Traveling Star, Wandering Chaos

I woke up to see Minh sleeping next to me. Somehow, I woke up earlier than him. I stretched my arms and opened the window. It seemed that the sun had decided to be a bitch today and flash-bomb my eyes. I winced at the accursed light and promptly closed the window and curtains for good measure. I stared at Minh as he slept. It'd been a few days since we came here. At first, I thought this was a weirdly realistic dream, but if this was a dream, I think I would've woken up by now.

I sat on the bed next to Minh. The weird guy in armor told us that we had to fight in a war for them. Who the hell would ask that of someone they'd just met?! They said that it was our duty. Duty for what?! Do they seriously expect teenagers to go to war and fight?! What the hell is wrong with them?! I sigh and lie down, looking at Minh sleeping peacefully. Knowing him, he won't be able to survive a cat, let alone a war. And anyway, it's my fault we were here in the first place. Damn Truck-kun. I sighed. Don't worry Minh. I brought us into this mess; I'll find a way to get us out of it. Trust your sister for once.

That will have to wait for now. I'll get out of bed and let Minh sleep for now. Stretching, I walked towards the door. I caught myself in the mirror for a second. My short black hair was a mess, my eyebags were very prominent on my pale skin, and my green eyes were as dead inside as my soul. I also looked like an idiot in that nightgown.

Mẹ would kill me if she saw me now. Well, there's nothing to do about it Mẹ isn't here to yell at me about it. So, that's one good thing, I guess. I'll change into my uniform or at least part of it.

Blazer or no blazer. Hmmm, nah. I tossed my blazer onto the bed and walked out the door.

I walked into a stupidly long hallway. Big windows ran along the white walls letting the damned sunshine through. I swear, this stupid ball of gas is out to get me. I decided to look around the place since we were gonna be here for a while; might as well explore.

A few minutes later.

I'm lost.

How did this happen?! Whose idea was it to make this castle the equivalent of a hedge maze?! "Ugh, tao ghét nơi này, cái lâu đài nay to qua" Ugh! This place sucks. My feet hurt, and I'm lost. I sat next to a potted plant near the window to rest. I looked around me, but no one was here. For a castle with tons of servants, it sure is quiet.

Just as I was about to get my lazy ass up, I saw a girl around my age walking by. She had wavy blonde hair tied into a bun, a freckled face, porcelain skin, and wore a classic maid outfit. She stopped in her tracks and looked at me.

"Miss Hero, you've left your chambers," she said. I stood up and nodded. She stood in front of me, a few inches taller. She tilted her head with a confused smile, "Are you lost, Miss Hero?" she asked, "This castle is quite large. Would you like me to help you?" she added.

"Yes, I would appreciate it," I replied.

"Very well then. Where do you need to go?"

"I just want to look around."

"A tour then," she said

"Yes," I nodded. She held out her hand. I took her hand and followed her throughout the castle.

We first went to the greenhouse. It was surprisingly relaxing, not a lot of people, just me and Miss Maid. Plus, there was a pretty waterfall, too; Minh would spend so much time drawing here. We walked around, looking at all the different flowers; there were even a few bunnies running around. "Beautiful, isn't it?" the maid said.

I smiled and nodded, "Yes, it's really nice."

"I spend a lot of my free time here."

"Must be nice."

"Yes, I quite enjoy it here," she said, taking a blue flower from one of the flower patches.

"Wait, are we allowed to do that?" I asked,

"No worries, there are already so many flowers here. No one is going to be angry over one missing flower," she assured. For a maid, she's a little too carefree. I mean you can't just take something from your boss's home and not get in trouble. Right? "Are you sure about that?" I asked again.

She chuckled, "It's fine; there's no need to worry," she reassured. She put the blue flower she had picked in my hair and grinned, "Miss Hero, you're quite pretty, aren't you?" she pointed out.

"Um, thank you?" I say, giving an awkward smile

"You're welcome," she replied, "Oh! I also want to show you the ballroom. Come with me," she beamed, taking my hand and dragging me somewhere else.

We arrived at two giant doors. What are we doing here? I looked at the maid as she pushed the doors open to reveal a large ballroom. The room was empty, but it was really pretty nonetheless. The ceiling was glass, the walls had some murals on them, and the floor was white. A little boring, but it's not nothing. I walked in with the maid following. Wait, I didn't even ask her name. The fuck, my dumbass really forgot to ask her name! I turned to the maid, "I forgot to ask, what's your name?"

"My name?" she muttered; I nodded.

"Yes, it's kinda weird calling someone Miss Maid."

"I see. Well, my name is Althea,"

"Nice to meet you, Althea. I'm Aliya."

"Pleasure to meet you, Hero Aliya," Althea chirped, bowing.

"No need to bow, and can we drop the hero part?" I said, "I mean I know, but it's only in name. Plus, I haven't done anything heroic and I don't plan on starting."

"Nonsense, you are a hero; it's only natural that I show the proper respect," Althea explained.

