Bewitched (Snow White with the Red Hair Fanfic)

46.Time

Lera's P.O.V

It took a while to finally get to know where I was heading but I finally got the information out of the person taking me there.

I was heading towards Tanbarun. But that didn't make sense. Just yesterday, I was scared from head to toe hearing about my punishment.

Of course, I felt relief when I found out I was headed to somewhere safe. But it still confused me. How could Anri just let me go like this?

I thought she wanted to finish me for good. Either way, I was pretty sure she lied about her and Kaine's situation. Only if I knew a way to prove it...

And also the ability.

Couldn't I just meet Raj and Kisa in Tanbarun and tell them about my situation? Raj could help me come back to Clarines.

But the proof. The evidence. I had nothing to fight with against Anri.

Wasn't her deep blue eyes and fair hair enough to be used as her heritage to being the late King's daughter? As far as I knew, Kaine didn't have those traits.

I was struggling with the questions growing inside my head. Maybe I should just wait until I arrived to Tanbarun and I could convince Raj to hear me out.

Suddenly, the carriage came to a stop. The sole guard driving it came down and saw my puzzled face as to why we have stopped.

That was when I realised it was the same guard that had given me the cotten blanket when I had been so  sick behind bars.

"Um.." I started. "Why have we stopped?" I asked reluctantly. His gaze was so stoic and intense and I tried to stare right back at him.

"Do you want to go back?" He asked. That question was so sudden that I froze before answering. "Actually, yes. But I don't suppose you would take me back..." I let out a sigh.

All of a sudden, he unlocked the cage and opened the door for me. I gave him a confused look and he started to explain.

"We'll stop by at my house first. Then, we go back to the palace. I don't understand why you want to go back to that place where everyone's out to get you but I think you'll regret it more if you don't."

I was utterly stunned! He was harsh with me at the beginning but he turned out to be a very compassionate person.

"If you will do so, I would be extremely grateful, um.." I stopped as I did not know what to call him. He lightly nodded before saying, "Edgar".

I smiled. "Thank you, Edgar."

We took the road leading to his house. Edgar let me out of the cage and allowed me to properly sit beside him while he propelled the horses.

After three hours or so, we reached his house which was a lovely cottage with a cosy warm feeling. When Edgar invited me in after introducing me to his wife who had just come back from the market, I was met with a pleasant surprise.

"Miss Lera!?"

The little boy rushed to gave me a hug as I crouched to return the hug. Even after everything I had been through, I still remembered him.

"Sid!"

After that little reunion, Edgar went on to tell me to have dinner with his family and stay for the night before heading back to the palace first thing tomorrow.

I had an incredibly long talk with Sid during dinner especially about the first time we met. He said he felt really grateful that I came to his rescue out of the deep waters. It was so much fun to talk to a kid unlike the atmosphere at the palace where I was judged for every move I made.

"Aren't you and Prince Izana gonna get married???" Sid asked in curiosity as my eyes welled up a bit from that question. We were supposed to get married...

That was when Edgar cut in the conversation to a halt. "That's enough of reunion talking. Our guest is gonna have an early start tomorrow." He said.

"Teresa, get Sid to bed." He told his wife before signalling me to have a talk with him. As Teresa and Sid walked away into a room, Edgar sat at the dinner table once again and also motioned me to sit opposite him.

I warmly smiled at him. "I never knew you were Sid's father. You two really look like two peas in a pod." I said and giggled a bit.

"I'm glad if you think that. The truth is, I believed what the palace spoke of you. I really thought you were just a manipulator skilled enough to deceive others."

Not knowing what to say, I held my head down. If even he thought about me like that, perhaps I really was being an intruder in this country.

"But when Teresa told me that you saved Sid, I had some sort of trust in you. And after having guarded you outside your cell for a week, I understood your suffering. You have probably faced a lot more than this."

"But the way the First Prince looked at you and the way you only seemed to long for him, it was almost like a fairytale."

He had that sort of trust in me? Even though I was hated by almost all, a little bit of sympathy always helped. The tears from before welled up again and before I knew it, I was crying.

Edgar silently handed me a handkerchief and I cried myself into it. It was just so tiring with all these troubles and pain! After a while, I wiped my face with the cloth and looked back up at him.

"This is just a reminder but if you had been righteous all this time, there's no reason for you to accept those lies being told about you. "Thank you..." I spoke softly.

He gave me a smile this time.

"I'm on your side, Princess Lera."