“You’re impossible, you know that?”
“I’ve been told.” Often. By more than one person, but especially by one person. The princess laughs again, and the feeling exploding in my chest reminds me of happy days spent rolling in the grass with Suyai.
“I need to get the Sun Staff, princess, and I don’t want to fight you every step of the way, but I’m not going without you.”
“You know passing the trials won’t change the plans the Inka has to get rid of you,” she says.
“I know. I don’t care about her plans. I’m going to change their minds another way.” My easy response sparks something in her.
“How?” She looks at me, and I see a hint of the child she must have been in her eyes, stubborn but hopeful.
“No clue,” I answer, and that child is locked away again, replaced not by the dead-eyed confidence I hate but by a new subdued version. The princess doesn’t look mightier than all, but she’s not filled with childish hope either.
“You’re delusional. You really think you’re going to barge into Lima with a silly rod and play the hero?”
“Well,” I start, a smug grin starting to take over my face. “I am the Guardians’ Hero.”
“Oh,please,” she says with an eyeroll, pushing my face away from hers with an open palm. I hadn’t realized how close we got during the conversation, and I’m already missing it.
My stomach chooses that moment to growl with hunger. We haven’t eaten anything all day. Only the coca leaves and ceremonial drinks still in our system kept us awake and moving. I remember my constant hunger as a kid Mare’s age, and he’sonly complained once. The princess seems to read my thoughts because she goes back to the choclo and starts working it over the fire to warm up.
I go to the back and fetch Mare. He’s still half-asleep, but he fights against being picked up and insists on walking. The chumpi turned blanket drags behind him, and I feel like I should chide him to try to keep everything clean. Suyai would.
I look down at myself. My tunic is covered in dirt, front and back, from how the princess pushed me. I flush thinking about it again.
Who cares about some dirt?
We eat in relative silence. The princess and I share an unspoken desire not to disturb Mare out of his half-asleep daze. Once he’s done, I promptly guide him back to his sleeping spot, where he cuddles into the warmth with a smile on his face.
That is, until I start to leave.
“No,” he grumbles. “You have to stay.”
I hold in a laugh. He’s got a look of determination as if he’ll drag me back kicking and screaming.
“I’ll be in soon. I promise.”
“Why not now?”
Why not now? That’s a good question. I look over to the fire, where the princess sits chewing on some dried alpaca jerky. She looks mildly discontent at the flavor but swallows it anyway.
“Just a few minutes, Mare. I have to talk to the princess.”
“Oh, that’s good.” His eyes light up as he speaks. “Go now! What are you waiting for?”
The princess looks up at us when I yelp out a laugh at the insistent way Mare bats me away. I see where his priorities lie.
“Is everything okay with him?” she asks, and I hear genuine concern in her voice. It changes something in me, and I know we’re not going to fight this time.
“He’s okay. Are you okay?”
She sighs at my question. “I told you, I’m not getting my mimicry back-”
“No, not your mimicry. I meant, are you okay?You.”
Her head snaps up to stare at me. Her brows pinch together, and she looks more confused than I’ve ever seen her.
“Don’t you have more important questions you want to ask?”
