by C S Patra
Alice turned back and pulled off her gloves. “It turns out that I have secrets too, Your Highness. I have secrets that I can’t show everyone because it could destroy them. It might sound good but it’s not. It’s a curse as well.”
“You kill things with your touch?” Vinnie asked.
“Not exactly. I have a curse but it’s vastly different from yours. Step back for a little bit and watch this spot here.” She pointed to where the pile of ashes lay. “You killed that flower with your touch. Now I’m going to bring back several in its place.”
“How?”
“Just watch.” Alice kneeled down to where the ashes were and threw off her glove. Gently, her fingers brushed against the ashes that used to be the flower. She felt how warm the ground was under her bare hands and waited until she could feel something rising from below. She pulled away from it and something began to grow out of the ground. It sprouted leaves and slowly formed several petals. What once had been a flower was now several flowers in that same spot.
The whole time Alice did this, Vinnie stared with wide eyes. She had heard of other curses but not something that brought life. “How did you do that?”
“It’s been my curse since I was young. No matter what I touch with bare hands, I bring flowers and leaves out of them. It’s fine if I touch bare ground like this but not a person. Could you imagine what would happen if I touched a person?”
Vinnie gulped. “It really is a curse. You’re worried about the same things I am. Does everyone know about it?”
“Only those who work at this bakery.” She put her glove back on and looked over at Kian. “He figured it out very quickly. He wondered why I always wore gloves, no matter where I went. He thought I had some special power.”
“I just didn’t know what kind of power,” Kian added. “That’s why I surprised when I saw what the princess did that night. It was so different from what you do. I just knew it was a curse as well and maybe, just maybe, it can be broken the same way.”
“Is that so?” Vinnie turned to him. “Then you’ve given me an idea, little thief.”
“Oh yes, about that…” Alice glared at him and began yelling everything she could at him. “What were you thinking?! Why would you do such a thing?! How could you? What did you possibly think you could gain from this?!”
“Alice, please…” Vinnie stopped her from jumping out at him. Kian was trying hard to protect himself but was afraid of running away. He had two people who could kill him with their touch but Vinnie needed him in one piece. “I need him for this. I’ve made a deal with him.”
“Why?” Alice demanded. “He’s been terrorizing the kingdom by breaking into houses. I should have him locked up already! What good would he do?”
“Well, for starters, he’s probably seen more than we have. He’s not as cursed as we are. We’ll need someone who can touch things without breaking them apart.” Vinnie pointed out. “If he does as I say, I can overlook all his crimes and he’ll be rewarded. He can have anything he wants. Besides, it’s not like he has a choice. He’s fully aware of the consequences and they can be far worse than rotting in a cell.”
Kian took a deep breath. “I have my reasons for what I did, Miss Alice. You may not believe me but it’s true. I would like to help Princess Lavinia with her journey. Not just for the reward but I feel like it’s my duty.” He bowed to Vinnie. “I accept your offer, Your Highness. Tell me what you want me to do.”
“Wait one minute!” Alice stopped him. While Vinnie was quick to forgive him, she wasn’t. She was far from through with him. “You’re acting like all of this is fine! Are you aware of what you’ve done?! You could have been killed! What good reason could you have to do this?!”
“Miss Alice, I…”
“I don’t believe you!” She tried to calm down, but it was too much. No matter how badly she wanted to hear his reasons, she couldn’t let him speak. “I trusted you! I thought you were smarter and better than this! Now what am I going to do?! What’s going to happen?! Did you ever think about those consequences?! What were you thinking?! No, tell me, were you even thinking at all?! I’m not sure anymore!”
“It’s all right, Alice. I will handle his fate. You just need to calm down.” Vinnie assured her, putting her gloved hand on Alice’s shoulder. It sent something down Alice’s neck and she slowly began to relax. “As hard as it is, I need you to be as calm as possible. Try to be reasonable.”
“I also don’t expect you to forgive or understand my reasons, Miss Alice,” Kian added. “I can’t talk about them now. However, Princess Lavinia and you have something in common. It may not be the same curse, but I think it can be broken in the same way. Unlike both of you, I’ve actually traveled outside of Themasa. I know what it’s like and how harsh the weather can be. You will need someone to guide you. That’s what I think the princess wants from me; she wants someone who can lead her out of the kingdom.”
“That’s one of the reasons, yes,” Vinnie agreed. “For now, we will not discuss anything you’ve done in the past. I have a far more important thing to take care of first. I am supposed to rule this kingdom, but this curse prevents me from even step out into it. That’s why I need both of you. I need your help. It’s a lot to think about but I would love it if you also accompanied me, Alice. Together, we can break our curses and see the world beyond Themasa. I just need you to trust me as well.”
