“What's this?” a young James asked, leaning against a tree for shade.

ㅤHis mentor grinned, holding out a vial for him. “It's for you.”

ㅤSuspicious, James took it from him, inspecting the outside. There were no obvious markings in the baked clay, so James opened it and gave it a sniff. It smelt bitter and green.

ㅤHe turned the questioning gaze to Jay.

ㅤ“Where's my thank you?” his mentor groused. “This is a breakthrough in herbalism! An expensive one at that.”

ㅤJames didn't look impressed. “You haven't even told me what it is.”

ㅤ“It's to fix your creepy fucking lookin' eyes, kid.”

ㅤJames had spent the last year living away from civilisation. It wasn't long after being found by his mentor that Fabian began his purge against red eyes, regardless of people’s age. Not just captured, he’d ordered for their immediate deaths when found. Men, women, children, it did not matter. The new king was being meticulously thorough and the message was received loud and clear.

ㅤThere was a familiar sting in his chest he pushed away.

ㅤDespite the circumstances surrounding James, his relic, his appearance, his wounds, Jay hadn’t asked a single question. It wasn't out of politeness; James took comfort in knowing the man truly did not care. His mentor only wished to line his pockets.

ㅤ“It means you can finally start helping me with my work,” Jay went on. “You have a big debt to start repaying me for.”

ㅤ“Oh yea, because I've seriously enjoyed getting battered every day.” But even if James said that, he was grateful.

ㅤAlthough they weren't friends, they were comfortable with each other. At first, he’d only followed to get Eris back but they’d both eventually seen the mutual benefit of each other’s company. He wasn't seeking a fatherly figure from the murderer, however.

ㅤJames thumbed the vial, unsure how he felt about it.

ㅤ“So what do I do with it?”

ㅤHe was looking forward to returning to civilisation.

➵ ➵ ➵ ➵

James sat at the back of the wagon, enjoying himself. Alex struggled pathetically with the fire, and James made no attempt to help. After such a boring yet tiring day, he thought it okay to indulge in some light entertainment.

ㅤ“I bet that Fabian bastard who can’t wipe his own arse could light a better fire than you,” James ridiculed him.

ㅤAlex looked up at him from the ground, but James couldn’t see with what expression. He imagined he was probably glaring at him.

ㅤJames had become skilled at relying on his other senses in the dark, finding them more reliable than his failing eyes. There was a soft splash of a stream nearby, the crystal sound delicate and gentle, indicating it was small enough to be potentially drinkable. Even if Alex was too precious to build a fire properly, he could pick the right location.

ㅤFinally, it caught alight. Alex looked both relieved and tense, his face lit up in an orange glow.

ㅤ“Oi,” James called. “Can I have a jacket now?”

ㅤHe thought he’d be ignored. But, maybe after learning his lesson from last time, Alex pointed to one of the crates next to James.

ㅤ“There should be some clothes in there. Help yourself.”

ㅤAlex seemed more dejected than earlier, perhaps because of their argument. James hadn’t said those things in an attempt to change Alex—he held little hope for the knight in that regard. James got himself involved in something that he shouldn't have.

ㅤThere were five crates crowding the tight space of the carriage. He already knew he wouldn't be able to see anything inside them. Instead, he wrapped himself in a blanket and hoped that Alex was too distracted in his own stupid internal journey of self-improvement to register it.

ㅤPeople were difficult. James much preferred Eris who was a simple soul. She was happy with whatever. She'd never expressed desire anything more, was never dissatisfied.

ㅤThinking about sleeping so close to another person made James feel weird. The last time he'd done so was many years ago, back when he was with his mentor.

ㅤThe crackle of the fire, the rustle of wind, the sound of Alex's shoes scraping against dirt—everything reminded him of Jay. Almost every night they’d spent on the road like this, sitting silently, on their way to the next town. The wistfulness made him sleepy.

ㅤHe couldn't tell if the tightness in his chest was homesickness or his abused ribs.

➵ ➵ ➵ ➵

James awoke randomly in the night, his toes and fingers stiff from the cold. He lifted his head, disorientated.

