Lost Crown

Why?

We have been walking for at least five hour before we stopped. We we're still in the city, strangely. He threw me down on a bench. I coughed, my throat dry. I watched him as he looked about, not helping but to admire how strong he looked. I shook it off quickly.

"Why did we stop? Are you finally going to release me?" I spat a bit bitterly. He ignored my tone and shook his head. "No, we are simply looking for somewhere to eat and drink." He told me. My eyes lit up.

"We're going somewhere for food?!" I yelped excitedly. He stared at me. "Why is it such a surprise?" He growled. I shrunk back a bit. "Well, I just thought since I'm a captive-" Zano glared at me coldly. "Would you prefer not to have food?" He asked sharply. I shook my head abruptly. "N-No!" I protested. He snorted. "Then do as your told and shut up." He growled. He grabbed my ropes and dragged me along roughly.

The street was less crowded now and a huge river split each side of the road. Boats of weird shapes and colors came crawling by, people with cameras on there in awe. Strange purple ducks floated on the surface of the water that looks part deer. Oh, how they all looked so free. I would give anything for that ignorance again.

He stopped at a street cart that didn't have a line. He made sure to keep me close, not letting me even glance in a direction to run. "One fried apple, a Bênõllån Crunch, and two sodas." He ordered. The owner nodded and placed a bag in front of him with two sodas on the side. "Seven Kihn!" He demands.

Zano growls and opens his wallet, pulling out three coins. One was a silver color, strange print covering the surface. The other two were bronze, different descriptions on them. He hand them over, the owner smiling.

Zano grabbed the bags and placed one drink and the bag in my hand. "Carry this." He instructed. I glared at him. "So no only am I a captive, I'm also your personal servant! Just dandy." I throw out there sarcastically. He glares but says nothing as he searches for a seat for us.

We made our way to a bench. He ties me down and snatches the bag, digging through it. He pulls out an apple the size of a cherry. It was crunchy on the outside, and looked yummy. Just extremely small. He throws it at me, digging around more.

I catch it, starving. I haven't eaten in so long. I plop it into my mouth, bitting into it. It exploded into several different flavors, none of them apple. Still, I could feel my eye light up in delight as I swallow. It wasn't filling at all, but it taste wonderful. I smile and looked up to say 'thank you' when I saw what he had.

His lunch was a huge sandwich dripping with a salty and creamy sauce. The bread was toasted and barely was able the keep together the layers of meat and plants. His eyes met mine right as he was about to take his first bite. He growled. "What? Not even a thank you?" He shook his head. My jaw dropped. "You gave me a tiny little berry and ordered that monster?!" She exclaims. He rolled his eyes.

"I won't spend a lot of money on someone who is only going to be in my life for about a week." He snorted and took a bit. I sipped my soda, pouting. "And whose fault is it that I'm here?" She retorted. His stare turned icy. "I didn't give the orders, Princess!" He snarled. I looked to the side, spiting. It was a habit of mine; when I wanted to show distaste but ran out of words for it. He growled. "Spitting won't help you, Princess."

I growled. "Why do you keep calling me that?" I asked softly, rage in my voice. His breath came out cold, a cloud of freezing air puffing out of his mouth. "Does it bother you, Princess?" He sneered, biting into his sandwich.

"Yes, it does! Speaking as you're victim, I think I deserve to know!" I shouted. He quickly pinned me to the ground, dropping his food. His ice cold hands wrapped around my wrist, almost burning them. His body hovered over mine, freezing air radiating from his body.

"Listen, Princess. You are no victim. Now you can make this hell or make this heaven. The king only said to bring you back alive, he never specified what could happen to you on the way." He whispered into my ear. The words rung around in my head like a church bell sounding, striking fear into my very soul.

I shiver, nodding submissively. He got off, his gray eyes narrowing. "Fuck. You made me drop my sandwich." I coward, knowing he was in a bad mood. My rebellious streak was gone. He roughly pulled me up by the rope. "Come on. We'll be late if we wait any longer." He griped and tugged the rope, making me stumble forward. He rolled his eyes. "Today, Princess!" He growled.

The rest of the day was like that, constantly being pulled. If I fell, I would be dragged until I could get up on my own.

We finally found ourselves out of the city and into the heart of a forest when the sun started to set. "We'll rest here." He commanded. I fell to the ground, panting. Scrapes covered my knees and belly that were still bleeding. I winced as I felt the bottom of my feet swell in pain. He sneered at me. I guess this was his way of telling me to watch my tongue.

He moved to readjust my ropes, his sneer fading a bit. I whimpered and flinched. I want my mother. I want her kind smile. I want my brother. His amazing laugh. I even would put up with my dad more. I just want home. I can already sense how worried Nico was.

Zano studied me for a minute, his eyes now seeing how beat up I was. I was still in my tank tops and shorts with no shoes, so you can see all the scars and bruises along with the new scrapes. He sighed and turned around, rummaging around in his bag. A small breath whispered out my slightly parted lips, which were swollen by the lack of water.

He came back with bandage wrap and a bottle of water. I backs away, I knew fear striking in my green reflecting eyes. His eyes looked deep into mine, sadden. By what, I don't know. "Hey, it's okay. I'm going to make you feel better." He spat out, his grief covered by annoyance.

I shakily sighed, trembling as I allowed him to get closer. He knelt beside me, wrapping the bandages around my waist and her legs. His brow creased, feeling me winced at his touch. Why are you doing this? I asked him in my head. I was perplexed. Wasn't this the same man who dragged me by my waist the whole day. There were red marks were the rope irrated my skin.

He sighed. "These bruises are at least up to two weeks ago. What happened to you?" He asked softly. I was now so confused. "Why are you doing this to me? A few minutes ago you wouldn't care less if I died. Why should I share that with you?" I asked in tears. He snarled. "Because maybe I'm not heartless." He turned and stalked off. I sighed and crossed my arms, which ached. I felt bad.

But why should I? I drifted off to sleep, my mind going a hundred miles per hour. So much has happened, and now all I can do is let my mind go blank. I still have tomorrow. And the next days. Months. Years. Wait, no. I only have a week.

Great.