"What's the plan, father?"
Prince Tomura swirled the last of his wine in his chalice, eyes following its movements as he awaited his father's response.
"We wait." The King replied, his tone and expression dour. The fingers on his large hands drummed against the table as he cast his eyes out the dark window of their bedchamber.
"If Toshinori's dogs manage to track down the princess, then we will proceed with the original plan." He continued, not even turning to look at his son.
"That I marry her?" The Prince croaked back, watching as the wine ceased its swirling and settled at the bottom of the cup. His own, scowling face reflected back at him in the blood-like liquid. He set it down on the table with a silent sneer.
"Indeed." His father drawled back, continuing to stare out at the blackened world outside of their window. "Doing so will secure this kingdom far easier than taking it by force."
When he finally returned his gaze to his son, he scoffed at the expression of clear distaste he was met with. "There are worse roles to play, dear boy." He grunted, grasping the bottle of wine and topping up his son's chalice. "Once she is you wife you may do as you wish with her. The kingdom will already be ours."
Prince Tomura gulped down the offering. "And if she doesn't return?" He queried, running a tongue across his dry, crimson stained lips and trying not to sound too hopeful.
The ghost of a smirk graced King Shigaraki's lamp-lip features. "Our army is prepared to march the moment I give the order."
He ceased the drumming of his fingers to enclose them in a tight fist. "Once we take this kingdom, there will be no stopping us. From here, we can march onwards to take Todoroki in the west and Yaoyorozu in the north."
With his free hand, he filled his own chalice and raised it before his son. The prince mirrored the action. They gave a silent toast to their cunning scheme before draining the claret greedily.
Two ears were pressed up against the door. Two pairs of eyes widened at what they'd just heard. Two pairs of feet scurried silently back down the corridor.
Once safely back in their chambers, Mina and Ochako finally let out the air they'd been holding in their chests.
"We have to do something."
*
The knights turned to acknowledge the newcomer. He towered over Sir Midoriya who stood at his side holding an armful of fresh apples.
"This young man tells me you're looking for someone?" He stated jovially, balancing a hefty axe across one of his broad shoulders.
The smiling woodcutter had sunshine blond with wide blue eyes and a muscular build that made even Sir Russel look like a beanpole.
"Indeed we are." Replied Sir Russel, turning to shake his hand. "The Princess, Calliope. And your name is?"
The woodcutter rolled his large shoulders and flashed a wide smile. "Call me Mirio." He declared. His face then adopted a look of puzzlement. "What makes you think the Princess passed through here?"
Sir Kirishima stepped forwards, standing erect and puffing out his chest. He addressed the burly woodcutter with his manliest voice. "There were no signs of them on the other roads."
Sir Kaminari nodded beside him. "Yeah and besides, this forest seems to stretch for miles! There's no way they could have already passed through. They must be lying low here."
Mirio's bright face split into a hearty laugh.
"What's so funny?" Snarled Sir Bakugo, lowering his head like a wolf with a scent.
The expression caused Mirio no bother. He replied with yet another smile. "Do you have any idea where you are? Which forest this is?"
The circle exchanged glances. "No?" It replied collectively.
The woodcutter hummed in thought, his index finger tapping the wooden handle of his axe. "Well, never mind." He dismissed. And went on before anyone could interject. "If the Princess is in this forest, I know the best person to ask." He turned on a heel and waved his free hand over his shoulder and beckoned them to follow. "C'mon, I'll take you to them."
As the knights trudged through the forest, leading their horses and carrying their gear, a sense of uncertainty carried between them.
"Can we trust this guy?" Whispered Sir Kaminari behind a cupped hand.
"We outnumber him 5-1..." Sir Kirishima pointed out, eyes training on Mirio's broad back.
"Yeah but have you seen his arms!" The blond bleated back, holding up of his own- it looked like the stem of a wilting daisy in comparison to Mirio's branch-like biceps.
From the back of the group came a snarling voice. "How about you keep your mouth shut and your eyes open." Sir Bakugo cut in. His horse spluttered at his side and shook his long mane.
Mirio the Woodcutter lead them through the forest, tapping tree trunks as he went. The sound echoed through the air.
As Sir Russel watched him perform the peculiar action, he soon realised it wasn't at random.
