The Prince And The Pagan

Chapter 5: Waiting For News

-Cole-

“Cole, give it back!”

My sister chased me around the hallways, as I had taken her favorite bracelet she had gotten from our mother. We were having a party later tonight, and of course, my sister took ages getting ready, so why not make it a little more fun?

“Sebastian! Catch!” I said and threw the bracelet to him.

He caught it easily and Liana glared at me before trying to get it from Sebastian, who easily held it over his head. She tried to jump to get it, but it was pathetic and so fun to watch.

“You are so st*pid! Give it back, Sebastian!”

“And back to Cole!” he said and threw it to me.

But just before I could catch it, a man taller than any of us jumped in front of me and caught it easily. My father looked over his shoulder at me and looked at me with a little smile.

“Teasing your sister again?” he asked.

I shrugged a little right before Liana walked over to him, and he gave her her bracelet back.

“Thank you, dad,” she said sweetly before sticking out her tongue at me and then walking away.

“Don’t you two have something better to do?” he asked us, as Sebastian came over to stand beside me.

We looked at each other shortly before looking at my father who was shaking his head a little.

“What about training? Sebastian?”

Sebastian knew that was a hint to go practice with the other knights, and just nodded, bowing just a little.

“Of course, your majesty,” he said, and walked away.

I watched him walk away before turning to my father, who was still shaking his head a little.

“What? It was just a bracelet,” I said.

“And if you might have dropped it somewhere? Or lost it in any way? How sad don’t you think your sister would have been?” he asked.

“But I didn’t drop it,” I said proudly.

“Cole, that is not the point,” he said. “You need to think ahead. You can’t just let your impulses control you or you or someone else will end up getting hurt.”

“It was just a bracelet,” I repeated, not at all seeing what the problem was.

He sighed, tired that I didn’t try to truly listen to what he was saying, but I just couldn’t really see what he was trying to say.

“What if it hadn’t been a bracelet?” he asked.

“But it was.”

“Cole …”

“What?” I asked.

He just kept shaking his head for a little while, and I stood there confused, not understanding anything.

“She is your sister. Be nice to her,” he then said, giving up on teaching me a lesson.

“I am!”

“Just go get ready. This party is important to your mother,” he said.

I sighed. Why did he ruin all the fun?! I walked away yet couldn’t help but think about what he had said. What if it hadn’t been a bracelet?

It felt like I was struck by lightning, as pain overflowed my body. I coughed violently, and it only made it worse. What had happened to me? My eyes tried their best to focus, but it was dark all around me, or maybe it was just my eyes that couldn’t focus. I was so dizzy and … thirsty! I needed water.

“W-Water …”

It was a strange sound, and I was unsure if I was even able to say the word. I sounded like a frog trying to speak, and yet suddenly I felt a cup placed at my lips, and cool liquid ran down my throat. I drank it hungrily all the way to the last drop, even though I wasn’t sure what it was, or who had given me the drink. It tasted kind of sweet though, and suddenly my world spun around me, even though I couldn’t see, I knew I was drifting away.

-Raven-

Nine days had passed. No news … None at all. I walked by Dimar’s tent every day, hoping to hear anything or see anything but nothing!

“Hand me the knife.”

I didn’t hear what my friend Helena was saying. My eyes were locked on our healer’s tent. Was he dead? Was that why we hadn’t heard anything?! He couldn’t die! Not yet, at least.

“Raven?!”

“What?”

I turned my head, seeing Helena beside me. We had been tasked with preparing the meat for tonight. A big deer had been brought home by the hunters. I had been too distracted lately to go on any hunts. I did not want to leave our little village, because I was so desperate to know about the prince. So, I had to help out in different ways.

“The knife,” she said, and pointed to the one in my hand.

I had used it to stab the ground and twist it around, as I watched the tent and hoped to see the healer appear, bringing us news.

“Oh,” was all I said as I handed the knife to her.

“What is going on inside that head of yours?” she asked and smiled.

She started to remove the outer layer of the skin, with all the hair, as she spoke to me. I sighed and leaned a little back. I couldn’t really concentrate on anything at the moment, and especially not cut a deer open and remove its intestines and fur and all of that. I just needed to know if he was alive.

“Nothing,” I lied.

“I don’t believe you.”

“No?”

“No. Don’t think I haven’t seen the way you look at Dimar’s tent and the way you pace around in front of it every day,” she said. “Did your father not tell you to stay away?”

“I am!”

“Pacing in front of the tent is not staying away,” she said. “That is like a lion waiting to pounce.”

“I am not going to hurt him!” I said.

She just gave me a look that said, really?

“Yes! I just want to know if he is alive. That is all. Let us not forget I was the one who found him, and I brought you all to him.”

“Maybe, but maybe you did that because you were confused by his sudden appearance, or maybe you changed your mind. Let us not forget, Prince Cole is not his grandfather. Just like King William was not like the old king either,” Helena said.

“Well, he is out here for a reason,” I said in a low voice.

She just sighed and shook her head.

“Yes, and there are a thousand reasons why. He is the prince after all, and if he lives, he will be king,” she said and looked towards the tent.

I turned my head and looked at it too. We had only been notified a few days ago about King William’s death … this we knew meant trouble, but we had no idea what the prince’s appearance meant, and what had caused him to turn up here. All we knew was the castle was grieving and it was closed off at the moment. Not that any of us wanted to get close there anyway. Those kinds of people look down on people like us. Why I never believed that King William did not want us dead as well.

“He will live,” I said.

I turned to look at Helena, who smiled.

“Can you see the future now?” she teased.

I rolled my eyes and we both laughed a little, but then my eyes landed on Micha a little further away. He had appeared with some hunters, and we locked eyes shortly, but then he walked away with them, not even looking back at me. Helena clearly saw the way we had looked at each other and turned to me.

“What is going on between the two of you?” she asked.

“I wish I knew,” I said.

I truly did. I had no idea why Micha had behaved like that the day I found the prince. It was so strange, and since then he had been acting all cold and distant. We had barely said one word to each other these last nine days, but maybe it was also because I was so busy focusing on the prince and hearing any news about him.

“Maybe go talk to him,” she said.

I shook my head. If I left to go find Micha, I could not watch the tent.

“No, I don’t think that is a good idea,” I said.

“Raven …” she sighed and shook her head.

“What?” I asked innocently.

“The tent isn’t going anywhere. Our healer isn’t going anywhere. The prince isn’t going anywhere. I can’t say the same thing about Micha. You know the girls here are all obsessed with him,” Helena said.

Helena was already married herself, maybe why I never had to fear she had some secret love for Micha, but it was no secret that he was very popular with the other girls here, and I was just the one who had caught his attention for some reason.

“We have a job to do,” I said and pointed to the deer.

“I can do it. You aren’t really helping anyway,” she laughed. “Now go!”

“But-“

“I will watch the tent as well. Just go.”

I sighed, but knew she was right.

“Thank you,” I whispered before I got up and went to find Micha.