The Legendary Monster Layer!

To Ari’s side, Elise slowed.

The only information Ari had given Elise was back at her apartment: that Ari would be showing her, rather than telling, why she’d been acting weird the past several days. Elise had tried to poke out more information from Ari during the trip to Claire, but Ari had remained tight-lipped, wanting to present rather than explain. Or, present then explain. It would be much easier.

She supposed it was unfair, in a small way, to be dropping this on Elise rather than spelling things out in the safety of her apartment. Ari was putting Elise in a difficult to handle situation. Because how would Ari handle it? If Elise presented something this strange to Ari, without any hints to go by? But still. Ari wouldn’t have been able to work up the nerve to explain. By showing Claire to her, it would force her to.

“This is … a friend of yours?” Elise asked, shooting Ari a sideways glance. They weren’t close enough to be making out the details of Claire, besides her brightly colored yellow-and-black hair and her general shape—her armor, and the great-hammer leaned to her side. Her antennae would be what gave away her origin most clearly, but from the distance they were, Elise couldn’t see the spindly black strands.

“Yeah,” Ari said. “Um. I wanted you two to meet. She’s … part of everything.”

Wanting them to meet, at least, wasn’t a lie. If Claire—and the rest of her Menagerie—didn’t have such a hard to explain existence, she’d have had Elise meet them sooner. The day they’d become acquainted, probably. Why wouldn’t she want the people she considered friends meeting?

Which added another layer of anxiety to this situation. Not only was Ari coming clean about her class, finally, but she was having her lifelong best friend meet her newest set of … what? Friends? Lovers? Her relationship with her Menagerie was hard to define. ‘Lovers’ didn’t feel right … not in the full suite of implications that came with it. But ‘friends’ wasn’t wholly correct, either.

“Who is she?” Elise asked. “And … why here?”

Why were they out in the Forest, Elise meant, and not meeting back at Molehill. Ari had good reasons for that, which Elise would be finding out shortly. Plus, Ari intended to introduce Elise to the rest of the Menagerie, and the burrow. But all that—and explanations—would come later.

“Let’s go say hi, first,” Ari said, deflecting.

Elise trailed behind Ari, confused.

Claire, too, her expression coming into view, seemed perplexed by how Ari had returned with company. Ari had insisted the Menagerie keep out of view and to themselves, so Ari purposefully dragging a stranger to meet Claire was unexpected for her, as much as it was for Elise.

Ari couldn’t help but feel awkward. There were so many things to be worried over—so many dynamics to consider.

Would anyone be totally comfortable, here? Ari could forgive herself for the nerves thrumming through her.

They arrived. Claire’s strange appearance came into full view. Oddly, besides a slight inhalation of breath, Elise didn’t comment, or stop in surprise. Ari supposed as a mage, Elise was well studied. Strange things, like a race of people she’d never seen before, would be easier to take in stride for a student of the arcane. Elise had seen, or read, more astounding during her studies.

“Um,” Ari started. They’d come to a stop in front of Claire, who had given a tentative smile to Elise, but otherwise was looking at Ari with question marks in her eyes. She obviously wanted to let Ari take the lead, not knowing what was going on.

“Claire,” Ari said, “this is Elise. Elise, this is Claire.” The words were the slightest bit stiff, but honestly, smoother than she’d thought they’d be, considering how her heart was galloping.

“Hi,” Claire said brightly. “It’s nice to meet you.” Though welcoming, her response was inflected up—a question mark hidden in the sentence.

Elise, on the other hand, was more reserved. “And you as well.” Her eyes flicked to Ari, then back to Claire. “You’re … Ari’s adventuring partner?” She kept careful control of her tone. Ari couldn’t begin to guess what assumptions she was making.

What would Ari think of Claire, if she were in Elise’s situation? She had no idea.

“Uh,” Claire said. “Yeah? We … adventure. I’m taking it you’re that Elise? She talks about you a lot.”

Ari did?

That made sense, she guessed, but she hadn’t thought

she talked about Elise to her Menagerie. Not ‘a lot’, at least. Here and there.

That meant Claire had some idea of who Elise was, then. That smoothed some things over, at least.

A lull in the forced introduction. Both Elise and Claire looked at Ari pointedly, waiting for her to explain herself. That was fair. Ari took a deep breath—settling her nerves in whatever way she could—then got to the thick of things.

“Claire, do you mind if Elise inspects you?”

The request was a social faux-pas, a pretty heavy one, not that Claire would know better. Allowing another person to inspect you was deeply personal. It gave away a your class, level, and stats, which was more information than someone would normally want to present a stranger. The kind of thing reserved for close friends and family, and for some people, never revealed. Ari asking Claire to do so, rather than letting her offer, was twice as bad.

“Sure?” Claire said.

Some of Elise’s composure faltered at the bizarre turn, both Ari’s request, and Claire’s instant acceptance, her lack of reaction at Ari’s inappropriate question.

“Ari?” Elise asked.

“Go ahead. Um. I know it’s weird. But it’ll speed things up.”  And provide concrete proof.

Elise turned to Claire, brow furrowed, visibly uneasy and her confusion deepening. But she did as Ari suggested.

A second later, Elise stiffened.

It was, of course, one thing in specific that drew the reaction out. Claire’s class, ‘Honeybee Defender’. While Elise had maybe dismissed her bizarre appearance—undoubtedly something she had never seen before, with her bumbleebee hair and antennae, but not the oddest thing possible—she couldn’t dismiss Claire’s class name. Not combined with her appearance.

Then, Elise shooting Ari a wide-eyed look, Ari preempted her questions.

“So,” Ari said. “A week ago, Claire was a monster. A member of the royal guard for the local Honeybee Colony. You know the one?” She cleared her throat. “And, uh, my class turned her into this. A … person.”

Elise stared at her.

Here we go, Ari thought.