“Woah… check out THAT one.” Emberlynn nudged Zelda as she pointed across the auditorium at the knight who clunked heavily toward the microphone. There was a resounding clang with every step that he took. Even several yards away, she could hear it clear as day.

“Awesome! Do you think he made it himself?” The other girl whispered in reply.

Emberlynn shook her head. “No way. He had to have bought it. Still pretty sweet though.”

It was definitely better than any of the half-assed costumes she’d seen so far that day. Or worse — the many convention attendees who hadn’t even bothered dressing up at all. What’s the point in coming if you aren’t even gonna TRY?! She wondered.

“Uh… yeah, hi.” The knight muttered into the microphone, calling Emberlynn back to the present. “My question’s for Mr. Durand… I’m a huge fan, by the way.” He looked away almost nervously as he spoke.

“Thank you.” The actor replied with a small smile from up on the stage.

“So, my question is one that I think fans have been wondering for a long time…” He paused, as though for dramatic effect. “If you had to fight 100 duck-sized horses or one horse-sized duck, which would you pick, and why?”

The entire auditorium echoed with the sound of laughter then. Emberlynn was so amused by the absurdity of the question that she didn’t even pay attention to the actor’s response.

Even with all the panels she’d attended over the years, she’d never actually gone up to the mic to ask a question. She wanted the chance to speak to some of her favorite actors and writers, but could never think of anything good to ask. Nothing that wasn’t super embarrassing or cliche or had been already asked a million times before.

She loved that this boy in the knight costume had managed to do what she wished she had thought of trying herself long ago — ask something fun and absolutely freaking ridiculous.

Emberlynn slowly rose to her feet as she watched the knight leave the microphone and go back to his seat.

“Ember? What are you doing?” Zelda hissed quietly as her friend began walking across the aisle toward the other seating section.

“I just wanna go say hi.” She replied with a small shrug.

“Again?” Zelda shook her head, half-amused. Clearly she was used to her friend’s confident, outgoing nature by now.

As she often did, Emberlynn felt no fear about approaching a stranger. Just curiosity about the mysterious knight who asked the ridiculous question. Emberlynn guessed he was somewhere around her age, and he seemed to be from England, based on his accent and flawless English.

That wasn’t uncommon — Emberlynn had met several people from other countries at GeekCon over the years. It was one of the biggest conventions in Europe, and people often traveled from all over to attend. It was a great way to make new friends… and to practice her English too.

“Hey, nice question.” She smiled sweetly as she took a seat beside the silvery knight, whispering to him in the best English she could muster.

“Thanks!” His voice was slightly muffled by his helmet. Thankfully, he seemed completely unfazed at being approached by a stranger. “What a stupid cop-out answer though. ‘I’m against violence toward animals’… Seriously? What kind of bullshit is that? It was hypothetical!” He laughed, shaking his head.

Emberlynn had no idea what ‘cop-out’ meant, but she knew what ‘bullshit’ was, at least. And she couldn’t help but agree that the actor’s answer had been completely ridiculous. “Yeah, that was so dumb!”

A woman sitting in front of them turned around then, shushing Emberlynn and her new friend scoldingly.

With a sheepish smile, Emberlynn nodded her head toward the door at the back of the auditorium, shrugging. “You want to find somewhere better to talk?” She whispered.

With a slight creaking of metal, the knight nodded and joined her as she rose to her feet.

They headed out into the deserted corridor that connected the auditorium with the main exhibit area. As they crossed over the threshold, Emberlynn quickly pulled out her cell phone from the pouch where she’d hidden it.

Emberlynn returned the phone to its pouch, finally noticing that the mysterious knight was staring at her almost expectantly (or at least, she assumed it was expectantly. She couldn’t tell underneath his helmet).

“Sorry… My cousin.” She explained, trying to choose her English carefully. “I wanted to tell her why I left.”

“That’s alright.” The knight replied. “Cool costume, by the way. Cavewoman? Or, uh… wilderness warrior thing?”

“Almost…” She smiled slightly at him.

“Hmm… Oh! A Wildling? Like from Game of Thrones?”

“Yeah!” Emberlynn smiled proudly, striking a quick pose.

