14 FOURTEEN
The sheer joy and relief that seized her heart when she saw the outlines of Nashville was overwhelming. The euphoria made the agonizing walk almost worth it.
Karen and Thomas was both beaming with joy. Will laughed out heartily. Soon after the encounter with the bandits, they had continued to walk north. Will had said they couldn't afford to waste more time since they had now lost the cart and the horse. None of them felt like walking, but the thought of a warm place to stay and a hot meal was too beautiful to just give up on.
By the time it was dark, Celeste's feet were so sore and blistered, she wanted to cry. She was exhausted, and hungry. Very hungry. But Will guessed they wouldn't reach the city until next afternoon. So she had to suck it all up. It was her fault they were in this mess anyway, she wouldn't make it worse by complaining like a brat.
It was a miserable night. Everyone was irritable and exhausted. They finally decided to stop when the sun went down and slept on the ground. Celeste had groaned out loud when she realized they were going to have to sleep on the damp and smelly ground. Hers and Will's conversation had gone like this:
" You Are A Spoilt Brat"
" But what if they're snakes? Or some weird little sucker that bites?"
" Guess you'll have to suck it up,"
" Shut up,"
" Don't tell me to shut up. If anyone should shut up it should be you!"
To which Thomas had snapped
" All of you shut up!"
Karen kept glaring at them for dragging her into it.
Celeste tossed and turned all night, finally dozing into a restless sleep staring at the stars.
She knew Will was still awake too.
Don't ask her how, she just knew.
Her sleep was ruined with nightmare after nightmare. She was horribly cranky when Thomas woke her the next morning. But her mood brightened when she saw the berries Will had managed to find. It wasn't much but it wasn't nothing either.
The atmosphere was considerably chipper when they walked. Will said they would be in Nashville by noon, she hoped he was right. Onward they marched. occasionally sharing jokes or passing insults.
Celeste had never had friends before. Except for Gabriel.
There was no one her age in the castle. And whenever some royal children were visiting the castle, they were a disappointment. All spoiled, mean, and beastly. They had always entertained themselves by torturing her. So all this was very new to her. She mostly kept quiet, worried that she would say the wrong thing. It shouldn't matter, Celeste had never cared what other thought of her and her sharp tongue.
After every few moments, Thomas would turn to Will
" Are you sure we're going the right way?"
When he asked it the first time, Will had said he was sure. The second time he used sarcasm. The third time Will had glared at him. Now Thomas asked it for the fourth
" Are you absolutely sure?"
" That is it!" Will snapped. He grabbed Thomas and put him in a headlock, ruffling his hair while Thomas apologized and begged Will to not ruin his hair. Celeste could tell Thomas was joking. He didn't doubt Will. Something told her he could never, he was just messing around.
When they finally reached the town, everyone was grinning and Celeste found herself doing it too.
Before they entered the streets, Thomas gave them a speech about safety.
" Don't make eye contact. Don't laugh. Don't talk. Don't flirt!" He said that staring pointedly at Will. Will only smiled sheepishly and winked.
Celeste was afraid someone would recognize her but she told herself she was being paranoid. No one had seen the princess, and they thought she was dead.
Nashville was one of the towns that didn't seem to be affected by the war. The houses seemed intact, the people grim but occasional laughter was heard. Celeste wistfully watched two children run along the road. It felt good to be in a town, near people. Certainly, people stared at them, Will said it was because of his drool-worthy looks. Celeste would never say it out loud, but that was half of it. Her dress was caked in mud and dirt, she probably smelled, her eyes were poofy from lack of sleep and her face felt blotchy. Her hair was wild and tangled.
But Will looked like he hadn't been on the run for a day. Only his dirty clothes gave him away. His grey eyes were sparkling with mischief and his lips were twisted into a smirk.
They stopped in front of a building called
"Nosey's Pub and Kitchen"
Karen snorted after reading the name. It was pretty noisy, shouting could be heard from inside.
