Chapter Text
The kennel was a piece of art. Its bars were formed into interlocking diamonds, so as to discourage the mimic from chewing through them and pulling them out, and it was made of a glittering, flexible metal alloy that seemed more than able to stand up to his mimic’s sharp teeth. Andrei’s eyes had blazed with inspiration when Wil had first approached him about the project—something to contain a monster from the Dungeons was unheard of, and Andrei had proclaimed it his honor to be the first to manage such successfully.
It’d taken a lot of practice getting his mimic used to it. He’d started by feeding it in there, putting some of its toys in there, laying next to the front of the kennel and playing with the mimic while it was in there—but it paid off enough that now, Will was confident in the next step on his “Mimic training regimen” step plan.
The kennel sat next to his cash register on the counter, the mimic laying down in it. In front of it sat a blow with cheap copper coins. He’d affixed a sign that read “DROP COINS INTO MY CAGE—I’M FRIENDLY!” to it, with a small doodle of a mimic and a heart coming out of its mouth in a speech bubble.
“Okay, buddy,” Will said, standing in front of his mimic. It wiggled on the ground of its kennel, not bothering to get up. “This is it. The big day. Everybody around town’s heard of you, now it’s time to make a good first impression.” The mimic did not seem particularly impressed by his pep talk, but continued to wiggle enthusiastically at the sound of his voice regardless. “We’re gonna keep your exposure short for today, but I think you’ll love it and customers will love it. I just don’t want to overwhelm you.”
Will flipped the sign to “OPEN!” outside, before settling back in behind the register. The bell above the door chimed brightly. Customers slowly trickled in, open and interested faces inspecting his wares, his shop, his mimic.
“Cute lil’ fella, ain’t he?” One burly, bearded man said, tossing a coin into the kennel and huffing a laugh as the mimic pounced on it and shook it in his teeth.
“The cutest,” Will assured, preoccupied with checking out a different customer. “Just don’t stick your fingers in there.” The larger man shook his head and laughed more at the idea.
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he’d promised.
“This is a mimic? But they’re so….small,” A woman with a red checkered head scarf said, giving the kennel a wide berth. She tried very hard to keep the ancient pots she was purchasing in-between her and the terribly frightful monster in question, which was currently curled up in the corner and letting out rumbling snores after a long hour of being cooed over and fed.
“100% purebred mimic, yes ma’am,” Will had confirmed, digging through his register’s drawer. “Organic, grass-fed, farm-raised, no GMOs included,” he joked, winking at the customer as he gave her her change. She’d giggled, charmed, and had shyly adjusted her scarf before gingerly dropping one of the coins into the cage. The mimic perked up, immediately rushing over to lay down closer to the front and nibble on the new treat.
“You’re so spoiled,” Will said, mock-scolding his mimic as it gave more happy-wiggles, much to the customer’s delight. “What sort of monster are you, eh?”
Customers were incredibly interested in his little mimic as his planned short day drew on, admiring it and playing with it until the mimic was purring in contentment. Will took a momentary break in the customers to do some quick restocking, squatting down to dig around his counter space.
“Oh Will, are you training him to be your familiar?” A familiar and completely unexpected voice inquired from above. Will jumped, startled, banging his head against the top of the shelf he was reaching into and cursing loudly.
“One sec,” he grunted, pulling several slim books from the back before straightening up. Eris was standing in front of the register, her light green hair pulled back in a half-hazard low-hanging bun. Her fingers were interlocked and pulled close to her body as her sparkling eyes admired the mimic. The mimic, meanwhile, paid her no mind as it gnawed determinedly at its favorite piece of scrap iron.
“He’s uh, just a pet,” Will said, putting his books down. “I think? Honestly, I don’t know what a familiar really is, no offense.”
“Familiars are magical creatures trained to assist with work,” Eris replied automatically, still distracted by his mimic. “So if they help you in the dungeon, or in the shop, then they’re a familiar.” She looked back at Will. “What’s their name?”
“Name?” Will repeated. Eris tilted her head.
“You…didn’t name them?” She said, squinting at Will like he was an entirely different species.
“Uh. I, no. Not yet,” Will sheepishly shrugged. He’d gotten so used to calling the mimic pet names, he’d just kind of forgotten to actually give it a proper name. “It’s just my little buddy, you know?” Eris nodded.
“Names have power,” she said wisely. “And it’s also just a good idea to name them if they ever get loose and you need to call them back, too. Sometimes I have that problem with Sylvester.”