Alice sat down on the bench that was by the door. “I... I want to help you, Your Highness. I’ve heard what both of you are saying. I want to remove my curse. I just worry about things over here. Not only that, I worry about the journey. What if we come across something we can’t fight against? What will we do then? How will we escape?”
“That’s why you have me, Miss Alice. If you need help escaping, I can help you.” Kian pointed out. “I know I can’t tell you why I’ve done these things but for now, you have to trust me. If you never want to speak to me again after this, that’s fine. I’ll leave once we’re done and you won’t have to see me after that. For now, let’s do this together.”
“You really want to help? How do I know you won’t betray us?”
“I don’t have many choices, do I? It’s either this or face my death. Besides, if I were to try and betray you, the princess here can turn me to dust with just a touch. I’m not foolish enough to risk my life that way.” Kian took a deep breath. “My offer still stands. After all this, I will never bother either of you again. I’ll leave Themasa if you want me to.”
“We’ll discuss that when we get there,” Vinnie said. “For now, I think Alice wants some time to think about this. If you can, please let me know by tomorrow evening before sunset. I would love for you to come though. I’d love to help you remove your curse.”
“I’d love that too,” Alice murmured. “Let me sleep on it then. I promise you’ll have an answer soon.”
“Yes, take your time. I know I’ve shown and asked too much of you. However, if you were to accompany me, I would be so pleased. I would love to have you on this journey…if you want to come along.” Vinnie assured her. ““I really hope you do.”
Alice thought about this but said nothing. She bowed before the princess to show her respects. “I swear you will have an answer by tomorrow, Your Highness.”
“You can still call me Vinnie, Alice. Your Highness makes me sound more important than I am.”
“But you are important.”
“Not really,” Vinnie murmured. “I do want you to keep calling me Vinnie. I will allow it. In fact, I like that nickname far more than my real one. I feel like one of you when you call me Vinnie. It’s all right.”
“Okay then. I’ll call you Vinnie,” Alice decided. “Give me time, Vinnie. And whatever I decide, I hope you will accept it.”
“I know.” Vinnie looked over at Kian. “I am happy you wish to come along. Wait until tomorrow when I can tell you more about this.”
“Okay,” he agreed. “Do you need a
nything else, Your Highness? Did you want to get anything from the bakery?”
“Not today, Kian. I’ve said what I needed to say.” Lavinia nodded at them. “Until next time, Alice. I look forward to hearing your decision.”
With that, she made her way back to the castle, but she could feel their eyes on her. Alice didn’t want to stop looking at her because she had a lot to think about. She was scared but she would come around. She wanted to go with them. She was curious.
She had a desire to leave Themasa as well.
Chapter 9
Alice was having the hardest time deciding what she wanted to do. Everything had come down on her at once and she couldn’t concentrate anymore. She had no idea what she was baking and constantly seemed to mix sugar with salt. She couldn’t tell a cookie and a cake apart. All she thought about was Vinnie and her request. Vinnie, Princess Lavinia, wanted her to go on a journey to remove her curse. It was a horrible feeling that everything she touched turned to ash and Alice knew it all too well. Bringing life wasn’t a good curse to have either. No matter how nice all that nature looked, it was inconvenient. It could hurt others. She wanted to remove her curse as well.
So why can’t I say yes to this? She wondered. It can’t be because of Kian. Thief he may be, but he hasn’t hurt anyone. He’s willing to help and we could use him. He’s the only person who knows both of our secrets.
With all this, she didn’t know what she wanted. Taking a quick break outside, she found Kian sitting close to the ovens and baking some of the bread. He had fallen quiet after Vinnie left and didn’t say anything unless someone asked him to do something. Everyone was curious as to why he no longer seemed enthused about his work. He was doing it but without that same energy from before. He was doing it because he had to, not because he loved it.
Right now, he was staring at the fire and watching as the bread baked in the oven. Alice slowly approached him and sat down a few inches away. “Kian, I think you and I need to talk.”
“I already told you, Miss Alice. I have my reasons for what I did and I can’t talk about it right now. I swear I will tell you when I’m ready,” he murmured, not bothering to look at her. “I know what you think of me and you’re ashamed. You want to send me to prison for my crimes.”
“No, I wasn’t thinking that at all!” Alice insisted. “I admit I’m shocked about this, but I actually wanted to ask you something else.”
“You want to know what I’ll do after all this? I can’t come back to work here.”
“Actually, I wanted to know if you’ve ever been up north. Is it really as cold as they say it is?” Alice began. “If so, then we’ll need to take some warmer clothes and things. Also, we might not be able to make it on foot alone. We’ll have to find someone to take us. I know there is a place with a station that has trains. I’ve never seen one, let alone be on one, and I’d like to take a ride on one.”
