I folded myself into the deepest bow I possibly could. Since my back was all scabby at the moment, I couldn't go so low as to touch my nose to my knees, but hey, I tried.

"Thank you so much, Sheriff," I said, bowing a couple other times just to be clear. "We'll pay you back as soon as possible."

Sheriff laughed his signature belly laugh, his arm around his wife. "Don't worry about it. You can take as long as you want."

I swallowed back tears. "I won't forget this," I choked.

He reached out and squeezed my arm reassuringly. "You're doing well, Filian. Ever since Ava's accident..." His smile faltered, and he only repeated, "You're doing very well, but don't forget you have us to rely on, alright?"

I nodded, the tears tumbling out of my eyes. "Mom's fine," I croaked. "Thanks to you two."

His wife also wiped away a few tears and sniffed, and she came over to hug me. "Be strong, Filian," she whispered, her voice cracking a bit. "And we're always here for you."

Sheriff cleared his throat, looking away, and when his wife pulled away, he patted me on the back as I bowed again. 

After bowing maybe ten times more, they finally shooed me away. I trudged down the road, clutching the Velawins in my hand. Just enough to pay the risen amount that those loan sharks, Gair and Simon, had said they would demand. I took a deep breath, shoving the bills into my apron pocket with a sigh. I'd gotten through it this month, but I wasn't sure if I'd be able to keep doing this. 

"Filian!" someone yelled from a distance. I turned around and squinted-- somebody with half of their body out the window of a carriage was waving at me as the horse clopped closer and closer.

"Filian!" she yelled again.

I grinned, turning around and running back to her. "Rosa!" I yelled back, waving.

The carriage pulled to a stop before me, and Rosa sprung open the door. "Climb aboard, Filly!"

I laughed, delighted. "Is this what it means to have a noble best friend?" I joked, and I hopped on. "Are you taking me back home?"

"Sure! And I'll pick you up in fifteen minutes after I get all the little ones on board."

I raised my eyebrows. "That's possible?" I looked around. "Is this carriage even big enough for that?"

"They're little ones. If you hold Ruth and I hold Roly or Poly, and Ryan lies down in the middle by our feet..."

I burst out laughing. "Poor Ryan!" I exclaimed.

She shrugged, a big grin on her face too. Her eyes shined. "Oh, he won't mind. Trust me, if it means he gets to go to the Midelus Festival, he definitely will not mind at all."

We reached the restaurant in no time amidst our chatter, and then I hopped out and waved goodbye to the back of the blue -and-white carriage, which was aesthetically pleasing no matter how many times I saw it. Those silver highlights! That gentle mix of gentle colors! Nobles could have some good taste.

"Hi mom!" I yelled as I breezed into the room.

She looked up from her knitting, a smile already forming on her lips. "What's got you so excited, Filly?"

"I told you yesterday, right?" I wrapped her into a big hug. "I'm going to the Midelus Festival with Ro's family!"

"That's right!" She patted my head. "That sounds amazing. Enjoy yourself while you're out there, okay?"

I squeezed her as hard as I could until she choked and hit me a couple times on the back.

"Goodness, Filian," coughed my mom. "You'll kill me at this rate!"

"Hehe, sorry." I scratched the back of my head. "Anyhow, Rosa's coming here with her fancy schmancy carriage. Remember what I said?"

"Yes. Blue and white with silver linings, right?" She smiled at me. "Sounds amazing."

"It is! And I rode it when I came here." My smile drooped, but I forced it on myself again and made my voice sound as cheerful as possible. "I was on my way back from Sheriff's."

"Sheriff? You mean Daniel?"

"Yup!" I threaded my fingers into her hand. "He let me borrow some money. For Simon and Gair."

"Oh, Filly," she sighed. She traced a hand on my face, and my cheeks quivered, trying to hold the smile in place. After a pause, she exhaled slowly. "Tell them I said thank you."