Overall, she was quite pleased with how it had turned out, though creating the costume had not been without its challenges. She’d spent half the summer trying to perfect the design, only to discover too late that the chest was too tight, despite having followed her measurements exactly. God, did they really get bigger?! Emberlynn had wondered. She was turning sixteen in just a couple months. Weren’t they supposed to stop growing by now?

Thankfully, her Onkel Tam had managed to help with a few last minute adjustments to make sure it fit. And she was pretty sure it was one of her best creations yet.

“Where’d you buy it?” The boy’s deep voice called her back to the present. “I bet it cost a fortune!”

Emberlynn shook her head slowly. “I made it.” She explained. “And I… made how it looks too.” She finished uncertainly, not knowing the English word for “design”.

The knight seemed to have understood. “Really? That’s amazing. I had to cheat and have my dad buy mine, and I don’t think I could ever come up with my own design like that… Still looks pretty cool though right?” He asked almost hopefully.

This time, she nodded. “Definitely. You make a very good…” For a moment, she struggled to recall the right word. “Robot.”

A deep rumble of laughter echoed through his helmet at her words. “Ha-ha, very funny. It’s not THAT bad, is it?”

“What do you mean? I’m serious. I like your robot costume!” She assured him.

“I’m not a robot though… unless I’m a mechanical knight or something.” He tapped his metal-clad finger against the chin of his helmet for a moment. “Hmm… cool twist, actually. A robot knight!”

“A night?” Emberlynn had no idea what he was talking about. “Like the moon and stars?”

He shook his head. “No, knight. With a ‘k’. Not a robot.”

“Huh?”

This time, to her surprise, he replied in German. “Ein RITTER. Kein Roboter“

It took a few moments for it to finally click. “HA! Oh my God… Robot, Roboter… How the hell didn’t I figure that out?!” Emberlynn burst into hysterics as she recalled her long-ago encounter with a sweet little boy in Brindleton Bay. Guess my drawing really must have sucked! And I must’ve been the stupidest nine-year-old ever.

“What’s so funny?” This time, he continued speaking her native tongue. His accent was pretty noticeable, but she was still able to understand him. The confidence with which he spoke told her instantly that his German was much better than her English.

Emberlyn smiled as her laughter finally died away. “It’s a really long story.”

“Hey, I’ve got time!” She could almost hear the smile in his voice. “Well, more like twenty minutes ‘til my dad comes and picks me up, but still.”

“Pretty sure it won’t take THAT long.” Emberlynn replied. It was even more comfortable talking to him now that she was speaking her own language.

“Well, that’s a relief.” He teased. “But what are we gonna do for the rest of those twenty minutes then?”

She took a step toward him, her smile widening. “I’m sure we can think of something…” Her stomach did a brief somersault, though she couldn’t quite explain why. “Uh, I’m Emberlynn, by the way.”

“Mason.” He replied warmly, finally reaching up to remove the helmet from his head.

Emberlynn braced herself for a troll, just as Zelda had said… But was pleasantly surprised as she looked deeply into the boy’s pretty green eyes.

And Mason seemed to be looking back just as intently.

Emberlynn wasn’t sure how it happened. One moment they were standing together in the corridor, laughing together about her failed English.

And the next…

The hard metal of his gauntlets was cold and uncomfortable against her skin, but Emberlynn couldn’t have cared less. All she cared about was the fact that she was kissing a guy! A really cute, British one!

YES! Score! She thought triumphantly as she continued to try and figure out what to do with her tongue. This was only the second time she’d ever kissed anyone, and the first had been a simple peck during a game of spin the bottle last spring.

This was way different. And kind of weird and sloppy. But awesome too! I can’t wait to tell Zelda! She’s gonna FLIP!

“Ember? You in here?” As though on cue, her best friend flung open the bathroom door, causing both Emberlynn and Mason to jump.

“Ow!” Emberlynn cried. Mason’s teeth had caught on her lower lip as he pulled away from her.

“Sorry…” He muttered awkwardly.

“THERE you are!” Zelda seemed completely unfazed at finding Emberlynn in such a compromising position. “We’ve been looking for you everywhere! Man, you’re lucky I was the one who found you, and not Onkel Phee!”

