Loyalty in Unity

[FloatingAroundSpace]

Barrin turned to glare at June as she left, shaking his head the entire time. This was going to be one hell of a marriage.


Auria smiled at June as she approached. "Ready?" she asked, offering one arm for June to hook her elbow around, so that they could be linked by them. "I have plenty of places to show you down by the docks. The smell is undesirable, but the food is quite good. You might find some of the shops along the port nice as well."

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

"Ready." Hooking her elbow around Auria's, June grinned. She didn't even care what Auria showed her first, she was just glad to be getting out of the castle and exploring. Especially since Barrin wouldn't be tagging along this time around.


"Mm, I'm always up for trying new things. Especially when it comes to food." she laughed as the two made their way down the castle steps. "I'd also like to take a peek at those books you mentioned earlier, if that's alright?" she asked, turning her head to look up at the taller brunette.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

"It is fine," Auria said smiling as she led June down into the crowded Vanguardian streets. She waved at a few vendors, who waved back, smiling. She walked along the cobblestone path and eventually made her way through the crowd, glancing at June occasionally to ensure she was doing alright before arriving at a calmer street. Here, there were children laughing as they ran after one another, feet slapping against stones as they played. There were plenty of merchants hawking their wares, from foods to clothing to weapons and books.


Eventually, the smell of the river came over them. Auria breathed in, allowing the smell of the salty seafood that no doubt was being sold to mesh with the crisp cleanness of the river. "I love it here," she sighed. "I don't get to come here as much as I used to. The twins are a handful and Nartai complains that he can't feed them."


She snorted.

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

Smiling happily for the first time since she got there, June and Auria walked arm in arm down the crowded Vanguardian streets. Unlike last time she had went to barracks with Barrin, June was able to take in the sights, smiling as she watched the vendors work and people mill about, and the children that were playing in the street. In a way, it reminded her of home, although it was much busier than Etaleth was, considering Vanguard was just a bit bigger than her homeland.


Eventually, they reached the river, and June took a subtle deep breath in as well. While the smell of fish was a bit unpleasant... the smell of seafood being sold and the smell of the river seemed to overpower that. Glancing up at Auria, June smiled as she told her how she enjoyed be at the docks, chuckling lightly. "Yeah, I understand why. I used to sit at the docks for hours back home, just staring out into the water. There's just something about it that's so...calming." she sighed with a smile.


"If you want, I'd be more than happy to watch the twins for you if you ever want to get out for a while? I used to watch my youngest sister all the time, so I really wouldn't mind at all." she offered as she looked up at the taller woman. Being the second oldest of 7 children, June was almost always babysitting someone. Her siblings joked that she was too much like their mom in the times that she watched over them, however a slap upside the head always shut them up. Perhaps the reason why she loved children so much was because she was from a large family herself...


Hm. She had never thought about that.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

Auria laughed, patting June's arm. "You are quite kind," she said, turning with a smile to June. "I have July take after the children sometimes, but they too cannot really feed them when the time calls for it and we don't have wetnurses."


It was a Vanguardian thing, really, for the true parents to look after the children. While some other kingdoms hired nurses to feed the babies, Vanguard had never quite caught on. Perhaps it was the idea that raising your children involved being in every aspect of their lives and having someone else intervene was considered failing in their duties.


Whatever the reason, Auria found herself looking after the twins more often than not, with the two usually blinking back at her with their round eyes and hair so much like their father's.


"I have missed going out on walks, truly. Perhaps you could aid July? They seem to struggle to keep all three of them in line at once and I'm sure you will have to meet the twins on a more daily basis if you every end up having children yourself."


She glanced around the port some more. A few ships docked and Auria pulled June in their direction. "Let's see what they have for us."

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

June offered the brunette a sheepish sort of smile, nodding slightly at her comment. Ah, so they didn't have wetnurses. They had wetnurses in Etaleth, however only hired them when it was absolutely necessary. If one could make time to be with their child without a wetnurse, then it was believed they should. However, there were just some circumstances you couldn't control, so the wetnurses were there if they need them.


Her mother had managed to raise the first four children without wetnurses, however they depended on them from the fifth child on quite a bit. June remembered it being quite stressful during that time actually.


"I bet. My mother used to say there were times she just wanted to kick everyone out of the castle so she could have just a moment of peace when we were younger." June laughed lightly. "If it would be of help though, then I would love to." she smiled, however it fell slightly at the thought of having her own children. June had always wanted a family, but the thought of having children... with Barrin... It was enough to make her feel sick.


