Compeer

Chapter XIII

"Have you been ill?"

I swiveled my head to look at the prince with a cold expression. It had been a few days since the dinner, and I had tried to avoid talking to him more than was necessary. If he asked me something, I usually came up with one word answers.

"No."

Evanon fidgeted uncomfortably, grimacing at the curtness of my response. From the stream of the light that ran across his face, I could see the prince's eyes darken in annoyance. I closed the curtain of the carriage, not wanting to look at him anymore, and decided to stare at the ceiling.

The prince had a meeting earlier in the day in the countryside and had taken Evanon and I along to accompany him. Though I did not sit in on the meeting, I did have to endure five grueling hours of the woman of the manor—Lady Enderby—giving me a very detailed tour of the place, stating the history and age of every object and giving its approximate monetary value. Though she was nowhere near finished when the prince's meeting concluded, she had apparently decided she liked me—probably because I had stayed silent the entire time, only smiling and nodding when it was appropriate—she had insisted that I come back sometime in the near future to "continue our little tour." Just to get out of there as quick as possible, I had agreed, and dreaded the moment she sent the letter confirming the date.

Though, judging from the blanched look of Evanon's face when he and the prince had exited the room they conversed in, I wasn't so sure I had it so bad.

"Then why have you been acting so…" the prince paused, as if he were searching for an appropriate word, "strange?"

"I'm not," I responded, my gaze on the ceiling now set in a glare. I heard him let out a heavy sigh, and I could practically feel him begin to seethe with frustration.

"You will answer me in full sentences!" he half-growled. I dropped my eyes to look at him, cocking one eyebrow.

"No," I said defiantly.

"What do you want?" he snapped. I remained silent. "Well, you must be acting this way because you want something. Tell me. I will get it for you, and you will stop this nonsense."

What did I want? I suppressed the urge to grin. Though I really had no material reason for being so short with him, it seemed as though I would gain something out of it anyway. I thought of something to ask for.

"I want to go back to the market," I said slowly, testing him. Evanon let out a sharp laugh at this, and the prince only scowled.

"The market," he repeated, frowning. "Why?"

"Evanon took me there," I said. "I liked it. I want to go back."

He gave me a long, hard look at this, and I returned it with an even stare. In truth, I wanted to spend as much time away from the castle as possible. I had been cooped up in the castle, and I was tired of it.

"And you want to go now?" he asked almost incredulously. "It is in the complete opposite direction of—"

"Ok." I slouched in my seat, folding my arms across my chest and looking away. The prince let out a snarl.

"Turn around!" he suddenly shouted, banging on the wall of the carriage so that the driver would hear him. "We are going to the market!" I felt the carriage slow to a stop before it began to turn.

I turned my head and finally allowed myself a grin, knowing that the prince would be too busy wallowing in his annoyance to notice.

Beside me, Evanon snickered.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The carriage came to a stop and the door opened, letting in a stream of light. The prince exited first and then I followed, shielding my hand from the sun. The sky above our heads had no clouds in it at the moment, but from a glance into the distance I could tell that the good weather might not stay. Far into the horizon, black clouds were making their way slowly in. Hopefully we would not get caught in the rain.