"Don't look like you've lost something" said Angelica, placing her hand on Clive's cheeks and squishing them.
"Aren't I?" answered Clive, in a helpless voice. His eyes didn't dare to close as he tried to burn her image into his memory.
"Don't think you can get rid of me that easily" Angelica squished his cheeks like bread dough.
"Soft as ever..hehe" Angelica chuckled
Clive flapped his hands like a baby bird learning to fly.
"I'm not gone forever. Just for a little while till things settle down" She said, letting go of him and taking a step back.
"Take care of mom and dad and.........everyone"
Angelica started firing away advices like a machine gun.
"Don't be a moron"
"Don't be reckless"
"Don't sulk like a baby when mom scolds you"
"More importantly, don't let those twin disasters come near you" She said, clenching her first, her eyes glimmering menacingly.
"The last one's for you too" She turned to Chirpy and winked at him.
'Try to get a chuck out of their legs'
*woof*
'Consider it done'
The duo telepathically communicated with their eyes.
'kekeke'
An eerie smile leaked out from Angelica making her look like the devil.
She snapped back to her senses a moment later after realizing it was getting too late.
Angelica looked at the wall clock to find that it was half-past two. She had to hit the road as soon as possible to avoid being seen by anyone.
"And I repeat." She turned back to Clive.
"Don't. Do. Anything. Stupid. Again" said Angelica, with a serious expression on her face.
"...."
"No comebacks?" Angelica tilted her head
Clive did not respond to her deliberate provoking and instead, just started at her face.
"Aren't you gonna defend yourself?"
"Ok then...bye bye" Angelica rolled her eyes and started walking towards the door.
Suddenly she felt a strong hand grip hers and pull her backwards.
" ! "
Clive hugged her tightly in his arms and closed his eyes.
"You're choking me"
Angelica tapped onClive's shoulders to make him loosen his grip. But on the opposite, he started tightening her arms around her even more.
"..."
"My eyes are going to pop out" Angelica's voice stuttered like a broken radio. Her face was pale as white as a sheet from being squeezed like a ketchup bottle.
'At this rate, all the ketchup till the last drop is going to come out'
"Seriously what has gotten into you"
"Take care of yourself" said Clive, with his face buried in Angelica's shoulders. He loosened his arms around her a bit to let her breathe properly.
"I know" Angelica smiled and hugged him back. She could feel his hands trembling, reluctant to let go.
"Don't create any new problems"
"That's impossible. Since trouble's gonna follow where I go." Angelica got out of his arms and smirked at him
"We are old buddies for a reason"
Angelica put on the rob she had thrown on the floor and strode towards the door leaving behind the two. She paused before she reached the doorknob and turned around one last time.
"Don't follow me. I can see myself out" Angelica said to Clive and Chirpy, who was gazing at her like lost souls.
"Goodbye" she voiced, waving her hand without looking back, and closed the door on her way out.
That was the last time, Chirpy and Clive saw Angelica before being reunited years later.
Angelica stopped at Maria's grave to pay her respects to her beloved grandmother.
She placed a bouquet of camellia flowers which she took from the garden and placed them neatly on top of the grave.
'The gardener is going to be spooked' She stifled a laughter
Earlier, Angelica had stopped Clive and Chirpy from following her because she was sure that they would devise some plan to keep tabs on her.
And she was right in doing so.
Inside her pocket was a magical device the size of a rice grain that Clive had placed on her when they hugged.
"Hmmm" Angelica squinted her eyes and observed the tracker under the moonlight.
A simple magical tracker was enough to track anyone within a hundred-mile radius. Which would ultimately destroy her reason for traveling all the way from the capital on a horse to avoid being followed.
The person being bugged would have no idea they are being traced until it was too late.
"Quite ethical, brother"
In fact, it was an alchemy-infused magical device of Clive's design.
Before Maria passed away, she was working with Clive to increase the range of the device to a larger extent.
And from the looks of it, the one in Angelica's hand was an improved version. She couldn't determine the range just from looking at it.
On any terms, it was bad news. She made a mental note to throw it in the river and put it back in her pocket.
'Have fun chasing the river stream' she smirked
"Mylady?"
Angelica froze when she heard a familiar voice from behind.
'Oh Sh*t'
Julian was staring at her, surprised by her sudden appearance.
Every day after sunset, Chirpy howled all night long and woke up all the knights in the dormitory since Angelica disappeared.
Julian had come out to inspect since it was unusually quiet tonight. He had been looking for Chirpy when he stumbled across the most unexpected person.
And as far as he knew, Angelica was still in the capital after she accepted a political marriage with an esteemed noble to provide support for the county. She had left the residence in a hurry when Julian was away working in the relief shelter.
Julian was unaware of the shenanigans that led her to become 'the cursed bride' and was confused when she vanished without a word.
Though he could not see Angelica's face in the dark. He was affirmative that it was her based on her figure and posture.
Besides she was the only one who would visit the grave in the dead of the night. Her showing up unannounced was not out of the ordinary.
"Mylady?" Julian called out again when Angelica didn't respond.
"Word to the wise" Angelica slowly revealed herself from the shadows.
"You never saw me here" she said, her face void of any expressions.
Julian's eyes grew wide. He felt a chill down his spine when he saw Angelica's face illuminated by the moonlight.
She was not joking like she usually does. It was a clear warning.
But why?
Before Julian could ask anything else, Angelica faded away into the darkness leaving him surrounded by questions. He couldn't feel her presence anywhere as if her appearance was a mere illusion.
It was the next day, he received news of Angelica's death, days prior to their meeting the previous night.
"What the hell?!"
Julian's yell was heard throughout the training ground till it reached Clive's office.
Three days later in the capital Volos.
The news on the death of Duchess Frost dubbed 'the cursed bride' was still the hottest topic discussed everywhere. The first page of all the newspapers in the capital was filled with new discoveries and conspiracy theories as the duchess's funeral was about to be held soon.
But today, another small article made it to the front page.
'The young lords of the Howard barony were attacked by wild beasts on their way home from the capital. They are currently receiving treatment in their residence for bruises sustained from fighting it off. Is security being lax everywhere?'
*neigh*
'And that's how folks I survived as a cannon fodder'
Angelica smirked as recounted the events of the past two months.
Life as she knew it was turned upside down within a fraction of days and now she was at a point where there was no turning back.
After completing all her unfinished businesses, followed by a quick visit to her parents, Angelica set off into her journey without a destination in mind.
"Which way do you wanna go beauty" Angelica asked while stroking beauty's head.
"I was thinking south. I've never been there"
*neigh*
Beauty jumped into the air as if to accept her suggestion.
"South it is" Angelica smiled as she continued stroking Beauty's head. The duo had become partners as thick as thieves over the past days.
'I won'
Angelica complimented herself, feeling prideful in beating her destiny.
Everything was going according to her plan. And now, all she had to do was wait for the storm to pass.
At least that was the idea. But fate had other plans.
**********************
This marks the end of part 1 of 'Surviving As A Cannon Fodder' .
I will be back with part 2 of the story after a small hiatus.
Catch Angelica on her journey to freedom in the upcoming chapters!
Until then it's bye!
- Akane