Prompt: #33 Without
Summary: Forever together, yet eternally apart.
A/N: This is the 3rd part of the story started in Chapter 35: Caecus. It was originally supposed to be 3 parts but has turned into 4. Inspiration is the movie LadyHawk.
Egeo is Latin for "to need, lack, want, be without".
Egeo
Sayin' that Captain, (he'll just keep calling him that because he's sure Prince Noctis didn't want anyone else knowing who he was really was just yet) was a man of few words was kinda stupid to even bother saying. He was a very powerful man. No doubt about that. He was also very mysterious in that super cool hero type of way. The man had a very strong vendetta against The Overlord which would have sounded crazy except he had a pretty darn good reason to. Nobody could fault him for wanting to kill the very man that had stolen everything from him out of something like jealousy. It would have been different if the Princess had actually liked the Overlord back but she didn't and so that made him just plain crazy. He hadn't been sure he even wanted to know all this before, but now that he did, he knew the Overlord was already a walking corpse in his opinion. If any man could kill the Overlord it'd be Captain. No doubt about that. Both men were dark and powerful but there was just something about Captain that made you want him as your Dark Knight. The Knight that would do anything to defend you. Captain was compassionate and understanding and just. He'd have to be because he was definitely patient with him and he hadn't killed Priest that morning when he'd had a darn good reason to, too. Call it hero worship. A proud, noble Dark Knight was a hero to anyone who was mouse like and small like he was.
Captain was everything he wasn't and he was sure glad that there was a man like that around. There were too many like him, mouse like, that didn't do anything except think about themselves. The quicker Captain regained the throne and became the King that he should have been already the better for everyone. Didn't take a genius to work that out. He'd have a boring life once that happened but at least he wouldn't try things that would get him sent to the slammer anymore.
"There were times I wondered if you had died," he heard Captain say to Priest when he had run down all the steps from the tower to where they were standing together. The Princess, LadyHawk, as he dubbed her afterwards was perched on Captain's arm as he proudly sitting on Horsie's back. "There were many times I wanted to kill you myself."
Captain's voice had been grim but not too threatening. He was just being blunt and honest. Then he had raised his arm and looked at LadyHawk. It was at that moment he realized just how stupid he'd been to miss the major detail of how Captain always looked at LadyHawk. There was always a warm fondness that would have been just plain weird if she'd just been a typical bird. Now that he'd noticed it and now that he knew the why, he could believe the crazy tale that he'd gotten himself involved in. He's sure he would have flipped too if the love of his life had just been struck with an arrow to the chest and dropped like a rock to the ground. He didn't know where Captain called his patience from. He'd been more than a little patient when he'd tried to tell him the hawk was done for. But Priest was talking again and his thoughts were cut off.
"I was glad to be here and assist. I owe you both so much," said Priest with a hopeful grin on his old face. "I have a solution to your problem too!"
Captain hadn't answered but continued to stare at him in wait. He had that skeptical look on his face though that meant he already knew whatever you were gonna say was utter BS.
"In three days, you will be able to stand beside Princess Stella in front the Overlord."
Captain's face hardened and his jaw clenched from anger. His eyes flashed to red too and he'd be a liar if he said he hadn't stepped back a little when he saw that look on Captain's face.
"In two days I shall reach Nihilsomno and I shall kill the Overlord," vowed Captain in a tone that sounded a bit like he was saying there was sun shining in the morning.
"No! If you do the curse will never be broken," cried Priest.
"Go back inside and nurse your ale, old man," suggested Captain very unkindly. Yeah, resentment had been there and it had quickly replaced any gratitude he'd had a moment before.
"You think I'm drunk when I say this!" protested Priest heatedly. "I've been forgiven for what I've done to you both!"
"Forgiven?" Captain repeated with scorn but it was a relief that his eyes had turned back to blue. "You have not been forgiven. You have been driven mad."
Well, that was awkward and very poignant and he didn't know how to break the tension after that. He was just selfish enough to be thankful that Captain never said any of those mean things to him. Priest's face fell then and he didn't utter any protests because he knew he'd deserved it. That didn't mean he looked utterly broken up about it. He'd been torn himself because he liked Priest but he liked Captain more and he knew Captain had plenty of reason to say such mean things.
