Private Tales The Prince and the Fugitive

[Fraeya]

It wouldn't hurt to get another's help to find Ember. She'd need all the help she could get. Even though she'd never admit as much to him.

Sighing, she gave a quick, short nod, saying the ceremonial words.

"I, Fraeya Elwing, accept your oath Kalavan Il'Drun." And there it was. A shadow of a connection that eased along the back of her spine and behind her neck. Ember would be safe. And if Kalavan went back on his oath? It would hurt him like hell. Maybe even cripple him.

The girl swayed on her feet. She was hungry. And still had a long way to go to recover from her flight.

"We should find some food."

 

[Kalavan]

They were bound now. Closer than either would care to admit.

"Fraeya Elwing," He echoed then nodded to himself. A fine name.

"This Ember must be quite the..." Person? That wasn't a guarantee. He mused on. "They must be quite important to you, to make me take an oath."

He approached her and stopped at a respectful distance. Kalavan idly gazed into the trees. "The wood is ripe with game. I will hunt if you can set up a fire and cook." He looked to Fraeya. "I do not know how to cook."

 

[Fraeya]

“He is,” she spoke quietly, unwilling to give any more information than that. If they found him, Kalavan would soon see what she meant.

“Cook?” A twinkle in her eyes but not enough for a smile. “I can manage but I don’t eat meat. You’re on your own for that. I do make a mean vegetable stew though.”

She was vegetarian. And t made sense if he knew she could talk with animals. A hand ran down her tired face.

“I’ll look up river for some root vegetables.”

Maybe she’d get lucky and find an apple tree, too.

 

[Kalavan]

When was the last time Kalavan had meat? Plenty of vegetables, though. So many potatoes, the mere thought brought displeasure to the prince. And oat mash- watered-down oat mash. Damn that prison. Even game would be like a feast to the prince. How pitiful, Kalavan thought of himself.

"A mean vegetable stew," He echoed. There was little eloquence in the way that Fraeya spoke. He noticed this now. How young was this elf? A brief episode of despair welled in his stomach. Had he been imprisoned so long that colloquialisms had changed so drastically among the elves? He suddenly felt very old.

Meat and vegetable stew, though. It sounded like a treat.

"Do take care to not wander far off. And if you see any Anirians, I'd be enthused if you were to call out for me."

 

[Fraeya]

“Hm,” she wasn’t used to others looking out for her. And in a way it felt a little parenting. It was...surprising.

“Let’s hope there are no anirians.”

Lips twitched. There was another problem. She had no supplies since her escape. All her traveling gear had been lost. No pots or stoves. No seasonings. Eventually, she’d need to restock or trade somewhere. Although, she didn’t have anything to trade with.

Problems to tackle later. For now, she could roast whatever vegetables she found in water soaked leaves.

Kicking off her boots, she dipped her feet into the cold steam, relishing the feeling as she walked through the waters, lavender gaze scouring the shoreline for edible plants.

 

[Kalavan]

He lingered and watched for a moment as Fraeya splashed about the stream. For somebody that had an ostensible distaste for the Falwood, she certainly fit right in.

With a soft sigh, Kalavan wandered to the tree line and kept walking until his black garments became indistinguishable with the shadows.

He scooped up a handful of rocks, tossing away those that were too large or small as he walked. He was left with only three adequately sized rocks. The elf shook them in his hand as he walked, mimicking what one would do if they were to roll dice. Golden eyes scanned the ground, looking for any movement through the underbrush.

He wandered for some time, not thinking of anything in particular. Eventually, with the small rocks and his magic, he hunted two rabbits and quickly returned to the tree.

 

[Fraeya]

Fraeya lifted the edge of her shirt as her gathering bounty got quite large. Small red and purple potatoes. Mint and wild chives. Plenty of dandelions. She'd even found some berries and nuts.

Sadly, no apples.

By the time Kalavan returned, she'd gotten a small fire going and wrapped the vegetables up in some larger leaves and placed them on the edges of the crackling fire. Legs folded beneath her in the soft grasses as the light in their small clearing was already beginning to fade and give way toward the growing twilight before dark. A stick tugged and worked at the bundle of wrapped vegetables. Lavender eyes lifted toward Kalavan as his form materialized from the shadows.

"Successful I see. At least you weren't eaten by monsters."