Yeah, no kidding… “Sorry… Guess I kinda lost track of time.”

“Uh, yeah. I’d say so.” Zelda giggled softly, her eyes bouncing back and forth between Emberlynn and Mason for a moment.

Emberlynn couldn’t help but notice how suddenly uncomfortable he appeared. “By the way, Zelda, this is Mason.” She nodded over to her new… friend? Makeout partner? Maybe both. “Mason, this is my cousin Zelda.”

She gave the older boy a small wave. “Hey, Mason! Sorry to, uh, interrupt… But I had to find Ember.” Her eyes flicked back to her cousin. “You got third place in the costume contest!”

“Wait — REALLY?!” This was the first time she’d gotten anything beyond an honorable mention. Emberlynn felt her chest swell with pride as the realization struck her.

“Yeah! But you weren’t there to get your prize… They have an Amazon gift card and some dinky little ribbon thing for you at the Information desk. Onkel Phee sent me, Dad, and Papa on a manhunt to find you!” Zelda explained. “I had to make up some lame story about you saying you didn’t feel good and disappearing to the bathroom… You’re welcome, by the way. You totally owe me now.” She grinned as she spoke.

Great, now I have to pretend I was off getting sick. Emberlynn thought to herself, annoyed. But she supposed it was a hell of a lot better than her father finding out where she REALLY went. He and her mother would probably murder her once they got home, if they knew.

“Thanks, Zelda.” Emberlynn tried her best to sound sincere. Then, she turned her attention back to Mason. “Sorry… I should probably go grab my prize… But I can be back in like five minutes?” She offered.

Mason shook his head. “It’s alright. It’s gotta be almost four o’clock already, right?”

Zelda pulled out her phone and glanced down at the screen. “Four fifteen.”

“Oh shit. I bet my dad’s here… He said he’d come get me at four.”

“Oh.” Emberlynn failed at hiding her disappointment.

Mason’s face fell. “Sorry… I wish I didn’t have to go. But it was really nice meeting you, Emberlynn.”

“You too.”

He seemed to hesitate for a moment. “And y’know, me and my dad are staying in Windenburg for a couple more weeks. If you wanna hang out again or something, you can always call me. If you want.”

“Sure!” Emberlynn’s face suddenly lit back up as she pulled out her phone. “What’s your number?”

Rather than trying to juggle the phone in his metal-clad hands, Mason dictated his number, which Emberlynn eagerly added to her contact section under “Robot”.

Mason chuckled heartily when he saw what she’d written. “Cute… Very cute.” He smiled. “Later, Emberlynn.”

“See ya.”

He gave Zelda a quick nod and Emberlynn one last smile before finally heading out the door.

The moment it closed behind him, Zelda rounded on Emberlynn, her eyes wide. “Oh. My. GOD! Ember!” She squealed. To Emberlynn’s relief, her friend’s cries seemed to be more of excitement than shock or disgust.

“He’s cute, right?” She replied with a grin. “And a pretty good kisser too.” I think… Honestly, Emberlynn had no clue whether he was or not. But at least he seemed to have a better idea of what he was doing than she did?

“Wow. First you get a prize in the costume contest, now you’re making out with a random British dude in a bathroom… You’re growing up so fast.” For a moment, Zelda feigned wiping away a tear before breaking into a smile once more.

Emberlynn rolled her eyes in reply, though part of her couldn’t help but wonder if there was some truth to her cousin’s words. Over the past several months, it was more than just her breasts that had grown. Her confidence had too. She felt stronger. Prettier. Less awkward. Especially around guys.

When she was younger, her parents had often referred to her as something of a ‘late bloomer’ compared to other girls her age. But this past year, much to her embarrassment, her mother often gushed about how suddenly her baby girl had started to “blossom”.

Is THIS what Mama was talking about? Getting bigger boobs and a prettier face? Finding the confidence to make out with a cute stranger in the middle of GeekCon?

Emberlynn’s lips stretched into a smile at the thought. If this was how it felt to start to blossom, she couldn’t wait to see what it was like to be in full bloom.