Grace
After only two minutes of careful planning, they realized they already had a problem: Tanner didn't have a horse.
He did, however, know how to ride one. So, after delaying this decision for two days, they had to decide how to deal with it. It wouldn't have been such a big deal if Jamie hadn't still been too angry with Tanner to let him ride with him. Grace was out of the question because Jysra was still a difficult case. That would only leave Aderah, but Grace had noted that the little healer wasn't thrilled about sitting this close to a stranger for hours on end. She tried to hide her discomfort, but it wasn't a convincing effort, and Grace saw right through it. She also knew that Aderah would never directly complain about it because she was the only member of their circle who was objective about Tanner. She didn't want to give him the impression that she had a problem with him as well.
They had three options then: Tanner could ride with Jamie, which would result in unbearable bickering; he could ride with Aderah, which would make Aderah uncomfortable; they could switch places and one of them had to ride with Grace, which none of them really wanted; or Jamie and Aderah would both take Makhi.
This entire conversation went on for fifteen minutes without ending. Tanner wisely remained silent and waited for them to figure it out. Meanwhile, Grace sat next to the other two, frustrated, and only later turned down Jamie's suggestion that they tie Tanner to his horse and drag him along with them.
She'd had enough after another three minutes when she felt a headache coming on. "Aderah, how would you feel about letting someone else ride on your horse?"
The girl seemed surprised when Grace interrupted her conversation with Jamie, but she shrugged after a few seconds. "As long as it's not Jamie."
"Now, what's that supposed to mean?"
"Tanner takes your horse, then, and you go with Jamie," Grace said, ignoring her best friend. "That is settled, and I don't want to hear any more complaints about it. You'll simply have to deal with it now because I'm not going to listen to this for another minute."
When Jamie opened his mouth, she interjected, "Jamie, I give you my word on that; another argument, and you will be the one tied to a horse and dragged through the mud until we get there."
That shut him up.
Grace leaned back in her chair and rested her legs on the table, satisfied. She didn't only end the mess with this solution, but she also got the opportunity to play matchmaker between the two of them. It didn't matter if she was just reading something into the way they act around each other or if she merely thought they'd be sweet together. She had brought them closer together; therefore, her task was done for the time being. If she was right about this, she would be incredibly happy for Jamie. He deserved someone who was good to him. In a way she never could.
Tanner frowned at first when they mentioned the arrangement. "I'm not sure I want to take your horse, Aderah. It doesn't seem fair of me to do so."
The girl simply placed her hand on his arm and replied, "That's totally fine with me. She is very calm and easy to handle, so that won't be a problem. There's nothing to worry about." She gave Jamie a sidelong glance. "If I strangle him after a while, just know it's not your fault."
Grace took note of Jamie's reaction. He may have pretended to be upset, but she noticed the sparkle in his eyes. He enjoyed how she spoke about him, probably noticing how similar her personality was to his at times.
Grace had to resist sitting him down until he told her how he felt about the healer, as much as she wanted to. She didn't want to press the issue until he came to her on his own. Which she was sure he would do eventually.
They were ready for the following steps now that their last problem had been resolved. They decided to spend one last night at Tanner's home because it was already late in the afternoon.
Grace had gotten plenty of rest the night before, so she decided to stay up all night going through her plan again and again, as if she hadn't done so in years. She went over every last detail, considered countless options, thought of possible solutions to potential problems she encountered when thinking around endless corners, and ended up positive that everything would work out in their favor. She couldn't possibly have missed anything. Of course, she'd prefer Plan A, in which she wouldn't have to sacrifice anything or anyone, but she would if necessary. Jamie would be safe no matter the case; it was one of her main priorities while planning. She couldn't guarantee the same for Tanner or other figures in her game, though. It should have been more difficult for her to prepare for sacrificing innocent people, but freeing the world from her father would save much more lives than she could imagine. Everything would be worth it in the end.
Except for Jamie, the others were unaware that her brother, Kaden, was going to take charge after she paved the path for him, and she would officially return as the long-lost princess to support him. She owed him that much because abandoning her brother at the mercy of their father was something she could never forgive herself for. She hadn't been the only one who had suffered in that household. That's why she'd sworn to make amends in whatever way she could, even if it meant living a life she'd never wanted. The main reason she didn't feel like she belonged in that life was undoubtedly due to the abuse she'd endured since she was a child. Every part of royal life would be indelibly linked to those memories.