The glare lasted a little longer on Captain's face until LadyHawk had flapped her wings and distracted him. He'd turned to look at her with an affection on his face before he had actually looked a little sheepish. As if he knew that she was tellin' him off for being so mean. He didn't know if he felt more inspired of just plain depressed when he realized this. No matter what form, the Prince always saw Stella in Lady Hawk. He'd watched Captain as he'd stiffened after a moment atop Horsie and trotted over in his direction.
"Say, Captain," he said as if he'd been thinking.
"I am forever grateful, Mouse," said Captain, giving him a mutually thankful smile. "I will no longer try to force you on this errand of mine."
You'd think he was talking about heading over to the store and grabbing some milk and eggs.
"That's good of you, sir," he said with a grateful grin.
"Stay out of trouble," admonished Captain.
"Say, are you and LadyHawk still headed to Nihilsomno?"
"LadyHawk?" Captain asked with a slight frown before he caught the reference. He smiled approvingly at him and he knew he'd liked the new nickname. "Yes, as a matter of fact, we are."
"Cause I suddenly remembered that I forgot something and I'm headed there myself," he said as believably as he could.
Captain looked at him shrewdly, knowing that he'd been lying out of his teeth, but he was wise enough not to point out the blatant lie. He'd actually smirked at him.
"Well, hurry and gather your things then," he said, sitting straighter in the saddle. "I am leaving now."
"Will do, Captain!" he'd shouted with a mild salute before running back towards Priest.
He hadn't gotten very far when he heard Captain's faint chuckle and a fondly voiced, "LadyHawk", before he'd started hollering for Priest to hurry up and follow behind them. They had two days to convince Captain that he needed to hold back from killing the Overlord just long enough for them to break the curse. They would, Priest had figured out a way. If anyone would be truthful and sure that this was going to happen, it'd be Priest. He'd called it his chance at redeeming himself to his Princess and the Prince. Mouse believed him completely but convincing Captain was another issue all together and it'd take more than just him to convince Captain.
Much later in the day, they'd been walking through a thick forest with him on Horsie and Captain walking beside them with LadyHawk on his arm. He thought they were making way too much progress too quickly when Captain caught the reins and they stopped.
"A storm is coming and the sun is almost setting," uttered Captain a little thoughtfully.
"How do you know? I can't even see the sky through these thick trees," he'd said, looking up and trying to squint through the thick foliage around them.
"Five years give you an acute sense of them," Captain explained absently. He motioned for Mouse to take LadyHawk. "There should be a tavern about a mile or two beyond those trees. You should be able to make it in time before the rains start to come down in abundance."
"Will do," he replied and he'd steered Horsie in that direction.
"Tell her I love her," he heard Captain say behind him, in a voice full of longing and regret.
His heart went out to the man. There'd always been a haunted look about Captain, but if he were in this crazy situation he knew he'd be batty, not just haunted. Even with that haunted look, Captain held it with a poise and grace that proved just how wrongly he'd been treated. Definitely dealt the wrong cards and he deserved to be King over his kingdom. Five years was a long time to travel aimlessly every day with the woman of your dreams stuck as a bird. He wondered if they could at least see each other in those few seconds before they would both turn. He'd wondered if they had ever tried. It didn't look like they had. Maybe it was too much torture for them. Maybe that was the frustration that was the cause of Captain's mission to kill the Overload after all this time. The world would definitely be a better place without the evil jerk. It'd been so long and the situation so helpless. He's sure that being helpless didn't sit well with a man like Captain. They didn't fair well and when they snapped, Run!
He'd tried to put himself in Captain's shoes. Couldn't because he wasn't noble and he, shame to say, probably would've moved on. Princess was a magnificent creature of beauty but his kind of prat couldn't handle all that baggage and responsibility. He wasn't made of the same stock as Captain and it had nothing to do with him being a peasant and Captain being a Prince. The Overlord himself was from nobility and he was sicker than a sewer rat. He was dishonorable. More than he was! He'd also never be able to handle another man being able to spend time with his lady like Captain so trustingly let him. He'd be mad with jealousy and would probably end up stabbing the git in a fit of rage. All Captain did was say, "Tell her I love her", in a voice that left no doubt that he meant it.
