Anilyia (36 page)

“You mean you really speak to flowers?”
Anilyia asked in disbelief.

“Yes. Flowers have always been my friends,”
Liselle answered. They continued walking again. Anilyia looked as
though she were going to say something else, but refrained.

After traveling through the light brush for
another ten minutes, they came around a bend in the canyon to see a
small waterfall at the end. At the bottom was a good-sized pool.
“Ohh, that looks wonderful,” Liselle said with a little clap.
Turning to Tathan she commanded, “You two boys set up a camp on
this side of the bend. Princess Anilyia and I are going to take a
bath!” She handed over her bow and quiver, grabbed the princess’s
hand and tore her away from Tathan.

Liselle desperately wanted to bathe. She had
a bar of soap in her pack as well as a towel allowing her to wash
her face and hands in various streams underground, but this pool
looked divine. She knew the princess would want to clean up too,
regardless of the fact that she was trying to escape Liselle’s
grasp.

They reached the edge of the pool and
Liselle stripped out of her clothes while Anilyia stood there
staring at the water. “Well, get undressed. I have soap. We’ll get
under the waterfall and let it run through our hair,” Liselle
encouraged. She dipped a toe in the water. “It’s nice, not too cold
even though we’re in the mountains.” The princess didn’t budge,
just staring at the water. Liselle sighed. “You do know how to take
off your dress, don’t you?” she asked jokingly.

Princess Anilyia shook her head
side-to-side, tears streaming down her cheeks. Liselle stared at
her in shock. Surely, the princess could do something as simple as
remove clothes . . . or not. Liselle moved back to her, ignoring
the way Anilyia shrank from her touch.

“I’m not going to hurt you. Quit acting like
I’m a monster,” Liselle told her as she unclasped the dress down
the back. It was badly tattered, not being made for running through
tunnels. She had the princess step out of it and the undergarments
and then helped take the shoes off. Other than being dirty, the
princess was exceptionally beautiful. “Well, come on, let’s get in
the water.”

She led Anilyia into the pond. The princess
wasn’t struggling to get away anymore, which was nice. “Have you
ever bathed yourself?” Liselle asked. Anilyia shook her head no
again. They were into the middle of the pool and the water was up
to their waists. “Let me get this straight. You’ve never undressed
yourself, you’ve never bathed yourself, you’ve never . . . have you
ever done anything for yourself?” Liselle asked. Anilyia shook her
head no, yet again.

Liselle was beginning to understand why
Tathan sighed all the time. She led the princess to the waterfall.
At first Anilyia shrank back from the water falling on her head.
Liselle let the princess be for a minute while letting the water
wash some of the dirt and sweat from her own hair. Then she stepped
back and used the soap she had brought with to create lather. It
took two washings to get the grime out, but felt so much better
when she was done.

Anilyia stood under the waterfall while
Liselle washed. The princess watched and began to run fingers
through the platinum tresses that had become brown from dirt.
Liselle created more lather and began to help the princess wash her
hair. “Scrub the soap into your hair with your hands,” she
explained, showing her how. The princess followed along and
actually smiled as she gained confidence. “Do you really have
people to do everything for you?” Liselle asked.

“Yes,” Anilyia answered, speaking for the
first time in a while. “My handmaidens dress, bathe, and care for
my every need. I do feed myself,” she said with a blush. Liselle
smiled gently, happy that the princess was finally talking. “I’m
not stupid or helpless,” the princess finished.

“I don’t think that, Your Highness,” Liselle
replied. “I’ve always taken care of myself, even when I was a
child. It’s unusual to meet someone who isn’t self-sufficient.”

“Are you giving me a bath so I’m clean when
the dragon eats me?” Anilyia asked quietly.

Liselle stopped in shock. “Wha . . . no!
Vevin isn’t going to eat you.” Liselle put her hands on the
princess’s shoulders and looked her in the eyes. “He told me that
dragons are allowed to eat princesses and even that you’re supposed
to taste extremely good.” Alarm showed on the princess’s face and
Liselle realized that probably wasn’t the best thing to say. “But
he promised he wasn’t going to eat you and he’ll keep that
promise.”

