The Prince's Mark

Chapter Six

Hearing the other elf's voice made Pendaer freeze. Agonizingly slowly, he let go of Tracou, stood up, and faced the other elf.

The other elf said something in a language Tracou didn't understand. He had never heard Elvish before, but that had to be what he was using. It was entirely incomprehensible. This elf must have enjoyed the sound of his own voice because it was quite a while before Pendaer got a word in edgewise.

When it was his turn, Pendaer opened his mouth, paused, and then looked down at Tracou.

"Listen,"Pendaer said to the other elf in Aodehsh. "I understand all of that, but nothing has happened. If it had been allowed from the beginning, I wouldn't have had to do... what I did."

The other elf appeared flummoxed. He looked Pendaer over, took a step closer to him, and asked him a short question in Elvish.

"Because speaking in Elvish would be rude," Pendaer explained, gesturing toward Tracou, who had stood up and moved to Pendaer's side.

Only then did the other elf spare Tracou the barest of glances. The elf'supper lip curled in disgust at the sight of him, just like it had when they first met.

"Surely you must realize how far you're lowering yourself by associating with a dezmek."

Tracou tensed. This elf was unbelievable!

Before Tracou could say anything to defend himself, Pendaer moved partially in front of him, as if to shield him.

"This dezmek has been helping me."

"Well, you don't need to rely on someone like him anymore. So." The other elf glowered down at Tracou. "Go on. No need to plague us with your presence."

"Plague you!?" Tracou had never dealt with someone so awful in his life! How could he say such cruel things so easily?

Pendaer let out a slow breath through his nose. "You'll apologize to him," he said to the other elf, voice low. "I heard that you were rude to him the night before last, too."

"What?! But, your—!"

"Apologize."

A range of emotion crossed the other elf's face, all negative. It took some time for him to slide his gray eyes over to Tracou and it took even longer for him to start speaking.

"My apologies," he mumbled.

Pendaer smiled. "Is that better? I told him off for you."

That was an apology in name only. Still, it was better than anything Tracou could have gotten by himself.

"Marginally."

"Hmph. This is absurd," the other elf said. "The sooner I bring you back home, the better—clearly this country is a corrupting influence. Say goodbye to the dezmek and let's go!"

"I don't want to go."

Silence descended between the two elves. The crowd, still waiting for the play, kept up their chattering in the background. Pendaer stood tall,still half in front of Tracou, and was rather calm for someone dealing with someone so infuriating. The other elf radiated rage,which cut off suddenly. He straightened up, tapping his foot.

"You realize that, as long as we're outside the Elven Kingdom, I have permission to do whatever is necessary to bring you home, don't you?"

Pendaer winced.

Whatever was going on was bad. This other elf was causing problems for Pendaer and, on top of that, was simply terrible. It sounded like he was willing to resort to violence. Pendaer was not fit for a fight. His ability to shoot a bow wasn't going to save him if he didn't have one. Anyone could see that. So Tracou reached behind him and under his tunic to pull his wand out into the open.

"If he lays a hand on you, I can take care of him," he said.

Both elves turned to Tracou, but had very different reactions. The sight of Tracou's wand made the other elf flinch, as it should! In contrast, Pendaer beamed down at him as though he had performed the greatest trick of all time. That look should have made him feel patronized, but instead Tracou wanted Pendaer to always look at him like that.

"You would defend me?"

"I said I would help you," Tracou replied, doing his utmost to keep his voice even.

The other elf loudly cleared his throat, forcing Pendaer and Tracou to redirect their attention to him.

"Even with this threat," the other elf began, chancing a glance at Tracou's wand. "I stand firm. I must bring you back home as quickly as possible."

To Tracou's surprise, Pendaer nodded. "I understand. But... Give me the rest of today. Alone. I might never get a chance like this again and I'd like to enjoy it."

The other elf frowned. "That is decidedly more time than quickly as possible."

"I know. But if you give me some time... I'll go back willingly with you. And I'll sing your praises when we return."

This made the other elf freeze. A shudder then ran through him as he regained his ability to move. "Sing my praises?"

"I'm sure you know what I mean."

"I-I do. Yes, fine! I'll give you some extra time. Then tomorrow we'll leave! I'll come to collect you right here."

"Fine. I'll meet you here tomorrow, around midday."

"Is that really okay?" Tracou asked.

Pendaer shrugged his shoulders. "Sure. Let's go."

With that, Pendaer grabbed Tracou's hand and hurried away, leaving the other elf behind in the crowd.