Second update today! I'm almost at the point I wanted to be when I started. Just so happens to be next chapter. Do you ever write whole stories for certain scenes? That initial inspiration of an idea. It's one of those. So I'm stupid excited for the next update. Be back soon!

Thanks for reading!

The Fourth Day Ends

After being fawned over and generally praised for a good few hours, the guys were quite put out and ready to party. Even Allen was stifling his yawning after the forty-fifth 'bless your hearts.' The only one basking in the glow of unfounded compliments was none other than Skye, but that should come as no surprise since the boys had suspected that he fed off of his own swelling ego for sustenance for quite some time.

They had traipsed up the hill and into a cozy office akin to a merchant's with maps on the walls and shelves and shelves of musty books. It was offhandedly explained that their library and government office were one building as they gathered to discuss the situation around a table. Gill poured them tea, and they half-wondered if the boy had spit in the pot out of malice. The mayor said their village was 'economical,' but the state of repair of the room around them or lack thereof and the watery, tasteless tea made it quite evident these people were on hard times. Klaus felt even more sick at the prospect of them giving up their precious few resources for a frivolous party on their account. He pushed his teacup away.

Most of the mayor's gibberish went right over their heads. He rambled about some quilt and a tree and the elements; Klaus figured they were some sort of cult and was highly uncomfortable. Allen was thinking the women weren't half bad looking, but that was about all this town had to offer. Skye had a rather shocking wide-eyed interest in all that the little mayor had to tell. Rod was all but taking notes like a secretary at his side, excited to learn something no one else on the outside could.

"Have you always been cut off? We can't be the first people to—" Rod was stifled by Skye talking over him.

"He means it took us a long time to find our way here," Skye said to make their appearance sound planned. By this time, Klaus was giving him a similar glare to Gill's. What was he trying to pull? "If only we could've gotten here sooner."

Hamilton sympathized with a grieved nod. "Yes, but… you're here now. That's what matters. I know Waffle Town has become sheltered over the generations, and we see less merchants by sea with every passing year, but we always believed you'd—"

"Did you just say waffle?" Allen cut in, finally opting to speak up after spending the better part of their scheme on the observing end. He wasn't necessarily against what Skye was doing, but there was only so much bullshit he could handle at a given sitting. "Your town is 'waffle?'"

"Why, yes!" Hamilton happily reported. "You've arrived! I still can't believe I've been given the supreme honor of having the office of mayor when the fabled Heroes of Waffle appeared."

Tea flew out of Rod's nose.

"And that's perfectly fine," Skye sent a warning look to the boy as he struggled to clean up his dribbling. Klaus pat Rod on the back as he regained his bearings, and Gill grumpily wiped up the spilled tea. Skye smiled back to Hamilton. "We're here to do what we can. Where are our lodgings?"

"Oh! Yes, of course!" Hamilton leapt to his feet, looking flustered with so much on his mind. He had forgotten. "Your journey has been long; you must need rest. We want you to enjoy the feast we've prepare in your honor after all!"

If he said 'honor' again, Klaus was going to scream in the stuffy, quiet office. Skye had been right after all. There really was no honor in thieves. Here he was steaming, but he wouldn't say a word. He hated it, but he wouldn't betray his friends. So he watched them pull the wool over these innocent peoples' eyes. For whatever reason, these people had faith that their band matched their religious prophecy, and they were taking full advantage of that. There was no honor left in him. He was ashamed.

The mayor ushered them out with promises of showing them to the sacred spots at a later date. Half the boys crossed their fingers that day wouldn't come. The afternoon was winding down, and the sunset cast orange rays across the village's cobblestone square. Villagers had indiscreetly waited outside of the town hall to catch glimpses of the so-called heroes, and the boys received smiles and waves once again from those loitering in wait for them to reappear.

"Tonight, you shall be treated as kings!" Hamilton promised, shaking Klaus' hands this time in both of his own with great gusto. "Our humble village will stop at nothing to leave you impressed."

"Yes, well… that's… good?" Klaus ventured uneasily, coming up short on faux sincerity. He looked to Skye for direction, but he was being ignored. Klaus was still worried about the mayor's son who was glaring at them suspiciously every few moments, putting him on edge.

