Hylltywyll was displeased. He didn't take threats against him lightly, even if they were something as small as hitting him with a sandal. No, the one taking threats too lightly was this brazenly disrespectful old woman who actually dared to think she could use him as a cane. Maybe he should turn her into a cane, literally.

He narrowed his eyes at the back of Kou's head as he really though about it, but before he could actually do it, his attention was brough to the equally if not more disrespectful grandson questioning him. For someone who invited him to spend the day with her, Hylltywyll was feeling less and less welcomed by the old lady and her loudmouthed brat wasn't helping.

"Ooh, turn someone inside out? I've never done that before. Maybe I should give that a try. Are you volunteering?" Hylltywyll asked Tarou, a threatening smile on his face. He hadn't tried doing that to someone. It sounded gross, really, and Hylltywyll didn't like the idea of doing something so messy. He was mostly just trying to mess with Tarou. He wouldn't mind turning him into an orb again though.

Kou seemed oblivious to the innocent little conversation between the two boys. Hylltywyll glanced over to the nerd eating a sandwich and shrugged. Eh, he'd do. He didn't look like that exciting of a target to Hylltywyll. He didn't care about political offices and all that. He'd pranked nobles and high ranking Mage's Guild members before. Some city official wasn't a big deal.

"You're really stuck on that soap thing..." He mumbled, one eyebrow raised as he looked down at Kou. "Fine, watch this."

He jumped off of Kou and vanished from sight as he landed in the shadow being cast by the old woman. With an unseen wave of his hand, a shadow began to spread over the park as the sky suddenly became overcast with thick clouds. Already, several happy parkgoers had their lovely day disturbed, but Hylltywyll didn't even care about them at the moment.

With the clouds offering the cover of shadow, he had free reign to go wherever he pleased unseen. He scampered directly over to the city official who was looking up in confusion at the sudden appearance of the clouds. With quick, unseen hands, the badge on the official's chest vanished, along with the coin purse in his pockets, and a lovely hair pin in the bun atop his head. Finally, completely unnoticed by him, the sandwich in his hands was taken away and replaced with a bar of soap.

The official couldn't make heads or tails of the unexpected weather, so he just shrugged and went back to eating his lunch. He took a bite of what he was expecting to be the home made egg salad he had brought with him and instead tasted the bitter, waxy, revolting flavor of the hand soap he usually loved the smell of.

He spat the soap out and retched, not noticing as his hair that was supposed to be tied in a tight bun fell over his eyes which had suddenly been left exposed without the glasses in front of them. He stood up and leaned forward, not noticing as his silk robe fell open in front of him, the shiny silken sash holding it closed around his waist missing.

Hylltywyll reappeared, perched on Tarou's shoulder, munching on a sandwich. A city official's badge was pinned to his poncho and a silk sash was tied around his waist. A silver hair pin with a pretty, gem-centered flower design on the end was in his hair which now had a tiny purple bun on top of his head.

When he finished the last bite of the pilfered sandwich, Hylltywyll licked his lips and looked at Kou with a bored expression.

"There, I did your little soap prank. Happy?"

---

Overcast
One With the Shadows
Quick Palm

“I’ll turn you inside out if yer so excited to try it.” Tarou’s threat was a coarse growl in the back of his throat. This exchange, Kou did not miss. She leveled a glower at her grandson that said play nice, please. Tarou really wasn’t sure what the hell Gran saw in this little rat holding onto her shoulder, but she seemed like she was havin’ a good time, so he could stand to suck it up for a while and let her have her fun. He didn’t have to like it. In fact, he hated this entire situation. The last thing Gran needed was to be taken advantage of by this ghost rat. Hell, they were supposed to be spendin’ the day together, rarely as they got to these days while he was busy with his gang, and all this Crescent Stars bullshit, and Gran was off on her own adventures. If he couldn’t give her a good day, to the point where she felt like she’d have more fun with something that crawled out of a gutter… what the hell good was he?

He didn’t fault Gran, of course. Couldn’t fault her. It was no one’s fault Tarou had no idea how to be part of a family.

Sullen, all he could to was stand back while Kou watched Hylltywyll terrorized this government official. At least Tarou could get behind fucking with shills from the crown. He watched, jaw clenched, while the shadows danced around the dupe – none the wiser to the fact that his belongings were being stolen. The little fucker moved gracefully and swiftly, like a charlatan accustomed to using misdirection and cruel tricks to draw one’s attention from the real cruelty.

