Hello readers! So I know it's been like... forever. But I got inspiration for this fic so I'm going to try to finish it.
This chapter takes place the night after Jaron takes off for the pirates and leaves Tobias tied to a bedpost in Runaway King.
Enjoy!
Knock! Knock!
Amarinda blinked. Darkness streamed in from the windows and the storm that had begun that afternoon still raged through the night. It was not the time for people to be barging into her room. Especially on such a day as this. Gregor Breslan too close to the throne to bear and Jaron having run off like the coward he was. There was no future for Carthya. He had run from her and now he ran from his understood what it meant to be afraid of what one was tied to. But Amarinda did understand what it meant to be such an idiotic wimp. She closed her eyes, trying to ignore the insistent knocking on her door. The guard would take care of it. And if he did not, Sarah would.
"Amarinda!" She sat bolt upright in bed. Sarah was not in her chair. Something was wrong. "Amarinda please open the door!" She was sure that she had heard that voice somewhere before. Amarinda stood up, grabbed the fireplace poker, and approached the door cautiously. If the guard had not dealt with the person yet, the guard was knocked out. Or worse. "Your Highness, this is urgent. Please! It's me! It's Tobias!"
The Princess dropped the poker stick and rushed to the door. Before opening it though, she smoothed her dress and ran her fingers through her hair, trying to appear at least sort of presentable. Amarinda took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and opened the door.
Tobias was drenched in rainwater and mud streaked his face, and yet he wore the royal clothing Jaron had departed with. A tall, bald man stood beside him, the dark night making him look even more imperious. Amarinda recognized him as the bodyguard/friend who Jaron called Mott. The guard lay on the floor, knocked out presumably from the huge sword the man held.
"Hey," Tobias forced a smile. "Sorry for barging in but-"
"Where's Jaron?! Weren't you with him?! You know Gregor is going to make his move, how foolish can you be-"
Tobias put a cold hand on her shoulder. "Please, Your Highness, I know you have questions. But we'd like to speak to you in private. Without the entire castle listening."
Amarinda cocked an eyebrow. "It's the middle of the night. The entire castle is asleep. I was asleep."
"We are truly sorry," Tobias said. Amarinda sighed. Carefully she ushered them into her room, taking care to tell Mott to bring in the unconscious guard in case he awoke.
Amarinda shut the door tight and turned to her new accomplices. Tobias stood awkwardly, clearly trying not to look around her room in case there was something he should not see but Mott was comfortable, tying the guard's hands to the bedpost and keeping his eyes on his work.
"Alright. So… what happened?"
And then they told her. How Jaron was sure the pirates were connected to Vargan and how he was sure that if he did not leave and take them down, Roden (some boy who apparently had been with Jaron and Tobias when Conner was holding them) was going to hunt him down to kill him. Supposedly, Jaron had tied Tobias to his bed so he would not leave with him or get Mott and insisted that Tobias pretend to be a frightened Jaron to keep the regents and Gregor at bay. It was all a little ridiculous to Amarinda, but then she'd gotten used to Jaren being ridiculous.
Mott looked about as angry as Amarinda felt. "Trust me, my lady, if I could stop him, I would. But he's Sa-Jaron. And-"
"We do not have time to dwell on what we could have done," Amarinda rushed into action. "Mott go to Jaron's room and fetch a change of clothes for Tobias. Tobias, I'll brush your hair in the style Jaron wears it, and then we have to practice your voice. And the way you walk. And everything else."
Tobias interfered. "Jaron said I should just hide in his room."
"Yes, I know," Amarinda responded, flustered. "But Gregor will want to check you're really back, and servants will come and go."
Tobias nodded. "Right. Sorry, yeah." Mott bowed to Amarinda and left in a hurry.
Amarinda turned to Tobias. "He doesn't speak much, does he?"
Tobias shrugged. "He was Conner's miserable dog, Princess. He is still getting used to being treated like a normal person." He paused. "Well, we'd better begin?"
"Yeah, yeah, I guess so." Amarinda cautiously took Tobias' arm led him to her vanity. Tobias sat in her chair stiffer than she had ever seen him. Slowly she began to brush the wet tangles out of his dark blond hair. Amarinda found herself staring at Tobias's intelligent eyes in the mirror. He was a cautious boy, smart yet aware of how he could affect others. She did not know how Lord Conner had ever thought Tobias could have imitated Jaron. He was so unlike the once missing prince.
"Uh!" Tobias pulled away from her brush. "Sorry, that hurt."
Amarinda let out a little giggle. "You were tied to a bed this morning by an insane king who's gone hunting pirates. That hurt?"
"Um… yeah?" Perhaps it was small and in the midst of a great uproar but the pair shared a smile.