Hamilton went down the line to shake each man's hand in turn. He released Skye's arm and looked over his shoulder at the villagers who were already littering the square with tables and party prep. They were lacking direction, so there was plenty for the mayor to do in the meanwhile. He very generously offered: "I'm afraid that we are underprepared, and your rooms are not yet available. However, if you'd like to freshen up from your travels, my home is open for you."

"PRAISES," Allen gratefully accepted for them all. He hadn't seen a comb in far too long.

Rod ruffled his taller friend's hair, getting swatted away. "Hehe, Allen's grumpy without soap!"

"It's because you reek without it," he retorted.

"I suppose that would be nice…" Klaus surrendered in agreement. They couldn't afford to get sick with the long road ahead of them.

"And the feast?" Skye prompted, hoping it would lead to a discussion for the types of food that would be present. Starving or no, he was a rather picky eater.

Alas, his segue was ineffective. Hamilton clapped his hands together with decision. "Yes, of course! By the time you return, we will all be ready for you! Come, Gill, make nice. Show the heroes to our house, so they may prepare for their welcome!"

"I heard you; I was standing right here…" Gill grumbled, the surly boy rolling his eyes. He kept his gaze low, his entire demeanor now dismissive and completely different from the evident panic he had upon meeting them. Perhaps his head had cooled to the situation over the hours, but Klaus was still on high alert. There was something about him he just didn't trust. The boy beckoned his head and sounded almost professional in his address. "Follow me, please."

Allen and Rod immediately fell into step behind the kid. Allen poked at the cowlick atop Gill's head and was quickly flicked away in annoyance. Klaus, more ready for a nap than anything, rolled his shoulders and turned to Skye. But the space was empty where he had been.

He spun around and found his friend off to the side of the road by some browning hedges with a pair of women. Klaus rolled his eyes. "Typical."

Klaus fell out of step with their friends and met up with Skye, putting a hand on his shoulder to get his attention. "Hey. Don't wander off."

"I'm not wandering anywhere – just doing some sightseeing. Look at these shimmering blossoms; I can't say no to maidens so exquisite! They have stars in their eyes," Skye remarked with that manipulatively charming tone he played so well. The girls giggled at his theatrics. Klaus half-wondered if they were taking him seriously or if they just found his saccharine melodrama comical.

Still, Klaus did as he was told and accidentally made eye contact with one of the women. Her deep, honest gaze immediately made him feel another nauseating stab of guilt as well as a little bashful, so he shook his head and looked over his shoulder towards the stairs where the others disappeared. "W-we ought to catch up; come on, you can be a bother later."

"I'll have you know these lovely creatures pulled me aside, thank you," he defended himself, his tone falling a little flatter as he pursed his lips in a whine.

"We're so sorry to trouble you!" The girl with short brown hair apologized, bowing her head to them. She held her hands together in pleading, looking back up at Klaus hopefully. "Please do not misunderstand – we're not looking to win your favor for our own selfish gain. We only wish to please the Four!"

"Er, no, o-of course not…" Klaus found himself stuttering again at her display of reverence, his face heating up further. He didn't notice Skye smirking at him.

"My name is Anissa, and this is Renee," the other girl with the honest eyes spoke up, stepping past her friend who was much too nervous to go on. She parted a lock of glossy hair behind her ear after making her own little bow of greeting. "We're to prepare the table for the heroes, and we wanted to inquire as to your preferred foods?"

"O…oh…" annoyed with himself, Klaus coughed into his hand to clear his throat. "Yes, well… thank you. That's very kind."

"We only wish to do our part in showing our gratitude," Anissa bowed her head again. Renee mimicked her more cool-headed friend and dipped her head as well.

"I'm sure anything you make will be more than satisfactory," Klaus said, scratching his jawline and winding his hand up nervously behind his neck.

"But he hates shrimp," Skye stuck his thumb at his friend. It was his turn to do the dragging, and he took Klaus by the collar to yank him away. He sent a little wave to the girls. "We'll see you tonight, my doves. We'll be looking forward to it!"

