Credit to alty for bouncing off me; this whole story belongs to he as much as I, as this story was written in tandem.
Remmy and Pierre and Nagoya and Paul belong to me
Alton and Joanne belongs to alty

---

CHAPTER 13
Here And Back Again


The following morning, the party bid farewell to the owls and their leader, and a pair of scouts led them to the outskirts of the forest. Their newly furnished travel wear provided them comfort against the cold northern air and snowy terrain as they trudged their way back to the abandoned town.

"We can stop here for a moment and let our raccoon friend out," said Remmy, pulling out the bottle containing Paul and stepping under the doorway to the old inn. The rest followed him into one of the rooms, Alton and Joanne looking in from the hallway to avoid overcrowding the space.

"Alright, Paul," the owl mage said, holding the bottle sideways toward the pillow and grasping the cork, "time for you to wake up."

With a loud pop and the sound of friction against glass, the compressed raccoon spilled out headfirst onto the pillow, his head and shoulders expanding back to their regular shape, followed by his chest and waist, as Remmy pulled the bottle back to pour the rest of him out.

The raccoon's tail poofed out once free from the bottle, leaving only his black feet slightly bulging just under the bottleneck. "Hm! A little stuck. I'll just..."

Remmy sticks the cork in his beak and then carefully grabs the raccoon's shins, which deform unnaturally due to the space/matter-warping magic still affecting his body. He gives them a couple yanks, stretching them before another hollow, squidgy pop accompanies the toes suddenly sliding out. He quickly drops the cork into his other wing and seals the bottle, averting another accidental meal for the enchanted container.

Paul's eyes fluttered open as if waking from a dream, apparently unaware he'd been poured from and pulled out of a bottle.

"Uhm...he-hello, I don't suppose I missed fastbreak?" He crosses his eyes and bats at his muzzle.

"Woah, more scattered than usual. Let me try again. I'm not hungry yet, mind, but then the sun is over...that way..." He looks towards the window and out. "No, wait, it's..." He completely forgets, or abandons, manners as he hops out the window proper to follow his train of thought.

Remmy follows him by leaving out the door, as Nagoya giggles. "Quite the strange one you've collected, hm?"

Pierre nods. "And his...broken mannerisms are a little infectious. Mayhaps he'd be a better performer. Still, while he got in the way of the one battle we were in...he's not ineffective otherwise in transit, and his light fingers could be better pointed. I only wish we could have gotten to know him for longer before action. Compared to the other unintended acquisition - we got to explain ourselves to her and back at the very beginning, and we were all the better prepared to have her."

Joanne sticks her tongue out. "I resemble the remarks. But at the very beginning, I was more guaranteed than Alton."

Alton chuffs. "Sleep for a longer while and it takes a while to awaken."

Nagoya looked at Alton. "So, then it is true. You are the Sleeping Soldier of myth, are you not?"

"I am, Princess," Alton nodded in reply.

Nagoya regarded the tall bird closely, as if for the very first time. After a brief moment of silence, the swan princess laughed from the awkwardness it brought on.

"I'm sorry... but it is a little difficult to describe how I feel meeting such a mythical figure in the flesh. The stories you could tell, the questions people will have, it's all so exciting, but..."

The princess studied the old myth's face as she spoke. He maintained a pleasant smile–or what passed for one among birds–and eye contact, but the smile lessened a bit as she spoke.

"... but you are not a thing to be gawked at or pestered, of course. I would never impose such an obligation. After all, I am in your debt, not the other way around. I want you to feel free to enjoy your life as you see fit."

Alton's smile widened back, closing his eyes and pitching his head down to shake it. "I would happily answer your questions, Princess. In time, I may write down what I remember, so future generations may learn something from my stories. But in the meantime," he looked over to Joanne, "I would very much enjoy traveling the world with a companion who would have me."

Joanne smiled sweetly and placed a hand on Alton's shoulder, rubbing it lightly. Nagoya made a face like she witnessed two feral canine pups nuzzling each other. She reached down and squeezed Pierre's hand before looking at him with an expression that said, "Isn't that so cute?" Pierre squeezed back and smiled, letting himself feel a blush come on without any shame.

"Well, um..." Nagoya cut gingerly into the lovely air, "Sir Alton, there is one thing I have always wondered about the old stories, if I may ask."

All eyes were on her, prompting her to proceed.

"After you were brought back from the dead, and then completed your mission from the gods, why did you return to sleep?"

