Eva's Journal

CHAPTER FOUR

The prince settled behind me as we rode in silence through the woods between the two kingdoms. He did not seem interested in any sort of small talk with me. I didn't mind though. I was busy concentrating on the challenge that laid ahead of me. I was honestly scared and slightly mortified about how and if I might find Anna. We continued walking until night fell completely, making any further journey impossible.

"Let's settle here, Eva. We have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow." I forced my horse to a stop. The prince got off his horse and tied them both to a nearby tree.

"Would you like me to start a fire or gather water?" I asked him before he turned to me and looked interested.

"Who are you? Like really?" I looked at his face and laughed.

"Who am I? Okay, let's settle this now. I am a lady-in-waiting getting her princess back. Right now, I am either a collector of water or a fire starter. So, pick one." He smirked and began to gather some simple twigs. I walked away and huffed, muttering under my breath until I reached a stream. I reached down filling the canteens with water as well as a bucket for the horses.

As I drank from the stream, I heard a twig snap behind me. I reached into my cloak and readied my knife. When the second snapped I turned swiftly throwing the knife into the bushes. A groan was heard and a body fell through the bushes with my knife embedded in his chest, most probably his lung. I marched up to him and dragged him back to camp. He groaned in pain at every bump on the path.

"What have you picked up, collector of water?" I laughed sarcastically as I pushed the man against a tree.

"You are hilarious, princey. I caught him spying on us. If we are to succeed no one can know we are here. It's time for a different cover. You need to put these clothes on. Take off the royal robes." The man laughed at my bluntness towards the prince. Atlas took the knife out of the man before asking him a question.

"Who sent you?" the man chuckled spitting blood.

"Listen you know you are going to die. So do you want to make it painful or quick?" He looked up at the prince and then at me. The prince had an intense look in his eye I hadn't seen before. He dragged the man further into the forest as I made our dinner. I moved my eyes away from the woods and sparked the fire causing it to light up. The water began to boil as I started to cut up vegetables from my bag.

Time dragged on and soon dinner was ready. I only heard a few screams from the woods which didn't last long. I got two wooden bowls from my bag placing them next to the pot. After tasting it, I was content it was ready to eat. The prince appeared from the woods and he had changed his clothes.

"You were a long time, princey. Is everything okay?" he smiled and nodded at me before sitting next to me. I poured him some stew and he thanked me as we ate in silence. I tried reading his face and saw a lot of discomfort in the creases of his eyes.

"Did he tell you anything?" he got up and placed the bowl next to mine.

"He was sent here to check if there was an army coming to the kingdom. They took her. We can get her back though."

"We? So, there is a 'we' now?" he chuckled and nodded wiping his hand across his face.

"Yes, Eva. There is a 'we' now. We can help Anna together." I smiled at him before taking the bowls and washing them up. I left them by the fire knowing they would dry quickly from the dying embers.

"By the way, you can call me Atlas if you want. You don't need to call me prince or anything." I nodded as he slipped into his sleeping bag.

"Goodnight Atlas." I turned to face the stars and knew we would be up in a few hours.

"Goodnight Eva."

The morning came around quickly. I looked for Atlas and saw him still asleep in the sleeping bag. I stretched and walked down to the stream to wash before starting on the road again. Stripping off my clothes, I walked into the deep part of the stream. The current helped me wash and rinse my hair and body. I resurfaced and moved my hair away from my face, not realizing Atlas was stood watching me from the riverbank. As I made eye contact with him, he blushed and turned his face away. I squeaked embarrassed, quickly moving out of the river and pulling my towel around me, covering my body.

"Atlas, you can turn around now. Not that it matters as you've seen it all anyway." He swallowed the lump in his throat and turned to face me.

"Eva, I am so sorry. It was a big accident. I was just getting a drink and I saw you and I just didn't look away. I am sorry." I smiled and waved my hand.

"Don't worry, Atlas. It's forgiven. Let's travel through the forest and never talk about it again." He nodded his head before moving back towards the camp. I sighed and dried myself off, changing into a light travel dress. I was slightly embarrassed but it kept making me giggle every time I imagined Atlas' red face. I walked back to the camp as Atlas was packing the last bits away. He was in deep concentration and I placed my hand on his shoulder causing him to jump. He smiled at me and continued to pack in silence.

We walked beside the horses and started to warm up to each other a little more.

"So, were you excited to meet your soulmate then?" I asked him as we stood close to one another, protected by our horses.

"I was a little nervous I'd never find her. I had been on countless dates with all sorts of women throwing themselves at me. I hated it. I lost my parents and have been on the run ever since, I just wished for a little company. How about you?"

I sighed, "I haven't found him yet, but I think something is changing. I mean I never felt as though I had one. I feel as though I have an empty heart with no emotion...", he looked at me with sadness in his eyes, "Ah, I don't know." I laughed nervously.

Atlas wrapped his hand in mine and smiled at me as we drifted closer together. I found a weird attraction to Atlas. He was kind, gentle and sweet. His sense of humour matched mine and we found we spent time laughing and talking. We grew closer with every story, every mile and every step towards Sceneria.

As we sat down to rest the horses just outside the next village, I began to ponder what was happening to me. Things were changing inside me and I believed it was all to do with Atlas. He was changing me and it was not good. We fell asleep close to each other and I realized our friendship had to stop. I would need to stop it to protect my heart and Anna's.