“I’m sure I’ll name him eventually,” Will said, noncommittally.
“Good.” Satisfied, Eris put the slime chunks she’d picked out from his discount rack onto the countertop.
Will flipped the sign to “CLOSED” as she walked out, waving goodbye to Eris before softly shutting the door.
“A name, hm?” Will said, unlocking the kennel. His mimic jumped out onto the floor, nuzzling against his leg. He scratched its top. It took off towards the bedroom and Will followed after it slowly.
He sat down at his desk, pulling his journal and pen out. The mimic had already barreled into the bed and cuddled up into a nest of blankets and pillow. He tapped the pen against his lip in thought. He’d always been shit at names.
“Moonie? Moonie the mimic, who lives at the Moonlighter?” He wondered out loud. “No, that sounds stupid.” He chewed his pen. “Maybe something badass, like Ironfang. Because you’re an Iron Mimic…” Will wrinkled his nose, glancing back at his snoring companion. “No, that doesn’t really fit you either.” He flipped through his journal, idly.
“My mom had a dog, before I was born, so I guess I could always name you after him,” Will thought out loud. “Duke? Duke the mimic?” He paused. “Or maybe…Jester?” Will glanced back at the mimic, still snoring in his bed.
“Jester,” Will said again, trying it out, still looking at his pet. It felt good. The sort of name he felt sure the mimic would grow into, something he could feel light up his chest when he said it. He grinned. “Jester. Yeah, that’s it. Sleep tight, Jester, you damn bed hog.”
Will woke the next morning and immediately knew something was wrong. He stilled in his bed, blinking the sleep from his eyes as the cogs in his brain slowly turned. The house was quiet…and that was the problem. The house was too quiet. Will shot up.
“Jester, you better not be getting into shit again!” He hollered. Some panicked shuffling and a loud slam echoed from the storefront and Will cursed, his legs tangled in his sheets as he tried to get up. He kicked them off, staggering to the open bedroom door.
He could see Jester’s hinges and back legs sticking out of the overturned bargain bin.
“You little shithead,” Will said, stomping over and picking the mimic up. It wiggled in his hands, bone fragments falling from its mouth. “You were eating my bone shards?”
The mimic wiggled harder, running on the air in his grasp. Will groaned.
“It figures that coins wouldn’t be the only thing you eat,” Will sighed. “Really don’t know what else I expected. I guess I’m just glad you got into the cheap bone shards and not the expensive ones.” He tucked the wiggling creature under one arm, marching over to deposit it in its kennel.
It sat down and looked up at him pitifully as he locked the door. It pawed the cage unhappily.
“Oh, don’t look at me like that,” Will said, wagging his finger. “You should know better, mister. And I,” Will glanced at the clock, “need to go out to the butcher and Eris to see what kind of diet you need.”
He threw on his clothing and pendant in a rush, tucking some coins into his pockets. He strapped his bow in as an afterthought, more out of habit than anything else, before heading out into the bright morning sun. He blinked, raising a hand to shield his eyes.
The fall air was crisp, but the sun was still warm. Yellow and brown leaves danced in the wind as Will walked across the town plaza, waving to friendly faces as he passed by.
The Wooden Hat was already open, with Eris and her cat familiar, Sylvester, bent over a bubbling cauldron well behind the open-air counter.
“Gently…” Eris was coaching as Sylvester deposited mouthful of bright red berries into the green potion underneath while she carefully stirred it with a long wooden spoon. “That’s enough, thank you.” Will leaned against the counter, enraptured as the cat effortlessly walked along the edge of the cauldron to butt his head affectionately against his owner’s. Eris turned back to the counter, pushing up her large, round glasses.
“I love watching Sylvester and you work,” Will said with a grin. “It’s always so cool.”
“Oh, thank you. I couldn’t do what I do without him,” Eris scratched under her cat’s chin as he hopped onto the counter. He kneaded the dark brown cloth that decorated the wooden counter. “Quit,” she told her familiar. “But what can I do for you, Will? Need some more health potions?”
“No, I was actually wondering if you might have a book on mimics? Or something?” He gestured vaguely. “I caught Jester eating bones I was planning to sell. I thought he only ate coins, but now I’m thinking his diet might be a little bit more complicated.”
“I think I have one on monsters in general?” Eris said, turning away from Will and towards her home. “Just a moment.”
She disappeared behind the heavy spruce door, leaving Will and Sylvester behind at the counter. Will looked at the gray and white cat and offered his hand to him. Sylvester delicately sniffed Will before rubbing his entire face against the human’s palm. Will was scratching behind his ears when the door opened back up.
