His taunts set them off, and they all drew swords. One, Mike, had a bow, and he drew back an arrow, pointing it directly at the pink-haired man. The thought of someone dying to protect me made my blood run cold, but I couldn’t force my feet to move to protect him. I was frozen where I stood, watching in horror as the pink-haired man readied his blades, and it looked like an all out battle was going to start right in front of me.
For a long tense moment, no one moved until a whistle cut through the quiet, jerking Mike’s attention to the side and off the pink-haired man. Then, while he was still looking for the source, the barbarian in front of him, Matthew’s husband, lunged at the horse, causing it to startle and rear. Mike was forced torelease the draw to keep his seat, the arrow falling uselessly to the ground. Before he could nock another one, an arrow sailed through the air right by his head, making him duck, and the rest of the guards and horses began to shift uneasily.
“That was a warning. Matthew doesn’t miss. Next one goes through your eye,” the pink-haired man drawled.
Matthew stepped out from behind the wagon closest to the forest, bow drawn and pointed at Mike, his face a mask of quiet determination. Like me, the guards didn’t recognize him at first, but once they did, they all started shouting, calling him a traitor and a whore just like they had me.
“Enough!” one of the barbarians barked. “You either leave now with your lives or forfeit them to us. Decide.”
Marvin bared his teeth, he didn’t like either option, but he seemed to recognize he was outmanned. Eight barbarians, plus an arrow aimed directly at his company, and two more on the ground with weapons. There was no way they’d get the upper hand.
Shooting me a look so full of hatred and vitriol, I felt it like a physical blow, he growled out, “The king’s order was real. You better hope you make it out of this country quickly. If any knights find you, you’ll be beheaded for betraying your kingdom.”
He left without a backward glance, the rest of his company following after him with the same rapid pace as before, and I was left wondering what I’d gotten myself into. I hadn’t thought leaving would cause such insanity. I just wanted to find someone to love. Was that truly so wrong that I should be beheaded because of it?
“I still think he’s lying,” the pink-haired man commented, returning to the bored expression he had earlier. “They would’ve had to have a king’s order before we even showed up for that to be true. There’s no way they would’ve made it all the way outhere in a single night. How would the king even know where we are?”
I couldn’t answer that. I had no idea if there was someone visiting town that would have been able to make that order. I’d been so focused on escaping, I didn’t pay any mind to who was there. I just wanted to be free.
Tears swam in my vision, and I rubbed at my eyes vigorously to hide them. I thought about going back, just to make the insanity stop. But that wouldn’t work either. Not after everything that just happened. I’d be going back to my death. I had nowhere else to go.
A hand rested on my shoulder, and when I glanced at Matthew, he gave me an understanding nod. He squeezed it supportively before walking off to join his husband again.
Tyos took his place, looking me over with a concerned frown.“Are you okay?”
Drawing in a shaky breath, I nodded. “I-I’m sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused. You can leave me in the next town if you’d prefer–”
“No,” he cut me off gruffly. “Not safe to stay. You come with me.”
“He’s right, you know,” the pink-haired man said as he sauntered closer, looking me up and down like he was just now taking me in. He raised an eyebrow at me. “Were you seduced on the first night? That’s impressive, even for me.”
I looked down dumbly for a moment before realizing what he was referring to. I was wearing Tyos’s tunic and not much else. The flush that burned through me went straight to my hairline and down my chest until my whole body felt like it was on fire. “N-No! I just– I needed–”
Thankfully, the other barbarian who rescued me the night prior stepped in because I was too embarrassed to speak formyself. “His clothes were muddied and torn from his escape. We were going to ask you if you’d brought a spare he could borrow.”
The pink-haired man wrinkled his nose. “I mean, I did. But it’s dirty. I don’t think they’d be any better than whatever he showed up in.”
His friend beside him snorted. He said something in a language I wasn’t familiar with, and the pink-haired man rolled his eyes.
I shot a questioning look at Tyos, who shook his head with a rueful smile.“He speaks Al Nuzem language. I not know it.”
“They’re talking about who might have a spare outfit,” another barbarian said. He looked serious and authoritative, and Tyos bowed his head respectfully when he approached. “Apparently, they’ve both soiled their spare outfits. It might be better if we purchase you something new in the next town.”
“Oh, that’s really not necessary,” I rushed out. “If I can just have my old clothes back, I can wear those. They should be dry by now.” Hopefully, anyway. I wasn’t going to force them to purchase me clothes just because they were damp, though. I’d survive.
“Clothes torn,” Tyos pointed out with a frown.
Giving him a lopsided smile, I shrugged. “I’m a tailor. I can mend them.”
My clothes were moved from the fireside once the rain had stopped. Someone had been kind enough to hang them from a line they’d put up between a few trees and they were mostly dry when they were given back to me. Stained and torn, sure, but I wasn’t in a place to complain. I settled on the floor of the wagon I’d slept in, my bag against my hip as I started mending mytrousers first. There were some rips from falling into the bush, but they weren’t too bad. It was my tunic that took the brunt of the damage and would take longer to fix. I figured trousers were better than nothing, and I needed to give Tyos back his tunic eventually.
The pink-haired man joined me in the wagon, along with his friend, while the rest either rode in the other wagons or on horseback. No one wanted to wait around for me to finish working after the confrontation with Marvin, so I sat near the opening in the back for better lighting, keeping my mother’s sewing tin inside my bag so it wouldn’t spill if we went over bumps.
The dark haired man said something, catching my attention when he gestured at me, and the pink-haired man translated for him.
“He wants to know how you can do that while moving.”
Pursing my lips, I considered my answer while threading the needle like an old habit. “I used to travel with my father to other towns for materials when I was younger. I’ve practiced enough times that it’s not difficult anymore.”