Okay. Time to change the subject.


Before she could though, Auria started to pull her along towards where a few ships had docked to go check out their wares. June smiled slightly as she nodded and followed along, curious to see what was on the boat, and also how the foreign kingdom dealt with new shipments.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

As the boat docked, a man dressed quite formally approached it, carrying a scroll with an apprentice dressed in plain white robes rushing forward at his feet, holding what appeared to be a wooden block. The man examined the boat before nodding firmly at it and the people began descending via ropes and drawbridges. They brought with them boxes with a fancy seal stamped on them.


Auria leaned forward, examining the boxes as the person began unrolling the parchment and turned to the apprentice with the wooden block which turned out to be a box, opening it and leafing through to find a piece of paper which what Auria could guess was the captain of the ship signed it.


As soon as the person glanced over the paper and nodded firmly, glancing over the boxes once more, he left and the crew members began hollering their wares.


"Silks for sale! 5 feet for 2 gold coins!"


"Tradin' wool for cotton! By the pound!"


"Tales of lands beyond right here, brought from across the sea!"


"Come," Auria said, pulling at June again, grinning, "they have books. Perhaps we can take some back to the castle."

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

June watched as the ship was inspected, people descending on ropes and drawbridges. She always thought that swinging down from one of those ropes looked like so much fun. Not for the first time, she wondered what it was like to sail out on the open seas.


Soon enough, the inspection of the ship and its cargo seemed to be done, and the crew members were calling out their wares to passerby's. The mention of tales of lands beyond caught her attention though, her head jerking over to look at the crew member holding up a leather bound book. A small smile rose to her lips and she turned to Auria, hoping that they could check them out. however the taller brunette seemed to be thinking the exact same thing as she was.


"You read my mind." she chuckled, grinning as she followed Auria along to the crate of books. The familiar smell of leather and yellowed pages hit her as they approached the crate, mixing with the saltiness of the seafood and the freshness of the river. It was such a pleasant aroma to her, as odd as it may be.


Peering into the crate, June carefully picked up one of the larger books, opening it up and delicately skimming through it's pages in hopes of finding a few she liked. "Are there any particular kinds of books you like?" she asked Auria, her eyes flicking up to look at the woman for a moment before going back to skimming the pages of the book.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

"Ones of adventure and victory," Auria said calmly, bending down to pick up a leather bound book with golden writing on the cover. "Ones that speak of the greatest heroes and the most tragic ones."


She flipped through, examining the pages with interest. "I've always liked ones that have heroes that aren't perfect. It makes me feel closer to them, as if I could one day possibly be them, if only I tried harder."


After a pause she added, "And when the babes grow older."

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

"I completely agree." June nodded with a smile, happy to find someone who shared her love of books. It might not be to the same degree as herself, but it was still nice to find someone who shared your interests. "Their imperfections make them that much more relatable, which makes their victories and defeats that much more inspiring, or heartbreaking." she added, her eyes gleaming slightly with excitement.


"I also love tales of different worlds, with mystical beings and magic. I know it's not real and the stories are just made up, but it's a nice escape from reality at times. It's nice to dream of a world like that, a world full of magic and mystery and adventure." she smiled, tucking the leather bound book under arm before bending down to grab another. This one was slightly smaller than the other, but was still rather thick, and wasn't as worn. The cover was a burnt red, and was also covered in gold writing.


"Have you found any books that have caught your eye yet?" she asked, glancing up at Auria before back down at the book in her hands, skimming through it's pages once more.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

"Not really," Auria said. "I ought to show you the library when we get back," she added, looking up at June. "Nartai finds it very interesting, as does Casimir, though his reason for that is a bit... different."


Auria looked sad for a moment, thinking of the young boy that was almost constantly ill and trapped within the confines of a castle. "You should see all the books kept there about far away worlds," she chuckled. "Ones about heroes cutting down dragons long thought to be dead, about great gods coming to vanquish mortal enemies..."


She sighed. "It is satisfying to slip away from reality on occasion, is it not?"

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

"That would be great." June grinned. When she wasn't training, June usually spent her time either reading or milling about the town back in Etaleth. So she had no doubt she would become rather familiar with the library during her stay here.


Noticing Auria's somber looking expression, June's smile faltered for a moment, wondering for a moment what could have upset her. She quickly put that thought out of her mind though, not wanting to pry too much. While she could definitely be stubborn and hot-headed, June did have manners and knew how to use them most of the time. She wasn't a barbarian after all.


