STRUVLAND
Chapter 11
The Woods
Alessandra

It has been a week since we ran from the house. Penelope had found the two horses she had hidden and rode with Mei while I rode with Oliver. She lied to Oliver that a guard informed her of a potential threat and that she should prepare for an escape for us. He accepted that as truth. Ysabel is tucked safely against my body by a large piece of fabric securely tied around my body to carry her. Since I have no idea how to ride a horse, Oliver sits in front of me while I have my arms wrapped around his waist.

In every breath I take, I catch a whiff of the only scent I will ever associate with him, mulled cider. Ysabel pops her head out from the wrap and meows at me. I unwrap one of my arms from around Oliver's waist and pet Ysabel. The spoiled fluffy cat purrs in response before putting her head back in the wrap. I rewrap my arm around Oliver and sigh. Oliver looks back at me for a moment before looking ahead again.

"Penelope, when do you think we will be able to stop to rest? Princess Alessandra and her cat are getting restless," Oliver asks Penelope. Penelope sighs as her chestnut-colored horse walks slowly. Mei yawns and Penelope looks around for a place to stop.

"There is a small clearing right over there," Penelope nods towards the clearing surrounded by trees. "It is a few steps away from a river, you both can get cleaned up."

"Alright," Oliver responds before guiding our onyx-colored horse towards the clearing. When we arrive, Oliver hops off the horse and ties it to a tree before coming to help me off.

"Please, be careful of Ysabel. She would be very upset if you crushed her." I state as he clasps his hands around my waist to help me down. Oliver chuckles and shakes his head before placing my feet on the crunchy snow-covered ground. I like the way his laugh sounds. I like most things about him.

Penelope ties her horse to the same tree and Oliver helps Mei off. I make my way towards the river as Oliver and Mei follow closely behind. We cup our hands to fill them with water and splash it on our faces. Oliver hands me and Mei a piece of cloth.

"This water is freezing, surely my fingers will fall off if I have my hands in it any longer, wouldn't they?" Mei asks.

"It is a small chance but not entirely impossible. If you use the cloth you won't have your hands in there for too long," Oliver states. Mei mutters something in Ylierian and dips the cloth in the water before using it to wipe the dirt off her face. Oliver and I do the same. I stand up and walk away from the river with Oliver and Mei. Penelope sits by a fire she started while we were gone.

"Prince Oliver, would you mind helping me set up the tents?" Penelope asks.

"Yes, of course, but if you don't mind, I think we should go by our regular names instead of our titles. I feel it would be safer." Oliver replies. Penelope agrees and Mei sits next to me on a boulder as they put up a tent.

Ysabel meows as she walks around the tent. Penelope has tied the flaps of the tent together and put a big rock on the bottom to hold the fabric down to keep Ysabel from escaping by crawling underneath.

"Feed her some dried meat, she is probably hungry. It's in the bag over there," Penelope says to me, pointing to the bag by a sleeping Oliver. I peel the soft fur blanket off my body and crawl over to the bag. I search it for dried meat and smile when I find some. I grab the meat and turn towards Ysabel. She looks at me curiously and briskly walks over. I offer the meat to her and she sniffs it before carefully biting into it and taking it from me. I crawl back to my bedroll and climb in. The warmth welcomes me as I lie down.

I study Oliver in the soft candlelight. He sleeps with his mouth slightly parted open and an arm underneath his pillow. Shadows dance across his cheekbones as a lock of his messy black hair falls against his brow. I count every rise and fall of his chest and eventually, my eyes get heavier with fatigue.

"If you fall for him, that will definitely complicate things. So, I advise you to simply not fall. I cannot bear dealing with the headache you will cause for me if you do," Penelope says quietly from across the tent. I move my focus to her and blink slowly, fighting sleep.

"Trust me, I won't," I state before my fatigue finally takes over.

I wake up to someone brushing a lock of my hair back from my face. I furrow my brows and swat the hand away. The person chuckles as I sit up and yawn. I look towards the direction of the sound and see Oliver.

"I was trying to sleep," I state, yawning.

