The Pirate Queen

Chapter 39

Eric walked through the streets of Farnce with his head held high and his hand clasped firmly in Ariel's. There was a lightness in his heart that came from the ring on her finger. He knew now, without a doubt, that Ariel didn't want him dead anymore. Probably.

The lightness in his heart was what kept his feet moving assuredly as they walked through the quaint and clean streets of Farnce. He admired their white stone buildings with their iron balconies, window boxes overflowing with red and white flowers. Vendors on the street sold everything from clothing, to jewelry, rugs, and furniture and food. If they weren't on a mission to save the pirate crew stranded on the beach and, you know, the rest of the world, Eric would have stopped and bought a cup of warm apple cider, along with a flat pastry stuffed with fresh fruit and chocolate to share with Ariel.

This, this, was the world he'd grown up in. Not balancing on the bucking deck of a ship, but strolling along the streets, admiring the scenery, talking to vendors, and just being.

But they didn't have that luxury. War aside, Eric was a missing runaway prince and Ariel was a long-lost princess and Pirate King. Taking the day off to gorge themselves on street food was not what they could afford to do. But it was one of the things they were fighting for others to be able to continue doing.

It was a beautiful day, if not a tad cool, and it seemed the entire city was out on the streets. Many people gave them curious looks, but no one seemed outright hostile. They were given a wide berth though, perhaps because of their shoddy clothes or the fact they smelled like the ocean.

"Everyone looks so... Happy," Ariel mumbled.

Eric nodded as they strolled across the street from a park where a group of children were kicking around a ball, screeching and laughing while their parents watched from the pools of sunlight between the tall trees. "Farnce is small and lost most of their navy power, but the country is very prosperous. They control the most fertile fishing spots in the northern hemisphere. Wealth is shared, the people are happy."

Ariel gave a slow nod, taking in everything around her. He couldn't even begin to imagine what was going through he mind right now, seeing her country for the first time. Her birthright. The higher up the hills they went, the better the view of the town right down to the fishing docks. Eric watched Ariel carefully but her face betrayed nothing as they stopped outside the gates where five guards were stationed.

The guards paused their chatting when they saw the small ragtag crew, pushing off the walls they'd been leaning against casually as the four pirates and one prince walked up.

Regretfully, Eric pulled his hand from Ariel as he sauntered up to the gate, making a show of taking them in. Their crisp uniforms, the sharpened swords, the polished boots. All of it untested against actual threats like them.

"I'm sure it'll make the King happy to hear he has a group of languorous boys stationed at his gates," he drawled.

The tallest one, still three inches shorted than Eric, straightened as he stepped forward. "I've been minding these gates for the past ten years, boy. If the King has an issue, he's yet to bring it up with me."

Eric's eyebrows shot up as he took in the man closer up. He was older, the eldest of the five, with a greying beard and a lined face. It was possible he had fought pirates before and had taken this position as a way to get away from the action. A shame he was about to get thrown right back into it. "Well I've got an issue, and I'm bringing it up. If an actual threat came at your gates those walls would defend better than you."

The man's face turned beet red and he drew his sword, pointing it at Eric's chest. Clearly he, and his four companions, had failed to recognize how well armed they all were. Eric didn't even blink. He'd aimed to antagonize but not maim. No one else drew a weapon either, taking their cues from him.