"Wilkin, I'm not going to tell you again. Leave the dying man alone."
"I'm just trying to see what color his eyes are. We don't even know." The voice was young.
Involuntarily, one of his eyelids was forced open.
"There. You see. I told you he would have brown eyes. Same as me!"
Henry struggled to open both eyes. The little boy looked back at his face and screamed. He ran to the corner and hid behind the young lady. She walked forward slowly.
Henry looked around. The room was small. The bed was uncomfortable. His leg ached and his side burned. He knew well enough to stay down. "Where I am?" He asked.
The young lady was at his bedside now, looking down at him with scrutinizing eyes. She was right to be cautious. Henry only hoped she didn't know he wasn't a Nieblan.
"Who are you?" She asked without answering his question.
While he wished he had answered immediately, he hoped his delay would only suggest he had a concussion, not that he was lying. "A soldier. I was injured."
"I can see that." She eyed him sharply. "What is your name?"
"Arthur." He lied.
"Who were you fighting, Arthur?"
Was this woman interrogating him? He was too tired for this. It was hard enough to stay awake, let alone answer her relenting questions. "How should I know? I was only following orders. An enemy had crossed the border. A spy."
"Why are you here?"
"I was injured and dying. I knew a loyal citizen would help me." He was trying his best not to sound suspicious. Making it as vague as possible. It was hard to keep up though, he was getting dizzy. He was trying to remember it fully himself. He wasn't even sure how long ago it had been.
"Why didn't the other soldiers help you?" She was finding holes in his story, he could tell.
"They died."
"How convenient."
"Not really," he was surprised he had the energy to be sarcastic.
She huffed. "I mean how convenient for your story."
Henry let out a long breath. It hurt to exhale. Hurt to inhale. "Are you going to kill me or not? Because if you keep asking me questions I promise you, death would be more merciful."
"Wait a minute..." she paused. She grabbed a wet washcloth and wiped his face. He could feel the dried blood peel away with the cloth. It felt better. She gasped. "I know you."
He frowned. That was impossible. He was in Nieblan territory, he wouldn't know anyone here. He opened his eyes wider, focusing on her directly. She was thin, practically bony. Her face was pale with freckles and her hair was a mess. Oh no...
"You're the lump who smashed my pumpkins!"
He tried to deny it but she punched him in the face before he could speak and the world went black.
He woke up to purring in his ear. His chest was rumbling. He opened his eyes. There was a cat lying on his chest. He coughed and the cat stirred but remained contently on him. His head was pounding.
The young hag walked back in. "Chlodomer get off of him!" she shooed that cat away and Henry suddenly felt lacking. The weight of the cat had actually felt nice. Now all he could feel was pain, mostly in his leg.
The girl stared at him from across the room. She held the cat in her arms.
Henry sighed. "So what now?"
Silence. He tried to get a better view of her but it hurt to sit up. He shifted slowly up onto his elbows, grunting from the effort. As he sat up the sheet fell off his torso and into his lap, exposing his upper body. He hadn't realized how bad it was. His whole torso was bruised and cut up, his arm had stitches, and on the right side just above his his hip was a wound from the knife he had apparently been stabbed with. He still couldn't remember when that happened. He couldn't see his left leg but he figured he probably didn't want to.
The girl stared. He looked at her expectantly. She looked away.
"I don't know what to do with you," she said softly. Her hair was piled up on top of her head in such a mess it looked like birds might nest there. Her feet were bare and dirty and her eyes were tired.
"You could keep taking care of me," he offered lightly.
She shook her head, her eyes conflicted. "And risk hanging for treason?"
Henry tried his best to act dumb. "Treason?"
"I know who you are, Prince Henry. You made it clear in the field earlier your father was the King. And since you don't have a dragon by your side, I can only assume you aren't Prince Ralf and must be the eldest brother."
Henry swallowed, his throat raw. He was thirsty. He was in trouble. "If your field was in Lyra what are you doing here?" There was no sense denying it now.
She shrugged. "My grandparents live there. My mother was Lyran. My father is Nieblan. I help them in their field when I can."
Henry wasn't so concussed that he couldn't deduce her mother must be dead. "Where is your father?" the only male figure he had seen was the little boy from earlier. Fear prickled at the idea of her father being around. A young lady and little boy he could ward off if need be. But an adult male? In his current condition? Not a chance. He could barely even sit up.