Kou didn’t seem especially phased by Hylltywyll’s magic; rather, she clapped her hands together like she was watching an especially amusing play. Mostly, she was just overjoyed he’d indulged in her soap prank. To a vicious prankster, it might not have seemed like much, but she was having the time of her life.

(Or perhaps the real prank all along was that Hylltywyll had somehow found himself playing jester to one of the most boring women in the whole of Starlight City.)

When he returned, Kou’s eyes were practically sparkling with excitement.

“Oh, I am!” She nodded. “How marvelous! You’re so talented, Hylltywyll!” She was rather glad that they weren’t fighting anymore. Though it had been fun to go back and forth, she didn’t have the stamina to keep up with his endless energy. Though she could still enjoy the fun of it all. “Oh, I know – do you think you could make two people swap clothes? Imagine their surprise when they notice they’ve found themselves in different attire than what they left the house in!”

Meanwhile, Tarou was staring thoughtfully at the government official’s badge that Hyltywyll had stolen. “I dunno, Gran, you might be thinkin’ too slow. This badge looks like it belonged to someone real fancy. Bet if we stole some more fancy clothes, we could parade around the town and just start askin’ people to do shit for us, the way a real official does.”

There was a dangerous smirk on his face now. Maybe there was some fun to this whole prank business after all.

"Hmph." Hylltywyll raised his chin with a smug smile. Finally, this old lady was showing him a bit of respect after seeing what he could do. Of course he was talented, he already knew that, but it was nice to hear someone else say it out loud.

His smug smile dropped as he looked down at Kou from atop Tarou's shoulder, one eyebrow raising and mouth slightly agape. Seriously? Swapping people's clothes? Why were all of her prank ideas so boring? Now, stealing someone's clothes and leaving them naked in public, at least that would be a bit more funny, but still a step below Hylltywyll's standards.

Hylltywyll looked at the stolen badge as Tarou pointed it out and listened while he gave his suggestion. He didn't even care that this thing was an official's badge when he stole it, he just thought it was shiny, but that wasn't a bad idea. Stealing some more fancy clothes would be easy too.

"Heh, I can do that." He said with his own smirk. He didn't voice that this idea was better than Kou's or that he was surprised the stick in the mud grandson was actually capable of making a fun suggestion.

Looking around, there were a few options of who he could rob of a few fancy garments. The official himself was still dressed pretty nicely even without his accessories. And he was still gagging from the taste of soap. What a priss. There was also someone riding in a rickshaw with some pretty nice robes. He looked half asleep, but him sitting would make it a little difficult to get his clothes off of him. He also couldn't actually tell if those clothes would suit a government official.

"Let's go somewhere else before that guy stops gagging and you pick someone with fancy clothes for me to rob." Hylltywyll suggested, grabbing one of Tarou's horns to keep himself stable while they walked.

“Ooh, that sounds fun!” Kou did not seem too offended by the fact that Hylltywyll was more interested in Tarou’s prank than her own. It was virtually the same prank anyways, but Tarou’s had an achievable end goal; namely, the crime of impersonating a government official.

One would think her recent excursion to Sol City which shan’t be discussed would dissuade her from doing anything crime-adjacent, though perhaps she’d not learned from her mistakes. Or perhaps she loved her grandson so much that she believed so wholeheartedly he’d never do anything nefarious.

Well, that was where she would be wrong, because he was a wanted gangster, political terrorist, and enemy of the crown.

And he had an idea. A terrible, wonderful idea.

He did see the sleeping gent in the cart, though Tarou was of the same opinion of Hylltywyll that this would be a lot more difficult to deal with. “Nah. Better to steal straight from that guy. He’s got the uniform for it.” Tarou paused. “… Think you could switch his clothes with mine? I think I got somethin’ that’ll be real interesting.”

He’d then pull a poster out of his pocket - a wanted poster, just for Hyll to see. It kinda looked like Tarou, but with enough smudging and plausible deniability that it could be anyone. What was important was the dragon symbol emblazoned on the breast pocket of his robe. A coiled dragon, which was also depicted on the poster.

