Usless Bagage

Talking with the Duke later resulted in me standing in front of some very interesting characters in a retched garden. It was small with more trees than flowers but still, they're sickly sweet sent sick and me.

A group of warriors and mages was being forced on me to 'help me' reach the evil mage and 'defeat' him or something. Stingy didn't like any of them except a little blond girl with a staff that was too big for her.

She had her hair pulled up in many braids that fell like waterfalls from the two tight pink leather wrapping on either side of her head. She too had a nice pastel pink robe that covered a black dress beneath. There was something more to her and it called to us. Her dreams would be interesting.

The others…a young man, good looking and full of arrogance. He had trouble looking at me. It made me smile. Stingy made a show of her self and sat on my shoulder. The young man shifts uncomfortably. The Duke stepped in almost as an apology, but to who I wasn't sure.

"This is Prince Florence, he is a gifted knight. He-" stingy growled at the Duke and pounced over my head to the other shoulder (almost losing her balance because of the extra weight). The Duke fell silent and surprisingly didn't step back.

"What is this vermin!?" the Prince had an elegant voice but that was it. He went for his sword. With a slight lift of my right arm, my royal blue magic puffed in a pretty cloud in front of his face. He looked startled, held his sword aloft and promptly fell over.

Shock and panic spread through the garden and the small group of people that where there.

Tilting my right arm up so everyone could see my words, they projected clearly from the white crystal, "HE SLEEPS."

Two knights came and checked him, they nodded and said the same thing, then quickly carried him away.

The next to be sized up was another young man. He had thick brown hair and a rough face. He had a spear on his back and I could feel him watching me. Stingy didn't like him but she agreed, he had a good look in his eyes. He had been faced with death before.

"It doesn't speak?" his words were meant to get a rise out of me but only Stingy huffed at him. His voice was lighter than I would have expected almost nasally.

"MY THROAT WAS MELTED." His completion paled at that and I smiled. He didn't look at me again.

"He is Kiytan. His people live in our southern region. You won't be able to find anyone better with the spear." The Duke's voice was a bit shaky. Was it because of the so-called prince?

"This is Zaylen of house Dellamore. She is a very talented mage, don't let her stature fool you." The Duke almost had himself under control now. Zaylen did a small courtesy and walked up to me. Stingy was amused. Zaylen then held out her hand and a piece of cheese appeared. Stingy was all too happy to take it from her.

"Stingy…let me try it first." Stingy ignored my thoughts and continued to smell it. "Stingy…" huffing at me she turned and held it up to my mouth with one hand. I could feel her resentment and hope that I wouldn't take too big a bit.

Touching my lips to it, no immediate reaction and so I took a little nibble. It was good. Stingy was annoyed that I took a bite at all and quickly scurried under my hood and hair before I could get any more.

"Pfft, what an interesting pet you have." Zaylen smiled and returned to her position. The next two were twins, both men but a bit older than the others. They didn't seem particularly bothered by the spectacle. The one on the left spoke first that had a bow on his back.

"I am Jackin and this is my brother Luckah, as long as we get to kill things we don't care who or what you are." His voice was deep and even with his soft tone, he was clearly heard.

"Jackin Hallzay is very good with a bow and strategy and his brother Luckah Hallzay is a fantastic support mage." The duke was sounding more like himself. Stingy poked her head out having finished her little snack and taunted the Duke a little. He flinched from her glare and huffing.

"FINE, EXCEPT THE MAN I PUT TO SLEEP. HE WILL JUST GET IN THE WAY." Zaylen laughed a very pleasant giggle and the twins smiled at my words. They knew as well as I that the prince had never experienced real combat. The Duke looked to his feet and sighed. He probably saw this coming.

"Can we talk about this over tea?" the Duke held his hands out for me to lead the way out of the garden and reluctantly followed. I didn't like the dirty water but it could sit down. My leg was starting to hurt me anyway. I had been standing for too long.

He leads me to a nice small room not too far from the garden. I sat in the hard wooden chair gratefully. This room wasn't used much by him. Its furniture and decorations were well worn. This was probably the first time in years he came into this room.

A basic white teacup was set before me. Yep…brown water.

"Prince Florence, he is not a very well regarded prince. He is the fourth out of six brothers. The king hopes that with this chance he will change into a proper prince."

"OR DIE?" the Duke just ignored my words and took a long sip from his cup.

"FINE, I WILL TAKE CARE OF YOUR LITTLE PRINCE PROBLEM. THERE ARE TO MANY PEOPLE GOING WITH ME AS IS."

The Duke looked relieved and actually smiled at me. Stingy popped out and the smile dropped. Feeling as things had been settled I stood and went to leave. But the Duke's voice stopped me.

"Oh and Sullivan, your guard these past few days will also be going with you." I didn't even turn to acknowledge him. At least now I knew my stalker's name. He was waiting patiently outside the door for me.

Stingy has taken a liking to stare at him when he followed us. It made me more comfortable because then I knew where he was and what he was doing. Sullivan didn't seem to mind her gaze. That was interesting.

I had become somewhat used to him. His silent presence was becoming something akin to a favorite bowl. I could eat without it but the food just didn't taste the same. Stingy felt similar. Sullivan wasn't so bad anymore. He even tossed a piece of bread to her the other day. It was stale but still good.

