Tenebris Renasci: A World of Magic and Gunpowder

The journey to the city was filled with dread from Alexander and Marcus. 

Eventually, Marcus began to mess with Alexander in an attempt to stave off his boredom. It started with gentle kicks to his shin when Olivia wasn't looking, but it quickly escalated.

"Stop." Alexander hissed quietly, waving a fist towards Marcus. 

Marcus flinched, bumping into Olivia. 

Olivia turned to look at Marcus with a curious expression. "Is everything alright?" She asked with a concerned expression.

Marcus turned to Olivia and smiled. "yes ma'am, just excited to go shopping."

Olivia smiled. "Oh, are you interested in picking a few dresses for yourself?" She said with a giggle.

"Ha!" Alexander pointed a finger at Marcus and laughed. 

Marcus gave Olivia a panicked look, almost as if something was secretly uncovered. "U-uhm why would I need that?" He asked nervously.

Suddenly Olivia's eyes widened as she glanced over at Alexander who was still chuckling to himself. 

"Sorry, that was a slip of the tongue." She said with a forced smile.

Louise, who had been quietly looking out the window, turned to see Marcus. She then raised an eyebrow. "Slip of the tongue?" She asked confusedly, "Is Marcus not a girl?"

Alexander laughed harder. 

Causing Louise's confusion to grow, evident by her increasingly perplexed expression. 

This is priceless, take that you overgrown tree!

"I-I'm a boy!" Marcus said defensively, nervously glancing at Alexander, who was wiping the tears of joy from his eyes.

"Alex, I'm a boy!" He repeated. "Honest!"

Alexander knew Marcus was a boy, ever since that embarrassing day they met three years ago. Alexander may have been a little slow on the uptake, but he was an idiot.

"Oh I know, but this just makes perfect revenge." He said with a triumphant grin.

Marcus breathed a sigh of relief as he looked around the cabin of the carriage. Clasping his hands together and placing them into his lip, he quietly watched Alexander.

Alexander for his part relaxed in his seat, satisfied with what had transpired. "Heh, Marcus being a girl… that's funny." He muttered to himself with a smile.

The remaining trip to the clothing store was uneventful, especially since Marcus had fallen silent, though he did periodically glance at Alexander occasionally.

The carriage finally began to slow as they neared the clothing store. 

Parking outside, Alexander was greeted with the sight of a large building of stone. Large glass windows with beautifully carved patterns into the stone itself. 

A smile grew on Olivia's lips as she eyed the building. "this is going to be fun." She said excitedly as the carriage rolled to a halt.

Elise hopped down from the driver's bench and then walked around to open the carriage door. Reaching her hand inside, she helped everyone one by one.

Olivia was the last to exit the carriage, doing so with the grace and dignity of a noblewoman.

"Alright children, stay close to me and don't wander off," Olivia said as she guided everyone towards the entrance, the doors left open to reveal a large interior filled with shoppers and clothing.

The floor was filled with a green and white pattern, the walls were high and covered in wallpaper that held intricate patterns and details, with the roof being white stone with skylights scattered throughout. 

Walking past the front doors, Alexander was greeted by two guards who stood on either side, armed with revolvers and short swords.

Noticing Alexander staring, they gave a quick nod, "God day sir." One of the guards said with a smile.

Alexander nodded before turning his attention back towards the store. As they continued to journey further in, Alexander began studying the racks of clothes that were stationed all throughout the store.

On the walls were shelves filled with rows and rows of various shoes and accessories. With ladders beside them, and employees dressed in fancy suits or dresses.

This place is like a Victorian shopping mall.

"So, did you have anything in mind?" Olivia asked Louise. "Blouses, dresses, shoes?" 

Louise looked around with a curious gaze. "Hmm, I think I'd prefer starting with the undergarments," Louise said with a nod. "Then we'll work from there."

Alexander giggled to himself. "Panties." He said to himself softly.

Suddenly he was smacked in the back of the head.

"H-hey!" Alexander said angrily, turning around to see Elise staring at him with narrowed eyes. 

"Behave yourself, my lord." She said sternly.

"Ha!" Marcus said with a point. 

Elise soon smacked him in the back of the head. "I didn't do anything!" Marcus said as he grabbed the back of his head.

"Hush," Elise said with a finger to her mouth.

Alexander snickered, causing Elise to raise her hand once more.

"Okay, okay!" Alexander said as he raised his hands to the back of his head.

Olivia smiled as she looked over towards Alexander. "Alexander darling, you should behave yourself, who knows, you may find a young girl to charm." She said with a wink.

Alexander smirked as he grabbed the collar of his coat. "Please, there's only one woman for me, and her name is Camilla." He said with a nod of his head.

"As if," Louise remarked. "She's engaged to the heir of house Dubois, and he is quadruple the man you'd ever be." She said with a snarky tone, her voice full of superiority.

Alexander rolled his eyes. "Tch, that's too bad, she's a good woman." He said with a sigh and grin.

"What would you know about a good woman?" Marcus asked curiously. "You're only six."

