Assama looked with concern as she read a request submitted by a man who went by the name of Dex Miller. Evidently he believed that there was an assassination plot against him. He asked for a mage to shadow him while he tried to figure out who was going to assassinate him. What was odd about this request though, was that it offered a small reward. If an assassin was truly following her, Assama would be sure to put in a high reward for successfully protecting her, but perhaps Dex wasn't like that. Maybe Dex was confident in his own skills to defend himself, but just wanted a mage as back up just in case things went south. Either way, Assama thought that this request was urgent and took it right away.

The pink haired mage rushed out of the guild hall and went to find the coffee shop Dex specified in his request. Luckily Assama knew Orchidia very well and was able to arrive there swiftly. There were only a few people at the café. One man with puffy black hair, sipping away at his coffee caught Assama's eye. He was looking around almost skeptically and was mumbling incoherently to himself. Assama walked over to him and asked "Excuse me, but are you Dex Miller?" The man squinted his eyes at Assama as if he was analyzing her. "I may... depends on whose asking." Assama resisted the urge to roll her eyes. One always had to be polite for their client. "I'm Assama Sinclair, a member of Lamia Scale. You put out a request recently," she said, revealing her guild's emblem. "Oh really...?" Dex asked, still seeming unsure if Assama was telling the truth or not. "Isn't this proof?" Assama asked, gesturing to her tattoo. "Hmm, I guess you're right," Dex said, relaxing a bit. He took another sip of his coffee and didn't seem to talk any more until he was finished.

When Dex drank the last drops of his coffee, he talked once more. "I would like you to follow me on my mission to discover who my assassin is. Basically, I want you to be my shadow. Follow me wherever I go. Copy my every move. Maybe you could even learn a thing or two about being a spy." Assama looked at him. He looked nothing like a spy, aside from the fact that he was wearing all black. Frankly, that made him stand out even more in Orchidia, rather than blending in. She sighed to herself. This was going to be a long day.

Assama, obviously, had to do what her employer requested. Of course, she didn't emulate every single movement Dex made. Some of them were just too embarrassing. She didn't know what was going on in Dex's mind, but it was as if he was in a movie of sorts. A spy movie. She didn't know if he felt like an authentic spy by acting the way he was, hiding behind objects, rolling across the cobbled streets, and even going into a bush at one point. It only seemed natural to question his sanity. He was acting like a little kid who heard about a spy for the first time.

She approached Dex who was currently hiding behind a barrel full of apples. "Got any leads?" Assama asked, hoping, praying to some God out there, that Dex wasn't just wasting her time and was actually developing his case. "That man wearing the blue cloak is suspicious," he responded, his eyes shooting daggers at the man who didn't even seem to recognize their existence at the moment. "I don't think-" Assama began, but Dex hushed her. He came out of hiding and approached the man. Assama trailed close behind him to hopefully prevent him from doing anything too stupid. Unfortunately, that was not possible.

Dex tapped the shoulder of the man cloaked in blue. He turned around. He didn't look anything like an assassin to Assama. He had a kind face that she could easily imagine wearing a friendly smile, but right now, he was only giving a look of confusion with a mix of annoyance. "Sorry sir, but couldn't you see I was talking with someone?" Dex didn't seem to care, for he persisted on with the conversation. "Talking about what? Your plan to assassinate me?" Dex accused, his voice rising. "Um, Dex?" Assama asked, but it was no use. "I've been watching you and do you know what? You've been acting suspicious." "I don't know what you mean." The man sounded utterly perplexed but Dex either didn't seem to notice, or didn't seem to care. "Pull back your cloak." "Why?" "Do it!" The man pulled back his cloak to reveal a dagger in his hilt. "Ha! A dagger! You were going to assassinate me!" "No, I-" Assama had to interrupt. "Dex, please, lots of people have knives and daggers, not just assassins. Travelers and adventurers come through Orchidia all the time," she reasoned. Dex glared at Assama, then to the stranger, and then back to Assama once more. "I guess you're right," he said to her. "Good, now let's try to find out who the assassin really is." After Dex turned around, Assama apologized to the man for Dex's behavior and went back to Dex.

"You know, I don't think anyone is out to assassinate you. We haven't seen anything suspicious all day. Do you think it's possible you could have misinterpreted something as a death threat?" Dex looked at the Lamia completely outraged. "You dare think that I'm making this up?" He roared, drawing unnecessary attention. Assama looked at the people around her, staring at the two of them. "Dex, we're in the middle of a crowd of people. Do you really think that this is the time to-" "Do you think that this is the time to call me a liar? My life is in danger! We will continue our investigation to find this assassin!" This was such a waste of her time. If she could, she would take her reward money and leave. She wished she could ask for extra for wasting the time of a mage who could be doing actual, beneficial things to society, but knew that she couldn't do either of those. She had to play along with Dex until he was done with his investigating. When they were finished, Assama gladly took her money and left, hoping never to go on a request like that again.

Word Count: 1081/1000