These contrasting thoughts ran through his mind as he'd reached the tavern and made sure to tie Horsie in one of the stalls inside of the accompanying stable. The rain had just started to come down in sheets by then. Captain was right! He'd settled LadyHawk on the stall door where Horsie was tied. Then he'd laid out a gown for her. How he'd missed the fact that Captain kept a gown in one of the compartments of Horsie's saddle made him feel even more stupid. Thieves were always supposed to notice these things! His head had definitely been loopy since this whole fiasco was plunked on him like this. After looking at how fancy and very princess like the gown was, he'd "borrowed" a gown from a hanger outside that was dry and brought it in for her.
Realizing that if he didn't scram, he'd be getting more than an eye full of Princess Stella starkers and that if he did and Captain ever found out he'd probably castrate him, he'd turned around and waited out in the rain. That turned out to be sort of a bad idea because he didn't have an umbrella, having left it in Horsie's saddle and it had been pouring out there! But he'd needed to be chivalrous or Mousie Jr. would be detached, so he waited, even though he did start shivering out there.
"You can come in now," said a subdued feminine voice from inside.
He hadn't needed to be told twice, so he was jumping through the door and into shelter as soon as she'd finished her sentence. At first he hadn't been able to see her anywhere until she slowly walked out into view. She had almost looked shy and heaven help him, she's looked even more alluring. What a woman!
"Thank you," she said indicating her simple gown with a smile. Before he could respond, she'd turned around to Horsie. "Hello Acerbus," she said, leaning her forehead against the massive head of…
"His name is Acerbus?" blurted out Mouse.
Lady turned to give him a curious smile. "What do you call him?"
"Horsie," he'd said as if she should have guessed.
She'd burst out laughing, covering her mouth in a vain effort to cut it off, and he doesn't think he's ever heard a more charming sound.
"I hope you did not tell Noctis," she said, fully amused.
He shook his head and totally agreed that he was glad he hadn't told Captain. He's not sure what Captain would've done if he had ever found out he'd called his rider, Horsie.
"Good, because if he has not hurt you, Acerbus would," she warned, giving the giant an affection pat. Said giant that was glaring at him something awful.
He'd grinned toothily and tried to pat Acerbus himself but the behemoth turned his head away as if insulted. Even though he'd given him that nickname out of love. Ingrate!
"Aaw! Don't be like that boy," he'd said with the Princess giggling beside him.
"I am sure he meant no offense," she reassured the giant and it was only after that, that he'd let him pat his monstrous head.
"Mouse," said Lady hesitantly.
"Yes, my Lady?"
She looked upset, torn and maybe a little sad. Actually, more than a little sad.
"He is taking us back to Nihilsomo, isn't he?" It wasn't even really a question because the look in her eye told him that she already knew the answer to that. She was just looking for confirmation from him for some reason.
He nodded hesitantly in response.
She looked away and he could tell that more than just her gaze left the stable in that moment. After what seemed a few minutes, she sighed with a shake of her head. The resignation hunched her shoulders but she didn't rail like any other female would have. She hadn't completely agreed with Prince Noctis' plan, but she'd been wise enough not to get angry at what that meant for them. They would be stuck forever living that way even though they would still be together. From the looks of resignation he'd seen in both their faces, they'd figured they'd be happy with just that. It had him marveling all over again at the superior strength of character that they both had. Even though she thought it was obviously as bad an idea as he did, she didn't utter one word against Prince Noctis' decision. He'd bet that she was tired of all this too, but she at least had more reservations about making it so final. Well, at least outwardly at least. Captain was good poker face. But, the Prince was in an awkward position. It was clear that he didn't like how things were running in his kingdom and that this was the only way to save at least his people if he couldn't save himself. These two were both very special people and they belonged together because they both knew they couldn't be selfish like the rest of them were. They shouldn't have had to live such a terrible life every day! It wasn't fair!
"Well, then, on that happy thought," he'd found his fat trap saying before he'd even realized he was talking. "I need a stiff drink."
"Very stiff," she agreed with a genuine smile of appreciation.
"Since it's absolutely pouring out and I forgot the umbrella last time, I'd better not forget it now," he said, opening the pathetically small umbrella that had been attached to Acerbus' saddle. He didn't think it'd actually belonged to Captain cause he doubted he was susceptible to the rain anyway. One of those men that just let the rain pelt and freeze them and still look badass.
