What Happens To A Sidekick When the Hero Settles Down?

Reid sat on the Knight Bus in the front, as Archie zoomed about London, killing time as they drove about. Days were slower with students in school. And after the lunchtime rush, there was pretty much no one out there that needed a ride. So Archie zoomed around like a mad man, pushing the bus to the limits. It had terrified Reid at first, but now he was used to it.

He had collapsed in the chair that was strictly his, strictly the conductor’s because it was at the front and it was magically fastened to the front, though it did spin around in circles according to the direction of the bus. He sat, his legs stretched out and skimming over the floor as the chair swung to and fro, not that he noticed.

He had his Gameboy out and was fully concentrated on getting to the next level of Zelda. Calvin might be better at Dig Dug but he would never best Reid at Zelda. Reid was a perfect woodland elf… in as cool and masculine a way as that was possible. He and Link made a great team and Reid knew he was just as cool as the guy… minus the wearing tights and then dealings with women. Reid could technically do both, but was good at neither. Not that he had worn tights… Okay, one Halloween…

He glanced down at his watch and vaguely wondered where his best friend was, what the fool was doing. He was probably with Chase, which depressed Reid a bit. He did not know how much longer he had with his friend. When would Calvin’s priorities completely change, when would his loyalties be so tied up in protecting her that Reid was a distant memory.

Perhaps he was being dramatic. But without Calvin causing trouble, Reid had no reason to be rational and logical. So yes, he was allowed to be dramatic.

“Ay, we have someone to pick up in London,” Archie warned and spun the wheel. Reid sighed and saved his game before the bus stopped harshly. He stood and walked to the door, pushing it open and putting on his conductor smile. “Welcome to the Knight Bus, help for the stranded witch or wizard. Where might we take you today?”

"Oh - come now! I'm not stranded! Stranded is such a gloomy word," Paris informed the conductor with an amused grin. He took a step forward, flattening the bottoms of his trusty sneakers against the Knight Bus' first stair.

His hair was an untidy heap upon his head; some strands were singed at the ends, while others stuck out awkwardly as though they had been hexed that way. His clothing too showed signs of having gone through hell, due to the rips and tears that had been made in his ill-fitting jeans, as well as the sad state of the suit jacket that he wore. In fact, he seemed uncharacteristically cheerful for someone who looked such a mess.

Paris looked upward with a thoughtful expression upon his face, as though he expected to see the rest of his sentence hanging in the cloudy sky. "I'm just in need of a bit of an escape, I'd say," he added with a nod of his head. Yes, he approved of that description of his predicament.

Paris climbed up the remaining of the bus' stairs, and jumped once when he reached the top. "Now, just a warning," he began, and pulled himself inside the large vehicle after curling his fingers around the back of the nearest seat. "You may or may not have a bit of a stalker problem this afternoon. There is an angry wizard on my tail, you see, and I imagine he may be a bit keen to follow us," Paris elaborated, and took a seat. He crossed one leg over the other and folded his hands in his lap, smiling all the while.

"Bonjour, Archie," He greeted the man with whom he had met on several occasions in the past, waving in his direction with a flourish of his fingers.

In all honesty, Reid was mostly used to elderly witches who dozed and caused fusses and distracted middle aged men who read the prophet. He was typically ignored and there was rarely an ounce of any sort of life in those who boarded the Knight Bus. So to see someone striding off with an obviously louder personality than he was used to threw him off ever so slightly. Between that and being dragged away from the world inside his gameboy, and it was like waking after a long nap- unsure of time and how long her had been gone.

Reid blinked a few times and then stepped out of the way of the man who was boarding the bus. Archie was chuckling as though he knew who this man was and he could not wait to see Reid flounder- Reid had become familiar with this laugh. It happened on occassion, since Archie knew everyone it seemed, and he knew how Reid would get along with people. He could usually predict the times Reid felt most out of his depth.

Reid mouthed a bit as the man explained, or rather highlighted a story and left the rest to Reid's quick-acting imagination. He suddenly pictured an old-fashioned car chase, an intense duel, and his face paled. Reid was quick to shout brave declarations from afar, but up close confrontations inspired a flight response from him. He wanted to get rid of this stranger- then again, he had been craving some adventure.

"Go Archie," he said in a thrilled whisper, brilliant visions flashing before his eyes. Archie cleared his throat and said, "Forgetting something, kid?" He was drawn out of his fantasy land and looked over at Archie who was pointing to the payment box. "Right! Erm, eleven sickles to get where you need to go, 13 buys you... Oh. Where we going?"