Never had Yule met anyone so ignorant in all of his life. Or maybe, perhaps, the better description should be naïve? Sheltered? The world of Iraloné was not exactly the most peaceful world and he could not imagine any country out there that could be so peaceful as to create a child like Penelope. Even most sheltered of noble children had a bite to them, a cautiousness and suspicion. Everyone was out to gain.

Yet, Penelope did not have a single thought about gaining, other than to learn information that she lacked that practically everyone else should already know. Perhaps he shared a bit more information than was necessary, but whether it was the far-off country of Exund or their neighbour Ivaren, everyone knew the story of Birain’s rulers.

It often was presented as a fairy tale, a flight of fancy to explain the unusual way in which Birain chose its rulers and to explain away the bloody history that was born from the capriciousness of a goddess.

To Yule who felt the most bitter about his own situation, he envied Penelope who didn’t seem to have a care in the world. What kind of life did she lead, that she could walk so carelessly with a stranger? It had only been a few days, but the impression he had of her was a child who truly knew no hardship.

Yet, he could not find it in himself to be too unkind or cruel.

Her sudden tantrum surprised him, making his mind need to do a mental reset on how he interacted with her. Sure, she was a stranger, but for the moment, she was his benefactor (loathe as he was to rely on a girl younger than him) and companion; the journey actually felt more bearable with her by his side. Yule knew he could go alone, but it just felt more fun.

Yes, even with all the times they started shouting at each other, startling each other and generally being nuisances to one another, Yule was having fun.

His life as Ulysses Laertes Raviseul had never been so carefree.

For her sake, he should cut off all ties once they got to safety, because getting involved with him could lead to some very serious dangers for the girl in the future. He was to meet his contact in Ceralde and then be taken into custody of his family’s retainers, as the remaining heir of the first great family of Birain. As the only son of the former king, he would be targeted until he could safely reach adulthood when he could reclaim his birthright, no matter what some stupid trinket said. No matter the claims other may have.

It should never justify the death of others, yet that was the bloodied history of the rulers of Birain. Coup d’etats, political intrigue, backstabbing, betrayals and massacres. The people who vied for the throne were cruel, even if they ruled over the people fairly. But more often than not, they were cruel to the people, too. What person in their right mind would dispose of others so callously in order to secure their power? It all disgusted Ulysses.

 Well, for the moment, he was Yule.

 A simple boy who had run away from difficult circumstances, travelling beside Penelope, a strange girl from another land.

 He wanted to do right by her, for the short time they would be together. His pride as a royal dictated he should repay her guileless kindness, so he made sure to keep pace with her, holding her hand to facilitate that more easily. He used to walk in front of others, leading the way, because that was always his position. Walking beside someone at such a sedate pace was foreign to him.

It wasn’t bad, though.

But she was very weird.

Her magic, for example, was unlike anything he had ever seen.

As a prince, he studied many subjects, magic being one of them. Magic was executed in one of two ways: incantations or magic circles. Never in his life had he ever seen someone just draw directly on skin and then mumble ‘please heal’ in order to cast any healing magic. He supposed, at its core, she did make a drawing and she did chant (plead) for it to work, but for it to actually work!? He was pretty sure the way magic worked in Birain should be true in other countries, too, so what was even going on?

One of the things he would need to explain to Penelope was to hide how she cast her magic. If not the method itself, but also in the fact that she healed him. Healing magic was considered a holy ability and was heavily monitored by the temples of the goddesses. Every child who showed potential was immediately seized without discrimination. Many families were torn apart whenever the potential for healing appeared in an individual, at least in Birain this was highly true.

More than once had a representative of the temples become a king of Birain, allowing the temple control over state affairs at times. Those were some of the most oppressive moments in Birain history, all because of what healing magic meant.

Those blessed by Tulilith, the goddess of rebirth, had the ability to heal. Without fail, those who had been reborn by her grace had that power, which made them easy candidates to become ruler, because they would naturally have the clear eyes similar to that of the goddess.

Penelope had such eyes, he mused. Something else she must learn to hide once they got close to town. Yes, he would need to have a word with her, before things got complicated for them. For her, he mentally corrected. Once he met his contact they would part ways and he would do this as one last kindness for his benefactor.

Penelope was an innocent girl. She did not deserve to get kidnapped and brainwashed to do the bidding of others or used for other nefarious deeds. There had been a rash of kidnappings of children to be sold into slavery, too.

Damn, but his kingdom was such a mess since the coup that ousted him from his childhood home. Truly, it was such a shame that the little girl had come at such a time. His homeland was always in a state of tension, but nowhere near as bad as it was right now. So much to fix, so little time.

At the moment, though, he would take things one step at a time. His current mission was to bring himself and Penelope safely to Ceralde.

Her hand squeezed his and he turned to meet her clear gaze. Such a soft colour. So these were the supposed eyes of the goddess. They were showing him concern. He made a little noise of reassurance, before looking away.

What lovely eyes, he thought to himself, as they continued on their way together.