His Secret War

Alessandra didn't worry a thing about her stuff. ...the thought of swinging in a hammock high off the ground was still so prevalent in her mind. She waited patiently until he was done, then followed as he led the way to the tree that was going to be their sleeping arrangements. Just as she thought, the hammock was high up. Safely hidden in the branches where someone lurking in the forest wouldn't be likely to look. It really was a perfect hiding place for sleeping at night.

Now if she weren't so scared!

"I wouldn't mind sharing with you. At least then you'd not be prone to fall?" Though she was really thinking, at least then he might hold on to her and she wouldn't fall! He was well used to sleeping in those sorts of things, he would know how to stay stationary.
 
Alistair kept a comforting grip around one of her hands while he led her to the tree they always found each other at. He looked up to be certain his hammock was still there, then looked to her when she mentioned sharing was acceptable. It truly delighted him to hear it... He did not want to be stuck in the trees and frankly, laying beside a woman he vowed to protect didn't sound too bad.

"I won't allow either of us to fall. This tree hasn't let me do--" He paused, returning to the thought of him falling. Technically, it did let him down! All the way to the ground. After shaking away the thought, he cleared his throat and continued, "The hammock's good and sturdy. Now, I assume you don't climb trees too often..."

Even if she did, this one took a lot of strength to climb. He slowly let go of her hand and reached for a branch, getting a firm grip on it before placing his foot on to the trunk. "You'll have to climb on, my lady." It didn't feel right to ask a lady to get on to his back, but how else was he going to do this? There was no rope handy.

"I won't let you fall. Just hold on tight." He was smiling at her, though not sure she could see it. There was some moonlight warring with the clouds and some stars visible, allowing some light that Alistair was grateful for.
 
Alessandra was giving him a dubious look. She hadn't failed to catch the way he cut himself off. Hadn't let him down, indeed! Yet, the way he smiled... He could probably tell her the sky was falling and with a smile like that she'd believe him!

Hesitantly, she stood on her toes and pulled up her skirts just a bit. With a quick hop, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and her knees at his waist. It didn't feel at all secure, so she may have been holding on so much more tighter than was necessary! Hiding her face at his shoulder so she wouldn't be able to see the ground get farther and farther away.

"Okay, all ready!" came her muffled response.
 
Alistair kept his grip on the tree as she jumped up, not at all surprised at how light she was. A breath of air went slowly through his lips before he reached for another branch, pulling himself up so his feet could stand on the one he was holding on to. This had to be done quickly so there would be no risk of her limbs growing too tired to hang on to him. With both eyes on the prize, he jumped up for another branch and pulled their weight up, a small grunt able to be heard as he did so.

"Almost there." After the update, he looked to the hammock above them. Only a couple more branches left... He was used to this routine, but carrying someone with him was a challenge!

Swiftly as he could, he grabbed for another branch and used it to help him swing across to another, making him feel light during the jump. When the hammock was within reach, all he had to do was stand on one more branch. Ever so carefully, he stretched his leg out so his foot could stand on one branch and then brought the other one over the join it. This particular branch wasn't as thick as the others, so he wobbled the moment he stood upon it.

Before he could make the mistake of dropping her--or both of them--he said to her, "It's right in front of us, my dear."

He bit his lip while he tried to plan the best way to get in without her getting hurt. Although she was acting incredibly brave, he could tell she was terrified. He made a small jump for the hammock and landed on his knees, making a heavy sigh of relief even while it rocked back and forth. Loosening his grip on her to set her down, he fell on to his side, staring triumphantly, and tiredly, at the branches in the distance.
 
Alessandra opened her eyes slowly. Looking down over the edge of the hammock, only to turn back and firmly attach herself to Alistair's arm. It was so high up! The hammock gave a soft swing with them both situated inside. She trusted it could hold their weight, but it hadn't quiet eased her nervousness. It took her a moment to scoot herself in to laying down, resting her head just at his shoulder. Alessandra never released his arm, however.

