Lavender & Lilies

Tension

It had been two days since they passed through the primary checkpoint at Merceus. The night air was crisp and cold, and the mood had been even colder.

At least, it had been between Dimitri and Lilliana. Between Ambrose and Lilliana, however, it was suffice to say the mood was the exact opposite.

And that was the main reason the prince had walked a short ways away from the wagon.

Stopped in the middle of the forest path Ambrose claimed was a shortcut, the children were snuggled up cutely with one another, asleep and stock-still. Unfortunately, Lilliana and Ambrose were snuggled up in quite a different manner.

It reminded Dimitri far too much of his sleepless nights adjacent to Sylvain's room, which always sounded to have more than one person in it until unholy hours of the morning. So, trying his best not to wake any of the kids, he tiptoed out of the wagon and landed on the ground with a cushioned thump. There were other small trails throughout the forest they resided in, and he figured now was as good a time as any to explore one or two of them until he saw fit to check if the commotion had died down at all.

The weather in Enbarr was usually much warmer than he was used to. Faerghus, almost always harsh and unforgiving in its frigidness, would never have reached such levels of heat, even in the summer months. Mercifully, though, the night air was always more chilly in the Empire than it was during the daytime. It was the proper temperature for one to go trooping around alone in the dense forests, and Dimitri was thankful for it.

Now, as he stared at the trees in silence, the prince had nothing to do but reflect. How in the world did he end up kidnapping a horde of children and an insufferable young siren, who just so happened to be awaiting her promotion to duchess of part of his own domain?

Every time he asked himself such a question, he couldn't help but wonder if it would do his revenge plan any good to continue with this stupid scheme. And, for the most part, he wasn't even the one orchestrating the scheme; his captive was! An unbearable thought, to be sure, but it was true of his situation nonetheless.

As much as he hated to admit it, he couldn't kill the girl now. Not that he wasn't capable of it, but because everything would come crashing down if he went through with it. That raised the terrifying notion that perhaps Lilliana had planned for him to come to this dilemma. For all he knew, the kiss she trapped him in just a few days ago could have been an attempt to taunt him about it. If so, then perhaps it was for the best he hadn't threatened any actions of such nature against her recently. He most definitely wanted to, yes, but she would certainly bring this point up to keep him quiet.

Speaking of quiet, that was all the forest was until Dimitri heard a fearful sob come from somewhere behind him. Then, as suddenly as the sound erupted, something fast and heavy bowled into his leg, almost knocking him into a tree.

Dimitri grunted and unsheathed the hunting knife from the belt concealed underneath his shirt. The sobs stopped abruptly, replaced with a slight sniffle instead.

"Who is it?" Dimitri demanded sharply. "Show yourself. Now!"

Little Faye von Elway peeked out from behind the tree across from him.

Dimitri lowered his knife, feeling a bit silly. "O...oh. Hello there. I... I didn't realize it was you."

Faye rushed towards him once again and he knelt to catch her. There were tears in her eyes, and she buried her face in his clothes like she didn't care if he was her sister or not. The prince, unsure of what to do, awkwardly patted her head a few times.

"I c-can't find Lillie," Faye cried, obviously distressed. "I th-thought I heard her g-gasp, or some... something, and I'm s-scared she's hurt,"

He sat down and crossed his legs, setting her in his lap and letting her lean against him. "Er... I'm sure she's quite all right," He reassured her, suppressing the urge to snort wryly. "You're very caring to be worried about her, though."