Honestly, it was such a small fee, Kendra couldn't imagine why Craig hadn't made the request earlier. In fact, she was beyond confused as to why he believed that it would cost her to do what he wanted and felt the need to wait for this type of opportunity.
Given, she couldn't exactly deny a part of her hated what she was doing. Not because of Craig's end, not in the least. But communicating with Cartman was just always a pain in the neck.
Her quill rested on the inkwell prepped beside her on the bench, tongue gliding over her upper lip under her scarf. She sighed, staring at the blank papyrus resting on the book atop her lap just waiting for her script. She had to figure out how to do this correctly. Not so demanding as to immediately shut off any hope of his approval, but not so meekly asking as to let him brush it off as nothing more than a timid suggestion. The iron of her quill tip tapped rhythmically against the glass bottle, barely audible under the blossoming sound of summer all around her.
She took a long, deep breath, lips curling in the slightest at the potent aroma of bloomed zinnias wafting around her in an almost overwhelming takeover of the senses. She adored it. Kyle hadn't been kidding when he told her the elves thrived off nature, that they gave it the respect that it deserves and the room to be what it was meant to be. Kupa Keep was not bereft of plant life, but certainly wasn't flourishing this extent. And what few gardens they had she rarely got to venture out to see with the king keeping such tight lock on her. Not in Larnion, though.
Here, everywhere was a garden. Every yard was filled with color and life, every home and business was created to accommodate what had laid there prior to their construction. Even the palace itself was a tangle of corridors and winding passages to wrap around trees that seemed older than time itself. It was a land of the land, and Kendra wondered if every elven culture held true to their roots as the Broflovskis kept their kingdom.
Blue eyes fluttered open, a content smile spreading along golden cheeks. Everything about Larnion whispered 'home'. It was nothing but comforts, familiarity, and traditions. Even the ever-tumultuous whirlwind of politics took a backseat to elves coming to a stop and basking in the glow that the earth gave them so generously. She herself hadn't indulged in these pleasures nearly enough, a part of her still stuck in Kupa Keep, she could only assume. She was aware that she had nearly complete free rein to galivant as she pleased, especially within the palace's allowances. But a part of her still hesitated warily, just waiting to hear that bellowing shout, to be dragged off to a conference room and given the same lecture she'd received time and again. Nothing but a mess of how a single branch catching her scarf could blow the entire ruse, how a pollen-induced sneeze could prompt noise that most thought impossible from her.
Here, in the eastern garden of the Larnion palace, none of those things seemed possible. Not for something so delightfully picturesque. Not here, under the shade of full linden trees, dappling sunlight peeking through and spotting over her and the stone bench she found herself upon in her wanderings. She'd requested Craig and Butters to leave her be in the garden, Craig only allowing it after a quick scan and noting the elven guards spread along the far outside perimeter of the land. She'd needed this more than she thought. Needed time to let herself breathe in the fresh, dewy air. Her only outside venturing had been into the city, where her nerves were beyond frayed. But this, this was lovely. This was the nature that Kyle so loved, felt such a connection with.
This was what she was supposed to be a queen of.
Her smiled dripped at the notion, continuing to stare into the jumbled mess of branches swaying above her. A long, somber sigh left her, that practiced demeanor slipping right out the door with it.
What was he going to do? Kenny could only keep this up for so long before he was found out. He still didn't know how Cartman was imagining this would go. He'd done excellent so far at staying hidden, despite how many eyes were so constantly on him. His greatest challenges had come merely from getting measured by Queen Sheila's handmaidens… and Kyle.
Kyle was definitely the obstacle in keeping just what he was in the shadows.
Never had he wanted so desperately to speak to someone. In Kupa Keep, staying silent was more than easy enough. Few ever had anything of worth to respond to. But the elven prince seemed to be a plethora of potential hours-long discussions. He was so expressive to just what he was given on paper, Kenny could only imagine how much more he could worm out of him with a sly drop into a suggestive tone, an excitable shout.
