Chapter 4: 4- The trail
The time on horseback was not at all what I had expected. My body was soar and tired but I tried to make the best of it and I spent the days getting to know the knights. Daniel was still himself, acting like the brother he was, whining at me and being overprotective as usual.
Patric was a humble person, laughing a lot, taking care of the horses and always preparing our meals.
Relieved, I realized that neither Byron nor Mathew were interested in getting to know me. Their company made me feel uneasy and I kept my distance from them as much as I could. Which wasn't difficult at all, as Mathew always sat with his nose in the map and Byron always kept to himself.
Leon, on the other hand, was always around, we talked a lot, he made me laugh and helped me to relax when I felt down. But I constantly felt Daniel's watchful eyes on me , and it made my curiosity grow.
As soon as we had a moments rest, Leon showed me how to train to became a better archer, those were the moments I longed for when I sat perched on the horseback. But for each passing day, I realized how controlled my life was going to be, I was used to having the freedom to do what I wanted, the opposite of the life of a princess.
After a few weeks on horseback, i finally got tired of the journey, everything looked the same, the only thing that ever changed was the weather.
Today the sun was shining and it was a lovely spring day, insects were buzzing at the edge of the ditch, a light breeze was caressing my skin and the sun kissed my face. Despite that, I had a hard time enjoying it. In the beginning everything was exciting, meeting traders, spotting wild horses and riding through villages. But the people we met was a bit too curious about the five knights and the random girl with them and Mathew decided to avoid meeting people as much as we could. Instead we took the small trails that all looked the same and I soon noticed that nothing new happened.
Today I was overwhelmed with boredom. I looked around restlessly, in front of me in line was Daniel, first rode Mathew as usual, I glanced back and my eyes met Leon's dark browns, he raised a questioning eyebrow but I shrugged my shoulders in response and turned to stare into Daniels back again. And we continued on at a steady pace.
Patric whistled a cheerful melody in the back of the line, I had heard it before and started to hum on the song without even noticing. At the same time, my thoughts began to wander. I often thought about what kind of man would greet me over there in the castle. Surely someone who loved their child wouldn't choose to send it away?
My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a curious voice.
"Who was he?"
I looked at Leon who rode up next to me, but I remained silent.
"The one you said goodbye to?"
I sighed reluctantly and turned my gaze forward again.
"Why are you asking?"
"The look in his eyes as you left .." He didn't finish the sentence but kept his eyes on me.
I looked the other way, out over the meadow and sighed again.
"You seem smart enough to figure out the rest yourself"
"Sorry Princess, you looked bored, like you wanted something to talk about."
The guilt made me sigh and I turned to smile at him and began to tell him the story about me and Ren.
"We've been together since we were little, as long as I can remember we were inseparable."
Leon continued to look at me with his intense gaze.
"But you became more then friends as you got older?"
I glanced at Daniel's back, he was within earshot. Leon followed my gaze and laughed, he understood.
I shrugged my shoulders. "Something like that."
Daniel must have listened because he turned to look at us.
"Leon, shouldn't you watch our backs?"
Leon gave him a nod and let the horse slow down and he ended up behind me again, riding in silence.
That night we camped on a high cliff. The food was the same as always, a pot with some kind of stew and a piece of bread. But I never complained because Patric put his whole heart into the meals and the life on the road always made me hungry.
As soon as we finished eating, I climbed up to the highest point to enjoy the view. Several miles were seen from the cliff, and I gasped at how small everything looked from there. It wasn't long before Leon came up to me, we sat silent and looked out over the landscape.
Far away, barely visible with the naked eye, a pillar of smoke rose up on the horizon.
"What is it?" I asked.
"Reality."
"Hm?"
"War .. it is our neighbors who occasionally manage to cross the border, the soldiers plunder and destroy the villages." He paused and looked at me, "That's one of the reasons why we bring you home now."
I looked skeptic at him "What? What can I do?"
"The king is struggling with politics, he needs you at his side."
"But what can I do?"
"Do you want to go to war?"
"I-... I don't think so."
"There you go, then you can stand behind your father and his hard work to keep us out of the war. You would do great work in the court, I am sure."
I giggled to myself and repeated the words in my head. But started to shake my head, my new life felt so distant, like a strange dream. But the closer we got to the castle, the more I realized it was reality.
I closed my eyes and sighed. Then, without looking at me, he gently placed his hand on top of mine.
"You are going to be fine."
That gentle touch and those words, it helped more then he would ever understand. And I wanted that moment to last forever, just him and me and the view. I turned my palm up and braided my fingers with his. I didn't dare look at him, at the risk of crying. I felt so vulnerable, so confused and lost. For each passing day, I longed even more for my forest. Leon hugged my hand.
"How can you be so sure?" I whispered.
"Because you're not like everyone else."
He looked down at me and smiled his charming smile. Just then someone cleared his throat behind us and I knew exactly who it was.
"Leon, you have the first guard."
Without questioning or hesitation, he looked behind us and nodded before he got up to leave.
I had my eyes fixed on the smoke, waiting for Daniel to say something.
"Go to bed Eve."
I made no attempt to say anything, but wiped away a tear before I got up and his firm expression softened.
"Is everything okay?"
"I'm homesick, that's all."
As I passed him he put his hand on my shoulder but said nothing.
He was fantastic my brother, in many ways. But he had never been good at talking about my feelings.
Instead, I kept them to myself. When I climbed down the cliff it struck me how different Leon was compared to Ren. Both always manage to make me feel better, but in different ways.
Down at the camp, I went to fetched my blanket, wrapped myself in it and laid myself near the fire. We always slept under the open sky and it was always wonderful to watch the stars before I fell asleep. But this night I slept anxiously and woke up with a jerk, Daniel sat next to me and put his hand on my forehead.
"It's just a dream Eve, you can fall asleep again, I'll be right here with you."
I pulled my blanket closer and rested my head in his lap, he stroked my hair until I fell asleep, just as he did when I was little.
But the dream came back
I was chased by men in black robes, one of whom had bright red eyes and thick black mist surrounding him. I ran but came nowhere, his hands locked my arms in a tight grip, I couldn't move .. I wanted to scream for help but I had no voice! I tried to tear myself loose, hit and kick. But nothing helped.
Then suddenly all the men fell to the ground I looked around, everyone was dead.
I stared at the bodies around me, everyone had been killed by arrows.
I quickly opened my eyes, Daniel was sleeping heavily beside me. I looked out into the darkness and met a pair of brown eyes. With a sigh of relief I smiled at him and made myself ready to close my eyes again, then I slept peacefully the rest of the night.
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Xeelia
Xeelia I'm adding new chapters fast right now but my plan is to update once or twice a week.
I'm still finishing the Swedish version of the book, I have 70+ chapters so there's a lot to translate but it's fun and I'm changing things as well, which makes me think this book will be even better.
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