Sure enough, after a few more taps on the bark of a large broadleaf, the next sound that floated on the breeze was not an echo, but a distant response.
"Ah! Not far now!" Mirio exclaimed over his shoulder.
A few more rhythmic taps later and the forest opened up into a bright clearing, occupied by one, large tree with twisting roots and gnarled branches. The woodcutter declared that they had reached their destination as he swung the blade of his axe into a nearby stump.
"Sorry to disturb you!" He then called.
Sir Russel frowned as he tried to locate the person Mirio was addressing. Upon finding the clearing seemingly empty, apart from the circle of bewildered knights, he initially though the woodcutter was talking to the elder tree. However, movement caught the corner of his eye and it sought out a silhouette crouched in the branches above them.
The shy figure moved cautiously, stepping tentatively from one branch to another as it made its descent. Only when it's slippered feet soundlessly touched the dried leaves of the forest floor could Sir Russel finally take note of the stranger's appearance.
The hunching young man had long, pointed ears and long hair the colour of midnight. It framed his porcelain fair skin and slanted eyes as they flitted nervously from face to face.
"Dude! Is that an elf?!" Blurted Sir Kaminari excitedly.
The sudden exclamation made the stranger wince and withdraw into his long, white cloak even more so.
"Oh come on now! Don't be rude!" Mirio retorted. "I thought you Knights were supposed to be all about manners and such!"
"Only towards pretty women." Sir Kaminari grinned.
But Sir Midoriya apologised on his behalf and bowed to the elf as Mirio took his side.
"This is Tamaki." He informed them, clasping a large hand to the elf's bunched shoulders. His eyes remained fixed on the ground, his lips pressed into a firm line.
Sir Russel feared the poor fellow might cry.
"Tamaki, I was wondering if you could help us out." Mirio began, folding two, muscly arms across his chest.
The elf looked distraught, his eyes still downcast as if he were pleading for the ground to swallow him.
The woodcutter seemed to ignore his obvious discomfort as he went on. "You wouldn't happen to know if the forest is keeping a Princess here, do you?"
Sir Russel exchanged a quizzical look with Sir Midoriya at his side.
"What do you mean by 'keeping'?" The green haired knight asked.
But he received no response as the elf and the woodcutter continued their exchange.
"What does she look like?" Tamaki uttered, shifting awkwardly on his slippered feet.
Sir Kirishima was the one to give them their answer. "Long green hair, olive skinned, golden eyes. Her name is Calliope."
"We suspect she is traveling with two men." Sir Bakugo added gruffly.
The timid elf fell silent for a moment, casting a look towards his tree. Perhaps he was considering running away. But he replied in a small voice. "I haven't seen her. Then again, I haven't seen anyone in a while."
Behind him, Sir Russel spotted a pile of carved, wooden figures laying in a pile by the foot of the tree. Clearly, Tamaki had a hobby. One figure in particular caught Russel's eye, a curvaceous depiction of a woman with long hair and wide eyes. It must get pretty lonely living in a tree, pondered the knight.
"Great." Scoffed Sir Bakugo, rolling his red eyes. "Glad we're wasting more time following these freaks around!"
Both Sir Russel and Sir Midoriya were readying to scold his rudeness when Sir Kaminari piped up, his hand raised and his brows knitted together.
"Erm, is anyone going to explain what the hell is going on with this forest, by the way?"
The woodcutter laughed heartily once more. "Dear Sirs! You are all in the forest of Thirteen!" He declared, in such a way that suggested they should know what on Earth he was talking about. But the knights merely looked confused in their shared silence.
"Meaning?" Bakugo grunted, when Mirio failed to elaborate. He crossed his arms across his chest as he awaited an explanation.
The woodcutter sighed, grasping his hips and shaking his head of sunshine blond hair. "Meaning, unfortunately for you and your princess, all of you will most likely have a tough time finding your way out again."
"How come?" Squealed Kaminari, looking rather panicked by the ominous declaration.
Mirio shrugged and spoke matter-of-factly. "This forest likes to collect people. Anyone who comes in, particularly those whom it finds interesting, it keeps."
Sir Midoriya placed a curled finger to his chin in consideration of this. "Well that explains why we've been wandering for what feels like days."
"Did it collect you?" Sir Russel asked the woodcutter, eyeing his cool demeanour with curiosity.
