Fern was quiet for a long time after she and Thorn left Cliff.
She saw Thorn look at her over and over again but she pretended not to notice. Perhaps she didn't have the energy to respond.

They had travelled a great distance and were almost at the outskirts of the empire, more and more people passed their path but still next to nobody, the further south the closer to the war zone, nobody wanted to be there.

Thorn looked at Fern for a long time and this time she returned his glance, the man looked as though he hadn't slept in days, his eyes wide and hands constantly twitching, Fern looked like she hadn't slept in days either, though she was different. Her eyes were half closed and she moved slowly like a zombie. She wondered if she had inherited this from just wearing the water elf's robes.

"Would you like me to take you straight to the castle or do you have a detour in mind?" Thorn asked.

Fern straightened and rubbed her tired eyes.
"How did you know I wanted to go-"
She stopped herself, Cliff had said something about her aspirations as a guard, hadn't he?
Clearing her throat she started again
"Let's go straight there."

"Wonderful!"
Thorn clapped his hands together enthusiastically and smiled, revealing one jagged fang. Fern could deduct from just this that he was not a direct mix, but his heritage wasn't ideal either. Funny, he seemed to resent mixes, even use the word derogatorily.

Fern's eyes widened.
"Are you smiling? I haven't seen you smile before...why are you smiling?"

Thorn drew a silver pocket watch from his jacket and pointed to it's face.
"We'll be early, and of course you know, being on time is late!"

The only thing that could make this man smile was being early for...whatever they were early for. What a person to go on a road rip with.

"So..." Fern wiped some dried tears off her cheeks, no use in being miserable. And she might as well get to know her travel companion, so she opened up with a question many people refused to answer.
"What's your story?"

Thorn seemed surprised she would ask about him, maybe she shouldn't have said anything, she wished she had just stayed quiet- what if it was a traumatic tale?

For a moment he froze, and looked into the forest around him nervously. The tall man looked a lot smaller right now. Thorn seemed to forget she was even there until he took a shaky breath and turned her direction. His face flashed from worry to discomfort to calm as he said
"Well, Princess, yours is bound to be more interesting but..."

He inhaled slowly and Fern could tell she was in for a very long story. For a steward Thorn was pretty young, though Fern thought this was like asking an old person about their childhood.

"I was the fifth child of a very poor family, we lived on a farm outside the capitol and being the youngest I had no outside job which made me subject to child labor -tending to the farm practically by myself.
You might be thinking 'does all that work really make you strong?' Well, not me for sure! So one day I was digging and I found some shiny rock and the more I dug I started to realize this stuff was everywhere..."

Out of his plum tailcoat, Thorn pulled a necklace with a large clean cut gem on it.
It almost seemed to glow in the dim morning light. Before Fern could get a good look he stuffed it back into his pocket and continued his story about rocks and farming and 'gaining social status in an aristocratic prejudice society'. Fern wasn't listening though, she was watching the sun rise in the eastern sky.

It cast beautiful pink and orange beams of light onto the thinning trees around the duo, and the path at their feet.

Despite her exhaustion Fern was feeling much better now that cheerful color had reached the drab forest.

"The road looks much more travelled now, wonder what happened to all those people on their way to the tavern..." Thorn said, it sounded like a joke but when Fern looked at his face it was grim and serious.

His words Fern of a thought that seemed to burn a new flame of fear every time she remembered it.
"Fire." Said Fern lowly.

Thorn raised his head, his plum hair bouncing as he turned.
"What?"

"Fire terrorists. One destroyed my own house...he was...he was a tall, fairly heavily built man, ember eyes and a black cloak, dark gloves..." That was all she could remember, all she saw. But she didn't think she'd be able to forget it.

"You mean exactly like your friend? Precipice?"

Fern's eyes widened in surprise that Thorn would even suggest such a thing.
"Cliff? No... it was his house..."

"Maybe you shouldn't trust everyone you meet." Thorn remarked, in that know it all tone of his. A tone that said 'I'm better than you' without speaking at all.

Fern pointed a finger at Thorn as she growled
"Maybe you should know someone before you just decide you hate their guts."

Thorn groaned. And started again in that same prideful voice.
"Nothing against him personally...mixes just...sketch me out."

