Chapter 28:
Theresa
A few hours earlier
Clarence sipped at the soup Theresa had prepared as he glanced over at Alywin, who had not yet picked up his spoon. Instead Alywin kept his eyes forward, his face relaxed, but the tightness in his smile gave away Alywin frustration and nervousness.
Theresa looked down at Alywin's soup that sat on the small wood table and raised her eyebrow, "Are you not hungry, child?"
"I ate before we got here." Alywin said with a forced smile before he leaned his elbows on the table, holding his chin in his hand.
"I see." Theresa said as she made a point to look at Clarence's bowl, which was almost empty, "Would you like some more, Clarence?"
Clarence began to nod his head, but he saw in the corner of his eye that Alywin was glaring at him. Clarence thought about it, but decided to nod his head anyway. He was sick of eating bread and wild berries. Besides, he thought to himself, this soup is delicious. Why shouldn't I enjoy it?
With a content smile, Theresa grabbed Clarence's bowl and got up from her seat at the table, walking over to the nearby pot over the fire to refill it. While she did that, Alywin shot a glare to Clarence and mouthed the word Fatty to him before he turned back. Clarence's face grew red as he elbowed Alywin, who grabbed him by the facial cheeks and squeezed them.
"Ouch!" Clarence cried out as he pulled away from Alywin. His shout got the attention of Theresa, who turned with a surprised face.
"Alywin, why are you harming a guest?" She snapped as she glared at him, "I raised you better than that, of that I am sure."
Alywin looked up lazily at Theresa and muttered after one more glare at Clarence, who glared back, "I'm a guest too."
"Oh, so you're not my little son anymore? The one that would hang on my skirt and cry if I wasn't in view of him?"
Alywin blushed heavily, and Clarence could not restrain the laughter that built in his throat. Clarence tried to wipe the tears that formed at his eyes away as he continued to howl,
"Y-You… hanging on a skirt…" Clarence held his side as he laughed, imaging a baby Alywin with glistening eyes as he held Theresa's skirt like an infant monkey latching onto its mother.
"Shut up and eat your soup, you little brat!" Alywin seethed, muttering between clenched teeth as Theresa put the soup down in front of Clarence. Theresa sat down with a smile as she watched Alywin yell at Clarence, who had finally managed to control his laughter. Theresa was surprised by this display by Alywin. Even when he was a small child, Alywin never showed this much open emotion. He would usually keep everything to himself and would only cry. It made Theresa's heart warm to see Alywin being so open with someone, though Theresa felt a small twinge of sadness that she could not have been the one to help him.
"So Alywin," Theresa began, pulling the attention away from Clarence as he tried to eat more of his soup, "Why did you come? You inferred you needed something, so how can I help?"
Alywin sighed before looking at Theresa, "My friend and I need to get out of town without being noticed."
Theresa raised her eyebrow in intrigue, "What did you do? Or should I say," Theresa began as she looked at Clarence, who continued to sip his soup, "What did the crown prince do?"
Clarence spit out his soup as Alywin sighed and covered his eyes with his hand. Alywin passed his napkin over to Clarence, as Clarence profusely apologized and tried to clean himself and the table up.
"How long have you known?" Alywin asked as he lifted his hand off his face.
"I was quite sure when I heard his name, but how he eats his soup gave it away." Theresa said with a happy smile, her hand clenching a napkin as she dabbed at the table, "Only royalty curve their pinkies to touch their soup before they eat it. An outdated way of testing for poison, but I guess it's hard to stop old habits."
"Is that why you offered me another bowl of soup? To check?" Clarence asked, pausing his cleaning to look at Theresa. She laughed and shook her head in response,
"No, I offered you another, because you looked like you were enjoying the soup." Clarence blushed as he kept dabbing at the spilt soup, "Please do not worry though. Alywin knew I would find out sooner or later. He wouldn't have brought you to me if he didn't trust me." She wiped up the last bit of the soup and put the napkin down. She then looked back at Alywin, "So what happened? Is he on the run?"
"No, actually, he just wanted to see life outside the castle, so I'm taking him out as a favor."
