The next morning, Trevor woke up to Mr. Tiggles resting on his chest and someone shaking his shoulder. His throat was burning and his head was pounding, but he stretched anyway. It felt like somebody had left the air conditioner on full blast, and he was shaking despite the warmth of the bed.

“I’m fine,” he said hoarsely, as he started to push the blankets away. “I can go to work today.”

“Meow,” Mr. Tiggles said as he jumped off of Trevor’s chest.

The next thing he felt was a warm hand on his forehead, pushing him back down. He fought against it, but his body was weak and he could barely put up a fight. A bottle was put against his lips, and a thick liquid with way too much sugar to counteract the terrible taste flowed into his mouth. Though Trevor drank it, he coughed and sputtered afterwards.

It took a few minutes, but his head started clearing up along with his throat. He opened his eyes and blinked away the sleep to see that Adabelle was sitting on the edge of his bed, Mr. Tiggles purring on her lap, and smirking at him. Her tail swished loudly over the blanket. “Not sick, huh?” she asked.

Slowly, Trevor covered his head with his comforter. “Still sick, can’t go anywhere,” he claimed. “Best get out before you catch whatever it is I have.”

“Dorimy made that potion, and I have a second one here if you feel you need it,” Adabelle laughed. “Bought one, got another free for mentioning it was for you. Seems you really are a snake charmer after all.”

“It’s too early for banter,” Trevor whined. “How are you this awake?”

“It’s already almost noon, Trevor.”

Peeking his head out of the covers, he checked out the clock to see that Adabelle was telling the truth. Half of the day had been wasted already. “My alarm clock didn’t go off.”

Trevor felt Adabelle shift on the bed and set the alarm. It went off the next minute, and she waited. It didn’t take long for Mr. Tiggles to jump off of her lap and start attacking the alarm clock in a way that made it turn off after a few good bats.

“Meow,” Mr. Tiggles said proudly.

“Cats,” Trevor sighed.

“Cats,” Adabelle agreed as she stood up. “I’ll give you a few minutes to get ready, and then I’m leaving. Don’t take too long.”

Waiting until he was sure she left, Trevor got up and picked up Mr. Tiggles. “You causing trouble for me, little guy?” he cooed. “I thought we were friends.”

“Meow.”

“Yeah, you’re right, I can’t stay mad at you.”

Setting Mr. Tiggles down on the nightstand, Trevor got himself dressed in a hurry. He paused only to check and see what the weather was like through his window. The sky was cloudy, but he estimated only a slight chance of rain. Regardless, he pulled his coat into his inventory along with an umbrella by the door.

In hindsight, he really should have had those with him, but now that he was once again aware that weather existed he would take steps to be prepared for anything. Especially now that his Capacity stat was 5, he had so much room to work with. Trevor felt like he had his own portable storage unit inside his brain. With this in mind, he grabbed another change of clothes just in case.

“Pspsps,” he called, waggling his fingers over his shoulders. Mr. Tiggles came running before jumping up on him as he normally did. When Trevor summoned his backpack, the cat curled between it and the young man’s neck.

“Purr,” the cat said in its unusually deep voice.

Trevor opened the door to see Adabelle waiting near the Hero House. When she was in his home she had worn a white, quilted tunic that was a far cry from her normal attire. He had expected her to be wearing her blue robes that she wore on days she worked, but found she was armored instead.

Adabelle wore intricately woven chainmail with solid gorget and pauldrons that protected her arms down to her elbows. Her gauntlets were made of fine leather, and she was adjusting them when he exited his home. At her belt was a plain scabbard holding a sword with a simple crossguard.

“Oh, are you not a mage of some kind?” he asked without really thinking about it.

The horned woman paused. “Robes throw you off?”

“Little bit, yeah,” Trevor admitted.

“That’s my work attire. This is my adventuring attire. Since we’re leaving the city walls, I want to be well protected.”

Trevor frowned, and that nervous feeling started coming back to him. “Should I be armored, too?” he asked. “Rashie didn’t say anything about-“

“No, you’re fine,” she said, grinning. “I’ll be there, so you don’t worry about a thing.”

“Oh, right. Guess that’s true.”

“It is. Now come on, let’s get moving,” Adabelle said before she started walking towards the nearest gate out of the city.

“You got it, lady,” Trevor said, falling in beside her.

As they walked through town, he did a cursory check of his body. His throat was no longer sore, and his head was as clear as could be. While it was slightly chilly out, it was comfortable. Whatever Adabelle had given him had worked like a charm.

“What was that potion you made me drink?” he asked after clearing his throat.

“Just a little something to combat colds and fevers,” she answered. “The version I used for you was more expensive than what people can usually afford, but it just made it more effective.”

“Oh, how much do I owe you?”

Adabelle waved her hand. “Don’t worry about it.”

“No, I really don’t want to be a burden on your finances, so I want to pay you back,” he insisted.