The plan was simple, but Hylltywyll would surely appreciate it. Swap clothes with Tarou. Get this dude arrested by some nearby guards all while wearing his clothes and flashing his badge around. Make out like bandits with his things… probably use his badge to get free shit. And dinner. Definitely dinner.

Impersonating a government official is a serious crime that can have serious consequences. However, Hylltywyll loved committing crimes, and didn't believe in consequences for his actions, so that wasn't going to stop him at all.

Hylltywyll thought about it, with a knuckle against his chin. It was still switching people's clothes, but it was definitely more interesting than just doing it to confuse a couple of random strangers. He glanced at the official he'd already robbed, and saw he was just about recovering from his taste of cleanliness. He was now spitting on the ground, probably trying to get the soap taste out of his mouth. How uncouth for someone of his stature to be spitting in public! Hylltywyll chuckled.

He gave the poster Tarou held up in front of him a look over with a smirk. Looked like this grandson wasn't a sweet innocent kid like his granny thought he was. He did look and act like a thug, what with the muscles and all the threats he threw at Hylltywyll. It really wasn't surprising to see a wanted poster for him. The poster really didn't do a good job of getting his good side, if he had one, but he was at least recognizable from the dragon symbol on his robe. Hylltywyll was surprised he would actually still be wearing that since it was on his wanted poster.

Stealing from someone was easy for Hyll, but stripping them naked and then completely redressing them would be a bit more difficult. He hadn't really tried it before. Giving things back to people wasn't really his forte.

"Hmmm, I think I can do it, but I'll need you to do what I say." He replied and then jumped off Tarou's shoulder, onto the ground next to him. He put one hand on Tarou's leg. "Don't touch anything and stay quiet."

With that, Tarou started sinking into the shadows, Hylltywyll pulling on his clothes and shoving to force him down into the darkness faster until he completely vanished, Hylltywyll's hand going down into the shadows too as he pushed on the top of his head before pulling it back out.

He glanced at Kou and chuckled before scurrying off to do the same to a very startled government official. With both men in his own personal domain of pitch blackness, switching their clothes was easy. With the help of a little of his magic, he was pretty sure the guy didn't even know what was happening. He just shouted for help, but no one could hear him in here.

Hylltywyll was thorough, making sure to switch everything except their underwear. He was even pleasantly surprised to find some nice trinkets on the guy he had missed while he was pickpocketing him the first time. This guy had some deep pockets in his robe. Well, now Tarou had some deep (but empty) pockets in his robe.

When he was all finished, he ejected the guy back out onto the grass on his back, taking a moment to hit the back of his head just a little extra hard to make the dork think he must have fainted and fallen off his seat or something. Something that would let him rationalize being in nothing but darkness for a few minutes. Just a gentle concussing.

Hylltywyll ran back over to Kou and pulled Tarou out of his shadow, now wearing the finest robe a government official could own. Reluctantly, Hylltywyll also gave him the official's badge to pin to his chest, and the sash to keep his robe closed, but he kept the hairpin and other accessories for himself.

"Done. Now for your part." He told Tarou expectantly. He did his part, and now he expected the thug grandson to do his.

---

Hylltywyll's Shady Shelter
Shadow Sight
Pass Without a Trace
Minor Trickery

Yes, it was more than a bit stupid for the leader of a notorious gang to go around wearing his own symbol on wanted posters. No one ever accused Tarou Miyami of having brains – though the sin of pride, he possessed aplenty. It helped he had a fair number of dirty guards and low-ranking administrative officials in his pocket, so whenever he did go out in public, it was rare he’d run into trouble. Now, though… he was actively begging for it to come to them.

Tarou pursed his lips at the prospect of being told what to do by a little rat he could punt like a football, but he respected the hustle. In the gang, everyone had their parts to play. The muscle, the brains, and the thieves. Right now he was just workin’ with a thief he wasn’t familiar with, that was all.

“Right, right…”

He held his breath while Hylltywyll worked his, uh… magic, in the literal sense – not sure if even breathing would fuck up what was about to happen. By the time that Hylltywyll switching their outfits, Tarou’s face was red.

He sucked in a breath and looked down at himself.

Man, he looked pretty fancy.

“Now this is exactly what I’m talkin’ about.” He grinned. He might not’ve been a full fellblood the way gran looked – he didn’t have all their features – but he sure did have a demon’s smile.