Anissa's face colored at that, and she quickly looked away biting her lip. Renee waved back and turned to her friend too soon as they were just leaving earshot, squealing at her and giggling over their encounter with the pair. The boys caught just a snip as she gushed: "He's way dreamier than I—!"

Klaus let out a long sigh, making quick strides across the square and taking the steps at a brisk rhythm, straightening his cuffs that didn't need straightening. "You hear that? You're already quite popular again."

"Hm," Skye hummed at his side, hands in his pockets and a carefree smile on his lips.

His face returning to its usual pallor with every step away, Klaus was sounding more confident again as well. "You'd best be careful before the husbands start getting mad."

"You'll have my back when that happens," Skye shrugged. His eyes followed the two lonely streets, and he decided to head towards the tallest home on the lane.

Klaus caught that late, stopping short. He saw he was left behind and jogged to keep up with Skye. "Hey! Don't say that like it's inevitable!"

Skye chose correctly, and they found Gill waiting with his arms crossed outside the first door. His foot was tapping the stoop in short temper. A few birds were spooked at their arrival and fled the alcove on their right.

"You take too much for granted. Perhaps I should let one of these husbands catch you square on the nose. Teach you a lesson. You'd appreciate me more," Klaus was scolding him all the while, but Skye only tuned in at the end. He was soon to tune him back out as they approached the mayor's son.

"The others are inside. You will find all of the necessary amenities at your disposal," Gill dictated, standing just enough out of the way so that they could pass through into his home, but they'd still have to get uncomfortably close to his scrutinizing glare to do so.

Klaus practically fled past him, glad to find Rod and Allen again. He got anxious being separated in this strange place. Skye lingered at the door in front of the young man, finding a new toy to play with. Skye wasn't stupid – he knew full well when someone saw past his lies. Besides, Skye was barely trying; he could hardly blame the kid for hating him. Yet he wasn't fighting anymore. He cocked his head comically to the side. "Your name was… Gill?"

He went unmoved, unchanging. "Your memory is in working order."

"You don't like us very much," Skye guessed, his expression sparking bemused.

"Quite the understatement," Gill affirmed, still glowering. But his foot had eased its tapping.

Skye made a sound of interest. His fingers drummed along his chin. He looked back where his crew disappeared, noting the lavish, antique furniture and absent-mindedly appraising the value of half the room at a glance. "Yet you let us into your home?"

Gill began to look more exasperated than angry. He swallowed his annoyance. He wasn't going to let this jerk get to him. "I follow orders."

His eyes lit up with mischief at that. "Oh? That's quite a bold thing to reveal to someone you've just met."

The mayor's son gave him a more genuinely baffled expression, the stoic façade cracking ever so slightly. What was with this guy? Some kind of perverted psycho? Nonetheless, Gill found himself continuing his interrogation game. His temper was quickly getting the better of him. "You're mistaken – I take orders from the mayor, not you."

Skye didn't miss a beat, his eyes skipping to the floor and quickly back up. "Did he order you to wear those shoes like that?"

Gill looked down at his brown buckled loafers and black high socks. He looked back up at Skye, aghast. "I…! Wha?"

Skye sadly shook his head. "Father still dressing you? Tsk, tsk. You look like a schoolboy. How old are you anyways, kid?"

"I am not a child!" Gill grabbed Skye's wrist just as he was about to make to pat him on the head, snatching it in a surprisingly iron grip just over his hair.

"But you dodged the question," Skye accused curiously, letting his hand go limp in Gill's grasp.

There was this strange, disarming ability that this con artist had – and a fraud he was, he had no doubt – that Gill couldn't fathom to explain. He almost felt that he himself was in the wrong for raising his voice, and he needed to apologize. There was this placid innocence that was alongside the smarmy smile that he so desperately wanted to strangle. Gill was positive he'd never seen someone so infuriating and contradictory in all his life. He gathered his wits enough to bite back at him defensively. "I don't have to explain myself to you!"

Skye's grin widened in teasing. There it was again! That look that sparked Gill's killer instinct like nothing else – not since that carpenter's stupid, oblivious grin anyways. But this guy's was much worse. It was calculated in its overconfidence. "You need to respect your elders."

