Queen of Ashes │ Season 1 │The Journey

9 │Change of plans

Freya was roused from her dreamless sleep by a light gust of cool air. It was already dark outside. Lazily stretching, she slowly got out of the creaking bed and looked around the room. She was alone. Feeling a little uneasy, she put on her boots and adjusted her clothes so that they fit comfortably. Where were her companions? Should she start looking for them? Freya looked around the dark surroundings—the moonlight filtering through the curtains, thanks to which she could move around the room without making a big mess out of her movements.

She noticed that their bags were still in the room. What caught her attention, however, was the window that seemed to be closed when she and Leander went to sleep. Why was it open now? She approached it hesitantly. She wasn't quite sure what she expected when she pulled back the curtain, but it certainly wasn't what she had found—a pair of insanely dark eyes, staring at her surprised face with a twinkle.

"You're no longer sleeping, good. I've come to wake you up," Leander said with a grin. He gave her a look that could only mean that she should move from his way and give him space to hop into the room. Freya moved slowly.

"What are you doing exactly?" She asked, ogling him up and down. Her gaze lingered on his chest, which the full shape seemed to call out to her from beneath his half-unbuttoned shirt. That part got his attention.

"Like what you see?" He asked in response with a stare calling mischief.

"What? No! I..." Freya stuttered but stopped mid-sentence. That wasn't important right now. "Couldn't you enter using the door?"

He shrugged. "Where would the fun be in that?" He gave her one of his disarming smiles. One that Freya had come to like uncomfortably too much.

"Gods, give me patience..." Freya sighed, rolling her eyes. "Shouldn't we be on our way already?"

"Indeed. That's why we should hurry. Qadir is waiting downstairs," The Prince said as he picked up their belongings from the floor. "Do you need a moment?" He added, pointing at the small table with a bowl of water and a mirror on it.

"Do I look that bad?" Freya replied lightly, giving the Prince a fleeting smile. For some reason, she felt comfortable enough around him that she was ready for a little joking at this point.

Leander returned her smile without thinking. "You're way too beautiful to look bad even without much of a rest," he said so casually that it took Freya a moment to catch what exactly he had told her. She blushed and was about to reply to him as if contradicting his statement, but he did not allow her to do so, opening the door and heading toward the stairs. "We'll be downstairs but please, hurry up," he added, and after a while was gone, leaving Freya alone.

Realizing that she should take care of her morning—or in this case rather evening—toilet, she headed toward the table, sitting down and dipping her hands in the bowl of water. After a moment, her face was clean and her hair loosely braided. She looked decent, but beautiful? The Prince's words confused her. It was true that she kind of provoked him to say that, but damn, she hadn't expected him to answer her so casually, as if it was something obvious. Or maybe it was just his way of being? Maybe this was how he always talked to women? Anyway, she had to collect herself if she was willing to eat anything. Freya had a feeling that they were already late on their journey, and it was only the second night! She took a mental note to ask Qadir about his whereabouts, feeling their delay could be somehow connected to his activities.

By the time she reached the crowded beanery, the two men were already seated, a pint of beer in their hands and a good deal of food on the table which, she had guessed, was waiting for her. She took a seat and grabbed the food ravenously. This time they ordered bread with a couple kinds of cheese and sausages. She was eating greedily as if her life depended on it. In truth, she was more hungry than usual, but the other reason she almost pounced on the food was knowing that because of the delay, they probably wouldn't be able to stop by very often.