The Truth Over The Wall

Chapter 15

"My father was always so adamant about it," Alistair said rubbing his chin, "Eleven years he chased you to Tafah and back. How did you ever manage to convince him to go against King Damon's wishes?"

"It wasn't very easy," Hanalea choked on the words, it had not been at all easy, "But I was lucky I wasn't alone. I was never alone actually."

They had been riding for an hour now since they had met up with Elena. Alistair was right, it had been really awkward telling her she did not need to come anymore.

But much like her mother, she had not been deterred. She had explained how she could instead pose as the princess in Hanalea's place to keep anyone from finding out.

"Who knows," She had shrugged, "If it works. I might just be able to buy you more time."

Hanalea smiled slowly, as it occurred to her. She had not been alone, not really. Maybe she was blessed, but she had always been surrounded by one person or the other, ready to help her out.

"Jason," she started and then corrected herself out of respect for him, "King Jason was a great help. I'd thought it was enough that I had someone to write to, someone to talk to when he came to visit. But he was more than any of those things. He was always on my side and supported me from the very beginning...

"He was the one that encouraged me to talk to your father about it," Hanalea nodded and then smiled when she remembered, "And he was the one that calmed your father down after he'd heard what I had to say."

"Oh, yes," Alistair remarked, "That must have been an amusing conversation."

"Amusing?" Hanalea asked wide eyed and shocked, "Try traumatizing. He threatened his own life more than once unless I desisted."

"You can't pay attention to that," Alistair waved it off, "He's always been more than a little dramatic. Mother always said so."

"Yes, well," she said, saddened by this reminder of Ellie, Alistair's mother. Ellie's memories, though sweet and kind, were always touched with a hint of sadness. Framing them into eternity.

"Eventually he gave in." Hanalea cleared her throat, "King Jason was very persistent." Especially, after I told him what I'd found, she thought, purposefully keeping her eyes averted from him.

If Alistair noticed that she had purposefully kept something out and given him a secretive look while she was at it, then he'd made a very good show of keeping it to himself.

Some things or some particular secrets, he was privy to know, it would seem. And some he was not.

"We should stop here," Alistair said, hoping to end this conversation, "I'll set up camp."

Hanalea dismounted and responded, "I'll build the fire."

Claire's journals. Even after all these years, Hanalea held on to this silly fear that the less people that knew about them the better.

Otherwise, much like it happens in most fairy tales, her magical connection to her parents would be broken and lost. Because too many people will want to have contact with them too.

And that is not how magic works. You can only hold it in your hand for so long... Before it slips away and finds someone else that better cares for it.

She knew she could tell Alistair about them, and that she should. She just was not ready to reveal to him the secret doorway that led to that pretend world where they were still alive, and she could still be with them.

She could not tell him all these things, yet. Once maybe, when she and her Alistair had been as close as two friends could be.

But now with that four year chasm filled with hidden truths and unshared information, she was not sure she could tell him this just yet.