But then she reminded herself that Kaden and she could live a completely different life, make happier memories in their home, enjoy the fun aspects of that life, and rule better than any previous king in Azivélle had ever done.
Nothing would be the same. And, for the first time in her life, she wouldn't cause anguish and pain but rather hope and the possibility of a better future for herself, her family, and her people.
She could finally stop feeling like a monster when it all was over.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Tanner and Aderah were finishing off their packing. Jamie was already prepared and standing in front of his horse. He looked at Makhi's back, and Grace could see he was trying to decide where to sit: would he sit behind Aderah, keeping her safely in front of him where she could distract him, or would he sit in front of her, forcing her to hold onto him so he couldn't watch her?
She voted for him sitting behind her. If he got too distracted she could at least take the reins.
She was right in the end. Jamie sat behind the healer, occasionally staring at her. So far, he hadn't fallen from the horse or entirely misled Makhi. Grace was certain the girl was unaware of how much he admired her. She continued to speak to them as if they were still seated at that small dining table. Grace remained silent during the conversation. Tanner did as well, so she was practically only talking to Jamie, although she kept addressing everyone. Grace zoned out at one point, not even trying to keep up with every topic Aderah was mentioning.
She didn't want to admit it, not to herself or anybody else, but she was terrified of returning home. It would take them about two weeks to get there, but it meant two weeks of her tormenting herself over having to see her father again. Every time she thought of him, her heart tightened, and she felt weak all over again. He was the reason she turned out the way she did. He made her hate the feeling of weakness more than anything else. And she was afraid that if she stood in front of him again, she might crack and allow the little, defenseless girl to take her place. The version of herself she'd attempted to kill since escaping. It had never fully worked. When the memories of her father washed over her, all she could do was break and grieve for the little girl who had to bear it all.
Jamie's laughter broke her away from the desperation and overwhelmed her with the usual feeling of light before her memories reached the worst chapters. He had that effect on people without even realizing it. It seemed like he was feeling much better now. Although his wound had healed, a scar remained. It was greater than she had expected, yet it was still nothing compared to the one his brother had given him. But the worst thing was the mental scar it had left him with. That's why she felt grateful for every smile and laugh she could witness.
Aderah laughed. "You can't just walk across two kingdoms. It's only been a week since you nearly died. If I let you do that, I'd completely fail at my job."
"I don't think I have any other options, lady, if you keep mocking me like this," Jay replied, amused.
"It's not my fault you're so easily mocked," she grinned back. Grace had no choice but to agree. He certainly was at times.
"That's it," he grumbled, almost jumping from the horse.
"Wait." Aderah clutched his sleeve. "I'll stop, I promise." She turned as much as she could and looked innocently up at him.
"Don't," he said, smiling back. When dimples formed on his cheeks, Aderah quickly turned back, facing the path ahead. Grace knew that if the trees' shadows didn't cover them, she'd find the healer blushing.
As Grace looked towards Tanner, she saw he had a slight smile on his lips—a rare look on him. He seemed to have noticed it as well.
Grace had been at the front until they took a break later that afternoon, not only to give the two apparently love-struck fools some space but also to keep herself out of any potential conversation. Tanner was just behind her, but he never spoke to any of them. He did nothing but observe.
The sun was shining brightly, but luckily they had about two days through the forest ahead of them. It was enjoyable in the shadows, but it became unbearable in the open.
They couldn't find any water nearby, but they did come to a halt at a little clearing with immense trees that contained some kind of fruit. Grace wasn't familiar with them, but Aderah assured her that they were safe to eat for both them and the horses. So they dismounted and collected five of these fruits for each of the horses before sitting down and eating themselves. The fruits were slightly larger than an apple, but instead of being green or red, they were white. Grace bit into it cautiously at first, but it was sweet and juicy, and when she looked at it again, she noticed the bright orange insides. She couldn't describe the flavor, but it was good enough for her to eat three of them, as did the others.
"Do we have enough space in our bags for two hundred of those?" Jamie asked as he reached for another.
Aderah went over to the saddlebags and studied them. "There should be enough room for fifteen. That should be enough for a while. I'm also convinced that at least one hundred fifty of those two hundred would start decomposing before we could eat them all."
