Hundreds and hundreds of Beastskins—no, I saw some human too—were strewn sparsely around the area chopping woods, cooking cold meals, stitching clothes, washing stuff, there were even children running around on the smooth and soft soil in a happy mood not knowing their rocky futures.
"We've got new companies." Fayn announced to his comrades who came dashing to our arrival. They all jumped and swarmed Ben like bees on honey. After a whole long minute of inner-circle greeting, Fayn pushed Ben and Shaph forward along with me to the rest of the crowd. "Ben," his hand moved in order, "this is Shaph Princess Carla's butler and here is Princess Carla of Coronale who helped Ben out of his imprisonment."
A briefest of cheers echoed the old wood before everyone remembered that they should not make too much noises or it would give them out. All of us were treated warmly—even too hot—with great hospitality and respect. Ben was taken away by his friends to heal his injuries and to tell his tale in the mad Queen's prison, Shaph had forcefully became a monster for the children chasing them round rather—I'd say, cutely¾while other people came shaking hand with me squelling like they were on a meet & greet with a K-pop superstar.
"I'm so glad the lovely Princess of Coronale is on our side!" A half-squirrel woman exclaimed excitedly.
I heard 'liar,' but when I concentrated it was 'lovely.' I thought I was going mad if I was to stay in this world any longer. But how to go back when I was double-stuck in the deep forest of this magic-saturated world?
I was engulfed in the clamor and felt quite left out an hour later when all had left me alone. Being a Princess, no one dared to assign a responsibility to me, unlike Ben who were at once accepted as a watchman, and Shaph who joined the food searching group. So I sat on a burly pine root that surfaced above the grassy ground at one point and submerged again as if it was swimming in the dark damp earth, looking awkwardly about all by myself.
"You've been well? You look kind of—younger?" A voice sounded as Fayn came sitting next to me and I jumped. Wow! he does know how to flatter a girl. It was not easy for me to talk to him since the last time we saw each other he acted as if he bore a grudge with me and that I was a nuisance to him. He also disappeared without any telling or signs, oh wait—
"Is it because of this? That you disappeared?" I asked out of the blue.
A wistful smile drew on his face. "Roseheart broke out of prison. I was searching for her. She's very dangerous to us."
"She is." I agreed feeling disgusted at the thought of those conversations with her and shuddered slightly.
"I'm sorry," Fayn said. "I did not mean to ignore you. I don't want Roseheart to know that—"
"I understand." I said. "What happened after you came back to Azmera? Queen Ru—Roseheart caught you?"
"Not really," Fayn relaxed his posture but his voice remained tense. "Her secret army, the Beastskin haters, ambushed many of my search teams, and that's why I decided to come back here," he added, "but she had already seized the palace and started killings Beastskins and humans who are friends with us in the city by the time I got back. I had no choice but to gather everyone and hide. I haven't got enough force."
"That Queen is searching all over for you." I said.
"I know," Fayn grinned. "She must want to skin me alive and salted my flesh storing for a whole year supply." jested Fayn and I winced at the idea. "I can't fight her now. We are too weak. The only way is to ask King Leonard, Leonhard's father, for help."
"If there's anything I can do," I tried to be useful. "just tell me."
His grin broadened and I had an ominous feeling about this. "You can always be by my side. I'll need that." He said and I could only laugh it off. "But only your existence here helps a lot. Everybody is even more fired up when they know the Princess of Coronale is on their side."
Well, that felt rather good.
That evening, before the light was brought down to hell with the sun, while the denizens of the deep wood were having cold hard bread and wild fruits as dinner, Fayn (after a meeting with his counsels) made an announcement about our chasers and that we needed to move faster to the south. He divided groups and gave orders. Since there were many kids with us, we would have to set off only an hour before dawn. Later, a half-horse Beastskin showed me a tree hollow as big as the bathroom back at the palace that was to be my sleeping bunk. Verdant velvety moss overlaid the ground like those exquisite carpets in the castles, and natural pattern of the wooden wall eased troubles off of my mind. I just prayed that there would be no worms crawling on my face when I woke up.
I dissolved into the squashy tuft of lichens, crisscrossing my arms to keep warmth for the conquering night.
Starlight was still clinging in the dark sky when I came half into a trance between the dream and the waking realm. This tree I am sleeping in must be a magic tree, I thought sleepily, since in here was so nice and warm—warm enough for a tropical girl like me¾despite being in the middle of a deep forest and no sunlight.