Kou clapped her hands together; she’d missed the conversation between Tarou and Hyll, but she recognized that they’d pulled off her clothes swapping prank all the same. “Oh, how wonderful! And no one got hurt!”

Would that it was the truth.

“Exactly.” Tarou lied. He didn’t like fibbing to his gran, but he figured he was already going to hell anyways. Besides, she looked like she was having fun, and this rat fucker had stopped terrorizing him because his attention had been diverted by the task at hand (and the prospect of a better reward than fucking with an elderly woman who could do no wrong, ever), so it was a win-win. He pinned the official’s badge to his chest and put a hand on gran’s shoulder. “Hey, gran, that guy looks pretty rough. Why don’t you go check to see if he’s awake!”

Kou cast a sideways glance at the unconscious gent. It certainly looked like he’d only hit his head…

“Alright then!” She said, as chipper as ever, before hobbling her way over to where the young man lay. How could this have happened? It had been too fast for her to see, as blurry as her failing vision was. Tarou’s clothes were a little loose on him. She hoped he would not be too upset when he woke, though she figured he’d get a good laugh out of it as all was said and done. Utterly ignorant to the rude awakening this man was about to receive, she shook his shoulder. “Young man!”

He shot up like a crossbow bolt.

“WUH-“

Unfortunately, with enough force to knock his head against hers where she was leaning over him.

“Ow!”

Kou staggered, rubbing at her fragile forehead where the official had hit her. It hurt more than she anticipated. At the same time, the official was still gathering his bearings, trying to figure out how the hell he’d fallen asleep… and where in the world his jacket and sash had gone. While he was fumbling, and Kou was still hurting from the blow, Tarou whistled at a pair of approaching guards who had polearms slung over their shoulders.

“OI! LOOK OVER THERE! That’s the leader of the Defiant Drakes, harassing an old woman! Arrest him!” It was fortunate that there truly was little separating those on the side of the law and those against it; little, save the dividing line of their morals. Yet Tarou carried himself like a leader. In this uniform, no one was going to question him.

“Huh?” The official raised his head, as if part of him realized he was being addressed. “No, I had nothing to do with this!”

The guards saw the dragon patch on his new outfit. They saw Kou clutching at her forehead.

Did they really need any more reason than that?

“GET AWAY FROM THAT WOMAN IN THE NAME OF THE LAW!”

Both men raised their spears and started dashing after the poor bastard. The official picked himself up, eyes wide. “No, you have to believe me! I didn’t do this! I’m no Drake, check my badge-“ It was then that he patted his chest… and his face turned white as a sheet realizing something had been taken from him.

And then he ran.

And then he tripped on Tarou’s pants legs.

The guards were on him in an instant. There was no denying it. His goose was cooked. He was about to learn exactly what it meant to be on the bad end of people who were just waiting for an excuse to snap.

Tarou moved to grab Kou. “Come on, let’s get outta here before they finish what they’re doin’.” He winced as he turned away from that bloodbath. Oof. Yeah. That was brutal.

Being a Fae, Hylltywyll couldn't tell a lie. But that didn't mean he couldn't keep his mouth shut and act innocent. Yeah, no one got hurt, as far as Kou knew. And he felt no need to say anything to change that.

Hopefully she just didn't turn around as the group rushed away from the man being beaten to a pulp for a simple case of mistaken identity. Oof, that had to hurt. These guards were a lot less gentle with their concussing than Hylltywyll was. He'd be feeling that for a while, whether he managed to prove himself innocent or not.

Hylltywyll looked down at Kou, the little old lady rubbing her forehead with one hand as she was being pulled along by Tarou's grasp on the other. Well, it looked like she was wrong about nobody getting hurt, in a way she actually knew about.

There sure was a lot of head trauma going on in this general area, from a slight bonk with a sandal, to- Oh wow, that's a lot of blood. Someone should probably stop them.

Anyways.

Hyll took a little pity on Kou once they left the park, rounded a corner, and couldn't see the bloody scene behind them anymore. He reached a hand down from Tarou's shoulder to tap a finger on the top of Kou's head. Immediately, a dull purple glow washed over her for just a moment and healed her of her injuries.

There, now she was fine, and maybe the doting grandson would get off of Hyll's back a bit. He knew he was still suspicious and unhappy with his presence. Maybe he should put him back into his shadow again and let him hold his breath until he passed out. The thought put a smile on Hyll's face, especially knowing there was no need for him to hold his breath in there. But, like with Kou, he felt no need to say anything about it.