" Who would drink in the afternoon?" Celeste wondered.
" Will," The other three said in harmony.
" Maybe the girls should wait outside" Thomas suggested.
Both Karen and Celeste shot the offer down. Celeste regretted it instantly, the place was too crowded. She kept bumping into people and mumbling apologies.
This place was bigger than she thought though. Tables were spread out in front of a stage. The bar was on one side and was crowded with drunks. The smell of alcohol was mixed with the smell of cooking meat. The people were chatting busily, Celeste could barely hear herself think. She had never been in such a crowd except for Royal balls or parties. And they didn't compare to this. For one, royals were quiet, these people were not.
"Stay close," Thomas told them.
"Let's just get a table and eat," Karen suggested as a woman shoved her aside. Celeste agreed with her wholeheartedly.
"What're you lot doing here blocking the way?" A voice drawled. They all turned simultaneously to see a short, fat woman with her hands on her hips. Her red hair was pinned carelessly on top of her head and she had a huge boil near her nose. She was currently scowling at the four of them.
"We just want to get a table and eat," Thomas said exasperated.
"Do you even have any coin on you?" She drawled looking suspiciously at their disheveled appearances. Thomas reached into his pocket.
"Of course we ha-" Will's snappish reply was cut off when Thomas elbowed him, his eyes widened.
"Fucking bandits" He whispered. Will's expression changed in the blink of an eye. He lifted his lips into a wide smile and stood up straighter.
"What I meant to say, dear lady," He began blinking more than necessary. Celeste wanted to vomit. "Is that we had the terrible experience of coming across some bandits. Nasty little buggers they were. I would have obviously chased them all away " He said proudly. " But my friends here can barely hold swords so it was a risky situation. They took our money and our horses. Now we have to walk home but it is far away and we are starving!" Will said dramatically. The women listened attentively.
"We have heard a lot about this place, but what they should've talked about was the host. It is not often one meets a pretty lady " Will continued. It was working, the women blushed a bright red and began stammering.
"Well uh, business is low and uh maybe we could... Oh, I know! " She squeaked excitedly.
"My customers need entertainment! So I'll give you food and a table and in exchange, you perform!"
"Perform?" Will gulped. "My friend here can act like a clown," He said patting Thomas on the back.
"No, it has to be you" She argued.
"I am flattered. I really am but "
"Either you perform or you leave" She snapped. Will glared at her.
"Fine!" He snapped. "Do you have a guitar?"
The women nodded excitedly. "Now boy, just follow me," She said disappearing into the crowd.
Will groaned turning to the others.
"Think of the food?" Thomas offered, grinning.
"You're enjoying this aren't you!" Will accused.
"Do you even have any talents besides being a prick ?" Celeste said.
"I have a lot of talents " Will smirked before disappearing after the women.
"Watch where you're going!" Celeste snapped as a man shoved past her. Thomas grabbing her and Karen's elbows and lead them ahead. They finally managed to find a table with a decent view of the stage.
Celeste plopped down on the wooden chair and heaved a sigh of relief.
"What do you think Will will do?" Celeste asked Thomas. Thomas rose his eyebrows in amusement.
"I can only guess what Will will do" He chuckled
"I can imagine him doing a tap dance" Karen grinned. Celeste laughed, the image in her head was too funny.
Karen suddenly groaned swinging her feet.
"My feet feel like they're dying" She complained.
"I assure you sister they smell that part too" Thomas grumbled under his breath.
Celeste stifled a laugh before glancing around the room.
"Do people have nothing better to do ?" Celeste said hesitantly. "There's a war going on, but here it feels like nobody cares"
"They're just having a good time," Thomas said. Celeste sent him an blank look.
"They're having a good time ?" Celeste mumbled incredulously under her breath.
"Hello!" A nervous voice piped up. A tall lanky boy stood with his hands in his pockets.