Alton closed his eyes and inhaled lightly through his nostrils, nodding as he did as if recollecting the ancient memory. With an exhale, he gave his answer.

"Well, Your Highness," he began, "... I'm afraid I don't remember why, exactly."

Alton and Joanne had been holding hands while they spoke, and he gave hers a subtle squeeze as he said that.

"All I can say for now is the gods would not permit me to die. So I decided to rest, having been left weary and alone at quest's end."

Joanne looked up at him. "Alton," she began, the empathetic shock evident in her voice, "that's–"

The wizard enters back in through the door, adventuring pickpocket in tow. "Silly raccoon. Acting in ways that look like you're trying to escape doesn't reflect well on you..."

"Yes...I know," Paul says, head hung a little. "But coming out of there is like a hangover with less headache. Just a dizzy spell as you shake off the haze...no idea exactly how long you've been in there, and your body clock won't agree with your brain. I had to clear my thoughts - and my sinuses."

"I understand that, but that's one more example of casually following your impulses getting you in trouble. Paul...you need to have better control over this."

"I agree with Master Remmy," said Nagoya. "Until we arrive at Altair, you are under our charge. You will not wander off without our supervision. Once we reach my kingdom, you will be free to do as you please within the laws of the land."

The Princess exchanged a glance with Pierre before continuing. "And if you comport yourself well on the journey home, you will have proven yourself reliable enough for an employment opportunity; be it a squire for Pierre, an apprentice for Remmy, or perhaps an agent for the crown. Do you understand?"

After a brief trudge through the bitter cold outside, this address from the royal crane seemed to dispel the raccoon's lingering disorientation. He stood up straight, then stooped into a bow, his muzzle nearly touching the weathered wood floor. "F-forgive this clumborous mammal, Lady Nagoya. I-I have no intent to let you or my-m-m-m-my friends down again," he stammered out, not forgetting the kindness extended to him by the party after his humiliating self-sealing incident.

Pierre chimed in. "You honor me, Princess," he said with a bow of his head, "that I would be a knight in your employ."

"You are my hero, Pierre," she replied warmly without reservation. "And a hero to my kingdom. I would see you as head of the king's guard, should you desire the responsibility."

"I traveled across the land to rescue you, with the help of everyone here. Including my potential squire here," he said, leaning to place a hand on Paul's shoulder and gesturing to him to get up. "I would be willing to take it on, if your father will have me."

"As for me," Remmy interjected, albeit good-naturedly, "I am quite satisfied with my current responsibilities, and would only wish to continue my studies in the comfort of home."

Nagoya smiled and raised a hand to her beak, as if to stifle a giggle. "Yes, of course, my homely master mage. You have earned the respite of a cushy job during peaceful times."

"And, Joanne and Alton," she turned to address the bird and the snake lady, "I would extend the same invitation to you both, to serve in the kingdom if you so wish. But I understand you wish to see the world together. Perhaps you would like to serve as ambassadors of Altair to other kingdoms and nations, even to the Hidden Owls?"

Joanne looked at Alton to study his expression. When he nodded to her with a smile, she bowed her head back to Nagoya and said, "We would be honored, Princess. I certainly will not turn down the benefits of a position that allows for travel," she added with a wink.

Alton smiles with some pride. "A perfect job for a hero during times of peace. It takes such trust to bridge gaps; the right kind of patience and conditioning to make the trip - and good company helps all of it."

Joanne giggles and hisses. "Oh, you!~"

Remmy smiles at the banter, rolling his eyes. "Perhaps I myself will make the trip on occasion, vacation, scholarly trading, or eventual retirement. Their mages are, of course, enraptured with the method that we sealed the Beasts and saved their village - it's not all they know but it's all we gave focus to in conversation. When next we meet...I'll surely learn more of that, if they don't seal away their whole village! But so too do I wish to know what else they know of magic..."

"Be the Holt of Crystal any indication, they know quite a lot," Pierre adds.

"Precisely!"

Nagoya smiles at all the spirited ramblings of a seeker of knowledge. "What next may we encounter on our journeys?" she interjects.

Alton taps at his feathery fingers, one-two-three then back to the second. "We fought the bear, or I did, in a forest after watching a young warrior hold him off. I doubt we'll see him there, but perhaps we should find his village and stop by; though claiming hospitality unoffered would be rude."

"No harm in stopping by," Remmy said, "they're familiar with me already. I could go on ahead and find out if they can accommodate a brief visit."

"That sounds wonderful," said Nagoya. "I confess I have never been to see the Bears at all, save for the few who live in or travel through Altair."