Theresa looked alarmed at this statement as her eyes snapped to Clarence, "Your Majesty, with all due respect, I recommend you return to the castle and never attempt something like this again."
Clarence was shocked by Theresa's serious words, "Why? I've never been able to see what life outside the castle is like. I want to be a good ruler, and the only way I can do that is if I understand the lives of commoners."
"Your Majesty," Theresa said as she leaned forward, her hands clenched in her lap, "Meuridge may seem like a nice town, but behind the smiling faces walking the streets are poverty and violence. Meuridge at least tries to hide the debauchery that happens, because of its proximity to the capital. In many other towns, poverty and crime is rampant, and to say it would not be safe for you to be wandering around cannot be understated."
"But, that's impossible." Clarence said, trying to wrap his mind around what he was hearing, "The capital is thriving, and the money we have sent in from taxes-"
"-Goes right into the nobles' money purses, to keep them tame." Theresa's face dropped as she could see what she was saying was bothering Clarence deeply, "I'm sorry, Your Majesty, I don't mean to alarm you, but the life you have lived behind the castle walls is not the life many children on the street do not get to live. Alywin for example-"
"Enough!" Alywin said, slamming his hands on the table as he stood up, "If you can't help us, I'll figure it out myself." Alywin slipped out of his seat and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Clarence watched in surprise before jumping up, ready to chase after Alywin, but Theresa held out her hand, stopping Clarence.
"Sit, finish your soup." Theresa said, gesturing to Clarence's bowl of soup. Reluctantly, glancing back at the door, Clarence sunk back down in his seat, "I think it's very kind of you to be worried about him, but right now Alywin needs to be alone. Besides, I want to speak with you alone."
Clarence held the spoon in his hand, pooling the soup into it with fixed movements before he thought to himself and looked up at Theresa, still holding the spoon in the warm soup. "What do you need to speak to me about?"
"Alywin hasn't told you anything about his past, has he?" Theresa asked, a frown crossing her features.
Clarence looked down at his soup, "He only mentioned that he lived on the streets before he moved into the duke's home."
"Then coming here must have been very surprising to you." Theresa said, sadness washing over her expression, "Where should I start then?" Theresa took a moment to think to herself, holding her hands together tightly as she stood up, "I'm sure you've noticed that Alywin and I look nothing alike." Theresa walked to Alywin's chair and sat down, adjusting her skirt before she stared up at Clarence. "Though I am Alywin's mother, I did not give birth to him. The truth is that I found him wandering the streets as a small child, no older than five or six."
"D-do you know who Alywin's birth mother is then?" Clarence said, staring in surprise at Theresa as she revealed Alywin's past.
Theresa shook her head solemnly, "No. I only found the small child huddled in his tatters of clothes behind a bakery. He," Theresa paused for a moment, gaining her composure, "He was eating scraps from the trash, trying to feed himself. He was so dirty and so thin." Theresa held her hands out in front of her and looked down at them, as if she was replaying the memory in her mind, "I remember holding his small body in my arms as I picked him up. He tried to fight me, but he was so weak and tired, he could only limply push me away."
Clarence tried to swallow the lump in his throat as he listened to Theresa, his heart sinking as he learned Alywin's past and how little he knew about his friend.
"After I brought him here and fed and washed him, I tried to find his family, but it was a waste of time. As the war between the elves and the humans was becoming worse, more and more children were losing their parents to the war. I assumed Alywin was one of these children, so I took him in as my son. It was incredibly difficult at first to care for him. For days, he refused to eat anything, and it took him months before he would even utter a word." Theresa said as she shook her head, "But the girls loved him the moment they met him. I believe they are why he is so open now, because their love for him was, and still is, unconditional. We became his family overnight." Theresa looked at Clarence and smiled weakly, "But he's changed with you, Prince Clarence."
Clarence's eyebrows furrowed as he took in what Theresa said, "What do you mean?"
