It was well past midday when Teddy strolled in with the girl clinging to his arm. She was short by werefolk standards, standing only a bit above six feet tall, not including her ears, which added another nine inches or so. Her pure white skin made him think of fresh fallen snow, with her long metallic silver hair acting as moon beams. Despite her obvious gym time, she was cute in a helpless creature sort of way. She trembled with each step, and her periwinkle eyes darted around nervously as if enemies could be anywhere. Like most Callians, she had a heavy, muscular build, a result of the Callians' extreme fitness and weight-lifting culture. She smiled nervously, the way anxious people do to hide their anxiety. It wasn't convincing. It was, however, very Callian of her.

  "Eddy, you can turn off the IGM. Callians can smell that you’re human, so Bunny already knows,” Teddy stated flatly as he tried to push the girl off. She was clearly much stronger than he was and didn't want to budge except to push him forward so she could hide behind him. She peered shyly over his shoulder, crouching to hide better as the pair were almost the same height. That would make her only a few inches taller than Ed.

  Timidly, the bunny-girl forced a smile, and she forced herself to leave Teddy's arm. It should also be said that Callians don't bow or curtsy to show respect like other races. Werefolk submit to the more dominate force with what others deemed a ridiculous pose – a pose designed to put the one showing respect at a clear disadvantage, like a dog exposing its belly. Depending on the Callian, the stance either looks ridiculous or adorable. Bunny was the latter.

  Her head cocked to one side, her neck extended as she stood on one foot, the other raised high and tucked beneath her. Her hands framed her face like cat paws, the small curved blades between her knuckles poking out ever so slightly. Her back was curved, as if to show as much of her torso as possible. She smiled without showing teeth while looking just above his right shoulder. The woman moved with grace and obvious practice despite the pose's inherent imbalance. It was clear she was not a commoner, despite the rabbit ears. She was clearly well-trained and experienced with such a gesture.

  This wasn't a pose used under normal circumstances. Most Callians would only use it a few times a year to submit to officials as part of a crowd. It established or acknowledged a hierarchy, such as pack leadership. It was important in the Callian caste system, but only nobles were judged for their technique. Most Callians wouldn't exaggerate the pose's features so much that it looked like they'd fall over. That was for nobles showing off. Callie-Alpha and Callie-Omega submitted to Ed's father in this extreme fashion when they were forced to make the trip into the Capital of the Thirteen.

  In this context, the pose was an unspoken request to join his pack. She was saying he was her leader now. She accepted him as such. It was a request he could either accept or deny. He was going to deny her and remove memories of their amanofuchigoma from her mind. Before he cleaned her brain of their illicit (in Callie) crystalline tent, Ed wanted to use her to get at Teddy. It wasn't kind, but the girl wouldn't remember it anyway.

  “I'm not accepting. Drop the stupid pose, girl,” Ed snapped, trying his best not to lose his temper. He hated the thought of having to memory wipe someone. Why was Teddy forcing his hand? He also didn't want to consider his grand deception ineffective. Why was everything falling apart? “And turn what off? I am a weredonkey.”

  Situations like this were why he drank. Well, that and to dull the noise of brainwaves if he was being honest. Oh, and guilt – he had a lot of guilt. The prince drank deeply and tried to stop his mind from listing the many, many reasons he spent as much time as possible toasted.

  The bad omen spoke with her sweet voice full of complimentary tones, “Bunny thinks Eddy smells wonderful. Eddy smells like strawberries, chocolate, and the finest cocktails. Bugaboo doesn’t know what Bugaboo is talking about. Bunny just didn’t know Callians could smell as amazing as Eddy does. Bunny is so silly sometimes.”

  Bunny smiled, showing off her perfect teeth, and giggled flirtatiously. Her animosity toward the Mechmian grew as the girl felt deeply betrayed. It didn't take a telepath to see her glare at him with her eyes between lovesick glances at Ed. What woman didn't fall for the prince, drunk or not? It sickened Ed to think about it. He wanted those around him to have free will, but they always eventually lost it. He didn't want women around him to be love drunk like his mother. It made him angry, and he began to feel justified in taking out his frustrations.

  “Bug, are you making decisions? Is it your job to make decisions?” Eddy’s voice was smooth and thick as chocolate cheesecake as he ignored Bunny. He couldn't stand the way she'd fallen for him with absolutely no resistance. It made him sick to think how his “gift” stole her agency and sense. Worse yet, having her around only amplified how he saw others see him. She was damaging his goal of cruelty until Teddy found himself again.