"It isn't so bad here. Kind of comfortable?" Warm too with the heat of his body. That she hadn't expected. Now she was looking up at the tree canopy, admiring the small bits of sky that peeked out from between the branches. Stars were out nice and bright. There was something nice about getting to sleep out in the forest like this.
 
With his free hand, he gave hers a tender touch while looking up at the stars with her. "Aye," he agreed. "I love being able to sleep up here." He was glad he could share this experience with someone. It would have been so awkward to ask one of his friends to come up here with him. Not to mention, they'd have some trouble getting here. He knew they had their own ways of star gazing, though. Up here, though, they were so much closer!

"I always feel like I could touch the stars." he whispered, making a gentle sigh and smiling.

His head had turned itself to rest atop of her head, eyes still on the starry sky. They had each others body heat to keep warm, though he wondered if he still should have brought a blanket. No matter... He'd gladly be a blanket for her if she needed it!
 
Butterflies in her stomach, she had not felt this way since she was a little girl and had a crush on one of her brother's friends. Alessandra was smiling as she linked her fingers with his. Despite still being wary about sleeping so high off the ground, this was so nice!

"I think you are a romantic, Prince Alistair. Stargazing and daydreaming." What an interesting sort of man that wants to touch the stars and yet fights for the rights of his people. Maybe in the end it was the same thing?
 
Alistair was starting to feel bashful again when their fingers were laced. His thumb stroked the top of her hand while he watched the skies with her some more, a chuckle in his throat when she called him romantic.

"Thank you, my dear." Romance was one of his best qualities and he knew it. It often just came naturally because of his passionate personality and ever since he made this forest his home, he learned to love what was beyond castle walls. He hoped that if and when he returned to his throne, he could make some modifications that would allow him to look at stars from his bedroom. If not that, set out a hammock in one of the courtyard trees!

He felt like he should return a compliment to her, but there were so many to choose from! He settled on something he thought was clever, "I think you are stunning. Stunningly courageous and stunningly beautiful."
 
Compliments were nothing new to Alessandra, and she may have heard she was beautiful a million times before. But that wasn't the comment that had her blushing faintly and at an uncharacteristic loss of words. Did he really think she was courageous?

Alessandra twisted, a little wary of the hammock's motion, until she could rest her head better at his shoulder. Grinning, she still hadn't released his hand.

"No one has called me courageous before. A bother, strong headed and a number of other things. But courageous is new. I think I like it."
 
Alistair's eyes grew heavy, so he allowed them to close after she situated herself at his shoulder. "You've displayed a lot of courage and will continue to show it as we move in on my brother. That, I am certain of."

Before letting his mind wander into a world of dreams, he was thinking about how enraged Ivan must be right now. The woman he wanted to make a queen was no longer at his castle and plotting to overthrow him! Alistair considered it a victory, a smug smile on his face when he thought more and more about it. Soon enough, he'd take back everything that belonged to him and see to it that Ivan would make up for his crimes.

"We can practice more with weapons tomorrow, Alessandra. And see the villagers. Let us sleep now."
 
Morning came with the sing-song chirping of birds and a cool breeze. The gentle sway of the hammock and delicious warmth she seemed to be curled up against was irresistible. Alessandra really had no interest in waking. Even as she remembered she was several feet up in the tree tops and currently with an arm and leg draped far too comfortably over a man she had only known for a few days, she still thought it a very pleasant way to spend the morning. In fact as she nuzzled against his neck, her eyes remained closed. Alessandra pretended to be asleep. A few more stolen moments wasn't going to harm a thing.
 
His face tightened as the breeze swept across his face, a yawn following. Waking up was usually easier for him, but having Alessandra nearby made him never want to. He remained still so he would not disturb her slumber. There was no hurry to get back down to the ground, though he'd have to wake up more before carrying her there anyway. One of his eyes open to see the beauty attached to him, only seeing her hair because she was in his neck. A gentle smile touched his lips as he opened both of his eyes, his free hand wishing to comb through those silky locks. Any movement must be avoided, though. Alistair had no idea she was only pretending to sleep.
 
