A Clash of Worlds (Taliesin&redblood)

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Nai comically staggered off Paris's shoulder at the sound of him swearing, floating back up slowly and shaking his head. "I know what you're thinking and as nice as that sounds I'm hate to tell you that is not a good idea. Invisibility is one thing but flying is much more dangerous. We'll just have to make our way through the country the hard way." It would take longer, which meant that things might get a bit hairy between the two countries but the use of magic would help them move at a pace that would avert possible war or such. "We can use some smaller spells to get you some money and then you can buy a horse as well as supplies."
 
"I know that already." Paris mumbled. Of course it was too dangerous to fly, especially if he tried to be invincible at the same time. It would also take too much time to learn as he still were a beginner. He only had a few of the basics when it came to a flying spell and he was sure he wasn't even halfway through that training.

Moving through a country at foot seemed very risky. Even with a horse it could get dangerous. What if they were robbed? He weren't sure how the crime statistic were in Adrian's country, but traveling like that was never a good idea in any country. But he didn't have much of a choice now had he? "I do hope you aren't talking about forgery Nai." The prince said, slightly scared that he had to do an illegal act. Though he couldn't be sure it was illegal in that specific country. "I've never been in a country were making false money isn't a serious crime if that's what you're getting at."
 
Nai looked at Paris as if he was crazy for several moments before finally following his train of thought. "Honestly." He pouted. "The things you accuse me of. Do you think you could get away with such things in a country full of magicians? Even a half rate untrained hedge magician could spot fake money in an instant. The point is that you have a sellable skill in your ability to use magic and I'll be able to guide you through some small tasks and we'll have a decent amount of money in no time."
 
"Oh." Paris felt slightly ashamed over his statement now, but what else could he have believed? It wasn't like he knew their culture, and magic was new to him so he hadn't even thought about using it to earn money. "Ehm... Exactly what kind of tasks do you reckon I would do?" He asked, slightly worried that Nai might overestimate his abilities. magic or not, he weren't used to any kind of work except being a diplomat. That would certainly not be one of the things he would have to do now.
 
Nai grinned. "Oh you know, basic stuff. Mending, cleaning, building that sort of thing. It doesn't take much skill or power but many magicians consider it below them or they often charge fairly high rates." His expression turned even more mischievous and he shrugged. "We'll just have to wing it as we go. We have to make you look at least somewhat like you belong in Laesin. They will not take well to someone who looks like he is from a technological country." He tilted his head considerately. "That may be the hardest part actually..."
 
"Well, as long as I can do it with magic I guess it might work." Paris stated, not completely sure he would be able to learn mending and building without the use of magic. Cleaning... Maybe. It didn't look that hard. But he had never done it so it might be harder than it seemed.

"And what do you mean with that?" Paris raised an eyebrow. As long as he changed clothes, wouldn't it be alright? Sure, for that he would first need a change of clothes, but once he got that it shouldn't be too hard, right? "Do I really look that different from them?" Well, in the clothes he wore now, most likely yes.
 
Nai squirmed a bit at the question, annoyed that he hadn't thought of this problem first though there probably wouldn't have been a lot that they could have done about it then. "You look...foreign and royal. You move like you are but that is only half the problem. In our country most people have darker hair, mixed in with redheads. Laesin was initially a collective of many tribes that took in Adrian's however many great's grandfather, who then learned their magic and combined it with his own. He then united the tribes and carved out a kingdom for them all. Thus someone with your hair looks like you are at least very distantly of royal blood." It helped that Paris's hair was much darker than Adrian's but it still had that distinctive blue tint that would have to be dealt with.
 
Paris thought about what had been said for a moment. The way he moved could certainly be fixed, he just had to practice a bit on the plane. Hopefully Nai knew how commoners behaved and moved, because Paris had no clue even when it came to his own country. Sure he could see some of it on TV but it wasn't like their postures was the first thing he payed attention too.

"I could die my hair darker you know. Any hairdresser can do that within an hour." The prince told his little friend. His mother would get a heart attack if she got to know that her sons hair had been colored, but it was for a good sake. "If you think it would help I'll tell the driver and the pilot that we need some extra time." He then continued, already ready with the phone in hand.
 
Nai blinked. "Ah, so you do have such things in your country, good. Yes, it would be better to do it in your own country." It would be another piece of trail for Paris's mother to follow them but once they were safely across the border things would be a lot harder for her. He watched quietly while Paris set up everything for the hairdresser. He was trying to think of anything else last minute they would need to worry about. Paris was awfully pale and a little frail looking but he was a magician so they could sort of pass it off. "Hmm...perhaps we will say you were attacked by bandits." He mused out loud to himself.
 