  She was an open book to the drunken mind before her. Ed could practically hear her train of thought. Bunny wondered how Bugaboo could ever think to decide without going through his alpha. She wanted to stay, but this genius beside her made her look bad in the alpha's eyes. Teddy was a weak nerd who could never be an alpha. Why hadn't she approached the topic more respectfully? Eddy was right to keep Bugaboo in check. Why had she thought she deserved the assistance offered? Even if she did, bending now would set a bad precedent for Bugaboo. Such thoughts moved quickly across the surface of her mind, flowing like water.

  “Why was she here?” Ed wondered silently. He wanted to ask, but he knew he was weak. Weaker than even Teddy. If he knew the problem, the reason why she wanted to join him, Ed would most definitely fold. More pressing was the self-hatred he felt from making her cheer against her own cause. Ed didn't know what to do with his gift if it kept making her cheer against her own well-being. It made him feel guilty over something he couldn't control.

  There was nothing Ed wanted more than to scream at the silver-haired girl for agreeing with him. She had submitted herself to him. If she were smart would have tried to convince him to change his mind and let her join his routine. Instead, she was lamenting her own lack of manners and resigning herself to the terrors her subconscious suppressed.

  “No, sir. No decisions from me. I simply wish to present ye with options,” Teddy stated plainly, “And this is a good option.”

  Bunny wondered how Bugaboo could ever think to decide without going through his alpha. Eddy was right to keep Bugaboo in check. No! NO! NOOO! Ed's thoughts screamed to drown out the girl's thoughts. He wasn't right. He was a terrible person who was turning away a poor young girl who was so traumatized that her mental anguish had been buried deep. She was terrified but barely remembered why. She wasn't even wearing one of the revealing Callian outfits. She wore a pair of black, baggy men's trousers and a deep plum High-Mountain-style tee. The tee was stretched across her ample bosom, but she wasn't wearing it in the usual way. The front was tied the way girls do to make a shirt a midriff, showing off her impressively well-defined abdominal muscles.

  That was when Ed realized the girl was not only wearing one of his expensive shirts, but had cut it to give it a more feminine neckline. Similarly, the pants she wore had been modified, but they looked like the tough material Stone favored for his off-duty clothes. Only one person had the gall and ability to steal clothes and modify them on short notice.

  “Only present an option? Then why is there a were-whore at my table wearing my clothes?” Eddy accused melodically, his eyes narrowing, “How did you even get my clothes? I thought I told you not to break into my room anymore.”

  She had been annoyed and felt the betrayal. Now, Bunny was beginning to get angry. How dare he? How dare Bugaboo steal from Eddy? Maintaining her Callian grin, her fingers began to dig into Bugaboo’s arm. She thought about letting go, but Bunny needed to hold on to someone real. She didn’t feel deserving enough for someone wonderful like Eddy. Stone was a meanie who refused to comfort her. She needed a human, and all she had was this terrible waste of space. It was probably better than she deserved. She hadn't even questioned where the clothing had come from.

  Her self-hatred stirred Ed's heart, and he felt extremely guilty. Still, Callians smiled, and he looked dashing no matter what they felt on the inside. He barely heard Teddy's response.

  “Ed, I know this is difficult for ye to believe. I scarcely believe it meself. The prototype IGM is not sophisticated enough to fool werefolk. I theorize you've just been convincing the locals that we are werefolk using the thing ye do not like to use. That also explains the increase in total inebriation time per day as of late,” Teddy explained, scratching the back of his head as if embarrassed. He was hiding behind a mask of apathy, just as the girl did behind a smile.

  “If it isn't broken, don't fix it,” Ed corrected before realizing Teddy had almost gotten away with his dirty topic-changing trick, “I'll take care of this screw up. Let's just get her outside.”

  The last sentence was a command. One, the bunny girl would have obeyed if the fear hadn't made her shake. Only one of her feet moved to leave. The other remained firmly planted alongside the blue knight. After a moment, the shaking was so severe that she was grasping the arm to keep herself upright, as silent tears rolled down her face, catching on the dimples of her smiling lips.

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  “It is not functional, it requires more adjustment than I can perform with my current tools and parts,” a confused Teddy stated with his head tilted to the side like a dog trying to understand human speech, “Nothing to blubber about. It just requires a bit of rework and a few test subjects. I do despise blubbering. Ed, would ye assist?”

  “Fine. Fine. Stop crying. Explain what's going on!” Ed demanded as the sheer terror bled into his empathetic consciousness. His word was powerful, and the girl's tears immediately ceased, though she still shook as if she were freezing.

  Shaking his head and stomping a foot, Teddy began, “Bunny is a member of the Callie-beta-alphas' personal guard force. As you've heard, Kitsune is presumed POW, possibly alive, and Kitty is presumed KIA. I propose a rescue attempt for the former. With the data I currently possess, I believe undertaking this mission will also enhance the completion of our current objective. More importantly, it provides an additional layer of cover. We are knights investigating the missing Callie-beta-alphas.”