"The Alywin I know never gets angry, at least not in front of people, but in front of you, he raised his voice." Theresa smiled as she reached out and grabbed Clarence's hand in her own, "I feel like I'm truly seeing Alywin for the first time. Who he really is, not a façade that he presents to even us, his family. And for that, Prince Clarence, I must thank you. I've never seen Alywin so full of life like he is with you." Theresa squeezed Clarence's hand as she stared into his eyes. Clarence stared back at the warm, brown color that pooled in Theresa's irises, "I am only telling you all this, Prince Clarence, because I think it's best for Alywin that you know. So please, Prince Clarence, take good care of Alywin. He has gone through things no person should ever have to go through, and all of this while he was a child. Please, if nothing else, be by his side so he can find the peace he deserves. As his mother, this is all I can ask." Theresa slowly let go of Clarence's hand before she stood up and turned away from him, wiping at her eyes and clearing her throat, "It's time to open soon. I must go and help the girls prepare, but I will do my best to help you out of the city safely if that is what you require."
Clarence nodded his head, "Thank you, ma'am."
Theresa turned to glance back at Clarence, before she weakly smiled, her eyes bloodshot, "Then consider it done." She then turned and began to make her way to the door, but before she could fully get to the door, Clarence called out to her,
"Please wait!" Clarence said as he got up from his seat, "I-I just want you to know that I truly value Alywin's friendship, and I would never let anything happen to him!"
Theresa turned her head slightly, keeping her body facing the door, before she whispered out, "Thank you, Clarence." She then walked over to the door and opened it, where one of the girls was standing, her hand up as if she was just about to knock. Beside her was a disheveled and grumbling Alywin.
"Miss Theresa, I'm sorry to interrupt, but your usual guest is here. He's waiting upstairs." The young woman said, her free hand now holding onto her shawl as her other hand clutched Alywin's shirt sleeve tight in her hand, as if stopping him from running away. The young woman leaned in and whispered to Theresa, "And he brought an unfamiliar friend with him." Theresa's face hardened immediately as she nodded her head.
"I see." Theresa stepped out of the room where Clarence was standing, concern on his face, "Thank you, Celeste. You're dismissed." The young woman nodded lazily and pulled Alywin's sleeve towards her before she turned to Alywin, her green eyes sharp as daggers
"You better start behaving, you brat! Don't make me come back here." She said before she released Alywin's sleeve and turned with a huff, her blonde hair swinging with her as she walked away. Alywin glared at her disappearing figure as he tried to fix his frumpled sleeve, grumbling under his breath.
"Wait here while I take care of this pesky business." Theresa said to Alywin, her voice stern and her face tight. "Do not leave this room until I come back."
As Theresa closed the door behind her and made her way up the stairs, Alywin looked at the closed door and sighed, shaking his head as he grabbed the chair Theresa had been sitting in before and pulled it out. He then plopped down in the seat with a heavy sigh as he covered his face with his hand and asked, "How much did she tell you?"
Clarence's face immediately puckered as Alywin looked at him through the fingers covering his eyes, "Fuck." Alywin whispered as he squeezed his eyes shut, "I should have never left you two alone together."
"She really loves you, Alywin." Clarence said as he looked down at his hands.
"She's a busybody." Alywin snapped back as he sat up and glared at Clarence. Clarence immediately whipped his head up and glared at Alywin,
"How could you say that?! She'd do anything to make sure you're happy, and that's all you can say?!" Clarence said, raising his voice with every word.
"I didn't ask her to tell you about my past! It's none of your, or her, business!" Alywin said heatedly between clenched teeth.
"She only told me, because she's worried about you, Alywin! She asked me to look out for you!" Clarence shouted back. Alywin rolled his eyes and stood up.
"I never should have brought you here." Alywin said coldly as he stood up and left the room, slamming the door behind him.
"Alywin!" Clarence said, getting up from his seat, "Wait! Where are you going?!" Clarence shouted as he hurried after Alywin.
…
"How long do we have?" Theresa asked as she hurried down the hall, her sharp gaze forward as she clenched her fists.
"About twenty minutes, ma'am." One of the women said as she hurried to keep up with Theresa's fast pace.
"Fine, get the girls ready and to the front hall. Oh, and Mary, Oliva, and Cecily are doing something for me. Leave them to their work. And tip the informant very well for this information."