 

[Kalavan]

"Hmph. Of course. What monster would dare trifle with me," He gently laid the two rabbits by the fire pit. He sat across from Fraeya and quickly spotted the berries. "Oh, I do love berries."

Kalavan took another moment to look at all that the young elf prepared.

"You're quite resourceful," He mused, "A skill learned from your struggles."

A skill that he, quite frankly, lacked. Even while imprisoned, everything was prepared for him. Of course, the quality was incomparable to his days mingling among royalty as heir to the kingdom of Calimdar. What remained the same, however, was Kalavan's lack of everyday skills.

 

[Fraeya]

"I did what I had to," she bristled. She couldn't help the slight frown at her lips as the rabbits crackled over the fire. Still. Could she really fault others that ate meat?

"And I dunno," the elf with dragonspeak prodded the wrapped vegetables with her stick slowly.

"Perhaps you could've run into a spiderweave. Splondofork or dorsalcrypt." A half smirk on her lips, scale-speckled face glimmering in the firelight. Satisfied that the vegetables were done, she pulled them from the fire.

"Do you not even know how to start a fire?" A dark-purplish brow rose in the elder elf's direction.

 

[Kalavan]

Kalvan squinted at her. Spiderweave? Splondo-whatsit? Were they creatures common to all but the old elf? Every moment spent speaking to the young girl made his stomach drop lower and lower. He realized that many things would change over two-hundred and fifty years, but it felt as if he had no place.

"Of course, I can start a fire!" He appeared to be baffled. "You just... need wood and magic."

 

[Fraeya]

Head shook as she carefully peeled back layers of the leaf to reveal softened and steaming vegetables and herbs. The girl leaned over, letting the smell waft up to her nose.
“What if you couldn’t use magic, hm?”

moith watered slightly at the smell. And her stomach grumbled. She couldn’t remember the last time she ate.

 

[Kalavan]

"But, I've always been capable of using magic." For all the apparent wisdom Kalavan seemed to carry, it was clear that the all of the Prince's struggles have never involved having to survive in the wilderness.

He didn't even realize that he should probably turn the rabbits now.

Kalavan was no pyromancer, but a mere spark was effortless for him. He could easily start a fire that way, so why would he need to know anything else? It was quite elven of him to be stuck in his ways.

"You didn't start the fire with magic, then?"

 

[Fraeya]

She began picking at the vegetables and plopped one, cooked carrot in her mouth. Could really taste the rosemary. Mmmm. Heaven.

Swallowing, she looked at Kalavan over the flames.

“Well. I used magic but that’s besides the point. What if I was too tired or drained? I know how to make a fire without magic.” This time, she took a potato and munched on it.
“I thought every village elven village was like mine growing up. Small. Relying on the land. The forest. All taught basic skills of survival.”

A curious spark caught in her look as she eyed him.

 

[Kalavan]

"We taught arithmetic, history, and the arts in Calimdar. It was unique, you could say. There was little... need for learning the skills of survival." Suddenly his eyelids dropped, as did the corners of his mouth. The old elf looked very tired.

"I learned of magic, foreign sciences from lands as far as Amol-Kalit, how to trade... How to wage war."

He looked into the fire.

"Not once did I ever think a day would come when knowing how to properly build a fire would be of use to me."

 

[Fraeya]

"You must be...very old," she commented quietly and continued to munch quietly. She'd never even heard of the place he'd mentioned. She was good at magic. Surviving on her own.

With Ember.

Heart twisted.

"The fire. I can teach you if you'd like. Looking for edible plants too." Might as well have him become useful at more things in case she needed it. "Do you think we'll be safe here to spend the night?" The young elf eyed the trees around them.

 

[Kalavan]

“Hm,” He absently looked at the fire, “Five hundred summers.”

Though, he seemed to glow when she mentioned teaching him.

“Oh, yes, I’d quite enjoy that.” How long had it been since he learned something? Since somebody was able to pass their knowledge to him? In the past, he was surrounded by those that knew more than him. His father. His lover. His trusted friends. Dead, all of them.

“The tree has a special magic- a ward. I can sense its presence. No normal humans should be able to find us.”

 

[Fraeya]

“I’m not worried about the normal ones.” An involuntary shudder ran through her spine. What did they call themselves?

Dreadlords.

