Thief Prince

by Cheree Alsop

  “Welcome to Antor,” the Prince said with a small, wry smile. Danyen snorted, but Andric continued, “We may do things a bit differently than you're used to, but you are welcome to do whatever you would like here as long as it doesn't put anyone in harm’s way.” I knew it wasn’t in my imagination that he glanced at the twins when he said that. “My Hawkmaster, Ayd, will send any messages to your homes that you would like to convey to your families. I urge you to take the opportunity to let them know that you are alright.”

  “Yeah, right,” Kenyen muttered loudly.

  “You'll read them or change them,” Nyssa accused. Brynna nodded defiantly beside her.

  Andric shook his head, his expression clear as if he had expected the accusations. “I give you my word that I’ll not look at nor alter your letters. You're free to say in them what you will. I’ll be sending letters to each of your parents as well to explain to them why you are here.”

  Trevin stared at him. “They'll tear you apart, you know.”

  Andric nodded, unaffected. “I know you must be famished, so please come with me. It wouldn't be polite to keep them waiting much longer.”

  We exchanged looks at the word ‘them’, but followed the Prince to another set of doors on the west side of the room. At his slight touch, the doors were pulled open. The sound of talking flooded the room, then abruptly fell silent. Andric tipped his head at us invitingly, and then entered through the door, the two wolves right behind him. I followed Kaerdra and Trevin with the others close behind.

  The room we entered was bigger than the ballroom in our palace back home. The ceiling met in the center with six branching marble support beams that arched to each side. The center point glowed like a small moon which lit the majority of the room. Rows upon rows of tables were set below a raised dais with what appeared to be most of the citizens of Antor standing beside them. Animals were mixed among the Antorans. The citizens glanced at us curiously, but they mostly watched their prince.

  The expressions on their faces were not the fear and formality I usually saw on countrymen in the presence of their ruler. Instead, I saw familiarity, gratitude, and respect. Andric returned the same expression, but more guarded, as if aware of every move he made. It was strange to see someone just a few years older than me with an entire country resting on his shoulders. I wondered where his father was.

  “It's good to be home,” Andric said in a voice that carried over the crowd with ease. I heard a few chuckles. He smiled back. “I've brought a few guests to spend our final winter in Antor with us. Please treat them well; they aren't used to our traditions.” He said the last word with a slight inflection and more people laughed. He spread his arm to include us. “Please welcome the Crown Princes and Princesses of Denbria.”

  To our surprise, applause rang out loud and echoed from both ends of the massive hall. I glanced at Tisha; she met my gaze and shrugged slightly, her expression as puzzled as my own. Apparently, we all had misconceptions about how the winter months in captivity were to be.

  The Prince of Antor continued, “They have free range of the castle and our city; please get to know them and make them comfortable here.” He turned to us, his voice still raised for all to hear. “And if we are under attack, there’s a safe room within the foundation of the castle where you will be protected. We'll just hope we don't have to use it.” He said it lightly, and the Antorans laughed, but there was a different tone to the laughter this time, and different expressions on their faces. The experience and knowledge in their gazes made a shiver run up my spine.

  Andric gestured for us to follow him to the table on the dais. We walked slowly past the Antorans and up the two steps to the higher table. Covered platters waited, and the scent that wafted from them made my stomach growl. Landis stifled a laugh.

  “Eat, welcome you,” Andric said. But the crowd below waited, and Andric remained standing as if he had expected it. He glanced toward the door and I saw him exchange a nod with a tall, stately man dressed in dark green. “Our journey came at an inconvenient time, forcing us to put off the Winter Festival for these other important matters,” Andric said in a voice that carried across the room. He looked around and every eye was on him, an air of expectancy hanging thick above the tables. He smiled a true smile, “So we shall have the Festival tomorrow!”