"Ah, dragons. Now that is my dream pet." June joked lightly with a laugh, having always been fascinated with the mythical beasts. She imagined it would be rather daunting, see the winged creatures flying across the skies. But it would also be amazing -- if they weren't bloodthirsty dragons, of course.


"Mhm." June hummed in agreement, tucking the second book under her arm with a satisfied sigh. "I used to daydream all the time when I was little during my studies. I'd get so distracted, my father had a large bell placed in the room just to keep me from drifting off into my own little world." she laughed lightly, remembering it all too well. "After the first day of that, I could still ear the ringing well into dinner. I quickly learned to pay attention during my studies though, so I supposed his plan worked in the end." she chuckled lightly.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

The man in charge of the ship came bustling over, a rather squat person with brown eyes and slicked back black hair, peering at them through beady eyes. "Are you paying for those?" he asked, pointing a single finger at them.


"Ah, yes," Auria said, frowning at the man. Something about the symbol on his chest was familiar, but she couldn't remember where from. Perhaps she had seen it in one of Nartai's papers before, or seen it pull into the ports before.


Auria took out her pouch and rustled through it, taking out some golden coins. The man snatched them up from the palm of her hand. Auria blinked.


"You haven't told me how much," she said, sounding offended.


"That was enough," the man said, and hurried away, going off to yell at a man in heavy and large cloaks with glasses perched on his nose that was also rifling through books.

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

A moment later they were interrupted by who June assumed to be the man in charge of the ship, from what she had seen earlier. His rude attitude made June blink a couple times and frown, eyebrows furrowing in frustration as he snatched up the coins from Auria's hand without so much as word. Her muscles stiffened and her upper lip twitched slightly, ready to tell this man off if he continued with his rudeness.


Thankfully, he walked off a moment a later, and only then did June realize she had been clenching her fists. Un-clenching them, June narrowed her eyes at the man and scoffed. "Well that was rude. I nearly chuckled a book at his little head to knock some manners into him." she muttered quietly with a scowl.


Hot-headed and fiery, June had a bit of a temper on her, and didn't take anyone's bull no matter who they were. If that wasn't already obvious enough from the way her and Barrin interacted already.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

Auria squinted at his back. "I swear he seems familiar, but I don't know where from," she said. Sighing, she put her pouch away again. "So, have you gotten all you wanted?" she asked. "There are quite a few other ships about and plenty more to explore."


Auria loved the ports best because they offered her freedom and choice. There were so many different places and so many different items to choose from, from new cloths and clothes to exotic looking plants and animals. Of course, animals were strictly prohibited from the castle and plants were always thoroughly examined, but Auria couldn't resist peering at them all for fun.

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

"Hmm." June hummed thoughtfully as she stared at the man for a moment, before turning to look up at Auria. "Well at least he's gone now. We don't have time for such troublesome men." she sniffed indignantly, exageratting a bit so it was obvious that she was merely playing.


"I would love to explore more and see the animals, if that's alright with you." she smiled, eager to keep exploring the ports. Plus, she had always loved animals. They were never allowed to have any animals inside the castle in Etaleth, however June had tried many times to sneak one in when she was younger. It never worked though, of course, and she usually ended up getting in quite a bit of trouble.


"I don't want to keep you though, if you have things you need to do." she added. After all, Auria was a wife and mother. She wouldn't want to take up too much of her time, especially with how nice and plesant she was being with her. And it didn't seem fake, like the forced smiles or formal greetings of yesterday. Fake was not something June could handle, and she would not plaster empty smiles on her face. But that seemed all that Barrin wanted to do. To just "get through this." Perhaps that's part of the reason they clashed so much. She wanted real, raw emotions, whether it be from love, sadness, or anger. While he wanted an emotionless partnership, void of any connection. June couldn't do that. She just couldn't live her life like that, ignoring the other and only acknowledging them with empty gestures for show and fake smiles.


She didn't care if their bond was one of hatred after this, but so help her, there would be some kind of bond. She'd make it so. They were a part of each others life now, whether they liked it or not. And June was not living the rest of her life as an empty shell. She refused to.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

"I do have to buy something for Nartai," Auria said slowly. "I promised him I would get him more ink bottles; he's always running out of them. However, I can snatch them up quickly enough. It won't be a bother."


She glanced around, scanning the ports for some kind of cage or to hear the twittering birds or roaring cats and wolves that were often brought along.


What she did find, instead, was a familiar face and a clinking swords. "Look who it is," Auria chirped, grabbing June's arm and dragging her along.


