Raaz woke up drenched in sweat. For once, she'd like to have woken up to the sound of birds chirping. Or the rays of the Sun gently touching her face. No such luck so far. She sat up, pushing her brown hair back as they fell onto her face. Stretching noiselessly so as to not wake up anyone else, she looked over at Laaj and found her snoring her worries away.
She then looked out the window and noted that it was still dark outside. Stupendous. If the summer heat was almost unbearable before sunrise, Raaz didn't want to think about just how bad it could get when the sun was overhead. Adding to that, they'd be working in the open fields, again. All day long.
Quit whining, she told herself. A little heat is much easier to deal with than starvation and the curse of unemployment. That's what she'd told herself yesterday. And the day before that. And the day before that.
No lie there, though. Ever since they were kicked out of the shelter home after they'd matured, (physically, at least, in the case of some) employment was their biggest concern. Back in town, Mani was the only one who managed to find a considerably stable job at the blacksmith's. And it was quite shameful and not in the least practical for the rest of them to live off of what he earned.
It wasn't that they lacked skills. Population in Manzarhaal had grown alarmingly in the past couple of years, making it near impossible for derelict souls like them to find any kind of housing or work. Fortunately for them, the problem with the growing population hadn't gone unnoticed by the King, who decided to clear parts of the forests surrounding the kingdom and make it a habitable space. Not only was this a good idea in the long run, it also created several opportunities for immediate employment.
King Thareekh, she had to admit, was a breath of fresh air when compared to his predecessors. Too bad his reign probably wouldn't last as long as theirs. And his possible successors...those were another story.
Might as well take advantage of the situation as long as they could, they decided. And so they rushed to get their names registered as workers for the extension site. The pay was reasonable. Yes, two pieces of silver and three meals a day wasn't a bad deal at all. The long work hours and the cramped living spaces could all be tolerated as long as they could sustain themselves.
Yes, this was good, Raaz thought as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Unsure of whether it was the heat that woke her up or the pesky winged pests, she scrambled to her feet and slowly made her way out the room, doing her best not to step on any of the other workers. Warm winds greeted her as she stepped outside.
By the time she had showered and gotten dressed, Laaj and the others had woken up and started with their day too. Laaj met up with her at breakfast.
"Getting hotter, isn't it?" Laaj raised her voice a little to be heard over all the chatter in the crowded lunchroom.
Raaz shrugged in response. "Heat's the least of our worries, I'd say."
"You're referring to the Prince."
"Naturally."
" I don't know. He didn't exactly seem like the domineering type yesterday." Laaj examined a weird looking speck on the edge of her plate.
" Doesn't mean he's not trouble. Remember what Mani said?"
"Ugh." Laaj rolled her eyes. "Mani thinks everything in this world is out to get us. The roof, the floor, the walls. This thing on my plate that's supposed to be bread, I think."
"While I don't deny that, he does have a point. Royals aren't exactly known for being straightforward in their approach. Maybe the Prince is trying to get us to let our guard down." Raaz argued.
" King Thareekh turned out to be fine."
"A rare exception. We've got far more examples of untrustworthy Royals to afford getting comfortable with any of them." Raaz wasn't sure if she was too cynical, or Laaj was too naive. Either way, their judgement of people often differed as a result. Of course, this seldom turned into any kind of spat. Thankfully, Raaz thought.
They met Mani and Vihr at the clearing. Mani had an axe flung over his shoulder, and Vihr had his saw resting next to his supply bag on the floor. The girls placed their bags next to Vihr's to relieve their shoulders momentarily.
"We'll be heading a little deeper into the forest today." Vihr announced.
"At least you will have better shade than we will. We're stuck under the scorching sun in an open field for the entire day." Raaz said.
"Whiny." Vihr muttered under his breath and received a glare from all three as a response.
"Why don't you-" Raaz clenched her fist.
" Have you come across any wild beasts yet? No incidents, I hope." Laaj interrupted, partly to change the subject and partly because she was concerned.
"Not many. Normally the animals steer clear of us." Mani replied.
"Naturally. They'd rather not disturb the scary humans with the axes and saws." Raaz commented.
Mani chuckled softly. "The scary humans?"
"The scariest animals in the forest. On the planet, in fact. With our cunning backstabbing ways and our need to make nature do our bidding, no other beast stands a chance." Raaz said.
"Oo...kay. If we're done with the self-deprecating philosophies, I think we'd best be heading out." Laaj tucked lightly at Raaz's sleeve.
"Yeah, you're right. I'm not giving Bidod any opportunity to practice his birthright of screaming into people's faces." Raaz said.
"You think The Mighty Orator might show up anywhere?" Vihr chuckled, obviously proud of the nickname.