He sighed again. It was a lovely dream, something he would find himself envisioning late into the night when sleep just couldn't seem to fall into his grasp. Hypothetical conversations were plentiful, Kenny managing to calculate to the closest octave just where Kyle's voice would fall at certain phrases. His eyes glimmered with faint wistfulness, wondering how Kyle would react to the way his own voice liked to jump in volume when given the chance. The strange cracks that still wormed their way into his speech from so long of minimal usage. He pondered if Kyle would enjoy his tone, or find it grating in some way. If he would hang onto Kenny's every word like the seed of a dandelion, just waiting to get whisked off into the air from a change of his breath. Perhaps Kyle would find his mannerisms as enthralling as Kenny found his to be, and he would find himself thinking about them out of nowhere, wanting to extract a particular reaction from him as Kenny so often did.
Kenny found himself smirking, curious as to whether Kyle would find something about him so entertaining he'd never want it to stop as he did the prince's tendency to blush and squeak at a surprisingly risqué comment. Ken knew he was really pushing a line, that he was finding himself far more intertwined with his betrothed than Cartman probably expected. He was only here to gain Kyle's trust, to get an answer to a question he didn't ever want to ask. One he didn't know if he could ask. It was a danger on every level: Kyle could figure out Cartman's scheme at the drop of a hat, Kenny knew he was far too smart to just let it slip on by as a presumption of innocent naivety. Or, the other alternative, Kenny would be singlehandedly destroying the Drows.
Both were awful, one far more than the other, but both did have a similar connective thread that lead to the conclusion: Kyle was going to get hurt. Whether through purely feeling betrayed by someone he allowed himself to trust or finding his kingdom in ruins with himself at the helm of the destruction, this wasn't going to end well for him.
Kenny's shoulders dropped, eyes burning. He didn't ever want it to happen, neither of them. He didn't want to be the one to hurt someone who'd treated him with such a kind hand. He didn't want to have Kyle turn his back on all humankind once and for all, declare the entire race to be nothing but vile monsters that another generation could deal with if they wanted peace so badly. Kenny didn't want to be what destroyed such geniality, such faith in the inherent goodness of others, even with deep-seated prejudices always lingering in the back of the elf's mind. He was fighting through them to make this engagement work, to make sure his betrothed felt included in this strange land.
That damning question of Cartman's could undo all of that.
Kenny had a bit over four months left, and he was more than determined to figure out just how he could avoid it, how he could somehow save both Kyle and his sister. He was being torn apart by the two of them, his old life of family and fond memories now conflicting with the tender grasp of something more to be had if things continued the way that they were. Given, that possibility was laden with its own problems, but Kenny wanted to work them all out. Get Karen safe, tell Kyle the truth, and let things happen from there, just hope that Kyle would feel the same about him regardless of what he was hiding.
The hope was perhaps naïve, he knew. But it was one of the few dreams he'd found himself having outside of helping his family in so goddamn long. He just wanted it so much.
A glance at the still-blank parchment snapped Kenny right back into place, right back into a princess' agreement still left to fulfill. She sighed, shaking her head. She didn't know how to approach this. Working towards anything with Cartman could very well be another way for her to be entrapped. But, Craig was sick of how he was being treated, how his and Tweek's letters to one another were being intercepted or Cartman was just flat-out refusing to let Tweek write him. Kendra couldn't find his logic in that, but then again, she could rarely find his logic in anything that he did.
She could only figure that it was only due to Tweek being so close to the court, how he could very easily overhear something not meant to be heard. If word got from him to Craig about the schemes being hatched, Craig would take it to herself, or worse, to the king and queen. The possibility of war was teetering on the horizon, people only somewhat kept reassured by the idea of the impending union. One confession to the Larnion royalty could send their army marching straight towards Kupa Keep's gates, Kendra's head on a pike for such deceit.
Kendra rolled her eyes at herself. She knew better than that. So much better than that. But, hearing those stories all throughout her life of how the elves were torturers of humankind still found themselves nestled deep in her psyche, despite knowing damn well that the Broflovskis would never allow such horrors on their watch. At most, should things take such a turn of discourse, maybe she would be held as a prisoner for bargaining or something of the sort. Hopefully. She wondered if breaking the prince's heart would turn that, if Kyle would call for her head in a fit of emotion-driven revenge.
Hell, she wondered if this would count as breaking the prince's heart. Perhaps that was a bit egotistic to believe of her hold on him.
"Kendra? You all right?" a half-croaked voice called.