Fern gritted her teeth, Cliff? A mix? A mix is someone whose parents belonged to different elements, they were seen as lowly and disgraceful and being accused of being a mix was a great insult to anyone's entire hierarchy. Cliff didn't have any family, and disrespecting the dead is often worse than the living.

Fern looked over at Thorn who was glancing into the trees again, his pace hurrying, under his breath he was whispering to himself but Fern couldn't make out any words.

When he saw her staring at him Thorn shot her an annoyed look.
"What?!" He snapped, before rushing his hand to his mouth and uttering something about his deepest apologies.

Fern's blood began to boil, did Thorn think they could just move on from their conversation?

"I love Cliff! And you can't just go around hating everyone you meet, between you and him I have a lot more against your twisted smirk." She growled, pushing Thorn harder than necessary.

Thorn stumbled back, his hand over where his arm had been shoved.
"I was just teaching you a lesson in trust...it should be earned."

After a comment like that, Fern decided that the person she didn't trust was Thorn. He hadn't earned it.

Fern exhaled and ran her hands through her brown hair.
"I-I'm sorry...I just-"

"No need to beg for forgiveness with me. It's my job to get treated like crap by royalty. You're...not the kindest but you're a lot better than your fiancé and his big brother." Thorn said plainly

"Fiancé?"

"It means to-be-husband."

"I know what it means- But I-I don't have a fiancé!"

"They didn't tell you? Oh, those are the worst kind of betrothals...you are getting married to the Prince Oak of The Earthen Empire."

Betrothal? No, Cliff and Rose wouldn't...would they?

And the prince of all people? This had to be a misunderstanding. Fern wasn't worthy of the most high class young man in the land, no way.

Seeing her confused face Thorn made sure to mention
"It's an honour really, any woman would give her right arm for such a chance."

"Well not me!! Come to think of it..why me?!"

Thorn cleared his throat, gesturing with his thin hands as he spoke.
"The king thought you the were best for his first born son, but if you ask me it was more about allying the kingdoms so that we'd have a chance in the war."

"Allying the kingdoms? We're on the same side here...Earth."

"Do you need to sit down, your highness?" Thorn asked, apparently that had been the wrong answer.

This was a good opportunity for Fern. Maybe if she asked him about whoever he thought she was now...he wouldn't be suspicious.
"Yeah...I feel sick...mind if I run some stuff by you?"

Thorn guided Fern to a rock and helped her to sit down on it.
"Whatever you need, miss."

"You can call me by my name."

"Certainly, Princess Tsunami."

Ah, so according to Thorn my name is Tsunami and I am a Princess, not from the Earth Empire. Judging by the name water seems most appropriate.
But why would he think..?

Oh. Oh no.

"How did you know what to look for to find me?"

Thorn produced a pocket sized portrait, done in charcoal pencil, though even devoid of color the young woman in the drawing was easily recognizable.

She was fairly thin, her ribs and collarbones almost visible, her wispy hair cascaded down her sides and her eyes were covered by a short veil. Her lips did not curve into the smallest smile, which said a lot more than any hint of joy could have. She looked solemn, as though she had just come from a funeral, Fern wouldn't be surprised if it had been her own. Because this image seemed to bring her back into existence.

If it was in color nobody would make Thorn's mistake, but in black and white Fern looked like a less put together, scruffy version of the water elf from the forest. The woman's dress was almost entirely to blame however.

"So...if I don't marry him...the war gets worse?" Asked Fern, her face had begun to lose color already.

"Yes, excluding Carnation and a few others our military is...less than stellar. Your Empire's military would eventually find our greatest weapon and use it against us brutally. So simply, if you don't marry him everyone you've met here dies."

"I guess I don't have a choice then...if I ever need anything...can you help me?"

"That's my job, your highness- I mean Tsunami."

Fern gave Thorn a pained but genuine smile and pushed herself up off the rock.
"Thanks."

A/N Thorn is 50% Coran and 50% Lotor, that's a fact.

Also, I'm not a fan of this chapter so I want to release chapter five sooner than usual...unfortunately I'm having troubles with it. So I'm not sure when it will be released.

That's all! God bless, love y'all, bye!