Looking around, the street was a lot less crowded than the park. Here and there, Hyll could see a couple sitting at a table sharing a meal or walking down the street holding hands. Oh, right. With all the action in the park, he almost forgot today was Hearth Day. His mood dipped and the smirk on his face dropped. Well, whatever, He was spending Hearth Day with these two bozos. That was the deal.

He ignored all the couples and tried to find something else to look at while they walked down the street. And he spotted something he liked.

He let out a small "Oooh..." as his gaze locked onto a small stall on the street. Alongside it, a rack had a selection of different robes and other clothing on display. Most of it even looked like it could fit Hylltywyll. Probably clothing made for children, but it was surprisingly nice quality. Maybe this stall catered to more wealthy clients or something. Actually, this whole street felt a bit on the upscale side with the restaurants feeling a lot more classy than any ramen bar.

With his stolen clothing, Tarou actually blended right in around here. Maybe this was where that government official guy had come from.

---

Major Healing

The state of the Crescent Isles justice system was a sad one. But that was neither here nor there, and a far deeper conversation about laws and politics for today. So Tarou gently led Kou away from the complete and utter decimation of the poor asshole he’d screwed over, back down the streets before those guards wisened up to the fact that they’d been played.

“Oh my…” Kou murmured, still trying to catch up to what just happened. “Is he going to be alright? He didn’t hurt me too terribly bad…”

“He’ll be fine.” Tarou lied, bringing her out of the park. At the same time, Hylltywyll tapped her on the forehead, and the minor injuries she’d sustained from the bump cleared right up.

She beamed at him, moving to pat Hylltywyll on the head, if she’d let him. “Oh, thank you, dearie! I feel right as rain.”

They’d wandered away from the park Tarou had originally brought her to - where Hylltywyll had been causing mayhem. They were in some upper-scale part of town now… a far cry from the neighborhood where Kou’s restaurant had been located, but just the kind of world that high class patrons would come from in the rare occasions they deigned to visit the seedier parts of town. On rare occasions, they might even find Kou’s food good enough to request her services as a caterer. As if they could not stand the prospect of showing their face in lower class establishments to eat food they enjoyed.

They were always the sort of demanding clients Kou could not help but dread.

She loved all people, of course… though it was difficult to, when they’d never bothered to take the time to respect her; because of her blood, her status, her lifestyle.

Atypical as it was, Kou was much more content like this.

“I am having a very good time.” Kou remarked to no one in particular - perhaps meant for both Tarou and Hytywyll. Tarou had been planning on taking her to one of these fancy establishments for dinner… a reservation they’d long since missed, but Kou didn’t mind one lick. She was with her loved one, and she felt as if they’d made an unexpected new friend along the way - one who’d livened the day far more than she’d anticipated.

It made her feel like she didn’t need to be coddled to have fun.

“I am glad you joined us today, Hylltywyll. It has just simply been so fun!” Her odd definition of fun notwithstanding.

“And it’s only about to get even more fun, Gran.” Tarou, too, was having a surprisingly good time, in no small part because he’d been able to so thoroughly screw over the government while entertaining Kou. And now he had unlimited access to a badge, and he looked like he belonged here. He noticed Hylltywyll had spotted a place that was rather fancy. Gran could use some clothing like that, too. Not to mention he could pawn off some of that jewelry to make some cash.

Tarou stormed up to the vendor - a mousy looking man - and flashed his badge.

“Official government business. Give me everything these two here want from your wares. This is a matter of upmost importance for furthering the interests of the Emperor and the Princess.”

It was time for them to tear up the streets. Didn’t just belong to those rich fucks no more.

The vendor looked startled at Tarou and eyed the badge for a moment. He looked like he wasn't expecting this, but didn't argue. He couldn't argue seeing that official's badge on the man. Maybe he'd delt with unreasonable demands before. In a high class neighborhood like this, unreasonable and demanding customers were probably more common than polite and courteous ones.

