Chapter 9

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Ice

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 We walked silently through the maze of corridors. My eyes silently photographing every corner, entrance, exit and hiding spot. My head formulating a plan for the next break in. It's interesting he didn't feel like blindfolding me as he led me through the halls. Neither had the guards thought about it when they had brought me in.

 "You know you have you are thinking about written all over your face. I know you are already planning another break in. I'm not exactly stupid. It is unnecessary and unadvisable, so you should stop now. Anyway, you aren't leaving this palace for long time and it is not easy to exactly contact anybody outside of here."

 His voice broke the silence. Whoa, he just read straight through my thoughts. However, I have already broken in 3 times before. This was just a new path for me to take to escape.

 "It wasn't so hard to break in and out the first time. Or the second. Or the third either."

 "Hah. Funny. It's not going to happen again. The security has been tightened."

 "Thanks for the tip."

 His face scrunched up in annoyance. "You won't be leaving. Let alone breaking in again."

 "We'll see about that. Anyway, I am inside the castle. Thanks for the help to break in. So this will be, let's see the 4th time?"

 "You are a prisoner, now."

 "Are you so sure? I'm pretty free at the moment." I shake my hands and legs as proof. "Yup, no chains or handcuffs or binding devices."

 "Just shut up. Don't make me get duct tape."

 "Ooo. Scary. So definitely mature. As expected of a prince." Sarcasm dripping from every word.

 He sighed exasperated, but didn't say anything more. I never thought we would meet again like this, and this soon. Didn't he say he never wanted to see me again anyway? Why on earth does he need to talk to me? Why not send me straight to the king. I spot the symbol I had left behind during my earlier escapade. Maybe he doesn't realize who I am. It's not like I look completely like that helpless little girl he left behind. Snickering, I turned away to look at Flame.

 "Laugh all you want. You are on cleaning duty with me." He grunted in annoyance.

 "What?" My eyes widened in surprise and amusement.

 "You made the mess. You help clean up. It's a simple rule. Even toddlers understand that." He explained as if talking to a 5 year old.

 An awkward silence came between us. We couldn't look each other in the eye and we didn't know what to say to each other. It has been a long time. He broke the silence again.

 "Why are leading a rebellion in the first place?"

 "Why? You ask why? Well, your father is a stuck-up freak who only thinks of himself and his entertainment. He tortures people in public for his entertainment, makes poor people pay impossible taxes and when they can't pay he either tortures them, make them take loans with high interest or force them to sell their kids or kills them for the fun of it."

 I take a pause. Watching his expression, but it didn't change. His head had started to nod a bit but stiffened as if he realised his movement in agreement to my statement.

 "Should I go on, or is it enough?"

 He hesitated. His eyebrows furrowed, then straightened out before his face went back to being blank.

 "You know you are committing treason right?"

 I knew that. I knew I could be one of the tortured, one of the people who is either whipped, hanged, put in prison or simply have my head chopped off, but I don't care. Why should I care? Why should I care about something so trivial as death when others are suffering just to live the life that is thrusted at them with brutal force? I rather live a short life but help others not suffer, than to live a long life watching others suffer. We had stopped in front of the mark I had left behind, paint buckets and brushes in front of us. Picking up a paint brush, I dipped into the paint before answering his previous question.

 "What do I have to lose?"