Deserter

EIGHTEEN

HELLO CHILDREN, AND WELCOME TO OVERLOAD WEEK

What is Overload Week? Well, pretty much what it sounds like. I will be posting a chapter from both books - this one and MPC - today, tomorrow, and Wednesday (and the first chapter of a new book on Wednesday night).

Why am I doing this? I'm going out of town from Thursday until Tuesday. Radio silence on here and I'll be lurking on Instagram.

Pace yourselves or binge as the chapters come, it's up to you. I'll also (probably) be flooding my One Shots book 'Sanders Fleet' with ideas I've got. 

Spread peace, love, and positivity, and enjoy!

{Chapter Triggers: mention of a knife, one (1) bad word. Those are all I can think of/figure out from reading through the chapter, I apologize if I missed any and feel free to inform me.}    

Patton caught up with Virgil just outside of Ocresa.

The prince was staying off of main roads, which was probably a good idea. He must have stopped somewhere on the way, because when Patton approached him he was sorting through some supplies.

"Virgil-"

He whipped around quickly, a knife practically materializing in his hand.

"Who- oh. Patton? What are you doing? Why are you here?" Virgil dropped back to the ground from the crouch he'd leapt into.

Patton shrugged and sat down next to him. "No use for the castle to have me there when the fight comes. I'll just be a liability, or I'll be in the way."

Virgil frowned. "Thomas would never send someone away when they could help. He knows you're the most proficient healer in the castle, why would he... he didn't send you away, did he."

It wasn't a question, and Patton just shrugged, looking at the ground between them.

"Why did you come after me?"

He looked up at the young prince. "I want to make sure you're safe."

"I'm a trained assassin, why the hell would you need to do that?"

Patton frowned. "Language."

Virgil rolled his eyes.

"You think you're going to get across the country without being questioned." The healer said, shaking his head. "You're too young to do that properly."

"What does that mean?"

Patton shrugged. "You're twenty-four, and a bit small for your age. People will expect you to still be in your apprenticeship, and they will want to know things. Who you're apprenticed under, where your teacher is, what you're doing."

"I don't see why you can fix that." Virgil leaned back on his hands. "And I'm not small."

"You are."

The prince glared at him. Patton just shrugged and continued. 

"And I'm a good thirty years older than you are. If people see us together, they will assume you are my apprentice." He grinned. He had thought about this, knowing Virgil would question him. "No curiosity in that, we could be on our way. You will be much safer than if you went alone."

Virgil scoffed. "I am plenty capable of keeping myself safe, Patton. No need to worry about me."

"You can say that, but it will happen anyway." Patton sighed and shifted to sit crosslegged. "You really shouldn't leave."

The prince got to his feet, going to his horse and removing one of her saddlebags. "So that's why you're here."

"No! I am concerned about you, Virgil. You and your brother were very important to me when you were young. I prayed every night for years after you left that you would be okay." Patton sighed, looking at his hands in his lap. "I just want to make sure you're safe."

"Then you'll let me go." Virgil dropped the saddlebag next to his supplies and offered Patton a hand. When the healer took it, he hauled him to his feet. "Leaving is what is best for me, Patton."

Patton shook his head quickly. "What's best for you is to be where others care for you. You can't go running around the world with no one to keep you company."

"Can and will." Virgil said flatly, stepping away.

"Just let me come with you."

"Why?"

Patton hesitated and Virgil shook his head. "You can't change my mind."

"I can try. Where are you planning on going?"

"Rounne, in Esca." Virgil began to repack his saddlebags.

"Roman's hometown." Virgil scoffed and Patton smiled, walking over. "Allow me this, Virgil."

The prince looked up at him. "Allow you?"

"Yes. Let me come with you to Rounne. Give me that time, three days? Give me those three days to try and convince you to come back. If I'm unsuccessful, I'll let you go without another complaint."

Virgil sighed heavily and walked back to his horse to reattach the saddlebag, not saying anything. Patton bounced on the balls of his feet a little, waiting for an answer.

"Fine."

"Thank you."

Virgil grunted and looked around the little clearing. "We've got hours of daylight left. I planned on making the border between Plaule and Esca by nightfall."

Patton nodded and whistled softly. Spindle, trained to come to the sound, wandered into the clearing.

The two men mounted their horses, Virgil sitting high in his seat to look for anything he wouldn't have been able to see from the ground. He couldn't spot anything, so he gently tapped Drifter's sides with his heels.

Patton followed him.

~~~Two Hours Later~~~

The sun finally went down, and Virgil found another out of the way clearing for them to set up camp. Patton bustled about, setting up a fire and digging through the supplies they had. He promised Virgil he would buy more the next day so that they were both properly fed, but the prince just grunted.

After they had eaten, they sat quietly by the fire. Virgil seemed like he wasn't paying attention to anything, but every time something outside the clearing made a noise he twitched. Patton realized that he was listening for others approaching and stayed quiet, letting him do that.

He pulled a small book from his pocket and began to turn through it, gently turning the worn pages. There hadn't been a day in nine years that he hadn't carried this book, and it was extremely battered because of that.

Patton sighed softly, looking down at the spidery scrawl on the pages. It was fading and the papers were slowly coming loose of their binding. He knew he would have to have it restored soon, or let it go.

No, he would restore it. This wasn't something he could let go, ever.

"Patton... are you alright?"

Patton looked up, finding Virgil watching him with a concerned look. It took him a second to realize why, then he felt something warm roll down his cheek.

He wiped the tears away quickly and sighed. "Just... missing the past. Got caught up in my feelings, I suppose."

Virgil frowned and Patton waved him off. "I'll be fine... we should get some sleep, so we can get moving in the morning. Do you want to set a watch?"

Virgil shook his head, jerking a thumb towards his horse. "Drifter is trained to pick up on danger and alert me. I sleep lightly anyway..." He hauled himself to his feet and moved to the bedroll he had put out earlier. "Goodnight, Patton."

"Goodnight." Patton murmured. The prince wrapped himself up and fell quiet.

He looked down at the book again, closing it carefully and running his fingertips over the name inscribed on the front.

Micah Arael Adekin

{Drifter's training is based off of the Ranger horses in the Rangers Apprentice series, who are trained to sense danger and have specific alert noises to warn their rider}