Chapter 7

Cold Hands, Warm Hearts

"I hate horses!"

Raphael screamed as he tried to balance himself on Spike as he and Prince Leonardo rode through a meadow. Leonardo found the scene amusing and adorable at the same time. "You are doing great, Raphael. Just don't pull his mane!"

With a spare bridle from Prince Leonardo, Raphael was lucky to have something to control the horse, but it seemed he had no idea how to use it. Once again he lost his balance and fell off Spike into the soft meadow below him. Leonardo snickered quietly and ran after Spike to bring him back.

"From now on, the only thing I will sit on, is my ship!" Raphael crossed his arms while still laying on the grass.

After retrieving Spike, Leonardo, still snickering, got off his horse and offered his hand to Raphael who gladly took it. The poor young turtle then crossed his arms, pouting.

Looking around himself, the prince suddenly had an idea popped up in his mind, "Hmm… I think I have a solution for that."

He removed the saddle from Ryan and placed it on Spike instead. What surprised Raphael the most was when the prince softly patted Ryan's face and told him to run back to the castle by himself without him, while doing so, the prince also used weird hand signals to communicate with his horse. What shocked him more was when Ryan obeyed the prince's command right away. Seeing the surprised expression on the younger turtle's face, the prince answered him with a smile.

"Ryan is the most intelligent horse I've ever trained, he never disobeys me," Leonardo spoke with pride.

Raphael rolled his eyes, "and no one will suspect why you're not with your horse? Did you think of that?"

"Of course no one will suspect, I always did that when I want to have some time alone without anyone knowing where I go." As he spoke, he approached Raphael and patted his back, encouraging him to get on Spike. "Now hop up, Spike is ready to go!"

"Spike again!? Didn't you see what he did to me!?"

"Don't worry, we're doing it together this time," Without waiting anymore, Leonardo hopped on the energetic horse, taking his place on Spike's back behind the saddle from Ryan he put on earlier. Before Raphael could ask why Leonardo didn't sit on the saddle, he was pulled up forcefully by the prince. Then next thing he knew was him already sitting on the saddle with Leonardo sitting behind him. When he was losing his balance, letting out a yelp, the older turtle caught him by surrounding one arm around the younger's waist to help him balance. "Whoops, it's okay, I got you."

The pirate didn't reply as he tried so hard to contain his blushing face. The thought of having The Prince of Europa being intimate with a thief like him alone made his heart swell.

"Now, grab the reins and let's go! I'll help you from behind,"

"Uhh… I'm not sure about this…" Reluctantly, the pirate who had never ridden a horse before in his life grabbed the reins.

Without warning, Leonardo took hold of Raphael's hands that was gripping the reins in his and rapped his feet on the horse's side while crying out. "Hyaa!"

With a loud cry, Spike lunged forward with speed. With the determination to succeed, Raphael conquered his fear and let the prince teach him while trying to keep down the fear in his voice as well. "Okay, okay! Tell me how this thing works!"

The prince gripped Raphael's hands tighter while guiding him to how to control Spike. "Just follow my lead!"

They travelled along a beautiful meadow covered in blue poppies in which Raphael was told by Leonardo that these rare blue poppies grown only in Europa. Even though Raphael was not interested in flowers that much, he admitted that the scene was beautiful. He allowed Leonardo to continue taking him to other places in Europa, almost forgetting where they intended to go to in the first place.

As they continued their journey, Leonardo also took him to a high spot in Europa on the hill where they could almost see the whole Kingdom. From afar, they could see the majestic castle and the people doing their daily routine. The scene reminded the pirate of his old life in another kingdom. "I had never admired something like this for a long time… not since… never mind…"

When Raphael didn't continue his sentence, Leonardo felt an urge to ask, but refused to do so since he was certain he would not get an answer. Until the appropriate time, he would ask again. He gave both of them a moment to admire the picturesque kingdom before continuing their journey.

Finally, they travelled through the forest near the ocean where Raphael has anchored his ship there. By the time they got there, the sun was already setting. The younger didn't even realize that he rode Spike by himself by the time they arrived his ship. "Did I just take us to the ship by myself?"

As Leonardo got off Spike, he grinned widely. "I stopped guiding you for some time and you didn't even realize it. Hah!"