Raising an eyebrow, Adabelle gave him a sidelong glance before shaking her head. “Dorimy gave it to me buy one get one specifically because I mentioned you might be sick, so as far as I’m concerned you got a freebie and I have one tucked away in case I ever need it.”

Trevor frowned. “Are you sure?”

As they started walking out of the town’s gate, Mr. Tiggles jumped off of Trevor and disappeared between a pair of buildings. The young man wanted to call him back, but seeing as they were heading into the farmland, it was probably better for the cat to stay in town. Adabelle certainly didn’t seem concerned with his departure, at least.

“I’m not bothered by it, and it certainly didn’t cost enough to ‘be a burden on my finances.’ Besides, I owe you for the Full Night’s Rest,” she said dismissively.

“That was a gift.”

“And this wasn’t?” she challenged. Trevor couldn’t find the words to refute her. “Let me ask you something. How come taking on a quest and specifically requesting an expensive potion at the risk of your own finances is different from me going out to buy medicine for you?”If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

“Well, that’s different because it didn’t cost me anything,” he answered slowly. “The quest’s rewards being reduced didn’t mean much to me because that wasn’t money I had to begin with.”

“I see,” Adabelle said. “And how is it okay for me to receive the Full Night’s Rest, but it’s not okay for you to receive medicine? That’s basically the same thing. If I remember right, your words were, ‘this is what friends do for each other.’ What makes it different when it comes from you than when it comes to you?”

Trevor didn’t answer right away as his hypocrisy was called out. As his mind raced, he felt his anxiety start to rise as he couldn’t find the words to deny her claim nor explain himself. He didn’t even realize that his response was being closely watched until Adabelle bumped her shoulder into his.

“After you brought me lunch that one time, I asked about you around town,” she admitted. “Mostly Thimbleden, but he pointed me towards a few others. Drelik, Dorimy, Froil, other deliveries. Everyone seems to think you’re a nice guy who’s eager to help out, but who’s helping you?”

“I just like to be self-reliant, is all,” Trevor said quietly.

“If you don’t mind me saying so, this seems to go past the point of self-reliance,” Adabelle stated. “When was the last time you asked someone for something? Would you have woken up at three in the afternoon with a full blown fever and shambled your way to Thimbleden’s asking if he had anything you could help with?”

“I had to do that a lot in my world,” he said defensively. “There wasn’t anyone else to rely on, and I had to take care of myself. This is just, well, it’s my way of staying in control of my life, I guess.”

“I can certainly appreciate wanting to stay in control of your own life,” Adabelle agreed before placing a hand on his shoulder. “But it’s important to realize that you’re in a place where you’re surrounded by friends, too. Wayne, Rashie, the people you help.”

“Well, none of them went out of their way to get me medicine.”

“I suppose they didn’t.” Releasing his shoulder, she sighed. “Before I came here, I was an adventurer. Dragged into it, really, but I had to learn to accept the support of a team. We didn’t work very well at first, which was something I can fully say was my fault due to how hard-headed I was, but eventually we fell into a good rhythm. If someone like me can learn to accept the help of others, so can you.”

“That sounds so self-deprecating,” Trevor noted. “Everyone’s capable of growth, so it shouldn’t be hard to believe that you can be, too.”

“And just like me, you can learn to accept help,” she stated. “I’ll be around, so feel free to lean on me when you need to, okay?”

Trevor nodded, but didn’t say anything. Her tail wrapped around his wrist as she took one of the side roads, pulling him after her and letting go once he was on the right path. The sign was in English just as it had been before, and said that this was the road to the Danger Zone. That pretty much confirmed that it was meant for Adabelle’s Power.

“I was human, then,” Adabelle said softly. “My team and I were on a grand quest to stop a demonic sorceress named Medivene from opening a physical rift to the underworld. Our priest had received a vision from his deity, essentially telling us to trust no one we normally did, and that we were on our own. That’s where I died, protecting them from the front lines. Jackson said that everyone else survived, that we succeeded and my sacrifice wasn’t in vain, but I still struggle with it, sometimes.”

“They couldn’t have done it without you. You were strong for them, and if Jackson says that, then I believe him,” Trevor replied before pursing his lips. “But, that also sounds like you may have made some of the same mistakes I might have when I was being summoned.”

“Common mistakes, though I didn’t know it at the time,” Adabelle confirmed. “Not counting Wayne, who’s calm under any circumstances, and Rashie, who was just happy that she wasn’t being eaten anymore, it’s more common than you think.”

"What's up with that, anyway?"

Adabelle glanced at him arching an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I mean..." Trevor paused. "So, it seems like the Quest Master is really snappy, I guess. I'm not sure how to put it. But the way it seems now, I have a hard time believing that it wouldn't understand that those common mistakes are just that, mistakes."