"You're awake?"
A voice was floating peculiarly close to my ears. Reminded of dangers, I came to my full wake and tried to sit up, but my body seemed to be tied by something that held me down on my side and made my arm ache. I wriggled frantically when the voice spoke again.
"Hey, it's alright! It's me!"
I remembered the voice. Now that my sense was perfectly clear, my sight seemed to become clear as well, and I saw Fayn holding me in his arms. It made me even more frenzy in spite of calming down.
"L—let me go!" I said, aghast, and broke free. "Why are you hugging me?!"
Fayn sat up, yawned, and whisked away a sleepy teardrop. "You were trembling like a little lonely puppy. I'm just trying to help." He said so righteously.
The thought of magic tree turned out quite tragic and I stumbled out of the bed burrow with both cheeks overheated. I had not taken a shower last night and Fayn hugged me—wait! this is not the right thing to worry about!
Almost all of the refugees were awake, quietly and energetically rustled about their morning business in the dark, when I came out. A rabbit Beastskin greeted me, "Morning your Highness. How's your sleep?"
"Great." Fayn came behind and said it.
To me, it looked as if hundreds pairs of glassy eyes were directed at me, mocking and knowing that Fayn and I had been sleeping together in the same burrow for the whole night. I wanted to burst and disappear.
"King Fayn we're ready." One of his counsel said and we set off on our journey without breakfast.
It was not hard to ignore those disturbing thoughts about what happened last night. I was a grown up enough not to care about teeny tiny meaningless thing, especially when there was really nothing going on between me and Fayn. But I learnt for the first time that peering plus pointing plus whispering in such soundless wood could drive you nuts. And, ironically, all the food I had that day were all kind of nuts too. (I'm going to hate nuts for the rest of my life.) Moreover, Fayn refused to leave my side dwindling chances for me to clear my indictment.
"Here," said Fayn and I turned to see a small white flower in his hand.
"Hmm?" I casted him a curious eyes to mask all kind of thoughts that were racing madly in my head.
He's not going to give it to me, is he? No! doesn't it end already? The trying to get Princess' attention thing? Should I take it? What should I do?! Or is it just something to eat?
"For you." Fayn said smiling sweetly, while I was weighing on the advantages and disadvantages of taking that flower. There was not many seconds to decide and I took it in the end hoping there was no deeper meaning to it. "Thank you."
"You know," His voice and smile was gentler than usual. "I confess that at first, I approached you because I want the power and position of Coronale's lineage."
How smart of me! I was surprised, not about my wisdom, but about the target he was aiming at.
He continued, "Your bloodline would be very useful to me who has no power, no money, no magic,"
"But you have your people," I chimed in and beckoned around with my eyes. "you have their faith and trust. That is also magic."
Fayn seemed to step closer to me. "You're right." He paused and I thought that this weird conversation had already ended when at length the run-away King began, "This is why I fall in love with you."
I managed to trip and choked on my saliva. My intentions to stray Fayn away from the feared subject backfired me. I took time to cough buying moments to think of a nice and right way to react to those—what? confession? Is that even a real confession? What's he aiming at this time?
Numerous replies came and went. I could pretend I was tripping and did not hear it. There was this scenario too, I could play innocent and laugh it off. But as he caught me before my face kissed the mossy rock, my skin burnt where he touched. And when I looked up and met his warm blue gazes, my eyes were on fire too. Both sparks raced through my veins aiming for my heart.
Before the flare could ignite the bumping of my heart, I forbade it with a slap on my cheek. Fayn enlarged his still gentle eyes at my excuse. "There was a mosquito."
He smiled knowingly, "There's no living things in this area of the forest."
At least it stopped there, the weird conversation, and we went on in silence. My head was not as silent though, it kept reminding itself, repeating my status—I was no princess, not even having a pretty face—that much was the truth. What Fayn said must have something behind it. I must be in control. I must not fall in love.
We only stopped for ten minutes for lunch. We would not even stop if we had no children or elders with us. Fayn did not bring the subject up any more but he seemed to be a lot gentler to me than ever. I hardened my heart and acted normal.
That night I scrounged for a blanket since we were not allowed to build fire. There were only just enough blankets for the kids and the olds apparently, and I could do nothing but brace myself beside a female hare Beastskin.
