Silver: The Lost Royal

32 | The Shed

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Dhul ~ dhool
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NOT a whisper of cold could they feel in the air as they trudged onward under the blazing eye of the sun. Karyn had her hand wrapped around Zack's, holding on to it as sweat trickled down from every point on her torso and her forehead. Occasionally she felt a drop trail down her back as well. She tried to keep her focus on their connected hands and not on the burning sensation of the sun, or the incessant pricking at the spot where the SiatJan's blood had scorched her.

"I feel like Salome. Drained beyond drained or something like that," she said, and Zack chuckled.

"We should rest then," he said, and she let go of his hand before she sat on the ground. Zack joined her, his chuckles a delight to her ears as he sat cross-legged like her.

"What's so funny?" she asked. "You're also tired, aren't you? Plus, I'm not a nomad. No one trained my body for this."

In her peripheral vision, she caught Zack's teasing smile in response to the playful undertone in her statement.

"Yeah, you're not. You're a princess," he said, playing along.

"Exactly! Can you imagine a princess walking through an unending forest in the North?!"

"How atrocious? This would spark outrage and the people will need someone to blame for this."

"I'll be the first to put Jamie's name out."

Once their eyes met, his lips curved into a wide grin and neither could hold back the bubbles of laughter that tumbled out of them. The sound of their laughter echoed in her ears, and at that moment, the heat didn't make her skin burn. The pricking reduced to a fizzle as their bodies gravitated towards each other.

Yet, the wave of euphoria that had engulfed her soon passed, and in its place came a thought as sad as the wilted leaves around.

"Would they even accept me?" she started with Zack's burning gaze on her. "As their princess."

"Of course they would," he was quick to say.

"They barely know me."

"They do."

"Only for about seven years. The rest of my formative years are a mystery to them."

"They'll love you, regardless."

His statement forced her eyes to meet his. "Why do you say so?"

"You're easy to love," he said, and her eyebrows rose for a fraction in shock, but she also caught sight of a light shade of pink tainting Zack's cheeks.

"I mean." He cleared his throat and broke their locked gazes, staring ahead. "They've always loved you. You're going to be the first queen of Wlerden. Not the wife of a king, but the daughter of one. Every birthday of yours was a celebration in Wlerden. A reminder of how close you were to your coronation."

"My birthday was a celebration for everyone?"

"Yup." He stole a glance at her and chuckled at her wide eyes and parted lips. "That's how loved you are."

"How did you celebrate it?"

A smile formed on his lips before he let out a wistful laugh and as his eyes looked up to the sky, she could see the nostalgia swirling in them, as if the sky held memories of old.

"We lived in Dhul, Vunmarc and we weren't over twenty living there then, like one big extended family. The morning would start with music and displays of magic. That was before SiatJans or The Red Guard arrived. I would spend the whole day with the other kids, eating and playing."