Barrin had a basket in one hand and a piece of paper in the other, reading it with diligence. In the basket were a few herbs of various colors and shapes. Some looked like leaves, all green and bound together with rope. Some looked like small flowers, clustered together as if to keep from blowing away.


Barrin looked up at Auria's voice, smiling slightly at his sister-in-law before his eyes fell on June. His smile wavered slightly but did not drop, though he didn't seem all too pleased.


"Hello," he said.


"Now, what are you doing here?" Auria demanded cheekily. "I thought you weren't coming down to the ports."


"Running errands," Barrin responded, lifting the basic up to eye level. "The good doctor wants me to get some things for Casimir so." He shrugged.


Auria nodded and placed a hand on his arm gently, giving him a sympathetic look. She knew how difficult it was, looking after Casimir all the time. He was constantly sickly and it felt like he would break at any second, always rattling himself with a cough or lying in bed with a fever. He was pale all the time, much more so than his family, and he was thin. Some days, he could hardly hold anything down and would grow thinner. It only seemed that Galene could ever gaze at him without pity/


Some days, Auria wondered about the wisdom of the youngest princess. She seemed wise some days and like a child others.


"Well," Auria said, glancing between June and Barrin, "I'm going to go snap up some ink bottles for Nartai. You two keep each other company for a bit and I'll be right back."


Barrin opened his mouth to protest, but the woman was already gone.

 

[ImpossibleGirl]

"As long as you're sure." June smiled, continuing to follow along beside Auria pleasantly. That is, until her attention was brought to the person Auria had greeted. Eyes landing on Barrin, her pleasant demeanor fell, and it was obvious she didn't seem too pleased with seeing him either. Not wanting to cause a scene on public again in fear of a repeat of last night's dinner, June merely shot him a brief and small smile, although it was obviously forced and very short, disappearing just as quickly as it appeared.


So he was getting herbs for Casmir? June watched the exchange between the two curiously. Galene had mentioned that Casmir was sick a lot, and she did notice how sickly he looked during dinner as well, even if it was vaguely. She hadn't thought much about it, but seeing the basket of herbs and the look Auria gave Barrin, June had to wonder what was like to have a sibling that sick. What it was like to be that sick. It was hard for her to imagine.


Her train of thought was interrupted by Auria's statement of what she was doing, and June quickly turned to protest as well, but the brunette was already walking away. Letting out sigh, her shoulders slouched a little. If she didn't know any better, she could have sworn she had done that on purpose.


Blue eyes flitted over to look at Barrin, narrowing slightly as she debated just running off on her own. But she wouldn't be able to find her way around the foreign land, and would mostly likely get lost. Her hard gaze softened then, and with another small sigh, she ran a hand through her hair. Well, it seemed she had no choice. Might as well make the best of it.


"Well what else do you have to get?" Reaching over, she plucked the list from his hands, peering down at it thoughtfully. "It'll go faster if we're both looking. Plus, I want to check out the animals, and I doubt you're going to let me do that before you get everything on this list." She scoffed, eyebrows furrowing slightly. She also wanted to help because of Casmir, whom everyone seemed to keep talking about. It seemed he was dear to them all, so the least she could do was help find the stuff, right? Not that she'd ever admit that to Barrin though. God forbid if he found out she actually had a soft side like most people.

 

[FloatingAroundSpace]

Barrin resisted the urge to snap at her and remind her that Casimir was his brother. Then he realized that it was a foolish thing to do and highlighted the conflict between the two of them.


"There's some grains that are supposed to soothe his stomach," Barrin said. "I don't know where they are and I can hardly pronounce the names. After that, we just need poppy seeds because it'll help him sleep."


There were three words that hadn't been crossed out in a long list of them. They had strange names indeed, ones that seemed difficult to decipher. Barrin took the list back, glancing at it and waving at a man dressed in all white, showing him the piece of paper. The man adjusted glasses on his nose.


"Ah yes," he murmured, staring at the paper. "The little prince is ill again?"


Barrin grunted his response. Most people who wore white were scholars and had knowledge on a certain field. This man was wearing the proper robes to be one and had a herb stitched onto the breast pocket of his robe, symbolizing his specialty.


"Pity," he tutted. "He would make a wise ruler."


Barrin nearly rolled his eyes. He would prefer the pity to come after he figured out what he was looking for.


"Ask that man," the scholar said, pointing to the one that had been rude to Auria and June earlier. "He may know."


Barrin thanked the scholar and walked towards the merchant.