review replies:
DukeDaniel: Alexis is such a queen. And she loves that bucket. God willing, I'll start to get better soon.
Okuri-chan: Well, if he hadn't been, she could always hit him with the bucket!
Alexis stuck one hand in her trouser pocket, lifting an apple to her mouth with the other. "What are we going to do when our provisions run out?" She asked before biting into it.
"We do what we have been doing, I suppose." Stephen said, glancing over at her. The redhead was on the far left of the group, putting her closest to the road that they skirted at a reasonable distance. "Forage."
"But there's three of us now." She countered. "Unless we split up - and that's a bad idea because we might lose each other - we're covering the same amount of ground as when there were two of us, and now we have an extra mouth to feed." Stephen looked over at Cafos, who shrugged.
"She has a point."
It was their second day of travel from the Blackhaven mansion. For the most part, they stayed in the woods beside the road, keeping out of sight while allowing them to see anyone who passed by. Though the trio generally agreed that they probably weren't in any danger, they all felt more comfortable within the shelter of the trees.
Either way, the road they followed seemed seldom traveled. Over the last two days they had only seen two other groups, a carriage that overtook them and one passing by the other way.
"What supplies do we have left?" Stephen asked. In response, Alexis rifled through the bucket that hung over her arm.
"A couple pieces of jerky, some hard rolls, and two apples." She reported. "That'll last us till… maybe the end of the day if we're lucky." Stephen pursed his lips.
"Well… we don't have time to try to find a job again." He said slowly. "And it's still a few days yet until we reach Belmourne, correct?"
"That's right." Cafos confirmed. "And we don't have any guarantee that the Lady will let us in, much less feed us."
"Well, we could hunt." Stephen said. "Though without proper tools it would be difficult. Our only option is to keep an eye out for food as we go, to avoid losing too much time."
"It's not our only option." Alexis countered. Stephen glanced at her, and she went on. "We've passed a couple of carriages. If another one came, we could…" she rubbed her index finger and thumb together, and Stephen blinked uncomprehendingly.
"I highly doubt traveling nobility would be charitable to a group of urchins on the side of the road."
"No, I meant we steal from them."
"No!" Stephen exclaimed. "We're not- we're not going to rob someone."
"It isn't like we'll be hurting them." Alexis insisted. "If they can afford a carriage, they can spare a few coins for us."
"That's not the point."
"She's right, though." Cafos cut in. "We're on a mission of vital importance for the high king, surely that authorizes us to bend any laws keeping us from our goal." Stephen pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I don't know why I expected better from you." He said. "You two are incorrigible." Alexis grinned.
"So…"
"No. Final answer, no." Stephen cut her off. "We're better than highway bandits." Alexis's smile vanished, and she folded her arms.
"Fine."
"Just keep an eye out for food." Stephen told them. "If we run out of supplies, we'll… figure it out then." Cafos seemed equally annoyed with this idea, but neither he nor Alexis argued, and the group lapsed into silence.
"So what is our mission, exactly?" Alexis finally broke it. Stephen looked back at her.
"We're warning Notch about my father."
"But he already knows." Alexis countered. "That's what Lord Giles said, anyway."
"Yes, he knows." Stephen agreed. "But we may have insight that he does not have already. Especially since we encountered him directly." He cast a glance at Cafos. "Some more than others." The valkyrie's lips thinned at the reminder.
"Beyond that," Stephen added, lowering his voice a bit. "Like I told Giles, I… want to hear it from Notch if my father and mother truly deserved what was done to them."
"He's killing people." Alexis said bluntly. "No offense."
"None taken, but, was he like this before?" Stephen asked. "I've been lied to for my whole life. I just want to know the truth." Alexis pursed her lips, nodded.
"That's a good enough reason, I guess."
"I want to know the truth too." Cafos added quietly. "Want to know if Notch… approves of everything that Lucius is doing." Stephen shot the blond a sympathetic look. He wasn't the only one affected by Lucius's lies.
"Guess I'm just along for the ride, then." Alexis commented. Stephen reached over to ruffle her hair.
"You're our good-luck charm."
Alexis scoffed, swatted at his arm. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me."
"Just for that, I'm giving you the worst luck I can."
The weather was pleasant, the air warm, but not hot, and the group remained in good spirits for most of the day. As night fell, though, they polished off the remainder of their food, leaving them uneasy as they made camp that night. The next morning was worse, as they had nothing to break their fast other than a patch of dubious mushrooms that they agreed not to eat. About midmorning, clouds covered the sun, and the trio was forced to take shelter under the trees as best they could as it began to pour.
It wasn't that any of them were unused to harsh weather, as Stephen and Cafos were forced to work in the rain plenty of times and Alexis had rarely had reliable shelter, but combined with their empty stomachs it made for quite the sour attitude between them. Alexis had her arms hugged to her chest, glowering at the path ahead, while Cafos marched along behind her with his wings tightly pinned to his back in an attempt to keep his feathers from getting soaked. Stephen was struggling to keep his frustration at bay. They needed food, and they needed it soon.
Eventually, the rain calmed down to a light drizzle, and it was around that time that Stephen began to hear the sound of rushing water.