“Found it!” Eris said triumphantly, purple and brown cloak billowed out behind her as she ran down the stairs. “Pete Parella’s Rynoka’s Dungeons: What Every Hero Needs to Know—and Doesn’t. It has a section about the monsters in each dungeon, back when all four of the dungeons were still open, instead of just the Forest Dungeon and Golem Dungeon.” She excitedly flipped through the pages, her fingers skimming the pages rapidly. “Mimics, mimics…here we go.” She pushed her glasses up and scanned the page, reading aloud. “Mimics are primarily carnivorous, eating other monsters and adventurers alike who fall into the trap of their chest-like mimicry. They are naturally attracted to and collect shiny objects in their mouths, but it’s unknown if this is a part of their diet or a hunting mechanism that connects to their appearance as wooden chests. Hmmm…According to this, mimics will eat not only an unfortunate adventurer, but everything on them as well: treasure, weapon, clothing, and even their Pendant.”
“So Jester does need meat,” Will said, immediately guilty. “And possibly bone, too, for the calcium…Shit, poor guy is probably starving. I should have done more proper research and not just assumed.”
“Mimics are ambush hunters, so I wouldn’t worry about you starving—Jester, was it?” Eris’s eyes briefly flicked up from the book and he could see her try and hide a smile behind the pages. “That’s a nice name.”
“Ironic, since it looks like I’m the clown in this case,” Will sighed. Eris snickered despite herself.
“You’re fine,” she said confidently. “Mimics are like snakes. You probably shouldn’t feed them every day, given how they typically have really sedentary lifestyles. I’d guess maybe you give him a big meal once every two weeks for the first stage of his life, or adjust as needed? He seems pretty active for a mimic.”
“He’s a fucking handful,” Will agreed. “I’ll start there and we’ll see how he reacts. Thanks a million for the advice, Eris.”
“It’s no problem!” She said, beaming at him. “I’m always happy to help.”
“I owe you one, seriously. You ever need a favor, just ask.” Will insisted. Eris just waved her hand and shook her head, smiling.
“Don’t worry about it. Just keep me updated on them and let me know if you need anything else. Where are you off to now?”
“The Boar’s Butchery. I’m gonna pick up lunch for me and Jester, with luck.”
Eris nodded, bidding him farewell. He gave Sylvester one last head pat before taking off back the way he’d came, armed with the knowledge he’d hoped for.
The Boar’s Butchery was just up the road, a shop that was more window display than anything else. Beautiful cuts of all sizes and shapes were lined up for decoration, neatly sliced slabs of meat that each had a small label next to it, pricing it and naming it.
“Everly!” Will greeted as he swept into the bright shop, its large windows keeping the inside well-light. The girl behind the counter was a head shorter than Will, her bright red hair shaved into intricate patterns against her dark scalp.
“Will!” She responded, her voice pitching high. “It’s been ages! I thought you’d gone vegan on me!” Will staggered dramatically at the accusation, clutching his chest.
“I cannot believe you would wound me like this,” he said. “Like I could ever give up lamb chops and mashed potato. Especially with butter! Vegans can’t eat butter!” Everly laughed, shaking her head.
“Seriously, it’s so good to see you. I heard you got a new pet!” Everly leaned in, conspiratorially, her eyes sparkling. “Word is that Xenon hates it, too.”
“Where’d you hear that one?” Will asked, amused. He leaned in and poked her nose, making her stick her tongue out at him. “I mean yeah, of course he doesn’t like it. You know how he is.”
“He was just in here, muttering about it.” She put on her best Xenon impression and continued, hunching her shoulders and pretending to hold a staff, “That boy, following his dreams. How dare he have a pet that makes him happy. Blah blah blah evil monsters blah blah blah.”
“He called Jester evil?” Will asked, genuinely appalled. “Eve, tell me you’re joking on that one.” She shrugged.
“He might as well have. He made it sound like the thing was going to kill you and parade your corpse around town.” She tilted her head, one hand on her hip. “I know he’s basically your dad or whatever, but he really does treat the stuff you care about like trash sometimes, Will.” He cringed at that, looking away from his friend.
He knew she was right. It was a discussion they’d had a lot as teens, and continued to have as more experienced young adults who’d both inherited businesses from their deceased parents. Xenon had never approved of most of Will’ interests or pursuits as a kid: while he’d never outright called Will a burden or a disappointment, how (disappointingly) different Will was from the stories of his parents framed had always framed most of their conversations and expectations.