He had long brown hair and eyes exactly the same color. He was currently smiling nervously at Celeste.
"Hello?" Celeste replied though it was more of a question than a statement. The boys fidgeted with his hands.
"I uh..." He trailed off suddenly becoming beetroot red. "Forget it!" He mumbled rushing away. Celeste stared in confusion at his retreating figure before turning back to her friends.
"What was that about?" Celeste said confusedly.
"Well seems to me he took a liking to you," Thomas joked. Celeste frowned at him.
"He probably wanted to invite you for a drink or something and then got nervous and ran off" Thomas explained.
"Why would he want to invite me for a drink?" Celeste said incredulously.
Thomas chortled.
"Maybe he thought you were pretty?" Thomas offered. Celeste scoffed out loud.
"I smell like a half-dead badger and I probably look like one too!" She exclaimed.
"He was kinda cute," Karen said observantly.
Thomas glared at her sharply.
"What?" She inquired defensively.
"Oh look!" Celeste pointed out. "Will's starting"
Most of the people turned quiet too staring intensely at the young boy who had climbed the stage. Will was sitting on a stool, in his hands was a guitar that looked ancient.
Celeste stared at his face, looking for signs of nervousness or pride or anything. But Will's face was blank as a sheet of paper. He was looking straight ahead, but his eyes were holding an undetectable emotion. Celeste had a feeling like he wasn't really here. Physically he was here, sitting on a stool but otherwise, he seemed... he seemed so far away. How was it possible that he looked exactly like Will and yet nothing like him at the same time?
He raised his hand and stroked the guitar strings lightly. He stopped for a moment, face pale like he had seen a ghost. Then he took a deep breath snd began to play. Celeste gasped. She didn't know what she expected, but Will was playing a perfectly haunting tune as if he had had years of practice. Celeste hadn't taken Will for a musical person. But he currently had his eyes closed and was playing effortlessly.
Celeste was even more surprised when he began to sing.
"Black flies on the window sill"
Why had Celeste never noticed what a beautiful voice he had? His steady voice broke the silence that had overtaken the room. Celeste found herself losing focus over everything else except Will. Like Will was all that mattered.
"That we are
That we are
That we are to know
Winter stole summer's thrill
And the river's cracked and cold
See the sky is no man's land
A darkened plume to stay
Hope here needs a humble hand
Not a fox found in your place
No man is an island, this I know
But can't you see?
Maybe you were the ocean when I was just a stone"
Celeste didn't realize she was holding her breath until her chest starting burning. She resisted the urge to look away from the stage. It felt like she was watching something horribly private, something she wasn't supposed to see.
She realized that she did not know Will after all. Sure she knew he got annoyed quickly, and that he loathed poetry, and that he was joking most of the time. But what about the Will who spent hours staring at maps? What about the Will who knew Icarus? What about the Will who would be harsh and cold and guarded? What about the Will who couldn't sleep at night? What kept him up at night? What made him the way he is?
"Black flies on the windowsill
That we are
That we are
That we are to hold
Comfort came against my will
And every story must grow old
Still I'll be a traveler
A gypsy's reins to face
But the road is wearier
With that fool found in your place
No man is an island, this I know
But can't you see?
Maybe you were the ocean when I was just a stone
No man is an island, this I know
But can't you see?
Maybe you were the ocean when I was just a stone
So here we are
And I don't wanna beg your pardon
And I don't wanna ask you why
But if I was to go my own way
Would I have to pass you by?
And I don't wanna beg your pardon
And I don't wanna ask you why
But if I was to go my own way
Would I have to pass you by?"
Her eyes met Will's from across the room. He looked so tired, so exhausted , had he always looked this way? Why hadn't she noticed before? Why hadn't any of them?
He looked so sad.
But all that sadness, all that exhaustion disappeared from his face in an instant. Just like that, he was back to himself, or at least the Will she knew.
She wished that she'd just been imagining it.
