The Wedding Crashers Job

Location: Hills Hotel ⚘
Word Count: 761/250 ⚘  

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It was warm, but slightly moist mid-afternoon according to Hope's keeper Wulfhild, the several centuries old being who looked like an aged elf. They had been in this magically beautiful city for a few days now, and Wulfhild still couldn't cope with the loud and rambunctious urban city life. Hope was in the bathroom of their 2-Bed hotel room, finishing his shower and getting dressed for his first job as a wizard of Pharaoh's Call. And he was meeting someone, an individual, he had spoken to for a very brief moment over the phone. Hope couldn't help but feel particularly curious of this figure who would be accompanying them on his job. He was certainly someone stronger than Hope which was helpful of course. How dreadful would it be to flop at his first "contract", as his guardian Augustus liked to professionally refer to them as.

The tall handsome blonde prince with striking blue eyes, despite his combat prowess, was actually quite sheltered. Never had he done the most of simple things in life. Clean his own clothes, work an actual job, or even tie his own tie. His life revolved around living life in the palace of his faraway kingdom, that, and watching over Hope, the effeminately beautiful young man he seemed to fancy far more than he'd ever admit. Augustus stood in front of a mirror, failing to tie his own tie and grunting in aggravation. As Wulfhild came back into the room, holding the wedding invitation they had received 2 days prior, Hope suddenly emerged from the bathroom, his usual gown discarded for an uncharacteristically masculine tuxedo vest. Though its tight-fitting nature still accentuated his thin feminine frame. Wulfhild flicked him a look, "Exquisite as always my dear Hope", he said in a half-interested tone, his eyes still glued to the invitation, "But I expect you're ready for what's ahead. To-to-to. A scoundrel willing to disrupt a joyous wedding out of frivolous jealousy. Puh! Blasphemy!"

"It is a bit extreme...", Hope began softly, his light footsteps meandering over to the struggling Augustus, whose face suddenly flushed like a rose once Hope was upon him, "but should he make an appearance...", his hands were now autonomously working on Augustus' tie, "I'm hoping we can qualm his inner beast and bring forth his compassion instead. You know how I'm an advocate for peaceful resolutions." But that did make him wonder though. Would they be able to appease to a heart-broken man? Love is such a powerful...thing. You can never quite understand what someone's heart will drive them to do. Hope, finished fluffing out Augustus' tie, and looked up him with a quiet smile. Augustus froze, his gaze not leaving from Hope's pretty face and in an attempt to gather his feelings, he grunted, "Err...thanks. I could of done that myself though" he stuttered, pulling away from Hope and looking at himself proudly in the mirror. Hope let out a soft chuckle, as did Wulfhild, "To-to-to!"

Hope watched Augustus as he admired himself, "I Imagine so..." he said, walking over to the mirror next to Augustus and looking at himself in an analytical like manner, "But I feel quite ephemeral if I am unable to dole others, so....". Augustus nudged him, "You aught not proclaim such a thing ever again. At least not around me.", his piercing blue eyes were now glaring at Hope through the mirror, "You really don't know how beautiful you are" he murmured. Hope kept his gaze upon himself and pondered what Augustus had said, before turning to him curiously and asking, "Beautiful?".

Augustus turned red like a ripe tomato and looked away.."Ah! No no no! What I mean't was..."

"Now then! To-to-to! I shall lead the marry way! Come now! Time is of the essence! Let us wait for our guest of honour out front. He should be here any minute now!", Wulfhild mindlessly interrupted, thrusting open the door of their hotel room and heading out to the front of the hotel, Hope and Augustus in tow. "Awwww..." Wulfhild swooned, "I just love weddings!"

But as they waited out front, Hope did expect for the man to arrive soon. It was about 3 hours before the wedding would begin and they stilled needed to get to the actual location to discuss the plan of action. Not to mention they needed to speak with the bride and groom and gather as much information from them as they could before the ceremonies commenced. Hope figured the wedding preparations were currently being addressed as well. They have time. No worries.

Location: Front of Hills Hotel⇢Streets towards wedding location
Word Count: 596/250 ⚘
Guild: Pharaoh's Call ⚘
Rank: D ⚘  

---

The trio didn't have to wait long for the strange fellow to arrive. Luckily. They spent most of that short amount of time discussing about the ex-boyfriend. Primarily Wulfhild, who just couldn't contain his utter disgust regarding the matter, "Hooligan!", he'd declare in outrage. Hope seemed slightly bothered by the whole thing and spaced out, nibbling on his pinky and pacing back and forth. He was somehow disturbed by the situation, but he just couldn't put his foot on what was getting him. August seemed disinterested all together to be frank. He was just tagging along to keep Hope safe. The blonde man, ignoring the gawking eyes of the women who walked past him, just stood there stoically, patiently, his eyes looking across to the forever peeved Hope. "Something wrong?", he asked, his eyebrow raised, "You seem....lost in thought". Hope paused his movements and looked at him, "Well..." he began, "There comes a time when one finds themselves lost in their own sea of imagination." His gaze looked about aimlessly, "But something seems amiss. I believe more than just dirt lies beneath this un-turned stone."