"I'm okay tonight." I said to Fayn and made a rigid smile to hold down the tremble.
"Princess," said the hare Beastskin whose name I learnt later was Honey. "Your skin's so cold! You should go with King Fayn. He's a lot warmer than a hare like me."
Fayn merely smiled as Honey urged me up. While I was wondering whether they were trying to help each other and used all my might to insist that I wanted so bad to be with her, I lost once again and was dragged away by Fayn who seated himself with his back against dark pine barks and sat me sideway on his laps. His arms enfolded around me and his right hand pressed my head to his shoulder. It was warm, warm to the point that my heart was overcharged with energy.
He must have heard my heartbeats because he began patting me lightly on the arm as if lulling a baby to sleep. It worked miraculously.
There were problems on the next two mornings whence it took such a tremendous effort to control my heart that I would probably give up within that noon. I woke up to the usual warmness and gentleness in Fayn' arms and to the unusual rustle of dead brown leaves in the dry wind.
"What happen to the Forest?!" Ben gasped while others gawked openmouthed at the dying forest before their eyes.
"Magic?" muttered Fayn beside my ears and peered into my face. "But you are here Kara, how could—?"
This caused everybody in the camp to wake and after a momentary shock, all the fugitives stampeded begging me to change the forest back to normal. As if I had not enough to deal with already!
"Y¾yes." I said hastily and stepped forth. Shaph jostled up front and elbowed me looking worried. "Princess..."
I did not say anything. I did not know what to. Which gestures should I make to look like I am using my ultimate power? And will I be lucky like last time with the Magic Crystals and Philip?
There was a rustle once again but there was no wind. A slim woman with hawk-like face ascended down from a tree with one pair of elegant golden brown wings which reminded me of the hawk I always saw back in Coronale. This person was probably a hawk-Beastskin.
"King Fayn," The woman said as she knelt down on one knee, her voice was a deep shapely alto, low but soft like velvet.
"Gavenia," said Fayn, "why are you here? Aren't you supposed—"
"Forgive me King Fayn!" Gavenia suddenly burst out. She seemed to cry too. "King Leonard declined our request to aid our army against the tyrant queen. He wouldn't allow us into Aeca too."
"What?" This seemed to shock Fayn more than the browning forest.
Another dog-Beastskin appeared with tongue hanging out of his mouth, gasping for breaths. "King Fayn! Mad Roseheart's army is catching us up!"
"Now?" Fayn brows almost joined. "How far?"
"Only a few kilometers."
"Where to run King Fayn?" asked up a deer-beastskin. "Aeca has abandoned us. We have nowhere to go!"
"Pack up everybody!" Fayn did not answer but quickly gave out orders to each of his men. Soon everyone was ready to move again.
"Run!" Fayn said and stronger Beastskin adults hitched children and elders and human up on their backs while Fayn carried me. All the Beastskin sprang off, going on the run once more.
"Fayn," I said to him from his back. Although this had given me chance to avoid setting the Magic down (and funnily the Magic-declining forest had once again reminded me that I was not the real princess and it stopped the dancing of my heart completely), I did not think I was in a situation to be glad about this luck. If Queen Ruth(less)heart saw me here, and we were all captured, how would she torture me? I almost fainted at the thought and regretted telling her about some brutal torturing method I saw through my fingers from movies. "Where are we going? Do you have a plan?"
"Aeca." said Fayn, "It's the only way we can go."
I thought for a while and believed it could be an opportunity. "Let's go. I can get all of us into Aeca."
Fayn only casted me a backward glance and remained quiet as he whipped on faster. The herd went non-stop for a quarter of day, even those piggybacking like me was mightily tired. By the sundown, everyone was so worn out that Fayn could not help but allow an hour of rest. However, as the hour was used up, exhausted bodies were still scattered across the fawn forest. Nobody was in their waking state until the break of dawn when the thumping of boots and clanking of steel blades startled the escapees out of their reverie of slumbers. We resumed to the running again.
"They're there!" a voice shouted from among the black corpse of trees speeding us up. Our weak legs could not take us as quick as yesterday and we could see figures garbed in red tunic catching up. The human soldiers were not as fast as Beastskin, but with luggage and wasted limbs, our speed matched.
"It's not far!" Fayn encouraged, and it seemed to work because we all ran a trifle faster.