He'd been thinking maybe he should just hand it over to the Princess when she'd easily looped her arm with his. He can admit to himself at least, that he'd gotten giddy at the sight of such a beautiful woman on his arm and he'd giggled like an idiot around his first crush. They'd both braced themselves against the pouring rains and gusty winds once he'd open the stable doors to let them out and get to the tavern. The wind had blown the umbrella forward and they were just laughing at how useless the umbrella really was when they crashed into something soft and hard. The umbrella flew away on impact. When he'd finally managed to get a clear view of what they had crashed into, the Princess had already let out an agonized scream. It was a horse, but that wasn't what had him wanting to scream as Lady had. On the saddle, where they both had just crashed up against, was a fur skin of a black wolf. He'd swung his trusty rifle around so fast and whipped it into the face of the creepy, looney, diabolical lookin' man seated in the saddle. Captain had also taken to leaving his broad sword for him too just in case but that was clipped at his belt and harder to reach for at the moment. With a tug, he'd pulled the hysterical princess behind him as she'd tried to reach out for the freshly skinned fur. There was still red blood on it!
"Lady get back!" he'd shouted but she still resisted. Until he'd shouted, "Stella!". That had seemed to wake her up and she'd run back into the stable.
"Stella?" repeated the hairy, creepy giant on the horse in knowing recognition. A malicious grin had formed with crooked yellow teeth that made you want to gag. Crazy man was obviously a wolf poacher. He'd been wearing an entire long coat made up of all wolf furs if one had any doubts before.
"Get away!" he'd shouted, pointing the end of his rifle's barrel in his face.
"Watch it little man. You're scaring me," came the snide reply. Okay not in the least bit scared but at least he wasn't trying to do anything sneaky like.
"I told you to scram!" he'd shouted again and cocked his rifle to make his point.
The terrifying man merely rolled his eyes and laughed in that cackling evil way as he'd trotted away into the woods and disappeared. He'd been a sopping wet mess all over and not entirely out from the rain either. That was sweat in there too you can be certain. He'd been trembling from fright and adrenaline and he was surprised his knees hadn't buckled. That guy had been pure evil to look at. The deranged, crazed kinda guy you wouldn't want to come across during any day. Don't even think about an encounter in the dark! He'd hunched over feelin' pretty drained when the stable doors flew open and the Princess, riding atop Acerbus, raced off in the direction the wolf poacher had gone.
"No wait! Please! Stop!" but there was no way she would've heard him over the rain and the pounding hooves of Horsie. Not that it would have stopped her. "He's going to kill me!"
He's never been really sure what happened in that dark, terrifying forest between Princess Stella and the wolf poacher. He'd been so frightened that he'd thought his heart palpitations would turn into a full blown heart attack. Going against his very nature, he had dashed towards danger instead of running away from it. He'd heard the distinct sounds of wolf traps clamping viciously with loud snaps and the scream of the Princess just beyond the trees in front of him. Probably a good thing that she'd screamed cause he might not have ever found her in that madness. He heard the sharp snap of another trap going off and a sickening chortle of somebody obviously convulsing. When he'd finally crashed onto the scene, it was to the horrific image of the poacher's bent form and the clamp's vicious teeth sinking in to his neck. A very gruesome way to go.
Princess Stella had been standing over him, shaking like a leaf with her rapier in her hand. He'd scrambled over to her and cried out a, "What happened?"
"He did not get Noctis!" she cried out in relief then, paying him no mind in her relief. "Thank goodness! He did not get Noctis!"
It had not taken a genius to figure out that the Overlord knew that the Prince and Princess were back in the general area of Nihilsomno and had sent that wolf poacher to kill the Prince in his more vulnerable state. If he had succeeded, that would leave Princess Stella at his mercy and he shuddered to think of just what he had planned with her then. The man was definitely sick and demented, not to mention determined. There was no reasoning when a man was that far gone. Obviously Prince Noctis knew that and that was why he'd decided on this mission to kill the Overlord to begin with. He knew that he could not protect Stella forever and instead of endlessly worrying about it, he was going to remove the threat completely, no matter that it would leave them both in endless misery and loneliness. The things one did unselfishly for the one that they loved. He'd never been familiar with the notion really. He'd never loved anything more than he loved himself and couldn't understand what it was like to be unselfish. A mouse was not a giving creature. It took where it could and had no remorse about it. So was he. Being a witness to the contrast, he didn't think it was appealing to be unselfish either. He could admire it though. It took a strength he didn't have so he could admire that at least. Just so long as it wasn't him doing the sacrificing.
