"Hm…." Soren hummed deeply, rubbing his chin. He and Claudia were in a medium-sized room that served as the town's hall. Gathered around a small wooden table filled with maps. The room was packed with onlookers and local folk that wanted to hear the news.
The mayor and other local leaders had already gone over the entire presentation twice, trying to make their case for why they needed the crown's support in these uncertain times.
Soren had been trying to look at every angle of the situation, tried to offer up solutions or ask questions as to why this or that wouldn't work, but every time he was shot down for one reason or another. As his father had said, this town was a lost cause as a defensive structure and being so close to the border, it would be the first to go in an attack.
"Alright. I think I have made my decision." Soren announced, walking away from the table and in front of the crowd.
The room fell silent as they all waited for a judgment. And Soren grabbed a small stool and stood on it, to be head and shoulders above the rest of the room.
"Everyone, I am Soren and am currently speaking as the scion for my father, Viren. Your mayor and elders here have aired all their concerns with me, and after extensive weighing of our options, I have made my choice." Soren announced in a well-rehearsed way. Before he got to town or started this meeting, he already knew he had to turn down any pleas for help.
"Unfortunately, at this time, with the looming threat of the elves, it has been deemed… infeasible to build up your town as a defensive outpost. To build any defensive structures, it would take weeks of construction and travel for the lumber and metal. Additionally, I was made aware that the town has no active militia to handle such defenses if we were to invest in defenses here. And, As I'm sure all of you are aware, with war on the horizon, we simply can't spare a full squadron of men out here."
Soren looked around the room as a buzz of whispers broke out. He could tell the crowd didn't like it, the faces of the common folk filled with worry, some with betrayal or anger.
"What are we supposed to do when the elves attack?!" A raspy voice from the back of the crowd called out.
Soren sighed and swallowed. "If you fear for you and your family's safety, the best thing you could do is leave. Glendale is half a day's travel from here; it is a much larger town. And, it already has a garrison. You will be protected there."
Another burst of murmurs from the crowd.
"But our lives are here, our family, our homes, our farms!" Another protest came. This time from a woman near the front. Nods of agreement followed her statement.
Soren could feel the 'weight of leadership' at this moment. He knew that the safe option was to abandon their homes and move. He knew it would be the best way to preserve the most lives, but he also knew it would uproot a lot of people's lives, and in the end, he had no way of knowing when or if the elves would attack. He might be telling these people to start from scratch somewhere else for no reason.
Eventually, he nodded. "You are right. It is up to you if you want to seek safety or not. But our decision remains the same. I am sorry, we can not afford troops or materials to fortify Akiron."
Soren stepped down from his little stool and quickly walked over to Claudia as he said this. She met him, but he was immediately set up by the mayor and elders again, begging him to reconsider.
As Soren stepped down, the small murmurs became everyday conversations amongst many groups inside the room, then quickly raised in volume over the town's next course of action.
After what seemed like a mad dash to the door, the siblings left the building. As the door closed behind them, the loud roar of the crowd could still be heard.
Alone now, on the abandoned streets, with their horses packed and waiting, The sun was high in the sky of mid-morning.
"We should be able to get home, maybe by nightfall." Soren estimated.
They mounted their steeds and headed off, quickly finding the edges of the town, leaving the small village behind.
"Well, I think you did an excellent job." Claudia finally said, breaking the silence of the ride.
"Hmm?" Soren raised an eyebrow.
"The meeting, you were very authoritative, in control. You know? Kind of reminded me of Dad a bit." Claudia smiled.
"Oh, yeah…" Soren said. He looked back down at the back of the road in front of him.
"Are you alright?" Claudia asked.
"Yeah, I guess so. Just some stuff on my mind." Soren answered.
"About the village?" Claudia asked before continuing. "It's not your fault. You shouldn't feel bad about having to say no."
"No, not that. About last night." Soren said.
Claudia went silent as she felt her heart jump into her throat. She thought for a moment before deflecting.
"Haha, you mean. Why didn't I get the sleeping bag and decide to share the bed with you? I was just lazy, I guess." Claudia smiled.
"No," Soren looked at his sister now. "You kissed me."
There was dead silence for a moment; Claudia reigned back on her horse, bringing it to a stop on the road. Claudia could feel the pit in her stomach further sink.
"What…?" Claudia asked, raising an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"
"I felt it." Soren looked away as he held up a hand to his lip, brushing it with his fingertip. "I thought I was mistaken, that I had been dreaming it. But I remember the taste. I could taste your lip gloss."
Claudia subconsciously sucked in her bottom lip, tasting the familiar taste of her lip gloss.
"Heh, I don't know what kind of dreams you were having last night Soren, I wasn't even wearing my lip gloss yesterday!" Claudia lied.
There is a shadow of doubt across Soren's face as his brow furrows. He gently prods the horse to continue without responding immediately.
Claudia could feel her heartbeat hard in her chest as she spurred her horse along to catch up. She felt about lying, but she couldn't take the risk of Soren knowing the truth. As she caught up, Soren was looking down absent-mindedly. He seemed to be thinking hard on something.
"Hey, It's alright." Claudia tried to soothe him. "Don't worry about it, too much, alright?"
Soren glanced at her and nodded, but he was uncharacteristically quiet the rest of the boring trip home.
It was deep into the night when they arrived home, taking the tired horses to the stable to get them fed and put to bed. Claudia and Soren were assisted with dismounting, taking all their gear out of the saddlebags, and unequipping the steeds.