Paris first called the driver, as that was necessary with the glass dividing them. He told him to get them to a good hair dresser before letting them off at the airport. Then he sent a text to the pilot that it would take more time than expected to arrive. While he wrote, he heard Nai mumble.

"Bandits? Well that would certainly explain my spotless clothes." He chuckled. That was another problem. "What should we do about my clothes anyway? We don't have anything in Laesin style in our stores. To get that it would have to be special ordered, and we don't have time for that." His clothes was the biggest give away of him being foreign. They had completely different styles both in everyday life and for royals.
 
Nai tilted his head musing. "Well I suppose you could go naked and we could hope no one's got an anti-illusion ring or something." Unfortunately for Paris they were perhaps some of the most common magical items sold in Laesin. It was equivalent to having a fancy watch in Paris's country. Not something every person had but it was likely that at least a few people in any village had one.
 
The prince blushed heavily at the strange suggestion. "Out of the question." He immediately replied. Even if he had an illusion to make him look dressed, he himself would know that he wasn't. It would be enough to make him far too flustered to be able to concentrate on magic.

"I'll tell the driver to buy clothes while I'm getting my hair done, then you can choose from that what would give the least stares." Paris suggested in a rather demanding way. Even the humble prince had demands he wouldn't bend on. "What colors are normal on clothes for commoners in your country?" He asked. Even if the clothes design was rather strange, he could at least try to fit in with the color scheme if they had any.
 
Nai had had a feeling that was going to be the response and couldn't help but grin widely. It was interesting to see Paris get a bit pushy as well. He would have been more surprised if he hadn't seen how the prince had manipulated Adrian so easily. "Grey, brown and green mostly. Easy colors to make and find." He floated up and in front of Paris's face, looking him over and shaking his head. "None of which are really your colors but such is the way of the world I suppose."
 
"I'm a prince. I can look good in any color." Paris said defensively before smiling.

After a few seconds in silence he added. "You will have to wait in the car while I get my hair fixed. People aren't used to creatures like you." It was important not to get too much attention. It was bad enough that the reporters might flock around the shop as fast as they hear the prince of their country is there, but a magic creatures would probably make them go amok. "Just stay here and wait for the driver to throw in the clothes. Go through them and tell me what will fit best once I'm back. Don't go anywhere." Paris said with a warning finger in the air.

With those words he left the car that just had stopped outside the hairdresser. People were already whispering and girls giggled. Was it someone looking like the prince, or was it truly him? Paris spoke to the drived, whom locked the car and walked in another direction to fix the clothes. The hair took about an hour to get done, though he did refuse to wait there until his hair had dried completely after having been watched the last time. Reporters had been forced to stay outside the shop and the staff had been considerate and not let anyone in. Customers that had gotten a time was called and sneaked in through the back door. They didn't seem to mind much as they got to see something much people could only dream of. The perfect prince charming was out without bodyguards just to color his hair in a dark brown color.

When he left he of course took the back door. The reporters had apparently not realized the existence of the door as of yet. He had to make a run for it to the car as there was some distance between the shop and the car, thus he could be clearly seen once leaving alley way between the buildings. The reporters spotted him fast, but he were able to reach the car, get in and then it was locked and he was safe. A big pile of clothes was lying beside him. "So, found anything?" He asked, picking up one of the garments. It certainly wasn't his color.
 
Nai stuck his tongue out as Paris got out of the car, not impressed by being given orders but he couldn't entirely ignore the words of the one who gave him the life he had. Reluctantly he sulked about the car until the driver had left the clothes and then sorted through them. By the time Paris got back the clothes were in two piles while Nai was laying face down on top of one pile, barely raising his head when Paris got inside. Creatures like him weren't really meant for moving things around, unless it involved bolstering the magic of their creators.

"Murr.." He whined for a moment before tiredly crawling over to the pile next to Paris. "A few." A lot of the things were obviously of too high quality and of materials unknown to the country but there were a couple pairs of brown slacks that looked normal enough as well as some baggy long sleeve shirts that had passed muster. They were mostly grey with a green tossed in. "Just pick the ones you like the best, we'll want to be especially pitiful looking if you expect to get some help along the way."
 