"What are you thinking?"

"Not sure..."

Just then, a green haired fellow arrived. Quite an unnatural hair colour bestowed upon this man took Hope by surprise. He did his best not to stare upon the man's emerald crown, and quickly walked over to him and bowed , "Ah! Hello there. My name is Hope Yulestarian." he said sweetly, a small butterfly like creature suddenly fluttering around him for a brief moment before dissipating. This happens often when Hope formally meets someone, personifying his already delicate and effeminate beauty. When he raised his head, August and Wulfhild were already behind him, the latter smiling pleasantly while August kept his trademark stoic countenance. He wasn't the best at expressing himself or meeting new people, but Hope took the liberty of doing him the favor, "This is Augustus". The young blonde tall man just nodded his head, "And this is Wulfhild", the latter bowed as Hope had, "Well met. I hope your journey here wasn't too tumultuous. But nevertheless, I know the way to the ceremonious rendezvous, so let us be off then."

And with Wulfhild not giving the man much time to introduce himself, they were off. No one spoke for the first few minutes of the trek. Wulfhild remained focused on getting to their destination; so he walked in front leading the charge. Augustus walked behind them, keeping a close eye on this green haired stranger in the suit. Hope on the other hand was admiring the magical beauty of Rose Garden, it was such a fantastical city. Like a magical Las Vages. All around, the streets were busy with magical and non-magic folk alike. Inanimate objects moved about on their own, and the streets lights bloomed of different iridescent colours. And the sweet aroma was to die for. Hope was walking beside the green-haired fellow when he smiled to him softly, "Ah. Sorry about that back there. Wulfhild can get a little passionate. It's Mr. Foss yes?".

"I really do hope it wasn't a bother for you to meet us at our hotel" he continued, "It's just that we were particularly busy before your arrival and didn't have much time to meet at your location. My sincerest apologies. But if I may ask..."

His voice took a more serious tone as Augustus suddenly trailed behind them a little closer so he could tune in, "Have you spoken with the bride or groom yet by chance?" he asked the green haired fellow thoughtfully.

Location: Streets towards wedding location⇢Flower Shop
Word Count: 586/250 ⚘
Guild: Pharaoh's Call ⚘
Rank: D ⚘  

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As they continued on the bright and vibrant sidewalk, Hope listened carefully to what Lucius had to say, though to be fair, it wasn't much. Augustus continued to hang back and listen in on their conversation and Wulfhild frolicked up front as he dallied with some kind of small magical trinket he had picked up the night before. "Ah. Yes. Sir Lucius. How lovely.", Hope said in a gentle tone, not noticing August's face turn hot pink like a pig behind them. "But I see you are man of scarcity. Familiar to my golden haired compatriot here" he said in a coy manner, looking over his shoulder to August and giving him a wink. The man huffed disapprovingly and turned away, "Not even close..."

But after several more minutes of walking, they came to a pause in front of a flower shop, halted by none other than Wulfhild. The pointy eared Alv, still fiddling with the unknown object, turned to the three behind him, "Hope. August...." he called out to them like a nagging parent(his eyebrow appropriately raised), "I do understand the principle of this occasion is business, but nevertheless, this is still a wedding. Even we Alvs find the act of gift giving a formality for something such as this. You may fancy to keep it simplistic of course. Flowers perhaps?". Hope's gaze fell from the two men near him towards the flower shop window, flowers with exotic colours he'd never seen before and some whose petals even changed colours every few seconds. And others that were glowing and giving off a faint dust. Oh there was even a flower that was walking and conversing with a customer too.  Before he knew it, his eyes were glued to the inside of the shop, causing Wulfhild to grin. "Thats a sensational idea Wulfhild!" Hope chimed, "Look at how beautiful these flowers are. My heart's all a flutter. What do you think August?"

The statue-like blonde man waltzed near Hope and peered into the shop, shrugging, "Err--I suppose it couldn't hurt."