It still depressed him though. He'd figured that the whole day had been a toll on him cause he didn't remember much after what happened with the wolf poacher. He didn't remember falling onto his little sleeping bag either. Heck, he wasn't even sure how he'd gotten to be lying in front of a fire as close as he was when his eyes opened to the sight of roasting fish. Bleary eyed, he'd looked up and seen a grilling beauty just waiting for him to inhale and a smirking Captain standing over him. You'd have thought nothing had happened the night before from the casual way that Captain was smirking at him. Of course, Captain wasn't even there with them to know just how terrifying the night had been, wolf form or human, and he's not sure he was sorry that he wasn't either. Not that it'd done anything but make him even more confused as he'd sat up scratching his head, noticing that they were not anywhere near a forest or a tavern anymore and wondering if it'd all been a dream.
"Good morning," greeted Captain in a friendly voice. There was something to be said about a man that made you feel loads safer just knowing that he was there. He's sure his lanky presence hadn't reassured the Princess of being safe. "I made breakfast. You look like you could use the coffee too." Captain had added when he'd continued groggy eyed.
"What a night," he'd muttered to himself.
The thought of coffee brightened him up and he'd barely managed to get to his feet before he heard the call of LadyHawk approaching them from across the icy lake. Yawning as loudly as he knew was impolite and stretching his arms just as wide as his mouth, he'd been more than a little confused when his arm jerked down and nearly dropped the heavy hawk that had perched onto his forearm. Gawking like the idiot that he was, he'd turned to see that Captain looked just as stunned as he was. That is, until a knowing smirk crossed Captain's lips and he'd crossed his arms to get a better look at him.
"Last night," said Captain, giving him a level stare that said that he was going to know if he were lying before he'd gotten a chance to think one up. "What happened?"
"Nuthin'," he tried to yawn again which did not fool Captain one bit. Plus it was awkward since he now had a bird perched on his forearm.
Captain had merely continued to stare at him and waited until he told him what he wanted to know.
"Well, we uh, had an interesting night."
An eyebrow went up and he knew he had to think fast.
"Just a little stormy, not bad," he added slyly, before he'd looked down to chide LadyHawk. "Now you gonna get me in trouble by doing that? Get on back to your master, LadyHawk."
"More than stormy," stated Captain but it wasn't a question and he definitely wanted an answer.
"So we may have run into a little bit of trouble but nuthin' I couldn't handle," he'd gone for nonchalant but Captain had that alarmed look on his face now and he knew he'd been caught. Gah, why was Captain the only man who could tell if he was lyin'! He made a motion of trying to get LadyHawk onto Captain's arm again more forcefully. "You're bein' right silly this morning LadyHawk!"
Finally, after giving him a hard stare again, Captain had taken LadyHawk onto her own arm and looked into her small face.
"She's the most beautiful creature I've ever seen and I'd be an idiot to deny it," he'd said, drawing Captain's attention away from the incident the night before. He'd watched as Captain gently lowered LadyHawk onto a special branch he'd placed near the fire before continuing. "I doubt there's a man alive that wouldn't think so either, but it's clear as anything that she's in love with you too, Captain."
Captain didn't look ecstatic at the news, but he figured it didn't matter that he knew she loved him when they couldn't be together.
"Every moment you spend with her… I envy you," Captain confessed slowly, before turning to look at him with a look that was so vulnerable he felt ashamed to have seen it.
"I could spend a lifetime with her and she'd never look at me the way she did when she was thinking about you," he'd muttered with both a shrug and a little envy himself. Captain gave him a piercing look that was hard to figure out.
"How do know that?"
He'd shaken his head.
"I'd think a lot about you too, Captain," he'd said with a cheeky grin that had Captain rolling his eyes with a smirk. "She loves you more than life. She's had to."
Captain looked away from him to stare at the horizon in thought. It was that far away look that he'd seen the Princess get the night before.
"Did you know that hawks and wolves mate for life?" Captain asked in a quiet voice before turning to look at him.
He'd never been much of an animal person to know that so he'd shaken his head.
"The Overlord did not even give us that," Captain had finished and that steel look of anger had replaced the mournful look that had been there before.
