Unveiled Secrets: The Promise of the Fae

Chapter 2 - What's wrong?

Aaron watched as the prince and princess ate a meal with them. He learned that both of them are friends of Philip. When he got to the north, he was allowed to rest for a few days before he is required to work for himself. The palace won’t keep feeding him as a guest. He clearly saw Nate roll her eyes when she heard that.

He grinned inside. He would never have thought that she’s a princess. By the way she dresses and the way she acts, one would clearly assume she’s an ordinary person.

One thing is clear, though, the closeness between the two royals. He wasn’t as surprised when he heard that they are engaged. Still… they’re too young. But maybe that’s how royalty works, he’ll never know. To be fair, majority of ordinary people do get married at an early age, too. Some are much younger than them. In the last decade or so, more and more people have chosen to marry as they get older.

Philip, he met as he was strolling the corridors and found his way to the armory. He was friendly, despite the difference in their status. He offered to give him a tour of the grounds. And then, he met his younger sister and brother. They have extra rooms in their house and offered one to him, to which he’s grateful. Vince arranged some work for him to do at the palace, mainly help organize the armory after the knights use the various weapons on it.

He’s not aware of the things that happened at northeast as he insisted on going back to the north immediately. For no real reason. He doesn’t have any family or friends since he got captured. But he feels a sense of belonging in the land of the north. He was born there, in a small village. He grew up breathing the air of the land. There is a distinct smell permeating the wind at the north, due to vegetation and the forest trees. He’s associated that smell to home. He clearly recognized the moment they crossed borders, when the mercenaries went to the northeast, as well as the moment when he returned. He’s sentimental towards the land, not to any particular person.

He sat on Pyro’s side, while Nate is on the other. When Pyro dropped his fork, Aaron reached out for it. Before it could touch the ground, it halted. He immediately stooped to take it. His heart pounded wildly in his chest. Did anyone notice? When he straightened up to give it back to Pyro, he noticed Nate’s gaze on him. Her eyes are narrowed on him.

“What’s wrong?” Vince asked, glancing at them.

“Nothing.” They answered at the same time. He drew his gaze first. His hands started sweating. Why does it have to happen now? Did she notice or not?

“Here, try this, my lady. It’s your favorite.” Selene offered a piece of fried eggplant. Technically, Nate likes a lot of dishes. They’re all her favorites. It’s not like she can choose one that she would like to eat for a lifetime.

“It’s delicious. You’re getting better.” She patted the kid’s arm. For a young girl, she’s very responsible.

Aaron stole a glance. She’s not asking. Maybe she didn’t see. He started to take a deep breath. He’s still not relaxing, though. Only Vince and Nate noticed his tension. The kids were oblivious to it. The two of them exchanged a quick glance, Vince’s expression was asking her what’s up. She only raised her eyebrows quick, telling him later.

When the meal was over, Aaron’s heart rate sped up again as Nate openly stared at him. The kids worked together in doing the chores.

“Let’s wait for Philip outside. The fresh air would be nice, too.” Nate started, throwing him a meaningful look. Vince followed her quickly, wanting to get answers.

He gulped, reaching for a goblet of water as his throat feels dry. They’re royals. They would uphold the rules, won’t they? Should he run already? Would he even be able to? They have knights. They could easily catch up with him. Why? Why did he even decide to stay in this place? It has been a long time since that ability of his did something.

When he stepped outside, Nate threw him something. It gave him a fright and he jumped back. He looked down and saw a gold coin.

“What’s your ability?” Vince asked, having heard what happened already.

“What do you mean?” Evade. Pretend. Maybe he could survive this way.

Nate narrowed her eyes on him. She’s trying to recall if he’s aware or not about the “underground” treatment of magic. Well, he hasn’t been here long.

“I saw you.” She declared.

“What did you see?” Aaron continued to feign ignorance. He almost had a heart attack when the gold coin floated in front of him. He cursed and stumbled backwards.

“That wasn’t me.” He’s sure of that. He has determined before that he’s only able to do it when he directs something with his hand. One reason he normally keeps his hands under his cloak.

Vince sat down beside him. “But you can do it?”

Aaron glanced at him and watched as the gold coin flew towards the prince’s hand.

“You… it’s you?” His eyes widened. He wasn’t expecting the prince to actually…

Vince propped the coin in his fingers, offering it to him. “Let’s see how you do it.”

“What…” Wait, he hasn’t recovered yet. His heart is still beating fast and his mind is still fuzzy from the panic. His arm weakened and he laid on the ground, breathing heavily.

Nate sat on his other side. He watched as the coin traveled from Vince to her.

“What…” His gaze travelled from one to the other, and back. He sat again, supporting himself with his weak arms.

“You try.” Nate offered the coin to him.

“Go ahead. There’s no one else around.” Vince did look around to check.

These are royals. Though they seem friendly to him, he’s still their subject. He should obey. He swallowed the lump in his throat as he reached for the coin.

He tilted his head; he doesn’t really know how it works. He’s still a little confused, so he’s distracted. They… they have magic?

They both noticed his struggle. Well, he probably thought he’ll face execution, which didn’t happen… And now, he’s found others who have special abilities, too. That will take some time to digest.

“Do you mind walking with us? Back to the castle? The king must see you.” Vince asked, as he helped him stand up. He stumbled again, missing a firm step. The king? His panic is back.

“Uh, don’t worry. Nothing bad will happen to you. On the contrary, it’s good news. You’re the first one to join us.” Nate tried to assure him, sounding a bit cheery. There was a smile on her face, too. 

That should mean something good, right?