She whipped her head around, smiling at her visitor. Speaking of the devil. Kyle looked at her from a bit of a distance, seeming to warble in his place. Her smile once more fell; he looked utterly destroyed from his last few days of 'treatment'. She nodded, waving him over to sit with her and scooching on the bench to give him space. He seemed to consider it for a moment, glancing back at the door of the palace and sighing before slowly stepping her way. She felt her heart wrenching as he stumbled a bit, a hand slightly out in front of him to catch himself should he fall forward. He reminded her of some of the elderly citizens of Kupa Keep that would come in asking for loans from the palace, the ones that would need a younger soul to guide them forward so they wouldn't embarrass themselves before royalty.
With great care, Kyle finally made way through the courtyard to the bench, nearly falling down into the seat beside her and seeming winded from his twenty-yard journey. She gulped, looking at the subtle tremors of hunger and exhaustion racking through him, the vines splashing through his sclera and the wobbling way in which he sat. He swayed with the wind, not having the vigor needed to stand strong against such a gentle breeze. Kendra pouted, scooching a bit closer and putting her hand on his shoulder. He looked up at her and smirked lightly, "I know. I look like a fucking mess," he laughed humorlessly.
She glanced at the blank parchments still on her lap, shrugging to herself. Her letter could come later, she'd promised Craig it'd be completed by the end of the day, so she still had more than enough time. She hastily scribbled him a message, Kyle taking it and squinting his eyes slightly through his tiredness. 'I don't know about that, you make even sickness look pretty cute.'
She grinned at him looking at her with an unamused expression, waggling her brows and he let out a tiny snort. "I'm too tired to argue how stupid that sounds. Enjoy it. This is one of the only instances that's ever the case," he warned her through a yawn.
Kendra smirked as she wrote a response, seeing that confession as full-blown permission to see just how far she could press before bringing out that feisty snap of his that was such a joy to watch. Maybe it'd perk him up at the very least, give him that burst of energy he seemed to so desperately need. She handed him another paper, propping her cheek in her palm as she watched him slowly changing colors. 'Oh, well if that's the case, then I'm going to take this opportunity to tell you that you have the most slappable ass I've ever had the pleasure of laying my eyes on. Bet I could get it as red as your face right now.'
"Okay, this is taking advantage of me in my weakened state," he complained, crumpling the paper and throwing it back at her face as she violently struggled to stop from bursting into a roaring laughter. He sighed and shook his head, rubbing at his blearing eyes as he waited for her to stop shaking so damn much. He looked back up with a gentle nudge against his arm, seeing her lean against him briefly with a fond, teasing sparkle in her eyes, feeling his face redden deeper. He was too goddamn tired to deal with this and try to bluff his way through everything like usual; he felt strangely vulnerable under that doting stare. He cleared his throat, "Seriously, though. You all right? You looked like something was bothering you." That glitter seemed to get snuffed out all at once, Kyle snapping into a panic that he'd said the wrong thing. "If you don't wanna tell me, that's fine," he assured her hurriedly, nearly stumbling over his words.
God, did she wanna tell him. She wanted to just tell him everything right now. If he was healthy, maybe it would have been momentarily considered. But he was right, outside of teasing, anything big said would be taking advantage of him. She wasn't about to do something like that to him. Kendra opted to wave him off and plaster that smile back on, leaning her forehead down against his temple. He blinked, nearly falling at the sudden weight before a gloved hand intertwined into his own bare, shaking fingers. He gulped, wondering if his disillusions had really come to a head here of all places, if he was sitting in his goddamn room leaning against his wardrobe and thinking it was another person.
Kendra took a long, deep breath, relishing in the scent of spice and coffee mingling with the smell of toasted sap and wildflowers in an intoxicating combination. He was the personification of warmth, everything to love about late summer and early fall swept into this one body. She grinned slyly, free hand reaching up to pull down her scarf in the slightest, pressing wet lips against the side of his head, pecking lightly time and again, finding new spots as she traveled. Kyle was speechless, tremoring halted and fingers flexing around Kendra's own. He quietly squeaked at a light press against his ear, feeling Kendra's smile gliding wider from the sound and his stomach twisting into knots.
She backed off, readjusting her covering before coming back into his view, watching him with a raised brow of amusement. He seemed so dazed, so humiliated at his unwarranted noises. She chuckled to herself, twisting to write him another note with her free hand, keeping his fingers captive in her own as he stared at her in utter silence. He glanced down at a paper being held up in front of his face. 'Are you all right, my dear?'