"I haven't even done anything heroic," I insisted.

"True,"

"You could at least make me feel better about it!"

"Sorry, sorry," she giggled. I sighed. Well, at least she's honest. I walked around the ballroom, "This place sure is empty,"

"Well, there aren't any events happening soon, so it's expected,"

"True," I mumbled, and then I thought of something. Should I? No way, that's too embarrassing. I looked at Althea and found her looking back at me. She walked over to me with a smile and asked, "Aliya, since this is a ballroom," she held out her hand, "Care for a dance?" I froze, shit, fuck, what do I do? Should I decline, or should I do it? Aliya, you don't even know how to dance; you'll just end up looking really stupid. But, on the other hand, someone hot asked me for a dance. Knowing that I'm one of the ugly people, this is probably a once-in-a-lifetime chance. Then, the image of me dancing with Althea came into view. My face was getting a little hot.

"Aliya, are you okay?" Althea queried. I snapped back to reality and looked at Althea.

Fuck it.

I took a deep breath and accepted her offer. Althea smiled as I took her hand, and she pulled me to the center of the ballroom. Althea took a step to the left, then the right. I tried to copy her footing to the best of my ability. But apparently, my clumsy ass had other things in mind. I tripped over my foot and fell into Althea's arms. She chuckled as she caught me. What's so funny? I've never done this before; don't laugh at me. I glared at her. "It seems you don't have the best dancing skills, hero," Althea commented. I stood upright and rolled my eyes.

"Well, I've never done this before; can't blame me,"

"I suppose that's true. Heroes aren't known for being able to dance," Althea conceded.

"I'm not a hero," I sigh,

"Right, right, not a hero," Althea agreed, then she tucked some stray hair behind my ear and fixed the flower in my hair, "Just Aliya, right?"

"Uh, y-yeah," Curse your rizz.

"So, is there anything you're good at?" Althea asked. Hmm, things that I'm good at. I like reading manga and Manhwa. I'm pretty strong, but I'm shit at sports. My grades are good, but that's not really something to brag about. I can't think of anything. I usually just sit around, eat, and watch anime. "Aliya?"

"Huh?"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. So, I'm not really good at anything,"

"Really?"

"Yeah, unless lazing around counts as a skill," I sighed. Althea giggled at my remark. I couldn't blame her. I'm practically a dumbass with no skills whatsoever. I'd laugh too.

"Well, if you aren't good at anything, then is there anything you like to do?" Althea inquired,

"Um, I like reading," I replied

"There's a library; we can go there next," she suggested. My face lit up. A library? Now we're talking!

I took her hand, leading her to the door, "Lead the way, Althea," I cheered. Althea smiled leading me away.

We reached a long stairway. We climbed up flight after flight of stairs. Althea was doing fine. Meanwhile, me, with the stamina of a sloth, clawing up these damn stairs, using all of my willpower to not give up after the first thirty steps. After we made it to the top, I flopped onto the floor like a worn-out ragdoll. "You don't have the best stamina, do you?" Althea remarked,

"You think?" I sarcastically retorted, scrabbling to get up from the floor. Althea helped me up, opening the door to the library. The library was filled with copious amounts of books from wall to wall. In the middle was a sitting area with a fluffy carpet and cozy-looking chairs. I felt a ten-ton weight lift off my shoulders as I bolted inside, Althea following close behind. I scoured the shelves for something interesting to read. Until I came across a book with a pretty cover. I took it from the bookshelf and stared at the cover for a moment. The cover looked like a magical grimoire from a video game. "Are you interested in celestial arts, Miss Hero?" Althea interjected

"Holy shit!" I squeaked. Do you mind if you warned me before you decide to scare the crap out of me?! Also, I thought we dropped the hero bit?!

"Sorry, did I scare you?" Althea chuckled

"Yeah, no shit," I grumbled, holding tight onto the book.

"Anyway, my question still stands. Are you interested in celestial arts?"

"Celestial arts?" I queried

"Yes, the celestial arts. It's an ability blessed by Asteria to wield a portion of her power," Althea explained. So, in other words, magic, makes sense. If we're following the basic logic of a typical sekai, then magic is bound to be in the picture.

"So, like magic?"

"Magic? Is that something from where you're from?" Althea asked

"Kinda."

"I see," Althea said, "Well, only a few people are blessed with the ability to perform the celestial arts. It's a highly sought-after gift," Althea rambled on.

"You seem pretty interested."

"Of course, being able to perform the celestial arts is being blessed by the gods. Most if not all of my family have this talent," she gushed, "However, despite that, I wasn't..." she trailed off, her eyes staring at the book I was holding. "Hey, since we're here, any recommendations for me?" I asked. Let's lighten the mood a little.