ㅤAt some point, the curtain had been closed behind him, the glow of the fire teasing through the material. Alex must’ve remained awake and fed it. For as long as James was in his custody, the knight could not sleep safely. It gave James an advantage. It was a matter of time until Alex started making tired mistakes.

ㅤAwake and alert, James ventured out the wagon, still wrapped in the blanket. The curtain made wooden chopping noises when brushed aside. Little lengths of string were tied to the fabric edge with sticks attached—an alarm.

ㅤJames wasn't particularly offended by it.

ㅤ“The joke will be on you when this annoys us all day,” he warned.

ㅤAlex looked exhausted, barely able to summon his unimpressed scowl. His eyes were underlined with dark bags, his hair tousled like he'd been running a hand through it all night, still as handsome as the day before.

ㅤUnlike the orange glow of the fire, the sky wearily mustered the start of a cold blue morning light. Day would arrive in an hour.

ㅤ“Sleep well?” James asked him, just to be annoying.

ㅤAlex didn't respond, instead, he watched James hesitantly. Being the recipient of that look made him nervous, as if Alex was trying to puzzle something together in his head.

ㅤ“I couldn't sleep… I was too busy thinking about something,” Alex said, Rois coming out fluently.

ㅤIt was then that James realised his mistake.

ㅤHis blood ran cold. Only a slow blink betrayed his inner turmoil, but he was sure that would be enough for Alex to read. Shit. Shit. Shit.

ㅤ“Where’d you learn it?”

ㅤ“It's useful for the job,” James replied, a beat too quick.

ㅤ“Must’ve been hard finding a teacher,” Alex mused, tapping his finger against his chin. “Only a few people have access to those kinds of learning materials.”

ㅤJames shrugged. His gut twisted and his stomach churned, his throbbing pulse stirring up panic inside. “Nothing opens doors better than money. There's no such thing as noble exclusivity. Not really.”

ㅤIt was such a stupid mistake, he wanted to batter himself in the head. He’d been so occupied in pissing off the knight that he’d blundered so absolutely. This was the closest thing anyone had ever known. Not even Jay had known he could speak it.

ㅤInstinctively, his fingers twitched with the urge to protect himself from the information he'd leaked. But he couldn't kill the knight—not yet, not without Eris.

ㅤ“What other languages do you know?” Alex went on to ask.

ㅤJames took in a steady breath, calming himself. Even if Alex knew this, it was too much of a stretch to reach the truth. He could play it off naturally.

ㅤ“I know quite a few, actually.”

ㅤHe feigned nonchalance and sat himself down at the dying fire, opposite Alex. His ankles ached from the constant metal weight pulling on them. He pulled up his trousers to inspect for any skin damage.

ㅤ“Taulumni? Esparian?” Alex fished.

ㅤIt was better to be truthful in case James got caught in a lie later.

ㅤ“Of course,” he admitted. “My Esparian is lacking, though.”

ㅤ“Ashadi?”

ㅤJames looked at Alex with a questioning eyebrow raised.

ㅤ“That's one of my better ones, truth be told. You?”

ㅤ“Me, what?”

ㅤ“Do you speak Ashadi?”

ㅤIt was an intrusive question and the answer would depend on how generous Alex felt in that moment. But, perhaps Alex wanted to humour him a little.

ㅤ“I never learnt it,” Alex said. “But I know a little.”

ㅤJames couldn't help but smile, surprised yet satisfied. Alex had been charitable enough to give him an answer.

ㅤKnowing ‘some’ Ashadi, he would’ve likely been exposed to some Ashadi people at some point. Possibly slaves? But Ashadi slaves had mostly lost their language and it was unlikely his parents spoke it otherwise they would’ve taught him. James was somewhat happy chewing the mystery. One thing he did now know—Alex was Ashadi purely in race, not in culture.

ㅤEven though James still didn’t like the man, he’d now found a single likeable trait in him.

ㅤ“You're interesting,” James declared, fully intent on solving the puzzle of Alex.

ㅤAlex winced like he regretted ever saying anything.

➵ ➵ ➵ ➵

Even if the feeling was mutual, Alex would never admit that out loud.

