Chapter Four Hundred and Two - Sailor-Suited Soldiers of Love and Justice!

Chapter Four Hundred and Two - Sailor-Suited Soldiers of Love and Justice!

Chapter Four Hundred and Two - Sailor-Suited Soldiers of Love and Justice!

Okay, I said. We all agree that this is probably not a very good idea.

There were nods all around.

But were all going to do it anyway because this is fun and because these school uniforms are really cute?

Amaryllis sighed, but she sighed while looking really cute, so it kind of defeated the entire point of it.

Valerian had enough Mitytea uniforms for everyone, and since the uniforms were designed to accommodate all sorts of students of all sorts of sizes, they included a small but potent resizing enchantment. At least, thats what my Insight skill suggested.

So right now, all of my friends and I (even including Calamity) were decked out like first year academy students. That meant that at the moment we were all wearing white jackets with little golden brass buttons with pale blue epaulettes and a poofy pink ascot.

The uniform looked very naval, and thats because it kind of was. Mitytea Academy had been founded, in part, by some humans whod originally come from the Kingdom of Endless Swells, where they had a deep and long-standing naval tradition which carried into their way of dress.

The uniform was basically a low-ranking officers uniform repurposed for the Academy.

Well, repurposed and modified, because I was very certain that naval officers didnt wear pleated skirts while onboard a ship, or knee-high socks.

I feel like I should be wearing pantyhose, I said as I looked at myself in the mirror. This uniform shows off a lot of leg.

Ah, its okay, Awen said. You have, um, nice legs?

I grinned at her reflection. Thanks! It must have been all the jumping and bouncing around. It made for good strong leg muscles.

Amaryllis huffed a rather disappointed sort of huff and I glanced over to her. She didnt have the socks, of course, because that would look strange with her rather birdy legs. There is no way the academy doesnt know what theyre doing with these uniforms, she said. I bet this is just another strange tactic to get the school into a better position.

Yeah, Im sure, Calamity grumbled.

He was standing in the corner of the wardrobe room (Valerian had an entire room just for his clothes - and it was not a small room) with his arms crossed and a rather serious pout on.

Are you sure you want to come? I asked. You dont look super comfortable.

The problem was, of course, that Milytea was an all-girls academy. Though I wasnt going to tell Calamity that he looked very nice in a skirt and dress top, even if the top in question was currently stuffed with a balled-up shirt to give him a bit more of a feminine appearance.

I dont mind, Calamity mumbled. Better than being stuck here with the harpy noble. Dont know how long Id be able to hear him go on about the love of his life before I started to feel sick of it.

He is very... passionate, I said.

Will you even be able to pass yourself off as a woman at all? Amaryllis asked.

Calamity glared at her. Whats that supposed to mean? He grabbed the sides of his skirt and wiggled them about. Im wearing the uniform, arent I?

Well, no one but a bunch of young men in black robes who whistled rather rudely until Amaryllis fired a bolt of lightning past their ears.

We went left on leaving the hotel, and I was very aware of how unarmoured I was, which was a strange thing to notice. Had I gotten so used to wearing at least a gambeson and cuirass that now that I was without I was feeling a bit... not naked, but certainly underdressed?

Like showing up at a fancy party in jeans and a t-shirt.

Im surprised, Caprica said as we walked along. That you were so eager to accept this little side quest, Amaryllis.

Youre specifically surprised that I wanted to take it? Amaryllis asked.

Yes. Awen doesnt seek out trouble, Calamity seeks out another kind of trouble, and Broccoli seems like shes be willing to do anything for the sake of meeting new people. You, on the other hand, always seemed like the level-headed voice of reason.

I... should I have been insulted. Awen and Calamity seemed more amused than anything, and I was never in a hurry to find fault in something a friend said, but still, that didnt sound right at all. I wasnt willing to try anything to meet new people.

Amaryllis huffed. You may remember Francisco? You met him in Sylphfree.

The rather arrogant harpy man that challenged you to a duel, yes, I remember him. You clearly have some history with him, Caprica said.

History doesnt cover the depths of my hatred for that man, Amaryllis said. In any case, Valerian is his older brother. He is... perhaps a little more simple and less cunning than Francisco, but if my parents had arranged for me to marry him instead, perhaps I wouldnt have been so keen on removing his head. Hes a... nice man.

I processed that for a moment. The somewhat dopey and nice Valerian wed just met, who seemed very in love right now and rather silly for it, married to my best friend Amaryllis. That would lead to a very poor Valerian whom Amaryllis would lead by the tip of his beak. I loved Amaryllis very much, but she was the sort of woman whose spine was made of some sort of magically-reinforced steel.

That doesnt explain why were all dressed like schoolgirls heading off on a mission with very little time to prepare, Caprica said.

Well, mostly I want him to owe me one, and can you imagine how angry Francisco will be when I call in that favour? Amaryllis asked. Ah, I dont know how it is among the sylph, but within harpy society, a favour is owned by a family. I could call that favour with nearly any Hawk. Though really there are some practical issues with that.

Caprica nodded along. Self-interest and a petty need to one-up your adversary then. That makes a lot more sense.

Amaryllis huffed, insulted, but unable to contradict the statement.

Fortunately for her ego, we arrived at the next intersection and turned left, and I found my eyes caught by a car moving by. An actual car, not pulled by horses, but by a large steam engine billowing smoke out above it and making a huge amount of noise while a team of students from one of the academies hung onto it.

Whoa, I said. I havent seen cars in a while.

Its hardly impressive, Amaryllis said. A less useful use of an engine than an airship. Far more confined.

That... was weird to think of, especially coming from a world where cars were all over, but in a way she was right. This world had roads, sure, but most were unpaved, and they certainly werent asphalted. Besides, Amaryllis came from a super mountainous region, and so did Caprica. They wouldn't be able to use cars if they had them. Mattergrove might, but they seemed to be having a hard time catching up to other nations development of airships and the like.

I set all of that aside as we paused before a large wrought-iron gate, the words Mitytea Academy emblazoned over the top. Beyond that was a beautiful set of buildings made of a beige stone, with verdigris-green rooftops arranged in a large C around a central courtyard.

There were a number of girls within, all in the same white uniforms we were now wearing.

Looks like this is it, Amaryllis said. Lets deliver that letter and get out of here.

***