Alexander chuckled as he ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah…"

Should've seen me back on earth, big, tall, small, wide, thin, I had it all!

"Yeah, what?" Marcus asked, curiously staring at Alexander as they walked toward the undergarment section. "You didn't answer the question."

Alexander gave Marcus a knowing look. "I'm just good, born with the to spot gold." He said with the bobble of his head. 

Marcus stifled a laugh while Louise watched him in contempt. "You're truly a fool." She said with a shake of her head.

Alexander frowned as he looked back to Louise. "Look just because you're bored and stuck up, that doesn't give you the right to insult me, okay… missy."

"I shall judge whatever my gaze lands upon, and if that just so happens to be you, then so be it." She replied. "Besides, most people hide trash, not flaunt it."

Damn!

Marcus chuckled as he looked back at Louise.

Alexander narrowed his eyes. "Oh yeah?" He said in Irritation. "I might be trash, but you're just…" Alexander's mind went blank as he searched for an insult. 

Uh…

He looked around the store to help find an insult, eventually spotting a vase of flowers war upon a shelf of various glove types. 

"You… you're… you're like a flower." He said with a scratch of his cheek, "beautiful on the outside, but… thorny, like a prick." He said with a nod, "A prickly flower that's what you are."

Louise stared blankly at Alexander, her eyes shone with a glint of confusion. 

The air around the group fell into an awkward silence, with everyone glancing at Alexander.

Eventually, the group came across the undergarments section, which was filled with corsets, open drawers, chemises, and other items.

Elise, can you stay with the boys while I take Louise to find her size?" She asked.

Elise nodded. "Of course my lady."

Olivia smiled before walking further down the aisle. 

With them gone, Marcus looked over to Alexander with a curious expression. "Why'd you call Louise a flower?" He asked curiously, "Do… do you like her?"

Alexander frowned, "of course not!" He said, throwing his hands in the air in annoyance. "But it's hard to insult someone as cute as her."

"Huh?"

"No, I mean, there's nothing physically bad about her," Alexander said, chuckling nervously. "And It's hard to insult someone's character on the spot, you know?"

Marcus shook his head. "No, I can think of a million things." He replied with a grin. "She's haughty, mean, stingy, the personality of a brick, heartless, stubborn, rude, arrogant, stupid…"

Alexander sighed as he rolled his eyes. "Alright already, I get it, there's a million things I could've said." He then waved a hand in the air, "I just didn't think of it, okay?"

"Perhaps you like her more than you let on my lord." Elise chimed in with a giggle.

Alexander turned to Elise with a finger pointing at her. "Watch yourself, woman, I'm still your lord, and I will not be disrespected in such fashion."

Elise smiled as she ruffled Alexander's hair. "You'd make a cute couple, plus she looks just like Lady Camilla." She added.

Ugh, the fact that those two share a face is horrifying.

Alexander shook his head. "No, because even if I did like her. There's no way she'd like me back, do you see how she insults me?" He asked, pointing a finger to where Olivia and Louise went. "She hates my guts."

He then groaned. "Sometimes I wonder if everyone dislikes me." He muttered. "Maybe I'm just unlikable."

"I like you, Alex." Marcus chimed in. "I think you're the greatest boy in the world." 

Alexander frowned as he looked back at Marcus. "Alright then, tell me why." He asked with a scowl.

Marcus put a finger to his chin, "Well, you're my best friend, we train together, talk together, play games together, and you're really funny." He then placed his arms behind his back as he looked down at Alexander. 

Marcus then grinned. "But you wanna know what I like the most about you Alexander?" He asked, leaning forward slightly.

"Go on then." Alexander said, "I'm listening."

"I like how nice you are." He answered.

Alexander raised an eyebrow. "Nice?" He asked in bewilderment, "How have I ever been nice?"

"You're nice all the time," Marcus explained. "Remember that time when you took me off the streets?"

Alexander nodded. "Yeah, because I was bored, and I couldn't get Elise to kill you without dropping my radio." He answered with the cross of his arms.

Marcus chuckled. "Well, what about that time you still went to the store with Lady Erica even though you were practically a zombie."

"She's my mother. I can't just say no." Alexander answered.

"And that time you danced with me and Elise even though you didn't want to?"

Alexander nervously scratched his cheek. "Well uhm…"

"Face it, Alex you're the nicest boy ever, and I really like you for that, because if it wasn't for you, I'd still be a poor girl on the streets swinging sticks around," Marcus said with a soft laugh.

Alexander stared at Marcus, replying to the events Marcus mentioned and more. 

He always thought he was just being selfish but…

"Huh, I guess… I guess you have a point, Marcus." Alexander said as he looked down to his feet.

After lingering in the undergarment section, quietly mulling over what Marcus had told him. Olivia and Louise returned with several clothing items. 

"Ahh Elise, can you help me?" Olivia asked, walking towards her, arms covered in clothes. 

Elise nodded Olivia offloaded the clothes onto her. 

Olivia then sighed with a satisfied smile. "Now, onto the dresses."