On the Safe Side

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"Worse, I suppose." Talhad didn't know much about stories, but could imagine they weren't rather bloody. Little did he know, of course, though his idea of what could happen to Celeste was still more brutal. He continued walking with the princess over his shoulder. She behaved better now and the knight hoped it'd stay that way, because he was already tired of arguing with her. He looked up at the sky and narrowed his eyes, thinking about their next move. It was all rather uncertain - they should visit another village and rest properly, but with the possibility of bumping into the enemy, villages were something they should avoid at all costs. The man sighed and picked up the pace just a little bit, using his spear as support with every step he took. "Aren't you hungry?" he asked, wanting to take Celeste's mind off the current topic.
 
Celeste hated being carried this way, for many reasons, but she had to admit that it was nice rest for her feet. She had no way of knowing how far away the castle she knew as home was. She figured it must've been about a hundred miles. Then again, she always failed at geography.
At being asked about being hungry, Celeste remembered the emptiness in her stomach. She let a sighed, ".....starving......but 'a little hunger is a necessary pain in the name of beauty'" she quoted her mother in an uptight and slightly mocking tone "........I could really go for a buttermilk pie right now....mm.......the cook made the best buttermilk pies..............a salad actually sounds good......even with the shaved carrots and yucky purple lettuce..........mmm.olive........and cucumber slices with cherry tomatoes!" She went on about the food now.
 
Talhad rolled his eyes when Celeste started to remember the food she was used to eating at home. Half of the things she mentioned were unknown to him, and now she was making both of them miserable with her little list. The man found himself swallowing his spit, imagining the meals. Eating salty meat didn't bother him too much, but it wasn't a fancy thing to chew everyday. It was actually quite depressing that the best they could hope for now was a bowlful of buckwheat with some unidentified meat. He shrugged slightly with the shoulder that Celeste'd been put over, making her bounce a little. "I don't know about any of these, but I'd recommend eating the dried meat, princess. At least for now. I'll try to get you something more.." the knight hesitated. "..royal soon."
 
Celeste let out a meep like sound when Talhad's shoulder moved upward suddenly, even if it was only by a small amount. She listened to what he said. He didn't know about those things? Aren't knights supposed to get treated really well? Like nobles or something? ".......you've never heard of cherry tomatoes?! they're little tomatoes! ya know, little red balls filled with sweet juice! .....you're the weirdest knight I've ever met..........all the others are....were.....nice...and actually smiled!" She didn't seem to realize that half of those knights were actually flirting with her.
 
Talhad moaned quietly; his ribs hurted again when he took another deep breath. He was getting tired very easily. The good thing about this whole situation was that Celeste stopped making problems, at least for now. Talhad didn't want to continue the conversation, but for the sake of having a quiet journey, he was ready to tell Celeste almost anything. "I hardly ever ate at the castle, princess. I used to have my meals at home, with my wife. They were simple, but delicious." The knight said calmly, using his spear to push a small branch away from his face as he walked. "I never wished to sit in the hall with everyone else, and your father never made me to do so." The man ignored the part about other knights and smiling, because there was nothing to say about it. Celeste's opinion about knights had to differ from his.
 
Celeste was actually listening to what he was saying....and interested. Hell must've frozen over.
Simple meals? What were those like?
".....what were they like?" she asked curiously. The simplest thing she'd ever eaten was a buttermilk pie. It was just buttermilk, sugar(alot), flour, eggs, and vanilla. Then there'd, of course, be chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and a cherry on top.
 
The man closed his eyes for a moment, remembering the times spent with his wife. It was ages ago, but the memories were still young and vivid. "Goulash. Buckwheat. Baked potatoes with a bit of butter on top. Some soups. Ah, and a trout with various herbs when there was a special occassion for it." Talhad looked around and stopped for a moment, listening to the sounds around them. Before he continued walking, he managed to slow his breathing down. He couldn't hear anything else but the natural ambience of the forest. It was a stroke of luck, because the knight was in no state to run away or fight. "It's all a man needs, really, princess. Why, are you curious? I'm sure you'll be able to try at least some of those before we get to your uncle's castle."
 
the only things that Celeste knew about were potatoes and trout. Her mother had basically banned her from eating potatoes, 'They are bad for a young lady's figure' she had said.
"really? I have always wanted to try potatoes......um.......what's goulash? ...and what is wrong with a princess wanting to know about the cuisine that her subjects must settle with?" Goulash made her think of porridge. How far she was from the truth.
 
The knight wasn't entirely sure whether he really was having this conversation with the princess. It was surreal and almost impossible. Reaching a small rock, Talhad stopped and put Celeste down. He couldn't continue like that and hoped she wouldn't make a fuss about it. "It's a meal made of meat, vegetables and spices. The beauty of it is in the fact that you can put almost anything in it, princess. Beef, pork, horsemeat, ra.." Talhad pressed his lips together. In his life, he had to eat many different things, but he figured that making Celeste eat some of them was impossible, no matter the situation. He looked at her and shifted his weight a little. "Do you want me to give you some food now? We need to go and won't stop for a few hours."
 
Celeste didn't say anything when she was put down, rather glad not to have a shoulder in her gut. She kept her mouth closed when he described the dish, not wanting to risk drooling on anything. She was confused when he suddenly stopped his list.
At being asked about food, she sighed, "......salted meat?" she figured it was all there was.
 
