Everafter is both a weapon and a second chance for those facing death; however, not everyone can obtain this weapon because—not everyone deserves a second chance.
Possessing an Everafter also means having to sacrifice something in return, as a price for having been given the chance to live. Everafter is also connected to its owner, meaning that some Everafters can be affected by their owner's condition.
"One example is Red. When she's in a negative mood, the power of her bullets gets stronger."
"And the other way around, when she's in a positive mood, the power of her bullets gets weaker" explained the girl, sitting with her feet swinging, to the egg-headed man—I mean bald man—sitting opposite her.
"Oh? So that's why she suddenly became so strong at that moment?" The man with the bald head nodded in understanding.
"And that's why she rarely shows her feelings and looks like a voodoo doll." Alice laughed heartily before I stuffed her mouth with bread.
"By the way, what happened to the giant and that big house after you defeated them?" Humpty asked, full of curiosity.
"The giant was dealt with by other Fables sent by Mother, and the big house simply vanished without a trace," I said—that was the full report Mother had given us.
"Vanished without a trace?! How is that possible?!"
"I have no idea. If even Mother doesn't know, it means no one will ever know."
There was a long silence before I finally broke it, "Instead of talking about that, we'd better talk about the job Mother has given us," I said, after drinking my orange juice. "Have you ever heard of Robin Hood?"
"Oh, I know that name. He's been talked about a lot lately. He steals from the rich people in the city," said Humpty, wiping the glass in his hand. "The rich people in this city have started reporting him to the police."
"But they still can't find him," added Humpty, and Alice, who was sitting next to me and had just finished swallowing the bread I had stuffed into her mouth, nodded.
"It looks like our target this time will be difficult," said Alice, wiping the bread residue from her lips.
"More troublesome than the previous giant who destroyed 20% of the city?" I said. We weren't sitting inside a building now, we were outside, sitting near Humpty's stall. He had opened his juice stand while waiting for his bar to be repaired.
"Barbara...!" Humpty sobbed, and we could only look at him with disgust and bewilderment. "I miss your soft wood so much!"
He had lost his mind.
Alice and I got up from our seats and walked away without a word, leaving him reciting poetry about how much he loved the bar, whose owner was now on vacation. I put on my hood because the sun seemed to want to burn me alive, while Alice used her cards to conjure up some wood to cover herself from the heat of the sun.
"Do you have a plan to catch the thief?" I asked, glancing at Alice.
"Hm? Yes, of course—" before Alice could continue, a woman's scream could be heard. From inside the alley, a guy came out and ran away, blending in with the crowd on the street.
"Purple, check the woman in the alley," Alice said and immediately ran after the man.
"My name is Red—" before I could protest, she had already disappeared from my sight.
I immediately rushed into the alley and saw a woman dressed in classy, luxurious clothes. "H-Huh?! Who are you?"
I looked her up and down and didn't see any physical injuries. "Were you robbed?" I asked. The woman nodded hesitantly. "Get out of here quickly." I turned and ran out of the alley. On the other side, Alice looked around, confused about where the man was hiding.
WOOSHH!
The sound of an arrow whizzing towards Alice. She quickly took out her card and extended her root hand to block it. "You're not just any girl, are you?" The man muttered. Alice looked up and saw a man standing on the roof of a house with a bow in his hand.
The man had ginger-coloured hair, and his dark eyes fixed on Alice with such intensity that it seemed as if he could predict her every move, he wore a dark green beanie matching the colour of his hoodie and flannel shirt.
His expression showed no emotion other than seriousness. "Heh, you remind me of someone," Alice threw a card at her, and Robin quickly shot the card with an arrow, when the arrow hit the card—it exploded and emitted smoke.
Alice slipped away and flew up onto the roof, but when the smoke cleared, she didn't see anyone up there, until she sensed someone's presence behind her—Robin aiming his bow at Alice's head from behind.
"Checkmate."