Chapter 154 - Rest

~ Give them more, give them more! ~ Alexander whispered impatiently, while Alexa counted the coins she wanted to give as a reward to the men who took part in Magnus's rescue operation.

Alexa's finger slid avidly onto the small pile of coins on the small table, and Magnus's two firm fingers appeared on top of the pile, holding it firmly in place.

"We don't have much, princess. Leave it there!"

"Don't be ungrateful, Your Highness! These people risked their lives for you!"

"I'm not being ungrateful. I'm being practical. That's all the money we have to get to France," Magnus stared at the princess harshly, and she stared back.

"I will eat less during the trip! So. Give. More. Money. To them!" she mumbled under her breath.

"Haha ha! You?! Eat less?! I have never heard such bullshit!" Magnus sprang up from the table, shaking the floor of the wagon, which was at the same time a wheeled house for a family. Reed and his wife had given up space so the couple could get some rest.

~ Magnus has always been stingy. Don't listen to him, give the money! ~ Alexander conspired. Alexa hesitated for a moment, but finally said,

"What if I give them the buttons on my shirt? They are worth something! "

"In the current status of bandits they are in, it's quite possible that if they are seen with valuable buttons, they will be accused of murdering some nobleman, and it brings more problems than benefits," the Prince grumbled, looking out the small window. Then he added,

"Well, do what you want. I'm sure my brother must be talking badly about me, that I'm stingy, and other horrible things. I don't care at all, but I know what he's talking about. The look of a bird disapproving me could not shake me less."

Alexa added more coins to the amount they would use to thank the help of Giles and his friends. They had a lot of mouths to feed there.

"By the way ... Shouldn't we go back to Holstein instead of continuing our trip?" Alexa suggested. Magnus turned to the maiden, with a stern look,

"After all we went through, the death of comrades and even accepting a witch's spell, would we really return as losers, achieving nothing?"

~ Alexa, your sacrifice would be in vain, and we would be stuck forever in this situation ... ~ Alexander exposed his opinion in a sad voice. 

"Calm down, you two. It was just a suggestion. So we'll be leaving tomorrow for Duncaster and then for the port, right?"

The First Prince nodded, and I went to the table, taking what was left of the coins and putting it back in the pouch at his waist, 

"I see that, depending on you two, we will soon go from Princes to beggars." Magnus left the place, which was much bigger without him there.

"Uhn, he's quite a materialist, isn't he?" she commented, still looking at the door and shrugging.

~ I can't judge him, he still needs to wear clothes, unlike me. ~

Alexander's unexpected comment made Alexa laugh!

"Ah, it reminded me of something. Yes, that question you asked me, about what happens when I wake up in your body! Sometimes it happens. So I think it's involuntary, and it's not about impure thoughts! And… I think I need to learn how to shave for you, since I don't have a barber!"

~ OH! ~ Alexander ended up laughing too, ~ Yes, please take good care of me! I promise I will reward you as soon as I can! ~

"You can start by telling what you are hiding!" she turned to him with narrow, piercing eyes, knowing she had caught him unprepared. "Come on! Spill your beans! What were you doing this time when you were in Tanbury? I didn't believe your story at all! "

"But what are you talking about?!" Alexander's fearful tone denounced his inability to continue lying.

"I know you came back round and fluffy and such, but you hid part of your story. Come one! Tell me now!" she demanded, leaning her face and coming closer to the bird on the table. The little nightingale took two steps back, fearful,

~ Alexa…! ~

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"Milady! The food is ready!" a female voice called.

Alexa had already been sniffing some delicious game meat roasting for some time, and that had been torturing her, but the call was impossible to ignore now.

"Come on, hubby! Let's eat at last!"

"Go ahead, thanks. I'm a little sick…"

Alexa didn't ask twice, and practically ran out of the wagon.

Within minutes, she was devouring a bowl of boiled vegetables and game meat in the midst of the noisy band of Giles. Magnus was at her side, and nudged her, speaking softly in the Germanic language,

"Can you please eat like a lady, for a change?"