The burly blond raised a shoulder. "I don't know. I've never tried to leave before. The forest is my home."
"Well how can we get out?" Sir Kirishima asked, eyes wide.
"Well, if there's anyone who can help you, it's the nymphs, right Tamaki?" Mirio asked, turning to the elf who had kept as quiet as the bluebells this entire time.
The timid forest dweller nodded, shoulders still hunched.
"Yeah. I suppose. I'll take you to them."
*
"There! Now you all look pretty again!" Nejire exclaimed cheerily, clasping her hands behind her and admiring her work with twinkling eyes.
After decorating Calliope's hair with flowers and intricate plaits, she'd then turned her attention to the two young men.
Samuel had been quite reluctant to accept her wandering hands, but found himself unable to convince her to stop as she fussed over his messy platinum locks and faded travelling clothes.
Touya, on the other hand, had thoroughly enjoyed the busty nymph's attention as she showered him with compliments while she tended to his torn tunic and shock of dark spikes a top his head.
Once she was done with them, the trio looked like majestic rulers of the forest with crowns made of vines and flowers and shimmering silk sewn into their clothes.
Calliope smiled affectionately at her two companions, both of whom looked rather lovely in the glow of the afternoon sun.
Nejire had adorned Sam with snowdrops, daisies and silver thread, while she had given Touya a wreath of broad leaves and forget-me-nots, his tunic repaired with intricate embroidery that resembled swirling wisps of smoke.
"Aww! Thank you, Nejire!" Calliope cooed, smoothing out a wrinkle in Touya's cloak.
The Nymph smiled sweetly, tweaking a daisy by Samuel's ear. He shied away from her touch, nose crinkling as she tugged and teased his hair again.
"Oh! You're very welcome, Princess!" She chimed, turning back from the jester to cast her a smile.
Calliope bristled, eyes blinking. "Y-you know who I am?" She stammered, her fingers inadvertently curling into Touya's chest.
Nejire giggled, floating upwards to perch on a low hanging branch.
"Of course! The forest has been quite taken with your story! It's so romantic!" She clasped her hands by her cheek and sighed dreamily. "You'll be safe here! Don't worry! We'll look after you!"
Touya frowned. "Erm, what do you mean?" He asked, peeling away Calliope's clawing fingers while his eyes remained fixed on the Nymph beneath furrowed brows.
"People are after you, right! They want to take you away! But luckily for you guys, you found the forest and now you don't need to worry about ever being found again!" The Nymph sounded ecstatic, it was actually rather unnerving.
The trio exchanged bewildered glances and Sam spoke first.
"You mean to say, we can't ever leave?"
His words made Calliope swallow hard. Although this place was beautiful, the three of them had all sensed the underlying, sinister nature of the place.
"Well, why would you want to?" Nejire pouted, "Everything you need is here!"
Funnily enough, it was Touya, the man who had stepped into the mysterious lagoon first, the man who had hummed happily beneath the Nymph's tingling touch, who protested at once.
"What?! Absolutely not! You can't keep us here! I have to travel. There's no way I'm staying put."
A pained look crept into Nejire's features. "But I though you liked it here?"
"Nejire." Calliope began, reaching up to take her by the hands, "we owe you and the forest so much. But Touya is right. I don't think we belong here." That eerie, spine tingling sensation was back. She felt her hairs stand on end and her heartbeat quicken.
The Nymph's wide, blue eyes searched her own, her pink lips jutting out like a fresh rose bud.
Before she could speak her mind, however, the crunch of twigs and dried leaves underfoot alerted them to the sound of approaching bodies.
As they spun towards the sounds, a voice tentatively called out.
"Nejire?"
Upon seeing who had called her, the Nymph's previously glum expression turned into one of childlike glee. "Tamaki! Mirio!" She squealed, slipping from the branch and Calliope's fingers and bounding towards them.
But the two, new strangers were not alone.
The Princess barely had time to even acknowledge the Nymph's friends, as her eyes had just locked onto that familiar, crimson glare.
"Sir Bakugo..." she breathed, shoulders tensing.
"Princess!" Called Sir Kirishima from beside him.
Under the streaming light that filtered through the canopy, the knights gathered at the other side of the clearing. Calliope hadn't felt this trapped since her father had informed her of her betrothal to Prince Tomura.