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“I know, Mum,” he said, barely able to keep the stiffness from his tone.
As he walked down the hall, he took a deep breath. Maybe he’d lose weight during the next few days, and she’d lay off of him for a bit.
Why did he even bother kidding himself?
***
Lunch wasn’t as bad as Rainier thought when they stopped at a tavern in a town. Actually, it was terrible, but that meant he didn’t have to worry about eating it. Felix looked like he was trying to simply get through at least some of the stew.
It was supposed to be chicken, but Rainier said he was pretty sure it was the eyeballs and other nasty bits of the chicken that no one wanted to eat. The bread that came with it was also stale. Complaining wouldn’t do much good because everyone else had the same food, and taverns usually served what was available.
“This is making me sick,” Rainier said after a few small bites, and he pushed away the bowl. “We can’t eat this.”
“That other tavern up the street didn’t look too good either,” said the guard. “If an owner lets his windows get that filthy, I doubt he keeps the kitchen clean. That's what my Pa always said.”
Rainier wasn’t sure what else this town had since he’d never spent any considerable time there. “Let’s find a bakery. We’ll get rolls instead.”
Felix eagerly pushed away his bowl. “Sounds good to me.”
A nearby bakery had rolls from that morning and little glass jars of norben. They stood outside by the horses while they ate. Or more like, Felix and the guard ate.
“Aren’t you going to eat?” asked Felix.
Rainier patted his horse’s neck. “No. That stew made my stomach hurt. Thank Elira we didn’t sit there and force it all down.”
Felix scrunched his eyebrows together. “Do you want to find a physician or an apothecary? We could get something for your stomach.”
“I’ll be fine. It’ll pass.”
The lie made his stomach hurt even worse. He wanted a roll slathered in the butter-like spread, or five of them, but he had an opportunity to skip food, so he’d better take it.
In the afternoon, they passed the farm where the norben must have come from. The whitish tilker plants waved in the breeze, and the little pods that hung from them were fat. The leaves could be eaten, although some people didn’t like the faint tart taste. The pods could be pressed to get the liquid out which was boiled down into norben.
When they stopped for the night at the next place on their planned journey, Rainier and Felix ate in their room. Felix must have been hungry since he ate faster than normal, and he said he was going to use the bathing room down the hall.
“Is your ass sore?”
“Yep.” Felix smirked. “I definitely haven’t forgotten last night. My legs are sore too. I haven’t ridden that much in ages.”
“I’ll give you a massage before bed.”
Rainier had been eating slowly and trying to ignore the shame of eating in front of Felix, and he hadn’t quite gotten through half of the roasted beef with spinach and mash. When the innkeeper came to fetch the plates, he seemed flustered that the Prince hadn’t eaten much. He offered to make something else, but Rainier said his stomach wasn’t feeling well, so he didn’t want anything even though the food had been delicious.
Once he was alone, he flopped on the bed to wait for Felix. At least here, he couldn’t go downstairs and get anything to eat. He was used to riding more than Felix, but so little food had worn him down. He almost wanted to skip bathing and simply go to sleep right then, but he wanted to give his Kitten a massage even more.
Felix lasted through the leg part and was fast asleep halfway through the backrub. Rainier put out the lantern, settled in the bed, pulled the sheet over them, and draped an arm over Felix.
It took a long time to go to sleep with the hunger in his gut.
***
When they stopped at the rebuilt inn the next night, Rainier had grown hungrier. He’d eaten half of lunch, ignored Felix’s concerned face, and he ate half of dinner once they settled in their room. Fortunately, Felix didn’t question him and force him to churn out the usual lies.
Jolly Farms wasn’t far, and they rode out in the morning after paying the innkeeper for a packed lunch. More of the trees in this area were made of clear glass, but a few different-colored trees and plants dotted the wide, winding road. Felix could barely stay still in the saddle when they came around a corner and saw a fence in the distance.
“Look!” Rainier pointed. “There’s one.”
In the vast field beyond the fence and the shrubbery that had sprouted around it, a white unicorn stood.
