Tale of the Princess

XII

"I want you to hasten to my Father and inform him that I've won the Games. The money that I've earned has already been transferred to my lekha. Using those funds, I'll be staying back here and beginning preparations for the RePathing," Shyra told the Captain of their ship while servants bustled around with various bags.

She could tell that he was having reservations about this arrangement, but she was adamant about staying back in the kingdom where she would get most help with the RePathing.

"I see that you're choosing to stay back in Alza," a warm, honeyed voice said behind her, and Shyra felt shivers down her spine at the unexpected visit from Prince Mahi.

"I'm glad that you'll be here for a while longer. It gives us more time to spend together."

Shyra glanced self-consciously at the Captain, who was trying to listen to their conversation. She dismissed him with a huff, and he headed toward the ship with a bow and a knowing smirk.

Shaking her head in embarrassment, she turned back to Mahi, who, to her mortification, was also covering a chuckle.

"What?" she said, her cheeks beginning to burn with their characteristic red blush.

"Has anyone ever told you, princess," Mahi said, looking like he was trying hard to hold in a squeal, "that you look absolutely adorable when you're embarrassed and blushing?"

Shyra squeaked and covered her face. She heard Mahi laugh before enquiring about her living arrangements. When she admitted that she would set out and look for a place to stay, he huffed and threaded his arm through her elbow.

"Princess! Please allow me to accompany you and help in selecting a room for your stay here," he said and tugged at her arm. She glanced at their intertwined arms, pondered on his offer, then shrugged and let him join her in her hunt.

Once again they strode through the streets, arm in arm, and explored everything that Valencia had to offer. But this time, they had a very different goal in mind, and their walk was more subdued and serious.

They wove in and out of various rental homes, looking at pricing, location, beauty and other factors that Shyra deemed important. Mahi provided comic relief to their tiring task by commenting every once in a while that they seemed like a married couple who were looking for a new home.

She tried to ignore such comments, hiding her red face and turning away from him in the pretext of examining the houses. Though, from the constant chiding and sly remarks, Mahi seemed to be well aware of the effect he was having on her.

"This one!" she said, stepping inside the room and gesturing around with a flourish. "This is the house that I want to rent!"

"Finally!" Mahi cried, falling to his knees with a dramatic act. "I thought this would never end! I thought I would become a pishach! Forever doomed to roam the streets and haunt my subjects!"

Ignoring his antics, she turned toward the owner of the house and began bargaining for a reduced price on the house.

"Oh, jaani!" he cried yet again, and this time she froze in her tracks. Jaani? Where did that preposterous nickname come from? The owner glanced at the young prince with a harrowed expression, and Shyra wished, yet again, that the ground would swallow her now.

"My dear! Why are you bargaining for such an inconsequential matter? I'm the Prince of Alza and you're the Princess of Ziya, is it not? Not only this house, but I could also buy you heaps of heras and zevar of the finest kind. Let's just leave quickly. I feel like a husband who's had to endure hours of shopping with his wife. I just-"

Shyra covered his mouth with her hand, mortified beyond belief. Mahi looked at her with an amused twinkle in his eyes, and she caught his hand and dragged him to the streets.

"Prince Mahi! What in the five worlds are you doing? Why are you embarrassing both of us in front of these people? They'll actually think we're courting each other!" she scolded him.

"And is that a bad thing?" he asked, making her bite back her next reprimand. That statement was not the response she expected from him at all. All this drama was giving her a headache.

"Ugh! Why are you doing this to me?" she said, pressing her fingers to her temples. Feeling him move her hands from her head, she looked up to see him massage her head like he knew just what she needed.

"Why do you think I'm doing this to you, princess? More importantly, which action of mine is causing you to get this flustered?" he asked, a teasing grin gracing his lips. "Is it the nicknames? The subtle flirting?"

She was about to scold him further when his grin dropped and an unusually serious look replaced it. "Think on it, princess. Think on my actions, and their implications, and your feelings on them," he said, his voice dropping to a whisper.

The door behind them slammed open, causing both of them to jump. The haughty owner appeared in the doorway, casting a long shadow on them.

"Are you folks buyin' this place or not? I got a lotta people waitin' in line, and I ain't got time for your silliness," he said. Giving a squeaky response, she gave her affirmative and stepped through the threshold to discuss the arrangement with him.

"Tonight, princess. There's a royal dinner at the Palace, arranged for the competitors before they leave. I hope to meet you there," he called to her retreating back. She offered no response to his words, but caught herself smiling at his attempts at chivalry.