"I'm aware. Penelope wanted me to wake you so you could get Ysabel because she is starting to get on her nerves," He responds, a soft smile gracing his lips. I sigh and force myself to stand up. Oliver does the same and we walk out of the tent together. Penelope lets out a joyful noise when I appear in front of her. She hands me Ysabel, who is delighted to be away from her. I grab the piece of fabric I used to hold Ysabel close to my chest yesterday and hand her to Oliver as I tie it around me. When I finish, Oliver hands her back and I gently place her where she belongs.

I look around to see Mei sitting on the boulder from yesterday. I walk over and join her. She smiles when I sit down.

"When we get to the nearest city, I want to buy a new pair of boots. These are getting worn out and I don't want the poorly made ones you wear. I want expertly made boots that will last me," I state. Penelope looks at me like I've gone mad as she cooks a piece of meat over the fire.

"A regular pair of boots alone costs seven brills and four hundred and thirty-two ikes. A pair like the ones you request would cost around eighteen brills and two hundred and twenty ikes. We don't have that type of money, we barely have enough ennu to get enough beds at an inn with meals. Have you lost your mind?" Penelope responds. I huff.

"I don't even know how much that is in Pentoya's currency, ullilm. Please, convert ennu to ullilm so I understand," I say.

"One ennu, which is nineteen brills in our currency, would be five tyohus and three thousand whirss for you. Our ennu is worth less than your ullilm." Penelope explains.

"So, we can't get me new boots?" I ask. Penelope rolls her eyes.

"No, we can't get your boots. Now, shut up about it already," She responds. Oliver chuckles and I glare at him. He shakes his head with a smile on his face and walks away into the woods. Penelope sets down one of the cooked pieces of meat with a stick jammed through it and grabs another to put on a different stick. My stomach rumbles as I watch the steam from the freshly cooked meat swirl into the air. My cheeks go pink with embarrassment. Penelope looks at me before picking up one of the sticks and holding it out for me to grab. I stand up and take it from her before sitting back down. I rip off a piece of the meat and put it into my mouth.

"What meat is this?" I ask.

"Fox." Penelope answers. I look at her in shock.

"How did you manage to kill a fox?"

"It is really not that hard. Please, go back to eating before you start asking me any other questions that I don't feel like answering," Penelope states. I roll my eyes and continue to eat.

"Alessandra?" Mei asks, grabbing my attention.

"Yes?"

"Are you in love with Oliver?" She asks. I stop chewing and look at her.

"No, not that I am aware of, why?" I ask.

"You two are supposed to get married. Shouldn't you be in love if you marry someone?"

"Well, people in our position don't always get to choose who we marry or why. I know for a fact that if given the choice, Oliver would marry someone else. I wouldn't have that choice, not completely. I would probably be married off to a son of a lord on my father's council and forgotten about."

"How do you know if you're in love?" She asks. I hesitate and think for a moment. I have never had the chance to fall in love and I don't think I could ever love someone in the way they truly deserve.

"I have never been in love. I am the wrong person to ask but you might want to ask Oliver," I state.

"Why would he know if you don't?" Mei asks.

"He has had a different life experience than me. So, maybe he knows how to answer your question, no harm in asking," I respond. She nods before standing up and taking off in the direction Oliver went. The snow crunched beneath her feet with each step she took.

"I think we need to have you practice magic in front of Oliver. You have to be able to defend yourself for what is to come and you can't practice if he is around all the time. You need to tell him and pray he doesn't turn you in when we get back to the castle...if he makes it back," Penelope states. I cock my head.

"Are you sure that is a good idea?" I ask.

"Well, he hasn't tried to tell anyone about me actively practicing magic. Hopefully, he won't say a word about you. I doubt he will say a word about you though, he cares about you. Turning you in could result in your arrest or death and I don't think he could handle going through something like that again," She says.

"He can't possibly care about me. We are not kids anymore, not that I remember much from my childhood anyway. Caring about me will only bring him trouble and pain."

"Sometimes, you care about people, even if you think you shouldn't. The heart makes its own decisions, even when the brain warns it against those specific choices," Penelope says.

"I am not sure my heart has ever been able to make a choice," I say. Penelope shrugs and continues cooking.