The Innkeeper

Haris and Ayesha were both lying down on their picnic blanket, looking up at the parrots in the trees above them. All the parrots in the Inn had gathered on the tree above the teenagers, as if acknowledging the pair as their leaders. After flying around everywhere they were already exhausted, and once they had their little picnic the duo felt sleepy. They didn’t actually go to sleep, but they lay there, enjoying each other’s company silently. As compared to their earlier enthusiastic and cheesy selves, they were a lot more sombre.

“We should head back,” Haris said eventually, his voice reluctant.

“When will your family head out?”

“Tonight, probably.”

“Do you know where you’ll be going?”_.

“They’ll probably send me to some academy. I’ll probably be under supervision until that’s done.”

Ayesha didn’t reply, but only nodded. Haris spent a few more minutes struggling – he had something he wanted to say, but he couldn’t bring himself up to say it. Despite all his earlier bravado, he was still just a teenager and his experiences in life were limited – he could not help but be afraid of certain things.

Even without looking at him Ayesha could tell there was something on his mind. She waited a few minutes to see if he spoke on his own, but when he continued to hesitate she said, “Don’t keep your thoughts hidden. Secrets are not good for your soul, say whatever you want to say.”

Haris turned to look at his beloved, and she turned to look back at him. The two kids stared in each other’s eyes in silence until Haris finally spoke.

“Ayesha do you think we’re making a mistake? I mean you… I’m just….just…”

Ayesha chuckled. “Who put these doubts in your mind? Was it your parents? Or was it mine? Are you trying to say I could have anyone, so why should I be with you?”

Haris didn’t reply, but the worried look on his face said it all.

“If I can be with anyone, then why can’t I be with you? What’s the point of being rich, of being powerful, if you still can’t do what you want? If you’re forced to do things you don’t want to do just to keep your status or power, then aren’t you just a slave to those things? My parents think I don’t know better because I’m young, but just because I’m young doesn’t mean I’m wrong. Or are your concerns different? Is there something else on your mind?”

Haris shook his head and said, “I’m not afraid of anything else, not my parents, not hardship or struggle…but I’m afraid…I’m afraid that one day I will be your regret.”

Ayesha smiled as she caressed the young man’s face with her hand. “As long as you love me the way that you do, I will never regret being with you.”

The two kids smiled as they finished pouring their hearts out to each other. It would be a while before they got to spend time with one another again. Eventually the two left, and both received a key additional to the one they had bought because they both had made purchases in the Gift shop.

Mere moments after the duo left, Lex arrived back at the Inn. He took in a deep breath, and after holding it in for a few seconds, let out a relieved sigh.

“The air is so much better here,” Lex commented to the flying hologram around him.

“Living at the Inn is fine, but what will you do about your family?”

“The only reason there is any focus on me at all is because of Marlo. I’ll wait till he returns and have him clear everything up. Once the focus is off of me, I’ll think of something. I don’t want to introduce them to cultivation till I’m strong enough to protect them.”

“Makes sense,” Mary said, nodding.

“I see my MP has gone up again. What did I miss while I was gone?”

Mary summoned Velma, who gave Lex a detailed report of Haris and Ayesha. She did not get any additional information about them because only Lex could see his guests statuses, but Lex was sure that there was more than met the eye with the teenagers, especially considering that Ayesha left a tab of 10,855MP! Lex would not have access to that MP till she actually used it up, but her balance would be saved and she could use it at any time.

When he learned about their flying adventures he was slightly surprised, and then relieved to hear about the fact that they could not enter the Greenhouse even while flying. It would take someone who had a deep understanding of arrays to manoeuvre through the forest.

Lex also had some ideas when he thought of his guests flying around the Inn. Using the design interface he added a few permanent clouds in the sky, and introduced a looping air current. If his guests ever flew, they could ride the aircurrent and it would be like a ride. Having a few clouds in the air would also add a little more variety. He also decided to introduce a few more animals and birds.

Love birds, pigeons and peacocks appeared magically throughout the Inn. But he wasn’t done yet, he created a small, crystal clear lake near the Recovery room and introduced some cute looking fish. He didn’t know many fish except for Goldfish, and would need to research about which would be a good addition to his lake. For now the lake was small and shallow, as he didn’t have much space, but in the future he planned on expanding it. He placed a row boat in the lake, and then smiled to himself. If the two teenagers came back for another date, at least they would have a few more things to do. All the upgrades cost him 1500MP, but it was totally worth it. Lex could not help but imagine himself bringing a girl to the Inn for a date in the future, unaware that he wore a silly grin on his face. Everyone who saw him could guess exactly what the Innkeeper was thinking, and resisted the urge to facepalm.