“I had five guards. I don’t think the fifth is here; he should have attacked already. If he’s still back at the castle... I don’t know what he’ll do. Try to kill people, presumably, since they’re here to provoke war.”   He paused. “I... am sorry I didn’t say anything sooner. I should have warned you, warned your parents. I just... wasn’t sure what to do. We should get back to the castle. If we’re lucky, he hasn’t had the chance yet.” He finally took a moment to look at his own wounds, the arrows sticking out of his arm and chest. There was, thankfully, little blood.   “I probably need a doctor, too, at some point. This is painful.”   She grabbed his hand and pulled him from the shop. She’d come back later to rectify the mess they’d made, but for the time being, they needed to get back, fast. “I’m really sorry Mister Evermore! It’s safe to come out, and I’ll send someone to clean up!

As soon as she was out of sight, she leaned against a wall, letting everything wash over her. She took a shuddered breath as tears threatened to fall from her eyes. Why? Why were her emotions betraying her? She didn’t want to feel. She wanted to remain closed off, but the adrenaline was gone, and it left in its wake all the things she pressed down that day. She’d never seen so much death in her life. Sure, Hayward’s ‘guards’ deserved it, but her own guards did not. She had tried to push it to the side like they weren’t important, but she knew each one of them by name. They’d been in her family’s service for years. If she had allowed herself to acknowledge it in front of Hayward... he would’ve seen she was still a weak woman. And that was unforgivable to her. She finally straightened herself up, wiping away the few tears she’d allowed to fall, and headed downstairs to the kitchens, requesting food and drink to be brought up for the prince. She then grabbed two glasses of wine. Even if

Hayward was not nearly as well behaved as he should have been. The wine had kicked in, dulling the pain a little and weakening his inhibitions as well. Her, in that dress, fondling him a bit while helping him change pants? He was going to react, at least a little.Perhaps more than a little. His good arm reached out and grabbed the front of her dress. He pulled her into another deep, passionate kiss. For once, though, it was brief. He let go and followed directions, groaning a little as he scooted back onto the bed. “Ooh... that hurt. Worth it, though.” He winked playfully at her and settled down.Feeling more comfortable, he once again patted the bed next to him. “So, you said the mines are more interesting than the town. That doesn’t take much, I suppose, but I always think of mines as, well, just deep holes in the ground. What makes them so interesting?” he asked. He was still thinking of going to see t

Elissa nodded and disappeared down the stairs, taking a hard left turn when she saw one of her sisters to avoid them. They appeared to not take that as an answer and followed her toward the kitchen. “Not interested, Aeris...” she called behind her.Aeris wasn’t the beauty that Elissa was, but she had an adorably round face. She was only two years behind Elissa in age, but sometimes her ‘baby face’ as many had called it, made her appear much closer in age to the twins. It also didn’t help that, unlike Elissa, she had barely developed a chest. All of her extra weight laid in her hips and bottom, and while she was sure someone would find that attractive, it wasn’t the hourglass figure men drooled after (which, of course, Elissa had).“I’m not stupid. I know there’s something going on with you and that prince...” she double stepped to catch up to her. “Why can’t you be normal for once in your life and want to tell your sister?” They had never been close, and Aeris had been more of the pes

“I’m curious. Why do you dance? Is it a ritual? Or a way to commune with people?” “That in particular?” She asked, her eyes temporarily closed as she enjoyed the sensation of his hands roaming over her body. “It’s a ritual. One that if you asked about it, you would promptly be told doesn’t exist. Just like you’d be told no one used magic... if you asked...” she opened her eyes and looked back at him over her shoulder. “But the two things are very much related. It’s both an initiation and a celebration.” She was scanning his face to see how he would react to her words, and then her mouth opened and the words that came out surprised even her. “It marks you as a witch.” Her own family didn’t even know. It wasn’t something anyone spoke of, and it certainly wasn’t something that would be condoned. Hayward listened to her, though he was more that a little distracted as his hands moved over her body. He raised an eyebrow at her, thinking that she was just messing with him. “A witch, hm