"Of course, ma'am." She replied with a little curtsey before turning in another direction. As Theresa darted down the hall, dark thoughts began to slip into her mind.
What if those two get caught? What if they find something else that's tied to the rebellion? Theresa shook her head angrily as she hurried on, That bastard bloodhound, he's going out of his way to make my life difficult.
As the door to where Alywin and Clarence were waiting came in sight, Theresa sighed in relief. She hurried to it and ripped the door open, ready to quickly explain the situation. As her eyes scanned the room, Theresa's heart sunk.
Where are they? Theresa hurried around the room, calling to Clarence and Alywin. I told them to wait here, so where are they?!
Theresa paused and took a deep breath, Stay calm. Panicking will not help you now. Meredith and his friend are taken care of, so I just need to find my slippery son and the crown prince. Smoothing out her hair, Theresa let her stone face return as she left the room and nimbly made her way back to the main hallway. She scanned constantly with her eyes, trying to see something that was amiss, but other than women frantically running all around her, trying to prepare for the captain's arrival, everything was as it should be. Still, Theresa's heart began to sink as her shoes clicked across the flooring. As bodies moved all around her, Theresa felt her stomach churning and a wave of dizziness washing over her. Her trembling hand almost missed the wall near her, but she was able to reach it as she forced herself to breathe.
What is happening to me? Theresa looked at her shaking hand. Suddenly, Theresa's aged hand turned into a young woman's hand. With a gasp, she glanced at her hand, then all around her. What was once the brothel was now a busy side road, with carriages bustling to and fro and people walked all around, laughing and talking to their companions. Theresa was leaning against a closed store front, breathing heavily as she tried to catch her breath.
Theresa's eyes opened wide in recognition as she looked all around her, "Impossible." She whispered to herself as she looked down at her clothes. Her dark green dress was replaced with an old, well-worn red dress with a high collar. As she glanced in the glass of the store front, her older face had sharpened with youth. Her lightly greying hair had turned back to a deep red color, with small strands that had escaped her bun sitting all over her face. Theresa's body had returned to a time ten years ago, though her mind had not changed at all.
As if by cue, a young child, no older than seven or eight, with blonde, curly hair, ran past Theresa, laughing lightly as he did so.
"Alywin!" She shouted, her eyes glued to the fleeing figure of the small boy running into the busy road. As people turned to stare at her, Theresa ran forward, stretching her hands out as she tried to catch the small child. All Theresa could hear over Alywin's laughter was her boots pounding heavily unto the dirt road and her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath, "Alywin! Stop!" She shouted with the last of her breath as she finally stopped, her legs shaking from the intense exercise they were not accustomed to.
"You're no fun." A small voice whispered as the small figure of child Alywin stood next to her, his small hands behind his back.
"Are you done running around?" Theresa panted out, holding her knees as she continued to try to catch her breath.
"No." He said with a mischievous, childish laugh as his little legs scurried past her and ran forward. Theresa sighed in frustration before taking another moment to catch her breath.
"I am not chasing after you! You're too old to be running away like this!" Theresa snapped in frustration as child Alywin ran in front of her, staying just far enough ahead that he was out of her grasp, but close enough that she could easily follow him.
"Come along!" Alywin sang out to her as he hurried ahead.
"Alywin!" Theresa shouted once more in frustration before walking forward, not having enough strength to run after her small bundle of infinite energy, "Where are you going?!" Theresa watched in utter frustration as Alywin turned a street corner. Theresa summoned what little energy she had left to hurry after him and turn the corner. Her mind twisted with thoughts of wringing the neck of the small child, though as soon as she caught him, she knew she would forgive him right away. Theresa was unsure if it was part of being a mother, or if Alywin already had the ability to charm people with his innocent, angelic smile.
As Theresa turned the corner, preparing her hands to grab the slippery child, she was surprised to see a small Alywin, frozen in place and staring upward. His little lips hung open and his large, childish eyes glowed as he beheld the sight in front of him.