"Skye!" Glorious reprieve came from within the house. In the hall was the dark haired tall stranger, the one who kept giving Gill his distrusting glares right back at him. He had his arms crossed like a tired mother catching her child misbehaving.

Skye answered in a similar fashion to the analogy, his voice too blameless to be believed. "Yes~?"

Klaus signaled him over. "Stop pissing him off."

"Coming~" he acquiesced without further argument. Skye bopped Gill on the nose with his finger and welcomed himself into his home, looking at the ceilings and walls like it was a big spectacle to see.

Gill angrily huffed and slammed the door. He'd watch these jokers like a hawk. He could easily see them making off with his grandmother's silver if his back was turned. He'd love to snuff them out at the first opportunity. He straightened his bolo and caught his tall socks out of his peripheral, remembering the schoolboy comment. Seething to himself once again, he power walked back to the square to prep for the feast they didn't deserve. Dirty, rotten… thieves!

Gill returned after their baths and delivered the group to the square that night with little ceremony. He made his distance as best he could, but he was still forced to sit next to his father at the heroes' right hand. The guys were set at the forefront of a great circle on pillows for seats with low tables, and a bonfire was constructed in the center to light the summer night in warm oranges, reds, and yellows.

As the festivities began, Hamilton opened with a great speech that further confused the boys rather than gave them answers. He stood in his address. "All these years as it was foretold, arriving in our most dire need. I am so incredibly honored to be your mayor during this blessed time. We gratefully open our hands, our hearts, and our—"

"—legs," Allen whispered with a wink, getting a sharp elbow from Klaus. Rod still snickered immaturely, safe on the other side of the red head away from Klaus' punishment.

"—homes to these brave heroes! May the prophecy live!" The mayor held aloft his cup of wine.

"May the prophecy live!" The villagers echoed with their own cups and sipped in veneration. The thieves awkwardly took up their cups late and took sloppy gulps to compensate. Rod caught his down the wrong pipe and started coughing, now wishing Klaus could hit him after all. He rubbed his messy chin, bemoaning his rotten luck with beverages twice in one day, and met eyes with a group of children giggling at him. He smiled back.

"The festival of their welcome will soon begin! Tonight, we partake in celebrating the day of their arrival. May we mark this as a holiday for many years to come!"

The villagers applauded him, and a select few rose. They went about to collect the food stuff that had been scavenged for the feast, and a lone villager moved to stand before the fire before the four. He held up a paper. "A poem! For the heroes!"

Quite jarred, the boys looked between one another. A what? A… why? They could only stare on in silent horror as the man prattled off in tedious iambs his droning verse, praying each line to come would be the merciful last. The food came around, and Klaus was well aware of the girl setting his plate before him, her glossy long hair now pinned back in intricate braids woven with flowers behind her head. Her smiling, honest eyes met his, and she bowed as she departed, making Klaus feel even worse again about their deceit.

But they began to notice something off. The man's poem, though painful to listen to, was of dying winds and stagnant seas. Cold nights and tasteless bounty. The meal that was put before them was meager and bland; the bread was dry, the meat was chewy, and the vegetables were bitter. They were hungry and ate, but it was not quite the feast of celebration they were expecting.

Rod openly gnawed on the meat that was given him, trying to tear it between his fork and his teeth. Allen pushed away the carrots on his plate, cutting the pieces smaller and smaller, and Klaus forced himself to swallow politely what was given to him. Skye nonchalantly ignored his plate for the most part, focusing instead on the mayor's son who had his gaze on the clenched fists in his lap. His face as an easy read - he was embarrassed and outright pained.

After the poem finished, there was a great cheer of appreciation, and the boys clapped in lackluster comparison to the people. Hamilton had them strike up the band, and the party finally started to feel like an actual celebration. There was no dimming the spritely fiddle or the pounding drum, and the villagers all began to dance. Young and old alike moved around the flickering flames of the fire, singing an old folk song.

