I poured myself some chilled falaho juice. Though there were many people who could make falaho juice for me, today I had taken the time to prepare it myself. It was a pleasant day to be sitting in my balcony, overlooking the garden.
“Is Father ever going to come?” I let out a sigh. He was late again. It wouldn’t surprise me if he cancelled again.
“Patience, Rayoha,” Nyera sat at the table as well, back as straight as a board, barely sipping her own juice. “He may have cancelled often, but he would never forget your birthday.”
“I know. I’m sorry…” Deep down, I knew my father would spend more time with me if it weren’t for the war. He always seemed quite happy to be around me and I knew he loved me very much.
As I kept waiting and swirled the juice around in my glass, my mind went back to that night a few days ago, when that mysterious man, Kano, had snuck into my room. Who was he? What did he even want? Despite how grateful I was to have someone to spend time with, I wasn’t so naïve that I thought he’d just dropped in to say hello. He was there to steal.
But what? You don’t go sneaking into a bedroom at the top of a tower of a heavily guarded castle unless you are absolutely sure there’s something you need from there. For the past few days, I kept searching through that drawer to see if anything was missing. Nothing was. I could only imagine that meant he didn’t find what he wanted.
I sighed audibly, before glancing over at Nyera, afraid she would wonder what was wrong.
However, Nyera looked like she was in a trance. Staring out ahead of her at the empty, peaceful garden, she held her glass and sat straight and stiff. But as I peered closer at her, I realized it was the opposite – her eyes were alert and reacting to every minor movement around us. Her posture was one ready to jump up and strike should the need arise.
I reached over and lightly touched her shoulder. She jumped slightly and turned to face me.
“Yes, Rayoha?”
“Are you okay? You seem so… scared.”
“…I’m quite okay, Rayoha. Thank you for asking.”
“Then why are you… so stiff? Relax! It’s a beautiful day, you know.”
“I’m sorry. Perhaps… I’m… a little too paranoid at times. But that, to me, is far better than letting my guard down and taking a chance on your safety. This isn’t simply my duty. It is my purpose of bei-” she stopped herself and shook her head. “…I’m sorry. This is your birthday and all I seem to be doing is making the atmosphere tense.”
“It’s fine. I get it,” I leaned back, turning to look at the garden as well. It wasn’t a lie that I understood why Nyera was like this. Yet, it’s worrying. It’s as if all she could do was worry about me.
“Happpyyyyy birthdaaaay!” a voice rang out in exaggerated cheer.
“FATHER!” I jumped out of my seat and ran toward him as he stepped into the balcony.
“Look! I had the chef make you your favorite pudding cake!” He set it down just as I threw my arms around him in a hug. With a chuckle, he messed up my hair lovingly and hugged me back.
“Rayaha,” Nyera interrupted softly. She stood up, positioning her chair for Father to sit down. “If you desire, I will leave the two of you alone.”
“Why don’t you at least stay till we cut the cake?” without sitting, he moved over to the cake and picked up a knife he had places near it. “I’m sure you’ll love it too!”
“Thank you so much, Rajaha.”
On the cake, there were eleven of one kind of berry and eleven of another, arranged in the shape of two flowers.
“Do you like this flower decoration? Twenty-two berries for your twenty-second birthday!”
“It’s so pretty!” I took the knife from Father and slowly cut into the cake. As is custom for a good pudding cake, the outer layer is a crackable layer holding the soft pudding inside it like a large bowl. It took me some effort, but I was able to pierce through it, to my relief.
Maybe…I’m getting some energy back?
“What do you think? Looks delicious on the inside too, doesn’t it?”
“I can’t wait to eat it, Father! It looks amazing!” I cut out a sizable piece for Nyera and gave it to her.
She sampled it gingerly, then nodded it approval and continued to eat it slowly. As she ate, every bite – no, every chew of every bite – seemed so deliberate. When she noticed me watching her, she looked up, “Is anything the matter, Rayoha?”
“O-oh…nothing, Nyera.”
“…Would you prefer I was elsewhere?”
“Oh no! You can stay! That’s not why-”
“It’s okay. I don’t mind. I will await orders outside.”
“Nyera,” Father interrupted.
“Yes, Rayaha?”
“Why don’t you go down to the kitchen for a while? I’ve made sure the chef knows exactly what you like to eat and drink. Relax with this pudding cake and a proper meal for once.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry – do I appear frail?”
“No, you look great!” he flashed her a reassuring grin. “But even those in the best shape need some time off. Don’t worry about us. We’ll be fine.”
“I understand, Rayaha,” she bowed. “Thank you.” Then she left the room with her plate of pudding cake.
As we sat down to eat, Father poured himself a glass of juice. “Oh? This is delicious! And unusually flavored. Did you make this or did you ask the chef to?”
“I did,” I couldn’t help but smile. For the past several weeks, I had worked on making the perfect spiced falaho juice, in the hopes of impressing Father.
“How have you been, my son?” his voice sounded softer. “I’m sorry I’ve been so busy.”
“…I understand, Father,” I did understand. I really did. And I kept repeating that to myself despite how frustrated I felt.
“…But you’re still upset?” he offered.
I blinked and looked from my cake. “N-no! I’m fine! I’m fine!”
“Ha! Son, you may be older and I may not have seen you in a while, but I’m still your father,” he clapped me on my shoulder. “So what’s bothering you?”