The man nodded. "The best there is." He reached into his bag and gave Celeste the food, but didn't wait for her to eat, just started walking again. Having learned from the previous experiences, Talhad didn't dare to push her and make her walk as well, so all he could hope for now was that she would simply follow him, either because of being scared or because she really had no better thing to do right now. "It's not that bad, princess - and it'll fill your stomach." Talhad turned his head back and looked at Celeste. The situation seemed stable.. At least for now. She wasn't screaming, crying, trying to run away, and there was a chance she might eat the food he gave her. All in all, it could've gone a lot worse. The man couldn't help but chuckle under his breath, though he quickly regained the serious expression his face was so used to show. It wasn't the time for sillyness.
 
Celeste sighed, taking the meat, "...if this is the best, the worst must be deadly..........then again......enough of this and a person will die......" she ate it reluctantly. She got up and followed, chewing on the meat, ".........really, though....too much salt can kill you........that's how my grandfather died......." She wanted conversation, even if it was with a man she didn't like.
 
At this point, Talhad was almost sure the girl would leave him alone, having to chew the meat that was so far away from the usual delicacies she ate in the castle, but he was wrong. It was hard to say whether the fact that she actually wanted to talk with the knight was good or bad, but it certainly was new. Talhad turned his head again and nodded at Celeste when she followed him. He shook his head and closed his eyes for a moment, trying to listen to her words and, more importantly, to the sounds around them. It was so quiet and peaceful that he almost forgot their situation. "You'll be fine, princess, we'll get you something else to eat as soon as possible, I promise." He didn't mention her grandfather, because as far as he knew, the reason of the old man's death was completely different from the one Celeste was aware of.. But explaining anything of that matter to her wasn't in Talhad's list of things to do.
 
"...........I hope so.............I suppose I'm at your mercy as far as food is concerned........." She followed him, trying to imagine that the meat was something else...even celery would be welcome. She hated celery with a passion, but something other than meat would be heavenly.
 
Talhad didn't respond. He was shocked to find himself actually enjoying this little talk - he didn't expect it, but Celeste's innocent voice was rather soothing. It was probably due to that innocence that Talhad felt relaxed, as she kept speaking about trivial things that really didn't matter to them at the moment, or at least shouldn't. But now, he needed a moment to gather his thoughts. Plan things ahead. He made sure the princess was following him and he picked up the pace just a little bit, listening to her footsteps behind. The forest was quiet, but the rain kept falling down, and even though the trees helped, Talhad could feel his clothes getting heavier as they became soaked with water. Other than that, Talhad had to decide whether to teach Celeste some things about fighting, or not. Giving her a sword was out of question, but she seemed strong enough to use a dagger or two. It would take time, of course, but getting Celeste to learn at least some basics wasn't impossible. The biggest problem was with Talhad - the knight couldn't make up his mind. He didn't want to teach her and assume something was going to happen to him, but then again, not assuming this kind of risk was a proof of stupidity. "Princess" He started after a while of silence. "I need you to take this." He reached under his coat and grabbed the dagger, which he passed to Celeste.
 
Celeste started to shiver. The rain had begun to get through her peasant disguise. She hugged herself, trying to keep herself warm. She followed behind Talhad, trying to keep up when he started going a little faster. She was surprised when he stopped. Being addressed, she made sure to listen, but was taken by surprise when she was handed the dagger. "......um............." she didn't know what to say.
 
Talhad saw her face when he gave her the dagger. That was to be expected, but he sighed anyway. She held it as if she was holding a dead critter: trying to touch it as little as possible, her face slightly shocked and distorted with fear. He didn't say anything, and didn't stop at all, wanting to let Celeste feel the weight of the weapon. Only after a little while, Talhad turned his head around to the girl. "I wanted to avoid this, but the road to your uncle's castle is long. You have to be ready to at least defend yourself for a moment. Sometimes it is enough to gain a chance to escape." The knight looked at Celeste, his face even more serious than usually. "Do you understand, princess? I know this is not something a lady should do, but you'll need to endure it for the time being." He pushed a huge branch out of the way, wincing when he felt his wounds again. "For now, just keep it in your hand, walk with it."

It took them another few hours to reach a small town, which Talhad remembered as a village years ago. He told Celeste to stay hidden and went there first to check the situation, but for now, there was nothing to be afraid of. With the little money they had left, Talhad rented a room and brought Celeste a big bowl of goulash, only then allowing her to put the dagger aside.
 
Celeste didn't say anything about the dagger, and followed him. She had been about to fall asleep as she walked when they finally got to a town. She was quite irritated when told to stay hidden. Her own mother wouldn't have been able to recognize her, so why the worry?
Celeste was grateful to have a bed again, even if it was a peasant bed. She looked at the bowl of food in front of her with curiosity. She took a bite, "it's delicious!" she gobbled down about half of it, then stopped, "......"
 
Talhad nodded. "Good, just don't-" He sighed when Celeste gobbled down what seemed to be the half of the bowl, and sat down on the bed beside her. "-eat it too fast. Your stomach won't like it, princ-" The knight bit his tongue a little and looked at the girl. Calling her "a princess" in the middle of the forest was acceptable, but here, even in a town as small as this one, they could never be sure whether someone heard them or not. The man placed the bag on the floor and started touching his torso delicately, wincing from time to time. He needed a good night sleep, and for a medic to look at his wounds. Tha latter wasn't going to be an option tonight, so he was hoping for the sleep. "Is there any name you like? I should call it by it from now on." Talhad looked down at the girl. "Is everything fine? Does your stomach hurt already?"
 
Celeste held out her bowl, "here....you must be tired of salted meat too...............a common name would probably be safest.......no...........you said yourself that my way of speaking is different...it would probably be thought that I'm a foreigner.....so a foreign name would be better...............I've always liked Avari........."
 
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