"Stop whispering in another language, because 'that' is inelegant and suspicious," she replied, speaking out loud next,

"My husband is asking me if I'm feeling well, because he never saw me so hungry! This meal is excellent and very nutritious! Thank you so much for sharing with us!"

Her comment said with a genuine smile caused some shock and also brought smiles to them. 

"I doubt it's a meal that suits you, but we are grateful that you like it!" replied Giles. 

An elderly woman commented,

"Women expecting babies change their appetites. Most start eating for two, really!"

"...!"

The duo almost spat the food out of their mouths at the same time, and Alexa even choked, begging for air!

People laughed at the couple's reaction, while Magnus rubbed his 'wife's' back and offered her water. After that, many comments about the first child embarrassed the couple.

"It will be a beautiful child, as both are beautiful!"

"God bless that you have many children!"

"It looks like they'll have it!"

Each comment was more unnerving than the other, and Alexa wanted to scream in shame and run away. Her face was on fire. But seeing that Romeo was close, hearing everything, was even more embarrassing.

"Milady, please, you leave tomorrow, but finish telling us your story, please?" a young maiden with a thin face that contrasted with her bright eyes asked. "What happened at the palace in Constantinople?"

"What? Are you now some kind of Sherazade?" Magnus asked, intrigued.

Alexa knew what he was referring to, the tales from the Book of the Thousand and One Nights, which she had partially heard on her travels around the East.

She was surprised that Magnus knew the work, or had heard of it. The princess had already judged him in the past as yet another ignorant Westerner on the East. But then he remembered the rumors that some stories were spicy and e.r.o.t.i.c. 'Of course, he does, hmp!'

"Not a Sherazade, my husband. I was telling women about my life. Just the memories of things that happened while I was still living at my family's house in the east…"

The expression on Magnus's face was priceless. She knew he was extremely curious, but she could never tell, because she could never trust the First Prince. And even the men in the group were uneasy,

"Well, can only women listen?" Reed asked, practically speaking on behalf of the other men.

"They are just stories, but today for me it is a day of celebration and not of memories that make me miss the family that I lost. What can I say? The story had a happy ending. I left Constantinople and came to the West. I was engaged to a man and on the trip to get married, I met my husband. I would never have imagined that I would marry him, no matter how much I admired him. We were a little distant at first, but he started talking to me ... It was a surprise and a scare. But fate wanted it that way. We are undoubtedly a different couple from all the others… "

"But it's clear that they were born for each other!" said the same girl, and many agreed.

'OH BY THE GODS!' she was not even talking about Magnus, but Alexander, but people had no way of knowing, of course.

Alexa felt Magnus' gaze on her, and when she looked up, the Prince gave her cheek a tender pinch,

"Without a doubt, we both could have worse fates with our destined spouses… I cannot say that I am unhappy that Alexa has accepted marrying to a von Wutenfal," Alexa also realized that he was being dubious on purpose.

So the subject changed to other things, and before it was too late, they said goodbye, as they would go to Cymric's cottage to spend the night and thank him before leaving.

The wise old man greeted them with a satisfied smile, and wanted to know all the morning's adventures. When Alexa started telling about the druids' claims, the old man chuckled, "Eostre, uhn? This is the goddess of dawn and spring. It suits you so much, milady! Are you sure you're not her?"

Alexa just smiled, shaking her head.

"Eostre likes children and children like her! It's said that she had a bird and that to impress the children, she turned him into a hare. She could not undo the spell because her magic was weak in the winter. But with the sunlight arrival, and spring, she could have the bird back ... Isn't it interesting? I'm not surprised that they were so impressed!"

"The fact they believed it what amazes me the most!" Alexa confessed.

"As I said, these people no longer remember what the gods are like. Who does, anyway? They may be out there, and no one will recognize them."

Cymric's words made a lot of sense, in a disturbing way.

When Alexa lay down to wait for nightfall, Romeo landed on the headboard,

~ Alexa, ~

"Yes, Alexander?"

~We must nullify our marriage.~