The Gift of Beauty | ONC2020

Chapter 3

The sun was had only just come up on the horizon when Brandon was making his way back to The Golden Fleece. This time he was wearing a simple grey tunic with a coat of mail over it. On his back he wore a shield, and by his side hung a sword. The lands outside the city walls were inhabited by all kinds of beasts and creatures, and as a nobleman, it was his job to ensure the two of them would be safe. Even though he was just a lesser noble, he had been practicing with the sword for as long as he could walk, and he was confident in his abilities.

Three horses were walking closely behind him. Two would be ridden by Rose and him, while the third was carrying their supplies – water, food and their sleeping gear.

It had been easy enough to gather the supplies. The kitchen in his family's manor always had enough food, and the sleeping supplies were easy enough to steal out of the barracks. The horses were a different matter. Horses were expensive, so his family didn't own many. Brandon knew that his father was going to be furious when he finds out, but it didn't bother him too much. Brandon would be far outside of his reach. He just hoped that he wouldn't still be angry when they returned.

When the seamstress' store came within sight, doubt started to beset him. He was confident that if they managed to complete the dress, that King Edward had no choice but to crown him as the winner. But that was just the problem. What if they didn't manage to do it? What if they were late, or something happened to them during their travels? Or even worse, what if Rose would betray him? He wouldn't put it past her just yet, given how she acted out against him yesterday.

Brandon sighed. There were many things he was concerned about, and for good reasons. But in the end, none of it mattered. Because no matter how great the risk, Victoria was worth it.

When Brandon reached The Golde Fleece, he saw light coming out of the windows. At least they're awake, he thought, as he knocked on the door.

Immediately the door swung open, and Abigail stared at him through the doorposts. She looked frightening, her hair was all messed up and she had an angry look on her face.

"Now listen to me, dear," she said, softly but sternly. "I'm allowing Rose to go with you because she can use the experience. But she means the world to me. If anything happens to her, even if it's just a scratch, I'm holding you responsible."

She bowed towards him as she heard Rose come closer. "I bet you'd make a fine scarf, dear," she whispered in his ear.

Brandon stood stunned. She couldn't actually turn people into clothes... could she? Brandon had to admit he didn't actually know. And he didn't want to find out either.

"Don't worry, madam. I'll protect her," Brandon said, trying his best to keep his voice from shaking, though he didn't think he succeeded.

"I can protect myself. The question is, who will protect you?" Rose said, a smile on her face as she walked out the door. She was wearing a black coat and had a large pack strapped around her shoulders.

When she reached stood next to Brandon, she opened the bag, and took out a thin light blue dress. "A dress woven from the silk of the northern cave spider. Ready to be imbued with magical essence." The Husk seemed like a plain dress to Brandon, and he didn't see anything special about it. But then again, it wasn't yet imbued with magic.

However, even Brandon's untrained eyes could see that the dress was much too large for Victoria. "I don't think the dress will fit. Don't you have any smaller ones?"

Rose rolled her eyes. "We're going to use magic on it, dummy. It'll shrink to fit the person wearing it perfectly," she said. She gave Abigail a short hug and they said their goodbyes.