I'd Give Up The World For You

"Well?" Rukelion demanded, making Juliet jump. 

"Um…I think I've narrowed it down to two cities but they're still both really big and I'm not sure what more I can do from there. You're going to need a private investigator but I can't afford one."

"Then you're going to teach me everything I need to do so I can afford one unless you want to die." 

Juliet gulped. She had been waiting for a death threat. So it seemed he had retained enough of his rationality to resort to this. A clever strategy, really. He was in a world he knew very little about and needed someone in the know to help him out. 

Rukelion was utilizing the few resources he had. Or, in this case, the one. She had to help him so he wouldn't kill her but wouldn't that involve letting him stay here?! She lived in a studio!

"I'm a quick study so I won't need you for much," he continued disdainfully. "Direct me to the right resources and I can take care of things myself." 

Take care of things himself? How was a fictional character supposed to do that? He didn't exist! First and foremost he would need identity papers before he could get himself any sort of job but how was she supposed to do that for him? It wasn't like she had a forger on speed dial.

"That's going to be difficult considering you don't exist here," Juliet informed him. 

"So people require proof of existence in this world."

"Yeah. You'll need a social security card, driver's license, and birth certificate at minimum. I have no idea how to get those things for you legally OR illegally."

Rukelion's brow furrowed and a moment later his jaw set. "Show me what these look like."

Wordlessly, she brought hers out. It wasn't like he knew how to steal anyone's identity so she was pretty sure she was safe doing this. She wouldn't have done it with someone who wasn't a fictional character from a fantasy novel. 

"I see. And where are they printed?"

Juliet's eyes widened. "What are you planning to do?"

"That does not concern the likes of you. All I need is to know where," he said loftily. 

"Uh, no. You don't know how things work here but if you're planning to sneak in there are so many things that will get you caught. Technology trumps magic and you can't just go burning things anyway. Not here. That's a crime and you'll get arrested."

"I see. Then you'll have to accompany me and tell me how to disable said technology. I'll need to know how to work the printing presses regardless."

Juliet nearly fell out of her chair. This crazy villain was seriously going to break into government buildings and wanted her to go with him?! Pulling off a heist like that was going to be impossible without getting caught!

"There is no way we're going to be able to break into the social security administration office, the DMV, and the county clerk's office. All of those are super high-security places and—"

"Then we're going to have to get creative," Rukelion interrupted in a hard voice. "You got us into this mess and you're going to fix it for me if you want to live. You've crossed my bottom line and very few people who have done that are alive right now." 

She would have believed him even if she didn't know what sort of character he was solely by the look on his face. This man was terrifying. How had he ever managed to act like a sheep in front of Daisy instead of the wolf he truly was? Wasn't it tiring pretending? No one could act like something they weren't forever.

Juliet gulped. "Okay! I'll figure something out. But first we need to go get you some clothes. People don't dress like that here."

It was then that she realized she was still wearing the thick winter dress she had been in when they stormed the castle. That seemed a million years ago now that she was back home. It was jarring. A dress from a fantasy world did not belong in her blessedly familiar apartment. 

She went to go change and put on a pair of skinny jeans, a pair of boots, a floral blouse, and a warm jacket. "This is what people dress like here."

Rukelion frowned but didn't say a word as he followed her out the door. It seemed he wanted to talk to her as little as possible and she preferred it that way. He said nothing despite seeing all of the new sights such as this world's architecture, cars, and motorcycles. He soaked it all in silently like a sponge, not even seeming surprised. 

Juliet wondered exactly how much Daisy had told him about her world. He hadn't seemed nearly as shocked as she would have expected a fantasy character to be about modern amenities. 

She really didn't have money to spare on him without dipping into her emergency savings but he needed clothes so she went to a nearby thrift store to get him a week's worth of stuff. She had no idea what his sizes were so she told him to try on whatever looked like it might fit. 

Belatedly, she realized she probably should have told him what constituted appropriate dress styles around here but it turned out that was unnecessary. He had noticed what other people they had been passing all this time were wearing and managed to put together several outfits that looked 100% normal. 

Juliet was almost impressed. But he missed a few things like socks, underwear, and pajamas. Red-faced, she directed him to pick those out. Though almost everything in this store was used they were selling cheap packs of undergarments that weren't. 

He didn't say so much as a single thank you after she spent more than fifty bucks on him. She supposed she couldn't blame him for that all things considering but she would be seriously annoyed if she wasn't so afraid of him. 

She knew she was treading on dangerous ground here. One wrong move and he would torch her just like Demetria.

Rukelion left the store wearing some of his new purchases. Jeans, sneakers, a white t-shirt, and a green zip-up hoodie that made him look oddly like a walking Christmas decoration. They were almost back to the car when they were accosted by a starry-eyed teenage girl. 

"Wow! What a cool cosplay! You're going for a modern Rukelion Blaze, right? I'm planning on dressing up as Sarabeth for Halloween this year with my friends. We're all picking a character and she's my favorite."

"…I AM Rukelion Blaze. How do you know of me?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at the girl in suspicion. 

"Way to stay in character! Can I get a picture with you? My friends are going to flip."

Before Juliet could stop her, she pulled out her phone and took a selfie with a wide smile standing in front of a bemused Rukelion. She skipped off happily. Well. That could have gone a lot worse. Juliet had been afraid the poor girl was going to get burned. 

Once they were back in the car he rounded on her furiously. "How does that girl know who I am? Is she a fortuneteller too? She knew about Sarabeth as well. How common is this ability in your world?"

A fortuneteller? No way…had Daisy seriously used the same stupid idea she had to explain things to people who wouldn't believe they were characters inside a novel?

There was no point hiding it now that they were here though. He was going to find out sooner or later. Movie posters were up on billboards everywhere. But how was she supposed to explain this without getting killed?

Juliet let out a heavy sigh. "I'm not a fortuneteller. I'm an author. I knew those things about you and the others because I wrote you. You're all characters from my novel Down in Flames. It's really popular; that's why that girl recognized you." 

She thought he was going to take it much worse than he actually did. All he said was, "And I was the villain in your novel so you sought to destroy me and everything I loved."

He was smarter than she had given him credit for. In his backstory he was a clever character but that was supposed to vanish as he lost his mind. He definitely should have snapped by now. He had certainly seemed close to doing it earlier when he caught on fire without warning. 

How was he able to be so rational about all of this? Shouldn't he be on a rampage right now because he had seen his wife and unborn child die right in front of him? Or was he holding it together because he didn't think of it as dying knowing her soul was still out there?

Juliet was well aware of how goal-oriented he could be. When there was something he wanted he would stop at nothing to get it, no matter who got killed in the process.. Right now that something was finding Daisy.