"Never you mind where my father is. I can handle myself. Don't think I haven't found all that armor and weapons you hid behind a bush. Once I found out who you were I knew I needed to find any evidence of you leading to my home."
Henry raised an eyebrow. "Does that mean you'll continue hiding me here?"
"It means I want to cover any trace of you before the militia come pounding down my door. I need to keep my brother safe. And to answer your question, no, I won't hide you here. At least, not once I determine what to do."
"I'll pay you," Henry said eagerly. Surely a bribe would work. He looked at the room around him. He couldn't tell what was beyond this room but he was sure there wasn't much else. "My father is the King, you know how much he'll pay for his son to return home safely."
"I don't need your money," she spat. "I told you back at the field, you make a mess, you clean it up. That's how life works. If I decide to let you stay, I'll make sure it's you and only you who repays the favor."
Henry laid back down, in defeat and because he was too tired. Too tired to argue, too tired to move.
"Mavis Mavis!" The little boy came charging in the room.
"Wilkin I told you not to come in here anymore," she warned.
"But the doctor is here!"
Henry sat upright, too hard too fast. He ground through the dizziness. "What doctor?" Any Nieblan was no friend to him. He barely trusted these two. The more that knew about him, the more chance he had of being discovered and getting killed.
"Relax," Mavis said. "He already knows about you. Who do you think set your leg? And he's not a doctor. Not really. We just call him that because he knows so much."
Henry hardly found that comforting. "You shouldn't have told anyone else."
"Oh so I should have let you die?" she was annoyed, her hands on those scrawny hips again. Her face was flushing.
Before Henry could answer, a large, muscular man walked into the room, practically too tall to fit under the doorway. He eyed Henry sharply.
"I see he finally woke up." He took a step towards Henry's bed. Henry tried to scoot back, closer to the wall, as if that would help.
The man held his hands up. "I'm not here to hurt you. That may be a side effect of my treatment but never my intention. My name is Bander. I'm a family friend of Mavis' father. I was just passing by to check up on the kids while their father's away. Good thing too, or you'd be dead."
Henry flinched. He peeled back the blanket to reveal his leg. It was in a makeshift splint, still bent a little funny, but not as bad as it had been. "I take it you set my leg?"
Bander nodded solemnly. "Took all of us to keep you still. You must be strong if you had that much fight in you after what you endured."
Henry said nothing. He didn't like this. Now there were three people too many who knew he was in Niebla. He needed to get out, to get home.
"If you're thinking about leaving, I wouldn't," he warned. "I was just at the border. They've got it surrounded. No one is getting in or out unless they take the long way 'round."
Henry sank back. His prospects of getting home were getting worse and worse. "So why haven't you turned me in?"
"I still think we should," he answered honestly. "But Mavis has a heart of gold. And Wilkin would have a fit, he's grown quite fond of your lifeless body."
"How charming," he said under his breath. "I'm finding it a little hard to believe."
"Frankly I don't care what you believe. The fact of the matter is, you're still alive. Had you stumbled across any other door you'd be dead days ago. As the fates would have it, you came here. To the only half breed family within miles of the border."
"Half breed?"
"Half Lyran blood, half Nieblan blood. Both kingdoms have their faults. Lyra has more freedoms, but their taxes are three times that of Niebla's. So we live close to the border. Her grandparents live on the other side. We travel back and forth. At least we used to before that blasted wall was built and made traveling ten times harder and longer to do. Thanks for that by the way."
Henry rolled his eyes. He would be hearing about this until his final day. Which, he realized, might not be so far away. "I still don't understand why you would risk your life for me."
"Oh we're not risking our lives for you," Mavis chimed in. "We're still loyal Lyrans. But we also value this kingdom. Currently, however, Niebla is behaving poorly. We've been deceived into a dictatorship and forced into a war we want no part in. King Alan and Queen Ariana have never wronged us. They are fair and just rulers."
"Our dictator on the other hand," Bander said venomously, "Is the reason my other brother is dead."
The all looked solemn. It was a topic Henry was realizing was off limits. He also knew he should behave a little more graciously, given the circumstances. "I appreciate the sacrifice you all are making for me--for my kingdom. It won't go unrewarded."
Bander waved him off gruffly. "We don't need any of that. Just promise me you'll be a better ruler than your grandfather."