With a small bag filled with personal effects, Soren was ready to go to bed and hurriedly made his way away from the stable before Claudia could get herself finished.
As one of the stable hands finished taking the saddlebags off the horse Soren had been riding, she noticed there was something still in them. Claudia watched the girl pull out a small book bound in leather. Soren's diary. Or, 'War Journal' as he would always correct.
Claudia was nearly packed and ready to head to her room as well, so she opened her satchel and held out her hand towards the book.
"I'll take it to him." Claudia smiled
The stablehand quickly forfeited the book and went back to tending the horses as she made her way into the keep. It was pretty dead, with only a couple guards patrolling that greeted her as she passed. She got to her room and threw her satchel on the bedside table before sitting on her bed with the book.
"I shouldn't," Claudia mumbled to herself. Her fingertips grazed over the leather strap keeping the book closed.
"I should just take this to him right now." Claudia reasoned as she began to open the binding.
"I need to respect his privacy…." Claudia whispered as she began flipping through the pages.
She was greeted with the latest entry from this morning, flipping to the last page with writing on it.
Thursday, 13th of MidSummer
I'm writing early because something unique happened last night. I wasn't sure myself at first, but I am sure it was not a dream after waking up. Claudia kissed me last night. She had 'forgotten' a bedroll from the horses and insisted we share the bed. I thought she was just being obnoxious on purpose, but as I was on the cusp of sleep, I felt her lips graze mine for a moment. I stopped breathing for a moment, unsure what to do. I didn't object. I was just so shocked. I was convinced it was just another dream, but when I ran my tongue over my lips, there was a distinct flavor that I couldn't place for a while. It's the only reason I am sure what happened last night was real. I finally figured out that it was the same flavor as Claudia's lip gloss. I remember accidentally trying to drink it a few months back and getting a mouth full. There is no doubt it was the same.
I'm not sure if I should be elated, but I am confused. I have dreamed of something like this for so long, but for it to actually happen is… scary. I need to confront her about it today before we return home.
"...What?" Claudia blinked before moving her face closer to the page, rereading the last couple of sentences. "Dreamed of this? Does that mean… Soren has been feeling the same way…?"
Claudia felt her heart start to beat hard again. She could feel the butterflies in her stomach stir.
Claudia closed the book and left her room, heading towards Soren's. Her hands were feeling clammy as she walked down the deserted hallway. She bit her lip to keep her nerve and fight back her instinct, telling her to turn around and forget about this.
Claudia arrived at Soren's bedroom door and knocked on the door with a shaky fist. After a moment, she heard Soren tell her to come in. She cracked open the door and peaked in.
Soren was taking off the last bit of his armor.
"Claudia?" Soren asked.
"You forgot this," Claudia said, holing up the book from the doorframe.
There was a moment of silence between them as Soren recognized the book. He stepped forward and held his hand out.
"Thanks…" Soren said as Claudia handed him the book. It felt like he wanted to say something more but held back. There was another moment of awkward silence between them as Soren walked back over to the bed and set the journal down on a bedside table.
"So…" Claudia said, lingering in his doorway.
"So what?" Soren asked.
Claudia hesitated for a moment, a large lump in her throat making it hard to speak.
"I-I uh, I read something," Claudia said.
Soren was silent. He turned around to face Claudia. The tension in the air was palpable.
"Read what?" Soren asked.
"The last entry…." Claudia pointed to the book on the bedside table.
Soren glanced at the book for a moment before looking back at her. He didn't say anything, but Claudia could see his jaw undulate back and forth as he contemplated something.
"Well, you said you didn't even bring your lip gloss, so obviously, I was wrong," Soren said.
"I lied," Claudia said and took a step into the room, gently shutting the door behind her.
"What do you mean?" Soren's brow furrowed. His eyes were intense, boring into her.
"You were right… About that night." Claudia whispered.
"I don't understand." Soren once again airing his confusion.
"I did kiss you last night…." Claudia confessed. As she said these words, she could feel her heart pounding in her chest.
Soren brought a hand to his lips before looking down, trying to piece things together.
"But, why?" Soren asked.
Claudia smiled at that. "Because, dummy… I feel the same way you do."
"You- you do?" Soren asked.
"Yes, I just didn't know you did until I read that journal," Claudia confirmed.
There was another silence between them.
"So… what do we do now?" Soren asked.
Claudia could see that Soren's cheeks had turned pink over the last thirty seconds. 'He is so cute when he's embarrassed,' Claudia thought to herself.
"Well, what would any two people who like each other do?" Claudia suggested.
"But-" Soren started, looking at Claudia, worry already starting to paint his face.
"It would have to be secret, obviously. We couldn't let anyone know." Claudia took a step forward, nibbling on her lower lip. "But when we are alone, at night, like this..." Claudia stepped up next to Soren, their chests mere inches from one another. "We could…" Claudia raised up onto her tiptoes and went for it. She closed her eyes and pursed her lips, tilting her head forward, waiting for a kiss.
Claudia could hear and feel Soren's heavy breath this close. There was a moment of hesitation, and a shadow of doubt crossed her mind, but she quickly felt Soren's hand caress her cheek, and then his lips met hers. It was sweet and gentle, caring and loving. It was everything she had dreamed it would be. But, in an instant, it was over, and they pulled apart. Claudia opened her eyes just as Soren did the same. She felt his hand wrap around hers.
"It will be dangerous," Soren commented. "But, I think it's worth it."