"Never underestimate the power of a hungry man, young lady," he shot back.
"I wouldn't challenge him," Grace chimed in. He'd eat those two hundred just to make a point. Then he'd be sick for three days and complain about a stomach ache."
Jamie attempted to defend himself, but she interjected. Don't think for a second that I forgot about the time you ate thirteen apples in half an hour because I said it would be ridiculous of you to eat even five. You had a stomach ache for two days and complained that I didn't stop you in time," she added, glaring at him.
"You didn't."
"I thought it was unnecessary given that I had already warned you."
He scowled. "You warned me about eating five, not thirteen."
She scowled at him. "This conversation has officially become ridiculous."
He chuckled. "Only because you have nothing else to say in your defense."
She shook her head and returned her attention to Aderah. "To get back to my point; never underestimate his stupidity."
Jamie looked at her as if she had just thrown one of those fruits in his face. "Now that was rude."
The healer seemed to find the whole thing amusing. She grinned as she started to get some more of those fruits to fill the bags. Tanner got up to help her.
"So...," Grace began, beaming at him. "What were you two talking about the entire time?"
Jamie scowled at her briefly before shaking his head. He knew what she was thinking, but he didn't try to convince her that she was wrong. "Nothing special, really. She only told me a few things about how she lived alone there. I think we bonded over our family situation."
"You might as well admit it now; you like her, don't you?"
"Of course I do. Don't tell me that you don't."
She sighed and rolled her eyes. "I do like her. Just not the way you do... You'd have no chance otherwise," she smirked.
"Come on. That is not true."
"If you say so..."
Now he was laughing. "You'd be heartbroken then, because she'd never be able to resist my charm."
"You must be very happy then. I have no doubt she can't. She likes you, that poor thing," she explained. "You can now stop being oblivious."
He reddened slightly and averted his gaze. "I wouldn't have thought you'd approve of that."
She shook her head, frowning. "You don't need my approval for that, Jay. What makes you think that?"
"I don't know... I was sure you'd see this as an unnecessary distraction."
Did she ever give him the impression that her scheme was more important than his happiness?
"How could I be against anything that makes you happy? You deserve every single bit of happiness that comes your way. Who am I to take it away from you?" She took his hand in hers. "Please never think like that again. You are so much more important than my plans."
He returned his gaze to her and nodded slowly.
"Good," she smiled.
As soon as they'd ended their conversation, they joined Aderah and Tanner and got back on the horses.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The sun was high in the sky, relentlessly shining down on them as they rode into a less dense area of the forest. The crowns of the trees got thinner the further they went. They had nothing to protect themselves from the intense sunlight.
As Grace looked across to Aderah, she noticed that her cheeks had gotten slightly red, and not because of Jamie's flirty comments. Grace had to remove her cloak and long-sleeved top. Fortunately, she was wearing a top with thin straps underneath. She despised the summer and its scorching temperatures. Every time the heat got so unbearable that she had to wear lighter clothing, she felt vulnerable. Both physically and mentally. It wasn't that she was self-conscious about her body. How could she be when her father's friends and allies had been telling her how beautiful she was and complimenting her figure since she was ten years old? No, it was because she despised these compliments and comments about her body so much that she never wanted to expose any part of her skin again.
Of course, none of her companions would have made her feel uncomfortable in any way, but she had simply grown used to the comfort of being completely covered. She was tired of men taking advantage of her.
But she felt safe enough there, and was on the verge of passing out from the hot weather, that wearing shorter clothes didn't feel wrong.
Despite the fact that she was completely dressed in dark clothes, she felt much better. The others had also changed their attire a while ago. Jamie had stuffed his cloak into the saddlebags, leaving him with his usual linen shirt, which still had long sleeves but of a lighter material. Aderah had been wearing an old beige dress with thin straps all day, but she'd been wearing a loose coat over it until earlier this afternoon. Tanner hadn't bothered to put on warm clothes in the first place, so he'd remained in his black shirt.
At some point, Grace heard splashing water someplace to her right, shortly after they'd decided to take another break soon.
"Am I hallucinating, or do you hear that as well?" Jamie questioned, just as she was about to say something.
"If you are, I suppose we have the same hallucination," she replied.
