Peace for a Price (1x1)

Eleazar did not respond at first as they walked. "It is alright," he said at last. "There is no harm in asking. As for the people, to them you represent moving forward. Progressing. We are not just a kingdom of monsters any longer. We have begun to gather allies. Not everyone approves of making allies of humans, of course, not everyone ever agrees to a single decision, but they understand that it is forward movement for establishing ourselves, and many are proud of that. That, and some view you in the next step for helping humans as a whole to accept us as more than just monsters. You are very important to them."
 
Malisia sighed in relief, quietly of course, but the intensity of her gaze had subsided, replaced by her usual gentle demeanor.

"I see... I hope I can continue to live up to the expectations... "

The princess struggled not to reveal her plans, but she managed to keep them in, it would be a surprise, besides, if she told him now, it would seem as if she was expecting something in return, or well, that's what she thought of course.

She continued walking with Eleazar until she was satisfied and had gathered enough knowledge to ponder upon during the next hours.


It had been a pleasant time regardless of the mostly silent company the king offered, it was getting late, but she didn't make a choice of what to do, staying around the castle for the time being. The next morning she would consider visiting the town, but she found the current day fullfilling as it was.
 
"I am sure you will," Eleazar said simply.

He got turned around briefly, having not been paying attention while they were talking. It was a simple business to get them back on the right track, and he showed her down another long hallway filled with more beautiful art. This hall focused more on nature and animals, displaying reindeer and caribou and other small animals as well as trees and mountains.

Soon, they reached the hall leading to their guest chambers, and he paused. "Do you wish to retire for the night as it is getting late?"
 
Malisia thought about it for a second, unsure of what she'd pick, but deciding without too much trouble.


"Perhaps, we should rest for the night. I would like to visit the town tomorrow before we continue on the road, if that is alright of course- But for that, I should keep my energy." She said, with a soft smile. "Besides... We need to figure out how we will divide our space in the room, yes? Unless you've asked the duke for a separate room?..."

The princess wasn't judging him- Too much at least. But she was aware that Eleazar had been avoiding sharing a space with her in bed at all costs, choosing even a couch over such a thing, she wasn't angry because of it, in other words, her question was genuine.
 
Eleazar wasn't quite sure how to take her question. It didn't sound accusatory, but it wasn't a typically neutral question to ask, either. After a moment of thought, he said, "The room is yours. I do not mind sleeping elsewhere. I desire for you to be comfortable."

He turned and started walking to the doors leading into their rooms. "For tomorrow, you will have the whole day. We will not be leaving until the day after tomorrow at the earliest, and possibly not until the day after that if the duke has her way. Then, once we leave, we will be on the road to the next place we visit for another two days, and so on until we reach our final destination."
 
"I see..."

Malisia eyes narrowed a bit. Of course, it was all for "her comfort".

She followed close behind, thinking whether or not to speak up about her thoughts, in the end she decided to soften them up a bit, but she didn't stay quiet about what filled her mind this time, she let a bit of silence reign, but in the end she wasn't quite able to keep herself from speaking.


"I am at comfort the most with you around, your majesty. However, for tonight, I might remain on a chair if we are provided one. I have some reading to do- Feel free to enjoy the bed. I might join you in the later hours of the night... I do understand if you prefer to ask for a different space to sleep regardless."

Despite her words, her tone was quiet, and respectful, giving him a choince once again rather than attacking him with her words.
 
Eleazar eyed her with more coolness than he'd previously shown. "Sleeping in a chair is hardly befitting a princess while another fully able-bodied person sleeps in the bed," he said sternly. "You have already suggested that once, and I would prefer if you cease. The room is yours." He turned and closed the distance to the doors to their rooms and opened it. "Sleep wherever will make you the most comfortable."

He walked into their sitting room, and Lance rose elegantly from one of the chairs. He bowed deeply and greeted them, "Your Majesties."

"I will be staying in your room this evening," Eleazar stated, sweeping right past him and toward the washroom.

"I see," Lance said bemusedly, watching him go. The door closed, and Lance turned his gaze to Malisia. "Forgive me for intruding, Princess," he said with a bow. "I do hope you enjoyed the artwork. I shall leave you now." He started toward the exit.
 
Malisia was, not happy, to say the least. The worst side of her character showing as she took a deep, exhasperated breath once Eleazar had left.

She did her weakest attempt at showing a good smile when Lance came into the scene, but, it didn't work, she was clearly upset, a mix of, sadness and anger, flipping over each other as she held a strand of loose hair that cascaded down to her shoulder, twisting it between her fingers.


"T-Thank you, sir Hearthrune... I did, enjoy the art." She allowed him to go, remaining on the same spot for a short time, trying to cool herself down so that the redness of her anger didn't show through the patches of lighter skin.

The princess returned to her room, and did, just as she said she would, and stayed reading through the night with a rather, furious expression. one might almost say she was about to rip the book in her hand into pieces with how tightly she held the cover.