Finishing off the vegetables, she stood and stepped away from the fire. The sun had already set. “I’ll be right back.” Head titled back as she looked at the trees, though not because of what the elder elf had just said. Stopping at the base of one, she seemed satisfied and began to climb.

She had to get a signal out to Ember. If he was nearby....he’d see.

 

[Kalavan]

It took a moment for him to process the elf's vague referencing of Vel Anir's battlemages. Soldiers of the Anirian Guard were well-trained and disciplined.

It was not the Anirian Guard that laid waste to Kalavan's army on many occasions. While his kingdom was once able to combat the Dreadlords on almost equal footing, save for the select few that stood at the summit of the battlemages, Archons, they were still fearsome to behold. It almost sent a chill down the Prince's spine.

"Yes," He watched as she stood, dispassionately remarking on what she said, "It's never the normal ones that we fret over."

Kalavan did not question her actions and instead began to eat his own meal.

Burnt. Disgusting.

 

[Fraeya]

Fraeya climbed with the grace and ease that only an elf could show. Near the top of the tree, she whispered a quick incantation. A luminescent glow lifted briefly into the sky before quickly fading. Ember would be able to see it with his special eyes but anyone human would not. Perhaps some other elves would've seen the flash.

She remained in the tree until the stars shone more brightly and the sky had lost all its light from the day. Feet touched lightly back on the ground. She made her way back over to Kalavan. And suddenly, she was tired. Those days of being on the run would take a lot more than a few hours of passing out for her body to recover. She needed a good night's rest.

And maybe tonight, she'd get one.

 

[Kalavan]

Kalavan poked at the small fire with a long, skinny stick. He hadn’t moved from where he sat the entire time she’d been in the tree. Compared to the countless days spent in a cell, sitting in one spot amidst the beauty of nature was bliss. Begrudgingly, he’d eaten most of of the two burned rabbits.

“Here I sat believing you continued your journey without me,” He set the stick aside and watched as she approached. Aside from his exposed skin, Kalavan appeared to blend into the darkness. Frankly, the elf appeared ghastly as the flame flickered in front of him.

 

[Fraeya]

"Oh?" She curled up onto her side, on the soft grass. The firelight brought out the shifting hues of purple in her eyes. Almost like flames.

It made Kalavan look like a ghost.

"I keep my word. Though. I wonder what you would have done?" Fingers absently ran through the grass, head cradled by her arm.

 

[Kalavan]

The elf prince shrugged.

“That you do... We live lengthy lives. I would wait.” How long would he wait? Hours? A day? A week? He was not an impatient man.

Kalavan stared in the fire.

“Tell me what makes this Ember so special to you.”

 

[Fraeya]

"We survived together. We were both stuck in the bowls of Elbion. I met him there." The young elf paused and turned over on her back, letting her eyes stare off and search the stars above them of the small clearing.

"The mages of Elbion wanted to use us in a war and after years of being prepped for it, we escaped together."

The prince would probably miss the girl's grim smirk in the darkness. One could say they'd escaped with a bang, destroying a good chunk of the college on their way out.

"I'll never let them take me back. Never," she whispered - close to the vow she'd shared with Kalavan earlier. The girl meant it. She'd kill herself before that happened.

 

[Kalavan]

Kalavan listened in respectful silence. Even Elbion had its dark secrets, but that came as no surprise to the prince. Where there are good humans, there are also vile ones. What did surprise him was the fact that Elbion was training... soldiers? Battlemages?

"The strongest bonds are forged through shared hardship," he chimed.

"We are meant to be free. Furthermore, to be bound by Man..." his seething voice trailed. It seemed the two shared more than he'd initially thought. In fact, the prince saw much of himself in the young girl. The biggest difference, however, was that she still had another to cling to. There was nobody that Kalavan could seek out, nobody to give him a reason to survive. Yet, this girl did have that.

"We will find your Ember. First, you must rest."

 

[Fraeya]

A twitch of her lips in the darkness. Without turning her head his direction she spoke. "You sound like how I imagine an elder would sound like. If I could remember them." Her tribe typically referred to parents as elders.

A small yawn left her mouth. Arms propped the back of her head up and she let herself stare up at the stars until her lids became too heavy to keep open.

It wouldn't be until just before dawn when a dark shadow would streak across the brightening sky.