  Cheers and shouts of jubilation met his words. The Antorans took their seats and began to help themselves to the waiting food. We sat at Andric's gesture, and soon only excited murmurs and the sounds of eating filled the air. A pork roast with buttered potatoes and small green peppers sat nearest to me, next to a bowl of sweet white corn and sugared yams floating in an orange sauce. A leafy green salad with carrots cut into a variety of shapes and lightly braised with a sweet vinegar dressing gave a perfect counterbalance to yellow fruits shaped into flowers and glazed with honey and maple syrup.

  The food was delicious, and the variety of honeyed drinks brought a rainbow of flavors, both new and familiar. My favorite was iced goat’s milk with a touch of cinnamon and a hot powder that cleared my throat. The spice was slightly different from what we were used to, but it made everything taste exotic. I didn’t know if it was our long, hard journey or the fight for our lives that made our appetites so great, but we did our share to clear the food from the platters.

  As dinner wound down, I had a hard time keeping my eyes open. A jester stood in the middle of the banquet hall juggling a variety of eating utensils to the enjoyment of the cheering audience. Everyone seemed in very good spirits now that bellies were full and with the promise of the festivities tomorrow. But as I looked around, I saw a few sad faces, expressions valiantly positive despite the sorrow that showed through their eyes. It seemed that this was truly their last winter here in Antor, and they were giving their best to the present because the future was uncertain.

  Mothers played with their children, laughing at jokes and tickling their young ones, while fathers looked on with tender smiles. They didn't have the attitudes of countrymen eating in the castle for the first time. This seemed to be a common affair in Antor, which made it very different from the royal traditions in the rest of Denbria. Citizens were invited to dine in the presence of the royal families very seldom, and only then upon special occasion where favor had been granted. Here, though, the Antorans laughed and joked with Crown Prince Andric in familiarity. He didn't look offended at being addressed, and they were always very respectful. With the smiles shared, it seemed like the Antorans and their prince held each other in mutual regard.

  After the feast began to die down, Andric excused himself and apologized to his people for retiring early. He reassured them it was so that he could be rested for the celebration tomorrow. He also asked them to excuse the other Crowns when they felt ready to retire because they, too, had undergone a hard journey.

  Kenyen and Danyen left shortly after he did, and I followed a few minutes later. The urgency of writing a letter to Father pressed on my mind, and I knew I couldn't sleep until I had something ready to send out at first morning light. The least I could do was reassure my family that I was safe and that the Antorans were treating us well.

  I made my way down the candlelit hallway. Starlight filtered down the marble stones and gave enough light to see by; stewards had also put out candles as much for the ambiance as the light. I couldn't remember which stairway we had come from, so I took the second one and turned to the left at the top of the stairs like before. I walked quietly down the hallway. Nothing looked familiar. I wished I had accepted the offer of one of the maids to guide me back to my room.

  I sighed and turned to go back down the hall when a familiar voice stopped me. “Did you see them?”

  I looked up the hall. Faint light spilled from the partly closed door at the end. “They're finally here. I can't believe it worked,” Andric said.

  I walked back up the hallway, my slippers soft on the carpeted floor. Long tapestries and elegantly framed hand-painted pictures depicted forest scenes on one si
de of the hall and views of the ocean on the other. In one picture, a ship caught the final rays of the setting sun in its sails; next to it, a seagull perched by a wizened old man on a pier, both of them gazing down into the choppy water below. Across the hall, a young man and a great black bear walked through the trees; the young man rested his hand on the black bear's back. In the frame next to it, a beautiful young woman with long brown hair sat on a grassy knoll; a small gray fox waited beside her with its head on her knee.

  Another voice, one I hadn't heard before, stole my attention from the beautiful artwork. “All I see are ghosts. They're all there is now.”

  Andric's voice grew softer. “I know, Father. Try to get some rest.”

  I reached the door and stepped just far enough to the right to see into the room.

