Hansel & Gretel [NaNoWriMo 2016]

CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Hansel

Hansel woke up again to find both his mother and Gretel were no longer in his room and on his bed. It did not worry him, however, for he knew that as queen his mother was mostly a busy person and that his sister was most definitely searching for answers to their problem.

He exhaled as he sat up, thinking about how Gretel had been on the way back to their rooms last night. She had explained that Pela said that the dragon was somehow tied to why they were supposedly going to die, but he knew that there was something off. Gretel hadn't told him something else, something that he could sense was very important. What else could Pela have told her? What else could be worse?

His feet touched the floor.

Gretel had to be protecting him like she always felt she needed to. She must have felt that it was better to keep something hidden from him so he wouldn't have an emotional freak out again. He could appreciate that sentiment, but hated that she wasn't being truthful with him. Even though she hadn't lied to him, he felt that omitting something was just another form of lying. How could he help if she wasn't telling him everything? They were a team. They had to have each other's backs.

He got dressed and left his bedroom, determined to track down his twin sister and confront her. He needed to know the truth and couldn't handle being treated like a child in this situation.

Much like his sister had done, he bumped into someone due to being lost in his thoughts. However, unlike his sister's collision with Mylo the Knight, clean sheets were dropped to the floor and a basket was tossed into the air. Hansel had a split second to see the brown of her skin and eyes before he realized he hadn't said anything.

"I'm so sorry," he apologized, immediately dropping to his knees and picking up the sheets. "I didn't realize I was walking so fast and I wasn't paying attention—"

"I'm the one who should be apologizing, your highness," the maid interrupted, frantic to fix this situation with the prince. "I shouldn't have been in your way—"

"In my way?" Hansel interrupted. "I should have been the one to get out of your way. You're working and all I'm doing is—"

The maid flushed and interrupted him again. "No, I should have been the one to get out of the way. If you're walking fast, clearly it's more important than whatever I'm doing—"

"Okay, okay!" Hansel interrupted for the last time. "How about it's both of our faults? We both take responsibility because neither one of us was paying any attention to where we were going and our surroundings."

The maid nodded weakly. "Okay, your highness."

Hansel grinned. "Now let's clean this up. If we leave the sheets on the floor any longer, someone is bound to step on them."

The maid agreed and they quickly picked up the unfolded sheets, placing back into the maid's basket. Once they were finished, Hansel got to his feet and offered her a hand which she took with a blush on her cheeks. However, the moment she was on her own two feet, she took back her hand and bowed her head.

"I apologize again, your highness. It won't happen again," she mumbled, her blush spreading over her face.

Hansel chuckled, waving off her apology. "It's fine . . . What's your name?"

"Yviene," she answered with her face almost buried in the basket.

"Yviene," he acknowledged before moving on. "Do you know where the library is? I was hoping to find it on my own, but if you're willing—"

Yviene's head snapped up and her head bobbled up and down. "Of course, your highness! It's not far from here so it'll only take a second."

"Thank you," he said with an absent mind.