That next day, he'd been unnaturally quiet the entire time. Captain, who he wasn't sure had an awareness when he was in wolf form, had looked at him quizzically and then a little worriedly, but didn't get nosy. He'd respected his privacy and didn't ask him again about what happened. He wasn't hurt. LadyHawk wasn't hurt. Mouse wasn't hurt and that was all that really mattered. To think about all the worst case scenarios and knowing there'd been nothing he could have done about it, would only drive a man like Captain nuts anyway. So he decided to snap out of it before he worried Captain too much. Priest had finally caught up to them with his donkey pulled cart and he'd had enough company to take his thoughts away from the traumatic night before to get to his usual chattering.
"Since he's not being reasonable, we'll have to appeal to her," Priest said decidedly later when they were out of Captain's sharp hearing. "You'll have to ask her tonight."
"What exactly do you want me to say?" he'd asked and he hadn't even been sure he wanted to know the answer.
After Priest had caught up to them and they'd gotten to putting a lame brained plan together, it was time for them to stop traveling for the day. They'd traveled faster than expected and would soon reach the outer city limits of Nihilsomno by noon the next day. There wasn't any time for stalling on their part now cause they needed to wait the one more day before killing the Overlord according to Priest's plan. He wasn't sure he understood just what Priest's brilliant plan for breaking the curse was, but he was willing to try anything to help the two of these wonderful people.
It hadn't taken long for him to find the Princess once it'd gotten dark. She had this natural glow about her that made her easily found in the dark. Kinda like the moon was easy to find as black as everything else was. She'd been fiddling with the waistband of the pants that Captain usually wore during the day, when she'd whirled around to face him.
"Oh, there you are, Mouse," she said absently, trying to finish with her fiddling.
"We need to talk Princess," he said but she wasn't paying much attention to him. She was looking for her rapier then. "This is going to be our last evening together."
That stopped her and she looked up at him in confusion. "Why?"
"I haven't exactly been honest with you," he started and she gave him that searching look that said she'd known that already. Clever woman! "But we have a plan."
"We?" she repeated. "You and Noctis?"
"Well, no…," he said, jerking his head to Priest, as the other man revealed himself beside him.
Her face hadn't exactly been welcoming at the sight of Priest and he found he couldn't fault her that. She'd glared at him like Captain had but there was a grudging thanks along with the open resentment. There'd definitely been more welcome from her eyes than Captain and that was the best they could hope for. It wasn't quite hatred, but it was definitely resentment. Though skeptic, she'd been willing enough to go along with their plan. Princess, reasonable creature that she was, had more willingness with Priest's plan than Captain. She stood watch over them as they dug up the snowy dirt to make a wolf trap. Priest was hollering up a storm and shoving him while trying to dig as much dirt out of their makeshift hole as quickly as he could. Finally he'd managed to shove him so hard he'd landed on his back.
"I don't think this hole is big enough," he'd muttered.
"Well, let's hope it's big enough for the wolf," growled Priest without pausing in his digging.
It'd certainly been deep enough cause hauling Priest out of the narrow pit was a doozy. Priest had gained some poundage over the year and hadn't worked out his arms. Obviously not since both his strength and Priest's wasn't enough to get the man out of the trap. It wasn't until they heard the not too distant howl of a wolf, that he'd just sprung over the chubby older man and leapt out of the trap himself.
Things happened too fast after that. Wolf had come along towards the Princess from the other side of the frozen lake and just as he was about to reach her, had fallen through the ice and into the freezing water. The Princess screamed, ice cracking at her own feet when she'd tried to run and help, but not enough to make her fall through thank goodness. She got down on her stomach then and half slid, half crawled towards her drowning lover. He'd grabbed Captain's main sword and embedded it into the more sturdier snow, tied a rope to the hilt and crawled towards the drowning wolf, behind the Princess. She'd reached him in no time and was trying to hold onto his upper half but she wasn't strong enough to lift him out.
"Help me, Mouse!" she pleaded as she lost her grip on the slippery fur and the wolf dropped back into the water.
There wasn't any time to really think about things and he'd found himself diving into the water too. Breath was knocked out of him so fast he couldn't think straight for a sec. The struggling wolf threatened to claw his flesh off his very bones as it tried to regain the surface of the freezing waters. He couldn't think! He tried and tried but with the frantic cries of the Princess along with the harsh bites of Wolf's dagger like claws into him. It was cold, so cold! He's not sure how he'd even done it but it must've been the sheer desperation inside him that had him gripping Wolf's black, slick fur roughly into his fingers and hauling him out of the water. The sag of relief of accomplishment had him sinking into the water again. Princess Stella clung to Wolf and cried reassuring things, trying to warm him with her own body heat as Priest came crawling over the thin ice to help him out of the water too. He'd just barely managed to get his blue hide out of the water and then all of them collapsed beside the watering hole to calm down.
