Payments Due

[Taiylor Wallace]

The country of Hannibal stood alone in the most northern reaches of the continent of Icemark. Hannibal was known for being blanketed with snow at least half the year (if not three quarters), the rest of which was never nearly as warm as any country south of it. At the head of the capital city, Mordune, stood Regent Marcellus Shield in place of the Princess until she was old enough to govern. Below the Princess was her younger brother, the Prince Leonard Hannibal who was destined to be the Crown Prince, even King someday should he marry before his sister. The two young royals' parents, King Griffinos and Queen Donnalia, had died two years prior of a deadly influenza epidemic that the children were lucky enough to have avoided, but a percentage of the country had died from. Hannibal was still weak, but holding on thanks to allies. However, this help would have to be repaid someday.

Despite having survived the epidemic, little Prince Leonard, or Lenny as he was called by his caretakers and loved ones, was a sickly child. He was pale, and on the edge of blind as he could only make out blurred shapes and colors. Those blind eyes were pale, silvery-blue. His hair was long as was custom of royalty, a fine medium brown held in a simple ponytail. On a usual day, he'd wear the less formal Prince robes, also as custom. Being so frail, he couldn't do much even though he loved to ride his horse and walk in the gardens. Above all, though, he loved to spend time with his sister.

One particular mid-December day, young Lenny came to find his sister, as he did every morning since he could walk. She'd been his best friend his entire life.

[Rose Swan]

Princess Amelia Hannibal was a young woman of age seventeen who practically counted down the days until she turned twenty and was old enough to become queen. Her regent made decisions about the country that she never agreed with, and always told him such. She was intelligent, strong, and independent. During the moning, she'd stroll around the castle a few times, then came inside to the well stocked library and a cup of tea until lunch. She'd then be subject to her "lady lessons" as directed by her annoying regent until she frustrated the teacher to the point where she'd give up. At which point, Princess Amelia would go out and ride her favorite horse, River, with her beloved little brother Lenny for the afternoon. She had to make sure that her almost blind brother didn't get lost or something, otherwise the regent would forbid him from doing what he loved. As far as the Princess was concerned, he could only go so far with ruling her, but if he tried to do a thing to Lenny, she would make sure he never got a chance.

One morning, she was out strolling through the snowy morning with her fur cloak on over a Christmasy red dress, along with the hood pulled up over her blond hair, when her brother came running out to find her. Amelia grinned. "Morning Lenny. Have you eaten breakfast yet? You know I don't like you running around outside with nothing warm in you to keep any illnesses away."

[Taiylor Wallace]

(Aw man, I can't read the dialogue in that color)

"I did," Lenny nodded and joined her beneath the fur cloak.

Hannibal being the northern frontier kingdom that it was, Amelia could see the rugged northerners in the distance going about their mornings. With such a short growing season, Hannibal's residents did not generally buy vegetables or trade for them. They grew them inside their homes in dirt-floor rooms that the people called cellar gardens, alongside actuall cellar-bound miniature vineyards. Hannibalan wine was the best on the continent and each family made its own. Gardens were kept up by women and their younger children, while older boys and their fathers hunted or farmed the rock-hard, hearty potatoes in huge communal fields. Older girls, outside gardening, spent their time in weaving, sewing, curing and smoking meats and preserving food in jars to last instead of going to waste. The people of Hannibal kept northern buffaloes, and reindeer for work and food, and poorer families used large males with blunted antlers for riding, while the middle class had tough draft horses and great beautiful wingless dragon-like lizards called drakes. The people of Hannibal were not strangers to odd creatures like drakes or even people like elves and dwarves. The Elven people were great hunters and rode odd horses with natural bone armor, called carapaces, and the dwarves rode small buffaloes called burgho.

One of the stately, quiet elves was riding their way on a carapace, and he swept off his pointed hat and bowed to them as he passed, as did his two elven companions. The three races tended to keep to themselves- not out of hate, just natural gravitation to their own kind- but Amelia saw all of them everyday. This very man passed by everyday and always swept off his hat to her, and she had no clue who he was.

Along with the races and odd creatures, there was also a much darker side to the north. Being so uninhabited by hateful humans, many so-called 'monsters' fled to the north for safety. Werecreatures, mystics, even grand gentle dragons hated by those who didn't understand that they were people too. Hannibal lived at a very edgy truce with these oddities, but was still just as afraid of them as the rest of the world. A few of these people did exist in Mordune, though. Like a lovely old dragon named Hinden who'd been King Hannibal's good friend and ally in battle. The old beast now lived out his days in a huge cavern just behind the castle in a tall mountain, and he and Amelia were good friends. Within the city, some werepeople existed, but led lonely lives, others being too scared to work with them. However, witches were completely forbidden except for a couple old apothecaries and the witches that the castle employed for safety that the Regent was planning to get rid of. Witches were too dangerous and too unpredictable.

As they went, Amelia heard the crunching of snow as Old Hinden came around the side of the castle. He was a huge silver-scaled brute, and over his many centuries of battle at the side of Hannibalan Kings, he'd lost the leathery part of one wing that caught the wind and allowed him to fly, his left eye was long gone, and he was covered in scars and a few long talons were gone for good from his back feet and front clawed hands. He walked on all fours, but he had hands and thumbs and he was much more intelligent than a human, and far wiser. Fur along the ridge of his spine, his forehead, and his great beard were white with age of nearly 700 years, but he was still bound in muscle and thrice the size of a massive draft horse. He stepped around the corner of the castle, limping a bit thanks to some arthritis and old war wounds. He smiled kindly when he saw the young royals.