Lost in warmth and comfort, it was several moments before Alessandra forced herself to stir. Though it may have been bliss to swing from the treetops and lay curled up with a man she thought charming and heroic, her mind kept drifting off to the fate of Hilda and then even the villagers too. Was it fair for her to be happy and comfortable when so many people were suffering?

Not realizing she had let out a heavy sigh, Alessandra carefully leaned to sit up. She looked surprised to see Alistair was already awake and eyes open. Her smile couldn't be repressed. "I didn't mean to wake you."
 
"Nothing to worry about," he assured, looking to her. Alistair normally woke up early anyway out of habit. The hammock rocked back and forth a little as he sat up, giving his arms a long stretch while he gave a mighty yawn. Last night's sleep was the best he ever had, he had to admit. They would only get better as long as he had her to hold onto.

Alistair looked below the branches from where he sat, not really getting much of a view. All was quiet, except for birds that were nested around them. "Ready to get back to the ground? We can have some breakfast and go from there!"

He wondered if she might enjoy thieving... Although it was immoral in its own way, Alistair got a thrill out of robbing carriages that passed through or breaking into the castle for Ivan's riches. He often considered imprisoning his brother instead of just breaking in for the money, but it was always so risky. Ivan seemed to expect it; he was a paranoid man. There was always heavy security that became more difficult to avoid.
 
"A new day, a new adventure." Alessandra responded with a grin. Getting back to the ground though was going to be tricky. Asking him to take her down would have been the simple thing to do, but it wasn't exciting.

Carefully shifting with the movement of the hammock, Alessandra reach out to grab on to one of the tree branches for balance. A quick hop and she was on solid footing, inching her way to the thick trunk of the tree. Moving in to a sitting position on the branch, she stretched and lowered herself down to the next one. And repeated the process until she was near enough to the ground to finally jump! Her landing couldn't be considered graceful, but she did manage to keep on her feet.

With a wide grin, Alessandra looked up to Alistair. "Are you coming?"
 
Alistair was expecting to have to carry her down. He was sitting there, thinking on how the best way to go about it would be. Going down was a little trickier, since he wasn't defying the gravity. Instead, he was depending on it to simply not kill them.

To his surprise, she was moving out of the hammock and planted her feet on a branch. He blinked at her in disbelief, and then shook his head when she made that big, confident smile. Alistair should have known better than to doubt her ability to take care of herself. He had to remember that she was very capable of looking after her own self without his help. With proper training, she could even prove to be warrior worthy. The thought of her challenging him for his title as the Prince of Thieves.

"Right behind you," he replied, following close behind her. Having done this many times, he was patient with her pace and skillful with his maneuvering. He tried to stay close at all times in case she needed to hold on to him, should she lose her balance.
 
As precarious as climbing down a tree was, Alessandra found it good fun. When she had both feet planted firmly on the ground, she thought of herself as a rather accomplished tree-climber. She was still grinning when he joined her on the ground. Rocking back and forth on her feet, in that childishly eager desire to begin getting in to things.

"Where will we start first? At the village, or with swords, or a wild rescue mission?" she asked.

"A rescue mission seems appropriate." A sudden, unfamiliar voice interjected. In a flurry of stomping feet and shiiiink of steel, the tree Alessandra and Alistair stood by was then surrounded by at least two dozen armed men. King's guard, dressed in their battle armor. The owner of the voice finally stepped through the circle of soldiers. A tall, imposing individual with dark hair and a well groomed, pointed beard. His eyes glittered with a cool amusement.

"Alistair of the Wood, you are under arrest for Treason against the Crown and the kidnapping of His Majesty's Fiance. Take him." Gesturing his hand, several men moved forward to seize Alistair.