"Of course!" I held her hand on my face and stayed like that for a few moments more before I dropped it and stood up. "I'm going to get ready and go out now. Rosa's going to come over in a moment with the rest of the kids." I drew a breath and smiled as big as I could, though the corners of my mouth was shaking from the effort. "I'm going to ride that beautiful carriage until we get to Midelus, you know! Sounds great, right?"

"Wonderful," she agreed. She made waving motions with her hands. "Now go ahead, and don't mind me. I'm working on my knitting."

I patted her knee and went to pack my bag. Not even three minutes later, mom tilted her head and listened. "I think I hear them!"

I rushed to the window and peered out. "You're right," I said, chuckling. Slinging my bag across my body, I ran out. "Bye, mom!"

"Have fun!" she called, and I yelled back an affirmative through the now-closed door.

I flew down the stairs and to the carriage outside, bouncing in excitement. Three heads popped out of the carriage window when I came.

"Filian!" Roly and Poly shouted, shoving each other away.

"Filian!" Rebecca said, from above them. "Climb on!"

I laughed, and this time, a smile naturally sprang up on my lips. "I was meaning to," I replied, my eyes dancing.

"Hey! Stop pushing!" said a voice from behind the door that suspiciously sounded kind of like a squeal, pudgy and adorable. My grin widened. That must be Ruth, hidden from everyone.

When the footman opened the door, Ruth almost came tumbling out, her hair in a total mess.

"Little piglet!" I swept her up right away and climbed aboard, even as Ruth glared at Roly and Poly.

"No fair, you get the windows," she complained, and I mussed up her hair a little more.

"I'll prop you up so you can see outside too," I promised, and she pouted but nodded all the same. I raised my eyes and met an amused glance that took me by surprise. "Mother Lily? You're coming with us too?"

"Can't trust you two to make sure none of my kids get run over by horses, can I?" she replied.

"Let's go!" Rosa yelled, and the carriage jolted to a start. All the little ones (except Ryan, the brooding teenager sitting on the floor in between our feet, looking as disgruntled but also as dignified as ever) squawked in excitement. And off to Midelus we went!

---

EXTRA: Rosa's Successful School Stories, Part 1!

---

"So Duke Lansesstern is changing factions," the Crown Prince, Alexander Forbias, commented as he rustled through documents. He blew his silvery hair out of his eyes, and numerous noble girls who had been peeping from the window of the Student Council almost fainted from the sudden attack of handsomeness.

He noticed, but he pretended he didn't. He scoffed to himself internally. They were all faking anyways.

"Winston, you haven't heard back from Leo?" Alexander asked, turning to his assistant. 

Winston, the bespectacled first-year, adjusted his glasses. "Leo hasn't been in contact since after school started."

The Prince frowned. Leo hadn't been so bad with contacting them before. He narrowed his eyes. "When was the last time you saw him?"

Winston thought for a moment, his eyes turned skyward. "Probably not since two days before school started. I believe he said he had something his father wanted him to investigate."

"Oh. Then that should be fine." His father always sent Leo out on the most unorthodox moments, like the start of school. He lay his papers down on his desk and stood up. "Good job, Winston. You may go on ahead to your lunch hour."

He bowed. "Thank you."

After Winston left, he turned to the window, his eyes piercing through the soundproof glass to give a warning look to the six or so girls still standing. They gasped and hid, though three more girls fainted straightaway to the ground.

He sighed, packed up his bag, and strode out of the room himself, immediately making use of a secret passageway reserved for Student Council members and emerging out into a field that nobody truly went to. Being the Prince was tiring, and the last thing he needed was another hoard of noble girls following his every move.

The Prince ruffled his beautiful hair, unknowing of the amount of sparkles that this movement cast (he was, after all, the main target), and sped up his pace towards the most reclusive spot he'd found in the Academy. It was like a little grove, filled with the scent of roses from the nearby rose garden, but with soft grass and the perfect size for him to lay down. Nobody ventured this way without good reason, so he wasn't as wary as he usually was.