The royal parade! Theresa thought to herself as she followed Alywin's eyes to see a smiling Prince Clarence riding on an ornate chariot. Young Prince Clarence was covered in gold from head to toe, and it made him sparkle brightly in the bright sun that hung over them. As the young prince passed Alywin and Theresa, he smiled brilliantly and waved at them. Theresa curtseyed politely, but Alywin stood, continuing to watch the prince pass, his body frozen.
"Alywin, bow to the prince." Theresa whispered as she grabbed Alywin's shoulder, "We cannot look at the prince. We are just commoners, we do not have the right to stare or be near the prince."
This caused Alywin to finally turn and stare at his mother, "Why can't we? He's just a boy like me."
Theresa smiled and turned, getting down to Alywin's eye level, "Alywin, he's not like you. He's the crown prince. He will always be out of our reach. But that's not always a bad thing. Being the prince is a very difficult job. Your only job is being my son, and that's quite easy, isn't it?"
Alywin turned again to watch the crown prince passing on his chariot, but the prince's attention now turned to the other side of the street, "I think he's beautiful, Mama. I wanna be near him. Maybe then I can be beautiful too."
Theresa's eyes widened in surprise, but then she gently smiled and grabbed Alywin's face in her hands, turning his face to face her, "What is this? My handsome son wants to leave his adoring mother and loving sisters to be near the prince?"
Alywin's small hands clasped his mother's as he looked down, "Maybe not today. Maybe when I'm a little older."
"Maybe!" Theresa said with a laugh as she stood up, "Look, the prince has moved on down the road. Do you want to head home now?" Alywin glanced once more at the fading figure of the prince before he nodded. Theresa smiled as she grabbed her son's small hand in her own, "Then let's go home."
As she began to walk with her son, she felt his small hand slipping out of her grasp as her body and face aged. Theresa tried to grab his fleeting hand, but as she reached out, all she felt was air.
"Alywin!" Theresa shouted as the busy, buzzing street turned back into the hallway in the brothel. Theresa blinked as she tried to get her bearings.
Why did I remember that? What will a memory from ten years ago do to help me now? Theresa asked herself as she looked at her weathered hands with a sad frown. Right. Where are those two? I only have minutes before that bloodhound is here.
Theresa glanced up and called to one of the women who was passing her, "Elizabeth, have you seen Alywin?"
"I did! He was heading into the storage room just a moment ago!" Elizabeth's slim eyebrows furrowed as she continued, "I thought you knew that though?"
"Right. Of course." Theresa regained her composure and pushed a loose lock of hair behind her ear, "Thank you, Elizabeth. Please prepare for the captain's arrival."
"Yes, ma'am!" She said with a small nod before continuing on her way. Theresa did not even wait for her reply though, as she walked with lightning speed to the storage room and ripped open the door. Behind the door was Alywin and Clarence, heatedly whispering to each other.
"There's no time for this." Theresa said as she walked right past them and over to a pile of rolled rugs in the corner, "Help me lift this. We only have minutes to spare."
Alywin and Clarence briskly walked to her side and together the three of them lifted the rugs, "Why are the queen's knights coming here?" Alywin asked as he strained to pick up the rugs. Clarence grabbed one of the rugs Alywin was struggling with and lifted it with ease, which caused a sneer to come to Alywin's lips.
"I have only a guess," Theresa said as she pushed the final rug away, "And it has nothing to do with you two. Nonetheless, it would be in both of your best interests not to be found." Theresa stomped her foot heavily on the ground and held it there for a few moments. Clarence glanced over at Alywin with an apologetic look while they waited, and with a huff, Alywin nodded back at him. Finally the other side of the hidden trap door popped up, and Theresa grabbed it before moving her feet.
"Get in, both of you." Theresa said as she held the trap door open. Clarence jumped in first and held his hands out to catch Alywin as he jumped in after him. Alywin slid in and grabbed onto Clarence for support before thanking him. Theresa nodded as she began to lower the door, "Alywin, I know you've never been very good at listening, but please stay here. I'll be back soon."
"I'll try." Alywin said shortly as he lit a match from his pocket. Theresa held back a sharp reply and shut the trap door before replacing everything until it looked just like it had before. She nodded in approval before hurrying out, hearing her other two guests hurrying down the stairs.