A Journey

A Tempting Proposition

Annabelle stood, surrounded by soldiers prepared to attack upon the slightest attempt of escape, glaring menacingly down upon the man in the chair. Her father stood as far away as possible, not trusting his daughter any more than the guards around her. The little man, who wasn't fazed the slightest by Annabelle's rude manners.
"As you most likely know", the small man began, "I have been ruling over the Dwehre Kingdom for quite some time." A grunt was heard from Annabelle, followed by a warning poke in the back from the soldier.
The little man continued, "Yes. And I must say my peasants seem to be quite pleased with what I have accomplished. I got rid of that crazy man at the leak stand, fixed the crack on the street, ect. ect. My point, people seem to be getting bored. They want something to happen."
"And where do we come in?" Annabelle interrupted.
"Ah! Yes. The interesting part." The man rubbed his chin and layer back in his throne, arms crossed. "I want you two to be my mascots. You can play up the image of the helpless child is lost in the world! Then, a kind hearted old man, me, reunites the girl with her long lost father and brings the girl back home, where she reshape a her life! Then, I get some sympathy, and am finally respected again. Of course, you would get something in return. That's how agreements work. No one does something just because they are just that nice. Mark my sarcasm. No no no. We as individuals don't think like that. So, what's on your mind? Anything you want."
"And you assume we will give up our entire lives so you can feel good about yourself?" Annabelle questioned.
"Of course not! I would give you new, safer lives, filled with fame and fortune! Isn't that what any one would want?"
"It's very tempting" Julian said. "But how can I be sure you will hold your half of the agreement?"
"Look around me!" The king gestured, arms open, to his surrounding. "Does it look like I am struggling with money? I'm sure that whatever you want I will be able to afford."
"And what makes you think I will do this? Or does my voice not matter?" Annabelle grumbled angrily.
"Of course not! This isn't just a one person act. I need both of you. So what do you say?" The dwarf man was practically hanging of the edge of his seat.
"No way! I'm not doing this just so you can feel good about yourself! We have lives too!" Annabelle was practically yelling at this point.
"Annabelle, think long and hard about what you are saying. This could be our chance to live normally again." Her father warned in a slight whisper.
"No. There is no we in this. You threw away your chance at we when you ran away. It's only me and you." She had now centered her attention on Julian, stepping closer every word, as he cowered farther away from her accusing finger.
Reminding the two where they were, the small man began again. " I of course will give you the night to think it over. I will be expecting an answer tomorrow at breakfast. Until then, we have prepared rooms for each of you. Soldiers, would you please escort them?" And with a dismissive wave, they were marched off once again.