"Pitiful? Don't worry, once I have been without a shower for twenty four hours, I'll look more pitiful than a lost puppy." Paris said while looking through the clothes. It was far from what he usually wore, and definitely not his colors. He chose a grey shirt and a brown pair of pants. Hopefully it would be enough to trick people.

"I do hope Adrian appreciates what I do for him. I will have to live with this hair color for weeks." Of course Paris had been smart and told the hair dresser that he didn't want a permanent color, instead he wanted one that could be washed out after some time. The last thing he wanted was to cut his hair short simply because the color refused to go out and it looked awful together with his natural hair color that was growing out. He had saved his hair for eighteen years, there was no way in the world he would let it be cut off.

"Do you think I'll look extra pitiful if my clothes are torn?" He then asked Nai. In his country, torn clothes was more of a fashion statement than a way for people to notice how poor you were. But he doubted they had the same sense of fashion over there.
 
"There definitely won't be any showers where we're going." Nai said with a faint grin as he floated upwards and laid down on his side as if the air was as solid as the ground. He had nothing to say about Adrian. Even having come from the man's mind Nai couldn't predict how the next meeting between the two princes was going to play out. "We should definitely tear up your clothes at bit. I was thinking you could roll around in the bushes, maybe get a bit scratched up and extra dirty. Bonus points if you manage to pick up a bruise or two. Especially on that face. It'll still be pretty enough that every lady within several miles will be falling over themselves to help you out." He managed to say the last bit with a completely straight face.
 
Paris sighed pretty loudly after hearing what Nai had to say. "You're pushing my dignity to the bottom of the ocean floor." He said while shaking his head. "Just don't put the blame on me when my mother comes to strangle you for what has happened to my hair and my clothes, and soon my face too." The prince told Nai. "Though I guess you'll have to deal with Adrian first. I can't even imagine what he will think of me searching him up all bruised and dirty." He would definitely not take that fall alone. First chance he got and he would lay the blame on Nai and Adrian. They had already taken away his dignified appearance, so why not go all the way with his personality too?

Soon they reached the airport and went onto the jet. It wouldn't take long to arrive at the airport closest to the border. With car it could take as long as a day, but with the jet it was less than an hours trip. It was the first time the young prince had been on any kind of plane, and suddenly he realized how much he hated it. When he had been flying with Adrian he had known the person who was in control. He had trusted him completely. If he learned to fly himself he would be in full control himself. But not knowing his pilot any further than his name made him a bit frightened. What if they actually crashed? He was stiff for the whole trip and almost felt like kissing the ground once they reached the next airport. But of course he didn't. By then he had changed clothes to those he had chosen in the car. He had torn them a little bit, but thought it was best to let the bushes do the majority of the tearing so it would look natural.

"And there we have it. The mystical land my people only can dream of visiting." Paris said jokingly as they started to close in on the border. Even without signs, it was obvious where the border went. The asphalt stopped so abruptly, and some had even been forced off the ground at one part. There had once been a dispute among the two countries about who owned what land. After many years the right documents was finally found and they realized that the land Paris's country had built their roads on actually belonged to the other country. It was removed immediately. It had been one of the few times the countries actually had interacted with each other, and now a hundred years later they had started to interact again. Mainly for the border issue, though their country didn't seem very willing to let outsiders in yet. Neither did Paris country, but they tried to hide it a bit more.

"Some people think you get cursed if you are an outsider stepping only one foot inside." Paris chuckled. It was silly rumors, as always.
 
Nai had gone strangely silent as they approached the border. "Well, they are not entirely incorrect. If any of the border patrols find you at the very least you will have a tracker put on you. Generally speaking though there is little reason for someone from your country to be coming here so it's rare the reaction is so minor." He seemed to go somewhat transparent for a moment and once he solidified he grinned and seemed back to his normal self. "Luckily you don't need to worry about that. We should probably get properly across in pretty quick order though." He floated up and down in a somewhat anxious manner, as if that would hurry the prince.
 
"I hope you're right." Paris mumbled and hurried forward. At the moment he couldn't see anyone in sight, but considering they were wizards they might just make themselves invincible, and in that case it wouldn't matter how many times he turned his head left and right. It was first when they were far away from the border that the prince dared to open his mouth.

"Wow, that went easier than expected. When you started to talk about the police I was sure someone would be close by." Paris looked back just to make sure no one was closing in on him. " Okay Nai, you're the guide. Where should we go?" The prince asked as he looked at the little creature. Hopefully Nai would have forgotten all about rolling in bushes and getting bruised. That was one part of the mission he'd rather live without if no one reminded him of it.
 
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