A Devious Exchange

Pride from Pity

At the crack of dawn, breakfast was served at the ringing of a bell in the courtyard. I had luckily gotten myself dressed early, hurrying to get some food before it was all gone. It wasn't much quantity wise, a plate of grits with a handful of eggs, but it's different to the regular bowl of porridge. As I ate my serving on a stump, I saw Miook and Nicholas get their food before joining me. Before I knew it, another bell rang. Miook didn't spare me a glance but grumbled something about another meeting. I quickly shoveled the rest of my food into my mouth and followed them back into the dim meeting room.

I couldn't bring myself to look over at Nicholas, even as he sat down beside me. He didn't say a word either, opting to stare straight forward till everyone was seated. It was incredibly awkward, the tension between us hopefully not visible.

I listened to the group's friendly bickering in a daze until a loud slam of the door nearly brought me to the floor. Low and behold, Commander Atticus stared over us with a harsh scrutiny, strutting forward to his chair. I could feel my skin prickle and hands dart into my lap to pick at the threads of my skirt. At the head of the table, a young man with distinctive red curls sat up straighter with one side-glance from the Commander, not daring to meet his eyes.

Not this again-

Atticus straightened out his uniform, his authoritative tone rumbling in his chest, "Let us continue. Moving forward to the finer details, The King has allowed us a dozen stallions and carriers to accompany us on the day's journey. Food staples and water flasks will be supplied accordingly, as well as weaponry."

He glared at each one of us, slowly sweeping his gaze around the room, "I expect nothing but prime conduct and full use of yourselves. In other words, don't expect to be twiddling your thumbs for even a second. If I assign you a task, you'd be a fool to do anything but the best."

For the next hour, Atticus kept discussing the layout of his mission. I could tell he spent a long time thinking over the plan, going as far as to include weather scenarios. I'll admit, he has the knowledge to be an experienced and tactile leader, but his companionship is atrocious. Gods help us if we had questions or suggestions!

My fingernails tapped against the table, my nerves still antsy. I leaned my weight onto the back of the chair, straightening myself again on the uncomfortable cushion. Each time he moved his gaze to my side of the room, I made work of counting the many bricks on the wall behind him. It didn't stop the cold shivers, but I didn't want to accidentally provoke the man.

From what I gathered, we'd be leaving with twenty soldiers, one captain, and one commander leading the expedition. He didn't mention who I was due to ride with, where to bunk, nor my overall purpose. My part was still allusive, but I only guessed it would come clear when we officially made the encounter. As much as I hated it, I wanted to know. If I were to be thieving the item, trading for the item, being sacrificed for the item. I could practically hear Prince Hendrix's voice elongate the word sacrifice in my ear, making my eyes flinch shut.

What even was the item in the first place? 

That thought also bothered me. Reginani mentioned something about a key, from what I could remember, but I'm not entirely sure. Maybe I could ask Nicholas-

"You best stop that tapping before Atticus bites your fingers off."

A warm hand gently clasped over mind under the table, ceasing my movements in a warm envelope. Nicholas looked at me worryingly in his peripheral, nodding his head back at Atticus.

I felt like a bucket of ice water splashed me right in the face when I looked back at the Commander, finding him already glaring at me. What is his deal with me! I couldn't look away from him now, noticing how his lips thinned and posture went rigid the longer we kept eye contact. It took me back to the times when schoolhouse teachers would glare at the class troublemakers before swatting them at the front of the room. The tips of my toes and fingers turned to ice, and I gulped down the remaining saliva in my dry mouth. I felt another squeeze on my hand in the back of my mind, pulling my eyes away graciously.