Monday 29 September 2014

Mischief - Part 7

The next day, over breakfast, the King was in a glorious mood as he was going hunting that day.

"Perhaps I shall catch a fine wild boar today," he exclaimed with joy like a child on Christmas morning.

Mal turns to him from her seat and smiles sweetly, "I'm sure your Majesty is quite talented when it comes to the hunt. Might I be so bold as to request the privilege of accompanying you on your trip, Sire?"

He looks at her with astonishment written across his jolly old face,"Oh, Lady Malora, are you trained in the ways of hunting?"

If she's gonna be playing a part, she might as well make it an interesting one.

"Quite a few of the ladies from Ermosta are skilled at hunting. My father wanted a son and he got me instead. He never mentioned wanting a son again after training me."

"Well, you're a spirited young thing aren't you?" King Ashtar replies, "Of course, you may come with us my dear. I look forward to seeing how well you hunt."

Mal laughs and notices Riverqo's questioning look in her direction.

He didn't expect her to just sit in the castle all the time did he?

                                                                      -----

The arrow whizzes past the trees and hits the boar right in his sides. This causes it to land on the floor with a thud. Birds start flying off in whatever direction they could think of.

King Ashtar claps his hands, "My, my, you are indeed a fine hunter, Lady Malora."

She smiles in a pleasant manner as she gets off her horse, "Still not as good as you though I imagine, your Highness."

She takes out the arrow from the boar and puts it back into her case, still covered in blood and all.

"Shall we take a break at the lake nearby father?" Prince Riverqo pipes up.

"An excellent idea, my son."

Shortly, they found themselves all set up near the lake. Malora excuses herself to clean off her arrows. As she is looking at her reflection in the water, she can't help but think of what was going on and what she was actually doing. How long could this charade keep going on for? What would happen when they all find out the truth?

She hears footsteps approaching and immediately loads her bow in preparation.

"Who's there? If you mean to hurt me, I will shoot you," she told the approaching person.

"Calm down Mal, it's just me," Prince Riverqo exclaims as he emerges from the bushes.

"What do you want?" She asks him as she stands up properly from the ground.

He walks up closer to her, "I just wanted to make sure that you were alright."

"I can take care of myself, Rivie. You know that."

"I do, of course," he replies and moves even closer to her. So close that she can easily examine the intense grey irises staring back at her.

He brushes a strand of hair away from her face, "I'm just concerned about you."



Friday 26 September 2014

Mischief - Part 6

OH SHIT!

Mal was starting to get nervous now. This is not an ideal situation. Of course she could easily just knock him out but then this doofus would probably ask for her head. Oh, also her cover would be blown, of course.

She looks at Prince Arizel, "But I must, why a lady cannot break a promise after all."

He pins her to the wall and she just takes it, knowing that any sign of defiance would be enough to arouse suspicion. The young royal then lowers his face to hers, "My dear cousin would understand if you were a bit..."

He brushes his fingers against her cheek seductively and finishes his sentence with a smug look on his face, "Occupied."

As Mal tried to figure out her next move, she hears her name being called out, "Mal! Are you here Mal?" She had never been so relieved to hear her name.

"I'm here, Prince Riverqo!" she shouts out quickly before Arizel could keep her quiet.

Riverqo stumbles upon the two of them and still sees Mal being pinned to the wall by Arizel. He raises an eyebrow and looks at his cousin, "Not trying to play around with my beloved are you now cousin?"

Arizel backs away from Mal and chuckles, "Is she yours now Riverqo? I wasn't aware of that. My apologies." Riverqo looks at Mal and walks up right to him, "I think the one you should apologise properly to is Mal."

Clearly not satisfied with the way things have turned out, the arrogant prince bows before Mal, "My apologies, Mi Lady. I was not aware that you were spoken for."

Mal slips back into her regular mode and smiles at the bastard, "An honest mistake, your lordship."

And with that Prince Arizel walks away. Leaving Mal and Riverqo on their own.

Mal lets out a sigh of relief as she looks at Riverqo,"You saved me just then. Thanks."

Without warning, he grabs her hands, which causes her to jump in surprise. "WHAT THE --"

He holds her hands in his and looks at her seriously but with a gentle tenderness, "Your hands are still trembling. I'm sorry. I should have warned you about Arizel. He is quite notorious for taking maidens as he wishes."

She looks down at her own hands and realises that he is indeed right. She was still trembling, which she didn't think she did.

"I couldn't blow my cover. I didn't know what to do." She tells him with an honesty that surprised even herself. And she looks at him straight in the eyes as she says this.

He smiles at her in a charming way, "I won't leave you alone from now on Mal. Don't worry. I'll make sure you're okay."