Dungeon Item Shop - Chapter 29: F is for [-----]

“Hey!” Something grabs her shoulder as she is jostled around. “Hey! Dumb-ass! Wake up!”

Fresh groggily opens her eyes, lifting her arms to yawn as she looks at the small figure standing above her.

“There’s a bed here, you know?” asks Jubilee, placing their hands back onto their hips as they stare down at the girl sitting on the floor.

“I was waiting for you to come back,” says Fresh, rubbing her eyes. “I didn’t want to go outside without you~” yawns the girl.

“Huh?” asks Jubilee somewhat disbelievingly. “You know? You sound really clingy and desperate sometimes,” they say, shaking their head and sighing.

“Sorry,” says Fresh laughing and rubbing her fingers through her hair.

Jubilee tilts their head, staring down at the girl’s strange expression and then relents, shrugging. “Look, go downstairs and get that mushroom gunk off of you before anyone sees it. The guild is empty now.” They turn around and go back to the door. “Come meet me at my place. Make it snappy, we have work to do.” With that, they pull the door back open and leave.

Fresh stares after them curiously, wondering what was going on. She gets up and stretches, bending forward to unsuccessfully try to touch her own toes. Something pops in her lower back again and she winces, wondering if she didn’t actually inherit the body of some old woman. Though, she had slept on the floor twice in a row now. The girl sighs and slaps her cheeks, waking herself up as she heads to the door to go downstairs and wash up.

Half an hour later, the girl emerges out from the adventurer’s guild and steps into another bright, sunny day. She smiles, closing her eyes to let the sun touch her face. Spring really is lovely here, there hasn’t been a single bad day yet. Lucky for her she thinks. Opening her eyes, the girl looks down at herself. At the same dress that she’s been wearing every day for almost a week now. It still appears manageable, but she definitely needs to find something more robust and more… obscuring. Jubilee knows about tailoring, maybe they can make her something? The girl thinks, but then shakes her head as she walks with crossed arms to cover the wet spots on her front. She’s not going to ask anything else of them, until she’s paid it all back first.

Smiling to seal that promise into her heart anew, she walks down the bustling hive of the city, heading down towards the dungeon and ignoring the sensation of any watching eyes that might happen to find their way towards her. Soon enough, she finds herself at Jubilee’s house and knocks on the front door. It opens a few seconds later and Jubilee nods to her, beckoning her inside. An old, worn out broom in their hands.

“Hi!” says Fresh energetically, stepping inside the dusty room.

Jubilee doesn’t respond with anything more than a snarky “-took you long enough,” and  tosses her the broom. Fresh fumbles, the broomstick tumbling between her hands as she just barely manages to catch it. Jubilee rolls their eyes and turns around to head back inside.

“What’s this for?” asks the girl, confused.

“It’s a broom, dumb-ass! You can either shove the handle up yourself or you can use the other end to start sweeping,” says Jubilee, waving her off in frustration. Fresh looks at the broom then back to them.

“Why?”

“Because the merchant’s guild representative is going to be here tonight with the admission paperwork,” says Jubilee, shrugging. “If your hair-brained plan is going to work, then we need to set-up somewhere and we can’t make a shop in the guild. So -“ Jubilee holds their arms out wide, gesturing to the open space and doesn’t say anything further.

Fresh stares at them for a while, processing. Not quite sure what they’re getting at. 

The obscured figure’s vibrant eyes seem to die just a little more, as nothing comes back from the girl though, as the wheels in her head are clearly still turning. They sigh in defeat and lower their arms, shaking their head once again.

“AH!” Fresh’s eyes light up and her fingers clench the broom tightly. “You want to do it here!” Her eyes grow dewy as she realizes the weight of this new gesture. “Th-that’s a great idea!” She drops the broom to the floor, running towards Jubilee with open arms, her emotions overwhelming her. “Thank yooooou~” The figure darts to the side, quickly avoiding Fresh’s lumbering grasp and ducking out and away from her arms, just in time.

The obscured person glares up at the confused girl warily. “If you try to hug me again, I’ll cut you,” they say sharply, waving a piece of glass at Fresh, who chuckles meekly at the threat, not sure if its serious or not. “- I’ll cut you deep,” they promise, the eyes behind their mask going wide.

“You’re such a good friend, Jubilee!” laughs Fresh, smiling brightly, taking a moment to wipe the wet out from her eyes.

They twitch as she utters the statement. Their body tenses up for a moment, before they relent with a final, long and protracted sigh. Lowering their arms, they tuck the piece of glass back into a tattered pocket and avert their gaze. “I know I am. Get to work. Dumb-ass.”

[Jubilee has accepted your friend request]

[Friends] {It takes two}

“Huh?” Fresh looks at the little window, then back to Jubilee who has already turned their back to her and has begun to walk up the stairs. “You do down here. I’ll do the upstairs.” With that, they leave, leaving Fresh standing alone down in the dusty ground floor room. Her eyes slowly go wide as the events run through her mind, as she realizes that she just officially made her very first friend.

Her fists clench tightly together and she finds herself bobbing up on her heels in joy as she makes a quiet, but excited squeak. This is it! This is what she’s been trying to work for! Something feels warm inside of her chest.

Determined, Fresh reaches down to grab the broom from the floor and with a steeled gaze, sets to work. Promising that she’s going to make this place perfect. The bristles of the broom scratch against the boards as she sweeps. The girl narrows her eyes. She’s going to do it right, this time. She takes a step forward. She’s going to work hard, to feel this feeling that she’s feeling right now. The bristles scratch against the boards again.

She’s going to do it every day from now on.

Her friend was counting on her.