ㅤBeyond his control, some of the heat behind Alex’s loathing was slowly being replaced with a kindling curiosity. Even with James' excuse, a commoner would not know Rois. They just wouldn't. Hell, not even many lower nobles did. So how did James?

ㅤHe wondered if it had something to do with the previous Jay. There must’ve been more than one of them. The method of murder had changed at least three times. It wasn't until the third change that he became famous—when the deaths became that much more frequent, his victims became that much more prolific, and the rumours of their charred bodies brewed around. It’d been about ten years since then.

ㅤAlex snapped out of his daze as James rubbed his eyes.

ㅤ“What are you doing?” Alex asked, more interested than concerned.

ㅤHe’d noticed it yesterday but James' eyes were red and sore. Today they were worse.

ㅤJames hesitated. “Don't suppose you brought my bag with you?”

ㅤAlex hadn't.

ㅤ“Then, I'll cope,” James said, before promptly changing the subject. “You should bring me something to eat before I eat one of the horses.”

ㅤ“Get it yourself.”

ㅤJames did so, the blanket dropping off his shoulders as he stood. Alex wondered why he’d taken the jacket off if he was cold.

ㅤThe muscles in James' lean figure bunched and tensed as he moved, his movements slow and deliberate like a cat. His shoulders were broad and strong, his waist skinny.

ㅤAlex quickly averted his gaze. He stood and walked to the tethered horses, distracting himself by murmuring to them. Rather than being stroked, they clearly wanted something to eat and quickly got bored of Alex after realising he was empty-handed.

ㅤOnce he walked back, he was surprised by the sight.

ㅤRather than eating, James had raided the crates to pull out medical supplies. His right hand had already been bandaged and James made progress in covering his entire left arm in the material, struggling with the awkward angle. Alex didn't go help him.

ㅤ“What are you doing?”

ㅤJames looked up, the end of the bandage between his teeth as he tied it with two hands. He spat it out and then regarded Alex curiously.

ㅤ“Covering it,” he said, obviously.

ㅤ“Looks painful.”

ㅤHe expected him to laugh, but James didn't let any emotion on at all. “Happened when I was a kid. I hardly remember it anymore. Doesn't hurt, just looks real bad and looks worse if I have it in the sun.”

ㅤAlex nodded.

ㅤWith the increased daylight, now would be a good time to start preparing the horses and carriage for travel again. Instead, the nagging questions in his head reached their limit of patience.

ㅤ“I've asked you before...” Alex began. “But what did you do with that child?”

ㅤJames stared for a moment, his brown eyes moving slightly as if weighing a thought in his head. Alex waited for him to make his decision.

ㅤ“I'll trade,” James said, finally. “An answer for an answer—just like earlier.”

ㅤAlex couldn't imagine what James could possibly want to know in return.

ㅤ“Why?”

ㅤ“I'm interested in you.”

ㅤThe wording caught Alex off guard. Though he knew James wasn't talking about it in that way, he felt self-conscious.

ㅤ“Okay, deal. I want to know what you did with the bairn.”

ㅤJames' lifeless gaze didn't falter. “I took him to the Taulum border so he could flee the country.”

ㅤAlex's brows furrowed. “Flee the country?”

ㅤ“Nope. You had your question, now it's my turn.” James tilted his head. “Did your family ever own slaves?”

ㅤThe question wasn't something Alex was prepared to hear. He’d no idea what expression was on his face right then but it took a moment to calm himself, disgusted with the answer that would come out.

ㅤ“Aye,” he said, gritting the words out. “They do.”

ㅤJames didn't seem to think one way or the other, simply accepting the information with a nod.

ㅤ“Now tell me—flee the country?”

ㅤJames smiled and shook his head. “Nope, I'm done with the question game for now. Go do your thing so we can get moving.”

ㅤAlex ground his teeth. “You plan to just watch, do you?”

ㅤ“Yes, I plan to just watch. What are you going to do about that?”

ㅤSighing, Alex decided to walk away from the situation and get the horses. He didn't need to turn around to know James was disgustingly smug.