Not Our Plan

Chapter fifteen

It was an awkward walk. The only thing that could be heard was the crunching of leaves beneath their feet, and the occasional "Ow," when somebody scratched their arms on one of the tree branches.

Shawn kept glancing back to see how Ethan was. The prince looked tired, and as much as he hated it, it was tempting to bend down and give him a piggy back. He wouldn't be that hard to carry, since he was so small.

But that would mean the prince would realise Shawn actually had feelings towards him. And that wasn't allowed.

His feelings weren't allowed.

He wasn't meant to—He wasn't supposed to. It wasn't possible. But there it was, those butterflies in his stomach whenever he saw Ethan do something even slightly cute.

For fucks sake, just stop. Just stop being adorable.

Just let me be who I always have been.

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Ethan's feet felt like somebody had hit them continuously with a hammer. Every step he took made him even more tired. They had been walking all day. It was nearly sunset now, which wasn't exactly fun. He didn't want to get scared in front of the others. He yawned, rubbing his eyes as he looked up at the sun. He could only imagine how Rose was feeling—She wasn't even that used to walking.

Or maybe she was. The other three hadn't gotten the full details of what happened when she lived with the others.

"We're setting up camp here." Elizabeth announced, stopping. Shawn turned back to look at them, his eyes narrowed. Ethan noticed he didn't look tired at all. "No, we're not. We need to keep going. They'll find us."

"We have been walking all fucking day." Liz snapped. "We are sleeping here for tonight. I can guarantee you they're not going to get to us yet, but if it really worries you that much, then you can keep guard."

Shawn glanced at Ethan, and for a moment Ethan swore he saw pity in Shawn's eyes. "Fine." He sighed, looking away. "But we're taking shifts in guarding. Non-human, light a fire."

"Light it yourself, you lazy piece of shit. I'm making myself a bed." Rose began to pull leaves off trees. She made a pile, then sat down on it before deciding it needed more leaves. Ethan stared as she moved nimbly, pulling the twigs off the leaves. Shawn pulled out a sword and studied it. Ethan turned to look at him instead, and his eyes caught on the sword. It was light, clearly very badly made. The handle was wooden, for crying out loud. He looked down at his own sword, then tapped the boy on the shoulder. "Um... Shawn?"

"What?"

"D-do you want my sword? To keep? I'm not going to be fighting very much so..." He trailed off. Shawn studied his face, making Ethan blush, before putting down his own sword. "Okay. What's the catch?"

"No catch. I just think that... Uh, no offense, that... My sword is better quality than yours and-"

"You've got that right." Shawn held up Ethan's sword, admiring the glistening gems, writing and golden edges around it. "This sword is amazing. It's perfectly balanced—I bet you could balance it on your finger and it wouldn't even fall. Imagine all the things you could cut clean in half with this. And stabbing somebody with this would be heaven! So perfect. Everything about it is so amazing. Wow, I could k-" He stopped himself and cleared his throat. "Uh. Thanks. It... means a lot."

"Aww, is somebody a fan over swords?" Elizabeth said in a baby voice as she was passing. "Who likes Ethan's sword? Who? You! You like Ethan's sword, yes you do." She teased him as if she was speaking to a baby. Shawn glared at her, pointing the sword at her. "Fuck off, okay? I like what I like? You're into carving, I'm into swords."

"All types." Rose added. "Now be quiet, I need my beauty sleep."

"Yes, well, you're going to be sleeping for the rest of your goddamn life if you really want to become beautiful. Now shut it." Shawn snapped at her. "Go the fuck to sleep."

"You want to fight, sweetie?" Rose sat up. "Because I can guarantee I'll win, even if you have that fancy fucking sword."

Shawn scowled at her. He waited a moment before saying, "We're finding the closest village as soon as we can and buying you some fucking clothes, because your nudeness is a fucking problem. You disgust me. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to stand guard while you all rest."

"I so hate him." Rose muttered when he was far enough away. "There is nothing wrong with the woman's body. It's what's wrong with the male's mind that's the problem. I'm... I'm going to sleep. Wake me up in the morning." She curled up into a little ball and closed her eyes.

Ethan sighed, sitting down with his back to a tree. "Do you want to help me build a fire?" He asked. "Clearly Shawn isn't going to. I've seen the knights doing it before, so it can't be that hard, right?"

Liz smiled, looking at him like he was the cutest boy in the world. "Of course," She said with a small giggle.

Though it took a while for them to figure out how to light the fire, they did manage it eventually. They sat next to the warmth of the crackling flames, holding their hands over it and talking about Ethan's journey. He even included the part where he kissed John after making sure Rose was really asleep.

"When I was in the maze for the first time, it was like I was going crazy. I had a flashback of when I first met you, do you remember? I tried to touch your hair." He giggled.

Liz didn't find it funny. She bit her lip and put more wood on the fire. "Ethan, you've probably figured out by now, but I have bad memories from my childhood. Really bad memories. I don't wish to talk about it, but one day I'll tell you. But... For now can you promise me something? Don't mention my childhood. It tends to... Trigger me. I know you didn't mean it but thoughts of my father really scare me. It makes me relapse, a little."

Ethan nodded, resting his head against her shoulder. "I'm sorry." He said in a quiet voice. "I didn't mean to trigger you. Uh... Relapse?"

She reached for her dagger, picking up a piece of wood. "Nothing. Never mind." She replied. But it was in Ethan's mind now. He began to wonder if her childhood was like his.

He had it good at one point. Spoiled, got whatever he wanted. It had ended, yes, when his life spiralled suddenly into neglect, but at one point it had been great.

Now he wondered if Liz had ever had a good life.

You know, usually I edit this but to be honest I cant be bothered. I'm on my period, mothers day is tomorrow (which I fucking HATE), and I'm so fucking tired I might as well just curl up and sleep. Bye. Hope you enjoyed this bullshit :/