"Oh, uh, yes, right away. Please, help yourselves, madame and... uhhhh...." He stuttered, looking at Hylltywyll and not knowing what to address him as. "Your pe-" He started and Hylltywyll's eyes narrowed with displeasure at being called a pet. ""-eeeculiar... " He continued and Hylltywyll still gave him a displeased look. "...ly... handsome... creature?" He corrected himself slowly, trying very hard not to offend. He let out a sigh of relief when Hylltywyll looked satisfied enough with the compliment.

Hylltywyll hopped down from Tarou's shoulder onto the top of the clothing rack and sifted through the clothing on display, looking for something he liked. Soon, he did find something nice. A deep blue haori jacket with a black silk lining on the inside and a printed pattern of flowers in silver along the bottom and the edges of the sleeves. It looked incredibly luxurious. Too luxurious for a child. Maybe this vendor tended to serve Dwarves or Gnomes? What kind of crazy person would dress their toddler in something this expensive when they'd grow out of it in no time? Unfortunately, in this area, that wasn't uncommon.

Hylltywyll took his poncho off and slipped it into his shadow before he put the jacket on and looked happy.

"Oh, that looks lovely on you. I think it would match wonderfully with this, and... ah yes, these." The vendor said, going into sales pitching mode and offering Hyll some more clothing. A kimono that, while high quality, had no pattern on it. It was just a dark blue color with a black sash. Admittedly, it did compliment the patterned haori nicely. He also offered a simple pair of black shorts to go with it and Hylltywyll put it all on along with a nice cone-like woven hat that cast his head in shade. He wanted something to replace his hood.

Hylltywyll smiled and spun around, like a child showing off their new outfit. The clothes fit him surprisingly well. It was hard to notice, but he had actually changed his own form slightly. It was easier for the little Fae to change their form to fit the clothing than to change the clothing to fit them. He was less hunched, and his legs less bent. He almost looked like a normal, though very hairy and with bird feet, child. He really fit the image of a yokai even more now.

The vendor was glad to be finished assisting one customer and turned his attention to assisting Kou with anything she needed. He even offered Tarou some accessories to match his current outfit. This guy was a true salesman. It was a shame he was being swindled.

---

One With the Cosmos

“Oh, Tarou, I assure you, I’ve no need for any new clothes!” Kou insisted, staring down at the frayed sleeves of her robes. This one was from Tarou himself, though her own wear and tear on it had already left it looking… well-loved. It was nicer than anything she’d ever owned before. And looking at these pieces hanging from the hangers, Kou was struck with the feeling these were worth more than she could make in a year.

It felt wrong for her to have this.

Tarou, who did not understand the sheer magnanimity of wearing clothes you were never meant to touch; of knowing if you wrecked it then you’d destroyed something worth more than you’d ever make in your life; shook his head and pointed his thumb at the vendor.

“It’s fine, Gran. Look, he’s cool with it.”

“Yes, yes, of course!” The vendor was already ready to cater to their needs, not wanting to piss off the surly government official who could snap his spine with one hand. If the old lady and the rat monster wanted clothes, he’d give them clothes.

Kou sighed. “Well, maybe just one piece…”

She eventually settled on a dress for the summer, one with soft sunrise pinks and oranges which reminded her more of peaches than the morning sky. It was still a rather pretty piece, and it looked like it was the cheapest thing here.

Once she’d made her selection she turned to Hylltywyll, who had already donned a rather dashing kimono. “Well aren’t you the fanciest fellow in all the nine lands?” She gushed, delighted that he appeared to be having fun. She’d try to punch his cheeks and straighten his outfit, if he let her. With the garb on, he looked like he blended right in with their little family! “Ooh, you picked such a good color, dearie!”

Meanwhile, the salesman was fitting Tarou with a scarf and new gloves.

“Refresh my mind, sir… how exactly will this help the Princess?”

“Keep your nose where it belongs.” Tarou threatened, and the salesman did not ask again. “And pack up a few more of these dresses for me to take to go.” If Gran wasn’t gonna take them, then he would for her.

Within minutes they’d cleared out almost the entire shop; picked dry like a buzzard picked at bones.

Hylltywyll put his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest with a raised chin and an approving smile. Well, of course he picked a good color! How could he not? He was a Fae of impeccable taste. Impeccable taste for someone who usually wore very little clothing, anyways. He didn't really need clothing since his fur covered everything that needed to be covered, but this wasn't so bad. He liked how flowy the robe was and the hat gave him plenty of shade. He'd cut some holes in it later for his ears.