"I hope not. Besides, if you ask me, he'll probably lounge in his quarters all day and have the supervisors handle everything." Raaz said.
"Sounds about right. Alright then. See you girls in the evening. Be careful." Mani picked up Laaj's bag from the floor and handed it to her while Raaz and Vihr picked their things.
"Thanks Mani. Later, boys."
The Prince wasn't lounging in his quarters, much to everyone's dismay. He showed up at the fields about an hour after work for the day had resumed. Much like the previous day, he was fidgety and looked uncomfortable with...pretty much everything. His guards were there too, but they didn't flank him on either side like the previous day, and walked at an arm's distance behind him. He was dressed a lot simpler too. Just a plain beige shirt and trousers. No embellishments. No gold and silver buttons or frills. Bidod paused his yelling to greet the Prince with a monotonous, "Your Highness."
They talked amongst themselves for a while, with the Prince mostly just nodding whilst Bidod seemed to go on and on about something rather animatedly. While some stopped working to try and listen in, Raaz continued to work without sparing them a second glance.
It wasn't until a few minutes later, when she noticed the Prince standing right next to her, that she realised he was taking rounds. Great. So now the man who hasn't worked an honest day in his life is going to go around the fields judging how well others are doing their work. The world was unfair.
She glanced up to see him talking to some other workers, and she wasn't sure who looked more nervous-him or them. The Prince, she noted, seldom made eye contact when he spoke. She had almost looked away from him to go back to work, but was glad she didn't. Because if she had, at that exact moment, she'd probably have regretted it for as long as she lived.
The Prince, still finding the ground a lot more interesting than the rest of his surroundings, turned to his left after he was done talking to the workers. Having turned a little too swiftly, and tripping on heaven knows what, he lost his balance and started to fall backwards.
Eyes widening, Raaz dropped her pickaxe and grabbed onto his shirt, using all her might to pull him to his feet. It worked, sort of. He was no longer falling backward. The problem? He was now falling forward. She gasped out loud as his body slammed into her and they both fell down, him on top of her.
"Watch it! I mean, if you're staring at the ground all the time-" Raaz caught herself as she realised exactly whom she'd just yelled at. Oh no. No. Why would she yell at him? This was exactly the kind of thing Mani had told her not to do.
When the Prince looked at her, however, his eyes showed no anger. What she saw in them was shock and confusion. He obviously had no idea about the danger he was in a few seconds ago.
"What.." He mumbled in confusion. Realising the position he was in, he swiftly rolled off of her and sat up, as did she. That's when he saw the spading fork, placed in an angle that all its tines would've gone straight through him, had he fallen on them.
"That.." He gulped, "That was close." Climbing onto his feet, he held out his hand to help her up. She had half a mind to slap it away, but she'd already dug herself into a pretty deep hole with that outburst. So she quietly took his hand and let him help her to her feet. She winced as her body ached from the impact of him slamming into her.
"I…" The Prince started, eyes on the ground, but caught himself. Slowly, he lifted his gaze and looked into her amber eyes. Raaz blinked. What was that? Uncertainty? Hurt? She couldn't understand what it was that she saw in his eyes.
"I'm...I'm grateful." The Prince said, looking like he was struggling to maintain eye contact. But he didn't look down this time. Was this because of her comment about him always staring at the ground? She decided it had nothing to do with that.
"Thank you for saving me. Really, thank you." He sounded genuine, Raaz noted. She didn't know what to do with that.
"Sure." Raaz nodded. Sure? Really? Why would she respond like that? Should she have curtsied? She didn't know if she was acting disrespectfully. She just stood there, not sure what to do next. She'd never spoken to a Royal before, so she felt like she was walking on eggshells. What do these people find 'offensive'? Where do they draw the line? She had no clue.
One of his guards started towards her. "Show some respect, you-"
Prince Faiz held out his hand to stop him. "Please." The guard stopped, but continued to glare at her.
"Thank you, again." With that, he started to walk away, but stopped a few feet away from her, and turned to face her again. "Can I have your name?"
"Raazan." She replied, still unsure of whether she should've added a 'Your Highness' or 'Sire' after that.
He smiled gently. "Raazan. I owe you." With that, he started to walk towards the other end of the field. His guards walked a little closer to him now, probably wanting to avoid another incident.
Raaz ignored the stares of the other workers and picked up the spading fork. She had no idea who it belonged to or who left it there. Turning it so that the tines were facing downwards, she put it down again. Then she picked up her pickaxe and got back to work.
Bidod passed by her, and she heard him mutter, "Fool." She wasn't sure if that was directed towards her or the Prince, but she didn't like it anyways.