Which may be the reason why he almost did not notice the first-year girl in the honors class he helped teach lingering at a tree near the entrance to his grove. He stopped right away when he registered the other person, who suspiciously straightened up the moment he saw her.

Who was she again? He wracked his brain. The new noble. The High Duke's illegitimate child. Ah, yes, he thought, raising his blue eyes coolly to look at the girl. The Chesterfield girl.

"What are you doing here?" he said softly, his muscles tense but maintaining his relaxed posture.

"Oh hello there! Fancy meeting you here!" She laughed in a high pitched voice. He frowned. Was she always this kind of character? "I think I lost something."

"You think you lost something? Here...?"

She blinked at him a few times with golden pupils flashing between her eyelids. "Um. Right." She cleared her throat and turned a little away from him. "A-aww!" she stuttered, glancing at him a few times. "Silly me. I forgot my notes today." She laughed, but it was more like three "ha"s shouted out into the air. She glanced at the prince one more time. 

He stared back impassively. Was this a new method the fangirls were using on him? "Your notes?" he finally said, since he was still the Prince and had to be polite.

"Yes," she said. (This was a good time for a giggle, wasn't it?) She stretched her lips into an obviously fake smile and let a long "hehehe" leak out from her mouth. 

The Prince took a step back, eyeing her warily. Was she, was she threatening him?

She didn't notice anything weird and thought hard. What were the next words again? "Oh! Um, if it's the infamous prince, surely your notes are..." She stopped and frowned. "Are... a, a masterpiece?" 

Was that a question?

(What had the next action been? Clap hands together, right?) She suddenly held out her hands in front of her, arms straight and shoulder-level, and the prince jumped back. She brought them together into a loud clap. (That oughta do it, she thought proudly.)

The Prince was busy trying to figure this girl out. His usually impersonal and cynical self was gone. He was still seventeen, and weird things meant weird. And dangerous, because he was the Prince. Besides, as the Prince, he’d gained what he liked to call a radar of danger-- he could tell when something was dangerous.

She seemed very dangerous.

What was she insinuating with her horribly awkward words? She sounded like she was almost chanting. And that clap-- what had that clap meant? Had she called an animal? Was that-- he sharply inhaled. Was that a signal?

This was dangerous. He frowned. She wanted notes? Perhaps he could get her off him with just notes. If she was a fangirl, that would make sense. He slowly reached his hand out to search his bag for his notes. "Did you want to see my notes?"

(Yes! He'd said exactly what the game version of him said!)

"Oh could I!" she shouted, and rushed forward. "I would be so grateful your highness wow!"

She snatched the book out of his shaking hand and held it above her head, regarding it almost like it was holy. The Prince stared at her with wide eyes and furrowed eyebrows, half-lying on the ground from when he'd stumbled back in absolute panic and fright.

He quickly dusted himself off and scrambled up again. He coughed and looked around discreetly. Nobody saw that, right? It wouldn't do good if people started to whisper about how cowardly the prince was, not after two years spent carefully cultivating his cold exterior. He couldn't!

He cleared his throat. The girl didn't move. Was that music he was hearing? He craned his head to hear and realized the girl was humming some majestic song to herself.

This was getting creepier and creepier. He edged back. The grove would have to wait today. "I will now be going," he said loudly, stiffly, pasting a rough smile on his face. "Leave my notes in the Student Council meeting room or give it to the office." 

Not even waiting for an answer, the Crown Prince of Durova took up his bag and left as quickly as his legs could take him without seeming like he was running away. Which, for the record, was exactly what he was doing.

---

A/N: Yes, I totally planned to take a five-day hiatus. Totally. (But really, sorry I was late. I was busy figuring out who came up with the horrible concept of midterms.) But I'm back now and will be updating as per usual, except maybe tomorrow because I'll be in a camp!