His dreams were also interesting to watch. Most of them consisted of him training and fighting monsters, but about every two to three days, he would have a 'bad one'. A very large dark figure would appear in his room, the figure would hit and beat him and then try to go for a very small girl. That's when the dream would change and Sullivan would be a large man himself and attack the dark figure. He would wake up screaming a name, his dream hands soaked in blood. Sometimes I would intervene and let him sleep through the night. I think he knew when I did this. The last time is when he tossed Stingy the bread.

People avoided me less and treated me more with weariness instead. That was annoying. I couldn't wait to get back into my room. Something in me made me pause slamming the door behind me. Sullivan crinkled his forehead at my odd behavior. I had never really looked at him before as he was always on guard.

His nose had been broken and a nice deep little scare was left between the eyes, his face was square with quiet gray eyes. He had a dimple in his chin and a cut through his right earlobe. His hair was an unremarkable brown and cut short with the back pulled tight into a very short ponytail. He was broad and had no insignia on his chest as the other guards did.

"Uh…miss?" his voice startled me and I slammed the door shut. Knowing that he was coming with me was not so bad.

Stingy skittered down with a heavy plop on the floor and did her inspection of the room. I could smell the bleach from the maids… fresh clean sheets on the bed as well. I hope they didn't touch my bed… the smell in the room was suffocating and what was that other horrid stench coming from? The pointless table next to the wall?

Stingy pulled her hulk upon its small round top. She almost knocked something against the reflective thing on the wall, and she squeaked in complaint.

"Maybe if you lost some weight you wouldn't hit things so much." My thoughts read loud and clear from the indignation coming from Stingy.

It was plants of some sort. Whatever it was they needed to go away.

In this artificial night, the plants had gone into their night cycle. It was close enough. Placing my left hand on them, a fresh wave of stench assaulted me.

Closing my eyes, it was faint, but it was there. Slipping into the plant's simplistic life force was easy. If it had a color it would have been a beam of light as it cuts through a thick layer of white dust and fog. A hazy white. But with my magic, the royal blue quickly tainted the other almost unassuming color. It only took a drip filled with anguish and anger.

The once soft plants became hard and brittle. The smell became much weaker. That was good. Stingy was happy as well.

The larger wardrobe that I had pulled a few feet from the wall still stood where I had left it. That thing was of solid wood and if not for the small red gem I wouldn't have been able to move it.

The sleeping ward was still intact. Whoever went close to this wardrobe would become very sleepy until they passed out. I liked to call it my night veil ward. The more layers you covered yourself in, the faster you went to sleep.

I was exhausted. It had been a very complicated few weeks with no signs of it slowing. I had pinned a sheet on the wall with one of the hair sticks they had threatened to decorate me with. From there it wrapped around the wardrobe to form a sort of wall. It left a good foot gap on the ground so I could see anything approaching. It made a very passable fort.

Two ways in, and perfectly placed to see the door and the windows. Stingy rolled in the sheets and used clothes I had managed to keep for my bed.

Those maids were even more stubborn and vicious than some of those failed experiments of that man…especially the head maid. Stingy didn't even faze her.

Feeling me thinking of her she scurried over to me and began climbing my cloak. Squatting down and scooping her up in my left hand, she happily jumped to my shoulder. It made it easier for me to crawl into my bed and rest my back against the cool wall.

My white crystal had used a lot of power today. As I thought about the day's events and the necromancer he showed me, I poured my magic into the crystal till it couldn't take anymore. Stingy started whining that she was hungry as well.

Sighing I held my thumb up to her and she turned her nose up at it… She really was getting picky. Pulling my cloak down and exposing my underarm up for her, she greedily bit in. I also concentrated on filling her with my magic until she felt like she may pop.

"Enough." No reaction. "Stingy! I said enough!" my words rang out in my head at her with weight this time. She reluctantly let go. She licked my wound and it stopped bleeding, there wouldn't be a scare left either. I wouldn't mind even if it did. It didn't take long to fill her up but now that she was so big…I would need to watch her more.

That necromancer was fascinating. Why would he warn others and let his plains be known? I wish I could see that crystal again. A shiver ran down my spine. Stingy was curling up on my lap and didn't bother keeping up with my thoughts now. Stroking her fur she quickly fell asleep, perfect.

Slipping into her dream it was filled with food, soft sweet bread and some of those cakes we had for dessert yesterday. It made me smile.

Other dreaming threads began to drift and mingle in with Stingys. Catching ahold of one, it pulled me into another dream. The maid was having a problem cleaning a silver vase. As she scrubbed it, more spots would appear on the opposite side.

This maid probably didn't get out much… feeling another dreamer close, I grabbed ahold of it. It was a dog's dream… no one was really sleeping. I would have to wait for tonight to find my way into the prince's dreams. Knowing who's dream I wanted is half the battle. Now that I had met him, I should be able to feel his dream thread.

The necromancer was too far away for me to feel any trace of his dream- if he dreamed at all. I had tried for days and nights will nothing to show for it. But that child prince was a different story.

Should I kill him right away? Hmmm no, a slow burn would be more entertaining. He could be practice anyway.