"We must live," pleaded the Princess weakly to Priest, as she stroked the wet fur of Wolf. "As humans and not as animals any longer. I leave it in your hands now."
As much as a part of him worried about the Princess and Wolf, he'd been too distracted with the simple act of not biting his tongue off as his teeth chattered uncontrollably and clinging to himself to try and gain some warmth in the cold night. He'd barely been aware of anything as Priest ordered him to strip and get closer to the fire, before wrapping a very warm and dry fur rug over his shivering form. He doesn't think he'd ever feel anything as painful and debilitating as freezing like that.
"The Pppppriin…," he'd tried to say but couldn't get his teeth to stop clanking together as he continued to shiver.
Priest thrust a flask full of brandy into face and poured some into his mouth that had him sputtering but at least something inside him was burning, as the liquid flowed down his throat. He could feel the burn sting of it in the insides of his chest.
"They're fine now, Mouse," reassured Priest without him having to try asking again. "Now you try to get yourself warm and don't sleep just yet."
Sleep sounded awfully good but whenever he tried to keep his eyes shut, Priest would bonk him soundly on the head and wake him up again. When he'd done it about five times he'd actually given a cry of protest and let out a barrage of unseemly curses at the old crab until he ran out of breathe. Instead of the murderous glare that he'd been expecting from Priest, the old badger had smirked knowingly and that was when he'd realized that his teeth had stopped grinding and he'd stopped shivering. Knocked the wind from his sails and he's collapsed into his heap of heating furs.
"You still can't sleep you rodent!" ordered Priest with half a growl, but he'd been so happy to have some warmth coming back into his system that he'd chuckled in response instead.
He hadn't been able to sleep the rest of the night though and it was only about an hour until dawn that he'd been well enough to stand. He'd "borrowed" a few white robs from Priest when the coot wasn't lookin' and made sure one had a hood so he could cover his still freezing noggin' and rushed over to the small ditch that he and Priest had been in such a rush to dig before the entire fiasco had started. He'd tried to creep noiselessly but he doubts any of the occupants of the ditch would have noticed him if he'd crunched noisily around the surrounding area anyway. They'd both been too deep in their own musings and it was like a shield around them as they both lay there. Princess Stella was stroking the black fur of Wolf as the black beast lay quietly and peacefully by her side. She still had her hood on so he couldn't see what her face looked like exactly. They hadn't been looking at each other. Both looked like they were still recovering from the shock of almost losing one another.
He'd been too far to say for certain but he hadn't been too far off that he'd missed it when, just as the Princess squeezed her hand around a handful of fur, her knuckles started to glow. The look on her face was mildly alarmed and she'd brought her hand in front of her as she watched the beginning rays of the sun shine from behind her, against the pale skin of her hand. Her eyes sparkled behind the shadow of her hood and she glanced down at Wolf. His breathe had caught cause in that one moment, he'd watched wide and misty eyed as black fur started to change into skin. He'd seen the almost sharp awareness snap into Captain's eyes as he'd jerked his head in her direction and caught side of her hooded body. His transformation hadn't been completed cause his face had only the vague silhouette of his face mixed with Wolf but his eyes, those piercing orbs of his were locked onto the equally changing form of the woman beside him.
He'd never been an eloquent person. He didn't have the education to ever make up fancy words and he's sure they would have been useful in this instance but all he could say was that it was so tragic and so sad and so beautiful a scene, that he'd been streaming tears without knowing it as both the Prince and Princess tried to reach each other before the sun fully rose. He'd held his breathe in hopes of holding that moment just a second longer but it didn't matter. Just before their fingers could touch, the Princess had let out a cry of agony as her outstretched fingers turned into feathers and she changed so drastically that she'd flown away before Captain could have gotten a grasp of her. His responding cry of agony shook the ground all around them and he'd jerked to awareness and scrammed before he could be seen, but he didn't think he'd ever forget the sounds of bitter pain that escaped Captain's mouth as he walked away and let the man grieve alone.
I am very sorry for the delay but I hope that the length of this will let you know that I wasn't having you wait so long for only a couple hundred words. :)