Keep Your Enemies Closer

An Escape of Accusation and Misgiving

"Cheerfulness and contentment are great beautifiers, and are famous preservers of good looks." - Charles Dickens

Reyna flew through the palace, still in her nightclothes. Only the maids and servants were awake to her chagrin but they weren't enough to stop her. Oh, she was a sight to anyone who saw her running, her stream of dark hair billowing out behind her as she reached the gardens. It was still quiet, the only people there the gardeners snipping away dead flowers. She was too quick for them to spare her a glance, although they may have heard her hiss of pain as a pebble nipped her bare feet. The ground beneath her feet at least was dry and cracked, not wet and mushy from rain. As she got far enough way, she looked over her shoulder to her balcony, seeing Donovan's figure so so visible against the rising light. It wouldn't be long before someone noticed, no, not long at all. The barracks were in sight now and she ran faster at its appearance, calves burning as her legs pumped. Once she reached Fabian - they could run together. Immediately. Her breath quickened in short gasps as she finally reached its entrance, bursting into its doors. 

Reyna found an unexpected image inside - a group of young soldiers only in towels, gaping at her intrusion. They stared, stopped in mid conversation. She wondered how long they would gawk before clearing her throat and straightening up. Like her hair wasn't a mess, her feet weren't bare and caked with dirt and she wasn't in her nightwear. She put on her most charming smile. "Can you tell me where Fabian is?" She asked nonchalantly. The boys glanced to each other in a silent debate and Reyna cursed for them to hurry up. One of them finally said as she bounced on the balls of her feet - "two rights and a left." She didn't bother with thanking them as she raced through them, head pounding. She didn't run into any more soldiers fortunately as she reached a singular room there - and breathed a sigh of relief as she raised her fist to the door. 

It occurred to her then, this was the first time she had been in here despite her training. He had seen her room numerous times - but Reyna had never seen his. This wasn't the time for curiosity though. "Fabian?" She called, knocking on the door numerous times. She heard a pair of footsteps and a muffled reply and in an instant the door was open and he was there, frowning at her. "What are you doing here?" He held the door open and Reyna went in without a second thought, slamming the door shut behind her. She leaned against it, finding Fabian looking aghast.

"Something's gone wrong."

"You could say that." Fabian looked her over, for injuries he wouldn't find thanks to Juniper. She itched to ask him if what he knew that made him want to leave was what she found out about Donovan. But that conservation was for another time - right now, her priority was getting out and fast. "We need to leave." She ordered, leaving no room for discussion as she gestured to the pack she had on her shoulder and then his. "Can you slow down for a second? What happened?" When Reyna saw he wouldn't budge, she sighed angrily. "Your best friend tried to strangle me on a balcony that's what." Fabian's face drained of colour. "And he's a murderer," she seethed. "But I'm guessing you already knew that." His throat bobbed at that and Reyna knew it to be true. "He's currently lying unconscious on my balcony." She finished. "So its not looking good for me."

"Reyna-"

"No." She interrupted, eyes hot with impatience and rage. "We'll talk about this if I don't end up dead. Talking of-" she jerked her head to the door. "We need to run." Fabian nodded, gathering up his own pack of supplies and flinging it over his shoulder. "Okay, okay." He did one last check of his room and then opened the door, Reyna not far behind him. Her heart beat abnormally in her chest as they sprinted through the barracks, not a solder in sight to see them. Fabian looked around and if she squinted hard enough, Reyna bet she would see a crowd of distressed people on her balcony. Fabian gestured for her to follow and she tore her eyes away, running into the woods. "Wait." He flung a hand up and she stopped, nearly barrelling into him. "What?" She asked, rife with a need to continue running. He scoffed at her attire. "You can't seriously think you can run miles in that." 

She swallowed her pride and went behind a nearby tree. She dressed as quickly as she could, into her training clothes and shoved her nightclothes in the pack. She was tempted to leave them strewn amid the mud and dirt but it would only leave a trail for where they'd gone. And they couldn't have that. She tramped back forwards and nodded to Fabian that she was ready to continue. Behind them she could hear voices growing closer, to the woods or the barracks she didn't know. But she didn't want to stick around to find out. Bird song clouded her ears as they ran forward, feet crunching over various sticks and twigs. The melody calmed her down, cleared some of the haze that inhabited her mind. It was shady in the forest, the sun not yet peeking through the canopy and she muttered a prayer for that under her breath. She was already boiling despite the coolness of the forest but she didn't dare stop. Neither did Fabian, who said nothing and just continued running. 

Reyna was glad then, for her training these last weeks. Without it, she couldn't have run this much and would have been doubled over in the first ten minutes. It could have been an half an hour, or one or two, when they reached a small stream. Suddenly, she was back in Valbara, parched and starving, trying to make her way to her salivation while running from deadly monsters. It was amusing how things were so different and not different at all. She was running from a deadly monster, parched and starving, while trying to make her way to a salivation that didn't end with her neck snapping like a bird or her oh so precious head cut clean off. Reyna barked a laugh at herself and Fabian span at the sound, brows raised high. She waved him off. "I think I'm losing my mind." She explained and at his expression, she laughed again. He slumped to the forest floor and handed her a water skin from his pack. "Your hands are trembling." He murmured after she had a long drink, his hands rubbing hers. The motions soothed her and she closed her eyes, leaning her head against his shoulder.

It was so silent in the forest she could hear the constant thump of his heart. Reyna exhaled, her mind trying to lull her to sleep. He didn't say anything and they just sat there in the middle of the woods, who knows where. Finally he said, "we need to keep moving."

"I know." 

Neither of them made a move to leave. Fabian exhaled and she could hear the unsaid emotion in it. "Tell me," she whispered against his neck. At first, she thought he wasn't going to reply but eventually he said, "I almost got you killed today Reyna because I didn't tell you. If I had, he never would have gotten that close to you." She marked how he deliberately didn't use Donovan's name. "How long have you known?" She asked softly. How long has he been like this.

"He could be violent and jealous when he was younger. But, in the last five years, he hadn't been like that anymore. I mean, I knew he got drunk and slept around - got up to stuff he shouldn't - but I assumed he was just going through being a handsome wealthy young Prince. I only found out he had been murdering these women-" he let out a strangled voice as he said it and Reyna fought not to flinch from the sound as goosebumps crawled up her arms. "-when I went into his study only yesterday evening and found Gladys limp on the floor while he stood over her." 

"And?" She could barely get the words out, just thinking of the kind brown haired girl she had known. "He told me it was a mistake and to leave. Not to breathe a word to anyone." Reyna opened her eyes and watched Fabian shake his head. "I had never seen him like that even when he was young."

"You weren't going to say anything, were you?"

"I didn't know what to do. What to think. I liked Gladys - she was my friend. She never deserved that. I just knew I wanted to leave." Fabian explained, meeting her gaze. 

"It wasn't just me."

"No."

"You would have stayed." She accused, more disappointed than angry.

Fabian pulled back. "Not if he'd tried to kill you." He pleaded. "If I knew what he was - I could never serve that. Never."

"She wasn't his first kill either." Reyna murmured, other faces rising in the heap of her memories. Guilt swamped her, at accepting Donovan's words so easily. Something occurred to Reyna and without thinking it through she blurted, "you weren't going to say anything because you were jealous of her and Everly were you?"

Fabian's head snapped towards her, his face horrified and hurt from the accusation. "Is that what you think of me?" He gestured between them as he stood up, dropping the water skin into the pack. "This can't exist if there's no trust between us." Fabian warned, an edge to his voice as he took off running, not bothering to wait for her. With his words ringing in her ears, she had nothing else to do but get up and follow him.