251 Vines (2/2)
Layfare choked on her words. Her chest burned as her eyes soured. She was an idiot. She should have done something that day. She should have gone to her father despite his protest. Her indecisiveness killed Neil.
She opened her eyes. Darkness blanketed the night, peeking through gaps in the canopy. The leaves below felt like mattresses though prickly. Her head rested on some soft wood.
Her ears caught the loud crackling of fire. The smell of burning meat rumbled her stomach.
”Who is Neil?” Shadow asked, squatting near the fire where a skewered squirrel was cooking. Shadow's armor was all gone, leaving a muddy shirt.
Layfare forced to sit though her head ached badly. She grimaced until she found a position of comfort.
”My cat”
”So your cat is a noble who prefers thin shirts and loose trousers?”
”How!?” She regretted that impulse after pain surged through her skull.
”No outbursts. Your injury is bad. Your jaw is not broken though I think your face will remain swollen for a few days”
”How did you know about Neil?” Layfare endured the pain.
”Remnants of dust. The dust I gave to you last night didn't take effect at once. The remnants gave you a second dream. As the giver, i saw it.”
”What are you talking about?”
”Does it matter? What matters is Neil.” Shadow offered her a squirrel morsel. Pride told her to decline but hunger won in the end. She took the stick and started eating. It was burnt, chewy and bland.
”Care to talk about him? As apology for what I said earlier, I will listen to you” Shadow said.
Layfare glared at Shadow. She didn't hate him though there was something about Shadow that irked her. But the thought of releasing her emotions was an enticing one. The food needed gratitude too.
”Neil” She said after a while. ”Neil was my lover. He was a nobleman, a low noble. He courted me after we met during my eighteenth nameday. He is the purest, kindest person that I know”
Neil's face flashed before her memory, drawing tears.
”Neil was sent to war against you. He didn't want to go. He was not a soldier, he was a sweet man who loves to paint. About two months ago Neil went to a battle in Canton. They were defending a bridge or something like that. They say...” She couldn't finish it. It was too painful.
”Battle of Serino Bridge” Shadow said. ”I was there. A portion of Cantonese delayed the Union's legions in a bridge while the others escape. The Rooster caved through them. A few surrendered though. Maybe...”
”He's dead. When you returned the corpses, his was included.” Layfare sniffed and wiped the last of her tears.
”It was a sad thing” Shadow said. ”But my opinion remains. This war is useless. The blunt truth is that Neil died without purpose”
”I know. I like to pretend that his death somehow changed something but it didn't. I lost Neil for nothing” Layfare kept her stare at the fire. The squirrel was now but bones. ”I don't have hatred towards your King and Queen nor do I have a need for vengeance. I know how this war began and I know its Hadea's fault. I just feel powerless. Most of us do.”
”You know Princess, I'm starting to like you. That is bad because if I like you then the King and the Queen would also like you. I just hope they would get over their guilt if something would need to happen to you”
”That is a bleak outcome. I sure hope things won't go that far. Or better, I escape”
”Don't hope on it” Shadow said. ”We have gone off course but riders will fetch us tomorrow. Rest well Princess. Gain your strength and recover. You'll need it”