“Oneof the few titles you hold with any respect,”Isaid, butIcouldn’t help mirroring his grin.
Hehuffed, “Can’tplay nice for even a minute, can you?”Buthis grin only broadened, andIdidn’t like the way it made my stomach pull in knots.Heshifted then and brought himself to sit on the bench with me, his leg and side pushed against mine as he reached past to pull the curtains of my window completely open.Heleft his hand at the window to point at various sights as we passed them, soIwas essentially surrounded by him.Hespoke softly, but the words seemed to float by me as allIcould focus on was the feel of his body just slightly pressing into mine in the confines of the seat, and the wayIcould feel his hair just barely brushing my shoulders as he leaned over.
Thatwas until we rounded a corner, and the buildings pulled away to reveal the rolling grass hills that surrounded the city.Wehad come to the edge of the city proper.Inthe distanceIcould see where the black volcanic sand still peaked out from the higher and sharper hills dusted with snow, but everything nearby was covered in waves upon waves of flowing green grass, resistant to the cold’s embrace.
“Doyou see that small village there?”Hewore an unmistakably mischievous grin now, as he pointed out the window.Ipeered through, but allIsaw was more grass.Ifrowned, and the carriage pulled to a stop.
“Isthis where the festival is?”
“No, but it’s just a short stop.Comewith me.”Heheld out his hand, andItook it without hesitation.Heled me out of the carriage, but the shoesIwore were not compatible with the muddy road we had ended up on.Hetook one look at my shoes, then at the ground, and then swept me up.
“Putme down!”
“Andruin those expensive shoesIgot you, not a chance.”
“Youcan afford new ones.”
“Ofcourse, butIliked these.Stopsquirming, ifIdrop you here, you will be absolutely filthy.”Hewas right, and it wasn’t likeIcould run anywhere in these ridiculous shoes.Ifinally let myself settle in, feeling the warmth of his arms behind my back and knees, and the feel of his broad chest.
Thewind blew the scent of sweet grass and rich earth to me, with just some slight undertones of animals and their leavings.Itwas fantastic.Hecrested a small rise, andIcould see a few pens of goats and sheep.Theyseemed out of place all alone in the grass field, but on closer inspection…
“Thehouses!They’reburied in the ground!”
Hechuckled, “Ina way, yes.”
Weapproached the small village, for nowIcould see a number of these dwellings, some painted white, some just raw wood, that looked like the homes of the city, but they had allowed the grass and earth to cover them like a blanket.Weapproached the nearest house with the animal pen attached, and the king set me down on a small path made of flagstones, soIcould find my balance without sinking into the ground.Heapproached the adorable yellow door of the small cottage and gave it a polite knock.Aswe waited,Icouldn’t help but approach and run my hand over the edge of the grass where the roof met the ground.Ittickled my palms and was still wet with the morning dew.Upclose,Icould see it was laced with tiny white flowers, and even saw a few bugs making their own homes.Somehowit felt like life, likeIcould feel the network of roots that grew here and as far as the eye could see.
Thedoor opened a crack and the tiniest squeak emerged, “YourMajesty!”Avery young human girl had stuck her head out the door.
“Hello,Emilia, would you fetch your father for me?”Shebolted back inside, and a few moments later, amiddle-aged human man with a handsome brown beard emerged.Hewore his work clothes and wiped his hands on an already dirty rag.
“YourMajesty, we weren’t expecting you with the festival.I’msorry to be caught in this state.”
Abraxaswaved his hand, “Icame unannounced,Bronn, it is no issue.ButIwas hoping that you might have something for me?”
“Ofcourse,YourMajesty.”Bronnturned back into his home, leaving the door ajar.Oncehe was out of sight, several sets of small feet snuck into the doorway.Icounted six children in all,Emilialikely being the oldest.
“Askhim to do the magic!”
“No,Pawill be mad.”Theybickered amongst themselves, asIturned, raising an eyebrow toAbraxas.Hegave me a grin before squatting down in front of the children gathered at the door.Myheart stopped for a moment as he whipped a dagger out of his belt, but then he carefully rolled back one of his sleeves and drew a thin line across his forearm.Crimsonblood welled up from the cut, and he held his arm out for the children as they gathered around, their greedy eyes wide in anticipation.
Almostas quickly as it had appeared,Isaw his wound knit together.Hewiped away the small line of blood that remained, revealing perfectly smooth skin underneath.Thechildren’s eyes widened further, smiles crossing their faces.
Footstepssounded, and they all pulled back quickly, asAbraxasstood, rolling his sleeve back down.
Bronnreturned, a frown passing his lips as he eyed his children, “Whathappened?”
“Nothing!”Theyall chimed back at once, betraying their guilt, butBronnonly sighed, holding a package wrapped neatly in white linen out toAbraxas.
“Itook the liberty of adding a few extra things for you and—” he turned to me.
“Tori, justTori.Apleasure to meet you,Bronn.”
Henodded, but one of the small girls pushed past his legs and whispered, “Areyou a princess?”Itwas my turn to squat down, looking into her round blue eyes.
Imotioned to my head, “Doyou see a crown?Wouldn’tIneed one of those to be a princess?”
Shelooked up at the vacancy, but then added, “Butyou are so beautiful!”