It was a shame, but she didn't comment on it. To think just a few hours ago she was planning to give a gift to the king to show she was finally accepting her place as his new wife. Sure, she hadn't changed her plans, but how, oh how was she supposed to react? His silence was most upsetting. Not clarifying anything, nor making things easier for her, oh how she wanted to tell it to his face, to make this work, and yet, she just... Couldn't.
 
Eleazar stood in Lance's windowless room glaring a hole into the wall.

Lance entered and delicately shut the door behind himself. "You certainly do have a way with the fairer sex, Your Majesty."

"I am in no mood for your sarcasm, Lance," Eleazar snapped.

"Oh, it is not sarcasm. I never said it was a good way," Lance smiled.

Eleazar turned to glare at him, but Lance's calm smile never wavered. Eleazar gave up and turned away. "We have known each other for less than a week." He paused to count the days. "Yes, about five days in total, and she is already saying things like how she feels comfortable with me and thinks nothing of saying she'll sleep in a chair and then slip into bed later. How does she not realize how she sounds?"

"Perhaps she does actually like you," Lance pointed out. "Or came into this agreement with certain expectations of fostering feelings."

"I think it is more likely that she is either not a very good spy, or even more likely, considering her parents, I am the first person in any position of authority who has treated her with any level of decency and she is reacting to that," he stated. He huffed and ruffled his wings restlessly. "I do not want a relationship. I did not expect her to feel otherwise."

"You should have thought of that before you married her," Lance replied.

"I did, but there was no other way to get her parents to feel tied to our kingdom," Eleazar snapped. He turned and paced a circle in the smaller room. "I will have someone else walk with her around town tomorrow. Until we are trapped back in that carriage together, I will keep my distance."

"As you say, My Lord. Until then, you should get some sleep," Lance said, nodding to the bed. "I will not be needing the room tonight."

Eleazar sighed and flopped onto the bed with less grace than a king likely should have had. "I miss the night."

"I am sure you do. Perhaps you should think about trying to be a little kinder to the Princess, though. Keep your distance, but there is no need to be cruel," Lance advised.

Eleazar did not answer and closed his eyes. Lance stepped out and went to do his own nighttime exploring.
 
Though upset, she didn't exactly blame Eleazar, he said it himself when confronting her parents during the wedding. She was a product.

This was a deal for the sake of the folk not hers. She had to remind this to herself again and again, as much as it stung and made her chest feel an odd pressure that made her restless.


She didn't sleep, as was a habit of hers when she was at her worst, but at least she tried to do something worthwhile. She continued her study of botany.

Eventually, she decided to compile the information in that old book she always carried around. As she opened it, the book folded with a light breeze, its pages turning back a bit until she was found face to face with the image she'd drawn of the girl back at the castle. Kame. The expression was, well, not particularly content, perhaps she hadn't taken into account how uncomfortable the servant girl had been during the time she drew her.

Malisia sighed, reading back on every single thing she'd written the same day she had met Kame and was honestly, saddened by them, high hopes, worries, desires, even pathetic little fantasies of how the wedding would play out and how she'd spend a lovely day accompanied by her new husband, the king.


She shook her head. Pitiful. Had it truly been less than a week? Maybe if she made things work, Eleazar would finally open up to her?


The minutes turned into hours, and before she realized, the sun would come out, and she'd finally see the scattered parchments, books and stains of ink on her hands.


Another day, just another day.
 
The next morning, servants brought breakfast to Malisia, her maids, and the other servants in the royal caravan, but Eleazar did not appear. He still hadn't come when breakfast was over and the dishes cleared away. Nearly an hour passed, and someone knocked on the door.

It was a young male Kitsune with grey fur like Duke Asudai. He smiled, eyes twinkling, and gave a quick, deep bow. "I greet you this morning, Princess of the Cranovid Kingdom!" he chirped eagerly. "It is known that you desire to see our city, and I am your guide!" He peeked up from his bow, his ears perked eagerly. "I am yours from now until the sun goes down, and I am most willing and knowledgeable! I can show you all the city."
 
Malisia was, surprised to say the least, she truly expected Eleazar to appear at any moment, and yet, it seemed like her actions had led to his anger boiling to the point of him avoiding her entirely, she was dissapointed, but tried not to show it too much in front of the new stranger.

He sounded energetic, not a trait the princess found annoying, yet, this one seemed so eager to serve it was almost strange. Then again, given the beauty of the castle and attitude of the duke, it made sense that the people here were much more... Warm than the servants that attended to the cold king's needs.

She dipped her head slightly in a kind greeting.


"Salutations. Thank you... So much for the offer. Seeing that it is such a fine morning, I will have to accept your offer, eagerly."


The princess smiled a bit, placing her hands behind her back, deciding to interrogate the young man a bit.


"Before we head out- May I have your name and how many springs you have lived?"


