𝑩𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒍𝒅

chapter thirty-three

Emriana

"Can we eat it?"

"No,"

"Is it blue?"

"It can be,"

"Is it soft?"

"It can be,"

"Princess come on, you have to help us," Zeke whined as he tugged at my dress like a child trying to get someone's attention. I shook my head, sending him a mischievous grin.

"Come on, it's not that hard," I laughed through my comment, and it seemed to anger the trio. They let out a series of curses under their breath, along with low grunts. It was so funny to see how bad they were at charades. It wasn't even a difficult object.

"Give us a clue!" Drakkar demanded as he sat up next to Zeke, who was still sulking.

"Say please," I teased them, hearing them release another series of profanities. I giggled, and Akira moved a little in his sleep next to me.

None of them said anything, and I couldn't help but be amused by their groggy attitude. They weren't really the type to say please and thank you. I moved my attention to the lovely sight before us.

The day was coming to an end, and the sun was slowly setting down, giving yellow and pink shades to the sky. It was really pretty, and it made me think of the evening back home when I would watch the sunset every day. I noticed earlier that a few guards had lit up the hanging oil lamps on the main dirt road.

I reached for a piece of grass near the edge of the blue blanket and plucked it. I rolled the herb between my fingers before tickling it with Akira's fur. His snout crippled as I kept moving the grass near his ear, which twitched every time. I giggled as I heard his low growl. His dark eyes stared right back at me as he released another annoyed growl.

"Oh, don't be mad! I was just teasing you," I giggled, but he didn't seem to appreciate it as he stood up and left, not before hitting me in the face with his tail. My eyes widened.

"Akira! Why?" I whined as I rubbed my cheek, and he just walked away.

"Please," I heard Drakkar whisper, and I glanced back at him to see he wasn't even looking at me, almost like he was ashamed.

"Huh?"

"Can you give us a clue, please?" he repeated under his breath, and I bit the inside of my cheek to hide the victory smile threatening to surface.

"Nope," I replied, giving them the same smirk they always gave me. Zeke's and Drakkar's brows raised at the same time as their eyes zeroed in on me. Before they could do anything else, I sprung to my feet and ran down the hill.

"Princess, don't run away from us," I heard Zeke call from behind me, but it only made me laugh harder.

"Little one, don't make us chase you," Drakkar added, and I glanced back to see the two of them standing up after me.

"You're too slow," I nagged them as I ran past the pond. It slowed me down as the ground was a bit uneven, but I kept running anyway. I squeaked as I almost slipped on a rock, but thankfully I was able to keep my balance.

I could hear their rapid footsteps and the sound of the herbs slapping their pants behind me. I was pretty sure they were letting me win at this point, their legs were so much longer than mine, but I still kept going.

I looked back and was surprised to see Drakkar only a few feet away from me. I squeaked as I fastened my pace, a laugh escaping my lips.

"Little one, I would stop if I were you," Drakkar called out, and I replied with a very out-of-breath no.