He gulped, looking at her sparkling gaze and taking a long, shaking breath. "I… I'm gonna be honest… I-I'm so tired I don't know if that actually happened or not," he admitted, eyelids drooping. "I'm sorry, I'm really fucking just… I feel awful."
Kendra's grin slipped off her face yet again, scooting herself closer to the weary soul. She unwove their fingers, sliding her arm around his shoulders and pulling him lightly into her side, her hand landing in his hair. Kyle opened his mouth to protest before fingertips oh-so-lovingly began to pat over his skull, his exhausted form melting at the kind treatment. He'd been forced up so rigidly the last week, demanded to keep himself taut and wound and moving to keep awake. But he couldn't pull away from this, his eyes slipping closed as he sunk closer against her. He could fall asleep, just stay right here with her warm hold and the scent of daffodils wafting off her skin. Kyle couldn't help but smile, feeling her leaning her head atop his own as she continued to pet him down. "You must come out here a lot," he mumbled, nearly knocked out already. "You always smell like one of the gardens. Were you in the northern one earlier?" he questioned through a yawn, knowing even through his stupor that it was where their array of daffodils was in full bloom.
She cocked her brow in the slightest, shifting carefully to grab her notes and quill, scripting another letter as she continued to pet through his thick hair. The back part of her mind couldn't help but wonder how it felt beneath the silk of her gloves, how soft and plush it must be. How it would curl around bare skin and cling to it, try to keep her with it. She sighed. Maybe one day. She finished her note, tapping his head and waiting patiently as he forced himself to pry his eyes back open. He squinted at a simple 'actually, this is the first time I've been out in any of them. This is the first time I've been outside aside from when you took me to the kingdom.'
He blinked, slowly sitting back up and staring at the innocent cock of her head, mind whirling in bewilderment. 'Then why do you always smell like the forest?' he wondered to himself, lost in the mystery sitting before him.
She moved to write another query before a sharp jerk caught her peripheral. Kyle inhaled sharply, clutching his left side and his mouth dropping open, labored pants scraping through his throat. She released her quill, reaching forward and gripping his arm, heart pounding in terror at the agony wreaking havoc over his face. She gasped at a ghastly green glow glossing over his eyes, his entire body shaking, jaw audibly clattering. He cried out, wobbling and trying to find a semblance of the ground again, completely lost in his own haze as Kendra tried shaking his arm, tried to get him back with her.
A blaring agony ricocheted through his chest and he let out a stifled sob before the glow fell from his gaze, his eyes rolling back and slipping shut. Kendra let out an audible cry of dismay, unable to help herself as he limply folded over. She dove forward as he collapsed onto the dirt, shoving her hand under his head to keep him from making an impact. Her breath turned short and panicked, gaping at the unconscious prince in her arms and looking around frantically. She needed to get him help now, but she couldn't just leave him unprotected in the fucking garden.
Kendra narrowed her eyes in determination, moving Kyle to turn to his stomach and throwing his arm over her shoulders. She took a deep breath, years of being goddamn coddled as royalty was definitely not doing her any favors. Kyle was beyond slim, lighter than herself in fact, but she still struggled to stand herself up with his deadweight form. She gritted her teeth, grunting under her breath as she nearly got tangled in her dress and brought back down to the ground. She shook her head. No, not while Kyle so desperately needed her help. Kendra winced, throwing an arm around Kyle's waist and dragging his limp body towards the palace. She prayed, prayed to any of the deities she'd heard of in her lifetime for her to get him where he needed to be, to help her get herself forward.
Adrenaline was certainly helping, managing to make it a good foot with every step as Kyle's legs dragged behind them. 'He'd do this for you, fucking do it for him,' she ordered herself with a groan. A sharp hiss slipped through her teeth, hearing Kyle groaning and she gulped. She wasn't expecting it to be so sudden, thought that maybe he'd slowly work his way towards it hitting him. No wonder everyone around the palace had been watching him with such sympathetic caution. She finally made it to the door, grunting and twisting to kick it open with a high-heeled shoe.