Tarou might have been a bit more of a threat, but Hylltywyll preferred the ride that didn't feel like it would collapse under his meager weight. The old lady was frail and seemed like she could collapse just from her own weight at any moment without her cane. Hyll also just liked being higher up, and Tarou was much taller than Kou. His shoulder was definitely a better ride. And, with his hands occupied by all the bags of extra dresses he insisted on buying for his dear granny, Hylltywyll was confident Tarou wouldn't be able to take a swing at him faster than he could react. He did have to admit the guy was strong though, judging by him carrying basically a whole stall's worth of clothing down the street.

With a bit of clothes "shopping" done and the group now looking like they really belonged in such a high-class area, as long as no one questioned what the small purple creature riding on the large man's shoulder was, they walked down the street to find their next stop.

Hylltywyll finally saw what he was pretty sure was a restaurant. He couldn't read the Crescent Isles language. He had only fairly recently learned how to read the common language, but it looked like a restaurant. He could even smell something delicious wafting out of the propped open door. It looked really fancy, and even the faint sound of some instruments being played drifted out of the door as well.

"Let's go there!" Hylltywyll said as he grabbed one of Tarou's horns and pointed to the restaurant.

It would be some time before the shop vendor wisened up to the fact that he’d been conned. By then the trio would already be off at another part of city, enjoying the fruits of the ministry’s labor. That was to say, taking advantage of the privilege of a government official had its perks! Tarou was already all geared up and ready to see what profit he could squeeze out of this venture yet.

Meanwhile Kou herself had already grown quite hungry. Having her magic drained by a little creature had certainly taken a lot out of her - and fatigue, at her age, was an affliction one could not so easily bounce back from. Normally she’d prefer to cook for friends, but… ah, this was supposed to be a day off, right?

“I agree! Tarou, let’s go there!”

Tarou grumbled as Hylltywyll tried to swivel his horns around but complied, only because he was also getting hungry and if nothing else he’d like to get a good meal outta all this.

The place was bougie. The kind of eatery that made your eyes bulge when you looked at the prices and made your wallets hurt when you paid. Good thing they weren’t gonna need to do that today! Confident, Tarou strolled up to the host taking names at the door, and flashed his bag with all the swagger he could muster. Which was quite a lot.

“Official government business. My group and I are gonna need a table and food, uh, effective immediately. On the house.”

The host, unfortunately, was smarter than the shop vendor. “I’m sorry sir, and how exactly is this government business?”

“Because I’m a government official, and I’m hungry. And I demand you feed my Gran and her friend here before I call on the guards because you questioned an order from a superior officer.”

If he had any doubts, the threat of personal harm shut them up immediately. The host paled and nodded, writing down something in his notebook. “Very well. But your, um… pet will have to sit outside. Restaurant policy, I’m afraid.”

“He will be coming with us, thank you very much.” Kou insisted. “And with a seat at the table, too!”

The host looked like he was about to have a fit when Tarou flashed his badge again, daring him to act out of turn.

Within minutes the three were seated with menus and drinks. Kou kicked her feet in the air, too short to fully reach the ground, beaming with excitement. “Wow! I can’t believe these kind gentlemen gave us this table for free! What do you think you’re going to eat, Hylltywyll?”

Hylltywyll scowled at the host as he dared to call him a pet. That was just insulting! He was even wearing such nice clothes. How could this guy call him a pet!? He was content to just let Tarou handle the talking to get them in. Calling him Kou's friend was a strong word, but he was fine letting that go. But being called a pet? This guy was going to pay for that.

His eyes never left the host as the group was lead to their booth. His head turned, his narrowed eyes locked with the man who looked a little nervous.

Sitting in their booth, Hylltywyll's little legs dangled in the air beside Kou's kicking feet, the tiny Fae even shorter than the old woman. His eyes barely peaked over the table, his fingers on the edge of it. He slid a menu off the table and took a look, unable to read any of the words. Hmph. How many languages did people have to write in? Wasn't learning common enough? None of these letters even resembled the common ones at all!

He grumbled and looked over at the next table over, a couple sharing a platter of little things, holding them between sticks and feeding them to each other. Nauseating. But, whatever they were eating looked good. It looked like pieces of fish or something rolled up in rice or placed on top of a little lump of it. Some of it also looked like it was wrapped in some black paper. They looked like they were enjoying it.