"Recommendations? Yes, I have quite a few books that are a must-have read," Althea chirped, her eyes sparkling with excitement. She seems happy now. I'm glad. Wait a minute, didn't I just meet Althea today? Sure, she's really nice, sweet, and pretty. But I've only known her for a few hours at the most. There's no way I like her this much to give a shit about her feelings, right? Right. I watched Althea pick out a stack of books and place them on a table. I sat on one of the chairs, still holding the grimoire-looking book. "So, what genre do you prefer? Thrilling horror or lighthearted romance?" Althea asked, looking over a few titles.

"I'm okay with most genres, as long as they're not cripplingly sad. And the characters aren't annoying," I answered.

"Alright, not too sad and good character writing... here we go," Althea said, handing me a thick book with a red cover. I looked at the cover of the book. The cover was red with a drawing of a girl in a hood and basket etched in gold. "The Red Hooded Traveller," I read aloud. This honestly looks like a Little Red Riding Hood fanfic. Althea sat down next to me, looking over the book. "This story was one of my favorites. It was originally written for children, but the wonderful characters and plot drew me in. I couldn't help but fall in love with it,"

"So, it's a fairy tale?" I said bluntly

"Uh, yes. I've always liked the way fairy tales were written," she explained.

"Cool," I said, flipping through the pages; the story is pretty long, and the art is nice, although I don't see a summary. I turned to Althea, "So, what's the story about?" I asked.

"Well, the story's about a girl named Elise, who was born into a noble family going on a journey around the world enduring sorrows and hardships, but also meeting and helping lots of people."

"Sounds fun."

"Trust me, it is. The plot is simple but the story itself is meaningful and has a beautiful message." Althea said. I looked at the cover again. Althea seemed to really like it. As she continued to ramble on about the book, I silently watched her face light up. I guess I made a new friend today.

…

We spent a long time exploring the library and reading of course. Then Althea helped me get back to my room and we parted ways. I closed the door and sighed. I turned around and saw that Minh was awake, "Good afternoon, had a nice nap sleeping beauty?" I asked mockingly

"Yes I did, I think I had the best sleep of my life. Without your snoring, I could finally get some shut-eye," Minh retorted

"How cruel, I don't snore that loud. Just loud enough to annoy you," I sneered.

"Or you just snore really loud," Minh shot back.

I rolled my eyes, walked over and flopping onto the bed, "I made a friend today," I mention

"My condolences to them," Minh remarked, looking out the window.

"Okay, I'm not that bad."

"Says you."

"Fuck off"

"I'm telling the truth, even Mẹ agrees with me."

"She doesn't and you know it."

"Really? Then, why does she always say, Phương lười lắm, chỉ biết chơi game, ăn ngủ." Minh quoted, giving me that stupid smirk again. I rolled my eyes at him and saw a pile of paper on the table. I got up and looked through the pages; the papers were covered in drawings and sketches, most of them looking like the view from the window outside. "Let me guess, you were panic-drawing," I said

"No, of course not. Why would I be panicking?" He deflected.

"Because you realized that this isn't a dream?" I countered and Minh fell silent. He opened his mouth to say something, but didn't. He slumped onto the bed, defeated. Looks like I win this time. I sighed and fell back on the bed next to him.

"Are they nice?"

"Huh? Who?"

"Your new friend, or were you hallucinating?"

"She's real!"

"Then, what's she's like?"

"First off, her name is Althea. She's working as a maid here. She's really nice and she showed me around the castle."

"Are you sure it wasn't because she felt pity about your lack of directions? Like how you got lost in that sleeping bag?"

"Damn it Minh, it was one time!"

"And you think I'll let you live it down?"

"Fuck you!" I laughed.

Maybe this place won't be so bad. Other than the war, I think I can get used to this. Hey, whatever deity sent us here, make sure you give Mẹ a good life. It'll be hard enough without us there. So please, fate, be nice to us.

Side Story Time! Dated - 13yrs

Test Day

I sit down at my desk and look at Phoung next to me. She yawns, leaning back on her chair. I continue staring at her until she notices, "What?" she asks. Yup, she's forgotten.

"Nothing, just wondering why you're so calm."

"Why wouldn't I be calm?"

"Oh, I don't know. Usually, when it's test day, you panic like a headless chicken,"

"Wait, there's a test today!? I thought it was next week!" Phoung exclaimed, the panic finally sinking in.

"You didn't check your email?"

"You know I don't check my email!"

"Well, I think you should start," I suggested. Phoung slumped into her chair grumbling, "You should've just reminded me."

"How are your fuck ups supposed to be my responsibility?" I retort, followed up by a sigh, "Alright, we have an hour before the test. You can study my notes till then," I say, her eyes lit up as I hand her my notebook.

"I will use this graciously," she cheers

"If you fail, don't blame me,"

"Wow, thanks, I believe in myself too," she says sarcastically.

Even after studying my notes, she still failed. After school, she got an earful from Mẹ and she was grounded. "I hate you" she huffed.

"I let you use my notes, it's not my fault you have the IQ of a dodo bird,"

"Fuck you!"