"Amelia, Leonard," he spoke in a deep and gentle tone. "I haven't been out to see you these past few days. I trust all is going well?"

[Rose Swan]

(Alright, I'll change it. ^^)

Amelia smiled at her brother's response. "Good boy." she responded while wrapping as much of the warm cloak around him as possible to keep him warm. Later she'd make sure to give him some form of hot drink to warm his smaller body up more quickly.

Amelia led the boy to a snow covered stone bench and dusted it off with a gloved hand. She sat them both down and started watching the people go by. She loved watching the citizens go about their work despite the cold. And they did it so cheerfully, it made her a bit envious. The Princess would never do such work without complaining. She preferred fun work like reading or organizing the library, not getting her hands quite so dirty. But nonetheless, she admired those who were capable of doing it. She also waved at the kind gentleman and his companions who tipped their hats at her and her brother constantly, bu riding off before she could ask their names. The people in her country were so kind, and it was always something she'd loved.

Suddenly, she heard crunching snow behind her, and turned to see Hinden. A wider smile flashed over Princess Amelia's face. "Good morning, Hinden. I'm excellent, and Lenny here seems to be fairing well. And yourself?" she asked as she undid her cloak to leave on Lenny and hug the old dragon.

[Taiylor Wallace]

"Bit stiff from cold," he admitted, "but nothing a warm nap in the cavern can't fix a bit later." Hinden picked up a massive scaly hand that was half the size of her entire body, to hug her close against his chest. Most people thought reptiles were cold and hard, but Hinden was warm and his scales, though tough, were actually like plates of leather along the front of his neck and underbelly. He settled near them, crossing his front arms comfortably. "I came for a reason, though, my dear... Lenny, might you allow me to speak with your sister in private?" Lenny nodded and went inside to await his sister. Hinden sighed quietly, "Amelia, my darling girl... You know as well as I that your brother becomes more ill everyday. The healers don't even know what it is he has, but it's most certainly making him waste away. It's time to seek someone who can really and truly help him, and the results must be permanent. And you know as well that the only people with that kind of power are the Northern Witches that hide away. Their power is hundreds of times that of the castle's mystics. And there is one nearby who is one of the strongest, I can feel his presence. It's time to take a risk or else make Lenny continue to risk his health."

[Rose Swan]

Amelia sighed at the news that Hinden brought. "I know he's slowly dying, and I don't want him to die, but there's no way they'd let me leave the castle to go looking for the Northern Witches. The Regent would pitch a fit, no matter how much I hate him. He'll never let me go looking." she said with a sigh. "I want to take that risk. But I have no idea how to go about it."

[Taiylor Wallace]

"You must take young Lenny, my dear, and go. Do not ask the Regent for permission, tell no one what you do, nor even that you go. I would accompany you myself if I were a younger dragon, but then again, this Northern Witch nearby... He would not take well to a dragon. He already will not take well to royalty, I'm sure. But if he has a heart, he will help you. It may cost you, but no price is greater than the value of the young Prince's life. Go today, Amelia, leave without a word to anyone else, and take Lenny to the town of Gaia. It is long since abandoned by most of its residents since the plague twoscore years past, but there are some people left, most of them creatures in disguise. A belltower stands in the north end of the town. There, you'll find the witch. Go, my darling, take only what you need to last you til you return tonight. Gaia is not far, but the weather is fiercely cold."

[Rose Swan]

"Shouldn't I bring at least a guard along? Can Lenny handle the distance and cold? I am so terribly worried about him, I don't have the faintest idea where to begin planning for travel, and to Gaia of all places. This witch, he could kill either of us. I'm practically defenseless, and Lenny is worse than I am." It was true; her body was thin and shorter than average. She looked like she could be broken if handled too roughly. "Maybe I could bring the horses with us? It would make the trip faster, would it not?" If she brought the horses, she could say she went out riding with her brother all day. It was technically true. Not a lie, but not the whole truth.

[Taiylor Wallace]

"Take drakes, they're much faster and they're trained to defend their riders. Very few witches have interest in killing those who are no threat to them, and you and Lenny are certainly not. If you go quickly, Lenny will not get too cold. You've no need for planning beyond which I've already told you. The Witch will demand payment of course, but that is something that can be taken care of later. Go, dear one, go now." Hinden gave her a gentle nuzzle and went on his way.

Drakes, or wingless dragons, were quick creatures, far faster than horses, but only the wealthy could handle them. The castle's blacksmith, Boar, had a stable full of them and wouldn't ask questions if Amelia wanted one for the day. If they went quickly enough, none of their mentors nor guardsmen nor the Regent would detect them or catch them and hold them up.

[Rose Swan]

Amelia hurried inside to the kitchen as her first stop. She grabbed some bread and cheese with a little bit of meat and a couple apples, stuffing them in a basket. The basket was then brought back to her room where the princess snagged her warmest cloak and ran off to go find Lenny.

Once the boy had been found, she brrought him inside, saying nothing, and wrapped his warmest cloak around his slender body. After a brief but tight and affectionate hug, the boy was led to the stable with their drakes. Lenny was put on the gentlest of the bunch, and Amelia grabbed the second nicest Boar owned. The pair left moments later, Amelia pulling her cloak aroud her tightly and shivering.