Alessandra lept to swat one of the soldiers away, but found herself quickly lifted right off her feet and pulled away. "He didn't kidnap me, I ran away!" Her kicked and squirming seemed to futile, even more so when the soldier squeezed all the breath out of her so she couldn't shout at them some more!

"You can explain that to the King himself, my lady. I am sure he would be interested to hear his fiance has ran away with a traitor."
 
Alistair parted his lips to answer Alessandra's excited question, until some unexpected visitors circled around the tree. He swore under his breath and made a held his ground, eying the leader of them threateningly. The Prince was without his sword, so he couldn't very well challenge any of them. All of his weapons, even his trusty quiver, were all hiding in the forest with his men, who he hoped did not get discovered.

With an amused, but bitter smile, he slouched and raised his arms in the air. "Fine, fine. I wondered when you imbeciles would finally be able to catch me," he said with a chuckle, clearly unafraid. No heroic statements would need to be given... Since Alessandra was a Queen-to-be, they wouldn't dare bring any harm to her. He couldn't cool off the simmering anger he felt when they forced the breath out of her, though. One of his hands curled into a fist; he dearly wanted to punch those men in the throats.

Deep within the forests, Alistair's beloved friends could see and hear what was happening to their leader. They made not a sound, or a move, because there was no way they could win against this many armoured men. Instead, they would just have to plot a rescue mission for the Prince. A quick one at that... Knowing Ivan, he'll probably kill his brother as soon as possible.

Alistair cooperated as they shackled his wrists and pushed him forward to walk with them. The people in the village were going to be so emotional once they saw this. Their true King, who many thought was dead, would finally be seen after all this time. Tragically, he was a prisoner... These facts weighed heavily on his heart.
 
The trip back to the castle felt like it took ages. All the while Alessandra was struggling to wiggle herself free and to no avail! A woman didn't have to be a genius to realize this was serious and not going to end well for Alistair. She should have been worried about herself, after her Former-Fiancee had threatened to throw her in a prison cell if she returned. But Alistair was being accused of treason by a man that didn't seem to have all of his marbles. What if they killed him..!

Upon reaching the castle grounds, most of the men escorted Alistair off towards the dungeons. They were rough and amused, none of them being loyal to the true heir and all paid handsomely by his brother. Deep down in to the prison, in the darkest, damp area they finally tossed him. Chaining him up to the walls with only an old skeleton hanging nearby to keep him company. There was no light and no cell bar windows. Just the darkness and the steady echo of water dripping to a puddle on the floor.

Alesandra was sure that she was going to be taken to the dungeons too. But instead, she was hauled in to the castle and towards the King's chambers. It seemed the tall dark haired man meant what he said. That she could tell the King her case herself. As he knocked on the door and entered, at first she thought that maybe he would be fair and listen, but she quickly that it was a fools dream.

"Your Majesty, I bring you your Fiance." said the dark haired man, bowing low. "Found in the woods with your brother, the Traitor. In his bed, no less. What is your command, liege?"
 
"We've got ta save his highness!"

Alistair's group of friends gathered at their usual campsite, nervously talking amongst themselves about how they were going to pull this off. Barging in during broad daylight would be unwise... At least with at night, they could use the darkness to their advantage. They might even be able to convince the townspeople to help!

They decided upon hiding out in the village with the rest of the peasants, dressing themselves to look just as poor as the others. There would have to be some explaining, too. Those poor, poor people would have to know the truth sooner or later.

Meanwhile...

Ivan's door was opened to Alessandra, who was no more than a traitor to him. "Is this true?" he asked crossly, narrowing his eyes at the woman. "That is where you were all night!?"

The King wanted to strike this woman; to show her who was boss! One of his hands curled into a fist, but made no movement towards her. Everything was so perfectly planned out. He would have all of this land to himself, with a beautiful woman to share it with. Ivan didn't care about the inhabitants... Being King had different meanings to him.

"I should toss you in the dungeon with my brother. It wouldn't last for long, though. He'll be executed first thing in the morning!"
 
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