"I want that." Hylltywyll said to Kou, pointing to the loving couple's plates.

The eclectic trio was seated… rather uneventfully, all things considered. Kou almost expected something to happen, or for Hylltywyll to get upset at someone calling him a pet of all things. But no, he took a seat with them, his little feet dangling off the chair while they waited for their food. Kou’s stomach growled, a reminder she needed something to replenish her energy. She perused the menu, searching for something fulfilling to eat, only to goggle at the prices. 50 solars for a single plate of three slices of sashimi with a little bit of rice? 60 for a bowl of soup?

What kind of restaurant was this?

“There better be gold flakes in this soup!” She grumbled, all too aware of the total of five solars she carried in her pocket - evidently, it was small pennies to such a prestigious place. Kou might have even felt insecure if it weren’t for the fact that she could see the food going out to nearby tables… if it could even really be called that. It looked more like little bits and bites of fish with leaves draped decoratively on porcelain plates. If this was the way rich people lived, then she wanted nothing to do with it! All pomp and no circumstance.

Oh, well. At least it was free.

She looked over at the dish Hylltywyll was pointing to, then back to the menu, only for her heart to stop in her chest. 140 solars, all for a few pieces of unagi sushi?

“I could make better sushi than that, I’m sure.” She muttered to herself. “Though so long as it’s free, I’m not opposed to trying!”

She waved down a waiter and gave them her order - sushi for Hylltywyll, a bit of oyster soup for her, and Sol City crab and sake for Tarou, who had already made himself at home in his seat. Once she was done Kou reached into her purse, pulling out a few star candies which she deposited into the waiter’s palm. “Here. Have some candy, dearie. For your hard work.”

“Thank you… ma’am.” The waiter said, squinting at the wrappers of the candies which had just been gifted to him. A cheap sweet from a cheap brand. And there was still a tag on this elderly woman’s clothes. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say they weren’t government officials at all!

He put their order in with the chef, but if any of the table’s occupants happened to look over towards the host, they’d see the waiter chatting with him suspiciously while they waited for their meal.

Hylltywyll narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the host and their waiter speaking to each other, the waiter casting glances back at their table occasionally as he did so. Hmm. That didn't look good. If he had to guess, these guys were suspicious of them. Not really surprising, given the old lady with the price tag wagging off her robe behind her and handing out cheap candies, the man that looked less like a government official and more like a criminal, which he was, and the handsome, powerful Fae being that was too good for this place.

The waiter didn't even bring them any water.

"I'll be right back..." Hylltywyll mumbled to the two others in the booth before sliding off of his seat and under the table. In seconds, he was darting from table to table, his form hidden by the shadows of seated patrons that seemed to stretch just a little unnaturally to provide him an uninterrupted path. He arrived beneath the host's podium while they were still speaking.

"There's no way that guy is really government official. He looks like he eats children. Who would elect a government official like that!?" The waiter whispered.

"I dunno, I wouldn't be surprised..." The host shrugged, but nodded. "But yeah, I don't think he really is either. That whole group is suspicious. What government official demands free food when they enter instead of waiting until the check arrives and making a scene?"

"We should call the guards." The waiter said, looking toward the table again and then glancing around. "Wait, where'd the little purple thing go?"

"Right here."

The two looked down with fear as the answer to their question came from below, only now noticing the shadow beneath the podium stretching out beneath them. Hylltywyll grabbed both of them by the ankle and they had no time to scream before suddenly plunging down into total darkness.

The disappearance was so fast that the few others in the restaurant that had actually been looking in their direction blinked and thought they must have had a little too much sake, rationalizing that the two must have walked off or hadn't even been there in the first place.

About a minute after he had slipped away, Hylltywyll climbed back into his seat from beneath the table, a satisfied expression on his face. He hadn't been particularly hungry, having drank a fair bit of mana from Kou not so long ago, but those two had such a pitiful amount of mana that they could hardly be called snacks. Draining them until they fell unconscious also was a lot safer than leaving them to ruin everything. Hyll was having fun pretending to be a government official, and some nosy waiter wasn't ruining it for him. He was also happy to get some revenge on that dumb host for calling him a pet.

---

Mass Shadow Control
One With the Shadows
Hylltywyll's Shady Shelter
Wicked Desires