Henry nodded his head.
"Good. Well then, I might as well see how you're doing."
He checked him out, giving him a thorough inspection. If he wasn't a doctor, he sure acted like one. He knew the terminology, knew what medications to leave. He gave specific instructions to Mavis, and Henry hoped she had a good memory because Henry wasn't so sure he was even processing the words. He was so tired. This had been the longest he had stayed awake.
He piped up when he realized Bander was leaving. "This doesn't feel right leaving you with him. I should stay."
Mavis shook her head. "Your wife needs you. She doesn't have much time left. And your kids, they can't take care of themselves. Get back home safely. We'll be fine here."
"I will never forgive myself for leaving you like this. I'm so sorry."
Mavis shrugged. "We've had worse, haven't we?"
"You're too brave for your own good, girl." He kissed her head, and embraced the little boy. "I'd say write to me, but I'm not sure that's wise. They'll be tracking any mail, especially any sent through the air. Don't try to cross the border for some time. And find a good spot to hide him. I'm sure they'll come knocking soon enough."
"We'll be fine."
He looked uncertain. "Goodbye. You'll be in my prayers."
When he left, the room deflated. Henry looked at Mavis. The worry on her face was evident. She was biting her lip as if she didn't quite know what to do next. "Look," Henry said, clearing his throat. "I don't want to be a burden and I don't want to put your family at risk."
Mavis suddenly glared at him. "Well we don't have much of an option do we? Listen, I sealed my family's fate when I opened that door. I let you in, I had Bander help you. I could have locked the door, pretended not to see you. So stop apologizing and start getting better!" She released a breath. "Sorry. I'm under a lot of stress right now. I'm not normally this ill-tempered."
Henry raised an eyebrow. "I don't know about that." He thought back to the first time he had met her. She had quite the temper then too.
Wilkin giggled from the doorway. Mavis glared at the boy and slammed the door, keeping him out of the conversation. She returned her attention back to Henry.
"We need to go over some ground rules."
"Yes ma'am."
She started pacing the room. "I know you're the Prince and all, but I need you to forget about your birthright and follow my orders. I can't allow you to do anything that puts this family at risk. That means you don't leave this house unless I give you permission to. Don't try to write to anyone back home, don't get up without letting one of us help you, and stop staring at me like that!"
He blinked. He hadn't realized he'd been staring. He had just realized she was wearing trousers. Men's pants. He had never seen a woman wear men's pants before. While Elysia had asked several times, Maria had never allowed her to. The women around the castle were also much more reserved than Mavis. Everything was neat and orderly, their appearance was always flawless, their posture perfect, their attitude appealing. Mavis was...the opposite. She was like a tornado. She was unruly, awkward, her shoulders often hunched forward when she was tired. Her hair was beyond explaining.
"You're still staring."
Henry shook his head. "Sorry. I'm concussed."
Mavis eyed him. "There will also be no judging of the people in this household. I'm sure I'm not what you're used to. Too bad. I'm not going to pamper you like you were at the castle. You will have to do a lot of things for yourself, whatever you can do that is. I know you still have a lot of healing to do, I'm not completely heartless. But you won't be spoiled here. And as soon as you're able, I want you out of this house."
Henry thought about saying something snarky in response, but he had a feeling that wouldn't bode well for him. After all, she did punch him when she found out who he was. He wasn't sure he should play with fire right now. Not while he was still confined to a bed. "I understand the rules and agree to all of them."
She let out a breath, as if she too had been expecting a smart remark. "Good. Now onto a more serious subject."
He watched her as she moved over to the dresser across the bed. He had to sit up a bit to see what she was doing.
"When the militia come, which I'm sure they will. You'll need a place to hide. The first two drawers of this dresser are normal. The bottom too are false. They are actually one drawer and when you open it," she opened it to show him, "You can actually step inside and get into the wall. Now it's a bit of a squeeze to get in and out, but once you're in you can stand up fully. It used to be a closet, but my dad made it into a panic room when Niebla became a dictatorship."
"Impressive. Not sure how easily I'll be able to get in it."
"Trust me," she said. "When your life depends on it, you will find a way. Oh and your armor and sword are already in there. We needed a place to hide them."
"Have they come looking for me yet?"
