author's note; in this fic tess (ava) is the traitor, not isabel (vilandra)...
THE KING, THE WARRIOR AND THE PRINCESS,
written by Whipper
My brother's whispers are hardly more than warm air against my face but I don't need to hear the words to know what it is he want. We've shared so many dark nights, so many starclouded skies that word a long time ago became unnecessary. I touch his shoulder in silent assurance; of course he will come.
"Don't worry, brother."
He will be here any moment now. His eyes intense and every part of his body hard with the danger. Adrenaline will make his heart sing.
He will run towards us and he will cause us to cry with relief and joy. As he always have. He will kiss us hard and his mouth will be blood and steel. The kiss of a soldier.
He will look at us and see our worry and our anxiety and he will laugh at us and his happiness will be ours.
He will be here any moment now. He has to be.
Moments pass. Heartbeats.
Once again my brother's voice is warm against my face and this time I can almost hear the words. But just almost. He is mute with despair but the silence in his prayer still echoes in the void that is me.
He has to come.
My brother whispers blood and pain, whispers curses and love, prays for him to come. To live and never die.
And I curse with him. Pray with him.
He must come soon.
"Do you hear that?! Do you hear it?!"
"Yes. Yes, I do."
"It's him."
"I know."
"He is safe, Vilandra. Yet is not all lost!"
He kneels at my brothers feet, his head bent. My brother takes hold of his hands and drags him close in a hug.
"My brother."
"No. Your servant, sire. Your sword."
I watch them, proud. My brother, the King, and my husband, the Warrior. The King's Sword. He turn to me and his eyes are less intense now. He greets me and I nod at him, my entire being a celebration to his existence.
"Husband. I see that you are well?"
"Yes, wife, I am. You have not worried I hope?"
His voice is light. He must know I have worried. I care for him, do I not? We were raised together in the Royal Palace, we played together as children. We were betrothed very young, not out of love but out of necessity. But yet we were lucky; we were friends and very close. Never lovers though. My husband's heart was already taken. And I guess, that in a way, so am mine.
"Not at all. His Majesty have though."
My brother smile at us, used to our bantering.
"Was all well at the Palace?"
"Your... bethroded is still with Them, sire."
His voice is dark with disgust and hatred. Me, I feel like him. I do not understand her. The King's eyes are filled with pity though. Sometimes I do not understand him either.
"But you are back with us again. That is all that matters."
My husband smiles at that. A small smile filled with all that which sometimes makes me envy the woman that has captured his heart.
Then his face becomes closed, tired, and for a couple of seconds he reminds me of my brother. As if the entire world rested on his shoulders. I guess, in a way, it does.
"Sire, I fear that we will have to leave.."
"Leave?"
"We have to leave this planet, sire. For your sake. And Vilandra's."
No! It can not be. He can not be serious. Leave? That is... we can not do that. We are... we are the Royal!
"No! Tell him. Tell him that-"
"Shush, Vilandra."
"But-"
"Sit down and be quiet."
It is not the voice of my brother, the boy I played with as a child. It is the voice of a King. My King, the man to whom I once swore an oath to always obey and honor. So I sit down, quiet.
But inside me there is no silence, inside me thousands of voices will not be quiet.
"You heard my sister. We can not leave this planet."
"We have to, sire. The Skins have become too dangerous... They have become a threat to all of us."
"No."
If it had been any one besides my husband that no would have been final. No one disobeys the King. Not his own sister and certainly not his own Sword.
But my husband is not anyone and the fire in him is strong and not easily put out.
"If we stay here you will die, my King. We all will."
My brother turns his back at us so that we will not see his face. He is unaware that both me and his Sword can read the way he holds his body as good as we could ever read his face.
"Bring Her to me. And Nasedo."
"Ay, sire."
No questions as to why. He leaves the most difficult questions for me to ask. Not that he is a coward, but he chooses his battles well.
There is not many that agree with me when I say that my husband is a wise man. But then there are not many that knows him as well as I do. In fact I believe that there are only two other persons that do.
"Don't go now though. The King's Sword is steel and honor, but still made like the rest of us. You will need sleep and food. Take care of my sister now, then come talk with me and tell me about your journey. Then rest here with us tonight and eat with us in the morning."
"Yes, my King. Thank you."
He kneels again than walks up to me, his cloak as black as the sky. I reach out and caress his face. It is still the same and that surprises me. He has just told us that the Royal Four...
No, the Royal Three. It is just me, him and the King now. The Queen is not... She has betrayed us all.
"Are you well, Vilandra?"
His voice is soft and caring. He seldom speaks to me like that, it is a voice he normally spares to his Beloved. But I can see myself in his eyes and I understand his concern. My face is so pale and my eyes are even darker than his.
"We have to leave?"
"Yes. I fear that is the only solution."
"All because of her..."
"Yes."
He takes my hand in his and walks with me to the tent. In there he helps me into bed and tucks the blankets close to me. I open my mouth to say that I'm sorry for not knowing that such kindness lived in him but he shushes me.
"Sleep now. Perhaps I will see you in the morning."
"Yes. Be safe, husband?"
He doesn't answer me. My husband never was a liar. I close my eyes to hide the tears that's burning in me. I can feel his hot breath against my skin as he places a gentle, brotherly kiss on my cheek.
Then he leaves. And I know no more until the next morning.
When the sun rises above us the next morning I wake up. I did not wake up when my husband returned to our bed, nor did I wake up when he got up from bed this morning.
I get dressed as fast as I can and walks out to the fire. I find my husband there, his cloak tightly wrapped around him. He notices me and smiles.
"My lady."
My husband. My brother's Sword and warrior and my own brother in heart. I do not wish for him to leave. I fear for his life. Yet I know the King is right to send him to the City. There is no one but him that we can trust with our lives. The lives of the Royal Family.
"You have spoken to the King?"
"Yes. Last night."
"Did he tell you-"
"It is not for you to know, wife. Not yet."
I do not get upset. I know it is my brother who have told him not to reveal anything. My husband is fire but he was also raised to be the Sword and will never disobey the King. Sometimes I wonder what would happen if he had not at an early age been taught obedience.
"So you are leaving now?"
"Yes."
I take off my ring, the one with the Royal Sign. It is given to the children of the Royal Family the moment they are born. My husband and the Queen also have the rings; they were given to them at the weddings.
"Give this to my musician? He can sell it, perhaps. He will need the money..."
But we both knew that my musician, my lover, would never exchange the ring for money. He would keep it forever and maybe... Maybe one day he would return it to me. Maybe.
My husband accepts the ring and then turned to leave us, to go back to the Royal City. As the King's Sword he will face danger, maybe even die. Yet he does not say good-bye.
He never does.
"Husband?"
"Yes?"
He does not turn around.
"Tell your Beloved that I am sorry that we have to take you away from her. Tell her that I mourn with her."
As I watch my husband's departure I hear step behind me. I do not turn around, I know those steps so well. Also I know the voice that whispers with a broken voice;
"Come back to me, Brother."
When we no longer can see the Sword I turn around to face my brother. His face is wet with tears but I pretend not to notice as I embrace him hard. Just as I pretended not to hear his whispered words a few moments ago.
This story will soon be continued...
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