The Crown's Reflection

Chapter Twelve: Friends?

"When you are not fed love on a silver spoon you learn to lick it off knives. "

-Lauren Eden

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"Uh, Elsea?"

Elsea jolted back to the present, images of the memory still flashing through her mind. 

"Huh? Sorry, I was-"

"Spacing out again?" Everett sighed dramatically, as if it was a regular occurrence. 

"So..." Elsea said awkwardly, "Are we uh, fr-friends?" 

Ever gave her that exasperated look that he used for when he wanted her to feel especially stupid. Then he leaned across the coffee table and wrapped his arms around Elsea, crushing her to his chest. Elsea was frozen, and it took a full three seconds for her to realise that he was giving her a hug. 

"Usually a hug isn't supposed to be one-sided." Ever whispered in  her ear, and Elsea threw her arms around him and hugged him back, shaking with emotion. Tears sprang to her eyes at the sensation of being embraced, and she clung to him like her life depended on it. Never had she'd been hugged like this, like he never wanted to let her go. Elsea had a friend. 

"Ahem. Your food is ready." 

Elsea realised that she was still sitting in her chair, and that Ever was practically lying on the table hugging her. He extracted himself, and climbed off of the table and back into his seat. 

"Thanks." He said smoothly. Strangers gave him odd looks, but he grinned and ate his food calmly. Elsea downed her coffee, tilting the cup up so he couldn't see her flaming face and wet eyes. Ignoring the scalding, second degree burns that set her throat on fire, Elsea gulped greedily, the delicious liquid filling her at last. Once she was finished, Ever passed her a glass of ice water, brows high. Elsea took it thankfully, the cold water soothing her throat. 

"Listen, Ever. I didn-" Ever pushed a finger against her lips, silencing her.

"It's okay. I understand." A teasing smirk spread over his face. "Every single night, you thought of my face before you fell asleep, wishing I were there. You missed me so desperately, that sometimes you pretended to talk to me. You-"

Now it was Elsea's turn to cut him off. She grabbed his cooled coffee and without even thinking, splashed it all over his coat. 

Ever stared at her, and then down at the brown stain ruining his coat. Elsea knew she had taken it too far, and opened her mouth to give the biggest apology of her life. He made a surprised sound, and then started to laugh, his face crinkling with amusement. 

"Why, you-" Ever managed to say, before bursting into laughter again. He doubled over, and Elsea found herself dissolving into laughter too. 

"The look on your face-" Elsea laughed harder than ever. "-priceless." 

They laughed and laughed, pointing randomly and unable to form complete sentences.

After their fit had finally calmed down, they looked at each other, beaming. Everett's eyes were bright, his cheeks flushed from laughter. They left the coffee shop, and he slung an arm around her like it was the most right thing in the world. 

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"Whoa." Elsea's eyes widened as she took in the crush of people that rushed to the market. Every type of stand imaginable lined the closed-off street, filled with merchants eager to sell products. The air was a mix of sweet, savory, and sour  smells, making her mouth water in anticipation. 

Elsea held onto the back of Ever's coat, lest she get pulled away in the swarming customers. Everett had told her the event was overwhelming and exciting, which had begun to make sense now. 

"Yudi seeds for only two silver!" A old man waved seed packets in front of Elsea's face, his raspy voice accompanied  by a splatter of spit. "Consume one seed daily to get healthy, glowing skin!" 

"No thanks," Elsea said, raising her voice over the constant noise. 

"Look into the crystal ball." A young woman with old eyes thrust the ball in front of Elsea. "What do you see?"

All Elsea saw was her bewildered reflection. Ever and Elsea pushed past insistent sellers, trying to find something for lunch. Finally, they stumbled across a promising food stand: Warm soups, sandwiches, and  exotic fruits!  it read. Elsea bought a tuna sandwich so she could eat as they walked easily. It was salty and fresh, filling her up quickly. Everett was trying to eat his clam chowder, but was failing quite miserably, splashing food everywhere. 

"Let's find somewhere quieter to eat!" Ever shouted, and Elsea nodded her agreement enthusiastically. But after a couple minutes searching, they concluded that there was no such place. They continued walking aimlessly, dodging determined sellers as they went. 

"I have an idea," Ever said in her ear, so she could hear "We split up and buy something for each other." 

"Good idea," Elsea said, turning to speak in his, "We'll meet at the front of the market in an hour." Detaching her hand from its place on his coat reluctantly, Elsea headed in the opposite direction of Ever. She floated around for a bit, thinking of things he would like. A pastry place with a delightful aroma caught her eye, or in this case, her nose. A slice of vanilla cake with lavender coloured frosting stood out to her from the rest, and she bought it, pleased with the wax paper and delicate box it came in. 

Then she saw it. A stall with books being displayed, and a cheerful seller waving at people. Elsea practically ran to it, recognizing many covers that she'd enjoyed. Reminding herself that she was here for Ever, Elsea bought a particularly sad book, hoping he would cry as much as she did. The rest of the hour went by quickly, and she managed to find a wool black beanie for him also. 

At the front of the chaos, Elsea found Ever waiting for her, a surge of happiness making her tired limbs walk faster. Elsea traded bags with Ever, and they looked inside at the same time. A bouquet of fragrant and bright wildflowers greeted her, and Elsea buried her nose in them, wondering how he knew they were her favourite. A book waited for her on the bottom of the bag, and she let out a surprised  laugh. It was the exact same book she'd gotten him. Ever's face broke out in a wild grin, and Elsea soon joined him. 

Ever devoured the cake, and tugged the beanie over his ears, looking akin to a seal pup. His hair fanned over his face in inky tendrils, leaving him looking vulnerable and sweet. Elsea couldn't resist patting his head as they walked. 

Elsea saw the guard first, Everett a moment later. Their mood disintegrated and Ever yanked her behind a tree, pushing a finger to his lips. Elsea's breath came out fast and heavy, her heartbeat loud in her ears. How did they find her? Elsea was foolish to think she had escaped them forever. Now she was going to get dragged back to the palace, forced back to the life she had tried so hard to run from. Tears slid down her face, even as her fear choked her. 

The palace guard finished pounding the wanted poster into the wall, and Elsea held her breath and closed her eyes. Then it came to her. Her sister, the queen, had done this. Had sent guards to comb Raveene for her, and seemingly didn't care whether she came willingly or not. The guard looked around and after a nail biting moment, walked away, leaving Elsea to her fate. 

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Finally we get to the exciting stuff.

*evil laughter*