  Andric sat on the corner of a large bed under a double set of bay windows opened wide to the night sky. Winter-chilled, salty sea air, as familiar to me as my own room at home facing the Zalen seafront, drifted in on the evening breeze. Moonlight from the windows made a rectangle on the bed, revealing a man with dark brown hair streaked in gray and a salt and pepper stubble beard on his face. He sat propped by pillows on the bed and stared at Andric as if his son was a stranger.

  “I can't sleep,” the man said, turning his head to stare out the window. “I'm waiting up for my Maritha.” My heart slowed when I recognized the name of his wife who had passed away six years ago.

  I couldn't see Andric's face, but his voice was patient with the tone of someone who had repeated the same thing many times. “She's not coming back tonight, Father. It'd be better if you slept now.”

  His father was torn, his eyes searching the night. “She said she'd be back soon. The captains must be taking their time.”

  “Maybe the ice stopped them,” the son replied quietly. “The ships should be in port soon.” Andric rose and closed the windows, latching the great shutters over them. It took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust to the suddenly darkened room. A fire flickered in the corner. Andric went to it and added more logs, causing a shower of sparks to dance and drift through the air. The light from the fire made the marble stones closest to it glow with warm yellow light. “Sleep, Father. Don't worry about Mother; she's safe.”

  I turned to leave, and saw Andric's head jerk around. I froze in the darkness. His eyes narrowed. It was then that I saw Bayn blink silently from the base of the bed. He stared right at me, his golden eyes reflecting the firelight.

  I turned and ran down the hall, my heart pounding. I took the stairs two at a time, turned to my right, and hurried back up the next flight. Counting the doors, I pulled open my own and closed it tightly behind me. I sank onto the bed with my head in my hands. I had no right to be there, and shouldn't have overheard the things he said to his father. Those things were private, and I shouldn't have eavesdropped. I tried to tell myself that I really hadn't meant to, but I couldn’t get past the thought that I had also stayed when I realized who was in the room.

  I was so ashamed that I could barely write the letter to my family. A beautiful black quill that showed a purple hue when I turned it in the moonlight perched next to the bed on a small nightstand; a fresh sheet of smooth, pressed paper lay waiting as if someone knew I would want to write home before I went to sleep.

  I took a deep breath to clear my head, then put the quill to the paper.

  Dear Mother, Father, and Rory,

  I want to let you know first that I am safe, and so are the other Crown Princes and Princesses. We have not been mistreated, and everyone is unharmed. We’ve been given our own rooms in the Antoran castle, and are being treated very hospitably. Prince Andric said we are here to learn how important it is to work together so that our own countries don’t go through the same thing Antor is. I’ll let you know when I find out more about it, because it’s all still a bit confusing to me. I love you very much. Please give Rory my love; I’m anxious to hear how he is doing. Prince Andric said that he is letting us write as often as we’d like, so I’ll write you again soon. I miss you.

  Love,

  Kit

  I finally pulled on my sleeping robe and hung up the beautiful blue dress. My feet felt as heavy as stone and my legs ached from all of the unaccustomed riding. I collapsed on the bed and fell asleep when my head touched the pillow.

  Chapter 10

  The next morning, shouts of command followed by thuds and grunts resounded through my room. I opened my eyes and saw early sunlight streaming from the window. The air was chilly, but when my bare feet touched the floor, I was surprised to find that it was warm. The white marble lit the room in a pleasant morning glow.

  Before I could go to the window and find the source of the sounds, a knock sounded at my door. I slid my feet into slippers that someone had put at the foot of my bed while I slept, pulled on my robe, and hurried to open the door. Kaerdra, Tisha, and Brynna waited for me, each dressed in their own robes with matching slippers. I wondered if the thoughtfulness of the clothing touched them as much as it did me.

  “Did you see them?” Brynna asked. She didn’t wait for an answer and pushed past me to the window.

  “What do you suppose they're doing?” Kaerdra echoed, following her.

  Tisha smiled at me. “Good morning.”

