Once Upon a Lost Prince

Chapter 2

A few days have passed and Faye was getting better, yet she was still lying, falling in and out of consciousness because of the fever that hit her frail body. Irwin stayed by her side at all times, and forced some broth down her throat from time to time during the day to eliminate her sickness and strengthen her body's ability to fight the infection.

Before long it was the time of the month when Irwin had to leave to the town. He wanted to buy more meat and chicken to help Faye in the process of regaining the blood she had lost. So, early at dawn, the young farmer prepared his traveling kit and a huge saddle, containing his crops, then headed off through the forest. The sun was slightly peeking over the mountains and the moment Irwin was between the trees, he was left with green reflections and a small torch in hand, illuminating the way he has traveled so many times before that he came to memorize its every bush and stone.

He reached Peteonia an hour before midday, so he had some rest and caught his breath after hours of walking before he went about his business. Irwin traded what he had with him- seeds, vegetables and fruits- with what he needed, he even decided to bring some female clothes for Faye which earned him weird looks from the lady that was wrapping the dresses, but he didn't mind her stares and continued on his way the moment he grabbed what he paid for. He felt he had a duty towards the girl who's taking his house as a shelter, and he planned on fulfilling it.

Soon enough, it was time to leave and tread the same path he came through. Irwin left his home earlier that day knowing that Faye would be safe, he kept her hidden in an under-ground space under the wooden panels. He put a probability that her brothers would come back and break down the door in search for her, and that was what caused panic to cloud his mind as the open front door came into his view.

He rushed inside, forcefully opening the door all the way and causing it to bang with the side wall, only to be rendered speechless at what met him. Faye was standing near the fireplace, fire brimming under a pot, a wooden spoon in hand and a startled look on her face. She was dressed in a shirt of Irwin's and one of his trousers, tightening the waist with a strip of cloth and having her hair tied loosely with another. Her face having more color than when he first met her, though still on slightly wobbly feet.
"You're awake!" Irwin breathed with relief, for her regaining her health and him not facing what he feared.
"Yes," Faye said awkwardly then continued, "I'm sorry, but I had to borrow something from your trunk," her gaze shifting to the ground, "I can't go around wearing what was left of my dress." Her cheeks burned and she casted her eyes up slightly to study his reaction.

"You need not to worry about it," Irwin smiled, a dimple showing on his left cheek. He had figured that she managed to bring herself out of the hiding place and get everything back to its former place. Then the two remained silent for a while until Irwin decided to speak up again and ask about what was Faye cooking, placing the paper bags and his saddle on the table that sat in the middle of the kitchen-foyer area
"Oh it's nothing much!" She exclaimed, "Carrot soup, something I learned from Mrs. Taylor back in town!"

Irwin stepped closer and looked into the pot, "smells delicious," he said with another polite smile gracing his features, the rich savor of carrots wafting through the air, creating a cloud of sweetness that raced with Irwin's senses, intensifying his hunger.

"It is!" Faye was excited to have him taste the soup. She only cooked it once for her ungrateful brothers who complained about something with each gulp even though she knew there was nothing amiss. That incident was one of the many that made Faye understand how much her brothers are plain uncaring and hateful. That hate was inherited though.

They were a happy family once until the Gods decided that it was time for Evelyn to hand over her vessel. Her husband, Joshua, couldn't handle his beloved wife's departure, and having a daughter that resembled her mother added to his pain and sorrows, leaving him with so much distaste towards the cause of his fuelled sadness. Time passed and the father died too, but his feelings towards his daughter burned within his sons' blood.

"-So my brothers decided that it was better to marry me off than living with me anymore, not giving a care of what would happen with me once I'm in that vile creature's presence. I had to run." Faye finished, tears slipping like crystals down her rosy cheeks. The way she looked out of the window and into the night sky left Irwin in deep thought. 'How can a girl so young be able to bear such treatment for so long?"

The two continued eating silently, no one uttering a word about the huge reveal of events of how Faye reached where she was then. The darkness covered the land not two hours back and the two companions were sitting, sipping on the cooked soup when Faye found that the man that helped her deserved to know why she needed help in the first place and decided to tell her story.

"This tastes really good," Irwin broke the silence after so long, finishing his second bowl and going for the third.
Faye only smiled in return and stood up; taking her own bowl to the small water bucket that sat as a sink and washed then kept it to the side. She walked back to sit were she was, her head swirling with thoughts and plans of how to continue her life after she leaves Irwin's house.

"I'll be taking the coach today so you can rest," Faye finally revealed what caused her unsettlement, "I've occupied your bed for too long, it's time for you to have your rest especially after your journey."

"Don't worry about tha-"

"No," she cut him off firmly, "I overstayed my welcome, you kept your hospitality this far that I feel ashamed of being a burden."

"No-No," Irwin started with a vigorous shake of his head. He was desperate for her to see what he did, so he continued, "You don't understand!" He said, "It’s been too still here and I used to move around aimlessly that I thought I would go mad any minute. But when I saw you today, limping your way around and creating this," he gestured to his bowl, "pouring your heart with every ingredient you added; I actually felt what it meant to be home."

He was looking deep into her eyes, waves crashing against scenery of green; he held her hands unknowingly, pleading not to be left alone again.

Faye's heart squeezed at his words and she couldn’t help but ask, "Don’t you have a family?"

That question slapped Irwin out of a reverie of dread, his hands retreated and his shoulders slumped. "I don't know." He muttered. His voice held the ache in his heart, a tone of loss and what appeared to be fright.

"What do you mean?" Faye's brows furrowed as she brought her confusion into words.

"I mean exactly that," he sighed, and looked from the wooden cracks of the table back at her, "I can't remember, and every time I try to form a memory or draw a sketch of my past life, I fall into a swirling world of thoughts." He took another pause then continued, "But I have my suspicions."

"How so?" She inquired.

"One day I woke up with a splitting ache in the back of my head and went out to clear my mind, but then I heard a scream that made my head thrash for memories even more but in vain. I followed the noise of breaking bones into the forest and saw a woman torn apart, killed by some creature, her face unrecognized. I think she was my mother." Irwin gave Faye some time to allow his words to sink in then continued, "Please don't go. I can’t bear staying alone any longer."

It was Faye's turn to hold his hand as an offering of comfort, "I'm sorry for that," she consoled him, "and don't worry, I have to pay you back your good deeds." She showed her teeth as she grinned, her tone holding finality, "I won't leave.”