Kendra brought him into the hallway, looking around for signs of anyone, knowing full and well she couldn't goddamn yell for help like she so wanted to. She spotted a servant down the way walking away from them. She growled, looking around in a hurry before finding a potted fern beside her. She licked over her lips, hoping when Kyle woke up he'd forgive her for what she was about to do. Her gloved hand snatched the lip of the pot, fingers dirtying at once in the rich soil as she whipped her arm around, watching the plant soaring down the hall before landing with a brittle crack as the clay shattered against the stone floor.
The servant whirled around in shock, seeing Kendra frantically waving the arm not clinging around Kyle's waist. He glanced down, seeing the unconscious redhead and his jaw dropped, pivoting and running towards them, bashing his fist against a door on the way. "Prince Kyle is down!" he shouted, continuing to sprint down the hall and help Kendra support his limp form.
The door burst open, a group of servants rushing out and finding them, frantic chatter picking up between the lot of them as they ran over. "Thank you, Your Highness, we have him," a handmaiden nodded at her as two larger men came over and picked up Kyle. He groaned, fingers unconsciously trying to grip onto Kendra's shoulder before he was torn away from her in a protective hold and hurried towards the other end of the palace.
Kendra made a move to run with them before being stopped with a gentle hand of the woman elf beside her sporting a dismal smile. "Let them take care of him first," she advised. "The healer will let you know when you can see him. He would never forgive himself if he hurt you."
Kendra's shoulders sank, looking back down the way they went, her jaw trembling. She wanted to go. She wanted to make sure they didn't drop him, that everyone was doing everything they possibly could to ensure his safety. She tremored with a sniffle, heart erratic and stomach cramping with anxiety.
That hand lightly rubbed her arm, the servant letting out a somber sigh. "Seeing it the first time is always the hardest," she told her. "It's scary, I know. But he'll be just fine, Princess Kendra, I promise."
Kendra looked down at her and cocked her head a bit through her turmoil. She didn't think she'd seen this particular maiden. She'd been here for nearly two months but was still finding new halls and people every day and it both fascinated and terrified her. Long brown hair flowed down her back, a simple softness lingering in green eyes spackled with golden flakes. She sniffed again, pointing at her and tilting her head more.
She blinked. "I… I'm sorry, Your Highness, I'm not sure what you're asking."
Kendra blinked, not particularly wanting to go run out for her paper for this. She brightened with an idea. She gestured to herself with her hands before lightly grasping the woman's arm and turning to a bare, pale forearm. She carefully spelled out 'K-e-n-d-r-a' with her finger, watching the woman's eyes lighten with understanding.
"Oh!" she exclaimed before chuckling. "My name is Heidi," she gave a polite curtsey.
Kendra returned a weak smile and bowed her head before her eyes flickered back down the hallway. Heidi sighed, "I've been here since he was thirteen," she commented, getting the princess' attention back on her. "I saw him fall the first time that year. Sir Stanley nearly shoved me through a wall trying to get him to his room," she chuckled sadly. "I know it looks awful, and it's certainly not a good time for the palace or Prince Kyle… but he'll make it as he always does," she assured her. "You've spent a lot of time with him. I'm sure you've figured out by now that he's as stubborn as they come."
Kendra gave a small breath of a laugh and a nod. She sighed, moving down the hallway with slow steps, feeling Heidi watching her carefully as she knelt beside the busted pot. Her shoulders sank in guilt, prying the poor, uprooted fern from its spilt home. She cringed at the intricate weaving of life now bereft of sustenance, wondering if she'd taken a life to get Kyle's saved. Maybe he would be that tulip that the redwood now inhabited.
Heidi squatted down beside her, looking curiously at her remorseful face and giving her a small smile. "We can go replant that," she told her, laughing quietly at the princess perking up at the notion. "I can help you," she suggested, standing and offering her hand. Kendra blinked, not used to any elves outside of the Broflovskis being so welcoming. She took her palm and got back to her feet, following as Heidi gestured and led her back out towards the garden. Kendra cradled the wounded plant, cocking her head at a light tingle rushing through her fingertips before looking back up as she stepped into the sunlight once more.
She sighed, giving another small sniffle. Heidi was right. Someone would come get her when it was safe to see Kyle again. She gulped, staring at the sky and saying a silent prayer, hoping that time would come sooner than later.