“I know,” Will sighed, leaning on the counter. He played with one of the buttons of his vest, a bright green gleam against the darker green cotton. “I put my foot down about Jester, though.” Everly raised an eyebrow at him.
“Oh?”
“Yeah.” Will made a face. “He came barging in a bit ago, demanding I…sell him.” Will paused, hesitating, and continued quietly, “or ‘put him down.’” Everly’s dark brown eyes widened almost comically at that.
“He wanted you to either sell or kill your pet? You, a grown-ass adult? You, who would never, ever mistreat an animal in your life? Oh, hell no. That is fucked up.” Everly was practically hissing in rage at that point, rubbing her hands together furiously. “Where does he get off, demanding shit like that from you?”
“I know! It’s fucking ridiculous!” Will waved his hands. “You’d expect him to just be happy for me, finding some kind of companionship—you know he’s always bitching about me asking Tomo out so I’m not “so lonely in my shop,” even though I’ve told him before I really don’t like her like that,” Everly nodded sympathetically, waving enthusiastically for Will to continue.
“And you know, Jester will be really good for business in the shop too, he’ll make a great guard mimic and Xenon is always getting on my ass about “how’s the shop,” “are you making sure to take care of the shop,” “you should work more on the shop,” but no, it’s more of him dismissing me and making me sound like I’m the unreasonable one. Me!” Will exploded. “What kind of jackassery, you know?”
“Tomo is so cute,” Everly sighed. “But she is soooo not your type.”
“I keep telling him, I don’t even have a type,” Will sighed back at her. “I’m not interested in dating. I don’t want a girlfriend. I’ve never even met a girl I’ve liked like…that. But seriously, he’s such a hypocrite.”
“See, this is exactly why you need to come see me more often,” Everly said, sagely. “When’s the last time we had a bitch-and-bake? It’s been months, Will. Months. And you go and bottle shit up like this, and also you don’t even bring me any cookies or nothing.”
“I know, I’m sorry,” Will said. He blew a stray strand of white hair out of his face. “Between Jester, and the Dungeons, and the Moonlighter…it’s been a really busy month for me.”
“You have to promise to bring him over one of these days. Jester is such a cute name! I have to meet him!”
“I will! I promise.” Will put his hands up in a peace gesture. “I actually came here today specifically for him, actually.”
He explained the situation to Everly, with the bones and the biweekly feeding schedule. She fiddled with the string of her apron thoughtfully as she considered what Will had said, turning back and disappearing behind a porthole door.
She came back with a hefty package of meat, wrapped in paper about bound with string. Will picked it up experimentally with two hands, surprised by its weight.
“This is…geez, what, seven or eight pounds?” He hazarded a guess.
“Eight-and-a-half,” Everly said matter-of-factly. “It’s pork shoulder. One of the more inexpensive cuts we offer here, and delicious when it’s smoked. I figure since mimics sometimes eat adventurers and humans have been referred to as ‘long pigs’ before in how they taste, it was the next best thing.”
“That’s perfect!” Will said, marveling at the packaged meat. “Eve, you’re brilliant.”
“Don’t you ever forget it,” Everly said, breezily. She rang Will up and he paid, grateful. “Do you want me to set you up for regular pork shoulders of the same size every two weeks?”
“That’d be amazing, yeah.”
“Done and done,” Everly said, pleased.
Will bade her farewell, promising to bring Jester with him the next time he stopped by (and internally praying that Jester would be ready to go on outdoor walks in the town by then). Tucking the meat in his bag he started back home, enjoying the afternoon warmth. It was a lovely day.
He opened the door to the shop back up. Jester, still in his kennel on the counter, immediately jumped up and started pawing at the kennel door.
“Calm down, calm down,” Will laughed as he unlocked the kennel door and the tiny mimic barreled into his chest. He gave the mimic scritches as it nuzzled against him. “Off the counter, I have something for you.” He stepped back and whistled, patting his leg. The mimic hopped to the floor, sitting in front of him.
“Stay, stay.” Will reached into his bag, pulling out the package. He unwrapped it, revealing the meat. Jester’s wiggling intensified, but he stayed sitting even as Will walked over to the food bowl. Will gingerly put the meat down into it. “And…break!”
Jester tore off, jumping on the meat. His iron fangs sank into the chunk of pork, neatly flipping it into his open mouth before snapping shut. Will whistled as his mimic came racing back, running around his ankles.
“Well, I’m glad you liked it so much,” Will said, patting Jester.