Being dramatic as he was, he sighed and placed a hand on his chest. "Finally. I thought we'd die out here in the middle of nowhere. What a waste of a corpse that would have been. People should be given the opportunity to say farewell to my stunning—Ow." Aderah interrupted him by shoving her elbow into his side.
"I might drown you if you don't stop, you know?" she said.
"That's not fair. I'm not going to defend myself against you. I still owe you," he said, glaring at her playfully.
Grace had had enough of this and began leading Jysra towards the sounds of water. She didn't turn to check, but since the conversation behind her had stopped, she assumed they were following.
The entire forest was full of small caves and tiny piles of rocks that were already completely covered in moss and ivy, which was why they couldn't see the small pond that was hidden behind one of them. The splashing was caused by a little waterfall that emerged from the heap of stones. Grace had no idea where the water was coming from, but she was relieved anyway.
She dismounted and walked up to the pond, peering into the crystal-clear water. It wasn't that deep—maybe four to five feet. Despite her skepticism about the source of that small waterfall, she removed her boots and sank in. It was calming and refreshing, and she could feel the sweat and dirt from the previous days washing away. As she turned, she noticed Aderah's astonished expression and Jamie's grin. He slid down the horse and extended out his hands to help Aderah get down as well. Tanner had already started to lead Aderah's mare closer to the water.
"Are you not going to come in?" she wondered.
Jamie was going to remove his shirt when Aderah rushed past him and jumped in. She smirked at Grace and nodded towards Jamie. Grace just responded with a grin and raised her hand. She silently counted to three. Then, before he could even take off his shirt, they began splashing gallons of water on him.
He stared at them, his hair dripping wet and his mouth wide open. "Unbelievable. Do you really want to do this?" he questioned, getting closer to the edge. "I wouldn't have done that if I were you." He jumped in as well, right next to them, and dunked Grace's head under the water. He let go again after five seconds and turned to Aderah. "Are you afraid of heights?"
She shook her head, suspiciously eyeing him.
"Good," he smirked before diving under and emerging three seconds later with Aderah on his shoulders. She hadn't expected that. When she wavered, she gently gripped his hair for support. Grace giggled as she saw the healer helplessly sit there. Jamie held onto her legs, keeping her from jumping off.
"Let me down." She struck Jamie on the head.
"Not with that attitude, I won't." His grin covered his entire face.
"Didn't you say you owe me? For saving your life or something?"
He considered that for a few seconds. "I don't think so, no. And unless you have that debt on paper, I'm afraid I'll just write it off as a good, selfless thing you did," he replied. "Also, you said that you weren't afraid of heights, so I don't understand your problem. It must be an amazing view up there."
"The same view I've had for hours. Now let me down," she sighed desperately again, pulling at his hair.
He gently smacked her hand away and spun as fast as he could against the resistance of the water. The girl's grip on his hair slipped, and she couldn't maintain her balance any longer. She fell backwards, headfirst, into the water. Jamie, who was still clutching her legs, let go swiftly. Fortunately, the water was deep enough where they were that she didn't smash her head on the ground. Otherwise, Jamie wouldn't have done that; Grace was sure.
Jamie reached out a hand to her as soon as she rose to the surface. "Truce?" he innocently requested.
She smacked his hand away and went past him, as if she couldn't believe what he had just asked. "Absolutely not."
Grace grinned proudly. She had a feeling Jamie would come to regret this soon. Then they'd be even.
When he realized an argument would be pointless for now, he turned towards Grace and approached her.
"You still don't know how to handle women, do you?" she asked, chuckling.
"To be fair, I haven't spent much time with anyone other than you in a long time, and I don't think you should compare yourself to people like her," he replied, gesturing behind him. But when he turned around, no one was there.
Grace, who had watched the healer dive down to his legs, smirked again. She could see the moment he understood the girl was going to get even. He moved away from Grace and stared at the water all around him as his legs were swept away underneath him. Aderah came back up and held him down as soon as his head was underwater.
Luckily for him, he could hold his breath for a long time, so after four seconds, he gave up and crossed his arms. Grace had to laugh out loud when she saw him down there, distorted by the water, which made him look like a sulky child. Even Tanner behind her, who was so silent that she nearly forgot about him, laughed at that scene.
"Do you think he's learned his lesson?" Aderah asked.