Girls with leis of local flowers approached the heroes and danced something interpretive, a story of a Harvest Goddess and her home on the earth. Klaus was hardly following the plot since the girl he got in front of him was of course the raven-haired Anissa. He couldn't help but feel she was the best dancer as well, gracefully twisting her body and flowing with the music for the tale. She moved towards him suddenly, and Klaus found himself trying to reflexively back away with nowhere to go. He dumbly caught himself with his palm on the ground behind him as she set the ring of flowers over his head and about his neck. Easy as a nymph, she finished her enchanting dance with the other girls, and they received additional praise – Klaus more enthusiastic this time, finding his clapping awkwardly slow down to meet the speed of his friends applauding around him in an effort to keep him from looking overeager. He got side eyes. Too late.

"Come dance with us, hero!" A familiar girl with short blonde hair was before Skye, holding out her hands to him in offering.

Skye had accepted her lei, but he shrugged dismissively. Yet his charm remained in his rejection. "Alas, beautiful girl, I do not dance. But he loves to."

Klaus was horrified to find himself thrown under the bus and unable to protest as he was pulled to his feet, and he clumsily stepped over the table. Rod brightly followed the example as he too was led by the hands by a pretty village girl, leaping over his plate towards the fire circle. But Allen was also too cool to dance, and he waved off the woman who came to collect him, opting to stay with Skye and the bitter carrots.

"I'm Maya – what's your name?"

Klaus had gotten used to ignoring this particular question over the years he'd spent with Skye. He simply pretended not to hear her. "I'm afraid I am not a dancer, Maya – you've been fooled."

"Nonsense!" She chided with a little giggle of delight, seemingly not suspicious to miss his name. "I'm sure you're grand; just give it a try."

"Er, no, I really cannot—" He looked sideways enviously at Rod who had no trouble learning the steps the villagers were doing with ease. Brat was good enough he looked practiced. Cheating, high society asshole…

"Then we'll just have to do the work for him, won't we?" Another voice cut in. Klaus rued that it was Anissa, finding himself mute in her presence. She was bold and her tone was suggestive. Maya was put out that she cut in, but it was clear she wasn't having any luck with him. She went to dance with her friends in the circle, hoping she'd gain one of the other heroes' favor.

True to promise, Anissa allowed Klaus to remain standing in place, but the way she moved around him made him look like the life of the party. She was lithe and elegant and always a hair's breadth away. He wanted nothing more than to hide his face in his hands, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from her in the firelight. But mostly, he loved and hated Skye with every fiber of his being for getting him into this madness while he sat safe on the sidelines.

"Your friend appears nervous. I hope the feast is to his liking?" Hamilton asked, beckoning to the stony-faced Klaus.

"He's having the time of his life, I assure you," Skye replied with a lewd smile. Due to Klaus' closed off, worrywart nature, he never got any action with women. This dance was long overdue.

Hamilton twiddled his fingers, looking between Skye and the fire. The thief almost thought he was going to ask him to dance – but Hamilton finally sighed in content. His eyes were misty. Skye was surprised. The mayor apologized, gazing at the flickering flames as the silhouettes flashed in the night over them. "My apologies… I just… I never thought this day would come."

Skye was a man of little remorse. He had been beaten and hated. Scraped by and clawed his way to survive. Starved. Abused. He learned to take what he could get when it was available to him. And this village was ripe for the picking. They were too vulnerable and foolishly generous. But Skye wasn't altogether heartless. Not yet. His eyes caught Gill's on the other side of the mayor, and the blond looked away from him. It was really too easy. They handed it to him on a silver platter. But it was one of those rare times that Skye hesitated.

A keg was rolled out, and his thoughts of potential guilt drifted off in the night breeze. There was one thing the village was still plentiful in – booze. Potent whiskey made from their fields of wheat and barley sloshed between the villagers in wooden cups that smelled strongly of the fermented drink, infused with the liquor to the grain. Allen could hold his alcohol, but he was soon out by the fire with the rest of them. Klaus' head was pounding even worse, and Rod stumbled as he laughed. Skye was hyperaware of the stars above their heads through the smoke, spinning, spinning, spinning as the fiddle and drum played in the dark.

In and out of the hazy dizziness of drinks, Skye was caught by the unchanging sadness on Gill's face alone. It was the last thing he remembered seeing before sleep overtook him.