"They were snooping around the property but gave up when the door was locked. Believe me, they'll be back soon. They won't rest until they've checked everywhere."
Henry struggled to sit all the way up, leaning his body against the bed frame. He was getting hot again, his muscles burning with fever.
There was a knock on the door. Wilkin entered with a glass of water. Henry could have hugged him. His throat was parched. The boy handed him the glass, his grin missing a few baby teeth.
"Thank you." Henry was surprised to find how hard it was to bring the water up to his mouth. His arm was shaking with the effort.
"I'm in charge of filling your water every so often," Wilkin announced happily. "It's one of the only things she'll let me do. But if you need anything just ring this bell." He placed a small bell on the nightstand by the bed.
"I appreciate that," he wasn't very good with kids. He wasn't good with people in general. He never knew what to say. Never knew what they expected of him. It seemed at the castle whenever he spoke with someone he never quite lived up to their standards. He was always just short of what they were looking for. His father's shoes were hard to fill, which made impressing people hard to do.
Wilkin was looking at him like he was some fairy creature. Some mythical legend. He knew he must be disappointing. He could hardly even move and was practically helpless.
"Maybe when you get better you can teach me how to sword fight?"
"What was that?" Mavis called from the kitchen. "There will be no lessons on sword fighting, you're too little.
Wilkin shrunk a little, then looked hopeful. "It can be our secret," he whispered.
Henry motioned him closer. "Once I'm better, I promise I'll teach you."
Wilkin grinned and then raced out of the room, out the house, and to the outdoors where he proceeded to get a head start on learning how to sword fight with sticks.
Mavis sauntered into the room, a towel over her shoulder, flour on her face. "Do not corrupt my brother."
"I haven't done anything."
She squinted at him. "Not yet."
When it was time for dinner, Mavis called Wilkin into the kitchen to eat. Henry could smell the meal from his room. Fresh baked bread, beef and mashed potatoes. He was starving. His appetite had finally increased and he was ready for food.
"Go ahead and bring our guest a plate," he could hear Mavis instructing her little brother.
"Why can't we eat in there with him?"
"He needs his rest. Besides, we eat dinner at the table, just like always."
"I wanna eat with him today!" Before she could reprimand him, Wilkin came racing into the room with two plates. One for Henry, one for himself.
Henry sat up slowly and Wilkin helped set the plate on his lap. It took effort, but he was able to feed himself.
Wilkin pulled up a chair to his bed and started eating. For a moment it was silent, but Wilkin was good at getting people to talk to him. He asked Henry all sorts of questions. Then it became easy to talk. Henry found himself talking about things he had never talked about with anyone else, getting asked questions no one had cared to ask him before. It was nice. He felt seen. This little boy was prying Henry open without even realizing it.
After a while, Mavis slowly walked in, as if she too wanted to hear some of the stories. She had already finished her supper but was accustomed to Wilkin talking about his day after supper. He was her only company and it was strange having this other person there.
Surprisingly, Henry had a lot of stories that interested Wilkin. He wanted to hear all about his training, all the fights he had been in. Henry made sure to keep it mild, to tone down the stories for Wilkin. He didn't want the wrath of Mavis.
Although Henry was exhausted, he found himself wanting to stay up longer to talk with the boy. He asked Wilkin lots of questions too. He learned about the boy's father, learned what kind of crops they had. Wilkin told him about his favorite things to do outside. How he liked to go exploring in the woods. About his rock collection.
Finally Mavis interrupted her little brother. "Alright, Wilky, it's time for bed. The Prince needs his sleep and so do you."
He left reluctantly, Mavis following behind to tuck him in. Henry had started to doze off when she returned. "Sorry about that."
He blinked a few times to stay awake. "About what?"
"Once he gets going he doesn't stop."
"I don't mind," Henry said earnestly. "It's nice having someone to talk to. He's a good kid."
Mavis smiled. "He is. He's a handful, but I love him."
They were silent. Then Mavis asked, "Is there anything I can get you before I go to bed? I have a few chores to do yet but I won't be up too much longer."
Henry didn't want to bother her with anything. "No, thank you. Dinner was great."
She smiled, her cheeks reddening. Henry supposed she wasn't used to getting too many compliments from strangers.
"Well, goodnight."
"Goodnight." He laid back for the last time that night and closed his eyes. For the first time in a while he slept soundly.