"To-to-to. Splendid! My wife would love these ones here of iris and periwinkle",  he proclaimed to himself, strolling into the shop. Quietly, August followed behind him. Hope was almost inside as well when he suddenly paused and turned to Lucius. "You know, Sir Fo...I mean...Sir Lucius. You are welcomed to join in the festivities.", he said to the man, unexpectedly walking back near him as he did so, "I do not begin to feign as though I understand your own personal customs. However, if you should like, I can purchase an extra flower for you to bestow to the bride yourself. But in any case...I do have something else to discuss with you in regards our assignment. I find something awfully peculiar about the whole thing." Hope looked around himself cautiously before leaning in closer and continuing, "I can't quite describe what I want to express in eloquent detail, but I have peculiar feeling about the bride's relationship with her ex-boyfriend." Hope suddenly grabbed the green haired fellow by his hand and pulled him aside near the flower shop window, letting go once they were there and crossing his arms as though in deep contemplation, "I've done a little research on our bride and this shall be her third marriage. It seems her other two husbands died in strange, inexplicable accidents only a few short years ago, leaving our bride ever the more wealthier. Did she happen to mention to you that she was a widow?"

(Sorry this post is so late. Real Life has gotten a little hectic, so it's been hard to find time.)

Location: Flower Shop⇢Wedding Location
Word Count: 761/250 ⚘
Guild: Pharaoh's Call ⚘
Rank: D ⚘  

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After asking the green-haired man the question, he and Hope both walked inside the magical flower shop and as Wulfhild and Augustus made their purchases, Hope followed Lucius around, listening closely to everything he was saying and nodding at each nugget that he dropped. Flower petals aimlessly floated around the store like halos, releasing lovely chromatic sparkles everywhere and it seemed that even Augustus was entranced by the aromatic and floral display that floated, sparkled, and even sang throughout the room. Hope was holding a singing sunflower when they finally reached the register and he contemplated Lucius' question before it was finally his turn to make his purchase, "Do I think they are cahoots? Perhaps. Though I'd prefer not to jump to conclusions without gathering more evidence.." he said in a calm voice, handing over his money to the clerk and waiting for the blue haired clerk to finish the transaction, "but I think it would be progressive to speak to the ex-boyfriend beforehand. If only we knew where he resided."

Hope bit his lip as the clerk gave him his change, "Oh. Thank you..." and as they proceeded out the door, Wulfhild and Augustus were already outside waiting, discussing some matter Hope didn't quite catch as he was still deeply contemplating the grand scheme of the situation. The overarching story, that seemed to be shrouded in some kind of disconnected mystery. It was about 30 more minutes of relatively silent walking before they arrived at the wedding location. It was a magnificent venue, filled with bright lights, dancing rose petals, long tables and chairs clothed in colours of peach and red, and singing flamingos that stood on opposite sides of a grand stage with a embroided podium.  All around, workers were rushing to finish preparations, despite there still being two hours before the actual wedding began. Two maidens in particular were in such disarray, that they accidentally ran into eachother and one of them gasped as loss her gripping on the massive red velvet wedding cake, causing it to fly high into the air before surely meeting its sudden demise. She wailed at her massive mistake, fretting that the bridezilla would indeed, have her head.  

But before the cake could hit the ground, it suddenly stopped in midair, floating softly above ground and to the amazement of those who were witnessing the strange act, would soon realize that it was Hope's doing. Small butterfly shaped nymphs fluttered around the cake in a synchronized pattern, keeping the cake afloat and slowly, Hope directed the cake through the air with his subtle hand movements until it gently rested upon one of the nearby tables. A young man wearing a red and black vest immediately stammered over, giving the maiden who had dropped the cake a disapproving glare before focusing back to Hope and bowing deeply. "Ah! You are like an angel from above. I don't know how I can ever repay you for your good deed. What a lovely magic you have. My name is Oricon Hornet. Pleasure is all mine." he said theatrically.  

Hope returned the bow in return and smiled. "It was no problem at all Sir Hornet. My name is Hope Yulestarian. This is Wulfhild, Augustus, and the gentleman here is Sir Foss. Well met." The butler looking young man simply grinned, "Oh! Mr. Yulestarian and Sir Foss. Yes Yes! We have been waiting for your arrival. We are forever grateful that you have come to watch over this glorious occasion. We want no dependencies yes?". Hope smiled gently and nodded his head, "Of course not". Sir Hornet clapped his hands together twice, "Right then! I still have much work to be done. Do make yourself comfortable. The bride and groom won't be here for another hour so please don't mind the mess."

And with that, he was back scurrying about to business, as were the rest of the workers. Hope let out a deep sigh and turned to his compatriots, his strategist mind thinking up an idea. "I think we should go see the ex-boyfriend. And the bride-to be as well. There is certainly more to this story than meets the eye." he said cautiously, pulling out a slip of paper, "And we already have her address so it shouldn't be difficult to reach her. I'm gonna ask around and see if anyone knows our ex-boyfriend, Tadaro Umanochi. If we can find his whereabouts before the wedding begins, we might be able to appease him. What do you think? Should we split up and search?" Hope asked Lucius.