Anything suspicious," the maid expined. "Princess Helena told me to look out for you while your here. This drink could be spiked."

  Hearing this he got very quiet as familiar words echoed through his mind. Fantasy creatures are real and dangerous, be careful. He couldn't afford to let his guard down here because anyone could take advantage of him. The only people Collin can trust is Helena, Captain Irving, Bethany, and the other Mavericks. If he becomes a powerhouse than nobody will underestimate this kingdom.

  "Okay," Collin said.

  "Good!" Bethany cheered. "Follow me."

  A few minutes ter he stood near a bathroom door as Bethany waved goodbye to him. This was weird? Collin would normally just shower at home, but Helena wanted to hang out today. He also noticed the castle looked different as he took off his muddy sneakers and opened the door. Waiting inside were 2 maids and a butler as they bowed.

  "Hi, Sir Collin!" they all greeted at the same time.

  Collin stammered. "Uhh...hello."

  "Bath is ready and the water is from a herbal hot spring," the butler told him as he held clean clothes in his hands.

  "I appreciate it," Collin took off his shirt and then paused because they hadn't left. "Um, do you need anything?"

  The maid smiled. "We're here to assist you."

  His confusion only sted for a second before he blushed and crossed his arms like an X. "No thanks, I'm good."

  "Are you sure?" the second maid spoke.

  Collin took the clothes from the butler. "Yea, I promise."

  "If that's the case we'll be on our way," the butler expined and left the bathroom with the other maids.

  He locked the door and sighed. The bathroom was fancy with marble pilrs, a sink, toilet, triangle mirrors, enchanted stained-gss wall tiles, fish-shaped lights, and a volcano tub with Caribbean water.

  30 minutes ter, Collin and Helena sat in a carriage as they rode through the city. He wore a Victorian shirt, khaki pants, an armband with the Nightingale crest, bck church boots, and a gold pendant. The streets of Xenovia were intriguing as they passed shops and a gold statue of a Jackalope. Helena wore a Gothic shirt, skirt suspenders, fishnet stockings, ce-up heels, lip gloss, a chrome ring, and tinted gsses.

  "You know you're a real stunner," Collin complimented.

  "And you're a real charmer," Helena held his arm and bopped him on the nose.

  "Helena...if you ever need to talk let me know," he expined. "It can be day or night and I'll be there."

  She smiled. "Thank you for everything."

  All of a sudden the carriage stopped and a guard opened the door. "Princess Helena and Sir Collin, we have arrived."

  The restaurant was a cozy cafe with a multicolored sign. When they walked inside it was a little crowded as butlers and maids walked around.

  "Hello, welcome to Abracadabra!" said the host. "Where dreams come true."

  Collin and Helena were escorted upstairs and sat down at a table near the balcony. The host left as they read through the menu, he noticed something off about Helena as she squirmed in her seat.

  "You okay?" he asked.

  His friend nodded.

  I don't get it. How are you immune to fire, but sunlight is deadly? Collin spoke.

  She ughed. "I don't know, call it an allergic reaction. Since I'm a halfling the sun just makes me drowsy."

  "Are you and Hero dating, now?" He remarked. "Dude was so lost at practice today."

  "No," Helena admitted shyly. "I told him I like someone else. By the way, we just received an invitation from the Terebinth Kingdom. They invited us to a dinner party in December and you'll get to meet the other Mavericks."

  "Dope," Collin grinned as a maid came by with their drinks. They both got the Starfruit tea, after that they ordered their food and the maid quickly left. "Do you miss magic school?"

  She smiled as her blue-green eyes sparkled. "Occasionally. We learn how to make potions and draw sigils."

  10 minutes ter, they ate their food. Collin ordered BBQ mb chops with a side of mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables. While Helena ordered Pepper tuna with a side of seaweed sad and sliced lychees. Just then he heard a fsh and turned, but saw nothing odd.

  "I have something to say and I hope you don't think I'm being impertinent," Helena suddenly spoke. "Your boyfriend thinks I'm drop dead gorgeous and I know he's polyamorous. Collin, I really like you and Rafhael. Maybe the 3 of us can be in a retionship?"

  Collin wasn't surprised this time because he knew something was going on with Helena. He had a lot of questions for his childhood friend and wanted to be honest about his feelings. Doing this could open up a can of worms, especially, since their families have bad blood. "I'll talk with my boyfriend and see what he says."

  Suddenly, a pop-up screen appeared. [ Objective: Help the kitchen staff with the dishes to earn 10 training points ]

  2 hours ter, Collin was in his bedroom listening to his mom's recent podcast. It was 6:46 in the afternoon as he id in bed and yawned. He brought some dessert from that cafe and hoped his family liked the Bck Forest Cake. When Collin returned home he saw his siblings pying with Indris as the Caider meowed at him. They had extra goat's milk in the fridge, but he really needed to buy better pet food.

  All of a sudden a pop-up window appeared. [ Objective: Practice sword skills outside and knock down a tree to earn 5 training points ]

  It wasn't completely dark outside yet as Collin summoned his sword and went into the woods. Without wasting any time he used his Dash Ssh to jump and cut several branches. After practicing a few sword techniques he learned from Captain Irving he focused his attention on a rge oak tree. Collin swung his sword in an arc as shadows shot out like hungry snakes and smmed into the tree with a loud snap. Birds cawed as the tree tilted and fell with a thud.

  Ding. [ Reward: 5 training points ]

  He thought about his other skills and that's when his cellphone rang as he answered the call. "Mom, what's up?"

  "Tonight will be stormy," Collin's mom warned. "Also, have you seen Idris? I can't find him anywhere."