"I'm sure he did," Tanner replied before Grace could. "Also, he's been under water for about forty seconds now, so unless you intend to murder him, I'd let him come up for air again."
He was right. Jamie had already gone longer than that under water, but that had been a while ago. She still didn't know when he learned to hold his breath this long.
Aderah seemed shocked as Tanner mentioned the time that had passed and quickly released Jamie, who, of course, had to make a point of not returning to the surface immediately, but after about three more seconds.
After a few deep breaths, he simply declared, "Now we're definitely even."
Aderah agreed, "Fine. But only if I can tie you to your horse and drag you along behind us," she said with an innocent smile.
He scowled at her. "Absolutely not." Despite his best efforts to keep that frown on his face, he couldn't stop the smirk from breaking through.
A light breeze blew across them at that moment, making Aderah shiver. Jamie immediately jumped out of the water and reached out to pull her up as well. Once she stood next to him, he drew his shirt over his head, which had been clinging to his torso, and laid it out on the ground to dry. Grace caught the healer staring for just a second before averting her gaze.
"I know you two can't get a room out here, but there are plenty of trees to hide behind if you want to keep flirting like that," Grace joked.
Jamie glared at her with a slightly bloodshot face that matched Aderah's. "Very funny," he responded dryly.
She wiggled her eyebrows once and swam toward the brink of the water to rest her arms in front of her on the ground. "Let's just stay here for a while. We're not in a hurry, especially with the weather today," Grace stated then, dismissing her previous comment. "We can take a break for an hour or two. If you need to sleep, you should do it now. I'd rather ride into the night when it's cooler than go on like this."
Her companions nodded in agreement. Jamie promptly laid down on the grass and stared upward. "I'll gladly take you up on that." He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again to glance suspiciously at her and Aderah. "If you two think about pouring water on me while I'm sleeping, I'll drown you and then hunt you in the afterlife."
Grace, who had planned exactly that, nodded blankly and replied, "I wouldn't dream of it."
He only frowned at her for a moment longer and then shut his eyes for good.
Tanner, whom she had, once again, nearly forgotten about, appeared in front of her and extended his hand. "You should get out as well. Your clothes will take some time to dry."
Even though she was surprised by this gesture, she accepted his hand and let him pull her up. "Thanks."
The two of them sat down in a sunny spot. Grace stretched her legs out in front of her and leaned back, her head tilted to the sky to let the sunshine warm her face. She'd go back into the shadows in a second, but for now she was enjoying this feeling.
"I'd advise you to take off your wet clothes," Tanner suggested to the two girls. "If you keep sitting here in the breeze like that, you will surely get sick."
Grace was never sick, but it did get cold once the wind picked up a little. She suspected a storm was coming up. So she got up and rummaged in their saddlebags until she found one of her shirts. The notion of attempting to remove her wet pants, which felt like a second skin at this point, made her want to rip them apart. The shirt had to do it. Grace went looking for two of Jamie's shirts for Tanner and Aderah, who seemed a little uncomfortable since Tanner indicated she should change. It would be the same length as the dress she was currently wearing—better than nothing since there wasn't much else the girl had taken with her.
She tossed the shirt at the girl, and another one was aimed at Tanner's head. "Don't look," she warned. "That's one of Jay's shirts," she clarified to Aderah. "He won't mind if you wear it. You really shouldn't be wearing that dress for much longer."
Aderah held the shirt out in front of her. It came up to her knees. "Thanks, but won't he need it?" she questioned, pointing to Jamie, who was fast asleep.
"He'll be much happier when he sees you wearing it," Grace winked at her, causing her to blush again.
Both of them changed after seeing Tanner lying on his back with the cloth Grace had thrown at him covering his eyes.
The next two hours were spent with Aderah and Jamie napping, Tanner being his silent self and staring into nowhere, probably contemplating his life choices, and Grace unpacking all of their belongings, only to repack them again, more organized this time.
Shockingly, giving Jamie the task of packing them had been a mistake in the first place.
At last, she decided to sleep for a few minutes as well.
Heyyy! I'm happy to announce that I will have much more time to write in the next few weeks, so I can hopefully get more chapters done than lately (which was basically nothing)... Let's just hope for the best😶 Anyways, thank you so much guys, for everything 🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