Anilyia looked entirely unconvinced. Liselle
hugged her. “Let’s finish cleaning up and then we’ll see what we
can do about fixing your dress. Are you certain you won’t wear the
robe I have?” The princess shook her head vigorously and Liselle
left it alone. She went to get their clothes, washed them, wrung
them out and put them on rocks to dry. The dress wasn’t perfect,
but it no longer smelled.

When they were done, Liselle took the towel
out of her pack and gave it to the princess who merely stared at
it. “You don’t know how to dry yourself either?” When the princess
shook her head yet again, Liselle helped her dry off and then dried
herself. She put on the grey and black robe made for her by the
Rojuun. Anilyia glanced at it with distaste. Liselle saw the look
and said, “Ahh, but I am comfortable and clean, whereas you have
only the towel to cover yourself for now.”

The princess looked down as Liselle wrapped
the towel around the important parts and tied it off. They left the
damp clothes where they were and headed back to the camp.

The boys had the camp completely set with
sleeping bags laid out and dinner cooking over a nice fire. Tathan
stared at the princess in her towel when they walked up. For once,
the princess hid behind Liselle who raised an eyebrow at her
cousin. “We would be thankful if you took a bath now, Cousin,” she
said, shooing him off.

Tathan had the good sense to blush. “Sir
Danth went to explore the path ahead and said he would be back by
morning.” He grabbed his pack and headed to the pool. The princess
stared at him until he was gone around the bend. She began to
follow him so she could watch, but Liselle dragged her to the fire
and dinner. It was ready and they ate their share.

A short while later, Tathan came back
wearing his own Rojuun robe, sword-belt wrapped around his waist.
Liselle had put the princess to bed in the extra bedroll Tathan had
thought to bring before they made the rescue. Regrettably, he
didn’t think to bring an extra towel or wardrobe fit for a
princess.

“Is she asleep?” he asked, pointing at the
princess. Liselle nodded and handed him a plate of food. “Good. My
hand will appreciate the break,” he said with a grin. Liselle
laughed in response and gave him a hug.

She broke the hug and frowned at her cousin,
holding him at arm’s length. “I’m worried about you, Cousin.”

He frowned in return. “Worried? About me?
Why?”

“Because you’re attracted to a very
beautiful princess who is also attracted to you,” Liselle answered.
“I see the way you look at her and the way she looks at you in
return and it worries me, especially with how far we have to
journey.”

Tathan began to protest and then fell
silent. He looked at the sleeping form. “She’s so beautiful,” he
said longingly, alarming Liselle even more. “I know I’ll never be
allowed to have her, but that’s part of what makes her so
desirable,” he said, turning back to Liselle with a crooked grin.
“I’m a thief. I take things I’m not allowed to have.”

“Oh, that’s nice, Cousin. So I have to
protect her from my lover and now you?” she asked in irritation
with hands on hips. “The princess doesn’t even trust Sir Danth and
doesn’t like me either.” Liselle began pacing. “I can’t say as I
blame her considering how I treated her. I’ve got to figure out a
way to control the flames when I get frustrated.” She stopped and
narrowed her eyes at Tathan. “You don’t get to have a relationship
with the princess and she’s not a piece of jewelry for you to
steal.”

He held up his hands. “I know. That’s not
how I really feel. I don’t want to steal her. She is beautiful
though.” Tathan looked at the sleeping form. “It’s nice to be
needed. It’s even nicer to have a hand to hold.”

Liselle stared at him. He didn’t notice.
“Tathan,” she said warningly. When he looked at her, she pointed a
finger in his face. “No.”

Tathan stared at the finger for a moment
then sighed and nodded. “I know.” He gave her a big hug. After he
ate his dinner, they both went to sleep.

***

Princess Anilyia lay awake in thought for a
short while after they finished talking about her. Her marriage was
needed so her kingdom could be at peace and fight off the advances
of the Iynath Empire. Yet she desperately wanted the thief to steal
her so she could continue holding his hand.

The wonderful aroma of cooking food woke
Liselle. The sun was well above the horizon. “I let everyone sleep
awhile. You needed the rest,” Sir Danth said from next to the
firepit. Liselle looked around and saw the princess and Tathan just
getting up as well. Vevin was nowhere to be seen.

