Will of a Prince

Jacob and Maria left the medical ward almost as fast as they entered. Maria spoke to Jacob, her voice low and alluring.

"His powers are quite scary. I think he is a lot more powerful than he’s letting on."

Jacob looked at her confused.

"What makes you think that?"

"I’m not really sure. It felt like instead of healing us, he was manipulating the structure of our body somehow. But in a weird way, that’s pretty much what healing is, right?"

"Hm... I’m not going to disagree with you, but for him to be able to manipulate our body structure, that also means he was able to manipulate the smallest things that help the body repair itself. It just seems like he would need a ridiculous amount of control to pull that off so effortlessly and he seems too old to be capable of that."

Maria simply looked forward, lost in thought.

"I think you’re right. Maybe I’m just overthinking it."

"Are you comfortable in the outfit you are wearing? I think it’s time I treat you to something as thanks for helping me train."

"I may just quickly change into a new servant uniform. This one got a bit torn up in our battle."

"Yah, I need to change too. Do you remember Sarah by any chance? The woman who runs the meat shop in the kingdom?"

"I do. Her food is to die for."

"Go get changed and meet me over there. I have a surprise for you."

Maria started blushing slightly.

"A surprise? You’re starting to worry me!"

"There’s no need to worry, you’re going to love it. I’ll see you there."

With that, they separated to get changed into better clothes. When Jacob was in his room, he put on a nice long sleeve shirt and changed into loose pants. Then he walked over to something left on a table by his drawer and carried it with him out of the palace.

As Jacob approached his favorite food place, he could smell the vibrant flavors already. He saw Srah behind the counter chopping up what looked to be pristine beef seasoned with every spice possible. It looked like she was just about to drop it on the grill when she saw Jacob.

"Oh! Hello there young prince! It’s good to see you again!"

Jacob smiled and waved at her as he approached.

"Hey Sarah, I hope business has been well. Do you have anything special in store today?"

"As a matter of fact, I do! It will just take a few minutes to cook. Is that alright?"

"That’s perfect. I’m waiting for someone here anyway."

"Oh? Who are you waiting for?"

"For Maria. We finally get to see each other after a little bit, so I thought I’d spoil her for her hard work, and for helping me train a little bit."

Sarah gave him a suspicious glare but turned back to her grill to continue cooking the meat.

"I’ll make sure everything is perfect for you guys. What do you have planned?"

"I’m going to have a picnic with her. I brought this basket to bring her favorite foods in."

Jacob laid the basket on the counter.

"Huh. I was wondering why you were carrying that around. By the way, I think I see her over there."

Sarah pointed behind Jacob, prompting him to turn around. It was indeed Maria who she saw. Only, Maria seemed to be wearing something slightly different than normal. It looked to be a green-colored variant of her normal clothes with long white sleeves and a jade skirt that covered her legs.

Her hair was also slightly different. It was put up in a unique style, resembling that of a retro updo. In Jacob’s eyes, she was absolutely stunning. She made him feel underdressed for the occasion.

"Hey Maria, I’m glad you could make it."

"Me too. I’m sorry if I’m late, some of the people in the Rose Clan forced me to try this outfit they made for me. It’s supposed be like my usual clothes, only more stylish and compliment my eyes."

"Well, you look great in it. Those people in the Rose Clan really know their stuff it seems."

Maria blushed.

"Thank you Jacob. Your outfit is also uh... unique!"

Jacob was a bit confused for a moment about what she meant but took it as a compliment anyway.

"Thank you! We will be all set to go in just a moment. Are you ready for your surprise?"

"I’m ready."

Jacob turned around and grabbed the basket off the counter to show her.

"We’re going on a picnic! Don’t worry, I’ll make sure we’re stocked up on plenty of meat. Sarah here is cooking up the premium quality stuff."

Maria looked dumbstruck, her eye’s started glittering at the sight of the basket. She whispered under her breath.

"This is the most magnificent sight I’ve ever seen."

"What was that?"

Maria jumped and repeated herself.

"Oh! I just said it’s lovely! I can’t wait to have this picnic with you!"

Jacob started packing the basket full of goods and handed Sarah the payment he owed.

"Do you want a meat stick for the road?"

"No thank you."

Maria’s stomach growled in defiance.

"...maybe just one."

Jacob let her choose from the wide selection. When she finally made her choice, Jacob made sure to hand it carefully to her, so she wouldn’t drop it. After that, he turned to wave by to Sarah and thank her for the amazing food as always. By the time he turned back to Maria, the meat stick magically disappeared into thin air. All that was left was Maria licking her lips and wiping her face.

"Did you eat the stick again?"

"Oh... There was a stick?"

Jacob sighed and guided her towards the exit of the kingdom while carrying their basket of goodies.

As they walked further away from the kingdom, the sun was shining beautifully. The sky was filled with clouds of all kinds of shapes, the wind gently blew against their face, the fragrance of flowers flooded their nostrils. It was a perfect day to have a picnic.

Slowly, Jacob and Maria started climbing up a familiar slope of grass. By the time they reached the top, three stone graves sat, sharing the breathtaking view with them.

Jacob was worried that Maria would feel uncomfortable if he brought her here. However, to his surprise, she seemed strangely at peace.

"Interesting place to have a picnic. I must say, I’ve never eaten in front of graves before."

Jacob embarrassingly scratched the back of his head.

"Sorry, but this view is just way too good to not enjoy as much as possible. I was hoping you wouldn’t mind."

"I do not mind. It is nice to know you care."

"Well, no more waiting, I guess. Let’s eat!"

Without wasting anytime, the pair both started reaching into the basket and eating. The meat was delicious. Every bite Jacob took was juicy, tender and flavorful. He almost felt like crying. Maria was enjoying herself too. She seemed to be controlling her usual ravenous hunger to enjoy the moment as much as she could. Both Jacob and Maria were basking in a peaceful silence, enjoying each other’s company.

After the pair were done eating, they both wiped their mouths clean and stayed seated close to each other, looking out at the view. Jacob decided to strike up a conversation he had been meaning to talk to Maria about.

"Hey, is it okay if I talk to you about something?"

"Anything you need, Jacob."

"These graves... your grave in particular. I’m not sure if I like them being here. And not because it may spoil any future trips here."

Maria seemed a little shocked at this statement but was curious to hear Jacob out.

"Why not?"

"There’s a few different reasons. For starters, it feels like keeping your parent’s graves out here is a way of trying to forget about them. Especially if they don’t have names associated to them. That would also mean you would be willing to be forgotten about too. I don’t like that. You’re way too memorable to me to be forgotten so easily."

Maria’s eyes widened and she blushed slightly.

"Another reason is because it feels like by making yourself a grave, you are just preparing to enter it yourself. In other words, it feels like you wouldn’t mind dying if it ever happened. Once again, I can’t have you dying. I want you to wish to be alive, to stay alive." 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

He looked at Maria to ask for silent permission to continue. Maria nodded her head, telling him to go on.

"Therefore, I thought I would suggest something. Perhaps, we can both get a choice in where we want our graves to be. Only, the graves wouldn’t be where we will eventually end up, but a monument to our old self that we are leaving behind to grow into new people."