"I can't believe it! That was the first time in my life riding a horse!" The younger remarked excitedly as he also got off the horse.

"You are quite a fast learner, Raphael. I admire that." The prince gave Spike a carrot before tying him to the nearly tree.

As a thank you, Raphael gave the prince a grateful smile. He grabbed a wooden plank that was resting on a tree and put it down to connect to path between the ship and the high ground they were standing on. "Come on in, it's starting to get cold, I'll prepare something for you. I hope it will be luxurious enough for a prince like you."

"Heh, no worries about that. I'm sure I've tasted something that will be worse than your cooking." Leonardo snorted, following Raph to the wooden plank.

"I'm not sure if that's a compliment or an insult." The pirate replied with a laugh hinted in his voice as he crossed the plank.

"Nah, I'm just teasi— Whoaa—'' The prince didn't realize how high he was from the sea water until he stepped on the plank. The wooden plank that was connecting the ship and the hill behind him was just quite thin and weak. Frightened by this, he froze in place as he tried to balance himself.

"Are you okay, Leonardo? Don't tell me you're afraid of heights!" Raphael crossed his arms as he chuckled, waiting for Leonardo to continue crossing.

With fear in his voice, he replied with a sheepish smile. "Ehh… n-not actually. C-Could you h-help me a l-little…? Ahh!"

Suddenly, Leonardo lost his balance and fell into the water. The pirate, thinking that the prince was just playing with him, snickered and glanced down at the spot where Leonardo just fell. "Come on, I know you're not that clumsy. You're getting yourself wet for nothing!"

When he didn't see any sign of life on the water, he started to panic. "L-Lenardo? Prince!?"

Without thinking anymore, Raphael jumped into the cold ocean.

-.-.-.-.-.-

More firewood was thrown into the burning flame setting in the middle of Raphael's ship. The prince sat quietly by the fire to warm himself up after Raphael rescued him from drowning, wrapping in a blanket that the turtle in red gave him. The pirate sat a little distant from the prince to give him private space.

"Thank you, Raphael, for saving me." A sudden voice broke the silence caught Raphael's attention. When he glanced at Leonardo, the said turtle still had a frown on his face.

"Glad I could help… but… Leonardo" Raphael replied with reluctance to continue the conversation while rubbing his hands together to ease the cold. "It's nothing to be ashamed of…"

"Of course it is!" The proud prince snapped back. "I'm a prince, heir to the throne, the kingdom depends on me. I should be able to do everything!"

Raphael sat in silence, letting the prince release his anger.

"And now you know my secret. This is so embarrassing…" The prince ducked his head down in shame.

The younger turtle, feeling a little braver, shifted his position to be closer to the prince and put his cold hand on the prince's shoulder. "One thing I learned from being by myself with a bunch of idiots, it's that I don't let one fear destroy who I am, despite how embarrassing it may seem."

Glancing up, he saw Raphael turned his gaze away from him, not daring to meet the prince's eyes as he tried to keep his face straight from showing too much emotions. The prince knew Raphael wasn't a turtle who would express his emotions to anyone easily, but was glad Raphael didn't sympathize him with pitiful look. That was the last thing he needed. With a reassuring smile, he patted Raphael's shoulder in return.

They didn't realize how close they sat beside each other. By the time their eyes met, they faces were only inches apart. Raphael, before he started to get lost in Leonardo's eyes, turned away, too ashamed of his status and also his growing feeling towards the unreachable, noble prince.

Leonardo, who got lost in his emotions, realized his action. He was shocked that he got carried away so easily. It was not the right thing to do, he told himself, feeling attracted towards a thief especially when he was also a male like him. But still, when he glanced at the turtle beside him, he didn't just see a thief anymore after spending such joyful time with him. He saw someone who he longed for in his life, someone those princesses couldn't be, someone he could trust with his life.

It would still be too fast to conclude that his emotions were certain, but in this moment, it was enough for him to say that this was love.

Author's note

I made another update! I know the previous chapter was somehow too short, but I made it longer in this one.

I have a draft for the whole story already, so I think the updates may be a little faster. No promises though XD

But don't worry, I'm working on other chapters right now, but before that, enjoy this chapter! Don't forget to tell me how it is doing so far!

Thanks anyone who's still with me or just discovered my story. Love you!