"Ah, yes, I understand. It's because the questions happen outside of this world," she explained. "Basically, the Quest Master is powerful to an absurd degree here, but all the changes you go through happen before you actually arrive. So you only get a little bit of the whole, and it's not all that powerful because you still literally existed outside of its sphere of influence. Not that it'll ever admit it."

Adabelle paused, and Trevor saw her eyes moving as though she was reading something. "Get a grip, Quest Master," she snorted. "You have a hard time connecting with people before they get here. You're still impressive, no one's doubting that."

"Oh, that's why the letters came one by one and it was slow to answer my questions. Just flat out ignored some of them, too. Then, I was in front of Jackson and everything was quick and snappy."

"Yes, and it's also fond of using templates to make things easier to send. So that people don't think it's having the issues it's having."

"Yeah, yeah, I had that same exact thought! Like it was trying to figure out a way around an obviously faulty connection." The young man frowned. "If it has to go through so much trouble, why doesn't it just wait until people are here to do the questions, then?"

Adabelle grimaced. "From what the records say, that's a terrible idea," she said slowly. "Because then it's literally altering you while you have your body already. There's a lot of cautionary tales for summoners and those training to become one."

"Wait, so I didn't have a body between my world and this one?" Trevor asked, but hit his forehead as soon as he finished talking. "Yeah, no, that makes perfect sense, actually."

"How was your question section with the Quest Master like?"

“I stumbled through it,” Trevor admitted. “The name, staying human, and the Power selection. After telling the Quest Master that I was human, not even thinking there might be alternatives, I asked it to give me examples of Powers I could choose from. It very quickly overwhelmed me, and I asked for some space. In order to think, you see.”

“And it gave you the Power of Inventory?” Adabelle asked, amused.

“Randomly chosen from the list of space Powers, yeah,” Trevor said with a chuckle. “But that’s okay, because I’m not really built for adventuring. I don’t like hurting things, but I do like helping people. I’m sure something based in, like, magical healing would have been better but in my defense everything was very purple and green.”

“That still sounds smoother than what I went through,” she said. “I had died to a powerful spell, and hadn’t realized it yet.”

“Oh, no,” Trevor breathed. “That must have been awful.”

Adabelle paused. “It was, yes,” she conceded. “I told the Quest Master my name the second time it asked, but after that I was still full of adrenaline and the urge to stab my foe. So when it asked my species, I was still distraught. I remember my answer after all this time.”

“Oh, no,” he repeated, wincing.

“I had said, ‘what are you talking about? I have to get out of here before that demonkin finishes her foul magic.’ You want to guess what happened then?”

“The Quest Master latched onto demonkin,” Trevor guessed.

Adabelle nodded. “I’m mostly the same, which was a relief, except for the horns, the ears, and the tail. My skin darkened, my hair turned white, and my eyes became this glowing orange. It took me a long time to become comfortable in this body, and there are still times when I don’t recognize myself in the mirror. I took a long time to calm down from being a reckless, hot-headed adventurer.”

“Is that what happened to your horn?” Trevor asked. "An adventuring accident?"

“My, you really are prying today, aren’t you?” she said with a dark laugh, offering him a smirk that barely reached her eyes.

“You seem to be in a sharing mood.”

“And you've already expressed your interest in getting to know me better, yes.”

“Yes,” he confirmed, his face getting hot as he remembered last night. “Yes, that is certainly a thing that I said to you.”

“It was during a duel in Eskretet, the capital of Lucent,” she said. Her hand reached up and ran her fingers gently along the split in her horn. “I got cocky because I was fighting someone who wasn’t Summoned, and paid the price. At the time I didn’t have enough money to repair the damage, just a couple of healing potions, but even now I leave it as a reminder to myself that I’ve already died once. It can easily come for me again.”

“Does it hurt?” he cautiously asked.

“Itches, sometimes, but not anymore,” she answered before changing the subject. “We’re almost there. Do you want to guess what I had said to the Quest Master when it asked what kind of Power I wanted?”

Trevor was about to open his mouth to make some random guess when the trees surrounding the path suddenly stopped after a certain point. The clearing was covered in wet ash and rocks jutted out of the ground in random places. He followed Adabelle to one of the taller boulders that were easy to climb up, and he stared at the Danger Zone in awe.

It was wider than he first thought. Perhaps a mile or so across, though he would never fancy himself an expert in eyeballing such distances. There was nothing but destruction in a suspiciously clean circle, and he realized he couldn’t even hear animals nearby. Aside from Adabelle’s breathing, the only sound was his heart beating loudly.

“When the Quest Master asked me what Power I wanted,” Adabelle said slowly when she realized Trevor wasn’t going to guess. “I had asked, ‘what are you going on about? If Medivene gets what she wants, it’ll be a disaster encompassing the entire continent the likes of which we could barely comprehend.’ I got what I said.”

Waving her hand towards the wasteland, she spoke again in a quiet voice that almost seemed to get swallowed by the vast, empty space. “And this is where I came to practice my disaster magic.”