[center][h2]Anne Mayer[/h2][h3]Nieve — Suspicious Shop[/h3][/center]
Even for a princess, it seemed a little overkill to send a trio of otherworldly warriors to go and collect her shopping. Did she not trust her own servants with the task? Anne supposed it could be a test, a way of verifying the new hires were reliable—or maybe Serena just wanted to get back at Remi by bossing her around a bit. Either way, the Knight had little choice but to accept the proffered letter and the work that came with it.

After a brief request for directions and a polite assurance of their success, the royal's three newest minions left the Guild behind and hit the streets. Anne had planned on asking some of the locals if they'd seen a golem wandering around, but it turned out she was in luck: Lewa found them practically the moment they walked out the door. She wasted no time in hurrying over to greet him, and gladly took the silent girl off his hands. 

"Thanks for keeping her safe. Were you able to find anything out?"

They took their time filling each other in as they walked, and by the time they neared the shop everyone was just about caught up with what the others had been up to. That still left a few unaccounted for, but Anne trusted they could take care of themselves... The girl was the one who needed protecting right now. That she was afflicted by mental illness didn't surprise the Knight, but the revelation of her Fae nature only made things more confusing.

"Is that right?" She looked down at the child, raising an eyebrow. "You're a Fae? Fairy? Fair folk?" She didn't look anything like the fairies Anne knew, but the Gensokyo group had mentioned a race of the same name. Given its roots in old legends, the word was probably used to describe numerous subspecies across the various worlds. "So where are you from...?" she murmured, still speaking to the girl but not truly expecting an answer. Once again, she'd have to dig up the truth herself.

In her distraction, she barely noticed that they'd reached their goal until Remilia spoke up. The Knight blinked, and squinted at the empty windows through her glasses. "Maybe the Princess got the hours wrong..." Even as she said it, she knew that wouldn't be the case. She had a bad feeling, and when Remilia caught the scent of blood Anne muttered a quiet command to her DC coat. Shimmering hexagons briefly glittered in the air as its barrier extended to wrap around the child as well, a direct layer of protection should anything nearby seek to do her harm.

"If it was an accident, someone should have noticed by now." She carefully stepped through the door and glanced around, visibly reluctant to take the lead so long as the golden-haired girl was still in her care. "Ugh... This already reeks of a trap."

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