  I smiled back and motioned for her to come in. “Good morning to you, too. Did you sleep well?”

  She nodded. “Very well, until the fighting woke me up this morning.”

  “Fighting?” I went to the window and looked out.

  The rear view of most castles or palaces revealed beautiful gardens and orchards designed for ladies' enjoyment and generally were tended by the queen and her women. It turned out to be one of the many other differences in Antor that required some getting used to.

  Instead of gardens, a huge training field spread out below us. Most of the snow had been swept clear, revealing hard-packed earth underneath. Hundreds of citizens, at least half of the Antorans that had gathered at the castle for the banquet the night before, spread out below singly and in groups. They each held weapons, mostly wooden swords, axes, and staffs weighted with iron, though some soldiers and citizens in a small group in the middle wielded real weaponry. These were given a wide berth by the rest and wore complete suits of armor.

  “What's going on?” Danyen demanded from the doorway.

  Surprised, I looked back to see the twins watching us from the door I had accidentally left open. I motioned that it was fine for them to come in. In any other setting, a Crown Prince entering the bedchamber of a Crown Princess would have been entirely unsuitable, but since everything else in our world had turned upside down, I figured there was no harm in stretching normal decorum a bit more.

  Kenyen must have felt the same way, because he pushed past his wide-eyed brother to join us at the window. Danyen sighed and followed.

  “It looks like they’re training,” I mused out loud.

  “For a hostile takeover?” Kenyen asked, bristling.

  I frowned, but couldn't answer him. So many Antorans gathered in the practice ground with weapons made me nervous also. It took me a minute to remember Andric's comments at dinner. “Andric said there was a safe room under the castle in case of an attack. It looks like they've had to defend it before.”

  Landis appeared beside Tisha. “I noticed that, too,” he said quietly. He gave Tisha a good morning hug. “There’re arrow marks in some of the shutters. None of the first floor windows have glass, probably because it's too expensive to keep replacing.”

  Kenyen shrugged, unconvinced. “I think it's a dangerous thing to have enemies this prepared.”

  “Who says they're enemies?” I asked before I could stop myself.

  This time, several of them glared at me. Brynna snorted, “We've been kidnapped and are being held hostage. Of course they're enemies.” She shook her head, her tone implying absolute stupidity. “What is your country going to do when you're queen?”

  I could feel my face turn red. I
ducked away to see Nyssa walk through the doorway. Trevin followed close behind to complete the gathering in my room. For a second, I stood back and just watched them stare at the commotion below. My cheeks burned from Brynna's comment.

  “They sure listen well to that thief,” Danyen mumbled with grudging admiration.

  I went to the next window and looked down to see the Antoran Prince in the middle of the group armed with real swords. He shouted commands which were echoed by Captain Jashe and Falen, his second. Jashe and Falen walked between the long lines correcting stances and adjusting sword holds. After each swing, thrust, or parry, the Antorans held their stance for Andric's next command. A slight shiver ran down my spine at the sight of hundreds of citizen soldiers trained to fight under their Crown Prince's command.

  I watched for several minutes and calmed my nerves by telling myself that if there was a possible chance of attack, at least we knew their country wasn’t helpless. A cluster of children off to one side swung short sticks with cross handles in time to the Prince's command. I fought back a smile when Jashe leaned over and helped a boy less than a quarter his size straighten his hold on the makeshift blade.

  The others finally gave up and drifted back to their rooms. I continued to watch the training warriors. Women swung swords next to their husbands, fathers corrected sons, and daughters trained beside brothers. It made sense to me, countrymen and women training beside hardened soldiers to prepare for whatever the future would hold.

  It was obvious by the steady hands, quick responses, and firm stances that these Antorans had trained for a very long time. Most of them hefted the iron shrouded wooden training swords with ease. White puffs rose in the cold air from their mouths as they grunted in response to each of Andric's commands. A few animals watched the training group from the sidelines. Andric's wolves waited near the head in a small pack.