She wasn't sure if the expression made sense in Cravonid.

Folk in Valeskiar used the expression of springs to refer to entire years, given that the weather was so pleasant all year round, they didn't really count a winter, or summer or anything of the like. A spring was a year, a blessing from Pgier to all living things, of course, to those who believed in the ancient traditions.
 
They did not use the spring method here in Cravonid, but it was a simple enough method that most were familiar with it even if they didn't use it much. Most said cycle, short for seasonal cycle, meaning a full year with all four seasons, but a few did refer to one season like the Valeskiar used springs. They counted winters more commonly as it was nearly a source of pride to survive them, especially farther north.

The young kitsune bobbed another bow. "Of a certainty, Princess!" he said cheerfully. "I am called Akira! I am sixteen springs old, and I am a distant relation to her ladyship, Duke Asudai! Distant, but this is my pride. My father designs roads in our cities, and I train to follow him!" He waited patiently to see what other questions she might have, more than willing to share what information he could.
 
She nodded. That explained his energy. A young man with a whole life ahead of himself. still full of life and dreams. Of course she wasn't exactly sure how long the folk in Cravonid lived compared to humankind, but, regardless, sixteen springs was still pretty young, compared to her twenty seven, soon to be twenty eight.

Malisia considered what else to ask, but she would do it once they were moving. Truth be told, she was about to play the same game as Eleazar and avoid him entirely for the rest of the morning. Was it incredibly petty? Yes, but, what else was she supposed to do? Staying inside all morning?


With a deep breath, she finally made her mind up.

"Interesting, I am sure you will achieve to create roads that even more grand- Say, if you had to reccomend any places to visit in town, what would they be? And don't worry, I truly have no preference, whatever you consider fit, I am quite sure I will find it enjoyable."

She assured him, and wasn't lying just to be polite. If she could sit down in a garden for hours, walking through town wouldn't be that difficult either. Malisia wouldn't leave just yet of course, she would listen to Lance's advice and get at least a couple guards to come with them.
 
Akira's smile grew even wider at her statement. "Your Majesty, there is so much to show you! So much! I would be so very, very honored to show you all! We have gardens and artwork and hothouses and bath houses and buildings so beautiful you would swear they were art! And food, too, Your Majesty. I know all the best places to show you. I will be your guide to the entire city, if you will allow, and I will show all that I can with our time. Do you desire to go?"
 
She found him, endearing despite how bad of a mood she was in and despite how tired she was. Malisia knew perfectly that it wasn't this youngling's fault that she felt this terrible, she wouldn't take her frustration out on him.

"Of course. Allow me to tell my- Party where I will be. I wouldn't like them to worry too much. Feel free to join me."


Malisia stepped out of the room with a slightly happier expression than the one she had just a few hours prior, she hoped she wouldn't find Eleazar before she found Hearthrune.

The princess walked quickly, but not too fast so that Akira could follow without much issue. She was in a hurry of course, she wanted to see all that the town could offer.
 
Akira followed her willingly, his tail twitching slightly in his excitement. It was considered good protocol to hold one's tail still, but how could he when he was going to be the guide for the Princess?

Lance was about to turn in for the day and was just outside his bedroom door. He paused when he saw Malisia coming and stifled a yawn before turning toward her. "Good morning, Princess," he greeted her with a bow.
 
"Good morning sir Hearthrune." She dipped her head lightly.

"This young man has kindly offered to be my guide and show me the town for today." Malisia gestured kindly, stepping aside so Akira may stand beside her, treating him with the same respect as anyone else rather than making less of him just because of his age.


"I will take a group of escorts, as you reccomended, an head out to make good use of the pleasant sunlight we have today... Would you like to accompany us? If not- Surely you could tell his highness where I went, right?"
 
Lance smiled faintly as Akira glanced at her quizzically, staying put behind her rather than standing at her side. "Thank you for the invitation, Princess, but I cannot join you. I will, of course, let His Highness know where you have gone. I hope you enjoy yourself." He glanced the way she'd come. "There should be two guards standing near the door to your quarters. I believe they will be able to accompany you and whomever you choose to take with you. They can summon more if two are not enough."
 
Malisia shook her head a bit.

"The two guards shall be enough- No need for an army." She smiled calmly at her own comment. "I will make sure to bring you a present as a token of my gratitude."

She bowed to bid him farewell, and walked back to the guards that Lance had indicated, walking slightly slower than she had previously, she made sure to tell her plans to the guards, as kindly as ever of course, greeting them respectfully and thanking them for keeping them safe.

The princess went into her chambers to retrieve her satchel, nothing that may be too tempting with someone with ill intentions, simply a modest amount of gold, blank papers, a quill and ink. Items she may use if given the chance to.


Once she was finally ready she came out of the room, and let the guards and Akira know she was finally ready.

"Alright then. I'm ready to explore the town good sir." She let out a warm smile, looking down at him. It would be a good day after all.
 
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