When I hesitated, his voice grew serious again. “I mean that. I can’t be with you often, but I want my son to be happy. So tell me what I can do.”
There was no way he could simply spend more time with me because I wanted it. Then really, there was only one thing that could make me happy.
“…Can I… leave the castle?”
“…Leave?”
“Not forever! Just… I want to go outside, see the world, experience it! I’ve… I’ve never seen anything outside of these grounds!” my eyes sparkled with hope. “Then… I won’t feel so lonely.”
Father fell silent and put his spoon down. With a slight frown on his face, he stayed that way, as if pondering it.
“Please? I promise I’ll be careful!”
“…No,” he said quietly. The tension in his voice was palpable. He watched me with a tired frown. “I’m sorry it’s this way, Shuba. I really am. But… please try to understand. We can’t take that chance.”
“…Right,” I lowered my eyes and didn’t argue. He was firm on this and I knew he wouldn’t be convinced – not even on my birthday.
“But hey! That doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy a little fresh air today?” he offered me a smile. “Would you like to go down to the gardens?”
“It’s okay, Father,” I forced a smile. “Really. Let’s just… let’s just forget about it and talk about something else. I don’t want to spend my time with you like this.”
“If you say so, son,” He raised the knife on the cake. “Would you like another piece?”
“Yes, thank you.”
As he cut me a piece of pudding cake, I began talking about all the things I’d been reading about lately – folk stories, fantasy novels – everything except all the romance ones I’d been reading from the secret section in my room.
Eventually, when there was a lull in the conversation, I yawned.
“Feeling tired?” Father asked gently.
“Mmm…yeah,” I ran a hand through my hair and fiddled with a pendant I always wore under my clothes. It was a yellowish pendant that seemed to glow in the light. Apparently my mother had given it to me and it was meant to give me energy because it was infused with light energy by a light mage. Since light magic, the source of all life, was what my body seemed to be severely under-producing, the hope is this pendant would give me more strength.
“Go get some rest then,” Father got up. “I’ll walk you there, okay?”
“When… when will I see you again?”
He smiled in what he seemed to think was a reassuring way, but I could sense the uncertainty in it. “Sooner than you know, okay?”
We reached my room and I turned to him, before giving him a tight hug. “Thank you for today. I’m sorry I was the one that cut it so short.”
“It’s my fault,” he gently stroked my hair. “I was late. But I promise to make it up to you, okay? Maybe I can spend more time with you when you wake up from your rest.”
“That would be fun! …Bye, Father,” I headed into my room and buried myself in my covers.
“Bye for now, son.”
As the door closed and footsteps sounded further and further down the hallway, I emerged from my cocoon and sat up. Clutching my pendant, I took a deep breath. If this pendant was meant to give me strength, then today I was going to need it the most.
It’s my birthday today. If Father wasn’t going to allow me to leave, I was going to do it myself.
Opening my closet, I dug through my clothes until I found a nearly wrapped bundle at the bottom. This was my “getaway” bag. Ever since I’d thought of taking a secret trip outside months ago, I’d been planning it and gathering everything I needed. In this bundle were medical supplies, some snacks, a short, sharp blade for self-defense, and most importantly – a disguise.
I pulled out the black shirt and dark green pants I had crafted by modifying my existing royal outfits. I took apart my old clothes and the result was a slightly patchwork creation that fit right in with a lot of townspeople’s work clothes. For my face was a riding mask I had stolen from Nyera. It was one she wasn’t going to use because it was too small, but it was just right for my face.
Changing into my outfit and taking off my royal headwear, I put out the “Do Not Disturb” sign and locked my room door from the inside for good measure. Then I glanced toward the window. If Kano can climb all the way up here… I wonder if I can climb down.
Peering out, it was luckily too high up for guards on the ground outside to see clearly even in daylight. But that also meant it was too high for me to make it down. Let’s face it. I’m not Kano. I’m a sickly little person trapped in a room.
As I stared forlornly and helplessly out the window, it hit me. I quickly took out some rope I usually used to tie a canopy over my balcony. Tying it to the windowsill, I scaled it down till I could drop onto the awning of the window below mine. A lot of these rooms were unoccupied servants’ quarters because the castle was so understaffed because of the war.
One more floor down and I found such a room. Entering it through the open window, I made my way out and down casually. With my outfit, I looked like a new stable hire who hadn’t received the royal uniform yet.
When I was out, I walked calmly to the stable and surveyed the maraga lined up in the stable. Petting each one, I let them choose me rather than choosing them. A black maraga with a large white spot on her nose decided she liked me the most. She bent at the knees to allow me to pet her easier.
“You wanna let me ride? Come on, girl,” I gently coaxed her out and climbed up on her. “Easy there…”
She squirmed at first, but as I spoke to her calmly and pet her soothingly, she eventually let me secure myself up there.
“And now… we ride!”
As she galloped along, I took out a map I had in my pouch. “Hmm, where do you think we should go, girl? …I can’t keep calling you that now, can I? Wow, I have got to check your name tag when I get down. How inconsiderate of me.”
Searching the map, I decided to head for one of the small villages on the outskirts of the nearest large town.
If I go through this patch of wilderness over here, I should get there faster.
As we rode along, eventually, fatigue began catching up to me. Clutching the pendant, I cursed under my breath and kept going. “No, stay awake. STAY AWAKE.”
Come on come one come keep going keep going…
Keep going…keep going…
Keep… going… keep-