"What's that?" Alexis was the first to call attention to it. A moment later, they stepped into view of a wide river that went across their path.
The road that they skirted alongside made its way up to a bridge that stretched across the body of water, which Stephen immediately angled towards - he didn't want to get more wet - but Alexis exclaimed, "We can fish!"
"We can?" Cafos echoed. "We have no equipment."
"I've fished with my bare hands before." Alexis insisted. "We can." Stephen stopped in his tracks, frowning as he regarded the river. Sure enough, he could see flashes of shimmering scales beneath the water, but this river was both deeper and faster than the one they had fished in before, due in part to the rainstorm currently drifting across the forest.
"It may be our only option," He said slowly. "Since we've had no luck otherwise. I'll go."
"You did a rotten job of it last time." Alexis marched in front of him, heading for the riverbank. "I'll do it."
"Alexis-"
"Alexis, no." Cafos and Stephen spoke at once. "It's too deep." Stephen went on. "I can teleport if I get washed away, but you're a lot smaller than me, and-"
"I think I know my limits." Alexis snapped at him, not even slowing down as he hurried after her. "You work on finding a way to build a fire on this awful day so we don't have to eat them raw."
"Alexis-"
"Stop it!" The redhead spun around, fixing him with a glare. "Ever since Blackhaven you two have treated me like I'm made of glass, and I'm sick and tired of it. I can swim, and I'm perfectly capable of- more capable, in fact, of fishing than you are. Hold this." She shoved her bucket into his front, and he staggered back as he caught it.
"We have not!" He argued. "I've treated you the exact same, and Cafos barely knew you for a day before we found out, you're seeing change where there is none!"
"You wouldn't let me take a watch, and now this!"
"It's not because of your heritage." Cafos cut in, taking a step out from underneath the shelter of the trees. "It isn't an insult to say that you're small, and not as able-bodied as we are. We're trying to keep you safe, princess."
"I am NOT a princess!" Alexis shouted. "Not a princess, not your 'good luck charm', and I am not helpless!" She whirled around, and Stephen's heart lurched into his throat as she marched into the river.
He didn't move as she made her way out into the center of the river, staggering slightly from the force of the river's flow. It was shallow, thankfully, but the water still came up past her waist when she finally stopped. Stephen didn't dare go after her, though. She would probably just scream at him again. He cast a quick glance at Cafos, and found the valkyrie standing just behind his shoulder, jaw tight as he watched Alexis fish.
It took about five minutes for her to make her first catch, and she splashed back out of the river, the tiniest smirk on her face as she dropped it into the bucket in Stephen's arms.
"See?" She muttered before turning away again. Stephen lowered the bucket to the ground, hugging his arms against his chest as he watched her head back out to the middle of the river. He would rather she be smug than hurt. Briefly, he glanced away, through the light rain to the bridge that stretched across the river. Maybe they could find a dry spot beneath to build a fire-?
A soft gasp caught his attention, and a splash, and his gaze flew back to Alexis just in time to see her be swept away beneath the water.
"Alexis!" Stephen shouted, lurching toward the river, but he'd only taken a single step into the water before he realized that the water was pushing her far too quickly for him to be able to catch up. He gritted his teeth, sent a glance back at a stunned Cafos, then teleported into the middle of the river in front of her.
Stephen immediately realized that the river became deeper the farther they went, as the water came halfway up his chest where he landed, then Alexis slammed into him and he immediately lost his footing. He locked his arms around her as they were swept away, holding his breath as he tried to get them up to the surface, losing a breath in a small yelp when Alexis scratched him in a desperate attempt to find a handhold. His world was spinning around him, he was drowning, he couldn't teleport if he didn't know where to go!
His back slammed into something solid, forcing the rest of the air from his lungs, and he clawed his way up the object until his head broke the surface.
Alexis's arms were wrapped tightly around his neck as he coughed harshly, having inhaled a gulp of water when he hit the object - which he soon realized was a large boulder that jutted out of the middle of the river. Clinging to the rock with one hand, Stephen wrapped his other arm around Alexis.
"You okay?" He whispered hoarsely. Alexis nodded into his shoulder, her chest heaving where it was pressed against his. Stephen sagged against the boulder, groaning as a spike of pain shot up his spine.
"Stephen! Alexis!" A shout from the bank caught their attention, and Stephen lifted his head to find Cafos standing across from them. Stephen tightened his arm around his friend, then teleported them both to shore.
They hit the wet dirt, Alexis flinching in his arms at the sudden movement as they did so. Stephen leaned back on his free hand as he held her, gaze skimming over her in search of blood or bruises. She seemed to be alright.
"You're not a good luck charm." He rasped. "A-and I don't think you're… f-fragile. You're here… because we're friends. An' I care about you." He gave her a little squeeze. "Isn't that reason enough t' take care of you?" Alexis sniffled, nodding.
"S-s'rry…"
"Don't be sorry." Stephen could feel his head swimming, and he carefully untangled himself from her, setting her in front of him. It seemed like no amount of air was enough to satisfy his starving lungs.
Black encroached on his vision, and the last thing he was aware of was the sensation of falling before he passed out.