“So you want to ride a train up north?” Kian finally turned around, confused by all this. “Miss Alice, I don’t think the trains go that far. There’s no station that stops up there. I’ve been on them before, but they only go to a certain distance. Up north, the weather is terrible. Not only that, you’ll be surrounded by all kinds of creatures and most are not that kind. They aren’t lying when they say there are witches and sorcerers around. If you cross them, you’ll end up with a horrible fate.”
“Still, there’s got to be an easier way to get there. Even if the train stops, we can probably find another way than just walking,” Alice thought. “Would anyone take us there?”
“We don’t know anyone up there who would. I’ve never really ventured that far up north because of what people have said,” Kian explained. “Even if we didn’t run into witches and sorcerers, we’d still run into all kinds of wild and dangerous creatures. Can you fight against them?”
“Well, no. I’ve never had to fight one,” she admitted. “I really do want to help Vinnie and I want to remove my curse.”
“Then tell her that.”
“I can’t,” Alice sighed. “My mind keeps thinking about everything else. I want to go on an adventure with her. I want to see more than Themasa and remove this curse. I’m just scared. I’m scared of what can happen.”
“In that case, the only way to break your fear is to step out of Themasa and see what lies beyond it.” Kian told her. “You wouldn’t be alone, Miss Alice. If we do fall into danger, we can work together and fight it.” He winked at her. “You are talking to someone who has succeeded in breaking into every noble home and the castle twice. I’m here to help both of you if you need it.”
“I want this badly. I would do anything to get rid of my curse. I guess I’m terrified of what lies out there. What if we never make it back? What if there is no cure? What will I do then?” She wondered out loud. “Staying in Themasa won’t change things but it also ensures that I’m safe. At the same time, I want to see more things.”
“Well, Miss Alice, seeing more things often means taking risks. I’m not going to lie and tell you there are no dangers because there are. That doesn’t mean we can’t avoid them or fight them. I do have an idea of where all the trains go but it’s going up north that will be hard. We will make it though. Others have done it and come back in one piece. We can do the same.”
Alice was skeptical about this. “The others probably have traveled more than I have. I know absolutely nothing about surviving different kinds of weather or how to act in other places. No one has ever taught.”
“Then I’m sure the princess and I can teach you. It shouldn’t be very hard,” Kian answered. “Of course, this all depends on whether or not you want to go. You shouldn’t feel forced to do so. I know how much this means to the princess but if you’re scared…”
“It’s not that! I want to help Princess Lavinia!” Alice insisted. “I’m just worried that we’re getting into something we don’t know about. I know you will be there to help us, but will that be enough? I keep thinking we should ask someone else.”
“I’m not sure who else would come. Very few people know of your curse and even less about the princess’ curse. If you want my opinion, you should go. You should do everything you can to get rid of it. I don’t know how much longer you can live this way.”
Alice stared at her gloved hands and knew Kian had a point. It was difficult to go anywhere and not touch anything with her bare skin. She had to get over her fear and go through with this. “All right, Kian. I think I should go. I should tell Lavinia that I want to go with her. Not only do I want to get rid of my curse, I want to explore things. I want to see this world for what it is. Maybe this is just what I have been looking for.”
“Then it’s settled. You must tell the princess what you want to do.”
That was when Alice felt the fear settled in. Even though she liked Lavinia, she was afraid to say anything. The fact that she was the princess made things more complicated. Alice didn’t know whether she needed to be formal or not. Lavinia was comfortable around her but now things had changed. The princess was much higher than her. She was to be treated with respect with or without a curse. Their conversations were going to be far different now.
“How do I say this to her?” She asked.
“Talk to her like you normally do,” Kian suggested. “She’s just a human being.”
“That’s true but she’s also our princess. I’m a much lower class citizen than she is. No one will notice if anything happens to me but they will if something happens to her. What if something does go wrong and she can’t come home? What do we do?”
“First off, there would be people who would notice if anything happened to you too. You have a lot of friends here.” He reminded her. “Secondly, these trips do come with risk but if you’re prepared for them, you can survive them. We are going to need food, water, clothing, and some smaller things such as a knife for cutting or a rope for climbing. I can make a list and show it to you tomorrow.”
“P
lease do. I’m so unsure about a lot of things but I want to help her out. I think we’ll be able to survive if you come along. You clearly know more than either of us does about the outside world. If we do this together, I think it’s possible to get through it.”
“I like how you think, Miss Alice. I’ll prepare things for the trip. You decide if this is really what you want to do. Whatever the decision is, you know I will support it.”
“Thank you,” Alice murmured. “I think I’ve made my decision. I just hope it’s not one that will hurt us all in the end.”
~ ~ ~
Lavinia was able to meet Alice later, but she noticed that things were very different with her friend. It wasn’t because it was the middle of the night and she was standing outside of the castle. It wasn’t that she was under a giant tree and that the wind was blowing hard. The only thing that Alice had with her was a lantern. That was the lone light in that darkness when Lavinia went down and out to see her.