  “We don't need a backup plan.”

  Face straight, Teddy replied, “Ed, ye are ruining me plan.”

  “We just need to wander the roads,” Ed began before catching himself, “We can't have this argument here.” Inside, something alerted within. Was that Teddy being mouthy or just his natural tendency to make plans without considering other people's opinions? Perhaps there was a crack that he could exploit to bring his friend back. This girl was perhaps not a bad omen, but a wonderful one, ushering his friend back into the land of the self-realized.

  “What argument, sir? I simply wish to bring something to ye attention. This is an opportunity for all of us to benefit. A guide, such as Bunny, would make things considerably easier. I require a werefolk research assistant for the IGM. Bunny can provide valuable information to help avoid cultural blunders. Earlier, she was explaining the nuances of the werefolk naming conventions.”

  “You were supposed to bring the guidebook so we wouldn't have this problem,” Ed reminded the other man tiredly. That had been the last argument before Teddy's mind had surrendered. Wait, was it that or was it about Teddy's menu choices being nearly all Mechmian foodstuffs? The pair had a lot of arguments that Ed was too drunk to remember.

  Determined and undaunted, Teddy wouldn't shut up and follow orders. He just kept speaking as if everything he said was logical. It was infuriating. Why was he the only one calm?

  “The mutually beneficial relationship between our two parties would ensure discretion on both sides. The Callian heads of state will not want the loss of the heirs to be known throughout the Thirteen. The successful recovery of at least one heir will be a great victory and will serve the kingdom well. The High-King will be pleased should we be successful,” the blue knight eventually concluded.

  Sul’s rage filled Bunny. Teddy only cared about making himself look good. He didn’t care about Kitsune. All she needed to do was tell Eddy; she was sure he’d understand and want to help her. He was a perfect person. Eddy was cool as Lune and cared about people. Edward blinked at the thoughts. The girl was clearly in his thrall, but Ted was fighting. There was a glimmer of hope that he would reemerge. How had he forgotten Teddy's tendency towards making trouble? He was so close to breaking the spell with anger that Ed's heart skipped with joy. He was careful not to show even a hint of it, though. He needed to crush the blue knight's martyr complex.

  At some point, the Stone had set the table. He was glaring at his friend in blue menacingly. Not because he was against the plan. White knights were supposed to support saving damsels in distress and princesses. He was a white knight and therefore had to support the plan despite his strong reservations and embarrassing need for a blue knight to remind him of what white knights did. He was a terrible white knight, but he would continue to improve. Ed hated listening to the healthy coping mechanisms floating about in the white knight's simple brain. Stone didn't think in words, but vague pictures, concepts, and verses from his holy book. He was a simple fellow who didn't think too hard.

  Why think when The Castillo provided all the answers? Stone was currently disapproving of his friend because his book disapproved of physical contact outside a family unit. Even within the family, the draconian text limited physical contact. That thot would need to be removed before she tempted the weak-willed knights like Locke into unspeakable sin! It was a good thing that saving princesses was probably an easy task.

  Leaning into the complete jerk archetype, Eddy channeled his white knight's judgmental nature and snapped, “You were supposed to read that culture book! You had one job, Bug. One flipping job. You are supposed to be my Callie subject matter expert, but you can’t even do that right. You forgot to download the naming convention, too. I don’t ask for much. We don’t have time to save some stupid whore-princess. Who cares? It’s not like they’ll need an heir for another 100 years. Plenty of time to get a new one,” Eddy snapped, slamming his hands down on the table, making Bunny jump.

  Disgusted. Ed's stomach lurched as he heard the girl's thoughts. Biting her lip, Bunny couldn’t help but admire his passion. Werefolk conception rates were extremely low, but that didn’t mean the people of Callie didn’t try. So what if their birthrates continued to fall along with their population? This wise alpha had a hopeful outlook. She wished she could emulate even half of his positivity.

  “I tried to read it, but it was so bloody boring. Not to mention the book was almost a thousand years old. Surely most of the information is outdated. That is why a cultural S.M.E. is so important to the success of the mission,” Bugaboo stated slowly. Stone cleared his throat, catching Bugaboo’s attention momentarily.

  “Eddy, might I be permitted to quote some scripts?” Teddy did not wait for a reply before continuing, “Salutations 7:14: And the good knight must always assist the damsel in need, for to do nothing is the work of evil and is unbecoming of the holy and a disgrace to all that is good. Ephnamis 45:6: The righteous must allow no evil to go unpunished. Veneration 3:10: A master who prevents a good knight from walking the path of the righteous is no master at all; just as the knight who allows the master to prevent him from walking the path of the righteous is no knight at all. Ferdinand 5:12,” Teddy stated before being interrupted.