Anilyia held the sleeping bag tight against
her chest and looked to Liselle for assistance. Before she could
react, Sir Danth pointed to some nearby rocks. “I brought all your
clothes here. They are dry.”

Liselle retrieved the clothing and glared at
the men until they turned their backs. She helped the princess into
her dress. A needle and thread in her bag would take care of the
worst rips when she had the chance. They sat down to breakfast.

“Sir Danth, has there been any sight of
Vevin?” Liselle asked.

“No, Milady. He has not returned, nor have I
seen wings in the sky.”

“Oh . . .” Liselle’s face fell.

“Dragons consider time differently than we
do, Milady. I am certain he will be just fine,” the knight
reassured her with a smile.

“Sir Knight,” Anilyia began. Everyone turned
to her. She paused for a moment before asking, “How do you make
expressions with your helmet on?” Sir Danth responded by raising an
eyebrow. When no other answer was forthcoming, they all burst into
laughter. It released much of the tension from the last few
days.

They had just finished their breakfast when
the attack came. Liselle felt her bones melt as she collapsed to
the ground. The princess and Tathan also hit the ground, both
screaming in agony.

Liselle searched her mind for some way to
overcome the spell. Her bones were in extreme pain. She didn’t know
if they had actually melted or not, but they no longer felt solid.
The screams of her cousin and the princess were distracting.
Liselle wasn’t screaming. She had been hurt before and could handle
it for some reason. Perhaps it was the knowledge she could heal
herself that made the anguish tolerable.

Rojuun warriors appeared over her, their
long knives at the ready. Between the screams and her own pain, she
couldn’t concentrate enough to cast any kind of spell or even think
what would be best.

Red rain fell from above. It took a moment
to realize that blood droplets were falling on her. A Rojuun head
flew through the air, headed for new adventures without its body.
More red raindrops flew. It was pretty in an abstract way. Sir
Danth’s sword swung in a silver arc, the blood spraying from its
edge.

The rain stopped and Sir Danth disappeared.
Liselle managed to tune out the screams enough to concentrate. She
began healing her bones and was able to determine that there was
nothing physically wrong with them. It was magic causing them to
feel that way. There was no telling how much time was passing,
although it felt like an eternity. She was working on understanding
how to overcome the spell when the sensation abruptly
disappeared.

Air filled her lungs, causing her to realize
that she hadn’t been breathing fully. Tathan and Anilyia stopped
screaming and gasped for air as well. Liselle struggled to get to
her feet, but Tathan was faster, his sword out and thirsting to
join in the bloodshed.

They looked around. Thirty dead Rojuun
littered the ground, half neatly decapitated. Sir Danth was nowhere
to be seen, but the sounds of battle rang from above the eastern
side of their small canyon. Tathan ran in that direction, but
stopped after a few steps. He looked at Liselle and the princess,
then back at the bank. It took an instant for him to move back to
the ladies, standing between them and the canyon wall while looking
for any movement or sign of danger.

“Thank you, Cousin,” Liselle said briefly.
She concentrated on a particular spell Vevin had shown her in their
travels. She cast it on herself first as he had taught her. The
spell would protect her for a little while from any further hostile
spells like the one that had melted their bones. She couldn’t
maintain it for too long though. She then cast the same spell on
Tathan, saving the princess for last.

Vevin had told her that it was important to
always protect herself first so she could continue to function. The
next most important was to protect whoever might be able to defend
her. Last was anyone who was innocent and might be harmed.

Tathan looked back and nodded in
appreciation, recognizing that she had cast the spell. Anilyia was
finally able to stand and ran sobbing into Liselle’s arms. They
were all covered in Rojuun blood, spread by the knight’s sword.

The knight suddenly reappeared in front of
them, his sword gleaming in the morning sun. There wasn’t a speck
of blood anywhere on it or his armor, a feature Tathan happened to
be very jealous of. “They are all dead,” he assured them. “Some
were at the top of the canyon casting spells while others snuck up
the river and lay in wait until we were incapacitated. They did not
realize their spell would have no effect on me.”