"All the more reason to stop by, then," said Pierre. "You should meet Elliot, the young bear who kept the Altar Beast engaged before we arrived."

"Oh my, truly?"

"Indeed," Alton chimed in. "The boy fought strongly. He managed to warm the Beast up for a one-on-one fight, which we happily obliged."

"Oh, did Pierre fight the Bear?" Nagoya asked innocently, pointing her gaze straight at the swan.

The main four looked at each other for a moment before breaking down into chuckles and guffaws.

"Come now," Pierre managed after composing himself, "her question wasn't so funny."

Nagoya frowned. "What?"

Alton cleared his throat. "It was me, mostly. Remmy aided me in sealing it, but I managed to win the day on my own power...and power up. You know...sportsmanlike."

"It's what we needed, to see what we were up against. I properly steeled myself for the next one, and gladly would have participated had the Bear been in no mood for a solo."

---

After a brief reprieve from the cold at the abandoned town's inn, the party collected themselves and ventured south to the mountains, on the other side of which lay the cave-dwelling bears they had befriended. On foot, the journey took roughly a day to cross the mountain pass, and so they set up camp outside the cave settlement while Remmy went ahead as an emissary. On the way, Paul had expressed an eagerness to learn some basic magic from the mages--simple temperature-based spells from starting a fire to frosting a drink--and managed to do almost as well as one might with a few sticks and kindling to start a campfire. Encouraging nonetheless, for someone only beginning to practice the arcane arts for everyday uses.

"Sticks and weaves, or leaves… magic is awfully tricky," Paul said, trying to will the sparks to blaze from the firewood and leaves.

"You're doing great, Paul," Joanne said. "You seem to have a knack for focusing on details, which is important. But getting the feel for the magic is the other half of the effort; sometimes it happens by itself, take it from me. That's why you have to keep trying."

"Well, eh, L-lady Joanne, " he said, splitting his focus momentarily to express his mild frustration, "what, egh, how do you handle feeling defeated? Such that practice never feels enough?"

"Oh, I'll admit it. I stew in defeat for a bit, and then take a break to do something more fun instead. Like seeing how tall I can stand on my tail, for one."

She demonstrated by lifting about two-thirds of her serpentine body up off the ground, easily dwarfing the likes of Alton or any of the Altar Beasts they'd fought.

"It's a wonderful feeling, like I'm above the world, and all the problems in it."

Alton looked up at the elegantly towering snake lady. Something like a wry smile perked the side of his face. Without her noticing, the bird lifted a feather and teased the snake's exposed "belly" and side, eliciting a jerking motion in the opposite direction. "Augh, hey!" she said in protest.

Alton's smirk widened to both sides of his beak. "Joanne," he said in a mock-menacing tone, "it seems you're somewhat ticklish."

She gasped and moved back. "Alton, don't you dare--!" Her face betrayed an effort to hold back a nervous grin.

It was at this point that Remmy returned from his surprise visit to the bears, bringing back a familiar black bear in tow.

"Ahem," the owl interjected, "everything alright here?"

He was answered with a brief silence, followed by the sudden whoosh of the fire being started, to everyone's surprise. Paul included, his outstretched paws recoiling from the flames.

The bear looks at the group. "There's...two more than last time. That's...the princess? I assume? Who's the other one? And is that supposed to be on fire?"

Joanne grins. "We assume so. I've been trying to teach this tagalong magic; not bad for his first day. How has your village held up?"

"They're proud of me for being the tiniest part in bringing you back victorious, and they wonder if we can rebuild the Altar now. I feel the praise may be too much..."

Alton chuffs. "Nonsense! You did plenty when we needed it."

Remmy nods, grateful. "I'm sorry that we aren't at solutions yet. But we have the dragon, and can work on breaking the curse if and when you're prepared to build."

The bear pumps a fist. "We are when you are and not a day later if we're asleep, an hour later if we're awake, and a minute later if we just ate."

Pierre clears his throat. "Princess Nagoya, Paul. This is Elliot. He wrestled the Bear. Alone. I do not know for how long before we got there."

The Princess bowed her head to the bear. "We are indebted to your bravy bravery, Elliot. If the hour is not too late, would we be welcome to meet with your elders and extend to them our thanks? We would not impose on them anything more, to be sure."

"Oh! No no, Your Highness," Elliot offered with deference, "they would be honored to meet with you, and offer what they have for the rest of your voyage home. Please, follow me."