  While both Eddy and Bunny had the same thought – Teddy talked too much and was boring, only Eddy was playing the role of the bad guy. He said his lines with such gusto and venom that even he wasn't sure if he'd agreed or not.

  “Will you shut up? Bug, I swear you talk more than anyone I know. Fine, if it means that much to you, then we can try to save the girl. If this little side mission interferes with our real mission in any way, it’s over, got it? Do you understand, Bug? I’m only agreeing to this because that one is kinda hot. You’ll get her dressed better - in something sluttier. I want a better view of the goods. I won’t have fugly women in my routine, understand?”

  Again, the girl thought of no disagreement. The tongue lashing had been well deserved; Bugaboo had been flippant and rude. Eddy was so wise, and Bunny was grateful he had agreed to help. Eddy had complimented her and even expressed confidence in Bugaboo’s ability to acquire clothes for her, despite there not being any other women in the routine. She would be pretty again thanks to her handsome new master. Eddy honestly thought of everything and was generous with his praise. Bunny wanted to look good for Eddy and hoped Bugaboo wouldn’t mess everything up.

  “Yes, Eddy. That seems a sage plan. I am glad you thought of it,” Bugaboo stated flatly as he began to eat. Bunny didn't think Bugaboo knew what the word "glad" meant because he didn’t look glad. He looked emotionless as ever, a thought confirmed by the wise Eddy. This gave the prince an idea.

  “Glad? That’s a laugh, Bug. You don’t have any emotions, do you Mechmian? Just a blank slate. Not even a useful slate since your stupid IGM was useless and you didn’t learn the one thing you were supposed to. It’s not like you to care about anyone. Why do you care about this animal? You hoping to forn her?” Eddy laughed, took a small pin off his clothes, and threw it at Bugaboo. The pin missed entirely, but Bunny saw the true Eddy.

  He was every bit as good-looking without the IGM as he was with it; the main difference was the ears. Eddy’s sparkling amethyst-eyes were captivating, and his full lips enticing without the IGM alteration. His thick raven-black hair was shoulder-length, perfectly styled in a wave with lots of body. Bunny loved the sound of Eddy’s rich laugh and admired his shiny, pearly white, perfect teeth. She could have sworn she saw a piece of light reflect off his endearing grin. His swarthy skin seemed to have a warm, rich glow beneath it. Trying not to stare, Bunny couldn’t help but like Eddy, he was cooler than Lune and hotter than Sul. Ed hated this description of himself; even if it was true, it felt false when in the minds of those effect by his family gift.

  “Of course, you are correct. Mechmians have no feelings. We brutally murder emotions when we reach adulthood. It is a good thing I have such an intelligent master, or I may someday forget myself.

  In tones full of indifference, Teddy pontificated, “As for the accusation of caring; behold my field of cares. See that it is barren, for it was sown with salt on a bed of granite in an arid climate from which no light nor air may ever reach. My sister will marry me to a perfectly acceptable Mechmian Lady when the proper time comes. I do not need this lass.”

  “There's that eye-rolling melodrama,” Ed thought happily as he rolled his eyes.

  “Stone wanted to be a good white-knight, and white-knights grow more powerful with good deeds. I know how smart ye are and realized ye would want our good white knight to grow ever more powerful,” Teddy stated indifferently.

  If Teddy was as brilliant as Bunny thought he was and Eddy was smarter than Teddy, then Eddy must be the most intelligent person in the whole world. The wererabbit's thoughts made Ed snort with mirth. He got a hold of himself quickly.

  “I am smart, and Fa- High King would like it…” Eddy replied thoughtfully, considering the words of his beta. What a good leader.

  Thoughtfully? More like happily losing an argument without admitting the loss. Ed grinned, knowing this girl was going to make things interesting.

  The rest of the meal was spent with Eddy telling Bunny about “himself”. Or rather, Eddy rambled on about his imaginary life as a famous musician/artist, traveling the world for inspiration. He had to travel under a false name, or his fans would find him and give him no moment’s peace. Teddy and Stone (whom Eddy called Bug and Dummy) worked as his guards.

  The girl listened intently as she ate with gusto. Ed could tell she wanted to talk about Kitsune, but he couldn't bring himself to discuss the topic. Only the night before, he'd been laughing about the situation with some new friends. Suddenly, the topic made him feel dirty. Who was he to attempt to save the princess? He was nothing but a spy.